When Angels Fall

by Stephanie Jackson

  “That was like five minutes ago, of course I remember,” she said.

  “And that if you die then humanity is lost?” he asked.

  “Yes, but I don’t understand that part,” she said. “If it was so important to destroy all the Blood of God on Earth, why not just kill Mary before she had a chance to have another child? I mean, wouldn’t it have been easier to do it that way than to wait two millennia to kill me?” she asked.

  “It would’ve been easier, and I’m sure Lucifer would have ordered his demons to do just that if he’d known what God’s plan was. But by the time he figured out that God’s blood still walked the Earth after the death of Jesus, it was too late; Mary had already had her child.”

  “Why not just kill Mary and her daughter?” she asked.

  “They couldn’t,” he said. “When more than one human carries the Blood of God, no demon can touch them.”

  “Couldn’t Satan have killed them?” she asked.

  “No. The first thing you have to remember is that Lucifer is, first and foremost, an angel; a fallen angel, yes, but still an angel. He has to respect the will of God. It didn’t work out for him too well the last time he stood against God.

  “Our Father decreed that Lucifer could only rise from Hell when only one person carrying His blood remained. Lucifer was locked in the pit until three days ago when your mother died.”

  “What would happen if he ignored God’s will?” Danielle asked.

  “If he interfered with the Blood of God, God would smite him,” the angel said.

  “Why hasn’t he smote him already?”

  “For the same reason that Lucifer never attempted to kill Jesus,” he said. “No one wants to kill the son of God; not even God himself, Danielle, and Lucifer is still a son of God.”

  “Dani,” she said.

  “What?”

  “Please, call me Dani. No one but my grandmother ever called me Danielle,” she said.

  “Dani, then” he said.

  Saying her name caused an unexplained tightness in his chest.

  “Speaking of which, do you have a name? I just ask so I can stop thinking of you as ‘the angel’?”

  “You may call me Gabriel, if you wish,” he said.

  “Gabriel? As in the Archangel Gabriel?” she asked in a little bit of the awe that Gabriel had been waiting for.

  “Yes,” he said.

  “Wow; you’re like a really upper level angel.”

  “I guess that’s one way to look at it,” Gabriel said.

  “It’s the only way to look at it. One of the four Archangels is in my house!” Dani said. “If my grandmother was still alive, she’d shit herself.”

  And…the awe was gone. He couldn’t really say he’d expected it to last; it would’ve been nice if it had lasted more than a few seconds, but he’d take what he could get.

  “Have you been watching my family all this time?” she asked.

  “No, that wasn’t necessary,” he said.

  “Then how did you know that my mother had died?” she asked.

  “All the bells in Heaven and Hell ring when a death befalls the bloodline of God,” he said.

  “Why did the demons wait three days after my mother died to come after me?”

  “To give you time to bury your dead. They want you dead, of that there is no doubt; but even Lucifer has respect for the Blood of God,” Gabriel said. “And to be clear, only one demon, Vetis, has come after you.”

  “But the attack in the cemetery and out in the street here, those had to be demons, right? I could smell the decomposition on them just like Vetis,” she said.

  “Those weren’t demons; they’re a species called Cambion,” he said. “They’re dangerous, but not nearly as powerful as a demon.” “What are Cambions?” she asked.

  “Ninety-five percent of the time, a Cambion is what you get when a demon mates with a human woman. A Cambion is half demon, but essentially a human.”

  “What do you get the other five percent of the time?” she asked.

  “A Nephilim,” he said.

  “And what are Nephilim?” she asked, her curiosity peaked.

  “They are essentially the same creature as a Cambion, only they’re not evil. And a Nephilim has the one thing that a Cambion lacks; a soul.”

  “How do you mate a demon with a human and get anything but an evil offspring?” Dani asked.

  “It all depends on the human woman that the demon mates with. If the woman is of low moral character, which of course, the demons prefer, then what you get will be a Cambion,” Gabriel explained. “If however, a demon mates with a woman of faith, usually in the woman’s sleep, then what you get will be a Nephilim.”

