Serving the Council

Thanks to cannd for editing, I I hope she will put up with it for a while, she has rescued me from poor grammar and missing narrative more than I can be thankful for, so thanks.

*

"Diana, what do you mean he is your son, you never told anyone this?" spoke the man seated upon the raised dais.

"Yes, Diana what do you mean a son?"

I looked at the man who spoke, he was about my height and well-muscled, but it was his eyes that concerned me because they had malice in them as he spoke. I started to say, "I have a pictu---." Those were the only words I got out before he leapt towards Diana and since she was on the opposite side from where he was, he had to go through the area the Grandfather, the young girl and I occupied.

I moved to allow him to pass, as did Grandfather, but the girl, was frozen in place by his rapid movement towards us and the invective coming from his mouth. I think his shoving her was nothing more than his impatience to get to Diana, but it elicited a violently protective feeling in me and before I realized that I had moved, I had him held in the air by his throat. His attempts to remove my hand where proving to be quite futile.

***

To the assembled group, the speed and obvious power of the young man were startling, but it was the fact that, with seemingly no effort, he was holding the man off his feet as the man clawed and kicked out striking him and did not seem fazed or affected by the blows, many of which echoed with the power behind them, that really amazed them.

Ghost spoke out, "Grandson, release him." The others stood in awe as another of the assembled group attempted to grab the young man's arm and was soon in the same situation, which now had Ghost yelling for him to release both of the men.

But, it was the young girl who got through to him with a simple touch on his side and the word 'please.' He responded by dropping both men and scooping her up into his arms.

***

"That, Achilles, is how I know he is my son. He has his father's temper and violence, as well as his calmness," the woman named Diana said. The young man looked down at the girl in his arms and before he could speak, the young girl said, "My name is Michele, but everybody calls me Shele."

Ghost gave a moan of despair, knowing that things he had intentionally buried in the young man's mind where coming to the fore. The young man he called grandson had experienced many episodes of great pain, and was about to relive some, if not all of them at one time. His only hope was that at the end, he would still be sane.

1979

***

I glanced at what had attacked me, it seemed so much smaller than it had moments ago. As it held onto my left arm, I swung at it with my right hand, registering what it looked like. It had huge claws and was covered in fur. When my fist made contact, the animal's head exploded like a watermelon hit with a hammer. I saw others approaching me, so knowing that I was in for a fight, I decided to leave the camper so I would have more room.

***

Leon watched as the back of the camper where the daughter of Ajax had gone exploded outwards and a huge were in hybrid form came crashing out, throwing the body of his second to the ground like trash. "Everyone attack him. He protects what I desire." Leon and Lily looked at one another and Leon asked, "Have you ever seen a wolf that big?"

Lily answered, "I do not think he is a wolf, Leon."

They watched as the giant hybrid stood its ground and decimated its attackers, but after a few minutes the vast number of wolves it faced simply overwhelmed it and it went down.

***

Michele and Anna stood on a rise watching the carnage below. Anna turned to Michele, "What were you thinking? You are to be mated to a REX, are you trying to start a war, child?"

"Anna, he felt like my mate. I am sure of it, he was my mate!"

"Well, he is dead now, no one could survive that battle down there."

Michele swung a branch she had picked up, striking Anna behind the ear, stunning her. Then she shifted and ran, thinking 'I don't know where I will go or what I will do, but whatever it is, it will be for me.'

When Anna got her senses about her, she glanced down one more time at the battle, which seemed to be over and wondered to herself, 'How did he last that long, only an alpha could do that, but I sensed no alpha in him.' She then shifted and went in search of her ward.

***

"Lily can you do anything to make him ours?" questioned Leon. "Yes there is something I can do, but I cannot do it here, I need to return home and work on it." Leon nodded his head in understanding. "For it to work though, we will need to keep him in one of his shifted states for a while and it will allow me to cloud his memories or suppress them,"

Leon called to his warriors, "Tie him up and get him back to the compound immediately!" The warriors did as their Alpha wished, tying the hybrid up and loading him onto a truck.

