Blessed by Night

The president and his men were standing outside the white house, staring into the sky and waiting for the sun to set.

At present, the tension in the air was something that could not be overstated. As the warmth of the day was traded in for the night's chill, the internal temperatures of everyone outside seemed to skyrocket.

When night finally fell, the entire place seemed to go silent. It was clear that everyone was expecting some giant mythical creature to fall from the sky but it didn't.

It came from the grass.

Out of the corner of her eye, Awena noticed a small black snake slithering onto the walkway.

Though she was the first to notice it, she wouldn't be the last as the snake grew larger and larger beyond what could have been considered normal.

It wasn't long until they were staring at a horned serpent over fifty feet long and as thick as a car.

"My god.."

"G-Get back!!"

The men all scrambled backwards, allowing armed soldiers to rush to the forefront as a protective wall.

However, the snake didn't seem to be in any distress over their change of attitude.

Instead, it opened it's mouth to an impossibly large degree.

But instead of seeing a disturbing, writhing mass inside, there was only a boundless, dark space.

And then, a woman stepped out of it.

She was beautiful and fearsome. Her eyes were hard, yet as striking as the scarlet wings coming out of her back.

Once she stepped into full view, a man immediately appeared behind her.

From the very moment he arrived, the assembled men and women felt as if an invisible pressure was bearing down on their shoulders.

Though Malachi did not seem to be actively trying to intimidate them, it was almost like this was just a side effect of staying around him.

Malachi took off his glasses and took in the sight of the president and his accolades.

…And the sixty-something men who had him and Anna surrounded.

Eventually, his eyes just settled on the British woman who they had actually come here to meet.

"Y'all sure are hardheaded." He held out his arm and Ajani shrank down to a more acceptable size as she slithered up it.

"Thought it was just supposed to be just you and a few friends."

Awena started to speak, when suddenly the president cut her off.

"As I am currently the leader of the free world, I'm afraid that I am the only person who it would be deemed acceptable to make negotiations with."

Malachi met eyes with the president for the very first time since arriving.

His and Ajani's disinterested looks were dangerously similar.

"Funny. Seems to me like you might not be afraid enough."

"I-I beg your pardon?!"

Malachi heard the sound of ammunition loading.

He raised his hand as a test.

A single shot was fired. It was a strange bullet that whizzed towards Malachi's hand.

Ajani caught it in her mouth. She then spit it back out onto the ground like the meatless bones of a rat.

Though she didn't wince, or even flinch, Malachi noticed the burns in her mouth all the same.

She was a tough girl so she would never complain, but Mal knew that she had actually been hurt just now.

'They've really been preparing well. Even for me.'

Nevertheless, Mal was more than confident in his ability to fight his way out of here if need be. Especially because Anna was here.

"I thought we were clear..." Anna sighed, clearly devoid of patience. "We're not interested in sitting across the table from a bunch of shitsticks who signed off on the mutilation of thousands of people."

"Look, missy. Our decision was made out of necessity, and-"

"That's enough." Awena finally pushed everyone else aside and attempted to take control of this meeting.

She stepped forward in front of Malachi and Anna and put on a rigid, but more acceptable tone of voice.

"You two must be weary. If you'll follow my attendant, she'll show you to a place where you can freshen up while dinner preparations are finalized."

Anna's face immediately softened. She wasn't a big complainer and always understood what needed to be done, but fuck if she didn't miss bathing on a consistent basis.

"…My fiancé and I will take you up on that. Preciate' it." Enjoy more content from My Virtual Library Empire

Awena seemed almost surprised judging by her expression. "I thought a fiery young woman like you would have made me work a bit more for your thanks."

"If your hot water ain't hot, or you serve us beans on fucking toast we're going to have a whole different conversation."

Awena's jaw set in place. Anna truly was an acquired taste.

-

Malachi had never been in the White House before. He'd never really thought about it all that much either.

But now that he was inside of it, he wasn't expecting the place to be so… white.

White marble floors, white countertops, white wallpaper, it was all blinding.

He had Zazu sweep the room for bugs or explosives, and had Ajani test the water for any sort of poison or mind altering substance.

So other than the fact that Anna had turned their bathtub into the eighth circle of hell, Malachi was in no immediate danger.

"Ahhh… this is the life." Anna sank further into Malachi's chest as she turned her head towards the ceiling.

He absentmindedly ran his fingers over her thighs under the water. Admiring their softness more than trying to illicit some lustful urges.

"Do you know something, babe?" She asked with her eyes closed.

"Hm?"

"I think this may be the quietest moment we've had since we started dating."

Malachi smiled knowingly. Their house was indeed the very last place someone should go if they wanted quiet and peace of mind.

What with Cami and the small army of animals who followed her beck and call, or Bianca's passionate NEET rants, or Joanne yelling at the housewives on tv, or Nadine yelling at the anything she found interesting, the Saint house was always full of noise.

Sei and Luna often tried to be the voices of reason, but they mostly end up falling into the madness with everyone else.

"I miss them." Anna said honestly. Malachi felt her heart ache as soon as the words left her lips.

Mal kissed the nape of her neck gently. "And we're almost back to them. Just one last push, yea?"

Anna nodded thoughtfully. "I honestly can say that I don't want to do this again. From now on, if someone in our family has to go somewhere, I want us to go together. Us against the world."

"We can't exactly bring our daughter into the middle of a battlefield." Mal reminded.

"Your mom would be happy to keep her occupied in her realm until the fighting stops."

Malachi chuckled. "That's true, she'll take any chance to get her hands on her."

"So it's settled then."

The water splashed as Anna turned around and straddled her fiancé.

"Us against the world. Promise me."

Malachi would have shared her sentiments if she didn't say anything. The words rolled off his lips as easily as smoke.

"I promise."