A look of feigned indignation crossed Ardat’s face. “And take away the opportunity for you to play the knight in shining armor? Never.”
Michael shook his head but couldn’t help a smile cross his lips. He stepped forward looking down into the bright shinning hole, duty spurring him on. “You think Gabriel’s down there?”
“There’s only one way to find out, my love,” Ardat said from behind Michael. “If Gabriel is down there, I won’t let you face him alone.” With two quick strides, Ardat was jumping into the hole. A second later she disappeared into the bright light.
Chapter Ninety-Eight
Seraphim leaned over Kassidy placing her ear just above the girl’s mouth. After a few moments she stood back allowing her bloodstained hands to fall by her sides. “She’s alive. Whether she’ll stay that way is anyone’s guess.”
“Not again, not again,” Raphael said trembling in the corner of his house. Ever since they found Kassidy on the beach, the Archangel has been reduced to a sobbing, shaking version of who he once was.
Alan could feel a lump in his throat pushing forward. It was only by pure willpower he forced it back down. “Do you think Raphael will be all right? I’ve only known him a short time but this seems—I don’t know what’s wrong with him. He won’t talk to me.”
Seraphim’s eyes traced a line from Kassidy’s still form lying in the pile of nettings to Raphael’s hunched over seated position. Without a word, she motioned for Alan to follow.
Alan obeyed content answers were coming. The two emerged into the dark night from the house. Waves still crashed against the shore in rhythmic timing but all signs of sea life were gone. The moon shone down unobscured along with an accompaniment of stars.
Seraphim walked down to the water and squatted beside the sea. She dipped her hands into the cold liquid and began scrubbing the blood from her palms. Alan followed suit. He couldn’t see all the red that painted his hands in the dark, nonetheless he knew it was there. His hands were sticky in the aftermath of Kassidy’s suicide attempt.
Alan allowed the silence to penetrate the moment trusting Seraphim would speak when she was ready. The Death Angel didn’t disappoint. “You can imagine as near immortal beings most of us have known one another a very long time. I knew Raphael when he was the leader of the Archangels. I also knew the six Archangels under his command; Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, Raguel, Remeil and Saraqael.”
Alan nodded along with Seraphim’s words forgetting she couldn’t see him in the dark. Even if she could, her eyes were still on her hands as she scrubbed them clean. “When the conflict in heaven began, Gabriel, Raguel and Remeil sided with the Usurper. Raphael slew Raguel himself. During the many battles, both Uriel and Saraqael were killed. Uriel always held a special place in Raphael’s heart. He loved her like a daughter. He held her as she died from a wound she received in the middle of the campaign. I believe Raphael’s resolve to fight was already beginning to crumble but Uriel’s death was the last straw. Her death began to break and twist him in a way I shudder to imagine.”
Alan could finish the rest of the story. He could feel Seraphim’s eyes on him. Alan turned from his position over the water and tried to make out Seraphim’s features against the darkness. “Kassidy reminds Raphael of Uriel, doesn’t she?”
Seraphim stood wiping her hands on her cloak. “More than that, Alan, for some unknown reason Kassidy looks exactly like Uriel. They could be sisters; perhaps even twins.”
Alan stood trying to make sense of the discovery, “Coincidence?”
Seraphim shook her head, “One thing I’ve learned in my eternity of a lifetime is that there are no coincidences.”
Alan remained quiet as they returned to the house. Raphael had moved from his seat in the corner of the room to a chair by Kassidy’s side. A new resolve replaced his quaking and moaning. Haggard eyes looked past his long grey strands. He was starring at Kassidy as if he could speak to her through only his thoughts. His gaze didn’t shift but he whispered words past his dry throat to Alan and Seraphim. “Do, do you think she’ll live?”
Seraphim knelt beside Kassidy placing the back of her hand on Kassidy’s forehead then pressing two fingers below Kassidy’s neck. “She’s strong. A Horseman will not fall so easily. She’ll live, Raphael.”
The Archangel slumped back in his chair with a huge sigh. Alan found himself wondering what his reaction would have been had Seraphim’s report had not been so favorable.
