Fate and Armageddon

Her hands went around my forearm as I squeezed her throat. Sharon touched me and I released her.

"My apologies, Sister. Please give us the key for the safety deposit box."

"She is the one who bears your child, Bazael?"

"Yes, and not even the Eye can kill her."

Hirielle laughed. "The Eye can kill anyone, Bazael."

"No, Hirielle, He cannot kill someone pure of soul and spirit."

"Then why did he not kill you?"

"Because if he killed me after the knowledge I bestowed upon him, he would then have to annihilate the Council."

"Just following Orders, Bazael?" She raised her eyebrow as she asked.

"Yes."

She nodded. "You know how to bend the truth until the ends touch."

"It is necessary sometimes, Hirielle. Now, the key if you please." I held out my hand, and it was not a request.

"Very well." She took the key out of her pocket and handed it to me. "I will report this to the Council."

"I know you will." I took the key and we went to leave.

"Wait, Bazael! Before you do this, think of the consequences!"

"I have, Hirielle. My conscience will be clear for the first time in twelve millenia, and so will the consciences of all other Order operatives. We were deceived by High Elder Garhael, and you knew of it. Instead of choosing the peaceful route as any self-respecting Setian would, he chose the path of war. The Order of the Rose will finally be absolved."

Hirielle seemed to consider what I had said, but then drew a pistol from behind her and moved to aim it at Sharon.

I didn't even have to think. I crushed the pistol in her hand before she could take aim and fire. I then grabbed her by the throat again and lifted her off the ground.

"Hirielle, you are only still alive because of Sharon. If you were to so much as scratch her, I would tear your head from your neck!" I growled low in my throat.

"I will report this to Garhael, Heretic! You have thrown away your heritage and your people for this human whore!" Hirielle snarled at me, and I could no longer stand it.

"Forgive me, Hirielle. Forgive me, Sharon. I do what must be done." I squeezed, and Hirielle dropped her guise just before the life left her body, and she crumbled to ash in my hand. The enormity of my deed hit my soul like the Hammer of God, and I fell to my knees.

And once again, Sharon was there to hold me as I wept the tears of pain and sorrow that I had lost another old friend, traitor though she may have been.

I rose to my feet and wiped the tears away. I was ready once again to finish this.

I looked at Sharon and kissed her tenderly. "I am sorry for my actions, Sharon. I love you and will protect you until the end of my days."

"You did what was necessary, my love. She was twisted in her soul, and her heart held only vengeance." Sharon said in a different language. My eyes grew wide. I pushed her back to arms' length and looked into her eyes. I was searching. Searching for... there!

"Jarielle, how is this possible?"

Sharon's mouth spoke, but Setian words emerged. "I am here, my love. Sharon Summers is here as well, and we now speak as one, for the moment. I know you love her as you loved me, my husband. I love you, and so does Brenael. She is your future now, darling. This is our goodbye." Tears fell from Sharon's eyes as Jarielle kissed me with her lips one last time.

"Goodbye, Jarielle. I love you, my wife. Goodbye." I spoke in Setian.

"We will always be in your hearts, Bazael. Our love will go with you and Sharon throughout the rest of your lives. Now she will be yours. Goodbye." Jarielle spoke and Sharon collapsed momentarily in my arms. When she blinked and looked at me, she cried and hugged me tightly. I held her close as she cried the tears of loss and love.

"I... I heard her, Baz. I felt the love she has for you and me." Sharon was sobbing softly as she cried out her grief over our loss. It was no longer mine alone. Jarielle's soul had touched Sharon.

"That was my wife, Sharon. Jarielle was the only other woman I knew who is comparable to you." I softly stroked her short black hair and held her to me. We knelt as the ashes of Hirielle's body dispersed throughout the house.

I stood and pulled her to her feet as she stopped crying. She looked at me and smiled. "She was remarkable, Baz. I never had a sister, but if I had, I imagine she would have been like Jarielle."

I smiled back at her. "I believe you are right, dear one. Let's go get that piece of the Prophecy. We will need it when we return to New York."

"Yeah. Then that Garhael guy will have to answer to the rest of your Council." She smiled and hugged me, then we left the house and ran back to the Jaguar.

We drove to the bank branch with key in hand. We went in together and the manager showed us into the safety deposit room with the box. We opened it together, and she left us with the Scroll of Prophecy. I lifted it and read it aloud. It was indeed the last piece!

