When We Were Still Human

by Vaughn Foster

  A flaming fist slammed against the metal.

  We’ll go back to Florida, and we’ll never go back to the other side. Life will be better, I promise.

  Clawed hands grabbed the chains and pulled with inhuman force.

  I’ll talk about a cute guy from the bar, you’ll pretend not to care, and I’ll kick your ass for scratching the couch.

  An animalistic roar echoed across the darkness. The door was still standing without a scratch.

  Avia clenched her teeth and pressed the very essence of her soul against the door. She channeled everything to her right hand, eyes set on the lock. Lava dripped down from her fingertips and melted the stone beneath. With a running start, she reeled back her hand and—

  Pain seared through Avia as she was ripped back into the stone hallway. A scorching heat unlike anything she’d ever felt flared on her right arm. She lay on her hands and knees, clutching the Mark. The burning throbbed like a heartbeat. It started in her arm then echoed in her chest. With every pulse, malice spread through her veins like magma. Sorrow and shame singed, then cauterized, leaving a spirit of ice in their wake.

  A cold wind blew through the hall and Avia froze. She could feel something moving through the aether. It was getting closer, walking at a steady pace until it was close enough to cross the border.

  “Hello, Avia.”

  She recognized the voice and scowled. “What do you want?” She rose to her feet and met the Mad Hatter’s gaze. The light from outside passed through his blue skin to the floor. Her suspicion was correct: he wasn’t truly there.

  “Well, deary,” he said, adjusting his hat. “To be honest, I was just curious how you were doing.”

  “I’m fine. Thanks for asking.” She tuned to leave.

  “He’s dead, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

  Avia stopped. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, forcing down the building fire in her chest. “I know.”

  “I figured as much.” He floated through the air to stand beside her. “It’s just that I wanted to be upfront. I know that not knowing can sometimes drive people mad. I mean, yes, you’re already mad, but I’m talking about the other sense of the word

  and—”

  “Shut up!” The power surged to Avia’s hands and they lit ablaze. She thrust them forward and burned through the invisible barrier. Her fingers gripped the Hatter by the collar and pulled him close. “I don’t fucking need you in my life! I don’t need you, I don’t need Cheshire, I don’t need anyone!”

  He slipped out of her grasp and scratched his chin. “Yes… I suppose you’re right. As should be expected from the Fourth. Arrivederci, Avia.” He tipped his hat and offered a small bow, then slowly faded into the sunlight.

  Avia huffed out a deep cloud of smoke and relaxed her shoulders. She imagined she was reaching down into her chest. She was pulling up the orb of sweltering hatred that had rooted itself earlier. When she had it, she closed her eyes and held it close to her heart. With the new sense of warmth, she continued down the corridor.

  Chapter 16

  “The infirmary is a separate building altogether,” Vladimir said as they walked along the clear stones. “When they were remodeling in 14 AD, they reasoned it’d be good to keep it away from the main structure in case some horrible disease made its way in. These corridors bridge to anywhere in the castle—the halls shift to put you where you’re thinking about. The angel who did the original spellwork died before he could work out the kinks, so stay close. Oh, watch your step, we’re here.”

  Before Val could process, she was standing in a large lounge area. Golden rays splashed off pale blue walls from an enormous skylight. A white upholstered couch and loveseat sat in the center; matching armchairs were positioned near the fireplace a few feet over. A bar counter sectioned off most of the left side of the room, and behind it, countless bottles of what looked to be alcohol sat on their shelves.

  Avia stood in the corner, casually talking with two men holding glasses of wine. One easily cleared six feet, the other was half a head shorter. They looked a little older than Vladimir, so maybe early thirties. But she knew that wasn’t true. Their eyes had the shadows of men much older.

  Vladimir waved and walked Val to the group. When she got closer, her Mark pulsed, and words formed in her head—just like they had with Avia.

  Zadkiel, Val mouthed, focusing on the shorter man to the left.

  Head archangel of the Heavenly Hosts, the second sin of Heaven. Pride.

