Angel Chronicles Ch. 02

Rockelle cursed his former partner's stupidity, and punched the wall in frustration. He had to go back to heaven now?! After only a century of banishment, he didn't think that the wounds he inflicted upon His Lordship's over inflated ego would have healed by now. So how am I to get in? But maybe I don't have to go in at all... He smiled as a brilliant idea came to him, and off he went.

Rockelle found April just as she was preparing to jump. Even from a distance, he could tell she was trembling with fright. He flew higher and higher, until he was but a few meters below her. "April, jump before it's too late!" He shouted, effectively startling her into jumping. Her screams were shrill as she plummeted, eyes widened with fright.

April could see clouds passing before her eyes as she fell to the Earth, her pulse racing faster than she was falling. She was silenced, though, when she hit something with a thud, and felt a vice-like grip around her waist.

She's so soft, Rockelle marveled. He wanted to tell her she was beautiful, but instead he blurted out. "Don't worry, you won't die today."She responded with half hysterical laughter, and replied, "I sure hope not. I don't want to be around those angels again anytime soon." Rockelle inwardly cringed when he heard that, knowing that since she was a nephilim, she wouldn't be accepted into heaven. His Lordship would probably do his best to get her into the ninth circle of hell. Rockelle sighed and murmured, "You and I are going to make the angels do a double-take."April was about to ask why, when Rockelle folded his wings against his body, and dove for the earth. April screeched as they plummeted, and blacked out as the speed got to be too much for her to handle.

Rockelle's own heart started beating faster as they neared the surface, and he saw that he was rapidly approaching an ocean-the pacific, I think- and knew he had to teleport soon, or risk dying from a belly flop. Pathetic way to die, in my opinion, He thought to himself.

At the very last second, he did teleport. But not before his right foot hit the water, shattering all the bones inside of it. With an agonized roar, and the last of his strength, he teleported them both to the demon dimension, the only place he could think of where they would be safe from the angels. He found a cave to rest in, and promptly fell into a state of regenerative sleep.

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April woke up feeling a bit... parched, to say the least. Every part of her felt dry, even her mouth. She also felt hot. Blister-causing levels of heat streamed through the entrance to the cave she was in, and the ground beneath her was dry and gritty with black sand. A cave... Huh. Better than a cage though, She thought bitterly. How did I get here...? Her thoughts trailed off as she saw the heap of muscle snoring next to her, causing her to remember the past day's events. It couldn't have happened. But if it did... Is Azariel okay? She wondered, and then muttered, "Azariel" wanting to see how she herself would pronounce the unusual name. She thought of her winged hero for a moment more, and sighed. My hero may very well be dead by now...

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I should be dead by now, Thought Azariel. The whip sang through the air, and ripped into his body and wings once again. His body ached everywhere, his head hurt from the taunts being thrown at him constantly, and he just wanted to vanish. "We could tell those wounds were self inflicted... Did it seduce you? No? Then why did you let it go?. . . Guess the all mighty Azariel isn't infallible after all..."

"ENOUGH!"His Lordship bellowed. "Enough. Azariel, I must ask you a question."

The room fell silent, as it waited for Azariel's response. He just wheezed and whispered, "Yes, Your Lordship?" This had better be good, he thought darkly.

"This woman... Is she your Kindeela? And don't lie or I can guarantee you an early death."

"Yes" was Azariel's simple answer, and the entire room gasped, for they had never heard of a nephilim being paired with an Archangel, or any angel for that matter. Nephilim were the offspring of a demon and an angel, and were considered abominations by most of the supernatural. Being the offspring of the two most powerful types of supernatural creatures had its benefits, though. The Nephilim inherited all the strengths of their parents and none of the weaknesses, therefore making them almost as powerful as His Lordship himself, even untrained. Unfortunately, most nephilim did not live long enough to learn of all their powers, and were often mowed down in their prime.

