Hi, I know it's been a while since I've updated but I got caught up reading Les Misérables. A good book to read but a long one. And once I finished reading this I struggled getting back into the groove of things. Anyway I hope you guys will forgive me with this update.

Warning: reference to torture.

Chapter 9

The Angels were known for many things: messengers, protectors of the innocent, and guardians. However, they were also punishers of the wicked.

Amunet with Shay and Evie made their way down the deepest bowels of the Other Side where they knew the Angels would be keeping Herod with caution.

There were dark creatures who hid in the shadows down here. Creatures that could eat souls, wait for them to grow back, and feast on them again and again. To venture down these depths was a feat that no soul would dare to do. It was not just the monsters who hid in such darkness, but a far greater evil, the fallen angel Lucifer. Any stories told about him could not do Justice in telling about his cruel methods of torture. Spirits who were beyond redemption or had broken the laws of the Other Side were tossed into Lucifer's care.

If the fate of the Living World and the life of her young descendant weren't at stake, Amunet would have gladly avoided going down to Lucifer for her entire existence. Deep down she was glad to have Shay and Evie with her as they made their way down deeper, carrying torches that waded off shadows and kept, and kept their guard up in case of an ambush.

There was a loud crunch as Amunet set her foot down. She looked to see what she had stepped on before hastily looking back up. "Do not look down," she whispered to her family members.

Her warning came too late though as the crunching sound they made caused the younger ancestors to look down, wondering what the cause was. They were horrified to see that they were walking on a pile of bones.

Evie gasped and nearly dropped her torch.

Shay gulped as he carefully lifted his foot off the skull he was standing on.

Amunet lifted her torch higher and saw piles of bones further down their cave like path. Whatever had eaten these poor souls who had wandered down here, she didn't want to find out.

"We need to keep moving," she whispered.

Shay and Evie agreed with her.

They tried to avoid stepping on any more bones, especially the skulls but it was difficult. Every crunch made Amunet wince on the inside, the fear of being caught and ending like one of them was strong. She used her Eagle Vision to help her see in the dim light. For now, she just saw the blue figures of Evie and Shay, but wait-

She stopped, noticing golden footsteps on the ground. That was a good sign. If they kept to them they should be able to make it to Lucifer's dungeon without much trouble.

Shay suddenly stopped, turning his torch behind them. "Did you hear that?"

Amunet stopped. She could.

There were whispers coming from the shadows all around them. She couldn't hear what they were saying specifically. They sounded urgent. Warning them perhaps?

Amunet carefully triggered her hidden blade, and saw Evie take out her walking stick, and Shay his sword. They didn't wait for whatever was hiding in the shadows to come after them, they ran.

Assassins don't run from danger, but whatever was down here was immortal and couldn't be killed by them, and with Desmond's deadline, they had no time to fight for their souls against such a creature.

Amunet used her Eagle Vision as they ran to help navigate the tunnels, Shay and Evie right behind her. The air was feeling warmer which meant that they were getting closer to their destination, but the whispers changed.

Instead of warning them, they sounded as if they were taunting them. "Kill! Kill!"

Amunet saw a door a few feet away from them glowing bright in her vision and opened it. As soon as the three of them were in, the door was shut and the whispers stopped.

They allowed themselves a moment of relief before pressing on. They could hear the agonizing sounds of tormented souls locked down here. They didn't dare to look inside the cells to see who was in them and what torment they were under.

They continued down the hall where they heard a man screaming bloody murder. The door it was coming from was shining in their Eagle Vision. They had made it.

However, that didn't mean success yet. If by the sounds of it, Herod was in there then there was a good chance Lucifer was in there as well, and none of them wanted to face him without caution. They carefully looked in through the cell window. Amunet could sense Evie and Shay's horror without looking at them. She herself had lived in a time where public displays of gruesome death were common: the wars she fought in, the crucifixions, and the gladiator fights where people died for the amusement of others. She had watched through her daughter Bennu's eyes the cruelty Herod I had inflicted upon his people, and had been satisfied with his death. But the torment he was under would have made even her weak to the stomach if she had been living.

Herod was hanging upside down, nailed in a crucified manner above a pool of green water Amunet recognized from the Styx, his clothing drenched in blood, most specifically around his groin area, and at the edge of the pool, close enough to look him in the eye was a creature that was part lion, part hippo, and part crocodile Amunet recognized as Ammit from the stories she read as a child. Behind Ammit was a man she realized had to be Lucifer. Lucifer had a handsome face that modern world society would describe as "bad boy handsome" but unlike other angels who wore white robes, he wore a modern black suit. He held up a scroll and was looking at it with such casualness he could have just been a modern business man if it wasn't for the horrifying sight before him.

