Daystar (46 page)

Furcas slashed with his sword, slicing cleanly through Ariel’s arm.
 
She held the wound and flew away as her limb reattached.
 
She hissed.
 
“You cause me pain!”

Furcas flexed his razor-sharp wings.
 
“Oh yes.”

Ariel let tears fall.
 
“But I am a child.”

Furcas scoffed.
 
“I do not believe that, so drop the act.
 
You are no child.”

Ariel snarled and snapped her teeth at him.
 
“I will have yours!”

Paimon kept his eyes on Metatron; the boy was blinded, unable to blast with noise if he could not see Ariel.
 
The boy flew in circles.
 
Paimon rubbed Bean’s back.
 
“You’ll be all right.
 
No need to worry.”

Bean squeezed her eyes shut.
 
“I want to go home!
 
I want Yoshi!”

“Soon.”
 
Paimon concentrated on Metatron as the boy healed his eyes.
 
Paimon created a small sun, a disk of light between the boy and him.
 
Metatron gazed upwards but could not see through it.

Ariel seethed.
 
“Enough games!”
 
Flames licked her skin.

Furcas leaned back.
 
“She readies fire.”

Paimon swore and looked down at Bean.
 
His heart pounded as hers fluttered too fast to count.
 
He and Furcas had experienced pain countless times, healed, moved on.
 
Pain was just a part of their life, but Bean had never felt pain, and she had never been afraid until now.
 
Paimon didn’t want her to hurt ever.
 
He took a deep breath.
 
“I do not think I can block heat Furcas, only create it.”

Furcas looked at the chain on his wrist.
 
“Give me slack.”

Paimon tensed.
 
“What are you going to do?”

“Just give me slack, Paimon!”

Paimon tapped the bracelet.
 
Furcas wound his hand around it and coated the length of the chain in sharp, glittering diamonds.

Ariel lit herself on fire and dove for them.
 
She slammed into Furcas’ chest and engulfed him in flames, seeking to hit Paimon and Bean with the same inferno.
 
Furcas threw the sword he held and grabbed her wrists.

Ariel screeched in his face, “You cannot stop me!”

“Fuck off, little girl.”
 
Furcas dove towards Metatron with Ariel in tow, drawing her heat away from his daughter.
 
He wrapped his arms around Ariel’s neck; his diamond skin redirected the fire back at her.
 
He pressed her towards the shield.
 

Ariel twisted and belched flame in his face.

Furcas hissed.
 
“Your fire cannot hurt me,
bitch
.”
 
He snapped his teeth at her neck.
 
“If you want to feel fire you should go up against Paimon solo.
 
He could teach you a thing or two about burning and pain!”

Ariel howled in frustration.

Metatron blasted them with sound, throwing the pair apart.
 
The chain yanked on Paimon, ripping his arm away from Bean.
 

Paimon grabbed the chain, ignoring the pain as it cut through his palm.
 
He hauled and swung Furcas away from Ariel.
 
The chain sliced through the air impossible to see.
 
It cut into Metatron, taking a chunk off his wing as it passed.
 
Furcas stretched his wings out as he soared; his feathers sliced Ariel across the face as Paimon whipped him around.

Metatron wailed.
 
Ariel snarled and held her wound.
 
She looked at Paimon.
 
“Die!”
 
She took a deep breath and her body churned with fire.

Samuel tackled her.
 
“Stand down, Ariel.
 
You are out of your authority!”

Ariel clawed at him.
 
“Let me go!”
 
She backhanded Samuel and launched fireballs at Paimon.
 
Furcas jumped in between batting them back with his wings.

Samuel grabbed Ariel by the hair and yanked her back to Heaven.

Azrael flashed by them and grabbed Metatron.
 
His eyes gazed upwards and caught on Furcas’ wings.
 
“Pretty pretties!”
 
Then the pair was gone.

Paimon and Furcas remained tense, eyes darting back and forth.
 

Gabriel swooped down and sat in the air making both jump back.
 
Gabriel held his hands up.
 
“I must apologize for their behavior.
 
Those two were not supposed to come.”

Paimon and Furcas eyed him.
 
Paimon pulled his wings back to free his arms.
 
Bean kept her fingers and toes imbedded in his flesh; she clung to his rib bones.
 
Paimon scowled at Gabriel.
 
“Those are the new ones?”

Gabriel nodded.
 
His gaze fell on Bean.
 
“What is that?”

“Your
niece
.”

Gabriel thought over the word.
 
“Your daughter?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, interesting.”
 
Gabriel nodded.
 
“Did you understand my message?
 
I did not understand yours.”
 
Paimon nodded.
 
Gabriel’s eyes flicked to Furcas where he readied more of his diamond blades.
 
“I do not seek to attack you.”

Furcas pulled another feather out.
 
“What reason do we have to trust you?”

“None I suppose, other than the warning about things to come.”
 
He sighed.
 
“I must return now.”
 
Gabriel looked at Bean once more.
 
“What is her name?”

“Bean.”
 
Paimon patted her head.
 
“Are you going to wipe her out of your memory as well?”

Gabriel looked away.
 
“No.
 