"May I propose a deal, then?" His Lordship asked, although it was more of a command than anything else. Azariel felt a surge of hope wash over him, but it was short lived. He knew personally that His Lordship would do almost anything he could to get his way, except outright lie. He could connive, misinform, and "accidentally" lead people to false conclusions, but he couldn't lie when a question was asked directly of him. Go figure, Azariel thought. He sighed, knowing that this "deal" would probably kill him and April both.

"What do you mean by deal? Is it just another trap?" Azariel spat, his fists clenching. His Lordship waved his hand, and the whip sang through the air once more. Azariel's arms pulled at the chains binding him to the floor, but he got nowhere. He breathed hard, trying to keep the screams in as the whip tore at his flesh, because that would give His Lordship more satisfaction that he didn't need.

Thankfully, His Lordship was feeling merciful, and didn't tell the boys to whip more than once. "Do you want to hear it or not?" He snapped, looking bored and annoyed. Azariel really didn't want to hear it, but he knew better than to pass up what could potentially be his ticket to freedom for the sake of being belligerent. "Yes." Azariel grunted, not wanting to say more.

"If you can prove that this abomination can feel emotions, such as affection, and has a conscience, then I will let you both go, and I will stop killing other abominations. But there are rules to follow. Here are the conditions: You have one month, you may not discuss this deal with her until after the one month period, you will be a fallen angel from this point on, and you will never come back to heaven again after the one month period. If you can prove this, and follow all the conditions, you are free. Do you understand and accept?"

Azariel couldn't speak for a moment. The offer was everything he could have hoped for, but he knew there was a catch. Why else would he be offered such a lucrative option?

"What's the catch?"

"Who said there would be a catch?" His Lordship shot back, albeit a bit nervously, in Azariel's opinion.

"I know you. There's always a catch, no matter what."

"Fine, fine. If you fail, you both die. Now, did you really want that bearing down on your shoulders as you try to "win her love" as the humans call it?"

Azariel's shoulders slumped. One month deadline, failure meaning death? He was about to protest, but His Lordship suddenly clapped and mockingly said,

"Well then! Time to get this show on the road, Azariel. Go out there and show us what you're made of!"

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Azariel owned several properties in Heaven, but his cloud front home was his favorite. The property was large, extending several cloud covered acres, and it was breathtakingly beautiful. It was several miles above the earth, so whenever he looked out his window, he got to see what an astronaut would see: the earth below him, continents and all, as it spun around the sun.

He set to the task of packing some of his most valued belongings, and realized that he didn't really have much of great importance. His work folder, with photographs of the mortals he had to investigate, was open. He thumbed through the papers and photographs, and sucked in a breath when he saw a photo of April. It was a simple photo, but it was the simplicity of it that made it beautiful.

In the photo, April was sitting in a coffee shop gazing out of a window, coffee cup in hand, and a book on the table in front of her. Her raven black hair was reflective of the sun light streaming in through the window, and her eyes were distant, contemplative. Something was obviously weighing heavily on her mind. I'll have to ask her about that sometime, Azariel thought.

Azariel's eyes watered slightly as he recalled some of his fondest memories of his time in Heaven's High Council. He wouldn't miss many people, but those he would miss would most likely miss him back. He would especially miss Angus.

Angus used to be a regular mortal, but some inexplicable circumstances had landed him here. No one in heaven knew why a former mortal got to serve in Heaven's High Council, but Angus was a good enough man, so no one questioned it.

Whenever he was asked why he was here, the burly highlander would reply, "For the same reason ye are." Needless to say, he was a topic of great controversy in Heaven. Some said that he was brought to heaven because he possessed too much knowledge of the supernatural. Some said he was part angel himself. Still others said he had made some sort of a deal with His Lordship, effectively binding himself to the leader of the angels.

Yes, Azariel would miss him. It could be said that Angus was his only true friend. Azariel was startled out of his reverie by a knock at his door. He tucked the photo of April into his pocket, and rushed to go greet his guest.