Knowing of Tyrell’s tendency to disappear on weekend nights, Angelique sneaked into his room, having little difficulty in the endeavor since the Arteme parents were rather heavy sleepers. Of all the people in his family, Tyrell had showed only her the location of his dream drawings. That was back when he used to trust her enough to discuss them with her. For a while now, he had been distant and ever cautious around her. It was very odd of him to hold back on her and called for an investigation into the problem.

Aside from that, Angelique had spoken the truth when she had informed her cousin that she was terrified at the fact that he kept coming home at night with insane injuries, which both he and Kat chose to lie about. It all seemed to have something to do with the new youths he insisted on hanging out with. Maren had never been very high on her opinion list, but at least she knew that he would never lead Tyrell into anything really dangerous. This Lucian that Tyrell had taken in presented much more of a problem than Maren ever had. There was this strange aura about him that told her that his presence around Tyrell was a dark omen. It would only serve to lead her cousin into more trouble.

To make matters worse, there was that other boy that Tyrell had spoken with on several occasions. She had not yet caught his whole name, only Dominic. But from what she had gathered from Tyrell’s frequent discussions about him to Lucian or one of his other friends, she had gathered that Dominic posed even more of a threat than Lucian. Lucian may be dragging Tyrell into peril, but Dominic was dangerous enough on his own. This was made even more concrete in her mind when she overheard how the older boy had threatened Tyrell during a lunch break. Why was her cousin choosing to associate with such volatile teenagers now?

This query had been her main reason for wanting to get into his room this night. Though Tyrell had never been one to keep a diary, the drawings that were inspired from his nightly dreams provided more than enough insight into his mind. Perhaps, it had been one of these bizarre dreams that had lead him to act the way he was acting now. She was betting that it also had something to do with the original dream that Tyrell had refused to tell her for the last two weeks. Something about that dream had spurned all this, she was sure of that.

Reaching the darkened quarters, Angelique rushed over to the clothes bureau and snatched at the handle on the bottom drawer. Giving it a small tug, she opened it, scattering the piles of papers that were sitting upon the sketch-pad at the center. She pushed the other papers aside and drew out the sketch-pad, closing the drawer with her back. Breath quickening with anticipation, she lifted the first page of the tablet and began flipping through all the drawings that Tyrell had shown her long ago. After a short while, she finally reached a group of sketches that she had never seen before.

There was one of a large black wolf with eyes as expressive those of a human. Then there was one with a winged figure, who looked somewhat like her cousin’s new acquaintance. At the bottom of the drawing stood a young girl clutching a blackened crystal cross in her hands as tears ran down her eyes. Angelique looked at the cross closer as a feeling of recognition washed over her. She knew that she had seen the object before even though she had no idea why she knew this. Of course, in her mind, she felt that the cross ought to have been amethyst instead of black. It just suited it better. The onyx shade of the relic fell across the cross almost as if it had been tainted by some other force, diluting its true essence and changing it into something entirely different. Something lacking.

As she sat there preoccupied with the concern of the cross, she noticed that a page was stuck to the front of the tablet. Pulling it free from the rest, she held it in her hands and gazed at it in complete shock. Not only did the image include a dying Tyrell, but it also featured a stunning lady with silky hair falling to her thighs, tangled within the massive angelic wings on her back. Each wing tip was smeared with the dark charcoal, most likely Tyrell’s attempt to add the effect of blood to the drawing. Around the lady's neck dangled the same cross as in the previous drawing except this time, the shading was lighter, indicating that the cross was no longer black. Also hanging from the same chain as the cross was a broach rivaling the one that the blue-eyed man had given her the other day. The amethystine wings of the jeweled item rivaled the hue of the wings of the young woman. With the cross, it seemed to make a perfect fit, its ethereal beauty complimenting the fierce elegance of the religious trinket.

Bringing the drawing closer to get a better look, Angelique was surprised to see that the woman in the picture was not a stranger. Something in the back of her mind flared awake at the image, forcing Angelique to throw the picture to the ground, her heart careening against her chest as a churning sickness hit her stomach.

"Evangel," the word escaped from her lips in a reverent prayer as she raised trembling fingers to her head. The name stood out in her mind as if she had known it all her life. With it came a crushing wave of sorrow and also a strong sensation of power. Unconsciously, she brushed her fingers across the hollow of her throat, fingertips seeking some unknown object. A voice in her mind hissed at the realization that nothing was found. It seemed to rail about the fact that something should be resting along her chest. In fact, it urged her that it should be her neck supporting the cross instead of the figure in the sketch.

Tearing her hand away from her neck, she clawed at the fibers of the carpet and leaned back her head, gasping for breath. What was going on? Why had that drawing evoked such animosity inside of her? Part of her raged that wasn’t wearing the relic, while another part was too baffled to have any sort of reaction. The feuding personalities inside her head frightened Angelique as she shoved the tablet back into the drawer, not caring that the papers were disorganized and that it would therefore be obvious to Tyrell that someone had been into them. She slammed the drawer shut as fast as she could, scrambling to her feet and fleeing from the room, from the nagging voice in her head that continued to remind her of the drawing.

Bracing herself against the wall outside, Angelique tried to regain her composure, sinking her nails deep into her palms to ward off the haunting thoughts of her sub-conscience. A few drops of blood trailed down the wall as she searched her mind for something that could possibly provide her some form of temporary relief. As she dug her nails even further into her own abused palms, she suddenly realized the one thing that could perform this function. She needed to know the truth.

Racing down the hall, Angelique crept into her mother’s room, forcing herself to hold her breath, fearing that the harsh sound of her erratic breathing would alert her mother to her presence. With as much control as she could manage, she crawled over to her mother’s closet door and pushed it open. In the very back of the compartment was a tiny wooden box that she remembered from her early childhood.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"What’s in there?" she had often asked her mother with gentle curious eyes, reaching for the distant object. Time and time again, her mother had grown stern with her and yanked her away from the box, forcing her away from the closet.

"It’s nothing! Never touch it!" Ciara had commanded, pulling the door shut as young Angelique had fought to control the tears that struggled to roll down her face.

"Why not? I just want to see it," Angelique had always asked her mother after the event, each time making one last attempt to return to the mysterious item. Each time, Ciara had slapped her violently and grabbed her wrist, shaking her.

"It doesn’t matter. You are never to touch it! I’ve told you so many times not to come back here. Why do you always have to ignore me? I’m just trying to protect you," the older women had pleaded with her daughter, often on the verge of tears herself.

"But I don’t understand. Why can’t I see it? What does it have to do with protecting me?"

Ciara had usually grown the most vicious after this question, dragging Angelique out of the room and throwing her into the hallway. "Never mind! I don’t want to see you trying to touch it ever again. If you ever open that box, I’ll...." Ciara had never been able to finish the threat as she always broke into tears at the words. She had shut her daughter out of her room for the rest of the day, leaving Angelique confused and alone with only the sound of her mother’s anguished sobbing to accompany her.

