Galvanize

"Jean!"

Jean didn't stop, continuing into the elevate's direction. Shortly, Celezar appeared by his side.

"Good, you sensed it," Celezar said, his eyes focused forward. "It's not a strong elevate--from the 1st Sphere--but there aren't many capable of summoning them anymore..."

"It's Patty," Jean said, "it has to be. But what the fuck did they do to make her summon one?"

"Fuck..."

Jean's thoughts exactly. His expression darkened as the elevate's presence brought them towards a wharf. "Celezar--"

"I've got it." Celezar placed a hand on his shoulder, and the scenery immediately changed to a waterfront where a single boat sat out on the water, unmoved.

Jean took a single step forward, only for his body to nearly blow backward from the force of an Infernal's rage. The wind would have knocked him off his feet if not for Celezar's arm around his waist keeping him grounded.

"Antonio," he and Celezar chorused in horror.

"Wait!" Celezar held him back, his eyes fixed on the boat. "He's murderous."

"We have to make sure he doesn't kill--"

"I will. Hold back a minute." Celezar released him, then disappeared.

Jean softly huffed with disappointment. He knew he would never become strong enough to handle a devil, but it was still annoying to be useless in a situation involving his family.

He heard a scuffle even from a distance, the movement causing the boat to rock, and Celezar's shouting followed the sounds. Antonio responded in an Infernal dialect, the sound guttural and animalistic, full of snarling and growling; Jean could barely make it out.

Antonio demanded why he should spare the bounty hunters.

Then, much to Jean's surprise, a young girl's voice spoke Infernal, her high-pitch managing above the masculine vocals; she was trying to calm her father down.

Antonio snarled back, though with less vehemence.

"It's alright, Jean," Celezar called as the boat stopped rocking.

Jean sped to the boat and jumped high. He still would have landed in the water, so he used his platforms to bring him aboard. He fixed his gaze on a small body dressed in pink clinging to Antonio's pantsleg. Celezar stood behind his cousin, holding him back in a stronghold that the nephilim visibly strained against.

On the other side of the boat, sitting on the floor and pressed against the wall, three men in bounty hunter garb stared at the nephilim with their eyes bulging out of their faces. They sat so still, Jean had to blink to make sure they were still alive.

Narrowing his eyes, he approached them, and upon noticing his footsteps, they turned frightened gazes on him. "What did you do?" he demanded with a growl in his voice.

The men flinched back. "N-nothing!" one of them blurted immediately.

"Then what's that?" he said, pointing to the being bathed in light standing behind Patty.

"An angel, a fucking angel; I don't know what it means!" the same man said. His companions nodded rapidly.

Jean exhaled patiently. He had to remember these men were just doing what they always did. Everyone knew bounty hunters didn't ask questions until after they caught their bounty.

"It's okay, Uncle Jean!" Patty said, still holding onto her father's pantsleg. "I was scared at first, but they were going to take me back when Papà showed up!"

Tilting his head back in thought, Jean slowly nodded. He then sighed, nudging his head to the left. "I'd get going if I were you."

Each man's throat bobbed, and they looked from Jean to Antonio as if asking him for permission.

Even Jean nearly jumped when a ripping growl emitted from the nephilim behind him, that being the metaphorical nod the men needed as they immediately scrambled to their feet and promptly jumped off the boat--straight into the water.

Jean almost laughed.

Almost.

"Let me go."

He turned to see Antonio's body shuddering, his red eyes unfocused. Celezar still held him back.

"Not until you've calmed down," Celezar easily responded.

"It's okay, Papà." Patty hugged his leg. "Juma made sure I was alright."

Burning red orbs glanced at the elevate standing behind her. "Juma," Antonio repeated. His voice, deep and guttural, still brimmed with rage.

"Yes, Lord Antonio," the elevate intoned with a nod. "My name is Jumael, but Patty has given me 'Juma' as a byname."

Antonio visibly exhaled, then he closed his eyes. His body slowly stopped shuddering. "Alright...alright..."

Slowly, Celezar let him go. Immediately, Antonio lifted Patty into his arms and hugged her desperately with closed eyes. She smiled as she hugged him back.

"I'm sorry," he murmured. "I hope I didn't scare you."

"No, Papà."

"Okay..." He slightly moved back to look her over with eyes that were pale blue again. "They didn't hurt you, did they?"

