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Langdon stood wide-eyed as his only means of transportation lay in ruins. The metal frame was twisted and mangled like a crane had decided to play with it. The shattered glass laid spread along the tiled streets, glistening against the sun.
"I'm not too familiar with mortal customs or technology, but I think that is bad?" Raphael innocently proposed, not too aware of these events.
Langdon only stared at the scrap.
"Yeah, Raphael, that's bad. It means that I can't go home or to my 'date' with Lady Nicholaus." The stunned professor explained, kneeling down to see if anything was salvageable. No dice.
"Well, we go to your house the same way I got here." Raphael thought out loud.
"Yeah, whatever; just get me home." Robert replied, his mind somewhere else.
Raphael smiled joyfully as he exclaimed "Ok! But it's a bumpy flight considering the wind patterns…" and grabbed Langdon's arm
Nice of Raphael to offer me a ride…Wait, he never said, "ride" per se…How the hell did he…oh no.
It was all ready too late; Raphael had dragged him into a back alley, hidden from view.
"Just hold on real tight and don't look down." The angel explained as he loosened the gun holster.
"Raphael, I don't that's such a good idea." Langdon protested while Raphael held on tightly to his hand.
"I've done this hundreds of times, Robert, and I have yet to lose a passenger." The angel assured.
"What if I fall?"
"We'll never know unless we take off."
Langdon shut his eyes close, holding on to the archangel's hands. Suddenly, he felt nothing holding him down. He felt as if gravity was null and the strong gusts of air hitting his face. He opened his eyes and below his dangling feet was the city.
"Holy shit!" was the only thing he could exclaim, his ears already popping due to the altitude.
"How do you like it?" Raphael asked, grinning as Robert took in the vista. The people looked like toy figures, bustling about with their business. "Whoa, cloud ahead!" the angel announced as his wings flapped harder. Langdon, on the other hand, got a faceful of the clouds; the droplets landing swiftly onto his face.
Dear God, don't let this be a dream…he wished in the back of his mind.
"Hey Robert, wanna play something?" Raphael inquired, a mischievous smile growing on his face.
"Whaddya mean?"
All together too fast, Raphael let go, letting Langdon free fall. Langdon's heart began to race as he felt gravity once again push him down to his demise.
Everything that goes up must come down
Inside a skyscraper, a bored secretary was looking absently to the window when a blur fell down. The woman stood up and ran to the window,
That definitely looked like a man!
Outside, just before his body could hit the ground, Langdon was picked up again and continued his flight. His vehicle was having an exhilarant fit of laughter.
"You could've killed me!" Langdon yelled airily.
"You're no fun!" Raphael exclaimed happily. "We've got hours to burn before you meet the lady…let's play a while!"
Well sure he can play his little game HE HAS WINGS FOR GOD'S SAKE! Then again…
"Sure, let's play. Just not too close-cut." Langdon said, his smile showing a bit of worry.
The game went on; Raphael tossing, Langdon spinning or somersaulting or anything the push allowed him to do for 30 seconds until Raphael caught him again. They went on until the sun reached the noon mark. After a few minutes, they were on the professor's Victorian home.
Langdon felt every cell of his body rejuvenated, his age and troubles no longer present at the moment. He had truly flown, not like an airplane but truly experienced flight. His hands still shaking from the adrenaline of each jump, each moment in the air. Raphael had given him, at least for small bouts of time, the gift of flight.
"Guess it's back to the real world." Raphael stated, his voice filled with sadness yet with a joyful expression.
Aw come on, don't ruin the moment…
Raphael then walked over to his companion. He opened his gun holster and handed his .40 to the man. "You'd better take it for now. It's got 16 rounds so use it sparingly. And don't think that with a mere shot to the head you'll be able to take out Lady Nicholaus."
"But don't you need this? Especially with that monster, Kimera, able to walk around in the sun?" Langdon asked, pushing the weapon back to Raphael.
"Kimera can only last a very short amount of time outside. You need to rest up; better men have gone against her and end up either being buried in Tupperware or becoming her minions." The angel explained, giving Robert the gun.
"Between dying and being her slave, I pick the Tupperware funeral." Langdon replied sarcastically, putting away the gun in a light coat.
"I'll come back to pick you up by 8 tomorrow morning. Be sure to be alive by then."
"I'll try."
As Raphael left, he couldn't help but give his new partner a piece of advice; "If she tempts you, remember this, you'll be a prisoner of your own body and will wish nothing but death. And when that time comes…well, let's just say hell will have an opening for you."
Interesting side note "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind." Langdon stated, grinning.
As the angel took flight, Robert couldn't help but watch him until he was out of sight. He checked his Mickey Mouse watch, it read 12:34 pm.
Six hours 'til Showtime.