Everything happened so quickly that at first, nobody was able to tell what they'd just witnessed. It took a few seconds before the first triumphant cry broke through the silence, and when it did, it was soon joined by an entire symphony of victorious shouts. Alain, for his part, held back – he could see that the entire horde of Demons had been reduced to dust, and that Lilith herself had been felled, and yet the entire thing felt completely unreal to him.

The thing that finally shook him out of his stupor was the realization that he still hadn't checked on Heather.

Instantly, Alain's eyes widened. "Mother!"

He left his empty Krag rifle leaning against the nearby sandbags, then bounded over to where he'd seen the last lightning bolt strike, where the Whitworth snipers had been posted. The area was a wreck, the careful camouflage of dirt and sandbags they'd set up having been completely trashed, and blood was everywhere. Alain's heart skipped a beat, and he looked around frantically, only for his breath to hitch when he saw a trail of blood leading away from the area and off towards the side. He followed after it, calling for his mother the entire time, until he finally found her being fussed over by several medics and priests.

Heather's teeth were gritted in agony as the doctors worked to stabilize her. Her left arm had been blown off at the elbow, and what little was left of it had already been bandaged. In her one remaining hand, she tightly grasped a bottle of whiskey, which shook beneath the pressure of her white-knuckled grip. At the sight of her, Alain rushed over, calling for her once more, only to stop when she winced.

"Calm down, Alain," she chastised. "Christ, my head's killing me already, and you screaming my name isn't helping any…"

"Forget about that!" Alain replied. "You're wounded!"

She waved the bottle of whiskey in his direction; it took him a moment to realize that was her way of waving him off. "I'll be fine," she grunted.

"Fine?! Your arm's missing!"

"I'm aware. And not only that, but I can't feel my left leg, either. Guess that means my days of hunting the supernatural are over now. Damn shame." She raised the bottle of whiskey to her lips and drank deeply from it, causing red to blossom across her face. Alain simply stared in disbelief; she stared back as she peeled the bottle away from her lips. "What?"

"Nothing, I just…" Alain let out a tired sigh. "I'm glad you're okay, mother."

"Yeah, so am I. That was a ballsy move earlier, by the way – turning yourself over to Lilith like that, I mean. You're lucky Az came to save you."

"Believe me, I know," Alain replied. He went to open his mouth again, only for his mother to once again wave the bottle at him.

"Enough about me," she grunted. "Go find your woman, I'm sure she wants to see you right now."

"My woman…? You mean-"

"I'm right here," Sable said from behind him. Alain turned around, and was completely unprepared for her to suddenly lunge forward and press her lips against his. He recovered after a second, enough to return the kiss, all while a few of the soldiers nearby let out a cheer at the sight of the two of them. After a moment, they broke apart, and Alain stared at her, numb.

"For getting us through it all," Sable told him. "Not that I needed an excuse, of course."

"Oh, I know," Alain said in response, as a smile finally sprouted across his face for the first time in days.

"Alain."

At the sound of Danielle's voice, he turned around to face her. The arrow that had been jutting out of her leg was gone, replaced with a roll of bandages. Aside from that, she was unhurt, though covered in dirt and other people's dried blood. His expression softened at the sight of her, and the realization that she wasn't in dire straits.

"You're a sight for sore eyes," he greeted.

"I could say the same to you," she responded. "I barely saw you during all of that, at least until the end – last I remember, you were over on the left flank as it was buckling. Figured I'd make sure you and Sable were okay."

"We're both fine. What about Father Michaelson? Is he-"

"He's okay, as is Father Alex. I saw them tending to the wounded earlier. They'll both be busy for a while, I imagine." Her expression hardened. "We lost a lot of people today. I don't know how many, but it had to be in the thousands."

"I know. It's unfortunate, to say the least, but they didn't die in vain."

"Yeah…" She let out a small exhale, then shook her head. "I'm going to go find a place to lie down. I assume a bath is out of the question, but I could at least do with a place to rest… and probably a drink, if I'm being honest."

"Got you covered," Heather called out, slurring her words as she raised her bottle of whiskey up. "Drink up, girl."

To Danielle's credit, she didn't react extremely negatively at the sight of Heather's wound. Instead, she nodded, then stepped over to her, accepted the offered bottle, and drank deeply of it. Alain watched the whole thing unfold, at least until Sable tapped him on the shoulder.

"Look sharp," she advised. "Here comes trouble."

