14

I believe that when you're born a Shadow Wing Nephilim, there's always a small part of you that wants to believe that maybe, just maybe, the dark one who fathered you could actually care for you. Maybe it's just basic instinct for any living being. Maybe it stems from the fact that you always felt like the world was against you and you wanted so badly for someone to care. Either way, the sad fact remained for all of us that our fathers could never truly be caring towards us, and would always end up seeing us as tools for whatever they wished to do in this world.

But seeing what I had with Zane in that dream, I awoke wondering if perhaps behind all of the animosity that Zane felt towards Astaroth, there was a part of each of them that longed to care at least a little for each other.

That stayed on my mind as I walked with Elijah near the car. We'd stopped at a rest stop to get out and stretch after a few long hours of riding, and it was now nearly dawn. Chris had also said that he was going to switch places with Zane when we got back on the road to allow him to rest. Zane had driven for most of the night, and it was easy to tell that he was getting very tired. The only good thing was that we were getting pretty close to where we needed to go. Another hour and we would be there, and hopefully without any issues.

Elijah looked up at the stars high above us as he held my hand, "Look Mama, there are so many of them." he was saying.

"I know. Aren't they beautiful?" I responded, stopping to look with him.

This was one of the nice things about being in the countryside. There was nothing to obstruct the view of the night sky and all the stars within it.

There was a bit of nostalgia within me as I did this. As a child, I'd always had this way of thinking that the stars were special beings looking down on us. Maybe I hadn't been taught that they were the souls of the ones we loved looking down from the Heavens like many people believed, but it was close enough in my mind. I admit that I didn't quite like the idea of the Heavens looking at us now though. That felt far too dangerous in this moment.

Zane stepped out of the bathroom door near us, drying his face with some towels, "It looks like we've made good time. At least nothing's followed us yet." he told me.

"Yeah. I'm glad of that." I responded. I glanced around us, "Any idea if Chris and the others are headed back yet?"

Chris had said that he wanted to check around us and make sure that there were no signs of anything trailing us, and Kira and Mark had agreed to help him. As far as Chris was concerned, Zane would be enough to protect me and Elijah if anything happened, and, of course, I had Saffron in my pendant.

Zane shook his head, "No, not yet, although I'd imagine that they will be back in the next ten minutes or so. Then we can get moving again. Hopefully we can make it to Fallsburg by sunrise."

I thought about that dream as I looked at him. I'd been tempted to ask him about it and his relationship with his father since I'd woken up, but hesitated. I didn't want to cause any trouble, especially after what happened while I was pregnant with Elijah. We hadn't seen or heard from Astaroth since then, but there was no telling if he'd really given up.

Elijah suddenly spoke up, "Zane, why won't your dad help us?"

Both of us were surprised by this sudden question. In four years, Elijah had never once even asked Zane about his father, even though he was aware that Zane and Will's fathers were like Jade and Saffron, at least as Fallen Angels.

"What do you mean?" Zane asked after a few seconds of recomposing himself.

Elijah glanced at my pendant, "Saffron always helps, and so does Jade. They keep me safe all the time like you and Mommy and Daddy. Why won't your dad?" he clarified.

Zane answered him carefully, "Well, I'm not sure I can fully explain that to you. My father is a Fallen similar to Jade and Saffron, but he is also very different from them. There aren't many that would want to help us either. It's just not how they are." he explained.

Elijah nodded, though he sounded like he didn't believe him, "I guess."

"Is there a reason that you're wondering about this now Elijah? You've never mentioned anything about my father before." Zane pressed.

Elijah nodded, "Because he said that he wanted to help, but he can't because then he'd have to let you go, and he said it bothers him because you were different."

Both of us froze. This couldn't have been. There was no way Elijah should've been anywhere close to Astaroth in these last four years, yet he was talking like he'd been speaking to him.

Zane knelt down in front of him so that they could be face to face, "Elijah, please be honest with me. Have you see my father?" he asked him.

"I think so. His name is Astaroth, right?" Elijah answered.

