Angels Falling

by Harriet Carlton

  Ryan looked him up and down. “Positive.”

  Colton arrived on the first floor moments later. Baxter approached and rubbed his head fondly. “Good to see you, Colt.”

  “And you, Baxter,” replied Colton.

  Nearby, Imorean heard Roxy’s voice, but he ignored it. It was almost overwhelming to have so many people back at Felsenmeer. He had got used to it being quiet. An elbow jabbed him hard in the ribs.

  “Ow! Yes?” asked Imorean, turning to face Roxy.

  “Where’s the new girl?”

  “Kadia?”

  “She’s the only new girl we’ve got, isn’t she?”

  Imorean was just turning to look at the second floor when Kadia appeared. “Kadia! Come down here.”

  With a grin, she opened her tiny wings and shot down to the lobby.

  “Kadia, this is Roxy, Baxter and Ryan. Everyone, this is Kadia.”

  Roxy gave Kadia a bright grin. “Great to have another girl on the team. I was getting worried I would end up being the only one.”

  “We wouldn’t do that to you, Roxy,” said Imorean.

  “Nice to meet you,” grunted Ryan.

  Baxter hadn’t moved. He was staring at Kadia as though spellbound.

  “Baxter, you okay?” asked Colton, nudging him.

  “Huh?” asked Baxter, shuffling his dark wings.

  “Aren’t you going to introduce yourself?” asked Kadia, smiling.

  Imorean inclined his head. Was that shyness he could sense coming from Kadia? Kadia was never shy. He looked at Baxter. Stunned. Baxter looked stunned. The front doors to Felsenmeer opened again, letting in a rush of cool air. Gabriel led the way inside, followed close behind by Diniel.

  “He’ll be in his office in the hospital wing,” said Gabriel.

  Diniel grinned brightly and slipped away without so much as a greeting. Imorean shivered. Relief, happiness, excitement. All three emotions were bouncing off Diniel in equal measure. He shook his head. He wasn’t sure he liked being able to feel this much. It seemed invasive.

  “Hello, Imorean,” said Gabriel, putting a hand on his shoulder.

  “Hey, Gabriel,” replied Imorean, glancing down as tawny and green wings brushed with his own white feathers. “How was the trip?”

  “Remarkably uneventful. That shouldn’t be so for long, though. Has Michael told you about Sariel?”

  “Yeah, he mentioned him.”

  “We have a solid date for his arrival. He’ll be coming at the end of the week.”

  Imorean frowned. “Great.”

  “I know you’re such a huge fan of his,” replied Gabriel, a smile worming its way onto his face. “It’s a shame you won’t be around to help with him.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Gabriel didn’t have time to reply. His hazel eyes were looking up. Imorean turned. Michael had appeared on the second-floor landing.

  “Glad you have made introductions. I have some rather sour news for all of you.”

  Roxy laughed. “Oh! Summer semester is off to a flying start, everyone. Imorean, we were betting on how long it would take for something to go wrong. Five minutes. Who was it that bet five minutes?”

  Imorean snorted and turned around to face his friends. “You were betting?”

  Baxter shrugged. “What can we say? We had to know how long it would be before something went screwy. My bet was three days.”

  Ryan sighed. “I was optimistic. I said a week.”

  “Oh! Me. I was five minutes,” said Gabriel.

  “No. Nope.” Roxy shook her head. Imorean had to work to hide a smile as Gabriel sighed. Roxy continued. “That’s not fair. You’re telepathic with him. You just forfeited your bet, Gabriel.”

  Michael plunged onward. “We are going to have a guest. In order to get him out of here as quickly as possible, Gabriel and I have decided to accelerate your trip to Mexico.”

  Chatter erupted.

  “Mexico?”

  “Why didn’t you tell us earlier, Imorean?”

  “When do we leave?”

  Michael flared his wings with a loud snap. The lobby fell silent. “You will be briefed tomorrow and will be leaving in two days’ time.”

  Imorean stepped forward. “Michael, that doesn’t give us enough time to practice.”

  “All the training in the world will not help you as you have such limited time.” Michael shook his head. “Unfortunate as it is, and it goes against my grain to say, I believe that you may stand a better chance of success if you reconnect with one another on a more personal basis. Take a few days to yourselves. Minimal training.”

