“What?”
“How do you know?” asked Roxy. “We’ve lived with her for several months now and I’ve never seen it.”
“She hides it. I saw it today. She was video chatting with someone.”
Imorean exchanged a confused glance with Toddy and Roxy.
“But why?” he asked. “There’s no reason for her to have one. The school would have provided a laptop if she couldn’t afford a new one …”
“I don’t know,” said Mandy shaking her head.
Imorean furrowed his brow as they walked. Why was Bethany deliberately choosing to break the rules and one of the only rules they had been given before coming? It didn’t make sense. It just didn’t. Imorean inclined his head as a loud clang echoed over the campus. Imorean and all his friends stopped. All of a sudden, he couldn’t fight the feeling that something wasn’t right. He drew a deep breath and smelled burning electricity. What was this? It felt as though a block of ice had descended on the group. Imorean felt for a moment that he was being preyed on. That something was stalking through the darkness around them. He was being seen by a nameless evil that he could not see himself.
“Does anyone want to go and pay Colton a visit?” asked Toddy. There was a hidden desperation in his voice that gave Imorean a feeling that he was trying to diffuse the tense atmosphere.
“Yeah,” said Roxy, checking her watch. “It's only nine o'clock. It might do him good to see his friends.”
“Come on then,” said Imorean, leading them along the most direct path to the student health center.
“You know, I'm kind of shocked Michael caught you,” said Toddy as they walked. “I didn't think he'd be able to.”
Imorean shrugged. “I didn't even know what was happening. It felt like I'd been hit by a bus.”
“I bet,” said Roxy. “He turned into a blur he was moving so fast. I guess that could be why people hardly ever see angels. They just move too fast for us to see.”
“I guess so. Did he actually fly?”
“You bet he did,” said Mandy. “We all saw him open his wings and the next thing we knew, he'd turned into a green blur. We only properly saw him again when you both smashed into the glass.”
“We hit the glass?” asked Imorean, remembering a second collision just after Michael had caught him.
“Yeah,” said Toddy. “I'm kind of surprised he didn't crack it or break his bones or something. I guess you didn't really feel it. After all, he was holding you.”
“I don't know if angels can get broken bones,” said Imorean, frowning. “Michael said a couple of days ago that angels are immortal and essentially indestructible.”
“Well, that would explain why he wasn't really hurt,” replied Roxy with a shrug.
“Come on. Let’s hurry,” said Imorean. “I'm getting colder by the minute.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Imorean was relieved to finally step into the hospital wing of the student health center with his friends. It wasn't much warmer in the stone building, but it was better than it was outside. Imorean wondered if Colton was in a better mood now. He hoped so. He stiffened as the others passed him by and he looked out into the darkness. He could have sworn he saw a flicker of movement out there. Something without shape or form ducking between shadowed trees. But the longer he stared out, the less movement he saw. His eyes must have been playing tricks on him.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Colton,” called Toddy as they all entered the hospital wing.
Imorean looked up at Colton's bed. The small boy was the only one left in the large room. He was sitting on his bed, facing away from them. His crimson wings were folded neatly behind him, clashing brilliantly with the stark, white bedsheets.
“Imorean, Toddy, Roxy, Mandy,” said Colton, turning. He sounded pleasantly surprised. “What are you all doing here?”
“We came to see you,” replied Imorean, folding his arms and smiling. “We wondered if you wanted company now. Are you feeling like coming back to the dorm tonight? We’ll be complaining about what’s been done to us. Should be a wild time.”
“You know what, yeah, that would be nice,” replied Colton, smiling and getting up off the bed.
“Baxter’s got his roommate back!” grinned Toddy. “I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you.”
“Good to see you back up on your feet, Colton,” said Roxy, beaming at the smaller boy.
“It's pretty good to be up,” replied Colton. He shuffled his small wings. “Though these put a bit of a damper on everything.”
“You'll get used to them,” said Toddy. “Maybe you'll even start to like them. I think I like mine. Being around other people makes them more bearable, too.”
