“Really?”
“Well, yes. We prefer the human shapes we’re in right now, but an angel can appear as any creature.”
“Let me guess, you can travel in time too?” said Imorean, shaking his head.
“We can, but it's not recommended. There’s too much danger of upsetting future events or disrupting the time-space continuum.”
Imorean laughed. “I was joking.”
“Oh … surprise.”
Imorean was glad that they were no great distance from the gym and it only took a few minutes to walk back to the building. From outside, he could hear the loud fans powering the simulator. He swallowed hard.
“You know what,” said Gabriel. “I'll come and watch this. I want to see if there's anything I can pick up for my songbirds.”
Imorean felt oddly comforted by Gabriel staying. “Is it me or does Michael push the raptors the hardest out of all the classes?”
“He does, but that's just because you are the strongest class, and he expects you all to be tougher than the others.”
“Lovely,” huffed Imorean, nodding at Gabriel as the Archangel held the gym's door open for him.
“Good luck,” said Gabriel, lengthening his strides and marching across the gym to stand next to his older brother next to the simulator.
Imorean followed behind him a bit more slowly. Despite the fact that they were almost identical, there was such a vast difference between Gabriel and his older brother that they hardly seemed like twins at all. Gabriel was so kind, so nearly human, while Michael showed that he had no interest in seeming as though he were any of those things. Gabriel was able to put Imorean at far more ease than Michael was. All Michael succeeded in doing was worrying him more.
“What did he want?” asked Toddy when Imorean stopped next to him.
“Seemed like he just wanted to talk. I don't understand these angels. Not at all.”
“Hey, man, that makes two of us. I'm just trying to go with the flow right now. I don't want to upset anyone.”
“Yeah,” replied Imorean, glancing quickly at Michael. “I know what you mean.”
“First flier,” called Michael.
Imorean sat down on the hard, wooden floor as Bethany trotted quickly out of the group and up to the entrance to the simulator. The raptors were the biggest class and as Imorean liked to go into the simulator last or next to last, he knew he would have a long wait before the end of practice.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Frayneson.”
Imorean looked up at the use of his name. Michael was standing at the top of the stairs, waiting for him to climb them. Imorean glanced around. He, Toddy, Michael and Gabriel were the only four left in the gymnasium. All the other students must have dispersed either to the dining hall, their dorms or other classes. Imorean couldn't help but feel a pang of hurt that Bethany hadn't said goodbye. He had grown so used to the little things.
Stiffly, Imorean stood up. Nervousness was starting to spark in him now. He really, really, really didn't want to go back in the simulator. The white-winged teenager glanced hesitantly at Michael, silently pleading not to go back into the wind tunnel.
“I am waiting,” said Michael, inclining his head slightly.
Imorean nodded. He couldn't fight the rising feeling of resignation that rose in his throat. He and his friends were at the complete mercy of the angels. The white-haired teenager hurried his steps as he walked toward the indoor skydiving simulator. Michael seemed to be impatient.
“Relax,” said Gabriel with a smile as Imorean reached the top step.
Imorean nodded at the Archangel, glad of his small word of encouragement. He picked up a pair of goggles and stood at the doorway to the simulator. His heart thudded in his chest. He couldn't convince himself to walk onward. He was scared.
“I do not have all day, Frayneson,” huffed Michael, jerking Imorean back to his senses.
“Sorry,” sighed Imorean, sweeping the goggles over his head and swallowing hard. He hoped that his heart would stop pounding quite so hard in a few minutes.
As soon as Imorean stepped into the wind tunnel and allowed the winds to lift him, he froze. Fear paralyzed him. His chest constricted and he couldn't move.
“Imorean,” called Gabriel, somehow easily audible over the sound of the rushing winds. “Are you all right?”
Imorean tried to reply, but his voice came out in a thin whimper. He couldn't do this.
“Spread out your wings, Frayneson,” snapped Michael.
Imorean didn’t move. He couldn’t move.
“Now, Frayneson! That is an order.”
