The Myth and The Guardian Book II: Christopher
Chapter 12

Allen appeared a few minutes after Archie and the other had vanished, and he looked around with great enthusiasm.

“Where are you?” He asked aloud to what appeared to be nobody.

There was no response to the question, and Allen continued to search the temple for a sign. He finally walked over to the statues and noticed the small amount of dark matter hiding in the corner.

“Christopher, my son, I have come for you. I have come to make you whole again.” Allen spoke without a hint of surprise in his voice.

The dark ball of blackness floated over to Allen timidly. It followed him as he walked over to the carpet in the center of the floor. Allen waved his hand over the carpet in a slow manner, and three bodies appeared as he placed his hand down to his side. The first two were the bodies of the two orderlies Christopher had murdered in the hospital, and the last was the lifeless body of Dr. James Farmer.

Archie and the others emerged from the portal and watched it close as they entered the Wilson home. Debra, Alex’s mother, entered the house seconds after the rest of them.

“What the hell is going on around here?” She asked looking for confirmation that she was not losing her sanity.

“Hi, mom.” Alex spoke nervously.

“I asked a question, and someone needs to answer me.” She continued. “I saw that hole all of you walked from before it disappeared.” She added firmly.

“I believe I should be the one to explain what it is you saw.” Archie spoke loudly as he stepped forward.

“Who are you? I don’t care who explains it as long as someone does. This is madness. Nothing that has been happening lately makes sense.” Debra responded with no attempts to hide her frustration.

“Should I take it away?” Archie asked looking directly at Alex and Austin.

Alex looked at Austin intensely and then returned her stare back to her mother.

“Yes, Archie. Take it all away, please.” She spoke after a pause.

“As you wish, Alex.” Archie replied softly.

“What are you talking about? Take what away?” Debra continued to ask question after question.

“Come with me, and everything will be explained. “ Archie answered as he motioned for her to follow him into the kitchen.

Debra entered the kitchen without a moment’s pause.

“Archie, if it’s not too much to ask, I would prefer if you took it all away. The portal, the baby, James, all of it.” Alex spoke trying to mask her sorrow.

Archie looked at the girl and could see how difficult it was for her to see her mother drunk and lost in the world. “Alex, I am afraid it is not my place to interfere with human…” Archie spoke but stopped as he caught the look Austin was giving him. “Very well, Alex. I will do what I can.” He said softly as he walked into the kitchen.

They all waited and saw the bright flash of white light that came from the kitchen. Moments later, Archie emerged and gave Austin a sad look.

“Austin, if I could talk to you for a moment…” Archie said with a hint of pain in his tone.

“Thank you for your assistance today, Mr. Lange.” Austin replied in a rushed and ungrateful tone.

Archie looked into his eyes and saw the hurt inside of them.

“Maybe I’ll see you around when it is necessary.” Austin added in what was obviously a forced tone.

Everyone felt the awkwardness of the moment and tried not to make eye contact with anyone as it happened. Archie gave Austin another look before he walked out of the house and closed the door behind him.

Debra walked out of the kitchen with a confused expression on her face and looked around the room.

“What am I doing in your house?” She asked Angela.

“Oh, you came here to umm…” Angela attempted to stall.

“Mom, you came here with me to see Austin.” Alex jumped in quickly.

“Oh my god, Austin Anderson. Is it really you?” She asked as she stared at Austin.

“Yes, Miss Debra. It’s me.” Austin replied in a friendly voice.

“Oh you poor baby. I am so sorry about your folks. It’s a good thing you weren’t…” Debra stopped herself as she rushed to hug Austin.

“I’m okay, Miss Debra. I’m sorry to hear about you and James not working out.” Austin replied foolishly out of instinct.

“Not working out? What do you mean?” She asked in a confused and sad voice as she released him from her hug.

“Mom, you and Dr. Farmer said goodbye a long time ago.” Alex interjected.

“I know, Alex, but Austin makes it sound like we agreed to break up. The poor man died in a car crash a few days before our wedding.” She replied softly.

“Yes, that’s what I meant. I guess I just didn’t want to say the words.” Austin lied quickly.

“Oh you’re such a sweet boy, but I am alright. I loved James with all my heart. He was a kind and loving man.” She replied proudly.

“Yes, I agree completely.” Austin answered on the verge of tears.

“He was honestly one of the best friends and one of the best people I’ve ever known.” Austin added strongly.

“Mom, we should be getting home.” Alex said politely.

“Oh yes, dear. It is getting late.” Debra replied.

“Austin you should come by the house tomorrow.” She added as she hugged him a second time.

“You got it. I’ll be there after breakfast.” Austin replied kindly.

