The Spark Ignites Pt. 05

He was ripped, to put it simply. Dense muscles that looked like they could crush rocks were complimented by a six pack... and it was all littered with scars. There were several that looked like they were from claws, others blades, and there was one that crawled up his side that looked suspiciously like it was once a burn, and in it were claw marks that were large, like the creature had hands the size of stop signs. From there, my eyes were drawn to a tattoo on his chest, a golden skull in a cloaked hood. There were two symbols I wasn't familiar with set on either side of it. One was light green, the other a deep blue, but those thoughts were swept aside as he settled into a loose stance. He angled his body slightly and set his feet so one was in front of the other. His eyes met mine, and the anger was still there, along with an iron will that I couldn't help but respect, then he made a 'come at me' gesture.

"Come on, seems you've got some energy to work out, and I still have an awful lot of aggression in me, so let's use the opportunity we have."

I said nothing and just rushed him, headlong like a bull. I closed the gap quickly, only taking a few seconds, but he was more than ready. A leg lashed out and caught me in the chest in a brutal Spartan kick. I grunted in pain, and I was sure I could hear my ribs creaking with the force he put into the blow. He clearly wasn't holding back, and so I decided not to hold anything in reserve either.

His kick lifted me off the ground, but I just used that along with my own power to boost myself into an overhead ax kick enhanced by my own fire. I was sure I had caught him off guard, but he just turned, allowing the blow to sail past his face, missing by only an inch or two. His hand grabbed my arm as my foot impacted the ground, and he whipped me into the side of a building. The wall cracked, but didn't break and bury me in rubble. The Hunter then moved back, covering ten feet in the blink of an eye.

"Why do you fight so hard, Abyss Flame? We all have a reason, so what's yours?"

I didn't have time to answer him before he was in my guard, slamming an open palm into my sternum, driving air from my lungs before sweeping my legs out from under me. On instinct, I lashed out with a hand, a burst of flame flipping me over so I landed on my hands, and forcing my opponent to retreat a few paces. As soon as the fire died out though, he was in my face again, but I didn't have time to get back on my feet, so instead I spun on my hands, letting my powers flow from my feet in a disc about chest height.

I heard the soft sound of a hissed out swear before he had to turn his advance into a slide, it was a moment of satisfaction, before the slide turned into a steel toed slide tackle that I was almost sure put cracks in my wrist bones. I toppled down to the ground once more, into a heap as the Hunter kipped up and did something that pissed me off.

He slipped a hand into his pocket, and, despite the mask on his face, he managed to look completely bored. I saw red, and the next few minutes passed in a blur of fists, feet and fire. But soon, I finally fell to the ground, panting, bruised, and thoroughly humbled. This man may not have as powerful of an ability as me, but he had plenty of skills and experience to more than make up for it.

It was like when I got too big of a head back when I was a teen, thought I could take on someone who had been doing karate for years. I was just as humbled back then as I was now, just with a few less bruises, and for sure, I didn't feel like my bones were on the verge of breaking. The Hunter finally stopped, standing over me with a look of curiosity in his eyes.

"Still gotta ask, what do you fight so hard for? I've got people I would, and have, killed for, and I do find they're an excellent motivation to keep on even in the face of certain loss. So, again, why do you fight like that, Abyss Flame?"

It took me several seconds to push myself up on my arms, and my eyes met his mismatched ones. His words did actually hit something in my head. He was right, there were a lot of things I had to fight for. I had my sexy elven seductress, the fiery and passionate dragon, my sister and cousin were back in my life, even if Steph was being a bit of a cunt at the moment. My brother in all but blood, Koa, hell, I even had a very pretty Fallen-

My thoughts were interrupted as the Hunter's arm snapped up, a blade suddenly in it and deflecting a spear of light away from his head. In the same movement, he slid away from me and into a prepared stance, ready to commit more violence.

"V!"

I heard a breathy southern voice shout out as another beam of light flew at the Hunter, and that beam was dodged just as easily as he'd dodged my fire earlier. I shot up to my feet and faced that same amazingly beautiful angel. She was clad in dark robes and plate armor, a mirror of the ones I'd seen normal angels wear, she looked like she was ready for war. A dark picture of majesty, and if I wasn't so damn sore and tired, I was sure I would be turned on by her.