"What, sweety? You were speaking Setian." Sharon smiled at me and I looked at her.

"I've already told you most of the Prophecy, Sharon. 'Mankind will find Destruction or Redemption by their own hands. With their Destruction, Setian Life will return to the Earth, and we shall thrive again.' This is the last part. I will translate it for you. 'If Mankind should be Redeemed by one of mixed blood, all life on Earth shall thrive, and Setians will live in peace with the races of Man.'" I smiled and laughed in relief. I felt as if the weight of the ages had finally been lifted from me. Sharon was smiling radiantly and laughing as well. I rerolled the small scroll and replaced it in the tube. I closed the safety deposit box and we left with the scroll in hand. I turned in Hirielle's key to the manager and told her that we no longer needed it.

Once in the Jaguar again, we drove east. We stopped only four times on the way back to New York. The last time we stopped for the night was in Philadelphia. We checked into the hotel under the names Alec and Sharon Bastion, and Sharon had smiled at that. She was only two weeks pregnant now, but we already knew what we would name our child.

"The penthouse suite again, sweety! You're going to spoil me!" She laughed when we entered the suite at the hotel.

I took her hand. "No matter what happens tomorrow, dear one. If the Council does not listen, we will die. But tonight belongs to us alone."

I led her to the bed and undressed her slowly as she undressed me, kissing and licking every part of skin I uncovered. She looked into my eyes when I knelt between her thighs and pleasured her with my tongue. Her moans of ecstasy were music to my ears when I tasted her orgasm.

I spoke no words as I rose above her and sank my manhood into her depths. She wrapped her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist as I thrust into her over and over. There was an urgency to our lovemaking that we hadn't felt before. We could feel the necessity in case this would be the last time we would hold each other. The next day would tell the tale of our success or failure, but I would not deny either of us the pleasure of our love that night.

She lay in my arms as we caught our breath. "Baz, what's going to happen tomorrow?"

"We live or die by the Council's judgment, my love. I will present our case and demand that High Elder Garhael recuse himself from judgment, or be removed by his peers. I shall then read the entire Prophecy for them, and let them judge its veracity." I said as I stroked her bangs back out of her eyes.

"They have to believe us, sweety!" She looked nervous.

"They will have to, Sharon. The scroll bears The Seal of The Order of the Rose. It is the Order by which all Commands are given by the High Elder."

"I have faith in God, Baz. I also have faith in you." Sharon held me tight and pressed her body to mine.

I held her as well, and for the first time in God knows how long, I drifted to sleep with her in my arms.

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Chapter 6: Come What May

I awoke disoriented for a moment. Sharon wasn't in the bed with me, and I looked out the window to see the sun rising. I looked about the suite, but she wasn't there. "Sharon?" I called.

Then I heard the shower running, and moved to the bathroom. I saw her outline through the fogged glass door and smiled to myself. I returned to our bed for the night and called Gabrael.

"Baz! I heard about what happened with the Eye when he returned. I thought you were going to call me!"

"I was, but we had a new target, and I apologize for not informing you. I am going to bring Sharon before the Council and present our case to them. Will you stand with us?"

"I will, Baz. By Blood and Stone, I will stand at your side and face down the Council by your side."

"Then by Blood and Stone will I stand with you through any trials you may have in this life or the next, my Brother. We will meet you inside the main entrance in an hour."

"I will be there, Brother. See you then."

I hung up and went back into the bathroom.

I slid the shower door open and joined Sharon. She looked up and smiled at me. "There you are, sleepy head." She kissed me lightly on the lips.

"I fell asleep, dear one." I wasn't ashamed. I was elated that I had been able to sleep with the woman whom I loved.

"Yes you did, and you snored like a chainsaw!" She stuck out her tongue at me, then giggled.

"I did?" I was shocked.

"No, but you should see the look on your face, sweety!" She giggled even more and jumped into my arms. Her mouth was on mine in an instant and I pushed her back against the wall as I hardened beneath her. Her legs wrapped around my waist and I lowered her onto my hardness.

She gasped as I entered her and her lips found mine again. I braced her against the wall and thrust into her over and over. The urgency from last night had returned as we made love standing under the hot water of the shower.

"Yes, baby! Yes, make love to me, Bazael! Feel me around you as you make me yours for all time! I am yours, sweetheart! Give me your love, please. Come inside me again, baby!"

