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Chapter 142: Hangar's On

Nathanial leapt to his hindpaws in blind fury, but Dirk grabbed his shoulders and kept him from dashing off. "Nathanial! You have a concussion! Lie back down."

The Akita snarled at his friend. "They have Avery hostage. She's at their hangar." He shook Dirk's paws from his shoulders and ran toward the crowded security checkpoint. _"Move!"_A tiny portion of his mind noted the Bone Spirit following closely behind and Agent Hugh shaking his head in annoyance. The agent didn't try to stop them but rather directed the police -- who must've come out while he was stunned -- to arrest the Knights that had tried to help Mr. Hubbard.

The crowd parted with some gasps and shrieks. Nathanial ignored them. He bulled through the thin barricades forming the queue on the other side of the checkpoint, using his telekinesis to ensure the fabric didn't entangle his hindpaws. He reached the railing separating the upper level from the open space going down to the lower one in seconds. The gap between that and the windows to the outside was a bit less than three metres, so he jumped up onto the railing and dove toward the windows. He released a telekinetic burst from his outstretched fists a few centimetres before they connected with the reinforced glass. It shattered, though it took a bit of 'encouragement' to clear enough space for him to fit through. The laminated safety glass sagged and stretched outward, leaving a hole much like the paper from those covered hoops he'd seen once during a televised motorcycle stunt.

Dirk didn't follow him through the small opening but rather just leapt over the railing with a warning cry to those below. He landed on his hindpaws and one fist, cracking the tile beneath him, and barrelled through the doors, almost knocking them off their hinges. The glass in them fragmented, too, but kept from splintering off like it was designed to. Nathanial's telekinesis kept him airborne long enough for him to land on the grass-covered hill on the far side of the road. He somersaulted once before regaining his footing. He idly noted the news van had been moved closer to the hangars.

Out of sight the cameras, Dirk removed his glasses and manifested. Bone flowed up from under his collar to create a helmet and from under his cuffs to form gauntlets and spiked, cleated boots. Dirk didn't seem to care that a few witnesses may have seen him from a distance as long as he wasn't on film to provide proof. Nathanial knew there were some security cameras and maybe even some camera-phones around, but they wouldn't pick up much detail -- and besides, he had a cover story ready anyway. Unfortunately, detail wasn't needed to show a portal suddenly appearing and the two of them disappearing. The two dodged between parked cars and buildings, following a direct path to the hangar two kilometres away.

How could Nathanial help Avery? The weather, other than a single dark cloud high overhead, was far too nice to give her any sort of boost, but there wasn't much he could do about that.

Unless...

The gods had their eyes on him, right? One of them in particular seemed to have some sort of antipathy to Liam and maybe even_him,_ if the headache he got from that storm was any indication. The gods also hated being insulted, so if he let loose a rather refreshing stream of invectives against a certain thunder god, perhaps Avery could free herself.

Then Nathanial remembered where she was -- a hangar full of explosives. Um, perhaps giving her that much power -- power she seemed to lose control of when angry -- wasn't such a great idea.

Dirk spoke after a minute, hardly winded from chasing after the Akita; his voice echoed oddly from inside his helm. "Nathanial, think before you act. I hope you learnt that from what happened earlier. You aren't invulnerable or omnipotent."

"I know." He cast his senses toward the hangar. They were still too far back to reach it, but there were a number of parked cars and other hangars along the same side road that Knights could hide behind. He ignored the people gawking at them from passing cars as he ran.

A fragment of supersonic metal entered his sensory range, followed quickly by the sound of a high-powered rifle firing. A sniper. Nathanial nudged the bullet with his telekinesis to easily deflect it aside and jumped over Dirk when the bodyguard tried to tackle him to cover his body. The bullet thudded into the grass between the side road and the main road to the airport.

"Dirk, I can easily stop bullets at that range. Don't worry."

The Spirit used his telekinetic control over bones to propel himself forward and swiftly catch up; he actually reminded Nathanial of Marvel's Iron Man or Magneto -- the armour looked more like Iron Man, but Dirk's control over the material was far more Magneto-esque.

Nathanial cast the Society agents' scrying spell and sent it forward. The sniper, a Sportive Lemur, sat on a catwalk inside the hangar by an open window. The window was roughly at a two-storey height, though there were no 'storeys' in the building. Eight more Knights scurried for defensible positions inside as warning of his approach made the rounds. Avery sat on a chair, paws duct-taped behind her back, and her hindpaws to the legs of the chair. Her Bluetooth earpiece still recorded everything; they must've thought it was just a phone.

