by Darcy Town
“Didn’t the Archangels just follow you?”
“Oh yeah, you can bet they did. They tried to enter this place, but couldn’t without getting sick. Then they tried to destroy the planet and couldn’t do that either.”
“Why?”
“You and Lucifer are Primangels. What you created together was stronger than anything the Archangels could throw against it. They couldn’t actually get in here, healthy, until today—”
“Wait, back up, I’m a prime what?”
He shook his head. “More big kid stuff.”
Dahlia pinched him. “Patronize me again and I’ll, I don’t know, but I’ll think of something bad.”
He grinned. “It means that at one time you were super badass, sufficient?”
“Fine, whatever.” Her face brightened. “Okay answer me this.”
“Go for it.”
“What is the deal with you and Belial?”
Andy closed his eyes. “Nothing.”
She smiled and shook his shoulders. “Liar.”
“No really, there’s nothing. That’s the problem and it’s frustrating because I don’t understand why! She acts like she loves me sometimes, and then she acts repulsed when I try and make any progress. I’ve just given up for the most part.”
“So you do love her?”
“Yes.” Andy opened his eyes and stared at the stars. “Lucifer fell in love with you as soon as he saw you. His world became you and you were everything to him. We loved you too, but in a different way and I couldn’t understand what he felt until I saw Belial.”
“Wasn’t she there with you at the beginning?”
He smiled. “Yes, but she was different then. For one, she was a guy. I loved her anyways, but I didn’t realize how much until she wasn’t the same as me anymore. It’s only gotten worse the longer we’ve been around each other. She drives me crazy!”
Dahlia’s mouth opened then closed. She looked at Andy. “So she’s like Furcas and Paimon?”
“Nope. She’s a girl all the time.”
“How?”
“Long story. No, I’m not being patronizing. You changed her. You changed a lot of things.”
“That’s why something bad happened?”
“More or less.” Andy looked her in the eye. “We’ll get your memories back, you’ll understand. They are in your head somewhere.”
She remembered the sheer terror of her one unchanging nightmare. “I don’t think I want them all back.”
“I don’t know if you have a choice in that.”
“Yeah…” She yawned. “How can I be tired right now?”
He smiled at her kindly. “You’ve had a long day.”
“Do you sleep?”
“Not unless I want to, so get some rest. We’ll be up and moving soon.”
She yawned. “Where are we going?”
“Lilliam outpost. From there I can arrange transport to the City and we’ll meet up with everyone else there.”
“Lilliam?” Dahlia frowned. “The city?”
He shook his head. “Another time. Digest what you’ve learned and go to sleep.” He patted her head. “I’ll be keeping watch, so don’t worry about anything.”
“You said you can’t move though.”
He smiled. “I have a few tricks up my sleeve to keep us safe if anything comes up.”
Dahlia rolled her eyes and got comfortable. She tried to keep her eyes open, but her body was fatigued. The emotional and physical roller coaster of the day was too much. She nodded off and slipped into a dream of stars and space.
***
Paimon sat by Furcas’ side and stared at his body. His chest convulsed; his mouth twitched. He had been able to get the fingers Uriel had torn off back on, but the arm and eye lay on the grass by his side. The spear wound in Furcas’ chest gaped wide open. None of that would heal.
Paimon knew all about spear damage. They’d had to deal with it when the spear had injured Lucifer at the Fall, but the reality of it wouldn’t sink in. He couldn’t accept it. He tried sticking Furcas’ forearm back on for the third time, but it did not reattach.
Paimon touched Furcas’ face. His jaw and cheekbone poked through the rent skin and muscle. “You’re going to be so pissed off.”
A distant human moan of pain snapped his attention off Furcas and on to the world around him. Paimon looked into the sky and shook himself. They couldn’t stay here much longer. He’d already wasted time. He was being stupid. He wasn’t thinking clearly. He rubbed his eyes. “Get it together.”
Paimon rifled through Furcas’ pants until he found his sewing kit. He fiddled with the plastic case. The kit burst open in his shaking hands, sending spools and needles across the grass. Paimon fumbled until he found a needle and thread. He tied a knot in the thread and started on Furcas’ face. He pulled the cauterized ends of Furcas’ skin together trying not to tear the wound any further. He sewed. Furcas did not move or breathe. Paimon cringed. “This is going to look terrible.”
