The Hidden Deep (8 page)

“Oh, I’m Sent,” he said grumpily. “I’m here to lead you back onto the right path, so come on.”

“Did Ransom send you?” Prissie asked suspiciously. “Why should I trust you?”

“You really are turned around … in more ways than one,” he said. “Actually, Harken sent me down here.”

“Y-you know Harken?”

Marcus shook his head as if she’d said something particularly dense. “This may be the only chance I
ever
have to say this, so let’s make it good. You should
trust
me because I’m an angel Sent by God.” Marcus offered her a hand, saying, “Fear not, and all that.”

“You’re an angel?” she asked skeptically.

“Yup. A cherubim.”

Prissie frowned in consternation. “Which one is that?”

“Protector.”

“Like Jedrick?” she asked, startled.

Marcus grinned broadly. “Just like him, yeah.”

“Prove it!”

He gave her a baffled look and cautiously asked, “How’m I supposed to do that?”

“Well Jedrick has wings … and armor … and a sword. You have scruffy clothes … a bad haircut … and a worse attitude. You
can’t
be one of them.”

“What’s wrong with my hair?” Marcus growled, running a hand over the top of his bristling two-tone hairstyle.

“It’s weird,” she muttered, eyeing the platinum section.

He gazed at her for several heartbeats, then sighed in resignation. “Evidence, huh? Fine, we’ll give that fragile faith of yours a boost. Hold this,” he commanded, thrusting his flashlight into her hands.

Prissie might have snapped at him for the insult, but Marcus shrugged out of his ever-present brown leather jacket, draping it around her shoulders. Its warmth stopped her shivering, but it didn’t calm her nerves as her classmate next unzipped his hoodie and let it drop to the floor. Jagged patterns that ranged from cream to soft yellow decorated his warm brown skin, and while she watched, they began to glow. With a harmony of whispered notes, they unwound from his bared arms, lifting and spreading until a set of luminous wings fanned out above him, filling the cave with a warm glow. Prissie stared in amazement at the brilliant display, then met Marcus’s waiting gaze and gasped. “Your eyes are different!”

“Very observant,” he replied with a smirk. Deep brown had been traded for an impossible shade of gold. “Abner said they would stand out too much, so he changed them for me. Kinda like Koji’s ears.”

“You really
are
an angel.”

“
Now
you’re making sense. You can’t trust everything in wings, though,” he cautioned. “Plenty of the Fallen have ‘em, too.”

“Oh. Okay.”

This time when Marcus offered his hand, she took it, and he pulled her to her feet. Shaking his head at her, he remarked, “It’s beyond me how you even found this place.”

“Where are we?”

“The Deep.”

That sounded ominous, and she gazed around nervously. Marcus’s radiance stretched far enough for her to see more of the narrow path that cut through rough stone. “It looks like this tunnel ends?” she said, worried about what had become of her little friend.

“Kinda,” he replied. “You came this far. Might as well see the rest.” Gesturing for her to follow, he strolled a short distance down the passage. As he moved, his wings relaxed, draping in neat folds that barely swept the floor. Prissie stared in fascination. She was tempted to touch them, to see if the translucent cascade was made of intangible light.

When he reached the opening, Marcus scooped up a stray pebble and casually tossed it into the darkness. Long seconds passed before a distant patter sounded somewhere far below. Then he propped his forearm on the edge of the opening and peered into the echoing space beyond. “If you stand in front of me, I’ll show you what’s out there,” he offered.

“Do I
want
to know what’s out there?”

“I dunno, but you have an opportunity to see something none of the cave explorers will ever discover,” he said. “Your chance is now if you want to take it.”

Part of her wanted to run away, but she remembered
Harken’s warning when she’d been nervous about trying manna for the first time. Some offers only came once in a lifetime. Prissie hung back and asked, “Why do I have to be in front?”

He favored her with a long look. “I’m gonna turn up the wattage, and I really doubt Tamaes would thank me for blinding you.”

“Oh.” She hadn’t expected to face her fear of heights while under the earth, but her knees were already knocking. With a shaky nod, she edged past him, nearly screaming when he placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Aw, c’mon! Calm down or Jedrick is gonna chew me out!” And then, golden light swelled behind her, spilling across the few paces that remained between them and a precipitous drop. “I might only be an apprentice, but I’m still a Protector, Prissie. I’m just trying to keep you safe.”