Nathanial did his best to give no indication he knew where the sniper was. *Dirk. Last hangar in the row, the open window facing the street.*

*I see it. I can't see the gunman from this angle, though, or from this distance.*

*His eyes are at a level halfway up the left side of the window. He's actually angled so his body is behind the wall on the far side.* Nathanial could almost see Dirk processing that.

*I could fire a 'bullet' at him, but it's well beyond my range of control. I really doubt I can hit him.*

*All right. He's not a threat at this distance, anyway. If he shoots again, I can deal with him.* A tiny portal opened along the path of the bullet could easily return the 'package' to the 'sender.'

Inside the hangar an argument started up, so Nathanial veered to run along the front of the buildings lining the side street. It slowed them down, but this way he could duck into a hidden spot to open a portal, if need be. The argument seemed to be centred on Avery. An Armadillo faced off with the Gecko. "Damn it, Jose! Why did you bring her in? You could've just told her to bugger off!"

The Reptile shook his head. "She's a reporter, Tex, and one of those damned beasts. She's in tight with the Marks pup, so I'm hoping it'll keep him off our backs while we finish here. I don't want to risk annoying the Temple again. They're on the warpath."

'Tex' slapped his banded tail on the ground behind him and crossed his arms. "That is what has me concerned more than anything else. I didn't sign up to start a war. I didn't sign up for anything_that would need mortar shells. I want to _protect people from threats, not be the threat." He pointed emphatically at Avery. "I don't care who or what she is, I don't hold with taking hostages. Even more so since she's the daughter-in-law of Luke McDougal, and _Geoff's_mother. You want war? Touch a patch of fur on her, and you'll get one."

The sniper kept a look out of the window, but the squabble had everyone's attention. Jose looked nervous but kept his pistol in hand and pointed more or less at Avery. "Don't let Chris hear you talk like that. He's backing this all the way. I heard he kicked Emily out for defending Gisele, Arthur, Patrick, and Lars. You'll get booted out, too. We're ordered to move these crates out right away, and that's what I'm doing. I don't know what they're for, and I don't care. I'm following orders. The Temple needs them, and that's enough for me."

The Armadillo shook his head. "Blind fool. Did you consider that someone might be using the Temple for their own ends? Is this really in the best interest of the Knights? Hardly. The Society won't stand for it, and no one else will, either. We can't stand up to them in open confrontation. Hell, for all I know, this is just Chris's agenda. I_haven't received orders from anyone but _him. Have you?"

Again Jose didn't appear to have an answer. "No, but he speaks for them, and he can kick me out. I follow orders, and those orders are to move boxes."

"And I follow my conscience." Tex grabbed his medallion and yanked it forward. The chain snapped and he tossed the bauble aside. "Fuck this shit. Move them if you want; just give me Avery. I'll keep her aside and quiet for a bit as one last favour, but I'm not about to let you put her in harm's way. The Marks pup is coming, and maybe returning her will convince him to back off. I don't know if it'll work, but I bet holding her won't stop him."

Nathanial considered that as he ran. Should_he back off if Avery was set free? This Tex guy was right: you _don't_need grenades, mortar shells, or rocket launchers to protect neighbourhoods from bumps in the night, and it looked like the Temple of Solomon was set to start fighting Spirits. The closest clan was the Halifax one, so these weapons could theoretically be _used within the day. Nathanial slid to a stop and stepped into the gap between two hangars; one of them was empty, so he quickly opened a portal near to the Knights' warehouse and led Dirk into it.

Jose seemed torn, especially when two more Knights tore off their amulets, tossed them aside, and stood by Tex. Nathanial used the pause to explain what was going on to Dirk, and to open portals just large enough to put a Mage Sigil on each van. Saving Avery was the highest priority right now; he could track the vans anywhere they went and let the RCMP and Society deal with the weapons.

The Gecko looked at the other five Knights that still kept their medallions on and seemed to draw strength from their resolve. "No, I'm keeping her. He might try to kill us all if she's let go. At the very least he'll probably interfere with our mission."

Tex rolled his eyes. "Right. What reason would he have to stop some guys moving boxes into a van? Holding his friend's mother hostage will guarantee he'll investigate. If you just got her to go away, or even ignored her, he'd probably still be back in the terminal. God Almighty, you can be so stupid."

Jose moved the gun away from Avery to point it at his friend; Tex instantly pointed his back. In less than a second there was a full standoff. "This is my last favour to you. Get out while you still can."

