Post by Gabriel Baal on Sept 22, 2018 17:50:22 GMT -5
He drew his fingers down her naked back as she stirred in the moonlight – she was a rare beauty and the heat of her body had warmed his cold heart through the nights. She let out a low satisfied purr as his fingers traced the lines of her body. He watched her skin prickle at his light touch. He smiled to himself as her body reacted to him, her back arching to meet his touch. He slid towards her and pulled her back against his chest. She let out a distant moan – a dream, perhaps? Or delightfully woken from her slumber.
He took in the scent of her hair – a perfume of her own design, mixed from herbs and botanicals found in and around their temporarily home. He could feel her press against him even more, as the chill in the air caught her naked skin. His hand snaked around her, his fingers now tracing the same line over her stomach and between her breasts. She clasped her hand in her own and began kissing the tips of his fingers.
So… She was awake.
He let out a low groan as she nibbled the tips of his fingers, as she rolled her head against his shoulder. He pressed his lips against her neck and she let out a squeak of excitement. He kissed from her neck up behind her ear and then back again to her shoulder as she arched even more, pressing against him with more fervour. His hand pulled away from her mouth as it slipped down to grip her hip, as he sunk his teeth into her flesh.
"Careful." She squeaked. "That will leave a mark."
"That was my intention." He said. "To mark you as my own."
She reacted instantly, turning to face him, her lips on his as they lost themselves in one another. It was a circle – endless and eternal. They would love and they would sleep. Over and over they had repeated the cycle as the edged ever closer to the cataclysm. They’d been lost and been found so many times in these past days that they’d almost forgotten the task that had been thrust upon them.
But once more would hurt no-one, he thought, as he lost himself in her eyes all over again.
When he next awoke, he found himself alone on the makeshift bed. Blankets and furs on the ground next to the fire that had been burning without fuel for the last seven days. He looked around, his eyes taking a moment to adjust to the dark corners when he found her – Elizabeth Morgan - pulling her dress down over her waist.
"Is it time?" Baalthazar asked. She jumped at his sudden intrusion into quiet. "Shall I ready the others?"
"No, my love." She said, taking a moment to be still her beating heart. "We have time before the event."
"This is a terrible idea. You know I can feel it – the darkness that lurks beneath." He said, standing from their nest, two vipers now uncoiled yet still ready to strike. "You must rethink this course."
"It is not my choice – I am to be there whether I wish too or not. To stand aside from them, to let them do this without our full power would be a crime against my kind." She said as she approached him and pressed her hand against his cheek. "Do not worry, love. I have the coven with me."
"And what do they offer you by the way of protection?" He asked, his heat rising. "Hocus pocus? Tricks? Smoke and mirrors?"
"You mock my coven, you mock me, sir." She said with a smile on her face. She knew the truth of him – he mocked, but he knew their power. He looked away, towards the window of their small shack – he looked out into a world that seemed to belay the calm before the storm.
"I can’t bare the thought of what could happen to you, Elizabeth. These kinds of incantations, they’re dangerous. Often what you think you’re going to find at the end is…" He began, but she stopped him with a finger to his lips. She stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his.
"It will be fine my love – you and the others will be nearby. Should anything go awry, I know you’ll be close enough to assist us." She said.
"And be banished back to the wasteland with whatever it is rises from the underworld? I won’t go back to the Pit." He said, his eyes wide.
Baalthazar had been born to a mother seduced by Demon. His birth had torn her apart, and he’d bathed in her blood. Left to die, the baby was found by a holy-man and taken to the Church orphanage. No-one at the Orphanage would ever turn him away, but none could bring themselves to escort the newly named David into the church.
On the 16th anniversary of his birth, he had awoken to find a man sat on his bed – the man’s eyes were blood red, and he’d offered Daniel his hand. When the two touched, they had been transported to a world like nothing he’d ever seen before. The darkness, the fear… Part of him yearned for it, but part of him hated it. He was being ripped in two– the human and the demon inside of him at constant odds.
He had returned to the living world upon his eighteenth year, having not aged a day. Twisted, broken, damaged beyond repair. He was isolated, and evil – his human side, cowering for fear that his demonic qualities would seek to destroy it. His evil was known across the land, and all those who cast eyes upon him feared his gaze. He ruled the rhealm of men, but had their disease. The crushing pull of time.
He was mortal here. He had grown older, and as time had gone on he had settled his mind on the idea that his days would end back in that place he’d hated so much. For twenty years he wandered the land, turning man on man and corrupting all that he touched. His time was growing short, time was pressing on. He would have to return to The Pit before long.
And then he met her – her eyes full of fire, despite their icy blue.
Elizabeth Morton had caught his eye and his breath – he’d challenged her to the ends of her wit, and yet she’d fought back with power and strength. She was a witch of some renown, despite having cast her coven aside for the thrill of adventure. She too had travelled the land, following Baalthazar’s path, putting right that which he had wronged.
To those Baalthazar had cursed, she was an angel.
They had battled for so long, until eventually they fell into one another’s arms – it had been a tryst of lust that had grown into so much more. When he looked into those ocean blue eyes, he saw a different kind of fire now – not defiant, but passionate. They had returned to her home to find her coven in disarray – they were at odds as to whether or not they should use their power to raise something from below. Elizabeth knew they were wrong, but she couldn’t stand by and watch without helping.
Tonight was the night – the night of the blood red moon.
"Do they even know what they’re bringing to this World?" Baalthazar asked. "What danger they could be in?"
Elizabeth let out a tired sigh.
"I don’t think they care. Part of me wants to leave them to their folly…" She replied, taking her turn to look out into the reddening sky.
"You couldn’t do that." Baalthazar said. "If you couldn’t turn your back on me, you can’t turn your back on them."
"That’s not the same, and you know it." She said, touching his cheek again. "I didn’t choose them."
He pulled her close again, and pressed his lips against hers – this was her path to walk, but he’d be close by. He’d be there should anything go wrong.
Gabriel slipped the white coat over his shoulders and pressed his palm against the door. It swung open to reveal a modest hospital room – the bed was pushed back against the wall. At the desk in the corner sat a nurse, looking over charts and paperwork. This patient was monitored day and night for changes and signs that he would awake.
Jason Ingalls had been brought to Demonsacre on a medical jet Chartered from San Jose. His mind was more broken than his body, and that was saying something. The injuries sustained should have had him screaming wordless agony, yet all he’d managed was a muffled moan that he, Gabriel and Rogan had finally discerned as “Confess.”
Gabriel felt a touch of guilt when he considered that the medically induced coma that Jase found himself in, whilst the right thing to do, had been triggered by Eden’s reaction to hearing that garbled word over and over again. She’d withdrawn into herself somewhat. Almost shrunken. When she noticed him watching, she fixed a smile and seemed to relax into the world, but as soon as he looked away…
"How’s the patient?" Gabriel asked as he picked up the chart at the end of the bed. He’d done this at least three times a day since they’d returned to Demonsacre, he wasn’t even sure why anymore – the coma wasn’t lifting yet, and his injuries were healing nicely. They’d brought the tongue with them – Gabriel’s surgeons had all agreed that there would be no hope to save it. It had already started to decay, and that was before Eden’s foot had crushed it further.
"He’s stable. Vital signs are all normal. Given his level of trauma, we should be really pleased with his current condition." The nurse said. But something in her face made Gabriel nervous.
"What is it?" He asked. She picked up a chart and handed it to Gabriel.
"These are the results of his last EEG." She said, showing him the long lines. Gabriel looked at the results and saw what was concerning her. The results were distinctly average for the thirty minute test except that every ten minutes, the lines would spike for around 5 seconds before resting again.
"That is odd…" Gabriel said rubbing his jaw.
"That’s what I thought – there’s been no physical change at all. Just these intermittent bursts. If I wasn’t in the room when they happened I could have sworn he was…"
"Screaming." Said Gabriel, looking down at the still, unmoving body in the bed.
He looked strange without the beard – but it had been a requirement because of the intense levels of oxygen that had been required. His hair was still a little too long, and his fingernails were dirty. He still had the look of the biker he’d once been, long ago. Long before Gabriel even knew he existed. Before he’d met Eden Morgan.
At least, that’s what everyone said – Jase was just another victim of the black widow. But that was, of course, never the case – Jase had always been his own worst enemy.
"I’d like to do another EEG." Gabriel said, pulling up the sleeves of his shirt to the elbow. As they attached the electrodes to Jase’s scalp, Gabriel couldn’t help but muse that this was likely the only time he’d be in a room with Jase and not be inundated with a number of well chosen barbs. He thought back to all those times he’d called Jase dull… When he’d questioned Rogan’s choice. And then… There had been a moment… A moment back when Samantha had just died. When Quinn had just died… When the two of them were on the same page. There was a moment where the two of them had clicked.
Quinn.
He felt that new feeling. That familiar pang of guilt.
"Alright, thank you. Could you give us some time." Gabriel said quietly.
"Don’t you want me to monitor the results, Doctor?" The nurse asked.
"I’ll be fine – we can do an official thirty minutes later, I just want to run some tests." Gabriel said smiling. The nurse nodded, made a quip about finally getting to eat today, and left the room. Gabriel looked up at the cameras from under his eye lids – he pulled out his phone and unlocked it. He quickly cycled through the screens before switching off the cameras in the room.
"Fear." Gabriel said quietly as he pulled up a chair next to Jase’s bed. He pulled off the long white coat and draped it over the back of the seat. "Fear."
Gabriel ran his fingers across his forehead, one leg crossed over the other.
"I know you’ll always believe that you’re here because of us. Because of me… Because of Ichabod… Because of Eden. But the truth, Jase, is that you’re here because of Fear." Gabriel took a deep breath. "I used that fear against you, all those months ago – I forced you into a retreat that you would unlikely return from. If you hadn’t had that fear, then you’d never have fallen victim to my words. I don’t blame you for your fears – I think Rogan may have pushed you further than anyone had ever imagined. But still… Fear is key to all of this."
Gabriel drummed his fingers on his knee.
"I had hoped that Fear would be the key to destroying Necron – alas, given the events of this past week, it would appear that both he and dearest Aveline are firmly entrenched in camp Necron. I can’t really criticise them for that – they have their own agenda. Why work together to destroy the cannibal and potentially cost themselves. It was a shot in the dark – the proverbial Hail Mary, as you American’s love to say." Gabriel half smiled as he spoke. "But their mistake? It’s a simple one. Eden and I will fell the demon, and anyone who stood behind him will be in line for the same treatment. I have no dislike for either Phrixus or The Red Queen, but if they come between us and the opportunity to destroy the beast? Then They will fall by his side."
Gabriel’s eyes never left the monitor – he was waiting for something, for anything, but there was no activity. Nothing at all. Just calm.
"I often believed that Fear and I would have crippled this entire company if stood side by side. We, like no other, can shine a light on ones frailties and pick them out. He has, of course, turned his powers towards me on more than one occasion and I have, for the best part, remained respectful of all that he’s done here… I’m not sure why he speaks to me. Perhaps it’s because I see my career following his same path – petering out to bit part, added to matches to make up numbers, an afterthought when Eden Morgan wants an easy win… Or Dave Rydell wants to make another comeback." Gabriel says with calm.
"Perhaps it’s because his journal entries are a smokescreen for his own shortfall. Reading his opponents so very well, until he steps into the ring with them face to face – then, the real Deimos comes to the fore – the one who knows how to defeat every living opponent, but has not the stomach to do it. Pretty words shroud a career that should have ended long ago. Now, all he can talk of is the past – how many times he’s fought at Outlast. How many times he’s won the Massive Melee. How many times, how many times, how many times." Gabriel added his heat rising some.
"Yet the world and their wife are quick to point out just what a lacklustre year that I’ve had – that I’ve been Mr. Synergy. Winning when it doesn’t matter, when it doesn’t count. But riddle me this, Jase. If you returned to the ring tomorrow, who would you sooner face? Fear? Or me? Only a fool would choose Gabriel Baal over a man so devoid of purpose that his name is mentioned following the question “who else can we get?”. A man whose moniker should be altered to “The Embodiment of the fear of facing reality." Gabriel rolled his tongue in his mouth, chewing on his words.
