Sword of Darkness

Chapter 13



Kerrigan spent the night lying in bed with Seren.The demon within him wanted to leave her, but the man didn't, and that was the part he'd been listening to. His sword was fastened on the wall above his head while they were entwined naked underneath the covers.

His body ached from the strain of the shield, and even now he could hear the gargoyles and dragons outside, trying to tear through it. Tomorrow, he hoped, they would be free of this.

Oblivious to the sounds outside, Seren was draped over his chest, sleeping peacefully while he toyed with her silken hair. Her breath tickled his chest and made his nipple pucker every time she exhaled.

He knew that he should leave. He had no business allowing this little creature into his withered heart.

No one could ever be trusted. Yet she filled him with unknown emotions that weren't violent or cold. And as he lay with her in his arms, he began to have even more peculiar thoughts.

He imagined her holding his child…caring for it.

In his mind, he could see himself as a merchant, working in his shop with her by his side as their children ran about, laughing and playing. He could see the sunlight streaming in through the large windows, highlighting the pale hair of a young daughter as she laughed and tried to catch the beam in her chubby hand.

Seren's sweet voice filled his ears with praise for their daughter's accomplishment…

"Oh, you are an imbecile," he breathed, banishing those images. What an insipid dream. Merchants and peasants were pawns. They were fools and beggars.

He was a king. Granted, king of the damned, but king nonetheless. And the world was his for the taking.

His coronation had been in blood and in fire. In truth, he liked it. He didn't want to be kind or compassionate. Ruthlessness was the only thing that served a man well. The weak suffered while the mighty took what they wanted.

And he was mighty.

He would never again be that pathetic, thieving peasant who was mocked and belittled by others. Those days were blissfully past, and they would never come again. He would make sure of it.

Kerrigan felt the warmth draining out of him. The fire returned to his eyes. Leaning his head back, he felt the magic flow through him once more like chilled wine that invaded every corner of his soul. Aye, he was formidable, and he fully intended to stay that way. Strength was all that was respected in this world and in Camelot. And his strength more than all the others.

His resolve set, he moved out from under Seren and dressed himself in his armor.

Refusing to look at her, he pulled Caliburn down and strapped it to his hips. The time for weakness was past. This had been a nice interlude with Seren, and he would make sure that his child didn't suffer. But in the end, he had to return to what he was.

The king of the bad asses. There was no place in his world for a consort. There was only room at the top for one person and that was he. He didn't need Seren and her petty emotions tying him to her. All he needed was his sword and his magic. To hell with everything else.

Seren sighed as her dream turned to a sweet, warm day as she'd known in her youth before she'd become an apprentice. Her mother had taken a job with the tailor of a small village in Yorkshire.

While her mother worked, she was playing in a field not far from the cottage of the woman who watched after her. She wore her pale green kirtle that her mother had stitched with yellow dragons along the hem. It was her favorite gown.

With her head thrown back, she was turning circles in the field, watching the beautiful blue sky spin around and around above her.

"Seren?"

She paused in her play at the sound of her mother's cadent voice. She stumbled a bit as the dizziness hit her. "Aye, Mother?"

As her mother drew near and her dizziness passed, she realized that she wasn't a little girl anymore. She was a woman full-grown.

She was herself.

Pausing in front of her, her mother brushed the hair back from her face and smiled sweetly at her before she kissed her brow. "You've changed much, my little treasure."

A stinging wave of grief consumed her as she heard her mother's blessed voice again. Tears welled in her eyes. "I've missed you, Mama."

Her mother's lips trembled. Unlike Seren, her mother was one of the most beautiful of women. Her hair was a darker shade of blond, with honey gold highlights. As a child, she'd spent hours brushing her mother's hair at night before her mother plaited it. Her hair had always smelled of spring flowers. It'd been softer than the best woven silk. Those precious memories flooded her now and made her ache to her very soul.

"I have missed you, too, my Seren," her mother said in a tender voice. "I hear you whispering to me sometimes in the quiet haven where I stay." Her features showed her own pain and grief as she cupped Seren's cheek in her palm. "Many times, I've wanted to answer you, but couldn't. But you were never alone, my precious daughter. Never."

A tear of joyful sorrow slid from the corner of her eye. "Why are you here now?"

