Greetings! Welcome once again to Angst Theatre's debut performance of "Turning Point"!

My deepest apologies for the slightly longer intermission than what was expected between the first and second posting runs, but something that has troubled me far too much since last February finally reached a breaking point and I had to take an action I had hoped to avoid. I won't go into the gory details here, but if you're wondering what I'm alluding to, check out my recently edited bio at fanfiction.net. Another way to find out what happened *and* to see one of the things that cheered me up enough to be able to resume work on this story, check out my kitten-koi's newest fluff piece for Trowa and Wufei of GW entitled "You Owe Me Nothing in Return". It's available at fanfiction.net [http://fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=778619] and if you drop by to read it, I hope you will be so kind as to leave her a cheerful note since without this encouragement, it might have taken me several more days to feel like writing again.

{smiles hopefully then puts on yet another piece of borrowed clothing borrowed from a bishounen, this time a deep burgundy, leather trench coat with more buckles than some bondage clothing can boast of and, after lighting the marquee, the llama hands you a playbill and introduces the show}

Tonight's performance opens on two extremely concerned beings, standing high above Shinjuku and wondering how to find their missing lover. They don't have long to wait, thankfully, and are soon en route to perform a dramatic rescue as well as enact some decidedly blood retribution. What follows is a tender yet heart-wrenching reunion that gives way to revelations for all of those involved before the angelic threesome departs, leaving behind a new friend whose bravery has made Chihaya's horrible experience somewhat more bearable.

{notes a teeny-tiny warning flag that Lauren, muse of warnings, recommended after her dad accidentally squicked her with a vague description of the battle in the bank}

By the way, as mentioned in the warnings, there's graphic violence in this fic and if such things disturb you, my apologies. I doubt it's really all that bad, but just to be on the safe side, don't read that scene while eating, okay?

Before we begin the story, may I publicly thank all the wonderful people who have sent comments to me about this story as well as posting them at fanfiction.net? Yanagi was incredibly generous and said this was the best birthday gift she'd gotten at the time she saw the story and that alone was enough to send my heart soaring! Then I heard from Rubious and Ryoko who added their own words of support despite the fact that neither one of them has ever even *seen* the show! Thereafter, Emeryl Tekutsu left me a kind note at the Earthians ML which was quite nice. The icing on my proverbial Cake of Joy was the amazing 15 reviews left at fanfiction.net by old friends as well as new ones!

{looks stunned and very, *very* grateful}

At a time when my confidence was drooping and my heart saddened, to receive this kind of reception along with my lovely giftfic was far more than I would have dared to hope for. I can't tell you enough how much each and every word of encouragement means to me, but I do know that my muses feel strongly about them and they fully intend to send a lemony thank you to you all very soon!

{bows deeply, truly grateful to those who support him so generously and then he invites you to return to the world of "Turning Point" as we see the power of a pair of avenging angels on a mission to protect the one they love! ah, but is creating mayhem *all* these two will do to save Chihaya? find out as you…}