Tex's eyes narrowed. "Not without the woman." The sniper high above him had his rifle pointed at the Armadillo, and his finger tightened on the trigger.

Nathanial opened a tiny portal into the Knights' hangar high up in the rafters and projected his voice through, though the sound was oddly distorted by the open space, making it echo weirdly. "I am the terror that flaps in the night!" All of the Knights, even the ones who'd just quit, whipped their guns around to point toward the place his voice came from. Gods, that was hilarious, and the smell of their fear... He shivered in delight and moved the portal to another location. This one was in a back corner behind some boxes. "I am the fluff that sticks to your nose!" He hated when that happened. Getting bits of fur off a damp nose was a real pain in the ass; Cats were lucky in that regard. He flipped the portal to a spot in the middle of several barrels of jet fuel. "I am... Well, you guys know who I am."

The Gecko's hands shook a little. "Nathanial Marks."

Nathanial beamed. "Yup! It doesn't sound all that impressive after my intro, though." He wagged his finger at the airplane in front of his portal. He was so wrapped up in this he forgot he wasn't actually in the same room as them. "Now, Jose, what's this all about? These guys were your friends. Do you get your jollies from betraying those people who are doing the right thing? From what I know about you people, Mr. Tex is right: most of you signed up to protect people. The Wolverine with us in the tower--"

Tex cut in. "Arthur McDowell."

Nathanial continued talking. "Mr. McDowell said it then when Dave pulled off his mask: wrong is wrong, and that he would've fought to save the plane if there was just a single innocent person on board. Sergeant Heimdolf told me much the same. Shooting a plane of innocents down is wrong. Holding Mrs. McDougal hostage is wrong. Smuggling illegal weaponry and munitions is wrong, especially when you have reason to believe they'd be used to launch a genocidal attack. I don't care what you think about me, or...well, about anything; you know that this is wrong."

One of the other Knights, a Stoat, frowned. "'Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.' Matthew 7:15. Don't listen to him, Jose." The Stoat stepped toward Avery and jabbed the barrel of his pistol into her muzzle. Her eyes grew large, and she whimpered. "Get out, Tex, and you stay the fuck away, mutt, or she dies."

Nathanial telekinetically reached into a crate of grenades and pulled the pins out of fifteen of them -- he made sure to hold the levers in place so they didn't arm. A bit of Dark energy weakened the wooden slats of the crate, making it an easy task for the grenades to 'accidentally' spill out in plain view of the trio. The way almost everyone dove for cover was hilarious.

The Mage began singing Oogie Boogie's Song_from _The Nightmare Before Christmas:

"Oh, brother, you're something.

You put me in a spin.

You aren't comprehending

The position that you're in.

It's hopeless, you're finished.

You haven't got a prayer

'Cause I'm Mr. Oogie Boogie

And you ain't going nowhere."

The song was so fun it always made him laugh, though this time it sounded more like a cackle. "No, seriously, you really_don't understand the position you're in. One little hostage you see, yet seven there truly be. One _you have bound so tight. Six I have, held by fright. Little bombs I've placed around, more than just those on the ground. Should the Wolf find harm, the bombs shall arm..." He dropped his voice an octave and snarled, "...and blow you higher than Mount fucking Olympus. Capice?"

Tex and the other two ex-Knights left their guns on the ground when they stood. The Armadillo glanced around as if looking for him. "I...think we'll just be going. Okay?"

Nathanial waved his paw dismissively, partly at Tex and partly at the increasingly nervous Dirk. The Bone Spirit couldn't see_what was going on, but he heard most of it through the tiny portal. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. I have no quarrel with you." The trio bolted for the exit. Nathanial tapped into his connection to Snow and opened a mini portal inside a box a short distance behind Avery and the two Knights beside her. His voice rumbled with the fear-inducing growls of his pack. "As for _you lot, I have a large bone to pick with you." Jose hadn't so much as blinked since the grenades spilt out; he stared at the explosives the way a toad stares at a snake before it got eaten.

