Alex's POV
To be frank, I have never seen this side of Jake, I was so used to the joyful innocent boy I loved I had completely forgotten how scary he can be when someone is threatening his family; Yet, I only felt pride and pleasure, knowing that he was mine and mine alone. If this bitch wanted what was mine, she'd have to rip him away from my cold dead hands, and rip my teeth out of his throat, because I had marked him as mine; He was my gift from the Moon Goddess, lady of the night, and I swore I would never let someone take him away from me. This Bruja was staring him down like he was nothing more than a snack to eat, and no matter what I was going to shut her ass down, but Jack got me to look at him and shook his head.
'This isn't your fight, let us handle this, for now, you'll have your chance. I promise.' He told me, and I would listen to him for now, but I would never be prepared for what I was about to see. As the Bruja continued speaking to Jake, saying things that sent rivers of blood through my body, enraged that this bitch thought she could talk to him that way; Jake just stood there, smirking, he wasn't phased by anything she was saying. Her words were venomous, meant to bring out anything of what she knew about him, but he just stood there: Puffing away on his cigar, he snapped his finger and a soda flew from the truck to his hand, he just kept on listening. The wicked with kept speaking but it was all just static to him, what was going on in his twisted little head?!
Jake's POV
As I continued listening to her, her words melted away as they had no meaning to me, I wasn't going to be bested by a shadow of the woman I once loved. I found my love, and I wouldn't let her go just because someone didn't want me to be happy. In other words, Jack my friend, it's time to fight for our rights. I wasn't going to back away from a fight simply because her message was terror and hopelessness. She was wicked, that was for sure, but she was weak compared to me: She lost her humanity, mine had just evolved to survive. Jack walked up to my side and stared her down as I just continued listening, to anyone else it would seem like a trance, but Jack knew me. He knew my plan, and he would follow me to the brinks of ruination if it meant he got the chance to best this Bruja in battle. Jack kneeled before the witch, and as he did a small portal opened behind our truck, letting Jameson out; He walked over to Alex's side and started whining, he didn't like this. Not. One. Bit. His collar was flickering, and we all knew what that meant, there was a storm brewing; One that the bruja wasn't ready for. We had hidden from our past long enough, now was the time for action, now was the time to fight; And we would fight like it was now or never. We just needed our orders.
Jack's POV
I kneeled before this bitch, feigning respect for her strength, and as I did I muttered a silent prayer to a name I dare not name. A being of irrefutable power, experience, and wisdom; The great old one, Our patron god, a being so wicked we would only be a shred of his potential.
"MASTER, WHAT ARE OUR ORDERS?!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, and as I did, it felt like a weight on my shoulders weighing infinity was lifted and I stood.
"My children, your orders are simple, but first. I would ask something of you, Jake. Where's your brother?"
As these words flew from my mouth, the collar around Jameson's neck started glowing a sterling silver color and transformed. From a sturdy silver collar to the form of a man; A bald man with a glorious beard, and piercing eyes: One silver One gold. He was the ascended monk, the man who feared nothing and fought anything.
"Damien!!" Jake shouted, and everyone stared in awe, this man was Jake's brother? A man of pure energy, who could transmute his very form to whatever his will desired? He was a god amongst us, and yet showed no hate nor fear; Simply love.
"It's good to be back, Jake. Is this your bully?"
"Yeah, you mind helping us with a bit of cleanup?"
"For you, little brother, anything."
N/A's POV
The wicked witch stared on, watching as Jack descended back to the ground and extended his hand out to Jake. This would be her downfall? A man, A dog, A woman, and a Demon? She had expected more, so much more, but these were nothing but pawns. She thought this would be a cakewalk, but she was wrong. Jake grasped Jack's hand and they joined once more, and Jacke was back in business, Alex got up from the truck and Jameson howled in pride, but there was something else, the Monk stared at the beast with a look of loathing, like he wasn't happy that the beast was free to exercise his own will, but it was a necessary evil to quell this Bruja.
Jacke's POV
"Jameson, you can stop hiding, we need you just as much as anyone. Release restraints level Alpha Omega...Zero," We said, and as we did Jameson started moving back and forth, as if in a trance that he had finally awakened from. As he did, he started shifting, the firey aura shifted to his will and from the form of a beast to a being of pure unadulterated rage, he was tame for so long he wouldn't be held back by some petty monk anymore. He pointed at Damien and mouthed "You're next" before turning his gaze on the witch, and for once in her entire existence, she knew fear. Death itself knew the meaning of fear, and waited for no one; We were simply instruments of eternal damnation against the wicked, and we were happy to be given the freedom to play our instruments.