Paimon stopped at the cheekbone close to the empty eye socket. He ripped at his pant leg and tied a bandage over Furcas’ ruined eye. He hunted around and pulled clothes off human corpses. He ripped the material into shreds and roped it around Furcas’ hip, abdomen, and shoulder, covering and holding together the gaping wound that crossed through his stomach, chest, and neck. He bound up the stump at Furcas’ left elbow and tucked the cloth into the bandages to keep his injured arm from moving.
Paimon lifted Furcas onto his back. He took the rest of the makeshift rope and tied Furcas to him. Blood soaked through his clothing in seconds. He grabbed Furcas’ intact right arm and tied it to the front of his shirt, keeping Furcas’ sewn up cheek resting against his neck. He held Furcas’ legs in place with his arms.
Paimon stood up and tested out the harness. Furcas did not slip off and he did not fall over. “Step one, complete.”
Pus oozed out of the sutures on Furcas’ face and went down Paimon’s neck. He swallowed hard. He checked that he had a good grip on Furcas and set off walking towards the south.
***
Dahlia was shocked awake by loud snaps in the night air. Branches broke in the southern end of the clearing. Andy wrapped a long arm around her and pulled her deeper into the undergrowth. It was dark, but the moon was out. They stared into the clearing. Another crash, a tree shook and leaves rained down. Andy hissed. His teeth sharpened into points; his eyes darted around searching out the source of the noise.
Helion fell into the clearing. He hit the dirt and didn’t get up. His halo flickered in and out like a dying light bulb. A loan moan escaped his lips.
His wing moved. Whitney crawled out from under him. She was bruised, scratched, and dirty, but otherwise okay. “Helion?”
Andy tried to stand. “Dahlia, get me to him!”
Whitney spotted them. “Help him!”
Dahlia grabbed Andy and pulled him to Helion’s side. She sat down and let Andy lean against her so that he was able to sit upright. She gaped at the bloody wing stump in horror. Dahlia looked between Andy and Helion. “What do we do?”
Andy’s eyes fell on the stump where Helion’s wing should have been. He sucked in air, queasy. He grabbed hold of Helion’s remaining wing and braced his feet against Helion’s back.
Dahlia beat at Andy’s hands. “What are you doing?”
Helion woke up and thrashed, throwing Andy back.
Andy ignored her blows and reached for the wing. “It needs to come off! He can’t heal in this half state. He will die like this!”
Helion rolled on the ground, his breathing harsh. His throat was raw from crying. Whitney took his hand and he calmed down. His cries turned to whimpers. He rested his head in her lap. She stroked his tangled blonde hair. Whitney looked up at Dahlia and Andy. “He hasn’t been able to speak coherently since it was torn off. I can’t get through to him.”
Dahlia leaned over Helion and looked back at Andy. “It has to come off?”
He nodded. “He ca
n’t complete the transition with one wing still attached. It’s preventing him from crossing over. If he can’t crossover, he won’t be able to heal. He’s still mortal right now.”
Dahlia stared at the wing. “What if we turned it off?”
“You can’t turn it off. It’s not a dial, Dahlia. It’s a receptor.”
Dahlia stared at the wing. Helion heaved and passed out.
Andy crawled over. “Let me get it off while he’s unconscious. He’ll wake up healed. He won’t really remember this.” He grabbed a handful of feathers.
Helion’s eyes shot open. “Hurts! Hurts! Let go! Stop it!”
Dahlia grabbed Andy’s wrists. “There has to be some other way!”
He grimaced. “It’s horrible, but there isn’t.” He looked at Helion. “You’ll be okay, buddy. Just close your eyes.”
Helion’s voice was a whisper, “Andy, don’t hurt me, please.”
Andy looked away; he gripped the muscle beneath the feathers. “It’ll be all better in a minute. You’ll see.”
Helion watched Andy. He hyperventilated.
Dahlia looked between the two. Revulsion made her stomach churn.
