Gabriel carefully placed the return spell in his pocket then reached for the bottle that would get them to Mab's dimension. Merlin had been very clear, if they lost the return one they would be trapped and he couldn't get to them. He had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach, should he really be trusting Cassiels' friend so readily? The pair had been friends for a few decades now, but Lucius was the son of the actual devil himself. Granted the creature had never given him cause to mistrust him and with so little else to go on, what other choice did they really have in the face of storming Queen Mab's castle home? Queen Mab, he couldn't believe the trouble one of his brothers was in over a woman and it wasn't Cassiel. His only hope was that once they entered Mab's dark dimension Raphael would pick up his Bride's scent and lead them to Rouge. He may not show it to his family but he was worried sick about the witch who had become like a sister to him. 

After much arguing it had been decided Duncan's mate, Marie would stay at the house and prepare her little hospital in the gatehouse cottage, just in case it was needed. Azrael would also stay to protect their home, he hadn't voiced it but the idea of Azrael having one of his odd turns as they went into battle terrified him. His other two brothers, Duncan and Winston, would go with him and Lucius to Mab's dimension and try to retrieve Rouge. Merlin had agreed only Mab would have taken Rouge May and that Lucifer helping her would explain how she was caught when travelling the mirror realm, Mab didn't have that kind of power in person let alone from her own from another dimension. Taking a deep breath he fastened his black overcoat and headed for the hall where they were all to meet. 

Lucius was the only one not dressed for a fight. The others all had casual shirts, trousers and boots but the demon wore shiny wingtip shoes and an impeccable three-piece pinstripe suit, crisp white shirt and black silk tie. 

"If you all manage to get me killed, I'm going to die well dressed." Had been his only response to Cassiels offer of more appropriate clothing. When offered a weapon he'd pulled a long narrow sword from the swagger stick he carried and saluted the assembled company before returning it to its cane. 

The last to arrive was Duncan wearing nothing but a pair of trousers. He kissed Marie and whispered something to her as he wiped a tear from her face. Gabriel had been careful not to listen to the whispered farewell.

"Az, look after her." The vampire nodded but his eyes seemed to look through the assembled crowd like they weren't really there. It wasn't an unusual look to find on the vampire's face, but it made Gabriel breathe a sigh of relief he was staying with the petite she-wolf. The wolf turned to the others.
"Are we ready?" Gabriel took a breath then nodded and rolled the tiny bottle in his hand a few times before throwing it on the ground. The purple vapours rose from the broken glass slowly, like they were heavy and struggling to climb the invisible air around them. They began swimming and dancing around themselves until they had formed a swirling circle in the air, with a crackle the circle began to glow and a shimmering doorway opened and filled the room with a purple glow. Gabriel went first without waiting a heartbeat, followed by Raphael, then Lucius. As the others turned their backs to him and stepped through, Duncan unbuttoned his trousers and pulling them down, began to shift into his huge shaggy red-haired wolf form. 

Through the portal was a bone-chillingly cold, dark and eerie world. Grey-green barked trees stood like lifeless statues with dull black leaves that hung motionless in the breezeless air. The grey-blue sky seemed to hang low over the grey-brown earth, in the distance was a city of grey and black buildings surrounding a huge purple-grey castle that towered over everything within eyesight. The very air felt cold and lifeless as the group surveyed the area around them. Behind them, the portal closed with a small popping sound and they were left in the silent landscape. 

"And I thought Dad's place was lifeless." Cassiel nudged his friend and forced himself not to smile as the demon smiled at him and winked a red-eye. Without a word or waiting for the rest Raphael started to make his way over the flat terrain in the direction of the city.

"Raph wait, we need to plan our attack." Gabriel caught his brother by the arm and held him with some difficulty.

"I have a plan, get back my Red and kill anything that gets in my way." Shaking off his brother he started again towards the city. 

"What will Miss Rouge do if you get yourself killed?" At Winston's voice, Raphael turned back round to face the dwarf. In his chain mail with his dwarven battle helmet covering half his face, his beard braided into two thick plaits and his huge dwarven battle axe gripped in his arms the dwarf presented a fearsome sight. Barely anything of the usually stoic, dependable dwarf showed. Clenching his jaw he bowed his head and waited without a word for someone to speak.  Gabriel waited a beat to see if his headstrong brother would take off again.

