Chapter Twelve
Seth
I couldn't find Uncle Hes anywhere, and it appeared everyone in Shangri-La had gone to their rooms to hide from the rain and storms that passed through one after another. Edan took Nessa to get something to eat and made her rest in her own room. I knew she cared as much for Malachi as me. I stayed in his room just long enough to come up with a plan to get Eveie out of her cell. I had archangel abilities, but I didn't know what I was capable of or what extent they went to.
I brought Ezra out of the Shadowlands, and controlled the lightstone, but how was I to break a demon out of a heavily guarded cell, make her come with me, and have her cure Malachi all without anyone noticing? I couldn't, but I could enter the cell and speak to her before I did let her out. The only problem was trying to escape if things didn't go well. But Eveie had a motherly edge to her, and unlike Eos, she could possibly be reasoned with. It was a risk I had to take, and one that I had to do alone. I couldn't risk anyone's life, not even Edan's.
I hovered behind a pillar and could see two guards by the lightcell that contained Eveie. The only weapon I could use was my ability to compel, but could it work on two extensively trained earth angels that have been around for a long time and are immune to many spells? I had to try. I had no choice.
I walked out into the room looking up at the ligthcell that went from ceiling to floor. Their pale eyes shifted to me.
"You're not supposed to be here, move on," one said in a stern voice.
"Oh, I know, but I've always wanted to be a guard in Shangri-La since I was little, and now I'm here. I won't get another chance, so I thought I'd jump at the opportunity now."
"Go talk to Rusul, he's in charge of us. Now, leave this room," the other one said in the same stern voice.
I stepped closer pushing my invisible force to them. Usually I go a bit slower, but I had to be quick with these two ancient guards that have the experiences of the ages with them.
"I'm sorry I can't, because I need to get in the lightcell," I said with their eyes on me.
"Move on," one of them repeated with a motioning of their spear.
I pushed farther into them almost like I was casting an invisible lasso, and tightening it in one quick motion. I've never used so much energy before, and could feel it quickly draining me.
"You don't understand," I said, stepping closer to them. "Let me in the lightcell." I didn't even blink my eyes to break the connection I had with them, but that connection wasn't convincing them. They've been guards for a long time and resistant to compelling, but I knew I had them, at least a little.
I pushed harder, and as I did, I realized they were guards that listened to only one person. "Rusul commanded me to take the demon-these are his orders."
They stared at me like two statues, and then parted lowering their heads as a sign of listening to an order. Inwardly, I smiled as I stepped up to the portal and with my lightstone in hand; I sliced the lightcell wall and went in.
Inside was bright and I quickly sealed the wall in one motioned. I clenched the stone in my hand and turned expecting an angered demon bearing down on me that I had to reason with, but instead, Eveie was curled up in a ball with her head tucked into her knees. Her shoulders bobbed up and down and I could hear her whimper.
"Please just kill me, Isaiah. My sisters are gone and I've lost my little girls." Slowly, she lifted her head up with her red hair stuck to her scaled cheeks. Her eyes widened as I took a step back. "You're not Isaiah," she said, gazing up at me.
Isaiah had spoken to her when I thought she was in confinement, and no one was supposed to be entering the lightcell. Obviously, there was more going on here than just containing a demon. I couldn't question her, and had to keep it simple and on track. I still didn't know the temperament of Eveie yet.
"No, but I've come to get you out." Never thought I'd be saying that to a demon. "One of your children is ill, and will die without your help."
"Ella?April?" I could hear the concerned voice of a mother coming from her.
Just as a precaution, I extended my compelling to her. Never compelled a demon before either, and wasn't sure if it would even work.
"No, another one, the boy you let live-your son, Malachi." I tried to push into her thoughts and paly on her desire to be a mother.