Imorean squeezed his eyes tight shut. This was too much to ask of him. The teenager took a deep breath and calmed his racing mind just enough to navigate back to the wind tunnel's door.
His arms shook as he pulled himself out of the opening. Once he was out of the artificial winds and back on solid ground, Imorean crumpled to his knees. All he could hear was his heart thundering. He ripped the goggles off his head and looked at the gym floor. Michael was surely furious with him. Silence.
“Mr. Davis, if you would wait outside, please,” said Michael from somewhere nearby, breaking the quiet. Imorean looked up.
Toddy hesitated.
Michael’s quiet voice was more threatening than his shouts. “Leave now, Davis.”
“Yes, sir.”
Imorean dropped his gaze back to the floor as Toddy fled. He heard one of the doors to the gymnasium close with a bang. The silence in the gym was now deafening and Imorean was certain that his heartbeat was audible to both Archangels around him.
“Insubordination does not rest well with me, Mr. Frayneson,” said Michael, breaking the tension. “Why did you not do as I ordered you?”
“I was afraid,” said Imorean quietly, raising his gaze slowly to look up at Michael.
Michael’s jade eyes narrowed. “This is a controlled environment. Fear is not to be heeded here.”
Imorean could hear the anger in the Archangel's voice. Michael's expression darkened. “Get back in the simulator and obey the orders I give you. If you do not, I will make you.”
“I can’t,” whispered Imorean.
“Get back in the simulator,” snarled Michael. His voice was lowered in fury.
“I can’t.” Imorean looked up at Michael. There was no emotion in those pale eyes. Imorean had no time to react, before Michael launched forward and grabbed hold of the front of his shirt, hauling him to his feet and pulling him so close that they were nose to nose.
“Cannot or will not?” Michael’s voice was low and dangerous. “Are you truly that much of a coward?”
“I can’t and I won’t,” hissed Imorean, his cheeks burning in embarrassment as Michael exploited one of his biggest fears.
“Get. Back. In. The. Simulator. Do as I say.”
“No.”
Imorean met Michael’s gaze fiercely. He would not be pushed around by the Archangel. Suddenly, Michael dropped him and Imorean stumbled, landing hard on his rear. There was a strange hum in the air and Michael’s wings were unfurling menacingly. Imorean wondered quickly if the Archangel really would force him to do as he had commanded. There was a horrible pressure in the air, as though they were inside a bubble that was ready to burst. Suddenly, Imorean found himself forced to look at the simulator. He gritted his teeth as, against his will, he started to stand.
“Michael, stop,” snapped Gabriel, crouching next to Imorean and resting a hand on his shoulder. Immediately, the pressure in the air vanished and Imorean felt his body to be his own once more. He blinked hard a few times and shook his head, feeling oddly displaced.
Imorean looked at the younger Archangel and furrowed his brow, wondering what he was doing. The man's hazel eyes met Imorean's brown ones for a moment, then Gabriel looked back at his older brother.
“Phobias are not a kind of fear that we, as angels, know well, but for some of these humans these heightened fears are ingrained into their very being. They can't co
ntrol them. Imorean isn’t a coward, he’s just afraid.”
“He is half angel.”
“His angelic nature won’t override fear. You expect too much.”
“He should not be afraid of getting in the simulator,” said Michael, folding his arms and flaring his wings again.
“The fans failed on him while he was at the top of the structure. Of course he's afraid. Imorean, that's correct, isn't it?”
“Yes, sir.” Imorean wished that the ground would swallow him. It would spare him the heat of Michael's anger and the embarrassment of having Gabriel defend him. He would rather stand nose to nose with Michael for an eternity than have Gabriel protect him. He felt childish and helpless.
“You said you didn't want to go into the simulator again, didn't you?” The question sounded almost rhetorical.
“That's right,” replied Imorean, feeling very small under Michael's angry glare.
“I do not –” began Michael.
“Then we won't force you,” said Gabriel, interrupting his older brother. “Michael, allow me to oversee Imorean's flight training for the next few weeks.”
