Disclaimer: Madison E. Blackwood and I (Black Dragon Valkyrie) do not own Sherrilyn Kenyon's AMAZING world of Dark-Hunters or any of the characters. We are simply barrowing them for this story. Madison E. Blackwood owns Maxima/Sinsa and Gemina Sinsabaugh. While I own Kamali "Axel" Parthenopaeus and Sorcha Parthenopaeus.
Enjoy! ^^
Axel's mind kept wandering back to her as he drove around New Orleans. He had noticed the way she had tensed up when he had offered to drive her and his sister, then how she had stiffly gotten into the car. Even though she had seemed to completely relax once she was inside, it made him wonder. Maybe she possibly knew someone who died in a car crash and so got a little jumpy around cars? He shook his head to clear it, it wasn't his business and if she wanted to tell him, she would. Then all of a sudden, he realized something. He couldn't read her at all. Couldn't hear her thoughts in his head or see her past, present or future. He ground his teeth. "Gods damn it!" He muttered under his breath. This could possibly either mean nothing, or... He grimaced and shook his head again as to not think about it.
By the time all the kids' parents had come to get them, and Jason's parents had returned, Sinsa was exhausted. Well, at least that was normal; there wasn't a day went by that she wasn't worked to the bone by nightfall. Either she wanted to get her mind off her past, or she ended up helping out so many people she just never got a chance to rest.
Simi was still hyperactive by the time Axel arrived to pick them up, and Sinsa was glad to foist her off on her brother.
"Go; bother Axel now," she said tiredly, waving her hands at the goth girl as the Venom stopped at the curb.
"Guess what Simi did today?" the girl was asking when Sinsa finally climbed into the passenger seat.
"What did you do, Sim-key?" Axel prompted amiably as he pulled out. Sinsa let the low, warm notes of his voice and the high, happy chirps of Simi's draw her into a deep doze, numbing everything around her until they got back to the Parthenopaeus residence.
Simi had jumped out Axel's side and booked it into the house to tell Tory, and Acheron if he was home, about her night. Axel on the other hand had gone over to Sinsa's side and opened the door before crouching down and gently shaking her shoulder to wake her.
"Sinsa..." He drawled. Then he saw her eyes start to flutter open. He reached over her slim waist and unbuckled her seat belt for her as she woke up.
"Hmm?" Still half in dreamland, Sinsa's forest green eyes focused on Axel's face and immediately began tearing up. "Jerrell... Oh, Jerrell..." Her voice, thick with pained mourning, broke into a wet sob as she threw her arms around Axel's neck.
Axel stiffened in surprise. But then relaxed a few moments later and gently wrapped her up in his arms, letting her cry into his shoulder as he buried his nose in her hair. Her midnight blue hair smelled like sugar and spice. "Shh.. It's okay Sinsa." He spoke calmly as he rubbed back to help comfort her.
Crying took whatever energy remained and before long, she was asleep again, tears still leaving dark streaks down her cheeks from her makeup. That left Axel with two choices: try to wake her up again, or take her inside and see if Tory had a place she could sleep for the night.
Axel picked her up in her arms, bridal style and used his foot to close the car door before carrying her inside. He explained to Tory that he was giving Sinsa his room for the night and he'll just crash on the couch. Then made his way upstairs and laid her on the bed before pulling to covers up over her.
Sinsa's dreams mixed with reality, and she thought Jerrell, her eldest brother, had come back from the dead to tuck her in, the way he had ever since they were kids. Even after she'd started tucking in his kids for him, he still took time to wish her goodnight. 'Night, Maxie; see you in the morning. Pain gnawed at her chest at his memory; there was no morning this time.
"Jerrell..." she sobbed in her sleep. "Why'd you go...?"
His eyes softened as he watched her turn and groaned in her sleep. He brushed some of her hair from her face and leaned down to lay a soft kiss on her forehead.
"It's alright, Maxie," Jerrell's voice whispered. "Sleep, little Sin; we're all watching out for you. Sleep in peace under our watch."
Assured, Sinsa's sleep deepened, restful now, and before she knew it, morning had come.
It took a full minute for her to realize where she was. Had she really fallen asleep in the car? How? The thought made her shiver and she jumped up, feeling bad for imposing. She took a moment to straighten her clothes, and ran her fingers through her hair in hopes of settling the bed-head curls. She caught a glimpse of herself in the three-quarter mirror on the door and grimaced at the streaks on her face.
"Ah shit..." she muttered. "I didn't cry in my sleep again, did I?" Quickly, she delved into her purse and pulled out a tissue, wetting it on her tongue and scrubbing the streaks away as well as she could before going downstairs.
