AUTHORESS NOTE: To quell any rumors that may (or may not) have sprung up in light of the sudden drop in my updating:
1.) I'm NOT dead.
2.) I HAVE NOT lost the motivation for this story. This story is my BABY. I love it so much I affectionately call it "Impy."
3.) I HAVE, however, started my winter quarter at community college. I am also two weeks behind in my Astronomy schoolwork, and I work all weekend... I DO have Fridays off of school and my job, but it's important to note that I HAVE A BOIFURENDO (BOYFRIEND) and I only see him ONCE A WEEK (on Friday). The injustice of the situation is sickening. I feel like how Mika probably feels all chained up in that room and not able to see Nema. Only I'm not a guy. And I'm not nearly as hotheaded as he is.
So please understand that though my updates are going to be spaced further apart, I HAVE NO INTENTION OF QUITTING. QUITTERS ARE WEAK.
ON WITH THE SHOW!
Improper Guardian
Chapter Seventeen
By: Brenli
Nema flipped through a large book bound in brown leather as she sat against the wall of what must have been the largest library ever made. For a week, now, she had been here in Hades, home of Uriel. While she made it a point to take up swordplay, she mostly dueled with Raphael if he stopped in. She dueled with Uriel once, and while she found him to be a talented… and sometimes frightening… opponent, the very core of his nature was gentle and peaceful. He did not wish to train her in any violent art form, so she spent most of her time in his enormous library, sitting against the wall in a carbon-copy of Doll's gray maid uniform, and reading.
What did she read? Anything and everything regarding Heaven and Hell and anything in between. She'd made it a point to keep a book about a Messiah so coincidentally named Mudou Setsuna. She'd marked out chapters about all of this, and if she ever made it back to Assiah, she'd make her parents explain themselves.
… Well, she understood well enough why they would want to keep things like this a secret. It might have been a part of their lives they didn't look back on so fondly, yet Nema still felt cheated. There were so many connections she had never registered! She remembered the close family friend who went by the name of Katou… for years he was in and out of rehab for his drug problems, yet she had always received letters from him… as it turned out, he was her father's SHADOW? And then there was "Auntie" Kurai, who always gave her the most beautiful gifts of jewelry… her parents had always said she was rich like royalty… Lies! She really WAS royalty!
But perhaps the most shocking realization of all… was about her "Uncle" Kira. Out of the close family friends her mother and father had, he was her favorite. Though they only contacted each other through letters, she'd quickly formed a family bond with him, and he became a sort of confidante. He'd even offered written words of comfort when Jinho had moved away…
But he was more than her surrogate uncle. And he was more than Sakuya Kira, the close family friend. He was the Devil himself.
And the Devil had a brother…
It suddenly clicked. So THAT was why Michael had been out to kill his brother… he'd been charged with the task of casting him out of Heaven! As for Bal, all she could find on her was that she was once caretaker of both Michael and Lucifer, and that she had become the Satan of Wrath after she died, Balbero. Rumor had it she had died once again, though she couldn't find out how.
Today she had found a large book regarding the Angel Hierarchy, and it seemed that there were extensive articles on the head of each class. They also had a chapter on the Elemental Angels, and there they were, listed by name, rank, and even activity. Only one was listed as "inactive," and it was Jibril, the Water Angel… who was actually the soul of her own mother.
Nema read through the chapter, absorbing the information… the reason why Jibril was living as Mudou Sara until the time of her death… why Uriel was unable to talk like everyone else… and then she found the information on Michael listed last.
The Elemental Fire Angel was created as the younger brother of a set of twins, the older brother being Lucifer, born as Lucifiel. It was prophesized that out of these twins, one would turn against God, while the other, acting in God's favor, would banish the sinful twin from the Gates of Heaven. It was wrongly prophesized that Lucifiel was God's Chosen, and many believed that Michael would become blasphemous even as a young child. The true prophecy was carried out when Lucifiel changed his Holy name and rebelled against God. Since this time, Michael has been widely revered as the War Angel as well as the Fire Angel.
Michael is a mysterious figure who is only active in times of war. He is never present at government meetings and rarely turns in opinions on important matters. When he is spoken of, his intense bouts of rage are first mentioned. It is believed that he is a very bitter Angel and has the capacity to care for very few, if anyone. It is believed that he is a very selfish character and would rather spend time alone than help anyone, the only exception being if he can start a war.