Her mother reached under the neckline of her golden gown to pull out a small medallion. It reminded her much of the one Kerrigan wore. It held the same star with a dragon. "It is past time for you to have this."

Her mother placed it in the palm of her hand and closed her fist over it. She held Seren's fist in both of her hands. "Your great-great grandfather was the one who betrayed his king and set all of this into motion. He allowed evil to seduce him, and he made a fatal mistake that destroyed the fellowship of Arthur's Table. We are of the bloodline of Emrys Penmerlin, and the daughter you carry now will one day meet the same challenge as our progenitor. I don't know what she'll choose. But if she follows in his footsteps, the world will be forever lost to Morgen and her demons."

Her mother wiped away the tear from her face. "Don't cry, Seren. Not for me. I'm at peace, child. I kept you safe until you were able to grow up, and now…your life is up to you. It will be what you make it."

If only it were that simple, but Seren knew better. There was so much that wasn't in her control. "What of Kerrigan?"

Her mother's gaze turned distant, as if she were hiding something from her. "His path is his own as well, and it's not for me to say. But you must be strong, child. Listen with your heart, and don't let others deceive you."

"But how will I know if they're deceiving me?"

"Seren?"

She turned at the sound of a deep masculine voice. Her mother began to fade.

"Mama, wait! Please don't leave me."

But her mother vanished anyway.

"Mama!" Seren woke up with tears in her eyes to find Blaise standing beside her bed.

He blinked twice at her. "Sorry, Seren, I'm not female." He frowned. "Actually, I'm not sorry that I'm not a female, but I am sorry that I'm not your mother…Then again, I'm not really sorry about that, either. Basically, I'm not sorry at all, I just felt the need to say something."

Irritated at him, Seren glanced about the room. There was no sign of her mother. No sign of her dream…at least not until she realized that there was something in her hand.

Looking down, she found the medallion right where her mother had placed it. Her heart raced at the sight of her medallion, but she kept it from Blaise. She didn't know why. It just wasn't something she wanted to share.

"Where's Kerrigan?"

"He's in the hall, waiting for you." Blaise moved forward and handed her the scarlet tunic that she'd made for Kerrigan.

Seren frowned.

"He wants you to wear it. Just in case."

Her frown melted into a smile at his thoughtfulness. "I'll be down in just a moment."

Blaise nodded before he left her alone.

Her thoughts churning over her dream, Seren scooted out of bed. There was a chill in the air. Or was it in her body? She couldn't really tell. All she knew was that it was frigid and eerie.

Dismissing the feeling, she quickly fastened the necklace and donned her clothes, then joined the men downstairs.

Unaware of her appearance in the great hall, Kerrigan was again dressed in his black armor while Blaise was dressed in a brown tunic and hose, with his white hair left free to hang down his back.

"Do I look like a woman?" Blaise asked Kerrigan, who was sitting in one of the chairs before the hearth.

"Aye."

Blaise looked completely offended by his quick response. "Excuse me?"

"What?" Kerrigan gave him an innocent expression. "You want me to lie?"

Blaise folded his arms over his chest in an angry gesture. "I don't look like a woman."

"Then why did you ask me?"

"Seren thought I was her mother when I went to wake her." He reached up and wrapped his hand in his hair. "Maybe I should cut this."

"Wouldn't help. Then you'd just look like an ugly woman."

Releasing his hair, Blaise glared at him. "Oh thank you, Lord Darkness. Do me a favor, never hire yourself out to work for a suicide hotline."

"Suicide hotline?" Seren asked as she moved closer to them. "What is that?"

Blaise turned to face her. "It's…" He paused and looked as if he were searching for a way to define it. "Never mind. It truly won't make any sense to you."

She was beginning to wonder if they spoke in esoteric fashion on purpose just to confuse her. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, you don't look like a woman. Kerrigan does."

Kerrigan snorted from his chair. "Hardly."

Blaise considered that for a moment. "Only if the woman is tall, hairy, and bearded. Come to think of it, you do remind me of a hag who used to live in Camelot."

Kerrigan narrowed his red eyes on the mandrake. "Shut up."

Seren tsked at Kerrigan and the venom he was releasing. "He's in a mood, isn't he?" she asked Blaise.

"Aye, and he's been like that all morning. What? Did you not share the blanket with him?"

"I said enough ."