For a long time, Angelique had wondered whether the object in the box pertained to some knowledge of her father, which she knew absolutely nothing about. The subject was taboo in the Arteme household. Nobody talked about and everyone went about their lives, content with the fact that Angelique at least had a mother who loved her dearly and that it should be enough for her. Tyrell had made a play for some information on a couple of occasions only to receive a cold reprimanding from his father, sending the boy running out of the room with tears streaming down his cheeks. Kat had always submitted to the notion that such things were not allowed to be discussed so she had never once brought up the subject of Angelique’s father with her parents.

As far as Angelique knew, her mother was Jace’s sister, making Ciara Tyrell’s aunt. Ciara had been raising her after her father had disappeared and having little money at the time had asked her brother if she could stay with him until she could afford another place. Jace had agreed and her and Ciara had come to live with their relatives. At least, that was all that her mother was willing to impart to her about their past. After a while, Ciara had eventually acquired a job working as a secretary for some small company. Still, she had refused to leave the Artemes.

Angelique had walked in on one of the earlier conversations about her extended stay. She had been too young to understand most of what the three adults were talking about, but she had managed to decipher a few words. Ciara’s reasons for wanting to stay with her brother involved something about fear and the worry that someone might find them. Before she could tell her relatives who it was, Tiana had discovered Angelique eavesdropping and informed Ciara. Ciara had reacted immediately, punishing her daughter for listening to other people’s conversation and screaming that she had no right to sneak around like that. Jace, probably fearing Ciara’s anxiety, had intervened and convinced Angelique to return to Tyrell at once. Not knowing what crime she had committed in order to receive such treatment, Angelique had nodded faintly and gone back to Tyrell who had apparently been searching for her the whole time.

All in all, through her seventeen years of life, Angelique had failed to learn any more about her father than she had known since coming to live with her relatives. Tyrell had promised to help her seek clues to unraveling this mystery, but after they had encountered dead end after dead end, both youths had decided to forget it. Ever since he had seen the way the rest of the family was always keeping things from his cousin, Tyrell had made Angelique a promise that he would never do anything like that. He swore that no matter what, he would always tell her everything. Back then, she had believed him since he was the only one who seemed to understand her thirst for knowledge. Now, it was like the younger boy had wholly forgotten his words. There had to be some logical reason for his actions.

Though she knew now that it definitely had something to do with the drawings she had discovered, she also had a hunch that it might even have something to do with her mother’s secret. Both secrets served to make their keepers violent and unpredictable whenever they were brought up, as Tyrell had never shown such anger to her before. Even her mother was normally a calm and docile person who harbored no ill feelings toward anyone. She was very loving to her daughter and displayed her affections on a regular basis with frequent hugs as Angelique was growing up and now the occasional gift for ‘just because.’ Yet whenever Angelique had brought up her past, Ciara had continued to react savagely, losing her sweet demeanor to one that was a lot more menacing. The parallels between her mother’s situation and her pacifist cousin’s couldn’t be ignored.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Trying to keep her movements silent, Angelique knelt down and lifted the box from the floor, flicking up the latch and allowing the back of the box to fall backward on its rusty hinge. To the girl’s delight, the action failed to make a noise as the contents of the box were revealed to her in a flash of light. Lying inside the box, curled in a mess of silver string, rested a small amethyst teardrop. Reaching into the box, she gathered the jewel into her hand, the cold silver chain slipping through her fingers and causing her to shiver ever so slightly.

Inside her open palm, the stone felt warm and comforting, filling her whole body with the soothing essence. It sparkled like no jewel she had ever seen, casting flickering shadows of violet light across the darkened space of the closet. Somehow holding that precious object in her hand felt right to her as if she had wanted to do this her entire life. For the moment, all she could think of was staying there forever, cupping the sweet euphoria and holding it to her chest.

But a sudden noise from her slumbering mother reminded her why she had come there in the first place. She had wanted answers. Though the amethyst didn’t appear to be revealing any information about her past or Tyrell’s current dilemma, it did promise a sense of relief to the frenzy within her mind. Its simple presence seemed to quell the rising fears that the drawing had produced and left her feeling content and relaxed. The feeling could only be described as wonderful and perfect, leaving her with a state of peace that she had never known before this moment. This relic could never have belonged to Ciara or anyone else; it had always belonged to her. It was meant for her and her alone.

Closing the box with a subtle click, she placed it back on the floor where she had found it, still cradling the amethyst in her fingers. She laid the stone across her throat and wrapped the thin chain around her neck, attaching it in the back with a clasp. Shifting her shirt to the right, she moved the jewel so that it was hidden under her flimsy black nightgown. Then, she climbed to her feet and slunk out of Ciara’s room, returning to her own room with a renewed sense of tranquillity.

She lay across her bed, toying with the jewel underneath her gown. Perhaps, she would talk to Tyrell about this when he returned in the morning. If this odd stone had something to do with her cousin’s changing attitude, she would find out soon enough.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Dominic kneeled against the floor, staring at the same page of his notebook that he had been reading for the past three hours. None of the words seemed to stick in his mind as it kept drifting back to the image of Lucian limp and bleeding within his arms. He had woken up to find that Lucian was not on the couch as usual. Unnerved by this realization, he had sunk down to the carpet and brought out the notebook, hoping to write something deep and meaningful along its surface. But whenever he tried to focus on his words, he found that nothing flowed from his pencil and the page still only possessed the same first word as it had when he had first started to write. ‘Why?’

He hadn’t even noticed when the clock chimed eight, informing him that he was late for class. All he could do was stare back at his blank page and wonder why he could no longer produce any coherent thoughts from his mind. After yesterday’s events, he should have been able to fill many pages with his response to the attack. Yet as he sat there, waiting for some type of inspiration to arise in him, he felt nothing. All he knew was a deep-seated worry.

The single word on his page fit his situation perfectly. It served to ask the question that had bothering him all last night and even now this morning. Why had Lucian done that? Why had Tashira pushed him away upon returning to the house? And most of all, why was he sitting here, wracking his mind with worry about the younger boy?

Well, at least the final question had a semi-answer. Since Tashira had forced Dominic from her room, where Lucian was sleeping for the night, Dominic had no way of knowing how the red-haired youth was doing right now. He hadn’t seemed very good when they had brought him back. The nervous look in Tashira’s eyes hadn’t helped to ease his anxiety either. He had found it quite cold of her to demand that Dominic go back to his room while she looked after her brother. It wasn’t as if he planned on injuring Lucian further. Tashira really didn’t trust him. Not that he could blame her, he didn’t trust any part of her family.

Still, the fact that he didn’t know about Lucian’s current condition explained why he wanted to know in the first place. He knew why he had rushed in at the last second to help the Hell Guardian. All of his life, Dominic had promised to protect those around him, even if he didn’t regard them with much respect. Seeing Lucian in such a helpless position had forced Dominic to react as he would if it were anyone else. He had no intention of watching one of his own die before him without attempting to do something. It was not as if the action had posed any real threat to him either since Lucian was the one taking in all the rebounded energy. He had made it quite easy for Dominic to break the illusion.

But the thought didn’t manage to soothe his uneasiness as he sat upon the ground. Tired of feeling like there was nothing that he could do, Dominic placed his notebook back in his pocket and got to his feet. He stormed back up the stairs and banged his fist on Tashira’s door.

"Tashira, let me in!" he ordered, smacking the front of the door as hard as he could, ignoring the tiny jolts of pain that shot through his hand.