“I doubt that very much,” replied Colton. “But for now I can deal with them until I find a way to get rid of them.”
Imorean waited for Colton to reach them before he turned and allowed Mandy to lead the way back down the hospital wing's stone steps.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Darkness lay heavy on them, dousing the world like a blanket. Imorean and his friends were walking under the yellow light of a lamp, past one of the campus's large expanses of grass, when Colton spoke.
“Did you go to the flying lesson tonight?”
“We did,” nodded Imorean, repressing a shudder.
“How was it? Is there actual muscle in these things or are they just vestigial? I still refuse to believe there are any supernatural goings on here. I think it's all science.”
“Oh, there's muscle in them all right,” replied Roxy, partially stretching out one of her own wings and smiling at it slightly.
“They are most definitely parts of our bodies,” said Toddy, silently beating his wings.
“I wonder how long they're going to keep us flying in the simulator,” Mandy said thoughtfully. Imorean was glad to see that her earlier suspicion about Bethany seemed to have vanished. As for his own though … he felt he needed to talk to Bethany and ask her why she had decided to bring a DenTech. It probably wasn’t a big deal, but he was still intrigued.
“Not too long, I hope,” replied Toddy. “I really want to try to fly the right way. I can't wait to test these things out properly.”
“Me too,” said Roxy, flaring her own wings.
“I don't,” said Imorean. “That unexpected flight this evening was more than enough for me. I'll stay ground bound.”
“Unexpected flight?” asked Colton.
“The fans shut down by accident while Imorean was having his turn in the simulator,” said Roxy.
“Oh no! Are you okay?” asked Colton.
“Yeah, yeah, I'm fine now. I don't know how much I like the simulator anymore though.”
“Don't be such a squid,” said Roxy, snorting and elbowing him gently. “You’ll be fine come next time.”
“I don't like heights and what happened in the simulator tonight was pretty scary, even though Michael managed to catch me,” said Imorean.
“There's nothing wrong with that,” said Mandy, smiling at him.
“I guess not,” shrugged Roxy.
Imorean though, wasn't listening to their conversation anymore. The ghost of a breath chilled the back of his neck. He stopped in his tracks. He heard something. It was something he had heard before and something that never failed to send chills down his spine. A gruesome, terrifying growl.
“Imorean, what's wrong?” asked Colton, sounding relaxed.
“Shh,” replied Imorean sharply, his brown eyes wide. He scanned the darkness. The snarl sounded somehow closer than it ever had before, as though a bridge had been crossed. Imorean breathed a sigh of gratitude as his friends fell silent. A loud, monstrous howl ripped through the night. It was like a wail of agony from another world and it was nearby. Perhaps only yards away. The strength was stolen from Imorean’s legs.
“What was that?” breathed Roxy. Fear was evident in her voice.
“You can hear it too?” asked Imorean. He saw Colton, Roxy, Toddy and Mandy look at one another
in fear.
“How could we not have?” replied Roxy.
“Imorean,” whimpered Toddy, sounding terrified.
Chapter 9
Imorean raised his gaze. Standing under one of the lamps that bordered the campus walkways was a massive, black dog. It must have been over six feet tall at the shoulder and was built like a mastiff. Its fur was black as pitch and writhing with parasites. Its jaws were open and dripping with something that looked disturbingly like blood. The eyes were vivid, glowing red, blazing with an otherworldly light. It felt as though the air had been knocked out of Imorean's lungs. The monster of his nightmares had become reality. It had to be … a Hellhound.
With a terrible snarl the beast raised its head slightly and locked eyes with Imorean. As it stepped forward, Imorean gagged on the overpowering smell of sulfur. The ground beneath the beast's paws was blackened and scorched. The creature opened its jaws wider and let loose a snarl that made Imorean's heart skip a beat. He wanted to run, he wanted to move, but he felt rooted to the spot. The hound took another step forward, claws digging into the soil. The shocked stillness in Imorean snapped. Prey instinct took over. He bolted, followed closely by Toddy, Roxy, Colton and Mandy.