Seren scowled at Kerrigan's angry tone. He reminded her of the day she'd first met him. Blustering and threatening. Gone was the tenderness he'd shown her lately. "Did I do something wrong?"

An unnamed emotion flitted across his face before he shook his head. He rose to his feet. "We have to meet the gargoyles soon. Before we do, I have to explain what's going to happen. When I drop the shield, I will have to feed from you immediately. You will have to submit to me. If you choose to fight, it could very well kill you. Do you understand?"

Aye, she fully understood that. She didn't like it, but she understood it.

She nodded.

"It's going to hurt, Seren," Blaise said quietly. "Probably a lot."

She swallowed at his grave tone. "How badly?"

It was Kerrigan who answered. "Bad enough that you will want to run away, but if you do, I won't be able to control it. If I lose control…"

She was dead, most like. Seren drew a ragged breath at the seriousness of their situation. "Very well. I shall endure whatever pain you cause."

Blaise gave her a look of respect. "You're a braver man than I am."

"Woman, you mean."

He screwed his face up at her. "There you go again, calling me a woman." He met Kerrigan's gaze. "I swear, she's giving me a complex."

Seren shook her head at his play, not that she understood that last bit exactly. But she had a good idea of the gist of it.

Looking at Kerrigan, she sobered as she noticed that he lacked their humor.

She approached him, only to have him move away. "Are you sure that you're all right, my lord?"

"I am fine." His tone was sharp and clipped.

Sighing, she nodded. "So when does the shield fall?"

"As soon as we go outside." Kerrigan looked past her, to Blaise. "Once I have enough power, I'll transport all of us from here into the future where Morgen won't be able to follow with her army. I figure the twentieth century should do."

Blaise sighed. "Seren won't understand anything there."

"Does it matter? At least there if a dragon or gargoyle pops through, they'll get shot down by the humans before they come near us. They may be fierce, but not even they can survive napalm or an armed missile. Once radar registers them, they'll be dealt with and they know it. It should keep them out of our way at least for a while."

"What is the twentieth century?" Seren asked.

Blaise let out a deep breath. "A world unlike anything you can imagine." He looked back at Kerrigan. "It'll mess with her sensibilities."

"Can you think of someplace better?"

"Not really. You're right about their weapons. But do you think that'll keep Morgen at bay?"

"Nay. However, the Adoni will only be able to come through the portal two at a time without alerting the military. We should be able to handle that with little problem."

Blaise nodded. "What about the gargoyles who are with us? They don't exactly blend during daylight hours."

"Let them find a building to sit on. They're not my problem. All I promised them was an escape from Morgen. What they do after that is their business."

Blaise looked at her. "Have you ever noticed that he really enjoys being evil?"

"Aye." But the strangest part of all was that there was something about that that she found alluring, almost endearing. "What can I do to help in this?"

"Don't die," they said in unison.

"I can honestly say that I will do my best to stay alive."

"Good," Blaise said as he walked over to the window to look outside. "Garafyn is leading them down the hill as he promised."

Kerrigan was staring at her with an undefinable expression that tugged at her heart. There was something about it that reminded her of the boy she'd glimpsed the day before when they had shared their blood.

He wasn't as cold toward her as he was pretending, and it was the man in him that set fire to her blood. There was something about being in his presence that made her ache to want to touch him.

But they didn't have time for that now.

Kerrigan turned his gaze away from Seren toward Blaise. "Remember that shifting us through time will weaken me even more, and I won't be able to recharge from Seren again. It'll be up to you and the gargoyles to fight whatever might follow us through."

Blaise inclined his head. "Have no fear. We can handle it."

Kerrigan removed his left gauntlet and tucked it into his belt. "Then let us get this over with."

Blaise headed out first.

Seren paused by Kerrigan's side. The sunlight played in the dark waves of his hair. His eyes were black now, restless, and she wondered at what was causing his dour mood. "I trust you, my lord. I know you won't hurt us in this."

Kerrigan couldn't breathe as he stared down into those clear, trusting green eyes. God's blood, he couldn't remember ever being so naive. Even now he half expected Garafyn to betray them. It would be in the gargoyle's nature.

Just as it was in his nature to destroy.

Only he didn't want to destroy Seren. Frowning at her, he laid his hand to hers. She had more strength and courage than Morgen's entire army.

