Dark Destiny (40 page)

A small geyser of water exploded from underneath the canoe. The two teenagers were caught off guard. The canoe flipped, dumping them into the water.

“Come Midnight,” Amber said, hopping to her feet.

“Meow.”

Amber’s black boot stepped onto the water as Midnight jumped onto her shoulder. One step, then another. The water beneath her feet flowed wildly, gushing out around her, but she did not sink.

She walked on the water, to the capsized canoe bobbing just beneath the lake’s surface. No sign of the love birds. The lake was far too deep to see the bottom.

Amber withdrew the vial of Sara’s blood and glanced at her reflection on the water’s surface. She took a moment to admire herself. After all these years, she was still beautiful.

The vial glinted in the bright sunshine and Amber held it up high. She admired the way the light penetrated the thick, red liquid.

Midnight leapt off Amber’s shoulder and landed on the water. She sat on the surface and licked her paws.

Amber tipped the vial, spilling its thick contents. The surface of the lake bubbled where the blood had fallen. The water turned red for an instant. Thunder rolled in and the clear blue sky instantly became cloudy.

This was the beginning . . .

Present day

Wednesday, 7:55 am (Purgatorium)

Jared stood on a rooftop and gazed across the skyline toward the TransAmerica Tower looming in the distance. In the clear night sky, the moon cast an eerie blue light, giving the floor to ceiling windows a ghostly glow and deepening the shadows around the tower.

The wind howled, whipping his blond hair at his cheeks. He exhaled into the cold air, his misty breath dissipating slowly. His burnt orange sweater was gone, as was the person he used to be. He now wore a dirty white muscle shirt that contrasted against his now dark grey, almost black, skin. His right arm and shoulder with their lean yet well-defined muscles were now covered with white Shade tattoos in varying leaf silhouettes.

The messenger bag Amber had given him hung heavy across his shoulders and back. Inside was the precious snow globe. Amber had given him specific instructions regarding what to do with it. For now, at least, the pervading thought on his mind was his sister.

Alone.

Hurt.

Sad.

Anger raged inside of him. Deep in his heart, his Soul grew darker, colder. And yet the immense dark energy that filled him made him feel more powerful than he’d ever been.

He sighed. “You guys ready to do this?”

Obsidian stepped forward, putting one foot onto the edge of the roof balcony as he leaned forward. He propped his elbow on his knee and flexed his grip on his black wooden staff. The glowing white flame tattoos on his face animated, writhing to life against the darkness of his skin. The red runes on his staff glowed, pulsing in time with his beating heart. He stared at the tower.

“It is the master’s will,” Obsidian rumbled, his voice deep.

Jared grunted. “Indeed it is.”

The extraction would be easy, but the rest? With him knowing the truth about the Revenant, he understood what needed to be done, but he wasn’t sure if he could do it.

Behind him, Kei also stepped forward. “Relax, young one. Our plan is balanced. We shall succeed.”

Kei wore no shirt. His lean, muscular chest and torso were more ink than skin. Yet only three were white: barbed wire that wrapped around his neck and both biceps. They writhed, twisting in circles.

“And besides,” said Obsidian, “we have back up.”

The TransAmerica Tower stood resolute, its ominous presence daring them to come. Black clouds filled the sky far to the East, flashes of lightning dancing throughout as thunder rumbled in the distant sky.

Jared arched an eyebrow and smiled.

Time to get to work.

Wednesday, 7:56 am

Standing at the large glass window with his hands clasped behind his body, Raphael stared at the Baltimore city skyline. The humans’ architectural engineering and craftsmanship was amazing. The complexity of the downtown skyline superimposed over the empty vastness of Chesapeake Bay was breathtaking. How simple humans with their undeveloped minds were able to create something like this was a wonder, and Raphael took great joy at the beauty of the human species, much in the way a human might be charmed by the industriousness and accomplishments of the simple honey bee.

Behind him, his brother grunted. This made him smile. Gabriel had a rough exterior, and that made him hard to really know. Still, Raphael knew that underneath his stern bravado was a passionate and wonderful heart. He wondered what thoughts went through Gabriel’s head today.

“Everything okay, brother?” Raphael asked, turning around.

Gabriel sat sullenly on a leather sofa, a manila folder open on his lap. He shook his head, frowning. “No.”

“Anything I can help with?” Raphael asked, taking a step toward him.

“These . . .” he scrunched up his nose in a sneer, “
humans
.”

He exhaled. “Sometimes, I think I could go down and smite them all for this . . .” He gazed at the gothic ceiling, searching for the right word. “This
treachery
,” he hissed.

Raphael pressed his lips together to keep from smiling and asked, “What treachery do you speak of?”

“Some human Hollywood producer has just greenlit a film that would portray Angels, the messengers of God mind you, as going back in time and fighting the dinosaurs! How preposterous is that? Do they not know what it is they do?”

Raphael sighed. “Brother, humans have doubts about everything. It’s within them to question, part of their make-up. And one avenue they use in which to attempt to answer their questions is art. Creativity.”

“Art? Creativity? Bah!” Gabriel said, throwing the file onto the floor. Its contents scattered across the polished marble. “Art is a sunrise over the mountains. Art is a sunset behind storm clouds. Art is a cyclone over the Pacific. Even humans can create art. The Sistine Chapel! DaVinci’s Annunciation! Art is certainly not humans traipsing about dressed up as their version of angels pretending to shoot dinosaurs with
eye
lasers!”

“This offends you?”

“Yes, brother! They are turning our role in the universe into a joke!”

