Archangel Evolution (15 page)

“It is a good plan. I understand. Be careful,
I’m not gonna be around to save your butt next time you get
stabbed.”

“I might not last a day without you,” Gabriel
joked.

“Probably not,” Taylor said.

From the diner, they spent time walking
around campus, eating ice cream cones, talking about anything but
wars and missions and rebellions. It was nice for a change. To act
normal. To do human things. Taylor was surprised at how much she
missed it. She had a sudden urge to see her dad, and even her
brother, in a weird, from-across-the-room sort of way. Just to know
they were alive and well. She considered calling them just to say
hello, to hear their voices, but decided against it—she worried
that by speaking to her family she might lose her nerve.

And then the day was gone, having melted away
like butter in a frying pan. They returned to Taylor’s room, where
Chris would meet them to secretly transport them to the stadium via
teleportation, or porting as Taylor like to call it.

When they walked in, Samantha and Chris were
already waiting. “Hey, Tay!” Sam said. “Ready for tonight?” Her
friend’s enthusiasm was almost oozing from her.

“I was born ready,” Taylor said.
Backtracking, she said, “No, not really. I had a good day full of
normal human stuff.”

Sam laughed. “Yeah, we’re a boring species,
but our simple lives can be quite enjoyable sometimes.”

Her best friend fit in so well with the
demons that Taylor sometimes forgot she was still human. “I’m
sorry, Sam, I didn’t mean to say—”

Sam cut her off: “I was just kidding, Taylor.
I am as happy as ever to be a lowly human—there’s less pressure. I
get to focus on being a college kid while you’re out saving the
world. The only hard thing is that I am left worrying about you
guys when you run off with your swords and guns and such.”

“We’ll be fine, Sam. At least I am capable of
defending myself now that I am trained.”

Chris said, “I can vouch for that. I’m still
sore from the orbs you knocked Kiren and me senseless with.”

Taylor grinned. “You asked for it when you
snuck up on me.”

“True,” Chris said. “Should we get going? We
need to be on time tonight.”

“Let’s do it,” Taylor said.

They formed a chain by holding hands and then
Chris flipped-spun-ported them to the stadium. A handful of angels
and demons were already there, including Sampson and Kiren, who ran
up to greet them.

Sampson said, “Time to get back on the horse.
I haven’t seen any real action for a long time.”

“You needed some rest after the last time you
saw action,” Gabriel noted.

“Well, I am certainly well rested now. I
can’t wait to work with your super-angel girlfriend on the next
mission,” Sampson said, motioning towards Taylor. “You have got to
teach me how to do that bird thing.”

“Already tried that,” Gabriel said. “She
claims it was all instincts, but I think she might just be holding
out on us.”

Taylor was aware that her friends were
laughing, but she was too focused on something else. She was about
to start a mission and would have Chris, Sampson, and Kiren with
her, which should be comforting, but it wasn’t. Instead, all she
could think about was that Gabriel would have none of them. It
didn’t feel right. They should both be amongst friends, especially
when they were in dangerous situations. It was at those times that
you needed people who loved you, people you could trust.

“What’s eating you, Tay?” Sam said.

Taylor realized it was the second time her
friend had asked the question. “Oh, umm, nothing. Just thinking
about the mission.”

“Don’t worry, Tay. I know it will be fine.
You’ve come through so many times before, you’ll do it again.”

“Thanks, Sam.”

“Sure.”

Gabriel said, “Let’s get started.”

The two demons, human, and angel went to sit
on the bleachers to watch, while Gabriel and Taylor headed for the
twenty yard line, where she would start her drills. She had told
Gabriel that she wanted it to be like any other day of training,
nothing special.

And for the most part, it was. Gabriel
started by stretching her out. From there, she practiced some
complex aerial maneuvers and then it was on to sword work. She
battled Gabriel, who managed to disarm her the first two times,
before Taylor won five in a row. Two hours had passed in a hurry,
and at the end, Gabriel said, “There’s nothing more I can teach
you.”

“Thank you, grasshopper,” Taylor joked, “but
I was really hoping to learn how to catch a fly with
chopsticks.”

Gabriel laughed and hugged her. “I’m not sure
the world’s ready for an angel like you,” he said.