Her soft pleas lit the fire in my blood and I gave her all that I am. I came inside her as she spasmed around me in orgasm. Making love to Sharon is always as magical for me as it is for her. Two souls and hearts enmeshed into one.

As we recovered our breath, I raised her off of me and lowered her to her feet. We washed each other again and dried each other off as we left the shower. We kissed and dressed ourselves in preparation for whatever this day would bring.

I paid the checkout bill for the Hotel suite and we walked across the Grand Central Station. It was where the entrance to the Setian Sactum was located. We went down the steps into the main concourse and towards the little known and never used secondary maintenance corridor. Once before the door, I turned to Sharon.

"Beyond this door, no human has ever been before. You will be the first, dear one. You will, however, be under my protection. I called Gabrael, and he is meeting us inside."

"Good. At least we'll have a friend backing us up." She took my hand, and I raised my hand before the door. It became intangible, and we stepped through it together to solidify behind us.

"Yes we will. Gabrael and I have trusted each other for more generations than I care to remember. Let's go." I led her through the corridors to the main entrance guarded by two Setian Warriors.

"Halt, Bazael. You are to be slain on sight, as is your human lover."

"Kelnael, you will stand aside. We have the missing piece of the Prophecy in our grasp, and the Council needs to hear it." I would not back down, even as Kelnael and Raxielle drew their swords.

"That is impossible," Raxielle said. "The Prophecy is complete!"

I looked at her. "Raxi, do you really believe that, when it says nothing of what will happen if the Redeemer should be born? I will read you the missing piece, and you may judge for yourself.

I opened the tube and unrolled the ancient scroll. "'If Mankind should be Redeemed by one of mixed blood, all life on Earth shall thrive,

and Setians will live in peace with the races of Man.' Here is The Seal of the Order of the Rose, if you doubt its veracity."

Kelnael took the scroll and looked at it, noting the seal. It had been very skillfully cut from the bottom of the orginal Prophecy and rolled into its own scroll, to be Sealed again by the Order, under the Command of Garhael. The Scrolls of Prophecy are indestructible, since the Magic prevents it. They cannot be hidden for long, even inside a volcano. They have a way of turning up somewhere unexpected. The only way it could remain hidden was inside that safety depostit box, and in many safes and lockers before that.

He handed it back to me after reviewing it with a critical eye. "It is real, Bazael. You and... Sharon Summers may pass. She who is the Mother of the Redeemer." He bowed to her, and we passed as he and Raxielle sheathed their swords.

Gabrael met us before we reached the Council Chamber. "Baz, Garhael has ordered all guards to detain or slay you if you try to gain entry."

I let my guise drop and flexed my claws. "Then let them try, Gabrael. Will you join me in battle one last time, Brother?"

Gabrael let his guise fall away as well and flexed his shoulders and claws. "It has been a while, my friend. Let us face them together." He nodded and grinned.

I turned to Sharon and handed her the scroll. "Sharon, my love. Keep this safe while we keep you safe. If we should fall in battle, make certain this gets into the hands of Elder Nishielle. She is the fairest Councillor of the Thirteen. She will see the veracity of the writing and will act accordingly. You have your pistol just in case, as well. Aim for heart or head, or you will not kill them."

Sharon nodded with tears in her eyes. "I love you, Baz." She came into my arms and we kissed lovingly. I stroked her hair and face, feeling her skin on my hand.

"I love you, Sharon. No matter what happens in there, never forget that." I smiled at her, and we turned to the main doors.

Gabrael and I nodded to each other and we kicked the doors inward. Twenty Setian Bladesmen stood in front of us. I knew them all. I had trained them all.

"Brothers! Drop your weapons and let us speak! The Council must know what we know!" I shouted my demand.

"Bazael. You have a lot of nerve coming back here after your betrayal and murder of four of our kind," said Garhael from his high seat in the middle of the Council bench.

"Garhael, I know you are a liar and falsifier. You removed the scroll the Redeemer's Mother now carries from the original Prophecy scroll! You secreted it away for millenia, in hopes that you would never be found out, or at least hoped it would be after the destruction of Mankind!"

Garhael laughed. "Kill them all," he ordered the Bladesmen.

"No." The voice rang out clearly. Elder Nishielle rose from her seat. "We will let them speak if we so choose. Vote?" She looked around. All save Garhael raised their fists to give her the support she needed. Only a majority override could cancel an order by the High Elder.

