Disclaimer: I don't own 'Underworld' or any of its regular characters. So there is no copyright infringement intended, nor do I intend to tick anyone off – I do this for fun and nothing else; if you sue me I'm too poor to pay and all you get is a rust bucket car, and a load of animals with attitude problems that make Viktor and Lucian look like a cakewalk:O)

Oh and you get the idea from the story that I am a Lucian fan; if you do, you'd be right! LOL

As to the reason for writing the story, let's just say the plot bunnies have been gnawing my leg for some time on this one and decided to finally give in.

WARNING: THERE WILL BE BAD LANGUAGE AND VIOLENCE, SO READ AT YOUR OWN PERIL.

All reviews, and constructive criticism, gratefully received – but no flaming please; and I will try to update regularly.

'—' signifies thoughts.

"—" signifies speech.

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PROPHECY

Chapter One – Resurrected

Lucian staggered to his feet, mildly surprised that Kraven hadn't killed him but pleased his little back-up plan had worked; he smiled slightly as Michael and Selene came round the corner of the tunnel. "Is Viktor dead?"

They both started "Yes, and so were you…" Selene was the first to speak, having overcome the shock quicker than Michael "however, as I sliced his head in two I think we're fairly safe to assume he will stay dead." Then realisation dawned "You're a hybrid too."

"Yes, couldn't very well let all the responsibility rest on young Michael's shoulders could I?" He flashed a sardonic smile that Michael responded to – the younger man couldn't help it, he liked Lucian, felt sorry for him "I injected myself with some of his blood - I'm not the only one, either. There was one other I picked, someone I knew I could trust utterly who was my closest friend; it was he who injected me with Amelia's blood. I wasn't sure it would work….." he looked at himself "it seems it did."

At that Raze came forward out of the darkness "did it work?" he muttered shaking his head and coughing. He began to spit out the liquid silver nitrate as his now hybrid body began to reject the poison, as did Lucien.

"I'd say by the mere fact we're both still breathing, however painfully at the moment" Raze gave a rueful smile and a nod at that statement "then yes it worked. Plus she killed him…." Lucian outlined before adding as an afterthought "Viktor…."

"Well, I didn't think you meant Scooby-Doo…." Raze grinned at his old friend and leader.

"Oh, a joke….. you must be feeling better!" Lucian smiled.

Raze turned to Selene "Thank you…"

"Don't thank me, I didn't do it for you or him…" she gestured to Lucian "I did it only for Michael." The young man leaning on her smiled, squeezing her shoulder. She glanced up at him, her countenance momentarily softening.

Lucian was immediately reminded of him and Sonja. It was their refusal to be torn apart, to denounce each other that consigned Sonja to her fate; he knew that Selene would suffer the same if the coven found her.

"We must leave; I know where we can go…."

"Grandma's?" Raze asked.

Lucian nodded "They'll never think to look for us there."

Michael looked on incredulously "You have got to be kidding me - wolves going to grandma's house? Don't tell me there's a little red riding hood too?"

Raze grinned as Lucian quirked an eyebrow "What? You thought the story was just a fairytale? But actually the cloak was black and they were all Lycans…and for the record there was no little red; well not the last time I was there anyway – oh and the woodcutter was a vampire." He grinned suddenly.

"I find nothing amusing about our situation." Selene spoke calmly.

"Oh come now Selene….we are all alive at a time when even I, optimistic as I am, thought we would all have perished. Surely we can be happy for our survival if nothing else?"

"Maybe, but if we linger we will not have it to celebrate for long." She pointed out.

"She is right" Lucian conceded "Come we must leave, they'll be here soon enough as she says." He turned to Raze "We must gather the pack quickly; they will raise Marcus now and we must be prepared."

Raze nodded "I'll make the call….."

"Tomorrow Raze, for now we need to gather our strength. I think the worst is yet to come." Lucian put in.

"Have we not slaughtered enough in the name of vengeance?" Selene asked still calmly, but her eyes flashed.

"Yes, yes we have….unfortunately your kin will not take kindly to an elder being killed by one of their own, and an ancient prophecy being brought true by mere Lycans.

