Title: "Unbound" 
Author: EA Karras and Magnes
email: eakarras@hotmail.com, twisted_knickers@hotmail.com
Rating: Very strong R.
Notes: Can you say bloodbath? I knew you could.
Disc: Due South belongs to Alliance, Tom, James, and their dark
counterparts
belong to us. So does Dire. And everyone else who belongs to us. 

------

It was Cecil who found him. And in truth he really hadn't been looking
for Tom. If he'd known his friend had been missing, he would have been
just as frantic as the rest of them. But he hadn't. 

He'd been running after Blendine, who had decided she was old enough
to fly the sewers by herself. She was just figuring out now that she
could have wings in demon /and/ human mode and had become the terror
of the roost. He wasn't really upset - she was doing what demon children
did - he was just worried that she'd get lost. 

So now he was after her, wishing he'd asked Dixie or Minute to accompany
him since they knew the sewers so well and they seemed to enjoy his
children.
He heard her flapping along and set off down the narrow tunnel and ran
smack dab into something solid, bouncing to the ground. When Blendine
hadn't started giggling uncontrollably he realized something was wrong.

He looked up.

"Oh my God..."

Tom was hanging from the ceiling of the sewer, cuts and bite marks all
over his arms and legs. It looked almost like a gaggle of vampires had
been suckling off him. 

He would've thought him dead if Tom hadn't been moaning.

"Blendine...sweetie...go find daddy's friend Benton...okay?" He was
panicking.
Don't panic...don't panic. He tried to block her view of Tom with his
own body. "Go find him and bring him and his friends here, okay? Tell
them to bring bolt cutters. Can you find your way back like a big girl?"

She nodded, frightened and excited and ready to prove that she really
could fly. 

"Okay. You go find him, honey. Hurry, okay? Follow my scent back. And
tell the werewolves, too. And Uncle Tom's friend Rupert. Hurry." 

Darting off, Blendine vanished into the darkness. Cecil made sure she
was gone, then loosened his own wings. He hovered up, trying to free
the handcuffs from the pipes. That got a louder moan out of Tom. "It's
ok...it's ok, Tom. I'm here..." 

He blinked when Tom's fingers opened and a handful of petals fell out.

Marigolds.

Marigolds meant death.

Dear Primal, who had done this?

"Cec," Tom could barely talk, his throat so raw and torn up from
screaming.
He felt the Enthos' leathery fingers touch his face. So warm. He could've
loved Cecil. Once upon a time, he had. But James...James was his life,
his love, his lupa. "Fraser...going after Fraser next..." 

"Shh...Don't move...help's on the way..."

"Tell him...'kay...?"

"I will...don't talk..."

"Ray...who's Ellie?"

"Ellie?" wondered the Enthos. "Tom, please, don't talk. Let me get you
free." He didn't resist the temptation to press his lips to the Moloch's
cold forehead. 

"Jame...ss...screaming...hurt..."

"Shhh. Shhh, Tom. They'll be here in a minute."

***

Blendine flew as fast as her tiny wings would carry her, excited at her
mission. She'd discovered the tunnels without any help from her brother
and they were her secret. She didn't mind sharing the secret with her
daddy, and now Uncle Tom. They could be trusted. 

She followed the voices in the hall, by-passing the room set up as a
play room where she knew her brother was playing at boring boy games.
She glided into the library, hoping they all noticed she was flying.
The other Uncle Tom was here. She didn't like him as much as the other
one. He wasn't as much fun. Especially not lying on the floor like that
with the other Ray looking down at him. 

"Blendine!" exclaimed her other brother, Adam.

She landed on a table, knowing she'd never get away with that at home.
"Adam, Daddy wants Benton and Dief. Uncle Tom is hurt." 

The room exploded into action.

***

Tom could feel Cecil tugging harder at the handcuffs, and wanted to tell
him to stop. It hurt. But he could hear voices. Lilith and...Ellie? Oh
God...no. Not again... 

"Ceci...Coming...they're..." Run. Please, God, Cecil run and don't look
back. 

Cecil shook his head. He couldn't hear anything. Couldn't see anything.
"There's no one coming, Tom. It's all right..." 

No. He could hear them. Could hear them laughing. Mad giggling. He
screamed,
barely aware of the hysteria in his voice. Pulling at the handcuffs.

"Tom? Tom, calm down..."

***

Mina opened the Oracle's left eye, carefully and shined her pen light
in. She frowned then did the same with the other eye. Ray Kowalski watched
from the doorway, almost angry at Caine and his Elder for making him
stay here. This...Moloch was not worth the effort they had all put into
him. If other Molochs were like him, he could see why his world had turned
them into pets. 

"Well?" He wondered how bitter he sounded and held Livia closer.

"What he did was dangerous. He risked his life having that vision," Mina
said lightly. 

Ray curled up his lips in a smirk. "Sure he did. He wouldn't risk his
life to do anything." 

"How long have you known him, Ray?" she asked, turning halfway towards
him. 

"Four years."

"My Ray's known our Tom off and on for at least ten or twelve years.
Maybe more. And I don't think he has quite the insight you seem to have
on this man." She glared at him, keeping one eye on your patient. "You
knew him as Caine's courtesan. He was that for five years, correct?"

"Yeah..."

"What did he do before that?"

Ray shifted, uncomfortable under her gaze. "I um..."

"You don't know." At his nod, she smiled. "He told Eloise he was the
Oracle of Baltimore for three years. A police officer before that. I
think he must have risked something then. Don't you?" 

Before Ray could answer, she felt a movement under her fingers. More
like a convulsive shudder. She gasped, turning towards him. "Oh God..."

He was awake, staring up at the ceiling. His body wrenched in agony as
another vision ripped through his system. 

"Help me!" She shouted to Ray.

"Wha..."

"Hold him down!"

***

Calhoun stared at the hanging, sobbing body of Tom Grissom. He'd seen
this before. He'd been there before. He watched as Fraser used a pair
of bolt cutters to free Tom's hands, finally closing his eyes against
the sight and the memory. 

"What?" Benton asked him quietly. "What is it?"

"Amaranth."

"I don't..."

"Lilith did the same thing to me...before Caine rescued me. A long time
before..." He gave himself a shake. "Draining the victim almost
completely.
Even for the undead, it's dangerous." He hastened forward when they
lowered
Tom. "I'll take him, Constable," he said. 

Fraser was pale. "This happened to Ray."

"Was he a vampire?"

"No. Is there a difference?"

"Yes. Constable, as I was telling Benton, Lilith did this to me. It's
why I went insane. I was left to starve. I survived on vermin and worse."

"What if he feeds right now?"

"He should survive. Von!"

The cranky Sabbat came over and stood before his elder's double. "Now
what? And don't tell me I'm on the menu." He scowled, knowing full well
he would be. Damnit. 

"We both are, and Ray," insisted Calhoun, sounding more like Von's elder
than ever before. 

"Listen, pal, I can't stand this -"

Calhoun locked him in place with a glare that would have done Wyrm proud.
"This is not the time or place to argue, Second of the Clan. Do /you/
want to explain to your elder you let his consort die for a want of
blood?"

Without waiting for an answer, they gathered their forces together and
left the sewers, returning to Hell to lick their wounds and deal with
having lost yet another round to Bloody Mary. 

***

Ray was grumpily carrying a load of blankets in to Mina when the war
party rushed in, carrying the Higher. He was nearly drained dry, any
idiot could see that. He caught his elder's glance and nodded, shoving
the blankets into Adolph's arms as he flew by. "Take those to your father,
kiddo!" 

Ben stopped by him. "Ray? What is it?"

"Nothing. It's nothing. Can you make sure he gets those to Mina, okay?"
He ran after Calhoun before he could get an answer. 

***

Mina was wrapping the Oracle in blankets when Ben and Adolph entered.
"What happened?" Benton asked quietly. The baby lay in a crib next to
the bed, fast asleep. He lingered for a moment, admiring her red hair.
He was surprised to have fallen so in love with her, but she was part
of Ray and he loved Ray more than he believed possible. 

"He keeps having visions. Each time they hurt him worse and worse." Mina
put down a syringe, sighing. "I gave him a sedative. I hope it works."

Adolph hovered over to his father and wrapped his wings around him again
as Fraser covered both of them with a blanket. "He'll be all right. He
needs Alex." 

"Alex?"

Adolph considered, trying to word his answer satisfactorily.

"Prince Kowalski's soul is Constable Fraser. Alex is my father's soul."

Ben blinked, staring down at the Moloch Oracle quietly. "Is that why
the visions hurt him? Because he's so far separated from his soul?" 

"It's possible..." Adolph pulled his father closer. "Alex was the one
who activated my father's Oracle abilities. He was also Adam's true pater.
Before Noor had the genomes rearranged." 

***

He could feel blood at his lips. James. He could smell it. Not his James.
The other one. The one who had sworn fealty to him. He nearly sobbed
with relief. "James..." 

"Shh. Drink..." He felt fingers brush his hair back. "Hurry..."

Hungry. He needed to feed. He could understand the frenzy that came upon
James when he went too long without feeding and understood why his lover
sometimes starved himself between feedings. It was satisfying not only
to his poor, abused body, but it filled all his senses, his mind, healing
him, filling him, giving him strength again. 

Gentle hands in his hair. Gangrel blood. He could taste the difference
when Von reluctantly offered his wrist. He tasted...dirty, almost. Less
pure. When Ray offered his wrist and he tasted the blood of a vampire
with a soul, it almost blew his mind. It was almost like psychic sex.
Tom was sorry to let him go but Ray was in no shape to give him more
than a mouthful. 

"Sleep, Tom," ordered Calhoun, covering him. Like Ray, the Moloch was
so new to being a vampire that he still needed some creature comforts
and still had the reflexes of the living. 

Still...Caine wondered inside his head about the demon half of Tom. Demons
did not go over. The human in Tom had, just as had happened to his
double's
daughter at the hands of the Mother, but the demon remained still. Tom
still breathed, was still warm...what the hell was he? 

***

"So...where do we go from here?"

"I want to eradicate this body's double. He's got Caine tagging along
for the ride. No way I'll build a power base with those two ganging up
on me." 

"Okay." Eloise leaned against the wall, admiring the scars on her wrists.
"Hey, what was that thing we ate?" 

"Disagreeing with you, Ellie?"

"Me? No. This body isn't too thrilled."

"You should feel this one. This one was the snack's lover."

"They sure can scream, huh?"

"He hasn't stopped. I'm getting a headache."

***

Cecil stood by Fraser outside of the room, the two Seekers with them.
"He said she told him you were next, Fraser. And he had marigolds.
Marigolds
are death flowers." 

"I thought they were slug magnets. She's targeting all of the Elder's
friends, it would seem." Dire frowned. "How odd that, what?" 

"Why is that odd?" Fraser asked, quietly looking at the flighty Seeker.

