The Tale of Two Brothers

Chapter 6 guys. Enjoy. Read and review.







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In a matter of hours, Tucker had learned more from Mackenzie than he had any man before. He had learned when to judge a person casting a spell, or preparing to cast one and how to interrupt or stop them and how to disarm without touching bare skin. He learned to use his quicker speed to dodge thrown spells and what to look for to discern magical taste, as in he knew how to figure out what magic was what. As he watched Mackenzie leave the training facility, he frowned. So, why didn\'t people use guns? As he went to voice his question, who should spill into the room? Jill.



"Oh, my night is just getting better and-" by the look on her face, something was terribly wrong. She walked over to Jack and grabbed his hand. In a matter of seconds, Tucker felt the need to hide under something very small. His brother had come over and all but dragged him out of the facility. He just happened to catch the ass end of Jack\'s tantrum and the hollered out words.



"DAMN THEM FOR THIS!!" Then he was in the elevator.



"What happened?"



"According to Jill, someone attacked the Agency."



"Wait, wait, wait, you mean the Agency that is helping us?" Nat just gave a solemn nod. "So...that\'s bad right?" He got slapped in the back of the head.



"Stop playing stupid brother." Tucker rubbed his head and thought about what this could mean.



"Who do you think did it?"



"The fanatics that killed you."



"Oh." Nothing else was said but when they got to the house, Jack was already gearing up. When he spoke, his accent was so thickly Scottish that his words seemed slurred and were almost impossible for Tuck to understand. But, Nat translated.



"Tuck, you stay here and guard the house. Jill will help by supping up the wards. Jack and I are heading out to get a trail. They\'ve got noses out already but it seemed the attackers are scentless."



"Not possible bro."



"I know." He noticed his brother packing his gun and his rifle but then he had a sword and more throwing knives than Tucker could count.



"Why don\'t you just use guns? They are so much faster."



"Some things don\'t die with lead Tucker and these are a much quicker means of detaching heads from bodies." Looking over to Jack, he noticed the big vampire grabbed a make-shift flame thrower: A can of hair spray and a zippo.



"So why do I get to stay here with little Miss Pixie?" he hiked a finger over at Jill who just stuck out her tongue.



"Because frankly, as a newborn, you are probably the best bet. If there is fresh blood, it will call to you. And since Jill can hold her own and all of the Agency staff has been recalled, you will only hurt the enemy."



"And I\'m guessing there are more friendlies than enemies down at the Agency?"



"Stop playing stupid bro." Tucker was getting sick of that saying.



"Out." Nat was moving, armed to the teeth, and so was Jack. When the door slammed shut in their wake, Tucker looked to Jill.



"Well Pix, looks like it\'s just you and me."



"And in this big old house, gee, what to do, what to do." She grinned and wagged a finger at him. "Come on big boy, I\'ll show you how this pixie protects your ass during the day." And then she explained how the wards on the premises worked and if she fell in battle, well, they would stop working. Why? They were tied to her life signs. Once that was snuffed out, their magic died. Permanently.





The place was devastated. After they encountered a bug in their systems the attack came from all sides. The guards had been wiped out without so much as a second glance and then the weak ones had been slaughtered. Once the intruders had made it to the top floor, the tanks were next. And after that, charges had been set and had blown certain areas of the building completely out. Whoever had coordinated this attack had inside knowledge of the place. How that was possible was beyond anyone capability to understand. Once Jack had seen the devastation, he\'d gone into motion and now he and Nat were on a faint trail that had been abandoned by their noses.



They didn\'t find anything and being close to dawn, they needed to get back to the house. Thank their lucky stars however, the PR personnel weren\'t working that late at night. It was just a block away from the house that Jack started running at breakneck speeds, even for a vampire. When they got back to the house, Nat\'s mouth opened. "No...way..." His cell rang. He picked it up and the number flashing at him had him flipping it open in seconds.



"My house is down so are every other member on the chair. Something is wrong with Jack, what is it?"



"I..." he couldn\'t speak. Instead, he just closed the phone and ran into the house. There was still smoke coming from the roof. The fire department hadn\'t shown up yet and he didn\'t know why. But whatever the reason, he was silently thankful.



