Chapter 2

In the sub-basement of a building, a tall man with short, slightly spiked dark brown hair, and a CCH with the mike down, was moving slowly. He clawed at the air, each simple motion taking seconds in the stylized fighting of Tai chi. Muscles tensed and skin glistened over tight black jeans. Shadows in the room played on his back, hiding and revealing three tattoos. On the right shoulder, a winged-lion clutched a capital A. The left shoulder displayed a wooden stake impaling the top loop of a capital B. Between the designs were the words: Forever In My Heart Will You Live.

The man paused for a moment, as if startled, then continued.

"Angel Investigations, Angel speaking."

Angel stopped, stood straight, and placed the eyepiece of the CCH over his eye. "Wait a minute. Tala Bloodmoon, as in the Tala Bloodmoon of Blood-Hunter Enterprises?" A pause. "Yes. I've heard of you. What self-respecting vampire hasn't?" A VERY long pause. "Hm. I agree with you on that. This is not something you take to your everyday detective." Another pause. "Yes, consider the problem in good hands. I'll be there in half an hour."

Angel stepped into the next room. He put on a black silk shirt, and his black duster. He grabbed a duffel bag, and threw some clothes into it. When the duffel was half-full, he packed his weapons.

Angel took the loaded duffel bag, tossed it onto the freight platform, closed the gate, and rose from his apartment, as the elevator groaned in stubborn defiance. When the elevator stopped, he got out, and left the building.

The full moon shone brightly, casting sharp shadows. Angel walked into a darkened alley . . . and disappeared.

Tala Bloodmoon paced in front of Blood-Hunter Enterprises' headquarters. Several vampire employees nervously watched. Word had spread like wildfire about the vampire Angel coming to help. Tala checked her watch for the third time in five minutes, and muttered, "Where is he? He's an hour late!"

"I'm right here," spoke a quiet voice behind her.

Tala jumped, and spun around, to come face-to-face with the most stunning man she had ever seen in her life. Chills ran down her spine. Her eyes widened, as her mouth parted slightly in astonishment and wonder. Oh…my…! It took a moment for her to speak, and when she did, it came out breathlessly.

"Great stars, you're even more handsome than I thought you would be." Tala paused. What did I just say! She quickly regained her voice and composure. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

Angel smiled faintly, almost in tolerance. "It's all right. I get variations of it all the time. I've gotten used to it."

"Yes," said Tala, slowly stalking around him, drinking in every moment, movement and inch of him, still feeling an unusual intoxication, almost like the first rush of blood on her tongue. "I suppose you would. Well then, shall we continue this conversation inside my office?"

Angel nodded in agreement. Tala gestured for him to follow.

In the office, Tala sat behind her desk, as Angel leaned against a wall, arms crossed.

"I'm sorry about being late. I pride myself on being on time, but you had some pretty strong protections around this building that kept me from doing that. Shadow Walking is dangerous by itself, but those wards nearly killed me."

"Shadow Walking?" Tala said with interest. "I've only recently heard of this. What is it exactly, how is it dangerous, and what has it to do with the runes I have placed on this building?"

"Shadow Walking is the art of walking into a shadow, and out of a shadow, into a different place. It's very different from walking the ghost roads. As for it being dangerous, what magic isn't? The runes around this building? You use them to keep certain dangers from entering. Am I correct?"

"Yes. Why?"

"Well, you see, those runes presented me a danger (from the demon within), until it encountered my soul and heart. Apparently, anything that has loved as I have loved is not dangerous.

"Also, Shadow Walking is considered an impossibility, even in our dimension--and I have traveled in many dimensions. Therefore, it should be impossible for me to do. I HAVE looked around, but it seems I'm the only one with this ability."

Angel paused, gazed at Tala, then said, "I've been trying to figure something out about you. I think I know what it is…. You're not human, are you?"

Tala laughed. "Of course not! I'm a vampire."

"No," said Angel firmly, "that's not what I meant. You weren't human to begin with. Am I right?"