I realize doing that was a mistake on my part.
 
Goodbye.”

Paimon reached out.
 
“Wait!”

Gabriel vanished.

Paimon ground his teeth.
 
“I do not understand him!
 
What the fuck is his problem!”

Furcas detached Bean from Paimon’s ribs.
 
“Let’s go home.”
 
He kissed Bean’s forehead and wiped Paimon’s blood off her.
 
“I am going to request us both off of this duty for now.”

Paimon nodded.
 
“Agreed, not while she’s a baby.”

Bean raised her head.
 
She was pale and her voice soft, “I’m not a baby, I’m a big girl.”

***

Belial curled against Andy’s shoulder.
 
The pair had fallen asleep under the fig tree.
 
Andy sighed and held her close to him.
 
He ran his hands across her body; her skin was incredibly soft and smooth.
 
He kissed her neck.

She smiled.
 
“Andrealphus.”

He opened his eyes.
 
“Yes, Belial?”

“We should go jumping.”
 
She looked up through the treetops to the sky.
 
“I want to fall.”

Andy propped himself up on an elbow.
 
“Of course, whatever you want.”

Belial grinned and jumped up.
 
She pulled him to his feet.
 
“You mean it!”

“Absolutely.”
 
He wrapped her in his arms and drew her into him until they touched toes to shoulder.

Belial kissed his chest.
 
“Jump!”

Andy leapt into the air.
 
He wrapped her in his wings as they soared through clouds.
 
Belial peeked out, delighted.
 
They reached the apex and fell back towards the earth.
 
She held on tight.
 
“We are falling!”

Andy laughed and waited until the last few seconds to open his wings and stall their drop.
 
His feet touched the ground, and he set her down.
 
Andy checked that she was intact.

Belial was breathless.
 
“That was as fun as I remember!”

“Good.”
 
Andy grinned and stretched.
 
“Looks like we didn’t lose anything when we got our angelic powers back.
 
I still can run as fast too.
 
Can you still grow your talons?”

“Talons?”

“The finger ones.”
 
He wriggled his fingers.

Belial stared at her hands and stuck out her tongue.
 
Nothing happened.
 
“I do not know.”

Andy held out his hand.
 
“You always usually flicked them out.”
 
He made the motion with his hand.

Belial mimicked him, but nothing happened.
 
She frowned.
 
“Does not look like it.”

“Maybe you need to be in the spirit of it.”
 
Andy grinned.
 
“Like this!”
 
He threw out his hands and snapped his fingers.
 
“Rowr!”
 
The trees across the clearing exploded.

Belial flicked her hands out.
 
“Rowr!”
 
Her hands appeared the same.
 
“
Rowr!
”
 
Still nothing.
 
“I do not think I can do it, Andrealphus.”

Andy grinned and picked her up.
 
“Well you can continue to practice.
 
You’ll get it eventually.
 
Want to jump again?”

“Yes!”

***

Gabriel pointed at Ariel and Metatron.
 
“We brought them back because they were interfering.”

Ariel snarled from where Michael held her.
 
“We were not!”

SILENCE, ARIEL.
 
GABRIEL IS YOUR SENIOR.

Gabriel folded his arms.
 
“We were supposed to maintain cover.
 
While I am working, I see these two.
 
It was highly distracting, but that is the least of my concerns.
 
They made their presence known and antagonized one of Ladriam’s and one of Lucifer’s.
 
They will be twice as vigilant now.”

ARIEL?

Ariel threw Michael’s arms away from her.
 
“He made the sun flash!
 
How is that covert?”

Gabriel shielded his emotions.
 
“They were not aware that was our doing, and since you obviously do not know, the sun has dark and light spots naturally.’

Ariel glared at him.
 
“We were not interfering with what you were doing.
 
You however were interfering with what we were!”

GABRIEL, THEY WERE NOT SUPPOSED TO INTERFERE, HOWEVER THEY DID HAVE A PURPOSE.

Gabriel frowned.
 
“You allowed them to go?”

OF COURSE.

Gabriel had enough sense not to ask why.
 
He nodded and bowed his head.
 
“Then I apologize for interrupting their mission, despite the fact that they interrupted mine.”
 
He glared at Ariel.

IT WILL NOT HAPPEN AGAIN.
 
ARIEL, YOU WERE NOT SENT THERE TO ANTAGONIZE FURCAS OR PAIMON.
 
THEY DO NOT MATTER.

Ariel bowed rigidly.
 
“It will not happen again.”

Gabriel nodded.
 
“I need to go back now.”

GO.

***

Gaea and Chronos circled the planet in opposite directions, their paths crossed every few minutes.
 
They both appeared as adults, not wanting to seem weak by looking like children.
 
They had heard of the attack on Furcas and Paimon and had no illusions about their safety.

Gaea streaked the sky with green light.
 
Her wings were unfurled looking like spring leaves backlit by the sun.
 
She enjoyed this space, this quiet.
 
She stared out at the universe and sighed, her heart pounded a little harder.
 
She wanted to know what was out there.
 
She yearned to see the empty planets, to fill them with life, but she was tied to the planet below.