  Imorean glanced at Roxy in shock, then gaped at Michael. “Time off? Did you hit your head or something, Michael?”

  “If it is assignments you are after, I can provide plenty.”

  “It just seems –” Imorean choked as Roxy clapped a hand over his mouth.

  She grinned at Michael. “What he means is ‘Thank you, Michael, for your great wisdom and gracious … giving of breaks. We shall make the most of the generous reprieve you have given us.’ Now who wants a drink?”

  Chapter 31

  Daytime television was such an idle way to relax. Imorean felt wildly unproductive, lying on the lobby couch, but hangovers always gave him the attention span of a goldfish. He shifted the way he lay on the cushions, pulling a blanket further over his legs. Felsenmeer was quiet for a change, in spite of it being late in the afternoon. A mercy. He wondered if he could take a nap down here until it was time to leave. He barely heard the minute click behind the couch and flinched hard as someone rested a hand on the cushion just behind his shoulder.

  “I am not impressed.”

  Imorean leaped off the couch spinning in midair. He regretted it halfway through the movement, head aching. He rubbed his eyes. “Don’t sneak up on people like that.”

  “Sorry!” shouted Michael, raising his voice.

  Imorean groaned and pressed his fingers to his temples. He could have sworn he saw a tiny smirk on Michael’s lips. “Oh, Michael. Please, don’t shout. Not this morning.”

  “You mean this afternoon.” Michael folded his arms. “Were you fully aware, you would have known I was there.”

  “Sure,” sighed Imorean. “I thought you said we were allowed to drink and party and such provided we were eighteen.”

  “You are.”

  “So why are you griping at me for it?”

  “You are leaving for a mission today. I had hoped you would be responsible.”

  “Michael, we’re teenagers. We aren’t responsible. That’s the whole point of being a teenager.”

  Something like a smile seized the side of Michael’s mouth and Imorean relaxed. “Clearly so. Sit down.”

  With a groan, Imorean collapsed back onto the couch and picked up his fallen blanket and the remote from the floor. To his surprise, before he could put his feet back up on the couch, Michael sat down next to him.

  “Do you need something?” asked Imorean.

  Michael spoke as though he hadn’t even heard Imorean’s question. “I have something for you.”

  Imorean paused. “You what?”

  “I have something for you.”

  “Like a present?” asked Imorean. This had to be an alternate reality. “Okay … This isn’t suspicious at all. Shoot.”

  Michael reached into his jacket and withdrew a large, square box.

  Imorean had to work hard to keep a smile from his face. Definitely an alternate reality. “Aw, Michael, I’m touched, but I thought people normally got on one knee.”

  “You are lucky you are hungover,” replied Michael with a chuckle. “Open it.”

  Imorean took the box from Michael and popped open the lid. A watch. He paused, breath caught in his chest. So different from his old one. Where his old one had had a white face and a dark, leather strap, this one had a sheer, black face. Eleven, tiny, silver lines took the places of numbers around the edges. In the place where the twelve should have been was the smal
lest compass he had ever seen. The case was metal. He tapped it. Gunmetal? The strap was thick, solid black leather. It smelled brand new.

  “Wow. It’s – it’s beautiful,” said Imorean. “Where did you get it?”

  “I finally made Uriel useful. He worked most of it for you. All the mechanics have been settled inside the stone face. The compass may not be entirely accurate, but it will do in an emergency.”

  “Are you sure this thing is for me?” asked Imorean, a grin working its way onto his face.

  “You are the one lacking a watch, are you not?”

  Imorean lifted the watch free from its box and held it under the light, his hangover forgotten. “What’s the face made of? It’s not a normal face at all. It’s too shiny.”

  “It is obsidian. I thought that, given your element, it was fitting.”

  Imorean’s mind flickered back to a long-forgotten, middle-school project. Obsidian. An igneous rock, formed when a volcano’s lava cooled rapidly.

  “Why are you giving this to me?” he asked.

  “You need a watch,” shrugged Michael. “Think of this as a very late birthday gift from the other Upper Archangels and myself.”

