Angeldust

by Peach, Hanna

  “Most of my men are on the other side of that Gate,” Balthazar said. He shimmered in and out of sight using his mirage magic as he fought off his own warriors. “I thought it’d be more fun on this side.”

  Balthazar kicked the warrior off the end of his sword with a satisfied grin. His eyes found Cleo over Jordan’s shoulder. They had been fighting back-to-back with each other. “Hello. And who is this lovely creature?”

  Jordan growled as he moved to shield her with his body. “No one you need to acquaint yourself with.”

  “Well, well, well, the infamous Jordan Bonaven finally settling down, hey? I approve.” As Balthazar spoke, he defended himself against an attacker with one hand, making it seem so easy. Balthazar cursed suddenly. He gave one final slice at his attacker and began to shove his way down the slope of the valley.

  “Where’re you going?” Jordan called out over the clash of swords.

  Using his sword Balthazar pointed to the swirling black cloud over the side of the mountain that was growing in thickness, swirling like a satanic vortex. “The Gate is opening.”

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  As Michael raised his sword, Alyx’s scream vibrated through Israel, causing rage to flood through him. Using his magic, he picked up one of the large ceremonial vases that were dotted around the place and flung it as hard as he could at Michael. The vase smashed across his back.

  Michael hissed at Israel over his shoulder. Alyx’s scream faded.

  That’s it, attack me, not her. Israel picked up another ceremonial vase and threw it at Michael. Michael turned fully towards him, magic sparking from his palms. The second vase shattered midair in a smash before it got near him. Michael laughed.

  Alyx began crawling towards her fallen sword, the metal winking in the candlelight like a spark of hope. Come on, angel, he urged her. Almost there.

  Israel picked up two vases this time, one that Michael could see and one from behind him. Israel threw both at once. Michael smashed the vase in front of him with a flick of his magic, but the vase thrown from behind shattered over his head. Michael roared, wiping ceramic pieces from his shoulder, glaring at Israel. How many vases were left around the room?

  Using magic, Michael threw his dagger at him. Israel pushed out his magic and the dagger deflected, whirling past his head. Michael missed.

  Michael grinned. “Try to aim without the use of your eyes!”

  Michael didn’t miss. The direct throw was a fake attack. There was a glint of metal in the corner of his eye as the dagger curved around from the back of the cross. Israel squeezed his eyes shut and screamed as a fiery pain sliced across both of his eyes. Warm wetness soaked down his cheeks like sticky tears. In a panic he tried to open his eyes but he couldn’t. Everything remained black and red with pain.

  He was blind.

  Alyx screamed again and her voice was filled with pain. He knew Michael was hurting her. She was suffering. His pain suddenly became irrelevant.

  What was going on? He was pinned under this thick veil of darkness. He couldn’t see.

  But Alyx could. He dipped into Alyx’s head and her vision opened up in front of him. So did the pain blossoming across her body. The same dagger that had cut his eyes was now sticking out of her stomach. Michael was advancing on her again, his fingertips crackling with sparks.

  He felt her grab the sticky handle of the blade with shaking hands. She braced herself then pulled it out, crying out as she did so. Her stomach tingled as her body began to try and heal itself. Alyx pointed the dagger at Michael as she shuffled back away from him. Israel’s heart swelled when he felt the defiance in her. She wasn’t going to give up. That’s my girl.

  Israel felt tiny fingers at his side, pulling his attention back into his body. “Israel, it’s me.” Israel recognized Sparrow’s voice, stuttering with fear and determination.

  “Sparrow, what are you doing here?”

  “I’m going to get you out of here this time.” Sparrow was trying to untie his ropes. His fingers were shaking, making the task difficult.

  “Stupid girl.” Michael’s voice boomed across to him, pulling his attention back into Alyx’s body. “You really think that pathetic piece of steel is a match for my magic?”

