So yeah, the first actual chapter. I post this without having Tsuki look at it, I hope she can forgive me for my impatience.
Please read and review.
The streets were never deserted, he thought as he let the curtain drop. Now, more than ever, with industrialization providing the money for people to be reckless. Bright electric lights made the day pale in comparison, and there was no more fear of robbery in the human soul. Bohemians, light women, students, everyone was out in the open, drinking, spending, wasting away…Not that he was complaining.
His footfalls were so soft they were hardly perceptible in the quiet room, as he glided through the floor to check on the woman sprawled on the bed. Her copper hair, cut short, was all over her face, but even without it hiding her he could tell she was hardly any attractive. Like many of them, she was well put together-a regulated diet, a good cosmetician and a hell of a fitness instructor had somehow turned this bland woman into something marginally pretty-yet she wasn't beautiful. Upon closer inspection, one could notice the little bags under her eyes and that her skin was starting to sport some very interesting patches, hinting that the layers and layers of carefully applied make up were finally wearing out.
Being with him was taking its toll out of her. She was starting to grow tired faster, and slept longer, her body desperately trying to conserve energy. However, a thin coat of sweat covered her torso, a remembrance of their activities earlier-no matter how tired she was, Ema would by all means carry out her part of the agreement she thought they had…One last desperate attempt to prove her worth to him.
The man's nostrils flared slightly with distaste as he straightened up. Soon, it would happen soon, and he would have her off his hands. The woman stirred in her sleep and flopped on her belly, covering herself up with the blankets, making him chuckle dryly. Such a vain attempt at modesty, such a human one too…He would never need clothes unless the charade called for such. Even in the electric light from the street, one that rather created than dissipated shadows, he appeared like a creature from another world, an incubus or a vampire, thousands of times more perfect than her, than any of them.
He didn't need to look at the clock-he could feel the sun rise behind the smoke screen that covered Paris. The rays could do him no harm, yet he preferred to stay out of them until it was necessary. He headed for the bathroom, locking the door behind him to make sure that woman wouldn't entertain any ideas of joining him. Just as he was about to step under the water, the phone in his pants pocket rang, announcing the arrival of a new message. Sighing, he picked it up, knowing that there wasn't a way to ignore it.
Leon, report at HQ, ASAP.-7
Leon snorted, closing the phone and throwing it in the sink. So they had finally decided on the particulars about the match. Very well, he would go…but, he added to himself once he was under the shower, not before he finished his business here.
London was…foggy. It was the usual weather for most of the time. Sora smiled as she jogged through the street, pausing only to drop a few coins in the cap of Charlie, the homeless person who always seemed to be hanging around Sarah-san's boarding house. Of course, there were plenty of guys like Charlie around town, and especially around St. Pancras train station, but he was amiable enough and he was always polite (in an albeit scrubby way) to Sarah-san and the others.
The muscles on her calves were protesting already, but she knew it was a simple cramp, an instinctive reaction to the pressure. It would go away soon.
She circled the basketball field, greeting the kids from the nearby foster home as she did that. They gave her half-nods and gruff laughs in return, but that was the normal reaction she got. There were really a few people in the neighborhood that were as friendly as she was in 6 in the morning, and Sora was known to be terribly, terribly polite.
Had they only known the reason why, they would've been surprised, she smiled as she climbed a bench and executed a graceful ballet jump. Early mornings were the only time she could, sadly, relive the joy of dancing and performing. The whole day, she'd be too busy running errands at Kaleido Stage or for the charity organizations she worked for. Not that she counted the good deeds as work, but still, it took up most of the waking hours. And Sora had to sleep, or, at least, spend a certain amount of time in her room with the lights out, doing nothing, to keep her landowner under the impression that she was no different than any of the other twenty-somethings girls, all artists from Kaleido Stage London, that inhabited the place.
Well…alright, that wasn't entirely true. To say that she was a normal girl, just like the others, would imply that she also spent certain nights out of the dorm, enjoying some…ahem, friendly company, or entertaining them at her place. Sarah-san wasn't very particular about that one, but Sora wasn't the kind to lie on purpose, let alone keep up an illusion for too long. Everybody told her she was a lousy actress, and maybe they were right. She was just…naturally against the concept of lying. Which made perfect sense to her, as her species was genetically programmed against lying…things went a little different when you didn't mention things, but even then, the situation was very important.
Bottom line was that Sora wasn't that good at keeping an appearance of a normal girl…but as long as she concealed what she really was from everyone, it should be fine….right?
Her beeper made her start and she nearly ran into a street lamp in surprise. Catching herself in time, she took a moment to calm herself before whipping out the offending device and looking at the screen. HQ, now.-7. Seven? Nobody ever used seven. The concept of 'breakfast' was soon forgotten and Sora was typing a message to Sarah-san not to wait for her, as she sprinted as fast as she could towards the British Museum.