“Add him to your songbird class?” asked Michael, sounded deeply offended. “He would never get the strength and conditioning he needs. He would be a liability as opposed to an asset.”
Gabriel shook his head. “I didn't mean add him to the songbird class. I meant I would work with him myself. Don't forget, big brother, I'm a raptor as well. I am only a coach to the songbirds.”
Imorean took a nervous glance at Michael and saw that the Archangel was frowning slightly, as though considering his younger brother's words.
“I suppose I do not see a problem with this arrangement, provided he is as ready to fly as the rest of the hybrids by October thirty-first.”
“And he will be. This will keep the two of you from ripping each other to shreds as well.”
Michael began to turn away. “If you insist.”
“Michael,” said Gabriel, his voice low.
“Yes, brother?”
“You dare to exert your power over a student like that ever again, and you’ll face me.”
Michael nodded stiffly, his wings flaring and eyes flashing in irritation. “Noted. Little brother.”
Imorean sighed heavily as Michael turned on his heel and exited the gym.
“So, what just happened?” asked Imorean, rising shakily to his feet.
“I have just taken over your flight training,” replied Gabriel, smiling slightly. “It should save you and Michael both a lot of aggravation.”
“You're not going to shove me back into the simulator, are you?” asked Imorean, furrowing his brow.
“No. I can see you're uncomfortable in there. If you're so scared that you freeze up you'll never learn to fly.”
“Do I have to learn to fly?”
“You do indeed.”
Imorean sighed and nodded his head slowly.
“Okay. When do we start?”
“Tomorrow morning,” replied Gabriel, his smile widening “Meet me at around six on the sports fields.”
“The – the sports fields? Not in here?”
“No. The sports fields.”
“All right.”
“Go and have the rest of your day, Imorean. I'm going to go and smooth things over with Michael. I don't want him to be upset with you, and him in a bad mood doesn’t bode well for any of us.”
“I think you're a little late for cheering him up, sir. Why is he like that?”
“He never made any effort to understand human emotions. Fear is not something that angels instinctively understand. We feel it, yet we do not understand it in the same way as humans.”
“I see,” nodded Imorean. He ran a hand through his hair and pressed hard on the side of his head. “Why does he hate me so much?”
“Because at your cores, you are very similar. Don’t look so horrified, Imorean. It should be a compliment. Go on now. I'm sure your friends are waiting for you.”
“Yes, sir.”
The white-haired teenager made his way across the gym slowly. The ‘compliment’ that Gabriel had given him didn’t feel much like a compliment. As far as Imorean was concerned, there was no one in this world that he would rather be less like. He also didn't know how to feel about Gabriel taking over his training. The younger Archangel was certainly easier to get along with, but Imorean now felt somehow separated from his fellow raptors. For a moment, Imorean quirked a small, humorless smile. Fellow raptors. How easily he was rolling over and taking in all that these angels said. Then again, Imorean knew he didn't have very much say in what they decided. This was their world, not his.
“What was that all about?” asked a voice, jerking Imorean back to his senses.
“Roxy,” said Imorean, looking up. She was leaning on the gymnasium's wall, looking at him in concern. Toddy, Mandy and Colton were with her.
“We saw Michael come out here looking furious. Who peed in his cereal?” asked Toddy, frowning.
“I guess Gabriel did. He’s just taken over my training.”
“What? Why?” asked Roxy, furrowing her brow and adjusting her rainbow wings nervously.
“I can't fly in the simulator, Roxy. I just freeze up and Michael's furious that I can't do things his way. Gabriel told Michael he'd take charge of teaching me to fly.”
“That's good, isn't it?” asked Mandy. “I mean, you and Gabriel certainly get along better than you and Michael.”
“Yeah. I guess it's good. I'll probably be a bit more comfortable now.”
“Are you guys hungry?” asked Toddy.
“No, thanks,” said Imorean, shaking his head. He probably should eat something, but he didn't have very much of an appetite.
