Disclaimer: The following is a work of fiction, which will include t/t and m/m relationships, and probably some sex too. If it is illegal in your area to read this, or if you are not old enough to read this (you know who you are), stop here. Otherwise, please enjoy.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is a companion story to "A Light in the Darkness." The story lines are related and the characters occasionally interact, and the frequency of this will be increasing. My sincerest thanks go out to O. Lefevre and Tarton who kindly edited this chapter. And thanks to everyone for writing such encouraging emails.
I am now posting my stories to a Yahoo!Group, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jaygordon_1981/ as well. I'm putting them up there a little in advance so I can make final edits before submitting to Nifty, so if you are interested, you can check it out. It's closed membership to avoid spam and flames, so just let me know!
Things That Go Bump, Chapter 22
"Carnage"
William carried Chase upstairs to the main floor and started to lay him out on a couch, but James shook his head and led him upstairs to the master bedroom and pointed to the huge, silk dressed bed.
"Are you sure," William asked.
James nodded and said, "As long as he needs," before shutting the door behind himself on the way out.
William laid the boy down and took his shoes off before drawing a light silk sheet over the boy and stretched out next to him, watching him sleep for a while. The weight of the last week, and the day, pressed in on him like tons of water, and he struggled to keep his breath.
Steve and Chris stepped out into the hall and caught James. "What's going on," Chris asked.
"Demons working for Sammael infiltrated William and Chase's school.... Their friends are downstairs...." Chris and Steve followed him downstairs and said hello to the guys. They sat down with James and the boys and talked to them about the whole situation and how they, too, had gotten involved in the whole mess. Then Carl told about his past and his abilities, which he repeated for Avery and Sebastian, who finally finished their reports to the Sebastian's inner circle about the day's events. No one wanted to talk about what they had just seen, and the tension was palpable.
After a long silence, Steve looked at Matt and asked, "So have you joined our team yet?"
Chris looked over at him really serious for a moment before breaking into a smile. They'd been working on things apparently, James noticed. "We could show you what your missing," he added, waggling his eyebrows.
When Matt's face turned pink, everyone laughed. "If Matt ever wants to try that out, we've got first dibs," Edward said, wrapping his free arm around the fiercely blushing boy, pulling him over.
"Guys," Matt said, laughing, "I think I need more straight friends!"
"No," Avery said, patting him on the shoulder, "take it from me, these guys are more fun...."
"Yeah, but we've gotten you between the sheets more than once," Sebastian corrected from across the room, winking, but he jumped when James smacked him on the behind.
"That's enough of that kind of talk," James said with a faux pious smile. "Would you guys like something to drink?"
James and Sebastian brought out sodas and tea for the boys and themselves and caught up and learned more about each other. They had all met at least briefly at Chase's birthday, and enjoyed getting to know each other better. When William quietly emerged from Sebastian's bedroom, he followed the voices and walked downstairs. Everyone looked at him when they heard the footsteps and he shook his head.
When he got downstairs, he said, "He's still asleep.... I'm going to call his parents and let them know we'll be late...."
Sebastian nodded, and asked, "Is there anything we can do?"
"No, I'm glad you're all here, though.... Could you call Rabbi Roth?"
"He's on his way," Sebastian said, and William nodded his thanks, stepping into the kitchen to call Steve and Sarah. He gave them sketchy details but assured them Chase was safe and sound and that he'd have Chase call as soon as he woke.
William sat down in the living room in a chair by himself and the conversation revived somewhat in a more subdued tone. But William couldn't sit still, so he stood and stepped out into the back garden though the sliding door in the living area and walked out to the wall. He pressed his hands against the cold rock and leaned in, stretching and pushing, exerting his muscles to the maximum against the old and immovable masonry. He wanted to scream, to let out all the frustration and pain, but he didn't want to disturb the others, didn't want to wake Chase. So he pushed all that tension into his already aching muscles, tensing them further and further, pressing harder and harder.
"It doesn't help, does it," Sam asked quietly, but causing William to jump nonetheless, all that tension releasing and relaxing in a single burst.
"No, sir, it doesn't help...."
"Sebastian filled me in," the old rabbi said, leaning heavily on his cane. "The incubus did quite a job on your mind, did he?"
William shook his head, "I'm such a fucking idiot!"
"William, a succubus, or an incubus can destroy a person in an evening, can break a man's will with a glance.... Your love shielded you to a degree, and the bond cushioned that further.... But no one can hold out forever against the sustained attack of these creatures...."