The dark Angel tutted. "Well, well, Herod old boy, this does not look good for you. Killing your wife and sons, ordering the slaughter of children, and from the looks of it, a whole bunch of atrocities I haven't gotten to yet, and when you died, you were given the opportunity to work for your repentance and move on to the Afterlife. However, it seems you have been spending too much time with the bad crowd. What say you?"

The former king cried in agony.

Lucifer nodded. "Of course. You know you've broken your penitence which means you will be thrown into the Styx anyway. It's only a matter of how much pain you will be in before that." He paused, rolling up his scroll. "But we have guests, who would like to talk to you before we do so. Don't you Amunet of Alexandria, Shay Patrick Cormac, and Evelyn Cecily Frye-Green?"

The three of them jumped back as the door swung open. They should have known nothing happens in Lucifer's territory without him knowing about it. They kept their guard up as they entered the cell, Ammit turning to them and growling.

"Easy Girl. It's not often we have guests who dare to enter our domain," Lucifer soothed.

Amunet thought that she had seen true evil before, but she was wrong. He was standing before her with a little amusement at her, Shay, and Evie, but overall his body language spoke of indifference to the pain he gave.

"Well? Go on and ask your questions."

The three of them silently communicated in a single look: Shay would be the one to question Herod while Evie kept an eye on Ammit, and Amunet on Lucifer.

Shay bent down and began to gently question the poor man. The king had begged for water, and with a puff of smoke, Lucifer produced a sponge of vinegar. It was bitter, but the moisture was enough to help Herod speak. He told them of how Cain had recruited him after his death with the promise of returning to the Living World when the time was right, how he had recruited practically everybody working towards penintence, the places he was familiar with on the Other Side, but no specific place where he usually hid, and that was all he knew he swore.

"There. Was that so hard now?" Lucifer asked with a malicious grin. He pulled a lever and before the former king could cry out, he splashed into the pool below him.

Seeing someone fall into the Styx was horrifying to watch. The water smelled of acic. When the surface broke, souls immediately tried to climb out but were prevented by the other souls pulling them down and trying to get themselves out, their faces shrunken and their hands bonelike. But it was the screams that were the worst part. The blood curdling and agonizing screams that struck Amunet, Evie, and Shay that they were forced to turn away, one of them even covering their ears in a desperate attempt to block out the screams and the sight of the poor soul who had fallen in, pleading for help before he vanished under the surface with the other lost souls. When the waters stilled and the screams died down, did Amunet finally look back at Lucifer who was looking at her, Shay, and Evie with indifference. If he were mortal, Amunet would have gladly slit his throat with her blade.

"Would any of you care to join me for a cup of tea? It's extremely rare that I have guests who haven't been mauled by the demons outside my dungeons."

Amunet would have rather drank a bucket of piss. "We'll have to pass," she coldly told him.

"We're under a very tight deadline," Evie's tone told him of her disgust.

Lucifer shrugged. "Just as well. You all have a lot of searching to do, and I've no doubt you'll find Cain eventually. When you find him, tell him I want my pets he stole from me years ago."

"We'll be sure to pass the message," Shay said with narrowed eyes.

With that, the two Assassins and Templar began their way out of Lucifer's domain.

"Next time we have to come back down here, please don't invite me to join your group," Shay said to Amunet to which she promised.

She had no intention of ever coming back down here if she could help it.

000{*}}000

As agreed, they all were to meet back up at the Farm where there were fewer eyes on them and Desmond as they reconvened.

Amunet's group was the last to arrive. The sun was nearly gone and stars were beginning to twinkle in the sky, but there was still plenty of light and people on the Farm were beginning to light lanterns. Amunet found the rest of her family outside her descendant's front yard and was surprised by what she saw.

Desmond was sparring with Edward using one of the pirate's cutlasses while the rest of the ancestors were gathered around them, watching.

"What's this?" Amunet asked as soon as she reached them.

Jacob turned to them with an almost sheepish expression. "Well… we tried to teach Desmond how to use a hidden blade until he nearly took Haytham out with Arno's phantom blade, then I tried to teach him some brawling moves, but…"

"But then Edward thought that Desmond needed to work on his speed and balance and thought sword fighting would be a good exercise," Arno finished.

"Good. Very good," Edward praised as Desmond blocked him.

