azrael_church_saving_maghen/set?id=225969382
I awoke in an old, abandoned house outside of town. My wrists were tied tightly behind my back with a rope and my shoulders were stiff from being in the same position for too long. A gag was tied into my mouth and was digging into the corners of my mouth and my cheeks. How did I get here you ask? Let's go back to the day after Taylah's murder.
Classes would continue as planned, though everyone was walking on eggshells not to say the wrong thing. An assembly was called that morning and Dr. Chester explained that they didn't know exactly what had happened since Taylah had never shown signs of being suicidal. They were planning to hand over the investigation to the police, but I knew they would never catch the culprit. After the assembly, I caught up with Maghen. I wanted to stay close to her just in case Jake tried something. But I was too late.
"How are you holding up?" I asked her.
"I'll be ok. Taylah and I were never close, but we've been in the same classes together since kindergarten. It's weird knowing I'm never gonna see her again. Do you...Know where she went?" She asked pointing up and down.
"I didn't reap her so I'm not allowed to say."
"Oh...Of course...Well one good thing did happen yesterday at least. It turns out Jake Thorn is in my IT class."
I tried to keep a calm face but inside my thoughts were racing. "Oh? That's interesting."
"Yeah!" She laughed, "Because he asked me out."
"What!? Maghen please tell me you said no."
"I'm going out with him and some of his friends after school...Oh...you don't mind do you? After the kiss at prom and all..."
"I mind but not because of the kiss. Please. You have to cancel."
"What? Why?"
"Just trust me..."
"What's the problem? I thought you'd be happy for me..."
"If it was anyone else I would be. You can't trust him. He's dangerous."
"Dangerous?" can a voice from behind me, "Why, Azrael, I'd hardly call myself dangerous. I plan on taking very good care of sweet Maghen, here." Jake walked around me and put and arm around Maghen, making her blush.
"Jake...Please don't do this..."
He smirked, turned her in the other direction and began leading her away, calling back as he did , "Envy is a deadly sin, little angel."
I felt my heart drop into my stomach. If he could convince her to get rid of my feather, or even leave it behind...He could do whatever he wanted to her.
I got home and changed into lace up jeans, a back jacket, and a tank top. I wanted to be ready for anything. I told Gabriel, Ivy, Bethany and Xavier about this when we got home and they agreed that something had to be done. We began brainstorming, trying to figure out where he would be taking her.
"There's no point in thinking normally. From what we've seen he likes to be over the top." Beth suggested.
"It wouldn't be anywhere where they would be interrupted. Somewhere Isolated." Ivy said.
Gabriel agreed. "Out in public there's too many of them to be discreet."
"He's very dramatic." I thought back to our first meeting, "He'll want somewhere theatrical. Ironic if he can help it."
"What's he like then?" Xavier asked. "I mean...Azrael, obviously."
"So...Death." Beth guessed, "Where's somewhere they'd be surrounded by death?"
"I...I don't know...Hospital...Morgue...Cemetery?" I started listing off the main places I reaped.
"That's it..."Ivy nodded. "It's big enough that they could do anything they wanted and not get caught."
"I'll go." Gabriel said.
Xavier shook his head. "No that's just asking for a fight. I'll go."
"No...Xavier, you're no good to Beth dead. " I said, making them look at me. "Jake will kill you without a second thought. He wants me. I'm the one who rejected him. Maghen is my friend. It has to be me."
"Azrael..."
"No Bethany. I have to do this." With that I walked out the door.
When I got to the cemetery, I saw a sky blue Chevy convertible parked across the street.
"Xavier..." I growled.
I made my way through the headstones, toward an older part of the cemetery from when the town was first settled. Many of the graves where now illegible, all of them rough and weathered down. The iron railings were rusted and vegetation was creeping across some of the graves. I walked until I spotted Xavier and Beth. I walked behind them and put a hand on each of their shoulders, making them turn around.
"Really?"
"I'm sorry...But We want to help." Beth apologized and I sighed.
"Fine...Follow. Stay silent. And if this goes south, get Maghen out and go get Gabriel. Understand?
They nodded and we continued through the cemetery, stopping suddenly when we heard voices. They were chanting in an ancient dialect no longer known to man which meant one thing. Demonic possession. We ducked behind a big tree, watching carefully. Jake stood on a grave facing a group of about two dozen. Behind me was the statue of an angel, about ten feet tall. Despite being and angel, there was something sinister about it.