"The ground is very flat and open, I can't see us being able to approach without being seen and our number isn't enough to get to the castle by brute force." Duncan huffed as he moved next to Raphael and sat back on his haunches. Gabriel glanced at the wolf but continued, "I think we are best to stay as secluded as we can in these trees and wait till nightfall. Other than Winston and Lucius we all have an eyesight advantage at night that the fae and trolls don't." 

The demon scoffed as his skin shifted from its usual flesh colour to deep crimson red and his red-on-black eyes glinted as he checked his claws.

"Speak for the dwarf, I can see better and move more stealthily and with greater speed than you in the dark, Vampire." He glanced up at Gabriel with an odd half-smile on his face. "If I didn't want you to see me you wouldn't." Gabriel watched him for a second then continued.

"Ok, well that still leaves us waiting for nightfall being our best plan." Raphael looked up at the sickly-looking pale yellow green sun that hung low in the sky. 

"Do we know for sure that thing sets?" He made no attempt to keep his irritation from his tone. 

"Az said a day here is only around five hours, followed by around five hours of darkness. It won't be long at all before the sun sets and the fae sleep." 

"Is there anything Az doesn't know?" Cassiel asked with a mix of teasing and awe in his voice.

"Where our sister is or what drove him mad," Gabriel answered flatly. At that Winston turned his head slightly, suddenly very interested in the imposing city, Lucius narrowed his eyes a little at the dwarf's action but said nothing and looked back to Gabriel. 

"We really are better off waiting for nightfall Raph. I'm sure Duncan would agree if he wasn't in wolf form." The wolf made a grunting sound and laid down, Gabriel watched his brother consider what he said.

"Fine!" With that, he took up pacing back and forth watching the city from behind the craggy rocks and crooked trees. 

Raphael became increasingly and more restless as the sun disappeared behind the horizon and complete darkness fell, there seemed to be no stars or moon in this dimension, just more dullness. A few dim tiny lights twinkled to life in the windows of the buildings in the city. As Raphael bolted across the desert-like plane between them and the city the rest set off in its direction at the quickest pace Winston could manage. 

Gabriel couldn't help but keep glancing over at the demon as he ran. He was completely hidden in the dark minus the two red glowing dots of his eyes and the white of his shoes. The vampire didn't fully trust the devil's son even if his youngest brother did. Even less so since that dig that he wouldn't see him if he didn't want him to. It didn't make any kind of sense for him to be helping them, let alone risking crossing his father. It was no secret that Lucifer cared little for his many children. He found himself briefly wondering just who his mother was, but not even Cassiel knew that and he'd known the demon for decades. It was a topic of much interest in Zeus Square but no one had ever dared to ask the Creature and Gabriel couldn't see him being forthcoming if anyone did. Unless his mother was a surprise player his presence was senseless and potentially dangerous, but even that didn't make sense as he couldn't think of anyone old enough to have birthed the demon that would have any interest in Rouge May.

They drew close to the edge of the city and the impending danger. Pausing, Gabriel surveyed the area around them and called to the others in a hissed whisper. 

"Duncan keep everyone together if you can, if anyone starts to stay nudge them in the right direction. Winston try to keep your chainmail from clinking if you can. Let's move through the city as silently as we can. Raph can you smell her?" 

"Yes!" His voice was a choked whisper and no witty or sarcastic retort followed. Not that Gabriel expected one but it would have been comforting to know his brother wasn't going psycho vampire killer on him. he already had one mentally unstable and broken brother. He didn't think he could handle two.

"You're in the lead, we'll all be behind you." They all set off again, silently following the creature in front of them. 

The city was eerily silent, there seemed to be no nightlife or activity of any kind in it once the sunset. At least in a graveyard, the insects came out at night, but here in this godforsaken dimension, there was nothing. It put them all on edge and made their near-silent movements sound deafening. As they approached the castle they began coming across guards, mostly pairs of one fae and one troll each wearing black leather armour, the fae carrying a nasty-looking pike with hooked barbs below its point, the troll's large wooden clubs. They dodged the first few pairs but one spotted them and ran at them. 