Even though she knew Marcus was telling the truth, it was hard to trust him. She was too used to thinking of him as a troublemaker. “I really,
really
don’t like high places,” she confessed through clenched teeth.

“Don’t I know it,” he replied. “Tamaes gave the whole Flight a schooling after that Ferris wheel thing. You can take the inside. It’s not far.”

“Is it safe?” she begged, needing reassurance.

“Yeah, Prissie,” he assured. “I’ll let you take a quick look, and then we’ll get out of here.”

The path that curved along the cavern’s wall was broad, and Prissie was able to hug the sheer rock face as they slowly approached an enormous slab of stone that was set into the wall with chains. She brushed the polished surface with cold fingertips and asked, “What’s this doing way down here?”

Marcus tested one of the chains and grunted softly. “It’s kind of a lock-up.”

“Like a prison?” she asked tentatively.

“Yeah, just like a prison.”

Her eyes widened in dismay. “You mean there are
people
inside?”

“Enemies,” he clarified. “Many who have Fallen await God’s judgment.”

Horrified, Prissie snatched back her hand and stepped away from the square barrier. “Shouldn’t there be guards or something?”

“Oh, there’re guards,” Marcus replied nonchalantly, nodding to a few points in the vicinity. “Beats me why you’ve got such selective vision.”

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, glancing around uncertainly. “I can’t help it.”

“Nothing to apologize for,” he said gruffly. “Come on, let’s head back.”

They turned and retraced their steps, and the going was easier with the Protector’s wings to lend them light. After the first few twists and turns, Prissie dared to ask, “Marcus, why are you here?”

“I already told you. I’m here to lead you out.”

“I know
that
,” she huffed. “What I meant was … why are
you
here instead of Tamaes.”

Marcus tapped her shoulder, and she turned to look at her rescuer. “Tamaes is up to his whatsis in trouble,” he said seriously. “Knowing him, he’s having kittens and slaying lions.”

“Having kittens?” she echoed incredulously.

“He’s
worried
about you,” Marcus clarified. His golden eyes narrowed for a second, and without warning, he leaned
forward and gave her forehead a flick with his middle finger. “Don’t even think for
one
second that he let you down!”

Rubbing the spot, she grumbled, “Are angels
allowed
to be this mouthy?”

“Am I wrong?” he challenged.

Prissie turned her back on her classmate, resuming her upward march. “Are you
sure
you’re an angel?” she flung over her shoulder.

“True facts, kiddo!”

“Don’t call me kiddo,” she snipped. Then a thought occurred to her and she paused. “Hang on. How old
are
you?”

“Older than you by a long shot, but what you see is what you get. Until Koji showed up, I was the youngest member of the Flight.”

“So, you’re still learning?”

“Yep, I’ve got a lot to learn.”

Prissie wasn’t sure if she should be worried that her life was in the hands of a novice, but it was sort of nice to know that Marcus wasn’t perfect. “How much further do we have to go?”

“A lot further, actually. We’re a
long
ways down. Gives me the creeps,” he said, hunching his shoulders. “Why’d you come all this way in the first place?”

“I followed one of the little angels down here. He seemed to be in trouble.”

Marcus stopped in his tracks, and she turned to peer into his baffled face. “There’s nothing but darkness down here, and they need light to survive.”

“I
know
that!” she retorted sulkily. “That’s why I was so worried about him.”

“Are you sure you didn’t imagine it?”

She glared at him. “Obviously!”

The young Protector’s face grew serious, and he gazed back down the way they had just come. “The need must be desperate,” he mused, and then his eyes widened. “Oh, man. I wonder if there’s any chance …! Hey, Prissie, did you get close enough to see the little guy?”

“Of course,” she said in exasperation. “We were together the whole way!”

“What did he look like?” Marcus pressed.

“Just like all the others, except for his hair. It was short … and stood up like a little mane … and it was a very pretty shade of green.”

With a stunned expression, the Protector whispered, “Lavi.”

A
bent figure skulked through the shadows, stubbing gnarled toes on a tumble of stones and cursing as he pitched onto his knees. “This wasn’t there before,” Dinge muttered sourly.