"Yes," Tala sighed reluctantly, "you are correct. I wasn't human, or even half-human, when I became a vampire. I was elven." Tala stopped, tilting her head to the side. "I wouldn't mind continuing with this conversation, but this is not the reason I called you here."

"True, and I didn't help any. The reason you called me is to help you find out who or what is trying to destroy your company, and because this person knows vampires are working here. So far, that is all I know. Care to tell me more?"

"Sure, if you'll give me a moment to turn on my CCH, I'll give you a copy of the data."

Tala reached into the drawer marked "CCH," pulled out the headset, and placed it onto her head. Adjusting the eye and mouthpiece to her liking, she murmured some words, then looked at Angel expectantly.

A moment later Angel placed his hand on his CCH. "Huh. You have had five blood-shipments gone amiss, and four break-ins, one of them successful. All this evidence, and you didn't contact me until now?"

"There was a…slight problem. My aide didn't inform me of the attacks until today, after this last attempt. Otherwise, the blood-shipments were the only thing I knew about."

"Interesting. Who is your aide?"

"Why don't I bring him in so you can meet him?"

"Good, since I wish to ask him about why he didn't tell you about those attacks."

My thought exactly. Tala stood, went to the door, and opened it. Just outside, the aide stood, waiting as he had been told to do. She beckoned him inside. Angel stood facing the door as Mark walked into the room.

"Angel, this is my aide: Mark. Mark, this is Angel."

Mark and Angel gazed at one another. Mark spoke first, fear in his voice, "You are him: the Angel of Lost Souls. The one who gave all vampires their souls!"

"Yes, I am," Angel said matter-of-factly, "but I am here, now, to keep this company from being destroyed. In order to do that, I need to ask you some questions."

Mark swallowed nervously, and said, his voice trembling, "I will answer what I can, Angel of Lost Souls."

Angel sighed, and smiled faintly. It was almost a grimace. He said, "Call me Angel."

"I would love to stay," said Tala suddenly, "but I need to recruit some new employees. I'll be back around sunrise."

The men watched as Tala left the room. When the door closed, Angel sat down on the edge of Tala's desk. He crossed his arms, and gazed intently at Mark, and said, "I already have some knowledge of what's going on here, but not all of it I understand. Care to fill me in?"

"Alright, let me get this straight. The attacks were done by a different group, each time?"

"Yes."

"All notified by phone?"

"Yes."

"And the reason you didn't tell Ms. Bloodmoon is because she was already having trouble with the blood-shipments?"

"Yes."

"Don't you think it would have been better to have told her in the first place, instead of trying to solve it yourself?"

"I didn't think it would take this long. When I finally realized I should have told her in the first place, it was to late."

Angel paced around the room, his frustration reaching new heights. He said, "This is not helping. I need more information! Whoever is doing this knows how to cover themselves too well!"

BOOM!

The door to the office flew open, slamming into the wall, shuddering with the impact. Tala strode in. Her face was a mask of rage. She walked to her desk, kicked it hard, and then leaned against it heavily.

"Nothing! Not one vampire will work for me! On top of that, one of my employees quit!"

Mark moved swiftly to Tala's side, his expression one of concern. "Who quit, Ms. Bloodmoon?"

Tala paused, then continued speaking, as if she had not heard Mark. Her voice was low. "Know what excuse he used? 'I will not work in the same building as the one who caused the Soul Restoration.'" She again paused, then slammed her fist onto the desk, and shouted, "Soul Restoration, my foot! If they knew that they worked for the one that caused the creation of the Slayers, there would be no 'Blood-Hunter Enterprises' to begin with!"

In the silence that followed, Mark backed away from Tala, made a strange choking sound, and fled the room. Angel moved 'til he stood behind Tala, and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"You are the Elven Princess spoken of in the prophecy of the Eternal Soulmates, are you not," quietly asked Angel.

Tala nodded, crystalline tears falling down her face, her anger gone, and said, "Yes, I am. I am far older than any can imagine. I am even older than that prophecy."

"How old are you?"

