Hear the Crickets

by BJ Sheldon

  I should have been angry at the intrusion into my best friend’s mind, but all I could think of was how fun it would be to get inside there and truly understand what motivated him. Putting curiosity aside, I could see Sean’s distressed expression and knew I needed to intervene. I glanced at Dorian and raised my eyebrows in a silent effort to ask him to do something about the situation.

  He shook his head with laughter and strolled toward his sister. He placed a hand on her shoulder, bringing her back to reality and out of Sean’s head.

  Sean’s body hunched over momentarily like a puppet whose lines had just been cut. And then suddenly, he leapt up and began to run around, flailing his arms as if swatting away a swarm of bees. Profanities flew from his mouth along with grunts and other things I couldn’t quite understand.

  “Don’t ever do that again!” he shouted, pointing menacingly at Lillith. His face was bright red. I could see the veins popping out of his forehead from where I stood. He was clearly upset at the invasion of privacy.

  Dorian unsuccessfully held back an avalanche of laughter, his eyes watering with delight.

  “She do this often?” I asked him, but he continued to laugh too hard to answer.

  “It gives me something to do,” said Lillith, shrugging as if what she’d done was no big deal. “But I gotta say, his thoughts are pretty interesting. Did you know he likes to—”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Sean yelled, pointing at his temple. “Who said you could talk about what you saw in here? Let’s get one thing straight, you blonde freak, if you tell one person about what you learned, you’re going to need to sleep with one eye open!”

  Lillith put her hands up and waved him on, rolling her eyes. “Whatever,” she said, looking utterly bored.

  Sean continued to pace the floor, apparently still trying to shake off the whole experience.

  Lillith turned to face her brother. “So did you tell her?” she asked.

  “Yeah,” he replied.

  “How did she take it?”

  “About as good as can be expected.”

  “I still think you’re wrong.”

  “I know what I saw.”

  “Just because you had some vague vision about her doesn’t mean she’s the one in the prophecy.”

  “My visions are never wrong,” he said defiantly, shoving his hands in his pockets.

  “Maybe. But your interpretations of them sometimes are.” Lillith smirked.

  “Visions?” I asked.

  “Remember how I told you I can see the future. They come to me as visions. But they’re not always complete. They’re like puzzle pieces that have to be put together. Sometimes, the pieces are harder to connect than others.”

  “You had one about me?” I was suddenly curious to find out what he saw. “So you knew who I was before you even got here?”

  “Yep. But I’ve had more than one. A few, actually.” Dorian rubbed the back of his neck and stared at the ground. He raised his eyes, meeting my confused gaze. “More than a few if I’m being honest.”

  I felt my face grow hot.

  “I’ve been seeing you for a while now,” he began. “At first, I thought maybe my visions were wrong—that a girl with wings couldn’t exist. But then I saw the attack that was about to happen today. So Lillith and I gathered our weapons and came through the portal just in time to watch you on the losing end of a sword.”

  “I wasn’t losing,” I said defiantly.

  “You traveled through a portal?” Sean asked, interrupting Dorian’s revelation. “You mean like a worm hole?”

  “Careful. Your nerd is showing,” I said.

  Lillith waved her hand in the air as if she was conducting an orchestra. Her hand went right, then left, then right. She followed it up with a complete circle. Suddenly, a space in reality opened up directly in front of her.

  It was about seven feet tall and was devoid of anything—nothing but complete darkness. The blank space swirled within itself as if a waterless whirlpool had been suspended in midair. The oval-shaped emptiness was definitely large enough for someone to walk through. The whisper of a slight wind emanated from its abyss, alerting us to its presence, but blended in with the sound of the breeze outside that was already making its way through the surrounding hills.

  I watched Lillith slowly push her hand through the void. I took a startled step back as everything gradually disappeared up to her elbow where she stopped. Then, she backed away, pulling out her arm, freeing it from the whirlpool of nothingness.

  I stood in awe.

