Angels Defying (Angels Rising Book 3)

by Harriet Carlton

  “… Yes, sir.”

  “Good. Your tent is next door. Retire for the evening. Be up at first light.”

  Imorean swallowed hard and shook himself. Had he done something to annoy Michael? He pushed the feeling away as hard as he could and turned to his squad.

  “Okay, guys. Let’s go.”

  Imorean turned and picked up his own rucksack, trying to ignore the muted whispers of his squad members. He heard the canvas of the tent move as the others began to exit.

  “Frayneson,” said Michael.

  “Sir?” asked Imorean, standing more quickly than he had intended.

  “You and I need to talk after the battle.”

  A sudden burst of anger lashed through Imorean’s chest. He wanted answers. “Why not now?”

  “Because I said so. I do not need you thinking over what I will have told you.”

  “You’re going to stress me out more now. As though that were possible.”

  Michael and Gabriel exchanged a look.

  Imorean folded his arms. “I need to know the squad and I aren’t doing a repeat of Greenland and the Teufelsschloss.”

  “Not at all,” said Michael. “I have already told you, I would not place you in such a situation again without warning. Stop worrying. It is good news that I have for you.”

  “Then why not tell me now?”

  Michael’s shoulders seemed to relax and he stepped forward, one hand coming to rest on Imorean’s shoulder. “Good news is best saved for after a battle.”

  “Where will you be?” asked Imorean, unfolding his arms.

  “We will be at the crater,” said Michael. “Gabriel, Raphael and I. We will be in the very center of the action.”

  “Are you scared?” The question was out of Imorean’s mouth before he could stop it.

  A sense of warmth swept through the area. At the center of the tent, Gabriel smiled.

  “No,” said Michael.

  Gabriel walked forward. “We’ve done this many times before, Imorean.”

  “The squad, they don’t trust you, Michael.”

  The Chief Archangel nodded sharply. “We will address that after we are finished here.”

  “How can I reassure them?” asked Imorean, taking a deep breath.

  “There is not much that you can do,” shrugged Michael. “Not on short notice. Go. You need to rest. Tomorrow will be a long, unpredictable day.”

  “Okay,” sighed Imorean. He couldn’t help but feel defeated. With a grunt, he pulled his ruck up onto his back and pulled back to the canvas of the tent.

  “Imorean,” said Michael sharply.

  “Sir?”

  “Tomorrow… unless you are given a direct order from me or Uriel, do not get involved. You are here for experience, not to fight. Do not enter the field.”

  Imorean’s blood ran oddly cold in his veins. “Okay.”

  “I need a sturdier answer than ‘okay.’”

  “I won’t get involved unless I get a direct order.”

  “Thank you. Dismissed.”

  Imorean stepped outside into the cold, still feeling strangely chilled. He paused and tilted his head back to look at the sky. Vortigern was drawing closer. A battle loomed at dawn. And he was to stand idly by and do nothing without orders. The creature who murdered his family in cold blood was approaching them and he was powerless to raise a hand in aggression. It was almost worse than being placed on the front lines.

  Chapter 34

  A weak dawn was just beginning to color the sky. The night was past its darkest. Imorean stood rigid, his toes just inches away from open air. Roxy and Toddy stood on either side of him. Over two miles away, Imorean could see light from the summit of the Eyjafjallajökull Volcano. It was the only pinprick of color on a dark landscape. A fiery, orange glow painted the low-bellied clouds above. Imorean absentmindedly buckled and unbuckled his watch, trying to ignore the bite of apprehension in his stomach. He felt sick.

  “They’re fine,” said Roxy, stepping slightly closer.

  “How far out do you think Vortigern is?” asked Imorean, turning to her.

  Roxy shrugged. “No idea, but it looks like Michael has everything covered up there.”

  “The amount of power they must need to do something like this,” breathed Toddy, shaking his head.

  Imorean looked down at the tips of his boots, not far away from the edge of the bluff where the reserve unit had been assigned.

  “How are we ever going to get there if they need us?”

  “I doubt they’ll need us,” said Colton, approaching out of the darkness. “I’ve been mulling it over all night. According to intelligence, we outnumber Vortigern, we have the element of surprise and of ground… and we have the Archangels. All five of them.”

