Ethereal Underground Part 18

"If we put out the fire, it may distract them. They are preparing that big pot for something."

Annalise held out her hand. "I can make the water if you can get close enough to throw it on the fire. While the hulmiens are distracted by the water, we can all make a run for it. Leon told me the entrance is a little farther down the cavern, a hole in the ground. They won't follow us down there. They said that no one ever goes down there."

Ash looked at her; they didn't even need to talk. He would do what he needed to distract the hulmiens and she would get everyone out. It sounded so easy, but he knew nothing ever was. Ash walked closer to the dancing hulmiens and tried to keep his mind focused. He didn't want to slip back under their spell. He decided to try and touch them as little as possible in case their poison was spread by contact. He walked up to Leon with his head held high.

"May I steal Arie away for a minute?" Ash asked Leon. Arie spun around grinning and held her arms out to wrap them around Ash's neck. Leon took a step back and let his eyes wander over to Annalise, who stood back away from the dancers. The girls noticed that Ash was back and ran over to him. They each put their hands all over Ash's body and tried to pull Arie off of him. Ash tightened his grip and pulled Arie closer. He gave them a loopy smile and pretended to still be affected by them. "I'm sorry girls but you will each have to make a line and wait your turn."

They each started to pout and complain.

"But we have missed you."

"We are so lonely."

A short green haired hulmien hissed and tried to pull Arie back by her hair. Ash watched as her bright eyes started to glow; the sound that came from her throat was like no other. Arie gasped as she lost her grip around his neck. The hulmien bent down and bit Arie in her shoulder.

"My turn!" Her hiss was so loud it echoed off of the walls.

Arie cried out; more in shock than anything else. She regained her balance and looked at the shorter hulmien. "You bit me!"

She was answered with a proud fanged smile. The hulmien held her hands up to show five razor sharp claws that gradually grew from her fingertips. Ash got in his fighting stance, ready to protect his friends.

Finlay ran over from the other side where he was dancing with some other hulmiens. "Whoa, ladies, hulmiens, why all the hissing?"

The green haired girl pointed a claw at Arie. "Fin- this red-haired girl means to take my food." Ash forced down a large gulp as the word food came from the creature's mouth. Food? In all his keeper battles he had come across many things but never had he been someone's meal. He knew that the hulmiens' intentions were not friendly, and she had just confirmed this.

Finlay stepped in front of Arie to protect her. "You will not harm my friends, with your claws or your fangs."

Ash looked around and noticed that the hulmiens were all starting to circle around the three of them. Annalise and Leon were nowhere to be found, Ash only hoped Annalise was filling Leon in on the plan, and quickly. Ash pulled his blade out ready to slash anyone who made a move.

"Are you hurt?" Finlay asked Arie. He pulled her head to the side to examine her shoulder.

Arie laughed in response. "It barely broke the skin. I am going to kill these...these things."

The hissing continued around them as the creatures cried out.

"I'm so hungry."

"We have waited so long."

The creatures stepped in closer; there was nothing beautiful about them now.

The sound of Annalise's sweet voice from behind him made Ash turn around. In a split second a rain storm started to fall from above. The rain soaked only the hulmiens. It startled them, since they had never been to the surface to see rain. Ash decided that the bonfire was useless now- he needed to use the water as a weapon against them. Ash tried to use the water to push the hulmiens back from around them, but he wasn't strong enough. It hit them; it just wasn't strong enough to harm them. One of the girls jumped toward Ash, but he sidestepped the attack and let her hit the ground. He tried again to make the water into a weapon, but again he failed. He could manipulate it, but there was nothing harmful about the water he threw at them. The water only appeared to agitate and confuse them.

"What are you doing?" Finlay cried out, pushing a hulmien back with a wall of vines. The vines sprouted from the ground and twisted around the creatures. They responded by slashing the vines with their claws in one swift motion. Arie swiped at a few girls with her knife. He didn't understand why it was so hard to control the water. He had no problem controlling it before, but he didn't have much experience with it in battle. He felt the tingle grow in his hands. He took a deep breath and cried out as he used his hands to throw a wave of water at another hulmien. She flew back against a rock, Ash smiled in response. He was getting a bit better. From the corner of his eye he watched each one of the creatures go up in flames. They each hissed and fell to the ground in pain. Their cries didn't affect him nearly as much as their singing did.