The group was gathered in a cult like semi circle around him. I didn't see Maghen, but I could sense her presence. But...She wasn't one of them. I could sense fear and confusion coming from her. Jake held up his hands and the group stilled.
"Welcome to the dark side, though I prefer to call it the fun side. "He laughed coldly, the sound sending chills up my spine, "I can promise you that nothing feels better than sin. Why not turn to pleasure when life treats us with such indifference? We are here, all of us, because we want to feel alive." he ran his hand over the stone angel's thigh, "Pain, suffering, destruction, death, these things are like music to our ears, sweet as honey on our tongues. We thrive on them. They are food for our souls..." He continued on like this for a while, each word of his speech making me angrier and angrier until I felt my eyes burning, turning black. This was one of the traits I had around sinners. That was how mad he made me.
By the end of his speech, his followers were howling and writhing, throwing back their heads and giving feral cries. A sound full of pain and vengeance. Jake smiled approvingly before continuing, "We don't have much time. Let's get down to business." His eyes scanned the crowd, "Where are they? Bring them to me."
Two people where pushed forward so that they fell at Jake's feet. One of them was a boy I recognized from school, a few grades below me. The other was Maghen. They both looked normal, but at this rate, they wouldn't be for long. Jake placed a hand on the boys head, taking a grimoire, a book of dark magic, in the other, "Don't be afraid. I'm here to help you." He made slow deliberate symbols in the air above the boy's head. The wind began to blow as Jake opened the book.
"Great." I muttered. "Now he's raising the dead..."
"Oh you've got to be kidding me..." Xavier groaned.
Jake spread his arms wide, reading from the book, "Exorior meus atrum amincus quod vindicatum is somes. Is est vestri pro captus"
' Come forth, my dark friend, and claim this body. It is yours for the taking.' I translated in my head. Not good.
A screeching sound pierced the air, making us all wince in pain. A black fog leaked from the mouth of the statue and drifted toward the boy. Jake seized the back of his hair and pulled it back, making the boy's mouth open. The vapor reeled and spun for a moment, contorting itself, until it dove down the boy's throat. The boy screamed and fell to the ground, clawing at his throat, until he lay still and stood, a new evil look on his face. Another face to add to Jake's followers. Then Jake started toward Maghen, a look of horror on her face.
"Don't worry my dear, "Jake told her tracing his finger lazily over her neck, leaving red welts were it made contact , "It won't hurt much."
Her hands were tied and the smoke was still dripping from the angel's mouth, ready to claim another victim. That. Was. IT! I moved from behind the tree, despite Xavier and Beth's protests. My wings snapped through my jacket and I shot forward, landing in front of Maghen, wings spread in defense, surprising Jake and all present. The fog paused, and I snarled at it. Since it was the soul of a dead sinner, it knew me as all dead did and retreated into the statue in fear.
"Azrael..." Maghen whimpered.
"Hello, Princess." Jake purred, "Didn't you know that this party is invitation only?"
"Yeah, well I'm Maghen's plus one." I glared at him, "Let. Her. Go. NOW!"
"Hmmm...No." he smirked.
"We know what you are!" Bethany yelled at him, she and Xavier coming out of our hiding spot.
"Does no one have manners anymore?" Jake asked no one in particular.
"What's it going to take? What do you want?" I brought his attention back to me.
"A deal? Don't you know that's dangerous?"
"Yes. Now decide before I call the reapers."
"Alright, angel... I want you to take her place." The smugness in his voice was overwhelming as he held out his hand to me.
"AZRAEL NO!" Bethany screamed as I shook his hand without a second thought. I sent up a quick prayer before the world went dark around me.
I woke up in the back seat in a long car. Jake was driving and Alicia and Alexandra...or at least their bodies, were on either side of me. I tried to move, but an invisible force was holding me down. Not liking the feeling of being trapped, I trashed, accidently smacking Alexandra in the mouth. "She's being difficult." She whinnied and Jake tossed them back a small package. "One of these should do the trick." He said.
Alicia held my mouth open while Alexandra forced a small pill down my throat. I coughed as it went down my throat and the girls sat back in satisfaction. The interior of the car became fuzzy and my was in the dark once again. I awoke again in an old, abandoned house outside of town. My wrists were tied tightly behind my back with a rope and my shoulders were stiff from being in the same position for too long. A gag was tied into my mouth and was digging into the corners of my mouth and my cheeks. Caught up? Good.