  Long, scarlet hair messily fell across his face as he talked. Though semi-formal in a white vest, golden tie, and white dress shoes, his body movements were casual. He was beautiful but without the haughty visage she would have expected from the Sin of Pride. Instead, his demeanor screamed of either boredom or drowsiness. She couldn’t tell.

  Val turned her attention to the other, immediately recognizing him as: Gemini, once one of the Zodiac Constellations. The Sin of Envy.

  What that was supposed to mean, however, was another story.

  The bulk of his muscles gave him a giant’s stature next to herself. His face and short hair hinted of African descent, but it was impossible to tell. Black stretched across him like the night sky, with hundreds of tiny stars speckled over his body. In the center of his chest, protrude a shard of green stone, roughly the size of her fist. Val tilted her head, then quickly scanned the room. In her mind, she saw an image of a man and a woman. Both bore the name Gemini. However, she only counted five people present.

  She looked back to Gemini, who also seemed distracted. His green eyes repeatedly drifted to the side like he was in a different conversation entirely.

  “Look who’s awake!” Vladimir exclaimed as they approached the group.

  “I can see,” Zadkiel remarked, looking her over. He was polite, but between his tone and the constant glances at the couch, Val was positive he’d been disturbed from a nap. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet.”

  Val shook his hand and happened to catch Avia’s glance in her peripheral. The other girl showed no signs that they had met. Instead, she simply walked behind the bar and started pouring herself a drink.

  “Umm… thank you,” Val replied, her cheeks reddening. Zadkiel opened his mouth to say something, but yawned. He rolled his head back and Val noticed a roman numeral II etched into the side of his neck.

  “So, this is Gluttony,” Gemini muttered to himself. He leaned down and studied her for a moment. “I thought she’d be... bigger.”

  The bass and amplitude of his voice only magnified his size. There was a dialect in his tone as well. Her immediate thought was French, but it seemed mixed with something else. Besides. She eyes the glowing green stone planted in his star-covered chest. It was clear he wasn’t from any human territory.

  “So did I,” a woman’s voice remarked.

  Val jumped. “Who said that?” She turned left, then right, but it was still just the five of them.

  “My apologies, Valerie.” Gemini sighed and shook his head. “That was my sister. She can be—”

  “I can answer for myself.” Gemini snapped to attention, eyes closed, back straight. Val then watched in awe as his hips widened and his body narrowed into an hourglass figure. Within seconds, the dominating man had transformed himself into the small, delicate framework of a woman. Her body was like his, enveloped in the beauty of darkness and stars. But the resemblance stopped there.

  Where he had been pure muscle, she was nearly half his size. His short hair was replaced with over a hundred intricate braids that fell above her breasts. When the transformation was complete, Val recognized that she was the same woman who had stood next to Gemini in the vision moments before.

  Handing Zadkiel her glass, the woman stepped towards Val, who was now an inch or two taller than the Sin of Envy.

  “Hello, Val,” she said cheerfully, extending her hand.

  “Umm, hello.” She tentatively shook then quickly let go. The stars on the woman’s skin were hot. Not enough to
burn, but certainly to startle. Val took a step back, reddening from embarrassment.

  The woman tilted her head then seemed to realize Val’s confusion. “Oh, I’m sorry, this must be very strange for you, isn’t it? Come, sit with me on the couch. My brother can make me appear as such an unpleasant person.”

  “I only work with what’s there,” Val heard the deep voice mumble.

  “Shut up, Cas,” the woman absently rebuked, then led Val by the hand to the couch. “Vlad, why didn’t you give her a heads up? The poor girl looks confused to death!”

  “Well, sorry if explaining Celestial anatomy wasn’t on the top of my to-do list,” Vladimir said, throwing himself onto the loveseat across from them. “I’ve been trying to catch her up on everything the Mark was supposed to do. Didn’t go through quite right.”

  “Hey, Avia!” Zadkiel called. “How’s your arm?”

  She gave him a nod and raised her glass. He then turned back to Vladimir with a wicked smirk. There was a clear history of competition between them. Vladimir messing up the Mark must have put Zadkiel at an advantage.