Dashing through the flames and heavy smoke, he hit the emergency stairs and ran straight into the training facility. He searched around and when he spotted Tucker in the corner, he noticed Jack holding his chest, on his knees, staring at his brother. He walked over, slowly, and when he got to Tucker, he had to look away. He turned fully away and went to his sire, gripping the man by his shoulders. When jack looked at him, Nat noticed the loss and sadness resting in Jack\'s gaze. His hands moved and he grabbed his sire\'s face, holding it tightly.



"Listen to me Jack, we need to go. Dawn is coming and once the fire department get\'s here to put out the flames, they will find this place. It\'s not safe to sleep. Grey\'s place is down and so is every other members who is on the chair of the agency." Jack\'s eyes started filling with red and the red spilled over, down his cheeks. "Jack?"



"She\'s..."



"Come on." He hefted his sire up and looked to Tucker. "Tucker, get her and lets go." Tucker turned to look at Nat and he noticed perfect trails of red down his brothers cheeks.



"I couldn\'t stop them Nattie...couldn\'t save her..." there was a fresh wave of blood falling down his cheeks.



"Get her and lets go. We need to move out before the flames get worse." Tucker looked a little stunned. Forcing his will upon his brother, Nat made Tucker move and the four of them left the house. Nat\'s jacket caught on fire and he had to toss it away before he started burning with it. When they were far enough away from the house, Nat grabbed up his cell and returned the call he\'d hung up on. "We\'ll meet you at the safe house."



"I\'m sending a car."



"Jack is going to need you."



"I can sense it boy. No need to state the obvious."



"Sorry Sir."



"Just get over there. I\'ll handle my son when we meet." The line went dead and Nat looked over to his sire. Jack had taken hold of Jill\'s lifeless body and was petting her hair, staring down at her open eyes. The gash in her throat had long since stopped bleeding. It shouldn\'t have killed her, but only Nat knew why it had. Jack seemed completely lost in that moment and he wouldn\'t have put it passed the Scot to meet the sun in the next few moments, but the car arrived and he was taking Jill from his sire and ordered Tuck to help Jack to the car. Tuck had no choice but to obey, he was still under command.



The ride outside of town was deadly silent. Tucker came around but hadn\'t said a word, eyes drawn to Jill. A fresh wave of guilt passed over his face and he covered it with his hands. it hadn\'t quite registered until he held Jill that she was really gone and then, Nat didn\'t know what to do. He closed her eyes and held her close to his chest, doing the same thing his sire had done and pet her hair. She didn\'t have to worry about Jack meeting the sun any time soon. Nat might have, but he knew in some part of his brain that this act gave his sire all the incentive he needed to stay alive, even for a little while longer. he would get revenge. What he did after that was anyones guess.



When they reached the safe house, they had to pull into the garage before they could get out of the car. Nat carried Jill inside, this time asking Tuck to help Jack inside. His sire had become almost lifeless, walking like a robot for the most part. he didn\'t protest Tucker\'s help and, amazingly, wasn\'t trying to harm him. When they got inside the building, the day sleep was weighing heavily on Nat but he forced himself to move forward through the lethargy. Tucker on the other hand crashed to the floor in the hall. Someone else would have to move him, Nat was busy.



In the foyer, a man stood on the bottom stair of the winding staircase, staring at them. He wore a black cashmere sweater and black, silk pants. His feet were covered in none other than, black slippers. His arms were crossed over his chest, one hand holding his chin as he studied the two walking in. He didn\'t even give notice to Tucker. When Jack caught sight of flaming red hair, he turned and started walking the opposite way. The red head\'s pupiless eyes followed the movement before he stepped down. His movements were so graceful, they would put a cat to shame. He moved with an agileness that spoke of centuries of honed skill and when he stopped in front of Jack, the man blinked and frowned a deep frown. Jack stepped passed the red head who\'s face hadn\'t changed and the red head reached out and grabbed Jack\'s arm, effectively stopping him in his tracks.



"Och...lemmeh go Tev. Dun wanna deal wi\' the likes of ya." When the red head\'s grasp remained, Jack hissed. Looking from one to the other, Nat never ceased to be amazed. Jack, the big, burly warrior, compared to TevAmun who stood maybe five foot six inches and was so sleight, he looked like he would disappear if he turned sideways and sucked in. TevAmun just increased the pressure in his hand and it brought Jack crashing to his knees. There was s sickening crack and Nat found himself walking up the stairs. He couldn\'t watch this. Tev had never let Jack call him by his name. It was sire, Master or sir but never his name. No matter how hurt Jack was, Tev would not let him forget it.