  Israel felt Alyx being slammed down as if a great force were crushing her to the ground. Her arm holding the dagger was pressed down too, rendering her weapon useless. He could hear her gasping as the air was pushed out of her lungs, and he felt pain flare as her ribs cracked one by one under the pressure. Michael was going to crush her. He had to do something. Anything…

  An idea struck him. He had only one chance to make this work. But he needed Sparrow to help. “Sparrow,” he whispered down to the boy at his side, “throw your magic out in front of me.”

  Sparrow’s voice trembled violently. “No. I can’t.”

  “Sparrow, please. Throw out as much as you can.”

  “I can’t control it. What if I hit you?”

  “You won’t. I trust you.”

  Under the darkness of Israel’s useless eyes, he felt as if everything grew still. Then he heard Sparrow’s voice, “Okay.”

  Israel went into Alyx’s mind. As Michael towered over her, his magic crushing her, Alyx began to bleed inside as her body broke from the pressure.

  “Do it now,” Israel yelled.

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  I trust you.

  Sparrow stared up at Israel. Even as this man stood tied to a cross and blinded, he trusted Sparrow.

  All his life, people had tried to get him to trust them, coaxing him, bribing him, telling him words they knew he might want to hear, making him do things for them. But no one had ever had enough faith in him to trust him.

  Except Israel. Israel believed in him.

  Sparrow would not fail.

  Sparrow held out both palms to the space in front of Israel. He let go of all the restraint around his heart, he dropped the wall that guarded all his true emotions, he released all of his attempts at holding back this magic that had been building up in him for months now. It burst from him, a great raging, uncontrollable force swirling out of him, reaching a fervor as he squeezed his eyes shut and screamed his heart and soul into his hands.

  * * *

  Through Alyx’s widening eyes, Israel saw the black magic swirling out in front of his cross. She didn’t know where it had come from. But he did.

  Israel pushed out his own magic, gathering Sparrow’s thick power in it like a hurricane gathering leaves from the trees, gathering it into one focused mass. Now was the tricky part. He had to aim, using Alyx’s eyes, but pushing out from his body.

  I’m sorry, Israel. Alyx’s voice, so soft as if she were already a ghost, floated into his mind. I can’t stop him.

  You can’t. But we can.

  Israel threw all of Sparrow’s GiftKeeper magic at Michael. Through Alyx’s eyes he saw the thick mass of power slam into Michael, soaking into him like a dark wine soaks into a sponge. Michael jolted and Israel felt the force on Alyx releasing. Sparrow’s GiftKeeper magic slid down Michael’s body and into the rocky ground, taking with it all of Michael’s stolen magic. Israel felt Alyx’s body release completely from the magic holding her down and heard her intake of breath.

  Michael stared at his hands. No more magic flowed out from them. It had worked. “My…my magic. What…?”

  Stronger together, he heard Alyx say in his mind.

  Invincible together, he replied.

  With a violent burst of energy, he felt Alyx launch from her spot. She flew towards Michael, her momentum knocking them both back towards the middle of the room, her dagger burying deep into his heart.

  Israel felt Alyx let go of Michael as he staggered back, staring at the dagger protruding from his chest, then up at her. She collapsed to her knees as the burst of energy drained from her. Michael tripped on the piece of torn carpet around the dome. He fell back and died on the very Gate he was trying to open.

  * * *

  J
ordan wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. He felt sticky blood smear across his forehead. His right arm was starting to show signs of fatigue from fighting with his sword and his magic was drained. The only thing keeping him going was Cleo’s presence behind him. The air was filled with the rank stench of blood and spilled intestines. The clanging of swords around him was so loud, like mismatched bells. Across the valley and the mountains, the desert sand and patches of grass turned a sticky dark brown.

  The last of the Seraphim from the three cities poured into the battle. The two sides were almost evenly matched now, the black against the white.

  “Jordan,” Cleo cried, her voice breathy with exertion. “We can’t win.”