Enjoy the Angst!

~~~Enigma~~~

(who intends to send some notes out privately soon to thank some very special friends not the least of whom are bearilou, cat [aka Skippys Cat], sweet "Willow" herself, Emeryl, and several others! it was as if the hairy pack animal heard you all saying "ganbatte!" when he needed to hear it and it truly helped!)

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Title: Turning Point [part 3/7]

Author: Enigma

Series: Earthian

Written: May, 2002

Rating: NC-17

Pairings: (Kagetsuya x Chihaya) (Messiah x Chihaya) (Kagetsuya x Chihaya x Messiah)

Category: Yaoi Angst Romance Action Violence Language Threesome Lemon. AU-OOC. Giftfic.

Archive: fanfiction.net [author: "E-sama the Llama"] ; also at Yanagi-sen's page: http://willownymph.1accesshost.com/www.1accesshost.com/home%20page.htm

Warnings: yaoi, angst, romance, action, graphic violence, excessive bloodshed, rough language, Chihaya-torture, science fiction touches, three-way lemon, friend insertion, AU-OOC. Giftfic for Yanagi-sen.

Spoilers: Contains spoilers for the entire 4 episode OVA series. Note the timeline diverges from that of the anime after Chihaya and Kagetsuya encounter Messiah in the bar in "Final Battle" and is set four months after that point. Also, please note that the author is completely ignorant of the manga series and if he has made errors based on that lack of knowledge, he is deeply apologetic and hopes the reader can still enjoy the story in spite of them.

Disclaimer: "Earthian" is the property of Yun Kouga. All original characters featured herein (including: Willow, Rhino, Hyena, and Gorilla) are © Enigma, 2002, and are not to be used without permission. This unauthorized and unpaid work of fanfiction is intended for entertainment only; kindly do not sue me.

Notes: Can a violent turning point in the lives of Kagetsuya, Chihaya, and Messiah help them find a way to blend two couples into a trio while they still have the chance?

*****

Glancing at his watch and noting that it was almost eleven, the powerfully built blond angel sighed and shook his head before saying, "Messiah, I'm really getting worried. I'm not so sure I want to wait until noon to go looking for Chihaya."

The amber-eyed being who regarded him with newly found compassion nodded and answered, "I concur, Kagetsuya, but where do we begin?"

"I wish I knew," the sea-green-eyed man answered dispiritedly as he gazed out over the city of Tokyo wishing his petite lover had taken his cell phone with him.

Stepping out onto the balcony and standing beside the muscular blond, the dark-maned biohumanoid-angel composite did something he had never done before and hesitantly placed a reassuring hand onto the slightly taller man's shoulder before saying, "Fear not, Kagetsuya. Now that you and I are no longer working at cross purposes, we will not fail him again. All we need is a sign." Amber eyes turned golden by the bright sunshine gazed into the azure sky as if searching for exactly that.

Green eyes shifted towards the synthetic being thoughtfully and Kagetsuya simply shook his head in amazement that someone who was created in a laboratory less than a year prior obviously had more faith than he himself did. Despite being from Eden, a planet that was far more civilized and infinitely wiser than Earth, the worried angel often found faith to be something he simply didn't have enough of. Perhaps this was a reflection of his role as one sent to examine the human race's negative aspects or perhaps it was something else entirely but either way at that moment Kagetsuya felt powerless and knew that hope would not be enough.

The pair of tall, handsome men stood together in silence, their hair caressed gently by the occasional breeze.

Each reflected on the previous few hours of earnest and occasionally agonizing discussion that had allowed them to put a great deal of their past enmity behind them in the hopes of bringing joy to the one they both loved in his own way. It hadn't been easy for either of them, but eventually they agreed that they needed to find a way to share not only their bed but also their hearts if it would bring the smile back to Chihaya's face and make their apartment a true home once more.

Wisely, they had decided to leave the final details of how they would build some of these bridges to their raven-winged lover. The petite angel would undoubtedly find new solutions the two overly dominant beings couldn't begin to conceive of and both silently hoped this would extend to their intimate activities as well since neither wished to accept a sexually submissive role if he could avoid it. Granted, neither of them had given it much thought and incorrectly assumed there was only one arrangement that three men could share in a moment of passion but this was a reparable error instead of a terminal one.

As the green-eyed angel was about to step back inside the penthouse to go in search of a street map so the two of them could plan a search pattern, Messiah pointed at the sky asking, "Do you see something, Kagetsuya? Over there, past the office buildings?"

The blond spun in the direction the man beside him was indicating and briefly cursed the fact that he didn't have augmented senses like the synthetic angel did, then responded urgently, "I don't see anything out of the ordinary, Messiah. What is it?"

Pushing his enhanced vision to focus more completely on the distant point where he thought he'd seen motion, the dark-haired being frowned and answered, "I thought perhaps it was Chihaya returning but I am mistaken. It appears to be nothing more than birds of some sort."

"Birds?!" Kagetsuya exclaimed, the previously elusive hope rushing into him as an option he had failed to consider earlier occurred to him and he asked, "Are they headed this way?"

Frowning since he didn't see how this was relevant, Messiah nodded and commented, "Yes, I believe so. Why do you ask?"

