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This is the second part to a sequel of Threads on a Tapestry. I recommend you read the first story before reading this so you will have a better understanding of the overall premise and the charactes.

This is a work of fiction. It contains explicit adult themes and as such is not recommended for readers under the age of 18.

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PATTERNS OF THE GRAND DESIGN - PART II

The streets were dark and silent as Victor brought his floater to a stop in the nearly empty parking structure of the museum. Both he and Sapphire exited the vehicle, careful to walk along the periphery of the lot to avoid as many security cameras as possible. Each time they approached one, the djin would reach up with a minor spell and disconnect the leads long enough for them to clear the camera's field of view. The weakness to this was anyone paying attention could chart their progress through a series of temporary blackouts. Victor hoped their new night guard was too inexperienced to notice.

They each dressed in black trousers, shirts and a black, nylon flight jacket. Clothing Sapphire had whipped up for them. The todd looked over at his mate. She almost seemed to glow with energy, for at her insistence they'd made love twice that afternoon, deliberately over-filling her magical reservoirs in anticipation of tonight's task.

When they reached the rear entrance, Sapphire gently reached out and tapped the bolt mechanism. There was a slight buzz then the door popped open as the locks were disengaged. The camera facing the door shut down in much the same way as the others.

"We're in," muttered the vixen. She pointed toward the video camera. "Are all these things connected somehow?"

"I think so." Victor replied. "They all feed into a monitor room on the second floor."

"Good," she nodded. Reaching up, the djin slowly floated off the floor until she was level with the camera. Placing one hand on the device, she formed a small sphere with the other and set it in front of the lens, reconnecting the leads simultaneously. "That should do it. Now all that they can see will be empty rooms and hallways."

"Will the spell last long?"

"Long enough," she replied, touching lightly down on the floor again.

"Victor grinned. "It's a good thing you aren't a professional cat burglar," he whispered.

"Silly todd! Why on earth would I want to steal cats?"

The Zorr did a quick double take then caught the amused gleam in her eye. Rolling his eyes in mock distain, he motioned for her to follow and the two figures stealthfully moved through the loading dock area to a set of stairs leading downward. "The tapestry's in storage on level ten," Victor whispered as he pulled the stairwell door open.

"Why not take the elevator?" Sapphire asked.

"The noise might alert security." The two of them cautiously descended the stairs, ears sharp and alert for even the smallest hint of detection. Reaching the bottom, they made their way across the work area to the storage vault. Finding a computer terminal, Victor opened the vault and accessed the museum's retrieval program. Moments later, a pair of robotic arms were bringing out the display case containing the tapestry and opening it. The todd's expression became one of both disbelief and fear. The tapestry figures were missing save for the images of a small unicorn foal and the lamp.

"Shit," he muttered. "What do we do now?"

"They couldn't have gone far," Sapphire replied. "I can still feel the spell's influence. It's weak, but I think I can reweave it with the magic I have. As I do, Kurok and Cypriana will be drawn back to the tapestry. I need you to find the security guard and the two of you get someplace safe. We can't allow either of the necromancers to draw mortal blood, otherwise their power might increase beyond my ability to restrain them."

"What would constitute a safe place?" Victor asked.

"They've taken a corporal form similar to the tapestry images. Find someplace secure with access into it that would be too small for them."

The todd thought for a moment then brightened, "The ticket booth at the front entrance. It's steel reinforced and the door is armored."

"Good enough," she replied. "I'll drop the spell I put on the camera system so you can find the security guard. Now go!"

Victor nodded in agreement, then leaned over and quickly kissed Sapphire on the lips before dashing back toward the elevators. There was no need for stealth now. He wanted the night guard to find him.

The vixen stood facing the empty tapestry. Reaching out, she placed both hands against the fabric and whispered a few words of ancient Aramaic. A soft blue glow spread outward from her hands, diffusing itself throughout the hanging. Where there was empty cloth, a pair of silhouettes formed, one that of a gigantic lion, the other a unicorn. The djin could feel her magical reservoir as it drained; stabilized momentarily, then drained again as she felt resistance. She began to worry.

