"I see you're having a bit of trouble," the archangel glanced away absently, "Lost something, haven't you?"
Troian could feel the heat begin to boil below his skin and took a tighter grip on the basin.
"Now, now, don't get testy," the angel held up his hands before him, his fingers adorned in rings, "I don't want you to blow anything else up."
"How do you know?" Troian growled through clenched teeth.
"News travels fast," he shrugged.
The demon was furious, "What is it that you want?"
"I am here to offer you peace," he clasped his hands in front of him, "I have found your sister."
Troian staggered back from the basin, knocking into the steps and falling back onto them. His sister, Sophie, she’d been found.
"I see you know what this means," the angel’s voice floated quietly from the basin and Troian jumped up, running back to it, "She has, however, fallen into the wrong hands, and The Agrippa has made its way to the Material World as well."
Troian shook his head, "How do you know all this? Who are you?"
The man bowed his head slightly, smiled, and alleged, "I am the Archangel Raziel."
"Raziel?" Archangel or not, the name was renowned in Heaven and Hell. "Why come to see me? You never see anybody."
Raziel sighed, "I am closely tied to this book, my boy, and it is in my best interests that the girl and the book do not come into contact. I have reason to believe that a rogue angel has kidnapped your sister. His name I fear you know: Adam."
Troian grimaced, "How is that possible? He was executed!"
"Was he?" Raziel questioned, "I know it seems ridiculous, I was uncertain of even my own suspicions, but there has been activity in the Material World that suggests otherwise."
Troian swore under his breath and clenched tight fists. "Adam," he growled, the name bitter on his tongue, "You've torn apart this family enough for one eternity."
Raziel stared solemnly at the boy, "Do you feel that, Troian? That anger?"
He nodded, unable to find words.
"I want you to use that and help me, Troi. Help me to destroy Adam and to save your family."
***
Inside, it was much darker. The front room was small and largely bare. A couch and two chairs faced one another in its center, and a grouping of candles placed in a tight circle on the floor, the only light source, shined between them. Some larger piece of furniture, perhaps a chest, sat in the shadows before the brick hearth at the back of the room between two archways leading into further darkness.
Sophie stepped in without hesitation, past the man as he held open the door, the strange markings on his palms slightly visible, but she could feel Mona linger on the threshold. When she looked back the two were staring at one another.
"Who are you?" Mona asked plainly, narrowing her gaze. She was significantly shorter than the man, but stood her ground, crossing her arms and leaning against the doorway defiantly.
"A friend," he answered in a tone that would suggest otherwise, "And you?"
"The same."
Sophie spoke absently as she went back to looking around the room, "She’s my cousin, Mona. And he and I met at the library," she put it together as the words fell out of her mouth, an afterthought as she went deeper into the house, inspecting the furniture, "The paper with the symbols was in the book, but only after...only after he gave it back to me. We’re here because of him."
Mona was quick to follow up, "That only proves you’re a meddler, not an ally."
"Oh?" the man cocked his head, "So you’re her cousin then?"
"Where are we?" Sophie rounded on them, demanding their attention. Though she’d never been here before, she had a strong desire to run about and inspect every corner of the place, feeling as though the action would sate some long-hidden yearning, and she wanted answers, "Why do I feel like I know this place?" They both hesitated, casting sidelong glances at one another. Sophie sighed, "Mona, how did you get us here? Through that...that thing?"
Her cousin opened her mouth then blew out a long breath. "That thing," she said slowly as if mulling it over herself, "was a tear in existence. We cut through the physical world and made a doorway to this place, the Transcendental Plane. Specifically, this spot. The paper you had, the one he gave you apparently, acted like a map, an address, and brought us precisely here."
"So what," Sophie chuckled lightly, "we teleported?"
"Not exactly. We’re not on Earth anymore." Mona was looking very hard at Sophie, as if studying her, waiting for something.
"Another planet?"
Mona shook her head, "Earth, other planets, the whole universe," she made a pained expression, "that’s the physical world and a different plane of existence than where we are. Think of it like stories in a building only without any stairs or elevators. You can’t go down, and no one can come up. Not without punching a hole in the floor, at least."
Sophie took a few steps back and eased down onto the couch. She stared into the light of the candles and tried to think about what she’d been told, but complete thoughts refused to form. Instead, she moved on to the man, "You—who are you?" Mona turned to him with an eager sort of look as well.
He bit his lip and looked down so his rusty hair fell in his eyes, "I’m Adam." There was something there. Something in that name that made Sophie peer a bit more deeply at him. He looked up cautiously, his light eyes searching her face, "I’m here to help protect you."
"Oh." She didn’t particularly want to ask from what she needed protecting. Instead, she looked off toward the darker parts of the house.
"Are you okay?" Adam ventured quietly.
She nodded, "I just need a minute."
As Sophie stared off at the shadowed fireplace, she heard Mona drop her voice to a whisper and questioned Adam, "Who sent you?"
"No one," he replied, equally low.