He bent down to inhale the scent of her hair before he placed a tender kiss to her lips. She tasted of innate goodness, of sweet womanhood, and in truth he wanted more of her. He wanted to take her upstairs and spend the rest of the day making love to her.

But he couldn't. They had a battle before them that wouldn't wait. He only hoped that he wouldn't fail her.

Pulling away, Kerrigan led the way from the castle, out into the bailey where Blaise was waiting for them.

He paused by the mandrake's side. "If I fall, take my medallion and get Seren out of here immediately. Hide her wherever you can."

"I will do my best."

"Good. Now let me go and do my worst."

He saw Seren meet Blaise's cautious gaze before they followed him onto the old wooden drawbridge. Reaching out for his dwindling powers, he summoned the earth's mist to help blind their enemies. So-called dragon's breath, it was the same spell that Emrys Penmerlin had once summoned so that Uther could lie with Igraine and father King Arthur on the unsuspecting noblewoman.

The thick fog rolled forward, and through its dampness, he could feel Morgen. She knew the source of the fog and she was livid. He sensed her gathering her army…

She called the dragons down before they flew into each other and ordered the gargoyles to climb the hill.

"Adoni! Ready your arrows!"

But she would never order them to fire and he knew it. The chance of blindly striking Seren and killing her was too great.

Now was the time.

Taking a deep breath, he brought down the shield. The pain in his head ceased immediately. Grateful for that reprieve, he turned toward Seren. He spread his left hand out, only to pause as he met her open gaze.

She trusted him.

His heart stopped beating as he saw the tenderness in her gaze.

Do it.

This was their only chance to escape. He narrowed his gaze before he placed his hand in the valley between her breasts. He felt the instant surge of her life force as he drew it out. It was warm. Invigorating.

But he'd barely started when Seren let out an agonized cry. Her eyes filled with tears as she bravely stood her ground. As promised, she made no move to pull away. No move to break his hold. She merely stood there with her lips trembling as her tears overran her eyes and fled down her cheeks.

The pain was excruciating, and still she stood strong like an ancient Amazon.

Kerrigan cursed as he snatched his hand away. He couldn't do this. Not to her. Not like this.

Seren staggered back. He caught her against his chest as his heart thumped in sympathetic pain.

"I'm sorry," he whispered softly.

"Are you strong now?" Her words came out in ragged breaths.

Nay, he wasn't. But he couldn't bring himself to hurt her again. He looked up and met Blaise's unblinking stare through the fog and realized that the mandrake knew what had happened.

He knew that Kerrigan had backed down. But there was no scorn in that violet gaze. No hatred.

If he didn't know better, he'd almost think that Blaise was proud of him.

"Looks like we fight our way out then." Blaise instantly took dragon form.

Drawing his sword, Kerrigan turned to find Garafyn and Anir nearing them. With a wave of the fog curling behind them, they flew in and landed before him. Their eerie yellow and red eyes glowed, and that was the only way he could really see them, since their gray bodies blended in almost perfectly with the fog.

"Let's go," Garafyn said.

Blaise tilted his head so that he could look with one eye at the gargoyle. "I thought there would be more of you?"

"The others fell behind. Screw 'em. It's every rock for himself. We don't have time to wait."

Blaise lowered his dragon's head to speak in a low tone. "We have a small problem."

"No," Garafyn said sternly, "wedon't. Let's go."

Kerrigan shook his head. "We can't."

"Why not?"

Kerrigan braced himself to fight them. "I can't feed from her."

A flap of Garafyn's wings parted the fog enough for him to see the angry look on the gargoyle's face. His eyes glowed eerily red in the mist. "Can't or won't?"

"Can't."

"Bullshit!" Garafyn growled. "You've killed people for what? Six hundred years or something like that? I've seen you do it countless times. Don't go getting…stupid on me now. Damn." He looked over his shoulder as he tried to peer into the fog. They could hear the others, but not see them. "We're about to become a driveway here, Kerrigan. Do something."

Kerrigan snorted. "I thought you were going to be a countertop."

"No, I just shafted the Queen Bitch who we both know isn't real forgiving. I don't even rate a countertop at this point. Not unless you grow a ball and suck the juice from your pet here."

Blaise moved toward the gargoyles. "I think you should just kill them, Kerrigan."