“You’re just clumsy,” taunted Murque. The lumpish demon patted the untidy heap of stones in a proprietary gesture. “I picked ‘em up. Thought it might be fun to pitch them down the hole.”

“Might be at that,” his companion replied with a hoarse laugh. He squinted down into the pit and said, “A few rough knocks to teach him not to let his guard down.”

“Sleeps too much, that one,” Murque grunted.

“Yes. I don’t trust it,” Dinge muttered. “I was a Messenger, wasn’t I? There’s dreams to consider.”

“I remember dreams,” the other demon murmured, then his lip curled. “Taken, weren’t they.”

“That they were,” his companion said in a dull voice. Reaching down, he picked up a stone and hefted it experimentally. Crossing to the edge of the pit, he sneered and let the missile drop. A soft grunt echoed from below, and a cruel smile cut across Dinge’s misshapen face. “Yes, this might be fun.”

“Who’s Lavi?” Prissie asked.

“One of Abner’s yahavim,” Marcus said. “They all have names since Abner dotes on them so much. They know his voice. He knows their names. Stuff like that.”

“Like a shepherd?”

“Just like that, yeah,” he replied, gesturing for her to keep walking. The passage had widened somewhat, and they could travel side by side again. “Of course, Caretakers are responsible for a lot more than those pipsqueaks, but Jedrick says Abner is good at getting lost in details. Lavi went missing not long ago, and Padgett has been beside himself looking for any trace of the little guy.”

“Padgett?” Prissie repeated, feeling like a parrot.

“Abner’s apprentice,” he said with a sidelong glance. “Him and Padgett both work as rangers at this park. Koji didn’t tell you?”

“
He
and Padgett,” she corrected automatically. “And
no.
Koji didn’t get around to telling me
anything
before I followed the little manna-maker. Lavi.” Prissie liked the way the name rolled off her tongue and quietly confessed, “I was wishing he could tell me his name.”

“They don’t talk.”

“I
know
!” Her brief flare of temper fizzled fast. “Do you think he’s okay? He wasn’t shining very brightly.”

“If he flew all the way to The Deep, then he’s pushing himself awful hard.”

“I carried him most of the way.”

Golden eyes flashed her direction once more. “You like those little guys?”

“Yes,” she replied, bristling because he seemed to be laughing at her. “Is that so strange?”

“Nah, they’re cute and all,” Marcus admitted. “I was just wondering why you think my hair is weird, but you think Lavi’s wild, green frizz-job is pretty.”

“That’s hardly the point,” she grumbled.

“You got that right,” he agreed with a smirk. “There
is
something important about that little guy, though. He was Ephron’s special favorite. They weren’t as close as Taweel and Omri, but headed that way.”

“Does that mean you think your friend is down there somewhere?”

“Could be,” Marcus replied grimly. “Abner’s gonna knock something loose if he finds out Ephron’s been right under his nose all this time.”

Prissie once again lost track of all the turns as they wound their way upward. “Do you come down here a lot?” she asked, hoping her guide wasn’t as confused as she was.

“Nope.”

“How do you know your way, then?”

They reached a fork in the trail, and he led her to the left. “I’m just retracing my steps, but I had help coming in.”

“Harken’s?”

“Nope,” Marcus replied, and once again Prissie felt as if he was teasing her. She clammed up, but in a little while, he said, “Took you long enough to call for help.”

“I guess,” she mumbled sulkily.

“Y’know, there’s only so much we can do on our own,” the Protector said seriously. “When you need help, don’t wait to ask. Sometimes that’s all God is waiting for. It’s
so
frustrating to stand by and wait to be Sent, but Jedrick says I’m too impatient.”

It occurred to Prissie that Marcus was actually pretty talkative. At school he mostly just shrugged and grunted. Of course, at school, he didn’t have strange eyes and shining wings, either. “Why are you pretending to be a student?”

“Harken will be retiring soon, and Jedrick wanted to have another Graft in place.”

“Why would Harken retire?”

“He’s getting old,” Marcus replied nonchalantly. “By human standards anyhow. People would notice if he hit his hundredth birthday and kept ticking, so he has to move on.”

“No!” Prissie gasped. “Harken’s always been there! I don’t want him to go!”

