Eternal War . . . Hidden Light *1x1*

[Phoenix's Rebirth]

((Okay. Take your time ))

[ariel.]

Courtney slowly got to her feet, looking at Sandra. The girl seemed so sure of everything, so positive. Smiling again, she hoped that she'd be able to become good friends with this girl. Her eyebrows then suddenly knitted together in thought, perhaps she shouldn't of been so forwards when she asked if they were there to help.. She was fully aware that some people were not exactly comfortable with that. "Are you sure?" She suddenly asked them, "We don't want to take up your hospitality."

She eyed Damion's limp body as Ryan hooked his arm under his shoulders, before she had a chance to offer to help, Sandra was already grabbing her hand and tugging her down the road. "Thank you again," She finally decided to say, "It means a lot - it really does."

~*~

Saraphina looked down at herself, grimacing in disgust at the sight of her blood, and Nero's. She was weight her options on if she would be best walking, or taking flight. Both would put equal strain on her, but both would also put relief on her too. She finally decided that flight would be best. Her eyes snapped to Aleron as he spoke, she had forgotten he was there for a moment. "I believe I will be alight." She told him with a nod. "It would be best for me to take flight though."

~*~

Nero stopped in an alley, renaming in his demon form as he knew it would help him heal faster. He didn't have the energy to make it back to law firm where the other demons awaited him. He rested his back against the damp stone wall, and sunk down to the alley floor. He rested his hand over the wound than went from his hip bone to just below his chest due to Aleron's scythe. The blood soaked through his fingers, as his body tried it's best to heal itself. Closing his eyes he titled his head back, and waiting for his body to heal.

[Phoenix's Rebirth]

((BTW, Anastasia = Excellent Movie))

It took them a while to get back to Ryan's apartment. Thankfully they had an elevator, so Ryan didn't have to worry about having to carry Damion up the stairs. Sandra unlocked the door, and Ryan carefully lay Damion on the couch, sighing in relief that they didn't run into any trouble along the way. "Aleron should be here soon," Ryan said, looking up at Courtney.

"Would you like me to get you guys anything to eat or drink?" Sandra asked, rushing to the kitchen. "We have lots of water."

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Aleron watched Saraphina closely, just in case she faltered during flight. He couldn't wait to get to the apartment to treat her injuries. "It won't take us long to get there by flying." He spread his wings and led the way.

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Xara ignored Shakra and kept walking. She had already had her ice cream for the day, and so she didn't want any more. And ice cream was Xara's new favorite thing to do. And she really didn't feel like doing anything anyway. But Shakra was persistent. She followed silently behind Xara for another several minutes. She suddenly stopped when she smelled something, a tantalizingly familiar scent. More blood. Shakra grabbed Xara, asking, "You smell that?! Let's go check it out. It might be fun."

Xara rolled her eyes and followed Shakra, eventually coming to an abandoned alleyway. On the ground sat a dark gray demon, bleeding heavily.

"I know him," Xara muttered. "He was fighting the angel earlier."

"Fighting an angel, huh?" Shakra chuckled and approached Nero slowly. "What happened to you, my dear? Lose a fight with a lousy angel, did you?"

[ariel.]

[[ Right? ^^ The true story, however, it defiantly far form pleasant. Dx ]]

Courtney studied the apartment when they arrived to it, as if looking for any sign of a threat. She had grown up being taught to search for threats everywhere she went because of the immortals. Once she seemed to to decide that there were none, she moved herself so she was sitting on the arm of the couch. She looked towards Sandra and Ryan, with slightly confusion, they spoke of Aleron as if they expected her to know who he was. "Aleron is your.. immortal?" She guessed glancing between them.

Her gaze settled on Sandra when she spoke. "No, no thank you. I should be alright." She responded, and then jabbed her thumb at Damion. "And he'll find his way to the kitchen on his own when he wakes up. Trust me." She told her, with the small laugh. Damion, being your classic teenage boy, will eat nearly anything you give him.

~*~

Saraphina nodded, and stretched her pale wings out, and followed after Aleron. She, however, kept her crisp white long bow clasped in one of her hands, clearly she still felt that was threat was still hanging around. There was never any telling with Nero. Sometimes he'd say that he would leave, but within seconds he would show up again, knowing that your guard was dropped and kill. He was a persistent demon and usually got what he wanted.

~*~

Nero's eyes snapped open, and he looked towards the two demons, his eyes narrowing into a glare. "An angel's magic is only of use, if you severe it's wings well still living." He responded curtly. "The angel would've been as good as dead, and my business would be done if it wasn't for her little friend that decided to show up. I can't say that I'm the definition of a fast healer when it comes to wound inflicted upon me by other immortals." He added on. "Now, what is it you two want?"

[Phoenix's Rebirth]

((Ah, it is such a wonderful movie. I love it. Anyway, I will get my post up sometime today. I have been getting headaches, and I can't be on my computer for long. I'm all right though.))