Leon then asked if the girl had been caught. The highest ranking of the surviving warriors spoke, "She escaped, fighting him took all our attention."

Leon was not happy with this, but what was done was done. He turned to Lily and pointed at the truck as it left the area, "Let's return home and see what we can do with this one."

***

I now remembered seeing the bodies of my friends strewn around the campsite as I fought. I also remembered that I did not wander the woods as I was told I did and that my killing of Bran had been an order, to see if I would obey in killing my teacher.

I finally saw the ambush that led to my being found by grandfather. And the person whom I had arranged it and I saw the memory of all those I had killed for no other reason than Leon wished them dead.

***

The only one in the room who had not moved away from Joseph was the girl, who was still in his arms, holding on tight.

***

"Grandfather, I know you told me you suppressed my memories, but why is what I want to know?" asked Joseph.

Grandfather looked straight at me, "Because I was not sure how you would react to knowing what actually happened to you."

"And what did you think my reaction would be?"

"I feared you would either go mad or go on a killing spree," answered his Grandfather.

"Grandfather, you do not have to worry about the former, but as to the latter, that is a forgone conclusion. There are many who are going to die, some who deserve it, others because they will try to protect them those who are doomed."

From behind him he heard his mother, Diana, speak, "And that confirms that he is my child, does it not?"

From the floor, Achilles and the other man nodded their heads in agreement, as did all the others, for the statement Joseph made sounded as if they had come from Diana's mouth.

***

The den of Karl and Allysins pack

***

"Karl we must pass this information to my father, not only for the fact that Leon is obviously insane, but because he wishes to claim my sister as a mate, and that thought terrifies me!" Karl looked at his mate, knowing that she was correct on the former, and the idea of Leon claiming his sister-in-law made his blood run cold.

The Den of Roux in Europe

***

"Ah, to what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call son?" asked Roux into the phone. "Father, I must report bad news and even worse news." Karl then proceeded to tell Roux about Leon's actions and his desire for Ashlynn. He then asked Roux if there was a way to get other REXS and Alphas he trusted to meet to discuss the problem.

Roux pondered this and came up with a solution that he thought would work. Out of the other four REXS, he trusted only one. He had children that had just been born to his mate, who was a cousin of Roux, and he thought a meeting could be setup through him in a few months, knowing that it was still several months before the first moon when Leon could make a claim on Ashlynn.

Months later

***

"Joseph, what do you know of the history of the weres, elementals and vampires?"

asked Diana.

"Well, the elementals and were races are just different branches off the evolutionary tree and the vampires are affected by a virus that alters their genetic code and stops the ageing process, gives them their great speed, and the need to live on blood," he answered.

"All true, my son, but do you know the how weres and elementals differ?"

"Yes, elementals' brains allow them to tap into the energies that surround everything, much like the force from 'Star Wars.' Weres have genetic codes that allow for their physical body to transform and tap into the same energy as elementals, which explains their ability to gain mass over there already existing body mass. Some just can tap into more in both cases."

"True as well," answered Diana.

"Mother, why are you asking me these questions?"

Diana looked at him and answered, "Because our healer cannot figure you out, my son. You have shown in your short time here abilities that are thought not to be possible in one entity."

"What do you mean?"

Letting out a sigh and looking at him she said, "Son, you have shown the ability to shrug off damage from silver like an elemental, the strength and power of a were and the speed of a vampire. No one here has ever seen such power and, the fact is, it frightens some of the ancients here."

***

Elsewhere in the same area

***

"Fen, your grandson shows all the signs of being a were, yet he also has elemental and vampire abilities."

"Yes, I know Alexander, and I know that were and vampire abilities do not come from my daughter. Has anyone found out the ancestry of his father?" asked Diana's father.

"Our contacts around the world have been back tracking down the information and we know that the boy's father has blood from five of the seven continents of the world and that they are as varied as Indians from the New World, the four corners of the old world from China in the east to Ireland in the west, and Norway to the north and down to northern Africa."

"And how does this help us?"