So though the war I had a hand in starting is ostensibly over, the general battle for supremacy is far from being so." Lucian pointed out. He stopped, sighed and took a deep breath "I am sorry for making you see Viktor for what he was….I am sorry for starting this war with him in the first place. I know now it is not what Sonja would have wanted…."

Selene eyed the hybrid before her for a moment then sighed "I had a right to know the truth and act as I saw fit and….." she hesitated before continuing "I would have done the same in your position. In fact to a certain degree did I not, once I learned the truth? After all, it was not just to save Michael that I killed Viktor…..revenge for my family also played a part."

Lucian dipped his head in acknowledgement of her admission, both knowing many days would pass before either felt comfortable enough with the other to even think about beginning to trust them. However, he felt a kinship to the boy he had turned and so felt they at least had that in common…..it wasn't much, but it was a start.

Raze grinned sarcastically "Well, girls and boys whilst all this immortal bonding warms the heart, we should be going…"

The others raised an eyebrow but, taking one last look around, they left.

0-0-0-0-0

Skylar, Sky to all those who knew and loved her, stood in the kitchen helping grandma make apple pies and other foodstuffs for the visitors she seemed to be expecting over the next few days; she was a striking woman whose hair was a natural but strange combination of red and gold tones as grandma liked to put it (or auburn and blond as Sky realistically viewed it) and eyes so blue they cut you to your soul. When she was angry they would go even bluer; so blue, in fact, they almost glowed.

She was 36, of a robust build, quite slim, but curvy in all the right places and muscular. Her hair was down past her shoulder blades and her long fringe tended to fall in her eyes a lot, but she refused to have it cut. People found her eyes disconcerting and she found long ago that to hide them enough so she could see you, but you could not seem them was a definite advantage.

She was a down to earth soul, not one for wild leaps of fancy and this was almost a joke between the two women when you considered her rather eccentric family. Indeed the only 'normal' ones had been her parents, though they were now dead; attacked by muggers and shot a few years back – but her adored uncle was her favourite…..Con was barking mad, and would tell lurid stories of his life growing up on the sprawling estate her grandparents owned in southern Ireland.

Although she'd lived there herself with her parents until she was 12, Sky could remember only a little of that life; her parents had resolutely, and without mercy, done their best to eradicate it from her memory.

but what she remembered kept her warm on many a cold night – running free with her cousins, barefoot and happy; her adored grand-da telling her daft stories and making them roar with laughter, and generally living like the 'little pups of the pack' as some of the villagers fondly called them.

Though she had to admit she never understood why they did that; except that maybe it was the extremely close-knit family she came from that caused them to think like that. She and her cousins banded together especially against any outside threats; and if particularly severe, the adults too would get involved. She had loved it there so very much; it was in London that Sky realised you could be surrounded by people and yet be totally and utterly alone.

However, her parents had hated living altogether in Ireland, and they had moved to London as soon as they could. She remembered her grand-da's tears and her uncle's as well as the others; her grandmother's tight lipped goodbye (she was never one for emotion), but the tears in her eyes also as Sky was ripped from them all and bundled in to the car. She begged to be left behind, to stay in the warmth she had grown with, but she'd been told to shut up.

They'd never let her return and by the time she was old enough to do so alone, her grandparents were dead and the others scattered; as the locals had suddenly turned hostile when some outsiders arrived and started stirring up hatred against them. The old couple dying in what seemed to be a suicide pact…

Whilst grandma was a Lycan, Sky was unknowing of all this and considered herself non-descript - she knew nothing of her background, that her family were legend amongst the immortals.

Grandma on the other hand knew much about her adopted grand-daughter; and also knew fate was about to assert itself, and set the younger woman on the path that would lead to a very different destiny to the boringly normal one she imagined she should have.

She smiled at the woman moaning to her right about the food she was baking and how it wouldn't be a patch on gramma's (a lie the old lady knew as Sky's food was better than her own; but the younger woman believed she was not a good enough person for anything, cooking merely being one thing - of course all that was about to change), that work was being a pain; she smiled as she realised life was about to get extremely surreal for the pragmatic soul beside her.

At that moment there was a large rap on the front door; Grandma smiled – in fact it seemed Fate was knocking now.

"Get that for me dear?" she smiled innocently at Sky.