A shiver went up my spine. No, Elijah had never heard Astaroth's name, nor that he was Zane's father. None of us had ever dared utter that name for fear that he could appear. We didn't even allow ourselves to think about him. Yet it seemed that he'd still managed to communicate with Elijah in some way.

Zane was quick to question this more, "Where did you see him? It's very important for us to know." he insisted.

Elijah thought about it before answering, "I don't remember when. It was before we left, and I know I saw him when I was sleeping. He was really tall and had black clothes. His hair was black too and his eyes were red. He said that he couldn't get close to me or Elena, but he wanted to see us. Then he told us that he was your dad, but he couldn't see you anymore because they made him go away."

Zane nodded, then slowly stood up, "It sounds like he was able to get through with the dreamscapes. That's a bit surprising, considering I thought Jade or Saffron would've sensed him."

Saffron appeared from the pendant, "Not necessarily." he corrected, "The dreamscapes can be quite tricky to navigate, and there are realms of it that Astaroth considers his territory and uses back doors to enter into. He's also one who enjoys hunting within Purgatory, which often intersects with the dreamscapes. That's part of the reason that he's so easily able to pull in victims for his torture and occasional possession."

"True, he has mentioned such things to me before." Zane relented. His attention turned back to me, "But who is Elijah speaking of with him? I don't believe I've heard of Elena before."

"We think she's the other Seraphita involved in all of this, but Elijah's only seen her in dreams. Chris and I just heard about it too right before we got that note from the Seraphs telling us to go to Fallsburg." I explained.

Zane nodded, now apparently putting things together, "Yes, now that you mention it, Will did once tell us that if he ever was able to have a daughter, he would've named her Elena. I wonder..." he trailed off in thought.

"Anyway," I continued, "why was he there targeting them? It couldn't have been just to talk to them. I've seen enough of Astaroth to know better than that."

I was feeling a slight panic within me as all of this sunk in. If Astaroth could get to Elijah in the dreamscapes, then what about the others? In particular, what about Lucifer?

"Astaroth tends to do everything to his own accord. He's always been that way." Zane acknowledged, "But if I'm hearing this correctly, it seems to me that he had ulterior motives for doing so. Even throughout the years with me, I've felt that it was that way. Although his core nature has always been of harm, there's a certain piece of him that also at times tried to care, as odd as that sounds."

Saffron shrugged, a knowing smile on his face, "It's his duel nature, as with many of them. Astaroth is not one to tangle with on a casual basis. He was made one of the seven rulers of the Hells for a reason. When the Great War in the Heavens occurred eons ago, Astaroth was considered by many to be one of the cruelest involved. He was the sole reason that many, many angels were brutally cut down, and he enjoyed every moment of the bloodshed. This is a trait that he has carried into the Hells and still practices in his domain. As I stated before, he has a habit of hunting for victims in Purgatory, and those unlucky enough to be sentenced under him are doomed to an eternity of vicious torture. When I've fought with him, he's held back quite a few times out of sheer spite for me. However, the last time we faced him, Jade ended up giving him quite a nasty wound before sending him back to his domain. It's probably a major part of why he's stayed away like he has, although I certainly would not count him out."

"And despite all of that, there were several times after he attacked me when he'd heal me. That or he'd simply stick around for a while and tell me about things he felt I should know. He even taught me a few tricks in fighting over the years. To be completely honest about it, I've always found his behavior very odd." Zane admitted.

"He said that he wanted to care about you, but he doesn't know how." Elijah informed him.

"He told you that?" I asked.

It sounded like Astaroth had been telling Elijah a lot of things, and hadn't attempted any harm at all. I wondered why.

Elijah nodded, "Yes. He told us that he was going to make sure that the bad one couldn't hurt us either."

We all looked at each other. That sounded strange.

"What do you think that means?" I asked.

Zane knelt in front of Elijah again, "Elijah, may we see your dream?" he requested.

"Okay." Elijah agreed without hesitation.