"Phrixus is the old dog – grumpy, and best left to sleep. But only because his feeble attempts to do the things he could do in his youth are more likely to hurt him than anyone else. His teeth have fallen out, his bark is throaty and overused. His legs are gone, and his guts have twisted. Yet he hangs on, with the putrid stench of decay ebbing from his still overly active mouth. Old dogs, it is said, take themselves away to die – but maybe, just maybe – we need to take steps, to put this old dog out of it’s misery." Gabriel added.
As he did, Gabriel noticed the spike – the silent screams in Jase’s mind.
"Pareo." He said quickly, and as soon as he did, the spike calmed. Gabriel matched the short, one second spike to the much longer prolonged spikes that had covered his previous results. Gabriel stood and leaned over Jase, his lips just a small distance from his ear.
"It is my time to Confess, Jase." Gabriel said quietly. "I know what it is that fills your nightmares. I know what it is that haunts your waking day. I know what it is that makes you scream."
Gabriel looked up at the screen. He smiled as he noticed the much smaller spikes, but ones that told him that Jase could hear him.
"I lied, Jase." Gabriel said quietly. "In the arena, all those months ago. You were chained to that chair, and leaned forward – I whispered that word in your ear and you couldn’t help but listen to me. And then I lied."
Gabriel placed a hand on Jase’s shoulder, a kind of comfort, but he knew it would be none – no, he had to undo the wrong that he did all those months before.
"I told you that Quinn had never been real. That she was a reality created by Sam – something to give you purpose, To give you life – I told you that Quinn had been created for you." Gabriel said, another deep breath crossing his lips. "It was a lie, Jason. She was every bit as real… As you and I."
He looked up to watch the screen again, and this time he saw a more consistent spike – but Jase wasn’t screaming – he was mourning all over again.
"Perago" He said, as he watched the lines return to their calm.
"Doctor." Came a voice as the door opened. "There’s someone to see you – says his name is Cazador?"
"I’ll be right there." Gabriel said with a smile. As the door closed behind him, he placed a hand on Jase’s shoulder. "Rest now, Jason Ingalls. You’ll be better soon."
They were close enough that they could see the ritual, but far enough away that they couldn’t hear the words. It was fine – they would be able to intervene at a moments notice if required.
"I don’t like it." Said the Priest. "We shouldn’t be allowing this. It’s a crime against god."
"So am I." Said Baalthazar with a half smile. The priest gave him a disapproving look.
"I’m fully aware – I don’t work with you through choice." He said. "I do it because you have skills that I would rather we used against the evils of the world than for them."
Father McLearn was, for all intents and purposes, a man of the cloth. Yet the church did not bless him with an alter or a parish. Instead, his role in their organisation was to cast out evil. He’d spent much of his time alone, performing exorcisms and banishments. But the truth was, Father craved bigger game – game far too powerful for his religious skill alone. His obsession had become his disgrace – and he’d been cast out by the Church. He fought for them, but not with their permission.
It had been Elizabeth and Father McLearn that had come to banish Baalthazar back to The Pit. They chased him down and when they finally met, the Priest had learned of Daniel’s upbringing. A heavenly Demon – a demon who could read scripture. It was something unheard.
And then they’d happened upon a Drude that had been cursing the small village with Nightmares. When the night came, Elizabeth and Father McLearn were tortured to the verge of insanity. And then, as suddenly as they had arrived, the nightmares lifted. They awoke to find Baalthazar stood over them, the lifeless hanging form of the drude clasped within a demonic hand.
From then onwards, Baalthazar had followed at a distance – until he and Elizabeth.
"He doesn’t like it either." The Priest said, looking to the Spaniard. Baalthazar turned to face the masked man that had joined them just days ago. "He looks nervous."
"No, nunca estoy nervioso." He replied, not taking his eyes off the scene. "Estoy siempre listo."
"You have any idea what he’s saying?" Asked the priest.
"Never. Elizabeth has some Spanish – it was never a priority for me." Baalthazar said. He smiled as he turned to face the Priest. "But I think he’s ready."
"Why would we condone this? Them raising something we may have to destroy." The Priest said quietly.
"We can’t make an enemy of the witches – Elizabeth can’t protect us from them. And do you want to have to fight them all?" Baalthazar asked.
"No." Said the Priest. "I suppose not…"
"We watch – should they be successful, then we judge what they raise. If they fail, we’ve made no enemies. Anything else? Then we’ll step in. Agreed?" He asked.
"Agreed." Said the Priest. He turned to face the Spaniard, known only as Cassimiro.
"Sí." He replied. Baalthazar smiled.
"With any luck, the witches will take it in hand – and we’ll have a quiet night to our…" He began, but he was cut off by screams. His head snapped to face the witches who were struggling with a figure that was in the middle of their circle.
"Go!" Said Baalthazar. "Now!"
And they broke their wait, with haste.
Gabriel stepped into his office and smiled to see the masked Cazador waiting for him.
"Mr… Ador…" Gabriel said awkwardly. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"I accept." He said, tossing the envelope down onto Gabriel’s desk.
"Well… Yes… I know. You told me as much when we selected you." Gabriel said quietly.
"I accept." Cazador said again.
"I think… We’ve… Maybe gotten off on the wrong foot here. Let’s start again." Gabriel said, extending his hand. "It’s good to see you."
Cazador looked down at Gabriel’s hand.
"I accept." He said reaching out and shaking Gabriel’s. It was a tight squeeze, and Gabriel felt the bones in his hand graze against one another.
"Quite." He grimaced. "Well… It’s good to have you on our team. I suppose while you’re here, it would be an idea to discuss strategy. "
"I accept." Said Cazador, not moving to take a seat.
"Right…" Gabriel replied. "Well, of course, your size and strength are a huge bonus to us. And whilst we appreciate that you’re a little rusty, we can see you being a huge asset to our team. I suppose, we look at you as… Something like… The Hulk to our Avengers."
"I accept." Said Cazador with a slight nod.
"Ooooookay." Gabriel added with a brief shake of his head. "So, what I was thinking is that you could make it your goal to soften up the Red Queen. I mean, nothing too damaging, afterall she’s throwing a gala for my best friend, the beautiful Eden Morgan. And she’s invited just about everyone who matters…"
"I accept." Said Cazador, seeming to swell with a kind of pride.
"I didn’t mean… It’s not my ga…" Gabriel seems to be losing the will to live. "You know what, yes, fine… I’m sure you’ll be welcome given that you’re part of team Baal. Anyway – The Red Queen has been on every single episode of Synergy and every single Pay Per View event of the year – I would hate for our team to be the reason that streak ends. I mean, if it happens by accident, then of course that’s what our business is all about. But I’m not looking for someone to go out and purposefully hurt Aveline…"
"I accept." Cazador answers, with a hearty nod.
"No, Caz… Listen… I said… No. Just… No. Aveline is Okay. Beat her, but don’t hurt her." Gabriel answered with a touch of concern. "Fear. Somers. Necron. I’m perfectly happy with anything from serious to permanent injury to any one of those. But Aveline should be defeated in a such a way that she’s left unencumbered, do you understand?"
"I… Accept." Cazador added, seemingly unsure.
"Okay, that’s not even an answer to that particular question. Can you… Say… Anything else?"
"… I." Cazador answered. Gabriel merely stared at him.
"Anything… Else?" He said.
"… Ac… Cept?" Said Cazador said without any semblance of being sure.
"Alright, I think we’re basically done here…"Gabriel said. "In summary… Aveline, The Red Queen, Le Bord de Dieu is to be defeated, but not injured. The others? Necron, Somers and Fear? They’re fair game. Then, once we make it to the final, it’s every man for himself. Comprendé, amigo?"
"I accept." Said Cazador getting to his feet and turning to face the door. As he reaches the door and turns the handle, he turns slightly to face Gabriel.
"This is going to be fun." He said before stepping outside and closing the door behind him.
"What the f…" Said Gabriel, as we cut out a strategically family friendly moment.
As they reached the scene, the devastation was clear for all to see – bodies were strewn across the ground as most of Elizabeth’s coven had been struck down. The witch hunter lay cold on the ground, his sword cast aside – bloody from the bodies of those who he had slain in the name of the Beast. The clearing had been protected by a spell that had prevented the risen thing to leave, and Elizabeth was muttering incantations to hold it back. The Priest and Cassimiro passed through, but Baalthazar was held back.
"Elizabeth – let me through." He said, but she did not. He pressed his hand against the invisible wall that separated him from the battle within. "Elizabeth! Let me in! NOW!"
His roar was fearsome, and this time she obeyed. She waved her hand and he passed through the barrier, but her momentary lapse allowed for a change in the balance. From behind the dark shape, stepped another – a male witch, whose power was not as great as Elizabeth’s. He was fighting against her spell.
"Do not do this James." She called over the sound of the whirling winds inside whatever this protective spell was. "We have to send this beast back from where it came. Look! Look at what it has done to our family."
"You did this!" He called back with anger and malice. "You killed them! And when he is risen, he will smite you for your lack of faith."
"This is not a fight for you! Please! Just walk away!" She called again.
"No, Elizabeth! I am tired of your word. I’m tired of your lies and your disloyalty. I am tired of you!" He said as he aimed a spell in her direction. She broke her concentration for long enough to block, but when she did, two more somethings sprang forth from the place where the demon had risen.
"It’s another Drude!" Called Baalthazar. "And a Familiar. Phraxius and Evaline!"
"What do we do?" called The Priest.
"Elizabeth – you hold back the darkness. Cassimiro, break the drude. Father – you take the familiar. I’ll deal with him." Baalthazar said, pointing towards James.
"Elizabeth – I may have to hurt him." He said as he looked from James to her.
"Do what you must – this coven is dead after tonight." She managed a brief look. "Please be careful."
Baalthazar half smiled before leaping into the fray. James was not expecting the direct attack, and his spell missed by some distance – Baalthazar quickly seized him and lifted him up into the air – on his return to the earth, he heard the witches leg snap in two. In his fury and anger, the spell that hit Baalthazar knocked him backwards, and his feet dug up the earth as he fought not to collide with the invisible barrier.
"I can’t hold this much longer!" Elizabeth shouted. "I have to break this spell to start the incantation to send him back! Hurry!"
Baalthazar needed no further encouragement – he dodged James next spell and scooped him up into the air. This time as he dropped, a kick to the jaw sent him back against the barrier – he hung for a moment, his eyes wide in horror. As he dropped to the ground, unconscious, Baalthazar turned to find Cassimiro twist the neck of The Drude and Phraxius fell motionless to the ground. On his other side, The Priest had the Familiar bound with Rosary – her eyes were turned upwards as her life, such as it was, expired.
"We have to move quickly. As soon as she lifts the spell, we strike." Baalthazar said. "On the count of three."
"One… Two… Three…" Elizabeth counted. And she pulled back – her light, disappearing and leaving the kneeling demon in full view. She expected them to strike, but Baalthazar tilted his head.
"You." He said quietly. "It… Can’t be."
"Baalthazar…" He said. "So good to see you, old friend."
"You’re no friend of mine." Said Baalthazar and they struck at once – Elizabeth casting spells that weaved between the arms of Baalthazar and Cassimiro as they pummelled the stumbling form. The Priest played his part, his Rosary blistering the blackened skin even further as it touched, binding it’s legs as it moved to fight. But they were too much for the weakened demon – fighting Elizabeth’s spell had taken it out of him.
[br["Now!" Baalthazar called out! The Priest wrapped the Rosary around the demon’s neck and pulled, to the ground, holding it in place.
"Daemonium non receperint vos es huc. Redi, unde venisti." She called, and Baalthazr could feel the pull as the darkness began to swallow the beast. But there was something else, something he had feared from the moment he had recognised his quarry.
