| |
The mountains were pitch dark. If Imorean hadn’t known they were there, there would have been no way of knowing they even existed. There was no moon. He sat still under the stars, the metal roof cold under his thighs. Silence reigned. Nothing in the forests moved. No wildlife chirped. He took a breath. The meeting had gone without incident. He would leave with Ryan’s squad, Michael, Raguel, Raguel’s team and Gabriel tomorrow. Raphael, Sariel, Uriel and Diniel would follow behind them once Toddy had been made safe. Imorean closed his eyes. He didn’t want to go back down into the castle. He swallowed and rested his head in his hands. Vortigern – Vortigern who had his mother and siblings alive and in his grip – was drawing on their horizon. Greece was their final stop before they challenged Vortigern. Imorean’s mouth ran dry. Was he ready? Could he face off with Vortigern if his mother, his family, were there? He took a shuddering breath. Discord between him and the squad, discord between him and Michael. How much more fighting could he stand? Part Archangel he may be, but he still felt human. Overhead, a few, distant stars winked down at him, as though they were holding secrets he could never fathom. Secrets. The word turned his mind to his former squad. His friends.
Roxy’s laughter and Ryan’s insult still rang in his ears. Had he really become Michael’s lapdog? Granted, he’d gone on missions with him and always tried to work with him to the best of his ability, but he only did so in order for them to be successful. It was all part of a larger plan – taking down Vortigern, bringing his family home. Righting some of the world’s wrongs. He closed his eyes and took a breath of the cool, night air. He couldn’t help how close he and Michael had become ... and even still, still, he owed him. He was still alive because of Michael. His fate had been altered. His very death had been prevented by Michael. His present and his future were what they were because of Michael. What should have been, whatever his plan and fate had been preordained as, would never be. When did this all get so confusing? He swallowed. Perhaps the squad really was safer under Ryan’s command. Ryan didn’t have the same connection that he did with Michael – Ryan was better able to keep them safe and free of Michael’s influence. Imorean took a deep inhale. It was better like this. He was already separated from them by nature of existence. Wasn’t it only right, logical, that he was separated from them by command as well?
Nausea made Imorean’s mouth run dry. Tomorrow they would move off to their final destination. Greece. They would have one final confrontation with Zeus – even now, that felt like a strange thought in his head – then they would start after Vortigern. Imorean bit the inside of his cheek. It was little wonder he couldn’t sleep. He turned his wrist and pressed the button on the side of his watch, illuminating the black face. Two in the morning. He ran a hand behind his head and felt the short hairs at the back of his neck. He should sleep, but he wasn’t tired. He was too stressed. Too worried. Angels were able to recharge by being on the astral plane. Was the same true for him? Bowing his head to rest on his knees, Imorean closed his eyes and pushed his own consciousness.
The air felt tense. Still. Supernaturally immobile. Imorean opened his eyes. The orange life of the forest below seemed dull. It was too quiet. Perhaps even the land itself had reacted to the presence of Vortigern. He stood, forcing his way out of his own body. He looked up and paused. There were more stars in the sky. Had he simply never noticed them before or was it that his human eyes could not see them this clearly?
He turned as he felt a second presence move nearby. Emerald. Mentally, he reached out. The edge of his consciousness pressed against another.
“Michael.” He didn’t speak the word. There was no need. He knew Michael could hear him. There was a ripple of green in the night air and Michael appeared on the rooftop. Neon green eyes flicked between Imorean’s astral body and his physical form.
“What are you doing up here alone?” asked Michael.
Imorean spoke aloud, words feeling slightly foreign even as he used them. But he needed this. He needed something human. Even on the astral plane, he needed to feel his own humanity.
“I couldn’t sleep. Didn’t want to really. Not after what happened with Ryan.”
Michael nodded and crossed the rooftop, his boots only ghosting the surface. Imorean gritted his teeth as Michael’s mind pushed against his own. Even in the motion, he could feel hesitation. A request, silently asking to search his emotions. Imorean raised his chin a fraction and closed his eyes as green flooded his vision.
A moment later, Michael relented and stepped closer. “You are conflicted. Why?”
Imorean looked up at him. “Why do you think? Ryan, someone who I’ve had on my team for over half a year now, tried to attack you ... and I got in the way. I chose to get in the way.”
“And I appreciate it. You understand I would have killed Ryan without hesitation, do you not? You prevented a death tonight, Imorean.”
Imorean sighed looked away. A warmth rushed over him. He didn’t need to be looking at Michael to know he was being watched. Resentment rose in his chest. Why did Michael care so much?
“Let me show you something.”
Imorean turned back as Michael stooped, watching as he picked up the sword that lay on the roof next to his physical body.
“What about it?” he asked.
Michael smiled at him and pulled the first few inches of blade out of the scabbard. “Read it.”
