Chap 13
It was not until the next day that Norman decided to descend into the church dungeons to check on May. He had felt a bit of remorse last night, especially after Caroline had berated him on his actions. However, he had managed to assure her it was the best decision, for the good of the clan, though neither of them really bought it.
However, the minute he saw the empty chamber, the shackles undone, the hole in the ceiling cone, and his future son-in-law unconscious up against the stone wall, all of those regrets vanished like freed apparitions. He knelt down and began shaking Ash in a panic.
"Ash! Wake up! Where is May?" he demanded, though the answer was already clear to him.
Ash awoke with a start from the shaking and sudden, loud noises. He was unable to speak for a moment as he processed exactly what was going on. Norman's eyes were burning into his, almost penetrating his soul and Ash stammered, doing the best he could with the situation. "Um…uh…" Was the right thing to tell Norman Drew broke in and that he helped in the escape of a good friend? Or was the better thing to twist that truth, as May had instructed?
"No need to speak. It must have knocked you out while trying to steal my daughter. Isn't that right?" Norman asked suddenly.
Ash nodded. It was best for Norman to assume his own stories.
"Any idea where they could have gone?"
Ash shook his head – he was honest about that. Unlike Norman, though, he wished them well, wherever they were. He heard the older Angel sigh in frustration.
"Can you stand?" Norman asked, looking back at him with concern and even helping the younger Angel to his feet.
Ash pretended to stumble, but was eventually "all right", and, supported by Norman, left the chamber into the dark tunnel.
"Where…are we going?" Ash inquired.
"I will drop you off with your mother and then I am going to the Angel Main House," Norman answered in a distant tone. He was looking ahead instead of in Ash's face, and the younger Angel could tell May and Drew's actions had broken the last straw.
Ash spoke again, "Is it possible that…the Demon…took her to Outskirt?"
Norman paused at that suggestion, but then quickly brushed it off as nothing. "No…as the next High Priest you should know this: Demons are not stupid, but they think we are. They do reside in this city somewhere, I just haven't cared about it until now."
"I thought you banished them to Outskirt?"
Ash was confused but Norman seemed confident about what he was saying.
The stairs to the main floor of the church had been left open and Norman helped Ash up the old, creaking landings. On the stage, Norman finally turned toward his young successor, looking him straight in the face.
"We did…the whole council that is. It was an agreement. We agreed not to kill them all, but instead, they could find somewhere else to thrive outside Metropolis." Norman paused again, thinking of his past actions and shaking his head regretfully. "But, I'm not stupid. I knew they were still here – I had a gut feeling about it…but…the council had told me not to worry about it. The war was over and not a Demon had attacked a Light since my law was passed, so I forgot about it.
But now…they are either back or showing themselves for the first time in two decades, and they must think they can retake the city…well, I say let them. I hope every single one of them comes back so that I have a good reason for taking them all out like I had wanted the first time."
Norman had begun to walk away as Ash followed just behind him. The older Angel did not notice, but Ash had put on a disgusted face. He finally saw exactly what May had discovered – the black insides of their lineage. However, he knew the most important thing discovered then was that he wanted nothing to do with it.
…
Drew's eyes were burning from lack of sleep. He had stayed up all night trying to warm May back up and save her life before the fragile thing flitted away. Her fingers and shoulders were still icy, but besides that, Drew figured himself successful in her resuscitation – she was breathing normally and the color in her skin had come back somewhat. She was still asleep though, resting her head just under his chin and her back against his chest. He had crossed his arms over her and folded in his legs, creating the only warm place for her the warehouse had to offer, all on top of a used mattress Drew had found.
He resisted looking at her, because he knew it would only end in Lust's full arrival. Right now it only knocked on the door, and appeared as blush across Drew's face as May began to move in her sleep. He looked toward the depressed floor just ahead of the mattress where it seemed as though a small, contaminated sea created its own, metal shore there. Steel columns penetrated the surface, but in all, the water was placid, as if it were a thick film draped over the metallic flooring. Just to Drew's left was a cave-in where the ceiling seemed to have fallen years ago, all sharp and jagged yet, artistic in a dark, secretive way. To the right was the way out – another cave-in of ceiling and scrap metal, but the light of day could be seen pouring through some unseen opening.
Drew finally looked down as May began to move more than she had that entire night, like a baby bird hatching from its egg – frustrated and still too weak to perform what she wanted. Her eyes shot open, taking in what was happening and then broke free of Drew's clutch. She quickly moved to the other side of the mattress, her face full of surprise and what seemed like fear.
"You…you…pervert!" was the first thing from May's mouth.
"Wow…that's the last time I save you," Drew said, looking away from her.
She was naked after all, and Drew would have given anything, at that moment, for a priceless peek – just one, even if she was doing all she could to cover up.
"Save me?"
"Yes…save. You were dying in a dungeon underneath the church…which is actually funny and really not surprising now that I think about it."