"You'll see!" The green-eyed man stated confidently then extended a hand towards the feathered creatures beckoning them with his mind as well knowing that those with whom they shared the ability to fly would respond.

Baffled yet unwilling to set aside his new found trust in the angel beside him, Messiah simply stood where he was and watched in amazement as two snow-white birds approached the balcony as if they had been sent there by powers beyond his comprehension. He was astonished as one of the doves alighted upon his companion's outstretched hand while the other landed on the balcony railing and languidly pecked at the surface beneath its claws.

Piercing green eyes focused on tiny red ones, Kagetsuya quietly spoke to the bird asking it, "Have you seen Chihaya, my friend? He is missing and we seek him."

The bird responded by cooing softly and tilting its head in curiosity, apparently unable to answer then it paused, listened in whatever strange and unknown fashion that the children of Eden could communicate with their avian contacts and suddenly it unfurled its wings and beat them against the air angrily. [1] The other bird, too, began to become more agitated and it paced up and down the railing quickly, making harsh cooing noises of its own that were far from soothing.

"*Damn* it all! I *knew* something was wrong!" Kagetsuya cursed suddenly, green eyes narrowing in rising fury as he tossed the bird aloft once more before shouting, "Messiah!! Chihaya's in trouble! Let's go!" Without hesitation or delay, he commanded his wings to manifest themselves. As the huge white-feathered appendages easily tore through the back of his shirt and his golden hair lengthened and flowed luxuriously down his back, Kagetsuya stepped up onto the railing and launched himself into the air to follow the retreating birds who were already on the wing.

Even though he had no idea what was going on, the amber-eyed being instinctively obeyed. Magnificent ebony wings forced their way from deep within him destroying his own apparel and gave chase to the three white winged figures ahead of him.

As they soared rapidly towards the section of Shinjuku where the doves were leading them, Messiah called above the noise of the wind, "Where are we going, Kagetsuya?! What has happened to Chihaya?!" He wanted to know how the blond even knew something was wrong, but that was a detail that could wait for later.

Shouting above the noise of their mighty wings as they tore through the azure sky, the enraged white-feathered angel exclaimed, "The doves couldn't show me but they heard him call our names and cry for help! That's all I need to know!"

With an intense expression on his face, Messiah growled, "Agreed! And if anyone has dared to hurt him…" He left the statement unfinished since they both knew full well what fate awaited any who foolishly chose to injure the violet-eyed youth that they had come to love.

No words were needed from his companion, Kagetsuya having long ago made the unspoken vow to protect and defend his chosen love regardless of risk or consequences. This fact alone explained his willingness to fly above the city of Tokyo on a cloudless day, something he would ordinarily avoid at almost any cost. The angels of Eden jealously guarded the secret of their true natures not wanting the "earthians" that they had come to observe see them for who and what they truly were. They also knew that detection by the often superstitious and fearful humans could lead to capture and experimentation or worse.

Despite their ability to easily out-fly the birds who were their guides, the two mighty beings following the doves held themselves back since they didn't know where the avians were leading them, but this was a welcome frustration since they knew they were getting closer to rescuing their endangered lover.

*****

Unwitting that things were about to change radically, the people trapped inside the bank where three robbers were preparing to attempt to blow the door off of a safe were understandably terrified.

The explosives that Gorilla was attaching to the thick steel surface were rarely seen in Japan and ordinarily available only to those who had special licenses to own and use them. However, he had taken temporary employment with a construction project in the mountains where a new highway was being built simply for the purposes of obtaining the dynamite they were using. Granted, he didn't have enough experience to do it quickly or efficiently, and his lack of knowledge was painfully obvious to not only the captives but also his cohorts.

Frowning angrily and knowing that every minute they remained where they were the danger of having someone walk in on them the way Chihaya had done increased, Rhino asked, "Are you going to get that done any time soon or not, Gorilla?! We need to get the hell out of here before somebody wises up and calls the cops!"

Snarling at himself more than his leader, the swarthy man responded in annoyance, "I'm doing the best I can, Rhino! It'll only be another minute or so."

"That's good," Hyena commented from where he currently stood guard over the helpless hostages. Running leering eyes over the trembling figure of the severely injured youth cradled protectively in the petite bank manager's arms, he added darkly, "I want to get our new toy here home and play with him some more! I can't wait to get that tape off his mouth and make him scream again, his voice was so pretty when he was screaming in pain."

Willow glared up at him and would've said something about him not taking the raven-haired boy from her protective embrace unless he killed her first, yet she wisely realized that would be giving the beast ideas he simply didn't need to have.