  “Why would a demon purposely make a Nephilim?” Dani asked.

  “Not all demons are equal. Some regret their decision to join Lucifer,” he said. “They can’t change their situation, but they try to help out in anyway they can.”

  “And how exactly does making a Nephilim help anything?” Dani asked.

  “If a Cambion comes in direct physical contact with a Nephilim, they die,” Gabriel said.

  “How can you tell the difference if they’re both the offspring of demons?”

  “Demon is a relative term. All ‘demons’ at one point in their existence were angels,” he said.

  “Like Lucifer?” Dani asked.

  “No,” he said, shaking his head. “Not at all like Lucifer. There are different levels of angels, just as there are different levels of demons. Most, but not all, of the demons that follow Lucifer were angels that swore their allegiance to him in Heaven.

  “When God flung Lucifer into Hell, he casted down Lucifer’s followers as well. They became Lucifer’s first demons. Most of those angels were low level angels; angels that never stood in front of the Throne of God.”

  “What difference did that make?” she asked.

  “To God, it made no difference at all. To the angels that joined Lucifer, it made a great deal of difference. They felt as if they weren’t among God’s favorites; that his love for them was less than they deserved. Lucifer promised to love them above all else, so they joined him in his attempt to take over the Throne,” he said.

  “So there really was a war in Heaven? I thought that was all just a myth.”

  “No, no myth,” he said.

  “I always thought that Lucifer turned on God because God loved humans more than angels,” she said. “It’s what we were taught in church.”

  Gabriel shook his head and said, “There was a war about that later, but Lucifer was in Hell long before that happened. I’ve heard the human stories about the war in Heaven, but they’re not true. It was never God’s love of humans that was the issue in the first war; it was His love for His angels that ignited a Great War. But, in truth, even that’s not the real reason.”

  Gabriel thought back to the time of the war; a long time ago even to him, and shook his head. He could still remember the sounds of his brother’s screams as they died; died for a cause that never truly existed. They had died for Lucifer’s greed for power; for his love, not of their Father that sat on the Throne, but for the Throne itself.

  “So, what was the real reason?” she asked, bringing him back to the present.

  “Lucifer was the reason. He took all of those angels’ insecurities and used them in his bid for the Throne. He convinced them that God had no love for them; convinced them that if they fought with him that they would secure their place before the Throne forever. He lied; had Lucifer won, he would have casted those angels down the moment he took power.”

  His mind went back again to all the bodies that littered Heaven after the war. Of all the angels that died because Gabriel had failed to follow God’s command. Gabriel knew that he had deserved to be casted down into the pit with Lucifer. He had defied God’s orders; but God had spared him. Spared him, and given him the opportunity to fix what he had failed to do the first time.

  2.

  “What did God do whe
n the war broke out?” Dani asked.

  She couldn’t believe she was talking about this. If you had told her two hours ago that she was going to be sitting in her living room talking to a bona fide Archangel about God, Heaven, and angels, she would’ve called bullshit.

  She hoped her mother was looking down on her from Heaven. Anne Coulter would get a kick out of her daughter becoming a ‘believer’ after all her years as an atheist. And to think that all it took to give her faith was a couple of Cambion and a demon trying to kill her.

  “Our Father didn’t get involved with the actual fighting,” he said. “He did issue a few orders to his Archangels.”

  “What were His orders?” she asked.

  “We don’t have time to go into that right now. If you survive this, I promise to answer any questions you have. Now, you wanted to know what you need to do to live through this, correct?”

  “Yes, please,” she said.

  “If you want to have a chance of living, you’re going to have to listen to me when I tell you to do something; no matter what I tell you to do,” Gabriel instructed. “I know it goes against your nature to actually listen to somebody, but that’s the way it has to be.”