"Well we know that he has warrior blood from all of these cultures and it is possible that most or all of them may have dormant genes and that when they were combined with Diana, they all became active traits."

From the back of the chamber came the voice of Homer, "There is a prophesy about a being such as this which predates even my birth."

"And what is that prophesy?" asked Lilith, the ancient vampire.

Homer walked to the front of the chamber. "The being in the prophesy has many names for it, but the one I think you all would recognize is, the arbiter."

A flurry of shouts and curses rang through the hall. For, all knew of this prophesy, as it was a part of all of the races. Were, elemental, vampire and even human all had a story about a being that would either lead the world into peace or would lead it to its destruction.

As the voices continued to bounce off the walls, no one heard Joseph enter the hall. He listened as those of the gathered group spoke over one another. He tried politely to get their attention and after a minute of trying, decided how to get the attention of the group.

***

"HEY!" he yelled. He was not expecting for them all to go silent at the same time.

***

To the surprise and discomfort of the group, they all stopped talking as all of them felt the power that came along with that single word.

What they all felt was the power of an Alpha. The part that actually frightened them was, as ancients, they were the most powerful of each of their kinds, most so old that they had watched the pyramids of Egypt being built and a few being old enough to remember the first attempts to establish permanent settlements of their human cousins. No one should have been able to do what he had done.

***

I stood, shocked that the room had quieted so quickly. So I asked what the argumentative yelling had been about.

***

It was Homer that spoke first. "Joseph, you know that those in this hall are amongst the oldest of our kinds, ones who have removed themselves, for one reason or another, into a setting where we can refrain from influencing the young of our race."

Joseph nodded his head and asked, "But, what does that mean when one loud yell from me quiets you all?"

It was Diana who answered, "Son, you got the alpha/master/lord reaction from everyone here, which means that our inner natures recognize you as being stronger than us."

"But, I am but a young were, how can that be?" responded Joseph.

"It is probably because from what Diana and you have told us of your father, we do not think you are solely a were. We traced his family line and it is possible that you received dormant genes from all three races from him. We think that your father and Diana's mating may have fulfilled a prophesy that predates even I," answered Homer.

"And still, what does all of this have to do with me?"

"To be honest, we do not know, but we are searching all the scrolls to find out."

***

THE DEN OF THE REX OF AUSTRALIA

The group of assembled alphas spoke with one another, trying to figure what to do about Leon. "I would say, have Karl challenge him for the spot. It has not been done in a long time, but it is within the laws."

Karl looked around at the assembled. "I would try, but I am not sure of the outcome and I will not risk my mate because as you all know, the winner of the challenge keeps what he kills. And you know if I lost he would claim Ally ."

Roux spoke up as well, "And as Rex of Europe, I have no standing to challenge him. Yet, if I deny a claim to Ashlynn, he can challenge me on it and I do not know, with any certainty, that I could stop him."

The Australian Rex, a small man who was a were-dingo, spoke next, "Then, unless we can find someone to challenge him, and/or claim Ashlynn, we are at a loss of what to do. I also bring the news that the vampires are greatly upset about the missing princess and they are claiming that a were stole her."

It was an alpha from Canada that shocked the assembled weres. "It is sort of true, for I know where she is. And more to the point, if what I have heard of the one who apparently took her is true, I think I may have found the answer to the problem with Leon." All eyes focused on the alpha, one of the few female alphas in the world.

Another asked, "Why has this information not been passed on to the vampires, and who is this were you speak of?"

The woman, knowing that she was in a precarious position because she had been told the information in confidence, weighed her options and figured all where bad. She made a choice and said, "She is in sanctuary with the ancient named Ghost and with Leon's Beast."

A flurry of voices yelled over one another, asking her how she could keep such information from the vampires and the REXS and yelling how it would cause such great problems, when out of the corner of Leon's vision, he saw his daughters and Anna enter the room, seemingly on a mission. Sensing his mate's entry into the room, Karl stood and went to her and the others. Allysin spoke into her mate's ear and he returned to the group and got their attention, "My mate, Anna and her sister wish to speak to us, apparently my worry went through our mate bond and she picked up some of what was said through me. She talked to Anna who said she had something to tell us."

