Shattered Boundaries

Authors Note: This chapter would probably have been better labeled as 9.5 rather than 10. The majority of the chapter takes place at the same time as the battle, but a few days have actually passed since then. Remember to Vote and Comment, and thank you for reading.

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Chapter 10:

"Heh, who needs angels and demons. I've got women and enemies and that's enough for me." Unknown NAU soldier

*Drip* *Drip*

"...know if he will survive."

"But the way she is holding him..."

"... what she is. For all we know she is doing that to... ...What about the other one?"

"..."

"...saw what happened. Be careful."

"Yes, Sir."

*Drip* *Drip*

"...Sister, they are troubled.... Please, you must..."

"..."

"...he cannot bear to look at me..." *Sob*

*Drip* *Drip*

"...LONG ENOUGH..."

"Don't! If you wake...."

"...Master, Please!"

"...enough!... think you could do anyway?!"

"...Rodriquez and Lee!"

"You know as well as I do...."

"...goddamned demon lover...

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"Well, I did say that there were to be no survivors," the finely dressed man chuckled at his own cleverness.

Sitting before a lightly crackling fire in his study, he looked far more at home than when he had been issuing orders on the hilltop. Though, the dark figure that stood at his side would doubtless always appear out of place.

"How soon until the men arrive?" he spoke to a thin, shaky looking man nearby.

"A little over a day sire..."

Sighing, the finely dressed man asked in a dangerously calm tone, "Is that what Christophe said then? A little over a day? Those exact words?"

Wringing his hands in consternation, the frightened attendant realized his mistake.

"No Sire, my apologies. He said that they would arrive in twenty-six hours..."

"I see... Now Jacques, I am feeling a bit concerned. Do you know why that is?"

"... No Sire, I.. I do not know."

"It is because one of my employees, for just a moment, thought he knew best... Oh it was nothing dangerous, just a little artistic license... changing a few words here and there. The same meaning was kept of course... just a few words... But you see, that is how it starts. First it's a few words... but soon he will be deciding what reports I should hear, who I should speak with, and which of my orders should be followed... So my dear Jacques, I do hope you can see why I feel so concerned."

"P-please, Sire! It was a slip of the tongue... I would never presume...! Please believe me Sire...." The attendant was nearly in tears as he begged.

"Do not worry my dear Jacques, I am a man that believes in forgiveness. After all, what kind of barbaric monster would I be if I punished my staff for every little mistake..."

"Thank you! Thank you Sire! You are truly a great and kind hearted lord!"

"Yes, a proper gentlemen would never dream of punishing his loyal attendants... We have subordinates for that... Julius."

The finely dressed man turned to the fireplace before him and watched as the flames flickered. The screams behind him went ignored as he considered his next course of action. The men that had been lost were of little consequence. Soldiers were easy to replace. Just offer food and clothing and new volunteers would come running. What interested him was how the assault force had been so completely eradicated that not a single survivor had come crawling back. Perhaps there was a new... business partner... to be contracted from among that group of North Americans. He brought a glass full of a dark liquid up to his lips and smiled as he savored it. Death, power, and vintage wine.... It was simply not possible to enjoy life more fully.

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*Drip* *Drip*

"... is he doing?"

"I do not know.... Sister is very protective of him..."

"Yes, she is, isn't she ...Will you be needing anything Annabel? Have you eaten today?"

"Yes Master. I am doing quite well..."

*Drip* *Drip*

Disjointed conversations. That was all he could hear. That was all he was aware of. He knew that there were many things missing, yet he was unsure of what they were. It was not just the words that were missing though; there were meanings he could not grasp. The words he could hear... he knew that they should hold more meaning for him. Something in him spoke of relief, but relief of what?

It was nothing but frustration. He wished for a voice so that he could speak to those others, but he did not know how to form the words. He had no way to make his presence known, to make those beings aware that he could understand them. It had gone on for so long now. The sounds were all he had. He knew that there should be more, but he could not remember what else there was. Like memories of a forgotten dream, images would come to him with a feather light touch, making their presence known but not offering up their secrets.

All he could do was wait. Though, what he waited for he did not know.

*Drip* *Drip*

"...days! How long do you think they will wait before they come looking?!"

"They are in no condition to be moved, or do you suggest we abandon them here?!"

"Then we make stretchers! There are plenty of materials lying around. The fact is, if we stay here, it won't matter if anyone gets left behind, we'll

all

die!"

The voices were much louder today, and now he could understand more than just fragmented pieces. Perhaps his time of waiting was nearly over.... He could only hope.

He was grateful for the increased understanding, but he wished that the volume had not increased as well. It created a deplorable sensation...pain, if he remembered correctly... He wanted to stop it, or at the very least soothe it somewhat. He instinctively tried to do just that... and the voices stopped. They did not fade; they simply came to a sudden and complete stop. How strange, they had never done that before. But even more interestingly, something had happened to him. It was as if he had grown, or perhaps he had he had not been aware of his entirety before and now he knew another piece of himself. But the sensation had disappeared as quickly as it had come. He wanted to experience it again, but was not sure how. He tried to mimic his previous desire to soothe the place that had held the unpleasant sensation. It did not work at first, but he tried again... and then there was a new noise. He should know this sound. It was a... it was called... a gasp. Yes, that was right. He was not sure what it meant though. Eh, it did not matter, he wanted to try gaining that sensation one more time. He suspected it could be created at will.