"Alright, alright…..but isn't it a little later for visitors now it's after 8, surely they could have waited until tomorrow?" Sky unthinkingly scratched her nose which itched suddenly; never a good sign she decided as it only ever itched like this when something odd was going to happen, depositing flour on the end of it and her right cheek.

In fact she was quite a sight anyway; her usually immaculate dark clothes now had spatters of white flour on them, despite the apron, her fringe had flour on it from where she kept pushing it back in the heat of the kitchen, and even her black heavy soled boots had a splash of flour on one toe.

She shook her head as she walked to the door making sure her fringe fairly covered her eyes; today it didn't, the heavy dusting of flour held it back slightly and her blue eyes shone even more due to the white powder surrounding them.

She sighed and gave up as she opened the door; she was confronted with a rather motley group of people. A tall blond man, a taller bald black man, a dark haired very pale woman and a shorter man with long brown hair, beard and the weirdest brown eyes she'd ever seen, stared at her. Though he was a little shorter than the rest he seemed the leader, and was still a good head taller than her.

Lucian for his part was surprised to see the door opened by a young woman around her mid to late 30's and apparently covered in flour. Her black clothes spattered and her fringe reasonably full of it so that when she blew up into it to move it out of the way to see better a sprinkling of it dusted down.

The most striking thing about her though was her eyes….they were so blue and seemed to be getting bluer by the minute. She eyed them warily, and all gathered were struck by how feral she suddenly looked.

The Lycan leader smiled and held out his hand "Hello, I'm Lucian and these are Raze, Michael and Selene; my friends" Selene quirked an eyebrow but thought it better to remain silent.

Sky looked at the pro-offered hand and then shook it. She felt a twitch of her nose and itched it, depositing more flour there and eyed them suspiciously. "Well, are you going let them in Sky, or expect them to camp on the steps?" Grandma bustled up.

"You better come in…" Sky offered reluctantly and stepped away from the door.

"Your rooms are ready; I figured you'd be here tonight if you were able." She smiled as Lucian happily embraced her "I bet you've had a time of it…"

"Grandma!" he exclaimed "Yes, we have rather – course can't work out how you knew we'd be coming….still, plenty of time to catch up later. We're starved!"

The old woman laughed "Well, there's plenty to eat….so come on." She turned to Selene "I've made arrangements for you too, dear." The young woman dipped her head in thanks; though wasn't sure how she knew they'd be coming. Then Grandma looked at Lucian "Sky doesn't know, so no blabbing as yet!" she smiled. He gave her a look but nodded, as did the others.

Once in the kitchen she turned to Sky "Have you introduced yourself, child?"

The younger woman sighed "I'm Skylar, though everyone calls me Sky."

"Skylar?" Michael couldn't help it, it was such an unusual name "That's…umm… nice."

Selene rolled her eyes at the limp compliment "It is unusual…." She added, deciding the truth was better.

Sky smiled suddenly and her whole face lit up "It is – very. My Grand-da insisted on it; it means eternal life, strength, love and beauty. I failed on the first and the last, but 2 out of 4 ain't bad!" she grinned.

"I wouldn't say that…." Smiled Raze, warming to the woman; she seemed nice and he sensed something about her, a kinship – he glanced at Lucian who nodded, he felt the same.

Grandma looked around happily, connections were being made immediately – Lucian for one couldn't take his eyes off Sky.

Just then a little girl of about 6 wandered in; the spitting image of her mother, even down to the unusual hair colouring, the only difference was her eyes - glittering, brilliant emerald green instead of the blue. "Mummy? Who's this?" she eyed the people now starting to sit round the table to eat; Grandma had surreptitiously filled a bowl with blood for Selene from a small locked fridge in the corner.

Lucian started, if he and Sonja had had a daughter he would certainly have expected to see her look exactly like this little scrap.

"Ah my beagán a mhuirnín – these are friends of your great-gramma's." Sky offered, slipping into the Gaelic that put her daughter at ease. She put her hand out for the little girl to come to her, her face softening at once at the sight of her child.

"Mhuirnín…another unusual name?" smiled Raze "Who picked that one?"

