12

After a few hours I was finally feeling human again, the vision or whatever from the phylactery really had me shaken. I called the order and gave all the details to Simon over the phone. I was sure the vision had a reason and perhaps something in there would help Philip find more information in the archives. Or perhaps even help Thomas find a new weapon or something we could use in storage, like the oculus glass that lets us see the true form of The Lich on video. I could see Angiola shutter out the corner of my eye when I wrapped up the story. It was understandable, having lived through it, in his point of view, I couldn't even imagine how deranged the Lich had become after all these years. Simon and I went over the rest of the plans, Angiola and I would be leaving first thing in the morning, a limo would be waiting downstairs to take us to the airport. We had reserved the room for another 3 days but I would make an excuse in the morning about the early departure. As much as we were enjoying our honeymoon I could tell Angiola was as ready to destroy that artifact as I was.

Sĕigo and Shay had arrived back in the Utah desert, and parked the RV close to the caves entrance. They didn't see Lillith or any other vehicles in the area but perhaps she had car troubles or was out getting supplies. Shay had held back, and had not completely drained all of his captives. He had been cycling through a few of them and only feeding when absolutely needed. He would feast before they went after The Order. They had done a bit of searching but didn't see anyone else in the area at the moment. It was dark outside when they arrived so they both headed into the cave where their God dwelled. They were almost surprised to find that Lillith hadn't shown up at all. Shay had begun to half trust her and figured she would want to stay in the RV. Sĕigo didn't seem to completely trust anyone, even Shay, unless you counted his master.

Lillith drove into Las Vegas around 11 P.M. The Vegas strip was just getting busy and she was absolutely ecstatic. There was just an energy about the place that welcomed her. She had all the windows down on the Jeep and was taking in the lights, the people and the party. It had been ages since she had been in an area that was so dedicated to pleasure. She tossed the keys to the valet at Caesar's palace and walked in like she owned the place. The first thing was going to be getting out of her traveling clothes. She grabbed a drycleaning bag off a rack a bellhop was pushing, and headed for the ladies room. After she rinsed the road grime off her face, she slipped into a beautiful little black cocktail dress. She could tell it would be just her size when snagging it off the rack. Afterall, being a magical creature definitely has its benefits. After tossing her road clothes in the trash can, she walked out of the restroom, then back onto the strip. It was time for some shoe shopping and perhaps some jewelry, not that she would be paying for any of it, but still. After about 20 minutes of walking and shopping, she was all dolled up and ready for some fun. Lilith could have any man or woman in this town, and she knew it. In a place filled with, and built for beautiful people she still stood out in the crowd. “Hey beautiful, you working tonight?” Asked a man hanging out of the window of a limo. He was wearing an eight thousand dollar suit, and a seventy thousand dollar watch. Lillith smiled a predatory smile and got into the limo without being invited. He was rich and would probably be staying in a really nice room somewhere. She could drain him of some of that extra cash and make his Vegas trip a bit more memorable. Why not, she needed a vacation after the mess with Shay and Sĕigo anyway. “I'm NOT a working girl Mr. Spencer, but we can have a good night *and* you will have lady luck at your side.” His eyes widened when she called him by name but they quickly glossed over. Later that night at the Luxor, he won $47,000 at the craps table and another $86,000 between black jack and roulette. They were comped free drinks, and a beautiful suite for the night. Lillith promptly closed the door on his face when he tried to kiss her at the threshold. Dejected, he returned to his room where he had been staying at the MGM grand. When he woke up the next morning he realized the cash out slips for the casino in his pocket was only a note saying “Thanks for a good time. Lillith.” Signed with a heart.

