ANGELIC FURY PART II


The first thing Carlisle smells is the overwhelming scent of sulfur and rotting flesh. It overpowers the pine surrounding him, hitting him with an unexpected force. He realizes, with a hard sense of dread, exactly what it means. Even before he spots the blur running toward him, a gleam of a knife in their hand. He barely has the chance to react in time, dodging to the left as the demon charges at him. The demon runs past, but he hisses when they turn around faster than he expected and slice his arm.

He barely catches a glimpse of the demon's face. Sharp with rotting flesh and an unhinged jaw. Crazed eyes that belong to one of the top predators, staring him down like a piece of flesh for them to devour. He knows this is Yana. It has to be. A deeper part of him, the still remaining bits of humanity that remember his past so vividly and the part that he likes to think the reason he refuses to hurt people, is terrified. A bone numbing fear that comes from something so primal and so old that it cannot be named. Something that he feels is put inside of each of them before they're born. Even the vampire crawling inside of his chest wants him to run.

But the other part of him, the part that reminds him why he ran out in the first place, the part that so desperately loves Ariel and remembers her screams and blood in his hands, is not afraid. He is angry. He doesn't remember any time in his life he has actually been so upset, so blinded by rage. Briar comes close, but this is the one - demon or not - that is responsible for Briar. The one that handed him the knife. The one that cut their lives apart. Something that is amplified by the uncertainty if Ariel is okay. All of his rage is so directed at Yana that he isn't sure if there is any left to be directed at Ariel for no doubt confronting the demon on her own. Something that he should have honestly expected, knowing her loyal conviction for her family's safety. He should have stopped her. He should have said damn the fake breakup, damn their cover, and been there for her.

His eyes are black voids when he stares down the demon, ready for whatever she may throw at him. His arm throbs with an unfamiliar sensation of pain. When the demon lunges again, his animalistic growl echoes through the surrounding woods. He braces himself to face her head on, to catch her wrists before she slashes at him again, but as he does so, Yana is tackled by a much more familiar blur.

Seeing Ariel releases the pressure in his chest, makes it easier for him to focus, to remember to keep his head. Even though blood is smeared across her throat, clotting from a fresh shallow cut, he wants nothing more than to hold her knowing that she is at least okay and alive. But for now - they have much more pressing matters, at the very least, the odds are now in their favor.

He shouldn't be surprised by the vengeful, feral expression on Ariel's eyes as they gleam in the night light. Her hands are already on Yana as they wrestle to the ground, Ariel gaining the upper hand as she pins the demon down. He rushes to step in, but the demon manages to push Ariel off of her, causing the angel to crash into him. He holds her for a moment, selfishly, and she looks at him briefly, eyes gleaming in concern as she takes in the cut on his arm.

"Don't worry, darling, we got this," Carlisle reassures her.

Ariel's smile is bleak as she leans back into him, regaining her balance. Yana circles them, knife in hand, and Carlisle keeps a close eye on her as Ariel whispers to him.

"I wasn't worried."

"I know, dove." His voice is just as soft as he brushes his hand down her arm comfortingly. The comment was more for him than for her, he'll admit, but seeing Ariel's confidence reassures him.

When Ariel lunges for Yana again, the demon runs forward, dodging to head straight for Carlisle. As Ariel mumers a curse, she turns to grab the demon before she gets far, then swings her around to toss her. Despite himself, as he watches the fight unfold between the two and not able to find an opening to jump in (and Ariel seeming to have it well handled), he has to admit that something inside of him stirs seeing this side of her. As if the animal inside of him is churring, pleased at her strength and her conviction. As Emmett would no doubt say, seeing her fight is - he hates to use the word hot, but it is enticing.

He finally gets a chance to jump in, immediately, when he notices Yana gaining an upper hand. The gash on Ariel's neck is getting worse the more she moves and the demon takes advantage of it by grabbing the angel by the throat, digging her nails into the wounds. Before Ariel's gurgled scream even breaks through the air, Carlisle wastes no time tackling the demon off of her with a snarl.

"It seems the little vampire does have some bite to him after all," Yana comments smoothly as she stares down into Carlisle's darkened eyes.

He wishes, desperately wishes, that Ariel didn't push them all away. Even if he can understand why, with him struggling to pin the demon down and Yana possessing a strength and speed that rivals an angel's. He rarely fought other vampires, nevertheless an actual demon. He has no doubts that if it was more than just Yana at the moment then he would struggle greatly. He cannot even begin to imagine if she had backup that outnumbered them all. How his family would have to give it their all to just get an upper hand. That it would take a miracle; do angels produce miracles anymore? Or is that something only their Father possesses?

Despite all of that, he wishes that he pushed more, that he fought against it, that he challenged Ariel instead of stepping back. Insisted that she was wrong. That they are stronger together than apart. Even more, he wishes that he asked more questions. Questions about demons, what to expect, how to beat them. If he kills her, if he could, then he wonders if she would be deported back to Hell, only to come back with more reinforcements.

His judgement and doubts over himself, over not fighting Ariel more on her decision, starts to fog his mind. Ariel gurgles in the background, coughing over her blood, and Carlisle turns to look at her to see if she is still okay, but that moment creates enough of an opening for Yana to take an advantage of. He lets out a snarl when the demon breaks from his grasp and grabs his own arm in the process.

He realizes with dread exactly what she is going to do in a fleeting second before the demon rips his arm off, tossing it aside before going at him with the knife.

"That's enough."

Ariel's language is distorted, snarled, and echoed. He recognizes it as the same language that she whispers to Charlie at times and while he doesn't understand what she says, the demon does. Yana is thrown off just enough by the language that Ariel manages to step in between her knife and Carlisle. He worries for her greatly, and almost pushes her out of the way of the blade, but Ariel catches Yana's wrist and twists it harshly.

The bone breaks under her grasp, effectively dropping the knife. Yana tumbles backwards as Ariel pushes her with force and before she recovers, Ariel gives a swift, solid stomp to the demon's leg. The snap of the bone is enough for the demon's face to contort, switching back to a deceivingly human appearance.

"Go on, send me back to Hell," Yana challenges through gritted teeth, looking up at Ariel with a deep rooted content. "I'll see you there eventually."

Ariel bends over the demon, her shadow casting over the demon's body as she towers over her. The look on her face is vicious, dangerously calm.

"I don't follow your orders."

The punch to the demon's cheek is enough to effectively knock the demon out. Carlisle takes that as a moment to retrieve his arm, knowing that it will heal soon and be (hopefully) as good as new.

Ariel turns to him immediately after taking care of Yana, her expression softening considerably as she checks him over. Her eyes linger on his broken arm as she closes the distance between them. Her hands place gently on his chest, looking him over to make sure she doesn't miss any injuries.

"Are you going to be okay," Ariel whispers, looking up at him with wide eyes that are a stark contrast to the way they were when fighting.

"Nothing that won't heal, love." Carlisle reassures, pressing a soft kiss to the top of her forehead, "Only thankful she didn't cut it off with the knife."

Ariel breathes a sigh of relief, glancing over at the unconscious demon then back to Carlisle. The adrenaline starts to fade from her as she breathes in deeply. She leans against Carlisle, her head on his chest as he wraps his now reattached arm around her. He presses kisses to the top of her head. If he's bothered by the blood seeping into his shirt, he doesn't mention it.

"I love you, Carlisle," she whispers, the words feeling freeing to be able to admit again, "I'm glad you're okay."

"I love you as well, my dove."