"About time," Finlay said.

Ash looked over at Leon who stood emotionless; he stared at the flaming bodies. If it was so easy for Leon to kill the creatures, why didn't he just do it in the first place? Unless, Leon's plan had been to make Ash look weak all along. The only male affected by the creatures, and the only male without an affinity. Ash let the burning hatred rise in his chest as he glared at Leon. The seraph was putting in his claim for Anna.

Chapter Eleven.

Annalise Her hands went to her mouth in shock of Leon's blatant display of power and caused the rain to stop. Before she could open her mouth to speak, he grabbed her hands and pulled her behind him.

"Come on, we need to get out of here," he called to the others.

She followed behind him quickly, eyes looking back to make sure Ash was in tow. He was, and he did not look very happy about what had transpired. They had tried to use their bond, share the affinity for water, and it had failed them. She knew that it was disappointment that flowed from him and over to her.

After they were once again to safety, Annalise found herself walking behind Ash, Arie, and Finlay. Leon had allowed them to walk in front so he could keep up the rear and make sure none of the hulmiens followed behind them. Really, Annalise was glad to have a few moments from Ash due to the harsh things he had said to her before they tried to fight their way out of the lair, as well as his interaction with those dreadful creatures. She knew that the flirtations with the hulmiens were due to their poisons and song, but it had reminded her that he had been more like that when they had met. He had been one not to settle down or spend serious one on one time with a woman, and so she had reminded herself that she needed to go home. It would never work between them, even if part of her wished it would. Their bond was not even strong enough to battle with.

Leon cleared his throat and she looked over to him to see what he needed. "What's on your mind, Anna?"

"I do not wish to talk about it."

"You haven't spoken since we left those hulmiens, and I thought you had some sort of fun there before things became dangerous."

Annalise let out a sigh and shrugged, "I did enjoy myself, more so than I have in a long time it seems. It is just that...I spoke with Ash about the bond. He wants to give it a chance, so to speak. I think maybe he wants me to stay but he would not say it."

She could see Leon's change in posture at the mention of the bond. He stood up straighter as he spoke, "I told you that mingling with the mortals would bring you down, but you did not listen to me. We used to bond with the mortals, and then it did not turn out in our favor."

"Do you remember those days?" she asked curiously.

"Yes. I was a young seraph back then. I still had warrior training, but the females were the majority of healers. We lived in harmony with the humans for the most part."

"Natara says that lots of seraphs were bound with mortals. Did you ever make a...bond?" She drew her words out slowly, not sure if she wanted the answer or not. If he had, perhaps she could get him to understand. If not, she feared that he would not.

"No," he said simply.

"Did you know of anyone with one? Did Finlay have one?"

"I did know of bonded pairs, and no this was before he was created."

Annalise tried to imagine a time without Finlay around. "The seraph world must have been a dull place."

Leon looked over at her with an amused smile on his face, one that she had missed getting from him through all of these serious conversations they had recently, "Is that a joke?"

"Perhaps."

"I never imagined you making a joke on purpose," Leon said with a laugh. He reached over to put an arm around her waist and pull her over to him. "I'm just glad to see that you are okay. I feared that the fallen would get to you in order to try and get to me. They know that you are my counterpart and with you wandering around the mortal world..." He let his words trail off, but she could tell what he meant by that.

"I am glad you are safe also. You have always been by my side and I do not want that to change. But Leon, I am not so sure that I want to leave here. This experience with Ash has opened my eyes to all of those things I wanted to see. I have seen the stars. I have gone on adventures. I have-"

She stopped herself from saying those words that she had not even gotten to tell Ash and cast her eyes to the ground, just how much she cared for him. "Anyway, it does not matter. If he wanted me to stay, he would have asked me. Do you not think?"

"Yes he would have. If he is any kind of man, he would show his feelings for you and ask you to stay. He just wants to use you for your power, for the bond. He can manipulate water now and no other mortal can do that. I'm sure that he would love to keep you around for that reason alone."