"Move your feet," Altair told Desmond as he parried Edward's attacks.

Amunet had to admit, the boy was good when he put his mind to it. He had potential. It brought to her mind memories of training in her own time, training under Bayek and his father, and training her own novices. She turned to her husband. "Did you learn anything from the Hall of Memories?"

"A little. Leonardo directed us to the historian Herodotus who was able to tell us some of Cain's history and what we can expect from him. You?"

"Herod was able to give us some information before he was thrown into the Styx, mostly about Cain's allies and the places he frequently visits." Amunet listed the places.

Everyone listened as they watched Edward and Desmond continue their sparring.

"Did you mention the Sinful Bliss?" Arno asked.

"Yes. Why?"

The Sinful Bliss was an establishment where souls went to seek… carnal pleasures they missed feeling. It was a highly frowned upon place by the Angels, but most of its patrons were spirits seeking pleasures before moving on or signing their penintence agreement. It was better than seeking carnal pleasures on the living.

Arno looked uncomfortable. "I… may know someone who is a… frequent patron there."

"It wouldn't happen to be Marquis de Sade would it?" Ezio asked with a teasing grin.

Arno glared fiercely at the Italian. "He spends most of his time at the Sinful Bliss, but when it's nighttime in Paris he likes to go up there and see the… modern nightlife."

It would be the middle of the night in France which meant that the Marquis would be there instead of the Other Side. aside from Arno none of them had any strong ties to the country and only a couple of them had any descendants there right now. They were better off waiting the next few hours for when the Marquis would return to the Other Side. They would decide from there.

They returned their attention to the sparring match when Edward's cutlass slid down Desmond's and accidentally nicked his hand. The boy dropped his sword with a painful shout. Edward stopped the fight, and looked at him with worried concern. "Sorry. Are you alright?"

Desmond answered with a hard kick to the shin. It didn't hurt him so much as surprised him that Desmond was able to catch him off guard and tackle him to the ground. The ancestors watched in amusement as Edward laughed while their young descendant fought to keep him pinned down. He may have been young and half Edward's size, but he was stubborn and had a lot of energy.

"Alright Desmond. That's enough." Haytham moved to pull Desmond off his father, but as soon as he touched his shoulder, Desmond quickly grabbed his booted foot and yanked it. The action caused the Templar Grandmaster to lose his balance and he fell flat on his back.

Now the whole Miles clan was laughing. Jacob was practically rolling on the ground with Ezio near him, wheezing. Altair was trying to hide a smile. Evie was actually giggling. Shay and Arno were, believe it or not, holding each other up as they laughed together. And Connor couldn't hide his mirth with his hands over his mouth. Amunet found herself smiling as she exchanged a look with her husband who was laughing as well. When was the last time they had all shared a laugh such as this instead of focusing on their descendants and trying not to let old animosities and different views interfere? Even Haytham, once he had thrown a glare at everyone let out a couple of chuckles.

Bayek chuckled as he approached Desmond and offered his hand. The boy took it and allowed Bayek to hoist him up to his feet.

"Not bad. I can already see an improvement in your fighting," the medjai commented.

Desmond felt his cheeks flushing from embarrassment as he rubbed the back of his neck. "You've seen me training?"

"We make sure to see all of our descendants in their training whether for the Creed or the Templar cause," Amunet answered him.

"You have potential in being a good fighter, but you lack focus," Altair explained.

Desmond rolled his eyes. "Can we please not talk about that? I deal with that enough with my dad. Can we just talk about Cain? Did you find anything on him?"

Bayek allowed the subject change to happen. The subject on fighting was over, for now.

"We met with Leonardo who was unable to tell us anything, but he pointed us to Herodotus," he saw Amunet, Evie, and even Haytham's eyes light up with interest. He described what Herodotus had told them of Cain's history.

"You said he spent centuries plotting his attack on his former people?" Evie asked, her mind racing to all she had known and studied throughout her existence.

"How does somebody live that long?" Desmond asked. The oldest person he knew on the Farm was Dr. Anderson who was seventy, and he remembered one of the kids he trained with, their grandfather passing away at sixty-seven a couple of years ago. The hard life of an Assassin catching up to him, he had heard his father say. Desmond didn't know how long a person was supposed to live, but centuries was unrealistic to him.

Shay explained it to him. "Growing up, the church told stories of men who lived for several centuries even to a thousand years at the beginning of time."