"Oh...well. It's just Ray. Sting Ray, with the fangs, he told me that
the Oracle was spying on her. One would think she'd want to target him.
She does seem to have difficulties letting go, woman scorned and all
that. But who am I to judge the actions of the elderly?" He shrugged.

***

Adolph looked up as he felt a shudder go through his father's body.
Another
vision. He closed his eyes. "Dr. Turnbull..." 

Tom groaned as the vision began. It didn't hurt as much this time. He
could see Fraser. Fraser walking. Marigolds. Blood. Screaming. Eloise.
Eloise was the key. Ellie? He didn't understand. 

***

"Who's Ellie...?" Tom whispered as he felt James watch him. "Who..."

"Ellie?" James thought quietly. "She was the Dark Mother's consort. Why?"

"She has Ray," whispered the Moloch. "Lilith called him...Ellie." 

He woke up a bit more at the look on James' face. "Ellie. Eloise. The
Last Daughter of Eve. Lilith corrupted her! She...performed Amaranth
on her and Eloise went insane." He gaped a little bit more. "You're
certain,
Tom, that Lilith said that?" 

"Yeah."

"Oh, god," breathed the Gangrel. "I'll be back!"

***

He couldn't get used to Jamey with long hair again. Fraser noticed it
every time he looked at the Gangrel. He hurried towards them, concern
written on every line of his face. 

"It's Eloise in Prince Kowalski," he said without ceremony. "The Last
Daughter of Eve. Lilith's consort. She went from healer to being able
to kill with a touch. She's insane." 

"Seems to be in vogue," said Dire, though his voice was deadly serious.
"Touch of death you say? Poor marigolds..." 

***

Ellie slowly made her way back into the prison, up through the tunnels,
into where she knew they had held her Queen. She smiled Ray Kowalski's
winning smile, somehow making it her own and stood in front of the cage
of the little boy who had ruined it all for everyone. 

"Adam..." She reached Ray's hand through the cage and stroked his cheek.
He stared at her, wide eyed. He knew her reputation. 

And ten seconds later, he felt it as he crumpled to the floor.

"Good night, Adam..."

***

Grissom woke up in Adolph's arms, staring up at the ceiling. He gasped.
"No..." 

"Daddy? What is it?" He looked at his father as he scrambled out of the
bed "Dad?" 

***

Dire was the first to see the Oracle as he ran towards the stairs to
the lower cells quite frantically. "Isn't there a proverb of some sort
about following panicked cats?" 

Fraser gave him an odd look. "I don't think so."

"Well there should be." And with that he was off following a panicked
cat. 

***

Grissom gave a gasp of horror when he saw the body. His fingers went
around the bars, and his legs gave out, sagging. Dire skidded to a stop,
grimacing. "Oh, rot..." The kid was a beast, but a child's death was
a child's death. 

Fraser came in third and it was he who saw Kowalski first. His lover
- or his body, at least - was standing by the door, grinning madly. Fraser
made a move to stop him and Kowalski held up a hand. "Touch me not,
Benton,
lest ye end up like the kiddie. Or the kitty." 

"Your name is Eloise?" asked Fraser, trying to keep her talking.

"I go by Ellie. Eloise is too uptight." She smiled as if it were a joke.

"What do you want? Why did you take Ray's body?"

"Personally, I don't want anything. I'd like to be a blonde again. I
didn't take his body, either, it was given to me. I'd rather have the
vampire, really." 

"Is Ray in there?" Fraser pressed desperately.

Ellie shrugged a bit. "Somewhere. He's giving me a headache."

Dire rose from beside the grieving Moloch. "What does Lilith plan on
doing, Ellie?" 

"Hmm? Oh, she's going to take over. She's going to kill all you heavy
hitters, then step in. In that body she can do it." 

Suddenly Dire's face turned very thoughtful. "Indeedy-do, Ellie." 

"A favor?" begged Fraser.

"What?" she smirked, turning the Mountie's stomach at the sight.

Fraser produced one of his leather uniform gloves and threw it at Ellie's
feet. "Give that to Lilith." 

***

Lilith stared at the glove and smirked. "Well. Not an unexpected surprise.
A little dramatic, but..." 

"What?"

"He's calling me out. Good." She looked at Ellie and brushed her fingers
against Ray's cheek. "The boy is dead?" 

"Deader than a lemming. The Oracle was...upset."

"He'll be more than upset when we kill his soul."

"Yeah, how we going to swing that little miracle?"

"Well, they have these things called hellmouths here, El. We just have
to figure out how to open one in the right place and Alex Vargas is
toast."

"How are we going to figure that out?"

"My body's seen it done. I just have to persuade him to part with the
details." She smiled. "Meanwhile, we'll keep stimulating the Oracle's
memories. Maybe we'll get lucky..." 

***

Grissom curled up in his bed, staring at the wall. He felt Cecil sit
on the bed beside him and blearily looked up at him. So odd that Cecil
and Alex had become one in this dimension. It was difficult looking at
him wearing that beloved face, knowing that it wasn't his Alex. Still,
this Cecil was gentle and his children were adorable. "Hey." 

"How do you feel?" asked Cecil.

Tom shook his head, averting his gaze. "I don't..."

"It was worse, wasn't it? Worse than what any of us ever did to you.
Right?" Cecil's voice was cruel. Biting. Tom shuddered, almost terrified.
"Wasn't it?" 

"Cecil, don't..."

"Think you'll ever be able to look them in the eyes again? Think you'll
be able to let him fuck you again?" Cecil stood up, pushing away from
the bed. "Moloch whore...." 

Tom felt tears running down his face and looked up at Cecil. Why was
he doing this? Why was he being so cruel? Why... 

He wasn't there.

No one was there.

No one had been there.

He heard a knock on the door, and it opened. Cecil stood outside looking
worried. "Are you all right? I heard crying..." 

"I'm okay..." he managed.

Entering the room, the Enthos stood beside the bed. Cecil brushed the
hair out of Tom's face. "You don't look all right..." 

"I'm fine!" Tom snapped, pushing Cecil's hand away. "I'm fine, ok?" 

"No, you're not, Tom. Listen, a lot has happened in the past few days.
If you need to talk about it, we're here. All of us." 

"Great," was the scathing reply.

"I won't deny what you did to Ray was wrong, but I understand why you
did it. I did something similar once. I was mad then, but I'm not now.
Please, understand the depth of the love these men feel for each other.
They are in each other's heart and minds and souls and they will do
anything
to get them back." He bit his lip, knowing Tom wouldn't answer him, then
rose and fetched the Moloch some fresh water. "When you want to talk,
we're here." 

"I saw Cecil," Tom said abruptly, surprising even himself. "My Cecil.
Here. Mocking me. But he wasn't here. It was so real..." 

"Do you mind if I tell the others about it?"

The Oracle hesitated then shook his head. "I...it doesn't matter. Do
what you want..." He closed his eyes, slumped back against the bed. 

***

"Slick, Fraser, real slick."

"I took a cue from my Ray, all impulse and instinct, Ray."

"Yeah, but calling out a psycho vampire for a duel? Come on."

"It has to start and end somewhere, Ray, and he couldn't waste the
opportunity."

"Benton, do not tell me you agree with what he did."

"Of course I do, Ray."

"Double teamed. Not fair. Don't forget its yer Mountie butt she's gunning
fer next round, Fraser." 

"I haven't forgotten, Ray."

The three men looked up as Calhoun and Aja joined them on the wall around
the demon haven. 

"Slick move, Fraser," commented Calhoun sarcastically.

"/Thank/ you," called Ray.

"We have a suggestion," continued the Gangrel Elder. "We want to run
it past you and your Tom." 

"What is it?" asked Ben.

Calhoun folded his arms, leaning against the wall. "Well...we basically
have all the right components right now to make me over in Elder Calhoun's
image. Basically, Lord Caine can declare me Autarkis, I can be made
Sabbat,
and we have an Ancient ready to donate some blood in a good cause." 

They all looked at Aja, who nodded seriously.

"And Tom is a vampire with a soul," added Fraser.

"So'm I," said Kowalski defensively.

"Tom was also turned by Calhoun, who has the blood of your Prince
Kowalski,
who has the blood of Lilith and the Giovanni and the Sabbat. I know
there's
no way I'll be able to be his equal in so short an amount of time, but
this may give us a chance, seeing as how I am also - willingly - possessed
by an Ancient." 

Silence. They gazed at him for a long moment, and then Fraser stepped
forward. "Let's go find Tom." 

***

He was in the bathroom, washing his face when it happened again. He looked
up from the sink, and saw /him/ in the mirror. Wyrm. Or rather, Vermis.
He squeezed his eyes shut, and shivered. "Not real. It's not..." 

"Like hell it's not," Vermis' voice rumbled out. "You don't remember,
do you? Conceiving Adolph? His birth? It's all a long amnesiac blank,
isn't it?" 

"Stop...you're not here..."

"You wouldn't have liked yourself those long four months..."

"Stop it...please..."

"The things you did...the things you ate...the people..."

"Stop!!!"

***

Fraser, Dire, and Ray were halfway to the Higher's chambers when they
heard the smash. It sounded like glass breaking. 

Fraser froze, turning towards the door to the bathrooms.

"Why do I have a really bad feeling about that noise?" Ray asked quietly.

They heard a second smash, and Dire was the first to react, shoving on
the door of the bathrooms with all his inconsiderable weight. It took
three tries, but with Fraser's shoulder added to the mix, they had the
door open in seconds. 

"Oh rot and bother," he muttered at the sight of the Oracle smashing
the mirrors with his bare, clawed hands. The Moloch Tom was bleeding
heavily, but showed no signs of stopping. 

Ray gave a squeak and ran to the linen closet to fetch some towels,
probably
the only vampire on the planet that couldn't stand the sight of blood.
He came rushing back and almost ran down Higher Grissom. 

Dire grabbed Tom, shouting for Fraser to help him calm down the
out-of-control
Oracle. He didn't expect the Higher to step forward. 

Grissom had heard the commotion in his rooms and had run down. He had
hoped that maybe James had fought the Lilith bitch and won, but that
was apparently just a dream. He stepped forward, staring at his
counterpart,
concerned. 

He'd seen this kind of behavior before in himself. When he'd first
returned
to Chicago and had begun working at the hotline. When Lilith and her
Empath demons had tried so very desperately to screw with his head and
they had been so successful for so long... 

"Tom?" Fraser looked up from where he was trying to stem the flow of
blood from Grissom's hands with the towels, understanding now exactly
what was going on.  "It's Lilith, isn't it? Doing this? All of this?"

"Yes." He closed his eyes, feeling a power surging through him. He'd
felt this before, when the Initiative had held him. Just before he'd
killed all of those people with the power of just his mind. He understood
now as well. 

Tom smiled and knelt in front of the panicking Oracle in Dire's gentle
hold. "Which one is it? Doing this to you? Do you know?" He touched
Grissom's
cheek gently. 