  “We can. We’re evenly matched now.”

  “That’s not what I mean.”

  Cleo let out a cry causing Jordan to turn his head. She was on her knees, a bright angry gash across her right arm, her sword lost to the earth somewhere. A Seraphim in black was towering over her, ready to cut her down with his sword.

  Jordan unsheathed a dagger and threw it at her attacker. It struck him dead in his heart. He ran to her and held out a hand. She grabbed it and he helped her up. Their eyes locked. For a second the battle faded around them. She smiled and it filled his chest with warmth. How strange that he could find a heartbeat of happiness among all this bloodshed.

  “Thanks.” She pulled her hand away to draw another sword and the moment was broken. They both turned back-to-back again to clash with oncoming attackers.

  “We can win,” Jordan said. “We just have to keep fighting until Alyx defeats Michael and stops the Gate from being open.”

  “And when she succeeds…how does she stop all of us from killing each other?”

  A cold realization fell upon Jordan like a shroud. The two armies were evenly matched now. They would both just keep killing each other until there was no one left.

  No one would win.

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  We won, Alyx thought as she dropped the dagger, now with Michael’s blood on it. She swayed on her knees. She let her torso slump forward to the floor and her forehead fall onto the carpet, as if she were praying. Her body ached when she moved. She thought she might like to stay like this forever.

  “Alyx,” yelled Sparrow. “The Gate!”

  Alyx’s head snapped up. Israel’s blood had oozed around the engraving in the floor and now the two ends had met, completing the circle. An eerie light shone around the edge of the Gate as if it were a light slipping through the crack under a door.

  The ground began to shake. The lanterns hanging from the ceiling began to rattle like bones. Pieces of grit and rock fell from the mosque ceiling and the air immediately smelled dusty. Hot air exploded up out of the Gate ripping apart the entire ceiling of this mosque. Dust, sand and large pieces of plaster swirled around her. Above her the sky twinkled with stars. She saw the two armies pause collectively at the explosion.

  The inner point of the circle engraving started falling away, revealing a black tunnel going deep into the ground. Michael’s arm fell into the hole, then his shoulder. He was going to fall into this Hell hole.

  “The Amulet!” Alyx realized.

  Alyx pushed herself up from the ground and launched towards Michael as his body tipped over the widening edge. Her hand found the leg of his pants just as his torso tipped in, his body hanging partially from the edge. She stared into the hole, a black and swirling portal extending right into Hell. In the distance she could see figures advancing.

  Michael’s body was getting heavier as it was being pulled into the Gate. Alyx yanked him back with all her might and grabbed for the Amulet against his shirt. She caught it, the chain twisting painfully around her fingers. The weight of Michael’s body pulled against it. The chain snapped and his body slid into the abyss.

  Alyx scrambled back from the widening hole. She shoved the cursed Amulet into her pocket. When this was all over she would find a way to destroy it. No one, not even she, could be trusted to use a power as great as this.

  Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely.

  Alyx shuffled back from the edge. The hole widened until it reached the thick circle of Israel’s blood that flowed around and around the edge of the Gate like a circular river feeding itself. The Gate was fully open.

  “How do I close the Gate?” she screamed at Israel over the noise of roaring that rose up from the smoking hole.

  “You have to break the circle of blood,” he yelled back.

  Alyx grabbed her fallen sword and flew to the edge of the portal. She felt to her knees and lifted the sword by its handle using both hands. She slammed it down into the stone across the edge of the circle as hard as she could, a scream tearing out of her mouth as she did.

  The blood rushing around the circle sprayed up against the blade. Then it seemed to calm. It stopped rushing, its path now broken by the sword that stood across the engraving. The ground began to shake again, but this time the pieces of stone reassembled across the Gate as it closed up.

  “It’s working,” Sparrow cried.

  Through the closing hole Alyx could see the faces of approaching demons, their snarling twisted features becoming clear. They ran towards the closing Gate, trying to get through before it shut.

