Part 15 (1/2)

”Uh, Anna. We have a visitor.” Ash nodded his head toward the other side of the cave where Leon stood. Leon's gaze was centered directly on the two of them. It was hard to get a read on his emotions, but Ash knew that Leon being here would make things a bit uncomfortable. Annalise's eyes widened; her face lit up in happiness. Without a hesitation, she ran across the cave and jumped into Leon's arms.

Leon tried to hide his excitement, ”I am so glad to have found you. A reaper saw you and the others and she told me where to find you.” Leon wrapped his wings around the two of them to hide them from the other's eyes.

Ash couldn't see or hear them, but he could feel how happy she was. He didn't get angry though; if it had been Jedzia who walked into the cave he would have reacted the same way. Ash walked closer and stood awkwardly near the counterparts.

”We have traveled so very far. Natara has helped us and we are so close. You have come to join us?” Annalise asked him as she stepped back from his embrace.

”No, I've come to take you home,” Leon stated, taking her hand and turning to look at the others.

”I don't think so,” Ash said, stepping up to the two of them and looking back and forth between them. ”You aren't going to go with him are you?” They were so close to the fallen and their bond had grown tremendously. If she walked away, Ash didn't know what he would do.

Annalise stopped to think for a moment. She took a breath and stepped away from her counterpart, ”I cannot go, I must help clear my name.”

”I don't believe killing the fallen will help your case against the Elders.”

”It is my only option.”

Leon's smile dropped, his hand going to his sword, ”I thought you might say that.”

”Do not hurt him, Leon. If you have ever trusted me, know that my heart is set on this mission. I-I know that you care for me.”

The cave was suddenly completely silent as he stared back at her. Ash couldn't believe his ears, his hand gripped his weapon tightly in case Leon decided to attack.

”And it should not be a surprise,” Annalise finished, looking to Ash quickly and back at Leon, ”that I care for you as well.”

Dropping his hand from his sword, her counterpart nodded, ”Okay, I shall help you here. Then you will return with me.”

”I promise,” she agreed. Ash took a step away from the two seraphs. Anna had just agreed to go back home after this was all over. He had only been kidding himself when he thought that just maybe they had connected over the past few days. It was hard to get a read on her emotions now. She was trying hard to hide something.

”Alright,” Finlay exclaimed, ”This is going to be just like old times. Me, you, and the fallen.” Leon tried to hide a smile.

Arie looked at the two seraphs in confusion. ”You two have killed fallen together often?”

Leon shook his head at Finlay as if to keep it a secret.

Finlay only scowled in response. ”I am going to tell her Leon. She is my charge and holds my heart,” Finlay told him. ”Leon and I are high ranking seraphs. We are the guardians on the frontline whenever there is battle. With the two of us here, there is no need to worry. We can take them.”

Ash never worried. ”Old Leon to save the day,” he thought sarcastically. Ash watched as Finlay grabbed Arie around the waist and pulled her in for a long kiss. Why did their relations.h.i.+p have to look so much easier? Annalise seemed to struggle every time she took a step farther from her upbringing, while Finlay seemed to enjoy making the Elders squirm. Then again Annalise felt a loyalty to Leon that Finlay didn't have. Ash wondered if maybe things could have been different if Leon was out of the picture. Ash pushed the thoughts from his mind, when this journey was over, and everyone went on with their former lives, where would that leave him? What would become of their bond? The sounds of crunching behind of Ash caused him to spin around. The unicorn stood and slowly lowered his head to Leon.

”You will take us as far as the entrance?” Finlay confirmed to the unicorn. He was answered with a slight nod.

”I will take you no farther, I dare not enter the tenth layer. If you five are so insistent on dying, it would be better to let me kill you now. I promise to make it quick.”

Ash's hand gripped the stolen keeper blade in his belt. If the creature attacked them, he wanted to be ready.

Finlay scoffed and puffed out his chest.

”Try it. I dare you,” he bragged. By this time, Arie had also pulled out her gun ready to shoot.

The unicorn looked at them for a long time. Ash could swear he saw saliva pooling at the corners of his mouth.

”I will not harm friends of Leon the guardian. It's your lucky day.” He turned around slowly and walked toward the cave's exit.

”Yeah, let's all trust the hungry unicorn creature,” Arie said, sarcastically.

Annalise nodded in agreement, ”Arie is right, He will not harm us.”

Her statement was well received with laughter from the group.

”Did I ever tell you how cute you are when you try and talk human?” Ash teased. He didn't care if Leon was there or not; Leon held no claim to Annalise. Staying close together, with Finlay bringing up the rear, they all crept from of the cave. They didn't know how many ancient creatures or mutants they would run into, but they were sure to find at least one or two. The group was covered in dirt from the journey. They hadn't run into many water sources, but when they did they weren't allowed the privacy of a bath.

After a few hours of walking, Ash noticed something strange about their surroundings. The dirt ground around them became more and more littered with bones. The piles of bones were scattered carelessly across the ground as if they were thrown from way up high. He felt someone tap him on the shoulder.

Finlay was only a few inches behind him. Ash turned around to look at him.

”What?” Ash asked. If he wanted to play the apology game, Ash definitely didn't want to partic.i.p.ate.

”The bones, they are becoming more frequent.”

Ash slowed down a bit so Annalise couldn't hear them talking. ”I noticed. Think it's a trap?”

Finlay poked at a pile of bones near his foot. ”Possibly, but these bones aren't of any creature I have ever seen. Unicorn! What creature lies ahead?”

The unicorn twisted his head 180 degrees so that he was staring back at him. Even though his head was turned at an unnatural angle, he didn't stop walking.

”That's gross,” Arie cried.

Annalise agreed, ”That is very unnatural.”

The unicorn ignored the comment. ”We are about to reach the seer and her lair.”

Ash pulled out his blade and pointed it at the unicorn. ”Why did you not mention this sooner? You are leading us straight to the home of a creature, why didn't you warn us?”

”You simply did not ask.”

Ash felt Annalise put her hand on his arm and gently push his blade down.

”Ash, calm down please.” The warmth of her touch was enough to cause his anger to dissipate. She gave him a comforting smile and turned back to the unicorn. It was easy for him calm down when he looked at her.

Leon turned to face the group. ”Do not worry. The seer is harmless. I do not believe she is the source of these bones.” He bent down to pick up a bone and began to examine it. Annalise walked over to Leon. She leaned down over Leon to take a closer look at the bone. Ash darted his eyes away from them and clinched his hands at his sides.

”Have you ever met the seer?” he asked Leon. Leon narrowed his eyes at the mortal and stood up slowly.

”The seer has prophesized many things for the seraphs over the centuries. Of course, that was long before she was banished to the ninth layer by you mortals.”

”Well I suppose that makes her harmless then,” Ash shot back, ”I still think we should be careful.”