Altair continued. "The Ones Who Came Before, the Isu were beings who lived longer than the average human being. Adam and Eve were hybrids created by the Isu experimenting in combining Isu and human DNA, and after the Great Catastrophe, the surviving Isu and humans mated with one another in order to survive. Perhaps in the beginning, humans were able to live longer due to the Isu DNA in their veins, but after so many generations of intermarrying, the lifespan began to shorten. Cain would have only been a second generation of the Isu-hybrids which would have allowed him to live for centuries in good physical condition."

"What does that say about his plans though?" Desmond asked.

"It tells us that Cain is a patient man when it comes to plots. He's most likely been planning for this opportunity ever since his death seventy-six thousands years ago, which means he will have planned on how to stay hidden until the third sunrise when he can return to the Living World in your stead," Altair told him.

That was comforting.

"Unfortunately, it seems our only hope in finding him stems from Arno's perverted friend in a dead brothel," Haytham said, garnering a deadly glare from Arno.

"I've told you before, he's not and never has been my friend. More like an annoying acquaintance I was forced to tolerate due to the helpful information he would give me. Want me to bring up your unsavory friends?"

Haytham was ready to throw back at him and argue, but Desmond spoke up. "What's a brothel?"

All his ancestors froze, and Desmond thought he saw a flash of panic and mortification flash in all of his ancestors' faces. Several of them coughed and a few even tried to laugh uncomfortably to defuse the awkwardness.

"Haytham, since you're the one who kindly brought it up, why don't you explain to our descendant what it is?" Edward suggested.

Haytham looked at his father in horror. "What?!"

"Oh for pity's sake!" Jacob interjected.

"Si," Ezio agreed. "If Haytham tells Desmond, the boy will have a completely different perspective on what it actually is."

"Is it a bad place?" Desmond asked.

"Not… necessary it depends on the establishment. It's where people go to spend time with girls… or boys, depending on your preference," Ezio explained.

"So it's a hangout place," Desmond guessed.

"You could say that," Jacob answered.

"But it's also the perfect place to learn information that could be useful," Ezio added in.

"And this… guy Arno knows spends time there?" Desmond asked.

"Unfortunately, yes. Thankfully though you don't have to worry about meeting him," Arno answered him.

"Why? Is he a bad person?"

Several members of the family grimaced before Arno replied. "He's… someone I wouldn't want you to be around if I could help it."

"It's nearly dark," Connor announced. The sun had just about completely disappeared, leaving only the moon and stars.

"Some of us will leave in a few hours and seek de Sade. Desmond, how are you feeling?" Bayek asked.

Desmond was taken aback for a second. "Honestly? I feel alright. I don't even feel cold."

Which was weird, considering that it was cold enough to begin snowing now. His body didn't even ache from all the mishaps he had been in the last forty-eight hours.

"Well, when you're dead you don't tend to feel the cold or heat like you used to when you were alive," Jacob said. Evie smacked him upside the head. Well that was encouraging.

"Roll up your sleeves," Amunet told him. "Let's see how your body is right now."

To see if he was turning into an actual ghost right now in other words.

Horror filled Desmond as he saw his arms up to his elbows transparent.

"That's not good," Edward voiced for them.

Desmond reached down his legs and pulled his pants up to his knees where they were transparent as well.

"That's not good at all," Shay whispered.

Desmond looked at them desperately. "How long will it take you guys to talk to Arno's friend?"

Everyone grimaced.

"He won't be back till one in the morning here. The few of us who can actually go to Paris will be spending all night trying to look for him," Arno explained.

"I know it's difficult not to worry," Bayek said to him, placing a hand on the frightened boy's shoulder. "But you can't let the fear control you."

"Easy for you to say," Desmond said, pushing his pant legs back down and walking away from them. Why was this happening? It felt like he was in one of those make believe stories they told around the fire. It was unrealistic.

He could faintly hear his ancestors talking as he walked closer to the forest treeline surrounding the Farm. He looked into the dark shadows he had always been scared of for as long as he could remember when he sensed it. It wasn't an owl, or a deer, or even a wolf that he sensed was watching from the woods but something else. Something that wasn't a wild animal. Something more… sinister. He narrowed his eyes, trying to see better in the dark when his vision changed. The shadows became gray instead of dark, outlining trees and bushes he couldn't see in the dark. Unlike the other times when his strange vision caused him problems, he felt as if this time it was trying to warn him.

That's when he saw it.