In recent developments, he was assigned as a Guardian Angel to the offspring of Water Angel Jibril and Mudou Setsuna (reincarnate of Organic Angel Alexiel), a girl officially named Mudou Nemaelle. It is believed that he was highly against this position. According to rumor, he neglects his duties as Guardian Angel in the pursuit of other hobbies…
"What'cha reading?"
Nema closed the book with a snap, keeping her place with her thumb. "Nothing!" She looked up to see Doll bent over her, smiling widely.
"That's a big nothing!" Doll plopped down next to her and took the book from Nema, opening it up where Nema had left off. "… Oh, you're reading about HIM?" Her face scrunched up in disapproval.
"What's wrong with reading about HIM?" Nema suddenly snapped.
"Well, why would you wanna read about HIM? He's a jerk. I met him once. You wanna know what he said?"
"Some insult of some kind."
Doll blinked rapidly. "… YEAH! You know what he called me?"
"A weak little girl."
"… You know, you're really no fun!" Doll pouted.
Nema shrugged. "It's Michael. Michael is Michael."
"… Oh, yeah, didn't he live with you for, like, EVER?" Doll said with big, dark eyes. "You're probably used to him being mean, huh?"
"… I don't know… for a while there… it was different."
Doll looked up at the latest addition to Uriel's household and rested her chin on her knees. "You mean he's actually NICE?"
"… Yeah. Yeah, he was."
"I don't believe you…"
"Well I'm not ASKING you to believe me, now, am I?" Nema said cattily.
"What? You think I haven't read this book or something?" Doll held open the book and pointed at it. "It even says here, he used to neglect you! It's only since the Rabbit Hunting started that he even looked in your general direction, and that was FORCED on him! How is that nice?"
Nema snatched the book from Doll's grasp, making the poor little maid squeak in fear. Her fiery red eyes scanned over the article on the War Angel, and she grumbled and threw the book far away from either of them.
"You didn't know about any of that till you got here, did you?" Doll said quietly.
"No. Does it show?" Nema hissed darkly.
"Yup." Doll said simply, watching the albino girl before her pull her knees up against her chest and cross her arms over them, burying her face into the safe cocoon she formed. "Makes you angry, huh?"
It was only then that the fire reflecting in her eyes died down. "… I don't know what it makes me..."
Doll made a low clucking sound in the back of her throat, like some strange sign of pity, and she quickly stood up and went after the book. "Hey, no more frowning! It's bad enough when Uriel-sama gets sad. Let's do something to get your mind off things!"
"… Wanna duel?" Nema asked as she came to a stand.
"What? NO! You'll cut my head off and Uriel-sama will have to fix me up! It'll be a mess!" Doll cried, moving over to one of many bookshelves to put the thick brown book back.
"Then what are we gonna do, Doll?" Nema sighed and tugged on a lock of her ivory hair, watching the girl put away the brown book and pull down a thinner, black one.
"What's this doing here?" Doll pondered as she opened the book.
"What's that?"
"Oh… this is a book on the Fallen." She flipped through the pages and showed Nema. "The different ways to be branded Fallen, where the Fallen reside… all that stuff. It's a small book… I'm sure there are others hiding somewhere… I have to go find where and put this book in the right spot… Hey!"
Nema had snatched the book from Doll's grasp and was greedily thumbing through it. "So it'll have stuff on Rabbits in here, right?"
"It might… Why do you insult yourself all the time? It's weird!"
Nema shrugged. "Bad habit." She said simply, and continued turning all the pages.
"… So, anyway, I heard Raphael-sama say something about you liking to sew? I like it, too! So instead of trying to saw my head off, we could sew something together! How does that sound?" Doll chattered, trying to pull Nema's attention away from the book.
"I found what I'm looking for."
Doll looked over at the pages Nema had let her eyes rest upon. "… Oh, why do you wanna read about that? That's probably the saddest chapter in the book!"
"The chapter on Rabbits is the saddest chapter of the book?"
"Yeah! So just put that away, already –"
But Nema only shushed her, returning to her spot on the ground, intently reading the beginning of the chapter.
"… Oh, come on, Nema…!"
"Quiet, Doll."