Anir hissed at Blaise. "Then suck off the dragon," he said to Kerrigan. "He's a worthless piece of scale."

Kerrigan sneered at them. "I don't suck energy off any male. Ever."

Seren took Kerrigan's hand. Morgen's army was closing in on them and her heart pounded at the ferocious sound of creatures advancing. Their steps and grunts echoed around them. It stirred the mist and rebounded off the stone walls.

They were coming closer and closer.

Any second, they would be surrounded…

Suddenly, Seren heard a voice whispering inside her head. Instinctively, she knew it was a spell like the ones Kerrigan had used in the past.

It was her magic speaking to her, she realized. It was the powers that he had awakened the day before. Closing her eyes, she listened to it and repeated the words out loud. As she did so, the air around her seemed to sizzle and burn. Something crackled in the fog, sparking colors around them.

"What is she doing?" Garafyn asked.

"Getting us out of this." Kerrigan pulled her into his arms and began to chant with her.

Seren followed his lead. She heard men screaming while the two of them combined their magic.

One minute they were there on the drawbridge, and in the next, they were standing out in the middle of an open field. There was no sign of Morgen or her army.

Opening her eyes, Seren looked around. They appeared to be in some kind of forest in broad daylight. She frowned as she saw something fly overhead. At first she thought it was a dragon, only its wings didn't move. It was huge and silver…

"What is that?"

Kerrigan looked up at what she was pointing to. "A plane."

She frowned. "A what?"

"Big. Silver. Bird," Garafyn said irritably, stressing each syllable as if she were simple-witted. "People climb into it and they fly from one place to another."

Seren looked back up to see it again, but it was already gone. "Are you jesting?"

"Nope."

Unable to believe it, she wanted to see the plane again. But as she glanced around, she realized that Kerrigan didn't look well. His features were pinched and drawn.

"Are you all right?"

"Never better," he said sarcastically.

Blaise changed back into a man. "Anybody have a guess on when and where we are?"

Kerrigan sheathed his sword. "I'm not sure. It looks vaguely like upstate New York. Stirling Forest, I think."

Seren frowned at his words. "NewYork? What happened to the old one?"

The men ignored her question.

Blaise turned toward Garafyn and Anir. "We need to hide the gargoyles. Beasts, go find a building to squat on."

Garafyn curled his lip. "Dragon, go find a—"

"Enough," Kerrigan said, cutting them off. "Blaise is right. The last thing we can afford is someone seeing all of us together."

Garafyn growled at him. "Yeah, well, I'm sick of pretending to be a lawn ornament."

"What is a lawn ornament?" Seren tried again.

Garafyn let out a disgusted breath. "A statue that sits on a yard where dogs piss all over it."

"Yeah," Anir said, "in short, it's us. I really hate New York."

Blaise snorted. "Hey, at least it has a lot of buildings for you to hide on."

Garafyn didn't look amused.

Kerrigan gave the gargoyles an evil glare. "Feel free to return to the Middle Ages or Camelot any time you want."

"Yeah, right," Anir said. "Like those people don't tie us to a stake and torch us. Really messes with their head when they realize stone don't burn easy. As for Camelot, f*ck that."

"Yeah," Garafyn snarled. "Especially after we just screwed over Queen Bitch." He looked at Kerrigan. "Where are you guys going?"

Before they could answer, something bright flashed beside them.

Kerrigan turned as an Adoni came through to land before them. He made a sound of disgust. "Don't you people have a home?" Drawing his sword, he lunged at the Adoni, only to have him step back.

The instant he did, Garafyn snapped his neck.

The Adoni fell dead at Kerrigan's feet.

Kerrigan curled his lip. "Did you have to do that?"

"I thought I was helping."

"I need to feed, and that would have been a great source of food for me."

Garafyn held his hands up in surrender.

"Anyone got a suggestion on where to hide before another jolly good friend finds us?" Anir asked.

"I'm thinking Pluto," Garafyn said under his breath.

Kerrigan didn't acknowledge that strange word at all. "We need something mobile. They'll have a harder time pinpointing us if we're in motion."

"Wait," Anir said with a note of warning in his voice, "I saw this episode of X-Files. The guy's head explodes the minute Mulder reaches the West Coast. I don't want that to be us."

Seren was completely baffled by their conversation. "Please, someone, tell me what's going on."