"Good lord, Nicky, do you have to be so loud?" yawned a voice from behind the door as it creaked open. To Dominic’s surprise, the person standing before him was not the silver-haired girl but Lucian himself. He was clad in a huge shirt that reached to the top of his legs with a pair of loose pants underneath. Yawning again, the younger boy gazed up at Dominic and blinked at him with sleepy eyes. "People are trying to sleep you know. And Shira is taking a shower. She’d kill you if she saw you in here."

For a moment, Dominic was too stunned to respond as he looked at the other youth, noting the fact that not a single injury marred his slender arms or the part of his shoulder that showed through the slack collar of his shirt. He didn’t look as if he’d been hurt in the least. As a matter of fact, he looked better than Dominic did, not possessing even one sign of injury. The only thing that was in disarray was his tangled mess of hair, which could be attributed to his unusual sleeping behavior.

"Well, say something, Nicky. You come barging in here and don’t even have the decency to talk to me," Lucian scolded as he swiped dangling strands of crimson hair from his face.

"You...You’re fine. You don’t even look hurt," Dominic stuttered, his voice developing an angry tone.

Lucian blinked at the words and then glanced down at the immaculate pale skin on his shoulder, the same shoulder where Tashira had previously stabbed him. He yanked up the sagging collar, covering the flesh and turned away, a bothered look in his eyes. "Uh yeah. I heal fast." The cold glare in Dominic’s eyes demanded a better explanation as Lucian lowered his eyes and added, "Plus, magical energy doesn’t leave the damage that normal energy does. So it’s hard to tell that anything happened."

"Really?" snarled the older boy, boring his dark violet eyes into Lucian as the younger boy gulped in his throat and nodded eagerly.

"Uh huh. Didn’t you know that, Nicky? I figured being a fellow Guardian, that you would be well aware of that sort of thing?"

He had Dominic there. Dominic had never dealt with this sort of thing before. He had no way of knowing whether or not Lucian had prior experience. Not only that, he was aware that the injury Lucian had given him during their encounter with him as Wolf had faded sooner than any of his other injuries. Maybe the redhead was speaking the truth. If he tried to argue with him without any proof, he would just be setting himself up for a fall.

"No. I wasn’t aware of that," Dominic admitted as Lucian gave a furtive sigh of relief.

Lucian stepped out into the hall, shutting the door behind him so as to prevent Tashira from any needless violence upon discovering that Dominic was in the room when she got out of the shower. He leaned against the wall and looked back at the dark-haired youth with a curious smile. "So why did you come rushing in here, Nicky? Were you worried about poor helpless Lucian?"

"You looked pretty bad yesterday. I just wanted to make sure you’d still be able to fight."

"Well, I may look better, but I’m not feeling too hot. Getting fried by pure energy can do that to you. Hence why I stayed home today. But you, you’re fine, why aren’t you at class?"

"I didn’t feel like going," Dominic replied, eyes steady on his companion.

"Heh. You sound like me. Shira used to throttle me for making lame excuses like that," Lucian laughed as Dominic growled and turned from him. The younger boy held out a hand to stop him. "I wanted to thank you for yesterday. You know, I never expected you to bail me out. I’m glad you did though. You were right, I would have never broken the illusion in my condition," he said in a softer voice, garnet eyes raising to seek out those of the older boy.

Dominic averted his eyes and yanked his hand away from Lucian. "Don’t take it personally. I only helped you because you were in danger. I would have done the same for Tashira or Tyrell. I just don’t like to watch those I know get hurt."

"I can understand that. But I’m not going to take back my thanks," the redhead declared, pulling himself in front of Dominic so that he was able to look him in the eyes. "So tell me. Have I proven myself to you yet? Are you willing to accept me as your genuine partner now?"

The older boy stared at him, thinking over the question in his mind. Lucian might be a nuisance, but he could handle computers and he was fairly powerful when it came to using the swords, even if he was terribly inept at making decisions. But working with him meant that he would no longer have to trail Tyrell on his own, it might be useful to have a back-up when things got bad, as they always did. Though Lucian was not the best choice he could have been offered, he was not the worst either. Besides his arm was still healing, which would mean that according to their bargain he would have to hang around for a couple more days anyway. That would give him a decent amount of time to decide whether or not it was worth having a partner.

Also, Lucian did have a natural affinity with people that made it easy for him to befriend them. That could come in handy later on, especially when dealing with Erik. He knew that the girl knew far more about their situation than she was letting on. She might not be willing to talk to him, but Lucian on the other hand, might be able to work some information from her.

Shrugging his shoulders, he turned his head to the side and mumbled, "I guess we can work together."

"Say what? I didn’t hear you, Nicky?" Lucian encouraged, putting a hand to his ear and leaning back his head. Dominic could tell he was trying to be smart with him.

"I said I guess we can be partners!" he shouted, fazing Lucian with the volume of his voice. He saw the elated flash in Lucian’s eyes and whirled back to him, adding, "But the deal’s still on. I’m only your partner until my shoulder is better. Don’t forget that."

"Sure sure," placated the younger boy, waving off Dominic’s added statements. "But in the meantime, I’m starving. Let’s get something to eat."

"Tact is not one of your talents, is it Ambrose?" Dominic remarked, slanting an eyebrow.

Lucian stopped his jubilant rush to get food and turned on Dominic with an irritated glance. "Isn’t the Ambrose thing getting a bit old? I mean since I am your partner now. Can’t you just call me Lucian? It’s not like I’m calling you Solanis."

The older boy walked past him, descending from the stairs and entering the kitchen. "No. That’s Erik’s job," he called back as he began to search the cabinets for some quick meal.

"Not funny, Nicky. Now quit changing the subject," Lucian grumbled as he too skirted down the stairs and flew to the refrigerator. He held the door open for a second, searching the inside. Then, he withdrew two shiny green apples. Sitting one on the counter beside Dominic, who was kneeling on the side as his eyes wandered over the contents of the cupboard’s shelves, the younger boy took a small bite of the fruit and sank into a nearby chair. "So what do you say you quit calling me Ambrose?"

Dominic ignored his question as he selected a box of cereal from the cabinet and pulled a plastic bowl from another one. He snatched a knife from the stand as he pushed himself of the counter and journeyed over to the refrigerator. Grabbing the carton of milk, he poured a cup into his bowl, mixing it with the cereal. Then, he proceeded to cut the apple into slices with the knife, bringing each piece to his mouth with the tip of blade. After some moments of this, his attention returned to the pouting Lucian. He finished another slice of the apple, pressing his finger against the dull side of the knife.

"Alright how about this, I’ll stop calling you Ambrose since you seem to hate it so much..."

Lucian’s head shot up from the chair and he looked at the dark-haired youth with ecstatic red eyes. "Really? Cool! That’s so uncharacteristically nice of...." the teenager began, tossing his half-eaten apple from hand to hand.

"You didn’t let me finish," barked Dominic, sinking his knife into the fruit once more as streams of juice ran down the blade. "I’ll stop calling you Ambrose since you seem to hate it so much if you stop calling me Nicky."

"What? Damn it Nicky, that’s not fair!" protested Lucian as he quickly bit his lip after realizing that he had just said the name again.

"Deal’s off."

"Come on. Be nice."

