by A. Catherine
“A safety precaution, in-case our abilities and forces fell through and there was nothing else to hold it together. Really, after the Tear, there wasn’t any need for them. I’ve completely forgotten about them until now.”
The almighty paused, looking at something on his screen and then swiping it away.
“I suppose, if a supernatural being had hold of one, then they could potentially yield their raw energy to an advantage.”
“You said you split them?”
“Originally, it was one object, we called it the Vil Kal. While the Eternals were still forming, the Vil Kal is how the Krƛnn mended the universe. But once we, the Eternals, completed our physical forms, we took to maintaining the Balance. Splitting it into pieces and scattering them seemed a safe way to disperse the energy for optimal coverage, in the event of a failure.”
Gabriel narrowed his brows. “I’m afraid I don’t fully understand.”
The almighty waved him off. “It is difficult to explain the happenings of the Before. The Krƛnn and Vil Kal preceded the Eternals, and most of what it is comprehensible,” he explained.
“And the split pieces…”
“Are what you call the Eternal relics. Before you ask me, Gabriel, what they are, I cannot help you. Once they were split, the relics took different forms, what they were when they were split is not what they are now.”
Disappointment and dread flooded through Gabriel’s heart with the weight of a thousand worlds. How can the alliance have any hope of finding them?
How did the Guardian killer find one?
“If you’re asking about them, am I to assume you are trying to locate them?” he asked.
Jophiel and Gabriel nodded in sync.
“At least to narrow down which one our unknown Guardian killer has and hopefully be capable of countering the power they’ve gained from the one they have in possession,” Jophiel added.
“I haven’t handled them in a long time. Their whereabouts are unknown to me,” the almighty stated.
Gabriel sighed. So much for that.
“Although—” God started. “A long while ago, not long after the Fall, I did give Chamuel the only one that remained in heaven. Lucifer was running off with objects of great power from our Depository on his way out, objects like the Opsalis. I gave Chamuel the relic to avoid Lucifer getting his hands on it and corrupting it in hell.”
Gabriel and Jophiel exchanged glances.
“We have to pay Chamuel a visit, then,” Jophiel muttered.
The almighty nodded.
A sweeping shrill came from the screen. God rushed around his desk and swiped. The images appeared on a bigger screen for all three of them to see.
Images of Azrael and Uriel fighting off a Scylla, debris of sinking ships and injured, bleeding angels.
“The Scylla was imprisoned in Sheol. That makes three prisons open now. The situation is growing worse,” the almighty stated.
Gabriel observed the images. It looked like it had caused a lot of damage, and a lot of souls would’ve been lost.
“Do they need assistance?” Gabriel asked.
He pulled on his thread to Azrael. He asked and she answered.
“No, they took it down. But only three angels made it out alive,” the almighty replied.
“What else was in Sheol?” Jophiel asked, observing every detail of the images before them.
“Most of the large, water-bound primordials. Leviathans, nyaids, hags. We had the cyclops’ in there, as well,” God answered.
Three leviathans if Gabriel’s memory served him right. Sharp-toothed sea-serpents, slippery and very hard to catch. During The Tear, they only managed to entrap three. The others had to be killed.
Hags were the size of human heads. They were a grotesque form of water-goblins. Their skin was mud brown and leathery, with ten tentacles each. If they got their grip on you, those tentacles would inject microscopic barbs that would hook inside and release a venom that would start digesting you from the inside out. It was through those putrid tentacles they would consume their prey. But they traveled in schools, and they were highly territorial.
Nyaids were a lot more elusive, more singular. But would inflict an equally terrifying death. They had no real solid form—more they were a patch of milky goo. In the time they lived on earth freely, they would float atop the surface of water, almost like a patch of seafoam. As soon as a living organism touched it, the Nyaid would wrap around its body like a second skin—cutting off the air and nutrients.
Nyaids were slow eaters, they would keep their prey encased until it eventually rotted. That’s how the archangels were able to catch them, once a nyaid had hold of prey, it was incapacitated until it finished its feeding process.
The cyclops was as the Greeks described. One eyed giants. They used to live in caves on the shores of rock islands where mortal sailors would seek shelter from the oceans fury. Cyclops’ were a lot less versatile and frightening. Brute force and an appetite were all they needed in their world. Their small brains actually made them some of the easiest primordials to imprison.
Primordials were cruel creatures without bounds. Basest of monsters with one unifying instinct, to kill. Some for simpler reasons such feeding. But others with larger brain capacity indulged in the pain they inflicted.
Humans in comparison were more civilized. They felt empathy and were family oriented. The combinations of these creatures didn’t work out well.