Sky tried unsuccessfully to stifle the smirk "No….mhuirnín is Gaelic for darling; the phrase beagán a mhuirnín is Gaelic for little darling. Her name is Ulrika, it means wolf ruler, but we call her Uli for short."

All the new members of the table looked slightly startled at the name; once again Selene recovered quickest and broached the question the others were thinking "Why that name?"

"I love wolves….." Uli answered, causing the Lycan hybrids to smile "and I like all animals. But dogs and suchlike love me back….I want to be a vet when I'm older."

"Why not a doctor?" Michael asked, the medic in him bridling; piercing green eyes swung and locked with his.

"Because animals don't answer back." Was the reasonable reply as the eyes swung once more around the group. Lucian hung his head so she wouldn't see him smirk….

"You could not have known that when you named her though?" Michael added with a grin at the child, but levelling his gaze at her mother.

"No….but…." before Sky could continue Uli butted in.

"But it's a brilliant story – when I was born a lot of dogs howled all night….and they did the same when Mummy was born too." The little girl's eyes were alight with awe.

"So your great Uncle Con tells you, but yes when you were born a lot of dogs barked – probably because there was something to bark at, like a cat - so he suggested the name Ulrika…..wolf ruler." Sky laughed.

But Lucian and Raze exchanged puzzled glances - that usually happened with a Lycan birth, though not all night; all very odd.

Uli sniffed each one at the table as she passed - much like, Lucian thought, a Lycan pup child would.

Selene was first; Uli wrinkled her nose "you smell of blood and roses, unusual. Are you dead?"

Sky rolled her eyes at Grandma "See what your bloody stories do?"

"Aye, but leave the lass alone – she learns with questions, don't you little one?" Grandma smiled at the little girl, willing the others at the table to work it out. She could see that Lucian and Raze were making the connections.

"No…." Selene spoke slowly and was unsure what to say, she did not wish to lie – but knew that the child and her mother were not aware of their immortal background.

"Hmmm…." Uli seemed unconvinced; she stared at the young woman. Her green eyes never wavering "You'll do." She finally decided; causing a smirk around the table, even from Selene herself.

She sniffed Michael next "You smell of blood too. But also her - like roses, and…" she sniffed round Lucian and Raze "him" her gaze settled briefly on Lucian "ginger.." She looked into his eyes "I like you, you have a kind soul – like her, but she buries hers."

"Uli, stop it darling – not everyone likes to be sniffed at. Some people find it strangely disconcerting."

"Leave her; we do not mind do we?" Lucian shook his head and the others followed. Sky rolled her eyes and Uli continued. In truth he and the others found it fascinating; particularly he and Raze – for them it was such a Lycan thing to do.

She moved on to Raze "well?" he asked expectantly.

Once again green eyes locked with blue ones "You are spicy - cinnamon and nutmeg - and your soul is true. You're his friend…." She pointed to Lucian "Good one too….no betrayer, you have a good heart." She rested her hand on his chest.

The large man was touched, for it was all true, and he smiled "flatterer!"

"No, I speak only true. I hate liars and am as useless as my mummy at it – she forgets when she lies and always gets caught. So do I….plus you can never lie with your eyes." She frowned a little, then smiled when she realised he was joking "Ah, you joke….I see."

Finally she made her way to Lucian, who had stored that little snippet away for future use…..they could not lie; she stared intently at him and he, unlike the others, held her gaze the longest until she smiled and patted his chest. "Ginger and honey as well as the blood and dank smells you all have. But yours alone is ginger and honey…..nice. You're nice" she stared deeply into his eyes, her own almost glowing as they connected "but sad though, muchly sad….my daddy died like your family, bad people killed him." She put her arms round his neck and climbed onto his lap.

Sky sat as open-mouthed as Lucian "She never, ever does that…never…she doesn't trust people." she stammered.

"Well, I'm honoured my lady." He rapidly gathered himself and replied as nonchalantly as he could to Uli, putting his arms around the little girl's waist to steady her and committing her scent of chocolate and oranges to memory; he would be able to pick her out of a group of hundreds now.

"How old are you?" Uli asked "Gramma is 764 years old, aren't you?"

Grandma nodded with a grin.

"Yeah, right!" Sky laughed.

"Listen, don't mock Gramma…." Uli admonished her mother.