Slipping in and out of consciousness, Chihaya continued to sob behind the duct tape that sealed his lips as well as overlapping part of his torn and disfigured cheek. Amethyst eyes rimmed with red from constant crying fluttered open and shut almost at random and it was clear he was in terrible agony. In his heart, he continued to recite his lovers' names finding some solace in the fact that if the brutish creature who obviously didn't know what he was doing with the explosives succeeded in killing him, Kagetsuya and Messiah would be in his thoughts at the moment of his death.

Straightening with a grim smile, the swarthy man brushed his hands together and stated, "That ought to do it! All we need to do now is set the timer and it should blow the door straight off."

"All right!" The wiry man exclaimed delightedly and then frowned and asked, "But what do we do with all these people? Won't they get hurt when it explodes?" He didn't really care about any of the hostages as individuals other than Chihaya, but he was smart enough to know the penalty for murder was substantially worse than that for robbery and wished to avoid facing that should they be forced to atone for their crimes later.

The ringleader of the group wasn't quite as foresighted, unfortunately. With a cruel laugh, Rhino responded, "That's fine with me, Hyena! Then there'll be no witnesses. Grab your boytoy there and get him out of the way so we can finish this."

Shaking his head, the wiry man answered, "I think that's a dumb idea, but you're the boss, Rhino." Turning towards Willow, he shoved the gun into the top of his boot then extended his hands towards her intending to scoop up the bleeding youth and he snarled, "Give him here, woman."

"No!" The ebony-haired bank manager wrapped her arms more firmly around Chihaya's trembling form and glared at him with all the fury she felt after watching her customers and employees being abused by the evil threesome. With matchless strength in the face of overwhelming odds, Willow growled, "I won't let you lay another filthy finger on this boy! If you're going to kill us anyway, just go ahead and get it over with!"

"You fucking *bitch*!" Hyena shouted, whipping the gun out of his boot and putting it squarely in her face. "Fine then! I'll blow your goddamned brains out and *then* I'll take what's mine!"

Before he could pull the trigger though, the large picture window in the front of the bank exploded into a million shards as a pair of winged figures quite literally flew straight through it. After slamming into the theoretically bullet-proof glass with his arms crossed over his eyes for only long enough to break the barrier, Kagetsuya was first to enter and Messiah was less than a second behind him, fury blazing in his amber eyes.

Frozen by the shock of the sudden arrivals, Hyena seemed to forget that he was about to kill Willow and the momentary delay was all it took for the white-winged avenging angel to obtain a basic understanding of what was going on and act to rectify the situation. Not taking the time to pull his huge wings back into himself, Kagetsuya landed briefly then spun to slam a vicious roundhouse kick into the wiry man, sending him flying into a wall which he hit with such force that it nearly snapped his neck. Unnoticed by anyone, the pistol he'd been threatening the green-eyed woman with spun across the floor and landed only a few feet away from the group of hostages.

"*Chihaya*!!" The blond angel shouted and dropped to his knees beside the broken and bloodied form of his petite lover. Reaching out to the woman who held the dark-haired youth whose violet eyes fluttered open through an act of sheer will, he choked and asked, "What happened?!"

Ignoring the fact that his frightening yet majestic obsidian-colored wings in full view, Messiah rushed to stand behind the snowy-feathered angel, equally distraught over the condition of his injured lover.

The badly wounded angel peered up at them bleary-eyed and desperately wished the duct tape wasn't covering his mouth so that he could call his lovers by name. Chihaya's bound wrists rose slightly in supplication for release and all in all, it was a heartbreaking sight.

Granting the blood-drenched youth his freedom, unfortunately, needed to be delayed as Willow warned urgently, "Look out behind you!!"

Temporarily abandoning his explosives, Gorilla had grabbed the heavy duffel bag that was filled with the equipment they had brought for the robbery and was swinging it towards the back of the synthetic angel's head.

Screaming his fury at the rude interruption, Messiah responded by making the feathers of one wing go rigid, aligning the tips of them in such a fashion that they formed a crude blade in a manner the authentic angels never could. [2] He whirled, using his modified appendage as a weapon which easily severed the swarthy man's arm at the wrist.

Blood gushed forth from the stump of the newly amputated limb and with a horrified scream, Gorilla watched the hand that had held the bag go spinning off across the floor of the bank to land with a sickening wet thud against a chair. The heavy duffel followed, crushing the newly disconnected body part almost beyond recognition and rendering it as inhuman in appearance as its prior owner was in behavior.

Having snapped back into awareness when he saw his two comrades being taken down so effectively, Rhino scrambled for Hyena's gun. Despite slipping in some of the growing river of fresh blood that coursed across the floor, he successfully retrieved the pistol and in shaking hands lifted it wild-eyed as he commanded, "Freeze!! You two fucking *freaks* better stay the hell away from me!" Realizing that both Messiah and Kagetsuya weren't the least bit afraid for themselves, he turned the muzzle of the gun towards the hostages and he added, "Take so much as one step towards me and I swear to *god* I'll *kill* these people!!"