  She wanted to smart off to him, but in this instance, he was absolutely correct. She’d always loathed any kind of authority. She couldn’t stand someone telling her what to do. She didn’t know if she could obey his every command, but she was willing to give it a shot.

  “I’ll do my best,” she said.

  “That’s all I can ask, I guess,” Gabriel said. “It’s still several hours before daylight. Why don’t you get some rest?”

  “I’ll never be able to fall asleep after everything that’s happened tonight,” Dani said. “What if the Cambions or demons come back?” “Then I’ll take care of it,” Gabriel promised. “There’s nothing for you to worry about. You’re safe for now.”

  Dani nodded and reluctantly headed to her bedroom.

  She was halfway up the stairs before she looked back down at him.

  “You’ll be here in the morning when I get up, right?” she asked, not wanting to admit how scared she was.

  “I’ll be here,” Gabriel said.

  She nodded and walked the rest of the way up the stairs to her room.

  Chapter Four

  1.

  Dani changed into a long T-shirt and climbed into her bed, but she couldn’t sleep. Every time she dozed off, she’d be startled awake, thinking someone was trying to get through her bedroom window. She’d get up to look, and find nothing. She gave up and walked down the hall to her mother’s room hoping her mother’s scent would help calm her; but only the smell of sickness lingered there.

  She walked back to her room, snatched the pillow and blanket from her bed, and marched back downstairs. Gabriel was sitting on the couch where she’d left him.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “I told you I wouldn’t be able to sleep,” she said, and plopped back down on the couch.

  She poked her pillow under her head, tossed her blanket on top of her, and stretched out as much as she could.

  “Would you like me to move?” Gabriel asked.

  “No, you stay right where you are. This is the only way I’m going to get some sleep,” she said.

  “You’re scared,” he said.

  “Scared? No, I’m not scared. I’m fuckin’ terrified,” she admitted to him and to herself. “Aren’t you?”

  “No, I’m not afraid,” he said. “And as I’ve said, you’re not in any danger right now.”

  “How can you not be afraid? Isn’t your life in danger, too?” she asked, yawning.

  “Yes, but there is no reason to fear anything,” Gabriel said. “The situation isn’t going to change, no matter how scared you are.”

  “Maybe not, but I’m still scared,” she said.

  “You’re safe for tonight, I promise. Now rest,” he said and brushed his fingers down her face.

  She immediately fell in to a deep sleep.

  2.

  Gabriel watched over Dani while she slept. He reached over to push a strand of hair out of her face, and felt his stomach clench. It was a feeling, an emotion, which he couldn’t explain. He thought back to the fight she’d had earlier that night. She’d taken on a Cambion…and won. Most grown men wouldn’t be able to take down a Cambion, and he found that he felt an unnatural amount of pride that Dani had been able to do so.

  Gabriel could have stopped it at any time; had in fact been about to stop it, when he saw Dani throw the Cambion into the street and put her fists up. He could admit to a certain degree of curiosity. He wanted to see what she would do when the Cambion approached her again.

  Dani hadn’t let him down. He watched as she kicked the Cambion in the chest and laid him flat on his back in the street.

  He was so preoccupied watching her stomp on the Cambion that he’d failed to notice another Cambion approach Dani from behind. Then Gabriel had intervened.

  It was too much to expect her to fight off two of them. But, he was undeniably impressed by what she’d done. He still wasn’t sure he actually liked her, but he had to admit that she had guts.

  “What are you doing?” a voice asked.

  He looked up and saw that his brother Raphael had materialized in the middle of the room. It had been a long time since he’d seen his brother’s pale skin and bright red locks, but not long enough.

  “My job,” Gabriel said.

  “Your job is cuddling with this woman on a sofa?” Raphael asked condescendingly.

  “I’m not cuddling with her,” Gabriel said. “She couldn’t sleep in her room because she’s afraid. This was the only way she’d get some rest.”