Zane gently held the sides of Elijah's head, pressing his forehead against his. Saffron and I also laid our hands on Elijah's shoulders so that we could see what they were seeing.

It was a matter of seconds before we'd entered the memories of Elijah's dreams. Everything looked dark in this particular one, although there were two figures that stood out near us, their auras glowing in the mist and gloom as they held hands. One I easily recognized as Elijah.

The other made my breath catch. She was a little girl that looked Elijah's age. She was very pretty, with dark hair that fell into curls to her waist and bright violet eyes. She was wearing a simple white shirt and dark skirt, along with black dress shoes. There was no doubt in my mind that this was Elena, not only for the fact that she was with Elijah, but because she looked so much like Will. Her hair and eyes were a mirror of his.

But the other things that immediately caught my attention about them was that both had their wings out, and both had the set on their backs and set for their ears. This seemed like a very risky thing, considering that the dreamscapes could easily intersect with the Veil and Purgatory.

A figure slowly floated up from the ground in front of them, taking on the form of Astaroth. He was dressed in a bloodstained white shirt and black vest with dark pants, with his long hair loose around him. He remained several feet from them, and both children were looking back at him with wide eyes. Elena stepped closer to Elijah, holding his hand tightly.

After what felt like forever, Astaroth finally spoke, "So you are the children they have spoken of. It seems they all were correct. Your essence is most definitely of Them."

"Who are you?" Elijah asked him.

Astaroth looked amused, "You show no fear of me. Are you putting on a show for your counterpart, or is that you know I have no intentions of harm here?" he responded.

Elijah shook his head, "You don't feel like you want to hurt us, and you look like Zane too."

"I should. I am his father, and I rather enjoy thinking that those I sire would look like me for the most part."

"Yeah, he does look like you, but his eyes are nicer." Elijah pointed out.

Astaroth humored him, "Perhaps that is to be expected. I do not consider myself as kind in any way. But this meeting is not just so that we may speak. I had to see you in order to be certain of what I can now do." he continued.

Elena seemed more at ease, stepping up beside Elijah again while still holding his hand, "What do you mean? Are you trying to help?" she asked him.

Astaroth glanced around them. For the first time I noticed that there were figures starting to surround the three of them. These figures were very pallid and wore clothing from many different eras. They seemed like they wanted to get to Elijah and Elena, but were being blocked.

His eyes narrowed as he looked at them, and a sudden surge of black shadows swept out around them. The figures screamed and cried as they were blasted back into the darkness.

"You two do not belong here." he continued as he turned back to them, "This is one area that I will make certain you can no longer access, considering none of those others around you have the ability to do so. But also, I have seen you both to ensure that he will not find you either. Perhaps I cannot prevent what will happen now with that boy or those others, but I also will not allow anymore interference for what must be done."

The dream ended there. We were all shocked as we let go of Elijah. Well, Zane and I were. Saffron was more amused with the whole thing.

"He's doing his own thing as well in holding Lucifer back. It seems that the grudge match between them continues on." he remarked.

Chris and the others were returning by then, landing near us.

"It looks like we're still in the clear for now." he told us.

"I would think so, especially with what we've just learned." Zane responded.

"What's going on?" Chris asked as he looked at me and Elijah. I didn't miss the worry in his eyes.

I did my best to explain to him and hoped he didn't take this badly, "Astaroth's managed to find Elijah and Elena in his dreams, and he told them that he was making sure that Lucifer couldn't find them."

"You're kidding, right?" Chris looked at Zane as he spoke.

"No. We all saw it just a moment ago in Elijah's memories, and I agree that it is shocking. Astaroth's made his own moves that actually help to support us. That's the last thing I would've expected from him." Zane confirmed.

"Are you sure that he's not trying to trick us?" Mark asked him.

"Good question." Chris agreed.

Zane didn't seem to think so, "No. There's much more to this. Astaroth never uses such roundabout approaches with anything he wants. That much I've learned throughout the decades. He's making his own moves here, and I guarantee you that it's a strike against Lucifer. If anything, everything he's done in the last five hundred years has been with that goal."