Garafyn gave her a droll stare. "We're discussing how we're going to die. Anir is voting for head explosion. My vote is disembowelment. Painful disembowelment."

"Shut up," Blaise said before he turned to Seren. "We need to find something to move us around quickly."

"I'm sure there are horses—"

"Too slow. We need something that moves much faster than that and doesn't get tired."

Kerrigan rubbed his head as if he had an ache between his eyes. "I have enough energy left to conjure us a mobile home. I think. But I'm going to have to feed soon and—"

His voice broke off as another Adoni appeared. His eyes flamed red an instant before he saw Seren. The air crackled as two more came through.

The Adoni rushed them.

Anir grabbed one while the other two went for Seren. Kerrigan swung his sword to drive one back.

Seren used her powers to blast the other, but it had no effect on him. She struck out, and her blows glanced off him.

The Adoni grabbed her hair and laughed. The air around them shimmered as if he were about to take her back through time.

Panicking, she saw Kerrigan toss the one he was fighting toward Blaise, who then engaged him so that Kerrigan could run toward her.

Before he could reach them, Garafyn grabbed the Adoni who held her and flipped him on his back. "One vegemite Adoni made to order. Eat 'em up, grump."

Seren cringed as Kerrigan placed his hand over the Adoni's chest. The creature screamed out in pain while Blaise killed one and Anir finished off the Adoni he was fighting.

She watched as the color came back into Kerrigan's face even as it faded from the Adoni. She wanted to look away, and yet she couldn't. She was mesmerized by the brutality of what Kerrigan had to do to survive. Damn Morgen for doing this to him. It wasn't right that Kerrigan had been turned into this because of one woman's sadistic nature.

But even as that thought went through her, Kerrigan let out a relieved sigh. When he came to his feet, he was again the fearsome knight she'd met in London.

Garafyn appeared to smile. "Good to the last drop, huh?"

"Don't start with me, Garafyn," Kerrigan warned. "I'm now in position to pull your wings off your back and laugh while I do it."

"Point well taken."

Kerrigan led them over to what appeared to be a road, only it had an odd black surface to it. She'd never seen anything like it. It was hot, with lines, both broken and straight, painted over it. No sooner did they reach it than a giant…something appeared out of nowhere.

It looked like a big, long box with wheels. It was too big to be a wagon.

"Is this a house?" she asked.

"Kind of," Anir said. "It's a mobile home."

She was baffled by his words. "How can a home be mobile?"

Anir laughed. "Step inside and see."

Kerrigan opened the door. "He's right, Seren. We need to get inside and get out of here before more come through."

Seren followed Blaise into the peculiar device. Blaise pulled her toward a table that was flanked by two benches while the gargoyles came in and tucked their wings around them. Kerrigan joined them, then shut the door.

"I'll drive," Blaise said.

"Duh," Garafyn said. "Kerrigan needs to rest. Anir and I would get us pulled over since I don't think cops are used to seeing statues driving, and queenie over there would kill us since she's never seen a highway or car before." He paused as if another idea just occurred to him. "You do know how to drive, don't you?"

Blaise gave an evil smirk. "Guess we'll see , huh?"

Garafyn looked sick to his stomach. "I really hate mandrakes."

Kerrigan shook his head at the gargoyle. In a strange way, he was beginning to like Garafyn, and that actually scared him.

"Relax," he said to Garafyn as Blaise moved to the front to take the wheel. He looked up at the mandrake. "Make sure you stick to the back roads."

"What? You don't want a major fight in a U.S. city?"

"I could care less about that. But we need to move fast, and I don't want to hit a traffic jam."

"Good point." Blaise took a seat, then started the engine while Kerrigan moved to the small row of seats so that he could close his eyes and rest for a bit.

Blaise pulled them onto the road and started down the empty highway.

Seren scooted out of her bench and followed Kerrigan to the back. All things considered, she was being remarkably calm, but then after Camelot, the marvels of the twenty-first century were probably mild for her.

"What?" he asked as she sat down by his side.

"They're going to find us again, aren't they?"

He sighed at the fear he heard in her voice. Part of him wanted to comfort her, but he didn't know how to do that. So instead, he chose to be honest. She had every right to know what they were up against. "Aye."

"Then what are we going to do?"