  “You didn’t need to do this,” said Imorean, holding the watch in his hand.

  “No.” Michael paused. “But we wanted to. Gabriel and I more than our other two brothers. We both feel quite responsible for what happened to your father’s watch. We know it meant a lot to you.”

  “Thank you,” said Imorean. He swallowed hard, his throat constricting with emotion. He looked at Michael, who was looking back at him expectantly. His hands shook as he buckled the stiff strap. This was the first brand new watch he had ever had. He turned his wrist over. A perfect fit.

  “You decided to go with the solid obsidian, then?”

  Imorean turned. Gabriel was on the second floor, leaning over the banister.

  “It is more traditional,” replied Michael, rising to his feet.

  “And I urged you to use snowflake obsidian,” said Gabriel, opening his green and tawny wings and floating down to the floor. “I’m glad you valued my input so much.”

  “Snowflake obsidian?” asked Imorean.

  “There are a few more crystals formed as it hardens,” replied Gabriel. “I think it’s nicer than regular black.”

  “Black is practical,” said Michael, sighing. “Imorean, I advise getting your squad up and making ready to leave. You can sleep off the rest of your hangovers on the plane.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

  Gabriel had accompanied them all the way to the departure gate in Iqaluit’s airport. In a way, Imorean was glad to have a short while with him. Gabriel had been his first mentor and Imorean felt that they barely saw each other anymore. White wings flexed in agitation, a motion unseen by Iqaluit Airport’s crowds. He was grateful that Gabriel was shielding their wings from people in the airport. It would have made for some interesting questions if the wings were visible.

  “Relax,” said Gabriel.

  “I hate waiting,” replied Imorean. Kadia had been swept off by Baxter to look at the duty-free items. Ryan and Roxy were nearer, standing in front of the departure windows. Roxy’s head rested on Ryan’s shoulder. Imorean rolled his eyes. Canoodling.

  “Airports are awful,” shrugged Gabriel. “It’s in their nature. Oh, before I forget.”

  Imorean’s fingers slipped as Gabriel shoved a gold card into his hands. “What’s this for?”

  “Hotels, food, drinks,” replied Gabriel. “All those silly human things you need.”

  “Oh, like you don’t like a warm bed at night,” scoffed Imorean.

  “Cool bed,” corrected Gabriel with a grin. “You’ll be wanting that A/C when you get down to Mexico. It’s a tad warmer than here.”

  Roxy looked over her shoulder at the mention of A/C. “We’re going to melt. I’ve been watching the temperature. It’s nearly double what we’ve been training in.”

  “Roxy’s right,” said Gabriel. “You’ll all need to keep an eye out for heatstroke.”

  Imorean rested a hand on the strap of his backpack. His AL Pack was concealed inside – expanded through supernatural means, it was able to hold everything he needed. The backpack was nothing more than a precaution to hide the AL Pack.

  “I’m not sure if you noticed, but Colton kitted you with satellite phones and a directory of our numbers as well. Your mental connection with Michael will be pretty powerless when you’re that far apart, so Colton and I are going to set up a command center back at Felsenmeer to see if we can help you from the base.”

  “You guys are awesome,” said Ryan, ungluing himself from the window and sitting down on one of the chairs near Gabriel.

  “You really are,” nodded Imorean. “I thought you were going to the Czech Republic with Michael.”

  “No,” scoffed Gabriel. “He insisted that I stay at Felsenmeer to babysit Sariel. So, me and Colton have to do something to occupy our time. What better way to do that than to remotely babysit the five of you instead? It’s a sitting cycle.”

  Imorean grinned. “Thanks, Gabriel. Do you know how long this will take?”

  “No idea. That’s all down to you and how fast you can find Huitzilopochtli’s rift.”

  “Would have helped if Michael had taught me that.”

  “You’ll do fine. I know you’ll figure it out,” replied Gabriel. He lowered his voice. “I have faith in you. I always have.”

  “You’re getting sappy,” said Imorean.

  “Sorry. Can’t help it sometimes.”

  Kadia and Baxter arrived back at the group and Imorean looked at their gate. Lines were forming for boarding. Imorean watched his team pick up their bags, double checking to make sure they had everything. One of Gabriel’s unseen wings nudged him.

