His breath was hard as he heard his feet pound underneath him and the only thought that consumed him was of Irisa. She filled all the void of shadows and darkness that covered the once beautiful halls of Paradise. Now, it laid in ruins because of the reign of Archangel Gabriel. Shouts and inaudible sounds filled the crevices of the broken and mangled walls of the great palace that was supposed to be solace for Angels. Sam's heart felt torn and depleted of hope because he knew what he needed to do...he had to fall again.

Cold breaths continued to entangle Sam as he was nearing the Edge and once again, he was faced with the Burning that came with the Fall. The voices were nearing him as he ran through a maze of corridors. He abrubtly stopped in front of an intersection of three halls that split and felt desperate because he forgot which way he needed to go from there. He ran his fingers of the Edict on his chest plate of his Obsidian armor and asked for the right place to be revealed. Opening his eyes, nothing was revealed to him. Sam looked up in desperation and there was nothing but thudding of the on coming predators that were behind him.

"I have served you all my life and I'am asking you for the way to my retribution. Even you, my Father make mistakes. Please, I am trying to save what is left of what you once held precious to you. Please...lead me back to her. She is my salvation," he said quietly underneath his breath. There still was nothing and Sam cursed. Suddenly, a tiny speckle of light flared briefly to the left corridor and then it was gone. Grinning, Sam took off with quick speed. He broke out into the familiar courtyard, he had once done before and thought nothing, but of his human wife, Irisa and his dead sons, that Gabriel killed with his own hands.

There was another spark of glitter and then it illuminated with pulsating whites and yellows of glorious light, Sam turned in that direction and dashed toward it. He caught a glimpse of the Edge and made his way toward it. It shimmered with lovely glows of white radiant light that flowed down like a crystalline river to where he needed to be...Earth. He gently took his two fingers and made the cross of the Edict across his chest plate, where it glowed the beautiful cresent of a tree with halo surrounding it. Only the most prestiges Angel were awarded this with the trust of God.

He murmured words of an ancient language that only the Warrior Angels knew and the eblem of the crest began to radiate and glow underneath his fingers. He heard yelling in the background, but he ignored them. The other Angels surrounded him, but did not get to close for they knew what was about to happen. One of the Angels stepped forward with a slow and methodical step. "Sam, please do not do this. She will bring us nothing but sorrow to our place." Sam looked up with a horrid look on his face.

"You call this Paradise? This place holds nothing but pain and false pretensions. What of my sons? What of my wife?" He growled underneath his breath with hatred toward his Brothers. "I have pledged loyalty with the Brotherhood of Paradise and then I was falsely accused of bringing the reign of our brother, Archangel Michael to an end. Brother, there is nothing but sorrow here, but she will change that," Sam whispered faintly. He turned away from his brothers and opened his wings.

His wingspan was impressive with gold specks lightly illuminating his massive presence. The feathers were a beautiful iridescent raven black, unusual for an angel, but Sam was not an ordinary angel. His first fall was with the lust of women, when the first angels fell to earth, a millennium ago. He had paid the price for that indiscretion and was awarded penance from his Father. Archangel Gabriel pleaded with their heavenly savior to be brought back to Paradise and to become a Watcher. It was agreed that Sam would be under the direct supervision of Gabriel and that he would be obedient, but because Gabriel knew Sam's weak heart for the humans, he began to take him on observation trips with who would be his future wife, Irisa.

With the painful thought of his late wife, Sam stretched out his wings and felt the wind catch them, feeling the breeze play over his feathers. He smiled because he remembered Irisa and how she loved to sit on sand and breath in deeply the sea wind that blew against her cheek. The single happy thought of her triggered a series of events that would betray Sam as he felt that familiar darkness creep and what once consumed him before. His breathing became uneven as he looked down to the tips of his fingers as they started to change shape into something he had kept dormant for so long. Sharp nails started to slide out, breaking the skin causing Sam to flinch in pain.

'No...no...no. Not this again!' Sam's thoughts were clouded and started to twist with a deep sense of evil. The chattering sounds of his brothers nearing abruptly stopped his transformation. He gathered his thoughts and focused on his present mission at hand. He heard a yell from behind him and turned to face the group of closing Angels. One of them stepped carefully in front of the group with his hands held open. "Sam, don't do this," he pleaded again. Sam shook his head sadly as he started toward the Edge, but his brother that still had faith in him kept his hands up to give Sam a signal that he was there to help.

"Brother, I know you think that we are only here to stop you, but I still have faith in you. You have to believe that," Elijah said as he continued to walk toward Sam with no sudden movements. Sam was distracted with his overwhelming pain that blinded him, and just as he was about to step dive over the Edge, Elijah grabbed his wrist to pull him back. Sam wrenched his hand free and fell backward over the Edge and he heard his brother cry out his name, but he was lost and felt himself being hurled back into the world he thought he had forgotten...Earth.

The author would like to thank you for your continued support. Your review has been posted.