“You folks have a good night.” Debra said as she walked towards the door.

“You too.” The Wilson’s all replied in a scatter.

“I am going to walk Alex home if that’s okay.” Austin informed the rest of the family.

“Sure, kiddo. Take your time.” Joel replied as he sat on the couch.

“Goodnight, everyone.” Alex spoke as she walked out of the door her mother had left ajar.

“Goodnight, sweetie.” Angela replied first.

“See ya, Alex.” Joseph replied second.

“Night, Alex.” Amy chimed in third.

“Sleep well.” Joel finally replied.

Austin followed her out of the door and closed it behind him as he exited the house. They watched Debra walk across the street to her and Alex’s home. The home Austin could still remember living in as if it were yesterday. She entered the house, and Austin could hear the door close behind her. The porch light came on a few seconds later as the two of them walked slowly across the street hand in hand.

“Alex, what you did for me tonight…” Austin started.

“You’re welcome.” She said with a smile.

“Well yes. I do thank you, but you have to promise not to do anything like that again.” Austin replied.

Alex saw the serious look on his face and decided not to argue.

“I just couldn’t let anything else happen to you.” She spoke softly.

“I know, but I can’t allow anything to happen to you either. Now, more than ever, I have to keep you safe.” He replied with a little pause as they took small steps up the driveway.

“What do you mean?” Alex asked.

“There’s something that I have decided not to tell the others just yet. Something that concerns you and may be dangerous.” Austin spoke in a way that suggested he was avoiding something.

“Austin, is this about what happened when Christopher was in control of your body? I told you, I was okay, and I’m sorry.” Alex blurted out instinctively.

“Yes, but I am not angry. I know you believed it was me. The thing is that if you were to get pregnant by a nephilim, the pregnancy could drive you insane, ruin your body in the worst of ways, or even kill you.” Austin finally forced himself to say.

“Nephilim? Kill me? What do you mean?” Alex asked with great alarm in her tone.

“I am a nephilim. That’s what I am called. A nephilim is the offspring of male Angels and female humans, and I saw visions of what happened to my mother during her pregnancy. It was…” Austin let his sentence fade. “What I’m saying is that I have no idea what would happen if you were to…” He started and stopped again.

“Austin, I am sixteen. I have no desire to have kids right now. Besides, Christopher and I used a…” Alex spoke but was interrupted.

“I know!” Austin blurted out uncontrollably. “Sorry for yelling. It’s just that Christopher made sure I was aware of everything that happened when the two of you…” “Oh god, I’m sorry.” Alex interrupted before he could finish his sentence.

“I know, but you have no reason to be sorry. I know you thought it was me. I just thought you should know what could happen.” Austin spoke softly.

“Yeah, I understand.” Alex said as she processed the information. “But now that we know all of this, and Christopher is completely gone, there is nothing to worry about.” She added as she kissed him softly.

“Yes there is, Alex. He is not “gone.” He just needs a body, a vessel. I think that’s why Allen hasn’t come after me again. He is trying to replace a vessel for Christopher.” Austin explained slowly.

“So, this isn’t over?” Alex asked as bits of fear shined in her eyes.

“I’m afraid not. This is only the beginning.” Austin replied as he pulled her into him and hugged her. “You have to be safe.” He added warmly.

“Why do you keep saying that? What haven’t you told me?” Alex finally asked as she saw the look in his eyes.

“When Christopher and I split, I noticed something about the way I feel for you.” Austin began with hesitation.

“What are you trying to say?” She asked in more of a yell than she intended as pulled away from him. “What you don’t love me anymore?” She added before he could answer.

“That’s not it! How could you even think that for a second?” He responded immediately.

“Then what is it?” She asked looking confused and nervous.

“I do love you. You have to always know that is true. However, the intensity of what I felt sort of decreased from what it was before I split from Christopher. Not to say that I don’t love you as much as I can. So don’t think that. I am just certain that I am not the only one who feels that way about you.” Austin finally forced himself to say to her. “So, you’re saying that Christopher loves me too?” Alex asked as she forgot to breath.

“No, he doesn’t know you to love you. What I am saying is that intense obsession about you that I had. The one that makes you feel special at times and uncomfortable at others, all of that was him. I love you, but he believes he has to have you at any cost. He will do anything to make you his, and I have no idea why he wants you so badly. All I do know is that it is because of something important. It’s as if his life depends on it.” Austin finally explained.

“How do you know this?” Alex asked as the fear crept up to her stomach.

“When he gave you that ring, I felt something inside of him while we were still connected. The ring is called the Bloodstone. It keeps the person wearing it from dying no matter what. Archie confronted him about giving you the ring, and Christopher denied being in love with you but said you are important for something. When he said that, I felt the same feeling stir up inside of him.” Austin continued explaining to her.