Dominic pulled away from the counter, nudging his empty bowl into the sink and tossing the knife in as well. He shot Lucian a triumphant glance and then started to walk back toward the spare room he was staying in. "Add that to your scoreboard, Ambrose."

The younger boy hissed and flung his apple into the trash bin, folding his arms against his chest and jerking his head to the side. "Damn you, Nicky!"

*~*~*~*~*~*

Tyrell walked home at his usual time, noticing that Angelique hadn’t waited for him and had headed home on her own. She had seemed remarkably happier than usual, not determined to force him to reveal his secret to her or even bring up what had happened yesterday. It was good to see her is a chipper mood, but it was also very unlike her to act so carefree.

As if that hadn’t been weird enough, Erik had chosen to return to the school today. His eyes had been following him all day long, watching him from afar. Tyrell could tell why Dominic had seemed so tense around him now. Speaking of which, where was Dominic today? For that matter, where were Lucian or Tashira? He hadn’t seen them since the game. Had something happened to his Guardians that he was unaware of?

Suddenly, a hand reached out and grabbed his arm, yanking him backward. Expecting to see Dominic there to spit some cruel denouncement at him, he was more than surprised to be face to face with Erik. The blond latched onto his wrist and pulled him to the side, ordering him to be quiet. Perplexed by the action, Tyrell complied and allowed himself to be lead of the street by the older youth.

"Erik? Where have you been? I haven’t seen you for a while?" Tyrell initiated the conversation as Erik reached under her blazer and held up the green rose medallion for the boy to see.

"I’ve been busy. I see you’ve found other Guardians to watch your back in my absence," the blond commented as Tyrell stared back at her, dumbfounded. Erik gave him a critical look and shook her head in pity. "I suppose you didn’t know that I was a Guardian as well?"

"Actually no. I only know that Lucian, Dominic, and Tashira are Guardians. I had no idea that you were one too."

"God, you are stupid. I can see why you would need so many people to protect you. Of course, I’m a Guardian. Why else would I be following you around all the time?" Erik snapped as Tyrell moved his shoulders in a tiny shrug.

"I don’t know. I guess I thought you were Dominic’s friend or something," he responded as Erik laughed coldly.

"Solanis’ friend. As if I would ever befriend that jerk. No, I’m the Guardian of the Earth. Like the others, I was sent here to watch over you and make sure that the Chimera don’t have their way."

Tyrell shuddered at the darkness in Erik’s laugh and looked up at her with wide gray-green eyes. "What do the Chimera want with me anyway?"

"You don’t know. Haven’t your precious Guardians told you yet? Well, I bet that hothead Ambrose wouldn’t know, but I’m sure Solanis does. He probably doesn’t think you’re worthy of the knowledge."

Something about the way she spoke to him disturbed Tyrell. Even at his worst, Dominic was never this vicious. He only got angry whenever Tyrell said something that he considered stupid. Erik just seemed to enjoy being cruel. "So why can’t you just tell me? You’re a Guardian too, right?" the young boy questioned, keeping his eyes focused on Erik’s.

"True. I am a Guardian as well. So it would be all right for me to let you in on the secret. The Chimera want you because you possess the Shards. And those who have possessed the Shards have always been close to those who owned the Cruce," Erik explained as she drew herself closer to Tyrell. "You do know what the Cruce is at least?"

"Yes. That’s the cross worn by the Alistars. I learned that from my dreams."

"So it is true. You are a dream seer. How interesting."

Tyrell felt his heart jump inside his chest as he realized what he had just told the other youth. He began to back away from her, feeling that he had said too much to a person he barely even knew. As of yet, he hadn’t even shared the knowledge of his dreams with Lucian and he wasn’t even sure if Dominic knew. How could he have been so stupid to tell someone who claimed to be a Guardian? How did he even know that Erik was telling the truth? What if Erik was just another Chimera? He seemed young, but so had Fang and he had been just as ardent as the rest of them.

"Maybe I should go now. My friends will kill me if I’m late to another one of our meetings. I can talk to you later," he stammered as he started to back away from the blond even faster.

"Yes, talk to me later. As in when the other Guardians are around? What’s the matter, Tyrell? Are you afraid of me?" Erik pressed, advancing on the nervous youth with flaring chestnut eyes.

"No...No, I’m not afraid. I just don’t want to be late," the boy yelped, desperately hoping that one of his Guardians would choose now to make their entrance.

"I’m a kid just like you. What’s there to be afraid of? Besides, I just told you the one thing that your so-called friends were keeping from you. Doesn’t that entitle me to some of your respect?" the blond girl continued, her pace matching with Tyrell’s so that the boy wouldn’t be able to run without it being noticeable.

Tyrell stopped his exit and turned to face Erik, an idea forming in his mind as to how he could find out if the blond was truly on his side. He shot her a fake smile and smoothed his shirt over the cross underneath. "Okay Erik, if you’re really just another Guardian, how did you know about the Cruce? How did you know why the Chimera want me?"

Erik grinned back at him as if his query posed no significant threat to her. "Why Tyrell, all the Guardians know. You see, we’re out to protect the Cruce more than you. A Key might be a worthy commodity but the Cruce possesses far more power than you’ll ever have."

"The Guardians don’t really care about me?" gasped Tyrell, feeling weak in the knees as the words raced through his mind. "They just want to keep the Cruce away from the Chimera?"

"Of course. Stupid boy, did you honestly think that such violent youths would serve you merely because they wanted to be your friends? The very idea."

"But you don’t understand. Lucian...." the desperate boy began, fighting back the feeling of sorrow that threatened to wash over him.

"The Hell Guardian? He just does this because he likes the rush he gets from fighting. The Heaven Guardian follows along for the ride. And as for the Sun Guardian, he couldn't give a damn about anyone. He’s only here because he has no other meaning in his life," Erik persisted, unmoved by the fact that her words were crushing the boy before her.

"That’s not true! You’re lying!" screamed Tyrell, lunging at Erik and throwing her to the ground. "How do you know all of that? Who are you?"

Afraid of Tyrell discovering her secret as the other male Guardians had, Erik shoved the teenager off her, slapping him across the face. "Stop acting like a pathetic child! I know this because I’ve been following the other Guardians around, deciding whether I wanted to join their hopeless lot. Every word I speak is the truth. Now quit this ridiculous pity trip and act like a man!"

Tyrell held a hand to his stinging cheek and glared at Erik, eyes filling with tears of disbelief. "I don’t care what you say! I know that you’re lying. Dominic may not care about me. But I know Lucian does. He is my friend! And nothing you say is going to change that, you stupid son of a bitch!"

"Keep living in your dream world, Tyrell. Just don’t come back to me when it comes crashing down around you. Guardians are not supposed to care for their charges. We’re merely supposed to protect you and Kathryn. Don’t you understand? It’s not a choice. It’s our fate. Do you really think that we would do this if we didn’t have to?" the girl roared at Tyrell, climbing to her feet.