"My son?" She pulled away from my gaze-compulsion wasn't working on her. "Eos is gone and so is Ebony. I'm my own demon now?free," Eveie said, lifting her blue eyes to me. I wasn't sure where this was going. "Your compelling won't work on me." She smiled with a tilt of her head as I rolled the lightstone in my hand. "You don't need to compel me to help one of my children. All you had to do was ask-I love my children." She stood up and stepped closer to me. "And you are brave to come in here and ask me and you must love him too, because you risked coming in here with a dangerous demon." Eveie didn't look dangerous, not like Eos, but looks can be deceiving.
"Are you dangerous?" I asked with a smile from Eveie as I squeezed the lightstone summoning its power.
She glanced down at the stone that illuminated my hand. "Only to those who wish to hurt my children," she replied to my relief.
"Very well then, I will release you on your promise that you will listen to me as no one knows I am doing this." I looked at Eveie. She was truly a magnificent demon-all light and sparkle like untouched snow.
"I promise, Seth Fairstone, holder of the angel light. I am free of my sisters and free of my burden of oath to them. I wish to have my children with me and safe."
I nodded my head, but not sure about how the with me was going to work out, but Evevie was the only one who could save Malachi.
We exited the lightcell and sealed it as I told the guards they've done a good job and Rusul would be proud. They may have been guards for a long time, but I knew through compelling them that they still yearned for praise from their leader. I left them with gloating smiles.
Eveie, I felt, was a different demon with her sisters gone. She truly wanted to be a mother and live quietly with no desire to take over the realms and destroy others. Why she was different, I didn't know, but I could sense it and trusted her enough to let her trail behind me as we quickly passed through the hallways to Malachi's room.
I checked to see if Nessa or Edan were in there, and found the room empty. A single orillion was left dimly glowing on the table next to Malachi. I motioned for Eveie to come in.
She glided up to his bedside and gazed down at him with her blue eyes surrounded in shimmering scales. Eveie was all white and silver with red hair that made her appearance look out of place. She was pale as if made from a mixture snow and ice splattered with dots of blood. Her appearance was striking as she warmly looked at Malachi.
"He's dying, and dying fast. It's one of Eos's thorns," she said with a silver tear forming in the corner of her eye.
"Can you save him?" I asked.
She glanced up at me. "I can, but not by myself. The poison has gone too far for mine to counteract it. I need my first daughter-I need April Snow."
April
"Why do you want me to kill Isaiah?" I asked turning towards Hesediel.
"He's an archangel that shares one viewpoint with demons-he wants monsters exterminated more so than any archangel. Isaiah is a very influential angel among the archangel leaders, and could sway the council in any direction he wants. He's planned this for years and I'm simply beating him to the one thing that will change things in our favor." He turned me to face him, and gently placed his hands on my shoulders. "April, you have many abilities that you don't even know you have. This world has been shrouded from you your entire life, but yet it always beckoned for you to find it one day. And even though you know very little about who you are yet, you have the ability to change things, make our world better, and put an end to the struggles when have endured for years."
I looked at Hesediel. He was sincere with his words at least, that's what
I sensed anyhow. But he wasn't any different than Ebony, and to kill someone I didn't know, even though they didn't seem like they wanted me to live, I couldn't kill them just because Hesediel wanted me to. At the same time, I was in no way to go against him.
"I wouldn't ask this of you if it wasn't for the greater good, and you won't be blamed."
I studied him for a moment letting the silence give me time to think on how to get out of this. I knew I had no choice, at least not right now. I didn't want to kill Isaiah, but I had to let Hesediel think I did.
"I don't know how to kill, I just know how to do a Taking," I said as he took my arm and pushed back the sleeve to reveal my hexmark.
"By this, April," his eyes flickered at me like a mad scientist finally having his creation come to life. "This is a rare royal hexmark-ones that are nothing but fabled in the monster world. He brushed his fingers across it and then covered it back up lifting his eyes to mine. "You do the reversal of a Taking. You give him some of your energy. The force will be too much, and kill him as if he died of natural causes. Archangels may live a long time, but they are subject to death as much as monsters or humans. Only in the form of light are they immortal." Hesediel gazed down at me as if waiting for me to agree. "Archangels, April, are the reason monsters live in the world we live in, and are governed by their laws. Monsters have no say in how their lives should be lived, and because of that, nothing can move forward." His eyes filled with a desperate sorrow. "Do you understand what I'm saying?" He gently asked.