“Yes, I think you’re right. When he pretended to be you and gave me the ring, he said: “Always wear it, for me. It will keep you safe.” Alex told Austin.

“So, when he replaces a vessel, I think he may try to come for you.” Austin said as he stared at her.

“So, I am in danger now.” Alex said the words before Austin could.

“Yes, and I have to keep you safe. You have to be safe.” Austin said again with great intensity.

“But the ring is gone.” Alex replied quickly.

“What do you mean? Where is it? Austin asked trying to hide his panic.

“I don’t know. It was on my finger when were in that place, and when Archie woke us up at the Wilsons, it was gone.” She explained.

“Archie.” Austin whispered.

“Austin, you don’t think he took it do you?” Alex asked in a shocked but curious tone. “I don’t think he would do that.” She added firmly.

“I don’t know what he will or will not do. Everything I’ve ever thought about him has changed in the worst…” Austin started but stopped himself. “Nevermind, I don’t even want to talk about that right now. It may be best if you and your mom went somewhere for a while.” Austin added.

“You want us to hide?” Alex responded with the question.

“I want you to be safe, Alex. If he can’t replace you, he can’t take you.” Austin answered firmly.

“Maybe we can go to my grandmas or my uncles for a while. I think I can talk my mom into it.” Alex replied after taking a second to think.

“Thank you, Alex.” Austin said with great relief in his tone. “This will make everything easier. I can spend more time trying to figure out what it is I’m supposed to do next. That would be impossible to do if I thought for a minute that you would be in danger.” Austin added sincerely.

Alex pulled him close to her and kissed him passionately for a few seconds.

“I will be fine. I promise. You just have to promise me that you will be fine too.” Alex said as she stared at him lovingly.

“As long as you are okay, I will be okay.” Austin replied warmly. “

Oh, are you sure? Because you look pretty wounded right now.” Alex replied playfully.

“Well, I guess I will just have to heal myself.” Austin said as he kissed her.

“Is that better?” She asked with a smile.

“Oh, I have so many injuries.” Austin said as he kissed her neck.

“Well, I guess we will have to replace the time to get you all better.” Alex replied as she grabbed his head to kiss him long and with great passion.

The two of them got lost in each other and said a thousand I love yous without speaking a word. Alex placed Austin’s hands on her hip, and he slowly slid them behind her and began grabbing downwards.

She nibbled on his ear as she he kissed of her neck over and over again. She walked backwards as he softly pushed her against the door of the house.

“Oh, Austin. I love you so much.” Alex whispered in his ear in a moan.

“I love you too, Alex.” Austin whispered as his lips went from her neck, down to her chest, and back up to her lips again.

Austin moved his right hand from her butt down her leg and lifted the leg. Alex wrapped the leg around him and pulled him in closer to her. She leaned back against the door, and the door flew open. The two of them fell to the ground and looked up to see Debra standing there.

“Oh, hello again, Miss Debra. Austin stammered as he stood from the floor and helped Alex to her feet.

“I said come by tomorrow Austin. Tomorrow means in the day time when I can keep an eye on you.” Debra said with a slight grin.

“Sorry, Ma’am.” Austin replied.

“Alex, get in this house before I have to hose you down. We obviously need to have a little talk.” Debra said to her daughter.

“Oh, mom. Not the talk, again!” Alex replied.

“Kitchen. Now.” Debra said as she looked at her daughter who was smiling from embarrassment.

“Goodnight, Austin.” Alex said as she kissed him one more time.

“Goodnight, Alex.” He replied as he closed his eyes and kissed her once more. The kiss lasted about two seconds before Austin felt the pinch on his ear.

“Ouch!” He exclaimed.

“Goodnight, Austin.” Debra said as she led him out the door by his ear.

“Night, Miss Debra.” Austin yelled as he walked quickly out of the house.

He kept walking across the street back to the Wilson’s house. He heard Debra close the door behind her as she went back inside. He grinned as he thought about what had just happened.

Allen presented the three bodies to the ball of black mist, and the mist hovered above them and moved back and forward as if it were inspecting them. It stopped over the body of the first orderly and lightning flashed and cracked inside of the mist. Allen waved his hand, and the first body was covered in flames and vanished completely within seconds. The mist went to the body of the second orderly and repeated the same lighting communication. Allen waved his hand again, and the second body was covered in flames until it vanished. The mist slowly hovered over the body of James Farmer, but it stopped and lowered itself until it made contact with the body. The mist let out a roar and a mixture of lighting and fire popped and crackled inside of the mist.