"Good morning, Sinsa!" Tory greeted cheerfully. "Are you staying for breakfast? Ash and Simi went for a walk, but they should be back soon."
"Ah, no," Sinsa said, dipping her gaze in apology. "I didn't mean to fall asleep last night; I need to get home."
"Are you sure?" Tory asked, a touch of motherly worry in her eyes.
"Y-yeah," Sinsa cut off, spotting Axel on the couch, one arm tucked behind his head, the other across his chest, ankles crossed. By the slow, gentle rise and fall of his chest, she knew he was asleep. "Oh god... Did I take Axel's room? I'm so sorry!"
Tory smiled. "Don't worry about it. It was just guest room and there was no way Axel would of allowed you to sleep on the couch."
The person in question shifted, stirring a little.
"Oh..." Sinsa watched Axel scratch his jaw absently with a thumbnail, seeing again just how gorgeous he was. Blushing, she turned back to Tory and pulled a paper out of her purse, quickly scrawling her number on it. "Um, I know Simi already has my number, but knowing her, she'll probably break her phone again and lose it, so, er... here. Have Sim call me if she's interested in babysitting again; I'll hook her up with some of my clients."
"She'll probably drag you along again," Tory laughed, "but sure. Are you sure you don't want to stay for breakfast?"
"...Yeah," Sinsa said after a moment's indecision. "I really should get back; my flatmate is probably out of her mind with worry right now." As if imaginary friends could get worried...
Tory frowned a little. "Well if you're sure..."
Just then the front door opened and Simi came bouncing in with Acheron behind her.
"Akra-Sin!" Simi hugged the girl from behind. "You're up! You're up!" She grinned.
"Careful, Sim!" Sinsa said, laughing lightly. She managed to pry the girl's arms off and turn around to give her a proper hug, noticing Acheron. "Oh, uh... Morning, Mr... Um, Ash." Too often, her polite manners had gotten a playfully scolded 'Call me Ash.'
"Sinsa," he nodded in greeting. "Did Soteria maneuver you into staying the night?"
"Oh, no; that was my fault," she said sheepishly. "I fell asleep in the car while Axel was driving Simi and I back from babysitting."
Acheron looked over to his still sleeping son while Simi beamed up at Sinsa.
"You hang out with the Simi today?" She asked with a pouting lower lip and big watery eyes.
She felt bad for what she had to do.
"No, I'm sorry, Sim," she said, gently rubbing the girl's head. "I've got to go home, and then I've got a bunch of work to do tonight." Simi's pout deepened and she huffed.
"I see; you don't like Simi anymore," she grumbled, crossing her arms. That brought Acheron's attention back.
"Simi," he scolded, putting his hands on her shoulders. "You know better than that; if Sinsa says she's busy, then she's busy. That doesn't mean she doesn't like you anymore."
"Hey, Sim," Sinsa added reassuringly, "tomorrow's my day off; why don't we go window-shopping and then hang out at Sanctuary? Sound good?"
The street was as crowded as ever; damn rush hour... Sinsa would be on the bus, but the crowds were too thick and she missed it. And there was no time to wait for the next one; she was going to be late for her dinner interview.
Yesterday, just as she and Simi were leaving Sanctuary, she'd gotten a call from one of the many places she'd sent her resume in an effort to get a good, steady job. Moving all over the country was no fun, and even though the Bronx of New York City would always be her home, she wanted to settle in a place where she had friends and connections. For now at least. So possibly getting a job as a manager for a small antiquities shop would be a massive step in the right direction.
An overzealous passerby shoved Sinsa aside, in a hurry to get wherever he was going, and she stumbled into the corner of a building by a side-street. Her mouth opened to give a scathing New Yorker insult, but it fled her tongue as she caught sight of a friend darting out of an alley into the side-street. The tall, sexy blonde was bleeding from his shoulder, and his breaths came in fast, shallow gasps.
"Donovan!" Sinsa cried, running into the side-street. The man's head jerked up, gold eyes fixing on her face.
"Sin!" he blurted. "The hell...? Get out of here, quickly!"
"Hell no!" she snapped, grabbing his uninjured arm and pulling it over her shoulders, ignoring the blood he smeared across her shirt and arm. "The hell happened to you, Donnie?"
"Damn it, Sin," Donovan whimpered. "You need to go before..."
"Well, well, well," a familiar voice interrupted. "So this is where you scurried off to..." Sinsa's eyes widened in shock as Axel stepped out of the alley.