Yes, I understood, but I still didn't want to be the one to kill Isaiah, and how that would change the outcome of things, I wasn't sure. But I knew I couldn't say no to Hesediel, he, I think, would make me do it somehow. I had to agree so I could get out of it easier. That I learned at Sunrise Acres-go along with authority then run away when you get the chance.
I kept my eyes locked with is as I nodded my head in agreement.
I couldn't sleep, but how could anyone that was supposed to murder someone, but not just anyone-a high-ranking archangel. Hesediel reassured me that no one would suspect anything, but I wasn't so sure. Do archangels just drop dead from time to time like humans? I had to run away from this soon and very quickly, but the only problem, I was in Shangri-La. Other than the building I was in, I had no idea what the rest it was like.
I sat on my bed and closed my eyes reaching for Ezra or Ebony. I knew they were there, but I felt a plate of glass had been put between us. I pushed at it, but it wouldn't give. They were trying to reach me; I knew this because just like someone beating on thick glass, I heard a thumping in my head.
I pushed more, and they thumped more until it shattered like an explosion in my head. I let out a gasp as I felt blood rush to my head. Pressing my hands to each side of my head, I slowly opened my eyes to see perfectly circular drops of blood staining the marble floor.
Hesediel blocked us from you with a potion. I heard Ebony's voice inside me.
"Help me," I said aloud, just as the door opened.
I stood up expecting it to be Hesediel.
"April,"
It was Seth looking down at me with concern followed by Eveie peeking over his shoulder.
I jumped up. "Seth!" I pointed behind him. "Eveie-behind you!"
He came to me, and placed his hands on my shoulders. "Shh, it's alright," he said, in a low voice as he looked me in the eyes. "She's with us, and she's going to help Malachi."
I shifted my eyes to Eveie who slid up behind Seth like fog.
"Malachi," I whispered his name. "How?" I kept switching my eyes between them. "Is he alright?"
By the grim look on his face, he wasn't. I felt my insides collapse like a sinkhole that swallowed anything close to it down into its depths.
"Listen to me, April." Seth stated calmly. "Malachi has been stung with a demon thorn and you and Eveie are the only ones who can save him. But we need to hurry."
"You bleed," Eveie said, bending down and touching the drops of blood that speckled the floor. She rubbed it between her fingers with a disgusted look. "Who made you bleed?"
I shifted my eyes back to Seth.
"Hesediel," I whispered his name with a confused look from Seth. "He-he wants me to kill Isaiah and gave me a potion so that I can't communicate with Ezra or Ebony who are trying to help me. I think he wants to get rid of them as well."
Seth stepped away from me and paced the floor rubbing his chin as Eveie stepped closer to me.
She smiled and fingered a lock of my hair through her hands. "You are my first daughter that I fell in love with, and I want to help you save the one who you are just beginning to love."
"We need to go," Seth said, tugging on my arm and gazing at Eveie.
"Wait," Eveie said as the light made her scales sparkle. "We can't risk being seen." She cupped her hand and blew into it as a fog curled around us and then faded.
"What was that?" Seth demanded.
Eveie smiled. "You've brought me this far, monster, I'm not going against my word. That was what I call quiet-and-invisible-dust. It will keep any wandering or curious eyes away from us."
Seth tightened his mouth and then looked at me as he grabbed my hand. "Let's go."
Eveie nodded as Seth guided me out of my room and into the hallway. I walked numbly down and around a maze of turns until we reached Malachi's room. I hadn't been able to see him since we came here. I felt as delicate as the buildings here in Shangri-La-all glass held up by thin frames. As hard as the wind and rain smacked against the structures, they should've fallen in on themselves, but they didn't. They were stronger than they appeared, but I wasn't sure I was as strong as they were.
Eveie glided over to Malachi and knelt beside him as she gently brushed the hair from his forehead.
