The Silver Guardian Bk. 02 Ch. 10

Author's Note: It has been a long time since I posted and updated this story and for that I apologize. I have been back to writing and have 3 new chapters that I am posting (8-10) but I need to give a STRONG warning right now. I have waited so long to post again as I have been trying to get an editor to work with me. After 3 months and still no success I am just saying F it and posting what I have now and when the opportunity comes I will update and post any changes that have been made. This may be simple editing or it may be major changes to the chapters, at this point I simply can't say. So, as you read this realized that I was the only one to edit it and I am not a good editor, and only a so-so author. So please keep comments and criticism to minimum when it comes to errors and things like that. In an effort to make sure my readers get new content I am posting it AS IS SO PLEASE BE WARNED.

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Several weeks later...

It was all coming together. It had been a hectic past few weeks. First Dante's order of stones came in and then shortly following those were his orders from the courier service. That had allowed Dante to begin fabricating new designing the rest of what he needed for this round of his projects. He still had several outstanding projects left to work on but getting geared up and trained and getting Eve operational was all of his focus now.

His and Lily's armor had been delivered the week before along with Lily's weapons and shortly before those they had received their orders from the enchanters. Lily and Dante along with Fenrir and Alunra had gotten their clocks and Astrid and Bryn had gotten theirs. Astrid would distribute the remaining items for the Pack and the Hellhounds in a gift box she was putting together for the Pack from Dante and Lily filled with gear and items and even food and drink from Avalon to his Pack.

She was building larger ones but with more generic items in ones going to all of the new Guardian's Councils that had been created. So far there were 12 Guardians Councils around the world and the census had been completed and the basics structures created that had started with the North American Guardians Council. Their new and currently hidden lycan nation consisted of far more than had first ever been guessed at when Dante was first learning his heritage in the O'Connor Pack. There were just over 2 Million Lycans on Earth. Many groups, some quite large, had been found all over the globe. Some hid in the wilds and lived very simply, while others hid in the masses of humanity and blended in. There was a large population in China and the surrounding countries, Japan had a surprisingly large number as well, Africa was represented well, and all over Europe. There was also South America. The Middle East was a no go, too much continued conflict and war drove them out long ago. The Polar regions were thought to have a few small dens and roving Packs but the regions were so remote and generally unexplored that no one knew for certain. If they did make contact one day they'd bring them in.

The gift boxes were all getting assembled and getting ready to go out, but it was having to be done in stages due to the quantity and sizes. The elven courier service wasn't designed to handle this just yet. Astrid had spoken to Lobelia and changes were being made and more resources allocated. They had talked about how this especially early on would become a very viable source of income and service for both of their nations and plans were in the works from both the Lycans and Elves to capitalize on this. That was part of the reason for the gift boxes. When the contents got out and Lycans saw just how useful and how nice they were there would be huge demand for them. What would either restrict or allow that demand to grow would be the delivery system. The sooner both the Lycan Nation and the Elven Nation could build it the better it would be for both of them in the long run.

Duties and needs were piling up for Dante and Lily and soon enough they'd at least have to make a trip back to Earth to handle a number of pressing business and National needs. He had to visit several of the new Councils and continuing on the infrastructure of their new Nation. Doing it all under the guise of a single business would be helpful, but Dante knew when we went back to Earth he and Lily would be in the spotlight. Their company Silver King Trinity, what in reality was the holdings of the entire Lycan race united, had taken on a life of its own. To the world at large it had grown overnight it seemed into a global powerhouse represented in every facet of every market. That was one of the reasons that sooner rather than later they would have to make an appearance. Everyone wanted to know who Dante and Lily were as the co-owners and founders to one of the largest businesses on Earth that seemed to magically grow out of the ether.