"Axel?" she breathed. "What...?" He did a noticeable double-take as he saw her, and stood frozen for a moment. She still couldn't see his eyes, but she had a feeling they were trained on her.
"Sin, go!" Donovan rasped, pushing her toward the street. "Leave her out of this, Dark-Hunter; she's innocent!"
"Innocent of what?" Sinsa demanded, keeping her grip on her friend as she glanced worriedly at him. All at once, her mind began whirling; Donovan had fangs. And not those fake plastic party fangs, either; real, sharp, gleaming fangs died ruddy at the tips... Like he'd been feeding from something. Or someone.
Axel's mind whirled, half in shock and half in fury. Unfortunately the fury got a hold of his mind as he growled low in his throat, the sound that of a predator than a man, when he reached out and grabbed Donovon by the throat and shoved him against the brick wall, holding his body several inches off the ground. "Just what the fuck are you bastards playing at?!"
He pulled the Daimon away from the wall before slamming it back, bringing a cry of pain from the blonde's lips. Livid did not even begin to describe the anger boiling in his veins right now. And he'll be damned if he let's Sinsa get dragged into this.
"Axel, stop it!" Sinsa screamed, terrified. Whether she was scared for Donovan, choking and gasping in his opponent's grip, or of Axel, furious and deadly, she couldn't say. But she knew one thing; she had to get them away from each other, quickly.
"Let him go!" she demanded, grabbing his arm.
"Sin, stop...!" Donovan wheezed. "J-just run...!"
Axel's grip tightened around the Daimon's throat as he looked to Sinsa. "No." His voice had turned cold and hard. Like a diamond edged saw blade. "Not after the life he took from another human." He knew by telling her that was risking telling her what he was, but it was the truth nonetheless. He had sworn after first meeting her to never lie to her.
Her grip on his arm tightened sharply, but she stopped pulling, horror in her eyes.
"...Donnie?" she breathed, stunned. It couldn't be true; she'd known him for nearly two years and he'd never even lifted a finger against her or anyone else, even when he was angry.
The panicked fear in Donovan's gold gaze flickered and crusted over to apathy, though she could still see the fear beneath it.
"Yeah, I killed him," he spat, still tugging at Axel's wrists. "Pathetic waste of human flesh... You should have seen him, Maxie... Whimpering and crying like a baby, pleading for his pitiful life..." He ran his tongue across his fangs, making Sinsa shudder. "Tasted like shit, but filling anyway; all that blood-"
"No!" Sinsa screamed, throwing herself away from the pair and clamping her hands over her ears as she ran.
Have to get away! Run! Get far away from here! She paid no attention to the angry tears tracking through her makeup.
"And for that, you shall pay with your life." Axel snarled at him. Then he dropped him suddenly, using his powers to keep everyone around from seeing where they were. He didn't need a mirror to know his own irises had turned celestial blue with molten gold rimmed around it, possibly with the whites of his eyes starting to redden.
He tightened a fist and what looked like blue lightning started to crackle around it. He picked up Donovan by the front of his collar. His voice turned into a harsh whisper as he brought his face closer to his. "And this is for making her cry." Without further ado, he ran his fist through the Daimon's black mark he knew decorated his chest. He barely could give a scream of pain before he exploded into gold dust like all Daimons did.
With his job done, Axel turned on his heel and easily caught up to Sinsa before she got more than five streets down. He gently grabbed her elbow to stop her. "Are you alright?"
With a startled shriek, she jerked out of his grip, hands flying up in automatic defense. A couple of passersby paused, curious or worried, and one guy came forward in the moment that Axel paused, surprised by her reaction.
"Hey, you alright, miss?" the man asked, casting a dark look at Axel. Sinsa breathed out in wary relief.
"Ah, n- yes, I'm fine," she assured him quickly. "I'm just anxious and he surprised me; we're fine." She didn't let him respond before she grabbed Axel's arm and pulled him into the nearest shop, a secondhand clothing store. The girl at the desk glanced up from her phone, but didn't seem to really notice them.
"Guy's styles to the left, girl's to the right," she said in a bored, rehearsed tone. "More popular items are toward the front; ask me if you've got any questions." And with that she went back to texting.
Sinsa shoved Axel between the racks near the back left of the store and pressed her hands to her face, taking deep, slow breaths that wavering with her tumbling emotions. When he started to say something, she snapped her fingers at him.
"Not a word, or I'll slap you to the moon and back," she hissed, trembling from adrenaline. "I need a moment to calm down, or I'll go crazy..."
Axel heaved a low sigh. He'd personally rather NOT end up at the moon, he really didn't like dealing with the bitch. When he noticed she was slowly calming, he let out another sigh. "Feeling better?"