Nat found the room he was looking for and cringed away from the lights. He carried her in and gently laid her on the stone slab. A man appeared and all except for his eyes, his face was covered in a dark cloth. The only other part of his body visible was his hands. Obviously Tev had called the Sealer in to take care of Jill. Nat bowed to the man and when the man touched his head, Nat\'s eyes closed and he felt himself crumbling to the floor. Sleep. He would have to thank the man if he ever saw him again. The day sleep claimed him and he didn\'t even think about where he would end up when he woke.





The world swam when he finally opened his eyes. He didn\'t remember where he was but when he sat up, it all came crashing back. There was a weight on his chest and he felt like crying. The last time he shed tears was when his mother died. Wiping his eyes, Nat looked around and noticed he was in a bedroom. Well, that accounted for the comfort. With a small grunt, he looked to his right and noticed Tuck laying there, still dead to the world. Nat thought about his brother. No, Tuck hadn\'t really known Jill that long but he just as much as Jack or himself, would feel the weight of this death. Jill had become something of a sister to him in the time he\'d been at the house. And he\'d been with her when she died. His thoughts were interrupted when Tuck started moving.



Nat reached over and drew his waking brother to his side. When Tuck\'s eyes opened, the weight on his chest got heavier. Without thinking, Nat laid back down and curled around Tucker. His brother\'s arms came around him and then his body started shaking with sobs. Nat made soothing sounds, his hands stroking Tuck\'s back and hair.



"She smelled so good Nat..." The horror was plain in his voice. "Couldn\'t...help..."



"It\'s not your fault Tuck."



"I just wanted to bend down and...and..." Nat pulled his brother back and looked at him. His face was stained and he was pretty sure his shirt was worse but, Tuck was more important. With a small sigh, Nat leaned in and started cleaning his brother\'s face. Tuck started protesting at being cleaned like a child but there was no fight in it. When Nat pulled back, he wiped his mouth and looked over Tucker. Well, that was better. He wasn\'t covered in bloody tears now. "I wanted to so bad Nattie..."



"But you didn\'t, did you Tuck?"



"No." He swallowed and his eyes locked with Nat\'s.



"You did good brother." Nat patted his shoulder and for the first time ever, he noticed how beautiful his brother was. Yes, his hair was dreadful with it\'s bleached blond color and he was paler now than he had been in life but, he was beautiful.



"Nat?"



"What Tucker?" He didn\'t notice his voice sounded far away.



"Why are you looking at me like that?"



"Like what?" Nat blinked and searched his brothers face. Confusion was plain but so was sadness, frustration and hunger.



"Like you want to do things that siblings aren\'t supposed to do..." His voice was nothing but a whisper and something flickered in his eyes. It looked very much like hope. Nat shook his head a little and just held his wrist out in front of his brothers face.



"Eat Tucker." He hadn\'t realized he\'d just taken away his brother\'s will with the command, but when Tuck just bit down on his wrist without any prep, he growled and slapped himself in the head. He immediately released Tucker\'s mind but his brother was no worse for ware and didn\'t seem like he noticed the intrusion. When he had fed enough, Nat asked him to stop but Tuck didn\'t seem to hear him. "Tuck, stop." This time, he knew Tucker heard him because his arms came up to hold Nat\'s wrist to his face. Nat narrowed his eyes and pushed against his brother\'s will. There was little resistance and then Tucker\'s mind was Nat\'s. "Stop." Tucker\'s mouth eased, arms falling down and Nat drew away his arm. he licked and sealed the wounds and released his brother\'s mind.



Then Tuck attacked him. Nat looked at his brothers eyes. They were his own, not black or red, just Tuck. Grabbing his brother\'s arms and rolling them over, Nat pinned Tucker to the bed. Tucker snarled at him, snapping his teeth.



"What has come over you bro?" Confusion was evident in Nat\'s voice when he spoke. When Tucker looked back at him, the tears started all over again. Tucker\'s struggles stopped and he just lay there, under Nat, crying his eyeballs out. "Tucker, bro, what\'s the matter?" Nat\'s eyebrows drew together as he watched his younger brother. It seemed like Tucker wanted to speak but he couldn\'t get the words out. Letting Tucker\'s hands go, Nat straddled his brother\'s thighs and cupped Tuck\'s cheeks, giving him a little shake. "Tucker, talk to me."



