Return of the Hero 10 - Proof

Sneaking into the gate had been trivial, as George and Elizabeth said. Though it had been less 'sneaking in,' and more them walking right past security with him in tow, ignoring all cameras and sensors and the few security guards who recognized them. No one paid George and Elizabeth any heed. Lucas kept his head down, to avoid cameras, just in case.

The gate itself was mottled green, unlike the gate to hell he'd seen earlier, and at least ten feet tall, floating just above a metal platform. Research equipment was piled up around the thing, pressing up against the metal walls of the building that had been built around the gate. A large part of Lucas wanted to explore it, to touch the strange cameras and satellite dishes and weird crystals, but he restrained his curiosity in favor of actually stepping inside one.

Elizabeth and George had both dressed in tight, leather bodysuits, what they called standard training gear.

"You sure this is ok?" Lucas stage whispered, feeling like there were eyes upon him even as they stood before the portal.

"Yes." Elizabeth said. "We're just showing our brother the dangers of the gates. And if anyone notices any energy fluctuations, it's two of America's most powerful S-ranks showing off. Enter after George. I'll follow." She assured him, clearly a little annoyed as Lucas had asked that question a number of times now.

He grumbled as George slipped into the gate. "Two s-ranks. I'll try to keep it around that level." With a heavy sigh he stepped forward, following his brother through the portal.

It was not nearly as disorienting as his descent from heaven. Whereas that had been a kaleidoscope of color and sensation, this one was like slipping through a veil of honey. Sticky. Cloying. The ambient magical energy clung to his skin and tickled his ears in a manner that was decidedly playful - in fact, it was a far cry better than the energy he'd been experiencing in the city.

"Oh, sweet relief," he groaned as he fully stepped through, sucking in a deep breath of sweet, clean air. The interior of this gate was nothing like hell, or what he had expected. Dense, thick greenery filled the land save for the small clearing the portal was situated in. The amount of life energy that suffused the place was what gave the air that thick, sticky feeling, it wasn't hot or humid in the slightest. In fact, it was decidedly mild.

Dense bushes filled the spaces beneath the trees, so thick he could barely see ten feet in front of him. Insects buzzed in the air, the chirping cry of some bird echoing through the foliage.

"You should have brought me here to recover," he complained, sucking in another deep breath, feeling the life energy absorb through his skin, tingling and nourishing his cells. It wouldn't produce immediate effects, that wasn't how it worked, but it would help his body grow stronger faster. It was like...nutrients for the body and soul, not a cure-all.

"We were planning to bring you here eventually," Elizabeth said as she entered, waving away a bug that buzzed around her head. George was already floating in the air above, looking about above the emerald sea of trees. Lucas cast his own senses out, reveling in how peaceful everything felt...comparatively speaking. There was still an undercurrent of oddness here, electric and inevitable, but it was less chaotic than the city.

"We knew you would eventually want to enter a gate. We planned to bring you here. Scare you in a place that we can control. There's nothing in here that will be able to do anything to me or Liz, but a D-rank like you? Perfect for instilling the fear of god." George said, descending from above. The wind whipped about his feet, acting as a platform for him to stand upon. Lucas sucked in a deep breath, testing the proverbial waters about them.

"You don't control anything here," he told them, bending and touching the ground. The soil was alive with all kinds of power, but underneath it all, 'mischief.' Gods above, this felt familiar...but he didn't think too hard on it. "They only let you."

"Who does?" Elizabeth asked, her voice sounding more curious than disbelieving.

"Doesn't matter," Lucas muttered, eyeing the nearest plant. To even say their name was to invite them closer, and, here and now, he did not want that. Maybe someday.

"Well, the training grounds we use are a little bit further north. Stay next to Liz and you won't get lost. Not like you can go far," George said, floating higher into the sky. Lucas extended his senses, pushing them out and against whatever lay within this place. It truly wasn't large, perhaps ten miles across in any direction, shaped like a dome. There were a few magical creatures within, but they all stayed far away from the portal.

It was not necessarily a true planet. Nor was it an actual plane, in his inexpert opinion. It felt more like a slice of reality, perhaps mirrored, perhaps copied. The walls were close, thin feeling and keeping this sliver of reality separated from all others, connecting and isolating at the same time. He really wasn't an expert on such things, he wasn't one of the eggheads who studied those really intricate parts of reality. Perhaps someday he would, but he just hadn't gotten around to it yet.