He stopped her hand from slapping him, having too much personal experience of being slapped when he was younger. He didn't care to bring any of the pain or the memories it brought back from the past where he had buried them.
"No, I'm not," she warned, eyes sharp with uncertainty and self-annoyance. She jerked her hand from his and began pacing, muttering to herself. All at once, she stopped, a sudden thought jumping to the forefront of her mind.
"He was protecting me," she said, voice riddled with disbelief. "That's why he said those things; he knows I hate blood. That's why he was so vivid; he was... protecting me..." Her gaze shot to Axel. "From you."
Subconsciously, she stepped away from him. "You... You killed him, didn't you? You killed Donovan."
He sighed. "No. What he said was true. He did feed off of a human and killed them. It's my job to stop his kind." He ran a hand through his hair. "So yes, I did have to kill him." Then he looked at her, meeting her dark green eyes, even though she couldn't see his. "If you're willing to listen. I will explain what I can to you."
"What?" Sinsa struggled to process what was going on. "No, I can't..." Her old fears were surging back, gnawing, clawing, ripping through her feebly built defenses that had taken years to put up. Donovan had left her, even though he'd promised always to be by her side. He'd left, tearing away yet another chunk of her dwindling trust.
"H-his kind?" she repeated, confused and anxious. "What...?"
"Hey," the clerk called, interrupting. "You two aren't making out back there, are you? Seriously, buy something or get out."
Axel sighed and took her hand before leading her out of the store. He took her to his apartment that he usually rented while in town and set her down on the couch before sitting saddled on a chair right across from her.
"How much do you know about Greek mythology?" It was good to start somewhere if he really was going to tell her.
On the way, Sinsa managed to gain some semblance of control over herself and her emotions, and by the time Axel began his explanation, she was ready to deal with anything he might say in a calm, rational, if cautious, method. Hopefully.
"Mm... I know most of the gods," she said. "Definitely the Twelve, and several of the 'minor' gods. Then there's the monsters, like the Gorgon and the Minotaur. And the heroes, like Heracles, demigods. And I know a lot of the myths too." She cocked her head, not seeing the connection. "What does this have to do with Donovan?"
He ran a hand through his long hair, subconsciously pulling it forward over his shoulder. "Apollo once thought he could create the perfect race. With the help of a dryad, he created the Apollites. They were much stronger and faster than humans. Even having some special gifts of their own." He left out a sigh before continuing. "More than ten thousand years ago, Apollo had a human mistress who lived in a small country called Didymos who gave him a son. The Apollite queen became jealous and sent some of her men to murder the girl and child. Apollo got angry and banished the Apollite race from the sun, cursing them to feed off of each other's blood and to die painfully over a twenty-four hour period on their twenty-seventh birthday since it was the age of his mistress when a small handful of the race had murdered her and his son. Another goddess taught the Apollites how to feed off of the soul of a human to elongate their life past that of twenty-seven years. If they choose to do so, they become what's known as a Daimon." He met her eyes. "This is what your friend Donovon was."
Her gut coiled sharply, disliking the notion.
"Y-you mean... He's been..." She cringed. "Eating... souls? Like a burger?"
His light nod was not the answer she wanted.
"Oh god..." she muttered, putting a hand to her mouth in a vague attempt to stop the rebellion starting in her stomach. "I think I'm gonna be sick..."
The moment Axel's hand rested on her head, the pain in her stomach started to lessen. She looked up at him with confusion in her eyes.
"I'm a little different from normal." He smiled a little. "But I assure you I don't eat souls."
"D-different?" she echoed. Her thoughts were beginning to reel; she wasn't sure what to think about first.
On the one hand, Donovan had lied to her; he'd only been twenty-eight, which meant he'd started the soul-devouring thing after they'd met. She could easily have been one of countless victims, and that thought terrified her almost as much as thoughts of her past.
On the other hand, there was Axel. He obviously wasn't... human. At least, not completely. Given the Greek reference, he had to be a demigod or something. Or, he thought he was.
Or else this was some elaborate joke, and Donovan would call her any minute to ask if he and his freakish friend had unsettled her.
No, she decided. Donnie had done some mean things in the past, but he'd never make her think him dead after everything she'd already gone through.
And that left one of two 'truths'; either Axel was completely and utterly off his rocker, or he was telling the truth.
No offense, Axel, she thought grimly, but I really hope you aren't telling the truth...