She rushed over on her black wings, about to swing a blade of light at the Hunter when I finally managed to speak.

"Stop!"

The world seemed to pause, the Hunter's left blade frozen in a blocking position, the other ready to slash at Alariel. The Fallen was about to bring her blade down in a powerful overhead swing, one I wasn't sure could be blocked. The Hunter took that instant to leap away, and now he stood beside Laina, Allison, along with several other cloaked individuals, one who also passed him the handle of his scythe. Alariel floated in front of me before dropping to the ground and formed a shield in her left hand made of pure light, obviously she was prepared for a fight to break out.

"You, Hunter, you've done your job here, now leave, you will not harm this man, he is under my protection!"

I could feel the eye roll, even from forty feet away. The man slid his sabers into their sheathes and walked up to a midway point between us. I did notice that his hands never left the hilts though, as if he was ready to have them back out in an instant. His voice almost seemed hoarse, gritting out the words.

"And you aren't welcome here, so get gone. Your little boy toy has to go through the same scrubbing procedure that everyone on this op has to. Get the stink of the Underworld off him."

That was news to me, but something caught my ear. There was an extra bite when he told her she wasn't welcome, almost sounding like a kind of prejudice. Normally, I would have waited, but my brain was pretty rattled inside my skull after that brawl, so I just asked.

"What do you mean she isn't welcome here? Do you have something against Fallen?"

He cocked his head to the side as he looked to me, but then shook his head with a harsh snort.

"No, not Fallen, fuckin psychologists, always digging around in skulls where they're better off never reaching into."

That was not the answer I was expecting, but before either of us could say anything more, Laina stepped to the front now.

"Let me handle this, sir."

She then turned to face myself and Alariel, holding herself with grace and looking like a perfect diplomat. She bowed slightly in respect before straightening out.

"Ma'am, you can accompany us to Aldion Tower to ensure his safety, as some of us who need to file full reports are going to decontaminate there."

A tense standoff was the only thing that happened for several moments, as obviously, the Hunters were not going to just let me go without doing whatever procedure they needed to, and Alariel was absolutely not going to hand me over to them. Something I didn't really understand, she didn't seem like someone to jump to conclusions and become violent. The gold skull guy was just standing over me, not even looking hostile, but she still attacked...

Whatever, it was a puzzle for later, as she finally dispersed her weapons and nodded.

"Lead the way then, but know that I do not trust you, or your boss."

Laina nodded and the tension in the air lowered as she took the lead towards Allison, who seemed to be opening some kind of portal.

*************************************

I sat in a chair across from Alariel in a side room of the Aldion's tower, she was back in her more casual clothes. Consisting of a well fitting shirt that showed off some cleavage, and a pair of skinny jeans that showed off her fantastic ass. God damn did I want to grab that, and I might have put some actual thought into that, except we also had a guest.

Off to the side behind her stood the Hunter who had rescued the three of us. He was leaning against a wall with his eyes closed and his bone mask firmly back in place. I could almost feel the irritation radiating off him as Alariel and I continued going back and forth over this same topic, but she completely ignored his presence, and rapidly deteriorating mood. The Fallen sighing drew my eyes back to her, and she was rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"Look, V, it isn't that hard, you clearly have feelings for Brianna, you've told me about your dreams, and that should make it incredibly clear for you to understand."

We had gone in circles around this point, she thought the dreams I had had in the underworld about my sister meant that I was in love with her. I vehemently denied it, I was just confused because I was in an incredibly stressful situation and her confession was messing with my head. Even if she was right, the repercussions of us getting together would be insane. Society still wasn't ok with siblings having sex, despite the shifting perpsectives over the last few years. Thanks to several politicians who came from the other side of the Veil, there were a lot of minor issues, taboos that were changing...

"No, it doesn't mean anything, at all. Do you have any idea at all what people would say about that? I can't do that to her, I can't make her an outcast to society just because I might want something more, and I don't."