"Fascinating," he muttered, more because the word felt right than because it was truly 'fascinating.' Though it did raise some interesting questions. Where did the beings within come from? Was the demon he'd seen truly from hell, or had it been a copy? He knew generally why they were happening, but the actual gates themselves were a mystery.

"So," Elizabeth said as she led the way, pushing through the undergrowth. "This was once what we called a Fey gate. Weird Faerie Tale like creatures roamed about in here. Now S-ranks keep it generally clean of any hostiles, and we utilize it as a training ground."

"Right," Lucas agreed, dusting his fingers over a fern as he pushed through it. The life energy it exuded danced about his fingers, ready for his light, ready to soak it in and pour out more. "It's a good thing you haven't closed it. This much life energy will help counteract some of the chaos the cities are causing. It's probably why there haven't been as many gates around this area specifically. Though maybe that's because I'm there, too," he said. Elizabeth said nothing as they walked, pushing further through the dense forestry, the animals he'd sensed moving in the trees but never moving closer.

It only took a minute or two to get through the forest and arrive at the training grounds. Lucas wiped his forehead, eyebrows raising as he beheld the craters torn into the flat landscape. Gashes from what looked like sword slashes tore the land, creating miniature canyons. Trees and plants had been all but torn asunder, soil upturned and blackened and even turned to glass in places. It was a properly used training ground, he had to admit.

"Well, this is fun. You two go first, yeah?" he said casually, setting his hands upon his hips. Both of his siblings turned to him, words half-formed in their mouths, but he cut them off. "No, really. Go first. That will give me an idea of what I'm dealing with, better than judging and assuming." His senses were a far cry better than theirs, but even he wasn't going to claim perfection.

They looked at each other. Lucas rolled his eyes. This is why he hated talking with twins, especially ones as close and George and Elizabeth. They had that whole...mental understanding thing going for them. Less hate, more like I get jealous.

"Right. Ok. Here, watch this." George said, coming to stand just before Lucas. He closed his eyes and turned his back, and Lucas stepped up beside him, feeling the wind coalesce around his fingers and form. His air whipped about madly. Magic power condensed into a blade of pure intent. George lifted his hand, pointed his fingers - and Lucas stepped in front of it, just as he fired.

A light breeze hit his back, George crying out in shocked alarm.

All before him, blades of wind cut across the land, decimating the already decimated landscape. Gouges ten feet deep were carved into the landscape, crisscrossing across the ground. Lucas held his chin in between his thumb and forefinger, nodding sagely, pursing his lips as he surveyed the destruction and pretended not to be taking great pleasure in the shocked silence radiating from his siblings.

"Decent. Adequate. But I told you to show me what you've got." he said, turning around, not a hair out of place, not even a single thread of his shirt cut by the biting wind. Golden light swirled about him briefly, an aura of utter calm exuding from him. He grinned savagely. "Do not hold back this time."

***

Lucas was fairly certain he had made a lasting impression upon his siblings. He sat in the man-made clearing, hands folded in his lap as he called out warnings to both of them, enduring lashing winds and frigid cold with nothing more than a slight discomfort.

"No, no, you need to focus more," he said, rolling his eyes as Elizabeth summoned a gale of biting cold that froze the ground so deep it cracked. When he moved, pointing at his sister, who was staring at him with the same wide, disbelieving eyes she'd had for the past twenty minutes, frost cracked and shattered from where it had built up around his clothes and person. "Less frigid rigidness - hey, that rhymed - more...well, snowmen and snowballs."

"I don't know how to do that," Elizabeth complained, resting her hands on her knees, breathing hard and eyes narrowed. "How are you completely unaffected by all this?"

"Focus, George," Lucas said, lifting one finger. A ray of light shot out from the tip, shining in his brother's eyes where he flew in the air, and momentarily blinding him.

"Ah!" he cried sharply, covering his eyes and falling a good ten feet.

"I am unaffected because you two are undisciplined. The foundation and talent is there, but the amount of effort you're putting into your attacks, combined with the power disparity...well, it's like a two-year-old punching an MMA fighter." He told them. "If the two-year-old had been trained how to punch a little bit." It was a comment meant to soothe their pride a little, ease whatever bruising their egos had endured in learning their brother was...well, what he was.

It really only made their expressions sour further. Lucas grinned madly at them, completely unapologetic. The truth was the truth.

"If you shine that light in my eyes again," George warned as he floated closer, breathing heavy and face red from exertion and frustration.