"… But it's only gonna make you mad!"
"It wouldn't be the first time I've been mad. Now go away, Doll."
Doll stood, looking dumbfounded at the rejection. "… Well, geez! Try to be friendly and it just backfires!" She muttered irritably to herself as she left Nema to her grim-looking chapter, no longer present to watch the features on Nema's face contort from one of shock to one of disgust, and finally into a calmer, yet deadlier façade to cover the upset soul of Mudou Nemaelle, full-fledged Rabbit.
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Over and over. Many times Cheriour repeated the tape, turning up the audio and zooming in on the faces of the two Elemental Angels in an attempt to make out what information Raphael had relayed to Michael.
He'd always prided himself in having such excellent espionage equipment, yet the two Angels had spoken in such low voices Cheriour was now reduced to piecing together bits of information to make an educated guess. They were speaking of Nema falling off buildings near the end of Raphael's visit… Michael had asked a question with the delighted tones of joy in his voice a bit earlier than that. Raphael had left with a contented smile on his face, and Cheriour clearly recalled that Michael had seemed… not happy, but definitely more careless about his restraints during the evening check up.
So it was something about Nema, then. Something about the recent events regarding her, but it seemed to make Michael happy, now… She must have been resurrected. Well, that was no problem. He could find her and dispose of her for a second time. Who knows? Maybe there were one or two things he could do before disposing of her, just to see the Fire Angel get riled up, of course. But now he needed to figure out where she could be hiding.
Mudou house? He asked one of his underlings to get a report on the system set up around the Mudou house. Apparently, Raphael was down there having tea with Setsuna and Sara and explaining that Nema had indeed been resurrected… and was living with Uriel.
Now, THAT was a problem. If Nema had been in any other place, even places in HELL, Cheriour could have found a decent way to track her down. But Hades… that was a designated no-man's land, a perfect sanctuary for human souls until they were judged and sent up high or down low… it was a SANCTUARY. Human, Angel, or Demon, anyone residing in Hades could not be harmed.
Cheriour shut off the video tape and sat back in his seat, stroking his chin in deep thought. There must have been some way around that… He'd have to do more heavy reading of God's laws… He was sure he could find some kind of loophole if he looked hard enough…
"Cheriour-sama…"
"Yes?"
"We have been very fortunate to catch two handfuls of Rabbits… a pack hopping their way to Raphael-sama. What shall you have us do to them?"
"Two whole handfuls, you say?" Cheriour smiled his cold, empty smile. That was one thing he liked about the Rabbits already in Heaven. He didn't need loopholes to reach them, just a good Rabbit Hunter or two. "… What is something we have not done in a while?"
"It has been two weeks since we have done any traditional crucifixion."
"Very well, but I want them to be lashed with ten different whips each beforehand. And they must be nailed at high noon, so that the wounds are baking for the birds."
"The birds will thank you for the meals."
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"… This is a lot you're asking of me, Raphael… You realize that I am putting myself at risk by letting Nema seek sanctuary here. Now, you ask me to keep Barbiel, too?"
"I ask this of you as a brother… Barbiel isn't far along, but she is going to start showing someday…"
"And you will be branded Fallen."
"You know it's more than that. SHE will be branded Fallen. And with the Rabbit Hunting? Who knows what Cheriour will do… perform a forced abortion…"
"That won't do."
"No child of mine is going to die before he or she lives."
Uriel sighed heavily, his green eyes fixating on the cup of tea Doll had left for him. "I admire those noble words…"
"They're not noble at all, this is nothing but instinct. I need to protect what I love." Raphael leaned forward in his seat, his ice-blue eyes pleading. "I have performed favors for you in the past. Remember… I resurrected Setsuna…"
"You did… And I keep his daughter safe in return."
"… What about Doll?"
"What about her?" Uriel said, frowning into his teacup.
"You know the body she is using is the oldest prototype you've ever made. It's a tinker toy you made before the first Great War. Very old."
"Yes…"
"That type of body is not properly constructed to hold souls. The second it shuts down, the spirit leaves. That is why you made the newer dolls that don't need keys…"
"… Yes."
"… You remember now. If I didn't cast a spell to keep her spirit moving slow, she would have been lost to you a long time ago." Raphael watched the Earth Angel continue to stare into the dark depths of tea in his cup. "… I have no idea what compelled you to try anything to put that Angel soul into a doll. You only had that old prototype and she wasn't an Angel you were familiar with… But I did that for you, just the same."