Andy wrenched. Helion wailed. The wing stayed attached. He swore. “I’m not strong enough yet!” He looked at Dahlia. “Find me a rock.”
Dahlia paled. “No.”
“Do it! Bring me a rock!”
“No, Andy.”
Andy gripped her wrist. “We don’t have a choice, Dahlia. Do you think I want to do this? He’s going to die of shock if he doesn’t heal! Get me a fucking rock now!”
Dahlia searched for a rock in the dark. She found one the size of her head. She dropped it at Andy’s feet, her eyes wide like saucers.
Andy gripped the rock and tore it in two, leaving a sharp edge. He looked at Whitney. “Don’t let him watch this. You should close your eyes too.”
“Okay.” Whitney pulled Helion to her and held him. He trembled underneath her hand, making both of them shake. Helion buried his head against her lap. She closed her eyes.
Dahlia fell to her knees, powerless. “Andy, don’t.”
Andy ignored her. “Dahlia, help Whitney hold him still.”
“Andy, don’t!”
Andy grabbed the white wing. He pulled the wing out taut and stretched it across his lap. He took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Helion.” He brought the rock to Helion’s back.
Dahlia pushed back on Andy. “Don’t, Andy!”
He glared at her. “Stop it, Dahlia!”
“You stop it!”
Andy grabbed her arm with his free hand. “Don’t make me restrain you.”
Dahlia searched her pockets for the pendant Paimon had thrust at her hours before. She found and threw it. The necklace soared over Andy’s shoulder and landed across the clearing. No longer in contact with the energy-absorbing pendant, Dahlia was engulfed in red light.
“Damn it, Dahlia!” Andy dropped the rock and crawled after the pendant.
Dahlia braced for the wave of sounds and sensations. She opened her eyes wide and her world shifted. Helion was no longer blindingly bright; he flickered between gray and shifting colors of blue and purple. The gaping wound on his back threw off sparks instead of blood.
Dahlia reached out to his remaining wing on impulse. It thrummed beneath her hands, flooding his body with the ethereal energy that trapped his body between Heaven and Earth. She slid her fingers across the swirls and whorls designed to capture and manipulate energy. She pictured bird wings; masses of muscle and feather that did nothing more than allow flight. Beneath her fingertips his wing shifted, changed form and color, lost the patterns that moved on the surface.
Andy made it back to Dahlia, pendant in hand. He gaped as Helion changed under her touch.
Dahlia let go of Helion’s wing, but the transformation continued. Blue, black, and white feathers burst forth from the bloody stump. The muscle and bone shuddered, grew, and unfolded. The wing reformed, but it was no longer white or glowing. His other wing vibrated and matched. Small feathers sprouted between Helion’s wings, fluffy down that linked the two with mottled white and black. His halo sputtered and went out permanently. Helion was Fallen, his access to Heaven severed.
Andy hauled Dahlia backwards. He fastened the pendant around her neck and stuffed it into her shirt. She lost her second sight and dropped back into normal vision. She gasped and held her head as her eyes changed to blue.
Andy grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. “Do not do that again! The Archangels can see you when you’re in that state!” She nodded and he released her. The clearing was silent.
Helion stopped crying. He stood up, pulling Whitney with him. Helion pumped his wings and blasted Andy and Dahlia with a rush of air. He went up several feet into the air and came down on his feet. His knees gave out and he hit the dirt. Whitney staggered, stood, and hugged him. He pressed his face into her stomach.
Andy stared at the new wings. He reached out and touched them. Helion shuddered, but did not move away. Andy smiled at the shiny blue and black feathers. He looked at Dahlia thoughtfully. “Pica pica, common magpie. Why?”
“It was the first bird I thought of.”
Whitney kissed Helion’s hair. “Leo, are you okay now?”
Helion nodded. He pushed himself up. Whitney looked into his eyes and balked. “What happened to your eye? You guys look!”
Helion blinked and turned to look at Dahlia and Andy. The white of his right eye was black while the iris and pupil were white. He had a streak of black mixed in with his blonde curly hair. Dahlia stared at the changes. “That might have been my fault. I don’t really know what I did to him.”
