The Chronicles of Fire and Ice (The Legend of the Archangel Book 1) (11 page)

“
Hell-Metal, huh?” said Scarlett, stepping out from behind the door. “You had better think harder next time you want to trap ‘The Legend’,” she said, throwing a fireball from her hands towards Abel’s face. His skin melted off his face right before her eyes, and his screams made Scarlett want to throw up. But she held herself together. She had to get out. She ran towards the open door, but one of the other angels grabbed her.

“
Stop fighting,” he hissed. “Our master told us to return you to the Academy.” His breath stunk of Black Wing, a unique brand of cigarette. It was then Scarlett remembered something Dyston had told her on their date.

Watching the football beside Dyston, she noticed numerous Nephilim smoking.

“Did you ever work for your father’s company?” she asked. He turned to her and smirked.

“
Why do you ask?”

“
I was curious. I saw Lakyn on the news talking about his cigarettes and their controversial new formula. Makes me wonder what’s so controversial about it.”

Dyston turned his gaze back to the game for a moment then turned back to her. A look of concern crossed his features.

“Look, you didn’t hear this from me. Okay?” he lowered his voice and leaned closer, quickly looking around to see if anyone was watching them. “I didn’t want to work for my Father’s company because of what they’re doing.”

“
What are they doing?”

“
Lakyn developed a unique formula. It caused controversy because the cigarettes were found to contain a hallucinogen that made you think Lucifer was your master, so that you would join the Lucifites.”

This was the
sign Scarlett needed to confirm her suspicions—that these angels were under the same influence, or thought they were. She knew they worked for Lakyn.

“
I don’t believe you,” she said, spitting in his face. But he didn’t let her go.

“
It’s the truth. He told Abraham himself.”

“
Abraham?” asked Scarlett.

“
Yeah, the angel that’s holding your fallen boyfriend,” he told her. Scarlett froze. They had Dyston. No wonder she couldn’t hear him anymore.

“
What did you do to him?” she demanded as she began to kick, striking one of Lakyn’s assistants in the shin.

“
Argh! You little Archangel bitch! The sooner we get rid of you, the better,” he screamed.

Scarlett
managed to get loose again and ran through the open door. She only made it halfway down the hall when she heard the elevator open around the corner. She froze and pinned herself against the wall, waiting. But the person who came around the corner was not who she expected, for there before her stood Dyston’s mother, Beth Blackbell, and right behind her, Jacob.

“
Scarlett, go with Jacob back to the Academy,” Beth told her. “I’ll deal with Abel and his… attack dogs.” Scarlett immediately ran to Jacob’s side but not before giving the older woman a warm smile. Beth smiled back and continued walking towards the apartment.

As Scarlett rode the elevator down to the ground floor with Jacob, a million questions zipped through her mind.

“Where’s Dyston?” was the first one she asked. Jacob met her eyes sadly.

“
He’s being held in the Realm of Light, and there’s only one person who can get him out,” he told her.

“
Who?”

“
Lakyn.”

“
Well, I’ll go and ask him when we get back.”

“
Okay, but Scarlett, there’s one little problem with that.”

“
What’s that?”

“
Lakyn’s the one who put him in there.”

Light

“What exactly is the Realm of Light?” Scarlett asked in the car on the way back to the Academy. Blackbell had its own private car fleet of old British taxis, which were used on official business only.

“
It’s a realm that can only be entered by angels,” he told her.

“
And why do angels go there?”

“
Because fallen angels can’t enter back into the Realm of Fire. And angels who haven’t chosen a side can’t enter the Realm of Ice. So they go to the Realm of Light.”

“
Which is like Purgatory, right?”

“
Not quite. Purgatory is where all other creatures live in wait. The Realm of Light is only for angels.”

Scarlett processed this.
“So, can I go into the Realm of Light and rescue him?” she asked, hopeful. But her heart sank with Jacob’s next words.

“
No, I’m sorry. Only full-fledged angels can enter the Realm of Light.”

“
But, you said Lakyn put him in there, right? Why?”

“
Because they are trying to start a new war, and Dyston was getting in their way.”

“
Who are
they
?”

Jacob let out hi
s breathe slowly. “The Lucifites.”

“
So, that’s what Lakyn’s been plotting? He wants to bring the Lucifites back to life?”

“
Like a phoenix from the ashes,” he told her.

Beth storme
d into Lakyn’s empty apartment. She was like a force of nature, and she swept the soldiers up in her whirlwind, for that was her Trait. She knocked the two guards down first, and then she went for Abel, who was cowering near the window. He glanced at it, and then at her.

“
You jump, you die,” she told him.

“
I’m going to anyway,” he told her, smashing the glass.

“
I’m not here to kill you, Abel. I’m here to offer you immunity, if you help my son.”

“
Which one?” he snickered.

“
Both, but more importantly, my youngest. The one you have imprisoned in the Realm of Light.”

“
Sorry, can’t help you,” he told her, about to jump. Beth grabbed him by the back of his shirt and pulled him away from the window.

“
Please, Abel, help me. I will reward you with anything that you wish,” she told him. He sighed.