May's face was a blank. She had honestly forgotten the entire thing either out of trauma or some other not so delightful feeling. But as Drew did his best to recall her memory, the pictures came back and her expression turned into one of sorrow.
"Oh…" she murmured. "And here I thought it was all a really bad dream."
"No…it wasn't. Those Angels are sick…even by my standards."
"You have standards?"
"Some…not many." It was silence after that, and the awkwardness filled the room like a poisonous gas. Drew took off his trench coat and threw it to her. "You…really should cover up."
May took it graciously, and put it on. Her small frame easily got lost in it, but it was warm and comfortable. She zippered it up and wrapped her arms around herself, shivering. "S-so where are we?"
"Warehouse fourteen," Drew answered.
"Could have just said "some warehouse"," May told him.
"Oh, I'm sorry…you've never lived around here!"
"Oh, excuse me!"
"Yes, excuse you. This is actually one of the best places to hide, considering from the outside it looks like the complete opposite. Besides, this is my lucky spot…other than Jack's bar, that is."
May tilted her head. "Fourteen's a lucky number?"
Drew quirked an eyebrow and then laughed at her. "Um, no. In reality, this would be the thirteenth building, but you know those mortals and their unlucky numbers. They think that if they print a fourteen instead of a thirteen on the building that that will miraculously change the luck status-quo. But, that has nothing to do with it. I often went here to get away from Harley and Kelly when they were being too ridiculous and Jack's wasn't that great to be at either."
May nodded, only slightly remembering who Harley and Kelly were.
"What? You forget already?" Drew asked, noticing May's confused expression. "The two other Demons you met over the last month. Anyway…we missed our night to get out of here…we'll have to live here until the tides change again next month."
May nodded. She could tell Drew was trying to lighten the mood, acting as if the unspeakable had not occurred or that the misfortune that plagued them did not exist. She was staring at the area of mattress in front of Drew, focusing on a small clump of fluff that had been scraped from it. The gray color seemed to blur as she thought about her clan. Were they all that spiteful? Enough to throw her into a dungeon and not even give a friend she trusted a chance to show his true colors? She wondered if only she and the other young Angels were unaware of that.
…
Norman had arrived at the Angel Main House, his face stern. Things were about to get ugly.
Walking out of the elevator as its ominous bell chimed its soon departure, he took long strides to make it into the meeting room. Without knocking, Norman opened the door, startling the old councilmen inside, their faces expecting a dire intrusion.
"That thing came last night," Norman reported.
His father nodded from the farthest chair, "Yes, we know. We suspected it would."
"Well, what the hell does it want with my daughter?" Norman demanded, leaning over the table, desperate for an answer to this madness. "Any bad vibes? Anything at all?"
"We've been sensing some trouble approaching us, but it feels very far away – it's not close enough to be about your daughter," answered an elder to his right.
Norman's fists clenched, "What are you talking about? I'm starting to worry about your accuracy! You sensed no danger last time I was here, and yet there's a Demon loose in the streets brainwashing my daughter! How is that not dangerous?"
"It only gets as dangerous as you allow it to get," mumbled his father, Eldest.
"What are you planning to do, High Priest?" spoke up another elder, this time to the left.
Norman paused. He was afraid to speak his mind on this matter, since for a moment, he felt wrong and uneasy about it. "I-I'm going to claim a fallen-Angel situation."
A few of the elders gasped at his decision. There had not been a case like this in many years and they knew for sure right then and there that Norman was desperate.
"Are you-"
"Yes! We must kill them both! For the sake of our clan's peaceful future here!"
…
May lay on her back and stared up at the metal ceiling over her in a daydream daze. All was quiet around her – the only sounds were the plip-plops of water droplets dripping somewhere deep within the pile of metallic scrap to her left. The evening sun's rays were filtered through the ceiling, illuminating the warehouse to a dark, auburn glow and the sound of Yanma buzzing around the dock outside kept her from falling asleep.
She wondered about her mother and brother – how were they taking the news that she was missing on purpose? How did they feel that she had run away with a Demon of all things?
Her thoughts were interrupted by footsteps entering her hiding place. Knowing the footsteps well, she paid no mind as the figure appeared before her and sat on the hard ground. He dropped a plastic bag onto the mattress.
"I love it when delis leave their back doors open," Drew said, smug and proud of himself for getting the better of two Goblins running their own joint.
Days had passed since May and Drew's escape from the dungeon, and now they were lazily awaiting the day the tides lowered enough for them to try to the escape plan once again. For now, they spent their days in hiding – only Drew went out to get food.
"Yanno, I saw an Undercover Angel today, out in the open," Drew said, removing a bagel from the plastic bag he had brought. "Wings and everything. They were interviewing people to see if they saw us anywhere."
Drew took a bite from the bagel and laughed. "Stupid mortals think they're cosplaying! Ha!"
"I knew they'd look for us," May murmured, nettled. "He just won't stop."
"He? Your dad?"
"Yeah."
