AN: Crossover chapter with the "Alpha of Alphas" series by i_me_andlex

The In-between, I was in the freaking In-between.

The place you go to when you die to become better and go through tests before your soul travels to another world and you get reborn somewhere eventually. That was where I was right now, accompanied by the Moon and Sun Goddesses, and looking for the first Archangel, the creator of the supernatural and most powerful angel of all, and the Angel of Death and Life. My mind still couldn't quite grasp what was going on.

When did my life start to sound like a damn supernatural movie? Oh yeah, that's right- the day that Lucien showed up at my parents' place.

I just kept on blinking as we stood there, waiting to find Lucifer and Azrael. The In-between was breathtakingly beautiful and every part of it was perfect. The sky was clear blue, without a single cloud in sight. The colours of everything around us were matched together sublimely. Even the gentle breeze was the perfect temperature. You could feel nothing but serene here. It was what I imagined that heaven must be like until Selene and Sol explained the In-between to me.

"I hate it when Azrael makes me wait- that angel sure knows how to test my patience," the Mood Goddess huffed, thumping her foot on the ground.

"Relax, Selene, I'm sure they will be here soon," Sol reassured her before she turned her attention to me. "Are you okay, Riley?"

"Yes, of course. Why are you asking?"

"Well, you keep on straightening your clothes and fidgeting with your sleeves. And, I swear that you will draw blood from your lip if you keep on biting it like that."

I hadn't even realised that I was doing any of that but now I was aware of just how much my teeth had sunk into my lower lip to the point that I really was on the verge of making it bleeding. I rubbed my neck, trying to relax a bit.

Sol smiled warmly at me. "Are you nervous?"

"Oh, no- not at all. Why would I be? I meet fallen angels every day so I'm kind of used to it by now." Yep, sarcasm. It might have been the lowest form of wit, but they also say it was the highest form of intelligence, no? Although, to be frank, my supernatural intelligence right now was pretty non-existent.

Selene laughed so loudly that I could have sworn that the whole In-between heard her. "Oh, I can wait for her to meet those two. It's going to be fun. Beware, Riley- they are charming and good-looking, and, in the case of Azrael, usually up to no good. Sol and I are kind of immune to them. You are lucky that you are marked but it might still not stop Azrael from trying to make a move."

Having an angel hit on me was the last thing I needed and I was lucky that my mates were not around or this could have turned into a mess.

My mates- I felt a sudden thug to the heart. The guys were right when they said that being separated would become difficult after I was marked. Ever since we left the packhouse with my parents, it was like a part of me was missing, like I was incomplete. I missed Aiden's sweet and caring side, and Rafe's cocky, challenging approach.

Just then I saw two dark-haired men approach us. Holy hell, they were hot indeed. The one on the left was athletic and perfectly sculpted, charm oozing from him, but it was his green eyes, which sparkled in apple green as they got closer, that had me mesmerized. His companion, on the other hand, had mischief written all over him. Black tattoos seemed to cover his arms and upper chest, from what I could see. His body was just as chiselled but his darker, black hair and his playful clear blue eyes, an exact match of the sky above us, distinguished him from his friend.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here," the tattooed angel said as he took me in with his eyes. "I was starting to feel hungry, ready for a little snack," he smirked.

"Cut it out, Azrael," Selene warned him.

Azrael. So this was the Angel of Death and Life. I had always expected him to be more like a grim reaper than a GQ model. They both gave off a dangerous, powerful vibe but I did not get the sense that he wanted to harm me. Yet, Azrael's smouldering eyes spoke of a different danger, one that I would have easily fallen for if my mates had not marked me.

"Selene, Sol. It's a pleasure to see you, as usual," the other angel, who I now knew was Lucier, spoke up. "And it is very nice to meet you, miss Moreau."

I reached out to shake his hand but he brought it to his lips instead. As he did so though, I did not sense any of the tingles and electricity that I felt whenever my mates placed their lips on my skin. Yes, it was official now- Aiden and Rafe had ruined me for all other men.

