With a little more reluctance that he would ever want to admit Paul lets his human form envelope him again. A few of the Bulmäs got past but nothing that Rae and Ryan can not deal with. Besides he reasons if she has had a good fight she’ll be easier to deal with later. Even in the battle he stops himself. Those are not thoughts he should be having about his family. He shakes his head to clear the last few sensations of the daemon from his mind. Some days being evil is just too tempting.
He looks up at the lea gate. He can make out another wave ready to come through.
“You ok?” He projects back to Rae. There is no instant scream for aid. “I’m going to close the gate.” He informs her. And then he jumps.
The assembled creatures stare at him in disbelief as one lone small Japanese man armed only with a naginata appears before them in their muster point.
One of the creatures even laughs.
A mistake. It draws Paul’s attention to him, a flash of blue and a portal appears across the centre of the creatures head, the crown falling left as the rest of the body falls right. There is a splat as the brains hit the floor.
Paul turns and smiles at them.
The assembled war band steps back. Paul holds out his sword and pointedly drops it through the gate as it vanishes through it, falling to the ground. The gate closes up; it’s connection severed by the life force trapped in the sword.

The war band look at him
He lets his teeth show, fully well aware of the insult that portrays to the beings in front of him.
His eyes narrow slightly and then he says.
“Run.”

Some of the creatures turn, others decide to stand their ground. It makes little difference to him. He prefers the chase, makes fear fresher and give it an edge. But even those that stand know their task is futile and ultimately all that waits them is death and their desperation gives the emotions a subtle twist, like lemon.
He stretches out his wings and claws to really get the message across, and their fear fills him.
Not that he makes it quick. He even lets a few of them get a blow in to give them an element of false hope and drag out their despair. Just as he is really loosing himself in the swirling mass of dread there is a loud pop sensation and he finds himself floating in the amber of U space.
Some one has spoilt his fun and collapsed the lay domain.
He rips out the throat of the Bulmäs struggling next to him in irritation, but some how it is just not the same. In this unfamiliar world they are just not enough of a challenge to make the hunt worth while, like a fish left flapping aimlessly on the sea shore.
He forms a portal around him and heads back to reality.
+*+
It’s cold. So cold and so dark.
And then it is light a blinding whiteness and the sensation that his whole skin is burning.
Prydan can hear his screams but they are a thousand miles away.
The only thing he can be sure of is his hands gripping the globe, holding on to it as if it is a life line, the one real link back to where he came from.
Dark Cold again. A sense of utter emptiness. So alone  and inaccessible. An eternity in isolation.
And then the darkness is cut through with a white light, like the sunlight reflection off a sword blade. He grasps for it. Feeling the light cut into his fingers. It hurts, hurts so much, but it is only pain and pain compared to the loneliness is nothing. Pain he can endure. Being cut off is worse than death.
+*+
Rae and Ryan suddenly realise that the forces they are facing are dwindling. What ever Paul is up to at the lea gate is preventing the waves of reinforcements and the forces her are pulling out using any route they can. Ryan thrusts his blade through the neck of one of the larger creatures and pulls. He feels tendons give in his back as he throws everything into the cut.
The creature drops to the floor and he turns for the next opponent. But there is nothing facing him.
He looks over at Rae to see she is sanding there, half leaning on her katana and panting. She half grins at him as she looks round at the mass of corpses and he sinks to his knees.
“Let’s not do that again anytime soon.” He begs.
She nods. Too out of breath to reply, and hobbles to the steps up onto the lawn to collapse on them, pulling out her cigarettes and lighter.
Ryan stares at the head in front of him, suddenly realising how large it is, and how close they came to defeat.