“I am,” said Mandy. “I'll come with you, Toddy.”
“I’ll come, too,” nodded Colton.
“I'm not really. Do you want to go for a walk, Imorean?” asked Roxy, pushing some of her dark hair over her shoulders.
“Sure,” nodded Imorean. “We'll catch up with y'all later.”
“See ya,” called Toddy over one shoulder.
Imorean fell into step next to Roxy and looked upward. Through the boughs of the shedding trees, the sky was deep blue, dotted with a few white clouds. Could Gabriel and Michael really expect him to simply forget his fear of heights and take to the skies?
“Your mom is worried about you,” said Roxy as they walked. “She emailed me today saying that you haven't been returning her emails or picking up for her video calls.”
“Well … she’s not wrong,” shrugged Imorean guiltily. “I want to, Roxy, I really do, but what would I email her about now? Not classes, because we're not taking normal classes anymore. We're taking Angelic History, Weather Patterns, Ornithology and other ridiculous classes like that. Tomorrow we're being shown how to fight hand-to-hand with demons. I can't tell her about that, can I? She'd think I'd gone mad. Video calling? With these things on my back? They're hardly unnoticeable, Roxy.”
“I'm just thinking she misses you, Imorean. You and your mom are close. I don't think you really want to lose that.”
“Of course I don't. I just don't quite know how to approach the subject that I am now a human-angel hybrid. I think that would stir a few questions, don't you? It’s not going to be a simple ‘by the way’ kind of a moment.”
“Maybe you should wait to show her the wings in person before you tell her what's been going on.”
“So, you're saying I should wait until we get home to contact her again?”
“No, you dummy. I'm saying you should talk to her about trivial things, then when you get home, address the elephant in the room.”
“I guess you're right,” said Imorean with a sigh. He wanted to tell his mother all that had been going on. He really did, but he didn't know how she would react, or, for that matter, how Michael would react. As far as Imorean knew, none of the students' families knew about what had been done to them.
“Come on,” said
Roxy, smiling and clapping him on the back. “Let's get on with our walk. Do something normal for a change.”
“Sounds like a plan,” replied Imorean, offering Roxy a small smile.
Chapter 13
When Imorean woke up it was just getting light outside, a yellow dawn turning the college pale. The days were getting colder and shorter. There was a definite, bitter bite to the air now. Winter was on its way. Imorean couldn't help but feel rather surprised by the weather. It was so far removed from the climate he was used to. He wished he still had his warmest clothes, but he and Toddy had submitted all of their old shirts and jackets to the staff for altering. It would be nice to wear his own clothes again, rather than constantly wearing the Gracepointe uniform. Unfortunately though, for the next few days, the uniform was all he had.
After he had finished getting dressed, Imorean made his way out of the dormitory and headed toward the sports fields. He wondered why it was so imperative that Gabriel have him up at such an hour. As he walked, Imorean wrapped his wings around his shoulders, glad of their warmth. He found he was starting to appreciate these strange structures more than he cared to admit. The first time and only time he had held a hover with them in the simulator, he had really felt the power and strength in them.
“Imorean,” called Gabriel.
Imorean looked up. The Archangel was standing at the far end of the track field, his tawny and emerald wings outstretched. Imorean lengthened his steps slightly, but stopped when Gabriel beat his wings downward and rose up off the ground. Imorean's mouth opened. He had seen Michael in flight once, but that night he had been too afraid to appreciate the splendor of the Archangel's movement. Now though, he could really see the power behind the wings. Imorean felt transfixed as Gabriel's wings carried him just a little higher into the sky. The Archangel circled once, then flew toward him.
Imorean shook his head. Gabriel was perfectly balanced in the air. His body poised like a bird's and his wings tilted every now and again to adjust for the air currents of early morning. Then Gabriel shifted his wings and landed lightly just feet from Imorean.
“Good to see you up bright and early,” said the Archangel, smiling.
Angels Soaring (Angels Rising Book 2) Page 10