Around him the voices started again, but they were easily quieted by one that spoke from somewhere nearby.

"Master has awakened."

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Insane. That was the only word that Private Jonathan White could use to describe the events he had witnessed.

They should have all died. There was nothing else to it. None of them should have survived that charge into the enemy lines.... And many of them had not. But for all that, there were those that still lived.

Hahaha, or perhaps we are all dead and this is our own personal Hell

.

He would have that thought many times, and he almost wanted to believe it. But he could not. Each and every one of his senses told him that he was still on the Earth that he had known for his entire life. Though, even that statement was incorrect. He might still be alive, but this was not the world he knew.

In the world he knew, demons and angels were not real. They were a story passed down for generations that only the most devout of the faithful still believed in. And even for those that believed, they dwelled only in Heaven and Hell...

They were not real... yet he had seen them with his own eyes. In fact, one sat only a few feet away. She would occasionally glance at him, a forlorn look in her eyes. But he could not comfort her... He could not even bear to meet her gaze...

It tore at him. He wanted to go to her side. He wanted to soothe her worries and hold her as he had done before.

But he was afraid.

She was... something else; A being entirely beyond his own existence. Before that day when they should have died, she seemed so small and frail. He had wanted to protect her, to give her everything she could ever wish for, and so much more... But he had seen an entirely different creature on that field. Somewhere deep inside, his feelings for her were still the same. But they were overshadowed by fear. Fear of what he had seen. Fear of what she was.

On that day...

He had been near exhaustion. The adrenaline that had kept him going far beyond the limits he should have been able to endure was fast running out. The pain that it had been suppressing until then was beginning to rise and take its place. He did not know the extent of his own wounds, but he knew that not all the blood covering him came from his enemies. Around him, his comrades had been falling one by one. He had long since lost sight of Anderson and only the Sergeant still stood with him. He had no time to wonder at their fates though, it was likely that they had all perished, but if only one or two of them could break through, they might still lead the force away. Remembering this thought later on, the private could only wonder at himself. An entire assault force would not go chasing after a single survivor. But at the time, all he understood was his mission and he would carry it out no matter what.

He could not remember all that had transpired. He could not recall the faces of his enemies nor how many he might have fought. It was all blur of motion as he tried to press through the line. Indeed, he could not remember much... until they appeared...

Enough reinforced steel to withstand a bomb blast... and they tore through as if it were paper...

The first inkling he had that something strange was happening was the sound of metal being torn and twisted. It was a horrendous, unnatural sound that stopped the fighting as all the combatants desperately covered their ears. But that was nothing compared to the sights he was about to witness.

Soon the noise stopped... but terror seemed to still grip their enemies. He could not fathom what they were experiencing as the mob of militia and soldiers rolled about in the dirt, their screams full of fear. A few tried desperately to crawl away, but many others lay curled up on the ground with their eyes shut tight. Those that were not screaming were simply whimpering, a pathetic whine that could barely be heard over the others.

That is when they appeared... creatures of legend that had no place on this earth. But it seemed the legends were wrong... not only had they appeared, but they now stood united in a fury that left him chilled to his very soul.

Some would say that the one in black was the more terrifying of the two. Blood covered her clawed hands and more would be spilled wherever she walked... but it was the one in white that the young soldier feared the most. She walked unerringly towards him. Those unlucky enough to have her pass nearby ceased their cries of fear... He did not understand how she did it, but death followed her as surely as it did her sister. As she drew nearer the fear in him grew, but he could not make himself turn away. He could only look on as the women he loved left a trail of corpses in her wake.

There was no indication of malice. In fact, she did not spare the pitiful humans around her a glance. She only walked forward, intent on her path. White could not understand then, why those around her ceased their movement, why their cries went silent...

Soon she was close enough that he could better make out her features... and his heart tightened. Those blue eyes that he had fallen in love with were now cold and uncaring. Her once radiant smile was nowhere to be seen.... She now walked with a regal grace, while the white, feathered wings behind her proclaimed her to be one of the messengers of heaven. But there was no warmth in her... White could only think that an angel of judgment had descended upon the earth.

He cannot say what he expected once she had reached him... but what happened was certainly not it.

Once this goddess of death finally stood before him... the look of cold fury left her, and she kneeled.

"What is your bidding, Master?" she spoke in an emotionless tone.

For a moment the soldier's fear was forgotten. In its place, all he could feel was a deep sadness. He did not know what had happened to his Annabel, but for all that it looked like her, this creature was not the woman he loved. But he could not stand to see someone with her appearance kneeling before him, so he spoke.

"Stand."

She followed his words exactly, standing but keeping her head bowed and her hands clasped before her. White felt another tug at his heart. She was like a doll... beautiful, but lifeless.

He wondered what he was to do now. His mind was frozen, grasping for something familiar, something that he could understand. Did his orders still apply? Did the Annabel he knew still even exist? So caught up was he in his turmoil that he forgot where he stood and those that still surrounded him.