If I was being entirely honest with myself, I wasn't one hundred percent sure that I was against at least trying something with Bri. She was very good looking, and she obviously didn't care about what society would say. I just didn't know what to do about it, I had to think rationally for both of us, since Bri wasn't going to. If anyone found out she was having sex with me, then she would be ruined, she could never find work, go to school, nothing. She'd be a social outcast.

Alariel put her face in her hands and let out a quiet scream. We had been saying nearly the exact same things for over an hour now, and I guess she was finally nearing the end of her patience.

"Oh father, give me the strength to deal with this stubborn man. He knows not what he says, and knows not the feelings in his heart. Look, V you-"

The Hunter interrupted her with a loud groan, finally opening his eyes. They were now a pinkish color, unlike the two different ones he had when he was in the underworld, when I lost control and tried to kill him.

"Fuck's sake can we hurry this up? I already had to miss a date night with one of my girls for this job, and now you have me sitting in on a clearly private but also pointless conversation. I want to go home and snuggle with one or more of them."

One of his girls? That statement sent my mind into overdrive with questions. Was he some sort of player? Did he have an open relationship? How did he keep them all happy? The way he said it just made me feel like he had more than two. I still had issues wrapping my head fully around having Nereah and Kari when I really sat down and thought about it. I usually tried not to think about it too much though, it just wasn't worth it. I was happier with those two in my life, so why worry about it too much?

Alariel whipped her head around with a scowl on her face. She had made it fairly clear that she wasn't the biggest fan of my rescuer. I'd overheard another argument when she had led him here. She didn't care for how truly steeped in deathly energy he was, he shrugged it off because he didn't care, saying that it's who he was. He let her heated glare roll off him like water off a duck's back. Pushing himself off the wall, he took a couple steps towards Alariel, and I could feel him grinning as she bit out a few words at him.

"Do you mind? I am with a client, you can wait your turn."

The Hunter scoffed as she got after him for interrupting her impromptu session with me.

"If you're with a client, then why the hell am I even in here, at your request no less. It can't be because I need a shrink, already have a confidant who isn't one that fulfills the role. She has full approval as well, so, why am I here?"

That was an excellent question, why had she demanded he be here? It wasn't like he was close to any of us who saw our fight, other than maybe Allison, but that was clearly a professional relationship. I heard more than saw my therapist grinding her teeth together in frustration. Honestly, this had to be the angriest I had ever seen her. She was normally so composed and calm, but this man just seemed to get on her nerves.

"I kept you here because I could use an extra voice of reason, you have a weird love life yourself."

I saw the Hunter raise an eyebrow for a moment before raising his head in agreement. Obviously, not impressed by her words, and even a tad irritated if the slight twitch in his eyebrow was anything to go by.

"Yes, I do. And how do you know anything about my perfectly fucked personal life?"

It was the angel's turn to scoff as she shook her head. Her blond hair shimmered in the light streaming through a nearby window, looking like strands of gold, and, not for the first time, I was struck by how beautiful she looked.

"You have the smell of multiple women on you, and it is too deeply attached to you for it to be anything less than a full blown relationship with them."

The man had a sparkle in his eyes, but it was not a good one. I could tell he was not smiling anymore, even beneath his mask. He shrugged again, as if to say 'and?' There was calm confidence oozing off him in waves, like he knew he was hot shit, but at the same time, there wasn't much arrogance. It was oddly balanced out by a steel core of experience, something I could tell he had by the way he held himself, and, of course, from the scars on his body. But still, beneath it all, my flames were whispering that there was a dormant rage, cold ashes of anger, just waiting to be reignited. I was hesitant to speak, not afraid, but he had kicked my ass so thoroughly with just his hands.

Alariel must have not felt that same thing, because she looked at him with disdain for several seconds before continuing.

"I can also see the multiple strings intertwined together going from your heart, and they are all mutually romantic love. That and a deeply seated essence of death, which has an almost unbearable stench."