In today’s times, humans would be completely unprepared for the horrors they would be facing.
Jophiel stood from her chair. “Well, we shouldn’t waste any more time.”
Gabriel nodded and looked back at his almighty father.
“How many pieces did you split the Vil Kal into?” he asked. “That would help a great deal.”
“Six.”
He nodded once more before following Jophiel to the door.
“Gabriel, Jophiel,” he said, halting their departure. “Keep your search for the relics discreet. We do not need any other supernatural beings looking for them. It would also be best to try to keep Lucifer from attaining any further knowledge on their whereabouts,” he instructed.
“If he is the one who brought them to your attention, he likely hopes to gain possession of them through your alliance. Be selective with whom in your alliance you pursue them,” the almighty finished.
Jophiel scowled. “I couldn’t agree more.” Then she locked eyes with her younger, more amiable brother. “To Paris, then.”
Paris. The city of love. And logically Chamuel’s current location.
PART THREE
PRESENCE OF MIND
TWENTY-FOUR
Heather
I SPENT SO LONG RESEARCHING the antichrist, that I hadn’t realized that no one had come to check on me for hours. When I finally glanced away from my computer screen and at the clock, I realized how long I was in my room completely undisturbed.
Either that meant everyone was too busy to notice my absence, or maybe they assumed that I needed some alone time. Either way, I was grateful for it.
I had actually changed my clothes, intending on working out like I had planned before I got lost in my computer. Some comfortable, leggings, a sports bra, and a track jacket. After tying the laces on my running shoes, I swooped half of my cropped hair into a bun.
It had been a while since I went running. Over a year, really. My academic life always seemed to consume my time, I spent more time indoors than I used to.
My mom would scorn me silly if she knew that. The woman hated being inside, if she wasn’t writing her books, she was in the garden, knee-deep in the dirt.
Which I suppose made more sense now that I knew she was actually a Nymph. The garden had been her connection to the angel life she led in secret.
That thought made me sad. I wished she’d have told me who she was. Perhaps I could’ve been closer to her, maybe if I had tried harder with that relationship, she would’ve felt comfortable sharing such a huge secr
et with me.
But even as a kid, I didn’t like getting involved in the garden. The most I could manage was lounging in the porch swing reading while she busied herself amongst the flowers and vegetables.
I regretted our distance. After learning so much.
I reached for my phone on the desk and clicked it open. Scrolling through my contacts until it landed on my mom’s. After taking a deep breath I pressed the green dial button and held it to my ear—listening to it ring…and ring.
“You’ve reached the home of Joseph & Eileen Coleman. We’re not available at the moment, but if you’d like to leave a name and number, we’ll try to call you back at our earliest convenience.” And then that familiar shrill beep.
I sighed. “Hi mom, it’s Heather. I was just calling to check-in; see how you’re doing. Hope your new book is turning out okay. Don’t worry about calling back, I’m doing fine. Say hi to dad for me and I’ll talk to you later. Love you. Bye.”
That wasn’t an irregular thing for us.
My parents were engrossed in their careers and activities, phone conversations were usually sparce and short in content. They trusted me to make smart decisions, and I know they would be there for me if I needed it. But beyond an emergency situation, I was on my own.
After putting my phone away, I made a mental note to try again later. Maybe one day I’ll find a chance to speak with my mom about her origins. But for now, I shouldn’t worry about bothering them.
I made the trek out to the main warehouse floor. To find no one around.
Surely there was someone here, but maybe they were resting or doing research of their own. I could only hope that whoever was on watch was an angel rather than a demon.
I eyed the workout equipment on the one side of the large steel space. There were plenty of things I could do, but I didn’t feel any particular pull to any of them. Then my eyes drifted to the back door at the far end of the warehouse. The door that led outside.
Nobody exactly said that I couldn’t leave. They more like implied that I should remain here for my own safety. But what harm could come from running a couple miles around the area?
I glanced around the warehouse, at the open archway to see if anyone was nearby. But it was quiet, no sign of anyone around.
What if I ran and didn’t come back?
The question rang in my mind. Surely it wouldn’t take them long to find me. But maybe I could get far enough to at least return some sense of normalcy. Maybe I could duck inside a restaurant or bar and steal away a few hours of regular mortal existence.
Even something as simple as that could greatly improve my whole outlook on all of this chaos.
I quietly walked to the door and touched the handle. Trying not to breathe too loud so I could hear any sounds behind me. Nothing. Good.
I pressed the latch, and it easily clicked free.
Unlocked.