  Sean made his way to the enormous gap in space. He walked around it a few times, taking it in, studying its dimensions. He stopped at Lillith’s side and lifted his hand toward the portal in an attempt to try it himself.

  “I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” she said matter-of-factly.

  “Why?” he asked, his hand freezing in mid-air, stopping just inches from its entrance.

  “It doesn’t allow mortals through. The minute you put your hand through it, you’d be disintegrated.”

  Sean’s hand flew back, out of harm’s way.

  “Good to know.”

  “Am I able to do that?” I asked.

  Lillith shrugged with a bored look on her face. She extended her arms straight out from her shoulders and quickly clapped her hands together.

  The portal disappeared.

  I looked over at Dorian.

  “Well?” I asked. “Can I open a portal?”

  He shrugged. “No idea,” he said.

  I reached out in front of me like Lillith did earlier and copied the movements she painted in the air and held my breath.

  But nothing happened. I turned to face Dorian. I suddenly felt incredibly stupid.

  “I guess that’s a no, then,” he said.

  “Besides, you have wings. What do you need a portal for?” Lillith asked condescendingly.

  I rolled my eyes and made my way over to my large canvas leaning up against the wall, completely ignoring her. It seemed apparent that all she wanted was to get a rise out of me.

  There was no way I was going to oblige.

  I needed to focus. In just a few hours, my entire life had been turned on its head. So, I studied the canvas in front of me.

  “Do you think my painting has anything to do with all of this?” I asked.

  “I think it has everything to do with it.” Dorian sauntered over and stopped to my left. “You really had no idea that you’d painted the symbol for fallen all over this thing?”

  “No idea,” I said, shaking my head adamantly.

  We stared at the painting. The paint had dried, and I traced the supposed symbols with my fingers.

  “What language is it?” I asked. “I don’t recognize it.”

  “It’s the language of the angels. It’s existed since before time. Only supernatural beings can interpret the symbols and read them. That’s why I’m surprised you didn’t know.”

  “I’m finding out there’s a lot of things I don’t know,” I said, shoving my hands in my pockets.

  “I’m sure now that you know who and possibly what you are, a lot of the things that come naturally for Hybrids will become clear to you. We’re guided by an intuition early on, and when we come in contact with other Gibborim like us, it just makes us stronger. That’s why Lillith and I never lose a fight. We’ve grown up together, so we feed off of each other’s power.”

  He was right. Ever since the arrival of the siblings, I’d felt different somehow. I couldn’t deny that something was happening—a new power that surged from within. I was changing.

  “So, you’ve really been seeing me in your visions?” I asked.

  “Yes.”

  “How did you know where to find me? I mean, your vision could have placed me anywhere.”

  “The portal knows. Once I acknowledge who, the portal knows where.”

  “So, why do you think I can’t summon a portal?”

  “Probably because you’re not a typical Gibborim.�
�

  I sighed heavily. “I’m not a typical anything. Never have been.”

  “Said the girl with giant wings.”

  Dorian bumped my shoulder with his, which caused me to giggle.

  I liked him. It was nice to meet someone who knew my secrets, knew more about me than I knew myself. But it was more than that. When he looked at me, I could tell he saw more than a girl with wings. He looked deeper every time he glanced in my direction, as if he was searching my soul for something. It sounded ridiculous. I knew that. But I couldn’t deny the feeling that began to well inside me whenever he spoke.

  Sean suddenly appeared to my right. He held my sword, leaning the blade against his shoulder as if casually holding an umbrella.

  “So, while you two were off wandering the wilderness together, Lillith was explaining everything to me. At least before she decided to tiptoe through my brain tulips. Now what happens?” His voice carried a slight lilt to it as if he was upset.

  I contemplated his question carefully for a moment.

  “Good question,” I said, directing my attention toward Dorian. “Now what? Azazel’s cronies are after me for a spear I don’t have, and they want me to raise his fellow fallen angels from some earthly tomb. What do I do now?”