"Ignis et sulphur redire. Redi, unde venisti." He could feel his own pull as the spell cast out all demons, pushing him too back to the Pit from where he’d once come.
"Nos autem accipere, non in nostro mundo." Elizabeth said as the ground beneath him seemed to call for him. And then…
"Stop! Elizabeth! The incantation is taking Baalthazar too!" Called the Priest.
"NO! FINISH!" He called, but it was too late, her concentration was broken. The pull was all but gone – Baalthazar felt the beads shatter around him as they broke – and Baalthazar felt the power of the demon’s thrust to his chest. He fell backwards.
"Defendat vivi. Quod bonum. Ut ali hoc mundo. Et incolumem custodiat. Servare eos indemnes. Se defendat, et custodiat et in lucem ac tenebras. Dispelleret inferos terreno regno ad stationem." Elizabeth said quickly, and Baalthazar felt a warm glow inside of himself. And then she called to him "You are bound! You are bound to our world – the spell will not take you."
Baalthazar turned around just in time to see Cassimiro lifted into the air with a single hand – a quick twist of the wrist, and the Spaniard fell to the ground with a lifeless thud.
"No!" Called Elizabeth.
"Bastard!" Called the Priest as he rushed the demon. But he was ready, and about to crush the Priest in the same way.
"Naberus!" Bellowed Baalthazar, and the Demon’s concentration was broken. A new string of Rosary wrapped around his legs and his arms, but it would be seconds before he was free. "Pareo."
The Priest’s eyes widened as the Demon Naberus dropped to his knees in submission.
"What have you done to me?" Asked Naberus
"I know you, Naberus. The Marquess of Hell. But you know me only as Baalthazar. What you you misunderstand, is who I truly am. I am Baal – I am the Principle King of Hell and you will bow to me." He said. "You will forget all of this – save one thing. You will forget all but the fact that Elizabeth Morton sent you back from where you came."
Baalthazar stepped to the size, as Elizabeth stepped forth.
"Perago" He said, as Naberus took in only Elizabeth Morton.
" Vade ad tenebras et putrida tuam nomine. Redi, unde venisti, Ignis et sulphur redire. Redi, unde venisti. Nos autem accipere, non in nostro mundo. A qua venit revertetur!" She said, as the earth opened up around him.
"I will find you all! Every last one of your name! I will destroy them! I will kill them, They will pay for what you’ve done!" He screamed as the earth closed up, and the protective spell around them died away.
Baalthazar looked to Elizabeth as her eyes rolled in her head and blood ran from her nose. He caught her, before she hit the ground. He could feel her agony – the pain in her head. This fight had taken almost everything away from her. She needed to rest.
The door of his office burst open and Gabriel stood up from his side of the desk.
"They won’t take me to see Jase until I’ve been to see you." Rogan said advancing on Gabriel. He didn’t move. He didn’t shirk. "I’ve got nothing to say, and you’ve got nothing I want to hear."
"Good to see you too, brother." Said Gabriel with a smile.
"I’m not your god damn brother – I’ve not been your brother in a long, long time." He said with anger, his fish crashing down upon Gabriel’s desk.
"And whose fault is that?" Gabriel asked, quietly.
"I’m not getting into this bullshit with you, lad. I have nothing to say." Rogan said, turning his back on Gabriel to face the orderlies. "Right, I’ve seen the prick, can you take me to see Jase now?"
Gabriel shook his head, so they backed out and closed the door behind them.
"Of course not, because this is what you do, right? You don’t get what you want so you manipulate everything…" Rogan said, but Gabriel cut him off.
"I merely wish to talk strategy." Gabriel said, but Rogan let out a burst of mirthless laughter.
"Strategy? You fuckin’ kiddin’ me?" His anger betrayed his attempts to stifle his accent somewhat. "I don’t care about how this match ends. I’m here because you made me. I had no interest in coming back to this world. I was happy where I was and you dragged me back!"
"Then leave." Gabriel said quietly, his hand brushing over his eyebrows with exasperation.
"What?" Rogan asked.
"Leave. Go. Tuck tail and run away – because that’s what Rogan MacLean does, am I right?" Gabriel said.
"Fuck you." Rogan said. "You think I’m gonna leave and let you throw Jase back in San Jose to rot away?"
"I’ll treat Jase either way." Gabriel said quietly, sinking back into his chair looking weary. "I was always going to treat him."
"Then why…" Rogan started.
"Because I felt you needed some motivation to get involved. I rolled the dice." He said quietly. "Now I’m rolling them again. Go, if you want to leave… Fine. I hold you to no oath. Jason will be nursed back to health as best I can either way."
"Nah, you’re fuckin’ lying." Rogan said "This is another Baal trick…"
"Oh of course, because evil Gabriel strikes again." Said Baal, this time the mirthless laughter was his. "Because Gabriel is the route of all fucking evil as always."
"You’re trying to deny…" Rogan started.
"You sided with him! Ichabod!" Gabriel blazed. "After everything he’d done, after what you knew that he’d done to me… You sided with him. Lucy, I could understand… Woman scorned and all that… But you? You who so dispised the path that Ichabod was taking us down and you stood at his side."
"Dry your eyes, lad." Mocked Rogan.
"Oh I have no issues with Ichabod. At least he was a man about it – he gave me everything I needed to see his betrayal coming. But you… And Jet… And Lucy… All spent so much time on sermons about how despicable the demonic Baal was, yet it was I who was struck thrice while my back was turned. It was I who suffered the knife in my back. Time after time, I’m the one left betrayed." Gabriel said, before leaning back into his chair once more.
"I’m sorry for breaking your ankle. I’m sorry for the part I played I you hating this world. I’m sorry for whatever it was that I did that meant that you had to keep turning your back on me. I’m sorry for the part I played in the end of the Engine… And most of all, I’m sorry for whatever it was that cost us the friendship that existed before the Engine ever did." Gabriel said. "But don’t you dare act like you’re blameless. Because Rogan MacLean – you broke my god damn heart."
Rogan stared at him for a moment, unsure of what to say. He cleared his throat, before slowly walking towards the desk.
"So… Outlast." He said pulling out the chair. "Awkward."
Gabriel let out a small gasp of laughter.
"Quite." He said. "I was hoping that you could do us the honour of backing of our mutual former friend Jethro."
"I can do that…" Rogan said. "He and I never quite finished our business. Surprised you and Eden don’t want your hands on him yourselves."
"For now, I’d rather keep him at bay – Eden and I need to focus on Necron." Gabriel said quietly. "He’s the main target."
"Wouldn’t mind a crack at the big fella myself." Rogan said quietly. "For what he did to Jase."
"I think in the end it may take us all… but for now, you focus on Jet. He’s obsessed with Wallace, and we can use that to our advantage. If he’s sure he’s going to make it all the way? Then perhaps it could be the key to your success. " Said Gabriel quietly.
"What happened… To make Somers turn." Rogan asked.
"The Order…" Said Gabriel quietly. "Made the three of us a target – well… Two. Eden and I. Jet was an unfortunate by-product… We lost people. Eden’s father, Nate…. Quentin. He almost lost Sherry. In the end, he decided he’d had enough, put the blame on me and decided he needed to do something to stop me. My influence."
He noticed Rogan avert his eyes – he agreed. Evil Gabriel wasn’t going to fade away all at once.
"Jet Somers isn’t a coward – but he’s not a hero either. He preaches, more often than not, about virtue. He’s a master of deception – he can turn your head away from all that he’s done to shine a spotlight elsewhere. Lucy Wylde was never in danger in the care of her father, we had her monitored. We’d have stepped in at the last second. Would he have stepped in when Jase was locked in that shack? Taking daily beatings from his brothers?" Gabriel asked.
"That was before I knew Jase." Rogan said, fighting Gabriel’s point.
"Perhaps, but my point is simple – Jet Somers is not the angelic do-gooder that he’d have the world believe. He has done terrible things, he’s said terrible things, he’s stood by and watched terrible things happen. The only difference between he and I is that I’m willing to let you know I’m coming before I do. Jet would rather you not see until the very… Last… Second." Gabriel added with a smile.
"So what, you want to keep him away from you?" Rogan said. "Scared, Baal?"
"Not me, Rogan… From Eden." He said with a smile. "For now at least."
Rogan nodded, but Gabriel didn’t offer anymore. He slowly got to his feet.
"Jase?" He asked.
"Of course." Gabriel said, pressing a button on his intercom. The doors open, and the Orderlies step inside. "Could you escort Rogan to Mr. Ingall’s room?"
The Orderlies nod and Rogan makes his way towards the door.
"Rogan." Gabriel says as McLean turns on the spot to face him. "I really am sorry…"
Rogan takes a moment to consider his words, before nodding. It was slight, but it was there. As the door closes behind him, Gabriel looked back to his desk where his phone buzzed.
”I’ll be there in a few x” Eden text. And he couldn’t help but smile.
Elizabeth had taken days to wake up – and when she did, she couldn’t abide the light. So they kept the light at bay with layer upon layer of cloth over the windows. The Priest and Baalthazar slept in shifts to keep an eye on her – when she woke, she often awoke from nightmares not caused by the drude. More than once, they narrowly escaped the spells she cast in her half slumber. Day by day, she was getting better. Day by day, she was waking for longer and letting in a little more light.
After a month, she was almost back to normal. And they came to her together.
"Elizabeth…" Baalthazar said. "Our time is at an end."
"What do you mean?" She asked. "What time?"
"We can’t remain together." Said the Priest. "He won’t be banished forever, and should he come back…"
"Then we need to be together to defeat him." She said. "It will take us all."
"Apart, he fears what happens when we come together. Together, we’re a target. He can’t search for us all at once." Said Baalthazar. "You’re in most danger. He cursed you and your descendants."
"So… What… What do you propose?" She said, her jaw set and defiant. She had that fire in her eyes again.
"Father McLearn will return to Ireland – his work here will be enough to convince the church to allow him to retire. Give him a parish. Live out his days. I will head to London, find other hunters, join their ranks and hope that I can be alerted when he returns." Baalthazar said.
"And me?" She asked, fighting the tears in her eyes. "What do you expect to do about me?"
"I have a birth on a ship to the New World. Travel across the Ocean and start again – change your name. You will be safer." He said, fighting back tears of his own.
"I will be alone." She said, her tears winning out. The priest silently excused himself, as Baalthazar took his place by her side. He reached up and cupped her cheek.
"We can’t be together… If we are, then we’re in danger. I will fight Demons until the end of my days, but I will not stand by and watch while you sacrifice yourself to the edge of destruction. You have a responsibility to your descendants."
"I have no descendants!" She bellowed.
"Yet." He said, his eyes focused on hers. "I love you, Elizabeth… But you have a life after me. And you need to protect those who come next."
She opened her mouth to speak, but then thought better of it – instead, she pressed her lips against his. If they were to part, they would have one last night together. One last night where she could be truly happy.
Eden had slipped into their with Caleb lagging behind. His hands were full of bags, legacy of the shopping trip they’d just come back from. Eden had been less than impressed with the Presidential-style entourage she’d taken with her. In truth, Caleb wasn’t necessarily required, but Eden liked him around. Made her feel safe. He’d gone for coffee after he’d dumped her bags on the sofa and slipped into her seat at the desk. She leaned back and rested her six-inch heels on the edge of the desk before she’d even spoke.
"Hey there… Partner." She said playfully.
"Good afternoon, love? I hear Caleb made quite the valet." He replied.
"Could you not? He gets grumpy when people sat that, and I don’t want to risk having to carry my own bags." She said as she started to go through one of the bags she brought with him.
"Did you buy me a present?" Gabriel asked.
"Of course not." She said, as she pulled out a box.
"Of course not." Gabriel repeated. "What, prey tell, did you buy to improve the aesthetic of our office?"
"This!" She squealed. Gabriel’s eyes opened wide as she picked up the wooden sign with her name up off the desk, and tossed it over her shoulder. There was a loud smash as one of his crystal glasses broke. "Oops… But… Isn’t it pretty?"
