"Mister Waverly," a shy voice spoke from the doorway, causing both men to look up from their study of the island's inventory, "I t-think I may have something for you."

Valentine glanced over at his soulmate and fought a grin.  Under the child's shyness was the unmistakable stamp of a shared bloodline. Though by the age of the human, he guessed this to be a grandchild, maybe even a great grandchild.

"Come in, Val," Alexander felt Valentine's amusement and acknowledged the silent musing with a nod.  He gestured for youth to join them.

The boy crossed the room with a heavy, painful limp, his wide eyes flickering nervously between the head of U.N.C.L.E. and the Lord of the Vampires.  His clothes were simple, unobtrusive, but they reeked of dust and magic.  Around his neck hung an ancient cross carved out of a pale, milky white stone, supported by hand-carved wooden beads.

** What happened to him that he is terrified by me? He is too young to be one of your enforcers, but his eyes are filled with the knowledge of who and what I am. **  Valentine's voice whispered in Alexander's head.

"Val, I would like you to meet your namesake," Alexander kept his voice gentle, not wanting to startle his grandson. The words were enough to make him freeze and go very pale.  "Please, sit and tell us what you have found in your searches."

** He and his family were attacked by a rogue.  He was the only one to survive. ** Waverly explained as he watched his grandson settle edgily into a chair.  He caught the fierce, furious anger that immediately flooded his bondmate and winced.  There was a very good reason he had not told Valentine when it happened.  * Val was hurt, badly, by the vampyr. It was all we could do to keep him from willingly dying.  But some of the damage could not be healed. *

** I could have helped heal him and he would have recovered the use of his leg. * Valentine growled fiercely, angered that his orders to leave the family members of the U.N.C.L.E. organization had been disobeyed.  * Why did you not call me? **

** Because Val was forced to watch what happened to his mother and when she turned she attacked him. ** Even now Alexander hated thinking about what had happened. It had taken a miracle in the name of Napoleon Solo to save his grandson.  ** Val has refused to leave holy ground ever since.  The fact that he comes here to tell us what he found is in
itself another miracle. **

The head vampire looked at the boy, his eyes far gentler as he noticed the fine tremors that racked him.  "I pledge to you that no harm will come to you as long as I am here."

The youth swallowed and nodded fearfully.

"Tell us what you have found." Alexander coaxed.

"I know what the Lillim wanted." The boy's voice was a whisper.  His eyes stayed trained on the vampire, while one hand nervously traced the ancient string of beads.  Under his hands they glowed faintly, but as his fingers left the wood, the glow faded.  Something about that tickled Valentine's memory, but he let it drop as he turned his attention to the huge book the boy placed on the desk.  "They sought the Key."

"Key?"  Both the man and the vampyr looked at each other in confusion.

"The Key to the Cave of Dispayre."  The youth's voice trembled as he said the name.  He carefully began turning pages of the book until he  came to a beautiful calligraphy covered page.  His finger hovering just over the ancient parchment, he read aloud the words written there.  When he was finished, he looked up at them.  "See?"

Valentine leaned forward, keeping his voice soft as he asked, "Did you understand the language you read?"

"Y-y-yes."

"Would you translate it for us?"  The vampyr watched the boy nod and turn back to the page.  How had the child, for he could not be too far into his teens, learned a language so old and forgotten that Valentine could barely remember hearing about it?  Some of the words seemed familiar, but most were pure gibberish to him.

"The Key to the Cave of Dispayre, the prison of the Queen of Demons is the Key to the End of Times.  After the fall of the Holy of Holies, it was hidden for an age among the treasures of Babylon, in a box of dull lead and covered by stones warning of the curses that protected it. After lying there safe and forgotten it was found by the Lillim and stolen, but the White Demons of the North feared the Lilim's power while they held the Key and spirited it away.  For another age of man is was hidden among the true relics. the Spear of Power, the Grail of ever-lasting life, the Ring of Knowledge, and the Tablets written upon
by God's own hand.  And so it was that the Knights Templar found them." The boy's voice was a mere whisper as he read the words, translating them into English for his listeners.  "When the Church ordered the fall of the Knights Templar, they hid their treasure away where no man could ever find it."

Valentine sat back, closing his eyes as he began to unravel the meaning of the words.  The Key.  The Key that his people had been quietly hunting for centuries had been held by the remnants of the Knighthood. And he knew exactly what that Key unlocked.  "They mean to bring her back."

The boy nodded, slowly placing a pair of white, silk gloves on his hands.  He reached into his coat pocket and brought out a small wooden box.  The sides of it were covered with blessings and spells old enough that they made Valentine feel young.  Carefully placing his fingers in specific points, he opened it.  A slim, black book rested on a thick, white silk lining.  "This tells why they need it and why they need Mr. Solo.  It also says what they are going to do with the young Prince."