  “We face him and fight,” said Lillith, matter-of-factly. She was half-paying attention as she browsed through my personal belongings on my desk.

  “Do you mind not rifling through my stuff?” I asked.

  Lillith rolled her eyes and stepped back.

  “Can’t I just go into hiding again? I mean, I’ve spent centuries hiding from the world. Who said I can’t just leave and disappear from everyone’s radar?” My logic seemed sound to me. What was the point in fighting a war we had no chance of winning?

  “It’s too late. They know you exist and where you are. Even if you did run, Azazel’s right-hand man, Raja, would hunt you down like a bloodhound. Now that they have your scent, there’s nowhere you can hide.” Dorian ran his fingers through his wavy hair, pushing the locks off of his face.

  That’s it then, I thought to myself.

  I was in it for the long haul.

  But if nothing else, I finally had a purpose, albeit a dark one.

  “So, where do we go from here?” I asked.

  “The Badlands.” Lillith had suddenly appeared at Dorian’s side. “We’re going to the Badlands.”

  “Why?” I asked. “What’s there?”

  Dorian pointed at the angel skeletons in my painting. “They are. It’s where they’re buried.”

  “I’m sorry, but what?” Sean blurted out.

  “The Fallen are imprisoned beneath the earth in the Badlands,” Dorian commented as if everyone already knew.

  “So when God decided to punish the Fallen and have them bound beneath the earth, he chose South Dakota? Seriously?” Sean’s voice went up an octave with disbelief.

  “The world was a very different place back then,” said Dorian. “This was far more than just a few millennia ago. There wasn’t a South Dakota. There wasn’t a North America. There wasn’t an Africa, a Europe, or an Australia. Just an enormous land mass surrounded by a single ocean. That’s it.”

  “Someone needs to wake me when this is all over,” I said, throwing my arms up over my head in disbelief. “I don’t have words for any of this.”

  “And we don’t have a lot of time. I think we’ve stood around catering to her hormones long enough. We need to get going if we’re going to stop him,” snapped Lillith, addressing her brother as she nodded in my direction.

  “My hormones?” My head jerked toward Lillith. “What the hell do you mean by that?”

  “Oh please. All I’ve heard inside your head since we got here is how hot my brother is.”

  My face grew warm from what I could only guess was embarrassment.

  “Okay, one, no more listening to my thoughts without my permission. And two, I’ve had plenty of other thoughts other than the ones about your hot brother.”

  The words fell out of my mouth before I could stop myself.

  Lillith snorted loudly. Dorian’s cheeks grew pink. He smiled and headed toward the door.

  “Wait! That didn’t come out right.” I tried to quickly backtrack, but it was too late. “Jesus,” I muttered under my breath, my face falling into my hands in a lame attempt to hide from the others.

  Once again, my inexperience around other people was clear. My social skills sucked.

  “Smooth,” whispered Sean, leaning in.

  “Shut up.”

  I hung my head, embarrassed, as we all followed Dorian outside. Lillith joined him near a large canvas duffle lying on the ground. I could hear metal clanking against metal as they rifled through the bag.

  Dorian pulled a leather belt out of the bag and held it up to me. It looked old. The leather had darkened with age, and the scabbard hanging from it appeared to be well worn.

  “Here. This should work, and it looks about the right size. Should make hauling that sword around easier for you, and it’ll keep it more accessible than having your minion there carry it around for you.”

  “I’m not her minion,” said Sean.

  “Yes you are,” I said, elbowing him in the side.

  I took the belt and buckled it high on my hips. I put out my hand, and Sean placed the hilt into my palm. I slid the blade into the scabbard, and it fit as if it had been made for my specific sword.

  Sean leaned in to whisper in my ear. “That’s kinda hot.”

  “Down boy,” I said, and chuckled.

  “All right. Let’s head out,” said Dorian. He stood up and arched his back. He leaned over and picked up the weapon-heavy duffle, gripping the handle tightly in his hand. His bicep bulged from the weight, causing me to stare awkwardly at his upper arm.