“I know, Christopher. It is not the proper body either, but it will have to do for the time being. We had three unharmed bodies, and the first two did not work.” Allen spoke to the mist.

A hissing sound came from the mist as a reply to Allen’s statement.

“You will have a little more than a year in human time. That’s more than enough time to locate your actual vessel.” Allen responded to the mist.

The mist floated quickly towards Allen and let out a quiet hissing sound.

“It’s not going to matter! Just take the damn body!” Allen exclaimed in a frustrated tone of voice.

The mist let out another roar at Allen, followed by a quiet whisper that echoed throughout the temple.

“Yes, I suppose you have a point. It will be beneficial to us in the long run. Fine, I will do it, but you are not to change it under any circumstances.” Allen replied coldly.

The mist floated to the side of Allen as he walked over to the body and waved his hand. James’ body was surrounded by a blue flame that continued to grow brighter and brighter. A burst of blue light filled the entire room for a moment but soon went away. The body on the ground floated in the air and no longer resembled James in any way at all. Instead, the body looked exactly like Austin in every single detail with the exception of the sun shaped mark on the left shoulder blade.

This mist moved slowly towards the body and inspected it for a moment. It then began to wrap itself around the body until the body began to absorb it. Once the last of the mist was absorbed by the body, the eyes opened and flashed red several times. The redness of the eyes abated with each flash until the eyes were completely normal. The body landed softly on the carpet and stood there for a moment with the eyes opened and lifeless. A few seconds later, the eyes blinked, and Christopher raised his hands to his face.

“Excellent, my son. The transformation takes us down to just below a year before the body becomes useless.” Allen said in a delighted tone.

“I understand.” Christopher hissed in a low whisper.

“Then let’s not waste any time. There’s much work to do.” Allen replied quickly. Christopher had an image of Alex burning inside of his mind.

“Yes, father. Much work to do indeed.” He replied darkly as he clenched his fists together.

The following day, Austin woke from a very peaceful sleep and took a long shower. He got dressed and walked downstairs to a large breakfast bought by Angela. He sat at the table and enjoyed the meal with the family. They all enjoyed each other’s company and hardly mentioned what had happened the previous night. Austin needed a break, and he was happy to see that they all understood it. Perhaps they needed a break from all of the strangeness as well. They all talked and laughed as they finished their food slowly. It was a nice moment, and Austin was hoping for many more like it.

The doorbell rang, and Austin immediately offered to answer it. He was stripped of his happy moment instantly. The fear that rushed up inside of him when the doorbell rang reminded him of how alert he would always have to be for the time being. He walked to the living room door and looked out of the peephole. Archie was staring back at him, and Austin reluctantly opened the door.

“What do you want?” Austin asked in a more angry tone than he intended. “Austin, I just thought that now would be a good time for you to finish your training. You know a great deal about your power already, but there is still much to learn.” Archie replied weakly.

“Archie, I’m sorry. I don’t want to be around you at all right now. You kept me in the dark my entire life. Do you know how alone I was? Do you have any idea how afraid I was when everything was happening to me? I woke up every day of my long life completely terrified of what may happen next or what I might do.” Austin said quickly in an effort to mask the pain in his voice.

“I’m sorry, son. I just…” Archie began.

“Don’t call me that! You don’t have the right to call me that!” Austin exclaimed strongly. “If you want to do something for me, you can tell me the truth about the bloodstone. Alex doesn’t have it anymore.” He added bluntly.

“Actually, that’s the other reason I am here. I want to make sure Alex gets the ring back.” Archie replied calmly.

“At least you admit that you took it. The question is why take it in the first place if you were just going to give it back?” Austin asked clearly.

“I did not take the ring.” Archie replied immediately.

“You would still lie to me after everything? You come here and ask me to train with you, tell me you want to return the stone, and then lie about taking it in the first place. I don’t believe this.” Austin said trying to make himself angry to distract from the hurt he felt inside.

“I am not lying to you, and I was not asking you to train with me.” Archie replied to a confused Austin. “

Then who exactly who would I be training with this time?” Austin asked curiously.

As soon as Austin finished his question, Aaron and Alex came jogging quickly from her house.

“Aaron!” Austin yelled as he saw his friend running towards him.

Aaron reached Austin to be greeted by a warm embrace.

“Good to see you too, Potter.” Aaron said as he hugged Austin back.

“How is this possible? I saw you die.” Austin couldn’t help but say loudly.

“Well, keep your voice down. Don’t tell the whole neighborhood.” Aaron replied in a hushed voice.

“Yeah. Sorry.” Austin said with a grin as he stared at Aaron.