"YOU WOULD CALL US WEAK?! MEANINGLESS?! PAWNS?! I pity you, Bruja, mi amor. You cannot see clearly, you've been gone too long. I would wish you well-deserved rest, but there's no rest for the wicked," I said before clapping my hands along to a beat that played in the back of my mind, as I did my family joined me, and those who I trusted much could see it clear as day. Our restraints were gone, as were there's; It was time for battle, and I wouldn't wait for a response. I manifested a gun in my left hand, and a scythe in the other, lefty and righty. Time to play once more.
The witch stood as an unstoppable force, a force to be reckoned with you could say, but we were no mere men. I lifted my left arm and channeled every ounce of energy hell had to offer and charged at her with a will that wouldn't be easily broken, grabbed her by the throat, and let my wings out to propel us forward, running her face into the ground with years and years of pent up rage; Jameson hot on our tail with Damien to his side, and Alex catching up swiftly, but it didn't matter this bitch would be dead if she thought she could best my family. I threw her into the air and as she came crashing down, I smashed the backside of my scythe into her back throwing her forward into a cliff-side. As I approached, slowly, I shot every bullet I had in my gun into her: Each infused with the powers of hell, burning with hatred, and ripping her vessel to shreds. Jameson caught up with Damien, and as she tried to stand back up, Alex yelled in my mind "FINISH HER, NOW!!" and I threw my gun to the side, Jameson and Damien raised their respective arms, placing their other ones on my shoulders; And as one, We uttered a simple phrase, releasing all the energy we had into shattering this Bruja, and returning her ashes to ashes, dust to dust.
Two beams of hellish, and two beams of holy energy were released, fusing and creating a beam of energy hot enough to cremate hell itself; Focused entirely on this wicked bitch who had caused us so much pain and suffering, and now the sins of her past had caught up with her, through us. The beam pierced her body, mind, and very bones until there was nothing left but the smoke of her ashes.
She wouldn't be gone for long, she was too strong to be bested once and call it done, but beating her here sent a message to everyone that we weren't to be fucked with. For now, we had a moment of peace and quiet to think, we walked back to the ashes of our fallen tower and sat down. Exchanging ideas, and thoughts on how to proceed before Alex spoke up.
"How about this? I go back to my pack and get everyone, and I do mean everyone, together. I bring them back here, bringing everything from our pack here, and we rebuild your tower together. It would be a way for your family and mine to work together and build both of our dream homes, while we plan our next move."
After a bit of murmuring from his family, all eyes were on Jacke, waiting for his word on the matter. No one was ever ready to make a choice of this importance, no one was ever ready to make a choice that could literally change the course of their fate, but he was.
"Sounds like a plan to me, go get your people, bring everything. If you need trucks, fuel, whatever, you call me and I'll get you outfitted. Just send me the list, while we try and see what we can recover from the wreckage," Jacke said as Alex got up from her feet and got in his truck, heading full speed towards her home.
Meanwhile, Jameson, Damien, and I continued talking, they were rivals and yet they set aside their differences for a moment to help us. We wouldn't abandon their faith in us, now it was time for us to reciprocate that trust.
"Any questions, nothing off the table, go."
"Why did you charge him with keeping me tame?" Jameson asked, hatred and sarcasm laced his words, but it didn't phase me in the slightest.
"Because, you're a wild card, you're nothing if not unpredictable. I needed that sense of security that you wouldn't bite the hand that feeds."
"Did you consider what effect that task would have on my psyche, Jacke?"
"I did, but I also considered one simple facet of your ascendance: What is an ascended monk, without a rival to face?"
"Well said, I guess this bond between us really is thicker than genuine leather, but so long as that Bruja is out there, we can't stop now just because we're ahead. So, what's the plan, Brother?"
"Let's go back, sift through the rubble, see what we can find in the ashes. I want to know if there was anything left, or if she truly destroyed everything, she's nothing if not thorough."
"A hunter will hunt her game until she wins, are you sure we can best her again?" Jameson asked as we stood up, a genuine question deserves a genuine answer, even if I wasn't sure.
"I don't know for sure, but you've seen what we can accomplish here if we set aside our differences and work together as a single unit. So, I think there's reason to believe that if there's a problem here that we'll adapt to face it, won't we? That's what the old man taught us, isn't it?"
"Indeed, let's go, Jamie, we've got shit to do," Damien said as we made our way back to my tower, my home, and we would rebuild. This place had been destroyed time and time again, but we wouldn't stop here, and we wouldn't stop now. We had a lot of work to do, but we would get it done. We swore an oath to it, and we would live up to it no matter the problem.
"Together we are a powerful force, as one mind, body, and soul. Let no evil enter, nor attempt to reduce us, because of the beliefs we hold. And with this love, combined with our strength, we ward off pain and stress. Technicians we are, wholeheartedly, in life and in death."