Annalise frowned, the thought never occurring to her before. She had a.s.sumed that his feelings were deeper than the bond, but Leon was intelligent and usually right. She could not see why she shouldn't listen to him. As if he knew she was thinking about her, Ash turned to look at them. His frown matched hers when he saw her counterpart's arm around her. Pulling herself out from under his wings, she couldn't help but be sad that she wasn't walking beside of the mortal like she had been the entire trip.

"But you meant it when you promised you will return to the seraph realm? You will be safer there."

Annalise sighed and let the frustration show on her face, "Yes. I told you that I would and you know that I keep my promises."

Ahead of them, Finlay threw his hand out in front of Arie dramatically, "Stop."

"Watch it Fin," Arie exclaimed as she ran into his arm and almost fell over it.

"Sorry dear." He turned to address the group, "We have reached the entrance to the tenth layer, home of the fallen."

Leon stepped up to the rest of them, but Annalise stayed slightly away from them, afraid to get too close. "I do not see anything."

"Hole in the ground, meet Annalise. Annalise, meet hole in the ground. Do the fallen really deserve more than that?" Finlay laughed and pointed in front of him.

She stepped forward, eyes averting away from Ash's stare and peered into the hole. It was large enough for one person at a time to fit through, and she could tell it was very dark down there. This was it, their last chance to turn around. However, she knew that destroying a fallen and showing the Elders that she was serious and regretful about what she had done was the only way they would forgive her. Still, she was terrified that one or more of the five of them would not come out alive.

Finlay led the way as he jumped into it without hesitation. Arie was next, followed by Leon and Ash. Annalise hesitated and peered down into the hole again. After several minutes, she heard them whispering below. Suddenly Ash's form appeared and looked up at her. She a.s.sumed that the others had sent him to fetch her.

"Come on, Anna, it's okay," Ash called.

Annalise shook her head, not being ready to go down there.

"Annalise," Ash insisted, "we are alone down here. If you aren't coming and we get hurt, what will we do?"

She gave him a scowl and held her breath as she gave in and slipped down into the small s.p.a.ce and landed harshly on her feet. He was right, they had to work together, but she was not ready for this part to happen, and she wasn't sure that she would ever be. It was best to just go.

"That was less than pleasant," she said and took Ash's hand as he offered it to her. It made her feel a little bit more comfortable.

He led her behind Finlay, Leon, and Arie through the tunnel. There were no longer florescent lights, no more jungle or mountains, just dirt and lanterns hanging along either side of the walls. It reminded her that she was underground and it made her cringe. As soon as they were out, she would take Ash back to the surface and look up at his moons before leaving. She turned to give him the suggestion when he opened his mouth to speak and she closed her own.

"Are you really going home with him?" he asked suddenly.

"Do not be upset with me," she pleaded, blue eyes moving over to him and begging him to try and understand what she could not say out loud. She hoped that he would ask her to stay...for him and not the bond.

"How can you expect me not to be?"

"Because you should understand."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Biting her lip, she shook her head to avoid spilling it all out. If she told him exactly how she felt, with Leon in hearing distance, their mission would be over, and Ash would possibly be dead at the guardian's sword. "You must trust me."

"I think you have trusted him enough," Leon muttered and turned to give the two of them a less than happy look. "Don't think that I have not seen there is something different about you, Annalise." His gaze moved over to Ash, "I know he has kissed you, and I know more about what you are feeling than you do. Don't push it. "

Annalise could feel her face flame a bright red, hoping to have hidden that from Leon until they could have had some time to talk. Ash, however, just smirked at the seraph, a boastful smile coming over his face. Leon looked as if he would throw fire at him that instant, and she thought she saw it licking at his fingertips anxiously.

"Quiet," Finlay said suddenly as he paused ahead of them and pulled Arie behind him, "I think we have company." Arie shook Finlay off of her and pulled out her gun. Ash reached down to pull out his blade.

As if on cue, Endarial stepped into view, followed by three male and two female minions, each with a different colored ring that glistened on their fingers, "Well, well, well, what do we have here? Not just little Miss Innocent, but her counterpart and Finlay? It must be my lucky day."

"Anna, stay back," Leon instructed and glanced back at them. Annalise could see the ball of fire growing in his hands as he stepped in front of her.

She tried not to frown, proud of herself for all of the training she had done and hard work into learning to be more a.s.sertive and understanding of things unknown to her before. He was still treating her as a child.