She replaced the sign with one of her own – diamond encrusted, and her name carved into what looked like…
"Silver? You have a silver name plate?" Gabriel asked.
"Silver? No! It’s platinum." She said with a smile. Gabriel opened his mouth to argue, but she smiled as she pulled out a second box. She slid it across the desk. He pulled open the box and found a beautiful snake skin desk sign, with a stainless steal name plate.
"Well… That’s quite…" He smiled. "It’s beautiful."
Caleb walked back to the office and tried to hold the tray with one hand as he fumbled with the door.
"Eden… No… Stop… You’re rubbing too hard." Gabriel said from inside.
"Oh stop, I know what I’m doing. Here… Let me just…" She started.
"No! You’re not spitting on it." Gabriel said. "Just… Let go, let me do it myself."
"Well… You’re ungrateful. I just think you need a little lubrication when you’re… Oh the coffee’s here." Said Eden as Caleb pushed into the door. Gabriel had a cloth and was buffing the nameplate on the sign that Eden had bought for him.
"Name plate… Obviously…" He said.
"What?" Gabriel asked.
"Nothing." Caleb smirked. "Oh, Eden, they didn’t have Iced Machiatos…"
"What?!" She said, turning to look from Gabriel to Caleb, to Gabriel and back to Caleb. "No, no, no… I’m not working here where I have to live with regular people coffee. No. We need to have a Starbucks installed."
"Wait… What?" Gabriel said. "No! We’re not paying for a Starbucks franchise."
"Gabriel Baal, don’t you tell me what to do with my company." Eden said. "If I want a Starbucks… Then I will get a Starbucks."
"Eden, this is OUR facility. It’s also a hospital, you can’t have a coffee shop in a hospital." Gabriel replied. Around five seconds later, Eden was flashing up screenshots of Coffee shops in Hospitals all over the world.
"Jesus Christ… Fine… Whatever." Gabriel said. Caleb smirked. Eden was like a force of nature when she wanted to be.
"Then it’s settled." She said, almost with a sing-song.
"Can we, maybe, focus on Outlast?" Gabriel said as Caleb sat down in the corner with his own coffee. Eden walked around the desk and sat down, her fingers locked together, almost mocking Gabriel with her faux-serious nature.
"I call to order the first meeting of the Board of Directors of Baal Holdings…." Eden said.
"What are you doing?" Gabriel asked, his brow furrowed.
"Starting our meeting. Shouldn’t we have a secretary in here to take minutes? I suppose Caleb could do it…" Eden said.
"Not a fucking chance, love." Said Caleb, pulling his phone out of his pocket and starting to check messages.
"Fine. I’ll take the minutes." She said, looking through empty drawers. "Could I… Borrow a pen… And some paper. Please?"
She grinned at him.
"This isn’t a board meeting. Jesus Christ!" Gabriel said, throwing his hands in the air.
"Wow. Rude." Eden said, slowly closing the drawers and leaning back.
"Look… Can… We just focus… We’re almost at… We need to think about Outlast." He said.
"So you said… Want to get to the point?" Eden said, through gritted teeth.
"I spoke to Caz. And to Rogan. They’re keen on our plan. They should be able to handle Jet, Phrixus and Aveline." Gabriel said.
"Aveline…" Eden mocked in a poor imitation of Gabriel’s accent.
"Eden…" He said.
"Eden…" She mocked in another even worse imitation.
"What is wrong with you today? You’re giddy." He casts a furtive eye at Caleb who smirks.
"I’m looking forward to you and I standing side by side against Necron and bringing that big freak down for good. That’s all." She said, smiling leaning forward with her chin resting on her clasped hands. Caleb’s smirk slipped. "If he makes it that is."
"Eden, we know…"Gabriel started.
"I know, I know… It’s why we live here now." Eden said, with her eyes rolling almost 360o in her head. "But if you think I’m going to stop hoping he’s collapsed in a ditch somewhere, then you’re insane."
"Fair enough…" Gabriel said, a half smile forming across his lips. "In the more likely event that Necron is at Outlast? Then we should be able to face him off one on one."
"Not necessarily a requirement." Eden said with a smirk. It quelled with the look that Gabriel gave her.
"You’ve beaten him, and you’ve beaten him down. He’s still here." Gabriel said.
"So am I." Eden said, cooly, her arms crossed.
"Eden, I’m not diminishing what you’ve done. But I helped to get you backstage at Day of Reckoning. Your plan worked at Synergy, but that was with Ichabod’s help. Truth be told, the best chance we have to put him down for good is together." Gabriel said quietly.
"You sure you’re not just trying to protect me?" Eden asked, raising her head.
"As if I would even think of such a thing…" Gabriel said with a tilt of his own.
"Fine… Then… I approve of your plan." She said stifling a smile.
"You don’t know all of it yet, love." Gabriel said with a half-smile himself.
"Gabriel…" Eden said, leaning forward in her seat, her eyes widening. "What did you find?"
Gabriel slid his hand into the drawer by his side and pulled one of the journals out from inside. He pushed closed the drawer.
"I’ve found something that can stop him." Gabriel said with a smirk. "Caleb, could you give us a few minutes?"
Caleb looked incredulous, but Eden didn’t argue. He climbed out of his seat and stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him.
And he never heard, what Gabriel had planned.
Elizabeth’s eyes were filled with tears as he ship pulled away from the Dock in Liverpool. She waved to the men stood watching the ship sail away, and she moved around to keep them in sight for as long as she could. Father McLearn left shortly after, a slap on Baalthazar’s shoulder to signal his departing. Baalthazar didn’t leave the dock until the ship was a speck on the horizon.
High above the scene, Ichahead and Quentin watched this parting of the ways.
"I don’t see why you’re showing us this." Ichahead said.
"Because this is the last time Necron, then called Naberus was defeated. Defeated by the ancestors of Gabriel Baal, Eden Morgan and Rogan MacLean. This was the moment these three went their separate ways, never to meet… But their ancestors? They would come together once again…" She said.
"Outlast." Said Quentin.
"You fail to understand…" She said. "This is about more than Outlast or Battleground, or Horizons. This is about more than UGWC, about wrestling… This is about good and evil."
"Wait, this isn’t about wrestling? Well who could possibly care about it if it’s got nothing to do with wrestling?" Asked Ichahead.
"It’s a little about wrestling." Said Quentin.
"It’s about wrestling and more – not every story has to be the same. And this story has origins hundreds of years ago – you have seen how the monster was defeated. You have seen what happened in those journals of Eden Morgan." She answered.
"So it needs the three of them? All of them to defeat him?" Quentin asked.
"MacLean makes things easier – but it is Gabriel and Eden that must cast him aside. They can end his threat forever…"
"And call them off me too?" Ichahead asked. "Because I’m done with that carnivorous choad."
"You will cease your senseless talking – you are no Ichabod. You are a shadow." She said.
"She’s got your number… You’re more of a cloud than a shadow." Quentin said with a grin.
"And you – jest and joke all you like, but you were reanimated to help your brother, and you have… So far… Failed him." She accused.
"Savage…" Said Quentin. "But… Fair."
"You can help him now – but not yet. He has knowledge, but not enough – he will fall before he flies." She said.
"You keep saying that, I’ve got no idea what that…" Ichahead and Gabriel turn around, but she’s gone. "Means… Well… That’s rude."
"Oh god… Has she left us here?" Quentin asked.
"Brilliant." Said Ichahead, as they took a seat on the edge of the building. "Fucking brilliant."
Hello Alan.
Things are, I assume, as you always want them. Alan Wallace stood in the centre of the ring with all eyes on him. In this instance, twenty four competitors all trying to scramble over one another in the Outlast tournament in order to get an opportunity to step into the ring with you in the Main Event. All eyes on Alan… All eyes on Wallace.
All eyes on Vain.
I know the pressure this event throws up – I myself, arguably crumbled under the pressure of it last year. Some would say that I was effected by the fact that I had to forego the Champions advantage of this event by fighting in the opening round. I was, of course, successful in that first round, but it made little difference. At the end of the night, it was Rogan’s hand lifted high in the air. You have no such pressure, which is good. I wouldn’t put anyone through that which Eden I have had to fight through.
You take your advantage, Vain… You’ve earned it.
It’s amazing that in three years, you and I have avoided one another like oil and water. You were the first name to tumble from my lips when I made my debut. Back in the days before you were dethroned by Travis Roberts. Back before you became that shadow of the man you used to be. Of course, you’re back to your best now – you defeated two women who have defeated me this calendar year. Lucy Wylde and Maggie Lockhart. You earned both of their championships and defended one of them against Backstab McGee just two weeks ago.
Another fantastic defence.
But this is the irony, I suppose. This time last year I was on top of the fucking world, and you were getting pinned by Dave Rydell at last years event. The lowest point in your career, and the pinnacle of mine. The juxtapositions between us are remarkable. Now you’re the Champion, Alan… One hard year later, and I’m the man who has failed and failed and failed. I take you as my inspiration, Alan. Knowing that the only certainty about being our World heavyweight Champion is that one day… You won’t be.
And one day I will.
Because you can’t keep a good man down forever, you’re testament to that. I’ve watched you play straight man to Travis Roberts, I’ve watched you play straight man for Killian King, I’ve watched you do what you chastise me for – follow Eden Morgan. I’ve watched you defeated by Dave Rydell, a feat that even I haven’t fallen to. I’ve watched you lose, and lose, and lose and lose… Yet look at you now. You’re career has had more ups and downs than Roxxxy Cotton’s underwear. You’ve had longer gaps between success than Roxxxy’s had between her ankles. You’ve been seen as a more worthless cunt than… Well…
That one writes itself.
Even this year, in the worst year of my career, you’ve done what you can to avoid me. Since day one I’ve had the urge to finally face you, but we’ve never so much as stepped in the same ring with any real meaning. You seem to mock my ability and my prowess despite the fact that you’ve been where I’ve been, and still you don’t seem to want to face me one… on… one. The great Vain, is no different to anyone else. Quick to spurn me, but the last to choose to face me. I’m a threat, whether I’m in form or not.
That’s a hell of a compliment.
The thing is, I know what you are – I have no problem respecting you. I know Eden and Killian were quick to tell you that you should retire. I disagree – I think you should keep clawing and scratching back to the top every time you tumble back to the bottom of the pile. I know it’s harder to come back from every time… I know you lose motivation… I know you lose heart. I know that dee down you ask yourself is it worth it? I suppose it’s why you’re always fighting for yourself, because you know that if you disappeared tomorrow, no-one would mourn?
Such a damning sentiment for such a legend in our business.
I mean how long did it take you this time? Two and a half years of false starts and failings. Two and a half years of almost being back to where you should be. Although, I suppose if you lost at Outlast that would just be… Another false dawn? I mean, I suppose when you think about it, anyone can win a ladder match… It’s not like you actually BEAT anyone for the title… You just… Climbed a ladder and stole it. This time you’re going o have to actually beat people to retain it… And if you don’t? Well… Day of Reckoning will just look like another Alan Wallace fluke… A win because the serious competitors were concentrating on one another…
That would be terrible…
It’s already tough to get out of bed of a morning… That would likely make it even worse. Alan Wallace, gun-shy… A thief rather than a victor. A charlatan rather than the real thing. A fraud who can’t even defend that which he takes – I suppose, when you think of it like that, your final run as Champion would be remembered in the same vein as Vein… As Mil Vidas Jnr. Lucky… Taking advantage… But couldn’t hold on to it when it really mattered.
A shadow of the Champion you used to be.
I know you’re getting old Alan, so I’ll give you a quick reminder… I’m a former World Heavyweight Champion. A former two-time Cross Hemisphere Champion, a former two-time Chaos Champion and a former two time Co-Operative Champion. I’m the fastest Grand Slam Champion of all… Time. I’m a winner of the Massive Melee, the Global Challenge and the first ever Trios Tournament and after this Monday? I’ll be the winner of Outlast too. And a two-time Grand Slam winner. And I have no issues with slapping you back to being Dave Rydell’s bitch in order to do it. Yes Alan… I’ll see you Monday.