  “I wish you wouldn’t say things like that,” muttered Imorean. He turned to face Colton and raised his voice. “Are the others awake?”

  “Ryan and Dustin, yes, but Mandy and Baxter, no.”

  “Let them sleep, Imorean,” said Toddy. “It’s not even light yet.”

  Imorean snorted. “We don’t know when Vortigern is going to be here. It could be minutes, it could be hours.”

  “Vortigern will not approach until he has the advantage of daylight,” snarled Uriel’s voice from the predawn darkness.

  “How do you know?” asked Imorean.

  “Michael has chosen his battleground well, as usual,” said Uriel, the ground crunching underfoot at he moved. “He has forced Vortigern to take the bad ground in an undesirable situation. Michael knows Vortigern will have to cross the Eyjafjallajökull crater to make contact with our forces. He knows Vortigern will attack from the northwest, putting the sun mostly in Vortigern’s eyes. Daylight itself will be Vortigern’s only advantage today.”

  “How long until daylight?” asked Roxy.

  Uriel’s voice softened slightly. “Fifty minutes. If I were you, Frayneson, I would start waking your squad. We may be called forward, we may not. Get them ready.”

  “Colton, wake your team,” said Imorean. “Toddy, will you talk to Ryan about waking his?”

  “Got it, boss,” said Toddy, falling into step with Colton.

  Imorean turned back to face the volcano caldera. Everything was quiet. Roxy stood next to him, just visible in the dark morning. Her face too was lined with worry. Imorean assumed he too looked the same. Brown eyes narrowed and Imorean extended his senses. Uriel was moving further away. The chaos of the reserve unit forced Imorean to center himself again. There were far too many emotions to focus on. It was overpowering.

  “You okay?” asked Roxy.

  “Are you?” replied Imorean.

  “No. Imorean, I’m scared. I want to be home in bed, not here waiting for slaughter.”

  “Yeah,” sighed Imorean.

  “But you don’t feel the same way,” said Roxy, folding her arms.

  “What?”

  “It might be dark, Imorean, but I can see you. You’re all on edge because you’re not there in the thick of the action. You want to get a shot at Vortigern.”

  Imorean glared for a moment, but could find no words to reply to his friend. She was right.

  The light of dawn crept in almost unnoticed and Imorean’s attention remained riveted to the Eyjafjallajökull caldera. Michael, Gabriel and Raphael were over there somewhere. One by one, his squad members joined him. Imorean could feel their tension and nerves. He swallowed. An anxious feeling was writhing in his gut. Something was going to go wrong. There was no way they could pull this battle off successfully. He turned as sudden movement sounded behind him. Someone was coughing, gagging. Baxter was bent double, dry heaving.

  “You okay?” asked Imorean, moving toward his squad member. Ryan and Roxy beat him to Baxter’s side. Roxy shooed him away.

  “Give him space!” snapped Ryan. Imorean raised his hands to shoulder height in surrender.

  “Imorean!” shouted Mandy.

  White feathers jostled as Imorean spun. Mandy was pointing to a
black spot on the horizon. Closer and closer it drew, faster than nature should allow. The terse silence was broken minutes later.

  “Is that what I think it is?” asked Dustin, swallowing hard.

  Imorean took a deep breath. “Yeah. He’s here.”

  Brown eyes narrowed as the orange light around Eyjafjallajökull crater grew brighter, outshining the dawn itself. A green flash caught Imorean’s attention and a catastrophic boom split the morning. Ash, rock, dust and gas exploded into the air in a great black cloud. Streaking up the side of the pillar, as though leading it higher in the sky, was a tiny line of bright, emerald green. Imorean couldn’t tear away his eyes.

  ‘Brace!’ cried Michael’s voice. Imorean balked, the command taking him by surprise. He was knocked off his feet by a shockwave and rolled several feet along the hard ground. Disoriented, he shook his head. His ears were ringing. He couldn’t hear anything. His squad members lay nearby, equally as bewildered. Imorean scrambled to his hands and knees, his eyes immediately back on Eyjafjallajökull. It was dwarfed now by a column of black and gray ash, stretching impossibly high into the morning sky. At the crater, a bright flash of green tore through the ash. A thousand voices seemed to cry out all at once, somehow heard over the roaring of the erupting volcano. Imorean’s heartbeat slowed. Vortigern had arrived and the chaos had begun.