"I a.s.sure you that I will not harm a feather on her wings," the redhead said, holding her pinky finger up in the air, "Pinky promise. It's your blue blood that I wish to have flowing on the ground below me."

Leon glared at her, menacingly, "You have tried before and failed, what makes you think that you will succeed this time?"

Suddenly, one of her minions ran at Annalise, not giving her a chance to move before he had her by the throat and up against the cave wall. She let out a cry and could see Ash tense up to come after her. She had been torn from his hands and she could feel him beating himself up on the inside for letting her get taken. Annalise shook her head in response and hoped he would stay back. She wanted to try to defend herself and raised her hands to grip the fallen's wrists and hold herself up. Her wings fanned back and forth to fight to hover above the ground.

"For starters, I have your counterpart," Endarial laughed as she pulled her lighter from her hands and aimed the fire straight at the blonde seraph.

"Ash!" Annalise called and let the water flow from her hand and down onto the floor. She hoped he would use it as he needed during battle, but after their failure with the hulmiens she wasn't so sure they could be successful. The fallen's grip tightened on her neck but it was just enough for Ash to focus the flowing water back at Endarial.

The water put out her fire and splashed in her face, drenching her tall form. The angry fallen leader let out a growl and pulled her sword from its resting place and held it out in front of her, "I will kill you all."

"It's made of silver!" Arie exclaimed, making sure the others knew to be careful.

Finlay and Leon both pulled their swords from their hilts as well and charged towards Endarial before Annalise could beg them to stop. She turned her attention to the fallen squeezing her throat. The world was getting blurry as she kicked at him.

"This will be so much fun," he laughed, his voice loudly echoing off the walls as she heard her friends fighting for their lives.

His laughter was cut short, however, as he froze and dropped her to the ground. His large form fell to the ground. Annalise's hands went up to her throat as she gasped for air, Ash looking back at her, gun in hand. She pulled the dagger dipped in silver from her side and cringed as she flipped him over, not wanting to be the one to remove his wings.

Finlay came running over to her and took it from her, "Here let me do the dirty work, you go work your magic."

She nodded in agreement and ran to join in on the battle. She was happy not to have to cut the wings off the fallen. It was sword against sword as Leon and Endarial fought. Arie was fighting fist for fist with a fallen, pulling her gun out to stun them before she moved on to the next. Trees were sprouting all around Annalise, vines whipped at her as she tried to get her eyes focused on the world around her. Fireb.a.l.l.s flew past her face as she tried desperately to get to Ash. He was trying to fight off a fallen, one of the females quite intent on removing his head with her sword.

As the clouds rolled in, she barely noticed them, not even thinking that it was unnatural for them to be here in the tunnels. Her sights were clear as she grabbed the female and focused her water around her face and down into her throat. She choked on it and let Ash go. She tumbled backwards onto Annalise.

"You human loving piece of-" she started, unable to finish due to the water being forced down her throat. Annalise pulled herself off the ground with her wings. She pushed the fallen hard against the wall which knocked her out. Her fear of losing Ash fed every drop of her affinity and fight.

She dropped to her feet, hand going up to move Ash's bangs to the side, "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," he said. He kissed the back of her palm and raised his blade up to continue fighting.

His eyes went wide, focused behind her, and she heard a terrifying laughter fill the s.p.a.ce.

Loki.

Thunder echoed behind his laughter, a sudden blood curling scream following behind it. Her breath caught in her throat as fear gripped her. She felt as if a knife cut at her. She screamed in agony as she tried to get up, confused as what was happening.

"Anna, don't," Ash whispered as he grabbed her and tried to keep her from going. There was clearly something he didn't want her to see. He shook his head and asked her to stay with him. Again her cries filled the cave, echoed by a deeper cry nearby.

She jerked her arm from his and turned to see who was screaming, a fear rising in her as she felt as if her own wings were ripped away. It took her breath away and she had to fight the need to fall to the ground in pain. Finally, her eyes settled on Loki. His dark hair fell to his shoulders, tucked behind his ears, his eyes were dark black depths looking back at her. They were full of hate and evil, yet entertained by whatever it was that he was doing. As she looked at the wings held in his hands, dripping with blue blood, she could feel her world stop around her.