Please allow me, to introduce myself.
He took in the scent of her hair – a perfume of her own design, mixed from herbs and botanicals found in and around their temporarily home. He could feel her press against him even more, as the chill in the air caught her naked skin. His hand snaked around her, his fingers now tracing the same line over her stomach and between her breasts. She clasped her hand in her own and began kissing the tips of his fingers.
So… She was awake.
He let out a low groan as she nibbled the tips of his fingers, as she rolled her head against his shoulder. He pressed his lips against her neck and she let out a squeak of excitement. He kissed from her neck up behind her ear and then back again to her shoulder as she arched even more, pressing against him with more fervour. His hand pulled away from her mouth as it slipped down to grip her hip, as he sunk his teeth into her flesh.
"Careful." She squeaked. "That will leave a mark."
"That was my intention." He said. "To mark you as my own."
She reacted instantly, turning to face him, her lips on his as they lost themselves in one another. It was a circle – endless and eternal. They would love and they would sleep. Over and over they had repeated the cycle as the edged ever closer to the cataclysm. They’d been lost and been found so many times in these past days that they’d almost forgotten the task that had been thrust upon them.
But once more would hurt no-one, he thought, as he lost himself in her eyes all over again.
When he next awoke, he found himself alone on the makeshift bed. Blankets and furs on the ground next to the fire that had been burning without fuel for the last seven days. He looked around, his eyes taking a moment to adjust to the dark corners when he found her – Elizabeth Morgan - pulling her dress down over her waist.
"Is it time?" Baalthazar asked. She jumped at his sudden intrusion into quiet. "Shall I ready the others?"
"No, my love." She said, taking a moment to be still her beating heart. "We have time before the event."
"This is a terrible idea. You know I can feel it – the darkness that lurks beneath." He said, standing from their nest, two vipers now uncoiled yet still ready to strike. "You must rethink this course."
"It is not my choice – I am to be there whether I wish too or not. To stand aside from them, to let them do this without our full power would be a crime against my kind." She said as she approached him and pressed her hand against his cheek. "Do not worry, love. I have the coven with me."
"And what do they offer you by the way of protection?" He asked, his heat rising. "Hocus pocus? Tricks? Smoke and mirrors?"
"You mock my coven, you mock me, sir." She said with a smile on her face. She knew the truth of him – he mocked, but he knew their power. He looked away, towards the window of their small shack – he looked out into a world that seemed to belay the calm before the storm.
"I can’t bare the thought of what could happen to you, Elizabeth. These kinds of incantations, they’re dangerous. Often what you think you’re going to find at the end is…" He began, but she stopped him with a finger to his lips. She stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his.
"It will be fine my love – you and the others will be nearby. Should anything go awry, I know you’ll be close enough to assist us." She said.
"And be banished back to the wasteland with whatever it is rises from the underworld? I won’t go back to the Pit." He said, his eyes wide.
Baalthazar had been born to a mother seduced by Demon. His birth had torn her apart, and he’d bathed in her blood. Left to die, the baby was found by a holy-man and taken to the Church orphanage. No-one at the Orphanage would ever turn him away, but none could bring themselves to escort the newly named David into the church.
On the 16th anniversary of his birth, he had awoken to find a man sat on his bed – the man’s eyes were blood red, and he’d offered Daniel his hand. When the two touched, they had been transported to a world like nothing he’d ever seen before. The darkness, the fear… Part of him yearned for it, but part of him hated it. He was being ripped in two– the human and the demon inside of him at constant odds.
He had returned to the living world upon his eighteenth year, having not aged a day. Twisted, broken, damaged beyond repair. He was isolated, and evil – his human side, cowering for fear that his demonic qualities would seek to destroy it. His evil was known across the land, and all those who cast eyes upon him feared his gaze. He ruled the rhealm of men, but had their disease. The crushing pull of time.
He was mortal here. He had grown older, and as time had gone on he had settled his mind on the idea that his days would end back in that place he’d hated so much. For twenty years he wandered the land, turning man on man and corrupting all that he touched. His time was growing short, time was pressing on. He would have to return to The Pit before long.
And then he met her – her eyes full of fire, despite their icy blue.
Elizabeth Morton had caught his eye and his breath – he’d challenged her to the ends of her wit, and yet she’d fought back with power and strength. She was a witch of some renown, despite having cast her coven aside for the thrill of adventure. She too had travelled the land, following Baalthazar’s path, putting right that which he had wronged.
To those Baalthazar had cursed, she was an angel.
They had battled for so long, until eventually they fell into one another’s arms – it had been a tryst of lust that had grown into so much more. When he looked into those ocean blue eyes, he saw a different kind of fire now – not defiant, but passionate. They had returned to her home to find her coven in disarray – they were at odds as to whether or not they should use their power to raise something from below. Elizabeth knew they were wrong, but she couldn’t stand by and watch without helping.
Tonight was the night – the night of the blood red moon.
"Do they even know what they’re bringing to this World?" Baalthazar asked. "What danger they could be in?"
Elizabeth let out a tired sigh.
"I don’t think they care. Part of me wants to leave them to their folly…" She replied, taking her turn to look out into the reddening sky.
"You couldn’t do that." Baalthazar said. "If you couldn’t turn your back on me, you can’t turn your back on them."
"That’s not the same, and you know it." She said, touching his cheek again. "I didn’t choose them."
He pulled her close again, and pressed his lips against hers – this was her path to walk, but he’d be close by. He’d be there should anything go wrong.
Gabriel slipped the white coat over his shoulders and pressed his palm against the door. It swung open to reveal a modest hospital room – the bed was pushed back against the wall. At the desk in the corner sat a nurse, looking over charts and paperwork. This patient was monitored day and night for changes and signs that he would awake.
Jason Ingalls had been brought to Demonsacre on a medical jet Chartered from San Jose. His mind was more broken than his body, and that was saying something. The injuries sustained should have had him screaming wordless agony, yet all he’d managed was a muffled moan that he, Gabriel and Rogan had finally discerned as “Confess.”
Gabriel felt a touch of guilt when he considered that the medically induced coma that Jase found himself in, whilst the right thing to do, had been triggered by Eden’s reaction to hearing that garbled word over and over again. She’d withdrawn into herself somewhat. Almost shrunken. When she noticed him watching, she fixed a smile and seemed to relax into the world, but as soon as he looked away…
"How’s the patient?" Gabriel asked as he picked up the chart at the end of the bed. He’d done this at least three times a day since they’d returned to Demonsacre, he wasn’t even sure why anymore – the coma wasn’t lifting yet, and his injuries were healing nicely. They’d brought the tongue with them – Gabriel’s surgeons had all agreed that there would be no hope to save it. It had already started to decay, and that was before Eden’s foot had crushed it further.
"He’s stable. Vital signs are all normal. Given his level of trauma, we should be really pleased with his current condition." The nurse said. But something in her face made Gabriel nervous.
"What is it?" He asked. She picked up a chart and handed it to Gabriel.
"These are the results of his last EEG." She said, showing him the long lines. Gabriel looked at the results and saw what was concerning her. The results were distinctly average for the thirty minute test except that every ten minutes, the lines would spike for around 5 seconds before resting again.
"That is odd…" Gabriel said rubbing his jaw.
"That’s what I thought – there’s been no physical change at all. Just these intermittent bursts. If I wasn’t in the room when they happened I could have sworn he was…"
"Screaming." Said Gabriel, looking down at the still, unmoving body in the bed.
He looked strange without the beard – but it had been a requirement because of the intense levels of oxygen that had been required. His hair was still a little too long, and his fingernails were dirty. He still had the look of the biker he’d once been, long ago. Long before Gabriel even knew he existed. Before he’d met Eden Morgan.
At least, that’s what everyone said – Jase was just another victim of the black widow. But that was, of course, never the case – Jase had always been his own worst enemy.
"I’d like to do another EEG." Gabriel said, pulling up the sleeves of his shirt to the elbow. As they attached the electrodes to Jase’s scalp, Gabriel couldn’t help but muse that this was likely the only time he’d be in a room with Jase and not be inundated with a number of well chosen barbs. He thought back to all those times he’d called Jase dull… When he’d questioned Rogan’s choice. And then… There had been a moment… A moment back when Samantha had just died. When Quinn had just died… When the two of them were on the same page. There was a moment where the two of them had clicked.
Quinn.
He felt that new feeling. That familiar pang of guilt.
"Alright, thank you. Could you give us some time." Gabriel said quietly.
"Don’t you want me to monitor the results, Doctor?" The nurse asked.
"I’ll be fine – we can do an official thirty minutes later, I just want to run some tests." Gabriel said smiling. The nurse nodded, made a quip about finally getting to eat today, and left the room. Gabriel looked up at the cameras from under his eye lids – he pulled out his phone and unlocked it. He quickly cycled through the screens before switching off the cameras in the room.
"Fear." Gabriel said quietly as he pulled up a chair next to Jase’s bed. He pulled off the long white coat and draped it over the back of the seat. "Fear."
Gabriel ran his fingers across his forehead, one leg crossed over the other.
"I know you’ll always believe that you’re here because of us. Because of me… Because of Ichabod… Because of Eden. But the truth, Jase, is that you’re here because of Fear." Gabriel took a deep breath. "I used that fear against you, all those months ago – I forced you into a retreat that you would unlikely return from. If you hadn’t had that fear, then you’d never have fallen victim to my words. I don’t blame you for your fears – I think Rogan may have pushed you further than anyone had ever imagined. But still… Fear is key to all of this."
Gabriel drummed his fingers on his knee.
"I had hoped that Fear would be the key to destroying Necron – alas, given the events of this past week, it would appear that both he and dearest Aveline are firmly entrenched in camp Necron. I can’t really criticise them for that – they have their own agenda. Why work together to destroy the cannibal and potentially cost themselves. It was a shot in the dark – the proverbial Hail Mary, as you American’s love to say." Gabriel half smiled as he spoke. "But their mistake? It’s a simple one. Eden and I will fell the demon, and anyone who stood behind him will be in line for the same treatment. I have no dislike for either Phrixus or The Red Queen, but if they come between us and the opportunity to destroy the beast? Then They will fall by his side."
Gabriel’s eyes never left the monitor – he was waiting for something, for anything, but there was no activity. Nothing at all. Just calm.
"I often believed that Fear and I would have crippled this entire company if stood side by side. We, like no other, can shine a light on ones frailties and pick them out. He has, of course, turned his powers towards me on more than one occasion and I have, for the best part, remained respectful of all that he’s done here… I’m not sure why he speaks to me. Perhaps it’s because I see my career following his same path – petering out to bit part, added to matches to make up numbers, an afterthought when Eden Morgan wants an easy win… Or Dave Rydell wants to make another comeback." Gabriel says with calm.
"Perhaps it’s because his journal entries are a smokescreen for his own shortfall. Reading his opponents so very well, until he steps into the ring with them face to face – then, the real Deimos comes to the fore – the one who knows how to defeat every living opponent, but has not the stomach to do it. Pretty words shroud a career that should have ended long ago. Now, all he can talk of is the past – how many times he’s fought at Outlast. How many times he’s won the Massive Melee. How many times, how many times, how many times." Gabriel added his heat rising some.
"Yet the world and their wife are quick to point out just what a lacklustre year that I’ve had – that I’ve been Mr. Synergy. Winning when it doesn’t matter, when it doesn’t count. But riddle me this, Jase. If you returned to the ring tomorrow, who would you sooner face? Fear? Or me? Only a fool would choose Gabriel Baal over a man so devoid of purpose that his name is mentioned following the question “who else can we get?”. A man whose moniker should be altered to “The Embodiment of the fear of facing reality." Gabriel rolled his tongue in his mouth, chewing on his words.