"… And I owe you for that."
"… You forced me to bring that up. But if you really want to be technical, you know you owe me for that."
Uriel took a sip of the dark tea and slowly nodded. "… For the record, I really did know of her. Her name was once Kirie, and she led a sad life. I felt an indescribable need to give her a new life, not the one of a ghoul… Because of this, I changed her name."
"It's still strange, and you know it. Fate must be pulling weird strings."
"… Yes… it must be…" Uriel said quietly. "… Bring Barbiel to me whenever she is ready to come here."
Raphael's icy eyes lit up in gratitude. "Thank you, Uriel, I –"
"Uriel!" It was Nema's voice, coming out like sharp steel to cut through the happiness Raphael emanated.
"Yes, Nema?" Uriel said calmly, and watched as Nema slid aside Uriel's tea cup and put down a thin, black book, a thicker, red book, and what looked like a big white encyclopedia. Several things were highlighted in pink, underlined in red. "… Somehow, I knew this would happen some time soon…"
"What?" Raphael asked, arching golden brows and looking at the three books.
"That is all disgusting." Nema said firmly, her red eyes flashing. "The first book, the black one. Read what I highlighted."
"Improper Children… born out of sexual relations between Angels… Risked abnormalities at birth… condemned Fallen… considered lower than Fallen… slums… unregistered… arrested for registration and branding…" Raphael read all the pink highlights. A whole sentence was circled in red ink. "They are animated sin, moving blasphemy, breathing filth."
"Breathing filth!" Nema hissed after Raphael. "Now the red one. Read the red one!"
"We are a breeding population of sinners, according to our great God… this is why we are condemned to live in the least sanitary, least bountiful of places… We do not deserve food, nor shelter… we do not hope for advancement… Ironically, I pray to the same God who has ruined my chances for a life I can be proud of… Today I found out that I am pregnant… He will never admit to being the father because he is too pure, his white wings are God's indication of it… But I have heard that someone has changed the minds of the high council… I have heard that they will send us food rations… A good sign. So I pray to God that this will not be an empty hope. I pray for a world in which we are no longer Improper… Fatherless or not, I pray to raise my child in a world much brighter than I have seen. I pray to give birth to a child with white wings… like it's father…" The Wind Angel looked up at Nema with confused eyes. "What is this?"
Uriel answered for her. "That is a rewritten copy of a diary recovered from the ruins of Shamayim. I also have the original diary itself… it has become a favorite novel for I-Children in Heaven."
Raphael looked at the cover, which was plainly titled, The Shamayim Diary.
"Want me to read that last entry?" Nema spat and snatched the book from Raphael's hands.
"You don't need to do th-"
"Oh it's short, it won't take long at all!" Nema snapped and began reading. "LIES! ROTTEN ANGEL… EXPLOSIVES IN THE RATIONS! NASTY WHITE WING LIES! IRONY… DYING FROM FOOD! FOOD WE NEEDED! ROTTEN LIARS...! MY BABY WILL NEVER…" Nema closed the book with a snap, and let Raphael look at the cover again. Under the title were the words, "Father, why have You forsaken me?"
"… God… Nema…"
"Who is this GOD you speak of?" Nema cut the Wind Angel off. "I have one more book for you! Don't worry, it's mostly pictures!"
"This is a forensic pathologist book, Nema…" Uriel said quietly.
"But not just ANY… There are Shamayim 'samples' in there!"
"Shamayim what?" Raphael asked.
"Hey, that's what THIS says! Read it!"
Raphael reluctantly obeyed. "Contained in the next thirty seven pages are pictures of samples from the Shamayim Explosion. These will show you what to look for whenever internal explosives are suspected…" He looked at the bodies. Several did not have faces, some did not have jaws. Many had giant holes instead of bellies, or even missing throats because the food had gone off in mid-swallow. Nema had highlighted something. "Note that the flesh of the open wounds appear to be tearing outward in a stellate, or starlike pattern. Lacerations will always push the flesh inward and not outward, as these curious wounds show."