  The woman put a hand on Val’s shoulder and sighed. “Try to let the men do anything, and this is what happens… Anyways, I’m Pollux, but you’re free to call me Paris. The brute you had the... pleasure of meeting earlier was my brother, Castor.”

  Images from an astronomy class she’d taken as an elective drudged their way to the surface. Val finally understood. “The Gemini constellation.”

  “Yes.” Paris waved for Zadkiel to bring over her wine. With a reluctant sigh, he handed her the glass, then sat down on the arm of the couch. She took a long sip then turned back to Val with the same piercing green eyes as her brother. “Stars are alive. The constellations you see from Earth simply mark the area under our domain.”

  “Just get to the point, Polli,” Castor droned.

  Paris rolled her eyes. “Cas and I were born as… Cas, what’s the human equivalent?”

  “Conjoined twins,” he grunted.

  “Yes, conjoined twins, but obviously more complicated. We’re on the same psychic link.. When we took a physical form, we stayed linked and got stuck sharing one body.”

  “I guess that makes sense…” Val struggled to keep up. This was insane. Angels, vampires, and now stars? It was too much for one day. She just had to find this Michael, explain her situation, and figure out her next step once she got back to Earth. Of course, she’d still have to figure out the whole ghoul thing, but—”

  “It’s nice having you and Avia here.” Paris’ voice broke Val from her thoughts. Vlad blinked and realized the woman had never stopped talking. “I think another woman will do this place good.”

  They turned around to see Avia down another large bottle of liquor at the bar. She belched a cloud of blue mist, then strolled over to Vladimir’s loveseat and plopped down.

  “Impressive selection,” Wrath said, turning to Zadkiel. “What was that?”

  He squinted at the empty bottle. “Some thirteenth century rum laced with golden ivy from Atlantis. Or it could be from the shipment we received last month, enchanted by a witch doctor in the Caribbean. I can’t remember.”

  “Wow.” She leaned back into the cushions and stared at the bar. “Either way, you guys are really holding out on us lowly humans.”

  “Please.” Vladimir seductively lowered his eyelids. “If you were a mere ‘lowly human,’ you would not be here. The same to you, Val,” he added, shifting his gaze. “You two are remarkable in every way.”

  Though Vladimir was hopeless and trying way too hard, Val couldn’t help but smile. He was ridiculous, but seemed like a good guy—more or less. She thought back to the kindness he’d shown less than twenty minutes ago when she was crying into his chest. He gave no indication it ever happened, but it had, and she was thankful.

  “Is he always this desperate?” Avia asked, turning to Paris. Paris nodded, then took another sip of wine. Avia laughed and looked back at Vladimir. “Well, Prince of Darkness, you’re not too bad yourself. Maybe one day when you get on my level, I’ll stop by.”

  He winked then suddenly turned back to Val. “Oh! Valentina!” She started, afraid he’d noticed her staring.

  “My name is Valerie—” she tried correcting, but he kept talking.

  “I just remembered, we have to get you set up in your room.”

  “He’s right!” Paris exclaimed. She grabbed Val’s shoulders, eyes wide. “There’s a lot we have to do. Right now, it’s just a bed and dresser. We weren’t sure of your style, and we didn’t even know if you were going to be a man or a woman, and—”

  Val jumped off the couch and held her hands up. “Whoa, it’s okay.” She stepped back and took a deep breath. “I appreciate the hospitality. I do. But I’m not supposed to be here. I know this Mark or whatever says I’m Gluttony, but I think you have the wrong person.”

  “Told you,” Avia sang. Zadkiel raised an eyebrow. “What?” she scoffed. “She barely knows what she is. Tell me I’m not the only one getting that lost puppy/ Dorothy in Oz vibe.”

  “Well, maybe I can help with that.”

  Everyone turned around. A man in royal armor stepped through the doorway, red cloak trailing at his feet. Gold trimmed the edges of steel, silver breaking off at points to scarlet mesh. A golden dove rose from his chest, its wings outstretched to his shoulders.

  Michael, King of Heaven, first born son of Rein.

  Val stared openmouthed at the king as he approached. For someone who had been alive for millennia, he didn’t look a day over fifty. The bits of silver that streaked through blond hair and his short beard were the only signs of age.