"Chase could," William said, his shoulders slumping like a defeated man.
It's so hard to remember he's just a boy, Sam thought to himself. "The incubus's strongest weapon is sensation.... Chase's blindness protected him further.... After sight, touch is the most direct method of working their temptation, but Chase's ... gift ... turned that weapon against him.... Chase could hold out forever, but not because he's better than you.... Only because he's perfectly positioned to resist that kind of temptation...."
"He is better than me," William said, not defensively, but with certainty.
"He is different than you, to be sure.... He's pure in a way that none of us is.... Innocent...." Seeing William blush, he laughed, "Not like that.... If I had to wager, I'd guess that everything he does is with such love that it doesn't touch that innocence.... But in any case, if Sebastian or Avery, or even you or I, were able to do what Chase did this afternoon, we wouldn't feel too conflicted about it. She was a demon, and it needed to be done.... And because of that, because we wouldn't think twice about it, we couldn't do it. Chase is different from us, but he needs you.... He needs your love to be strong, just like you need him to lean on so you can be strong.... And we all need you both to be strong...."
Sam motioned for William to walk with him and they walked around the house along the wall for a long time before William spoke. "I don't know if I can forgive myself," William finally whispered.
"He'll forgive you," Sam said.
"He probably already has.... It'd be easier if he didn't ... for a while at least...."
Sam smiled and shook his head. "No it wouldn't, but it'd make you feel better because he'd be doing wrong too...."
"I just feel so unworthy...."
"That's good," Sam said. "That means you love him.... I'm sure he feels the same...." They walked around in silence for a long while before heading back inside. William was smiling and so they didn't interrupt the good humored conversation this time.
Shortly, William crept back upstairs to check on Chase and found the boy quite deeply asleep. Clearly not a peaceful sleep. The sheets were a mess and Chase was on the other side of the oversized king. William sat next to him and ran a hand through his soft blond locks. Chase barely stirred beneath his hand, so he watched the boy for a few minutes and returned to his friends. Grabbing his backpack, he handed the boys the amulets he'd been sent home with for their protection. He'd been trying to figure out how to get them to wear them without telling them his secret, but the cat was out of the bag.
"How's Chase," Matt asked, clearly worried about his friend.
"Tired," William said. "He barely moved when I sat next to him...."
"Can I go up for a minute," Matt asked.
"Of course," William answered with a smile.
Matt went upstairs and as he shut the door behind him, Chris whispered, "He IS a cutie," making everyone laugh again. William called Chase's parents back to let them know Chase was still asleep.
Sarah sighed. "Why don't you boys ... spend the night.... Have Chase call as soon as he wakes up, even if it's the middle of the night!"
"Thanks Sarah," William said. "I don't think he'll wake up before the morning...."
"Take care of him," she said softly, before putting the phone down.
William waited for Matt to come back downstairs, then took Matt, Carl and Edward downstairs and through the portal to his training room and out into Chase's back yard. "Matt, make sure these guys get home safe.... Sebastian has people watching you to make sure trouble stays away, but still be careful...."
The guys looked at him and nodded, somber and scared. But before he could turn and get back to Sebastian's, Edward stepped up to him and hugged him tight. "You be careful too," he said softly before stepping back and taking Carl's massive hand with his own. William waved and returned to Sebastian's house, settling back in with Sebastian, James, Chris and Steve for a late meal. Afterwards, they relaxed in front of the television until William was too tired to stay awake.
"Sorry about this," he pleaded as he headed off to Sebastian's bedroom.
"Think nothing of it," Sebastian said, patting him on the back. "Strictly speaking I don't sleep, I have little need for it ... most times. James and I'll camp out somewhere.... Not with you, Steve," he added, catching the boy's sly grin.
William slipped into the room and put his clothes over the back of a chair. He gently undressed Chase and crawled in next to him, so close they took up less than twenty percent of the bed together. William hadn't realized how tired he was, and soon drifted into deep sleep.
When morning came, the sun, filtered through Sebastian's special windows, bathed the room in a soft light. Chase woke and stretched carefully, before rolling over half on top of William and resting his head on the boy's firm chest. Where are we, he silently wondered to himself as he looked around the sumptuously appointed bedroom and felt the silk sheets around him. Smiling, he put a hand on the boy's tight abs and ran in down beneath the sheets until he heard the boy groan and felt him stir. "Where are we?"
"Sebastian's"
Chase's body tightened, as he exclaimed, "Mom! Dad!"
