Brynn shook herself awake. Something was different in the room. Something had changed.
She looked around and gasped. Someone had painted a new picture of the wall after the image of the moon and the angel. Now, the same seven-winged anger was seemingly locked in combat with a demon. The detail was incredible; Brynn could see the sheen of sweat on both creatures' skins, the glint of the monster's fangs.
She marveled at it for what seemed like ages, losing herself in the picture. The angel had its right hand out, an explosion of holy looking light emanating from its entire body and engulfing both it and the demon. But the creature had a grip on the angel's throat, crushing the seraphim's windpipe and drawing clear blood, which dripped down and was licked up by the monster's snakelike forked tongue.
A sudden noise startled her. She looked up to see that brown-robed people lined the walls. Hoods hid their faces, and they stood, wordlessly, facing her.
One figure detached itself from the masses and walked forward.
"Good evening and welcome, Gabriel," he spoke in a far off, foreign tone. "If you had been delayed anymore, we might have missed this blue moon."
Brynn gave a confused sound. "What?"
The man lowered his hood and smiled. Brynn gasped. "Mr. Levanstein?!"
He held up his hand. "Yes, Gabriel. My name is Michael Levanstein. My son was supposed to deliver you to us sooner, but he got other ideas. Trust him to answer he call of his hormones instead of the call of God.
"He lost the faith. But he's been handled."
Brynn eyed him worriedly. "What do you mean? What did you do to him?" He was a jerk, but she didn't actually want him dead or anything like that!
Michael smiled that sick, sadistic grin again. "We delivered him into the hands of the Shadowed ones. God will have mercy on his soul, and we will see him soon enough.
"It was also quite lucky that my wife spotted you at the airport. We almost lost you to one of the followers of the Shadows. But that's all past now."
"What am I doing here? I mean, thanks for saving me and everything, but I kind of want to go home."
"Ah, and you will! And you will take us all with you! Back home, to the Kingdom of Heaven!"
Michael raised his arms in his rapture, revealing long red gashes bleeding at intervals on his forearms. Brynn winced at the sight, and he laughed.
"Yes, Gabriel. The stigmata of the Touch. I gave my blood as a sacrifice so you could be properly adorned for the occasion."
She gasped, disgusted. "You…you…!"
He chuckled again. "Yes, it was I who changed your clothes. But do not worry; you must remain pure for the procedure to work. I made sure you remained clean and uncorrupted by sins of the flesh all throughout your earthbound life, ever since the Council bound you in that pitiful human façade, down to threatening anyone who would want you as a romantic partner or elsewise."
His grin was deplorable, and she felt a wave on rage rise in her. This bastard had been keeping her from having a boyfriend? No wonder no one ever asked her to a dance besides Brad!
"Such a beautiful disguise shouldn't be marred, should it, Gabriel?" he asked.
"Why do you keep calling me that?!" she demanded.
"Because you are the lost archangel Gabriel! Guardian of the moon and the Garden of Eden! Wielder of the flaming sword and God's own wrath!"
"No I'm not!"
There was a moment of silence, and then muffled whisperings began echoing in the room.
Michael turned around and spoke to them. "My children, my comrades, do not lose the faith or you shall be consumed by darkness! Did I not say the human half would retain no memory of its celestial existence? It is Gabriel! Inside information from the London Society has led us to this ageless girl! There is no fault!"
"I'm not Gabriel! I'm Brynn Marner! I'm just a girl! Just a-…"
But all of a sudden, she felt someone grip her hair. They pulled her head back, silencing her screams.
"I am Loro, a brother of the Ascenders. But you are the archangel Gabriel. Prepare to regain your memory. I believe it will be quite liberating."
Suddenly she felt a tug at the back of her skull, and her brain erupted in pain. Angry shocks of electricity shot through her head, and she could feel something tangible slide through the back of her head.
Her eyes widened and her vision went blank. Suddenly she could see again and her sight was filled with the vision of a hand holding an ugly mass of black tendrils in silhouette against the white figure of the full moon.
She had almost gotten over the shock when her back began to split and sprout stubby appendages. As they grew, she lifted out of the chair and stood, still chained by the fetters. The appendages were arranged in a perfect heptagon on her upper back, and she could feel something prickly poking through them from the inside. Downy soft feathers began to caress her bare skin, and suddenly her view of the moon was blocked by seven wing tips stretching out and shading the night sky. The wind began to whisper, its song consisting of only one word.
"Gabriel".
………………………
Spike almost jumped. He had heard a scream from far off.
"What is it?" Buffy asked.
"Heard something. Be quiet a minute…" He put his ear to the wall and listened hard.
That did it. He could hear the girl screaming something about her name.
"I'm not Gabriel! I'm Brynn Marner! I'm just a girl! Just a-…"
Her voice stopped, and Spike pulled away from the wall.
"This is it, Slayer. Enough of this maze; we go through this wall."
"Through the wall? Alright, you better be sure."
In tandem, they both raised their boots and kicked.