Sophie listened to them grumble at one another haphazardly as she picked up one of the candles from the floor and got up from the couch, going to the object that stood by the fireplace. It was larger than she’d realized, at least six feet long, and came up to her knees. The light she held danced across its uneven surface, a sort of glassy crystal that came to many points, like dozens of jewels layered atop one another. Mostly shades of blue, she could see something darker beneath its jagged surface and knelt beside it, gently placing a hand against the crystal. It was warm.
Sophie gasped—a body! A chalk-white-skinned woman lay encapsulated in the massive gem. And she recognized her.
"Is that what I think it is?" Mona’s voice questioned, and Sophie turned to see them standing over her.
Adam nodded, "Yes."
"So that means you’re—"
"No," he was quick to stop her, "Well, kind of. It’s complicated."
The woman in the box was paler, if that were possible, and pink scars ran down her neck, but it was her. Her eyes were closed, but she knew they would be a pale gray when opened. She was the girl from the street that night, the one she had inadvertently called Verrine.
Sophie's heart immediately sank, "Is she...dead?" The word forced itself out, bitter on her tongue.
"No," Adam said, and she felt instant relief, "But she cannot wake like this."
"What happened to her?" When last Sophie had seen the girl, she was energetic even if she had been frightening.
"She’s been brutally attacked. When I found her she was near death, and I did all I could."
"Attacked?" Sophie leaned down to examine her long scars through the distortion of the crystal, "By what? There aren't any wild animals in the city, or at least, nothing that can do that."
"Those are from no wild animal," his voice dropped down, "Animal is much too nice a term for them. That's the work of a strigori."
Mona cleared her throat loudly at his comment, but Sophie continued to stare at the girl in the glass box. The word, strigori, was as foreign to her as this eerie, misty place, but for a moment all of that fell away and only the g
irl mattered. She’d wanted Sophie to go away with her. Perhaps if she had, this wouldn’t have happened. The girl who, as she thought back on their encounter, now seemed sweet and concerned only for Sophie’s wellbeing, would not be in danger of dying if she’d just listened.
Sophie stood from the floor and turned to the others, anger and guilt swimming in the pit of her stomach. "How can we help her?"
"Well," Adam scratched his head, ruffling his coppery hair, "she was too weak to fight off the venom which is why I encapsulated her. Her body isn’t susceptible to further poisoning like this, she’s been suspended out of time, but I need the antivenom if there’s any hope in healing her, and there’s only one place I know to get it. I’ve been trying to work out how to, but it will be incredibly difficult."
"Well, you’ve got us to help now, so where are we going?"
Mona’s eyes widened at Sophie’s offer, but she said nothing. The man shook his head, "It’s too dangerous."
"I think we can decide that for ourselves," Sophie perched back on the edge of the couch and looked up at him expectantly, but as she leaned forward to replace the candle on the ground, she winced.
He quickly knelt in front of her, "Are you hurt?"
"It’s nothing," the pain had lulled into a constant nagging in her shoulders, and she had done her best to ignore it, "It’s going away."
"She is hurt," Mona sat on the couch beside her and made her turn her back to Adam, lifting her shirt and exposing her shoulders, "It...started."
Sophie heard Adam take in a quick breath then sigh, "But it stopped."
Pulling her shirt down forcefully, Sophie turned back, "What? What’s happening?"
But her question was run over by Mona, "We weren’t sure if it would take. It might have if we hadn’t come here, but I think the plane stopped it."
"Who is we?" Adam raised his voice as he glared at her cousin, "And what did you do?"
"I got her out of there!" Mona snapped back.
"Never mind," he growled, standing and moving around behind the couch, "Sophie," his voice had softened again, "I don’t want you to be alarmed by this, all right?"
Sophie snorted, "I don’t think you need to worry about that at this point."
The man placed his hands on her shoulder blades, and she braced herself for pain, but none came. Where before even the slightest contact had made her cry out, now the entire weight of his hands did quite the opposite. Warmth poured over her, and she melted. When he took his hands away, she rolled her shoulders freely and smiled, "Wow."
"So you’re...human," Adam scratched at his chin as he came around before them and dropped into the chair across from her.
"What? Yes, I mean, what else would I be?" With the pain gone, Sophie felt a bit freer and screwed up her face at his comment.
Adam glanced at the glass box then back to the girls, "That gives me an idea."
***
Even as Michael entered the elevator he could feel the tension he would walk into twelve stories above. Something had gone awry, something big. They rarely met in the middle of the day and never in the apartment. He ran a hand through his disheveled hair, remembering the satisfaction he’d got when last here. He was almost able to taste the sweetness of her blood again on his tongue and gave his fangs a quick lick.
The bell rang and the doors opened, pulling Michael back into the moment. He’d left the apartment at Mona’s behest, not really wanting to witness or take part in the aftermath of what he’d done. It wouldn’t have been like when others changed, he knew, and it would, perhaps, not even work. But Naomi’s summons was foreboding. Then again, she was like that and these were unusual times. Perhaps he’d overthought the whole thing.
Simon leaned against the wall just inside the apartment, his hands shoved deep in his pockets, head hanging with black hair shielding dark eyes. Michael began to greet him, but Simon shook his head. So, the situation was that grave.