* * * *

Victor rode the elevator up to the second floor of the museum, then turned left and headed for the video monitoring room. The guard was not there, but true to her word Sapphire had removed the blanking spell from all the cameras. He scanned the bank of monitors, looking for the night watchman. The Zorr spotted him finally, lying across a couch in the visitor's center, apparently sound asleep. He shook his head in disgust. The head curator was right. Finding good help really was getting harder.

Reaching into a cabinet he removed a set of keys, then unlocked the alarm panel box, shutting the system down. The last thing he wanted was for the police to respond to a silent alarm and unintentionally provide Kurok and Cypriana with the necromantic energy the needed.

Finishing, the todd quickly made his way downstairs, crossing several large display galleries as silently as possible. Reaching the visitors room he went over to the couch and shook the guard. When the man didn't respond Victor jumped over the sofa and grabbed him by the jacket lapels, pulling him into an upright sitting position. The guard's head bobbled loosely. Frightened, the Zorr grabbed at something on the guard's belt, then let go of him. The body tumbled forward, landing face down on the linoleum floor. The back of the human's shirt was covered with blood. There was a hole, the size of a half dollar, in the center of his back where something had pierced him through both the spine and heart.

Victor backed away from the corpse and looked around frantically, unsure of what to do next. From across the gallery came a haunting, cruel laugh that echoed as if crawling from the very bowels of the earth. The todd starred as a figure seemed to glide silently out of the shadows. It was the unicorn from the tapestry.

"My, my, my... look what I have here. If it isn't Krystalla's pet fox, wandering lost and all alone, without anyone to protect him." The equine advanced slowly across the gallery even as Victor continued to back away from her. She paused, standing over the guard's body and looked down. "Oh my! I hadn't realized there was any blood left in him. Well, waste not, want not!"

A dark reddish glow suffused her body and she seemed to melt, flowing easily from her quadruped form to that of a anthrop unicorn. She looked down at herself, her voice one of disappointment. "Still not quite free of the djin's spell," she sighed. "No matter, I'll have my true form back soon enough." She held her hand above the guard. Again, a dark red glow reached out, touching the back of the guard's uniform. The blood evaporated, flowing upward in a glowing mass into the unicorn's outstretched hand.

She looked over at Victor and smiled wickedly. "Such a gentle, kindly soul. I can see why Krystalla would fall in love with you; so full of passion and life. So full of... blood."

"How do you...?"

"How do I know what? About you and your bitch?" She laughed again, her voice taking on a tone that bordered on madness. "Krystalla trapped us within the tapestry, true enough, but we were not as dormant as she thought. We could see and hear everything happening around us. For twelve hundred years we watched as the world changed and evolved. We watched as magic faded from the land and as your precious djin went from one master to another, sleeping within her lamp for decades or centuries between each. We watched as man evolved, built mighty cities, and destroyed them time after time. Yet from all of that, mankind never truly learned, never grew beyond himself. He simply played at godhood. That ends tonight!"

"W... Wit... what do you mean?" Victor stammered.

"I mean that tonight, we rebuild our empire... Not through stealth and guile, as before, but through power. Magic will return to the world, and we... its true, and only practitioners, will show the rest of humanity what real power is." She chuckled evilly, slowing advancing on the Zorr. "And we have you to thank for it."

"Me?"

"Yes, foolish little construct. Not only did you bring us to this wonderful citadel of knowledge with its hidden treasures and lost artifacts, it was your wish that made our escape possible. Your wish for a mate weakened both the djin and her spell, making it possible for us to work free of the tapestry. Your love of that traitorous bitch will bring the world to its knees and usher in a new order. One where gods walk the earth, and man exists only to serve those gods."

Listening to Cypriana's words, Victor's mind began racing. Fear had given him a clarity he had never before experienced. He stopped and locked eyes with the equine for the briefest of moments, and then, incredibly, he began to laugh. Not the hysterical laughter of fear, or the soft laughter of humor. His laugh was one of triumph, of power and confidence. The Zorr knew something that Cypriana had not yet realized.

"Have you gone mad, little construct? Has your helplessness broken you mind?"

"Not at all," he managed to get out between laughs. "It's just...just that..."He laughed again.

"JUST WHAT?" the equine roared.

"You can't kill me," he said simply.

"You are mad."

