Dark Angel Ch. 02

"Keep that infuriating red dragon away from me," Ashriel snarled.

Seth snorted. "Good luck with that one."

A sound drew everyone's attention. Rowie was huddled into a ball on the floor, holding her belly in obvious pain. Ashriel blanched. Had she been hit during tha altercation?

Oh-God.

Every able body rushed to the pregnant girl the fight forgotten. Remien gathered her up in his arms.

"Baby? What is it? Tell me?" he asked frantically.

He sat on the floor and positioned her between his legs. Ashriel's hand collided with Remien's when they both spread their fingers over the enormous belly.

The vision seized Ashriel so suddenly, he gasped. From within reddish-black mists emerged two males, identical twins with long blood-red hair, obsidian eyes, and vampiric fangs. Both carried bloodied divine swords, both had deep red, almost black dragons' wings. One held a severed head, the other carried Lucifer's sword also covered in blood. There was a black-winged blonde angel behind them. Davariel.

Ashriel reared back, his eyes wide as he gaped at Remien Fyre.

"What in hells name was that?" Ashriel whispered.

Remi's eyes narrowed, Devon, Seth and Zak frowned looking from one to the other questioningly, but Rowie's cry of pain drew their attention. Before Ashriel's eyes, her belly swelled larger until the girl screamed in agony.

Devon cursed roundly, his hands smoothing over Rowie's belly.

Remien looked up at his commander, eyes full of tears now. "Dev, make him stop. Please."

Zak disappeared murmuring something about Alluna, with Devon following suit.

"What's going on?" Ashriel asked looking from Remi to Seth to Natanael.

Remien held Rowie tighter, burying his face in her neck and murmuring soothing words.

"Devon's son," Seth sighed rubbing Rowie belly along with Natanael.

Ashriel looked up into the reaper's worried eyes. Abdiel reached over his shoulders and rubbed the girl's belly also.

"Jazriel wants his playmates to be born already," Natanael replied.

***

Anniel was pouring her heart out to Angel when Devon suddenly appeared and made a frantic dash toward the baby's crib.

Angel and Anniel both jumped up and ran after him.

He bent over the edge of the crib, desperately waving a brightly lit rattle, "Jazriel, please stop-stop. Leave the babies alone. You're hurting the mommies."

The baby began to cry and Devon reached in and picked him up.

Jazriel didn't look like a five month old. He looked like he was a year already. His hair was a mass of white-blond corkscrew curls and his eyes, enormous in his chubby face, glowed electric blue like Devon's.

Though he had no wings, his growth pattern was similar to a Seraphian.

Seraphs grew at an accelerated rate until they reached two years, but they resembled twice that age. Doctor Quinn had explained that at that point Jazriel would grow like a normal Edenian child until he reached twenty.

Afterwards, the aging process of a Seraph would practically grind down to a halt, making them appear eternally young for over a thousand years. Anniel knew from research on the topic that by the time they reached the last years of their life span they barely look older than forty plus earth years. Their movements became more graceful, their gaze sweeter, innocent. It was a beautiful race.

Devon rocked a disconsolate Jazriel in his arms. Angel approached worried.

"He was asleep," she said.

Devon shook his head, his brows furrowed in pain. "He must've awakened. He got Row again." Devon closed his eyes. "And Alluna. Zak wants to leave."

Anniel felt Devon's anguish. He didn't want any of them leaving Alpha 7. He felt possessive of all of them, but she knew he wouldn't forcefully stop any should they choose to do so. He'd plead, cry, throw himself at their feet, and beg shamelessly.

"Ash wants to leave too," he whispered.

Anniel's eyes snapped back up to Devon's. Hurt gripped her heart. Why did she think he'd want to stay? There was nothing of interest in Alpha 7 for the great and beautiful Ashriel of Angelos.

"Then we'll go with him," Angel suddenly said. "Zak and Remien can stay here with the girls. They're in no shape to be gallivanting around the galaxy after all, and we'll take a trip with Ashriel and our son." Angel smiled at Anniel. "Of course, I'll need help with the baby. You don't mind coming with us, right?"

Anniel blinked at Angel. "A trip? Oh, honey, I think Dev means Ash wants to jump ship, not take a little vaykay."

Angel frowned in confusion, but Devon smiled. "No, Anniel. Angel's idea is absolutely genius. If he wants to run away, we'll run away with him...at least for now. We can always come back home to the others once the girls give birth..." Devon frowned," which at this rate will most likely be any day now." He grinned again. "I can open a portal back to Alpha 7 and keep an eye on things here once in a while. I doubt Jaz knows how to traverse portals..." he gave his son a dubious look, "yet." Jazriel just stuck his thumb in his mouth, looking at his daddy innocently.

Anniel thought about their star cruiser. It wasn't too big and the thought of being in close confines with Ashriel had her heart slamming frantically against her ribs.

She shook her head, "I don't...I can't..."

Devon looked at her pleadingly, "Please Annie. You two need to be together."

Anniel gasped. "What?"

Devon's eyes lowered to her stomach. "Some things are just meant to be, Annie."

Anniel scoffed. "I'm not pregnant. A Seraph's gestation period is three months. What happened between Ash and me was over four months ago."

"Your pregnancy with Gareth was a normal nine months," Devon argued.