"I...I want-" He just broke off. Nat hissed at him and leaned closer.



"Want what Tucker?"



"You..." Tucker\'s face was just suddenly pressed against his. The action was so startling that Nat just sat there eyes wide in shock as Tucker pulled away.



"If the house wasn\'t shrouded in gloom and doom, I might actually see where this goes but we are in need of your help." Nat and Tucker\'s heads, in unison, snapped towards the door. Nat didn\'t wait for anything else to be said but was off his brother and the bed in one jump. Tucker was sputtering but Nat just ignored him. Then the door closed and there was silence, except for the footsteps behind him.



"Who are you?"



"The one who carried your fat ass up here." Nat came to a sudden stop and turned. His hand caught up the man\'s throat and he squeezed.



"I am in no mood for games. If you do not want to be my lunch, answer the question." The man just smiled and brought one hand up to Nat\'s arm. Nat felt heat radiating up his arm. His hand released and he hissed.



"They call me Flame." The man dusted himself off. If Nat hadn\'t been nursing his arm, he would have quirked a brow but instead, he just growled.



"Do that again-"



"Yea, yea, heard it before. I\'ll be lunch. If the proposition includes naked, physical contact, I\'m game." The one called Flame gave a cocky grin. Nat turned and started walking back down the hall.



"What do you need?" His question was answered by a loud crash, crack and scream. It wasn\'t just any scream, it was Jack\'s scream. Nat started running down the hall. His feet carried him down the main stairs and into the formal living room. Jack was bent over, clutching his wrist and staring at the floor. Nat smelled blood but he couldn\'t see where it was coming from. Nat looked from Jack to Tev who was standing over Jack, arms at his sides, hands fisted. Nat noticed the blood he smelled. It was in the corner of Tev\'s mouth.



"Jack?" Tev\'s head snapped over and Nat noticed his eyes had seeped into pure black with red flakes. Nat looked back to Jack. He started over cautiously, eyes darting between Jack and Tev. Tev never took his eyes off of Nat whereas Jack wasn\'t looking at anyone. Just as Nat got to Jack\'s side, his sire sprung up and attacked Tev. Nat jumped forward and grabbed Jack while Flame grabbed Tev. No, Nat was betting neither him nor Flame were really strong enough to hold either of the elder vampire\'s back from each other but it seemed once they were touched, both vampires calmed down visibly.



"Nathaniel, leave us." Nat winced at the tone in Tev\'s voice. he just held tighter to Jack.



"I can\'t do that." There was a hiss and Nat peeked around his giant sire to see Tev struggling to get away from Flame. When he looked to Flame, Nat noticed the man\'s eyes were swirling. Looking down to Flame\'s hands, he noticed smoke rising.



"Cease!" Flame\'s hands dropped away and Tev turned around and landed a backhand in the man\'s face. It sent Flame flying through the room and back out into the great hall. Tev turned to look from Jack to Nat. "You try my patience boy, leave us!" Nat wanted to leave because if there was one person on this earth other than Jack that scared him, it was Tev. Yes, he liked to think he only feared Jack but the reality was, Tev scared him shitless.



"I can not leave."



"Nat." Jack turned a little to look down. It was then that Nat noticed why these two were so...out of it.



"Are you...drunk?" Nat heard rustling and then footsteps. He turned and noticed Flame readjusting his jaw as he walked over.



"And that would be why we needed your help." Flame looked to Tev. "And the next time you put your hands on me, I am leaving your ass to bake."



"You will do as you have been ordered." Nat went back to looking at Tev.



"Listen here you undead bag of bones, I am here because my friend asked me to be. I don\'t have to sit here, bored out of my mind, during the daylight hours guarding your ass so the big baddies don\'t come and fry you you know. If not for me, you might have just been left to burn in that over sized hole you call a house." Nat watched as Tev took two steps towards Flame. Flame held out his hands and, just as his name suggested, two flames formed in his palms. "Another step and I blow a hole where your heart is."



Tev just laughed and was gone from sight. The laugh rolled down Nat\'s spine like a rush of ice water. Stepping away from Jack, Nat looked over Flame who was looking at him. In unison, they turned and both looked at Jack and spoke.



"Well?"