  But they were too far away. Thank God. Alyx didn’t think she could lift up another sword. Nor did she want to use the Amulet to command them. A demon got close, but only his clawed red hand made it through before the Gate closed with a bang, separating the hand from its owner forever.

  The wind around them just dropped away. All of the dust and pieces of the destroyed mosque hung for a mere split second in the air before they rained to the ground in a wide circle.

  * * *

  Behind his permanent darkness, Israel heard the sound of metal biting into wood. He felt the ropes around his arms loosen and he slipped forward. He fell into Alyx’s arms and her scent enveloped him. He couldn’t help but smile. “It’s so good to see you again, Alyx.”

  “Are you… Are you making jokes? At a time like this?”

  “At a time like this, I think jokes are all that keep us from going mad.” He was blind and would always be blind. He would never get to look upon Alyx’s face again.

  She lowered him down to the ground. “Sparrow,” he heard Alyx say, “help me bind his wounds.”

  He heard tearing of cloth, then he felt fingers at his wrists. Israel lifted his head to look, out of habit more than anything. “Did you just tear off your clothes into strips?”

  “Um, yes.”

  Israel sighed as he lay back down, letting them work at his wrists and his head. “Oh to have sight again. Sparrow, make sure you don’t let your eyes stray where they aren’t supposed to.”

  Israel felt the blood cease to flow from his veins. But he felt so very weak. A cry called from somewhere in the night and Israel remembered the war that had been raging around them. Horror seized him as he let the sounds of fighting and dying resonate in his ears. “What’s happening out there?” he asked.

  “We can’t worry about that now.” Alyx’s voice was strained. “We need to get you out of here so you can rest and heal.”

  “We can’t leave them. My father is out there somewhere fighting.” And Vix, Cleo…even Jordan, that obnoxious ass. “They don’t know Michael is dead. They don’t know they have no reason to fight anymore.”

  “We… We can’t do anything for them.”

  Israel knew she was right. But he had to see what was happening. He couldn’t slink away with his life and not face the sacrifices that were made so that he could be saved. If he couldn’t save them all, then at least he could honor their memories with an acknowledging look from him.

  Israel went inside Alyx’s head to use her eyes. But what he saw wasn’t a sea of black and white matted with red. She had opened her Soulsight and was staring at a sea of souls, moving, shimmering, then fading as one by one they were extinguished.

 
They look like candlelights, Israel thought.

  Candlelights.

  A sudden realization struck him. All his lessons with the Elder with those damn candlelights…first the lessons on blowing them out, followed by more lessons on control and precision. He thought back to his final lessons where the seraph taught him to breathe into the flames…

  That old mad seraph was really trying to guide him, more than he knew.

  His aunt’s words came back to him. “Your mother chose to die so that you may live. So that you might save a race that would all but destroy themselves.” When he’d heard his auntie say this, he thought he was here to save the human race; after all, they were the ones that Michael was planning to exterminate. But Israel had been wrong. It wasn’t the human race that he had a chance to save.

  The Prophecy had been convoluted. But it had been right. Israel did have the power to both destroy them by opening the Gate or to save them…

  Israel knew what he had to do.

  Chapter Fifty

  Alyx, having slipped into Israel’s mind, saw what he meant to do at the same time.

  “No,” she spoke, her voice trembling with horror. “You’re too weak. You can’t use that much magic right now. It’ll kill you.”

  “It’s what I was born to do,” he said. “It’s why my mother sacrificed her life, so I could be born.”

  “You are not sacrificing yourself.” Alyx gripped Israel’s shoulders so hard that her hands shook. “I didn’t come all this way to defeat Michael just to lose you.”

  “And if I don’t? If I live and I let thousands of Seraphim die? If I waste this opportunity to show them what they can’t see? What will you think of me then?”

  “You’ll be alive.”

  “I’m mortal, angel. I’ll die one day.”