  Imorean shuffled. “What?”

  Gabriel’s voice was low, serious. “You need to know something about Huitzilopochtli.”

  “Okay?” replied Imorean. Was there something Michael hadn’t told him?

  “Huitzilopochtli, true to the way he was worshipped, is motivated by sacrifices.”

  “Isn’t that true of all the gods?”

  Roxy called from her place in line. “Come on, Imorean!”

  Gabriel grabbed Imorean’s upper arm. “It is. Most come from a violent history – particularly the ones we are chasing.”

  “You better wrap this up, Gabriel,” said Imorean, darting a glance at the moving line. Tickets were being scanned now.

  “Blood. Huitzilopochtli loves blood. He’s motivated by it.”

  “I know that,” replied Imorean. “I researched him.”

  Gabriel sighed. “What I’m trying to get across is that … angel blood is more powerful than human blood. Be careful he doesn’t get any from you or your squad.”

  Imorean nodded. “Got it. Don’t get hurt. Can I board my flight now?”

  “I won’t keep you any longer,” chuckled Gabriel. “Good luck. Call Felsenmeer if you need anything.”

  “We will,” said Imorean, offering a smile that carried more confidence than he truly had. With that, he turned away from Gabriel and jogged to catch his squad.

  “What was so important?” asked Baxter.

  “Just some final instructions,” replied Imorean, adjusting his watch. “Apparently us not getting hurt is our number one priority.”

  “That normally is the number one priority,” scoffed Ryan.

  Roxy handed her ticket to one of the desk attendants and Imorean slipped into line behind her. They passed through the boarding gate first and waited on the other side for the rest of the squad.

  “So, what’s the plan?” she asked, a bright smile on her face, a translucent, colored outline of one wing visible over her shoulder. Imorean took over from Gabriel and focused on covering his squad’s wings from human eyes. Ryan arrived next.

  “Fly down to Mexico City, research some temples, find Huitzilopochtli and steal from a god.”

  Ryan gave a derisive sno
rt and Imorean nearly flinched as he was pinned with a glare. “Should be a cinch.”

  Chapter 32

  “I don’t care if you get cold easily, Kadia, I’m turning the air conditioning down as cold as it’ll go,” snapped Roxy.

  Imorean yawned and leaned on the hotel wall. The trip from Nunavut to Mexico City had taken over eleven hours with all the layovers included. They were lucky to have found a hotel close to the airport. He watched as Roxy fumbled with the key card.

  “Um, Imorean,” said Baxter.

  Imorean looked over his shoulder. Baxter and Ryan stood outside the door of the room next to Roxy and Kadia’s. “What’s up?”

  “Can we get our key as well?” asked Ryan. “Unless you want the three of us to sleep in the hallway tonight.”

  Imorean slapped his pocket and pulled the key from it. “Sorry, guys. I’m a little drained.”

  “So are we,” replied Ryan, snatching the card away.

  “He means, we know how you feel,” sighed Baxter.

  “Hey, look!” called Roxy from her and Kadia’s room. “Our room joins yours.”

  “Great,” murmured Imorean, pushing into his, Ryan’s and Baxter’s room.

  “I call sleeping on my own,” said Ryan, throwing his backpack onto one of the two beds.

  “All I care about is that we have a bed,” sighed Baxter, flopping onto the white duvet without taking off his shoes.

  “At least get changed,” sighed Imorean. “I’d rather share a bed with you if you’re in clean clothes.”

  “Are you saying I stink?” snorted Baxter.

  “I think we all smell pretty gross,” said Imorean, running a hand through his hair. It was filmed with grease and dirt.

  Kadia opened the door joining their rooms. “Why do you guys get two beds?”

  “We’re just that cool,” said Baxter, sitting upright. “Who calls shower first?”

  “Dibs,” said Ryan, moving toward the bathroom. “I’ll be back in a few.”

  “How cold has Roxy set the thermostat?” asked Imorean.

  “Sixty,” shuddered Kadia. “We’re going to freeze.”

  Imorean laughed and kicked off his sneakers as Roxy came in.

  “This place is safe, isn’t it?” she asked.