"El-lie," The Oracle gasped, closing his eyes. He didn't want to watch
them all staring at him. Then he opened his eyes, staring deep into his
counterpart's. "You could..." 

Tom tilted his head, nodding. "Yes..."

"Do it. For them. Please."

Ray shook his head, aware that a very strange conversation was going
on without their knowledge. "Do /what/?" 

"Hold him tight," Tom told Dire. "You too, Benton."

Fraser didn't argue. He wasn't quite sure what was going on, but he knew
arguing about it wouldn't get them anywhere. The Higher smiled at the
Oracle, touched his face, and concentrated. 

***

Lilith was gone when it happened, off to find the supplies she was sure
would be needed for the hellmouth. Ellie suddenly felt a relentless tug
in her mind and frowned. "No..." This wasn't what was supposed to happen.
The tug turned into a yank. 

She was losing her hold on this body, her grip slowly peeled away by
a strength greater than hers. No...This wasn't fair. It almost hurt.
This wasn't the right thing...she was the consort of the Queen. Nobody
was allowed to do this to her. 

And then she was gone. And Ray was alone. In the Sewers.

He shivered, dropping weakly to his knees in the damp and mire. God,
he could barely move, but he was himself again. Psycho Bitch Jr. was
outta here. 

"Shit..." He had to get out of here before Lilith returned. He'd have
zero chance against her. Him. Whatever. 

He struggled upright, having no idea of where he was or even what
direction
Lilith had taken earlier. He looked down at the water, hoping for a
current,
but it was stagnant. Well, he'd find his way. He didn't need light. He
picked the tunnel to the left for absolutely no reason, and set out.

***

Calhoun started when The Oracle tensed, and opened his eyes. The object
of his lust for so many years...and Ellie peeked out of his eyes. A
sneering
snarl, and then the Oracle tried to jump forward. 

He was held fast.

"What did you do?" Ray demanded of The Higher.

"Evened the stakes. So to speak..." He looked at Fraser. "We'll probably
be able to find Ray now..." 

"I say, could one of you stalwart lads fetch the Son of the House of
Rachel here?" asked Dire. "I mean, not to kick you fellas out, but he
and I are better equipped to deal with Duo Damsel here than you whole
personality types." 

"Wha-?" asked the Gangrel Kowalski, unable to get used to Dire.

Dire rolled his eyes. "We're Seekers. We can't be possessed. Ever try?
No room at the inn and all that. Now shoo before she tries to land a
house on you." 

"Can she tell us where Ray is now?" pressed Fraser.

Grissom turned to his double, closing his eyes as he searched with his
mind. Finally he shook his head. "She doesn't know. She just followed
Lilith in the sewers, she's too insane to have a sense of direction."

Fraser closed his eyes, trying to hide his pain. "We have to find him."

"Lilith knows how to open a hellmouth," whispered Tom. "She wants to
destroy Tom's soul." 

"Alex Vargas." Calhoun turned his pale eyes on them. "We have to hurry,
then we have to carry out Lord Caine's plan. If she's taken Fraser up
on her challenge, we won't have much time." 

"Let's move it," ordered the Primal Higher.

***

She glared at the spot she'd left Ellie and growled. The Higher. She
could smell his work from a mile away. Fucking Primals. Always going
and doing things they shouldn't. She sighed. "Well. I'll just have to
kill him. Primordial stew, coming right up, huh, Jimmy?" She relished
Calhoun's screams at that thought. 

"Want help?" she heard a thick voice ask. She turned and recognized the
blue demon behind her despite the burns and injuries. He leaned heavily
against the wall, clutching his side. 

"D'Hoffryn. But..."

"Let's just say I've got a grudge and he's got my powers." He smirked
and it turned into a grin. "But not all of them. Like the body. Good
choice. That bastard's tougher than any undead I've ever met before.
You said you wanted to snatch and grab a Soul?" 

"The Oracle's. His lover in the world I left behind. Some wimp in
Baltimore."

"Vermis' pet Oracle. Good. Shouldn't be too hard. Want to give this poor
Soul a fighting chance?" 

She considered. "I guess so. Kowalski's around here somewhere, too. He
can't get too far." 

D'Hoffryn's face twisted in to a mask of hatred. "I want Kowalski as
payment for grabbing the Oracle's Soul." 

"Get him and he's all yours."

***

Ray slipped, tripping through the sludge and grime of the sewer. He was
close to Hell. He could feel it. He could tell by the smell. Demon muck.
Lovely. 

"There better damn well be a warm shower ready..." He shuddered as he
slipped again. God, so light headed... 

It was then he saw the bright light. A wormhole, opening to a hellmouth.
Christ! He shielded his eyes, trying to hide in what shadows were left.
He felt a blast of heat then a draft of cool air and he heard someone
else stumbling around blindly in the fetid water. When he opened his
eyes, someone was standing right in front of him. 

He looked just as freaked out as Ray felt.

Ray blinked. "Cecil?"

***

He'd been on the phone with Stenos when he'd suddenly felt very dizzy
and an indescribable sense of being yanked clean out of his own body.
He couldn't tell if it was blackness or bright lights swirling around
him and he smelled sulpher burning. He felt himself hurtling nonstop
and thought maybe the floor had opened up around him and ate him. 

Right now he wished it had. It smelled rancid down here.

He staggered into the ankle-deep water. A sewer. He was in a sewer. He'd
been at his desk dictating a report and...yeah, he was most definitely
in some stinking, nasty sewer. What the hell? 

He heard footsteps and a thin, pale man emerged from the darkness, staring
at him. In the faint light Alex could tell he was tall and rangy and
looked haggard. His first question floored Alex. 

"Cecil?"

"What? Where am I? Who are you? How'd I get here?"

The man frowned. "You're not Cecil Noor?"

"What? No way! I'm Sgt. Alexander Vargas, Baltimore P.D. Who are you?"
The very thought that he could be mistaken for Cecil Noor
was...horrifying.

The man's eyes grew huge. "Oh, shit," he breathed. He looked around.
"Oh, god, come on! She'll be right after us! Come on, damnit, unless
ya wanna die!" 

"Who are you?" demanded Alex, wondering if the man was a complete nut.

"Detective Ray Kowalski, Chicago P.D. Yer a long way from home, Alex."

"How the hell did I get to Chicago?"

"Ever hear of Bloody Mary? Come on!"

***

Tom shivered when he shined his flashlight into the sewer entrance. He
so did not want to go back down there. The memories were too near. But
Ray needed them. He glanced back at the rest of the team. It was the
same group as before, minus the Seekers and Jay, who had to return to
the police academy. They'd been armed to the teeth before. It paled by
comparison to now. 

Tom let himself drop down, followed by Dief and Benton. He sniffed the
air, trying to sense Ray. He glanced back at Fraser, who stood very still
for a moment, concentrating. The Slayer Born and Bred pointed to the
left. 

"This way."

***

Kowalski struggled through the pipes, always trying to move upwards while
Alex had resigned himself to the company of a madman. He didn't quite
understand the snatches of some weird tale that the detective tossed
back at him, but he did gather that whomever had yanked Alex away from
his quiet little desk was going to be, quite literally, out for their
blood. 

Kowalski was weakening, too. His movements were slowing rapidly and his
speech was growing more slurred. Alex watched him, worried, wondering
if this man was drunk or on something. His anxiety was contagious, though,
and Alex helped him along as best he was able. He knew there was more
to this Chicagoan than met the eye. His senses seemed far better than
Alex's, to the point where he heard the flapping a good minute before
the demon got there. 

"Something's coming."

"I don't-"

"It's coming. Shit. Uh, hide," panted Kowalski. He looked around. Nothing
to hide behind except a corner. They crouched down, waiting. Finally
Alex heard it as well: a frantic, humming, fluttering sound. He saw
Kowalski
frown in disbelief and vague recognition. Before he could protest, the
detective was around the corner. 

"Blendine?"

Alex looked. An Enthos child - a purebred, by the look of it, too -
hovered
in the air in front of Ray. She had on a pink dress trimmed with ribbons
and lace that was miraculously clean, and she had long, silken blond
hair and mischievous blue eyes. Alex put her age at no more than eight,
though it was hard to tell with purebreds. 

"Uncle Ray!" she squeaked, tackling him and sending him staggering back.
Alex darted forward and steadied his companion. Blendine looked up at
the uniformed officer and her smile vanished as if she expected a world
of trouble. 

"Daddy?" She sounded panicked. "But I left...you were...daddy?"

Ray almost snickered himself to death at the look on Alex's face. "No,
Blendine. He's like the other Tom, okay?" 

"Other Tom?" Alex asked, staring at Ray wide-eyed. Could...Was Tom here?
In the sewer or somewhere else? He knew he was in Chicago, but assumed
his lover was dead after the whole clan wars debacle. They'd never found
a body, but... 

"Ray? Ray!"

Suddenly a man came splashing through the water and yanked Kowalski into
a tight embrace. Still clutching Blendine, the detective let out a
strangled
cry and seemed to melt into the caress. Blendine wriggled free, hovering
in the air again as Kowalski collapsed against the newcomer. 

A flashlight shone in their faces and a bunch of people Alex didn't
recognize
stared at him. And one he did. 

"Tom!" Alex felt his heart skip a beat as he gazed in disbelief at the
man in front of him. At the mirror smasher he clutched. "You're
ok...but..."
He blinked. "The fire...you..." He felt very faint. Someone - Kowalski's
twin brother? - was rushing towards him. "Oh damn..." 

Tom stared down at him as the man slid to the floor of the sewer, grabbed
by Vecchio and Ray before he hit. "Cecil?" he finally asked, looking
up at Ray. 

"Vargas."

"Oh." Tom was flustered. He slung the mirror smasher across his shoulder
and knelt down beside the unfortunate Alex Vargas, both Diefenbakers
hovering close and nosey. 

This Alex had stayed a police officer, it seemed. He'd even made rank.
Tom reached out with his mind. This man was thoroughly and completely
devoted to the memory of Tom Grissom, Oracle. He'd thought Tom dead.
Oh, the poor thing... 

Alex stirred, ashamed of his moment of weakness, but these men seemed
to take it in stride. He looked up at the man who held him. Kowalski's
twin. Or a clone. He almost panicked when the man smiled and he saw the
fangs. 

"It's okay," soothed Tom. "You're safe. You-mmfff!"

Alex had seized Tom by the shirt and yanked him down for a kiss that
quite literally took the Seer's breath away. 

Ray checked his watch. "Goin' fer a record here, guys."

Tom finally yanked away from Alex, panting and red-faced and shaken.
Vecchio chuckled. 

"Good shooting, wrong target, Vargas."

"Tom," breathed Alex, devouring the Moloch with his eyes.

"Yes and no," volunteered Benton.

Fraser turned, his lover cradled in his arms. The vampire prince was
unconscious. "We have to get out of here." 

