Blessed by Night

Mal recognized a few of them from T.V. and blessed events from before the world fell.

It tore his heart apart to see these once beautiful and vibrant people in the same kind of condition he found Joanne in after returning home.

"You\'ve all been through a lot, huh...? I promise that you\'re all in good hands now."

Needless to say, several of the refugees seemed to be put off by his appearance and voice, while others were so out of it from the abuse that they were practically robotic.

"I know this might be a little jarring, but… I need you all to trust me, alright?"

Malachi held out his hands and dark tendrils of a wispy energy left his fingertips en masse.

Of course, a few people panicked at the sight of a strange attack coming towards them from a 6\'6 demon, and even tried to run.

But ultimately, they were too slow to escape, and were eventually caught by the tendrils.

And instead of being attacked, or filled with pain, their inner turmoil and depression was eaten away, bit by bit.

"I... What is this..?"

"It feels a bit cold, but... it\'s nice..."

"I feel relieved somehow..."

Malachi ate more negativity in that moment than he ever had in his life, and this was the first time that it ever caused him to feel slightly \'full\'.

When the refugees were no longer on the verge of suicide, Malachi pulled back his hands and smiled at them reassuringly.

"You all should be feeling a little better now, am I right?"

Stunned, the formerly captive blessed could only nod their heads as their mouths fell open.

"Good to hear it. Now, where should I begin..." .

Malachi started floating with his legs crossed as he absentmindedly began to pet Manda.

"I guess I should say... you all are safe now. My name is Malachi Saint, and this little group of mine is-"

"Holy shit, Malachi?!"

"The hell happened to you?!"

"You look like something from the dark side of pornhub now!"

"Not gonna lie, I really fuck with the snakes."

"T-Then is it true what they said...? About you being connected to the aliens...?"

Malachi had really forgotten just how famous that he had been before the world went kaput.

He smiled wryly as he tried to think of which question to answer first, when suddenly an even bigger celebrity than him walked into the room.

"HOLY SHIT IT\'S LUNA AUTUMN!"

"WHY DID NOBODY TELL US SHE WAS HERE!? WHY DID NOBODY TELL US SHE WAS HERE!?"

*Unintelligible fangirl screaming.*

*Unintelligible fanboy screaming.*

Luna wore a simple, superstar-like smile as she stepped into the room.

Since it was late at night and she had only just gotten out of bed, all she was wearing were a simple pair of leggings and a pullover she had stolen- I mean, borrowed from Mal.

However, her clothes did nothing to stop her from looking like a superstar.

She had an icy, yet cool smile that made all of her rabid admirers lose their minds.

Before addressing the people, she slipped her arms around Malachi and kissed him in front of everyone.

...And because his snakes where attention whores, they demanded the same treatment too but were ignored.

But then, Luna caved and kissed them once each on the heads.

"What are you doing up so late?" Mal asked, though he was clearly happy to see her.

"Well, I couldn\'t right sleep since our bed was a little empty." she dug.

Mal scratched his cheek then looked away in embarrassment.

"Since I was up, I went into the living room to check on the girls when your mother introduced me to our... new helpers.

They seem nice, but the boys don\'t really appear to have any interest in anything other than Serana and Melanie. They barely shook my hand."

Truthfully, Mal wondered just why two dragon princes were both so focused on the human girls.

And given what had just happened to Serana, as well as their horrid first meeting... he was more than a little suspicious of Apophis, and he wasn\'t sure how to deal with him.

He was Serena\'s best friend / unofficial step father, so he had a duty to remain vigilant above all else!

Luna, or Emi, finally released Malachi and turned her attention back towards her starstruck fans.

"Hello everyone, and welcome to Nightfall. I\'m not exactly sure what my husband has told you, but..."

\'She called me her husband...\' Mal covered his mouth and crotch so that no one would notice his giddy smile or the rising tent in his pants.

Meanwhile, Luna continued her speech and tried to get the new additions up to speed.

"...This place is a self sustaining community with the goal of helping others we find who are caught in the crossfire or stuck in the wastelands.

We\'re sort of like a big family here, and our only rules are that you help out to the best of your capabilities, and do not antagonize or discriminate against any of our members.

That aside, we\'re sure that you\'ve all been through a gruesome ordeal, so if you\'ll allow it I want to admit you to this here medical wing so that we can help get you all some nutrients and ensure you\'re in good health.

I understand you may be averse to this given what you just went through, but please know that no one here wishes to harm you."

Needless to say, there were more than a few of the blessed who didn\'t look like they were too keen on being injected, or prodded, with anything ever again.

And honestly, who could blame them?

The experience they had just lived through was unlike anything any sentient creature should ever have to endure at any point in their lives.

And even though Mal had \'eaten\' their negativity, the resulting trauma had already damaged their brains, and they would never be the same ever again.

However, despite all of this, one by one, a few of the refugees started to climb onto the various beds and glanced at Luna with gazes of trust.

The scene left her more than just a little bit touched.

"Thank you all." she said sincerely. "We will do our best to make sure that your trust is not misplaced."

Luna waived her hand and a team of nursing professionals came streaming in.

They were led by Celeste, who conveniently avoided even glancing in Malachi\'s direction.

Though he could see her ears getting red as she walked past him.

"Can I borrow you for a moment, hon?" Luna asked as she started to pull him away.

She and Malachi made their way out into the hallway, where she finally let her face darken.

"I\'m glad that we\'ve got them here where they are safe and sound, but... their numbers are a bit of a problem. We only have around five available quarters left before we are at capacity.

And then there is the matter of clothing... I can see if some of our members have some things they are willing to donate, but I fear that most don\'t have very much to give..."

Malachi\'s face darkened to mirror Luna\'s, and the two of them seemed to share in a moment of despondence.

"This is my fault." she muttered. "I should have anticipated a larger volume of-"

"Don\'t go there." Malachi squeezed Luna\'s hand reassuringly. "You did the best you could with the resources you had to get this place built in time and as efficiently as possible. You couldn\'t have known what this whole thing would turn into."

Luna smiled softly as she rested her head on Mal\'s shoulder. "Then what will we do? How do we get these people the level of comfort and security that they deserve?"

Malachi fumbled for an answer that he didn\'t really have.

When he finally was about to blurt out some kind of half cocked plan, a sweet voice interrupted them both.

"I\'m sorry... did I hear you were having spacial issues?"

Looking back, the two of them found the always beautiful Thea wearing her usual radiant smile and with an unusually large twinkle in her purple eyes.

"I don\'t mean to pry, but... I think I might have a solution that will help you out with that if you\'re willing to listen."

She held up the beautiful golden bracelet around her left wrist, and the bright red gem inside started to glow brightly.

Miraculously, all three of them were teleported from the hallway to an unknown location…