Raphael licked his lips and paced a bit, wondering how to make his point clear. Finally, he cleared his throat and began. “I feel that sometimes humans don’t know how to ask the right questions. So they do something just to see what the reaction might be. In a way, the reaction can answer their question. Take this idea of Angels fighting dinosaurs for example. I feel it could be this human is trying to find his place in the world. By making a controversial film, it’ll spark multiple debates that will help him find his way. This human does not do it to offend, but to learn. For that, I cannot fault him.”

“Does this concept not offend you as an Angel?”

“Hmm,” mused Raphael. “I think I will need to see the final product before I am offended. As one once said, ‘you cannot give offense, only take it.’ I try not to judge these human actions. I try to help in any way I can.”

Gabriel smiled, admiring his little brother’s words. “For one so young, you are quite wise.”

“For the record, I think I might enjoy a movie about Angels fighting dinosaurs,” Raphael said with a smile.

“You’re not serious. You are just trying to vex me.”

“Not at all. In fact, I find it quite an honor to be portrayed as a wily and vicious dinosaur hunter.”

“No,” Gabriel grumbled. “You’re trying to goad me.” He chuckled at his younger brother.

Raphael flashed a brief smile. “Brother. I meant to ask you something.”

Sensing the tone shift, Gabriel asked, “What is it, brother?”

“Have you ever dealt with a Horseman before?”

“I have not. I’ve had no dealings with any of the four. Only Ariel has.”

Raphael nodded. “Did you notice his plane shifting? I think I may have heard him refer to it as ‘blinking.’”

With a heavy sigh, Gabriel replied. “I did indeed. That may pose a problem in the future when he truly does master his gifts.”

“It was back to back in the blink of an eye. Our recovery time is not nearly that quick. We can only ‘blink’ every couple of seconds, not instantaneously like the Horseman did.”

Gabriel stroked his chin. “I just wonder what other gifts the horseman may command. The more you know about your enemy, the better.”

“I don’t think he’s our
—
”

Their attention snapped in the direction of the heavy wooden door.

It was Raphael who spoke first. “She has awakened.”

Wednesday, 8:01 am

Sara pried her eyelids open, only to be met with a blurry suffusion of grey and black. The temperature was, well, perfect, and whatever she was lying on was remarkably soft. She blinked a couple of times, trying to clear her mind of cobwebs.

As her field of vision cleared, she turned her head and found a thick, heavy oak end table next to her.

Resting on that was a glass of water.

Cold water.

Too cold. Burning.

Panic squeezed her throat.

She gulped for air.

A cold shiver ran down her arms and back. She shook, fear creeping throughout her body. Sitting up, she frantically took in her surroundings.

The heavy brick walls gave off the impression that she was in some sort of ancient castle. The vaulted ceiling appeared perfectly smooth, as if it were crafted of the finest marble. Four portrait paintings hung on the wall, depicting four different figures. One of the figures was too familiar.

It was Sebastian, but there were subtle differences. There was an air of confidence to his expression and he wore a thin, ferocious smile, giving the painting an intense, dangerous feel. Sara examined the others. One man and two women. All beautiful. She didn’t recognize any of them.

There was a rap at the door. Her eyes darted to it.

She bit her lip as her heartbeat quickened. Before she decided whether to answer or not, the door opened a crack and an attractive man peeked in.

“Hello?” he said. “Is everything okay?”

She stared back at him in silence, knowing who he was.

He nodded once to himself before stepping into the room.

No doubt about it, this was the one who had come to her rescue in the city, the one that had protected her from the mountain of zombie creatures. His hands carried a tray with a large, upside down stainless steel bowl. She understood that there was most likely food under there. Her stomach growled.

After taking a few steps, he paused. “May I come in?”

Several seconds passed.

They stared at each other.

Finally, she acquiesced, accepting his hospitality with a weak smile. “Sure,” she said softly.

He nodded awkwardly and proceeded farther into the room.

“Hi,” he said, placing the tray on a small table. “Are you hungry?”

He removed the stainless steel lid to reveal, on a porcelain plate, eggs benedict, woodland strawberries, smoked salmon with herb cream cheese and bacon.

The smell filled her nostrils with the most amazing allure. She swallowed hard. Her stomach growled more intensely. She felt his attention on her, his expression asking if she’d heard the question. His head leaned in closer, wondering if he had missed the answer.

“No,” she answered. “I’m okay, thank you.”

“Please,” he motioned to the plate. “I had it prepared by one of the finest human chefs. Or, so they say. We can also offer you a ‘blackberry buttermilk smoothie’”

She smiled softly. “I’m good, thank you.”

He bowed slightly.

“Okay,” he covered the food back up once again. “It shall be here, ready for you to take it when you are ready.”

The smell, though not so intense, still lingered in the room and she could feel her mouth beginning to water.

Pushing the hunger down, she asked, “Who are you?”

“My apologies. We haven’t been formally introduced. My name is Raphael. I am an Angel of the Lord.”

He extended his hand out to shake.

She didn’t take it.

“An angel?” she asked. “But you don’t have any
wings
.”

A soft smile touched his lips and he retracted his hand. “If it’ll make you feel more comfortable, I can put a pair on.”

She didn’t hesitate. “What do you want with me?”

He nodded, his soft expression indicating he was ready to answer her questions. He pulled out a chair next to the bed and lowered himself into it. He inclined his head as he spoke softly. “The simple answer is to protect you. We only wish to take you home.”

“Home?”

“Yes, into the Light. You were ripped from the Light and we were sent here to retrieve you. To bring you home. You may not remember it now, but it’s the most beautiful place in existence, a perfect paradise for you. That’s where Michael is right now. Clearing your arrival.”

“Clearing my arrival.”

“Yes. With the Light being a place of such beauty and wonder, there are those that wish to break in. That is why we have many safeguards. But you need not worry about that. Once you’re home, your memories will return and you will know all of this. That’s when you will finally be reunited with
—
” His attention snapped toward the door as alarm filled him.