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Summation Two: Eli
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Raziel had met Eli through Eli's Uncle, Ezza - another of the Grigori. Ezza had been Eli's mother's brother. The boy was big and surly back
then; still angry with his father; still hadn't avenged the killing of his mother. He was even bigger now and maybe a little heavier, but still
no one you'd go toe to toe with on any given day.Raziel remembered Ezza talking about him once. Eli was a fell warrior, a Master of Shadows.
Ezza was proud of him. Eli never missed his mark, Ezza said. Among other colorful sobriquets, he'd been called "the Ace of Spades" and
"Derecho" the Black Wind.
In the Feral Wars, Eli shot Setanta in the gut with a poisoned crossbow dart that had enough curare on it to kill a raging Texas Longhorn bull,
according to Eli. Setanta's ferals dragged him inside a tent but Setanta wasn't in the tent or anywhere to be found amonst the dead.
That was Eli's experience. Short and simple. Raziel wanted to hear more. "Since I can't talk to Ramon, what can you tell me about him in
all this? He rescued Nikki from Setanta. Yes?"
"Nikki and two other kids, Kaji and Kyogen. There was a million dollar bounty on Setanta. It went up every time a hunter came up empty
with him - or dead. It started out at $250,000, and went up $100,000 each fail - if that tells you anything. Nikki used that fact to convince
Ramon it would be even grander if he were rescuing her and the others. He was readily influenced. But arrogance and insecurity often are"
Eli shrugged with a wry small smile.
"He couldn't ever come up with any proof, but Nikki swears she saw Setanta go down. The Comission considered witness statements
'heresay'. There had to be physical proof. My sister told me that, before she'd married Ramon - when we were still close. Before he
decided HE should be the Alpha. He drove a great wedge between us - all in vain. I was already named Alpha in all but ceremony.
He made everyone miserable with his crap, made my sister hate me. He was a show-boating ass and she'd already been spoiled
rotten by our father. The only good thing he ever did was make my niece, Glory. And that was a fluke, I assure you."
"Sounds like you didn't have much use for him." Eli allowed as that was very true. Turning siblings on one another and abandoning
one's children when they didn't agree with you - yet more favorite pastimes of Lyl's. He'd done it to his own brother - something
Raziel had never really approved of all these thousands of years. "We'll have to get together again, once this is over. It's been good
talking. Maybe next time we can catch up on life."
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