She narrowed her eyes. She had been wondering if it was all really worth it to her father – to constantly come after her about something so petty. She did not understand the severity of her crimes.
"They probably want to kill us," May murmured again, taking a bite from a bagel of her own. Drew stopped chewing.
"Seriously? This whole thing is that serious?"
May nodded.
"Why?"
The Angel shrugged. She then bit her top lip, her eyebrows squeezing the bridge of her nose. Everything seemed to be falling apart like dominoes on a tilted table. A tear escaped her eyes and streaked down her cheek. Drew reached forward and wiped it away with his thumb, while cradling her face with the other four fingers, forcing her to look him in the eye.
"Come on now," he joked, "You're acting like they're standing right behind me."
"It's almost like someone doesn't want us to get away. It feels like we're trapped."
Drew had nothing to say to that as he could not agree more. They had risked so much over the last month just to be together – the sneaking, the hiding, and the plans of escape from the irons bars that apparently surrounded Metropolis. And yet, even with all the trouble of having to wait for the tides to sink again, they were still trying.
Drew leaned even more forward. Rolling onto his knees, he kissed the Angel. May quickly made the blessing into an event, as she opened her mouth on that invitation and wrapped her arms around his neck.
…
It was getting dark now, the evening sun already set behind the ocean's horizon. The dark shadows of the night had begun to overpower the white rays in a natural beauty.
They came together again, this time Drew pinned her against a flat, solid portion of the fallen metal the spring-board mattress sat against. Feeling free in the darkness, they allowed things to escalate and quicken, though, to the lovers it only seemed to be moving in slow motion.
Drew held May's body close to him, and ventured away from her lips toward her neck where he felt a drive coming from a side of himself that had never before expressed itself so boldly. His vampiric instincts had seemed to become more excited as he took hold of the coat collar and removed it to reveal May's neck and right shoulder. Opening his mouth, he moved his fangs over the area of skin until he felt confident enough to apply more pressure. Sinking his shortest fangs into her flesh, he felt May tense up in his arms, though, no opposition arose from her. It was just a taste, and it was something Drew felt the need to perform. The blood flow was hardly anything snip at, and he lapped up the few drops of blood that did emerge from the punctures. The blood had a thick taste of iron in his mouth, but then something more. He had always been able to identify victims by the taste and smell of their blood, and now he was doing the same with May, only more romantically than the struggling that was usually included in a full feeding. She now seemed to really belong to him. The lacerations on her neck were proof of that.
Things were almost primitive, like two creatures only doing what needed to be done as articles of clothing were lost and the breathing became heavy. Drew went on to remove his coat from his mate's body to expose all of her beauty. She tried to cover herself, unsure of what she was allowing, but the Demon refused to let her think on it. He pressured her onto her back, and gently persuaded her to calm down and join him in this new kind of embrace.
After a brief session of these small persuasions, May engaged herself in this act and things began to move faster. As May lay on her back, perspiring and sighing, she knew this was right, just as right as their first kiss on their rooftop. Being overpowered by the darkness did not seem as bad as what the other Angels had always told her. What did they know anyway? May lay limp, her legs and wings sprawled out from either side weakly, covering the old mattress with feathers. She was naked again in Drew's arms, and this time, she refused to cover up.
…
The Balcony Room was quiet as the Elders sat in prayer, silent as mice. The room was dark, save for one light bulb that remained illuminated on a small desk to the far, upper right corner.
Norman had left hours ago in a fury and they all suspected that, despite his good side, he had decided to go through with exterminating his own flesh and blood. Eldest shivered in his chair thinking about it. He wondered what could possibly come out of a slaying such as that one.
Eldest gasped suddenly, disturbing the others from their prayer.
"Eldest?" asked one of the elders, concerned.
The old Angel shook his head, the thin bones in his wings becoming stiff and agitated.
"I fear…" he began, "That a new age will arise upon us."
"It was the wave, was it not?"
"I felt that wave," Eldest spoke louder. "It was quite a big one. Does anyone remember what exactly happened those twenty years ago?"
"We banished the Demon, sir," answered an Angel to his side.
Eldest nodded, "But not only that. We banished Underworld, the source of all deadly sins."
There was chatter across the table.
"And the way it was banished…who would have guessed? With any spell there's always a back door…and Underworld's back door is 'hate spawned from love'."
"What? What do you mean, sir?"
"That was the wave, sir?"
"I felt it, too."
Eldest folded his elbows and brought his bony hand to his chin where he evaluated his thoughts. It had been so long since he had been struck by such a surge of new life before, such a strange one too. It almost felt like darkness and light were fusing and mixing together. But how could that be? Light overpowers darkness, makes it cower behind things. Yet, this feeling was one all too different. Black and white were becoming gray and blurred.
"There has always been hate between Demons and Angels – since the dawn of time. But now…I feel that my granddaughter has brought our two families together. There is love…spawning from age-old hate and hate will spawn from this new love…I guarantee it."