"I don't….but it's hard to believe. For one thing how would you live that long? For another, why would you want to?"

"Fate in both cases…" Uli offered.

"Oh you and you're 'it's a fate thing' Uli." Sky smiled. "You forget your homework, its fate; you bit that boy at school, its fate!"

"But that was right and just, mummy – he was a bully!" Uli defended hotly.

"She bit someone?" Raze asked amused.

"Yes, yes I did – he was mean and nasty to Jacob….."

"Jacob?" Michael asked. Selene couldn't help but smile, these fully grown men, these powerful Lycan/Vampire hybrids hanging on the every word of a small child….especially Lucian it seemed, who appeared taken with the mother too.

"Jacob is my best friend in the whole world. He's from the old country and tells me stories." She smiled "he can run as fast as me and could fight as well as me if he chose to." she sighed and then levelled her eyes at Lucian "but he chooses not. Do you not think it silly not to fight to defend yourself?"

The man before her nodded sagely, stifling a smile "yes I do, self defence is always equitable under law."

"And we should know that!" muttered Raze with a grin. Lucian dipped his eyes back to the little girl.

She looked at Lucian's pendant, recently returned by Michael "That's nice. Is it yours?"

He nodded - his eyes suddenly sad. She rubbed his cheek and then gently laid her fingers of her left hand over the necklace "Awww, the lady died." She patted his arm with her right one. But then her eyes suddenly opened wider "Oh! Oh, that was mean and they hurt you too….but you got away." Tears welled in her eyes and then she sat back before leaning forward once more "You're like Gramma…..are they?" she whispered in his ear gesturing at the others.

He nodded, too shocked to speak knowing that, somehow, she had seen the death of Sonja and his escape and knew what he was.

"What is it? What did you see Uli?" Sky asked concerned "She never cries do you ceana?"

"Arbith mamaí…" Uli shook her head.

"What language is that? Where's the 'old country'? I'm confused!" Raze asked. Lucian shot him a warning look. "Well, I am!" he defended.

"It's Gaelic, I called her love and she answered 'no mammy' to the question. The old country, as you may have gathered from that, is Ireland. She likes to speak the Gaelic because no one round here understands it and she can say what she likes."

She sighed "Not that she doesn't do that anyway, but with the Gaelic she can say it without getting into trouble." Sky smiled ruefully at her daughter, who was still hugging Lucian tightly "Well, for what it's worth she's sure as hell taken to you…." she quirked an eyebrow at Uli.

"I like him – he's been so sad for a very long time….." Uli gave her mother a warning look that said she brooked no argument; this was to be her new best friend, after Jacob of course.

"Alright, alright – I said naught to be offensive, thú beage deamhan páiste!" She grinned.

"If I am a little demon child, then what are you as my mother?" Uli retorted with a sly smile.

"I am just your mother – but you, my girl, are too cheeky!" Sky laughed out loud "Now go to bed, it is late."

"Will you tell me a story?" Uli asked. She turned to the older woman at the table "Make her tell a story Gramma; she'll do it if you ask, she never refuses you anything - then you.." she turned to Lucian and tugged his hair "can kiss me goodnight and if you're really good, I might let you tuck me in."

Lucian couldn't help it, he laughed out loud – even Selene smirked. Raze roared, and Michael chuckled; this kid was really a piece of work. Michael wondered though how she would cope with them if she saw them as they really were; he stared at the kid once more and smiled, something told him it probably wouldn't phase her that much.

The old woman looked to Sky who vehemently shook her head "you know I hate to be the centre of attention Gramma, why do you insist on tormenting me so?"

"She will not sleep until you do, and it will entertain my guests while they eat." Grandma reasoned.

Sky sighed "Alright, alright! Slave driver, and after I cooked and everything."

The three men all looked down at their plates "You cooked this?" Raze and Michael spoke together "We thought it was Grandma." Raze added.

"Yeah, don't look too shocked – I have a knack for some things; anyway it's nothing much…...not as good as Gramma's." but she smiled and then looked at her daughter "So what do you want me to tell beagán mac tíre?"

Lucian raised an eyebrow at her "Little wolf?" She raised one back "I speak some Gaelic."

