Angel's Kiss

by Melanie Tomlin

  “Stop!” he commanded and the monsters disappeared. “What are you doing?”

  Danny’s face looked troubled. Is it because of the way he found me, or does he have bad news? I lay on the floor staring at nothing in particular, waiting to heal. He knelt down beside me and gripped my arms. Through his fingers a river of blood flowed and I realised it was taking longer to heal because he’d dismissed the monsters, permanently.

  “Bring them back,” I whispered. “I heal quicker when they’re here.”

  “I will not bring them back so you can allow them to tear you to shreds again,” Danny replied angrily.

  “I only did it to improve my tolerance for pain. When I discovered what ability you’d gifted them with, I knew each time it was over I’d be all right.”

  “What are you talking about?” he said.

  “The healing. If they hurt me, once it’s over I heal. You should have told me that’s what happens.”

  “You’re delirious. I can’t make you heal that way.”

  The bleeding was slowing and the wounds began to close. Danny let go of my arms and rolled up the sleeves of my jumper, which was soaked through with blood. He rubbed my arms, seeking the wounds and found none. He looked at me, astonished.

  “Helena… you can heal open wounds yourself now. You no longer need my blood.”

  He helped me into a sitting position.

  “You’ve lost a lot of blood though. You’ll probably feel weak for a time. You’ll definitely need to feed soon. Go and have a bath. Clean yourself up.”

  I leaned on Danny as we headed to the bathroom and held onto his arm for support as I climbed into the bath. I lay there, too weak to do anything. He gently soaped my body and washed the drying blood away.

  “I don’t think you need to practise anymore,” he said soothingly. “There’s nothing more for you to learn.”

  I didn’t argue. I felt drained — mind, body and soul. I’d pushed myself to my limits and exceeded them, with dire consequences.

  When my body was clean Danny helped me out of the bath. He dried me and wrapped me in a thick robe before carrying me back to the couch. He sat next to me and hugged me to him, kissing the top of my head.

  “What happened?” I asked.

  He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. I knew then that he was troubled. I’d noticed that he always went through those exact same motions when he was troubled.

  “My superior says he can do nothing for us.”

  I caressed his cheek with my hand and said, “Show me.”

  Danny lowered his head and gathered his thoughts. When he raised it the scene in front of me showed Michael with his back to Danny, though he seemed to know that Danny was there.

  “I knew you would come, Danizriel.” He sounded old, even for an angel. “You have always fought for lost causes. Some see that as a weakness. Not I. It is a worthy trait, this loyalty — this love — that you have.”

  Michael turned to face Danny, yet kept his distance. The same sorrow I’d seen when he talked about corrupted earth-bound angels was in his eyes. This would not be the light and easy conversation they had shared previously, when Danny had come to learn the truth.

  “All the archangels received Amrael’s final message. The evidence was quite damning, Danizriel.”

  Danny stood tall and straight, his feet apart and his hands clasped behind his back. I was reminded of something the preacher quoted often from the bible, on the righteous — Proverbs 20.7 The righteous walk in integrity — happy are the children who follow them!

  I felt a sudden sadness that there would be no children for us — we immortals — and mourned the babes we could have nurtured and loved had our lives been different. Childbirth would be one pain — the sweetest of all — I could not experience.

  “But I knew you would come to me nonetheless, to tell your side of the story, however bizarre and unlikely it may seem.”

  “Michael, I have no doubt that Amrael believed what he conveyed was the truth, yet it is far from it.”

  Michael shook his head sadly. “You haven’t even asked me what he showed us.”

  Danny’s eyes glazed over, as though he was reliving the events. “I was there, remember. I saw everything he saw, through my own eyes.”

  Tread carefully, Danny, I thought. Don’t alienate your only ally. What am I thinking? This isn’t a live telecast. It’s already come to pass. What’s done is done, no matter the outcome.

  “But you don’t know what message he sent with it.” Michael pressed.