As Michael scanned the room he found Grant sitting in a high backed chair, tense and unreadable as always, gripping the armrests. His only movement came from his fingertips, pawing gently at the overstuffed material. Rose sat on the couch, her legs crossed, lips pursed. She stared directly at Michael, but he couldn't tell whether she was happy to see him or completely furious. Danielle sat beside her, fidgeting with her hair and bouncing a leg up and down. Nerves always got the best of her, but then she was new to all of this.
Michael huffed, annoyed by the silence. "What's going on?" he asked no one in particular.
"She's gone!"
Everyone cringed at Naomi’s voice. Danielle even jumped up, accidentally attracting Naomi’s irate gaze. The girl’s lip quivered for a minute before Rose pulled her down again.
Michael noted the missing bodies, but asked anyway, "Who's gone?"
Naomi eyed him, "Mona, Sophie, both of them," she snarled the names through grit teeth, "Just disappeared!"
"Disappeared?" Michael was skeptical, "Two women just don't disappear. You mean to tell me the one, two...five of you can't find them?"
Naomi snarled then turned away. Rose sighed and spoke quietly, "We tried to find the brat, but the book's not reacting at all. And that bitch ran off last night as well. I had a feeling she would after the way she was acting. We've looked everywhere for her, but she’s just gone."
Michael grunted at Rose, "Mona, you mean?"
"Yes. That bitch."
Naomi cut in, striding up and down the room, "I should have followed my instincts with that girl. We played it much too safe with that little princess. I should have tied her up myself and force fed her."
Danielle perked up slightly, "But we've got the book!" She held up the leather bound tome from the coffee table.
Naomi glared at her and she set it back down. "We get one thing, we lose another! The book's no good to us without the girl." She rounded on Michael then, "How did she look when you were here?"
"Tired," he answered absently, "But not like she could have gotten up and left."
"Well, she did!" Naomi snapped, “All because you wouldn’t listen!”
“What?” he grimaced, “You were the one wanted to speed things along.”
Rose laughed quietly, “He never has been one for knowing when to hold back.”
Naomi took in a staggered breath and turned away with a huff, "This changes everything. You’ve all got new roles now, and don’t expect any of this to be easy. I want Sophie found and brought to me."
"And Mona?" Michael asked impulsively.
They all waited for Naomi to give the order as she stared at the floor. She ran a finger over her lips then smiled, "If you see the traitor, kill her."
Chapter 7
"Are you nervous?"
Adam’s presence beside Sophie was comforting, if only mildly, but of course she was nervous. She knew he knew it, but she wouldn’t say. Instead, she shook her head, "Are you?"
"A bit," he sighed.
"But you’re sure about this?" Mona pressed just as she had back at the little brick house.
"Yes. It’s been quiet since I left." Adam lingered on the word and looked far out ahead of them into the gray mist.
Heaven, Sophie thought to herself. Since he left Heaven. Adam had glossed over it, and, with concern for the white-haired girl mounting in her chest, she hadn’t probed him, but he had most certainly admitted to originating from, well, somewhere north of here. And why would she question, at this point, Heaven’s existence? She’d stepped through a rift in space and time—nothing was surprising anymore.
But still, she’d been given a strange task to perform in a strange place. They weren’t leaving the Transcendental Plane he assured her, despite that that meant little, but were again peregrinating, or traveling from location to location making just a small crack in space. Their destination was one of several places where a permanent access point to Heaven had been established. It didn’t go directly into Heaven, that would be too risky, but it was important enough to be guarded. The locations were
secret, known through a set of symbolic coordinates like those he had slipped to her in the library, but he had said ‘secret’ like it meant something different here. Apparently, Adam had been part of a regiment stationed at one of these locations. He’d rushed through the explanation, imparting that they had reserves at these bases, including a serum to counteract what the strigori venom was attempting to do to Verrine’s body. But they couldn’t just ask for it.
“Can we go over it one more time?”
Adam nodded, “Of course. You’ll be posing as a regular human woman.”
“I am a regular human woman,” Sophie reminded him, a slight lilt to her voice.
Adam and Mona traded glances and then he focused back on her, “Right. So, you’re going to wander onto the base and pretend you have no idea where you are.”
Sophie’s lip twitched, “I don’t have any idea where I am.”
“And you’re going to let them fawn all over you and ask you questions and you’re just going to tell them you can’t remember anything.”
“I can’t remember anything,” Sophie said exasperatedly.
“Well, it should be easy then,” Mona crossed her arms and eyed Adam, “And you’re positive they’re just going to let her waltz in? Dressed like that?”
Sophie’s clothing was still bloodstained despite that her body had been healed.
“Trust me. It happened on occasion, a human getting lost up here. They have little control over their souls when they face trauma and sometimes go wandering off. They won’t be expecting her actual body up here, so they won’t check. Interference with passive souls is supposed to be prohibited, but they tend to get very excited when humans randomly show up, so they indulge themselves by asking harmless questions instead of investigating. They like humans since it’s their business to protect them.”
“It is?” Mona gave him a knowing look.
“For these ones,” he spoke sharply then looked away, “At least some of them.”
The Nephilim: Book One Page 7