"Phrixus is the old dog – grumpy, and best left to sleep. But only because his feeble attempts to do the things he could do in his youth are more likely to hurt him than anyone else. His teeth have fallen out, his bark is throaty and overused. His legs are gone, and his guts have twisted. Yet he hangs on, with the putrid stench of decay ebbing from his still overly active mouth. Old dogs, it is said, take themselves away to die – but maybe, just maybe – we need to take steps, to put this old dog out of it’s misery." Gabriel added.
As he did, Gabriel noticed the spike – the silent screams in Jase’s mind.
"Pareo." He said quickly, and as soon as he did, the spike calmed. Gabriel matched the short, one second spike to the much longer prolonged spikes that had covered his previous results. Gabriel stood and leaned over Jase, his lips just a small distance from his ear.
"It is my time to Confess, Jase." Gabriel said quietly. "I know what it is that fills your nightmares. I know what it is that haunts your waking day. I know what it is that makes you scream."
Gabriel looked up at the screen. He smiled as he noticed the much smaller spikes, but ones that told him that Jase could hear him.
"I lied, Jase." Gabriel said quietly. "In the arena, all those months ago. You were chained to that chair, and leaned forward – I whispered that word in your ear and you couldn’t help but listen to me. And then I lied."
Gabriel placed a hand on Jase’s shoulder, a kind of comfort, but he knew it would be none – no, he had to undo the wrong that he did all those months before.
"I told you that Quinn had never been real. That she was a reality created by Sam – something to give you purpose, To give you life – I told you that Quinn had been created for you." Gabriel said, another deep breath crossing his lips. "It was a lie, Jason. She was every bit as real… As you and I."
He looked up to watch the screen again, and this time he saw a more consistent spike – but Jase wasn’t screaming – he was mourning all over again.
"Perago" He said, as he watched the lines return to their calm.
"Doctor." Came a voice as the door opened. "There’s someone to see you – says his name is Cazador?"
"I’ll be right there." Gabriel said with a smile. As the door closed behind him, he placed a hand on Jase’s shoulder. "Rest now, Jason Ingalls. You’ll be better soon."
They were close enough that they could see the ritual, but far enough away that they couldn’t hear the words. It was fine – they would be able to intervene at a moments notice if required.
"I don’t like it." Said the Priest. "We shouldn’t be allowing this. It’s a crime against god."
"So am I." Said Baalthazar with a half smile. The priest gave him a disapproving look.
"I’m fully aware – I don’t work with you through choice." He said. "I do it because you have skills that I would rather we used against the evils of the world than for them."
Father McLearn was, for all intents and purposes, a man of the cloth. Yet the church did not bless him with an alter or a parish. Instead, his role in their organisation was to cast out evil. He’d spent much of his time alone, performing exorcisms and banishments. But the truth was, Father craved bigger game – game far too powerful for his religious skill alone. His obsession had become his disgrace – and he’d been cast out by the Church. He fought for them, but not with their permission.
It had been Elizabeth and Father McLearn that had come to banish Baalthazar back to The Pit. They chased him down and when they finally met, the Priest had learned of Daniel’s upbringing. A heavenly Demon – a demon who could read scripture. It was something unheard.
And then they’d happened upon a Drude that had been cursing the small village with Nightmares. When the night came, Elizabeth and Father McLearn were tortured to the verge of insanity. And then, as suddenly as they had arrived, the nightmares lifted. They awoke to find Baalthazar stood over them, the lifeless hanging form of the drude clasped within a demonic hand.
From then onwards, Baalthazar had followed at a distance – until he and Elizabeth.
"He doesn’t like it either." The Priest said, looking to the Spaniard. Baalthazar turned to face the masked man that had joined them just days ago. "He looks nervous."
"No, nunca estoy nervioso." He replied, not taking his eyes off the scene. "Estoy siempre listo."
"You have any idea what he’s saying?" Asked the priest.
"Never. Elizabeth has some Spanish – it was never a priority for me." Baalthazar said. He smiled as he turned to face the Priest. "But I think he’s ready."
"Why would we condone this? Them raising something we may have to destroy." The Priest said quietly.
"We can’t make an enemy of the witches – Elizabeth can’t protect us from them. And do you want to have to fight them all?" Baalthazar asked.
"No." Said the Priest. "I suppose not…"
"We watch – should they be successful, then we judge what they raise. If they fail, we’ve made no enemies. Anything else? Then we’ll step in. Agreed?" He asked.
"Agreed." Said the Priest. He turned to face the Spaniard, known only as Cassimiro.
"Sí." He replied. Baalthazar smiled.
"With any luck, the witches will take it in hand – and we’ll have a quiet night to our…" He began, but he was cut off by screams. His head snapped to face the witches who were struggling with a figure that was in the middle of their circle.
"Go!" Said Baalthazar. "Now!"
And they broke their wait, with haste.
Gabriel stepped into his office and smiled to see the masked Cazador waiting for him.
"Mr… Ador…" Gabriel said awkwardly. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"I accept." He said, tossing the envelope down onto Gabriel’s desk.
"Well… Yes… I know. You told me as much when we selected you." Gabriel said quietly.
"I accept." Cazador said again.
"I think… We’ve… Maybe gotten off on the wrong foot here. Let’s start again." Gabriel said, extending his hand. "It’s good to see you."
Cazador looked down at Gabriel’s hand.
"I accept." He said reaching out and shaking Gabriel’s. It was a tight squeeze, and Gabriel felt the bones in his hand graze against one another.
"Quite." He grimaced. "Well… It’s good to have you on our team. I suppose while you’re here, it would be an idea to discuss strategy. "
"I accept." Said Cazador, not moving to take a seat.
"Right…" Gabriel replied. "Well, of course, your size and strength are a huge bonus to us. And whilst we appreciate that you’re a little rusty, we can see you being a huge asset to our team. I suppose, we look at you as… Something like… The Hulk to our Avengers."
"I accept." Said Cazador with a slight nod.
"Ooooookay." Gabriel added with a brief shake of his head. "So, what I was thinking is that you could make it your goal to soften up the Red Queen. I mean, nothing too damaging, afterall she’s throwing a gala for my best friend, the beautiful Eden Morgan. And she’s invited just about everyone who matters…"
"I accept." Said Cazador, seeming to swell with a kind of pride.
"I didn’t mean… It’s not my ga…" Gabriel seems to be losing the will to live. "You know what, yes, fine… I’m sure you’ll be welcome given that you’re part of team Baal. Anyway – The Red Queen has been on every single episode of Synergy and every single Pay Per View event of the year – I would hate for our team to be the reason that streak ends. I mean, if it happens by accident, then of course that’s what our business is all about. But I’m not looking for someone to go out and purposefully hurt Aveline…"
"I accept." Cazador answers, with a hearty nod.
"No, Caz… Listen… I said… No. Just… No. Aveline is Okay. Beat her, but don’t hurt her." Gabriel answered with a touch of concern. "Fear. Somers. Necron. I’m perfectly happy with anything from serious to permanent injury to any one of those. But Aveline should be defeated in a such a way that she’s left unencumbered, do you understand?"
"I… Accept." Cazador added, seemingly unsure.
"Okay, that’s not even an answer to that particular question. Can you… Say… Anything else?"
"… I." Cazador answered. Gabriel merely stared at him.
"Anything… Else?" He said.
"… Ac… Cept?" Said Cazador said without any semblance of being sure.
"Alright, I think we’re basically done here…"Gabriel said. "In summary… Aveline, The Red Queen, Le Bord de Dieu is to be defeated, but not injured. The others? Necron, Somers and Fear? They’re fair game. Then, once we make it to the final, it’s every man for himself. Comprendé, amigo?"
"I accept." Said Cazador getting to his feet and turning to face the door. As he reaches the door and turns the handle, he turns slightly to face Gabriel.
"This is going to be fun." He said before stepping outside and closing the door behind him.
"What the f…" Said Gabriel, as we cut out a strategically family friendly moment.
As they reached the scene, the devastation was clear for all to see – bodies were strewn across the ground as most of Elizabeth’s coven had been struck down. The witch hunter lay cold on the ground, his sword cast aside – bloody from the bodies of those who he had slain in the name of the Beast. The clearing had been protected by a spell that had prevented the risen thing to leave, and Elizabeth was muttering incantations to hold it back. The Priest and Cassimiro passed through, but Baalthazar was held back.
"Elizabeth – let me through." He said, but she did not. He pressed his hand against the invisible wall that separated him from the battle within. "Elizabeth! Let me in! NOW!"
His roar was fearsome, and this time she obeyed. She waved her hand and he passed through the barrier, but her momentary lapse allowed for a change in the balance. From behind the dark shape, stepped another – a male witch, whose power was not as great as Elizabeth’s. He was fighting against her spell.
"Do not do this James." She called over the sound of the whirling winds inside whatever this protective spell was. "We have to send this beast back from where it came. Look! Look at what it has done to our family."
"You did this!" He called back with anger and malice. "You killed them! And when he is risen, he will smite you for your lack of faith."
"This is not a fight for you! Please! Just walk away!" She called again.
"No, Elizabeth! I am tired of your word. I’m tired of your lies and your disloyalty. I am tired of you!" He said as he aimed a spell in her direction. She broke her concentration for long enough to block, but when she did, two more somethings sprang forth from the place where the demon had risen.
"It’s another Drude!" Called Baalthazar. "And a Familiar. Phraxius and Evaline!"
"What do we do?" called The Priest.
"Elizabeth – you hold back the darkness. Cassimiro, break the drude. Father – you take the familiar. I’ll deal with him." Baalthazar said, pointing towards James.
"Elizabeth – I may have to hurt him." He said as he looked from James to her.
"Do what you must – this coven is dead after tonight." She managed a brief look. "Please be careful."
Baalthazar half smiled before leaping into the fray. James was not expecting the direct attack, and his spell missed by some distance – Baalthazar quickly seized him and lifted him up into the air – on his return to the earth, he heard the witches leg snap in two. In his fury and anger, the spell that hit Baalthazar knocked him backwards, and his feet dug up the earth as he fought not to collide with the invisible barrier.
"I can’t hold this much longer!" Elizabeth shouted. "I have to break this spell to start the incantation to send him back! Hurry!"
Baalthazar needed no further encouragement – he dodged James next spell and scooped him up into the air. This time as he dropped, a kick to the jaw sent him back against the barrier – he hung for a moment, his eyes wide in horror. As he dropped to the ground, unconscious, Baalthazar turned to find Cassimiro twist the neck of The Drude and Phraxius fell motionless to the ground. On his other side, The Priest had the Familiar bound with Rosary – her eyes were turned upwards as her life, such as it was, expired.
"We have to move quickly. As soon as she lifts the spell, we strike." Baalthazar said. "On the count of three."
"One… Two… Three…" Elizabeth counted. And she pulled back – her light, disappearing and leaving the kneeling demon in full view. She expected them to strike, but Baalthazar tilted his head.
"You." He said quietly. "It… Can’t be."
"Baalthazar…" He said. "So good to see you, old friend."
"You’re no friend of mine." Said Baalthazar and they struck at once – Elizabeth casting spells that weaved between the arms of Baalthazar and Cassimiro as they pummelled the stumbling form. The Priest played his part, his Rosary blistering the blackened skin even further as it touched, binding it’s legs as it moved to fight. But they were too much for the weakened demon – fighting Elizabeth’s spell had taken it out of him.
[br["Now!" Baalthazar called out! The Priest wrapped the Rosary around the demon’s neck and pulled, to the ground, holding it in place.
"Daemonium non receperint vos es huc. Redi, unde venisti." She called, and Baalthazr could feel the pull as the darkness began to swallow the beast. But there was something else, something he had feared from the moment he had recognised his quarry.
"Ignis et sulphur redire. Redi, unde venisti." He could feel his own pull as the spell cast out all demons, pushing him too back to the Pit from where he’d once come.