"Think about it," the todd chuckled. "If you kill me, drain my blood and draw power from it, it's only one life. How much power would you need to defeat a djin? Kill me, and the spell binding Sapphire's power is broken. Kill me, and the spell entrapping you returns to full potency. Kill me... and you spend the rest of eternity in that tapestry."

Cypriana paused momentarily, taken aback by the sudden revelation. Then she smiled once more. "Fool... You've thrown away your advantage. I don't need to kill you, only hold you until your bitch mate is dead."

She reached out for Victor. The room thundered with four small, sharp explosions and the equine fell back, blood and meat trailing through the air in several thin streams.

"Don't you DARE call my mate that!" the Zorr growled. Smoke drifted upward from the muzzle of the revolver he'd lifted off the guard's belt. Red energy pulsed as the she screamed her rage. Cypriana thrashed, struggling to stand, the horrific bullet wounds slowly healing themselves.

Victor didn't hesitate. In a flash he was running out of the visitors gallery, hoping to loose Cypriana in the maze like corridors of the museum.

* * * *

Sapphire strained as her powers reached out to ensnare the two necromancers and pull them back into the tapestry. Something was definitely there, like a fish on the end of a hook, but its struggles were much more powerful than they should be. She could feel her reserves of magic slowly dipping lower and lower. She'd already burned through a quarter of the power she had and they were still resisting.

Shifting tactics, the vixen focused her spell on Kurok alone. If she could ensnare him first, she might have a chance to recover enough to take on Cypriana. Thin tendrils of blue energy reached out from the glowing silhouette of the lion and vanished into the darkened passages of the museum. There was a mental tug and Sapphire knew she had him. The tendrils thickened and stretched as she reeled the lion in, drawing even deeper into her reserves.

There was a deafening roar as Kurok was physically wrenched into the room, sliding like a phantom from the ceiling above. His lion form pulsed with a dark, reddish-black energy, and Sapphire immediately knew that the necromancer had recently drained someone's life essence. For an instant, she feared for Victor. Reaching out, she could still feel him, alive and well somewhere far above her. She returned her focus to Kurok, strengthening the pull on him despite the increased drain on her power. She knew the odds now favored her enemies; still she fought on,

The gigantic lion moved forward several feet then dug its claws into the floor, laughing insanely as he did. "So, our traitorous slave returns, hoping to imprison us once more within the tapestry. You shall not succeed Krystalla. We know you are weak... too weak to master both of us; perhaps even too weak to ensnare me. We shall drain you of the last of your power and feast on what is left of your half-mortal carcass."

"My name... is not... Krystalla!"

Once more the lion smiled. "Oh, we know that now little one." Kurok shrugged and the tendrils of light surrounding him burst apart, shattering like tubes of liquid neon. "We realized that from the moment you trapped us." Twin beams of red-black energy leapt from the lion's eyes. The vixen hurriedly threw up a shield between herself and the tapestry. Energy danced along its surface, splashing to the side tearing at the vault doors that surrounded them.

"I will admit you were very clever," The lion roared. "Giving us a false name, one that resonated so brightly with your essence that we both believed it to be your true name. Letting us control and command you for years, even as you secretly, stealthfully robbed us of our own might. Finally bedding both of us that last night, taking our strength into yourself, then weaving a prison from our own essence. It was a masterful ploy, wonderfully played." The lion's tone became one of bitter rage. "It is because of you we have suffered for it these last twelve hundred years!"

"I merely did as my then master commanded," the vixen replied. "You only have yourselves to blame, bringing the dark arts back into a world of light. Using your power to destroy and kill the enchanted creatures with which we share this land. You had to be stopped. My master knew this, so you were stopped, and so you shall be now."

Another twin blast of energy slammed against Sapphire's defenses, weakening her further. "Are you getting tired little half-djin? Can you feel your power draining away even as you try to reweave the spell? You were a fool to confront us. You haven't the strength needed to trap us again, and there is no one to whom you can turn for help." Without warning Kurok suddenly lifted his head, partially turning in the direction of the upper galleries as four small, distant popping sounds could be heard. "Cypriana?"

n that instant of distraction, Sapphire struck. A pair of massive blue hands reached out from the tapestry, scooped up the lion and pulled him into the fabric. Waves of reddish-black energy clashed with the blue-gold pulses thrown off by the djin. Surprised by the ferocity of the attack, Kurok roared his defiance, struggling, as his form seemed to flatten and bond itself to the tapestry. Flesh spun itself into silken thread and the creature's struggles slowly grew less and less powerful. The fabric glowed. Threads from it began bonding the image of the lion to its surface.