Financial experts and nations of all kinds were stumped and bewildered but all of the necessary documentation and paperwork on every single requirement was valid and legal and documented. No one could do anything about it and no one could stop it either. The timeframe alone that it was done it would have been impossible with mount Divine assistance, but Luna gave them that and they took full advantage of it. Things were progressing very quickly and the massive intricate puzzle was being built at rapid speeds. When an entire species gets together it's amazing what can be accomplished. Human nations demonstrated that during many of their great wars.

It was going to be very hectic when they returned. Dante and Lily had made a point that they as well as Astrid and Bryn had all learned how to teleport. It wouldn't solve all of their problems, it had rules and requirements for it to work. You first had to have been to the place you were wanting to travel, the more mass teleported at once the greater the energy drain, you couldn't teleport across dimensions or worlds either. So Dante couldn't teleport from the Palace in Avalon to their Castle home in Germany on Earth. But in the long run it would end up saving a lot of time. It's just that the first round of visits to all of the different councils would be the longest. After that it would be much easier. Dante and Lily were really going to become world travelers in all senses of the word. But with all they needed to to on Earth they could afford to spend to much time. They would wrap up the alliance and treaties between the Elves and the Lycans before they left but they still had all of the other races and realms out there as well. They would have to intersperse their trips to Earth and the Councils with trips to the other realms and Nations. The next trip would be to the Dwarves since that was one that was expected and had a promise to visit with already. They were also already allies of the Elves and it would be much easier getting them onboard with their new vision.

That brought Dante back to thinking about gearing up and that brought him back to when their armor and weapons had come in. Lobelia had called for them and told them to bring their good cloaks and Dante's new weapons.

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Dante and Lily walked into Lobelia's audience room unescorted. Lobelia closed the door and pulled out a series of crystals. She called them diplomatic stones, but they magically locked down the room from sound, entry and scrying. It couldn't block out the Gods but it would block out any other race's magic and stop them from looking or listening in. They had used them extensively during all of their meetings about their alliance.

On the desk in front of them were two large finely crafted wooden jewelry boxes. They were exquisitely made and detailed and inlaid with precious metals and stones with a lycan howling at the moon carved into the dark wood. Lobelia handed one to Dante and the other to Lily.

"This is your armor that you ordered. Dante, the jeweler you worked with along with the enchanter of yours and Lily's armor was able to finish the designs so the armor is currently stored in these amulets."

Dante and Lily opened the boxes. Inside of Dante's was the amulet he had designed. It was two crescent moons with his symbol in the middle made from mythril and had heavy use of the moon tears he had ordered sitting on a heavy braided mythril chain. In Lily's was the one that Dante had designed in secret for his mate. Lily's was similar to Dante's in that it had a pair of crescent moons but between them was a lily crossed with a caduceus representing her as the healer she wanted to be. It too was made of mythril and had beautiful inlays of moon tears but sat on a much finer mythril chain that was brushed on one side and bright on the other and seemed to constantly move.

"It's beautiful Dante, I love it and the surprise thank you!" Lily kissed her Mate before taking the amulet out of the box and putting it on. Dante did the same. They took off their cloaks and Dante set his weapons aside. They took off the top layer of their clothing and then willed their armor on from the amulet that stored it.

Lobelia was watching them closely, excited to see how it had turned out since she had no idea what to expect with how it would look. She first took note of Dante as his flashed on. His crown was currently showing and he made for a grand and imposing sight. There was a cleverly sculpted breastplate that covered a good portion of his chest and core but had sliding plates that moved with him and allowed for dramatic mobility. The combined mythril and adamantite metal had a gray kind of smoky addiction to the bright and lustrous silver of the mythril. Carved and etched along every flat surface was a design that mimicked the fur of a wolf and was incredibly detailed and unique. Over his chest was his seal raised over the fur which led up to the pauldrons. They were larger but contoured close to the head and neck to not interfere were snarling lycan maws with large claws hanging from the bottoms. Black leather intricately stitched with silver designs and scrollwork covered his arms down to his bracers.