The display was always open for visitors, a good thing in her case as she was very often troubled for money. She would, whenever she passed to get her instructions, pause at the entrance and admire the structure, the white columns and the stairs spiraling up…she knew that the rooms that were reserved for the archive looked more like Dante's Hell, but the pristine, white hall reminded her more of Heaven. It was a nice place, a place for relaxation, a place for study, a nice way to spend your days…but Sora had little time to look now. Why would they dial seven? She barely got a six for the subway attack, and that was five years ago. Now seven? What could be so important?
She crossed the grand hall, past the gift shop, paused to look at "The Horsemen of the Apocalypse" paper statues that were suspended from the wall, before descending into the showroom that displayed African Artifacts. Usually, she would go down further, past Peter and the other Angels, but today, she was surprised to find someone waiting for her, sitting on the bench facing the beads display. He turned his grim face towards her, and by the looks of it, she knew there was trouble.
Slowly, Sora approached him, tugging at the sleeves of her jersey nervously. Honestly, Gabriel? They couldn't have chosen a more intimidating angel to come and give her the assignment? She felt herself flush, wondering what the proper etiquette was for such a meeting, and yet she couldn't force the words out of her mouth.
Luckily, he seemed to understand, gave her a polite smile and offered her to sit next to him on the bench. They stared at the display for some time, before Gabriel pulled out a brown envelope from his pocket and handed it to her. His voice was calm, but there was a definite edge to it as he said: "Sora Naegino…I very much hope that you are ready for the challenge that lies ahead."
Knowing that he wouldn't get any less cryptic (all of the high-ranking angels were, more or less, difficult when it came to speech), Sora cracked the envelope open and took out the single sheet of paper. On the other end of the Channel, a tall, white haired man, received the same instructions and opened the same familiar envelope. Inside, in a writing that almost appeared ancient, stood the following text:
"From the beginning of time, Good and Evil have fought over the rule of this world. Now, once more, they will collide, for the following three weeks, and the best agent from both camps shall be sent to champion for their respective goal. So it has been said, and so it shall be done."
Sora stared at the lines extra hard, almost like a schoolgirl, hoping to catch some hidden meaning. Nope, the words, although written in a preposterous English, were quite plain. But she couldn't see what it had to do with her. Unless…
She looked up at Gabriel who in turn looked down at her, his eyebrows winging up as if he was challenging her to ask some silly question. Gulping, she felt that whatever answer he gave would only state the obvious, and she knew better than to annoy a higher-angel. Still…if this note meant what she thought it meant, than that meant…that she…that now…that she was supposed to…
"Represent us in this match against evil, yes." Gabriel finished for her, his tone only slightly strained. Sora flushed awkwardly, and seemed to loose her power of speech for a while, giving him a perfect opening to elaborate: "Our higher authorities have already began on the terms. Three weeks, as said, and the match will go on here, in London. Their agent is supposed to come any time soon, and you are to do everything in your power to stop him from causing damage to anyone."
"But…surely, there are better ones…" Sora gasped, but Gabriel shook his head
"You were the one chosen. Your position in this mission is under no doubt." He probably had a different opinion on the matter, but he probably wouldn't entertain it, let alone share it with her "For the last millennia or so, we have been winning, but only for now. The forces of Evil are getting stronger, and it's up to you to counter them. Ask no questions how, it shall be explained on the way. But you must not give up under any pretext, Sora Naegino."
"I wasn't planning to." She replied, her chest swelling with emotions-pride, fear, excitement "I won't let you down."
"Then I suggest you waste no time." Gabriel stood up, nodding Sora off. She stood and raced for the stairs, not wanting to waste a minute of it all.
In Paris, Leon snorted as he put the folder away. The little man in front of him, a greasy clerk with the most annoying face twitch attempted to glare at him, but the white-haired demon ignored him completely. "You must head out to London. This is where they agreed that the fight should take place."
"They. Precisely. Not me." Leon replied
"Oswald, you're arrogant, but you won't deny the orders of Satan himself!" The man's face was already red with rage "Do you know what he'll do if you don't obey?"
"I know perfectly, but I won't let it bother me, Blaze." Leon grinned "The Boss is well aware I have put effort and resources in my project here. Once I'm done, I'll fly to London and take care of that little angel."
"How long?" Blaze asked, nervous sweat tickling down his chin. Leon's nose wrinkled-how unsightly.
"For as long as it takes."
"Don't take this lightly!"
"Neither will you." He replied, shutting the door behind him with a loud clank. Tonight…he would finish it tonight. He'd been dancing around the prey for a while now, it was high time he went for the kill.
Ema Robins, who totally countered her name by being absolutely unable to sing, had successfully screwed, cheated and sabotaged her way up the measly hierarchy of the Noir club, and she'd pretty much loved every minute of it. She'd ruthlessly stepped on inferiors in order to get what she'd wanted and, if something like this could be taken literally, she'd sold her immortal soul for pleasure in this little world.