Kurok was well and truly ensnared, but the cost had been great. The vixen could feel her power waning. The last of her reserves had barely been enough to restore his half of the enchantment, but it was not stable. He would free himself again, and soon, if she could not find a source of manna upon which to draw.

Sapphire raised both hands, searching for even a small amount of innate power upon which to draw. She felt slightly dizzy. In more than twenty-seven hundred years of life, she had never depleted her energies to such a degree. She knew that draining them would not kill her, but it would be uncomfortable, perhaps even somewhat painful to exist without them.

THERE! The vixen could feel a subtle flow of energy coming from one of the museum workrooms. Staggering slightly, she made her way to the door and looked inside. Lying across a table was one of Victor's restoration projects. The large red, white and blue rectangular piece of cloth was old, but from it emanated a small amount of power. Men of courage had fought and died for this symbol, and in the process, imbued it with a part of their essence. She could draw upon that to stabilize the spell on Kurok.

Going over to the table, Sapphire reached out to touch the flag. She had to be careful, for if she drew too much of the essence from it, it would fall apart, a victim of age and corruption. She had just begun to draw the manna into herself when something struck her hard in the back. The vixen was thrown violently against the table. Momentarily stunned, she fell to the work shop floor. Her head had struck the table and she could feel a small trickle of blood seeping down her face. Disoriented, the djin rolled onto her back and looked up. There stood Cypriana, her eyes filled with malice.

The room filled by a pulse of red-black energy and the blue-furred vixen felt herself lifted off the floor and hurled against a nearby wall, stunning her even further. The world slowly faded from her view as she passed out.

* * * *

Victor ran through the display galleries, the sound of hooves hot on his tail. He knew the museum layout better that even some of the elder curators. Hours spent walking through the galleries during his break time was now paying off in spades. He heard Cypriana off to his left, approaching the prehistoric gallery. He ducked right, through the Egyptian exhibit and into the natural history wing of the museum. He paused, hiding behind a miniature diorama of the Cetaceous Period and watched as the unicorn bolted past the gallery entrance. The Zorr had the distinct impression she wasn't even trying to find him. With a sinking heart, he knew she was going to confront Sapphire with her newly augmented powers. Somehow, he had to help his mate. The question was... how?

Victor thought back to what Cypriana had said to him. She'd called the museum a citadel, filled with hidden treasures. What would constitute a treasure to a mage? Magic, of course. He remembered Sapphire once telling him that magic still existed in the world, but mankind had lost to ability to recognize it, preferring to use words such as fate or coincidence. An idea sprang into his head. There was a display in the Ancient Civilizations gallery that was on loan to them from the Hofsburg museum. One item in that display might help, but if the legends were true, that help might come at a price.

The sound of hoof beats had vanished by the time Victor reached the Hofsburg collection. It was locked. Grimacing, the todd hefted a large shield and smashed it into the display case. Reaching in through the shattered glass, he removed an old, broken spear tip. From its design, he knew it had come from a Roman hasta, or long lance. It was the only such one in the case. He slipped this into his pocket then grabbed the Roman gladius next to it. Picking up the shield, he dashed from the room, heading back to where the tapestry was.

* * * *

Sapphire woke to find herself naked and bound, spread eagle, across the top of the worktable. The blackened remains of the flag had been tossed carelessly into a nearby corner, drained of its essence. Next to it sat what was left of her shredded clothing. She looked up to find the gloating visages of Kurok and Cypriana. The unicorn had used the flag's manna to free her husband.

"Look, my love," said Cypriana, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Our little toy vixen is awake. Shall we play awhile, little Krystalla? Shall we show you what pain feels like? I doubt you've ever experienced it before. It should be fun."

Sapphire laughed defiantly at the pair. "Fourteen hundred years old, and you two still act like a pair of immature adolescents. Do you truly think you can frighten me?"