"Ladies, not that I am not happy to see you but it is unusual to show up at such short notice, and with a guest on top of that. What is this about?" Lucifer continued as he turned back to Selene and Sol.

"Markolf," both Goddesses said in unison like they had been practising this line forever.

I saw a muscle twitch on Lucifer's face even if he continued to smile, while Azrael visibly tensed up.

"Is it time?" Lucifer asked. His face became more serious, more thoughtful. It was evident that the news we brought was not good.

Sol nodded in confirmation.

"He is getting more and more confident, sacrificing more shifters along the way. His powers have grown immensely but still not enough to try and take all of you on. But we can't let any more shifters suffer," the Moon Goddess explained and I was shocked to see her so sombre for the first time since I met her. She certainly meant business at this moment. "Riley and her mates are our only hope."

Lucifer paced around as he listened, his eyes landing on me eventually. "She is certainly strong enough to take him on. Still, what is it that you need from us?"

I was done waiting for answers- I needed to know how to end Markolf. "You need to tell me how to kill him."

"Ah, yes. Killing a cambion is no easy task. Are you sure you are ready for it though, little girl? It would be a shame to have you perish in the process," he smirked and cocked an eyebrow at me challengingly.

Ugh, why do angels have to be cocky arses as well? Rafe can easily become one if that's the selection criterion.

"Thanks for the useful input." I gave him a fake smile in return. "Can you give me something that would actually be handy or are you also going to tell me that you don't know who he can be killed?"

A loud hearty laugh escaped his throat. If nothing else, I could at least put "Made Death laugh" under Achievements in my CV.

"Easy there, little spitfire. Don't doubt us our abilities, although I would be happy to show you some of my skills." He smugly winked at me. "And don't worry- we do know how to kill a cambion. I can do it with my eyes closed if I wanted to but, unfortunately for me, this is a matter that I cannot intervene in personally. Too many assholes to deal with nowadays."

He stretched out his hand and I looked at his empty palm, wondering what I was meant to be seeing there. Within seconds though, a long silver triple-edged dagger appeared there. It was a magnificent weapon, with the three spiralling cutting edges coming down to an incredibly sharp piercing point.

"I give you the Angel Blade," Azrael said with all the theatrics of a showman.

"It is beautiful." I ran my fingers along the dagger which was crafted superbly. I must have sounded like a madwoman for admiring a dagger but old habits die hard, I guess.

"I think she will do just fine with it, Azrael," Lucifer chuckled. "You need to be careful though, Riley- the dagger works in different ways. If you strike a demonic creature with it, you will temporarily paralyze its abilities. If you stab cambion in the heart, he will become fully human."

"Right, stab him in the heart and then kill him," I nodded. "How hard can that be, right?"

"Well, in the case of Markolf, there is a catch actually," Azrael pointed out. I was not sure if he was trying to rain on my parade intentionally but either way, he did- he dampened my mood like a fire doused with a bucket of water.

"Of course there is," I sighed annoyed. "Why would anything be straightforward in this world. So what is it?"

"He has been stealing the animals of shifters, or rather the animal spirits that live within the shifters, to boost his powers and his strength with their life forces, meaning that they are part of him now. Trapped inside him but still there. You and your mates are destined to stop him, so the only way to release them would be to stab him with the blade dipped in the blood of your triad."

My eyes widened. He couldn't possibly be serious. What would be next- needing unicorn blood? Actually, I didn't even want to think about that because that would have probably turned out to be a real thing.

Once my shock subsided, the importance of what Azrael just told me actually sunk in. "Wait, what do you mean to release them?"

The Angel of Death raised an eyebrow and pulled an "Are you serious?" expression.

"Oh, come on- I am still a newbie here. You have to spell things out for me, oh great and mighty angel," I said with the sweetest smile that I could pull.