A blood red figure coming out of the shadows. It's hood covered most of its features but it was close enough for Desmond to see its teeth peeking out from the shadows. Fear had nearly frozen Desmond on the spot even as his senses screamed at him Danger! Run! The foul acid breath that reminded him of the Styx River is what snapped him and caused to turn around to run. He didn't even make it a step when he felt his foot be pulled out from under him, causing him to fall on his stomach. He could feel his heart pounding as he felt the clawed hands around his ankle, and he let out the biggest scream he had ever mustered in his life.

Every ancestor of the Miles Clan jumped at Desmond's terrified screams, and turned to see their descendant being dragged by his ankle into the woods by a shadowed figure. Fear and horror ran through their beings before they took off after them. Desperation filled them to save Desmond from whatever creature was daring to take him from them.

"Help me! Help me!" Desmond screamed. He could see his ancestors running after him as whatever monster was dragging him deep into the woods. Their figures were blue in his strange vision, but he could see the fear on all their faces as they chased after him and the creature. His hands reached out desperately to grab something, but with his hands now transparent he was having trouble grabbing anything solid. He knew he had to focus, but it was hard when fear coursed through his body. He suddenly remembered his dad telling him that he would find himself in a tight spot where he would be afraid. He had told him that the fear would be a good thing because it would tell him to be cautious, but the important thing was to not let it fester into panic where it would cause him to freeze and do something drastic in a desperate attempt to survive. "That's what will get you killed," William had said to his son. So Desmond, even while he was being dragged through bushes and briars in the forest, shoved his panic down just enough for him to focus when his hand hooked itself around a tree root sticking out from the ground. He clung desperately to it even as the creature pulled with such force Desmond felt he was going to be ripped in two. But his survival instincts kept him from letting go. Then he did what children do when they're scared: they scream for their parents.

"Daddy help me!"

"Hang on Desmond I'm coming!"

That voice sounded so much like his father's that Desmond almost let go of the root in surprise, but when he looked up, he saw no sign of his father deep in the woods. He saw his ancestors getting closer and closer to where he could see the fierce determination in them to show that they weren't going to stop. It gave him a spark of hope, but then he felt his grip beginning to slip, and heard the angry growl from the monster that chilled his blood.

The angry growls became pained, and the grip on Desmond's ankle loosened a bit. He looked down to see two arrows buried in the clawed hands gripping Desmond's ankle. It pulled suddenly and Desmond's hands slipped from the root and he hit his head hard on the ground. The last thing he remembered was the loud bang of three gunshots, the creature's howls, and two strong arms wrapping themselves around him protectively.

"Dad?" he whispered.

Then darkness.

000{{*}}000

William woke from his desk and jumped to his feet. Adrenaline surged through him as he grabbed his sidearm and ran out of his office.

Desmond!

He startled Gavin who was in the hallway, running him down with such force the poor man didn't have a chance to move out of the way, but William didn't stop. His son needed him!

He ran outside, ignoring his wife and his best friend shouting for him.

"William!"

"Bill!"

He ran past startled Assassins returning from their searches, and past the neighboring houses, heading towards the woods.

"Desmond!" He screamed as he neared towards the treeline. His son was in danger. "Hang on Desmond I'm coming!"

He was almost there when a force collided from behind him, ramming him into the ground. He fought and cursed the person to hell. He needed to get to Desmond!

"Bill calm down!"

He didn't register the person holding him down. He fought, desperate to get to his child. The person holding him tried to wrestle the gun off of him. He pulled the trigger and the gunshot echoed in the night air.

There were shouts and curses.

"Someone get the fucking sedatives!"

The gun was gone, so William turned to his hidden blades. The snick caused the person holding him to jump back, knowing all too well how deadly William was with his blades.

William roared. "I heard him! He needs me!"

He didn't care who he had to kill. He already failed Desmond once, he wouldn't do it again!

He was about to head into the woods when he felt a sharp prick to the back of his neck. He turned around, feeling the sedative drugs quickly working through his body. He saw everyone on the Farm surrounding him and looking at him in fear and worry. He saw Gavin nursing a bloody nose, and looking at him in concern. Finally, he saw his wife, Elizabeth, guilt in her eyes as tears shed from them, and in her hand was a sedative shot.

Betrayal, guilt, and despair flooded him along with the pain of failure.

"Desmond…"

Then darkness.

000{{*}}000

A bit shorter than expected, but I'm hoping to get the next chapter up much sooner. The part of Desmond being taken was inspired by the scene in Jeepers Creepers 2 when the monster takes Billy in the first scene. Let me know what you guys think. Happy Halloween!