"Who are you people?" demanded Alex, tearing his eyes away from Tom.

"No time," said Fraser. "Benton, take Blendine. We-"

Both Mounties looked up as a clawed hand appeared on the ceiling, smashing
the tiles. James Calhoun climbed into the light, dropping down lightly
into their midst. He was not pleased with their dallying. 

"Move it! She's coming and she's got back-up!"

***

Dire whistled brightly as he poked around the Higher's dresser drawers,
looking for a distraction. He found leather instead. 

"Someone has a fetish," he said to Turnbull in a sing-song voice and
handed over a strange pair of padded restraints. "This should hold the
old gal." 

"Hmm. Let's hope so." Together they secured the Oracle, ignoring the
screaming rants of Ellie. The woman was seriously disturbed. 

"Careful, Rachel." Dire warned as Ellie nearly swiped him. "Remember
Adam." 

"Oh. Yes. Dear. He wouldn't happen to have any glove type things in there,
would he?" 

"Doesn't hurt to look. Ow! I was wrong! Victim of a...one of those. Oh!
Look at the spikes! Have you ever seen such an inventory of straps, belts,
buckles, locking, snapping, zipping, leathery by-products in your life?"

"What if I say yes?"

"I shall faint."

"He has the same things at his apartment." Turnbull said quietly. "Second
drawer from the bottom. 

Dire slid it open then slid it shut. He stared at Turnbull, shaking his
head. "You're wicked." 

Ellie rolled her eyes, quite annoyed at being ignored.

***

"You had an Alex here?" Vargas finally asked Tom, still a little wobbly
on the dynamics of what the hell had happened. Magick class had never
been his strong suit. 

Tom tensed, then nodded. "Yeah."

"What happened to him?" Alex was genuinely curious. "What, was he an
idiot or something?" 

"He's dead. He hit me with a door, Cecil killed him, and I really don't
want to talk about it. Ok?" Tom went back to waiting for James to come
out of the bedroom. He'd been declared Autarkis and made a Sabbat all
in the space of forty minutes. A world record. Von hadn't been too
pleased,
but for some strange reason, James' second was deferring to Tom now.
He was worried about his lover's double. Very worried. That was a lot
of change to take in so limited a span, even for the likes of James
Calhoun.

He was currently drinking of Ray and Fraser. Tom was next. Then Adam.

He wasn't quite sure how he felt about that.

He tensed again as he felt...something pressing in his mind. He recognized
it. "No..." 

"Are you okay?" Alex asked quietly.

"No. I...Shit..." He looked up. "Cecil!"

Cecil hurried over, having been peeking in the bedroom. "Yes?"

"Get...someone. D'Hoffryn's coming."

The demon gasped then scurried off. Alex was staring in shock. "That's
Cecil?" 

"Yeah."

"Why does he look like me and not...Cecil Noor?"

"I'll tell you later."

***

Constable Benton Fraser, RCMS, very gently and tenderly lifted the frail
and wasted form of his lover into his arms. Mina was waiting for the
hybrid prince in the sitting room attached to the suite where Calhoun
lay in agony. He glanced back at the newly made Sabbat on the bed. Ray
hovered over him, anxious for his Elder and ready to do whatever was
needed to ease the transition from Gangrel to Sabbat. 

Mina had already tended her Elder's wrists and the bites upon him and
the host of minor scrapes and cuts and bruises he was sporting. 

"Should he be in the infirmary?" questioned Fraser.

"I'll do exactly the same thing for him there as here and here's more
comfortable." 

They looked up as Tom entered the room. Alex was right behind him, having
no idea of where else to go. Fraser smiled a bit at the still confused
police sergeant. Alex was holding up well considering the situation.

"How is he?" asked Tom, watching as Mina hooked an i.v. into Kowalski's
hand. The ghoulite was asleep and from the looks of him, he wasn't going
anywhere anytime soon. 

"As soon as he's on his feet he'd better be on a cruise ship or some
other vacation where he'll be kept out of trouble and around lots and
lots of food," said Mina, glaring at Fraser. She didn't think he was
taking proper care of her Elder's questionable health. 

"How is James coming along?"

Mina glanced over at her other patient. "Well enough, under the
circumstances.
It's a great deal of strain on his system. At least our Elder had time
to adjust." 

"Time to go insane," Fraser said softly, tucking another blanket around
his lover. The old prison was damp and Ray had little enough body heat
as it was. "As when he was turned, Jamey had no one there to help him
adjust the changes forced upon him when he became Autarkis." 

"Have you gone?" asked Tom, watching as Alex wandered over to the bed
where Ray sat beside Calhoun. 

"Yes," Fraser said, indicating the bandage on his wrist. "I believe the
other Ray wishes to give to him as well." 

"He has a soul, doesn't he?"

"Yes."

"Let him."

Fraser nodded in agreement, looking up at a soft knock on the door. Eloise
and Adam walked in. They were holding hands and the Mountie felt a warm
smile spread across his face as they came to see the sleeping prince.

"Good morning, Higher. Constable. Doctor," said Eloise, her musical
Southern
drawl so out of place in the wilderness that was Chicago. "Lord Caine
has explained what it is you plan on doing with the other Elder Calhoun
and I think it only proper that I help as well." Before anyone could
protest, she leaned over and touched her sire's face. "Doctor Turnbull,
if I may...?" 

"Please," invited Mina, knowing the Last Daughter of Eve could do far
more for her patient right now than she could. Lifting Kowalski's
colorless
hand, Eloise perched on the couch beside him, intent and focused on the
man that had made her a hybrid. 

Ray joined them. "Think he's ready fer the next round. Who's the next
course?" 

"Me," said Tom firmly. "Fraser, Ray, Adam, listen up. D'Hoffryn's on
his way, too. Lilith isn't alone. They're getting closer. Get together
with Turnbull. I'll join you as soon as I can and we'll figure out the
next step." 

"We'll be in the library," said the Mountie. "We'll take Alex."

"Better. He won't like what he sees."

***

"You don't say!"

Turnbull glanced over at Dire as he fished through the drawer full of
fetish gear. The Seeker had spent the past hour in deep discussion with
Ellie on the names and uses of the various items in the drawer. While
Turnbull could appreciate what it was Dire was doing and Ellie was so
completely distracted that she didn't have an opportunity to torment
Tom, the Son of Elizabeth was getting annoying even by Turnbull's
remarkably
high standards. 

There was no dividing line with Peter where one persona stopped and the
other began and Turnbull was actually relieved when his own very serious
and highly intellectual Seeker fled the scene. 

"Bung-ho! What would you call this? Quite the education, eh, Renny?"

"You'd have to learn proper application, Peter."

"Right you are! Hate to use a tickler where a cat o'nine tails is called
for, or have your partner refer to bondage and you think it's some type
of savings and loan scheme. I say! Cecil, old mutton chop! What brings
your blonde head to our haunts? Say! Ever use one of these?" 

Cecil's eyes grew huge in recognition. Turnbull and Ellie perked up,
waiting for an answer. 

"Uh...uh...I...we..."

"I'll take that as a yes! Good for you!"

"Turnbull," he squeaked.

The constable gladly fled the scene as well.

***

Calhoun felt someone help him sit up and he opened his eyes. "Ray...?"
He felt woozy. He reached out and a cool hand steadied him gently. He
recognized the scent of the Higher that held his fealty. 

"He'll be here soon," Tom promised. He sighed, mustering his nerve as
he brushed Calhoun's hair out of his eyes. He was so used to his lover
with a Mohawk. "How do you want to do this?" 

Calhoun considered and then Tom felt fangs at his neck. He tensed up,
trying to push away the memories of what had been done to him in the
sewers, in the other version of Chicago... 

"You're okay with this?" Calhoun whispered, pausing.

"Yeah." Tom's voice was tight, his breathing heavy. He shouldn't be
breathing,
he knew that. But he'd figure it out later. The fangs barely pierced
his skin when he pulled back with a start. 

"You don't seem okay." Calhoun glanced at Mina, worried. "Here..." He
pulled away from Tom's neck and lifted his wrist gently. "It's all right."

"Yeah..." He felt teeth pierce the flesh of his wrist and squirmed,
pulling
back. "No. No, I can't. I..." 

"Tom. Tom, calm down." He felt Mina at his back. "Can you calm down?"

He was trembling like a leaf. Calhoun released him, leaving him alone
for a few moments before he reached out and pulled Tom close, holding
him gently. 

Tom curled up against him, hating himself for this weakness, desperately
wishing his James was here to hold him. 

He was surprised when he felt the vampire start to stroke his back and
neck, just as his own lover did when Tom needed to be comforted. A small,
sad smile touched his lips. They were essentially the same person. And
both of them loved him. 

And he trusted them both. His own lover he had trusted even before they
had actually met. This man had sworn loyalty to him and turned to him
in need. 

He was willingly trying to shape himself in James' image, willing to
risk total destruction at the hands of Lilith to save the people he held
dear. Tom could not back down now. 

He turned his head, exposing his neck. "Go on. Now."

"You're sure?"

"Hurry."

***

Dire rooted through the drawers, looking for something else with which
to distract the nutty fubar one. His hand touched something warm and
fleshy, and he pulled back with a start. "Oh my ears and whiskers..."
He pulled out a book, bound in human flesh. "Ugh. Well. This is...."

"The Necronomicon..." Ellie grinned, giggling. "The dead people book,"
she sang. 

"Gateway to the Wyrm..." Dire whispered. "We'd best put that back where
we found it..." He turned to follow his own instructions and heard a
snapping noise. It sounded like metal and...leather. 

"Oh dear..." He managed to get out of the way before Ellie leaped out
of the bed and tackled him. He hit the floor. Ellie in Tom's body was
just inches from his face, a feral grin on the Moloch's face. 

He found himself smiling back. "So, where to from here, old girl?" 

The brown eyes narrowed mischievously and a hand went for the still-open
drawer. 

***

Adolph looked up from his book in the library and smiled at Alex. "My
father's Soul," he said in awe, surprising Alex with the title. He smiled
wider, all innocence and childish delight. "I'm so sorry she brought
you here, but my father will be so pleased..." He caught Fraser shaking
his head and realized he'd done something wrong. "What?" 

"Tom is here?" Alex asked the strange looking child. His pale eyes grew
huge at the revelation. "He's here? Thomas Grissom, the Oracle of
Baltimore?
HERE? Where is he?" 

"Alex, calm down," said Fraser.

"Is he alive? For god's sake, just tell me if he's alive!" begged Alex.

The Mountie placed a hand on the sergeant's shoulder. "He's alive, Alex."

"I thought he was killed in the fire!"

"No. He was burned, but Wyrm managed to remove him before he could be
too badly harmed." 

"Why didn't you tell me? God, I've been mooning after your Higher and
you've had my Tom all this while! What's wrong with him that you won't
let me see him? Does he hate me?" Fear shadowed his eyes as he looked
to Fraser for enlightenment. 