She shook her head. "No, but they scared me. One of them was talking about...keeping me hostage."

Her father's eyes twitched. "Is that so..."

"Yeah, but his friends scolded him! They said that wasn't what they did."

Antonio grunted, then looked at Jean and held his gaze. It didn't take telepathy to know what he articulated.

"I don't know what they were thinking, either, Antonio," Jean sighed, crossing his arms. He still felt annoyed at his lack of usefulness. "It won't be easy to get the bounty off. Do you know anything about the bounty hunter world?"

Antonio frowned. "No, but I do know the person who created the bounty has the best chance of canceling it," he softly growled. "And from the look of things, I doubt your family would do that."

"I agree. Even worse, they may enlist the help of inhuman hunters," Jean sighed.

"There are a few ways we can go about this," said Celezar, leaning against him. "It depends on what you wish to do, Antonio."

"I'm listening." The nephilim nodded, an eye narrowing.

"Either we take a visit to the ol' Isle Veni and force them to rescind the bounty, we go to find the broker to go through them, or we wait, which I don't think any of us want to do."

"Wait?" Jean asked.

"Yeah." From out of nowhere, Celezar manifested a wanted poster with Patty's face on it.

Antonio snatched it. "What the..." He scanned the poster with a red burn in the center of his eyes. "How did they get this picture?"

From the little that Jean saw, the poster indeed carried a recent picture of Patty. He frowned at the thought, then asked, "Patty, were you asked to take a picture while in the manor?"

She slowly nodded. "Yes, when we visited the first time..."

A low growl ripped from Antonio's throat. Smoke emitted from where his hand held the poster. "I'm going to kill them..."

"Please don't," said Celezar, narrowing his eyes at his cousin.

The nephilim glared at him, and a brief staring contest ensued. Jean and Patty stared between the cousins, and only after Celezar made a low growl did Antonio look away with a grumble. His hand crumpled and then burned the poster into ashes.

"Papà, I don't want you to kill them, either," Patty said with a small frown.

Antonio nearly pouted, then kissed her cheek. "Alright. I won't. For you."

She giggled. "Thank you, Papà."

Jean made a slight smile at the scene. He couldn't deny the love between his niece and Antonio. Sighing to himself, he glanced off.

Right into Celezar's gaze.

His mate gave him a knowing smirk, causing him to scoff and avoid the green eyes. "Don't even," he muttered.

Chuckling, Celezar took his hand and leaned against him.

"Uncle Jean!"

A strange sensation formed in Jean's chest upon hearing his niece address him that way. He focused on her. "Yes?"

Her blue eyes sparkled with joy, and she bounced excitedly in her father's arms. "Do you want to see my room?"

He blinked, surprised she would ask. "Oh. Yes, of course," he said with a smile.

"Yay!" She patted Antonio's shoulder. "I wanna show my stuffies!"

A crooked but fond smile spread on her father's face. "Yeah, you've a great collection, huh."

"Yes!"

"I'll see you there, then," Antonio said to Celezar. Before Jean could respond, his niece and the nephilim disappeared.

An arm slunk around his waist, and in the blink of an eye, he and Celezar stood outside the two-story building in the rundown section of the city. Antonio and Patty were entering, and Patty animatedly waved them over.

Glad he was getting to see the entirety of his niece's living quarters, Jean slightly quickened his pace with an indulgent smile. Celezar walked in step beside him, his hands in his pockets. Patty bounced on her toes, waiting, and then she raced to a staircase he hadn't noticed until she began to ascend.

The staircase stood a few feet behind a chair and desk toward the back of the large room. Antonio approached said surface and sat heavily in the chair, kicking his feet atop the desk. "Have fun," he said to Jean, flashing a knowing smile.

Jean wanted to give him an unamused glance but resisted. Instead, he watched Celezar begin a conversation with his cousin.

"C'mon, Uncle!"

Patty stood at the top of the staircase, continuing to bounce on her toes. "I'm coming," he softly chuckled, taking two steps up at a time.

She grinned and spun around to skip to a door within an open hallway. He stepped onto the landing and could see down to the first floor where Celezar and Antonio conversed in a demonic language. He wanted to see more of the room but his eyes returned to his niece who stood in a doorway.

"This is my room!" she said as he neared. She opened the door some more, allowing him to see inside.