Imorean was the fastest out of all of them, having had experience on both the track team and the cross-country team. Running was something he was good at. Running while he was scared however, was another matter entirely. Everything seemed slower, as though he couldn't move fast enough. He tripped and felt as though he was trying to run through concrete.
“Imorean!” screamed someone from behind him.
The white-winged boy skidded to a halt. Toddy raced past him, not pausing in his panicked escape. Mandy was just a few paces behind Toddy. Roxy came to a halt next to him, panting and scared, but still at his side. Imorean looked back. Colton had fallen. The smallest boy wailed as he scrambled backwards, away from the oncoming dog, unable to get back up to his feet.
“Imorean, don't!” shouted Roxy.
Imorean reacted before he thought, racing back toward the Hellhound and to his friend. The hound had slowed and was making its way to Colton. Imorean found himself vividly reminded of a cat playing with a mouse. The beast was deliberately taking its time. Stalking. Enjoying. Upon Imorean's approach, the dog swung its head up and seemed to smile, growling loudly as it did so.
'It's me. I’m the one he wants,' thought Imorean, his heart thundering in his chest. The dog of his nightmares had come to claim him. Imorean knew he could have kept running and left Colton to the hound’s mercy, but deep inside, he wouldn’t allow himself to do that.
“Come and get me!” shouted Imorean, hoping he didn’t sound as terrified as he felt. He changed direction, running parallel to the pathway, hoping to lead the dog away from Colton. His plan worked. There was a triumphant snarl from behind him. The dog did want him and from the sound of the thunderous footfalls behind him, the hound had given chase. It felt that the very ground beneath his feet was shaking. Imorean raced past one of the lecture halls, then came to a grinding halt. His escape was cut short. Gracepointe was surrounded on all sides by high, brick walls and he had just come nose to nose with the perimeter. He flattened himself against the brick and watched in motionless horror as the hound slowly rounded the corner of the lecture hall. There was no escape.
Imorean swallowed hard. The monster stalked slowly toward him and Imorean was struck by its size. It was the size of a carthorse and far more powerful. Predator. Muscle rippled beneath its matted fur. The massive jaws were open. It was ready to kill. Imorean could see teeth the size and sharpness of butcher knives. The stars in the night sky shone overhead. Up, up, up, up. It was his only chance. Imorean flared his brand-new wings and flapped downward. They flopped uselessly at his sides. He jumped, smacking them down again. Feet left the ground. He crashed heavily back down a second later.
“Come on!” he cried. Again, he tried, desperate to get away. One leg buckled painfully beneath him as he landed again. He screamed in terror as he collapsed on the grass. Helpless on the ground. This was how it ended then. The hunter had found its prey and it was going to take its time. There was a slavering grin on the creature’s face. Imorean knew it was enjoying itself. He felt sick. He was to be mauled to death by a giant Hellhound, far, far away from home. Would his funeral be closed or open casket? The hound reared up on its back legs, towering above Imorean, and opened its dripping jaws. Black claws glittered evilly under the yellow beams of the campus lamps. They were ready to shear flesh from bone. Imorean curled into a ball and covered his head, watching the hound from the corners of his eyes, unable to look away. Those evil teeth were bared and the monstrous eyes were narrowed. The kill was just seconds away. He closed his eyes and thought of his home. Of his mother. Of the world he would never see alive again. He would never have been able to say a proper goodbye. His funeral would definitely be closed casket. From the back of his mind, Imorean heard the voice that had haunted his dreams.
‘Fetch.’
Imorean flinched. Was the dog not here to kill him?
All of a sudden, there was a rush of cold air and a flash of nearly blinding, green light. Imorean found himself dazzled. Seconds later, there was a hideous yelp as though something had caused the dog pain.
“This is the second time I have had to come to your rescue this evening, Frayneson. I hope we are not making a habit of this.”
Imorean's heart lifted in relief. Michael. He uncovered his head to see the Chief Archangel standing between himself and the hound. The demon dog had backed down considerably. Blood was dripping from a deep gash on the hound’s nose.
