"Dad…?" she said taking the smallest of hesitant steps forward.
Selaphiel smiled sadly at her coming to stand beside her and she saw that his eyes were the same as hers. His wings slowly solidified into feathered wings, with fierce orange streaks with icy blue tips on the end of his feathers.
"Is this real?" she asked looking around her
"What does your heart tell you?" he answered with a question. Truthfully she wasn't sure as it whether this was real or not, or where she even was.
"You're not real…" she finally replied looking at Selaphiel.
He smiled sadly again "Not everything as it seems, life, this place" he said gesturing around him "Nothing is tangible, nothing is truly forever" He said, El pondered his words. She looked over to the other Archangels who were stood silently as they regarded her. Someone who is soulbound yet with the grace and power of an Archangel.
"I'm sorry I was never there for you Jane" Selaphiel said sadly. Regret laced within in him
"It's okay…" she started to say comfortingly. She eyes lit up an Icy blue.
"No!" he shouted "I wasn't able to save you, save my daughter from the evil that was Brenner, I thought the demon was evil but Brenner was a whole different level entirely" he said through clenched teeth.
"Yet a human saved you where I could not" Selaphiel said although he wasn't angry that this was the case in fact it was quite the opposite.
"Is he good to you? Selaphiel asked.
"He's Mike" she said simply yet softly which spoke volumes of the deep connection that the two truly shared from the moment they had met in the forest long ago whereupon he shined his flashlight on her. El thought back and realized that she had nearly fallen in love with him straight away. In fact now that she truly thought about it, it was the moment when he had given a new name, not a number.
He nodded happy with her answer.
There was a flash of Red Lightning and there in the distance the titanic monster stood, it's head swivelled round to look at her and she gulped in fear starring at the monster that was the cause of so much suffering and so much pain, for her, for her friends, for Mike and countless others.
Selaphiel came to stand beside and he too regarded the demon. Eleven watched as the Mind Flayer's corruption spread throughout the land, desecrating everything in a constant and never ending state of decay and death.
"You will be the one to stop this Jane" Selaphiel stated gazing at the Mind Flayer with a hardened icy blue gaze "It has always been you"
"How? what can I do? This is bigger than me" she uttered helplessly.
"I'll tell you how I know, you marched back into that Lab without a second thought to the place that imprisoned you, tortured you and deprived you of what you most longed for, they were the reason you and Mike had suffered for as long as you did"
El looked up to her father with an expression that was hard to read.
"You had marched back in there because they took someone who you love, sound familiar?" El felt the echo of her fathers screams in the back of her mind along with the extinguishing of his grace all because she wanted to rescue Mike and make them pay with their blood at taking him from her.
"The Angel warding didn't even affect you, it had no affect on you, you are more powerful than you know" Selaphiel said with a twinkle in his eye. El turned her gaze to The Mind Flayer again.
"You're my daughter, one that I am damn proud of"
The other Archangels came to stand beside her as The Mind Flayer was beginning to make it's way closer to them.
"I can't do this alone…" she whispered as the might of the Mind Flayer bore down upon her like a scorching desert sun.
"Alone? You'll never be alone, we never left" Selaphiel said looking at her as her eyes brimmed with tears. "We'll always be with you"
"Promise?" she asked.
"Promise" he affirmed.
XxXxXxXxX
Mike had not moved from his spot from El's side whilst both Lucifer and Zadkiel were talking in hushed whispers, Jack had returned to Hell to oversee the final preparations for what was to come.
Both Angels could now see the faith trails of flame-like vapour rising steadily from her back due to their enhanced angelic senses, they could sense that she was in the final stage of Wing growth, Lucifer had knocked her unconscious so that at least she wouldn't be able to feel the pain of her back ripping itself open in order for the wings to be to materialize on the physical plane of existence.
Mike simply could not help but be worried regardless, she had been screaming in terrible, agonizing pain and he could not possibly imagine the extent of the pain that she was finding herself in, even now in her state of unconsciousness she let out a little whimper, the pain being so strong that it was even penetrating that blissful state.
Why couldn't things just be okay for once? Why couldn't they just be at peace? Mike thought bitterly.
El's eyes fluttered and they opened instantly finding Mike's who looked back at her with a small, relieved smile.
"Hey, El" he said relief evident in his tone.
"Hi, Mike" she said smiling although she was wincing in pain.
Lucifer wandered over seeing that she was now awake
"I manage to dull the pain to about a tenth of what it was but I won't be able to hold it back for much longer, they're trying to flourish" Lucifer said.
El nodded and looked at Mike who sent her a reassuring smile whether it was just for her or for himself as well was unclear.