He blinked. Compared to the main floor, her room appeared to be something out of a fairytale--if not exactly so. One couldn't mistake it for a room for anyone but a child like Patty: pinks and laces were hanging and draping all over, horse and rainbow motifs were at every turn of the head, and, of course, cute stuffed animals and dolls sat happily upon shelves. The twin-sized bed had a translucent white mosquito net canopy, and a white and pink trunk sat at the bed's lower end.

He glanced around, nodding with approval at the clean and tidy space. "Very nice."

"You like it?" She pulled at his sleeve, eyes bright. "I made it up myself!"

He grinned. "You did?"

"Uh-huh! Papà let me design it and everything!"

"I'm glad. He's a great father," he admitted.

"Yes, he is!" She nodded rapidly. "I know he has problems but..."

Raising a brow, he crouched to look her in the eye as she pursed her lips. "But what?"

She looked towards the floor. "Papà tries, you know. He works very hard to keep me happy...and healthy...and...I love him." She played with the button on his sleeve. "But people don't like him sometimes."

Jean's jaw locked, suddenly feeling self-conscious. She was far more perceptive than he thought.

She looked back up. "Do you think Papà is bad?"

"I...don't think he's...bad," he admitted cautiously. "But he has shortcomings and...issues...that worry me."

She nodded. "Like the alcohol?"

He slowly nodded. "I don't like that he drinks around you."

Her demeanor dampened. "I know...most people don't, even Mammina and Aunt Sera."

He frowned. "Why don't they like it?"

She didn't immediately respond, her expression turning into a frown. "He's sad when he drinks a lot. But he doesn't hurt me or say anything bad!" she quickly assured. "He's just very sad. He cries. I don't like it when he cries, but he doesn't let me give him hugs."

Jean wanted to ask her if she knew what happened to Antonio in his past but thought better of it. If he had any inkling as to what made her father act the way he did, it was nothing a child should hear or needed to know about--or anyone, truly.

He softly exhaled through his nose. His eyes wandered to the room again. A small vanity stood in the room, and while looking over it, he spotted a familiar amulet resting on a necklace stand. It was his sister's, the amulet she wore when she disappeared--or what was left of it. His eyes tightened with sentiment.

"Uncle?"

His gaze returned to his niece, lessening in intensity. Large blue eyes searched his face for reassurance. He managed a minute smile, sighing, "I'd like to know him better. Maybe I just need some time to see him in a different light."

Her expression brightened by a margin, and she nodded rapidly in easy agreement.

With a sigh to himself, Jean had to admit--even though Antonio didn't bring her back to Isle Veni, he clearly wanted or was at the very least alright with her keeping parts of her history and heritage. Jean couldn't ask for much more than that, unfortunately. At least based on what he knew of the nephilim...

He began to open his mouth when a sensation of alarm spiked through his being. Physically startling, he immediately noticed Patty did the same, blinking and hugging her arms to herself with confusion.

"Uncle, did you sense that?" she asked quietly, looking at him with fear in her eyes.

"Jean!"

Spinning to face the door, Jean stood and neared Celezar, who stood in the room's threshold. "What happened?"

With shocking nonchalance, Celezar sighed, "Well, the Isle Veni barrier was penetrated--"

"What?!" Jean sputtered. "Then the being that attacked must be at least B-Class!"

Nodding, Celezar took a few steps closer as he began to panic. "True. But I feel strangely relaxed about it..."

"Yes, Zarryel, I see that."

Nudging him, the hybrid scoffed, "You plan on going, don't you?"

Jean avoided his eyes, staring forward in deep thought. He felt his lips slowly turn downward, his hands steadily clench into fists. Instead of answering, he asked, "Do you know what it is, this creature?"

"It's the same demon hybrid that invaded your mind."

Covering his face with a hand, he wearily exhaled. The creature likely targeted the isle because of him. "Yeah. Yeah, I'll go."

"We'll go, love." Celezar gently unclenched his free hand to gasp it.

Lowering his hand, he broke into a small smile.

"Uncles?"

He turned to his niece but didn't miss how Celezar smiled at the girl's address. "What you sensed was something attacking Isle Veni," he explained.

Her expression of fear only worsened. "Oh, no! We gotta help, right?" Before he could respond, he moved out of the way as she ran to the balcony. "Papà!"

"No," came the dry reply.