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

"Trouble…?" Alain echoed as he turned to find Lawrence and Thorne approaching him. Both were spattered with dried blood and covered in wounds, but none that appeared life-threatening. If the two of them were bothered by their respective injuries, they weren't showing it at all, as they both had smiles on.

"Well, well," Lawrence greeted him. "Seems you actually managed to pull it off, Smith."

"Not just me," Alain reminded him. "It was everyone who participated."

"Sure, but you can't deny that you played a very large part in why we're all still here."

Alain pursed his lips. "No comment."

"Hah. Ever the modest one, I see."

"Why hog the glory when you can share it?"

"Good point." Lawrence turned towards Sable. "So, just to confirm – you two are-"

"Yes," Sable said, sidling up to Alain and grabbing hold of his hand. "We are."

"Interesting," Thorne commented. "But far from unheard of. After all, it isn't unusual in the slightest for the master to fall for their apprentice… though it is unusual for one to be a vampire and the other to be a mortal. Highly unusual, even. But then again, you seem to have made a habit out of doing the highly unusual, Smith."

"Yeah, I-" Alain paused, his eyes widening. "...That wasn't an intentional pun, was it?"

Thorne offered no response, instead sliding her gaze back towards Sable. "He's a good one, you know. Take care of him."

"I intend to," Sable answered.

"Good. Well, then… I hate to take my leave so soon, but Lawrence and I have other matters to attend to. Smith, do not take this the wrong way, but I hope to all that is holy that there is no reason for our paths to ever cross again."

"No offense taken, Thorne," he answered. "If anything, I share that sentiment."

She gave him a nod of approval, and then her and Lawrence turned and began to walk away. Alain watched them go before letting out a sigh.

"Alright," he said, "anyone else?"

"Just one."

At the sound of the new voice, Alain whipped around, a grin crossing his face as he did so. Az was standing there, still clad in his golden armor, his sword sheathed at his hip. Soldiers were staring up at him in awe and reverence, many of them with their jaws dropped, but Az paid them no mind, instead stepping forward. He only made it a few steps before Sable rushed him, throwing her arms around him.

"I missed you," she said, tears leaking down her face. "I thought you were dead."

"I was," he stated as he returned her hug. "But someone up above thought I was worthy of a second chance."

"I take it that's why you're back now?" Alain asked as he ran over to where the two of them were standing.

Az shook his head. "No. In light of my newfound redemption, they offered my old station back to me. I agreed to take it… with the condition that He would give me just ten minutes here on Earth to set things right."

Sable stared up at him with wide eyes. "Ten minutes…? So that means-"

He nodded. "Yes. I have to go back in a short while. I will not be returning for a very long time – long enough that everyone here, even the vampires, will have been very dead by the time I make my appearance again. I think you both know what I mean."

Slowly, Alain nodded. "Indeed, we do."

"Of course, we'll have a reunion of our own before then," Az promised him.

"You mean-"

"Oh, yes. Doing what you just did has its perks, after all."

Alain felt his heart skip a beat. "Thank you," he stated. "For everything you've done. And I don't just mean what happened a few minutes ago."

"I'm aware. And honestly, it's I who should be thanking you, Alain – were it not for you, I never have taken the steps towards redemption. I owe you my eternal gratitude, and by extension, so does the rest of the world."

Az gently broke free of Sable's hug, then offered Alain a hand. Alain, for his part, didn't hesitate to accept it, and the two men shook for what he was sure would be the final time for a number of years. Az gave him a grin, and Alain returned it with one of his own.

"Well, my time here draws short," Az said to him. "But rest assured, I'll be watching both of you, and when the time comes, I'll be there."

"I don't doubt that for a moment," Alain agreed. "I'll be seeing you, Az."

Az nodded in confirmation. "Farewell, Alain."

Then there was a sudden flash of white light, and when it cleared, Az was gone, with not even a trace left behind to indicate he'd ever been there in the first place. A pang of sorrow lanced through his chest, though Alain was quick to shake it off.

Az had done his part, and now all that was left to do was officially confirm the conflict was over.

Before Alain could address the troops, however, someone called out.

"Hey, look! The Army's here!"

Alain's eyes widened, and he rushed over to the highest point in their defenses he could possibly find. Sure enough, an entire caravan of wagons and horses was speeding towards them. Sable hurried over to stand beside him, and the two of them watched as the caravan stopped just a short ways away, and a man dressed in a very ornate-looking Army uniform, complete with a cluster of five stars on his chest, stepped out of the lead wagon, his mouth agape.