  “Don’t get too attached to her, Gabriel,” Raphael said. “You’re here to earn the forgiveness of God so that you may re-enter the Kingdom of Heaven; nothing more. You don’t need any unnecessary distractions from this Earth monkey.”

  “I don’t think that’s going to be a problem,” Gabriel said. “Dani isn’t really the kind of person you can get attached to.”

  “Mind that you don’t,” Raphael said sternly, and vanished.

  3.

  Gabriel couldn’t move from the couch without waking Dani, so he had no choice but to watch her sleep all night. She had a small, quiet snore that should have been annoying, but he found it didn’t bother him at all. He also noticed her skin had a slight flowery scent that he found vaguely soothing.

  He found himself wondering what she was dreaming about. He hoped they were happy dreams. Lord knows she had lived through enough real nightmares the last three days, and even more so in the last few hours, to have earned herself a good dream or two. She may be dreaming of better days with her mother or maybe of having fun with her friends…or of him.

  No, she probably wasn’t dreaming of him. Why would she? A better question would be; why he would want her to dream of him? He forced his thoughts away from that question, turned his head to the window, and waited for the sun to rise.

  Gabriel didn’t know how long they could stay at Dani’s home. The Cambion, and even worse, the demons, were now actively hunting her. The three Cambions that Dani had come in contact with were now dead, but it wouldn’t take long for other Cambion in the area to find her. If another Cambion caught her they wouldn’t kill her, but they would summon their demon father to come and collect her.

  There could be many Cambion in the area. Vetis had fathered at least three Cambion children of his own. Gabriel knew that because a Cambion can only summon its own demon father. Had Vetis not have fathered all three of that nights Cambion then more than one demon would have shown up. He also knew that Vetis had not shared the information of Dani’s location with any other demon.

  Every demon wanted to be the one to deliver the last of the Blood of God to Lucifer. They wouldn’t share the Glory with any of their brethren. To be the demon to deliver Dani to Lucifer would place them among his favorites and therefore give them more powe
r and a higher status in Lucifer’s court. So he had no fear that Vetis had shared this information; not even with Lucifer himself.

  Neither Cambion nor demon, no matter how high the demon’s status was, would dare kill Dani themselves. That honor belonged to Lucifer. The demon would, however, deliver her to Lucifer in Hell.

  Once Dani was in Hell, she could no longer be saved. Just as Lucifer could no longer ascend to Heaven, no angel could cross into Hell; into Lucifer’s domain.

  And Lucifer wouldn’t just kill her. He would torture her endlessly; torture her in ways that no human could comprehend. And once she was dead, Lucifer would torture her soul. Gabriel had told Dani that she would go to Heaven no matter what she’d done on Earth, but that only applied if he was successful in killing Lucifer. He hadn’t told her the whole truth. The truth being that, if Gabriel were to fail in his attempt to kill Lucifer, Dani’s soul would be lost to Hell for all eternity. Humanity would die out, and what Lucifer referred to as ‘their Father’s experiment’ would end.

  And it would be all Gabriel’s fault. It had been stupidity and misguided loyalty to his brother that had prevented Gabriel from killing Lucifer when his Father had ordered him to. It would not happen again.

  It was nearing sunrise when someone pounded on the front door. Dani jerked awake and grabbed Gabriel’s arm.

  4.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “It’s only a human this time,” Gabriel said. “You may answer the door if you wish.”

  “Are you sure it’s a human?”

  She felt silly for asking, but she didn’t want to inadvertently let another demon in the house.

  “I’m positive it’s just a human,” he said with a small smile.

  She tossed the blanket off and went to the door. She wished she’d looked out first. As soon as the door was opened, someone hit her in the face. She fell backwards onto her ass, looked up, and found herself starring up into the face of…

  “Buddy,” she mumbled, wiping blood from the corner of her mouth.

  “You forgot about good Ole’ Buddy, didn’t ya?” Buddy said. “You must have because I don’t remember getting an invitation to dear old mom’s funeral.”