"It's coming Mike" She said in a desperate whisper of despair. She looked to Lucifer "It's coming" She repeated and Lucifer nodded in understanding, he lowered his head and his halo of blue shone throughout the cabin as he communicated with the rest of the host.
But the momentary silence was interrupted as El began to wince harder In pain before there was full fledged screaming.
XxXxXxX
The Demogorgans and Demo-Dogs were starting to grow very restless. There was nothing left to Hunt as the Celestials had left and fled to Earth not that the Mind Flayer minded it simply allowed it to consolidate it's strength and forces, ready for to form the main gate to Earth. Ready to subjugate it to it's will and dominance.
Fortunately for the Human souls The Mind Flayer had no access to the Souls that resided in Heaven, Light barriers stronger than that even the demon knew stood fast in place, forged by The Light himself but it was of no matter as it would soon have access to the billions of souls of Humanity and the trillion of simpler of Souls that belonged to the animals that roamed upon it's surface.
For every soul it consumed, every ounce of grace it absorbed it grew that ever more powerful, soon it would have enough power to break through the barriers even in Heaven and invade the darker dimension of Hell. It's power would be nigh-omnipotent and it would have dominion over all things.
It's power was enough to dominate the mind's of the Demogorgan species becoming the attack hounds and foot soldiers needed to conquer new places of wealth and fat.
It's time would soon come.
XxXxXxXxX
The Light or God stood atop Mount Fuji and contemplated everything that had happened. He bowed his head. The Light for the first time felt confliction for the first time in Eternity.
He knew that Lucifer, his last Archangel had searched for him, as his brothers fought and died, as the Archangels failed to fight against something that was beyond them. A Foe that was nigh-undefeatable.
Could he…
Or most importantly…
Would he…
Leave humanity to it's fate? Or would his plan work?
As bad as humanity was they did not deserve extinction.
The Light sighed and gazed up to the sky at every star. He knew the name of every single one. He vanished in an explosion of Light.
XxXxXxX
Lucifer and Zadkiel could only watched as El suffered the unbearable pain that she had to go through. Mike could only look on helplessly as the one he loved more than life itself was suffering this unbearable torment, several times the pain was so great that she fell unconscious before the grace from within forced her awake again and the process had started all over again.
Lucifer watched on in concern, regular half angel half human hybrids could handle the growing of wings but she wasn't the spawn of an ordinary angel she was the daughter of an Archangel whose power was so great it made a regular Angel look like they armed with a bow and arrow.
Her back was beginning to glow brighter and Lucifer's eyes widened as he realized what was about to happen and he rushed from one of the cabin to pull Mike away from El.
El rolled off the sofa and onto the floor onto her knee's hunched over.
"El, Talk to me! What is it!" Mike yelled in a panic and in fear. Unsure of what to do.
She couldn't talk as the pain was too great. Lucifer began to pull Mike away who, to no-ones surprise resisted.
"No! no! I won't leave her!" Mike shouted. Lucifer was about to knock the boy unconscious until his eyes filled with Light. There was an explosion of light and the shockwave sent everyone apart from El flying backwards into the wall's.
Mike's head smacked against the wall and he felt himself smacked into a blurry daze. But there was no mistaking in what he could see. No mistaking the sheer beauty of it because there standing in the middle of the room was Eleven who was enveloped in a bright orange glow.
Her Wings were made of fire, her halo shone visibly, finally coming into existence, it differed in the fact it shone like bitterly cold Ice. Molten fire slowly drizzled to the floor like that of her father.
And Mike felt himself fall in love with her all over again.
(A/N) And so this journey is nearing it's end. I think there is two to three chapters to go which I look forward to writing.
It seems like so long ago that I started writing "Sacrifice" to "Beauty of Annihilation" to "Of Reich, Regret and Redemption" to now, it's a journey we have gone on together through which I have forged new friendships who have helped through some really shitty times. Staring at a blank page to filling it with words that bring people joy and laughter to sadness and tears is something I have enjoyed every minute of, being able to bring those reactions to you guys is something personally I never thought I would be able to do.
Im not sure what my next project will be after this. I may do a sequel if I can find a storyline in it or depending on the ending as I'm currently thinking of killing off one of two characters for the greater good lol as I always do. You guys should know me by now haha. But if anyone has any suggestions let me know!
I did have one idea where Eleven goes completely Evil and whilst Mike and Eleven are still in love it ends up with Mike having to kill her. I got the idea from a nightmare I had about someone I loved who I am no longer with. This idea was also my original intention for Beauty of Annihilation
As I sit here I am proud of everything I have achieved and will continue to achieve in the future. But if it weren't for you guys I would never had made it as far as I have. In fact I never would have gotten off the ground.
As always guys review! And until next time, Peace!