"That's very true. He always has kept quite a rivalry there. Wouldn't you agree Jade?" Saffron spoke up.

Jade appeared with us, "If you really wish to know my opinion, I'll say that I agree with Zane. Astaroth is the kind who does whatever he deems necessary to accomplish his perceived goals, and has had it out to challenge the Master for centuries now. I'd dare call it a grudge match, although none seem to know why that is." he confirmed.

"So he's using this again him. We're just pawns in their games either way." Chris scoffed.

"It is what it is, and you are well aware of that." Jade reminded him, "But for now, it would be in your best interest to keep moving. Staying in one area at this point is a risk and you are far too close to the meeting place to be careless now."

As much as any of us hated admitting it, Jade was right. Staying there like we were was only taking more risks in having something track us down, so we reluctantly went back to the SUV.

Chris hopped into the driver's seat, turning on the engine. Elijah was quiet beside me, a faraway look in his eyes now. It was like he was thinking about something very deeply.

The truth was that I was too. I kept picturing the little girl I'd seen in that dream with him. Elena. She truly was Will's daughter, and she was also at least known about. But what was Astaroth's game when it came to her? It seemed like he was treating them both equally, even though she was supposed to be the counter against us.

I shook my head, doing my best to clear those thoughts and focus on Elijah. He didn't really seem like himself right now. Maybe probing into that dream had bothered him.

"Hey, are you okay?" I asked as I put an arm around him.

Elijah blinked like he was coming back to reality, "Yes, but we have to go. They'll catch us if we don't." he responded.

"Who'll catch us?" Chris asked, concern marking his voice.

"Those angels."

We knew better than to not heed his words. Elijah had proven time and again that he had an uncanny ability to sense things before us.

Zane looked over at Chris, "Should we have Saffron and Jade flank the car?" he suggested.

"Not right now. I think we might have some time to keep ahead of them, but we definitely need to get to Fallsburg as quick as we can. We don't need to take any more chances." Chris responded.

Kira was also looking at Elijah from his other side, sensing that he was on edge, "Everything will be okay. We're going to make sure no one can hurt you." she reassured him.

"You will?" Elijah confirmed.

"Yes, I promise."

I felt like I'd come to know Kira very well by now. She was a good and sweet person at heart, but I'd also noticed during the last four years that she had this sadness hidden within her eyes. From what Zane had told us a few years before, something incredibly bad had happened to her about twenty years prior, but he didn't elaborate on what it was. Yes, Zane knew, but he didn't speak of it out of respect for her. Chris and I in turned respected that too and left it alone.

Mark turned quickly, looking out of the back window like he was listening closely to something.

Kira noticed it too, "What do you hear Mark?" she asked him.

"I can't make it out that well yet, but it sounds like it could be wings." Mark responded, still listening.

Chris glanced at him from the rearview mirror, "How close is it?"

Mark closed his eyes and concentrated, "I can't tell precisely, but it's got a hell of a powerful feeling to it. I don't think we're safe staying on the road. We need to take cover somewhere." he answered.

"Damn." Chris cursed.

Zane sat up more, "We may do better to use the woods near here. It would at least give us some shelter to hide Elijah if we have to be in a confrontation." he suggested.

"Sounds like a plan to me. I don't think we'll be able to avoid this." Chris reluctantly agreed.

He turned onto an exit to leave the highway, one that thankfully led down to the wooded area that we'd been seeing. He took an opening on the side of the road to pull the SUV into the dense woods as far as it would go. As we did, I could feel the presence coming at us stronger. They were right. There was no avoiding this.

Chris parked the SUV and looked back at us as he turned off the engine, "Come on. We'll be sitting ducks if we stay in here." he ordered.

"Agreed. It would better if we spread out as well and allowed the trees and underbrush to give us some cover. Perhaps we can try to evade anymore detection so that they'll back off." Zane added.

Jade and Saffron appeared from their stones, opening the door of the SUV.