"Alex, please. Sit down." Fraser guided him to a chair and sat opposite
him. Adolph glided over and settled on the table beside them. 

Carefully, in great detail as only Benton Fraser could manage, he told
the entire tale. Alex listened in stunned silence. 

"So...Ellie is in him now."

"For safe keeping. He volunteered the hosting, as our Tom tells us.
Constable
Dire - you haven't met him yet, he's a Seeker from St. John - is keeping
an eye on them right now." 

"Seeker - what's that? I've never heard of one before."

"Seekers are men descended from four specific matriarchal bloodlines,
called houses. There are the Houses of Rachel, Leah, Rebekkah, and
Elizabeth.
They...they are two beings in one, a body with two spirits. They are
renowned for their intelligence and incorruptibility. We're fortunate
to have two seekers with us now, Dire and Turnbull." 

There came a loud crash of broken glass and falling metal from the hall.
They all hurried to see what it was and were just in time to see Turnbull
stagger to his feet. A Hienic carrying a tray of covered dishes was
sprawled
on the ground as well, surrounded by their lunch. 

"Who is that?" wondered Alex.

"That would be Constable Turnbull. His human persona tends to be a little
clumsy." 

The Baltimore cop blinked. "So...what's Dire like?"

"A circus."

Cecil helped Turnbull up and ushered them all into the next room. "Tom
says D'Hoffryn's on his way. With Lilith." Clearly the Primal Enthos
was more afraid of the former Higher than of Lilith. 

Turnbull slipped easily into Seeker mode. "This is unfortunate." He
thought
momentarily. "He couldn't have all of his powers. If he did, Tom wouldn't
be Higher." 

"He has some of them at least," Fraser imparted. "He managed to bring
Sgt. Vargas across. I don't believe Lilith ever would have truly been
able to do that alone." 

"So what do we do? We know what to do against Lilith, but even without
his powers D'Hoffryn is still a Higher," Cecil said. He was shaking.
"We Primals will not be allowed to fight him." 

"What's he after?" Vargas asked. "Is there something he wants?"

"He'll want his job back." Cecil sighed and looked at Rupert as he settled
in. "He'll want us. And he'll want Ray." 

"Why Ray?"

"Because Prince Kowalski killed him. We Primals have very strong vengeance
streaks," Rupert added in. "You remember what Tom did to Anyanka for
her part in The Slayer's death." He and Cecil both shivered at the memory.

Fraser looked momentarily perplexed. "What did Tom do to her?"

"He..." Rupert looked to Cecil debating whether to tell. Cecil nodded.
"He ate her." 

Fraser blinked, speechless. Beside him, Alex looked grossed out.

"Ew."

"Indeed."

***

Ellie lay next to the Seeker who called himself Dire, exhausted after
their games. The contents of the drawer lay on the floor of room, all
haphazard. He smiled at her winningly and got off the bed to clean up
the room before someone complained about all the noise he was sure they
made. 

Ellie hummed, trying to get his attention. "I'll help you."

"Pardon?" He asked, turning back to her. He wondered at why the Oracle
hadn't made move one to stop Ellie's actions. "Help me what, old gal?"

"Fight her. I'll help you."

Peter Dire cocked his head, rather afraid he was starting to like this
person Ellie. "Why would you want to do something like that, Ellie?"

She smiled. "Because I like you. You're more fun than Lilith and you
let me do whatever I like." 

"Yes, I did, didn't I? Hmm."

***

"I'll go check on Tom and Ray," Fraser said, rising. "I'll be back in
a few minutes." 

Alex went with him, hoping to persuade the Slayer to bring him to Tom.
They found the Higher sitting on the bed where they'd left him, only
now the positions were reversed and Tom was holding Calhoun and stroking
his hair. The vampire was trembling, clutching Tom like a life line.
Nearby, Aja watched as Mina tended to Eloise's wrist. 

"How is he?" asked Fraser quietly.

"It's a hell of a lot to absorb," whispered Tom. "Thank god Caine's in
there with him or I don't think he'd be able to handle it." 

"Will he be ready?"

Tom concentrated. "It'll be close."

"Can you come to the library? We're assembling there."

"Yeah, give me a few."

Fraser checked on his sleeping lover and Ray then hesitated.

"What's wrong?"

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

Fraser turned down the hall to a room Alex hadn't noticed before. He
listened at the door for a long moment, frowning. Alex could hear muffled
laughter. 

"Who's in there?" he whispered.

"Dire."

"And Tom?"

Before Fraser could stop him, Vargas had the door opened. He stopped
dead in his tracks, gaping. Fraser fared just a little better. 

Dire stood on the bed, backed into the corner by Ellie in Tom's body.
She was wielding a feather duster and...a whip and he seemed to be having
the time of his life. 

"Tom?"

"Peter!"

"Constable!"

"A-Alex?"

"Joy! We all know each other!"

"Do we?" wondered Fraser as Tom and Alex faced each other for the first
time in five years. 

Ellie, amused beyond belief, allowed Tom to come to the fore. His reaction
was...not what Alex expected. "Alex?" His voice was weak, to say the
least. He blinked slowly. 

And then he passed out. Alex lunged forward and barely caught him. 

Dire stared down at the Oracle, not phased a bit. "Well, that was a tad
unpleasant." 

"Really, Peter..." Fraser shook his head at his fellow constable, who
plopped down to sit beside the unconscious Tom. "We have guests!" 

"She wants to help us."

Fraser looked...disturbed to say the least. "Help us what?"

***

Lilith kicked open the underground sewer entrance to Hell and looked
to D'Hoffryn. "How did you know that was there?" 

"I was their Higher. I know where everything is..." He paused. "Higher
Grissom knows we're coming. Shall I send him a warning?"

Lilith smiled slowly. "Please do."

***

They were almost at the library when he felt the pressure in his head
again. Kowalski turned to face Tom when he felt his friend stiffen a
bit and move even slower than his own snail's pace. There was a glazed
look in those brown eyes and he didn't like the utter blankness about
Tom's face. 

"Tom? You okay?"

"Mmm..." Tom touched his forehead, trying to fight past the sudden nausea.
"Fine. They want you in the library..." D'Hoffryn was here. He was here
and he was here now. 

And God was he pissed.

Prince Kowalski stood peering at Tom. The higher looked utterly freaked.
"Tom?" He reached out to give Tom a shake, and started when his friend
suddenly jolted back, crying out. "Whoa! I got ya..." He grabbed Tom
before he could fall, almost falling himself until he leaned the Moloch
against the wall, helping him to slide down to a seated position. "What
was that? What happened?" 

The psychic equivalent of being challenged to a fight. Bitch slapped
by someone who was his equal in power. "He's...he's calling me out."

"Who?"

"Who do you think? Can you get Von?"

"Uh, yeah. Vecchio here? He should have his cell phone."

He moved off at an unremarkable speed and when he entered the library,
he was welcomed loudly by those assembled. He waved them to silence.
"Vecchio! Got yer phone? Call Von. Tom Cat wants him here pronto.
Turnbull,
D'Hoffryn's here. Like, now. He called out Tom Cat." 

"It only seems fair," said a quiet voice right behind him. Kowalski turned
and almost melted at the sight of Fraser. "Seeing as how I called out
Lilith." 

"Frase..."

"Should you be up?"

"Naa. Look, Tom's down fer the count. Can you guys give him a hand?"

Turnbull and Alex retrieved the Higher, who was looking a little less
alarmed. 

"Where's Dire?" wondered Vecchio, hanging up the phone.

"Otherwise engaged," stated Fraser, inviting no further comment. He got
a few odd looks, but said nothing. 

"D'Hoffryn's here, but he's not the Higher," Tom began as they all settled
around the library. "He wants the title back and he'll stop at nothing."

"What is he now?" wondered Benton, who had never heard of him before
being brought here. 

"A demon. I don't know the type. He may be remarkably powerful, but that's
all he is." 

"Ergo, he's susceptible to the more common forms of demonic control,
correct?" asked Fraser. 

"I'm hoping. I can't guarantee anything. Let me handle D'Hoffryn, guys."

"He'll be gunning for Ray. I mean Prince Kowalski," reminded Cecil. 

"Yeah, well," muttered Ray. "What can I say? I stepped on his smokes."

Fraser gave him a look. "Ray, you fed on him and incinerated him." 

"I asked 'em nicely to leave."

"What about Lilith?" asked Vecchio. "How's Calhoun doing?"

"The other Ray is with him still. I don't know if he'll be recovered
in time." He looked up as a tall, fair-haired Sabbat, trailed by two
young women, entered the library. 

"Now what?" demanded Von.

Tom looked up and nearly snickered at the sight of Von and his groupie
Wiccans. "Well hello to you too."

Von glared at the Higher, then smiled sarcastically. "You rang, /Higher/?"

"D'Hoffryn's here. Your friends lose track of him?"

"Nope."

"Just decided not to let me know, that it?"

"Yep." Von smiled again. The girls seemed uncomfortable.

Tom cleared his throat. "I staked your double. I could do the same to
you?" 

"You could."

Fraser cleared his throat. "Gentlemen."

"I need you and the girls to scout him out while we prepare. Think you
can handle that, /Skyler/?" 

Tara suppressed a giggle and Ray rolled his eyes. Von glared at Tom,
angrily. "Yeah. I can handle it...consort." 

"Good."

***

Cecil handed Tom the Mirror Smasher and then frowned. Tom was once again
dressed in the Primal Hunting outfit. He was quite sure Calhoun must've
gotten a huge kick out of that. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"Yeah? Me too." Tom grinned at his former lover and took the gun. "Don't
worry so much." 

"Like that'll ever happen."

Tom turned when someone tugged on his shoulder. "Take these," Vecchio
said and glared at Tom meaningfully. "We don't need any blue kids with
horns running around." 

He smirked as he slipped the strap of the goggles over his head.

"WEAR them, Thomas," ordered Vecchio.

"Yes, Dad," muttered Tom, slipping the goggles over his eyes. He really
needed to rig them with night vision. 

"Cecil?" he asked, turning to his one-time lover. "Get far away from
here, please. Take Adolph and Livia." 

The Enthos nodded, knowing why Tom asked. "Did you two ever decide on
a name?" he wondered. 

Tom smiled, realizing they had never told him. "James picked her name.
We're going to call her Cecilia." 

He grinned as Cecil bit his lip and fought his tears. There were few
higher honors amongst the Enthos houses than to have a child named after
you. 

"You be careful," he ordered, trying not to blubber on the spot.

***

Ray Kowalski looked up at his Mountie, wishing once again that he didn't
have to wear these glasses and he could see Fraser with his own eyes.