"Nos autem accipere, non in nostro mundo." Elizabeth said as the ground beneath him seemed to call for him. And then…
"Stop! Elizabeth! The incantation is taking Baalthazar too!" Called the Priest.
"NO! FINISH!" He called, but it was too late, her concentration was broken. The pull was all but gone – Baalthazar felt the beads shatter around him as they broke – and Baalthazar felt the power of the demon’s thrust to his chest. He fell backwards.
"Defendat vivi. Quod bonum. Ut ali hoc mundo. Et incolumem custodiat. Servare eos indemnes. Se defendat, et custodiat et in lucem ac tenebras. Dispelleret inferos terreno regno ad stationem." Elizabeth said quickly, and Baalthazar felt a warm glow inside of himself. And then she called to him "You are bound! You are bound to our world – the spell will not take you."
Baalthazar turned around just in time to see Cassimiro lifted into the air with a single hand – a quick twist of the wrist, and the Spaniard fell to the ground with a lifeless thud.
"No!" Called Elizabeth.
"Bastard!" Called the Priest as he rushed the demon. But he was ready, and about to crush the Priest in the same way.
"Naberus!" Bellowed Baalthazar, and the Demon’s concentration was broken. A new string of Rosary wrapped around his legs and his arms, but it would be seconds before he was free. "Pareo."
The Priest’s eyes widened as the Demon Naberus dropped to his knees in submission.
"What have you done to me?" Asked Naberus
"I know you, Naberus. The Marquess of Hell. But you know me only as Baalthazar. What you you misunderstand, is who I truly am. I am Baal – I am the Principle King of Hell and you will bow to me." He said. "You will forget all of this – save one thing. You will forget all but the fact that Elizabeth Morton sent you back from where you came."
Baalthazar stepped to the size, as Elizabeth stepped forth.
"Perago" He said, as Naberus took in only Elizabeth Morton.
" Vade ad tenebras et putrida tuam nomine. Redi, unde venisti, Ignis et sulphur redire. Redi, unde venisti. Nos autem accipere, non in nostro mundo. A qua venit revertetur!" She said, as the earth opened up around him.
"I will find you all! Every last one of your name! I will destroy them! I will kill them, They will pay for what you’ve done!" He screamed as the earth closed up, and the protective spell around them died away.
Baalthazar looked to Elizabeth as her eyes rolled in her head and blood ran from her nose. He caught her, before she hit the ground. He could feel her agony – the pain in her head. This fight had taken almost everything away from her. She needed to rest.
The door of his office burst open and Gabriel stood up from his side of the desk.
"They won’t take me to see Jase until I’ve been to see you." Rogan said advancing on Gabriel. He didn’t move. He didn’t shirk. "I’ve got nothing to say, and you’ve got nothing I want to hear."
"Good to see you too, brother." Said Gabriel with a smile.
"I’m not your god damn brother – I’ve not been your brother in a long, long time." He said with anger, his fish crashing down upon Gabriel’s desk.
"And whose fault is that?" Gabriel asked, quietly.
"I’m not getting into this bullshit with you, lad. I have nothing to say." Rogan said, turning his back on Gabriel to face the orderlies. "Right, I’ve seen the prick, can you take me to see Jase now?"
Gabriel shook his head, so they backed out and closed the door behind them.
"Of course not, because this is what you do, right? You don’t get what you want so you manipulate everything…" Rogan said, but Gabriel cut him off.
"I merely wish to talk strategy." Gabriel said, but Rogan let out a burst of mirthless laughter.
"Strategy? You fuckin’ kiddin’ me?" His anger betrayed his attempts to stifle his accent somewhat. "I don’t care about how this match ends. I’m here because you made me. I had no interest in coming back to this world. I was happy where I was and you dragged me back!"
"Then leave." Gabriel said quietly, his hand brushing over his eyebrows with exasperation.
"What?" Rogan asked.
"Leave. Go. Tuck tail and run away – because that’s what Rogan MacLean does, am I right?" Gabriel said.
"Fuck you." Rogan said. "You think I’m gonna leave and let you throw Jase back in San Jose to rot away?"
"I’ll treat Jase either way." Gabriel said quietly, sinking back into his chair looking weary. "I was always going to treat him."
"Then why…" Rogan started.
"Because I felt you needed some motivation to get involved. I rolled the dice." He said quietly. "Now I’m rolling them again. Go, if you want to leave… Fine. I hold you to no oath. Jason will be nursed back to health as best I can either way."
"Nah, you’re fuckin’ lying." Rogan said "This is another Baal trick…"
"Oh of course, because evil Gabriel strikes again." Said Baal, this time the mirthless laughter was his. "Because Gabriel is the route of all fucking evil as always."
"You’re trying to deny…" Rogan started.
"You sided with him! Ichabod!" Gabriel blazed. "After everything he’d done, after what you knew that he’d done to me… You sided with him. Lucy, I could understand… Woman scorned and all that… But you? You who so dispised the path that Ichabod was taking us down and you stood at his side."
"Dry your eyes, lad." Mocked Rogan.
"Oh I have no issues with Ichabod. At least he was a man about it – he gave me everything I needed to see his betrayal coming. But you… And Jet… And Lucy… All spent so much time on sermons about how despicable the demonic Baal was, yet it was I who was struck thrice while my back was turned. It was I who suffered the knife in my back. Time after time, I’m the one left betrayed." Gabriel said, before leaning back into his chair once more.
"I’m sorry for breaking your ankle. I’m sorry for the part I played I you hating this world. I’m sorry for whatever it was that I did that meant that you had to keep turning your back on me. I’m sorry for the part I played in the end of the Engine… And most of all, I’m sorry for whatever it was that cost us the friendship that existed before the Engine ever did." Gabriel said. "But don’t you dare act like you’re blameless. Because Rogan MacLean – you broke my god damn heart."
Rogan stared at him for a moment, unsure of what to say. He cleared his throat, before slowly walking towards the desk.
"So… Outlast." He said pulling out the chair. "Awkward."
Gabriel let out a small gasp of laughter.
"Quite." He said. "I was hoping that you could do us the honour of backing of our mutual former friend Jethro."
"I can do that…" Rogan said. "He and I never quite finished our business. Surprised you and Eden don’t want your hands on him yourselves."
"For now, I’d rather keep him at bay – Eden and I need to focus on Necron." Gabriel said quietly. "He’s the main target."
"Wouldn’t mind a crack at the big fella myself." Rogan said quietly. "For what he did to Jase."
"I think in the end it may take us all… but for now, you focus on Jet. He’s obsessed with Wallace, and we can use that to our advantage. If he’s sure he’s going to make it all the way? Then perhaps it could be the key to your success. " Said Gabriel quietly.
"What happened… To make Somers turn." Rogan asked.
"The Order…" Said Gabriel quietly. "Made the three of us a target – well… Two. Eden and I. Jet was an unfortunate by-product… We lost people. Eden’s father, Nate…. Quentin. He almost lost Sherry. In the end, he decided he’d had enough, put the blame on me and decided he needed to do something to stop me. My influence."
He noticed Rogan avert his eyes – he agreed. Evil Gabriel wasn’t going to fade away all at once.
"Jet Somers isn’t a coward – but he’s not a hero either. He preaches, more often than not, about virtue. He’s a master of deception – he can turn your head away from all that he’s done to shine a spotlight elsewhere. Lucy Wylde was never in danger in the care of her father, we had her monitored. We’d have stepped in at the last second. Would he have stepped in when Jase was locked in that shack? Taking daily beatings from his brothers?" Gabriel asked.
"That was before I knew Jase." Rogan said, fighting Gabriel’s point.
"Perhaps, but my point is simple – Jet Somers is not the angelic do-gooder that he’d have the world believe. He has done terrible things, he’s said terrible things, he’s stood by and watched terrible things happen. The only difference between he and I is that I’m willing to let you know I’m coming before I do. Jet would rather you not see until the very… Last… Second." Gabriel added with a smile.
"So what, you want to keep him away from you?" Rogan said. "Scared, Baal?"
"Not me, Rogan… From Eden." He said with a smile. "For now at least."
Rogan nodded, but Gabriel didn’t offer anymore. He slowly got to his feet.
"Jase?" He asked.
"Of course." Gabriel said, pressing a button on his intercom. The doors open, and the Orderlies step inside. "Could you escort Rogan to Mr. Ingall’s room?"
The Orderlies nod and Rogan makes his way towards the door.
"Rogan." Gabriel says as McLean turns on the spot to face him. "I really am sorry…"
Rogan takes a moment to consider his words, before nodding. It was slight, but it was there. As the door closes behind him, Gabriel looked back to his desk where his phone buzzed.
”I’ll be there in a few x” Eden text. And he couldn’t help but smile.
Elizabeth had taken days to wake up – and when she did, she couldn’t abide the light. So they kept the light at bay with layer upon layer of cloth over the windows. The Priest and Baalthazar slept in shifts to keep an eye on her – when she woke, she often awoke from nightmares not caused by the drude. More than once, they narrowly escaped the spells she cast in her half slumber. Day by day, she was getting better. Day by day, she was waking for longer and letting in a little more light.
After a month, she was almost back to normal. And they came to her together.
"Elizabeth…" Baalthazar said. "Our time is at an end."
"What do you mean?" She asked. "What time?"
"We can’t remain together." Said the Priest. "He won’t be banished forever, and should he come back…"
"Then we need to be together to defeat him." She said. "It will take us all."
"Apart, he fears what happens when we come together. Together, we’re a target. He can’t search for us all at once." Said Baalthazar. "You’re in most danger. He cursed you and your descendants."
"So… What… What do you propose?" She said, her jaw set and defiant. She had that fire in her eyes again.
"Father McLearn will return to Ireland – his work here will be enough to convince the church to allow him to retire. Give him a parish. Live out his days. I will head to London, find other hunters, join their ranks and hope that I can be alerted when he returns." Baalthazar said.
"And me?" She asked, fighting the tears in her eyes. "What do you expect to do about me?"
"I have a birth on a ship to the New World. Travel across the Ocean and start again – change your name. You will be safer." He said, fighting back tears of his own.
"I will be alone." She said, her tears winning out. The priest silently excused himself, as Baalthazar took his place by her side. He reached up and cupped her cheek.
"We can’t be together… If we are, then we’re in danger. I will fight Demons until the end of my days, but I will not stand by and watch while you sacrifice yourself to the edge of destruction. You have a responsibility to your descendants."
"I have no descendants!" She bellowed.
"Yet." He said, his eyes focused on hers. "I love you, Elizabeth… But you have a life after me. And you need to protect those who come next."
She opened her mouth to speak, but then thought better of it – instead, she pressed her lips against his. If they were to part, they would have one last night together. One last night where she could be truly happy.
Eden had slipped into their with Caleb lagging behind. His hands were full of bags, legacy of the shopping trip they’d just come back from. Eden had been less than impressed with the Presidential-style entourage she’d taken with her. In truth, Caleb wasn’t necessarily required, but Eden liked him around. Made her feel safe. He’d gone for coffee after he’d dumped her bags on the sofa and slipped into her seat at the desk. She leaned back and rested her six-inch heels on the edge of the desk before she’d even spoke.
"Hey there… Partner." She said playfully.
"Good afternoon, love? I hear Caleb made quite the valet." He replied.
"Could you not? He gets grumpy when people sat that, and I don’t want to risk having to carry my own bags." She said as she started to go through one of the bags she brought with him.
"Did you buy me a present?" Gabriel asked.
"Of course not." She said, as she pulled out a box.
"Of course not." Gabriel repeated. "What, prey tell, did you buy to improve the aesthetic of our office?"
"This!" She squealed. Gabriel’s eyes opened wide as she picked up the wooden sign with her name up off the desk, and tossed it over her shoulder. There was a loud smash as one of his crystal glasses broke. "Oops… But… Isn’t it pretty?"
She replaced the sign with one of her own – diamond encrusted, and her name carved into what looked like…
"Silver? You have a silver name plate?" Gabriel asked.