"You'll what? Punch me? Blow a light breeze in my direction? Dry my hair?" Lucas asked innocently, standing and dusting himself off, layers of snow falling from his shirt. He honestly had better take it easy from here on out. His muscles were getting sore, the first tell-tale sign that his body was starting to be overwhelmed by his power. Which sucked. He hadn't even really been doing much of anything.

"I will peel the paint off of your car," George threatened with a low, dangerous tone. Lucas hesitated, recalling his Bel Air was, indeed, still under George's care. He'd been so busy he'd forgotten about it.

"You wouldn't," he breathed, going pale.

"Try me,"

"And I'll make sure your guitar is always out of tune." Elizabeth interjected. "Always."

Lucas gasped dramatically. "Heathens. Savages! What have I done to deserve such blackmail?!"

"Do you want the answer alphabetical, or chronological?" George deadpanned. Lucas opened his mouth, paused, thought about it, then nodded sagely.

"Fair point." Despite his dramaticism, however, he felt nothing but relief. His siblings were probably still skeptical, but they clearly believed his power was real, now. And they still treated him like himself.

His shoulders relaxed, a tension he hadn't known he'd been holding fleeing his posture. George and Elizabeth still watched him with confusion and a thousand other thoughts running through those heads of theirs, but for now, they were still just siblings. He ran a hand over his face, to clear his thoughts.

"What will you do now?" George asked, sharing a little look with Liz. She nodded. "You're supposedly this big-shot super-powerful warrior man. Will you become a Super?" The way he phrased it was all at once hopeful and not. Lucas considered it. Shuddered. And rapidly shook his head.

"No, thank you. That kind of fame isn't my style. Besides, my time is better spend doing other things here than fighting everyone else's battles." he said with a shrug, the idea crystallizing in his mind as he spoke. "I'm still only one person, and running around closing gates would be a stop-gap measure at best. It'd be better if I focused on helping fix the actual issue."

"How so?" Elizabeth asked, tone purposefully neutral.

"By becoming a teacher. A magic teacher of sorts. What I told you about the cities is true, to the best of my knowledge, and magic isn't as new to earth as everyone assumes. There are historical and cultural precedents. King Solomon, for example, was a real man. Nice guy. Dark sense of humor. Hung around too many demons." Lucas said with a shrug. "I'd prefer not to broadcast my existence to the world, either. Doing so may draw unwanted attention from beings beyond what you've already seen."

Elizabeth nodded while George shifted his weight from foot to foot, clearly not quite sure of how to take Lucas' answer. Lucas turned to face them fully, squaring his shoulders some.

"Would you like to meet one of them?" he asked, judging his current exhaustion. There should be enough time left for him to be able to contact someone from Heaven. Maybe even bring them down. A loose connection was probably safer; just a call, like what he'd shared with Azazel.

Lucas paused. Felt the energy around him. Relaxed slightly. The energy wasn't the same. It wouldn't accidentally connect him with Azazel or any other denizen of hell. Hopefully.

"You can do that?" George asked. Lucas nodded.

"That would help some." Elizabeth said slowly. "I know you've shown us your power some, but the story of heaven is still a little..." Lucas bobbed his head in understanding. Though, a small part of his mind pointed out it shouldn't be too much of a stretch, considering these gates connected to other planes of existence.

"Right. Stand back then." he said, flicking his hands and spreading his arms. Both George and Elizabeth stepped back a little, and Lucas closed his eyes, meditating, cycling his power and withdrawing it from his body so he could use one quick burst, just in case. Then, he waited, focusing his spirit heavenward.

A minute passed. Two minutes.

"What are you doing?" Elizabeth asked.

"Calling heaven," he replied.

"And we needed to stand back because...?" George pressed.

"I wanted to see if you'd do it," Lucas replied innocently. He was rewarded with a blast of cold air to the face, which he took with a little giggle. "Ok, now hush. We're actually getting to the interesting part now."

And he focused. He really focused - pushing his energy up and out, calling to the forces of Heaven...and getting a different answer than he wanted, or expected. With a click, his call was intercepted, changed, and brought straight back to another location. His eyes flew wide open as he realized who he was being connected to, a spike of concern lancing through him.

"Gods dammit." He grumbled, rubbing his face as reality began to twist and distort. "I should have guessed this was their domain."

"Whose domain?" George demanded sharply.

"Oh, no one, just an angry warrior-queen," Lucas said, already backing up from the rippling point in space that was appearing right in front of him. "I should have guessed this space was tied close to the Tuatha De Danann - well, sort of adjacent to them, but that's beside the point. Now, let's go before -"

"Lucas Ward." The voice that echoed out from the rippling tear in reality was at once commanding and confident. It was the voice of a woman who had seen countless battles and forged thousands of heroes - and Lucas Ward was not one of them.

