AN: Enjoy this chapter! Happy Reading!

And Happy Friday the 13th! :)

Chapter 25

EPOV

I rise for the night to find my female curled up against me in the bed. Her emotions are an equal mix of sorrow and determination and I find myself grateful to have such a tenacious mate as I know she won't give up on my Maker any sooner than I. I lean down to press a soft kiss to the crown of her head and she looks up to me with a weak smile, her brilliant blue eyes shining with uncertainty. Shit, this can't be good.

"Good evening, Lover," I greet, pulling her closer, running my hand over her warm skin in an attempt to ease some of her anxieties. "Did you meet with your mentor today?" I question as her golden head bobs in the affirmative.

"Yeah, they were able to secure the Newlins after the fight," she informs me, but the deep frown set upon her face tells me the questioning apparently didn't go in our favor. Shit. "They told me they didn't create an antidote, Eric, and they had the creator of the pathogen killed," she informs me as my jaw clenches in ire.

Fuck! I had hoped the capture of the Fellowship's leaders would ensure us the answers we seek. I reach through the bond then, feeling the same overwhelming rage and crippling bloodlust emanating from my Maker as last night is still flooding the bond we share. Son of a bitch. I tamper down the connection with him in order to think over our options more clearly when wet droplets begin falling to dampen my chest.

Defend. Shelter. Mine.

My instincts are screaming once more and I look down to see my Sookie crying earnestly in my arms. It kills a piece of me to see her suffering so. I lift her small form then, settling her into my lap before wrapping my arms around her tightly, holding her close as I push all the comfort I can possibly muster to her through the bond we share.

"Hey," I say softly, once her crying has quieted some. "You're not giving up on me now are you, Lover?" I question as she shakes her head vehemently, her firm willpower flooding the bond. "Good," I tell her with a small smile, placing a kiss to the crown of her head. "I need you with me if we're to bring our Godric back."

"I know," she says, brushing away her tears with a small sniffle. "And I won't give up, Eric, I promise. I just hate this whole thing; I hate knowing my mate is suffering," she explains as I nod my understanding, feeling precisely the same way.

"I know," I tell her, brushing back her golden locks with a small smile. "So tell me, my female, what is our next plan of action?" I question, supposing she has surely worked out viable options while I was in my day rest. A smirk pulls at her ruby lips then, letting me know my assumptions are correct.

"Well, Al and I were talking earlier," she starts as I listen intently. "He informed me he'll be assembling a team to help us search over the Fellowship's facilities. And I've been thinking, if this Dr. Yoshiro created the bio-agent, there's a good chance he may have left clues behind, like notes, or hell, even an intern or lab partner for all we know, even if he didn't get the chance to create the actual antidote. There have to be answers somewhere, we just have to find them," she explains as a wide grin forms on my face.

"An excellent thought, Lover," I assure her as she beams up at me. "And if Al's team is nearly as effective in searching out a cure as they were in last night's battle, we'll surely have our Godric back in no time at all," I assure her as she nods her agreement. A slight frown forms on her plush lips then and I pull her close, having a pretty good idea as to what is causing her current distress.

"You need to feed, Lover," I tell her softly as she nods lightly, letting out a defeated sigh. "Let us hope this is the last feeding we must share without our Godric here with us," I say softly as she gives me a weak smile, her sorrow diminishing slightly through the bond.

"I hope you're right," she whispers. "I miss him so much already," she adds as I nod my agreement, agreeing wholeheartedly with her admission.

"As do I, Lover," I assure her, leaning down to press a soft kiss to her lips. My Sookie reaches up to cup my face then, pulling me closer in order to deepen our kiss and my brows rise in surprise before I happily oblige her, finding solace in this closeness with my female as our combined lusts flood the bond between us.

My female surprises me further by reaching between us to take my erection firmly in hand. She grips me in her warm palm before pumping along my length to make me grown lowly. Fuck, yes. Our kiss is quickly becoming a passionate battle of lips, teeth and tongues, our zealous actions an outward display of our inner bane.

Sookie's dress, along with her undergarments are ripped away harshly, the tattered shards of cloth being thrown away carelessly as we proceed to lose ourselves in one another. My succubus climbs atop me then, pulling from our kiss. Her bright cerulean orbs are darkening in overwhelming lust as she meets my own hungry gaze before she leans closer to breathe against my ear.

"I need you to fuck me, Eric," she beseeches breathily as my erection kicks eagerly against her heated palm. I fully understand her eager plea as I feel the same insistent need to work this built up tension from my own system and readily oblige her, helping her to align my hardened length with her heated sex.

"Fuck," I groan out as she slams her hips down, impaling herself over my arousal with unexpected enthusiasm. She smirks up at me and I grin back as I proceed to move at vamp speed, pressing her back to the bed before mounting my lusty female, thrusting deep to elicit a pleasured cry from my succubus.

"Eric, God, yes," she moans as I work my hips at an unrelenting pace, pounding my demoness into the mattress with fervor. Nails bite into my shoulders, digging deliciously into my flesh whilst my own hands plunge into flowing, golden locks, gripping silken tresses tightly as the two of us proceed to work out our inner demons alongside one another.

I press my face to the heated flesh at the crook of my female's throat, surrounding myself in my mates' inebriating scent as our hips continue their relentless onslaught, meeting each other thrust for hard thrust. My Sookie's nails dig in deeper as her climax hits, drawing blood from me as a ragged scream is torn from her throat and her snug walls clench around me. With two more hard thrusts, an animalistic roar is ripped from me, echoing loudly through the room as I follow her over the edge, expelling my seed deep within my female.