Just like that, any calm in the air was instantly gone. The Hunter cocked his head to the side, a rather unamused look in his eyes as the temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees, just like when I fought him. It was a cold that had nothing to do with the actual temperature in the room, it was a chill that you felt in your soul. Like walking alone through a foggy graveyard on an exceptionally dark night. It just sent shivers down your entire body.

"And who gave you permission to read my soul like that Fallen? I don't recall letting you into it, you should know better than that. And what do you have against me? I have never even seen you before today and I haven't done any jobs for Micheal or Azazel, so what's your fuckin problem?"

I could almost taste the anger dripping from his words, and he almost spat the word 'Fallen' like it was venomous, and beyond that, an insult. I never thought that maybe it was taboo for Alariel to read someone's soul without their permission, but clearly it was something that this man was very much opposed to. I heard her murmur a short prayer for patience before she spoke to him again.

"It's you being a Hunter! Your kind are problematic, you cause strife wherever you walk, and you worship death like a great savior. Now, before I try and stab you with a light spear, help me convince this stubborn man about what I've been trying to do for over an hour."

The Hunter grumbled something less than flattering under his breath, then addressed the angel. I could see there was now a fire in his eyes, and knew this wasn't going to be pretty. The Hunter shifted, and the entire mood in the room did as well. There was a deep seated anger that was slowly coming to the front. I had felt that same anger when we talked things out with our fists earlier, we both had to vent, and honestly, it was good to get it out of my system before I sat down and talked with someone. Obviously, that same venting wasn't enough for this man.

"We don't cause strife, we end it, brutally, and worship him? Nah, he's surprisingly down to earth. We are all his children, and all will meet him, one day, so he treats us as such. Dying is scary, so Death tries to be warm, and welcoming, so that people can go to their afterlife knowing that they were not alone in the end."

Alariel was taken back by the deluge of information. Her eyes were wide, and her mouth had fallen open in a bit of shock. The hunter was far from finished, though, and continued on his tirade. The anger from before still burned hot, and my flames were screaming at me to keep as still as possible, to not catch the attention of this raging beast.

"Your kind caused so much more strife during the Great Schism, when Lucifer fell and the worlds were torn apart by bloody wars. Do you have any idea who was there afterwards to pick up the pieces and keep the vultures from killing thousands of innocent lives while the angels were busy picking a fight that should never have started to begin with?! WE DID. We killed anyone who decided to take advantage of the instability and pick off the weak and defenseless, like the angels are supposed to! I know the stories, I've spoken with the souls of those who died during those times, they are hurt, they trusted the angels to help keep the peace, but were failed by them. How does it feel, being part of the reason The Guild age was ushered in? The organization that made you and your kind almost obsolete?"

He was spewing hate like a volcano now, and punching below the belt too, if the hurt look in the blonde's eyes was anything to go by. But the Hunter was still not finished.

"Maybe next time, before opening your mouth, oh high and mighty angel, do some fucking research and form an educated opinion, instead of following the words of that warmonger Baraqiel blindly, like some lowly dog! Go talk to Azreal if you're so curious about my kind, he has a close relationship with Death!"

Those words held so much heat that I thought even I was going to melt from the simple but thorough tongue lashing the Hunter gave the woman. The man then stared at my therapist, who was now incredibly flabbergasted. It seemed like she had a lot to think about, and it was overloading her mind. There was a deafening silence as the man stepped around Alariel's catatonic form.

"Now if you want my goddamn help, then sit down, shut your mouth, and let me do my thing, my way."

The Hunter took a deep breath, holding it for several seconds while rubbing his temples. He let it out in a sigh, and the anger in the air dispersed as he seemed to get ahold of himself again. After grabbing a chair, spinning it around, and sitting in it backwards, he crossed his arms on the back before resting his head on them. Now, he addressed me directly, annoyance still in his voice, but it was just a passive frustration instead of a directed one.

"I apologize that you had to see that, it's been a very long few days, and there is a lot going on right now in my life. I have an awful lot of things I need to discuss with my master, and my boss. A lot of very loud, very painful topics that I would rather not have to talk about, but here we are. Anyways, V, right?"