Her classmate turned, and his expression softened. “Don’t panic. I’m not talking about next week or nothing. In the next decade, maybe. By then, I’ll fit in somewhere, and I can help Milo keep an eye on things. In fact, we’re kinda thinking if Harken pulls out, I can just move in with Milo. Nobody would be surprised if he befriended me, since he’s friends with everyone.”

“Would you run The Curiosity Shop, then?”

“Dunno for sure. Maybe.” Marcus paused at the next turning and frowned. “I should probably switch back just in
case we run into someone. I’m only allowed to freak
you
out today.”

Prissie watched in awe as he shook out his wings. The shifting shades of butter and cream pulled together, winding into tight strands that settled onto his skin in jagged patterns. She stared until the last little bit of light left with them, then sighed with regret.

“Turn my flashlight on?” prodded Marcus.

She’d forgotten she still had it, and when she snapped it on, her companion was untying his hoodie from around his waist. Marcus pulled it on and zipped up, then squinted at her in the beam of light. His eyes were back to being brown, and he looked like a normal teenaged boy again. Well, as normal as someone with two-toned hair
could
look.

They stepped onto a path that was much wider and smoother than the way they’d been going, and Prissie realized that they must have reached one of the mapped tunnels. Though the passage was once more wide enough for them to be side by side, Prissie’s steps lagged. They’d been walking for what seemed like forever, but there was no end to the darkness. She couldn’t remember the last time she was this tired. “Are we almost there?” she asked, whining a little.

“Hang in there, kiddo,” the Protector replied. “Not much further.”

For a while, the only sound was the scuff of their feet, but suddenly, Marcus stuck his arm in front of her, and she jerked to a stop. “What’s wrong?” Prissie whispered.

“Someone’s coming,” he announced. The heavy tread of boots came from the direction they were traveling.

“Do you have a sword or something weapony?”

“
Weapony
?” he snorted.

Prissie gave him an impatient look. “Yes! Don’t Protectors carry sharp pointy objects?”

“Not on the school bus.”

“So should I be worried?”

“Nah,” Marcus replied nonchalantly. “There’s no reason to get bent out of shape.” Low voices carried along the passage, echoing slightly in the darkness, but he didn’t seem at all concerned … until two figures came into view. “Or not,” he muttered.

“What?” she hissed, wondering if that was her cue to run for it.

However, Marcus ran to them, calling, “Tamaes, oh
man
! What happened?”

Prissie’s eyes widened in alarm as soon as she realized what she was seeing. Her guardian angel leaned heavily on Jedrick, whose drawn sword caught flashes of the colored light radiating from their wings. Marcus reached them and pushed himself up under Tamaes’s other shoulder, though it didn’t do much good because of their height difference. Still, the Guardian smiled faintly at his young teammate and said, “Thank you, Marcus.”

“You’re going the wrong way, you know,” the teen grumbled. “Abner’s waiting in the garden.”

Jedrick shook his head. “Tamaes was quite insistent.”

The sagging warrior murmured, “I just needed to be sure.”

Looking her way, Jedrick studied her dirty clothes and tear-stained face with concern before asking, “Prissie Pomeroy, are you well?”

“I’m … fine?” She was stunned to realize that her guardian was clutching a wound in his side. “Why is he hurt?”

“Tamaes was beset,” the tall Protector explained. “We
have been battling the enemy since the buses arrived on the park grounds, and it appears that their purpose was to separate the two of you. Did something happen?”

Prissie nodded mutely, and Marcus quickly said, “Can we talk and walk at the same time?”

Jedrick tried to maneuver Tamaes around, but the Guardian dug in his heels. With a small shake of his head, the green-winged warrior beckoned. “Please, Prissie. Let Tamaes reassure himself?”

Shuffling forward, she peered up into her guardian angel’s scarred face. “I’m fine,” she repeated, more confidently this time. For once, Tamaes didn’t avoid eye contact, and there was a warrior’s fierceness in his attitude.

The Guardian carefully withdrew his arm from around Marcus’s shoulder and lifted his wings, increasing the intensity of the light that surrounded them. His fingertips rested atop her head, and he pronounced, “I thank God for guarding your steps while I could not.”

“You’re hurt,” she whispered, taking in the gouges in his armor and the tears in his raiment.

Marcus casually remarked, “It takes an awful lot to keep a Guardian from his charge.”