I bowed. "Thank you, Elder. Sharon Summers, Mother of the Redeemer, has the scroll in question. She will hand it to Bladesman Vesael, and he will deliver it to you."

Vesael stepped forward and I nodded to Sharon, who handed him the tube with the scroll inside. Vesael bowed to her and marched up to Nishielle, handing it to her.

She then looked up and at her colleagues, Brothers and Sisters. "I move for High Elder Garhael to be recused, forcibly if necessary, from participating in these proceedings. Aye?"

Twelve fists rose into the air.

Garhael sat and said nothing. The Elders reviewed the scroll and we stood patiently waiting. The Bladesmen stood before us, and Sharon had come to my side, taking my hand in hers and interlacing our fingers again. I smiled at her and kissed her tenderly, causing a gasp from a Bladesman. I looked at him sharply.

"Where is your discipline, Yarael? Did you forget all that I taught you?"

He snapped to and saluted. "No, sir. My apologies, sir."

I smiled grimly. He knew who his Commander had been. "Then you will treat my love with the respect she deserves, Brother."

Garhael stood. "You blasphemer! You have taken the human whore as your lover, and have your son growing in her sinful womb!"

"Bladesmen! Remove the High Elder! He is being forcibly recused from these proceedings!" Nishielle ordered them. They nodded and moved to flank Garhael.

Garhael struck swiftly, and ten of the finest warriors I had ever trained fell before our eyes, writhing in pain. I moved without moving, slamming the High Elder against the wall. "NO, GARHAEL! YOU WILL REMAIN STILL! IF YOU TRY ANYTHING, I WILL KILL YOU!" I growled the shout at him. There were no tears in his eyes.

The Council acted quickly, binding him in place with Earth's Magic. I looked back, and Gabrael had moved between the High Elder and Sharon, blocking her from harm. He nodded at me and smiled. A Brother til the end.

I nodded and smiled in reply, and motioned for Sharon to join me before the Council. She walked up to me and smiled again. I took her in my arms and held her close.

"Bazael, the Prophecy is now complete." Nishielle bowed to me. She then turned to the rest of the Council. "I move that the Marks upon Bazael and Sharon Summers be removed immediately, and The Eye be brought as a witness. Aye?"

Eleven fists rose with hers in agreement, and The Watcher's Eye was summoned.

He walked in, still in his non-descript human form to stand before them. He bowed.

"Eye, you were the one who alerted Bazael and Sharon to the Scroll's whereabouts, are you not?" She asked.

"I am, Elder."

"Then your services as Watcher's Eye are no longer necessary, my Brother. Let the power be stripped from you and your freedom be long and full of peace."

The Council raised their arms as The Watcher's Eye knelt before them. The red aura of destruction coalesced from him and vanished back into Earth Mother from whence it came.

"You are free now, Hunshael." Nishielle smiled.

"Thank you, Sister." For the first time in my life, I saw him smile. Gabrael came forward and stood beside us as well, and Hunshael, formerly The Watcher's Eye, stood beside Sharon.

"Bazael, will you take Sharon as your wife?" Nishielle raised her eyebrow.

"If she will have me as her husband, yes, Lord Elder." I replied.

Sharon stepped forward. "I know I'm not really known here except as Mother of the Redeemer and all that, but I would like to say something if possible?"

Nishielle regarded her, then nodded her head. "You may speak, Sharon."

"Thank you, umm, Lord Elder. When all this started, I had no idea that I would be the Mother of the Redeemer, and I really didn't expect to fall in love with the man sent to kill me. We have been hounded across the country on the orders of that guy there." She pointed at Garhael. "Now I guess I'm being sorta accepted here, and I wanted to thank you. Baz is my love, and I am his forever." She stepped back and took my hand in hers again.

"She reminds me of Jarielle, Bazael." Nishielle smiled.

"Her soul is a perfect relection, Nishielle." Gabrael said with a smile. His wife nodded.

"So I see, Gabrael." She had silvered her eyes, as had the rest of the Council. They saw her without sin or evil, and they saw the life growing inside her. "Sharon, what do you propose we do with High Elder Garhael?"

This was unprecedented, and even I was surprised.

"I think you should lock him up and throw away the key." She glared at him.

Nishielle nodded and smiled. "I agree. Aye?" She asked the Council.

Twelve fists rose into the air.

We settled into my rooms later that night. "You are safe now, Sharon." I stroked her hair as we lay in bed together.