  Chapter 35

  It wasn’t the elapsed time. It wasn’t the underlying anxiety or tension. It wasn’t even the sounds of battle still raging in the distance. Imorean drew a heavy breath. It was the waiting. The pillar of ash rose higher and higher into the sky.

  “Your chinstrap’s loose,” said Mandy, tapping the side of Imorean’s helmet.

  “Huh? Oh, thanks,” replied Imorean, absently taking his helmet off and fidgeting with the chinstrap.

  “Let me,” said Mandy. “You’re really not focusing, are you?”

  “I just don’t know if we’re going to be called or not,” sighed Imorean. “I don’t know which would be worse.”

  “Think of everyone, Imorean,” said Toddy, approaching quietly.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Do you really think Colton’s ready for a full-scale battle?”

  Imorean turned to look at the rest of his squad. Roxy leaned on Ryan’s shoulder. Dustin and Baxter were scanning a paper together. Colton was tracing a line in the dirty snow with his sword tip. White wings sagged as Imorean sighed.

  “No. Not really.”

  Imorean narrowed his eyes in confusion as ranks of angels began to stand. There was movement. A lot of movement. A sudden, fearful chill ran through Imorean’s blood. He flinched and his wings rose of their own accord.

  “Imorean,” said Toddy, his eyes wide. “Is this…?”

  “Squad leader,” called Uriel, approaching through a crowd of rising angels. “Get your group ready. We’ve been called in. All non-essential battle gear is to remain here with a small contingent of Upper Morvine students.”

  “What?” asked Imorean. He heard Mandy gasp quietly.

  “We’re on! Reserve unit is active. You and the elite squad are active. Get your kids together. I want you going wide to the east. A message from Gabriel came through for you.”

  “What is it?”

  “He says, ‘Stay together. Don’t get separated. Fall back if you must. Keep away from the ash cloud.’”

  “Okay,” nodded Imorean. His mouth had gone dry and he swallowed hard before he moved toward his squad.

  “What’s going on?” asked Roxy, launching to her feet.

  “We’re going in,” said Imorean. He was surprised to hear a small tremble in his own voice. “We’re leaving packs here. Helmets on. Tighten your vests. Get your masks on. They’re made with angel technology, so they should keep the ash from hemorrhaging your lungs. Our eyes should be protected by our goggles. Make sure nothing’s loose. Double, no, triple check your swords are secure–”

  Roxy’s hand clapped over his mouth.

  “Stop worrying so much, Imorean. We’ve been checking all of this stuff since dawn, as per your half hour requests. Are you ready?”

  “Of course I am,” said Imorean, taking his helmet back from Mandy and snapping the chinstrap closed.

  “Where do you want us?” asked Ryan.

  “On me. Arrowhead formation. Follow me from the nose.”

  “You got it,” smiled Dustin, giving a two-fingered salute.

  Imorean took a shallow breath, his wings trembling. He reached back and touched his own sword as his squad finished essential, last minute checks. There wasn’t time to doubt. They had to go forward. They had no choice. He fixed his hand around the cool handle of his sword, taking comfort in the familiar grip. The crunch of snow beneath his feet sounded horribly loud as he turned back to look at Eyjafjallajökull’s ash cloud. Somewhere near the very top, he spotted a flash of green. Michael. And, no doubt, Vortigern.

  “Form up!” came Uriel’s harsh cry.

  A monstrous upheaval of movement. Clamoring voices. Imorean swallowed and raised his own voice.

  “On me!”

  He couldn’t help but feel relieved as his squad fell into position behind him. Colton on his left, Mandy on his right. Toddy, Dustin and Roxy in the middle. Baxter and Ryan taking the very back of the formation. Seconds elapsed. Imorean’s heart beat out the moments.

  “Now!” cried Uriel.

