Lilly's Torment(3)

"You do like giving her reasons to threaten you, don't you?" Gavriel asked softly with a grin.

"Well she doesn't exactly need reasons to threaten me. But they get old  and boring, so I give her new reasons. Life is too boring otherwise,"  Artaxias pointed out.

Gavriel rolled his eyes and rubbed a hand over his face. "Quit harassing  her. It's going to be hard enough to tell her I'm going to help in this  fight without you poking at her."

"I don't poke. She pokes, stabs, and tries to gut me every chance. I  just poke back as a survival strategy," he said with a lazy shrug.

"Well, let's go and poke the woman with this news."



* * * *



November 2029



The war was over, and now the humans had to rebuild. Those past the  former Veil hadn't been hit nearly as hard, though the humans had tried.  They'd held the lines and pushed the humans back. Many human cities  would never be what they once were. Not a bad thing, really. The past  was dead and over, and a future had to be found for all.

There were many humans, the instigators, who were arrested, detained,  and put into a specially designed prison. They were treated with more  respect than any prisoner from the races had ever been. They were fed,  kept healthy, and eventually stood trial for their acts against the  races.

Over time they were forgotten, dismissed by their fellow humans. But  they were never released. Not just because of what they'd started, but  because of what they represented. The humans didn't want to be reminded  of what their people could do when faced with the unknown. They'd called  themselves enlightened, beyond pettiness, and yet in one grand showing,  they'd proven how wrong they were.

Then the changes began. The races stepped up and told the human race, as  a whole, how things would be from there out. A new agency, the AEDA or  the Alien Earth Defence Alliance, was created. A place that would police  the worlds as a whole, both the humans and the races.

A new central government was raised, one that had say worldwide.  Representatives from each country, state, and province had a place, a  say. But the laws that came into place, overriding everything  previously, were from the races. They were sacred and unchallenged. The  humans knew who was the greater power in the world, and it wasn't them.



* * * *



December 2034



"We've found a replacement for Don Gaber," the captain told them. "But  I'm going to need you to work with her and get her up to speed,  Gavriel."

"Her?" He sat forward. "It's a woman?"                       
       
           



       

"That a problem, Agent?"

"Uh, no." He looked to Artaxias. "I've got no problem with a woman  taking the spot. Just curious how we got lucky enough to get her."

"She was FBI and was injured on the job. She was taking a leave to  finish her recovery before her director died. The new director and I  know one another, we got to talking and one thing led to another. She's a  fully trained field agent, but she's got a sharp mind and knows her way  around weapons of all sorts. So she's ours. Took me a while, but I got  her on our team. She's going to be here in the first week of January.  I'd prefer she was strictly in the armory, but she's also a viable  agent. That's why I'm assigning her to you two."

"Just to clarify, is she allowed out of the armory if it's needed?"  Gavriel asked knowing his friend was thinking the same thing.

"She is. She's licensed and has more black belts than I even want to  think about. She can hold her own, not against most of the races, but  humans for sure. Though, I wouldn't discount her around the races. She  could likely do a lot of damage. She's well versed in the races, as it  was part of the FBI and other agencies' courses when we all linked up.  She likely knows just where to hit to hurt and give her the time to get  away or end things."

"Good to know," Gavriel muttered. Sighing, he stood up and took the file the captain handed them.

"She's one of the golden children among the agencies," the captain  warned them. "I'm not suggesting you tiptoe around her. Hell, she likely  won't with you. But go easy until you all figure one another out. After  that just make sure I don't hear of anything and we'll all be good."

"Understood, Cap," Gavriel said, lifting the file in a slight salute.  They walked out of the man's office and headed for their own. Once  behind closed doors, he turned to look at his friend. "Well, what are  your thoughts?"

"We need to know more about her before she arrives," Artaxias said as he sat in his chair.

"So we pull her records, dig in her past. and find out just who Agent Webb is in the human world." Gavriel shrugged.

"Seems coincidental, though."

"How's that. Ax?" He glanced up from the file he'd just opened.

"She's our mate. Rather coincidental that she's now being assigned to our tender care."

Gavriel blinked and looked at her name, "Son of a bitch. How the hell  did you see that?" he asked, glaring at the man reclining opposite him.

"Better eyesight has its benefits." The Vhampire grinned slowly, letting his longer-than-normal incisors flash slightly.

"Asshole." Gavriel shook his head as Artaxias, or "Ax" as he called him, chuckled deeply.





Chapter Three




"That would be me, Agent Webb," a deep voice said from behind her. As  she turned, the large male bowed his head slightly. "My name is  Artaxias," he said. She noted that when he spoke, it was in a very  careful manner. "If you'll follow me, Agent, we'll get you situated in  the office and then show you where the toys are at."

"Wow." Lilly looked up, and up some more. "I think that I'm going to  call you Ax instead. Do you mind?" She gave him her hand and smiled.  "I'm Lilly Webb, the new pain in your ass." She was nothing if not  sometimes slightly joyful, even if it was only hiding the insecurities  that she held so close to her at all times. "I think that it's going to  be something else, getting used to you guys being as massive as you are.  Don't worry though, I promise that I really can carry my own weight."

Taking her hand, he bowed over it slowly. "I'm very sure you can do  anything you put your mind to, Agent Webb. And you may refer to me in  whatever manner you wish as long as it's nothing derogatory."  Straightening, he reached beyond her and, drawing his arm back, handed  her an ID card. "Wear this at all times in the building, it has to be  showing somewhere on your body. Unless you're in uniform and then it's  not necessary. Now, we should get upstairs and introduce you to the  other person in this partnership. Shall we?" He waved a hand toward the  bank of elevators she noticed only after the gesture.

"I think we shall. Quick question, though." Lilly looked up at him and  bit her lower lip. "Is he as large as you are? If so, I think that I  totally need to have a step stool to bring with me because otherwise I  will never be able to look you in the eyes and that just won't work for  me, at all. I want to be able to look you in the eye so that I can  measure just what you are telling me and see if I trust you or not," she  teased, her grin showing that she was doing just that, teasing.

"He's a little shorter than I am, a couple inches by your measurement  system. I'm sure there is a step stool in the armory you could use," he  told her. Stepping into the elevator, he punched the floor button and  then looked at her. "We don't lie. That's a penchant humans seem to fall  back on. Those of us from the realms never saw the need to do so. While  the truth may hurt and be unwanted, we always give it, as it's easier  to deal with truth than unraveling lies."                       
       
           



       

"Good. That is exactly what I want. I want and I need the full truth all  the time." Lilly fell silent once more. She leaned against the elevator  wall and chewed her lower lip. She wondered just what he would think if  she told him that she had been dreaming of him for the last ten years,  give or take. It might not be a very good thing, especially if she told  him that there was always another man in the dreams as well.

When the elevator stopped he led her out into a reception area and then  beyond. They moved through some desks toward an office. He pushed the  door open and stood aside to let her in, "This is where we are when we  need to do paperwork or make calls. This"-he indicated the other male  standing up-"is Gavriel. Gav, this is Lilly Webb, our new armorer."

"Agent Webb, pleasure to meet you." He nodded to her before looking to Artaxias. "You taken her down yet?" he asked.