“So, what happened?” He asked in a slightly quieter voice.

“Well, I used the last ounce of my energy to call the ring to me while Allen was trying to talk you into joining him. It shot from Alex’s finger to my hand without anyone noticing what I was doing.” Aaron explained proudly.

“Oh, that’s why you were trying to make him angry. You knew he would try to kill you, but you wouldn’t die with the bloodstone because you’re half human.” Austin said in a shocked voice. “I’m impressed, Aaron. I was allowing him to get me confused up until the point when I saw what he did to you with that dagger.” Austin added honestly.

“Yeah, I could see that. I figured it was worth a shot. I’m glad it worked.” Aaron replied with more pride than relief.

“You really are brilliant when it comes to fighting and surviving.” Austin said to rub Aaron’s ego a little more.

“Thanks. My little stunt was enough for the old man to let me train you up on my own.” Aaron boasted.

“Sounds like a plan to me!” Austin responded excitedly.

“Great. I wanted to start right away, but someone threatened to kill me for real if I didn’t wait at least two weeks.” Aaron said playfully as he looked at Alex.

“Two weeks?” Austin asked as he stared at Alex.

“Yeah, after last night, mom jumped at my idea to go visit family for a while. We leave in two weeks when she gets some vacation time from work.” Alex explained with a grin.

Austin could not help but smirk as he thought about the previous night.

“Two weeks it is then.” Austin said as he gave Alex a longing look.

“I thought you would agree to that.” She said as she kissed him quickly before walking inside of the Wilson’s home.

“Is uh, Amy in there?” Aaron asked with a sly grin.

“Yeah, and she may actually be happy to be annoyed by you this morning.” Austin said as he motioned for Aaron to come inside.

“So, you’re going to let Aaron finish training me?” Austin asked Archie smoothly.

“I thought you might replace it more enjoyable given our current situation. Besides, he really is gifted when it comes to survival.” Archie explained softly.

“Yeah, clever idea.” Austin said in what he hoped was a somewhat polite tone. “Austin, before I leave, there is something you must know about Christopher. He is..” Archie began to speak.

“Obsessed with Alex and looking for his human vessel.” Austin finished the sentence for him.

“Yes, but how did you know?” Archie asked without attempting to hide his shock. “A lot of stuff still got through to me when we were still connected, and the vessel thing I figured out by myself because of James’ son. I figured all angels can have vessels, even half angels.” Austin explained.

“Very good, son, umm, Austin. You are absolutely correct.” Archie said with a satisfied look on his face. “Good luck, Austin. I will be waiting for the two of you once the training is finished. I have a few matters that demand my attention as well.” Archie said mysteriously as he turned to walk away.

“Hey Archie, wait a second.” Austin blurted out his thoughts unintentionally. “Yes?” Archie replied.

“Well, I was hoping that since I would be training with Aaron, you could...” Austin said and then paused.

“I could look after Alex for you and keep her safe?” Archie finished the question for him. “It would be my pleasure, Austin. In fact, I have already made arrangements to do so.” Archie added with a wink.

Austin could not help but smile at Archie’s attempt to be cool.

“Thanks, Archie.” Austin spoke sincerely.

Archie gave Austin a slight nod before turning and walking towards the street. Austin watched him for a few seconds before finally closing the door.

“So, two weeks.” Alex spoke as she walked up behind Austin and kissed him on the neck.

“Yeah, two weeks.” Austin said as he turned around and looked at her.

“So, have you picked out which room in this place is going to be yours?” Alex asked seductively.

“You know, I have some ideas, but I could use some help deciding.” Austin replied in a teasing voice.

“Well, maybe we should go upstairs and look at all the possibilities.” Alex replied sweetly.

“You read my mind.” Austin responded as a giant grin appeared on his face.

He grabbed her hand gently, and the two of them walked towards the stairs quickly. “Don’t even think about it, stud.” Joel said as he walked from the kitchen and saw them.

The two of them could not hide their embarrassment as Joel caught them trying to sneak upstairs.

“Oh Joel, we were just going…” Austin tried to think of something.

“You were just going to come into the kitchen with the rest of us. Alex’s mother gave us a call late last night, and she informed us about how the two of you tried to say goodnight.” Joel explained with emphasis on the words goodnight.

Alex followed Joel’s orders and walked quickly into the kitchen. Austin followed her but was stopped by Joel placing a hand on his shoulder.

“So, it looks like things may be getting to the type of problems that all of us are familiar with handling.” Joel said with a grin as he gave Austin a playful squeeze on the shoulder.

Austin looked up at his best friend and newest father figure, smiled, and replied

“I sure hope, Joel. I sure hope so.”