The unnamed Stoat shook with fear but held his spot. "The Lord is my shepherd--"

Nathanial cut him off. "--for I am too stupid to think on my own. I shall unquestioningly follow any order by every charlatan who claims to speak in his name. Now, dumb ass, let's make this clear, these explosives -- and more -- are rigged with dead man's switches. Should something happen to me, boom! Now that that is clear, I'm dropping in to negotiate for Mrs. McDougal's release. I seek to help facilitate communications and terminate hostilities." A blaster rifle or light sabre would make it much easier, but words might suffice. He sent Dirk a quick message while a few hasty, muted conversations broke out. *I'm going in to draw attention, and then I'll open a portal for you up on a catwalk. Stay hidden up there as backup. If trouble starts, I'll drop Avery through a portal to somewhere safe, recordings be damned. You do what you do best.*

That got a fiendish smile from behind the bone helm. *But what I do best isn't very nice.*

*I'm counting on that.* Nathanial noted things had quieted down a touch in the hangar; the Stoat moved his pistol away from Avery's muzzle, but it remained close to her head. "I'm on my way." He opened a portal by the ceiling and dropped down to the floor. The grenades lay scattered between him and Jose. Every gun swivelled to point at him, so he smoothly snatched up a pinless grenade and began tossing it into the air and catching it again with his left paw. That ensured he was the focus of attention, enabling him to bring Dirk in. "Howdy do, neighbours." The silence was deafening. He smiled and back-flipped up onto a stack of crates. He crouched low on it, holding the grenade by his hindpaws, and cocked his head to one side. "Why so serious?" He cackled and lay down on his right side. He propped his head up and resumed playing catch with the grenade. The clatter of the lever every time he caught it made such a lovely noise.

Every fur-bearing Fur had fluffed up, and bits of sweat leaked out from under Jose's scales. He shivered in delight. 'Gods above and below, the aroma of all this fear.' Dirk began preparing for an assault; small chips of bone drifted down from the catwalk and fastened to the clothing of each Knight. Nathanial noticed they went to the knees, the ankles, the elbows, the wrists, the groin, and the collar. Dirk would be able to gauge the position and posture of each guy with near-certainty even if he couldn't see them. Nathanial's opinion of the bodyguard rose again.

The Gecko stammered, "P-Put that down! Are you crazy!?"

Oh, what a hilarious question! He cackled wildly for several seconds before he controlled himself. "Yes. Next question." He bounced up to crouch on the crates again. "No, seriously." He snorted. "Why do you think I'm in Nova Scotia and not off fighting terrorists overseas? I don't think I'm off my rocker, but other people do. I just enjoy my work. It's fun." He smiled hungrily. "Oh, so fun." He put the grenade down, clapped his paws together, and hopped off the crates. "But enough about me, let's talk about sunshine, lollipops, and hostages. Three of my favourite things." He pointed at Avery. "I want her released."

The nameless Stoat drawled, "Well, I want a billion dollars, and we both know how likely that is." He squeezed the trigger a bit, hesitated, and then fired a shot at Nathanial. The pause gave Nathanial time to prepare. The Mage created a few Shields at the edge of half of the gun's muzzle. This bent the bullet's path radically, but Nathanial used his telekinesis to alter the bullet's path even more to ensure it hit nothing volatile. For show, he tipped his head aside as if casually dodging the shot and telekinetically struck the storage box behind him, creating an impact crater with a wooden crack.

Nathanial shook his head with an evil grin. His lack of comment about the attack seemed to upset the Knights almost as much as his nonchalant dodging of the bullet. "I want her released, and in return I'm prepared to not kill you." He hooked his hindpaw under a grenade and used his telekinesis to make it look like he'd flipped it up to paw-height. He caught it and the four more that followed as he started juggling them. "It seems fair to me. Her life for your life." Agent Jay's scrying spell activated in the hangar, shortly followed by three more.

Jose timidly countered, "But there're six of us and only one of her." It seemed he didn't care for confrontations like this.

Nathanial switched to one-paw juggling so he could wag a finger at the Gecko. "Ah, ah, ah. You've miscounted a bit. I'm giving you your life in exchange for hers. I'm giving the Stoat _his_life in exchange for hers. It's six one-for-one exchanges, since each of you pointed your guns at her and agreed to hold her hostage, while I was busy fantasizing about stuffing a primed grenade in each of your mouths like a suckling pig prepped for a banquet." He switched back to two-paw juggling and added a few more grenades to the mix. "What do you say? Just put your guns down and walk out of here. I'll do nothing to stop you." The agents would likely arrest them soon after, but that wasn't any of his business.

Avery cautiously commented, "That sounds fair."

The Stoat pistol-whipped her. "Shut it, bitch."

Nathanial whipped something in return, but it was a grenade, adding enough telekinetic thrust behind it to cause some serious damage. It caught the Stoat between the eyes, shattering the bone and knocking him out. "Shut it, brute." The tension in the room rose a notch.