In response, the unicorn drew her horn sharply across the vixen's abdomen, slicing deeply through skin and muscle. The djin stifled a scream as blood flowed freely down her stomach. There was a bluish-white pulse of energy and the wound slowly healed itself. Smiling wickedly, Cypriana drew the blood which had escaped into herself and her body glowed reddish-black.

"Delicious," she muttered, looking up a Kurok. "She still has enough essence within her to feed both of us."

There was another pulse of red and black as the lion took on a more anthrop form. He reached across the table, trapping Sapphire's head in one massive hand. "Do you remember our last night together, Krystalla? Do you remember how the three of us made love? You took the form of a beautiful, young hermaphrodite so you could please both of us at the same time. You took essence from us, promising power in return. Instead you betrayed us! Well, now I shall return the favor!"

Razor sharp claws popped from each finger, savagely raking the vixen's body. More blood welled up and the djin screamed in agony. Cypriana was right. She had never before felt this kind of pain. Once again, there was a blue-white flash and the wounds healed themselves, more slowly than before. She was weakening. Her blood flowed into Kurok as dark red streams of energy.

"Go on, my love," laughingly urged the unicorn, her eyes blazing with hatred. "Take her as she deserves... like the slave slut she pretended to be!"

Sapphire twisted and writhed on the table, trying desperately to break her bonds, but she was too weak... too unfocused and the metal table clamps were too strong. The massive lion laughed at her feeble struggles and climbed up on the table with her.

"I think our little Krystalla doesn't appreciate our attentions." He reached a paw between her legs and began rubbing it against her mound, gently dragging his claws through her fur without leaving a mark. His rough tongue lapped harshly against her breasts. Its coarseness irritated the nipples as it scraped away layer upon layer of fur and skin until here too blood began flowing. Suckling them, he drew even more essence from the vixen even as she squeezed her eyes shut against the pain.

Kurok shifted position, bringing the tip of his cock to rest against the pink folds of Sapphire's sex. He thrust into her savagely, his massive rod tearing and brutalizing the vixen. She screamed again as a white-hot agony lanced through her. The anthrop lion brought his full weight down on the djin as he proceeded to thrust in and out of her, hilting himself so deeply as to rip at her passage.

Barely able to breath, let alone scream, she moaned and whimpered under the cruel attack. Blood began flowing down her passage, lubricating it enough for Kurok to continue. Reddish-black streamers of energy surrounded the two figures. These the lion hungrily absorbed. He scratched at the vixen, drawing more blood, but this time there were no blue-white pulses of healing essence. Sapphire's power was completely drained.

The rape went on for several agonizing minutes, with Cypriana urging her husband to even more brutal acts, laughing as she watch the vixen's suffering. The djin lost all sense of time, wishing only that the torture would end. When it did, it was both sudden and unexpected.

Two shots rang out, striking Kurok in the side of the head. He staggered back, roaring in pain as he withdrew from the vixen. The wounds quickly healed themselves and he looked up to see Victor Peabody, standing at the doorway. The Zorr tossed aside the now empty revolver and drew the gladius out from behind the large shield.

"You again?" Cypriana screamed. "You dare to stand against us... against gods! Worthless whelp! You've earned this pain!" She brought her hands together and a scarlet bolt of energy leapt out then splashed uselessly against the Roman shield. Her eyes widened in disbelief. Surely no mortal creature could stand against them. She brought her hands up a second time, then a third, increasing the ferocity of her attack each time, all to no avail. "This is not POSSIBLE!"

"STOP!" roared Kurok. "Cypriana... Stop! The beast has a magic shield! You're draining your essence against it!" He gestured toward Sapphire. "The bitch is still alive, her master spell's still unbroken." Sure enough, as he watched his wife reverted once more to her full unicorn form.

"Nooo!" She screamed, lowering her head and charging the Zorr. He dodged her attack, simultaneously swinging out with the gladius and opening a brutal wound on her side.

Victor tucked, rolled and regained his feet with unnatural ease. He felt almost as if his body were responding to the attacks without conscious thought. He ducked instinctively, avoiding an attack by Kurok on his unprotected back. Again the sword leapt forward, catching the necromancer along the underside of his throat. For anyone else, it would have been a death stroke. He crumbled to the floor, red-black essence crackling about him as he healed. The shield came up of its own volition, blocking and turning an equine style kick from Cypriana. Again the short sword slashed, opening a wound on her hip. More of her power crackled into the chill air of the vault.