None of them had ever seen anyone move as quickly as Lucius did. Even to the vampire's incredible eyesight, he appeared as barely a blur as he raced up to the creatures and using his sword sliced off the fae's head before leaping onto the troll and yanking his head to the side and breaking his neck with a barely audible crack. All before they could make the smallest of noises. The bodies dropped with muffled thuds to the floor. He grinned at his fellow rescuers, his red eyes gleaming as they stared at him. 

"We should probably hide them down an alley." He whispered in a low hiss, amusement dancing in his tone. 

Once the bodies were concealed they carried on to the castle. Reaching it without further incident, Gabriel stood looking up at its sheer towering walls. 

"It must be fifty feet high," hissed Cassiel. Gabriel tried to claw into the glass-like surface but his claws slipped down its surface without causing so much as a scratch. He tried again this time with more force but his claws still slid down without a mark. Lucius stepped forward and tried. His claws left the barest scratch on the shiny surface but he couldn't gain a hold.

"We can't climb it. Is she definitely here?" He asked Raphael, who nodded tightly. He was visibly struggling to keep his demon in check. "Any suggestions?" He looked about the group but no one spoke.

"Then I guess all we can do is start making our way around the wall until we find a way in." Keeping close to the wall they moved silently through the darkness but the castle's outer wall was just an endless smooth circle with only one entrance which was heavily guarded by both trolls and fae and huge heavy doors that there was no way to open from the outside. Lucius grabbed Raphael against his will and dragged him back from the castle as the others concealed themselves in one of the pitch-black alleyways. Gabriel noted how easily the demon manoeuvred an inraged vampire. Filing it for future reference if it was ever needed.

"I have an idea," Lucius whispered as he glanced back over his shoulder. "My father visits Mab frequently. If she's home I can walk right up to the gate and declare I've come to visit my father's friend." 

"How do we know you won't tell them we're here?" Gabriel eyed him warily. The demon smirked.

"Still don't trust me, Gabe? Send the wolf with me. They won't know him and I can claim he's my pet and bodyguard." Duncan made a low rumbling growl in his throat. The devil's son smiled at him.

"Unless the wolf would rather not. But he'd soon warn you if I'm going to betray you." The vampires all looked at each other, Gabriel wasn't about to risk Duncan's life.

"He won't betray us, Gabe." Cassiel was getting tired of his brother's distrust, but could also understand it. But Lucius had helped the young hybrid so much over the years. If it wasn't for him he'd probably still be lost and broken like he had been when the demon found him as a teen sneaking into his club.

"And once you and Duncan get in? If they let you in."

"Was kind of hoping you had an idea from there." Shrugged Lucius, Cassiel moved to the end of the alley and peered around the corner.

"There are twelve guards outside, we don't know how many are inside that gate but maybe the element of surprise will allow us to just rush them. What have we got to lose?"

"Us? Nothing? But Duncan has a mate waiting for him to return." Gabriel pinched the bridge of his nose and thought for a moment. 

"Duncan, if you agree to accompany Lucius and help us try to rush the gate. The portal spell is in my left coat pocket. If things go south, charge me and break it, get yourself through. The rest of us have no one waiting so just get yourself out." The wolf snorted and started trotting to the end of the alleyway. Lucius gave the vampire a cocky grin and turned on his heels to follow him.

"I guess he agrees to my plan." 

As a guard spotted the demon and wolf he held his pike at them, Lucius held his hands out and gave the guard a huge grin. 

"Tell Mab Lucius, son of Lucifer, has come to her with a business proposition." A fae guard in a pointy black helmet poked his pike towards Duncan. 

"The dog?" It asked in a nasal voice. Duncan growled quietly and raised his hackles.

"My werewolf bodyguard, in case you aren't as hospitable as your great Queens reputation." Leaving his troll counterpart to watch the pair, the fae creaked in his shiny black armour over to the gate and knocked on the door next to a small hatch which opened less than a second later. 

"Yes?" Asked a troll in a deep gormless voice.

"Lucius, son of Lucifer, to see the Queen." The hatch closed, Duncan held his breath as he eyed the guards and waited, moments later the gate began to swing open. 

"The Queen will...." The fae never got to finish his sentence as Duncan lunged forward and ripped out his throat in the same second that Lucius rushed the gate.