Angiola and I boarded the jet, our equipment and the artifact had been stowed by the staff. Thankfully they didn't seem to be bothered by handling the bags at all. The phylactery was in a custom case with custom cut foam, lined with a thin layer of blessed silver. I really wanted to be back in Rome already, as much as I had truly enjoyed the honeymoon with Angiola. The whole thing still had me pretty disturbed... More so than I really wanted to admit. Once the jet took off and we were over the Atlantic ocean the knots in my stomach started to relax a bit. I made myself an old fashioned with some nice bourbon, and sat down across from Angiola. “I'm sorry love, did you want a drink? My mind is still racing.” Angiola smiled, her dimpled cheeks and plush lips taking my mind off of everything else at the moment. “Is that an old-fashioned?” I nodded, and she reached over, taking the glass from my hand. She took a sip and smiled. “Oooooh yeah, I'll have one of these please.” I chuckled softly to myself. “I'll make another, enjoy that one sweetheart.” I said leaning down and giving her a kiss, tasting the bourbon and bitters on her lips. The longer we were together, the more I found that we had in common. It was really nice, sorta odd, but nice. “Are you sure you're okay, love? It seems like every time we fly you are a bit tense. I know you're rattled from that vision, but you were sorta like this on the flight over too?” Angiola asked me. She was right, and very observant. I shook my head slowly. “Im not really a fan of flying.” I chuckled to myself. “I had a few planes shot out from under me during the second world war. I got blown out of one aircraft completely when the tail section came off. I fell for I don't know how many thousand feet before hitting the ground. I woke up a few hours later, hanging halfway into a German trench. I haven't been a fan of flying since then.” Angiola just stared at me slack jawed for a few moments. I knew she read the after action reports but during both world wars I couldn't keep the best records. “Okay, I gotta hear that story!” I begrudgingly obliged and told her about that flight and a bit about the aftermath as we cruised through the sky and back towards Rome. Several hours and a few drinks later we landed in Rome and were picked up by Simon. Once everything was loaded into the large SUV we headed back to The Order compound. It was an odd feeling. Although I had spent the last few hundred years working for The Order, I had spent more time here in Rome in the last six months than in the last 60 years. Once my apprenticeship was over, and I had proved myself to The Order I was assigned to my current posting in America. Sure, I traveled a lot and if something came up, like with the Dark Pope I would go directly where I was needed. It was nice working with Simon again. Although I reported directly to him, for the most part I don't think we had worked directly together since the second world war. I had the southern United States covered, and if I needed backup there was teams of Manus Patris around the globe. It was nice to be in Rome, despite the horrible circumstances. “I told Philip and Thomas all the details from the vision you had when you handled the Phylactery, they are both doing a deep dive into the archives but I'm not sure how much they may find. Reginald has been working on some new tech. With all the open space we will be covering, he wants to break out a few of his larger drones. The cloaking on them won't show up on radar, and I believe they are lightly armed. This should give us ample overwatch. How was New York? I know you guys were working, but did you at least have a good honeymoon?” Simon asked while driving us. Angiola was still giddy with excitement from the Met, “It was amazing! The museum was so beautiful, I took a TON of pictures! The hotel was gorgeous and it was so wonderful working together. Plus the Vampiric Flamingos, how crazy was that! I'm really enjoying the field work too. Anything from the Met? Do they know about the swap or the hack?” I could only smile, it had been a wonderful time, and we really worked well together. “Nothing about the Met, and our contacts at the NYPD have not reported anything. I'm glad you two had a good time. I'm sure we would all love to see the pictures you took after this is over with.” Simon told her, while pulling into the parking lot at the compound. “Any idea how we can destroy the Phylactery? I had that vision, even with thick leather gloves on... As long as I'm at the compound, I could handle it again. Without gloves this time... Perhaps I would be shown some more information?” I offered haltingly, although I hated to mess with it any more. I really never wanted to touch that cursed thing again, but any information on how to destroy it, or the Lich would be well worth it. “Hopefully that won't be necessary, let's see what Thomas and Philip have come up with before we do anything too extreme.” Said Simon, putting the vehicle in park.

Reginald greeted us as we walked into the compound. “Welcome home you two, how was the Honeymoon?” He asked, hugging Angiola. “It was amazing! I got a ton of pictures from the Met.” She said excitedly. “We got the Phylactery, now we need to figure out how to destroy it, and The Eater Of Souls.” I told Reginald, as he embraced me awkwardly. “I believe Thomas and Philip may have found a few things that would help with that.” Reginald said as he let go of me. Simon led the way back into the conference room and set the case containing the Phylactery down on the long table. Thomas and Philip came in and gave us a warm greeting as well. It was odd, no one really approved of the relationship when we got together but now it seemed like everyone was just thankful to have us back. I know me leaving wasn't the smartest thing, but I honestly couldn't cope with life after I lost her. It was nice to not feel like I was the wildcard anymore. I felt like I fit in more, for the first time in many years. It may have been the distance and rarity of interaction that gave me the feeling I didn't fit in well. Thomas and I worked together many times fine tuning weapons and enchantments, plus making Simon's sword. Philip had helped me out more times than I could count over the years with research on missions, not to mention the years I studied under him while I apprenticed. I couldn't say exactly what it was but things felt different. More like a family now, as opposed to a holy militia? “Reading through the archives it seems that we have never destroyed a Phylactery ourselves, however there are detailed instructions as to how they have been dealt with in the past. Accounts vary a bit but I believe we can make this work with minimal blowback.” Philip said once we had all sat down. The Phylactery itself was still in the box on the table. “Blowback?” I asked, hoping Philip would have more information. “Yes, all of the records were the same in this respect. When the Phylactery itself is destroyed, there is a blowback. The exact nature can vary from instantaneous death of every living organism in a 90 meter radius, to possession all the way to quote: A hardening of the heart and soul of all present. Basically everyone around it at the time of destruction is at a high risk. Obviously we want to avoid all of this, and just because we are blessed, doesn't mean we are completely immune to all the ill effects.”