Jose almost shrieked, "What if that went off!?"

Nathanial shrugged. "That would've sucked." He raised his voice. "Anyone else want to strike a bound woman?" No one volunteered. "Good, now get the hells out of here before I get mad."

The sniper muttered, "You're already there, you psychotic bastard."

The Mage kept juggling as he looked back and up at him. "Yeah? Then why are you fools standing around serenading Hades? If you think I'm psychotic, you should be beating a hasty retreat before you find out if that's true first-hand."

Another Knight, a female Australian Numbat, he thought, stood in a more-or-less secluded area near the tarmac side of the hangar. She was primarily out of sight from the other Knights. She quietly crouched down, put her pistol on the ground, and crept out the door and onto the apron. As soon as she thought she was safe, she bolted for the gate to get off the airfield. Agent Pepe and an RCMP officer met her there and arrested her. Nathanial found it rather amusing that the argument she found most compelling so far was that she shouldn't trust his sanity. Should he be offended?

Nathanial stared into the frightened Gecko's eyes. "If you're worried about how your mighty Muskrat master might react, don't. Naughty little Chris is singing a whole new tune: the jailhouse rock. The RCMP discovered a delightful treasure trove of frightful weapons both in and behind his locker at the airport. When they get here, which could be any moment now, they'll have tons of fun cataloguing all this. If you're still here, they'll catalogue you, too."

The sniper's rifle pointed at the back of Nathanial's head, and he could see the Knight's trigger finger tightening and relaxing. The others bore signs of uncertainty, but Nathanial was prepared to wager their resolve was far higher than that. No one else would be talked out of violence. He began placing the juggling grenades on a nearby crate. *Dirk, in ten seconds, take out the sniper. Words have done all they can.*

*I agree. Let's get dangerous.* A fierce smile accompanied the last words.

The last grenade joined its friends. Nathanial put his paws in his pockets and leant against the stack of crates. He took a pair of his fog bombs in paw. "So, guys, now what? I've given you the best offer I can, and it seems you've turned it down. You hold Mrs. McDougal and aren't going to release her, while I have you, and I won't go anywhere while she's still here."

The Lemur sniper glanced at his colleagues down amongst the explosives and mouthed an apologetic prayer. Resolve solidified in his eyes. The long finger of the greyish primate tightened on the trigger before squeezing. A small bullet of bone burst through his rounded skull and exploded within his brain just as the powder in the high-calibre bullet detonated. Nathanial knocked the rifle aside to ensure the bullet wouldn't hit anything or anyone other than a wall. He whipped his paws out of his pockets to throw two fog bombs: one at his hindpaws, the other at Avery's. The fog billowed out with an audible woomph.

Nathanial saw Jose tighten his hand around the grip of his pistol, steeling himself to shoot Avery in the head; Nathanial didn't have time to drop her through a portal; it'd take too long for her to fall to safety.

But Snow appeared beside the Knight, already biting through flesh and bone, severing his arm. *We prefer cake. We_much _prefer that cooked flesh you made -- the bacon.* Snow spat out the Lizard's forearm and sat down, smacking his tongue in distaste. Jose, in the meantime, collapsed, screaming in agony.

Nathanial hadn't paused, however. Once he saw Snow had dealt with Jose, he put a Shield spell around Avery and turned to take out the Knights. Before he could do anything else, Dirk's bone trackers shot the hearts of each of them. The half-dozen fragments in each heart spun about, shredding the pulsing muscles. Gods, that guy was scary and efficient. The Mage shrugged. "Well, all clear." He put the pins back into the grenades, and Dirk took back all of his bone. Nathanial knelt by a now unshielded Avery. "I'll have you out in a second." The glue on the tape degraded into dust with a small zap of Dark energy.

The Mage rubbed Snow's ear. *Thanks a lot. I'll cook you some bacon or whatever else you want for supper tonight.*

Snow wagged his tail twice. *We will try whatever you make. We are curious about the solid things you ingest. They come in many textures and flavours, and scents, too, and they look very different.*_The Mastiff cocked his head to one side and then the other. _*Some even_sound _interesting. It is very peculiar and exciting.* Snow ducked his head to sniff at the wailing Lizard. *This one is leaking from his arm. We believe this is not healthy for his kind.*

Dirk remained on the catwalk, watching over everything. He returned his armour to its hidden state beneath his clothing and suppressed his powers. Nathanial called up to him, "How did the powered armour work out?"