"Silver? No! It’s platinum." She said with a smile. Gabriel opened his mouth to argue, but she smiled as she pulled out a second box. She slid it across the desk. He pulled open the box and found a beautiful snake skin desk sign, with a stainless steal name plate.
"Well… That’s quite…" He smiled. "It’s beautiful."
Caleb walked back to the office and tried to hold the tray with one hand as he fumbled with the door.
"Eden… No… Stop… You’re rubbing too hard." Gabriel said from inside.
"Oh stop, I know what I’m doing. Here… Let me just…" She started.
"No! You’re not spitting on it." Gabriel said. "Just… Let go, let me do it myself."
"Well… You’re ungrateful. I just think you need a little lubrication when you’re… Oh the coffee’s here." Said Eden as Caleb pushed into the door. Gabriel had a cloth and was buffing the nameplate on the sign that Eden had bought for him.
"Name plate… Obviously…" He said.
"What?" Gabriel asked.
"Nothing." Caleb smirked. "Oh, Eden, they didn’t have Iced Machiatos…"
"What?!" She said, turning to look from Gabriel to Caleb, to Gabriel and back to Caleb. "No, no, no… I’m not working here where I have to live with regular people coffee. No. We need to have a Starbucks installed."
"Wait… What?" Gabriel said. "No! We’re not paying for a Starbucks franchise."
"Gabriel Baal, don’t you tell me what to do with my company." Eden said. "If I want a Starbucks… Then I will get a Starbucks."
"Eden, this is OUR facility. It’s also a hospital, you can’t have a coffee shop in a hospital." Gabriel replied. Around five seconds later, Eden was flashing up screenshots of Coffee shops in Hospitals all over the world.
"Jesus Christ… Fine… Whatever." Gabriel said. Caleb smirked. Eden was like a force of nature when she wanted to be.
"Then it’s settled." She said, almost with a sing-song.
"Can we, maybe, focus on Outlast?" Gabriel said as Caleb sat down in the corner with his own coffee. Eden walked around the desk and sat down, her fingers locked together, almost mocking Gabriel with her faux-serious nature.
"I call to order the first meeting of the Board of Directors of Baal Holdings…." Eden said.
"What are you doing?" Gabriel asked, his brow furrowed.
"Starting our meeting. Shouldn’t we have a secretary in here to take minutes? I suppose Caleb could do it…" Eden said.
"Not a fucking chance, love." Said Caleb, pulling his phone out of his pocket and starting to check messages.
"Fine. I’ll take the minutes." She said, looking through empty drawers. "Could I… Borrow a pen… And some paper. Please?"
She grinned at him.
"This isn’t a board meeting. Jesus Christ!" Gabriel said, throwing his hands in the air.
"Wow. Rude." Eden said, slowly closing the drawers and leaning back.
"Look… Can… We just focus… We’re almost at… We need to think about Outlast." He said.
"So you said… Want to get to the point?" Eden said, through gritted teeth.
"I spoke to Caz. And to Rogan. They’re keen on our plan. They should be able to handle Jet, Phrixus and Aveline." Gabriel said.
"Aveline…" Eden mocked in a poor imitation of Gabriel’s accent.
"Eden…" He said.
"Eden…" She mocked in another even worse imitation.
"What is wrong with you today? You’re giddy." He casts a furtive eye at Caleb who smirks.
"I’m looking forward to you and I standing side by side against Necron and bringing that big freak down for good. That’s all." She said, smiling leaning forward with her chin resting on her clasped hands. Caleb’s smirk slipped. "If he makes it that is."
"Eden, we know…"Gabriel started.
"I know, I know… It’s why we live here now." Eden said, with her eyes rolling almost 360o in her head. "But if you think I’m going to stop hoping he’s collapsed in a ditch somewhere, then you’re insane."
"Fair enough…" Gabriel said, a half smile forming across his lips. "In the more likely event that Necron is at Outlast? Then we should be able to face him off one on one."
"Not necessarily a requirement." Eden said with a smirk. It quelled with the look that Gabriel gave her.
"You’ve beaten him, and you’ve beaten him down. He’s still here." Gabriel said.
"So am I." Eden said, cooly, her arms crossed.
"Eden, I’m not diminishing what you’ve done. But I helped to get you backstage at Day of Reckoning. Your plan worked at Synergy, but that was with Ichabod’s help. Truth be told, the best chance we have to put him down for good is together." Gabriel said quietly.
"You sure you’re not just trying to protect me?" Eden asked, raising her head.
"As if I would even think of such a thing…" Gabriel said with a tilt of his own.
"Fine… Then… I approve of your plan." She said stifling a smile.
"You don’t know all of it yet, love." Gabriel said with a half-smile himself.
"Gabriel…" Eden said, leaning forward in her seat, her eyes widening. "What did you find?"
Gabriel slid his hand into the drawer by his side and pulled one of the journals out from inside. He pushed closed the drawer.
"I’ve found something that can stop him." Gabriel said with a smirk. "Caleb, could you give us a few minutes?"
Caleb looked incredulous, but Eden didn’t argue. He climbed out of his seat and stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him.
And he never heard, what Gabriel had planned.
Elizabeth’s eyes were filled with tears as he ship pulled away from the Dock in Liverpool. She waved to the men stood watching the ship sail away, and she moved around to keep them in sight for as long as she could. Father McLearn left shortly after, a slap on Baalthazar’s shoulder to signal his departing. Baalthazar didn’t leave the dock until the ship was a speck on the horizon.
High above the scene, Ichahead and Quentin watched this parting of the ways.
"I don’t see why you’re showing us this." Ichahead said.
"Because this is the last time Necron, then called Naberus was defeated. Defeated by the ancestors of Gabriel Baal, Eden Morgan and Rogan MacLean. This was the moment these three went their separate ways, never to meet… But their ancestors? They would come together once again…" She said.
"Outlast." Said Quentin.
"You fail to understand…" She said. "This is about more than Outlast or Battleground, or Horizons. This is about more than UGWC, about wrestling… This is about good and evil."
"Wait, this isn’t about wrestling? Well who could possibly care about it if it’s got nothing to do with wrestling?" Asked Ichahead.
"It’s a little about wrestling." Said Quentin.
"It’s about wrestling and more – not every story has to be the same. And this story has origins hundreds of years ago – you have seen how the monster was defeated. You have seen what happened in those journals of Eden Morgan." She answered.
"So it needs the three of them? All of them to defeat him?" Quentin asked.
"MacLean makes things easier – but it is Gabriel and Eden that must cast him aside. They can end his threat forever…"
"And call them off me too?" Ichahead asked. "Because I’m done with that carnivorous choad."
"You will cease your senseless talking – you are no Ichabod. You are a shadow." She said.
"She’s got your number… You’re more of a cloud than a shadow." Quentin said with a grin.
"And you – jest and joke all you like, but you were reanimated to help your brother, and you have… So far… Failed him." She accused.
"Savage…" Said Quentin. "But… Fair."
"You can help him now – but not yet. He has knowledge, but not enough – he will fall before he flies." She said.
"You keep saying that, I’ve got no idea what that…" Ichahead and Gabriel turn around, but she’s gone. "Means… Well… That’s rude."
"Oh god… Has she left us here?" Quentin asked.
"Brilliant." Said Ichahead, as they took a seat on the edge of the building. "Fucking brilliant."
Hello Alan.
Things are, I assume, as you always want them. Alan Wallace stood in the centre of the ring with all eyes on him. In this instance, twenty four competitors all trying to scramble over one another in the Outlast tournament in order to get an opportunity to step into the ring with you in the Main Event. All eyes on Alan… All eyes on Wallace.
All eyes on Vain.
I know the pressure this event throws up – I myself, arguably crumbled under the pressure of it last year. Some would say that I was effected by the fact that I had to forego the Champions advantage of this event by fighting in the opening round. I was, of course, successful in that first round, but it made little difference. At the end of the night, it was Rogan’s hand lifted high in the air. You have no such pressure, which is good. I wouldn’t put anyone through that which Eden I have had to fight through.
You take your advantage, Vain… You’ve earned it.
It’s amazing that in three years, you and I have avoided one another like oil and water. You were the first name to tumble from my lips when I made my debut. Back in the days before you were dethroned by Travis Roberts. Back before you became that shadow of the man you used to be. Of course, you’re back to your best now – you defeated two women who have defeated me this calendar year. Lucy Wylde and Maggie Lockhart. You earned both of their championships and defended one of them against Backstab McGee just two weeks ago.
Another fantastic defence.
But this is the irony, I suppose. This time last year I was on top of the fucking world, and you were getting pinned by Dave Rydell at last years event. The lowest point in your career, and the pinnacle of mine. The juxtapositions between us are remarkable. Now you’re the Champion, Alan… One hard year later, and I’m the man who has failed and failed and failed. I take you as my inspiration, Alan. Knowing that the only certainty about being our World heavyweight Champion is that one day… You won’t be.
And one day I will.
Because you can’t keep a good man down forever, you’re testament to that. I’ve watched you play straight man to Travis Roberts, I’ve watched you play straight man for Killian King, I’ve watched you do what you chastise me for – follow Eden Morgan. I’ve watched you defeated by Dave Rydell, a feat that even I haven’t fallen to. I’ve watched you lose, and lose, and lose and lose… Yet look at you now. You’re career has had more ups and downs than Roxxxy Cotton’s underwear. You’ve had longer gaps between success than Roxxxy’s had between her ankles. You’ve been seen as a more worthless cunt than… Well…
That one writes itself.
Even this year, in the worst year of my career, you’ve done what you can to avoid me. Since day one I’ve had the urge to finally face you, but we’ve never so much as stepped in the same ring with any real meaning. You seem to mock my ability and my prowess despite the fact that you’ve been where I’ve been, and still you don’t seem to want to face me one… on… one. The great Vain, is no different to anyone else. Quick to spurn me, but the last to choose to face me. I’m a threat, whether I’m in form or not.
That’s a hell of a compliment.
The thing is, I know what you are – I have no problem respecting you. I know Eden and Killian were quick to tell you that you should retire. I disagree – I think you should keep clawing and scratching back to the top every time you tumble back to the bottom of the pile. I know it’s harder to come back from every time… I know you lose motivation… I know you lose heart. I know that dee down you ask yourself is it worth it? I suppose it’s why you’re always fighting for yourself, because you know that if you disappeared tomorrow, no-one would mourn?
Such a damning sentiment for such a legend in our business.
I mean how long did it take you this time? Two and a half years of false starts and failings. Two and a half years of almost being back to where you should be. Although, I suppose if you lost at Outlast that would just be… Another false dawn? I mean, I suppose when you think about it, anyone can win a ladder match… It’s not like you actually BEAT anyone for the title… You just… Climbed a ladder and stole it. This time you’re going o have to actually beat people to retain it… And if you don’t? Well… Day of Reckoning will just look like another Alan Wallace fluke… A win because the serious competitors were concentrating on one another…
That would be terrible…
It’s already tough to get out of bed of a morning… That would likely make it even worse. Alan Wallace, gun-shy… A thief rather than a victor. A charlatan rather than the real thing. A fraud who can’t even defend that which he takes – I suppose, when you think of it like that, your final run as Champion would be remembered in the same vein as Vein… As Mil Vidas Jnr. Lucky… Taking advantage… But couldn’t hold on to it when it really mattered.
A shadow of the Champion you used to be.
I know you’re getting old Alan, so I’ll give you a quick reminder… I’m a former World Heavyweight Champion. A former two-time Cross Hemisphere Champion, a former two-time Chaos Champion and a former two time Co-Operative Champion. I’m the fastest Grand Slam Champion of all… Time. I’m a winner of the Massive Melee, the Global Challenge and the first ever Trios Tournament and after this Monday? I’ll be the winner of Outlast too. And a two-time Grand Slam winner. And I have no issues with slapping you back to being Dave Rydell’s bitch in order to do it. Yes Alan… I’ll see you Monday.
Please allow me, to introduce myself.
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