"His father was white winged, so his blood was weaker. Ashriel's blood is purer because of his black wings. Gestation period's for full Seraphs is three months."

"But you're a werewolf, Anniel. The differences in DNA could slow it down."

Anniel shook her head. "A reaper's DNA is stronger. It takes over making the fetus take on full Seraph characteristics." She was sure of that. She'd looked it up when she was seeing Garethiel.

Devon just looked at her. "Step into my hygiene unit and we'll find out."

Anniel felt the blood drain from her face. She remembered the blip from her hygiene unit a few months ago...before she'd gone with Zak, Rowie, Remi, and Seth to Arboria to rescue Alluna who'd been stolen away by rogue Master Guardians.

If she were pregnant at the moment, it would explain why she felt so aroused all the time. It would only get worse. As she'd neared Gareth's eminent date of birth, her vagina had become so swollen and sensitive she'd needed to be constantly mounted. Lucien had been only too happy to oblige at the time.

Anniel hugged herself with a shudder. She didn't want that to happen again—any of it—the mindless lust, the painful birth, having another baby...losing it.

Devon and Angel's arms encircled her. Anniel looked up into Jazriel's glowing eyes. His face was identical to Devon's...like a clone. The baby cupped her cheek also, as if to soothe her.

"It'll all be fine, Anniel. You won't be alone. We're here for you." Devon turned her face to his searching gaze. "Don't let Ashriel go."

She slipped free of their hold with a bitter smile. "Right. So I'm supposed to trap him with this supposed pregnancy?" she laughed without humor. "I never told Garethiel about his son, why should that change with this one."

"Because he's not Garethiel," Devon retorted with a scowl. "Garethiel was a self-centered bastard. Ash is different."

Anniel felt a small rush of power bloom from Devon. Her commander looked momentarily distracted and then he cursed softly under his breath. "We have visitors."

He handed Angel the baby, "Keep him busy so he doesn't mess with the unborn infants anymore. Anniel, come with me."

Not waiting for an answer, he slipped his hand into hers and teleported them both down to the hangar.

The silence was deafening until she looked at Devon and asked, "Who is it?"

Seth, Remien, Zachariel, and even Ashriel appeared next to them.

Ashriel scowled until he saw Anniel and winced. "What's...?"

The sound of an incoming transport interrupted him, stirring the metallic scented air of the hangar. One of the transport chutes brightened with glowing blue light. A jet-black star cruiser floated out and descended a few yards from them.

Anniel saw when Ashriel stiffened. His upper lip beaded with sweat and his Adam's apple bobbed when he swallowed hard.

She watched him pull his shoulders back, tuck his wings rigidly to his back and approach the shiny expensive-looking star cruiser.

A ramp lowered from the black saucer, perched atop four delicate-looking metal legs.

If outrageous wealth had a scent, it would be exactly like the fragrance that wafted out of the expensive looking craft.

One white-winged Seraph descended first. He was wiry thin, which was not usual for a Seraphian male, and looked nervous. When his eyes alighted on Ashriel, they became frosty. He turned and motioned for someone else to come out.

Two more Seraphs exited the black saucer. The female was tall, slender, and delicate. Her hair was a cascade of gold falling between a pair of snowy white wings, the same color of her silver embroidered robe. She barely wore make-up, but it was expertly applied to look natural and demure. Her dark blue eyes bore angrily into Ashriel's. Next to her was a taller male Seraph. His hair was also blond, his eyes a cool green. Bulky shoulders filled an elaborately embroidered light blue robe that draped his long frame. His expression was cold and distant. They both approached Ashriel until they stood before him.

The female suddenly slapped Ashriel hard, once, cruelly. Anniel winced, resisting the urge to go to him. Devon and Zak put their hands on either of her arms as if sensing her compulsion.

The movement caught the woman's attention and she began to stalk toward Anniel.

Anniel bit back the urge to snarl and kept her features composed. Who the hell was this bitch?

The beautiful Seraph stopped before her, her eyes going over Anniel from head to foot with disdain. "Is this the whore that defiled my son?"

Anniel gasped, her face going first cold and then hot.

"Ah, mother, is that any way to greet your son's little...playmate?"

The nightmare could not have gotten any worse as Anniel gazed away from Ashriel's mother's hateful glare to the sight of Garethiel strutting down the ramp of the black star cruiser.

His white wings were spread behind his broad back proudly, and his golden hair fell over bulky shoulders to his waist. As always, he wore no shirt, and now sported an array of tattoos over his arms, chest, and abdomen. A cigarette hung from the corner of his lush mouth, its glowing tip releasing wisps of curling smoke. He looked every bit the gorgeous bad-boy angle that had broken Anniel's heart three hundred years ago.

He sauntered over with a conceited grin on his heartbreaking face. "Hey, babe. You're looking good after all these years." His dark blue eyes swept over her curves in frank appreciation.

She had to remember how to breathe. "Oh-god. Y-you're brothers?" Anniel stared from light to dark angel in horror.

Garethiel only grinned, before flicking his cigarette onto the pristine hangar floor. "Surprise, sexy," he growled and then reached for her, pursing his lips for a kiss.

An unholy snarl sounded behind Garethiel. Anniel watched as Ashriel became airborne, flying straight toward his brother with murder in his black eyes.