Dark Flames

There were a few snickers, as Kamui slammed right into Kyou, knocking them both back inside and out of sight.

“YES!” Toya shouted and pumped his fist in the air as he hovered in front of the balcony. “I got a twofer.” With a smirk, he flew back inside the balcony doors and everything got extremely quiet.

“I guess it’s over,” Zachary said shrugging.

Storm smirked, “Wait for it…” Suddenly two windows on the third floor exploded on each side of the castle, Toya going in one direction and Kamui in the other. Storm couldn’t help but laugh knowing they were now fleeing Kyou’s wrath.

“Okay,” Jason said after a moment. “Remind me again how the hell I got mixed up with you guys.”

Trevor slapped his hand on Jason’s shoulder, “You would still be demon bait with a lovely tattoo on your ankle.”

“If I go out in a graveyard tonight, doesn’t that mean I’m still demon bait?” Jason demanded in more of a statement than a question.

“Yeah, I guess it does,” Trevor smiled as if he’d just been granted a wish. “And just think… I’ll be one of the people protecting you.”

“Oh goody!” Jason deadpanned then frowned, “You’re not still sore about losing Envy are you?”

Trevor’s smile faded and he took a step toward Jason but Storm to step between them. He flinched when he was suddenly standing in the parking lot of the police station.

“Chad needs some help getting this place under control,” Storm instructed. “Play nice with the other children.”

Storm left him there and reappeared back at the castle where Jason was still in the process of taking a step backwards.

Jason blinked when Trevor just snapped out of existence and Storm grinned at him.

“Where’d Trevor go?” Jason asked looking around.

“He’s under restriction,” Storm answered with a smirk.

Zachary looked back up at the terrace then down at the window below it. He could see Angelica standing at her window holding the curtain open. She had a grin on her face and Zachary knew she’d seen what transpired. She looked down at him and waved before closing the curtain.

Everyone began to filter back inside now that the show was over. Tiara paused and followed Zachary’s gaze to the pretty girl in the window. Feeling a strange disappointment, she tried to shake it off by being thankful he wasn’t as mean as she’d feared… he couldn’t be if he had such a sweet-looking girlfriend. Not wanting to go back inside yet, she looked out toward the ocean and wandered off toward the long path that led to the shoreline.

Guy narrowed his eyes on Tiara wanting to talk to her. She hadn't even given him a chance to tell her his idea. Seeing her separate from the others, he saw his chance and followed at a discreet distance.

“I got a question for you,” Zachary said looking down from Angelica’s window and turning his attention to Storm.

“You want to know about Angelica,” Storm responded having seen him staring up at her.

Zachary nodded, “We’ve been partners for a long time and I think I have a right to know why we’re not going to be together for this. Can’t we include Angelica on Tiara’s team?”

“Angelica's type of power is needed elsewhere, and she has a new partner… plain and simple,” Storm said seriously.

Zachary narrowed his eyes, “Who, Syn? That guy gives me the creeps and Angelica doesn’t think much of him either.”

“It is how it should be,” Storm looked Zachary straight in the eyes, “We have been keeping her safe for him… he’s here now.”

“She’s my best friend,” Zachary pointed out in case Storm had missed the memo.

“And you will probably always be her best friend,” Storm smiled reassuringly. “But Syn is her destiny and there’s no fighting that. As a matter of fact, I’d advise you not to even try. It may be the last thing you ever do.”

“You’re sure?” Zachary asked broodingly.

“You know that I am,” Storm answered laying his hand on Zachary’s shoulder. “Would it help if I told you that she’s going to be happier than she’s ever dreamed of being?”

Zachary inhaled deeply and slowly let it out as he felt heaviness settle over his chest. Hearing it from Storm sounded so final… probably because it was. He pressed his lips together as he tried to harden his heart and let Angelica go.

Changing the subject, Storm gestured toward Tiara who had almost made it to the cliff. “It’s because you protected Angelica so well that I feel safe enough to place Tiara under your care now.”

“What do you mean,” Zachary frowned tearing his gaze from Tiara and turning it on Storm, “It’s just for tonight… right?”

Storm shook his head feeling no sympathy, “No, it’s not just for tonight.”

“Don’t I get a say in this?” Zachary arched an eyebrow. He’d crossed necromancers off his list of teammates a long time ago.

“Tiara’s going to need you more than Angelica ever did,” Storm pointed out. “Myra trained her to use powers that the girl didn’t even have yet. She may have learned the spells and rituals, but she hasn’t learned how to control them.”

“Like a human child pretending to be a wizard?” Zachary supplied.

Storm nodded and shrugged at the same time, “And now, she’s only had those powers for a couple of weeks. To my knowledge, she has yet to actually use her necromancy. Do you remember how many fires you accidentally started when you were learning how to control your powers? Not to mention the fact that you made your own parents forget who you were.”

“Don’t remind me,” Zachary ran a hand through his hair and glanced back toward Tiara just as she disappeared down a set of steps leading to the beach.

“Tonight will be her first time and the job she faces isn’t just one zombie… it’s a city of monsters that will try to raise the dead faster than she can keep them down.” Storm insisted, “Everything she does from here on out will be a first for her.”

“Her mother made everything look so easy,” Zachary’s voice was a little harsher than he’d meant it to be. He tried to cover his anger up by asking, “Where’s her father?”

“He died before Tiara was born,” Storm repeated what Myra had always said.

“What you mean is that you don’t have a clue who Tiara’s father is because her mother slept with so many men,” Zachary mused darkly trying to block the disturbing flashback from resurfacing.

“That is a side effect of the necromancy,” Storm nodded.

Zachary frowned in confusion, “What do you mean… side effect?”

“The more a necromancer uses their power to control the dead, the more their soul craves life to keep itself from being pulled down by the dead into the next dimension,” Storm explained. “It was never Myra's fault that she craved sex after using her power… it’s an uncontrollable desire that has to be fulfilled.”

“So that’s why Myra did it?” Zachary whispered. If he was honest with himself… he’d had a crush on Myra all those years ago. But seeing her make love to the enemy had turned that crush into something closer to loathing.

“I thought you knew,” Storm admitted with a slightly shocked expression. “Necromancers are very sexual creatures for a reason… they want to live.”

Zachary made a face, “And because Myra never chose a mate, she opted to stay alive by being everyone’s one night stand.”

“She tried to fight the hunger at first, but the longer she would abstain… the weaker her body became. Necromancers have always fed off the life-force of sex… though most of them did choose a mate,” Storm confirmed.

“Why didn’t Myra pick just one lover?” Zachary asked but his attention was on Guy who was disappearing down the same path Tiara had taken only a few minutes before. The man might as well have been wearing a t-shirt with the word ‘Stalker’ printed across the front of it.

“Never mind, I’ll see you later,” Zachary said over his shoulder as he took off toward the ocean.