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Static screen blinks to life. Asher Henry appears in the camera shot, looking worse for wear. He rubs the back of his neck, sighs, and then squeezes the bridge of his nose before returning his attention to the camera.

static

Asher: *heavy sigh* So... here we are again. I know you weren’t expecting a message from me so soon, but it’s imperative we reach the archangel Gabriel as soon as possible. I’ve put out my bat signal, and he hasn’t answered.

Asher shifts uncomfortably in his seat.

rustling clothes

Asher: As challenging as the guy can be, all of us care about what happens to him, and we really fucking need his help. So I’m really hoping his silence isn’t because something bad has happened.

Asher glances away, biting down on his lower lip as a flicker of concern flashes across his face. He stares in the distance for a beat before giving himself a shake and looking back at the camera.

Asher: If anyone has eyes or ears on the Messenger, please pass on a message of our own.

Asher stares imploringly into the camera.

Asher: Gabriel, if you are receiving our messages and choosing to ignore them out of some misplaced attempt not to get involved, it’s too late for that. You’ve been involved since day one. You know it, and so does everyone else. We need you. This is the literal end of the world. If there was any time to break the rules, this wou?—

door slams open

Asher: What the fu?—

Caleb: It’s worse than we thought.

Caleb Gallagher, Kingston Farrell, Bentley Mercer, and Kai Nash pour into the room, surrounding Asher and shoving a piece of paper in his face.

sound of multiple footsteps

rustling of clothes and paper

Kingston: Perfect, you’re already recording. We need everyone to hear this.

Asher: What am I looking at?

Ben: Th-the ch-chalice is a p-person.

Asher: What are you talking about?

Caleb: The prophecy that Pan translated. “Lucifer shall possess the chalice” ...

Asher: Right, I’m with you now.

Caleb: Well, Pan was able to decipher more, and that’s when he realized that the chalice is not an object but a person.

Asher: Possession? Again? Fucking great.

Kai: Not like that. He’s after a child.

Asher: He’s going to possess a child?

Kai: *frustrated growl* What part of ‘not like that’ are you having trouble understanding? He doesn’t want to possess a child, you idjit. He wants to use one. Like a tool.

Caleb waves the piece of paper.

sound of rustling paper

Caleb: A child is the key.

Kingston: I thought we were done with this ‘children as harbingers’ nonsense after we dealt with War.

Asher snatches the paper from Caleb’s hand.

sound of rustling paper

Asher: Give me that.

Asher stares down at the translation, brow furrowing and lips moving as he talks softly beneath his breath.

Asher: (mutters) A child. There are three already on the way. Fuck. Is it one of them?

Kai: Four.

Asher looks at Kai.

Asher: Four?

Kai: Dahlia’s pregnant. We only just found out.

Kingston: Bingo!

Caleb: What the hell are you on about now?

Kingston: Well, that’s three for three on the women of the Mate Games getting knocked up. Feels like we should get a prize.

Caleb: That’s it. You aren’t allowed to spend any more time with Remi. You’re starting to sound too much like him.

Asher: Three for three? This can’t be a coincidence.

Ben: I-it certainly d-doesn’t s-sound good.

Kai: I don’t care who he is. That bastard isn’t laying a finger on my child.

Ben: M-mine either.

Kingston: Agreed. Obviously. The stakes just got even higher in my world. We need extra protection on our women. No one gets close. Not without our approval.

Asher remains quiet, gazing off into the distance.

Asher: What if it’s not one of ours?

Kingston: One of our what?

Asher: Children.

Caleb: You think there’s another one?

Asher shrugs, still looking thoughtful.

drums fingers on coffee table

Asher: We’ve already said that there’s another group out there that needs to be found. What’s the over/under that it’s their baby?

Caleb: I don’t like it, but you’re not wrong. There’s no way we can control that if we don’t find them.

Kai stands, eyes glowing purple, expression fierce.

clothes rustling

Kai: *low growl* That’s not a risk I’m willing to take. Until we know for sure, I’m treating this as a threat to my mate. In fact, I’m leaving for Faerie tonight. We need as many fae warriors protecting our women as possible.

Kingston: The pack is already patrolling the woods. I’ll let them know the fae are coming.

Ben nods sharply.

Ben: N-no one threatens our f-families and l-lives.

Kingston claps him on the shoulder.

sound of hand hitting shoulder

Kingston: Spoken like a true alpha. You sure you don’t want to join the pack?

Ben: N-no th-thanks. Remi and I s-sort of prefer b-being on our own. L-less people t-to answer to.

Kingston: Fair enough, but the offer’s open. You’re family, so you have a pack whether you want one or not.

Asher looks at Caleb and hands him the paper.

paper rustling

Asher: Tell Pan he did a great job. This is really good information, but we need more.

Caleb: Why do you think he’s not in here with us right now? He’s working on it. If we discover who wrote the fecking book, that will go a long way towards us getting an accurate translation.

Asher: Why does that matter? It was written, what, a couple thousand years ago?

Caleb: Knowing the author gives us context. Context will help us be more accurate with the translation. It’s like with your computer writing.

Asher: Coding.

Caleb: Whatever. The language you use is specific to you and your style. Your preferences, the time in which you live. Same with whoever wrote the book.

Kingston: *clears throat*

All of the men look at Kingston expectantly.

Kingston: There’s also a chance whoever wrote that ‘fecking book’ is still around. They could give us a literal translation if we can find them.

Caleb nods, clearly considering Kingston’s words.

Caleb: If they are a demon and weren’t simply a mortal possessed or influenced by one, that’s very likely. Although the original Gospels were written by prophets, this certainly could have been the demonic equivalent.

Kai: What about an angel? Don’t angels and demons come from the same cloth? Two sides of the same coin?

Asher: *heavy sigh* And this is why we need Gabriel.

Asher blinks and looks at the camera.

Asher: Fuck, I forgot I was recording.

Kingston: I didn’t.

Kingston waves and blows a kiss.

Kingston: Hi, Mom!

Caleb: *groans* Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.

Ben: *chuckles* H-he r-really is l-like Remi.

Asher focuses on the camera again, smacking his hands on his knees.

sound of hands hitting knees

Asher: Well, I guess it’s a good thing I made this video today. If you have any knowledge of Gabriel’s whereabouts, please let us know. We need to talk to him. Clearly. He has more information than anyone else we’ve been in contact with. Time is running out, and we have a matter of days before the next Prince is released. Every second counts.

Kingston: *singing* Two minutes to midnight . . .

Asher shakes his head as Kai grabs Kingston by the neck and shoves him toward the door.

Asher: And on that note, stay safe. From the sound of things, we are going to need every ally we can get.

static

End of transmission.