“No!” Tom roared and his eyes flashed as he and John collided with Abraxas and the three tumbled end over end across the cold stone floor. Cain stood frozen, his fiery eyes glazed as he stared uncomprehendingly down at Lilly’s body.

John’s muscles bulged and grew and Abraxas screamed as the warrior demon twisted the general’s arm, dislocating it. Then he hauled on it and tore it from Abraxas’ body with a bestial snarl. Thomas lacked John’s strength, but with Abraxas focused on the snarling beast determined to literally tear him limb from limb, the smaller demon was able to maneuver his way around until he had his enemy in a headlock.

“You’ll suffer an eternity of torment for this, traitors!” Abraxas snarled through his pain.

“You first,” Tom snarled and jerked his hold. Abraxas’ neck snapped and he stopped struggling.

John didn’t stop. The second arm followed the first, and when Tom let go, John flexed his powerful arms and tore the head from the body. Each piece was then flung into the huge fire pit to sizzle spitefully.

“Burn, fucker,” John growled.

By the time they looked back, Cain had sunk to his knees and pulled Lilly’s body up against him so he cradled her tenderly. Tears of blood dripped from his chin into her hair. The wailing baby still wrapped in bloody blankets abandoned for the moment in his grief.

“Fix it!” Tom demanded of Telemachus, who moved to stand over the baby with his sword in his hand.

“I can’t.”

“Fix it!”

Telemachus sighed. “She martyred herself, Thomas… you can’t take that away from her. She’s a hero.”

“Fuck that! Fuck it, you bastards bring people back all the time, you fix her!”

“I can’t, Tom.” Telemachus looked sadly down at Lilly’s body. “I swear to you, I would if I could…”

Cain looked up at them stricken, “We have to do something.”

Tom and John looked at each other, and then down at the broken body of their best friend. They knelt beside her and Tom reached out to scoop Cain’s bloody tears from his cheek. John winced as he stuck two fingers into his own wound and Tom, who had been miraculously uninjured, bit into his arm until it bled.

“What are you doing?” Telemachus demanded in horror.

Cain took his brother’s hand, and John’s, with Lilly propped up against his body. John and Thomas joined hands.

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“Stop this! You can’t mean to…”

“Shut up flyboy.” Tom hissed.

“There hasn’t been a lich in centuries! It won’t be allowed! They’re all mad anyway!”

The three demons on the floor ignored him. Thomas chanted quietly in Latin and after a few runs through the spell, the others joined in. Telemachus looked on in horror as the feathers on his wings ruffled with the rapidly building power. “Please! Thomas I’m begging you don’t do this! She’s gone home!”

“She had carnal knowledge of a demon,” John said, his eyes focused on the body before him. “They’ll never let her go home.”

Telemachus gasped and began to back away. “You’re insane, all of you!”

Lilly’s body convulsed against Cain’s chest and the three demons chanted louder.

She couldn’t clearly remember what it had been like to be dead, but in the first moments she woke again, she screamed. Cain, Thomas and John clustered tight around her in a tangle of arms and faces and cooed calming words. Still, she screamed and struggled for a few minutes before settling into a whimpering mess amongst them.

“It’s okay, it’s okay baby, we got you,” Cain said over and over.

Thomas gripped one of her hands and John stroked her hair. “You’re back,” John reassured her.

“I was… it was… I’m…”

Telemachus's face was awed and frightened. “They’ll never let you keep her…”

“She saved your precious baby!” Tom hissed. “Damn right, they’ll let us keep her! You watch the war we’ll have if they don’t!”

“Thomas!” Telemachus hissed in warning, but Tom let go of Lilly’s hand and stood to stare the angel down.

“You tell them to leave us alone. The truce stands, so long as you don’t break it.” He said coldly. “And I suggest if you want peace in our fucking time you think long and hard about murdering the woman who saved your ass.”

“Tom… she’s already dead, you know that. Lich’s are,”

“There’s never been a Lich like Lilly.” Tom insisted, “If you thought for yourself for two seconds you’d know that.” He looked back at his family and then at Telemachus. “A Necromancer makes himself a lich by making demons slaves. He’s powered by their rage, animated by it. We’re not her slaves, and we didn’t bring her back with hate…”

“John,” Telemachus pleaded.

“Go away, Telemachus.” John didn’t look at him.

The angel took a hesitant step towards them, “Brother,”

“I’m not your brother!” John snapped. “I’m nothing! We’re nothing to each other, that’s been made abundantly clear.” He glanced at the sword in Telemachus’ hand. “If you try, I’ll make you kill me… and then who’ll look after your precious halfling?”

John and Cain helped Lilly to her feet and stood clustered tightly together. “I know where this is going,” John continued. “You can’t take her. You can’t even touch her, and if Abraxas knew about her so do the others. If you expect me to take her, slaughtering my family is a bad way to convince me.”

Telemachus stared at him helplessly. “If she gets away from you,” he started and then sighed. “Alright, Jonathan. You win.” He shook his head. “I’m not convinced I’d win anyway… There’s never been a Cabal quite like this.”

“Get the baby,” John said, and Cain moved to obey him.

The incubus squatted beside the baby and gently opened the blanket to look at her, “Hey there, monkey. You okay?” She settled as he lifted her into his arms and cradled her against his chest.

“Where will you take her?” Telemachus asked.

John shrugged. “We’ll work something out. We always do.” He wrapped an arm around Lilly’s shoulders and hugged her against his side. “There’s no undoing things we’ve done, I know that better than most. We just have to keep going.”