Lobelia called out, "The leather they used was very special. It came from a Shadow Drake, a cousin to some Dragons but not sentient. It is very light and incredibly strong and very tactile. It has a slight reptilian look to it but tends to bend light away from itself."

Dante's breeches were tight to him and had strips of intricately carved mythril and adamantite plates in strips across his thighs and around his knees and down his shins. They ended in armored boots and all of it was out of the Shadow Drake hide with oversized holsters strapped to his thighs on the outside. There was a finely detailed heavy belt around his middle that held leather harnesses for holding magazines and other items and a harness on each hip for his swords. Dante turned and looked at himself and Lobelia saw that on his back was a full moon in the night sky surrounded by the fur effect.

Lobelia looked over at Lily and really liked what she saw. Similar in ways to Dante's, her armor was of the same material and had the fur effect on it, same pauldrons, but she had a very sensual bodice instead that emphasized her femininity and sensuality and enchanted her impressive bust. On her breast over her heart was a lily crossed with a caduceus again like her amulet. She too had a very detailed heavy belt that connected to a war skirt done in Shadow Drake leather and mythril and adamantite strips. That ended at mid thigh and butted up to her high leather and armored boots similar in design to Dante's breeches. She too had her crown visible and cut an impressive sight. Like Dante she turned to look at herself and Lobelia saw that on her back were all the phases of the moon above a pair of intricate angel wings.

"You both look magnificent and now it's also functional as well. Congratulations they are masterpieces. You will have to practice shifting to your other forms with them but they are magnificent. Lily here are your new short swords." Lobelia set them on the desk and Lily picked them up. They were the same mix of bright and smoky grey metal and were is the swooping sweeping curves of the elven short swords style and had scrollwork down the bending spine of the blade. There was no cross-guard to speak of and it smoothly transitioned into the grip with the perpendicular handles Lily had asked for done in Shadow Drake hide with mythril wire wrap and ended in lycans head pommels. They were a thing of beauty and Lily moved them about and felt the weight and balance of them. They were extremely light and responded instantly to the slightest input, they would be perfect for her.

Lobelia spoke up. "Now out your weapons on this of you and then your cloaks." They spent a few minutes attaching everything and putting on their cloaks. Dante's new guns were strapped to his legs with Twin Moons on his hips with his cloak over his shoulders and his crown shining its inner radiance. He looked like the sling and leader of his people that he was as did Lily. Together they looked like the rulers of the Lycan Nation and the Champions of the Gods that they were.

"It's perfect."

* * * * *

Dante snapped out of his recollections and found himself back in the design lab. He was currently fabricating the main chassis that would hold Eve. This was the critical component and what everything else connected into. The core stone that had arrived was exquisite. It was a flawless red ruby cut in a teardrop shape that was the size of a grapefruit. Dante had constructed its cradle that held it in the core of the main chassis. That was in the shape of a pyramid that was several feet large and contained all of the primary components of Eve's design. Mythril was in broad use internally for its properties but the skin of the chassis was done in titanium. There was a clear glass ring around the top and the very top cornerstone was a perfect moon tear cut into the final shape of the tip of the pyramid. There were windows in the sides that let you see the core of the ruby, what would be Eve, when he was done. This would sit onto a pedestal that would be surrounded by all of the necessary cooling equipment and Eve's peripheral devices and support.

In another day or two he'd be ready to start Eve up and bring her to life. For that he'd need Lily's direct support but he knew he had it. Dante had talked to Lily earlier in the day about exactly how they would bring Eve to life. Dante would finish writing all of the code into the hardware and peripherals and build her language. But to give her life he would scan Lily to get a copy of her magic and essence and body. While he did that Lily would take a detailed scan of her mind using her own new magic techniques. She would connect to Dante as they had done previously in meditation and send him a perfect scan of her mind. Between the two Dante would merge them together with her code and then infuse energy into the magic and bring it to life in the heart of the crystal and breath the spark of life into Eve and wake her up. It wouldn't bring over Lily's memories only a copy of the construct of her mind. A blank shell that his magic and coding would inhabit and as she grew Eve's own personality would be developed and formed. Dante was almost giddy with excitement over nearly completing her and couldn't wait to finish. He had built personal support devices for himself and Lily and Alunra and Fenrir. They were a combination between a smart watch and a magical amulet. They were stylized cuffs made from mythril with power stones faceted into them and had touchscreens and scanners built in as well as phone connectivity. Eve would be able to connect to each one and her avatar would act as an assistant and never blinking guardian to he and his family. She'd be able to contact any one of them anywhere remotely and display her avatar in a 3D image above the watch using one of the stones as a focus and projector.