"There won't be any evading this. Judiel is leading them on this hunt, and he's already sensed the tremendous power from this boy's soul. The best that we can do now is fight until we can figure out the best way to drive him back completely." Jade informed us.

"You really think they'll be a way to do so?" Zane inquired.

"If there is, then we'll have to try. We're not going to let him get to Elijah." Chris responded.

We could feel the angels getting closer now. It was an overwhelming sense of power, and all around us, the woods seemed to become still. It was as if nature itself was sensing that something terrible was getting ready to happen.

I picked Elijah up once we were out of the SUV, looking over at Chris, "I'm going to take him farther into the woods. Maybe we can avoid them better that way."

"It's probably the best bet. I'm coming with you." Chris responded.

"That would be the best thing. We can hold them back here while you three go." Zane told him.

"Sounds good to me. I've been hoping to get a crack at this self-righteous angel." Mark added.

Kira was quick to call him down, "Don't do anything stupid Mark. We're making sure that he can't hurt Elijah, so don't lose your temper." she reminded him.

"Always do." Mark responded, flashing her a smile.

Chris took my arm and the three of us headed deeper into the woods. As we did, I saw Kira, Mark and Zane bringing their wings out and preparing to defend against the angels who were now starting to send bolts of lightning down towards us.

I didn't get a chance to see anymore. I could only hold onto Elijah tightly as we hurried through the dense underbrush and maze of trees. No, I wouldn't allow them to get to my child. Just as before, we'd stop Judiel from ever laying a hand on him.

Chris brought out his sword and wings as we ran. After a few minutes, we both stopped and he turned to look at the bits of sky through the swaying multicolored leaves.

"They've put up a barrier now. That means they're definitely out for blood." he muttered.

"Do you think they'll be okay back there?" I had to ask as I looked back towards where we'd come from.

"I hope so, but there's no other choice right now. They're not going to let Judiel or any of those others get to us or Elijah if they can help it." Chris reminded me. He looked over at Elijah, who was holding onto me tighter now. It was easy to see that he was afraid.

Chris gently ran a hand over his head, "It'll be alright. We're not going to let anything happen to you." he promised.

The silence around us felt deafening now. I could've sworn that I heard the sound of our own heartbeats. Nothing moved as we stood there. Chris kept his sword ready, cautiously looking up and around us, but other than silence, nothing seemed amiss.

"Maybe they've managed to hold them back." I whispered.

There's a law of nature that says you're asking for it when you say such things. As soon as I uttered those words, a large bolt of lightning hurdled towards us from the top of the trees.

Chris jumped in front of me, swinging his sword to deflect the strike back into the trees. It burned through several of them, causing them to hit the leaf covered ground with hard thuds.

Chris remained in front of us as three figures floated down through the haze of leaves to face us. They were angels who had come with Judiel. All three luminous beings wore white robes and were bathed in a blue glow, with two sets of large blue wings on their backs. Their blue eyes glowed as they regarded us with solemn expressions.

It felt like forever as we stood there facing each other. Then Elijah began squirming in my arms. The next thing I knew, he pushed himself away from me, the wings on his ears coming out as he ran away.

"Elijah!" I called desperately.

"Damn it!" Chris cursed, looking in that direction with me before turning his attention back to the angels who were after us.

They too had seen the wings and were already poising themselves to go after him, but Chris wasn't about to allow them.

"Go after Elijah! I'll hold them off!" he told me.

I was already turning to run after him as he said that. Not only did I trust Chris to fight them off, my first instinct was to protect my son.

I brought my own wings out and tried to focus on where I could sense him going. Elijah may have been running scared, but I could keep track of his aura. Hopefully this would allow me to find him before those angels did.

I felt a gust of air wiz past my head as I came to a small clearing in the trees. The object that had caused it lodged into the dirt beside me as I stumbled. I managed to catch myself and turn as I brought out my bow and arrow. I barely had time to pull the string back and release as something bright gold flew towards me. It flew back as my arrow barreled towards it, and landed a few feet from me, turning into the familiar imposing form of Judiel.