"Chill pill! I called your parents and kept them updated.... Your mom okayed us staying here last night."
"Mom? What happened?"
"What's the last thing you remember," William asked, rolling onto his side and looking into Chase's eyes with deep concern.
"I was in the library and Daemon ... touched.... Oh," the boy broke off as his mouth began to salivate and his stomach cramped. He rolled out of bed and tried to make for the bathroom, but made it only as far as the little waste basket by the night stand. Luckily, he hadn't eaten since lunch, and he mostly dry-heaved. "After Katrina?" he asked, as the queasiness passed.
"I held you and you passed out.... Exhaustion I think.... So we brought you back here and got you into bed, then we explained everything to Matt, Carl and Edward.... Well, Edward, the parts he didn't already know. He didn't let on to the others he already knew anything; I think he didn't want Matt to feel like we trusted him less...."
"He's a sweetie," Chase nodded gravely. "What have I done, William?" he asked, pathetically, his small frame beginning to tremble.
William hesitated, "What did you do?"
"It's a spell, a secret Raziel taught me called the annihilation matrix...."
"Cool name," William said, raising his eyebrows. "What does it do?"
"Just like the name says," Chase said, his face falling. "Everything within the matrix is ... annihilated.... Not destroyed so much as ... uncreated...."
William drew in a sharp breath and released it slowly, before dragging the boy into a deep hug. "I ... I'm so sorry, Chase, for everything...."
"I'm a monster," Chase sobbed, his tears running down William's chest. "I'm as bad as him...."
"Chase," William said, half-sobbing, half-laughing, "YOU are not a monster! You are so good, so ... wonderful.... I wish I could live up to deserving you for just a moment.... Don't ever call yourself a monster again!" Chase squeezed him tightly but spoke no more as they held each other. After a long while, he whispered, "We need to get dressed.... I want you to talk to Rabbi Roth...."
"He's here?" Chase asked, wiping his eyes with a graceful, pale arm.
"He came yesterday afternoon when he heard what happened," William confirmed, as they began to pull on their clothes. "Oh, and call your mom!" Chase smiled and nodded, grabbing his cell phone.
"Chase?" the woman answered after one ring.
"Hi, mom," he said softly, and tried not to start crying again.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," he said. "I hit my head in a fall yesterday, and there was some excitement. I was just tired, but I'm fine!"
"Alright, mister," she said, trying to sound strong. "Be careful, and we're talking about this tonight.... You boys be home by five! I've called the school so they know you aren't coming today...."
"Thanks, mom! I love you!"
"I love you too, baby.... See you tonight."
"Bye," chase added as he hung up.
"Everything okay?" William asked.
"Yeah," Chase said, "but I think we're gonna be talking about it more tonight...."
"Fun times!"
They walked out of the room and heard Chris and Steve playing in the game room, so the stuck their head in.
"Hey, guys! Get a good rest?" Steve asked.
Chase nodded, but was interrupted by a big hug from Chris. "I'm glad you're alright," Chris said and Chase squeezed him back.
"Thanks Chris," he said, smiling. In fact he blushed a little, just from the warm feelings he got from the boy, just pure concern and positivity.
"Is Rabbi Roth around still?" William asked.
"He's training with James and Avery in the basement. You should go join them! Want to hang out, Chase," Steve asked.
"Sure, why not," Chase replied as William went off to find the wizards. In the basement, he found them, practicing with various magickal implements, from swords, to staffs, to wands, and joined in.
Sam tossed him a sword and then set to teaching him some basic technique, before teaching him how to use it as a magickal focus for power. When it was charged with magick, the sword hummed with energy and sounded something ominously like a light saber. As they worked, William asked the man to talk with Chase after they finished.
"He's alright," Sam asked.
"He's torn up inside," William answered, shaking his head. "He called himself a monster this morning...."
Sebastian visibly flinched at that, and William guessed at what he must be feeling. If Chase was a monster, what would that make the rest of us?
"What do you mean you can't get Daemon to return your communication," Sammael snarled.
"I mean, sir, that when I attempt to communicate with him, I get no response...."
"Like Katrina?"
"No, sir. Katrina has ... vanished.... Daemon is clearly in the pit, and refusing to respond to my summoning...."