“
You know there’s only one way your son can get out of the Realm of Light, right?” he asked. Beth nodded. She knew, but she was afraid to admit it.

“
Yes, I know.”

Dyston
clenched his jaw. The pain from the bindings was searing and irritating his wrists. “Are these necessary?”

“
Just following orders,” Abraham told him.

“
From who?”

Before Abraham could answer, he led Dyston out of the cave, down a slope
, and into a creek bed, where everything shined. Dyston had heard about the Realm of Light many times from his mother, but he had never been here. So, he must be a full-fledged angel, he thought. The beauty of the realm temporarily took away the pain his fiery handcuffs inflicted. Everything shimmered and glittered, looking like it had been touched by faeries. The trees were covered in tiny blue lights. They swayed in a non-existent breeze. When they touched the tree next to it, the adjacent tree lit up brighter than the former. That wasn’t the most incredible and unique part about this place—that was the river. This river didn’t contain water. Rather, it overflowed with crystals, diamonds, and tiny crystal spheres—the very same type of sphere that Abraham had around his neck.

“
There’s no point in holding me in these bindings. I can’t escape from here without the key,” Dyston told him as they walked. “Where are you taking me, anyway?”

“
To the Chambers,” replied Abraham.

Dys
ton flinched. The Chambers was a place where they conducted tests and carried out punishments. It was a sort of courthouse for Nephilim.

They entered the forest
. The lights were brighter and stronger here. Up above and everywhere around, Dyston heard a flap of wings—other angels flew overhead. He wanted to call out for help.

“
Who are you working for?” he asked Abraham, who had just yanked him forward.

“
Keep up,” Abraham growled. Before long, the forest thinned out and it grew darker, but only for a second. Up ahead rose the spires of the Chambers. It looked like any gothic castle, except this one was outlined in blue light and seemed to float on clouds. They stepped onto the bridge leading to the front gate of The Chambers, and Dyston was immediately hesitant. He knew what the bridge was made out of.

“
If you don’t quit stopping, I’ll add
your
wings to that pile,” said Abraham, yanking him forward again. Dyston had no choice but to step on the bridge of angel wings. His mother had told him about it in a bedtime story when he was young—angels that betrayed God and went against their Task had their wings ripped out and added to the Bridge of Wings. From that moment, Dyston had been terrified to ever step a foot wrong until he found Scarlett. From that moment on, he realised he would sacrifice anything to protect her, even his wings. And if this were what it took, he would do it. He followed Abraham into the Chambers.

As soon as Scarlett arrived back at Blackbell
, she ran towards Lakyn’s office. But not before running into Emer and Del.

“
Scar, you’re back!” squealed Emer, throwing her arms around Scarlett.

“
Yes. Shh, don’t let everyone know.”

“
I’m so glad you’re back, and that you’re safe.”

“
Well, I’m not exactly safe. None of us are,” Scarlett told her friends. The two girls just stared at her, confused.

“
I’ll explain later. Right now, I need to find Lakyn.”

“
He’s missing,” Emer told her.

“
What?” Scarlett’s heart sank. “What do you mean,
missing
?”

“
Ask Jacob. He’s the one who darted him,” Emer told her.

“
Darted
him?”

“
Yeah, ‘cause he was hurting Josh.”

“
So, that means his office is free,” stated Scarlett as she ran down the hall.

“
I have a feeling this is not good,” said Del, staring after Scarlett.

“
Not at all,” added Emer.

Scarlett pushed
open the door to Lakyn’s office. It was dark and smelled of his cigarettes. She flipped on the light and surveyed the room. Jacob had told her that Lakyn held the key to freeing Dyston. So, she had to find something—anything— that was a clue. His desk was on the same wall as the door. She noticed it was clean, too clean. No papers, just a computer, and a bronze statuette of Lucifer depicted in his angel form—
his previous self.
Scarlett walked behind the desk, sat on the chair and switched on the computer. While she waited for it to boot up, she glanced around the rest of the room. There was nothing else but a punching bag and three bookshelves. He lived a boring life, she thought, dedicated to study. As soon as the computer home screen opened, the first thing she noticed was the desktop, or rather, the lack of one. There was no personal photo, only the Blackbell family crest. She realised, with a sinking feeling, that this must not be his personal computer. Instead of turning it off again, she decided to browse. The first thing she clicked on was his email inbox. A box appeared that asked for a password.
Damn!
She began to think of the possibilities it could be. The first thing she tried was
blackwings
. It was Lakyn’s company name and black wings also adorned his family crest, so it was the most logical choice. It was a success. She was in. She almost laughed out loud at how easy it had been. She studied the latest email, the subject line entitled
RE: BlackWing Test Subject - Phase One.
She clicked on it and read the body of the email. It appeared to have come from an employee at his factory, someone in charge of doing tests with the ‘new formula.’ It also noted that subjects were responding positively and followed every chain of command they were given. What she read horrified Scarlett. They were running tests on working class Nephilim with the hallucinogenic formula Dyston told her about. They were turning them into zombies. She clicked out of the email, shut down the computer, and quickly jumped away from the desk.