“Doesn’t he need a doctor or something?” Prissie asked anxiously.

“We will take him to Abner,” Jedrick said, adjusting his grip on Tamaes. “Marcus, if you take Prissie to the garden, Tamaes will have no choice but to follow. Use the stone door.”

“Yeah.” Waving urgently for her to follow, the teen said, “The sooner we get there, the better. Tamaes isn’t the
only
one who wants to reassure himself.”

“Who …?”

With a faint smirk, Marcus said, “What did Ransom call him? Your conscience?”

“Oh, no!” she gasped. “Koji!”

Before long, the passage opened onto one of the well-lit thoroughfares, and Prissie glanced around, trying to get her bearings. “That isn’t where I went in,” she said in consternation.

“Nope. This way,” Marcus directed.

She glanced behind to be sure that Jedrick and Tamaes were still following, then hurried after her classmate. When they rounded a bend, she reached out to tug at Marcus’s sleeve. “One of the rangers is up there,” she whispered, pointing.

“Yeah. He’s holding the door for us,” Marcus replied. “I’ll introduce you.”

“Is that Abner?”

“Nope. That’s his apprentice,” he corrected. “Padgett’s nice and normal. You’ll like him.”

The stone door wasn’t a proper door, meaning there weren’t any signs of hinges or a handle. A part of the wall had simply been pushed outward, creating an opening from which soft light spilled into the cave. Prissie recognized the ranger who stood in the gap. He was the one Koji had been talking to just before she left the learning center. As they drew near, he stepped aside to let them pass. “Welcome back, Prissie Pomeroy,” he said politely.

“Th-thanks.”

“
In
first; introductions second,” Marcus urged, hustling her through so Jedrick could maneuver Tamaes over the threshold.

She barely had a chance to take in the new setting when
Koji barreled into her. Without a word, the young Observer hugged her tight and hid his face in her shoulder. “Mercy,” she groused. “You really have been spending too much time with Zeke.”

To her embarrassment, that was the moment when all her pent up emotions decided to break loose. Sniffling, she turned her face, trying to hide her tears from Marcus. With a snort, the apprentice Protector patted the back of Koji’s head and said, “Looks like you’re in good hands here. I’ll just go help Jedrick.”

Prissie was grateful to see him go, and immediately felt awful because it was the wrong reason to be glad. “M-marcus?” she called, her voice barely carrying across the distance between them. He paused, though, and she whispered, “Thank you.”

He smirked over his shoulder, then disappeared through the trees.

“Trees?” she mumbled, looking around in confusion.

“Promise me?” Koji begged, backing up enough to grab her arms and give her a small shake. “I have asked, and it is permitted for me to request a promise from you. Because we are friends.”

“What are you talking about?” Prissie asked, wishing desperately for a tissue.

“It’s unusual for an angel to secure a promise,” interjected the ranger. Padgett wasn’t exactly smiling at her, but his dark eyes were attentive as he offered her a handkerchief. “But Koji’s desires coincide with the will of God.”

The boy let her go so she could blow her nose and dab at her wet cheeks. Once she pulled herself together, she asked, “You want me to make a promise?”

“Yes.” Koji reached out, and his fingertips grazed her hand. “Promise me that you will not go off without me again. Let me stay by your side for all the time that remains to us.”

Prissie’s brows drew together. “I didn’t
mean
to go alone. It just sort of happened,” she said defensively.

“From now on,” Koji pressed. “Promise to keep me close.
Please
?”

This was obviously very important to him, and after the experience she’d just had, Prissie really didn’t want to be alone again. “Okay,” she agreed. “I promise, Koji.”

The Observer’s sigh might have been relief or contentment. Either way, he brightened considerably. Turning to their quiet companion, he said, “This is Padgett. He is the Caretaker apprenticed to Abner.”

For the first time, Prissie
really
looked at this new angel. He wasn’t particularly tall, yet he stood tall. With his black hair and eyes, Padgett appeared to be Native American, and he fit into the same hard-to-figure age group as many of the members of Jedrick’s Flight — grown up, but not old. His park service uniform was neatly pressed, with short sleeves that left his arms bare, and she glanced at them, curious to see what color his tattoos might be. “My sort doesn’t have wings,” he said.