Sammael's eyes narrowed. Katrina had been right to be worried. Daemon was one of the least predictable and most troublesome of hell's denizens. Sammael had always figured it was because he was more "human" than the rest of them. He was close to them in a way other demons were not. But he was also rebellious! Sammael picked up the summoning mirror and said, "He might refuse you, but he won't refuse me!" Sammael focused on the mirror until his attention was perfect, then dipped one finger into its reflective surface, penetrating the seemingly solid glass. "DAEMON," he roared. The surface flickered and rippled, but no one appeared. "DAEMONNNNNN!"
At long last, a figure appeared, but it was not Daemon. "Sammael," the fell spirit Belial responded, taking Sammael aback.
"Belial," he sneered.
"It has come to our attention that you no longer reside in your royal ... palace.... My ... lord...." Belial's smile was the smile of a thousand jackals, dripping with serpentine venom.
"My royal prison, you mean?"
"Safe and sound, safe and sound we kept you these many eons, master.... We cannot protect you out there...."
"You treacherous rogue, Belial! You sound almost as if you believe that! My time has come, and I'll wreak my vengeance on this world, and yours too! You should have followed me!"
"To our own destruction? Sammael, you never understood us, did you? We don't want to perish! WE LIKE WHAT WE DO! We are well fed on the pain and suffering the humans are so expert at provoking in one another.... Why should we wish to end it all?"
"Don't you hate HIM? What He's done to us?"
"YES!" Belial hissed. "But better to torture and lead astray His favorites, to bring pain into his design, than to end ourselves in a mad process of destruction!"
"So Hell remains neutral in this," Sammael asked, on the verge of eruption.
After a long pause, Belial's smile spread into an evil and consuming grin. And then he laughed. He laughed in Sammael's face. "Daemon already brokered one deal with Sebastian.... Perhaps we can work out another.... Perhaps this time even Hell will fight on the side of the angels?" Belial's made cackle raised in pitch and intensity.
Sammael began to break, and he screamed "Belial!"
But before he could go on the demon stopped laughing, fell silent, and his face became dead serious. "Silence! I warn you, MASTER! Your end is nigh! This war isn't about stopping you, it's about destroying you, now!"
"Impossible," Sammael sputtered, but deep within him something stirred, something he'd not felt since the day he puffed out his chest and raised a hand against the throne of God: doubt.
Belial's eyes cut into him, and saw it at once. Then he knew. "Sammael, how's Katrina?"
"What happened to her," Sammael asked, his voice low and fierce.
"One of Sebastian's has recovered the lost arts of Raziel," Belial smiled. "Remember the annihilation matrix?" And after a pause for effect, Belial smiled and winked. "Fare thee well, dark spirit...." And he was gone. Sammael's rage was bursting from every seam, but that nagging doubt began to swell into cold fear. The annihilation matrix, an end-game he had not foreseen. And eternity of planning and the one thing he'd not foreseen: a mortal with the ability to unravel the fabric of a created being.
But the pressure inside was building and something broke. Holding together the physical form and the mortal mind attached to it took tremendous concentration and power, and at that moment, something began to unravel, the link between demon and mind. The chaotic madness of Sammael the demon began to leak into the cold calculating being that was Sammael the destroyer, the man that he struggled so hard to hold together to carry out his plans.
He entered a new address into the GPS and redirected his command unit to a very visible target; on a cool but cloudless afternoon the Nashville zoo would be busy with school groups, stay-at-home moms and their kids, tourists. And Sammael was ready to blow off a little steam.
Sebastian reached for his pocket and pulled out the cell phone which was flashing a code-black alert from the shadow network. He sprinted over to his office as the others stopped their practicing and followed him.
As he logged on he got the gist of things quickly. "Get ready to go. Sam, you and Avery are with me; James, William, you stay here with Chase. Do not leave, do you understand me?" James and William nodded but James hurried to his side and whispered something in his ear. "I'll leave the computer logged on. You can read the reports and follow us on surveillance," he answered.
James gave him a quick kiss as Sebastian's squadron of wizards began to assemble outside, and the Colonel opened a door to the Council's agent who had sounded the alarm.
In a dank room in a construction area, a lanky man in a zoo-keeper's uniform welcomed them. "Consul," he exclaimed surprised. He was a fairly low-ranking vampire, and had never seen the likes of Sebastian or Avery.
"Status," Sebastian demanded.
"I recognized him from your alerts.... Sammael, he's here with his three vampires and some dark wizards. The wizards are blocking the exits and the vampires are roaming the park...."
"Were you able to take any measures," Sebastian asked cautiously.
The man smiled. "They're too powerful for me, sir, but...."