Her words reminded Tyrell of what he had once heard Wolf say during their fight with Lionelle. He had said that it was the Guardians’ destiny to be the ones to shed blood for the Keys. They were chosen to undertake the messy tasks while the Keys were just supposed to initiate the fighting with the Chimera. Back then, Wolf had seemed almost regretful that he had been forced into such work. Tyrell shook his head. Of course, Wolf was sickened by his mission; Wolf was really Dominic, a boy just like himself. Nobody deserved to be forced to kill others for the sake of someone else, not even someone as bitter as Dominic. Maybe Erik’s words did ring of some truth. Maybe the Guardians were only doing this because they had to. Perhaps, they didn’t care for him after all.

"I don’t want you to hurt yourselves just for me," Tyrell whispered as Erik threw back her head in another emotionless laugh.

"As if you could change anything. This is destiny! You can’t do a thing!"

"But what if you die? What if the others die? It will all be my fault! I can’t let that happen!"

"But Tyrell, that is our ultimate fate. You can’t change it," the girl insisted as Tyrell tore himself from her.

He scrambled to his feet and began to run away, ignoring the tears that were cascading down his face. "Yes I can! I’m going to finish the Chimera myself! I don’t need the Guardians!" He didn’t know where he was going anymore. All he knew was that he had to get away from the Earth Guardian. He had to escape from those words. Had to escape from the sheer truth behind them.

"Where can you run, Tyrell? The Chimera can find you anywhere. And wherever the Chimera are, the Guardians will be there as well."

Tyrell tried his best to drown out her voice as he continued to race down the edge of the sidewalk. Just then, an enormous red form collided into him, throwing him an empty lot. Gasping for breath, the boy pushed himself to his feet, eyes meeting with the passive jade eyes of another. Standing before him was a red wolf, looking exactly like Wolf, except slimmer and not as muscular. Before his very eyes, the wolf’s shape shifted into that of a ravishing lady with full pink lips and a curtain of bright red hair that flowed to her waist. Drawing her fingers in a straight line in the air, she produced a jagged dagger with three spikes protruding from one edge.

"Pleased to meet you, Onyx. I’ve heard so much about you from my two friends Lionelle and Fang, who should be arriving shortly. But I see no reason why I should save all the fun for them," she purred as Tyrell jerked his head back, hoping to see somebody who would scare the Chimera out of fighting. The Chimera noticed Tyrell’s reaction and giggled within her throat, her voice rising in a seductive timbre. "Poor little Key. I’m not as dumb as my companions. I’m not going to fight you in the open. You’re in my illusion. Nobody else can see us. Not your teammate Zircon or your faithful dogs, the Guardians. You’re in our world now."

"Who are you?" whimpered Tyrell, starting to bring his hand toward the cross on his chest.

"Oh how churlish of me. I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Lupe. You should’ve asked your precious Sun Guardian about me. I’m sure he would have been glad to tell you."

His eyes flashed with shock as Tyrell tore his cross from his neck, instantly forcing it into the Divinity. He whipped the sword in front of him and held it out at the Chimera, hoping he could use it to frighten her. Lupe’s words had awoken a fearsome rage inside him. Had she hurt Dominic? If so, then perhaps she had injured the other Guardians as well. "What the hell did you do to the Sun Guardian?"

Lupe laughed again, her eyes dancing with wicked amusement. She brought a hand to her mouth, blocking the rest of her laughter from spilling out. "Sadly nothing much. That reckless Hell Guardian attacked me before I could finish him off. I did manage to get a good piece of his shoulder though. I think he enjoyed that. The sorry boy wanted to get hurt. He came looking for me. Such a sick individual."

"Don’t say that about him!" argued Tyrell as he held the sword back, preparing to launch an attack on the Chimera. He had no intention of letting his Guardians become involved in this fight, even if Lupe had said they wouldn’t be able to.

"I think not," growled a voice behind him as a whip suddenly lashed out and caught around his wrist, knocking Divinity from his grasp. His eyes fell across another form with thick golden hair and the smaller form with burnt orange hair that stood beside him.

"You’re not allowed to play like that anymore, Onyx," chided Fang, forming a circle of fire around the group as Lionelle yanked Tyrell forward. Tyrell stumbled and crashed to his knees before the golden-haired man who smiled at him with sinister delight.

"Now you’re going to tell us everything we want boy, or Lupe is going to do a little designing with your flesh," Lionelle warned as Lupe stepped forward, running her black nails against the jagged side of her dagger.

"I know you want the Cruce. But I seriously don’t know where it is," pleaded Tyrell as he watched Fang chuckle at his side.

"He’s lying. All Shard Keepers know. Even Keys. He needs a bit more encouragement, Lupe," the youngest Chimera urged, blue eyes sparkling at the thought of proving his devotion to the mission to his older brother.

"Well, let’s see what we can do about that," cooed Lupe as she advanced toward Tyrell. Tyrell’s eyes lit with horror and he tugged violently against the whip on his wrist. Lupe laughed at his futile attempts and grabbed a chunk of his mahogany hair, yanking it backward so that his neck was curved in a vulnerable position. The boy whimpered in pain as the red-haired Chimera brought her knife close to his unguarded throat.

Just then, there was a spark of black that sped by the pair and imbedded itself into Lupe’s arm. The woman shrieked in fury as dark red blood oozed from the wound and dripped down her arm, dropping onto Tyrell’s shoulder. All the Chimeras turned around as they heard a ear-shattering crack followed by an object shearing away a good piece of the leather wrapped around the Key’s wrist. Lionelle growled as he pulled Tyrell closer to him and snatched the inside of his collar, worried that the boy might escape due to the flimsy state of the weapon.

He turned toward Fang and bore his hard golden eyes into his brother. "You useless wretch! You said the Guardians can’t enter the field!" he hissed as Fang jumped and cringed at his superior’s words.

"I don’t understand, Lionelle. It should have worked. The fire field I set up is designed to prevent any of the Guardians from gaining access. There’s no way they can break through. It blocks any human entrance," the blue-eyed Chimera pleaded as Lupe slapped him across the face, slashing his cheek with her nails. Blood beaded under the marks as Fang’s frantic eyes sought out the location of the attacker. "It’s not possible."

"Your brother was right. It was foolish on our part to even think that you could manage this task. All we asked you to do was set up a field that would hide us from public view and hold the Guardians at bay. And you couldn’t even do that. You’re too young for this mission. You are not fit to be a Chimera," Lupe snarled at Fang who shook his head furiously.

"The field is perfect! The only way any one can be in here is if they were already here before I set it up! You should have done your job better, Lupe," the youngest assassin snapped back as something crossed his glaring eyes. "There!" He pointed to behind the wall where a shadowed figure was crouching, targeting a handgun. Fang snarled, showing off his tiny fangs, as he mumbled a phrase, forming a fiery sphere inside his palm. Before the figure could even notice that he had seen it, the Chimera hurled the spell at it with a curse.

The flame flew toward the oblivious figure, promising certain death upon contact. But Fang had misjudged his attack and the fire merely slammed into the wall behind the figure, not more than an inch from its head. Vengeful chestnut eyes floated out of the darkness as the figure raised her jade necklace to the air, whispering an incantation through her lips. A stream of dissipating green light flowed from the amulet, cutting a path along the street, emitting cracking noises as it raced along the grounds. Instants later, the area that had been touched by the light groaned and split, as the street was forced apart, the asphalt tearing in half. Fang cried out in shock as he discovered that the action had separated him from the rest of the Chimera, leaving him on the other side of a newly formed chasm.