“One of us should stay—”
Before Seraphim could even finish her thought, Raphael was answering. “I’ll stay with her.”
Seraphim seemed content. She walked over to the opposite side of the room, motioning for Alan to follow. Raphael’s back was to them. Just above a whisper, Seraphim voiced her worry. “We have more to deal with than just the discovery of another Horseman.”
Alan could feel fatigue beginning to settle in. His eyes felt like they were drooping down to the floor. He had to fight back a yawn before answering. “What’s that?”
“It seems Gabriel has also manipulated the rules of our mortality.”
Alan shook his head in despair. “I’m lost here. What are you talking about?”
“Before, only the power of the Celestial Weapons could kill us. A seashell should not have been able to penetrate the skin of a supernatural being, let alone a Horseman.”
Alan was brought back to his own interaction with Gabriel. How Gabriel had wounded him and maimed Seraphim. Was it possible? Could angels and demons now kill each other freely?
Alan ran a hand through his blond hair. “What else is going to change? Is Gabriel going to turn the stars into dragons to come down and destroy us all?” Anger, similar to what Alan felt during the fight earlier that day, began to build in his chest. “We should be doing something.”
“We are,” Seraphim said, “Michael and Ardat are following Triana and Kyle back to Gabriel as we speak.”
“No,” Alan said louder than he meant. “I mean we need to get out there and take this fight to Gabriel. We need to make him pay for—”
Alan’s words stopped as Seraphim reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder in an unlike-Seraphim way. “Peace, War. Your intention is noble but you need to harness your anger and release it when the time is right. Michael won’t fail us.”
Alan felt his temper fade. Seraphim kept her hand on his shoulder as Alan looked up into her eyes. Raphael’s home was lit by candles and the light of the moon that showed through two large windows. In the presence of the light, Seraphim looked beyond gorgeous. In that moment, Alan was able to define how his feelings had begun to change for the Death Angel. Before Alan could think of the many reasons he shouldn’t act on his instincts, he leaned forward and kissed her.
Her lips were intoxicating. Eyes closed, Alan lost himself in the feeling of her lips, then her body pressed against his. It was over as soon as it started. Seraphim pushed him away as an apology was already falling from Alan’s lips. “I’m sorry Sera, I know—”
Seraphim’s right hand was over her lips as she shook her head. “No—you don’t have to do that. I don’t want your pity.”
Alan’s brow furrowed as he tried to make sense of her words. “Seraphim, what are you talking about? That’s not pity.”
“You don’t have to lie to me, Alan,” Seraphim said as strength returned to her voice. “I know what I look like after Gabriel scarred my face and wing. I knew it was pity from guilt after I saved you that forced you to create this wing for me but this—this is too much.”
Alan’s heart went from soaring a mile above the earth to plummeting into the abyss in the matter of seconds. “No, no. That’s not it at all,” Alan said shaking his head and taking a step closer to Seraphim.
She recoiled.
“I kissed you because I care for you. I like you, Sera, with or without any kind of scar or wing.”
Alan’s words fell on deaf ears. Seraphim was past being vulnerable. The same look of determination she wore
around everyone else was on her face again. “I should be going. Artemis and those at the Temple need to be aware of the change in how we can be wounded as well as another Horseman being found. I’m sure Esther will want to send a battalion of angels to guard Kassidy until she recovers.”
Alan opened his mouth to speak again but Seraphim was already gone, leaving a string of confusion in her wake.
---
That night Alan fell into a dead sleep. He chose a place on Raphael’s sandy floor near the window that brought in a never-ending supply of crisp sea air. To his delight, Alan wasn’t haunted by any dreams or nightmares. Instead, he fell asleep wondering how he could prove to Seraphim that it was affections and not pity that drew him towards her.
When Alan woke he was no closer to an answer than when he fell asleep. The smell of cooking fish and fresh bread pulled Alan from his slumber. Alan remained in his lying position for a moment longer trying to fit the pieces of what he was hearing together. It sounded like Raphael was whistling.