"What did you do," Sebastian asked, worried.
"I released the tigers...." Sebastian gasped, but then smiled too. In any circumstances it was a risky move, but with supernatural powers on the loose, the tigers would stalk and attack them as they were able. Demonic energies like those around Sammael and his people were like blood in the air for wild animals.
"Brilliant," he said, patting the man on the shoulder. "But now you stay here and hide. If anyone but us comes here, step through the portal and close it behind you. Understand?"
"Yes sir!"
"Avery, you and I are going to find the bastards. Sam, Colonel, take your men and secure the gates so any survivors can flee, before joining us with any men you can spare from that task. Your job is find and rescue survivors. Avery and I are search and destroy!"
"Yes, high consul," the soldier said, saluting smartly and leading his men toward the door.
"Wait a second," the keeper called. "I got you these, thought they'd help...." He handed them maps of the zoo, and Sebastian nodded his thanks. The man was a clear thinker in a difficult situation.
Avery and Sebastian headed for the western part of the park, where trails cut through bamboo forests and winded up hilly paths. If caught between two monsters, entire groups would be trapped up there. Eviscerated corpses were strewn casually over fences, and littered the concrete paths. In one of the snack vendor's huts, a young woman's head rested on the grill, giving off the scent of burnt meat and burning hair. Avery's face was etched with disgust, but a rage was building in Sebastian, stronger and more intense than he had felt in nearly a thousand years. The last time he'd felt this way, he'd destroyed an army. As much of a monster as he'd ever been, he'd fought MEN.
"Monsters!" he snarled quietly. Coming to a fork in the path, he suggested warily that they split up.
"Sebastian," Avery hesitated. "I'm not afraid of a fight, but this seems overly ... risky...."
"Avery, there are children here! And those monsters! Remember that school bus?"
Avery's jaw set and he nodded, eyes seething bloody hatred. He remembered. Avery headed off toward the petting zoo, while Sebastian made his way up toward the zebra exhibit. As he passed the African wild dogs, he noticed that the creatures were huddled in the far corner barking ferociously toward the next curve in the path, so he slowed and took out his sword in one hand, a gun in the other. Take no chances. Huddling low, he peered around the next turn and saw that a couple of vampires were taunting a mother with a double stroller and a third child crouching behind her.
"Get away from her," he called, hiding his weaponry. There was a good chance they wouldn't recognize him as anything more than a foolish human male engaging in suicidal chivalry until it was too late.
One of the vampires broke off and moved toward him menacingly. "What's one little fairy gonna do about it," the other taunted. Just a little closer, he thought to himself.
And then he was close enough. "This," Sebastian said almost sweetly, bringing his arm around and revealing the glistening silver blade for just a second. It moved too fast for the young vampire to even see it coming before his head was severed from his body. His partner froze for a second in surprise. He looked like he was going to attack, but turned to run. "Can't let you do that," Sebastian said, twirling the blade in front of him like a wand and muttering a spell. An invisible blast of force rushed out of the blade and knocked the vampire off his feet. In seconds, Sebastian closed the difference and sent him to meet his friend.
Sheathing the blade and holstering the gun, he walked to the woman and said, "Are you alright?"
"I ... I think so...."
"Follow this path down toward the snake and frog exhibit, but when you get to the snack vendor, head into the woods and make your way toward the parking lot as best you can. You might have to wander, but I think they're probably guarding the main walkways...." The woman nodded and tried to go in a hurry, but her little boy held back.
"Are you a knight," the boy, perhaps five, asked.
Sebastian knelt and smiled, "In a manner of speaking...."
"You talk funny.... Where's your shining armor?"
Sebastian ruffled his hair and said, "If you stay real quiet and follow your mommy and be a good boy like she asks, I'll show it to you sometime, okay?"
The little boy answered him, "Okay," and raised a single finger to his lips, following his mother very seriously.
James and William read the preliminary reports of the attack with anger and terror. This was utterly gratuitous and on an unprecedented scale. Unfortunately it represented only the latest escalation.
William ran upstairs to get Chase, Chris, and Steve, and brought them downstairs. All of them were brought up to speed.
"What are we going to do," Chase asked quietly.
"We promised to keep you safe," James said as he struggled to get access to the proper surveillance programs and tap into the zoo's security system.
"We all have powers that can help," Chase complained. "We can't just...."
"OH MY GOD," James said, bile rising in his throat as the zoo's security cameras flashed on his screen.
"What," Chase asked.