I guess if you’re assuming that any intruders would be supernatural, they wouldn’t be using the door. I watched the archway as I slowly eased the steel door open, wincing when it made a squeak for a moment.
But no one came. So, I continued through it and kept my eyes on the archway until I finally clicked the door closed behind me.
Once I turned to face the outside world, I saw that this warehouse wasn’t the only one around. Instead, it was in the middle of an entire warehouse district of whatever city we were in. Away from the main streets of town.
It was well-past sunset, the moon rising higher in the sky, with barely any residual light coming off of the horizon.
Boy, does time get away from you when you’re living in a steel box with painted windows.
The florescent streetlamps were flickering on. I walked at first, getting an idea of which direction would lead me out of the warehouse district and into a city street. Making a few wrong turns into dead ends, I finally found a city road.
Looking back one final time, I tightened the small bun on my head and took off into a jog down the road towards the mass of city lights ahead.
A few miles. I could do that.
I didn’t bring headphones, jogging without music. Instead, I just listened to the wind in my ears and for any potential dangers around me. After about half a mile, I stopped feeling nervous and just relaxed into the run.
My lungs burned from the exertion, but I was thankful for it. I shouldn’t have stopped doing this, I missed the way it made my blood flow. There was a freedom in running, in being able to go anywhere on your own two feet, with only yourself as your limit.
If I returned to the immortal insanity behind me, I would need to convince one of them to do this with me regularly. As I’ll likely receive a verbal lashing for going out alone this time around, I’m sure Gabriel will be worried if he finds out. Hopefully, the archangel stays busy long enough not to notice.
Archangels.
God, this world I was thrusted into made me dizzy. I wasn’t even sure what my life would be like after all of this madness was over. Would I be able to return to my normal life? Studying religions would be a joke at that point. To know so much, and not be able to say anything about it.
How could someone even maintain relationships after something like this? With every person I meet, all I’d be thinking about is how there’s a Guardian angel attached to them somewhere.
Even worse, demons spend time among humans.
Knowing that—could I ever really trust another person? Could I even live amongst others knowing that I wasn’t even fully human?
I wouldn’t be a part of either world. I’m something in-between. So really, I don’t belong anywhere.
I shook my head to empty those thoughts out. No point in stressing about that now. One thing at a time. For now, I needed to help in any way I could. After that…I’d figure it out. Somehow.
I was close enough to the city limits to see the details of the local shops. A gas station was lit the brightest, and a single car sat there with an old man filling up his tank. People seemed friendly enough here so far. I passed a few streets, saw people leaving a restaurant hand-in-hand.
The further in I ran, the closer into downtown I became. Where things seemed to buzz with life more. Multiple bars and pubs lined the main street I turned onto, with some piano-bars and restaurants busy with customers.
I even passed by a small quartet playing in a small park area at the center of the city, a small crowd gathered listening while sipping on something hot.
It was brisk here. My track jacket barely giving me enough coverage, but the cold only motivated me to keep moving, keep the blood pumping.
No one bothered me, any who looked at me only offered polite smiles and went about their own business. I think this would be a pleasant place to live, especially if I weren’t all too aware of the warehouse full of angels and demons only a few miles east of downtown.
I stopped at the edge of an intersection, waiting for the light to change. I took the break to catch my breath and stretch out my already sore calves. Glancing around I saw a couple through a window enjoying a slice of chocolate dessert. My heart tugged at the sight.
Why hadn’t I spent more time dating when my life was normal? Now that I knew my life will never be the same, I felt a little rage at myself for not giving those few suitors a better chance. I may have been a solitary individual, but it wouldn’t have hurt to let more people in. To have friends.
I sighed and checked the light once more; it was about to change.
I glanced back at the window briefly and nearly shrieked.
In the window I saw Kale’s reflection, watching me. I whipped around to where he should have been next to me, but I didn’t see him. My heart thundered in my chest, and as soon as the light changed, I bolted.
Stupid. I was stupid for assuming that I could do this alone. I was being followed the entire time?! I rushed around another city block and looked around frantically but didn’t see him.
But the hair on my arms stood up, I felt him.
I needed to
go somewhere, anywhere. My eyes locked on a small diner at the edge of the street still alive with customers. I went for it. As soon as I slipped in, I felt the warmth inside, and I immediately moved into a booth in the back corner. Trying to control my breathing.
A tall, older blonde waitress came up to me. “Hello honey, anything I can get you?”
“Um, can I get a coffee please?” I asked.
She smiled and nodded. “Sure thing. Anything to eat? Our cherry pie is our specialty.”
I turned my head to the door. “Sure, I’ll take a slice.”