  “I can guess,” Danny said dryly. “There was no love lost between us and he would not see reason.”

  I could hear the emotion creeping into his voice and his eyes and face reflected what I heard.

  Michael held up his hand for Danny to stop. “I would have you hear his message, so there can be no misunderstanding.”

  Michael’s eyes changed colour and when he spoke, it was in Amrael’s voice.

  “The angel Danizriel has turned traitor and is harbouring an abomination — an earth-bound angel corrupted by a vampire. They are in league with other vampires, rallying them for their foul purpose and have trapped me, to die. Avenge me my brothers, and send them straight to hell.”

  Michael lowered his head. When he raised it again his eyes had returned to their natural colour and his voice was once again his own.

  “The armies of the archangels have been sent and they will scorch the very earth with angel fire in their quest to destroy the one you would protect, and those that would follow her.”

  “Helena is not evil. She is not corrupted.” He pointed at Michael, beseeching him to believe. “You yourself told me it only takes a matter of days. She has been changed for weeks and has not hurt or killed one mortal, though she’s had plenty of opportunity. She has fought and killed vampires and is exceptional at it. She refused to leave me to save herself and was fighting her way to save Amrael, as I would not leave him behind.”

  “Be that as it may there is nothing I can do,” Michael said.

  “I have felt her soul, Michael, and it is pure.”

  Michael sighed. “I cannot help you, Danizriel. I am but one amongst many.”

  “They will listen to you, Michael. You who cast out Satan.”

  Danny had faith in Michael that not even Michael himself seemed to have. He looked to me like an old and broken man. One who had seen too many wars and too many campaigns, too much blood and too much death. He was tired.

  “Times are changing, Danizriel. A new order is coming to the fore, though I doubt it is for the better.”

  “Michael, do not make me beg,” Danny said.

  “You would beg for your life?” Michael asked.

  Danny shook his head. “I would beg for her life.”

  “Danizriel, I cannot stop the other archangels and their armies, but neither I nor my army will help them. This is one fight,” he sounded angry now, “we will turn our backs on.” He sighed. “That is the best I can do for you.”

  “I am grateful for that, Michael. At least there is hope, now you know the truth.”

  “There is always hope, Danizriel, although I think more angels will fall before this is done.”

  Michael walked over to Danny and clasped his shoulders — a father advising a son and wishing him well.

  “Go in peace, Danizriel. Do not attempt to contact me again, for I shall not be able to protect you. Do not allow them to cast you out.” Michael shook Danny by the shoulders. “Do you understand?”

  Danny nodded and raised his hands to clasp Michael’s arms in a gesture that spoke much of the respect and gratitude he had for him.

  “Thank you, Michael, for hearing me out. How different things would be if there were more angels like you.”

  They hugged and clapped each other on the back before Michael turned and walked away, leaving Danny to ponder our fates.

  “What did he mean, don’t allow them to cast you out?” I asked. It sounded ominous.

&nb
sp; “The fate that awaits an angel that has been branded a traitor is to be cast out of heaven, to become a demon.”

  I shook my head. “No, they can’t do that,” I whispered. “Why would they do that? You’re no traitor, your superior knows that.”

  “He has been overruled in this matter,” he replied. “There is another option available to me though.”

  Hope, there was always hope!

  “Tell me,” I said, “Don’t keep me in suspense. How can we save you?”

  “You can save me by killing me, when the time comes.”

  I shrank away from him, horrified by what he was asking me to do. I could not do it, no more than I could end my own life. It would make me no better than them. It would make me evil — a self-fulfilling prophecy. Corrupted at last.

  Danny reached for my hands and I pulled away, shaking my head from side to side. “You can’t ask me to do that!”

  He sighed. “Then I shall have to find another way.”

  He reached for my hands again and this time I allowed him to take them.

  “Please understand I cannot allow myself to be cast out. I cannot become a demon.”