Alexander looked up, startled at that comment.  "Who told you about that?"

"That Illya Nicovech Kuryakin is the next in line?" Val's eyes were filled with wonder as he caught the surprised looks on the two faces in front of him.  "Michael told me when he brought the Prince back, before he told me to hide in the second library.  That's where I found these."

"Michael?"  Valentine asked.

"Second library?" Alexander echoed.

"The one behind the Chapel, where I've been staying." Val looked away. "Michael said it was okay to tell you about it now."  The youth grinned.  "He taught me to read all the books there.  He said it was time for us to help the Two or else all would be lost.  But he did not tell me what that meant."

Waverly looked at his soulmate, sheer panic rumbling through his thoughts.  The idea that his grandson was involved in all this was mind numbing.  The solid earth below his feet seemed unstable as he considered the idea that there was a hidden library behind the chapel. One that on one had been able to find, one that no member of the enforcement teams had known about, one that was not on any schematic or in any of the notes left him by his predecessors.

"Our grandsons consort with angelic beings?" Valentine whispered, shaking his head.  He did not want to believe it.  He could not believe it.  Angelic beings did NOT associate with his kind.  They never had in the past and they never would. not until the coming of the end of the ages.  And he did not want to think about that.  "Tell me this is not happening, please, tell me I misunderstood him."

"I believe we both heard him correctly."  Alexander forced himself to stand.  "I think we need to get Napoleon back here."

"I agree," the vampyr flowed to his feet.  "Perhaps you should return these books to their resting places and remain there.  You will be safer there than anywhere else."  He still could not quite grasp the idea that Illya had received help from . from one of the most powerful of the Enemy's commanders.

"Oh, Michael said you would need this.  But it cannot be touched by skin. that would be bad."  Val closed the box and pointed to the touch points.  Then he wrapped the box in a plain brown cloth and handed it to Valentine.  Although he was still pale and uncertain looking in the dim light, he was no longer trembling.  He picked up the big book and tucked it under his arm.  "You won't let them have it, will you?"

"I will protect it with my life," Valentine promised.  The young Waverly nodded and limped out of the room.  "Someday you must tell me more about what happened to him."

"You would have to ask Napoleon."  Alexander Waverly admitted, watching the young man sadly.  "Only the two of them know."

Valentine turned fierce eyes on his soulmate, "But if it happened when your grandson was but a child."

"Napoleon was not a member of U.N.C.L.E. back then, he was not much older than Val is now." Remembered pain and horror echoed in Alexander'svoice, "But somehow he saved my grandson, burned the rogue's taint from him, and kept him alive until we found them.  I had to oversee the destruction of my son and daughter-in-law - they had become the worst kind of depraved monsters.  They did not kill, they tortured - beginning with their own.   And their Sire watched laughing as they did.  Val refused to turn, he refused to kill, he fought them and he was barely more than a toddler. Then Napoleon stole him from them and kept him alive until there was no more trace of it in the boy. But no one could save John - or the others."

Valentine wrapped his arms around Alexander and let the other man lean on him.  The though of his other half having to hunt his own kin because of a rogue was dismaying.  The pain that still burned through the man's mind was just as fresh now as it had been a decade earlier, when the situation revealed itself to the U.N.C.L.E. chief.  But while he comforted his soulmate, his mind raced over the newly acquired information.  How had Napoleon Solo saved the boy's soul and returned him to humanity?

"I have found Solo." A small, lithe, beautiful demoness purred to the  Dark One.  "He is with the two garou and they have taken him to Titiana."

The Dark One smiled grimly.  "I will go there myself.  You, my dear, have earned a reward for your vigilance."

The female beamed, her eyes going half-closed as her master stroked her cheek.

"Look, my son, is she not beautiful?"   Her eyes opened fully in shock as a low growling agreement echoed through the cave.  A pale figure stalked out of an adjoining chamber, eyes glowing red with hunger, pain, and lust.  "She is yours." The master leaned closer, his breath tickling the female's ear as he whispered.  "Do not fail me. teach him well and perhaps he will give you the greatest of all gifts. his child."

The demoness nodded, her own base instincts rising to the fore as she opened her arms to welcome the pale figure.  His bare skin was cold as it pressed against her, a striking contrast to the warmth coming from her master's hand as he gave her one last pat on the back.  She would not fail him.

She moaned in ecstasy as Illya's fangs bit into her throat - it was an honor to yield to him and she was one of the few he would be unable to drain of life.  His fingernails pierced her skin, forcing her to remain still.  The succubus smiled, the more he wanted the stronger she would be and more able to provide for him.  She surrendered, not caring that her master was chuckling as he prepared himself to go and get Napoleon Solo.