Genesis: Falling Angel (15 page)

“Then why do it?” she snapped.

This, I could not answer.

“You are making me feel things I never thought possible. This mortal body,” here she gestured to herself, “is full of sinful thoughts. I have urges that make me have to pray for forgiveness more than I ever have before. I am falling into your sin, and there is nothing I can do but endure until the moment I can be free of this wretched body. We will
never
be together in any way, Adrian.”

“So you lust, don’t you?” I said coolly, though curiosity was eating away at me.

Her face burned red with either fury or embarrassment. “That is none of your concern, mortal.” Ouch. “Let us leave this place. We have a journey to complete. I want to walk, however. I will not touch you again.”

“Does touching me affect you in strange ways?” I asked mockingly.

To my surprise, she did not answer. She merely closed her eyes, lips moving in silent prayer.

Chapter 19
– Gabrielle

“Does touching me affect you in strange ways?”

His words reverberated through my mind for the next hour. I hugged my arms to my chest. The cold of Acedia had gone, but I was too insecure to allow myself to be more open. In this way, my arms shielded me. I had never realized just why humans liked to block out others with such body language. After hearing such crude words, I felt the need to protect myself.

I trudged along a worn path. The area surrounding Avaritia was mostly grassy plains. Noah claimed that dragons didn’t like trees. They blocked out prey. It was too open for me at that moment. It was too vast, as though the entirety of it was ready to keep me there for eternity. In all directions, I saw tall grass. The strong gusts of wind that blew over the plains made green, grassy waves crash against my feet. There were several clouds overhead, and I began to stare straight up at the sky to marvel at their beauty. They almost reminded me of angelic feathers with their soft, snow white appearance. I didn’t notice Adrian until I bumped into him, sending me to the ground with a light
thump
.

He whirled around, grasping my hand before I could move it out of his reach. He yanked me to my feet. I fell against him, hands pressed to his chest. My eyes sought his lips, wondering if, just for a moment, I could rega
in the relief I’d felt during our kiss. He gently pulled away from me, though. His face was a mask of calm, and in his violet eyes I could see myself reflected.  I looked so helpless and lost that I staggered back. How had I become so confused?

Adrian was not a pure mortal. Why had I thought that? Why had I so desperately wanted him to say that the demon who had accused him of promiscuity was spewing lies? After kissing him, I had begun to notice more about him. Everything in the way that he talked, looked, and acted screamed out the truth about him. He was a true citizen of Luxuria, I was sure.

The strange feelings he had mocked me about had been easy to ignore up until his kiss. The few times that he spoke so powerfully had sparked it, but that brief moment had made it a raging inferno. It was not just an innocent infatuation. There was lust within it. There was a heat spreading throughout my body that only felt cooled each time he touched me. The feeling was new to me, and although it did not feel sinful, I believed it was. My human body wanted something, so it was trying to trick me. It wanted me to give in, to throw myself into Adrian’s arms.

I was no fool. I knew the basics of procreation. I knew it was between husband and wife. I knew that there were certain biological factors involved. Gabriel had always told me that it was pure intention to procreate that was not sinful. He had not mentioned the burning, or the relief that followed the object of lust’s touch. He had not mentioned how strong the craving was.

Though with the primal need, there was another feeling. This one was pure, beautiful. It was like a slightly transformed way of the platonic love I felt for my brethren. It was like such feelings had been in a chrysalis with Gabriel, but had become a lovely butterfly during my time with Adrian. He was everything Gabriel was not. He was arrogant, crude, sinful, obnoxious, and selfish. Yet, he was also kind, loyal, passionate, brave, and helpful. Not only had his kiss awakened the sinful feeling of lust. It had also awakened this new, fluttery feeling. My heart beat faster in his presence. I caught myself sneaking glances at him when he was otherwise occupied. Every time I tripped or made a fool of myself, I delighted in how quickly he came to my rescue. My being near him nearly made my heart burst with joy.

