The First Age

A woman pulled up. Blonde and slender and immaculately dressed.

"Walking over this in bare feet hasn't been my finest idea, but I'll live."
She'd already refused Jared's assistance and the ambulance's aid and didn't intend to make a fuss. Not that the kindness was not appreciated. In fact the warmth was like walking into a field of nectar-filled flowers, as if the woman's gentleness was a tangible thing. No wonder Jared seemed relieved to see her.

Her only qualm was looking into that pristine interior and considering just how filthy she was in comparison -- this woman clearly had some wealth to her name. But Natalie was simply too tired to linger over niceties like dripping blood on the elegant leather. She could always pay for the dry-cleaning.

"Since the drama is finally over, I will take my leave."
Alvis had settled back into himself; unobtrusive in that slightly unsettling way she remembered from years back. Definitely not an art dealer, or not only. But like everything associated with the memory of her father, she kept those questions at arm's distance. He seemed to feel the same way because he did not glance down at her, just levelled a look on Jared as though bequeathing the promise of her safety into his hands now.

Natalie rolled her eyes and limped her way over to the car.

"Natalie Grey,"
she told the woman as she eased herself in. She didn't offer her hand, since it was rusted with blood, but she did slip back into the comfort of formality like old armour. She was on rote now, mind spinning in the background with all those little puzzle pieces. It felt surprisingly nice to sit down.

The woman said she'd be fine, and Emily wasn't one to force help on anyone that didn't want it. The other gentleman decided to leave, and for the same reason she didn't force the issue.

Jared went to get in the car on the passenger side, and the woman entered the back seat. If she cared about blood on the car she didn't make any sign of it. Emily really didn't care at this point either. It could be cleaned, however, this woman had been though something really rough. People came before things.

The woman offered her name as Emily got in the driver's seat. It was only polite to offer her the same. "Emily Shale,"
she said grabbing a cup of coffee and putting it in the back cup holder. "Coffee if you would like some."


She handed Jared his cup. "You are a godsend."
he replied before taking a sip. Emily smile at him before putting the car in drive.

"Where can I take you, Natalie?"
Emily said as she started moving the car.

Natalie sank into the leather and could have easily closed her eyes. Instead she took the coffee gratefully. Shale. It sounded familiar. She couldn't think exactly how, but the tedium of polite conversation to find out why was just too much to face, and she opted to sit quietly. Jared and Emily had a familiarity between them, and Natalie assumed there was history; they seemed to have the quiet confidence of a couple with years behind them. Certainly they both seemed content in each other's company.

The coffee was hot and reminded her just how parched she was; she cradled the cup in her hands and watched the dark city streets blur by. She tried not to think, barely listening to the conversation floating about in the seats ahead, except when Emily asked directions. She gave them, though it took a bit of guesswork; she wasn't exactly familiar with the city, and she'd been too eager to slip away from her worries and seek a little equilibrium before orientating herself. She hadn't even found that glimpse of peace. Now it seemed a long way off.

They arrived, and she pulled herself out of the car with a grimace, already stiff from the brief respite. She thanked them both before she left. Offered contact details if Emily required the car cleaned, and asked Jared to call her if he heard anything.

[[Continued at Through the Storm]]


Edited by Natalie Grey, Jan 19 2018, 05:45 PM.

Jerry had read all the reports. He'd browsed through the Atharim god's almost none-existent file and he'd looked at every possible angle before he even breached the subject of trying to find him. Not that he had to look far. The boy was holed up in a mansion with yet another traitor - Dorian Vega. Completely human yet he turned traitor. But the men and woman in the CCDPD were handling that job. He'd leave it be for now.

But he was still Atharim. And the boy found his way out and when the Archangels found him he put up a good fight. The report said he killed two of their own. Stupid idiots. This wasn't a child god. He was Atharim and he was a god. And an American. All those strikes it wasn't a wonder he was a traitor too. He was probably selling their secrets. Jerry sighed as he stooped down and examined the crater that the boy god had made. It looked like a meteor had struck the ground and there were cracks in the earth like it too.

There were shards of whatever shell he'd created. The reports hadn't been clear. No one really knew what he'd done. Just that it had almost killed him. Almost wasn't quiet dead now was it. Jerry walked over to a shard stuck in the wall. Lead lined... They'd come at him with EM and sonic weapons and he knew to line it with lead. It was a relatively unknown weapon. How had he know... there had to be another traitor.... someone with in an inner circle of the archangels.