  Lillith cleared her throat loudly, and I quickly looked away as my cheeks grew warm.

  “We’ll meet you there. We’ll tell you where specifically when we get there.” Dorian tossed a thumb in the direction of the Badlands.

  “You mean telepathically?” I asked.

  “Yep. Now that you know you can hear us, it’s like your own personal connection to the other Hybrids. Your own 911 as it were.”

  Lillith reached out her hand and opened the portal.

  “Give me an hour,” said Sean as he began to back away toward his car, his shoes crunching the gravel beneath his feet.

  “Sounds good,” I said, turning around to address the siblings. “We’ll meet you there. I’ll have Sean run home and grab what he needs and have him meet you inside the park.”

  Lillith and Dorian tossed a sideways glance at one another, confusion etched on their faces.

  “Hold up. I am not getting into a battle with the leader of the Fallen with a mortal to hold us back,” said Lillith, immediately shutting the portal with the clap of her hands.

  The sound of shoes on gravel ceased. Without even turning around, I could tell that Sean had stopped in his tracks and was waiting for my response.

  I stared the siblings down. Lillith’s tone didn’t sit well with me. I shoved my hands deep into my pockets to keep from smacking her and jostled my wings a bit behind me with agitation.

  “Well, I’m not going without him,” I said defiantly.

  Dorian stepped forward and gently grasped my arm.

  “Skyy. Be reasonable. It’ll be too dangerous for someone like him. I mean, look at him. He’s overweight. He’s old. He’s slow. He’s out of shape.”

  “He’s. Right. Here,” said Sean, waving his arms in front of his face. “And I’m not overweight; I’m big-boned.”

  “Sorry. No offense. Really. It’s just that we’re preternatural creatures that can run faster, jump higher, fight harder. He’s just a mortal. He can’t protect himself, and we won’t be able to protect him, either. You’d be putting him in harm’s way if you bring him along. You might as well kill him where he stands.”

  I glanced back at my best friend. Sean stood frozen, h
is eyes narrowed as if deep in thought. He seemed to be mulling over our visitor’s words, carefully weighing all the factors involved. Dorian was right. But I also knew Sean well enough to know he had a definite mind of his own.

  Sean’s gaze met mine, and I raised my eyebrows to ask the question.

  He marched forward and found his way to my side.

  “I’m going. I’ll stay out of the way. If nothing else, at least I can do my part to make sure you keep your hands to yourself.” Dorian’s hand still sat on my arm. Sean grasped his wrist and removed it from its resting place. Then, he pointed at him as menacingly as he could. “I’m watching you, buddy.”

  I chuckled awkwardly at Sean’s attempt to be protective. Dorian glared in Sean’s direction, clearly unhappy with the outcome.

  He may not have liked it, but if Dorian was going to drag me into his adventure, the sooner he discovered that I always got my way, the better.

  “Well, that’s it then. Sean’s going,” I said, clapping my hands together in mock delight.

  Lillith threw up her hands in frustration and stormed off.

  “If you hurry, you’ll have time to run home and pack a bag,” I said to Sean, motioning toward his car with a tilt of my head. “Only grab what you need. I’ll meet you at the campgrounds tonight. I’ll find you.”

  Sean put out his fist, and we bumped knuckles. He turned, climbed into his rusted-old Ford compact car and drove off, kicking out a cloud of dirt and dust behind his rear wheels.

  Chapter 7

  “We’re at the campground waiting for you, with your human,” I heard Dorian say inside my head. His tone was one of annoyance.

  “Must you say it like that? His name is Sean,” I replied. “Do you think maybe you can try to make an attempt to be nice to him?”

  “He’s a human. He’s just going to get in the way.”

  “You don’t know that. Just be civil to him until I get there. And keep Lillith from climbing inside his head, would you? I don’t think he cared too much for it the last time,” I said. The memory made me smile.

  “I’m not making any promises,” I heard Lillith interject.