This feeling had dulled slightly, replaced with a dull ache in my chest. My steps were heavy, I wore a constant frown, and I felt as though I could cry at any moment. Several times, Noah and Adrian had to fall back to match my slow pace. Whenever we stopped to rest, I sat down and stared blankly into space. Noah tried in vain to cheer me up, and Adrian merely shot knowing looks my way every once in a while. It was a pain that I was not familiar with. Every now and then, my eyes watered and I bowed my head to hold back the tears. This feeling was one that I didn’t have a name for. The pain felt as though my heart was breaking in two.

Why had Adrian’s words affected me so badly? Shouldn’t mortals be entitled to their own sins? They were given free will, after all. Why had his mocking comment on the so-called “strange” feeling stung so terribly? Why was it the only thing I could think of? Tears threatened to pour out of my eyes once more, and I let out a small sob.

Adrian caught this, to my embarrassment. He grabbed Noah’s shoulder, saying loudly enough for me to hear, “I think we should rest again. She seems to be very tired.”

I felt so ashamed. The three strange feelings were taking over my mind, making it hard to think of my mission. I had to defeat Lilith. I had to send her back to the darkest depths of Hell. It was why I was on earth. It was why I had stolen the vial from Gabriel and allowed the painful transformation into human form to take place. It was why I had sought a mortal guide. Now, my traveling companions had to wait on me.

Noah handed me some sort of bar made of honey and oats before he ran off to stretch his wings. It was hard to swallow with how dry my throat was. I nearly choked once or twice. Adrian did not eat. After my attention had started to become focused on him, I had noticed that he rarely ate. When he did, it was always with a scowl. This struck me as odd, but I was not on speaking terms with him. Still, part of me was worried. He needed to eat. All mortals had to eat. I feared that he would grow weak and become a mere shell of himself.

That’s when I realized something. Adrian would age. He would get old and worn out. If he lived long enough to become elderly, that is. He would one day be buried in the ground or cremated. He would rot. The worms would eat at his beautiful, pale flesh. Those violet eyes I adored would become part of the earth. He could wind up going to Hell, where he would be tortured for all of eternity. He could wind up going to Heaven, where I could see his soul every day, but he would feel nothing for me.

I wasn’t sure which one I preferred.

He caught me staring at him. With a sigh, he lied down on a patch of short grass. He patted the space beside him without even looking at me. I edged over to him slowly, lying down so that there was a decent amount of space between our bodies. Even still, I burned for him. I hurt because of him.

“What’s on your mind?” he asked.

“My thoughts are not important.” This was not a lie. My thoughts weren’t important to others. They only mattered to me.

“That’s a lie
,” he snapped. Then, after looking at my shocked expression, he grimaced. “Don’t look at me. Look up.”

I did as he said without really thinking it through. The sight above me was beautiful. The clouds were lazily drifting by, and there was no chance of me running into anyone while I stared at them. The sky was a lovely blue. Everything about it was so perfect. “I wish I could fly,” I said softly.

Adrian shifted in the grass. “What were your wings like? I’ve never seen angel wings. Is it like in the stories?”

The words didn’t seem right, coming from him. It was as if he was trying too hard to ask a simple question. I didn’t want to talk about my wings. Earth was my haven from the shame of having wings as black as a starless night. They had soft feathers, but their appearance was too harsh.

“They look like the ones in the stories, yes. Humans gained the idea of winged angels from actually seeing us.” I sucked in a deep breath. “My wings were black.”

He was silent. My heart broke a bit further. Of course I shouldn’t have said anything. If he found me appealing, I wanted to keep it that way. No, we would never be together, but my mortal mind was irrational. It was blinded by the feelings I was trying to fight. I was angry and hurt. Yet here I was. If I reached out, and he reached for me, our fingers would touch.

He turned his head slightly to lock eyes with me. “They must be beautiful.”

My heart pounded at the compliment, but I became frantic. Black wings would never be beautiful. “
What makes you think your tricks will work on me?” I hurried to my feet, and he followed with a confused look. “Do you honestly think simple flattery will make me change my resolve? Do you think you can take me to bed with such lies?”

“I suppose that’s a t
ouchy subject, then. Well, you didn’t have to answer,” he said calmly. “Just because your wings are black doesn’t make you anything like the Fallen. You’re gentle, kind. You’re just angry because you don’t understand what you’re feeling.” He held out his hand. “Let me help you.”