"I am part of a group of beings known as Dark Hunters. Created by Apollo's twin sister Artemis. Dark Hunters have a lot of similar characteristics to the Daimons... inability to go out in daylight, fangs, superior strength and senses... things like that. Several of them have extra abilities that they brought with them from their human lives. They are originally men and women who were brutally betrayed and killed, their souls screaming as they die. Artemis hears this and goes to them. If they swear eternal servitude to her to fight daimons, they have twenty four hours to take their revenge on those that wronged them."
He mentally debated telling her more before deciding that she might not fully believe him otherwise, and that would make it hard to protect her. But he decided to wait and see how she processed this first.
On the outside chance he was telling the truth, Sinsa knew she was at the point of no return; if she kept going, there was no going back to the innocent ignorance she'd been living in. In fact, he seemed to be waiting for her reaction; this was her last chance to back out.
Then again, in the more likely event that he's crazy, it might be better to go along with his delusion. Especially since Donovan died for it.
"...So, neither... Daimons or Dark-Hunters can go out in sunlight," she clarified, keeping careful reign on her emotions. He nodded, still gauging her reaction. "Then... The day before yesterday. You were on the bus before sunset..." Maybe pointing out the flaws in his argument would help jog him back to reality.
He let out a sigh. She was catching on. "True. But I never sold my soul to Artemis. I just fight Daimons of my own free will." He looked up to meet her eyes. "I never said I was human. But I'm not Daimon either. And for that matter, I should explain one more thing." He paused before finishing. "I am much older than you are lead to believe."
Well then. No doubt he also believed he was a Greek god and had powers unimaginable by 'mere mortals.'
Then again... Sinsa thought back to the instantaneous settling of her stomach at his touch.
Good god... I never thought I'd say this, but please let that just be my carnal attraction to him...
"How old are you?" she asked, barely keeping her voice even. "What are you?"
"Roughly? Over eleven thousand years. If you want specifics; I'm 11,369 since New Year's Eve." His grip on his chair tightened as he continued. "And as I'm sure as you've figured out already, yes, I am a god. Now mind you, I'm not fully Greek, and I personally hate admitting I'm even half Greek because of how much most of them tend to piss me off. The Greek pantheon is my mother's" he spat the word like it was poison "family. My father's is Atlantean. Does that about summon it up for you?" As if to prove his point, he effortlessly conjured a small ball of blue lightning and started to toss it back and forth between his hands as he waited for her reaction.
Sinsa's attention focused on the ball, all thought processes shutting down as she stared at it, flicking, and pulsing like a living thing eager to scorch and electrocute something.
This couldn't be real. She was dreaming. Or hallucinating. Did she drink anything, or eat anything, weird that could have gotten her sick or something?
A groan worked its way out of her throat as she leaned her elbows on her knees and pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes.
Eleven thousand years. Was it possibly even for gods to live that long?
God, her head was spinning.
"Mother Mary and all the saints," she moaned. "I'm going crazy. I am off the deep-end... Greek gods and soul-eating demons...
He surprised her by laughing. The ball discharged into nothing right in his hand. "Don't we all wish it were that simple?"
"You're one to talk," she snapped, her annoyance bubbling over as she dropped her hands and pinned him with a fierce glare. "You've always had this... this... this nonsense as part of your life! I just got a shit-ton of it shoved onto my lap, and I haven't even had a chance to mourn Donovan!" Abruptly, her anger turned to agony and she covered her face with her hand, her shoulders beginning to tremble. "Oh, Donnie..."
As if a switch had been flipped, he lost his laid back, easy going persona. The deathly seriousness of his expression and body swelled the air with a noticeable chill. "This is nothing compared to Tartarus and all its demons or all the other evils that run around this world among you arrogant humans. If I had not come around he would of killed you and devoured your soul within the year! If he hadn't, someone else would of. Fate is three disgusting bitches who tangle with people's lives, even their own family's, just for their own sick amusement. You're lucky if you ever get time to grieve those you've lost."
Shivers of terror tracked down Sinsa's spine; she could almost see the rage rolling off him.
Ok, there were two things she feared most now: everyone leaving her, one way or another, and Axel Parthenopaeus.
Even still, her anger over his reaction to her friendship with Donovan overruled her fear for a moment. She lunged to her feet and slapped him. Without a warning to let him know it might come, it actually landed this time.
"I've lost too many people not to hate it every time someone dies," she spat at him, "and I am not about to let a pompous Greek... halfling god tell me to be a cruel, heartless bitch!" Whirling, she slammed out of his apartment and onto the street, where the ever-present cloud cover had darkened, threatening to let loose on her. Apparently the entire universe was conspiring to tear her apart at the seams.