  The conversation was depressing and it upset me greatly.

  “At least you wouldn’t be gone,” I sobbed. “I could still be with you.”

  “Helena, that’s not how it works. As a demon I would try to kill you. As an ex-angel who dispatched many of their numbers, and was responsible for countless more demon deaths, I would be hunted down and captured. They’d take me to the underworld to be tortured for eternity. Torn to shreds, put back together and torn to shreds again. Is that a fate you would have for me?”

  “No, Danny, you know that. Why did your superior give us false hope?” I moaned.

  “I don’t think he did, “Danny replied. “Do not despair. Trust in Him, above all others.”

  I wanted to tell Danny how unfair his God was — this God that allowed disease, famine and war, and good angels to die — but knew he would not listen. He was God's soldier. No matter what claim I lay to him, God was the reason he existed.

  “Rest now,” he said. “At first light we’ll do something about getting you some food.”

  23. All Out War

  I woke with a headache, still on the couch and in Danny’s arms. I hadn’t had a headache like this since before I was changed. It was one of the many punishments my body was inflicting on me for pushing it too far.

  “You need to hunt,” Danny said. “You can’t afford to be weak now. I’ll come with you. There is safety in numbers, even if it is only the two of us.”

  “Won’t the angels sense you — sense us?” I asked.

  “Not if you’re quick.” He had something in mind. I could see it in his eyes. “Remember the other day, how you recreated the lights?”

  I nodded. Danny had given me a good dressing-down and I wasn’t in a hurry to continue with experimentation in that area.

  “How long do you think you can sustain the lights?”

  “You told me it was dangerous to want to stay,” I protested.

  “I don’t intend us to stay. I only intend that we remain long enough for you to feed. We can’t go to the ranch. It’s too risky. We can’t bring them back here.”

  I sat up on the couch, the effort enormous.

  “Yes,” I said. “I see what you’re getting at. If I use three points of contact we only need to remain in the lights for a minute at most.”

  “If the angels have descended everyone will be far too occupied to notice a few missing vampires. More than likely the vampires will think that the angels destroyed them. In a way they’ll be right.”

  Another thought occurred to me. “Danny, if I kill a vamp in the lights, can I let go? Will it be really dead?”

  “At this point it doesn’t matter. It will only return to its point of origin. However, I think once they’re gone — truly dead — there’s no coming back, regardless of where the act takes place.”

  “You’ll need to keep hold of me though, Danny,” I cautioned him. “The same rules probably apply to you if I’m transporting us. I’ll not lose you to the lights.”

  He laughed and I felt a glimmer of hope. “Then choose your wardrobe carefully and provide me with plenty of skin to hold onto.”

  Shorts, a crop top and hiking boots — that was the wardrobe I chose. Danny strapped the knife to my left arm and helped me put on my lucky charm.

  “You know what would be really cool?” I said.

  “No, what?”

  “Shades.”

  “Shades?” Danny appeared perplexed by my statement. “What do you need shade for?”

  “Okay, maybe you’re not up to speed with mortal names for some things. Does the word sunglasses mean anything to you?”

  Danny nodded. Two pairs of the coolest most expensive shades appeared in his hands. One pair he handed to me and the other he put on. The change it made to his face was amazing. It screamed out don’t mess with me!

  I put mine on and didn’t notice any difference. The sun was still as bright as ever. Danny saw me frowning and lifting the sunglasses up, looking at the sun, then dropping them back in place. He laughed and shook his head.

  “What’s so funny?” I asked.

  “You appear to be under the misapprehension that sunglasses will make a difference to the amount of light that gets through. Have you forgotten that your eyes will automatically adjust to any situation, to let in the maximum amount of light? These,” he took off his pair and held them up, “are purely for decoration. An unnecessary extravagance. You seem to like them though, so we’ll wear them.”