On the opposite end of the gap, Tyrell struggled in Lionelle’s hold, working to regain his footing as the older man forced him to his knees. He tried to break away, tearing the cloth of his shirt with his efforts. Still fighting against the Chimera, he allowed his eyes to wander over to the figure watching Fang with trepidation. He recognized the eyes and shouted out to the armed figure.

"Erik! Summon your sword!"

The girl chuckled at his suggestion as she brought her gun up and trained it at the man threatening Tyrell. "Swords may suit your other wimpy Guardians. But I prefer a real weapon. One that can account for distance," Erik gloated, cocking the trigger. Before she could fire, a blast of fire sent the gun spiraling out of her hand and skidding toward the crack in the ground. The blond jerked around and dove for her weapon as Fang rushed forward and snatched the firearm in his fingers.

He smirked and turned back to the Earth Guardian, caressing the cool metal as he held the gun at his chest. Then he whirled the weapon upon Erik and pointed the barrel directly at her skull. "Well. Now it appears that we not only have a feisty Key, but a presumptuous Earth Guardian as well," he baited as the girl reached for her jade rose once more. Fang fired, sending the bullet crashing into the wall behind her as Erik jumped at the sound. "No I don’t think that would be a very good idea, blondie. Remember that I have the gun. And I promise that I can fire this thing far faster than you can unleash one of your quirky magic tricks."

"Erik!" screamed Tyrell as a hand wrapped around his throat, cutting off his voice even as he was lifted a few inches off the ground. Lionelle sneered at the yelling boy and turned to Erik, tightening his hold on the Key’s neck.

"Perhaps, you can help us, Earth Guardian, we want to know where to find the Cruce. And we are generous enough to make a suitable bargain for it. In return for the information on its whereabouts, I grant the life of the Key Onyx," he proposed as Tyrell tried to choke out his protests only to have his efforts hindered by the crushing constriction of his throat. Erik narrowed her eyes and glanced at the captive Key, seeming perturbed at the situation. Lionelle noticed her petulance and squeezed Tyrell’s larynx ever so slightly, completely stopping the flow of air to the boy’s lungs. He turned to Erik with an unfeeling expression as he issued a final warning, "I would hurry if I were you, Guardian, I doubt this child can survive very long without breathing."

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Youch!" Lucian whined as he again tried to slip through the fiery wall blocking him from entering the alley. He knew he looked stupid running up against an invisible shield only to crash back to the ground, scalding marks on his hands or any other flesh that had come in contact with the barrier. Despite the fact that few people were passing through the area in the first place, Dominic had insisted that they hold back on using their swords just in case. Therefore, his only means of breaking through this energy field was his own body, which wasn’t taking too kindly to the burning substance in his way.

Dominic was stalking up and down the area, prying eyes scanning for some unprotected area or another way to gain access. But it seemed that no matter where he tried to enter from, the shield held all around the length of the alley. Crossing through was impossible, jumping through was impossible and going around was impossible. There was no tangible method of getting through. He fumed and shot a hand out to yank his partner away from the wall before the youth could further damage his hands. Lucian’s palms were already bright red and the skin was cracking against the sides, which he had been using to pound against the shield to no avail. Dominic whirled the redhead to the side and slammed him against a wall.

"Quit that! You’re not helping!" he spat as Lucian tossed his head to the side and glared at him with frustrated eyes.

"Well, what am I supposed to do? You and I both know that a Chimera for set up this wall. And I bet it’s got something to do with Tyrell. Do you honestly expect me to just stand here while he’s in danger?" Lucian argued as Dominic refused to let him return to the field, trapping him with one hand pressed firmly against his shoulder.

"Obviously knocking yourself senseless or burning the crap out of yourself isn’t going to help him," Dominic explained in a somewhat subdued tone.

"Then what should we do? We’re his Guardians. It’s our job to protect him and here we are standing around, totally helpless. I knew we should have brought Shira."

"Tashira wouldn’t be any more help. Besides, it was her idea that only you and me take this one," the older youth continued, brushing off the anxious words of Lucian.

Lucian filled with rage at the casual way his partner was taking their predicament. Swearing under his breath, he wrapped his hand around Dominic’s wrist and flung his hand away, at the same time, pushing back at the dark-haired boy with his other hand. Caught off guard, Dominic stumbled and shot a heated gaze toward Lucian.

"Haven’t you figured it out yet, Nicky? There’s another Guardian back there as well."

"How do you know that?"

"Use your amulet, stupid. I told you before that we can sense when either the Chimera or another Guardian is around," Lucian snapped as he ripped his ruby globule out of his shirt and shoved it in Dominic’s face. The older boy slapped it away as Lucian continued to berate him. "They could both be in danger for all we know! We need to get in there now! But no, you have to strategize and think things through, something you absolutely suck at in the first place!" Lucian shouted at Dominic, making an attempt to return to the shield.

Dominic moved to block him, stretching out his arm and giving the youth his best animalistic grimace. "I’m working on it, Ambrose! What the hell do you want from me?"

"Hey, you seem to think yourself the big tough leader of our group. I just thought...."

Without warning, Dominic whirled on his younger partner and caught his throat in his hand. Frigid amethystine eyes set on the redhead as his fingers pressed against the pale flesh. "Don’t you dare pull that shit with me Ambrose, or I’ll snap your fucking neck!"

The threat escaped his lips, bringing with it all his sudden fury. But the second it had passed, his mind began to register what he was doing. His gaze wandered across the hand on his partner’s throat and traveled up to the frightened look in Lucian’s eyes. The redhead seemed to be trying to hide his fear with a grim visage, but the wavering light in his garnet eyes told Dominic of his true feelings. He had never seen the younger boy look truly afraid and the expression disturbed him. But it was the fact that he had purposely caused the shift in attitude that distressed him more than anything had.

Turning his head to the side, he lifted his fingers and pulled his hand away from Lucian. Then he looked back toward the shield, studying it intently as he heard Lucian stagger behind him.

"I’m...s-sorry. I’m just worried. I don’t want anything to happen to Tye. We need to do something and I can’t think of anything. You know you’re smarter than I am, Nicky. I know it too. I just figured that if anyone can think of something, you can."

Dominic turned to his companion and lifted the sun amulet from his shirt, allowing a glint of orange to sparkle across Lucian’s eye. The dark-haired youth held the relic in his hand, rubbing the topaz gem in a rolling motion. Lucian looked at him in bewilderment, still cautious about getting too close to him.

"But Nicky, I thought you said no swords," he remarked as Dominic sent him a glare, demanding he shut up.

"Back off, Ambrose! You want me to do something. And so I shall," the Sun Guardian growled as his partner’s eyes widened in shock. Everything in his mind screamed at Dominic to rethink his decision. But Lucian was right, Tyrell was in danger and it was up to him to help him. He focused on the amulet, feeling the bestial rage building inside him as he was wrapped up in a wash of light. Fur streaking down his smooth skin as the wolf took possession. Lucian scrambled backward as he was suddenly face to face with the same creature that had threatened him back at the art gallery.

"Wolf! It was you this whole time!" yelped the Hell Guardian as the animal snapped at him, forcing him to back up further.