Alan pushed himself up to a seated position convinced he was going crazy. He rubbed his eyes and shook his head free from the sand as he witnessed the impossible. Raphael was hunched over the fireplace stirring a pot of broth while fish cooked and bread rose beside him.
Raphael was in fact whistling a slow tune under his breath. The melody wasn’t exactly upbeat however seeing the Archangel doing anything except be haunted by the past was a change for Alan.
Alan rose to his feet and made his way over to Raphael. Alan was shocked to see purpose in the Archangel’s grey eyes. His clothes were still grimy and his hair and beard were disasters on their own but he was moving with a sense of resolve. “Shhhhh …” Raphael said over the noise of his cooking. “She’s resting. She needs to get something to eat. I forget sometimes you Horseman still need sleep and food.”
Alan nodded dumbly trying to figure out if this was the same Archangel who was trembling and crying the day before. Alan took a deep breath and walked over to check on Kassidy. She was awake. Starring into the ceiling as if she was reading a book.
“Hey,” Alan said searching for the right words to broach the first conversation with someone after their failed suicide attempt. “So …”
“So…” Kassidy said still gazing at the ceiling. “I couldn’t even kill myself, right? I mean how much of a loser do you have to be to not even be able to kill yourself?”
“Maybe you’re not a loser at all,” Alan said. Kassidy finally broke her vigil of the wooden planked roof and fixed Alan with a stare. “Maybe it wasn’t up to you. It’s not your time to go.”
Kassidy rolled her eyes. “What, can you tell the future or something? Is that another trick along with those blue wings of yours?”
“No, just a feeling. For what it’s worth, and it may not mean anything to you, I’m glad you’re alive.”
Kassidy slowly nodded, “Well, that makes one of us. Two I guess,” Kassidy said motioning to Raphael’s back, “That old guys seems to be pretty happy I’m alive, too. This is really going to suck.”
“What is?”
Kassidy licked her lips and swallowed hard. “Coming down from all the drugs in my system. I’ve only been clean a handful of times I can remember and it’s harder every time.”
“I won’t pretend to know what that feels like, but you’re not alone. You have a lot of people that care for you now.”
Kassidy’s eyes shimmered in the light of the morning sun. She looked away before Alan could read her expression. “So, what am I again?” she asked. “A Horseman of the Apocalypse?”
Alan swallowed as he realized how hard it was to convince someone of the supernatural. “That’s right.”
“So, which one am I?”
“I don’t know. I’m War, so that leaves Death, Disease or Famine.”
“Great.”
Alan opened his mouth to speak again but was saved by a knock on the door. Before he could react, Raphael hurried to the door with a vexed expression. He opened the door and even before welcoming the person in, he greeted them with a command, “Shhhhh … Kassidy needs her rest. Please, if you must come inside just open the door on your own.”
Alan craned his neck to the side to get a glimpse of who was on the other side of the door. He caught site of the two women as Danielle answered, “Geez, we’re sorry. We didn’t know. You must be Raphael. Is that fish I smell?”
Chapter Ninety-Nine
Michael walked beside Ardat in the bright tunnel. Once they jumped through the hole, a dirt floor met their feet. A long path like hall opened up in front of them. The light that came from everywhere was brighter than the sun on a clear day. Michael found himself squinting as they traveled down the shining path. “This seems as unlikely a place for a demon to hide as any,” Ardat said under her breath.
“It certainly is a strange place for a creature of the darkness to call their home,” Michael said.
“What?” Ardat teased as she pushed an elbow into Michael’s ribs, “We can’t like shiny places?”
Michael grinned and moved to speak but an end to the tunnel they traveled through stilled his tongue. A steel door set in the wall of the dirt tunnel held a plaque that read, “Visits By Appointment Only.” Michael exchanged a curious look with Ardat who shook her own head in disbelief.
Michael pressed his hand against the cold steel door. It was locked. Ardat reached beside him and knocked. The sound of her fist striking the door echoed down the tunnel behind them.