Help me how? My chastity was what would allow my entrance to
Heaven, as an angel. I would not fall for such tricks. “Do you take me for a fool?”

He began to look slightly irritated. “Gabrielle, you have to be able to accept my help. Noah and I are your only allies right now.”

“I don’t need your help,” I spat. “This journey has been difficult because of you. If I had never met you, I would be fine.”

This time, he was angry. “If you had never met me, you would be digesting in the belly of a troll. Now, tell me how you planned on getting out of that one? I saved your life, and you are acting like a child. Just because you don’t understand anything that you’re feeling doesn’t mean I’m going to baby you. You’re going to have to fight Lilith, damn it. You need all the help you can get. What is your plan? Have you even figured out what you’ll do once you meet her?”

I swallowed a retort. I hadn’t thought about it at all. What would I do when I met the mother of all demons? What would I say to make her realize that God was sending his punishment? How would I survive a battle without my angelic strength and speed?

“I,” I began.

Several roars and screeches filled the sky. Adrian ran to me and pulled me to him. My face was pressed to his chest, and I was too stunned to move it. The ground shook several times in quick succession.

“Adrian, I presume?” It was a man’s voice. I pulled away from Adrian to find that four men stood around us. They all had the shiny eyes of dragons. The speaker said quickly, “Diamond wishes to see you two. Noah has been detained, so it is best if you come quietly.”

Adrian nodded at me. “I stay with the girl.”

“I don’t really care how you do it, Adrian. But you both have to wear these.”

He tossed two rough sacks at Adrian. After receiving them, Adrian arched one eyebrow. “What’s this for?”

“Diamond doesn’t like people knowing the location of her lair.”

Adrian put one over my head. After a moment, I was lifted on top of one of the dragons. Arms wrapped around me, and I panicked for a moment until Adrian whispered, “Don’t worry. Diamond’s no threat by herself.”

The sensation of flying hit soon after.

After what felt like hours, the dragons landed. The sacks were removed carefully after we were roughly tossed onto a floor. Said floor was covered with soft, white carpeting. Not a single stain was on it. The room itself was painted black. The furniture—a desk, two chairs, a bookcase, and a filing cabinet—was all white. There were no windows. Fluorescent light beamed down on us. The room was massive, with all of the furniture crowding against the back wall.

Behind the desk sat a woman typing away on a machine I recognized as a computer. She stood after a moment. She wore a white blouse with a black pencil skirt. Her heels were high enough to question just how she was walking in them. Her earrings sparkled with what I assumed were diamonds. The pendant around her neck held the same jewel. Her skin was bronze and her eyes were silvery. Her hair was completely white and pulled back into a bun. Her face was made up, and her red lips curved into a frown.

“Adrian. How unpleasant to see you,” she droned. Her voice was smooth like glass.

How did they know each other? How did Adrian know any of the demon lords? I was shaking slightly, holding onto Adrian. The woman stepped forward, holding her hand out for me to shake. “Diamond. Just Diamond. And you are?”

I just stared at her hand. She sighed and retracted it. “Intel tells m
e that your name is Gabrielle. You’re an angel, right? I haven’t seen an angel in centuries. Not since my fight with Michael. I also hear that
lies
are running rampant.” She made a point to stare at Adrian when she said the word “lies.” “However, this does not concern me. My brother has been returned to me. Our ceremony will commence in three days if you would like to watch.”

Adrian grimaced. “Not really.”

“Suit yourself. Adrian, you are free to go. I have what I want. There’s no need for bloodshed, don’t you agree?”

“Completely,” Adrian said with a relieved sigh. “Where’s the nearest exit?” He grasped my hand.

She frowned at the contact. “I didn’t realize you were so close,” she said with a note of bitterness.

“We’re not,” Adrian said, too quickly. I vaguely wondered if he had slept with her. It was obvious with the way she looked at him and how uncomfortable he seemed to be under her gaze.

“I’ll call someone up to get you.” She gestured to me. “You have to leave the girl, though. She’s too important.”

Adrian furrowed his brow. “The girl’s with me.”

“If it’s a fight you want, Adrian, I’m happy to oblige. I cleared up my schedule just to see you.”