Jaylen's eyes narrowed. "Where are you going with this?"
"We will trade the baby for you. The baby will grow up in the clergy and become a paladin to take your place."
He scoffed. "That will take years."
"I think your uncle will make an exception."
"And sacrifice the baby?"
"Yes. It will ease tensions. Then you might be accepted in the city again."
"You're going to trade the baby to the bloodthirsty murderers?" Jaylen asked. "Now you're thinking like a Fallen."
"You seem happy about that."
"It's better than trying to romanticize the situation."
"Do I have your permission to purchase the child?" Zeriel asked.
"Go ahead. Just don't let your father find out about you buying child. Isn't he against child slavery?"
"This baby won't be a slave."
"Oh, that's right. Because he's going to be killed. Nice."
"Again, shut up, Jaylen." Zeriel placed the coin into the girl's hand. "I will take care of your brother for you. He will be just fine. Go get yourself something to eat."
The girl shook her head. "Sammy! Don't take him."
"He will die if he doesn't get the care he needs. Trust me. I'm an angel. I'm a good guy."
The little girl timidly kissed her brother's dirty face before skipping off. "Okay. Bye bye, Sammy."
"Hey there, little guy." Zeriel cradled Sammy in his arms. "You're going to be all right. We will find you some milk and I'll bathe you and then we will get you to the nice priests in Ilyan who will bless you."
Jaylen's face turned into a devilish grin. "And then slit your throat. Doesn't that sound like fun?"
"Jaylen, stop. You'll scare him."
"He's like a month old. He doesn't understand what we're saying."
"But his soul does. His soul knows and it can sense hostility." Zeriel held his hand over the baby's eyes as a black shadow danced on his hand. "His soul segments are all intact. Interesting."
"Interesting?" Jaylen asked. "Why is it interesting?"
"We just happen to find a baby with all his soul segments intact in a country where the queen herself gives children to demons. That's why it's interesting. I'll have to ask Queen Sela."
"You're the worst kind of compassionate."
Zeriel took his backpack off and slid the baby inside, leaving it open in the top for the infant's head. "Awe, look at him, Jaylen. He's so tired."
"Because he's dying."
"What is your problem? You are being awful. Watch your angry attitude, Jaylen. We have a baby with us now."
Jaylen rolled his eyes as his frustrations built. "I can't believe you bought a baby."
"Let's go before Sammy starts crying."
Jaylen wrapped his blue scarf around his mouth and nose as they passed through the dark alleys. "What is that smell?"
"If you have to ask, do you really want to know? This entire country is disgusting."
"Why aren't we flying to the castle?"
"Werewolves are attracted to fast movements in the sky. We don't want to draw attention to ourselves, or we could be ambushed when we landed outside the castle."
"And they won't be attracted to a crying baby?" Jaylen asked.
"No."
"Is the baby a werewolf?"
"Not everyone in this country is a werewolf . . . just most of them." Zeriel stopped and spread out his wings to block the path. "Shh."
Jaylen looked around in the shadows. "What is it?"
"Shh . . . shh. Look on the roof."
Glowing yellow eyes materialized on the tops of the buildings as a deep growling filled the air. A naked man held up handfuls of throwing knives as he slowly started to grow thick black hair all over his body. The orphans scattered down the dark streets and out of sight. An ominous howl sent a chill down Jaylen's spine. From Zeriel's backpack, Sammy made a cooing sound.
Jaylen drew his longsword from his hip with his bandaged hand. "Anything I need to know about fighting werewolves?"
Zeriel stepped in front of Jaylen and sheltered him behind his wings. "Get behind me. I'll take care of these."
"But you're mortal now."
"So are you. In their eyes, you are still a child. You are valuable. I'll keep you safe." Before they could react, Zeriel dodged the flying blades that streaked past his face, missing by merely inches. The daggers embedded themselves in the wooden shipping crates behind him.
Jaylen screamed as rough hands grabbed him from behind and pulled him down to the cobblestones. His sword was pried out of his hand and glistening fangs appeared out of the darkness. "Zeriel!"
"Master!" Zeriel spun, sending his wings crashing into the wolves. They yelped as the fallen angel's shadows engulfed them. "Roll over and protect your face."