Anna looked at those in the room and turned and spoke to Roux first, "Roux, we must tell them of the Beast's origin and the connection to Ash and I."

Roux looked at her, a pained expression on his face, for he knew what she spoke of. She began slowly, "The Beast is named Joseph Catania, and I was there when he and Leon first crossed paths. It was the first time Leon and Lily tried to gain a mate of the blood line of Ajax and Iona. Karl, I am sure your father told you of the 'rogue' attack in your pack's territory in 1979?" Karl nodded his head, wondering what that mess had to do with this discussion. "It was not a 'rogue' attack, but an attempt to kidnap the last living female descendent of that line, Michele, who was Roux's mate and Ashlynns mother. Ash and Ally looked at one another, wondering what Anna had meant by that, but before either could voice a question,

Anna had continued, "Ally, you are actually my daughter, I am Michele. , I switched names with my guardian when I came to Europe, and the reason that Leon desires you and did not desire Ally is my fault, because as the youngest daughter, you are the last of the line, the prophesy he thinks he is making come true says that it's the youngest daughter of the line." Anna/Michele looked at the group. "we hid the facts from everyone by sending me away on 'missions' every time I became pregnant, which was timed to concur with my guardians, we just did not expect her to die in that accident after your and your sisters birth."

All around the room, jaws hung open, not knowing what to make of the information.

Sanctuary

***

"Grandfather?"

"Yes, grandson?"

"Hermes has just told me that Shele's still being here is causing problems, because they know she was last seen with a were and the vampires are threatening war over her disappearance ."

The two men sat next to one another on a bench, watching Shele run around and play with some animals, like nearly tame deer and sheep that the vampires and others kept as food sources. "Grandson, why have you not had Hermes or someone return her to the Vampire king, or done it yourself?"

"For the simple reason that I have asked her what she wants, knowing that I am the only person she speaks to beyond a simple request like food and drink, and she does not want to go to him." The old man looked at him.

"She is but a child, why would you give her the choice?"

"It's simple, she turns 18 in a few days and she was not asked if she wanted the 'privilege' of going to him, they simply killed her family and took her. The ones I rescued her from are rebels against the king, and they thought her death was better than her freedom!"

Ghost, looked at him with horror and asked, "Have you told anyone else?"

"Yes, my mother, Fenrir, Achilles and Apollo."

"And they agree," asked Ghost. "With her staying here?"

"No," he answered.

***

"They told me that if and when I leave, she is to go with me, that I am her guardian until she is 18. Then she is on her own in they're eyes."

Grandfather looked at him and asked, "And when she turns 18?"

He looked down at her, "She is free to do what she wants, if she wishes to leave my protection, she is free to do so, but I asked and she wants to be wherever I am."

"Do you intend to mate with her?"

His look startled Ghost, "NO, I DO NOT! She is like a sister to me, that is how I feel about her!"

Ghost gave a little chuckle, saying, "For a minute there I thought you were going to hit me."

"Old man, I would break you if I hit you, just ask Apollo and Achilles."

Ghost just chuckled again, "I have witnessed their trips to the healer after your training sessions and no thanks, even if I am immortal, it still hurts to heal!"

Ghost suddenly turned and with an even more grave seriousness about him than usual said, "Joseph, as I have told you, I am a seer and have seen some of your future and I have to tell you that you have to be somewhere the next mating moon."

Joseph looked down at Shele and nodded his head saying, "I know that, the others have told me the same thing, that I have a destiny to fulfill. But, I think that they are wrong in a sense."

Ghost looked at him with a puzzled frown upon his Native American features, "What do you mean by that?"

Joseph looked at him, "Grandfather, I have heard you say repeatedly that things happened at times you did not foresee, you saw the meeting of me and Shele, but it was not to happen when it did, so 'destiny' is a constant moving target to me. Yes, I might be destined for something, but it is dependent on the actions of many, not me alone."