  He chuckled and put his sunglasses back on. I thought how seriously bad he could look if he had the right wardrobe. Maybe one day I’d play dress-up with him, if he was willing. A smile flitted across my face.

  “Are you ready?” he asked.

  I held out my hand and he took it in his. “Where are we going? What’s my target?”

  “The edge of the corridor on my side of the border. Do you know where that is?”

  “Yeah, I remember it from when I studied the map of your territory. The border probably doesn’t matter so much anymore.”

  “If you have any doubts or concerns about being able to grab your prey, or feel it’s too risky, bring us back here straight away. You don’t have to impress anyone. We can always try again in a different location.”

  I rolled my eyes, and my head ached. “Yes, sir!”

  “Don’t get cheeky with me, Helena. I’m old enough to be your great, great, great, great… well, let’s just say I’m really old and you should respect your elders,” he chuckled.

  “Yeah, but you don’t look old. Not much older than me, anyway.”

  He squeezed my hand, indicating it was time to go. When we arrived at the outskirts of the corridor a fierce battle was raging, both on the ground and in the treetops. Danny let go of my hand and I darted in to grab a vampire. As I placed the vamp in a headlock Danny grabbed my elbow.

  “Out of here now, into the lights,” he said.

  We stood there, the three of us, suspended in time and travelling nowhere. My hand closed around the vamp’s cheek, my lips found his neck and my other hand found his arm. In less than a minute it was over. I let the body drop and it disappeared.

  Danny was still holding my elbow. “How do you feel?”

  “A bit better. My headache is gone.”

  “Let’s go,” he said, “This time to the other end of the corridor. Just picture it in the north instead of the south.”

  We performed five more raids — in different areas, some far away from the corridor — before I felt I was at my peak again. I was buzzing once more and keen to get involved in the fighting, but for which side? I didn’t know anymore.

  “I want to see what’s happening,” Danny said. He held out his hand. “I’ll lead. Don’t let go, whatever you do.”

  “Okay,” I said as I clasped his hand.

  We ran to enter the lig
hts and at the other end we found ourselves in the treetops, about a kilometre west of the corridor. Danny didn’t seem worried that they would see us or sense us. They were probably too occupied with their individual battles to worry about us for the present. I knew that wouldn’t last. When the angels had finished with the vampires, no matter their numbers, they’d come looking for us.

  “Sit down,” he whispered. “We can’t stay long, only a few minutes. Any longer and we’ll be detected.”

  “You make it sound like we’re invisible,” I laughed.

  “Shh,” he said. “They may not be able to see us, but they can hear us.”

  “You mean we are invisible?” I mumbled.

  “It’s a skill I’ve worked on for the last six centuries. I only stumbled across it when I couldn’t see my reflection in a window one day. One moment I was there, the next I was gone. When I blinked I was there again. I knew I hadn’t actually gone anywhere. It was a puzzle for a while. I can only make it work for a few minutes and I won’t be able to try again for a day or so. It’ll sap most of my strength. You’ll need to take us back to the cottage. I won’t have the strength to manage it.”

  Danny was virtually telling me that our lives would be in my hands. He wouldn’t be able to help me or provide any guidance at all. Was it really worth all the effort just to find out about a petty fight between angels and vampires?

  “Look over there,” he said, pointing to an area outside of the corridor.

  A large pack of werewolves, eighteen in total, were running to join the fight against the angels. Closer to us I could hear howling. Another pack of wolves were on the way, and they were rallying more of their kind. The one thing that appeared to unite monsters of all kinds was their mutual hatred of angels and their need to destroy them. I could almost taste the loathing in the air.

  “Will their numbers make much of a difference?” I asked.

  “Three or more mature werewolves can take an angel down. Unlike vampires they can’t kill an angel by draining it dry. They have to eat the angel, bones and all. The reason I think they need three is because the angel can still use angel fire when it’s being taken down — it’s a weapon that doesn’t give up until the angel is dead.”