"Stay quiet. Don't ask questions and let me do the talking." he hissed to his siblings, knowing they probably weren't in any real danger...unless she offered to train them. And they accepted. "Scath, long time no see,"

"Where are you? This is not the halls of Heaven. Why are you making this call?" she asked, the rippling in space starting to stabilize. For a moment, the air shuddered, as if someone hit it with a hammer, then tore completely. Silver flashed upward, a blade cutting apart the fabric of reality to behold the dark beyond behind.

And She stepped forward. Not out into the gate, whose thin, barrier-walls trembled beneath her might, but to the edge of the impromptu tear in reality. Lucas grunted as the full weight of her attention landed upon him like a physical blow, her wide, dark eyes staring unblinking into his soul. He smiled back at her.

"I'm on vacation. Didn't mean to disturb you." He said, holding his hands up placatingly.

"And here I thought you had come to apologize for breaking my spear." She accused, voice dry and not harsh, but simply stating a fact. "Or perhaps you wished for round two?" The darkness of the portal receded slightly, revealing the woman's figure.

She was a warrior through and through. Lean, corded muscle rippled with every movement of her arms, a dark leather armor covered her torso. A single spear was held in one hand, her hair braided behind her head. She was beautiful in a fierce, uncompromising way, in the way you might appreciate a mountain. Just as unforgiving as one, too.

"Yes. That was an accident. I said I was sorry," Lucas reasoned.

"You said the word, yes. You did not mean it." She accused.

"You did attack me first."

"That is irrelevant."

"It is extremely relevant."

"Um," George said, and Lucas tensed as Scathatch, the Warrior Queen who trained Cu Chulainn and gifted him the Gae Bulg, the legendary spear, turned her attention to his brother and sister.

"Who are they?" she asked.

"My siblings." He said, and, for the first time since he'd known her, which admittedly wasn't very long - he didn't interact as much with that pantheon as he may have wanted - he saw a bit of a reaction from her. Her dark, unblinking eyes widened fractionally, a flash of interest crossing her features.

"I see." She said, and she did.

"George, Elizabeth," Lucas said slowly. "This is Scathatch. Scathatch, these are my siblings. Be nice."

"The kin of Lucas Ward." she muttered, gaze flicking between both of them.

"They wanted proof that I had been a warrior of Heaven. I was trying to contact Michael, but I guess this space messed with my call. Sorry to disturb you, but I suppose you serve as proof just as well." Lucas reasoned, taking a step or two back, ushering his siblings behind him silently. He wasn't afraid of Scathatch, no! He was terrified of her.

"Lucas Ward is a respectable warrior." Scathatch said bluntly, without inflection or intimidation. "I fought beside him only briefly, but he name echoes in the halls of glory. Lucas. You are correct. This space does have some connection to the Tuatha De Dannan." she said mildly, casting her gaze about the dense forested area.

"You are...Tuatha De?" George asked, earning him a glare from Lucas. Shut up. He tried to telepathically tell George, once again jealous of his and Elizabeth's seeming mental connection.

"Do not be ridiculous. No. I am to the Tuatha De as your brother is to the annals of heaven. Not one of their number. Beside them all the same." She said, and her gaze sharpened. "You, however, are yet untouched. Untrained. Boy, girl, what -"

"Scathatch." Lucas was no longer backing up. The gate interior brightened. His shoulders squared. His bones ached as power began to swirl, not in anger, but in warning. Behind him, Elizabeth and George both gasped. Scathatch turned to meet his eyes. He held her unblinking gaze unflinchingly. "No."

She was silent for a long, tense moment. "As you wish. I will go now. And...Lucas," she said, already backing up. "You are on Earth?"

"Yes?" Lucas said suspiciously, letting his tension drop some.

"It has been a long time since I have been there. I wonder how my old home is doing?" And with that, she grabbed the edges of the tear and promptly pulled it shut, leaving everyone in silence. Lucas stared, watching as the cut was sealed together as if sewn, and only fully relaxed when he was certain she was well and truly gone.

"That could have gone better. Could have been worse," Lucas reasoned, turning around to face his pale-faced and shaking siblings. They fixed their eyes upon him, fear and something else in their expressions. He stuck his hands in his pocket, ignoring the little voice in the back of his head that told him this was the exact reaction he had been afraid of.

But he honestly couldn't blame them for being wary of Scathatch.

"Now, it's probably close to morning so...breakfast?"