Rising slowly in an awe-inspiring rustle of white feathered grace, Kagetsuya affixed the man with furious emerald eyes which narrowed further as he stalked towards the criminal and he growled menacingly, "*God* does not hear your pleas, you bastard!" The sight of Chihaya's blood on the man's clothing from when Rhino used the brass knuckles on the dark-haired youth was all the information he needed to know that this man deserved no mercy. As he stalked closer, he added with chilling finality, "*God* would *never* allow what you have done to go unpunished, either!" With a sudden burst of speed, he closed the distance between them, drew back one hand and rammed it open-palmed against the man's face, impacting Rhino's nose with sufficient force to drive the resulting broken piece of nasal bone straight into his brain, killing him instantly.

Blood gushed out in a scarlet rain as the newly made corpse pitched backward, spattering some of the hostages who were barely even aware of the events around them at that point, it was simply more than the average mortal soul could comprehend.

Fists clenched and seething with anger, Kagetsuya might have gone further but Willow's voice called him back to reason when she cried out in horror as Chihaya slumped limply against her, consciousness finally eluding him completely and his breathing became shallow and raspy.

Both of the towering angelic forms turned to her and it was the raven-winged one who demanded, "What has happened here?!" Messiah dropped to his knees and immediately reached to remove the tape from Chihaya's mouth, peeling it free as gently as possible and regretting the new flow of gore that followed when the piece over the wound on the cheek came free.

Fearlessly gazing up at the two astounding creatures with awe, the woman answered, "They were trying to rob the bank. They were going to kill us all." As the grief stricken amber-eyed angel used his inhuman strength to carefully rip apart the tape that bound the motionless youth's wrists, she added in a mortified voice, "Well, not *all* of us, that is. They were going to take this poor boy with them and do horrible things to him. Thank the Lord you came when you did. He would've been better off dead with the rest of us."

Understanding and rage filled sea-green eyes that had yet to lose their deadly gaze and Kagetsuya turned towards the sprawling figure of Gorilla who lay on his back clutching his gory stump to his chest in fear. Huge white wings extended almost fully and after a slight leap into the air, the blond angel came down hard, landing his knee straight into the swarthy man's neck crushing it and insuring that he would die a bit more slowly than his leader had.

Gazing into the dying man's eyes, Kagetsuya snarled, "Go to hell where you belong, bastard!"

Hideous gurgling noises emanated from Gorilla's throat and when he opened his mouth to speak all that came forth was a rush of blood that splashed over the blond angel's clothes.

Having successfully severed the tape that restrained the unconscious angel's wrists, Messiah silently turned the task of freeing him fully over to the woman who he instinctively knew he could trust and he rose to his full, impressive height, literally sparkling with rage. As his black wings shifted to an electric white and back again, he stalked towards Hyena who had struggled towards the dynamite-covered steel door to the safe intending to take revenge for himself and his friends in one final suicidal act.

Before the wiry man could activate the timer and thereby destroy himself as well as all those around him, an impossibly powerful hand clamped down on his shoulder and spun him around. Face to face with an enraged artificial angel, Hyena's eyes were huge with fear and anger as Messiah snarled, "You dared to threaten Chihaya. For that, you must die!" Stepping back slightly to allow sufficient room for his act of vengeance, he stiffened one ebony wing and then raised it in a lightning fast move which allowed it act like a sword neatly decapitating the man and adding to the rising sea of gore.

Ignoring the sound of Hyena's head bouncing onto the floor and rolling away, the amber-eyed being turned towards the woman who had averted her eyes from the carnage, preferring instead to focus on the boy in her arms who was struggling to regain consciousness. Pressing his blood-spattered wings behind him, he asked quickly, "Were there any others?" He glanced urgently at the other angel and saw that the blond who was back on his feet with his white wings fluttering around him angrily had the same question.

"No, that was all of them," Willow said gratefully, letting her shoulders sag tiredly as the feeling of joy at seeing not only herself but all of the helpless hostages nearby being saved sang through her soul.

Briefly, Kagetsuya and Messiah simply stood their ground trying to get their raging blood to calm. But the scent of death was in their nostrils and as warriors often find, it is easier said than done to find peace when the shattered corpses of those you've just vanquished lay cooling at your feet.

The silence in the room would only last a few moments, but it would help each of the three of those present and fully aware of the events of the prior few minutes to find the inner strength to face what came next. 

*****

To be continued.

Author's Notes:

[1] There is no explanation offered or details given for the weird angel-bird communication that occurs in the OVAs several times, but for the purposes of this fic, I've assumed it's some form of telepathy and that the birds simply replay memories as their responses when asked a question.

[2] Even though he's never shown doing this in the OVAs, when Messiah's wings sparkled with electricity and shifted colors during battle, they seemed to become somewhat metallic in nature and it occurred to me that this would be an interesting thing for him to do in a fight.

Please be advised: Parts 3 & 4 will be posted together.