Then the door of the mansion is wrenched open and Christine comes out. Her face like thunder with fear.
"You took your time?" She comment sarcastically.
"Where is he, Rae?" Christine lowers the weapon she is holding at her, her eyes blazing.
Rae realises she could use it. She takes the smoke from her mouth and points along the wall.
Ryan is sat with his back to the wall, a large weapon in his hand, staring at a large decapitated head in front of him. There is no sigh of a body. He is shaking slightly.
Chris drops the weapon and runs over to him.
"You ok?"
He nods slightly wincing as she places her hand on his shoulder.
He trys stand and then thinking better of it.
Rae reaches into ther pocket and pulls out a flat bar wrapped in gold foil. She tosses it over to him.
"Eat." She instructs, pulling out a similar bar for herself.
Christine unwraps the bar for him, putting the first piece in his mouth. He chews it, then his face distorts in disgust. "What is this?"
"Combasol." Rae responds. "You get used to it." She takes a large bite from her own bar. Despite her words, her face suggest that she is lying.
Jerry looks round as Mac heads off the check the perimeter. "Where's Paul?" She asks slowly,
Rae shrugs standing up. "He went to close the gate." She states. There is a slight pop noise, and a feeling of rushing air. The ripples in reality vanish "And he's done it." She finishes.
She draws on the cigarette and strides over to Ryan She drops to her knees before him, looking at his shoulder and face.
"You'll heal." She concludes flatly. "We were lucky." She states to Christine, "They only had moon claives." She gestures to the tree trunk lying next to the head. "If they had side arms, we would have been dead."
"If you and Paul hadn't been here." She starts looking at Ryan.
Rae just shrugs, "You have to thank him for that not me." She answers darkly.
Christine looks round. "Where is he?"
"You can't close a gate like that from this side." Rae states flatly.
Christine looks at her, a slight panic in her face. She looks at Rae's calm expression, remembering her own panic at seeing Ryan go. "Aren't you worried?" She asks.
Rae just looks at her. "He's immortal Chris." She responds as if the question is irrelevant to her. "You are talking about a man who walks dæmon plains for a laugh. The only thing I worry about is whether he'll remember to pick up the dry cleaning on the way home."
She starts to pull together the weapons, stacking them next to the one she left leaning against the wall. Leaving Chris to get Ryan to his feet she pulls the fallen moon claive over to the pile. It takes all her strength just to drag it. She stands looking round. "Shit where did he throw my gun?"
Mac comes back. "Island clear. I found Morgan down at the dock. He said three of the creatures jumped him and bogged them down at the warehouse." She reports. She looks at Rae. "Found this." She hands her a small gun.
"Great, that one less load of paperwork." She drops it into the holtser. Then she looks at the head. "Do you want that?"
Chris just stares at her. "Why would we?"
Rae shrugs, "trophy or something." She responds. "after all he did kill it." She adds gesturing to Ryan.
"Do you mind I'm trying to forget." He whispers.
Chris looks down at him, confused by her fiancé's state of shock.
"What ever." Rae pushes the thing rolling it to the pile of weapons. "I'll see if Kath recognises it."
She looks at Mac, gesturing to Ryan. "Get him inside will you." Then she turns her attention to Christine. "You I want a word with." She comments.
Christine stares at her, amazed that Rae is ordering her around in her own domain. Then she realises that, after all her and Paul have done, she has very little choice.
She points at the head, "They don't just come out delivering mail. What have you done Chris?"
"Nothing that I am aware of." Christine responds honestly.
Rae looks at her studying her.
"Ok let's try a different tack." Rae drops the cigarette on the floor and stubs it out. "Who is she?"
"Who?" Christine replies.
"This Silvia." Rae makes it clear that she is irritated at having to explain.
"She is my niece."
"Wrong Chris. I am the only niece you have, and as fucked up as my memory is I know I am not her." She pauses, when she speaks again her words carry power. "Stop lying to me."
Christine looks at her, she can feel the magic working on her, forcing her to speak only the truth,
"This isn't necessary." She complains
"I think it is." Rae replies.
"I can't tell you." Chris responds. She has to force the words out against the spell.
"Try wont tell me it's easier." Rae snaps back sarcastically. "She is bulmäs."
Christine looks at her in surprise.
"Like I said I have been around Kathnak long enough to spot bulmäs shit. They, "She gestures to the head in the pile. "They are bulmäs. You can't tell me there is not a connection."
"If there is one I don't know about it." Christine responds honestly.
Rae looks at her, then she nods and drops the spell. "Tell me." She asks.
"Silvia is the daughter of a friend, a close friend. She recently lost her family, I have taken her in." Christine replies. "Ok so she isn't really my niece, but I wanted to make sure she was accepted here so I lied. Sorry."
Rae nods at her reply. "I don't know who your friend was, Chris, But if some one sent them after her he had some powerful enemies. The girl is in danger, and she is going to need protecting."
"I am beginning to realise that." Christine responds.
"I'll see what I can find out."

Rae waves her hand over the pile of weapons and the head, the ground below glows blue and the pile slowly sinks into it, eventually vanishing. The blue glow fades to leave just the gravel.
"What I don't understand is how did they know she was here?" Christine asks.
"They don't need to know where she is, With lea tech you can just focus it in on the person." Rae smiles, "you know like Paul did to Ryan that time."
Christine looks at her, panic forming on her face. "Ryan!"
She runs into the house.