"Shit, Sookie," I breathe out, collapsing beside my female as she lets out a shuddering sigh.

"I think we both needed that," she says breathily as I nod my agreement, pulling her into my embrace and placing a soft kiss to her temple. We lie together for a time, relishing the intimacy of one another as the bond between us is engulfed with contentment and love.

"We should ready ourselves for tonight's search, Lover," I say after a time as Sookie nods her agreement. We proceed to shower and dress for the evening before leaving the bedroom hand in hand. Sookie pauses in the hall and I halt my movements, looking down to her in question.

SPOV

"I just wanna check in on Godric," I explain as Eric nods down to me, before leading me to the room with the metal cages that now houses our beloved. I've been careful to keep the bond with Godric muted all day as his emotions are utterly overwhelming in his current state, which is why I'm stopped dead in my tracks at the troubling sight before us.

"Godric?" Eric questions softly, his anxiety rising along with my own as we see our love laying unmoving in his shackles. I open the bond with him fully and fall to my knees feeling his crushing despair flooding through me. No, no, no.

"Oh God, Eric, what's wrong with him?" I question desperately as Eric shakes his head dismally, his blue eyes shining with concern for the one who made him, obviously feeling every bit as distraught as I about our beloved's heartbreaking state.

"I couldn't say, Lover," he answers miserably, crouching down beside me as a deep frown settles upon his handsome face. "Unfortunately we know nothing of the long term effects of this bio-agent," Eric says as my heart clenches in fear. I hadn't given this any thought before, and now I'm more worried than ever for my mate.

"Good evening," sounds a familiar voice beside us, making Eric and I both look over to see Al surrounded by a horde of demons and angels, much like those of the night before. His smile quickly dissolves to a frown, his silvery eyes shining in concern as he quickly assesses the situation he's popped into. "I'm so sorry, love," he says softly, looking down to me in sympathy.

"I don't wanna leave him, not like this," I tell them, making a split second decision as I receive nods of understanding through the room. I want more than anything to help find a cure, but I know I won't be able to concentrate on the task at hand if I were to leave my beloved in his current state.

"I'll feel better knowing you're here keeping a careful eye on him, Lover," Eric assures me, leaning down to press a kiss to my temple. I give him a weak smile before he raises his towering height above me to join the others.

"Worry not, love, we shall thoroughly search the Fellowship's headquarters in search of any answers to your mate's cure," Al assures me as I give him a grateful smile, nodding my approval.

"Thank you," I tell them, looking at the gathered, realizing they're all in this with Eric and I. "All of you," I say as grateful tears sting at my eyes. Angels and demons alike are giving me sympathetic smiles and I feel marginally better knowing such powerful allies will be aiding my Eric in this search. I rise to my feet then, pulling Eric into a tight hug. "Be careful," I beseech softly as he looks down to me with a warm smile.

"Always, Lover, we shall return in no time, I'm sure," he assures me, placing a soft kiss to my lips. The gathered proceed to take hold of demonic escorts before the group vanishes from the room, leaving a large, billowy cloud of green smoke in it's place. I let out a small sigh, turning back to my still unmoving mate with a deep frown.

He's splayed listlessly over the cement floor, his limbs still bound tightly as he stares absently with those red, glowing eyes of his at an indiscernible spot along the far wall. I lower myself to the floor, looking through metal bars to stare into those alien eyes as I pray we're not too late to save him, that there's still a chance to undo what the Fellowship has done to him.

The bond between us is still flooded with overpowering despair and tears stream down my face to feel such hopelessness emanating from my mate. He told me not so long ago it was I who granted him a second lease on life and now I fear I may lose him despite his newly acquired outlook on his existence.

"Godric," I whisper through my tears. "I don't know if you can hear me in there, but Eric and I are working on finding a cure for you," I inform him, receiving no sign of acknowledgement in return. "I love you, Godric," I whisper, cautiously reaching through the bars to place my hand over his, gently squeezing his cool skin as hopeless tears continue to stream from my eyes.

My brow pinches in confusion then as I feel the bond between us subtly muting. I didn't do that. I look to Godric's red eyes in question. Is it possible he's still cognizant in there? Is he trying to protect me? I wouldn't put it past him to try and shield me from such devastating emotions, but I had thought he had been rendered mindless by the pathogen currently coursing through him.

"Godric?" I question once more, pressing closer to the bars as hope flairs within me. "Are you still in there? Can you hear me?" I question excitedly as his eyes flutter closed. What the hell? The bond is steadily dampening further and my hope is suddenly smashed as utter panic sets in. "Shit!" I cry out, jumping to my feet as I realize I'm losing him. He's fucking dying. I can't let this happen.

I reach for the locks, hovering my hand over them nervously for a moment as I recall his earlier rage as he viciously snapped his fangs at me. I quickly shake off my fears, pushing back thoughts of a certain ravenous werewolf as I grip onto the metal locks, tearing them away with supernatural strength and tossing aside the metal shards carelessly before entering the cage, dropping down beside my dying mate.

Shit, I have to fix this somehow. Dammit! If only Eric were here with me, he would know what to do. I take a deep breath, realizing I'm wholly on my own. Godric's life is solely in my hands now; it's up to me to save him.

An idea occurs to me then and I send up a desperate prayer, hoping my coming actions won't result in death for either one of us. Desperate times call for desperate measures I tell myself, reaching down to the cold, metal shackles restraining my mate. I know I have no other choice but to go forward with my plans that will hopefully succeed in bringing my mate from the brink of death. Dear God, please don't let me be wrong about this.

AN: I know, I know, I'm mean...but you know I wouldn't really kill off Goddy, right?!