"What the hell…?" the General muttered as he surveyed the remnants of the battlefield. Alain and Sable came jogging over to him, and he turned his attention towards them. "I thought we were going to be walking into a war zone, and yet you all seem to have held the line somehow. What happened here?"

Alain didn't respond at first, instead reaching out to take Sable by the hand as the two of them shared a knowing look. After a moment, Sable turned back towards the General, giving him a warm smile.

"It was nothing short of a true miracle, Sir," she answered.

XXX

"Ow! Damn it!"

Alain shook out his hand as he swore, his finger pulsing in agony as he grit his teeth. Naturally, Sable poked her head out the front door.

"Watch your language," she admonished before heading back into the house.

"Yeah, yeah…" Alain muttered as he let the hammer fall from his other hand, then stood up and wiped the sweat from his brow.

The government had offered them almost anything they'd wanted in exchange for basically saving the world. Alain had every reason to be greedy and shoot for the moon, so to speak, but his sense of modesty had won out. In the end, he'd requested a plot of land out in the middle of Texas. It wasn't much – just a few dozen acres, fit to build a house and farm on – but it was his.

Sable, of course, had no such qualms about her. She'd initially requested a good chunk of the government's gold, and upon being denied, had settled merely for having enough money that neither of them would ever have to work again. It was a far cry from the empire she'd dreamed of creating for herself upon first landing in the United States, but somehow, Alain could tell that didn't bother her any. If anything, she seemed to live out those fantasies whenever she got to boss the ranch hands around.

Alain surveyed the area nearby once again, letting out a tired sigh when he saw that the board he'd just injured himself nailing in was barely scratching the surface when it came to the new chicken coop they'd needed to build. From what he could tell, there were still a few hours of work left to do.

Sable's head popped out of the doorway again, interrupting his thoughts.

"You should take a break," she advised. "Come in and sit with me for a while."

"I mean, I could-"

Her eyes flashed crimson. "I wasn't asking."

Alain blinked. "Alright, message received."

And just like that, Sable's expression turned jovial again. "Excellent."

She retreated back into the house, and Alain followed after her. No sooner had he shut the door behind him than was she upon him, pressing her face up against his. Alain wasn't surprised; if anything, he'd expected this to happen.

"You're not nearly as subtle as you used to be," he noted. "I saw this coming from a mile away."

"I wasn't aware that you still liked it when I was subtle."

He shrugged. "It comes and it goes."

"Hm. I think I liked you better before you got rich – you were far less inclined to talk back to me."

"That's your fault, not mine," he reminded her. "I was okay with just the land."

"I know you were."

She leaned in and pressed her lips against his, reaching down to grab his hand as she did so. In the process, Alain's hand passed through a ray of sunlight spilling in from the nearby window, which glinted off the gold band he was wearing. The yellow gem in the center of the ring glinted in the mid-afternoon sun, causing patterns to dance across the inside of the house behind Alain. And in front of the light show, the two lovers lost themselves in each other for what had to have been the hundredth time in the past year, not that it felt any different from the first.

The two of them eventually separated from each other, Alain gasping for breath as he did so. Sable gave him an amused look, and he rolled his eyes. She motioned for him to follow her to the living room, and he did so, the two of them sinking down onto the couch together. Sable leaned her head against his shoulder, a content sigh escaping from her.

"You should take breaks more often," she told him.

"Why?" he asked. "Worried I'll work myself to death?"

"No. I just like sharing moments like this with you."

"Hah." Alain shook his head. "By the way, have you heard from my mother recently?"

"Not recently, no. Though I imagine she's probably still raising hell downtown." Sable's brow furrowed. "You worry too much. If she needs us, she'll let us know."

"I know, but I can't help but be concerned, after what happened." He shook his head. "I just-"

"Sh," Sable told him, gently pressing her finger against his lips. "You should rest."

"Sable-"

"I mean it. You've been working hard recently, from sunup to sundown. You deserve some extra sleep. I insist."

Alain let out an exasperated sigh. "...Alright. I know better than to argue with you."

"I know you do." She leaned against him again, closing her eyes as she did so. Alain, for his part, leaned back, slipping one arm around her and pulling her close.

The two of them drifted off together, and this time, Alain's dreams were completely free of nightmares.

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