Not that Leon or any other demon would care for the specifics of such behavior. They hunted all souls, good and bad, and brought disasters on every household. They neither judged or wanted to be judged, however, Leon got out a special sort of thrill when he came after a person like Ema…A person with the full conscious that they had erred and that retribution would be carried out, whether through karma or the likes of him. He enjoyed seeing her squirm, jump at every slight noise, fear the inevitable and try to buy herself time…It brought a thrill to the hunt, a sort blindness for the future to come. It was what kept him alive…
The house was full, he thought with content as he sat in the back with his glass of 200 euro whiskey and flanked at both sides by different patrons of the bar. They all glared at him snidely, but nobody dared approach him. He chuckled-of course they wouldn't. Humans were envious, sinful, corrupt creatures, but, as if they sensed that he was somehow different, superior than the rest of them, stayed down, guided by their lowly self-preservation instincts. They were angry at him, but he wouldn't be there to bother them for long.
The lights dimmed and the show, as every night, started with the annoying mimes, followed immediately by Ema's impromptu show until midnight. Everything was normal…so very normal…the air was thick with smoke and chatter. Leon swirled the drink in his glass, counting the seconds slowly.
It was a perfect accident. A worker being clumsy at the wrong place at the wrong time, hitting the wrong buttons and letting one of the decors drop. However, Ema was too busy staring at him to notice it drop until it was too late. Her eyes widened with shock, betrayal and abandonment when the realization hit her, and then, a second later, her life came crushing down around her ears.
In the hospital, they registered fractured ribs and a broken arm, a hip that had to be replaced, deep gushes on her face and some strange formations on her voice cords. Her manager sent for Leon on her behalf, but the cell whose number he had been dialing remained unanswered, ringing away on the bottom of a trash can near the Airport D'Orly.
High time to change scenery…he had an angel to catch.
Sora laughed freely as Mia and Anna threw her up in the air and curled herself into a ball, spinning out of control. Her strawberry hair was everywhere as she landed swiftly and grinned at the small audience that had gathered. There were mostly children with their parents, but they were either in a hurry to catch their train, or more interested in the more advanced, more interesting facilities around them. Surely, London could show them something better than some clowns at St. Pancras train station.
However, she never stopped moving, doing everything possible that she had in her repertoire-juggling, acrobatics, falling on her face even. The rest of her counterparts just couldn't keep up with her-they were wither too self-conscious in their bright yellow jumpsuits and striped thighs, or too unwilling to perform with crazy make-up and colorful wigs in front of an audience that was a little too difficult to please. She, however, laughed and smiled without faltering, even when one of the kids threw half an apple at her.
Mia and Anna laughed their heads off when that happened-Sora always seemed to get into the most trouble than the rest of them. She was happy, she was cheerful, and her smiles were contagious, but people rarely shared her positive, happy-go-lucky attitude on life. If only they knew…
Kaleido Stage was situated in the heart of the city, but in order to get more people to come the owner, Kalos, had his performers do a little street show every week at the train station. Such an event, however small and unchallenging it might be for the trained acrobats, it was generally regarded as a purgatory that usually attracted the actors that had fallen from grace-the ones with a trauma or the ones always stuck in the back, who needed the extra paycheck. Sora's participating willingly in it, and her refusal for the bonus had really baffled most of them at first.
But for three years they had pretty much had gotten her pegged. She participated in charity events, the kitchen for the homeless…she voluntarily offered to look after the children of the performers while they practiced and even offered her assistance when a woman of the audience went into labor once. Sora was a kind soul, the type that always tried to help, and most of all, to make people smile.
However, that sort of lifestyle had proven pernicious for her career as an acrobat. She didn't train as much as the others did, and, in consequence, she was refused to take up big roles lest she failed in the middle of the performance. In the end, she was either stuck at the very last line of the back up dancers, or she did chores all over the place-scattered flower petals, handed out programs, cleaned up after the audience left, that sort of thing. It would've made more sense if Kalos just fired her, but for some unfathomable reason that owner kept her, for the great chagrin of May Wong, the second leading lady after the famous Layla Hamilton.
The performance was over, some polite applause resonated. The girls gathered up their things and headed out to find a bathroom where they could change. Sora decided to follow suit, but not before wiping out the make up with her sleeve. Just then, he heard a quiet sniffling and turned around to find a girl, not nine years old, sitting on the floor behind her and crying.
"Hello there." She whispered, kneeling next to her "Are you alright?"
Clearly not, because she started crying even harder. People were starting to look. Maybe she should take her to the operator's room, or the policeman…Sora picked her up and looked around to see better, and immediately, she saw a tall policeman walk her way…only he looked slightly more menacing than she would've liked. O-oh….
Panicking, worried, she took a step back and collided with the tall man that just emerged behind her from the arrival's gate….