  Imorean flung out an arm to halt his own squad and braced as an entire squadron of angels tore into the air. Their footsteps sounded like thunder. The combined wing power nearly knocked him off his feet. Behind him, Colton stumbled. Rank by rank, Uriel’s reserve unit launched off the edge of the cliff, racing through the air toward Michael’s aid. Imorean closed his eyes for a moment and took a steadying breath, then he too opened his wings and ran forward. His toes touched the ledge and, squad behind him, took to the ashen sky.

  Chapter 36

  Frigid wind whistled in Imorean’s ears as he guided the nose of his squad away from Uriel’s unit. Instead of a direct approach from the south, Imorean moved his group around the side of the caldera. For one of the first times since they had met, Imorean was glad to follow Uriel’s orders. It would keep everyone out of the heat of the battle for a bit longer. The billowing cloud of ash was heavy in focus now, seeming even more monstrous than it had at its eruption. Imorean could feel its heat even from a distance. The scope of it was immense.

  Below, a river raced itself, cutting a silvery trail through an ash covered landscape. Imorean drew his wings up, pushing the squad faster. Demons and Uriel’s unit sparred behind them. He needed the squad safer before they moved for their own attack.

  “Imorean!” shouted Ryan. Imorean turned his head, the nylon chinstrap of his helmet keeping him from seeing Ryan properly. Already, the other members of the squad were gray with debris. Their goggles were smeared and their face masks too, were nearly white with ash.

  “I hear you!”

  “Company overhead!”

  Imorean glanced up. A small group of demons, nearly matching them in number, had fallen in above them. “Follow!”

  White wings tucked against Imorean’s sides as he twisted over and down, pulling his sword free of its sheath. He straightened and set a vertical course. They needed level airspace. Quickly, he expanded his senses. Everyone was behind him in formation. No! Toddy and Colton were missing. Brown eyes flashed down. Colton and Toddy were separated from the squad by seven opponents. Imorean snarled and dove, sword down and back, just as Michael had taught him. This was it. There was no more practicing. Imorean blinked. His chosen target turned in midair to face him. Cream colored wing undersides slowed him slightly. Blue eyes met his own. He knew those eyes. He knew that face. Bethany! Imorean cried out and pulled sideways away from his dive. He shot past Bethany, missing her by inches. Shouts erupted from behind him as the rest of his squad clashed with their own targets.

  “What are you doing?!” cried Toddy.

  “Bad angle!” Imorean repli
ed, swinging back to face Bethany as he drew level with Toddy and Colton. “Go on! They need your help!”

  Imorean’s fury soared as he spotted Bethany swooping toward Mandy. He put on a burst of speed and tore between Roxy and Ryan. Several yards of open airspace lay between him and his squad. Then he was there. His shoulder collided hard with Bethany’s exposed side, skewing her balance and aim. This time, he hovered, waiting for her to get her position in the air back. Bethany shook her head for a moment, a few strands of short, blonde hair coming loose under the brim of her helmet. Then those blue eyes looked up. Imorean narrowed his own as Bethany made real eye contact. She didn’t say a word, simply shook her head and smiled. She moved first, sweeping in with a low attack. Imorean slid sideways. Air currents bent around his wings. His hand flicked as she passed him. Her sharp cry let him know he had hit his mark. White wings whirled in the air. Imorean barely had time to raise his sword before Bethany’s crashed down on his. Bethany’s teeth were bared and Imorean pushed back against her with all the power he could muster. Imorean looked down as a scream sounded below them. Ryan was moving from where he had been fighting to help Mandy. One of Bethany’s team members was plummeting toward the ground, wings limp and useless.

  The breath left Imorean’s lungs hard as a boot landed in his stomach. He coughed for a moment and gave Bethany a few yards of space. When he looked up though, she was nowhere to be seen. He looked around, expecting to see the edge of her sword swinging at his face. But he was wrong. She was nearly four hundred yards ahead of him already, moving fast toward the ash cloud. No. No. No! She couldn’t get away. Imorean’s blood boiled. His family’s traitor. Bethany, the one who had given up their location. The girl who had gladly tortured him weeks before. He couldn’t let her get away! Before he knew what he was really doing, he was moving. The air giving him the extra speed he needed to catch her.

  “Imorean!” shouted Roxy.

  Imorean barely heard her. She had nothing to do with this. This was his fight.