[Phoenix's Rebirth]

Aleron reached the roof of the apartment building in which Ryan and Sandra lived and waited for Saraphina to land. His pale gray wings disappeared and he went to unlock the door. It was a tall, nicely-built 10-story apartment complex. It was nothing too fancy. In fact it just looked nice, but was really cheap. Ryan's apartment was just down a few floors. Aleron hoped the other angel wasn't too weak to walk down the stairwell. "We're almost there. The apartment is on the seventh floor. Do you think you'll be able to make it?"

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Sandra trotted back to Ryan's side, her cheerful exterior a stark contrast to Ryan's usual dark expressions. "Yeah, the angel you saw earlier. Aleron is our friend. We found him in an alleyway about . . . three years ago. And he's been with us ever since."

Ryan nodded and remained silent, allowing Sandra to talk to the girl. Courtney seemed less frightened of her anyway. And so Sandra continued, speaking in a calm and friendly manner. Her hands moved out from her sides, gesturing to the apartment. "This is where we live. Sure we're by ourselves, but we do all right. Oh, my name's Sandra. And this is Ryan. And you are?"

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Shakra's eyes lit up with an ominous excitement when she heard Nero's words. She took a moment to adjust the long brown gloves on her hands and arms before answering. "I am Sharka of the Harkhald clan. And this is my new little sister, Xara. She doesn't say much. We were just bored and looking for something fun to do."

Xara remained still and watched as the other demon girl crouched in front of Nero. "Now what was it you were saying? You were trying to remove an Immortal's wings?" She paused and looked him over. "That does sound like fun. I've personally never tried myself, but I do remember hearing howling shrieks in the night. A wondrous symphony of pain and suffering." Shakra then pulled out a little knife from her belt and cut her own hand with it. Her dark blood oozed out and leaked onto the firm concrete beneath them before the wound suddenly healed itself, and the bleeding stopped. "It's absolutely beautiful."

[ariel.]

Saraphina adjusted herself so she'd land softer than she normally would, as she landed she allowed her wings and bow to fade away. The smaller injuries that settled on her arms and face seemed to be healing - if not already healed. As her feet made contact with the cool rooftop, she took a moment to survey herself, and a grimace found it's way onto her face. She hoped that her injuries only looked worse due to the amount of blood. The angel glanced up as Aleron spoke, and she nodded slightly. "I believe I will." She answered simply, making a gesture of her hands for him to lead the way.

~*~

Courtney nodded as Sandra spoke, she didn't say much, but she didn't really feel the need to. She let her gaze study the floor, only to have it snap back up as Sandra asked for her name. "Oh, uh, I'm Courtney," She answered before jabbing a thumb at the unconscious teenager, "and that would be Damion - my step brother." She added on. Studying the pair for a moment, she opened her mouth to speak again. "You two live alone?" She asked as if she just registered that Sandra has said, "if you don't mind my asking.. Why?"

~*~

Nero grunted in response as the demon introduced herself and the other, buy the look upon his face it was obvious he didn't plan to introduce himself anytime soon. "Yes. I was. It's what the firm hires me to do, remove their wings - get their blood. It pays well, in more ways than one." He stated. Finally decided to arrive to his feet, he allowed his human form to fade in once he decided that he was healed enough. Scowling, he realized he was missing an article of clothing that would top the black suit pants, and cover the blood red tie - his suit jacket. He always did seem to have troubles with the clothing part when changing forms. "Now, I'm not exactly in favour of repeating myself. What is you two want?"

[Phoenix's Rebirth]

Aleron walked alongside Saraphina in case she happened to stumble or fall. But in spite of her injuries, she seemed to have a strong will. He glanced back at the trail of blood she was leaving. The dark red was streaked all across the carpet where they had walked. But he was not concerned. After watching the angel a little longer, he knew her injuries were not fatal. And also the apartment owners had gotten so used to cleaning up after Immortals that it didn't faze them any more. They cleaned up the blood without asking questions--mostly out of fear.

----------

Sandra was a little hesitant to answer. Sadness replaced her cheerfulness. And after a long silence, she finally said, "Well, um, both our parents are gone. Ryan's father died in the war, and then his mother disappeared." Sandra paused and brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "My parents vanished. They went overseas, and I never heard from them again."

Ryan did not speak. He crossed his arms and kept his gaze to the floor. He hated the past. Everything. Talking about it, hearing about it . . . and most of all being unable to forget it. Natalie.

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"The apartment is just down this hall, the seventh one to the left. The humans are probably waiting for us," Aleron stated as they continued on their way. "Looks like you made it after all."

----------

Shakra let a wicked laugh escape her. She liked this demon. "Well, we didn't want anything. We were just wandering the streets. In the long run, I want to drain the life force out of every human and angel in this city. Perhaps we could help each other."

Shakra stood and brushed the dirt out of her clothing and then leaned back against the wall opposite Nero. "I can have the angel's life force, and you can have its wings. It's a win-win. Doesn't that sound like fun? And then after we're finished, we can play with the weak little humans all we want!"

[ariel.]

[[Thought I already posted this.. apparently not - I just hope I didn't post this on a random forum. x_x But, sorry for not posting yet, I promise I will get one up this weekend (no school Friday and Monday), I've just been extremely busy lately. ]]

[Phoenix's Rebirth]

((Nah, it's okay. Hope all's well for you! And no fair. We only get Friday off T.T ))