“And just what do you think you are doing here? No matter. I shall deal with you,” growled Michael. Was he speaking to the dog? Imorean felt that he was.
Imorean watched in fascinated horror as Michael spread his wings and drew something from a long, tube-like structure at his side. Imorean's jaw dropped as Michael produced a massive sword that blazed briefly with a vibrant, green light. Imorean could have sworn he saw emerald flames lick up and down the blade.
Imorean expected to hear the sickening crunch of breaking bones as the hound lunged forward, snapping at Michael. But Michael was no longer there. He was hovering just above the hound, looking down at it with disgust. Then Michael's wings folded close to his sides and the Archangel dove. There was a strangled roar as Michael's sword struck the beast. Imorean looked up warily.
The hound was crouched down close to the ground, one of its sides bleeding profusely. Imorean thought he could see exposed bone beneath the heaving blood. The monster's jaws were open as it snarled at Michael who had returned to his original position between Imorean and the hound. The Archangel's face was impassive, as though he was completely detached from the situation.
Slowly, the demon dog clambered to its feet and stepped toward Michael again. The Archangel twirled the sword in his hand, playing with the instrument as though it weighed no more than a steak knife.
Imorean cringed away as a paw the size of his chest streaked toward Michael's head. The Archangel raised one hand, catching the beast's paw then ducked under the creature's reach. As soon as Michael stepped out of the hound's striking range, the beast locked its eyes back on Imorean. A savage, hungry growl accompanied by the beast lunging forward once again caused Imorean to press himself flush against the wall. He squeezed his eyes shut. This monster was determined to kill him.
There was a split second of silence as Imorean prepared for his impending doom, then a wail of terrible agony. Imorean slowly opened his eyes, but as soon as he did, he wished he hadn't. The sight of Michael snarling, one foot on the beast's head, and the bloody sword plunged through the back of creature's skull was not a particularly welcome one. Imorean could see the tip of Michael’s sword protruding from the bottom of the hound’s open jaws. Black blood was already pooling on the grass. A red tongue lolled out of the monster’s dead mouth. The reek of sulfur settled heavy on the air.
“Filthy creatu
re,” said Michael, withdrawing his sword and wiping it clean on the grass before replacing it in the scabbard at his side.
Imorean opened his mouth to speak, but instead pitched forward and vomited on the grass. There had been very little in his stomach to begin with and he dry heaved for a few moments. When he had reduced himself to coughing, Michael spoke up.
“You have a weak stomach. Are you finished?”
“I think so,” sighed Imorean, wiping his mouth and feeling stung by Michael’s lack of sympathy.
“Good.”
“Michael!” shouted Gabriel, diving out of the sky and landing lightly next to his brother.
“You are late, Brother. I have dealt with our little pest. Annoying, but easier to kill than I remember.”
“Thank heaven. You were right. The gates had been overridden,” said Gabriel, placing his own sword back into its scabbard. He seemed unsurprised to see the body of the Hellhound. “Imorean, are you all right?”
“Yeah,” panted Imorean. The feeling of Gabriel resting a hand on his shoulder was a welcome contact. He whimpered aloud as his entire body started to tremble. Imorean wiped his eyes as unbidden tears began to leak out.
“We have a security breach, Gabriel,” said Michael. Imorean looked up. There was something deadly serious about his tone.
“I know. We’ll find a way to deal with it. Tomorrow.”
“Good. Get the staff ready for a meeting. I shall allow Imorean’s friends to know he is all right. Take care of him. When he feels recovered, escort him back to the dormitory. Tell the staff there is a … sanitation hazard to be dealt with.”
“Yes, Brother,” replied Gabriel, crouching down on the ground next to Imorean.
Imorean looked up as he heard a flutter of wings and watched as Michael rose gracefully into the sky.
“Imorean, you’re in shock,” said Gabriel. “Do you think you can stand up?”
Imorean panted. “I think so.” A tremble ran through his body as the stench of sulfur entered his nostrils again.
Angels Soaring (Angels Rising Book 2) Page 7