<I know you can understand me now. So listen up. You stay here! The barrier can only sense Guardians if they’re human. I should have no problem getting inside. You, on the other hand, will just cause problems if you try to follow. So listen to me for once in your life. You chose to rely on my decision. Now show me your loyalty and stay out of this.> The commanding voice sounded in Lucian’s head as he raised his eyes to Wolf, acknowledging that he had heard him.

"I’ll wait," the redhead consented in a passive voice as Wolf spun around from him and leapt into the shield. As he predicted, the barrier had no restrictions against non-humans and he passed through with ease.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Tyrell’s vision waned as his exhausted lungs failed to draw in any life-giving air. His eyes blinked in Erik’s direction, part of him wanting her to help him while the other part insisted that she stay out of harm herself. Lionelle’s fingers were clamping even harder around his bruised throat, a sign that the Chimera was growing weary of waiting for a response. At his side, he could hear Lupe playing with her dagger and begging the golden-haired man to allow her to try her own method of persuasion.

"I’ll tell you what you want. Just release the Key," Erik spoke, interrupting the tension of the moment. Her voice was vague and strained, almost as if she was forcing herself to get out the words. But even though her plea promised his release, Tyrell’s heart sank at the idea that he was causing his Guardian to compromise his mission.

As the Earth Guardian opened her mouth to talk, a black form tore across Tyrell’s fading gaze. Lionelle roared in pain as Tyrell felt teeth graze his flesh and sink into the Chimera’s hand, ripping the fingers free from his throat. The Key slumped to the ground, breathing irregularly and shock quickly setting in. He knew the identity of his rescuer and a smile crossed his face as he saw his beautiful ebony wolf snarling and wrenching the braided whip from Lionelle’s hand, violet eyes glistening with determination and burning rancor. Shaking his head, he attempted to push away the fogginess that was enveloping his mind.

A cry from Fang alerted him to the fact that Erik had lunged at the youngest Chimera and was struggling with him to retrieve her gun. That left only Lupe, whom Tyrell could see following the fight between her companion and Wolf with malicious delight. Her lips formed a hungry smile as she watched Lionelle kick at the wolf and fling him to the side. Tyrell could already sense what the female Chimera was planning as she stroked her luscious red mane, which was becoming longer by the minute.

"Wolf, watch out!" he called out to his Guardian as Lupe shed her human facade and returned to her more primal appearance. Before Wolf could regain his footing, he was beset by the bloodthirsty she-wolf, apparently eager for a new challenge. Recognizing the beast, slashing at his flanks, Wolf reared on his legs and let loose a chilling snarl. Tyrell hurried to bring himself out of his daze as both wolves sprang at each other with open jaws.

<Get Divinity!> urged Tyrell’s champion as the black beast was struck by the she-wolf. Fangs clashed as Wolf tried to stave off the Chimera, hoping to give his charge ample time to prepare himself for an attack. The force of his words in the young Key’s mind shook Tyrell free of his delirium and he rushed back to snatch Divinity from where it had fallen.

Lionelle was still reeling from Wolf’s attack as he saw the youth run by, sweeping the sword from off the ground. Screaming in rage, he lashed the whip out at Tyrell. But Tyrell saw the attack and swiped at the oncoming weapon with his sword, slicing through the leather coil that Erik had previously weakened. The Chimera watched in dismay as his weapon was cut in half, the latter part collapsing to the street. Tyrell used his preoccupation to send a sizzling line of lighting at the man, tossing him against the wall and rendering him unconscious. Troubled with the burden of injuring another, the green-eyed boy returned his attention to Erik who had managed to win back her weapon from Fang. She slammed the gun against his head, causing the Chimera to black out.

"Two down, one to go," she called out to Tyrell who winced at the brutality she had displayed. "You better check on that fatalistic pet of yours."

Tyrell whirled to the side to see Wolf crunching his teeth into the she-wolf’s forepaw as blood streamed from his torn shoulder, which had began to bleed again due to the intensity of the fight. The she-wolf’s eyes laughed with depravity as she ignored her broken paw and tore into the wounded shoulder of her opponent, jagged fangs renting the healed flesh. Wolf yelped in pain as the action caused the old agony to shoot through his joints again, forcing him to face the she-wolf on unsteady legs. The Chimera recognized the advantage and charged into her foe, flipping him onto his back and diving into his furry throat with her fangs.

"I’ll take care of her," Erik announced as she crept up to Tyrell’s side. She sighted her gun and pointed it at the moving masses of fangs, flesh, and claws. Tyrell saw her lift her weapon and snatched at her arm, jerking it away from the animals.

"Stop! You’ll shoot Wolf!" he cried as she smoothly brought her hand away from him and glanced at him with cynical eyes.

"It’s a beast. What would it matter if it died? At least it’ll insure the death of the Chimera. That is our main objective, is it not?" the blond noted, a rough edge developing in her voice as her eyes grew distant and dark. Tyrell was thrown by the animosity in her tone and stared at her for a second in complete silence, his gray-green eyes seeming to peer into her soul. After a moment, he jerked up his head and glared at the Earth Guardian.

"Bullshit! You know that’s the Sun Guardian! I know you know it’s him. If you try to fire that gun again, I’ll take you down myself," challenged Tyrell as he raised his sword up to Erik’s chest.

"How did you know that?"

"I’ve recently discovered that I’ve got quite the talent for reading minds when I work at it. I didn’t trust your sudden urge to do this animal harm so I took a little peek."

"You little brat! How dare you enter my mind without my consent?" hissed Erik, sputtering with anger at the thought of Tyrell messing with her internal musings.

"You’re endangering my friends and I can’t have that among my Guardians. Don’t worry I didn’t poke around long enough to gather much aside from that, Erik. Or should I say Erika?" the boy taunted, still not pleased with his Guardian for plotting to kill Wolf. Erik turned a soft shade of pink and clenched her fingers around her weapon, unable to say a word in response as she was paralyzed by fury.

Tyrell had to admit that he found it a little strange that the gender identity had been the first thing he had come across when checking Erik’s intentions. This was mainly due to the fact that working to maintain her disguise was constantly on her mind. Second, of course, was the fierce hatred toward Dominic because he had not only beaten her at a duel but had also discovered her secret. Erik was a very complex youth who, as he had come to realize, should not be underestimated or trusted entirely. She had her own objectives and though they ran astride those of the other Guardians, there was something lying beyond that mission. Something suspicious.

He looked back at his protector, trying to produce a reasonable method for saving him from the Chimera. An attack on Lupe meant endangering Wolf as well due to their proximity to each other. There was no guarantee that the blow would strike the Chimera alone. It was a risk Tyrell was not willing to take. He needed another option. The worst part was that he wasn’t sure he should depend on Erik to help him find it.

Just then, the animal digging into Wolf leapt from the bleeding beast and stood on her legs; anxious eyes dashing around as her body began to tremble. Wolf groaned and pulled himself to his feet, shaking on his weakened limbs as he stared at his enemy in puzzlement. The creature shrieked as if from some unseen terror and curled into herself, fur bristling and fangs bared toward the unknown foe.