"Flattery and a beautiful woman- Azrael's biggest weaknesses combined," Lucifer chuckled again.

"I admit it. Well played, Riley," the other angel laughed. "Anyway. If you stab Markolf with the blade dipped in your triad's blood you will release the animal spirits, meaning that they will be set free."

"So they will return to their shifters?" I gasped.

The devastation I had seen at the dungeon where we rescued Nat was something I wasn't going to forget anytime soon. The shifters who had lost their animals were broken if they had not died during the process already. I couldn't even imagine what they were going through because I never knew what it was like to have an animal, to really be a shifter, but I knew pain when I saw it.

I wondered what it would have been like to get my wolf back, to be able to shift and run free in the forest. It was futile to think about it though- even if we did manage to release those spirits, my wolf was not amongst them.

Azrael, however, shook his head. "That's not really possible. But those spirits will be free of Markolf's entrapment and that in itself makes the whole thing worthwhile."

Sadness washed through me at the idea that I couldn't do more but Azrael was right- freeing them would still count.

"Here," Azrael said as he passed me the Angel Blade, but not before he ran his hand over it, turning it into a spiralling hair stick. "A bit of glamour would make it easier to sneak this past Markolf or anyone else until the right moment comes. The glamour has been set to your control so only you would be able to change it back."

"I never thought I would say this but thank you, Angel of Death."

A moment of silence fell amongst all of us until Selene spoke up. "Right, time to get Riley back to her mates then."

Everyone nodded in agreement and Sol and Selene stretched out their hands for us to teleport back to their realm where my parents were waiting. Before our hands touched though, an insane thought crossed my mind.

"Wait," I shouted, making Azrael and Lucifer stop in their tracks.

They were clearly puzzled as I ran over to where they were and, to be honest, I was not sure what I was doing either.

"What is it, Riley?" Lucifer asked.

"My parents. My biological parents. Are they here in the In-between still? I..I know..." I stuttered from the sudden nervousness that took over me, "I know it has been 24 years but is there any possibility that they are here?" My pulse pounded in my throat. "Is there any chance I could see them?"

The two angels looked at each other, unsure how to answer my request.

"It's not something we normally do," Lucifer gave me a pitying look.

"You've got to be kidding me! I am doing everyone a huge favour by trying to save the supernatural world from the world's biggest arsehole- surely you can make an exception in this case." I was not giving up. Not when I was this close. When there was even the tiniest chance that maybe I could see them. The more I thought about it, the more my emotions were starting to get to me. "Please," I whispered my plea with a shaky voice.

"Beautiful girl and begging beat beautiful girl and flattery," Azrael exclaimed with a resigned tone. "Come on, Lucifer, she has a point- she will save us an enormous headache."

I looked at the most powerful angel again and was surprised to see pain in his eyes. "You remind me of someone," he muttered. Flames were now dancing in his eyes, and I could have sworn that the whole place suddenly started feeling hotter because of the emotions that the memory was stirring inside. "She is just as passionate about her family and as fearless as you."

"Oh, fuck," Azrael huffed behind me. "This is going to get sappy again. Don't you dare pity him, Riley- it's his own fucking fault that he is feeling like this. Driving the woman who holds his heart away, what an idiot! Pull yourself together, Lucifer, and give the girl what she wants because we have a bigger fish to deal with and not much time."

I had no idea what was going on but whatever it was, it was clearly tough on Lucifer. He stared into the distance, his mind seemingly miles away.

"Your parents are indeed here, Riley- they've been refusing to move on to keep an eye on you and your brother, so a little reunion might be good for everyone." I whipped my head around at Azrael's words.

"What? They are here? You mean I can see them?" I was in shock. When I asked them, I had hoped that it was possible but I also knew it was very unlikely.

"It's up to the big boss," he said as motioned with his head to Lucifer.

I turned into a ball of nerves, trembling as I looked at the other angel.