She ran down the stairs, almost stomping, and Jean exchanged a glance with his mate. They then followed, leaving Patty's room to walk down the staircase.

"But why, Papà?" she asked while standing beside her father as he rested in his chair, avoiding her gaze.

"They could've gotten you killed," the nephilim explained with the softest of growls.

Watching the girl pout and stomp her foot, Jean observed their interaction carefully as he and Celezar hit the ground floor.

"But they didn't!"

Shifting in his chair, Antonio shut his eyes. "Doesn't matter."

Her mouth scrunched. "Papà, you don't want them to die."

"Maybe I don't care either way. Your uncles can handle it just fine."

"Please, Papà?" she asked, placing her palms together. "You could really help them have less casities!"

"Casualties."

"Yeah!"

Jean could hear the man grind his teeth together. He was considering.

"Please?" She gently tugged her father's sleeve. "I'll be safe here!"

Jean pursed his lips when he heard this, unsure if that was ever the case.

"I have a guardian angel!" she continued, brightening up. "Nothing will happen to me now."

Jumael appeared beside the girl, nodding. "Indeed, I will protect Patty with my life, Lord Antonio. If by some unfortunate circumstance we were to encounter a being more powerful than myself, I will alert you immediately."

Antonio's body rose and fell in a deep inhale. His expression darkened and he muttered to himself, then lowered his legs from the table and rubbed his forehead. "Alright," he softly relented.

Patty gave him a hug, and he smiled, taking her into his arms as he stood. "Thank you, Papà!"

To Celezar, Jean whispered, "Is this true?"

Taking him by his waist, Celezar tilted his head to the side. "Is what true, love?"

"Is Jumael a guardian angel?"

"Yep." When Jean looked at him, a brow rising, the hybrid explained, "Believe it or not, your family had guardian angels for many years at one point..."

"What happened?" Jean figured he already knew but asked anyway.

His mate sighed. "The elevates saw your family as less...worthy of the blessing after the divide. I don't know the exact details, myself. I don't even know how your family even got guardian angels. Maybe you can ask Jumael sometime."

Humming, Jean nodded in agreement before looking at Antonio who stepped over.

"Alright, then," the nephilim began, "we need to gear up if we're going. This demon hybrid is likely summoning lesser demons to it, so we need to have all the artillery we can possibly carry."

"Right. You have an armory?" Jean asked.

"Yeah, this way." Lowering Patty to the floor, Antonio led them to a door behind his bar--which Jean just noticed.

More signs of Antonio's alcoholism...

He kept the comments to himself, blinking in surprise when the nephilim opened the door to reveal a large room full of weapons and ammunition. Entering behind him, he scanned the walls of weaponry. Several of the weapons were demonic in nature, likely made from parts of demons themselves...

"Take whatever you need," Antonio called from deeper inside.

Briefly glancing from him, where Jean could see the nephilim don a long black leather coat, Jean looked at the open cabinets of vials and potions. He took some strange white-colored ones with the label "anti-Infernal mist" beneath them.

"Will the demon summon anything else to it?" he asked Celezar, who stood inside the room observing the arms.

A green eye looked his way. "Probably not, unless it is with that witch-mate it has."

"Right." Jean scowled, then chose several more vials of the mist liquid, holy water, and some balms for possible wounds.

Admittedly, he had no idea what more than half the concoctions in the cabinet were for. He stuck to what was familiar for now.

Once done, strapping some belts around his waist and shoulders, he turned to see Celezar didn't have any new gear or utilities.

"Ready?" Antonio asked, approaching them.

Jean gave him a once-over. While dressed in the black coat that Jean could see had some anti-inhuman coating to it, likely to prevent fouler liquids from tainting it, the nephilim was entirely devoid of anything else on his person beside a belt holding large twin guns.

He raised a brow. "Ready, if you are."

"Alright." A strange eager expression appeared in the nephilim's eyes, and he passed Jean and Celezar to near Patty and give her a hug. "See you, Tea," he whispered.

"See you, Papà. Be good!" she giggled.

"I'll try," he softly laughed, moving to stand. He glanced back, smirking. "See you there."

He immediately disappeared. Patty waved at them. "See you, Uncles! Be safe!"

Jean smiled, giving a salute. "Will do."

The words had just left his mouth when his surroundings changed.

His eyes immediately shot open wide as he took in the scene before him.

Isle Veni was burning.