Everything was nearly ready and Dante kept working away.

* * * * *

Dante and Lily were in the design studio along with Lobelia, Master Eldar, Bryan, Astrid and the children. Everyone wanted to see Eve be 'born' so to speak and it was time for her to wake up. Dante was standing at the pedestal for Eve's chassis and Lily was right behind him with her hands on his shoulders. Lobelia and Eldar were watching closely, highly interested in this new magic and technique. Bryn was holding Fenrir and Astrid was holding Alunra. Dante and Lily and the kids were wearing their new communication wrist cuffs in preparation for Eve's birth.

Dante spoke to Lily as they began to concentrate. "Ok I've got her hardware powered on and started up. I've got my scan I made of you now I need you to start feeding me the scan you made of your mind Lily. I'll pull it all together and feed it power and push it into Eve's heart. We begin on my mark, you ready?"

Lily called out she was ready. They entered a trance as Dante began to assemble all of the data and coding and build Eve's mind and her consciousness. Dante pulled deep inside of himself and connected to his vast energy reservoir and began to Chanel ever increasing amounts of energy into the ruby and Eve's heart. The ruby began to glow and was growing in intensity by the second. Light began to shine brightly in the room and it started to envelop first Dante and the Lily who was bracing her Mate. It had been growing for several minutes before Dante yelled loudly and poured the final portions of power in. There was a tremendous flash and then the light was gone. In its place the room glowed a beautiful blood red as the ruby glowed brightly in the pyramid of her chassis and seemed to pulse like the beating of a heart.

Dante dropped to his knees breathing heavily as Lily kneeled down and held him. Both Fenrir and Alunra had called out "Daddy!" as he had fallen.

"I'm ok kids, that just took a lot out of me and I'm feeling very weak and tired right now."

The kids settled down as did Astrid and Bryn who had been worried as well but had held it in for the kid's sake.

Dante stopped up on shaky legs as Lily wrapped an arm around his side to steady him. She couldn't hold him up so well since she was so much smaller than her Mate. Lobelia and Eldar walked up to him. Eldar pulled a flask from his side and handed it to Dante.

"Here drink this. It's a powerful stimulant and has some alcohol and heavy amounts of sugar in it, it will help you reach a better equilibrium for now. You used an enormous amount of magic just now."

Dante downed the flask and could feel a warmth begin to spread through his body and mind. He still felt as weak as a little cub right now but the cold and hollow empty feeling was receding. Lobelia spoke to him.

"We need to get you food and then to lay down and recover. I've never seen that much energy used that quickly before, that was something else. How much of your reserves did you end up using. I know we've never actually measured your magic before but even without numbers you know your capacity."

Dante finished swallowing the elixir and looked over at Bella. "Nearly all of it. Eve's heart had a seemingly limitless capacity to hold it and by the end I was pushing at almost full strength and output. Between that and just how much I used, I am used up and very tired."

Lobelia smiled at him and rubbed his shoulder. "I'd imagine so after that display. That was very impressive as I said and was wonderful to watch. Thank you for allowing Master Eldar and I to observe this. Now what do you need to do for Eve? I imagine you still have some tasks before you can recover."

Dante smiled at that and shook his head in the negative. "Actually nothing in this case." The kids had come over and both them and Astrid and Bryn were looking at Eve's chassis and heart as they were all listening to him.