Obeying, Jaylen pressed his face to the dirty stones and covered his head with his arms. The assault continued with claws tearing at his clothes and scraping across his arms. Something wet and warm dropped onto the back of his head and soaked into his hair. He screamed out, pushing back against the werewolves. The power of his light magic surged up in him, radiating from his hands. A deep pain raced from his feet to his fingertips, begging him and urging him to cast his magic.
Zeriel screamed at him. "Jaylen, don't!"
Jaylen tried to contain it, but he was pushed to the edge. The tingling necessity rose up in his chest and he succumbed to the power and let it overwhelm him. When he released the pent-up light magic, the werewolves whimpered and howled in pain from the holy light that spread over the area. A flash of lightning spread across the sky, punctuated by the sudden rumbles of thunder.
Jumping up, he used the energy to dive for his sword then sent it slashing through the black wolves. Blood and fur covered the cobblestones until the remaining wolves dashed off into the night. At once, his head began to swim and he lost his balance, falling to his hands and knees in the alley.
"Are you all right? Master!"
Jaylen rolled over on his back and tried to regain his breath as the last sparks of light faded into the night sky. Despite the searing pain that had just ripped through his body, he felt strangely at peace. His mind was clearer than it had been in months. His lungs burned, but he could breathe deeply. "I'm . . . fine."
Zeriel stumbled backwards until he reached out to steady himself against the side of a building. Sweat trickled down his face and his wings fell limply to his sides. "Oh, I am not used to this."
"Are you okay?" Jaylen asked as he sat up and pushed his bangs out of his eyes.
"Just feeling weak."
"Have you eaten anything today?"
Zeriel grinned. "No."
"That's your problem."
"You mean I have to eat every day?"
"Usually more than once a day as well." Jaylen slowly stood to his feet as he continued to recover. "You've been around humans. You know how much they eat. You need to eat that, if not more."
"Ugh. This whole mortality thing is going to be harder than I thought."
"Imagine how I feel. I was born this way. Ah!" Jaylen bent over, clutching his stomach. "Help me. Help me!"
"What's wrong?"
He grabbed onto Zeriel's waist. "Sola's rays, I think I'm dying."
"I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong. This could be a result of you using your light magic and that could yield dire consequences. Do I need to take you back to Oviel so he can examine your body and find out what is wrong?"
"No. We can finish the mission. I'll be fine. Oh, no." Jaylen crumpled to the ground as he vomited.
Sammy giggled in the backpack.
"Shut up, baby! Don't laugh while I'm dying." Jaylen was writhing in pain as he vomited for a second time, this time it was mostly blood.
Several sets of footsteps filled the alley along with pale orange lantern light. A Wolfekin soldier in black plate armor with large furry sideburns stepped up to Jaylen and prodded his back with the tip of his boot. "You there, are you drunk?"
Zeriel emerged f
rom the shadows. "I would stop interrogating him. You don't know who you are speaking to. That boy is Jaylen Amalas Corrifus, Duke of Ilyan."
"You mean the disowned Tainted traitor? Yes, we know who he is. Men, get the paladin to his feet and take him to Queen Sela." He turned to Zeriel and glared at him. "Get our guardian Fallen in here to make sure this one behaves himself. I would hate for there to be a fallen angel fight."
Chapter 5
As they entered the black and gold throne room where large white wolves sat on purple cushions on either side of the two golden thrones, it was all Jaylen could to do keep himself from vomiting again. Blood had streaked down his chin and neck. His vision was blurring between his normal sight and spirit sight without him being able to control it. His heart raced in his chest, causing his breathing to grow rapid and shallow. Jaylen was beyond grateful that Zeriel insisted on carrying him into the castle. He doubted that he could have made it on his own two legs. A searing pain still radiated up his arms, left behind from where he used his light magic. If this kept up, he doubted he would still have use of his arms for much longer.
The soldiers left them, shutting the heavy golden doors behind them. The braziers lining the walls flared up with hauntingly white flames that illuminated the room. Zeriel set Jaylen down and held him steady. He pressed his face to Jaylen's ear and whispered to him. "It's all right. If you need me, I'm here."