Waiting for Clifford to arrive, they sat in
the bleachers with their friends, laughing and joking. Around
eight-thirty, the head of the demon Elders arrived alone, appearing
out of nothing in one of the end zones. Despite the fact that he
could have teleported over to them, Clifford walked slowly to the
bleachers; he looked older—and wiser—than usual.

Upon reaching them, he hopped over the small
wall and railing with an ease that was elf-like, youthful, like he
had just then cast off thirty years from his age. Smiling, he sat
next to Sam, who had Chris on her other side. Taylor was next and
then Gabriel, with Sampson and Kiren sitting in front of them, down
a row.

“Hi, Cliff,” Sam said.

“Ahh, my dear, how nice to see you again,”
Clifford replied.

“You, too. So which mission am I going to
lead?” she joked.

Clifford laughed, a hearty
ho, ho, ho
,
that reminded Taylor of gifts and colorful lights and North
Poles.

Clifford said, “My dear, your mission is to
keep me company. Whenever you’re not in class, that is.”

Putting an arm around Clifford, Sam said,
“Well it just so happens that tomorrow is the start of spring
break, so I’ve got the whole week to keep you company.”

Clifford’s eyes lit up at the information.
“That is great news. I was worried about Taylor falling behind in
her studies.”

Taylor frowned. “Really? The world is on the
verge of destruction and you’re worried about my grades? You sound
like my dad.”

Clifford said, “When all this is over I want
you to have a chance at a normal life, or at least semi-normal, if
that’s what you want, Taylor. College will help give you that
chance.”

Taylor laughed. “Semi-normal—that’s a good
way of putting it. And thanks, but don’t worry about my studies, I
can always catch up later.”

Clifford nodded. “I have just finished
meeting with the Eldership. We have finalized some of the details
for the missions,” Clifford started, emphasizing the
s
at
the end of missions and watching Taylor’s face carefully.

Taylor said, “I know about the second
mission—Gabriel’s mission. You don’t have to worry, I understand
how important it is and won’t try to change your mind.”

Clifford nodded again. “I wish it didn’t have
to be that way, but thank you for your support. The first mission
will be Gabriel’s and he will go with only a demon escort. This
will allow him to get around fast and travel light. He needs to
cover as much ground as possible in a short time.”

Taylor’s thoughts from earlier wormed their
way through her mind, into her throat, and out her mouth: “I want
Sampson to go with him.”

Alarm on his face, Gabriel said, “No, Tay.
You need all the firepower you can get. My mission is much less
dangerous. I’m just going to talk to people.”

“Yeah, talking to people about changing
everything about the way they think. It is not going to be an easy
message. Some will be angry. There could be violence.”

“Then I’ll handle it,” Gabriel said
firmly.

“I am not questioning how capable you are.
But there are many benefits to bringing Sampson with you. For one,
two witnesses to the evil that resides within the Archangel Council
will be much more powerful than one. And secondly, if something
does happen, you’ll have someone to watch your back.”

Still shaking his head, Gabriel looked to
Clifford for help.

He didn’t get it. Clifford stroked his short,
dark beard thoughtfully. “The girl has made a good argument.
Request granted. Sampson will accompany Gabriel on his
mission.”

“Thank you,” Taylor said. She looked at
Gabriel. “You’ll thank me later.”

Gabriel frowned, but didn’t argue
further.

Clifford continued with the informal
briefing: “The goal of the first mission will be to gain support
for the demon cause amongst the angels. We expect this to be a most
difficult undertaking, one that will require powerful words from a
powerful leader. We believe that leader is you, Gabriel.”

Gabriel said, “I know, I know, legends and
dreams. I’ll do my best.”

With a wry smile, Clifford said, “I know you
will.” He shifted his eyes to Taylor. “And you, young lady, will
lead the second mission. Christopher and Kiren will accompany you,
along with a dozen of the other top angels and demons. Your goal
will be to kill Dionysus. The angel mountain is a fortress, and we
believe getting into it while the angels are strong is nearly
impossible. Therefore, you will need to draw Dionysus out from his
stronghold, into the open. To do this, you will need bait.”

Taylor interrupted: “So we capture one of his
favorites, right? Like Lucas or Cassandra.”

“Exactly right,” Clifford said. “How you do
that is up to you and your team.”

Taylor glanced at Chris and Kiren, who both
looked significantly more capable than she felt. She expected to
lean heavily on them for advice during the mission.