Immediately the door swung open to reveal a circular room with a dirt floor, ceiling and walls. The man who opened the door wore a wide grin. He was ancient, with dark skin and a twinkle in his eye that spoke of secrecy. Michael unclenched his fists and took a deep breath. The man was no one he recognized. Having spent an eternity with his supernatural counterparts, Michael either knew or knew of everyone. This man held no recollection. “May I help you, Michael?” he asked in a respectful tone.
“I—We were following two people: a demon and a Nephilim.”
The man nodded with a sly grin, “Yes,” the man tuned his back to them and walked deeper into the room. He waived a gnarled hand instructing them to follow. “They were here only minutes ago. However they are gone now.”
“Gone?” Ardat asked shocked. “Gone where? The tunnel ends here.”
The man made his way past vials and bottles of different shapes and sizes and sat on a stool made of an anceint tree stump. “Yes, Ardat but still they are gone. We cannot change that. You are free to look around if you would like.”
Michael studied the room with pursed lips. With all the shelves holding scrolls and antique remnants of cultures long gone, there was hardly enough room for the three of them. Whatever did happen to Triana and Kyle, they were not there. “Who are you?” Michael asked.
The man gave them a crooked smile through missing teeth. The most menacing thing about his grin was the genuineness of the expression. “You may call me Shaman. And do not vex yourself too much in searching for a memory of me. You will find none.”
Michael tilted his head to the side unwilling to take the Shaman’s advice and still searching for some old recollection of the man. Michael only drew a blank. “Where did they go?” Ardat said, her voice cutting the silence like a sharp knife.
The Shaman looked at her with a gleam in his eyes. “I used a spell to transport them to Gabriel.”
Michael stood stunned at the ease of their interrogation. “Where is Gabriel now? Where did you send them?”
“I can show you if you’d like,” the Shaman said with a cock of his head. He reached down to the floor in front of him and picked up an old gnarled stick that nearly matched his own skin tone. “I can even send you there. Of course, there would be a fee involved for such a task.”
Michael heard Ardat let out a pent up sigh of frustration. He already knew what was coming. “Or,” Ardat said taking a menacing step towards their host. “We could always force you to tell us.”
The Shaman
raised a hand motioning her to stop. For the first time since they met him, a look of something other than merriment in his eyes. A cool anger washed over his face. “I would not recommend that, Ardat. I’m offering to make a deal. One that if you choose to hear, will benefit both our sides.”
“Sides?” Michael asked scratching the underside of his chin, “What side are you on?”
The anger in his eyes disappeared as the Shaman turned his attention back to Michael. “Well, my own side of course. I would like to propose a deal. I will transport you to the same location I sent those who you are following. It will lead you directly to Gabriel.”
“And in return?” Ardat asked like a growl coming from some mythic beast.
Unphased the Shaman continued, “In return, you will promise not to fight Gabriel.”
Michael couldn’t believe his ears. That was the whole point. What good would it be to find his Archangel counterpart and be unable to bring him to justice?
The Shaman continued before either Michael or Ardat could express their opinions. “Listen to me. Gabriel now possesses the strength of two Archangels. He is far beyond any warrior’s ability to defeat him, including your own. I propose you go to him, scout out the territory and regroup.”
Michael was running through the many reasons he didn’t trust the Shaman. Following those thoughts was another large crowd of ideas as to why he couldn’t let Gabriel go. If he failed, then Kyle’s life would be in the balance. He wouldn’t allow someone who knowingly put himself in harm’s way for the Light to be abandoned to Gabriel. “Why do you care about what happens to us?” Michael asked. Of all the questions raging for attention in his mind this one shouted the loudest.
The Shaman smiled his toothy grin, “Oh, I don’t care so much as to what happens to you two. However, I do care that Gabriel is one day overthrown. If you fight him and he kills you now, the odds of someone ever defeating him grow ever smaller in the strands of time.” The Shaman paused as if he were looking into the events of the future. He pursed his lips and continued to speak in a soft whisper, “There is one other that may be able to defeat him but the future is too uncertain.”
The Complete Archangel Wars Series: A Shared Universe Series (The Archangel Wars) Page 44