Sergeant Scott stood a short distance away, having seen the women and watched what was transpiring between the young private and the creature with the appearance of Anne. Typically quick to act, Scott could only stand there woodenly. With his confidence and mental state already shaken from the past events, he was close to the breaking point and was only holding himself together by a simple hope... that hope being that everything around him was just a dream... His plans had all gone astray, he had lead the men he was meant to protect to their deaths, and now something that looked like an angel was calling one of his surviving soldiers "Master". It had to be a dream, a terrible nightmare that he would soon wake from and do his utmost to forget. There was simply no other option, no other possibility...

The two soldiers stood unmoving. Both attempting to grapple with the turn of events and questioning their own sanity. And so they did not see their enemy stirring. Upon reaching her Master, Annabel's fury had subsided and her effect upon the men had dissipated with her loss of interest. Now some of those closest to the three were attempting to stand on shaky legs. They considered cutting their losses and running away, but they did not know what the source of their terror had been and so there was a possibility that it was now gone. Either way, they knew very well what their fates were to be if they did not complete their mission, and so some of them decided that it was best to finish off the North Americans.

The first to raise his rifle was an older man. He had survived the hardships of life in this new era and avoided the punishments that had cost the lives of so many others. He had a healthy instinct to survive and he knew that killing the oblivious soldiers quickly was the best way to do so. Unfortunately, he could not have anticipated the fate his actions would befall him. With rifle raised and sights aligned, he could have ended it all there... but he caught her gaze and at that moment he understood... she would never have allowed it...

The being that stood before him never moved an inch... but White was sure that it was her doing. He heard the clatter and thumps of weapons and bodies falling around him. He assumed that the Frenchmen had tried to stand back up, but now they all quietly lay on the ground. Dead. He knew that they were dead. The odd angles their limbs rested at, the emptiness of their eyes, and the unnerving stillness of their bodies left no doubt about that.

Closing his eyes, he willed away what he had seen, the reality he could not accept. But even there he found no escape. The world around him was as quiet as the bodies on the ground. For a moment he thought he heard a woman singing in the distance, but he dismissed it. In a place that had been crowded with soldiers and ringing with the sounds of battle not minutes ago... there was nothing. And he knew the cause.

Unwillingly, he opened his eyes and once more looked down at the creature that bore the visage of his love. Even now she still stood in the same position he had left her.

She's very obedient

. The observation was a stray thought that passed through his mind. It filled the emptiness in his thoughts and spared him for just a moment longer before he had to consider what she was or what he was to do.

"Look at me," he whispered to the silent angel.

She lifted her head and brought her eyes up to meet his. Silently he brought up his hand and cupped her cheek.

Soft and smooth

. The inane thoughts continued. He was operating on impulse now, his mind beginning to shut itself down in a desperate bid to protect him. He gazed adoringly at the face of the woman he loved and an absentminded smile spread across his lips.

And it was that smile that finally evoked a response in the angel. Her Master had never smiled like that and it worried her. In those cold blue eyes a spark of concern shown. Acting against her previous exacting obedience, she brought up her own hand to cover her Master's.

The touch unintentionally brought White partway back from the stupor he had begun falling in. Refocusing his eyes on the woman before him, he noticed the look of concern she gave him. It was one he was intimately familiar with. The same look he saw when her sister and Anderson would start fighting... the same look she gave him when he would obsessively worry over something...

"Annabel..."

She blinked, and in the same cute voice he could never forget she asked, "Yes, Mas...Jonathan?"

It was her! It was really her! Private White burst out laughing and hugged her tightly to himself.

"Do you know how long ago I told you to call me that? But you kept calling me master anyway," he said while continuing to shake with laughter.

"I'm sorry, Master," the confused Annabel mumbled into his chest.

"See? There you go again. It's Jonathan, just Jonathan," He responded, finally starting to calm down

She mumbled something he could not quite understand due to how tightly he was holding her, but Private White had never felt so relieved in his life. He thought he had lost his love to some legendary being of death, but she was right there in his arms.

It was a shame that the feeling could not have lasted longer...

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"Master, your warbrother is strong enough to speak with you now..." Annabel's soft voice brought White back from his memories.

"Good... Your sister won't try to attack us again will she?" He asked concerned about the last time someone had tried to get near Anderson.

"No, that would displease her master greatly..."

White could hear the pause after every sentence. He knew what she hoped for him to say, but he could not bring himself to say it... not yet.

Giving Annabel a quick nod, he stood up. Ignoring the look of sadness in her eyes he began walking to the main room where Anderson was. He still could not believe it though. When that woman had brought Anderson in to the shelter, everyone had sworn he was dead. Nobody could have survived the wounds he had seen.... But she had brought him in and taken over a corner of the main room. For three days she had lain next to him, guarding him from anyone that came too close. Hell, she had nearly killed Reichert. White was still not sure what he had been thinking when he tried that. They already had enough dead as it was and did not need anymore. Taking a deep breath, White opened the door to the main room.

It was time for the man loved by an angel to talk to the man loved by a demon.