A fire roared loudly in the first room of the house. Serene sat at a round table, her chair facing Marquette. Marq looked around, admiring the ornate architecture of the room despite herself.
Serene twirled her brown hair around her finger. A simple red dress clung to her full-figured body, and gold glittered on her hands and around her neck. "Did you know, sister dear, that I was a lecta? The Atrox chose me! Me! But you and Maris ruined it for me. I had you in the palm of my hand with false promises of returning Asheru. You know what happened when they found out I lost you? They took my power away, and I became nothing more than a lowly Follower!"
She slammed her hands on the table, knocking over a teacup, causing Marquette to flinch. Serene had a lot of anger, and she had no real sense of reality anymore. She continued to confuse Jessimar with Marquette.
"But, it doesn't matter anymore, Jessi. I have your Egyptian lover, and you have no one!" She screeched a maniacal laugh, chilling even Umbra to the bone.
Marquette looked at Ash. "What is she talking about?"
"Operor vos diligo mihi, meus Umbra Dea?"
"Yes," she stated firmly.
"Destroy her, then," he said grimly.
Serene laughed and thrust her power at Marquette, throwing her back roughly. She opened her eyes to mists, lost from the world of Nefandus. She stood and spun, screaming loudly.
Asheru reached for her hand, clearing up her vision. She growled and tried to leap for Serene. Ash held her back.
"You're mine, Serene," Marquette growled, baring her teeth.
"You can't even move alone around here," Serene said with an air of victory. "How do you expect to get me?"
Marquette smiled cruelly. "Like this."
Umbra leapt for Serene, its jaws clamping down on her neck. She screamed and continuously thrust her power at it. She flailed wildly, trying to get the creature off of her. Blood pumped from the wound. Yet, despite this, she still laughed. Umbra moved off of her, squatting beside her.
"Fool…You really thought…I…I'd make it so…e…e…easy?"
Asheru sighed and stroked Marquette's cheek. "I love you, Marquette. I have to leave you, though."
"What? Why? She won't come back, I swear! The Necroses will take care of that." Marquette stared hard into his eyes.
Ash's eyes flickered to a lumbering corpse. It could smell the blood from Serene's wound. Marq knew that, and despite the fact that Serene was immortal, her soul could still be devoured. Marquette moved in front of Ash, shielding him from the monster, holding his hand tightly.
The Necrosis attacked Serene, and others soon followed. Her screams echoed in Marquette's ears as her soul was devoured; disgusting slurps from the creatures could be heard.
"Ash!" Marquette pulled him closer to her. "We need to destroy them!"
The demon glimmered slightly. "What do I do?"
She pulled out a blade from her pocket, cutting their palms, despite the risk of the monster corpses. Umbra would hold them off. She laced her fingers with his, holding their open wounds together. The blood swirled, mixing together. He tried to keep himself solid as they continued on with it. She whispered a prayer to Anubis and Selene for luck.
"I summon the Dead, guardians of the Children of Anubis, to assist us."
Aestroth appeared, smiling cockily next to her. Rammelet drifted in with Nefetki trailing her. "We are here to assist you, Shadow Goddess."
Blood formed a small puddle around Marq and Ash. "Creatures from blood arise, from our blood is your demise."
xXxXxXxXxXx
The area shimmered, and Umbra stood with her. She was, again, in the first plane of the Underworld. The Dead who had answered her call hummed, caging the creatures with their necromancy. They looked at her, as if expecting something. She, in turn, looked at Umbra.
You have to bind them. Spin your energy with your blood and encircle them. We'll take care of the rest.
She nodded stiffly. She was going to die. And it didn't frighten her. She closed her eyes, pulling the energy away from every limb, every muscle, every organ, and thinned it out. It coiled and stretched as it became a fine line. The blood from her hands dripped from the wounds on her palms, spreading onto her energy wire.
Her soul mists clung to the wire, dragging it to the Necroses. She collapsed against Umbra, the feeling of death washing over her.
xXxXxXxXxXx
Berto held onto Marquette. She was barely breathing now, and her skin was ice cold. Ash looked at her limp body sadly.
"Oh, Marquette. I'm so sorry," he whispered.
Obie looked up at him, hearing his apology. "Why do you keep glimmering?"
"My life was connected to Serene's. I am going to become one of the Dead," Ash said drily.
"Will she be alright?" Samuel asked.
Nafetki grabbed Asheru's hand and actually smiled. "She'll wake up soon. You better get out of here. And quick."
Berto cradled Marquette to his chest and turned to shadow. The others followed. They had to get out; Regulators were already swarming around.
xXxXxXxXxXx
Marquette stirred as they neared the portal back to L.A. Her body bounced roughly as Berto ran past Regulators.
This helpless thing is really starting to get on my nerves, she thought wryly.
"Go, now!"
They ran into the portal as Medusa's Eye winked. The thick mist covered her face again. Maybe it was like a membrane of mucus. She tried to laugh, but instead began to choke. It was an eternity before they stepped into the daylight of Chinatown.
"Marquette!"
She looked up into the faces of her sisters, her friends. "Filia Lunae," she whispered with a grin happily spread on her face.
Operor vos diligo mihi, meus Umbra Dea?- Do you love me, my Shadow Goddess?