He looked pale and lifeless. I held my breath as I looked at boy I barely knew, but felt I had a connection to that couldn't be explained.
"Come here, April." Eveie didn't look at me as she gently turned his head revealing the circular, black area that reminded me of the rotten spots on a piece of overly-ripened fruit. Her blue eyes lifted to me. "Come child, he doesn't have much time."
I looked from her to Seth.
I walked over and stood next to Eveie. The closeness was excruciatingly uncomfortable at the same time, it was something that I felt deep inside of me was meant to be.
"Place your hand over mine, and we are going to pull the poison out slowly," she said, sliding her blue eyes to me. I nodded and she smiled. "The poison will go from me to you, but you won't be harmed. It is being filtered through me, but the energy has to go somewhere, and that's where you come in."
"You've done this before?" I asked looking at Malachi. "I mean, he looks?"
"He's still with us, but he won't if we don't do this."
I placed my hand over Eveie's. I expected it to be cold, slimy or disgusting in some way, but it wasn't. Instead, it was warm, soft and?comforting. I glanced at Seth as he looked anxiously from Malachi to me. I started to say something and it was quickly forgotten as I was nearly knocked off my feet by the rush of power that jolted into me.
I felt I was on a roller coaster ride that spun, twisted and turned into frightening turns that I wasn't sure if I was going to scream or puke all over Eveie who had wrapped her delicate arm around me.
"Don't scream-they'll hear," Eveie said in my ear.
After the initial rush, I felt my hand begin to burn as if I had placed it on a red-hot burner of a cooktop. I wanted to pull away, but Malachi depended on me. I pressed harder as my body felt like it was melting and my vision began to blur. By now, my hand, arm and part of my shoulder had gone numb, and just before I felt myself slipping into darkness, Eveie pulled away.
I let my body slump as Seth caught me in his arms. I kept my eyes open and focused on Malachi. His color had returned and he stirred a little. I felt relief and smiled as my body fell deeper in exhaustion.
/> "You did well, my daughter." Eveie turned and looked at me over her shoulder, and then collapsed.
"Eveie," I said, pushing with what remaining strength I had from Seth to her.
Her eyes were closed, and her red hair had started to turn silver like frost forming on glass.
My sister-give me to her, April.
It was Ebony's voice that I heard in my head.
"How?" I asked as Seth tried to pull me away from her and Malachi, now fully awake, looked at us with confusion.
Give her my energy.
An overwhelming eagerness filled me as I felt my arms were not my own and I placed them of Eveie's scale-covered cheeks. I gazed into her face realizing how beautiful she was-like an exotic animal. She was now all silver and white as her red hair had changed into silver strands. I felt a bubble form inside of me that desperately wanted to be released. It was like all of my insides had turned to metal, and Eveie was the magnet that pulled me closer to her, but I couldn't give her all the power that I had.
Stay with me, April! Pull back now!
My body shook, voices yelled around me, and I felt my surroundings explode with light, fire, and voices until a giant curtain of blackness fell on me like an avalanche.
Seth
I pulled April away from Eveie just as Uncle Hes, Ayil, and Rusul followed by Yolanda, busted through the door. Uncle Hes yanked me to my feet as Yolanda and Ayil took April and Rusul carefully approached Eveie.
Eveie stood with a smirk on her face as she gazed at Rusul. She showed no fear or resistance as Rusul stood in front of her. Her eyes scanned the room taking everything in as Uncle Hes yelled at me, but I didn't hear a word he said as my eyes shifted to Malachi.
"I saved the monster's life, my son, I saved his life along with April, my daughter." Her blue eyes shifted to April lying on the floor with her head nestled in Yolanda's lap.
"Where's the stone?" Uncle Hes hissed at me.
I heard him, but didn't reply as I tried to pull away from him towards Malachi.
"I freed her and she saved Malachi who had a demon thorn in him-he would have died," I said, shifting my eyes back towards Uncle Hes.
"You freed a demon to save just one monster!" Uncle Hes's eyes burned with rage, disappointment, and an anger I've never seen before. "You stupid boy!" Like lightening, Uncle Hes tightened his fist and hit me on the side of the head.