Dark as it was, Imorean was glad his vision on the astral plane was sharper than normal. He swallowed as his eyes roved over the word just under the handle. Michael. He still had Michael’s sword.
“But it responded to me earlier?”
“I never reclaimed it from you after I loaned it to you earlier. It responded to you because it felt part of me. Part of me you may be and you may be more Archangel than you are human, but ...”
“But what?”
Michael looked up, eyes on the stars. “You worry you are losing your humanity, but I assure you, you are not. You make all of your choices in the way that a human would. You base your choices and movements out of love, loyalty and humanity. These are things no supernatural creature can completely understand. Only a human would choose to spare. You could have killed Ryan. This sword, tied intrinsically to me, has killed many creatures, but you chose not to use it for that purpose. Tonight, your humanity kept Ryan from losing his life and kept me from taking the life of a student. You feel loyalty to your friends and there is nothing wrong with that. It is natural. Some angels may beg to differ, but I do not. Your humanity can make you stronger.”
Imorean swallowed hard. His eyes prickled. “There’s a lot going on in my head right now, Michael. I’m confused. I’m angry. Really angry. Because of you, there’s a part of my life I’ll never know. And that’s difficult to cope with. I’m still shocked. I’m still not happy that you chose me for this. I’m hurt, but ...”
There was a rush of anguish. Imorean couldn’t help but study Michael’s unsmiling face. Neon, green eyes seemed shinier than usual. He was tense, his brows drawn together in something deeper than a scowl.
“I hope, in time, you will come to forgive me.”
“Then give me time, Michael. Until then, let’s try to quit walking on eggshells around each other, huh? I can’t stand it.”
Michael looked back at him, one corner of his mouth pulled up. “I can do that.”
Imorean nodded, looking back up at the sky. The stars seemed brighter. “Thanks.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
DAWN ARRIVED IN ROSY waves of pastel color. It was going to be a long day. Imorean folded his wings and double checked his AL Pack for everything. He had double and triple checked that the sword he had was now, in fact, his own. In his mind, he reviewed their travel plan. They would fly as a team to the outskirts of Prague, take a plane from Prague to Thessalonica in Greece. From there, they would cover the remaining ground from Thessalonica to Mount Olympus on their own. Imorean swallowed. He couldn’t shake a horrible feeling of foreboding. Mount Olympus. Where, according to their best intelligence, they would find Zeus.
He straightened and looked up. Michael was across the courtyard, running final checks of his own. A door on the second-floor balcony opened, and Imorean looked up. Roxy, Ryan, Baxter, Colton and Kadia emerged. They looked tired but in good spirits. A small smile crept onto Imorean’s face and he let go of his pack with one hand to wave to them, but the movement fell flat as Ryan turned and glared at him. Imorean went back to packing, hearing thuds behind him as they landed on the stone floor of the courtyard. Vaguely, he heard Ryan’s voice, but paid him no mind. Other angels were starting to appear now. Raguel and Gabriel sailed down from the third floor. A few members of Raguel’s team flew overhead. Imorean’s hands trembled slightly as he fastened his AL Pack around his waist and checked the straps on his sword.
“Hey.”
Imorean spun. He hadn’t heard or felt Roxy approach. He smiled at her, but couldn’t help feeling apprehensive. “Hey.”
Roxy tucked her hands into her pockets and smiled at him. “He may not say it, but Ryan’s sorry about last night. He made a real idiot of himself.” She sobered. “I think we all kind of overreacted.”
“Michael could have done a bit better with his line delivery,” replied Imorean. “Won’t lie, it definitely sounded like he wanted Toddy dead.”
“Right?” said Roxy, a small laugh touching her voice. “I think he gave all of us small heart attacks.”
Imorean smiled again, then looked away and allowed the emotion to slip from his face. “You’re not mad at me, are you?”
Roxy sobered. “I’m confused. I thought you would never side with Michael against us about anything ... then you go and defend him.”
“I just don’t want to see anyone else hurt, Roxy. Not Michael, Ryan, Kadia, Baxter, Colton, you. Not anyone. And if Ryan had reached Michael with a sword out ...” Imorean bit his tongue. Something told him that repeating Michael’s words from the night before wouldn’t be a good idea. “... I don’t even want to think about what would have happened.”
Roxy nodded. “I understand that. You’re not his lapdog, you know. I can’t get my head around you and Michael’s connection, but that’s okay. I know you’re close with each other. It doesn’t mean you’re his lapdog.”
A small laugh escaped Imorean’s chest. “Thanks, Roxy.”
She smiled at him, then tilted her head toward Michael. “I think it’s time to go.”
Imorean turned. Michael was looking at him, Gabriel at his side. Raguel was gathering his own team together.
“See you in the air,” he replied, grinning at Roxy.