"Ah, I know you, angel." The bearded man in chainmail grinned he watched them from his throne next to the woman in all black with a large crystal crown on top of her yellow hair.
"And I know you as well, Aiden." Zeriel said with a slight bow.
Queen Sela looked a bit confused. "You know each other?"
"From a different time, long ago." Aiden frowned as he looked at Jaylen. "What is wrong with your paladin?"
"Despite being Tainted, Jaylen still has his light magic. He used it earlier when we were attacked by werewolves in the streets. It is slowly killing him."
"I have never heard of this." Queen Sela turned to Aiden next to her. "Aiden, have you ever seen this kind of thing?"
"No. I am intrigued, though. Zeriel, may I touch your paladin?" Aiden asked.
"As long as you don't harm him."
"He looks like he's being harmed anyway." Aiden walked up to Jaylen and held out his hand. "Pleased to meet you, Jaylen Corrifus."
Jaylen groaned as he shook the dark-haired man's hand. "Likewise."
"I am going to conduct a very quick experiment, if you will let me. I want to use my dark magic on you and see how you respond. If you are indeed Tainted, then it will cure whatever is ailing you. If you are still pure, then you will continue hurting like you are. There is a slight chance that you will get worse. But seeing as your angel is Fallen and your sun sigil is dark purple, you should be fine. Do I have your permission to touch you with my magic?"
"I'm already suffering. Go ahead."
The wispy shadows encircled Aiden's hands as he pressed the palm of his right hand against Jaylen's chest.
"Ah!" Jaylen screamed as he collapsed at Aiden's feet.
He knelt in front of Jaylen and his magic faded. He lifted Jaylen's face in his hands. "Your eyes . . . Sela, look at his eyes."
"Orange. Interesting. It seems you're not Tainted after all."
Jaylen struggled to stand up on his shaky legs. "Orange? My eyes are orange . . . like a . . . like a-"
"A demon. Whoa, blink again."
Jaylen obeyed, switching out of spirit sight.
"They're blue again. What did you do?" Aiden asked.
"Spirit sight. I can't control it all the time."
"When you did that, your eyes turned orange like a demon's. Explain this spirit sight."
Zeriel stepped forward to hold up Jaylen. "I will explain it. One of my dear angel friends, Oviel, did an operation on Jaylen's soul that opened up the normally dormant segments. It allowed him to utilize more of his magic and also see the auras around otherworldly creatures."
"I see. So he's a spell weaver?"
"Exactly."
"Rare. Very rare." Aiden stood back up and continued to study Jaylen. "But that doesn't account for him being part demon."
"I'm part demon?" Jaylen asked, his panic showing in his sky blue eyes.
"Yes."
"I actually know why his eyes are orange sometimes." Zeriel said. "He has been marked by a demon."
"Oh, I see. Who or what all have segments of Jaylen's soul?"
"An incubus named Gavin and an elf named Sulstair."
Jaylen looked up at his angel. "An elf? How does an elf have part of my soul?"
"I . . . accidentally sold three segments of your soul to him in The Veil."
"You what? Why would you do that?" Jaylen asked.
"I didn't know what I was doing."
Aiden nodded his head thoughtfully. "Yes, elves can be tricky beings. From what I've seen regarding instances like this, it would appear that Jaylen is caught in a liminal place. Much like The Veil is a boundary between Heaven and Hell, Jaylen's soul is being torn apart by demons, a fallen angel, and his own desire to follow the will of Sola."
"Is this because he refuses to give up on the vows he took?"
"It could very well be part of it. Really, Jaylen?" Aiden asked. "Have you really upheld every single vow?"
"To the best of my ability, yes. As I've told so many people, I am a paladin until the day I die."
"Yes, interesting. Very interesting. I have one question for you, Jaylen. Why?"
"Why what?"
Aiden eyed him curiously. "Why do you still want to uphold your vows? You have an easy escape from them. You could be free."
Jaylen placed his hand over his heart. "Because I don't want to live an easy life. I want to live the life I was meant to live. When I took those vows, it affected me inside. It marked my soul in a pure way and made me feel a way that I never want to lose. I will obey my vows as long as I possibly can."
"Whether it kills you or not?"
"Whether it kills me or not. Like I said, I will be a paladin until the day I die. I aim to do so in purity."