I dropped to my knees from the surprise hit that I never thought he was capable of. My head rang, vision blurred, and my cheek, numb at first, began to throb. More in shock that injury, I bounced back up as Eveie's eyes flared with blue flames.
"You hit children, you make children do your deeds, and you," Eveie, with an open hand and eyes fixed on Uncle Hes, pushed Rusul out of the way as she advanced towards him. Rusul was thrown backwards through the air shattering the window as he went through it. "You made my daughter bleed."
"Rusul!" Yolanda cried as she went to the window and was thrown backwards as if someone had pushed her away.
The force of the storm outside whirled around the room bringing in rain and cold wind that flipped the remaining curtains that hung on the shattered window. The door slammed shut, and began to glow with a white mist that surrounded it and then the window. Eveie had us locked in with her.
"Give me your stone, boy!" Frantically, Uncle Hes started to search my pockets and then slammed me up against the wall. I held it tightly in my fist. "Where is it?!" He yelled through clenched teeth and wild eyes.
Eveie stood in front of Uncle Hes as Ayil and Yolanda came up behind her. As if Eveie had eyes in the back of her head, she turned just as they approached her, and with an outstretched hand, released two quick balls of light that hit Ayil first, then Yolanda. They were both tossed through the air as if they had strings attached to them and someone jerked the end of that string. They hit the wall hard, Yolanda breaking a mirror, and Ayil smacking into a dresser. The whole display done by Eveie with a smile on her face and eyes fixed on Uncle Hes.
"Eveie stop, please," I tried to say in a calm voice as Malachi attempted to stand, but fell to the floor and began to crawl towards April. I held the stone in front of me and warned Eveie with my eyes. She looked at it as if I was showing her just any rock, not one that could contain her. Her eyes slid back to Uncle Hes.
The door began to pound with what sounded like hundreds of fists and through the outcries on the other side; I could hear Isaiah's voice.
"You are not a good monster. My daughter says you want her to kill an archangel that I have no qualms about-at least not yet." The door flexed and Isaiah demanded over and over to open it. "I can take them all out," she nodded towards the door. "But I won't, because all I want is my April." Eveie gave a scowl, held her right hand up, and from the center of her palm, a thin, black thorn extended from it.
She shoved it into Uncle Hes's throat and leaped towards April and Malachi in a blast of white light.
When my eyes focused, the room was filled with guards and Isaiah barking orders. I gazed down at Uncle Hes as his eyes locked with mine and gurgling sounds came from his mouth. He looked as though he was trying to tell me something as he reached for my hand and squeezed it. Blood gushed from the thorn protruding from his neck, and pooled on the floor, soaked into my clothing, and covered my hands. I tried to use my stone to heal his wound, but the poison and blood loss were quicker than any magic. I knew it was useless, and kept telling Uncle Hes that everything would be alright. My stone glowed with power and I felt its energy in my hand, but it wasn't strong enough.
He tightened his grip on my hand as I cradled his head, and then with one final gasp of air, Uncle Hes died. His eyes still focused on me with words he wanted say would forever remain unspoken.
"Demon thorns are nasty business," Isaiah said, standing beside me. I didn't even know he was there watching.
I didn't reply as I sat frozen with my blood-covered stone still in hand and held over the thorn. Uncle Hes was gone, and there was nothing I could do.
"Take the body," Isaiah said, commanding two guards.
They lifted him up and carried him out the door, feet dragging on the floor. I looked down at the blood that pooled on the floor, and stained my skin and clothes.
"Take him and clean him up," Isaiah said, kneeling in front of me as Edan lifted me up.
I stood facing Isaiah with Edan beside me. "Put him in a cell until I can deal with him later."
"But Eveie took April and Malachi. You can't lock me up." I looked into Isaiah's pitiless eyes.
"You freed the demon that killed your uncle, and now she took a powerful monster. She is on the loose, and all by your doing." He glared at me as he snatched the stone from my hand. "I think I have the right to lock you up."