“If there’s nothing else—” Clifford started
to say before being cut off by a loud cracking-tearing-grinding
sound from above. Taylor looked up and saw a single star shining
through a hole in the roof. Another crack, another tear, another
grind: Like an orange being peeled back, the roof was slowly ripped
from its moorings, revealing the clear night sky beyond. Glowing
shapes were silhouetted against the blackness of the cloudless sky.
Taylor counted six bright figures.

Taylor said, “Is this part of the
training?”

Clifford was already on his feet. He said,
“No, my dear. I think we’re under attack.”

Almost as a response to his statement, a
massive boulder of light tumbled at them from above. “Incoming!”
someone yelled, maybe Sampson.

Taylor watched as Chris teleported Sam from
the area, and then she spread her wings and rocketed away from the
danger zone.
BOOM!
She looked back to see the boulder
explode in a frenzy of sparks, fire, and shrapnel. The bleachers
were flattened by the impact—huge chunks of concrete and metal were
launched through the air. Instinctively, Taylor fired half-a-dozen
medium size orbs, destroying the deadly projectile rubble before it
could do any serious damage.

She heard Gabriel yell, “All fighters to me!”
His voice had come from behind her. Performing a tucked and
twisting front flip, Taylor hung in midair and then accelerated
forward in the opposite direction. She was able to easily locate
Gabriel, who was hovering ten feet off the field in the north end
zone, which was painted with the football team emblem, a
ferocious-looking, sharp-toothed beaver with a mohawk. Sampson,
Kiren, Chris, and Clifford were already beneath him—along with a
group of other angels and demons who were there to help Taylor
train—forming a shield around Sam, the only human in the group.

Taylor reached them in less than two seconds,
and Gabriel lowered himself to the field. He barked orders,
naturally assuming a leadership role. No one questioned his
authority, not even Clifford. “Angels—you will fly with me and we
will attempt to target one enemy at a time and force them to land.
Demons—you hit the fallen angels hard and fast when they reach the
field. Clifford—you’ll get Sam the hell outta here.”

Clifford was already reaching for Sam’s hand
as Gabriel was speaking. Once his fingertips touched hers, he
started to teleport, his body becoming fuzzy. And then a glowing
form was upon them, snatching Sam from his grasp and leaping from
the ground.

Clifford disappeared without Sam.

Sam yelled, as she was flown towards the
roof. Taylor saw her kicking and clawing at her assailant. She was
about to fly after her, but Chris said, “I got this,” and was gone.
A dark form appeared on the angel kidnapper’s back and the lot of
them—demon, angel, and Sam—disappeared. Chris appeared a second
later, hanging in the air for a moment, clutching at the
nothingness that used to be Sam. He yelled, “Nooo!” as gravity took
him back down.

Chris crashed to the field, spraying grass
and dirt in his wake. Taylor and Gabriel rushed to his side. He was
bloodied from the crash, but the scariest part was the look on his
face. It was something Taylor had never seen from her best friend’s
boyfriend. Fear, agony, hopelessness, defeat. Under enormous
pressure, Taylor had seen Christopher act calmly and confidently.
Now his face was ghost-white, a far cry from the shadowy ruggedness
that typically dressed the area between his scalp and chin.

Gabriel sensed the change in him as well. He
said, “We’ll get her back, Chris. I know we will. I need you to
pull yourself together so we get through this.”

The pep talk was all Chris needed to recover.
The color in his face returned, and his stunned cheeks firmed into
a stony determination. He was back.

They stood up and surveyed the sky. Five
angels could be seen soaring within the stadium. “Attack!” Gabriel
roared, as he threw himself off the ground.

Taylor followed her boyfriend, and was soon
joined by a dozen other angels in flight. Gabriel looked back and
growled, “Lucas is here. We target him first.”

As she followed him into a sharp turn, Taylor
saw an angel hovering in front of them, waiting. When they
approached, he stretched his arms forward and fired six orbs, three
from each hand. “Evasive maneuvers,” Gabriel yelled, as he
barrel-rolled to the side. Taylor went the opposite way, but as she
came out of the spin she could see that the orbs had combined
together to form into the shape of a giant six-fingered fist. Still
in its path, Taylor gained as much altitude as she could, narrowly
avoiding one of the blazing knuckles as it shot past her.