"What all did you vow?" Queen Sela asked from her throne.
"To remain chaste and celibate for my entire life. I am also to abstain from alcohol, drugs, gambling, smoking of any kind, and making deals with demons."
"How does that last one work when your angel is Fallen?"
"I made my bond with him before he was Fallen. It is still valid."
Aiden nodded thoughtfully. "So the vows haven't changed. Tell me, Jaylen, do you hate me because I've broken my vows?"
Hatred isn't part of Jaylen's outlook on life. "I try not to hate anyone. Hatred darkens a person's soul. I feel nothing but pity for you. I will pray for you, Aiden."
"I can tell there's more to this story than what you are telling us. What's the real reason you are so adamant about this?"
"My father. He was a paladin who broke his vows. He was constantly drunk and beat my mother. He hit me one time and fractured my jaw. He raped my angel. He was a bad man. No matter how much I try to remember him in a good light, I know that he was corrupted by so many things."
"What was your father's name?" Aiden asked.
"Doran Corrifus."
"King Talyn's only brother?" Aiden chuckled as he rubbed his thick beard. "I should have been able to put those pieces together when I heard you were the Duke of Ilyan. I knew Doran personally. We fought together before I joined Wolfekin. He was one of the paladins who helped to train me. If anyone else had said those things about him, I wouldn't have believed them. Doran was always a proper gentlemen and a very dedicated paladin when he was around us."
"He wasn't drunk then."
"That is true. I guess that can change people. The thing is, none of us even knew he had a son until after his death. King Talyn addressed us all and told us that they had found Doran dead in a tree and that his lover and his son were the only family he had other than the royal family. It was a shock t
o all of us. Of course with the vows, no paladin was supposed to have children or lovers. It was the biggest scandal of the decade, but we all believed that Doran was a good man. You should have seen him on the battlefield. That man knew no fear. But Zeriel, you know. You were there."
Zeriel held onto Jaylen's shoulder. "Yes. I was there for it all."
"You look different now, but that's probably just the black wings. You have to tell me. Did Doran actually do that to you?"
"Yes. I swear on my wings."
"Unbelievable. It's difficult for me to imagine Doran being like that. As his friend, I sincerely apologize on his behalf."
"That is unnecessary. I'm better now."
"Are you really?" Aiden asked, seeming to be genuinely concerned. "You don't look like it."
Jaylen turned to his angel. "Zeriel . . . are you . . . crying?"
"What?" Zeriel reached up to touch his cheek and his hand came back wet. He quickly wiped away the rest of the tears. "Oh, Hell. No, I'm fine. We need to focus on our mission. Queen Sela, why have you sent for us?"
She waved her hand dismissively. "I didn't send for you. Axaniel did."
Zeriel's white eyes narrowed. "You can stop with the games now. We're here. Axaniel is dead."
Sela smiled and clapped her hands together. "Axa, darling, would you come out here?"
The bald angel with the scar across his right eye, black wings, and a bottle of whiskey in his hand stepped out of the side room. "Hey."
Zeriel gasped. "Axa, you're alive and . . . your wings . . ."
"I'm Fallen."
"Why? What did you do that made you change so quickly?"
Axaniel took a drink from the bottle. "It was instant. I bonded with a demon. I needed help in The Veil to buy you and Jaylen more time to escape from Carvael. It was the only choice I had."
"Who did you bond with?" Zeriel asked.
"Sulstair the elf."
"So not only does Sulstair have three of Jaylen's soul segments, but he has his own angel as well? Who is this guy and why does he have his bony fingers in everything?"
"I don't know much about him, either."
"How could you not? You're his angel."
Axaniel shrugged his shoulders. "He doesn't talk much, except about his experiments. Elves are weird demons. We will discuss Sulstair more at a later date when this country isn't completely threatened by famine and war without their precious demons they rely on. I sent that letter in the hopes that you would come here to help us. Wolfekin is generally protected by a score of demons from Hell that are brought through a rift that Sela keeps open and maintained. However, when Oviel performed the soul awakening on Jaylen, he opened a rift that is interfering with it. Basically, they are so close together that neither rift is letting any demons through."
Angel of Darkness Books 1-5 Page 16