Grim faced, the Zorr reveled in their sounds of agony; payback for what they had done to his mate.

Kurok, recovered from the sword strike, gestured with one hand. The spell, intended to disarm rather than strike, caught the lower edge of the shield and ripped it out of Victor's hand. The Zorr quickly backed away from the two necromancers, putting them to his front.

"Now... Together!" Two twin sets of reddish-black energy burst forth coming together and once more splashing off Victor as if an impenetrable bubble surrounded him. Now it was the lion's turn to stare in astonishment at the fox morph. "It wasn't the shield!" he yelled. "The sword! Take it from him."

Charging in from both sides, the two necromancers tried to overwhelm Victor. He dove between Kurok's legs, stabbing him in the butt as he rolled back to his feet. Once more he quickly sidestepped the thrust of Cypriana's horn then brought his sword down against it. The gladius shattered, but in turn it broke the unicorn's horn off near its base. Reddish-black energy pulsed, then faded completely as the necromancer's power was drained away. Her body unwove itself as the tapestry's spell, weak though it was, reasserted itself. Long strands of thread reached out from the unicorn, attaching themselves to the cloth once more.

"KKKUUURRROOOCCCKKKKKK..." Cypriana's voice faded like a lost echo in a cavern as she was once more woven into the tapestry.

For a brief moment, there was silence. It was shattered by a deafening roar. Weakened, Kurok had reverted to the form of a Numidian lion. It leapt at the rapidly tiring Zorr, catching him full across the face and ripping out his right eye. Victor screamed in agony as he slammed into the vault control panel.

Kurok circled between the Zorr and the tapestry, laughing at the fox. "What now little pet? Think you're good enough to use that little piece of broken magic to heal yourself as I can. You've lost! I shall drink the remaining essence of your bitch and you, then free my mate once more. You cannot stop us!"

Pulling himself upright, Victor looked across at Kurok and smiled. His hand slapped down on the panel and the vault's retriever arms grabbed the lion by his mane and jerked him upright, like a kitten being carried by the scruff of its neck. The Zorr raced forward and jumped, driving the broken end of the gladius through Kurok's breastbone and into his heart. His body flared with a dark red essence that quickly faded. The necromancer's scream shook the foundations of the building. His body unraveled, weaving itself back into the tapestry alongside Cypriana.

Victor painfully pulled himself off the floor, picking up the broken sword. He looked up at the tapestry, locking eyes with Kurok. "Don't you EVER call my mate a bitch!"

The Zorr tiredly went over to the worktable and undid the clamps holding Sapphire imprisoned there. She slid gently into his arms, opening her eyes in exhaustion. "It's you!" she muttered softly, smiling up at Victor. She looked around in confusion. "Kurok and Cypriana?"

"Back where they belong," he replied.

"How...?" In answer to her question he pulled the spearhead out of his jacket pocket and held it up for her to see. Her eyes went wide in astonishment. "The Heilige Lance! Where did you get it?"

"I just remembered what you told me about how magic is hidden all around us, and voila! He who holds the Spear of Destiny shall never know defeat in battle." He gently pushed the object into Sapphire's hand. "Here, I think right now you could use this more than I."

Smiling, the vixen grasped the spearhead and slowly, carefully drew upon its manna. There was a soft, bluish-white glow as the djin healed first herself, then Victor. The lance was a powerful artifact and she was easily able to fully restore the tapestry spells and clean up around the museum before they both placed the artifact back in its display.

"What are we going to tell the board of governors about all this?" asked the todd.

"What's to tell?" she replied. "The video tapes are all blanked due to a power failure, everything's back to normal, and I altered the guards body so it looks like he died from a heart attack while taking a nap. Tragic... but perfectly believable."

Victor Peabody looked at the vixen and smiled. "You are absolutely incredible, magic lady."

"If you think I'm incredible now" she said, playfully tousling his hair, "just wait until we get home! I've a lot of recharging to do and we're going to be busy for at least the next week!"

"WHAT!"