"It's what my Uncle Con calls her….." She smiled sheepishly "Have I mentioned how eccentric and slightly weird my family are?"

"No…but it's obvious you love them even so." He smiled and she decided she liked him best.

"Yeah well, they're my blood and blood's important." She shrugged.

"Blood usually is….." Selene smiled.

"A joke?" Michael grinned.

"Possibly…." She squeezed his hand and he smirked "It's a new thing for me…."

Uli watched the interaction "I think they love each other…." She whispered to Lucian.

"Yes, she sacrificed everything to be with him and he nearly died to be with her." He looked at the couple with a sad smile.

"You risked everything too, so did your mate – but then we always do for love…." Glittering green eyes locked with his.

Lucian tweaked her cheek "You are wise beyond your years, pup."

"I like that…you can call me that - pup!" she grinned; then turned to her mother "tell the story of the big bad wolf."

All eyes turned to her and then Grandma, she waved at them "This is a different version is it not, Sky?"

"Yes, Gramma it is - because Uli and I do not believe there is ever such a thing as a truly bad wolf!" She chuckled. She turned to her daughter "Do you want come sit on my lap Uli?"

"No, thank you mummy - I am very happy here thank you." Uli grinned and settled herself back against Lucian's chest; he put his arms around her waist and locked his hand to keep her steady, closed his eyes and for one blissful moment pretended she was his and things had turned out so different. Raze and Michael watched him and both felt a deep sympathy for the loss he'd suffered, even Selene felt a slight twinge of sorrow for him – knowing full well what it was like to lose everything you cherished.

"Well, once upon a time – for that is the way all good stories start" Sky began the story as her grand-da had so many times when she was small. Lucian opened his eyes and smiled ruefully at the others knowing what they'd been thinking "there was a man who could change into a wolf. He was a wild man and for a time did many bad things – but one day he spied a lady and decided to eat her!" She said the last with a flourish causing Uli to giggle and Lucian to smile.

"Now this lady was different from other women and she was not afraid of him; this intrigued him and so he spared her. He decided to follow her on her journey and make sure she was safe; they had many adventures and he saved her life many times both as the wolf and as the man.

Eventually they reached her village and they realised they were in love; but she'd kept a big secret from him - her kinfolk, people that only travelled by night, and his were sworn enemies. Her people wanted her dead for daring to love outside their own kind, and his decided they could never accept someone from such a people - so what to do?" Sky paused as her grand-da always did and wait for the response from Uli that she had always given….

"What did they do mummy?" Uli's eyes were wide even though she had heard the story so many times before.

"They ran away……far away into the woods. For a time some of the ladies kinfolk, and even some of the man's, followed them and tried to kill them; but they fought them and he killed them all and thus he earned the name the 'big bad wolf' – when in truth all he was really doing was protecting his blood for in that time the lady had given him 5 children who he loved very much.

However, eventually they gave up and the couple were left in peace – finally they lived happily ever after."

"Were they happy?" Uli asked – Sky looked at her daughter she had never asked this before. But this story was now too similar to what she had seen of Lucian's past….and that had not ended happily at all, let alone forever.

"Yes, a mhuirnín they were…for always; or so my Grand-da said." She smiled at her daughter.

Uli turned to Lucian "Someone had the happies then……it could be you in the future." She whispered before pecking his cheek and looked at him hopefully.

He nodded, and the little girl wiped the tears from his cheeks with her thumb "You have to let them go eventually – even mummy let daddy go, eventually. But she nearly went to live with the angels…."

"How?" Lucian asked very quietly.

"Get her to show you her arms, Gramma saved her. She never did it again though, Gramma made her realise I needed her too." The little girl whispered.

"Uli? Now its time for bed…"

Sky gestured to the door and left; Uli following, after she'd kissed Lucian's cheek again and jumped down.

He watched them both go….Raze rolled his eyes, Lucian's heart was lost to the child already, and he felt the other's feelings would continue onto the mother soon enough. Mind you, they both reminded him of Sonja and he barely knew her - so you couldn't blame the poor bastard if they did the same for him.

0-0-0-0-0

Lucian levelled his heavy gaze at Grandma "well, my interest is thoroughly piqued – what the hell is going on?"

Grandma smiled "You have just made two very powerful allies."