"Eight thousand years, give or take a few hundred."

A pause, then Angel asked, "Do you know the entire prophecy of the Eternal Soulmates?"

"Yes, I was there when it was first spoken." Tala closed her eyes, then said, "Only when the Souled One and the Elven Princess meet, will the Souled One's Soulmate join him, for all time, and in all places, within their final forms. It is then, and only then that the Souled One will receive his redemption, and his freedom."

Angel drew in breath sharply, took his hand away from Tala's shoulder, and backed away. He said, "The Elven Princess I had heard of, but not the Souled One. Those words were something else…something called…Hell's Fire! The words were…Angel of Darkness!"

Tala turned to gaze at Angel curiously. He seemed frightened.

"What frightens you?"

"What frightens me? That prophecy frightens me! I have never understood, until now, what it meant."

"What does it mean? I may have been there when it was first spoken, but that doesn't mean that I know what it means."

"The Elven Princess is obviously you. But that title was sometimes changed to Slayer's Maker. Now I understand why. The Souled One is me, since I was the original souled vampire." A pause. "The term Angel of Darkness can also be applied to me as well."

"How?"

Angel began to pace, then stopped, gazing at the collage of weapons on one wall. He asked, "Have you ever heard of the name Angelus?"

"Yes, I am the only vampire left that knows that name, and it's various meanings. There's the Scourge of Europe, the Demon with the Face of an…Angel?" Tala gazed at Angel, then her eyes widened in understanding. "Angel," she softly whispered.

"Yes," Angel said softly, grimly, "I am, or was, Angelus. When I received my soul, I changed my name to Angel, to differentiate between the soulless and souled versions of myself. I am a creature of darkness, yet my soul is not. A perfect balance. Angel of Darkness seems a very fitting title for me," Angel concluded in bitterness.

"But what has that to do with the prophecy?"

Angel gazed at Tala, his eyes mere slits, then said, "You truly don't get it, do you? That prophecy says that I will be rejoined with my one true love, my soulmate: Buffy. The thing is: how do you join with someone that is already dead, and probably where I cannot follow?"

"What if she is still alive?"

"That's not possible," Angel said bluntly, looking away. "Buffy died nearly one thousand years ago. In. My. Arms. My name was the last word she ever spoke."

"She can be brought back to life. There are ways to do that."

"Not for a Slayer, there isn't. She defied death with her mere existence. She was, and is, the longest living Slayer to ever exist. She died when she was twenty-eight.

"This prophecy will be fulfilled, one way or another. I have no doubt about that. What concerns me is what this will mean for me and Buffy when it does."

Tala walked over, and stood in front of Angel. She forced him to look into her eyes, then said, "Do not spend all your time thinking of the past, and what it means. We must concentrate on the future. The future of this world.

"Now, we have a situation on our hands. Who or whatever is sending these vampire hunters after this company knows something about us. The more this person interferes, the closer humans are to finding out about us. We must stop this from happening. The thing is, we have practically no clues as to where to go with this."

Angel thought for a moment, and then hesitantly spoke. "There is a possibility that someone who is working for you might know something."

Tala's gaze turned thoughtful. "True. But how do we go about getting this person to reveal themself? IF there is one."

"Meet with all the vampires that are left in your company, and tell them what's going on. They deserve some knowledge as to what has happened, especially since this last attack. Also, if there is a leak going to whoever is doing this, they may change their mind and come forward, to tell us what we need to know."

"You're right. Let me see if I can get hold of Mark, if I didn't frighten him too badly."

Tala went over to her desk, grabbed her CCH out of the drawer, and placed it on her head. After a moment, she began to talk quietly into the mouthpiece. After twenty minutes, Tala sighed, folded the mouthpiece up onto the CCH, and turned to Angel. He was leaning against a wall, arms crossed, waiting.

"The closest time I could arrange a meeting is in three days. I just hope that no one else quits before then."

"You'll just have to keep them busy, then. I, on the other hand, am going to go and personally ask these 'vampire hunters' some questions."