"Bodies," Chris said. "Too many...." But he couldn't finish. He puked into the trash and carried it out to the hall. He didn't return.
"SO WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?" Chase demanded with helpless passion.
James looked at him, then at William. "This is too big for us...."
Fiddling around with the system, James managed to hail Christen Wheeler and Musa to a chat.
"Sebastian," both asked, but blinked as they saw James.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know what else to do," James said. "Avery and Sebastian deployed to the zoo.... You read the reports?" They both nodded. "I hacked the security system," he said, hearing their gasps as he sent the images to their consoles.
"My God in Heaven," Musa declared. "What can we do?"
"They need backup, and they need it fast," James said. "It's too much for two men, even those two men backed up by wizards as competent as Sam...."
Christen sent out a universal alert asking all able members of the council to rally to the gates of the zoo and coordinate with Sam and the colonel. "Thank you, James," she added before they logged off.
"I hope that's enough," William said.
But shortly, a smile spread over James's face as he watched the zoos main gate. Christen and Musa stood over a map with Sam and the colonel. Musa had arrived with his own guard of vampiric swordsmen, while Christen had brought an entire brigade of battle wizards. As quickly as possible, they moved out, with the goal of finding and rescuing survivors, as Sebastian had ordered, and "sanitizing" the eastern part of the park before rendezvousing with Sebastian and Avery.
Meanwhile, Avery found the petting zoo quite empty ... of living things anyway. He fought back the urge to vomit at the scene, and even when he closed his eyes he could not wipe away one image in particular: a tiny bloody hand on the ground, all by itself.
Forcing himself onward he found the bathrooms, and some people hiding within them. "Come out," he called as he walked inside. "I'm here to get you out of here...."
"Are you one of them?" a little voice asked.
"If I was, would I be waiting out here?"
The door opened and a few kids, brothers and sisters hurried out. He repeated the process in the other bathroom and added a mom and a teenage girl, her daughter. He led them out behind the bathrooms through construction to a wall. To the woman he said, "Get them out, pile them in your car and get them out of here. Once it's all over we'll sort out who they are and whatnot...."
"What about you," she asked.
With a dark look, he said, "I'm going to find what did this...."
"Then what," she asked, and by way of an answer, he raised an energy ball in his hand, small by his standards, and blew a hole in the wall ten feet across. Her eyes widened and she nodded, leading the children away. "Be careful," she called over her shoulder.
When he returned, he saw the path forked again. The right would take him more immediately back toward Sebastian, while the left was a wide loop that would bring him back here. He decided to head toward Sebastian and they could take the last together. But then, to his left he heard a little group of terrified gasps, up toward the snow leopard enclosure. He began to creep up toward it, but froze in terror as a hand grasped his shoulder and another covered his mouth.
"Shhh," Sebastian said quietly. "What's up?"
"Kids," Avery nodded at the little shack that looked into both the snow leopard and red panda enclosures. They could see it was a lot of kids. It looked like an elementary school group was inside and a figure, neither could see who, was blocking them inside.
Sebastian crept around one side, while Avery snuck up the other, until a woman's voice froze them both. "I'd recognize that smell of terror anywhere," she said, smiling derisively. "Little Hesed! The one who so worries the Master!"
"Sekhmet," Sebastian said, trying not to tremble as she turned to face him. He tried to draw her attention. "Let the kids go ... bitch!"
"Such language! Think of the children, Sebastian!" She nonchalantly reached out her left hand and a small child was forced into her grasp by an unseen power.
Avery got a clear line of sight and raised his hand, whispering with feeling, feeling driven by the image of a child's severed hand, "Ignis solus!"
Sekhmet was taken by surprise as she burst into controlled flame which never burned her hostage. Sebastian raised his hand and with pure brute magical force drew Sekhmet toward himself and away from the children, calling, "Get them OUT!"
Avery did just that, ushering the children away with their teacher and pointing them toward the hole he had created, before hurrying back to Sebastian.
Sekhmet had turned the tides, as she was no longer burning and Sebastian was on his back. "So you killed Resheph? Impressive! And even in my sleep I've heard tales of you, Wizard Salazar! You won't get the drop on me again," she growled, as she kept Sebastian on the ground with a force from her left hand and blasted Avery against a tree with her right.
She kept them both pinned and didn't seem to have any trouble doing so, as her laughter began to rise in bloodcurdling peals. Then she knelt by Sebastian and moved that hand which held him motionless up to his throat.