Helion shook his head. His lips moved as if he wanted to speak, but couldn’t. Tears formed in his eyes. He rubbed them away and held Whitney’s hand. He trembled. “That hurt badly, but not anymore.”
Andy stabbed Helion in the foot with a rock. Helion yelped and jumped back with Whitney in tow. The wound in his foot healed within seconds. Andy smiled. “Good. You’re one of us now, kid.”
Helion shook out his foot. “Fallen?”
Andy nodded. “You’ve made the transition. The wings had to come off, the real ones I mean. Not those. Can you actually fly?”
Helion dropped Whitney’s hand. He opened his wings and launched into the air. He caught a current and soared in a circle above their heads.
Andy smiled. “Well that answers that question.”
Helion folded his wings and dropped down. He walked up to Whitney and embraced her. “Thank you. I would not have made it here without you.”
She nodded and kissed him. “You’re my guardian angel; it’s the least I could do.” She smiled and brushed back his lock of black hair. She looked at Dahlia. “You knew about them?”
Dahlia shook her head. “I found out probably five minutes before you did.”
Helion looked guilty. “Sorry, I didn’t want to lie.”
Whitney squeezed his hand. “All men lie.”
“That’s for sure!” Dahlia laughed. Whitney joined her. They fell to their knees. Hysteria and lack of sleep played with their nerves.
Helion frowned at them. “I do not want to lie.”
Andy ignored the laughter. “What happened after we left, Helion?”
Helion searched his memories. His white pupil expanded. “Paimon did something with Dahlia’s old pendant. He was yelling at Michael and Uriel when I left. Lucifer told me to follow you.”
Whitney stopped laughing and nodded. “Monty kicked their asses! We were getting out of there and this huge pillar of fire erupted when we were going through the forest! Then there were these fireballs and they chased the angels!”
Helion looked confused. “I don’t remember that.”
Whitney stood up and brushed her clothes off. “What do you remember?”
“Your voice.”
Whitney looked at Dahlia and Andy. “Big red light shot up for miles and no one chased us, so we’re probab
ly all right. Right?”
Dahlia helped Andy to his feet. “Then let’s go. We can get back and meet up with everyone!”
Andy shook his head. “That’s not the plan.”
Dahlia put her arm around his waist. “What is this plan?”
“I told you, if Archangels attack we are to split up into teams. I am supposed to take you because I can get away the fastest. The other teams are Belial and Lucifer, Berith and Apple, and Furcas and Paimon. They’re supposed to draw the Archangels out and use their powers so that Michael chases them instead of you. You and I.” He motioned to Dahlia. “Are running low key, off the radar. But with Lucifer and Furcas injured and with this new pendant problem I don’t know how things have changed, if at all. But I have to assume that the plan still is as-is and proceed accordingly.”
Dahlia frowned. “Where are we going?”
“The City. Home base.”
“Why didn’t we go there before Michael got here?”
“Well…we didn’t want to kidnap you before we explained a few things. Yes, maybe we should have just taken you there, but there’s no point in thinking about that now.” Andy tried to stand on his own two feet. He looked at Helion. “How fast can you fly?”
Helion shrugged. He picked Whitney up and jumped into the air. He flew through the clearing. He looked healthy. He wasn’t nauseous, bleeding, or aching any longer. He smiled. “I can go as fast as before I think. Thank you for the wings, Dahlia.”
Dahlia saluted him. “You’re very welcome. They suit you.”
Andy reached for Dahlia. “Come on. I can’t go fast, but we should keep moving.”
“Right.” Dahlia nodded. She slipped an arm around his waist and they walked together.
Helion did loopty-loops above their heads.
Whitney laughed. She called down to Dahlia, “So, we’re hanging out with a bunch of fallen angels, the glowing Archangels with pretty wings are evil dickheads, and for some reason they want to get you. You’re dating Satan and now we’re on the run from evil dickheads? That’s the summary?”
Dahlia smirked. “He doesn’t like being called Satan.”
Whitney laughed. “Didn’t they make a movie about the bride of the devil? If not, they can now; we’ll call it Dahlia Devil Woman! Or Dating the Devil: It’s Not That Bad. Ooh, how about Lucifer in Love!”