As Wolf looked upon her, the strange feeling began to affect him as well. Odd shapes began to appear around him as everything grew dark and the only thing that he could sense was the moaning noises surrounding his body. Faces appeared before him. The gentle visage of a young woman with waves of chocolate curls tumbling over her shoulders. Another of an angelic face with deep black hair and maddened hazel eyes. Still another of a green-eyed man with a black mane held up in a tight ponytail at the top of his neck.

<Get away from me!> Tyrell heard the desperate plea hiss through his mind as he saw Wolf cringe from the Chimera. Lupe looked beyond reason as she bit at her own skin and allowed her eyes to flicker around with a hysterical gaze. Wolf was despondent and furious, snapping at the thin air and backing into the wall. His eyes didn’t appear crazed but instead took on the appearance of fright and bitter sorrow. <You’re not real!> His voice screamed again, the words startling the young Key.

In their mania, both combatants unknowingly called back their beast transformations, once more taking on the appearance of human beings. Lupe kneeled in her pooling red hair, clutching herself tightly and driving her nails into the flesh of her arms. Dominic pulled his knees up to his chest and curled his arms around them, rocking back, as he had often done whenever he had been frightened as a child. The blood from his wounds streaked across his chest, staining the shirt he had been wearing and covering him with the wet substance. But the dark-haired youth paid it no mind as he buried his head into his arms, shaking it violently.

"It’s not real! You’re not real! You can’t be!"

"Dominic, what’ wrong?" demanded Tyrell, worried by the broken tone in his Guardian’s voice. Dominic was acting like defiant child, refusing to lift his head or acknowledge what was going on around him. Erik straightened up beside the Key, trying to get a better look at the insane motions of the Sun Guardian.

"He’s seeing something," she explained as Tyrell looked up at her with expectant eyes.

"What? There’s nothing here. What can be doing this to those two?" he asked as Erik shook her head to show she was not sure herself. "Dominic, listen to me! Tell me what you see!" the youngest youth ordered the older youth. But Dominic ignored his words and continued to shout fierce assurances to himself, still rocking himself in his arms. Tyrell was distraught. "Dominic, please talk to me!"

As he called out to the unresponsive boy, Lupe took the opportunity to summon a spell as her last resort for salvation. The incantation whisked herself and the other prone Chimeras from that haunted ground, leaving the Key and his Guardians alone in the barren alley, the fiery shield lifted from the area. Noticing that the barrier had disappeared, the Hell Guardian that had been faithfully awaiting the return of his partner and Tyrell raced forward, his eyes catching sight of Tyrell.

"Tye! Thank god you’re safe. Me and Nicky were having some trouble getting to you thanks to that infernal magic wall. But since you’re alive and not gushing blood from some ghastly wound, I guess it would be fair to say that Nicky got here in time. Damn that jerk for keeping that wolf thing a secret from me all this time," Lucian rambled as he threw his arm around Tyrell’s neck and shook him roughly. He noticed Erik standing at the young boy’s side and produced a bright smile for her. "Hey sweetie, come to play the Guardian game. We knew you were involved in this somehow. Got to trust the amulets." The redhead fingered his globule, which was losing its intense glow. "When these babies glow, it means either the Chimera are lurking or another Guardian is jumping into the mix. Either way, they promise a fun time," he added, winking at the blond girl.

"So glad to see that you’re still kicking, Ambrose. I thought that our last fight took you out of the picture," drawled Erik as the Hell Guardian blanched a bit and then forced out a small snicker.

"Not quite, Erik. It takes a bit more than that to take me down. And I must say it’s so good to know that you picked up Nicky’s penchant for using my last name. Now I’ll have to get used to hearing it from two different mouths. By the way, where is tall, dark, and angsty?" the older boy laughed as he turned around to search for his partner’s whereabouts.

Tyrell pushed his arm off his throat and glanced up at Lucian, a nervous expression replacing his visage of shock at seeing the Hell Guardian. "Dominic is in trouble, Lucian. Something happened to him during his fight with Lupe. I think he’s seeing things."

"What?" gaped Lucian as his wandering eyes fell upon the curled-up figure of the Sun Guardian, still murmuring nonsensical words to himself. "Nicky?"

He ran up to the older youth and began to approach him. Dominic sensed his arrival and pushed backward with his feet, frantic eyes gazing at the other boy. "Stay back!" he hissed, scraping at the asphalt ground with his blunt nails.

"Ease down, Nicky. It’s just me, Lucian. You know, Ambrose?" the redhead persisted as Dominic continued to put distance between them. Lucian dropped to a crawl, hoping that perhaps seeing him at level with the ground might quell his partner’s anxieties. "Whatever you’re seeing isn’t there. Just close your eyes and it will all go away."

"Don’t you think I’ve tried that? Closing my eyes doesn’t drown out the voices!" yelled Dominic, holding his arm out to hold back the other Guardian.

"But you know it’s not real, Dominic. Why can’t you just accept it and come over here," tried Tyrell, trying to reach out to the youth through his mind. He was met with harsh resistance from an outside force.

"Don’t!" warned Lucian, looking back at his charge with resolved crimson eyes. "Don’t do that without his permission. You’ll just upset him even more."

"Boys, I don’t think we’re alone," cautioned Erik as she glanced around them. "Something caused those two to freak out like that. And I don’t think it was a Chimera."

"But nobody else could cross through the field. And we are the only Guardians. And Tyrell is the only Key here. Kathy is with those other two girls."

"Who said I was talking about a Key or a Guardian?" replied the blond, as her eyes became dark as they focused on something in the distance.

Tyrell stopped his attempt to help Dominic to pay attention to his two Guardians. Their conversation was bothering him. What else possessed the magic to break through the field beside a Key or a Guardian? As far as he knew, they were the only ones around that were gifted with the ability to control elements. True, he didn’t know much about this thing and for all he knew, there could be tons of others out there like him. Yet Erik seemed well informed on the situation and even she could not come up with an explanation as to who had interrupted the fight. Was it possible that there lurked an enemy even more dangerous than the Chimera? If so, what did they want? Did they also seek the Cruce? Or perhaps they wanted the individual Keys and Guardians themselves. But if that was the case, why were only Dominic and Lupe affected and not the others?

Then a slender figure leapt down from a balcony above the group. Her silver hair brushed against her back as a shimmering amethyst jewel illuminated the subtle contours of her neck and chest. Without speaking to the rest of the group, she walked up to Dominic, leaning beside the distressed youth. Lucian was too speechless to stop her as she rested her hand on the Sun Guardian’s forehead. Dominic tried to pull away from the touch, but then fell limp under her fingers. The relic on the girl’s throat pulsed with brilliant light as Dominic’s eyes flickered with a hue the same shade of violet.

Within moments, Dominic reopened his eyes and peered around him, obviously disturbed by the current state of things. His eyes had regained their usual indifferent gaze as they moved about the area, picking up the movements of the other figure as she pulled away from him and turned to face Tyrell.

"I’m sorry about your Guardian. I guess the Shard just took over for a bit there," she apologized as Tyrell stared back at her in wide-eyed awe.

"Angelique?" he whispered, as he crumpled on his knees, stunned by the sight of his cousin manipulating such power.

"Amethyst." she corrected.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Comments: Yikes! Really really long chapter. Well, I had a lot to do in one chapter so it works. Erik rivals Nicky in the asshole category, doesn't she? And I know, cliffhanger. Me bad.