  “Hey, Michael,” Zadkiel said as the king joined the group.

  “Sorry I was late.” Michael motioned to his armor, then laughed. “I decided to give Gabriel a hand in training your new recruits. Wasn’t expecting such a workout.”

  “It’s like you said, we only take the best, ya know?”

  Michael smiled then turned his attention to Val and Avia. “Good morning, Val, Avia. I’m Michael.”

  “Hi,” Val squeaked. She glanced at Avia, shocked that the other girl actually seemed intimidated. Wrath sat eerily still, wide eyes locked with the king’s.

  “Your highness?” Val asked hesitantly.

  “Yes?” His warm golden eyes met hers and she shivered.

  “Can you explain what's going on here?”

  Michael laughed and sat in the empty armchair. He studied her for a moment, then looked to Vladimir. “One of the runes is crooked.”

  “Yeah…” Vladimir sheepishly scratched his neck. “She was moving around a lot, and my hand slipped at the end.”

  Michael shook his head and smiled. He walked over to Val and placed his palm on her forehead. Whatever had been buried inside her skull now lay naked on the surface for her to see. Jewish telepaths psychically lifting bricks for the pyramids. Ogres moving the blocks of Stonehenge. Gods and angels coming to earth. Dragons and knights ruling together. People, places, runes, spells. She could see the castle, and Earth, and the parts of Earth that no one knew existed.

  Michael pulled his hand away and stepped back. “All knowledge from the Mark is accessible. Things might trickle in slowly, but everything should work.”

  Val leapt back from him, terror and malice twisted in her face. Did he even know what he had done? She hadn’t just received a traveler’s guide of Le Ciel; he had showed her everything. She saw Michael. Arrogance bleeding from his eyes like smoke. Standing before the Council of Heaven.

  “We’ve been here eons, and have yet to see anything worthwhile from this insignificant race. Kings and kingdoms rise and fall, accomplishing nothing in their short, savage lives. The only plausible solution is to cleanse the world with fire.”

  “No! I saw you! You declared war on the earth. I will not help you kill all of those people!”

  “Could you really call them people…” Zadkiel muttered under his breath.

  “And you!
” She pointed accursedly at the Sin of Pride. “You have killed thousands of people all over the world, just to make some spell called an Avenue?!”

  Paris cleared her throat, and Val whipped around to see the woman looking almost embarrassed. “It was important. The currents were out of control. Plus, each time, he managed to keep it under three thousand.”

  Val stared back in horror. “What are you talking about? That is no excuse whatsoever!” She looked around the room for someone who realized how crazy this all was, but everyone stared back blank faced.

  Michael closed his eyes and ran a hand through his hair. He looked up at Avia, who only shrugged, then back to Val. “I understand your reaction, Valerie. In fact, I thought the same thing when I realized what had to be done. But the Marks only carry basic information. It’s surprising that you saw that, but it isn’t the full picture. May I explain?”

  Val was about to explain where he could shove it, but the retort died on her lips. The angel’s eyes met hers, and for the briefest moment, she could feel an electric current dance through the air. Her anger was still present, but the building fury was silenced, as if he had cupped it in his hands. Val fought to hold on to some of the rage and crossed her arms. She glanced around the room, at the patronizing faces staring back, before giving an exasperated huff. Nodding, she allowed the king to lead her back to the couch.

  “When my father was on the throne,” Michael began, “he was kind. Humans, mirage, and angels all loved and respected him. But that compassion was his downfall. He never had it in him to punish man when they began to stray. Because he couldn’t raise his hand, every day is a bloodbath. In another thousand years, blood will be all that’s left.”

  He paused. Val assumed it was for her to say something. She stayed quiet.

  “That’s why I need you. Earth’s fate is Le Ciel’s responsibility. It could be argued that humans were on a self-damning path from the start. Le Ciel is the primary reason Earth’s in the state that it’s in. Outside of my father’s shortcomings, many of our people left to become gods. Those gods then required mortals to wage wars and offer sacrifice. It was only a matter of time before souls became the currency of the divine.”