Dirk caught on right away, though Avery frowned in confusion before cluing in. The Bone Spirit called back, "All tested systems worked as promised. This wasn't a very exhaustive field test; I'll recommend more before signing off on it."

Avery stood. She appeared a little unsteady and braced herself with the chair with one paw while the other turned off the camera. She then stepped around her chair carefully and kicked at Jose. Her paw caught him under the chin, chipping several teeth and momentarily silencing him. Nathanial was certain she meant to kick him a lot harder. She muttered, "Fucking bastard." She proceeded to ignore him and turned to Nathanial. "Should you be up and about after that hit you took in the terminal?"

"I'm fine." Nathanial began dissipating the fog and glanced at Snow; the Mastiff leant over Jose, happily drinking up the fear and fading life energy. Nathanial was about to tell Snow to stop so they could try to keep Jose from bleeding out, but he thought about how the Gecko betrayed him and the Knights he'd fought with to save the plane. Of how he took Avery hostage and resolved to keep her here and kill_her, an innocent bystander, even after Tex told him how stupid it was. Of how he didn't care what these weapons were for. Nathanial consciously hardened his heart, just like he had before shooting Jocelyn. _*Snow, if you're going to kill the murdering bastard, just finish him off, would you? Don't prolong his suffering.*

Nathanial's sight wavered, and the transparent spectre of Lily rose out of the pool of blood. *Everywhere you go, this is what you leave. 'Monster' isn't a strong enough word to describe you.*_Blood dripped from her wounds, adding to the pool beneath her spectral hindpaws. Snow turned from his meal in confusion and looked around. Lily drifted over to hug her trembling son, and she whispered lovingly into his ear.*This is your fate, Nathanial. As long as you live, all those you come into contact with will die. It's only a matter of time until Nicholas joins them. Remember what you did to Jocelyn.*_

The Horse lay on his basement floor with blood oozing from dozens if not hundreds of gashes and cuts caused by the exploding light-stick she had held. The team she'd led into his house lay dead all around him, including upstairs by his mother. Jocelyn sobbed in pain. Even if she lived, her face would be horribly scarred, and she may never see out of her left eye again. If she lived, she might come back for Nick and Micah. She wouldn't live. She'd never get a chance to hurt his family again. She'd be free from her pain. He raised the pistol and pointed it at her, condemning Ahmed to an agonizing month of uncertainty and to the pain of a shattered family.

Nathanial pulled himself away from his mother's clinging arms and dropped to his knees, ignoring the warm wetness that soaked through fabric and fur. *Step away, Snow. He's not food, not anymore.*_The Mastiff fled from the brilliant light that surrounded the Akita. _*He won't die. He can't die. I won't let him.*

His mother drifted close. *You can't save him. It isn't your fate. People will keep dying horrifically until you do. Like Jordan Davis will.*

"No! I'll change my fate! My life is my own!" Nathanial grabbed the severed parts of Jose's arm with his telekinesis and put them in place. Light energy enfolded the limb, light so bright a dumbfounded Avery was forced to turn her head away to protect her eyes. Bone and tissue wove together. Muscles twitched. The arm rose and sharp claws flashed, but it wasn't an arm that fell this time. It was a windpipe. The reanimated limb tore the throat out of the body it had been joined to. Jose gurgled as blood rushed into his lungs. In less than a second since Nathanial knelt, the Lizard lay lifeless. Nathanial whispered in despair. "No. No, it wasn't supposed to do this."

A soft breeze tickled his ear. *It's your fate. Join me, and it'll be over.*

Jay appeared behind him with Ella in tow. He took Avery's arm. "Ma'am, it's Agent Jay. Are you all right? Please, come outside so the paramedics can check you, then I'm afraid we'll need to talk to you about what happened."

She didn't resist but turned her head as she was led away through the fading fog. "Nathanial? Are you okay? Nathanial?"

The scaled arm rose again, reaching for another throat, but Ella pointed at it and said a few quick words. A greenish beam of light hit it, and a portion of the forearm disintegrated. The Panther -- or should it be Jaguar? -- picked up the crawling paw and shoved it into a bag.

Ella didn't put her arm around his shoulder to comfort him, but instead stood tall and looked down at him through her dark glasses. "What happened?"

Nathanial didn't look up. He couldn't look up. The weight of his fate hung heavy on his shoulders. "I tried to save him. He was dying. I don't want any more deaths if I can help it. I tried to save him. I-I'm cursed. Everyone around me is going to die, just like Jose. It's my fault. It's my fate."

Lily faded away. The last thing to vanish was her triumphant smile.