I managed to stand up, keeping my next arrow trained on him. He in turn had his sword trained on me.

"Well, well. Looks like you lost your rabbit, girl." Judiel chuckled.

I scowled at him, "You leave my son alone!" I ordered.

"Do you honestly think that you can stop me? I have dozens of angels on my side, and you only have two pathetic half Fallen and those sad little clans. None of that is a match for the ones like me." Judiel countered.

I braced myself as he was suddenly right in front of me. All I could do was hold up my bow to keep the sword from slicing into me. I could barely hold him back, and I couldn't transform it into any other weapon to better defend myself.

But glancing at the woods where I knew Elijah had gone, I felt the rage rise within me, giving me more strength to fight back.

"No! I won't let you take him away from me!"

I don't know how, but I managed to push him away from me. I changed my bow into a spear as quick as I could, standing my ground.

Judiel landed near me, wiping blood from the side of his mouth. I'd landed at least a small blow on him.

"You're an arrogant child, aren't you? I'd expect no less from one born to him; but I am not going to let that child be seen!" he declared.

I knew that I didn't stand that much of a chance against him, but I was also angry now. This was the angel who had been hunting us for centuries; the one who had almost killed Chris and Will, and killed countless innocent people who tried to shield the ones like us. He was even trying to have those clan Nephilim killed just because he felt like they were like us. No, I wasn't going to let that happen. Even if I died there, I wouldn't let him touch Elijah.

But as I braced myself for another attack, I suddenly became aware of a familiar presence a few feet behind me. I looked over my shoulder, feeling my eyes widen as I saw Elijah hiding halfway behind one of the nearby trees. He still looked deathly afraid, especially as he saw Judiel.

"Elijah!" I heard myself cry out.

Judiel smiled, "Looks like my job just got much easier."

I barely had time to think as he moved in a flash towards him. I reacted purely on instinct, which everyone had always told me was the best way to survive, and grabbed Elijah, holding him close to me. I managed to change my spear to a blue shield, and heard the sword hit it hard. It cracked from that hit with a fine, spider web like pattern.

I jumped back with Elijah, keeping my cracked shield up as I landed.

"Mama!" I heard him cry as one of the trees landed near us.

"I've got you. I won't let him hurt you." I promised him as I jumped out of the way.

I'll admit that I'd never thought in a million years that I'd be facing this angel alone like this, but at the same time, I had a good reason to fight.

I brought up my shield again as a blast of light came barreling towards us. Elijah screamed as it hit the shield, the impact hard enough to through us to the ground. The impact knocked the breath out of me, but somehow, I managed to bring out another word to defend us from the angel's attack.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" I demanded as I pushed against his sword, "He's only a child!"

"He most certainly is not! This child is the other Seraphita in the flesh, and I will not allow him to interfere with my hunts!" Judiel retorted.

My anger rose again and I pushed him back with all my strength. But unfortunately I didn't do enough damage to really affect him. He was still after me. I stared in horror as he was suddenly in front of me again, throwing me back to the ground. His sword buried itself into the dirt as it was thrust at my head, and I cried out in terror.

The next thing I knew, I was being lifted by the front of my shirt.

"Did you honestly think that you stood a chance? You are only a female Shadow Wing. Perhaps you were made to be stronger than the others, but you are still no match for angels. Now, what do you say to ending this little game between us?" Judiel said, looking over at Elijah.

I was horrified as I realized that three angels were now surrounding Elijah. He was still on the ground near us, kneeling with his hands over his head as they drew closer.

"Elijah!" I choked out, feeling helpless. I struggled hard to get out of Judiel's grip, but nothing was working. His grip was too tight.

Just as they were about to grab Elijah, a sudden powerful blast of green light came out of the woods. The angels quickly looked up as it hit the nearby trees, bringing them down in burnt cinders. That turned out to be a mistake on their part. Chris was instantly landing beside Elijah, cutting them down in a few swift movements. He glared at Judiel as he stood in front of his son.

"Let her go. If you want to kill them, then you'll have to go through me."