"Promise me you'll stay here with Calhoun," Fraser said softly, tracing
Ray's cheek with delicate fingers. He hated leaving him. Ray seemed so
helpless. It was almost impossible to believe this frail and gentle
creature
had bested Lilith and D'Hoffryn and the Wyrm. He seemed too fragile to
have survived so many storms, but here he was. 

"Only if ya promise you'll come back ta me," he replied softly.

"I promise," Fraser whispered, sealing his words with a long, loving
kiss. 

"I promise, too," he said.

"I love you."

"An' I you, freak."

***

Ray Vecchio was stationed in the cell block with both Diefenbakers. He
wished he had Guess with him. The devil Dog could be a pest, but he was
a scrapper and surprisingly good back up. From where he was he couldn't
be seen, but he had an excellent view of the entrance to the lower levels.
If they were coming, they had to come through here. 

He tensed as the werewolves both growled. This was it.

He dialed his phone. "They're in the cell block...now."

***

"Can he do it?"

"I believe we'll find out, Alex. Stay here with the monitors, please,
and keep us posted." 

"Fraser, where are you-"

The Slayer Born and Bred paused and smiled at the Baltimore cop. "I have
to keep Lilith from helping D'Hoffryn." 

"But what about what you guys were planning?"

"There's still plenty of time left to this fight."

He hurried off, leaving Alex nothing to do but sit and watch the monitors
with the handful of demons Tom hadn't sent away. 

***

D'Hoffryn smirked at the sight of his successor with the mirror smasher.
"You require a weapon? And here I thought this was going to be a fair
fight." 

"Hand to hand?" Tom asked, holstering the gun. "You got it." He growled
and took a running leap at D'Hoffryn, surprising the hell out of the
big and the blue. 

They rolled clawing and biting at each other. D'Hoffryn screamed when
he felt the Cat Demon pull at one of his horns and yank it clean off.
The smell of blood reached Tom's nose and he smiled wickedly at the demon.

It was then that D'Hoffryn realized that Lilith had left out an extremely
important detail. 

She'd never told him Tom had gone over.

And to add insult to injury, he was one of the Sabbat the D'Hoffryn so
completely despised. 

"Gone over to Wyrm, have you?" hissed D'Hoffryn.

"Better the devil you /know/," Tom mocked, then shoved the demon with
all his strength, knocking him back into the circular pit beneath the
cell block. 

***

"Cal? Hey, Cal, ya done stewin' yet? Wake up, Calhoun. Yo! Dead Man
Junior!
Wake up!" 

"Prince Kowalski?"

"Right here, Cal," said Kowalski. He was holding the vampire in his arms
protectively, slowly rocking him. "How ya feelin'?" 

Calhoun seemed to collect himself. "We feel...strange."

"Strange how? Strange as in good or strange as in I'm going to puke?"

"As in, point me at the fight."

"That's a good strange then, Cal."

He loosened his hold on the vampire. Slowly, Calhoun sat up, holding
his head. He looked at the prince and smiled a bit. Ray looked worn out
and on the verge of collapse, his hair going every which way. 

"Thank you," he said softly.

"Think you'll be able to stop her without killin' him?"

"I will do everything I can to spare him," promised the Sabbat.

Ray swallowed. "Cal? You can't lose. That's the rub, as Dire'd say."

"I know." He rose, unsteady for a moment. "It takes some getting used
to, being Autarkis." 

"I barely noticed. Then again, I barely knew what a ghoulite was. How
about being Sabbat?" 

"Very...liberating."

Ray smiled. "I think D'Hoffryn's here. I don't know where Lilith is,
but Fraser was supposed to keep her busy fer a bit 'til you got there.
Alex is dispatching out of the security office." 

"What about you?"

"I promised Fraser I'd stay here."

"Alone?" His disapproval was evident in his voice.

"I promised. Can't leave now."

"Are you armed?"

"Silver bullets."

"Be safe, my prince. My son," he added, his voice shifting from one accent
to the other. Ray smiled. 

"Take 'er down, Sabbat."

***

He hurried through the deserted halls to the security control center
of the old prison. Alex Vargas sat before the banks of televisions with
a headset on, monitoring every move made. He barely glanced at Calhoun
as he hurried into the room. 

"Where's Kowalski?" demanded Alex.

"Left him in my room. He promised Fraser he'd stay there."

"No good, he's too vulnerable. Rupert, go get him and bring him back
here. Bring  blankets and a pillow, too. Percival," he said to an elderly
Swiss Fish, "go get Seeker Dire and his prisoner. I want them installed
in the ante room over here where we can keep an eye on them. Xanthi,
make more coffee." He kept his eyes locked on the screens, every inch
the police sergeant. The demons hastened to obey their orders. 

Ray walked in, not noticing his erstwhile Elder yet. "Cecil's gone, he's
got all the kids with him including Lucritia and her new litter. Mina
took Eloise and Adam with her, they'll be waiting for ya ta recall 'em."
His eyes fell on Calhoun and he blossomed into a wide smile. "Elder!
I can still call ya that, can I, now that ya joined the majors?" 

"Of course," said Calhoun, returning the smile.

"Ray, go help Benton and Turnbull," Alex interrupted. "They're bringing
the rest of the mirror smashers up here." 

"On it!" Ray exclaimed, darting out of the room.

"How's the fight going?" asked Calhoun.

Alex bit his lip. "Tom and D'Hoffryn ended up in some type of arena
beneath
the cell block. They're going at it hand-to-hand for some stupid reason.
Tom's got the upper hand. I think D'Hoffryn didn't quite expect so much
resistance, so he's going to try something very dirty very soon or lose
another horn." 

"Where's Lilith?"

"They're in the yard. Look." He pointed at another screen.

Calhoun saw his double, the man he had made himself over to be, slowly
moving in the late afternoon sunlight. He was graceful and deadly and
vicious and Calhoun watched him with care, knowing that he was next into
that arena. Fraser surprised him by being able to hold his own against
the Dark Mother. He was armed with a stake and nothing else and he seemed
to have survived to this point without a scratch. Calhoun gasped when
he finally caught sight of Fraser's expression. 

It was, if anything, even more deadly than his opponent's.

"That's what I said," muttered Vargas. "I can't go over all the details
right now, Calhoun, but we're going to be trying to get Lilith out of
your pal. You may have to protect him in the very end. You'll know it
when you see it if we get this timing right." He barely glanced up as
Rupert returned with a protesting Ray Kowalski. 

"Don't make me pull rank, detective," said Alex warned. "Pipe down."

"Where's Fraser?" demanded Kowalski.

"The yard." Sgt. Vargas gestured at the door. "Rupert, Calhoun, help
them with the smashers." 

Turnbull, Ray, and Benton returned toting the heavy artillery. The armory
in the prison had been too well secured for any of the inmates to be
able to loot it during Armageddon and since Chicago's fledgling new police
force didn't have enough manpower or storage, they had left the weapons
where they were. The Primals certainly weren't going to use the weapons,
seeing as how the majority of them were only effective against demons.
So the armory remained, inventoried weekly by Sgt. Freedman and guarded
by the denizens of Hell. 

Kowalski, Ray and Calhoun watched the dual fights on the monitors as
Turnbull and Benton stashed the weighty rifles and ammunition. Fraser
was holding his own against Lilith, dodging her every blow quite well,
while still landing several of his own. Lilith was not the fighter that
Major James Calhoun was and it seemed that he was not allowing her to
tap that ability fully. Fraser was tiring, though, and they had to time
this perfectly. 

Tom...well...Tom's was too strange to be believed. Typical.

Eyes locked on the screen, Alex saw the motion the Slayer Born and Bred
made and gestured at the Sabbat. "Go! Get down there now! Fraser just
gave the signal. In about two minutes, he's going down. Don't let her
kill him." 

"Please," whispered Kowalski, his voice as pathetic as his posture. 

Calhoun was gone before the word was complete.

"Ray, get down there. Tom's got to know Calhoun's facing Lilith if we're
going to time this right!" 

The Gangrel nodded then faced his silent lover. For a moment they just
stared at each other, then Benton yanked him into a passionate kiss that
left Ray dizzy and weak-kneed. 

"I love you," breathed Ray.

"And I you," Benton whispered.

Ray gave him another swift kiss then was gone in the blink of an eye.

Vargas picked up the phone and dialed. "Turnbull, get ready. Vecchio
will meet you. Ray?" he said into the phone. "Calhoun and Ray just moved
out. Be ready." 

Kowalski sank into the chair beside him, staring at the TV screens, his
face a mask of worry. 

***

"Front and center? I say, old girl, do you think we can manage?"

"Verily!" Ellie exclaimed.

Dire put a hand on his breast. "A woman after my own heart. Lead on,
O imported fishy delicacy!" 

Percival rolled his eyes. Humans.

***

She was fighting a two-fronted war.

The Slayer was in and of himself a formidable challenge. Never had she
faced a mere human that could fight so well - fight HER so well. He had
lasted longer against her than many an undead, and so intent was he that
she could not penetrate his mind with her own. So it all came down to
a purely physical conflict and so far she had not been able to gain the
upper hand. 

The other front was internal. The Sabbat whose body she inhabited was
fighting back as well, as he had been doing all along, but now he had
shifted his defense from keeping her mind at bay to slowing his own body.
It was frustrating and she was growing increasingly angry that he should
do this, that he should be able to do this. 

The James Calhoun she had known had been strong, but nowhere near this
one's mental and physical ability. Sabbat. Caanite. Autarkis. She hated
him. If she'd had another proper host available, she would have let the
Slayer kill him. 

She knew she should have taken Prince Kowalski when she'd had him. 

Suddenly the Slayer staggered and fell. She let out a triumphant shout
and lunged forward for the kill. 

A hand clamped down on her arm, yanking her back and around.

She was nose-to-nose with...herself. The other Calhoun, the one from
her world. 

The one she had controlled for so long and driven insane after he tried
to defect. 

"Elder Calhoun," she purred, delighting at the opportunity of killing
him too, betrayer and bastard. 

He smiled. "Take me on, bitch."

***

Strange as it seemed, Tom Grissom was having a blast.

D'Hoffryn was fighting for revenge and his title back. Tom was fighting
for everything and everyone he held dear, from the city to his family
and friends and lover. 

Though he didn't realize it yet, D'Hoffryn would soon be fighting for
his life. 

Tom was just killing time right now.

That Tom was now a Sabbat shocked him and Tom pressed the advantage.
He wondered, too, what effect the demon's blood would have on him, if
any Higher blood had turned Ray from a fire vampire back to a ghoulite.
Would it do the same for him? 

A blur of motion out of the corner of his eye. Amazingly, he could track
it. Ray. That meant that Fraser was down. Turnbull would be getting ready.
It was starting for real now. 

He let D'Hoffryn get a shot in and fell back, clutching his middle. 

D'Hoffryn growled, knowing that this hybrid was toying with him.

Then he spotted Kowalski in the circular opening.