He opened his eyes to see the concern that burned bright in her green eyes. "We're going to keep running, Seren. It's all we can do."

"But for how long?"

"As long as it takes."

"You know," Garafyn said from the table. "It would be easier to hide if you two split up. The power of three Merlins is pretty damned hard to miss. But one…"

"I won't leave her unprotected," Kerrigan growled.

Garafyn scowled. "Since when do you have a conscience?"

"I don't have a conscience."

"Then why are we protecting her?"

Kerrigan didn't answer. In truth he didn't know what to say. He honestly had no idea why he was doing this. There was nothing to be gained by protecting her. Not really.

They were only delaying the inevitable. Morgen would find them again and again. She would be relentless.

He angled his head so that he could meet Seren's gaze. "You know, you've been nothing but trouble since I first met you."

Instead of being offended, she smiled. "I was minding my own business, my lord, when you came and took me away from everything that I knew."

Smiling, he reached up to brush a stray piece of hair back from her cheek. Her skin was so soft. Warm. In all his life, he'd never known kindness until she'd taken his hand and followed him into hell itself.

The only problem was that angels couldn't live in hell and demons couldn't live in heaven.

Kerrigan listened to the hum of the engine. Seren didn't belong here in this time period. She would have to learn a new language. Relearn how to do the simplest of tasks. She knew nothing of surviving in this world.

"Who was the idiot who planned this escape anyway?" Kerrigan asked bitterly.

It was Blaise who answered. "That would be the two who have rocks for their brains."

"I resent that," Garafyn said indignantly. "It wasn't like either one of you had a better suggestion."

Kerrigan didn't comment as he continued to stroke the softness of Seren's cheek.

Where could they hide? Really?

They were two gargoyles, an albino dragon, a demon lord, and a simple maid whose only dream was to be a weaver. They were far from inconspicious. Not to mention the fact that Seren would soon grow heavy with her pregnancy. Then she wouldn't be mobile. She wouldn't be able to run or to fight. He didn't know what kinds of demands this pregnancy would have on her powers.

She needed to be with other women. With someone who could help her through this. Someone who could protect her even better than he could.

He knew nothing of children or childbirth. He only knew how to take life.

If he had one wish, it would be to have had one day of peace alone with Seren. One day to have spent with her not as her captor or her protector, but as a man, pure and simple. But there was nothing simple about his life. As for pure…he would laugh if he could.

Nay, it was over. They'd given it a good run. But in the end, he knew the truth.

"Garafyn. Anir."

The gargoyles looked at him. Kerrigan leaned up and pulled the medallion from his neck. He took a moment to study the piece that he'd found near the stone where his sword had been buried. Morgen had been the one to explain its significance to him. In the hands of a Merlin, it amplified his power. It could also serve to return a Merlin home to Camelot should he be weakened out in the world of man. In the hands of the gargoyles or others who had no magic, it would allow them to channel certain powers.

With it, the gargoyles would no longer be seen by Morgen. They could hide from her. But more than that, they would have the ability to travel through time without a Merlin opening a portal and sending them through.

Though they'd still be cursed into the stone bodies of gargoyles, Garafyn and Anir would be free.

Sighing, he tossed the amulet to Garafyn, who caught it with one taloned hand.

The gargoyle gaped as he realized what it was.

"Payment for services rendered."

The gargoyles exchanged a stunned look.

"You're not going to keep us enslaved like Morgen has?" Garafyn asked.

Kerrigan shook his head. "There's been enough slavery. You're free." From the corner of his eye, he saw the weepy look on Seren's face.

Garafyn's hand actually shook as he placed the medallion around his neck. Two seconds later, the gargoyles vanished.

"That was truly kind," she said softly. She was so beautiful as her tiny hand held his. How could something so small touch him so deeply?

Still, he scoffed at her sentimentality. "What do I know of kindness?"

A gentle smile curved her lips as she lifted his hand to place a sweet kiss to his knuckles, which were scarred by a lifetime of fighting. "You're learning."

Nay, he wasn't. He was what he'd always been. Cold. Calculating. Because if he wasn't, he would never be able to do what he was about to do.

Kerrigan caught Blaise's frown in the rearview mirror, but he quickly averted his gaze. Garafyn was right. The only hope they had was to separate.

And it was the last thing he wanted to do.

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes. "Brea! If you want your sword back, come and take it."