everything in between. It all went on the fire, got blessed, and happily consumed.
Greasy hands found guitar chords and bass notes, beat drum skins and ran keyboards - the music was consuming them as much as they'd consumed the food and beer. Every instrument that had been brought in and salvaged from the old Beverly Hills compound was treated to a warm reunion with its owner.
It was a defiant display of taking back the night. Those sifted with music in their souls searched for song hooks, rapped and wrapped sixteen lines and sometimes twenty-one around thumping refrains - the audience of nonmusical Guardians being just as important, all energy blending one mind. Enjoy life. Live. Give. Share. Rejoice. Appreciate. They called the present the gift that it was. They carried that message to the sky above as they carried on down on the beach, blanketed in the effervescent light of creativity, laughter, love, and family, barbecuing crabs and corn and washing it down with ice-cold brews. Who knew what tomorrow would bring?
They'd finally run out of energy by dawn. The fire was now just embers. Cities and countries had been roughly chosen. A general outline of a stage plan and a plan of action had been loosely mapped out. Dumpsters and recycle bins far away got several deposits. Slow-moving but smiling Guardians stretched and watched another new day roll in, feeling blessed.
* * *
"I saw him," Lorelei whispered into her crystal ball. Her beady little eyes were narrowed to slits as she sent the message into Sebastian's throne. "Where are you, Master? You're the only raised one left of the dark covens of old ... the rest have been turned to ash. We need your energy to continue to empower us. Now we all do your bidding." Receiving no response, she began to worry and she made her attempts more urgent as her coven sisters gathered closer.
"He should have heard us by now," she said, looking at the five concerned gazes around her. "He is a full sorcerer; his rise was felt by all as Lilith raised him - and now, there's nothing."
"We should contact the displaced covens of New Orleans that were forced to flee with the general population," a hissing b londe whispered. "Perhaps there was foul play, and they could get us close enough to summon Fallen Null's energy." "Or we could simply go directly to Lilith to ask - " "Are you crazy?" Lorelei almost shouted, breaking the seance. "Over Sebastian's head? Never, until we know for sure that he's been incapacitated."
"Then hone in on the spell he cast," a brunette murmured, her eyes shimmering with evil.
"If something has gone awry with his spell, then he may be in danger and need assistance
... that is the only reason he wouldn't respond to a coven call of this magnitude."
* * *
seven hours of peaceful sleep did her body good. As she stretched and yawned, Carlos's familiar warmth spooned her, making her bones lazy all over again. Hotel life was getting old. The yearn for being in their own house again, their own kitchen, their own space was threatening to steal her peace. Rather than allow it, she snug gled deeper into Carlos's embrace and dozed, listening to his steady breaths of slumber and loving every minute of the way his heartbeat thrummed through her back. As she drifted in and out of sleep all she could think of was seeing him spit lyrics, the way it had totally taken him over... then how that caught fire at the edges of the team, burning everybody, setting them on fire with creative energy that they hadn't experienced in a long time. Carlos stirred behind her and she pressed his arm closer against her belly. "Thank you," she murmured.
"Good morning," he said in a drowsy, sexy voice, kissing the back of her hair. "For what?"
"For doing what you do," she said quietly, making his arm hug her tighter. "For being you - the fire for the group. The catalyst."
He chuckled softly against her hair. "That's just your nice way of saying I'm always the one starting some shit." "I'm serious," she said quietly and swallowed hard, suddenly overwhelmed for no reason, and unable to even explain to herself why.
"Hey..." he murmured, hugging her more closely. "I didn't mean to make fun of what you were saying, baby ... but if you want me to start some shit, you know all you have to do is ask - and ya don't