The growl changed to a roar of fury and hatred. Kowalski, who had killed
him, drained him, burned and broke him. 

Kowalski, who made him lose to the Wyrm of the Earth.

The roar changed to a scream that shook the prison to its very foundations
and D'Hoffryn leaped out of the pit and lunged at the vampire prince,
unable to hurt him enough. 

Tom's dark eyes narrowed. "I don't think so, pal."

***

Vargas let out a shout of pain and yanked the headset off. He gaped at
the screens, awed at D'Hoffryn's fury and how fearlessly these men faced
the demon. Tom jumped out of the pit after the former Higher, joining
Ray in the cellblock. He glanced at Kowalski and was floored to see the
calm pride in the hybrid's eyes as he watched his friends do battle.

***

"Dief, get the lights," ordered Vecchio then did it himself as the deaf
werewolf opted to ignore him.

Turnbull was pulling items out of the backpack he'd been carrying.
"Candles,
incense, and-" 

"One dead thing book," finished Vecchio.

***

Fraser was out of this. Thank god. James was exhausted from fighting
her. This Lilith was a different type of insane than the one that had
brought them to such grief for all these years. She was, if anything,
more dangerous because there was a certain logic driving her plans. 

She was trying to use him, his skill at fighting. He abandoned all his
efforts to keep her at bay and poured his strength into resisting her
control over his body. She was angry and lashed back at him with a new
kind of agony, but it only gave him more strength when he realized how
much he frustrated her. 

The other Calhoun was facing them now. He was fortified by Caine and...oh,
god, they'd made him a Sabbat. He had the blood of an ancient. James
could smell Prince Kowalski in him. Fraser. Tom. Lord Caine. He wanted
to cheer but couldn't. 

This other version of him had a fighting chance.

Better than that, given his way, James would let him win.

He knew Lilith sensed his resolve and her mental battle redoubled. 

But so did his.

***

D'Hoffryn screamed as the vampire prince and the Higher got the best
of him, biting and pounding on him as if to get him to submit to
something.
He fought back hard and managed to get a few good swipes in on both of
them, but seemed unable to gain any headway. 

He was too used to being a Higher and fighting like a Higher. He refused
to accept that he was simply a demon now. That a filthy, slutty /Moloch/
had taken his title and his role. 

The smell of the blood...it was different. Tom's was just...dirty. That
of a Sabbat and a Primal mixed together. Not unexpected. 

But The Prince's...

No. This was /not/ the same Kowalski that had killed him three years
ago. 

No.

It was a Kowalski, but not the one he wanted.

He gave another cry of rage and tried to lift up. He found himself thrown
to the ground, two pairs of fangs at his neck. Feeding. He couldn't
struggle.
Something was holding him down. What... 

***

The blood was as nasty as Ray had warned him, but Tom kept feeding,
keeping
his eyes on Kowalski as the Gangrel followed suit. He felt a twisting
in his gut but kept feeding. He did not like the feel of this. 

But he didn't have a choice. Keep feeding. Weaken him so they can do
this. 

D'Hoffryn's blood was changing him somehow, as it had Ray.

He gave the camera a thumbs-up and waited for the signal.

***

He wouldn't fight. He was slowing her every move and the newcomer, her
one-time slave, was beating this stolen body senseless. She forced him
to resist but he seemed to be welcoming the pain. 

A clawed hand swiped downwards. She screamed as the nails cut open her
face. His face. 

Lilith grew increasingly more frustrated as the fight raged on. There
was no way this man should be able to fight her so long. Even with the
help of Caine...She growled and then frowned. 

Was that a tug?

***

Turnbull chanted, holding the book over the open flames of candles and
incense. He and Vecchio could feel the power of the blood spell pulling
Lilith into the new host they had chosen for her. 

Vecchio picked up the radio and gave the order.

***

Vargas lunged for the public announcement system. He just had one word
to say across the entirety of Hell: 

"NOW!"

***

Tom felt D'Hoffryn tense underneath him and sat up, pulling on Kowalski's
arm. The Gangrel sat up and spat out the black blood, shuddering at the
taste. They stood as one, both reaching for the mirror guns as D'Hoffryn
stood. 

No. As Lilith stood.

The look in her eyes was priceless. Tom was smiling and he knew Ray was
too as they clapped their goggles on and took aim. 

"What the hell?" screamed Lilith.

"Precisely!" exclaimed Ray, glad she'd caught on.

***

He lunged and caught the other Sabbat before the man could hit the ground.
Calhoun gently lowered his double until they were both seated in the
middle of the courtyard. Amazing. The man had resisted the Dark Queen
with such determination and the price had been heavy. Mental scars aside,
the new Sabbat knew that he had beaten the man to a pulp and he was sorry
that there had been no other recourse. He cradled Calhoun's head on his
lap, frowning at the odd haircut, and bent close as the vampire tried
to speak. 

"Th-thank...you..."

***

"She's in! She's in! Go!"

***

The moment he heard Vargas' excited voice, Turnbull flipped to the next
set of spells he had marked. Vecchio handed him an open container of
demon blood collected earlier in the day. Slowly, chanting all the while,
Turnbull dripped the blood onto the burning candle in front of him. 

***

A fury as great as her own. Lilith smirked. The fools. With this body
she could- 

//You could what, deceiver?// demanded D'Hoffryn's voice. //Thanks to
you, my revenge will not be had!// 

//Try harder//, she hissed. //You wanted the Prince? Then kill the Prince.
His blood is thine.//

D'Hoffryn stilled, concentrating.

***

"Ray!" breathed James, still cradled in Calhoun's arms.

"What? The Prince?" demanded Calhoun. He looked around wildly, then set
James down and was off at a dead run. 

***

Kowalski sighed, relieved that at least part of this plot had worked.
Where the hell was the wormhole to nowhere? D'Hoffryn was recovering...

And then he was yanked away, body and soul.

"Ray!" screamed Alex. "Where is he?"

Benton whirled, eyes wide, and pointed to the screen. "Look! In the cell
block!" 

***

He was slammed bodily to the floor. Ray Kowalski felt his head impact
hard enough to make him see flashes of light. His body followed, feeling
as in he'd been dropped from ten stories up or something. His glasses
skidded across the floor and ended at D'Hoffryn's scaly blue foot. 

He heard the sound of his last pair of corrective lenses being ground
into dust. 

"What the-" exclaimed a voice very close to Tom's.

Well, he knew where he was now, anyway.

***

Before D'Hoffryn could make move one towards the vampire prince, Ray
aimed his mirror gun at the blue demon and fired. He grinned as the
Higher's
gun followed in succession. 

***

D'Hoffryn shook his head, enraged with Lilith as the wormhole opened
behind them. The impact of the mirror guns forced his powers to turn
in on himself and he felt the horrible tug of himself being pulled into
the void that spewed forth light and heat. Where would it land him? 

When the pain stopped he opened his eyes.

And she screamed.

Nowhere. They were nowhere. Limbo. Between worlds.

How was this possible? Who had done this?

There was no escape.

***

Ray stared at the blackened circle on the floor and laughed. "We did
it." 

Tom grinned back, then moved to help Prince Kowalski up. "You okay?"

"Yeah. Damnit. That was my last pair of glasses." He squinted briefly
at the blurred forms of Tom and his double then screwed his eyes shut.
It was twilight. Still too bright out for his tastes. He felt a pair
of glasses being slipped on his face and stared at the Gangrel, startled.

"I always carry a spare," Ray got out before he suddenly winced then
doubled over in pain. "Ohh...God..." 

Tom was milliseconds from responding to that before he felt a spasm of
pain on his back. Oh no. Oh God...anything but that... 

Ray stared at the two of them and at the black blood spattered on their
lips and faces. "You fed off him." His eyes widened in shock. "Oh shit!
You fed off him!!" 

Tom bit his lip, feeling the bones in his back and legs twist and change
inside tender skin. He fell to the floor, landing hard on his chest.
"Ray, get..." He screamed as claws replaced finger nails, muscles and
bones all over his body shifted, trying to accommodate his change. 

Kowalski stared, wide-eyed. It looked worse than the first time he'd
seen Dief turn into a kid. He looked towards the camera, waiting for
someone to tell him what to do. 

Ray fell to the ground in agony. He could feel his heart. It hurt. It
hurt badly. As if it was trying to restart itself. And then it did. 

And then lungs began pumping, oxygen filling his system, vital blood
pumping through his veins, sparks began flooding his vision. He groaned,
and everything went black. 

***

Alex watched on the monitor as the two men fell and the sergeant turned
ten shades of pale. He twisted in his chair to shout at the others.
"Benton,
Dire! Get down there now! I don't know what's going on, but I don't like
it." 

***

Fraser staggered upright, still breathing heavily from the exertion of
fighting Calhoun and Lilith combined. He had taken refuge just inside
one of the entrances to the yard and now he looked out to see Jamey lying
untended on the ground. As best he could the Canadian hurried to the
Sabbat's side, kneeling down beside him. He'd seen Calhoun here moments
ago. Where had he gone off to? Was Lilith not finished? 

It was impossible to tell if Jamey was still with him. Gently, Fraser
gave him a light slap on the cheek, trying to rouse him. A faint, growling
moan was his answer and a smile lit his face. 

"It's Fraser," he explained, settling next to him. "Are you injured?"

"Tom?" was the only response.

***

Halfway across town, Aja looked up at Cecil. "Something...I think
something's
gone wrong..." 

The shock of those words sent Cecil into the early stages of labor. 

***

Calhoun and Benton got to the cellblock at the same moment. They stared
at each other and then at the agonized men on the floor. Kowalski seemed
frozen in fear, unsure of what to do, and he swayed unsteadily. 

Benton went to his Ray and Calhoun went to the Higher, allowing Caine
to take over momentarily to access what was happening. 

Tom seemed to be fluxing between demon stage and what the demons in
Calhoun's
version of Chicago called Terminally Furry. He'd seen Noor do it a few
times to amuse Caine during his punishment sessions, but he'd never seen
it happen to a Moloch. 

Ellery had once told him the Molochs and the Hienics tended to try and
suppress their completely furry selves. Now he saw why. 

He touched Tom's face and then nodded. "Ray," He looked at the Prince
and felt Caine surge to the fore once again. "Ray, help me get him to
James. He won't hurt James." 

"Lookit them claws! Whaddya mean he won't hurt Dead Man?"

"James is his lupa. He would never hurt him. It's not the Moloch way."

"Yeah, an' it looks like he's found his way."

***

Ten minutes later, Calhoun was setting the Moloch demon - difficult to
call him Tom now - on to his feet in the walled-in yard. Tom shook himself
then followed the scent to where Fraser sat with the Sabbat. Fraser backed
off before Tom started growling, stepping away to watch as Tom, like
a mother cat finding a lost kitten, carefully inspected James with all
his senses. 

Stretched out across the vampire, Tom licked his neck, rousing James
a bit. With his eyes still closed, James ran his hand weakly through
Tom's coarse hair to his neck, pulling him close. To the surprise of
Calhoun, the wild animal he'd fought to drag here just stretched out
his full length atop James and a low, contented purr filled the night
air. 

***

"Ray? Ray, what is it? What's wrong? What's happened to you?"

To Ben's surprise and dismay, Kowalski was smiling as he crouched beside
his double. 

"Hey! Open up a bit! Lemme see yer chompers there, Raymond!"

"Wha-?" demanded Ray.

"Congrats, pal. You ain't a vampire anymore. Yer a ghoulite, just like
me." 

Ray's hand flew to his mouth, feeling his teeth with amazement. He gasped
then lifted delighted eyes to his lover's astonished face. 

"Ben! Know this means?"

"Tell me, Ray," breathed the Mountie.

"You won't cut yer tongue any more!"

If Kowalski's head hadn't been pounding /quite/ so hard, he would have
laughed aloud. 

Then he looked up at the familiar figure that stepped onto the catwalk
above and there was nothing and no one else in the world for him except
Constable Benton Fraser. Fraser smiled down at him then set off for the
stairs at a dead run. 

***

Tom changed back almost half an hour after being brought to James and
fell asleep almost immediately on top of the Sabbat. Calhoun went in
search of assistance and found Turnbull. Between the two of them, they
managed to get the two men up to the Higher's rooms and put them in bed.

Ben and Ray fell asleep together in another room, Fraser and Kowalski
in a third. Everyone seemed exhausted from the battle, taking to either
sleeping in beds or in chairs in the library. Even Vecchio, the sudden
hero to two hungry werewolves when he discovered the kitchen in his quest
for the control center, found an unclaimed couch in the library. 

Everyone collapsed except Vargas and Calhoun, who seemed to be in their
element. Vargas recalled Mina and Eloise, figuring that at least half
the men would need medical attention and all of them, including he, needed
a shrink. 

***

Dire took Ellie by the hand, leading her into the lower levels of the
prison. Quietly, they walked towards Aria's cage and stared in at the
sleeping feral girl. "She won't get better, will she?" Dire asked,
glancing
at Ellie. 

"Not likely." Ellie smiled and touched the bars.

"Well, then I suppose this is for the best. Yes?"

She smiled at him then turned back to the girl. "Oh yes."

***

Tom blinked his eyes open slowly and saw nothing but darkness for all
of two minutes. His eyes slowly cleared and he lifted his head from its
resting place on James' shoulder. 

He felt foggy. Exhausted. He felt like he could sleep for weeks. He laid
his head on the Sabbat's shoulder again and closed his eyes. He smiled
when he felt James pull him closer, trying to draw from Tom's heat. Always
eager for warmth... 

Then the memories hit him and he sat up, breathing hard. He was shaking.
Carefully, he slid out from under James' hold. He needed distance. He
needed to shake these images in his mind. Memories of cruelty and blood.
He pushed off the bed, intending to go out into the hallway. Mina was
poised to knock on the door when he opened it. She was carrying her
medical
bag. "Mina." 

"Tom. Are you all right? You look..."

"Pale? Dead? What?"

"Shaken."

"Not stirred?."

She glanced into the room. "Is the Elder here?"

"He's asleep."

"Not surprising. Mind if I look you over?"

"No. I think I need it, actually."

She closed the door behind her, seeing Calhoun asleep on the bed. She
motioned for Tom to move into the sitting room attached to the bed room
where they had laid Prince Kowalski earlier. 

"Take off your shirt."

The examination was thorough and caused a lot of frowns on Doctor
Turnbull's
fair brow. "Your fangs are gone. Do you know if you're still a vampire?"

"I...shit, Mina, I hope not! God, I don't want to be a vampire. I hate
it already." 

"Why?" she asked calmly. "There are a lot of advantages."

"I don't see any," he muttered. "What, there's advantages to burning
in the sun, sucking blood and smelling like an abattoir?" He barely
noticed
the stethoscope she pressed to his stomach. 

"Well for one thing, Tom, unless you go around playing with Filtha bones,
you're always perfectly healthy and your body regenerates anything that
was damaged or missing." 

He couldn't understand her amusement as she smiled at him, waiting for
him to get her hint. 

"What?" he demanded.

Folding up her equipment, Mina caught his eye. "Your sacs have grown
back." 

He gaped at her for a long moment.

"What?" he repeated, this time his voice was full of disbelief.

A little smugly, Mina snapped her bag closed. "What was that about sucking
blood?" 

Tom gaped at her. The selenic sacs. He could bear children again. James'
children. 

She watched the rush of emotions pass through him and smiled. "I'm going
to go check on Ray. See you later, Higher Grissom." 

He whirled away from her, pouncing on the bed. "James!"

The bed was empty.

James was gone.

Was he playing? Tom had no idea. He checked under the bed then frowned.
Where was he? Well, he had to found and told the good news. He hurried
to the closet and found something to wear. He had a vampire to track
down. 

***

Calhoun lay in bed, listening to Mina and Tom talk. He'd woken up the
same moment Tom had, but had kept still the moment he felt Tom's
revulsion.

Well, he could understand, but the rejection was still devastating. He
needed to talk to Tom. So much had happened in so short a time and they
hadn't had a moment together in what felt like forever. 

He was glad Mina suggested the examination. Tom was never a great believer
in taking good care of himself. He froze when they started discussing
why Tom didn't want to be a vampire. Gods.... 

He'd done this to him.

He knew it had been Lilith, but he had been planning to ask. Not this
week, not even this year, but he had been going to ask. Some day. 

He didn't know Tom wouldn't have wanted it.

"Oh God..."

Now that he had found love again, he never wanted to lose it. His own
recent brush with death had frightened him even more than he knew and
that fear had expanded to include the fear of losing Tom. He knew it
was selfish but he couldn't stop the feeling. 

He had to get out of here. He had to get out now and think. If that was
what Tom thought about vampires, about the Sabbat, what did he think
about the events of the past few days? 

***

Ray Kowalski, Chicago Knight and Caanite Prince, snuggled closer to his
lover, trying to maximize the skin contact between them. Beneath him,
Fraser came slowly awake. He smiled faintly at the feel of Ray's cool
flesh against his own. He could never tire of this man. He opened his
eyes a slit to find Ray's nearly-black eyes gazing at him with absolute
adoration. 

"You shouldn't be up," whispered Fraser. Ray had lost too much blood.
Only by virtue of being a ghoulite had he survived. He didn't have the
healing powers of a vampire or a demon, the stigma he carried nonetheless
made him more resilient than he would have been as a mere human. 

"I'm not up," he insisted, smiling a bit.

"You are indeed up, Ray."

"Keep talking dirty like that and I sure will be 'up', Benton-Buddy."

Fraser shook his head. "You're incorrigible."

"Miss me?"

"Terribly. I've rarely been so nervous. Ray Vecchio met me in the airport
to inform what had happened, that you were not whom you appeared to be.
I was...devastated. I had so looked forward to being with you again after
so long and I found a Gangrel instead." 

"I confused the hell out of poor Benton. He was patient, thank god, and
he believed me all along. That shocked me big time." 

Fraser ran his hair through the spiky red hair. "I'm not surprised in
the least. You're as trustworthy as you are irresistible." 

Ray almost melted under the gentle massage. His head hurt like hell from
that spill D'Hoffryn had been kind enough to bestow upon him. It took
a moment for Fraser's words to sink in. 

"I'm irresistible, huh? How's about my twin? He irresistible?"

"Not to me. Perhaps to the other Benton Fraser, but this one is taken,
thank you kindly, Detective." He lifted his head to kiss Ray on the lips,
silencing him for just a few minutes. 

"The other Fraser, he was a gentleman. Think my twin was a little wild
before they went to Canada. Fraser was a bit nervous when we were heading
south." 

"Nervous of what?"

"That I'd make a move on him. Not being his Ray and all. I wasn't even
tempted. Yer a /lot/ sexier." 

Fraser smiled. "Ray was...well, vampires in general tend to look at
relationships
a bit differently than we do." 

"He make a pass at ya, the dog?"

"Not per se. I know he flustered Jamey."

"Oh, big challenge there."

The Mountie chuckled, pulling him close for another kiss. Things were
looking very promising when there came a soft knock at the door. 

"Who the hell..." grumbled Ray.

"I'll get it-"

"Naa. Stay there and look good enough ta eat. Do not let that bed get
cold. Right back." 

He slipped out of bed and pulled on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt before
opening the door, fumbling to get the borrowed glasses on. 

The last person that should have been up, James Calhoun, stood in the
hall. Ray blinked at him. How and why was this man on his feet? 

"Jeez, Dead Man, why the heck are ya up?" he asked.

Calhoun was clearly bothered by something. He gazed at Ray a long moment
before he softly said, "I came to apologize." 

Ray frowned, not understanding. "Fer what?"

"Failing you, my Prince." He sank to one knee before Ray, bowing his
head. "I could...couldn't stop her. I tried every way I could, Prince
Kowalski, and I was helpless before her, just like I was eight years
ago." 

Ray shook his head, realized Calhoun couldn't see it, and crouched beside
the Sabbat. "Cal. Jamey. You didn't do anything wrong. You haven't failed
anyone. She's an ancient. She's had a helluva lot more practice at this
than we have. Cal. You did everything ya could. In the end, we beat the
bitch anyway. Cal? Look at me, will ya?" 

Reluctantly, the Sabbat looked at his prince. He should have known he
would receive nothing but kindness from this man. 

Ray pulled off the glasses and squinted at the Sabbat. "Cal, what
happened?
You know us. You know this," he gestured and Calhoun knew he was referring
to the whole incident, "this doesn't mean anything to us. You know what
I mean." 

"I do, my Prince," he whispered back. "But it does matter."

"What the hell did Grissom come up with this time?" demanded Ray in
exasperation,
knowing Tom alone was capable of producing such a reaction out of his
retainer. 

"It's not Tom's fault, Ray. It's mine. He hates what I am."

Ray frowned and sat down with a thump. "What is it with you Canadians
and guilt?  What are ya that he hates? Father of his kids? Well, some
of them, anyway. Elder? Major? Head of the household? What?" 

"Sabbat. Vampire. Undead." Calhoun smiled sadly. "I have to go."

"Where?" demanded Ray, not liking this in the least. He put a hand on
the Sabbat's shoulder. "Cal!" 

"I have to think. I just need to be alone for a while."

"How long is a while? Where will you be?"

"If you need me, call, my Prince." Calhoun gripped Ray's hand for a moment
then rose. "And just so you know, Prince Kowalski, I have never known
greater peace or love since I became your retainer. Thank you." 

And he was gone.

Ray struggled to his feet, emotionally drained. "Fraser!"

"I heard. Something awful happened between them. I know it."

"No! Something stupid happened, that's what! Where the hell are my jeans?"