"Curious wounds!" Nema mocked the book cruelly and pushed it off the table with a swipe of her pale hand, letting the big white book land on the floor, roll over and flip open again, stopping at another picture of a "Shamayim sample." And then she leaned her elbows on the table, her head hovering over Uriel's tea cup, and she said to the Earth Angel, "Tell me about Cheriour's Rabbit Hunting."
Raphael observed this Michael-like rage and wondered if she, like Michael, might explode in flames. "Nema, you don't need to do this…!"
"You! You don't know what I need to do! But I'm not gonna be in the dark anymore! I won't let you keep me blind!" Nema pulled up Raphael's chair and sat in it. "So out with it, Uriel. Why is THAT MAN doing this? We were already dying from starvation. Why isn't that enough for him?"
Uriel's green eyes blinked sadly at the I-Child before him. "… His intentions are, truly, unknown. He is merely one of many extremists, a believer in God's programming to the point of blind worship. He does not question God's word."
"And God's word is that we should be dead!" Nema snarled.
"God's word is that… your kind… should never have been made, to begin with. According to his speeches, Cheriour believes that if the I-Children are wiped out, God will be appeased."
"According to other books God is a COMPUTER."
"… Yes, but He is also an entity within the computer. While there is no proof that God has been displeased in any way, there is no proof that God is NOT unhappy, either."
"That's where Cheriour gets away with his fucking rallies!"
"Unfortunately so. With no proof of anything, and with such a smooth talker like Cheriour becoming overtly ambitious, the rallies worked in his favor to unimaginable degrees."
"And then he started the Rabbit Hunting."
"… Ironically, he took an old term used among I-Children to describe the Angels that caught and branded them, and spun it into a project name and a job title for those in need of money or just looking for an important status. He feeds off all sorts of angles to fulfill his one desire…"
"To kill us off." Nema said darkly.
"… To make I-Children suffer… and then kill them off." Uriel watched Nema's mouth curl into a scowl. "Cheriour is registered as the Angel of Punishment… he delights in torture devices by his very nature… and he will use them on whoever he is about to kill. That is his way. It was always been his way."
For a while the three remained silent, the two Angels watching the Rabbit absorb the information with a sour, hurt face. "… I want to know what we have done in response."
"We?"
"We. My kind. What have we done?"
Uriel paused before answering, but he answered truthfully, as he always did. "… The I-Children have no army. Their supporters are few in number and it is not enough to start a retaliation. Along with this, I-Children are not raised as other Angels are. They are not sufficiently trained and so, in many cases, the powers I-Children are born with remain dormant or are not used well."
"We do nothing."
"There is very little the I-Children can do about their current situation."
Again Nema was silent, and again the two Angels could only look upon the girl with sad eyes. "… I think my kind should fight back."
"That is suicide."
"SUICIDE IS SITTING DOWN AND ALLOWING THEM TO DO WHAT THEY WILL!" Nema suddenly stood. "You say Rabbits aren't sufficiently trained… take the supporters and have them TRAIN us!"
"It is too late."
"It's NEVER too late!"
"Nema, the I-Children are widely outnumbered…" Raphael said softly.
"Numbers have NOTHING to do with this! Cheriour kills us because we BREATHE. BREATHE! This isn't about numbers; this is about right and wrong! What Cheriour believes is WRONG and we should either show him or die trying!"
"So you'll rush into battle and die without another thought except, 'He's wrong!'" Raphael took hold of Nema's pale shoulders. "You'll be creating senseless slaughter."
"Senseless slaughter has already been created! Thank Cheriour for that!"
"Nema…" The Wind Angel fished for something to put an end to Nema's steadily growing ambitions. She was talking war and didn't even realize it! "… So, fine, go into battle and die! What… what will Michael think?"
"THAT MAN…!" Nema slapped away Raphael's hands. "HE'LL EITHER FIGHT WITH ME OR LEAVE ME TO MY DEATH, JUST LIKE HE LEFT ME TO BE RAPED! AT LEAST THEN I'LL KNOW FOR SURE WHETHER HE'S TRULY IN LOVE, LIKE HE CLAIMED TO BE!"
The Wind Angel frowned at the angry words flowing from Nema's lips. "… Nema…"
"Nema?" Doll suddenly entered. "I finished mending your clothes, and they're freshly washed, too!"
"Fine, I'll change then." Nema turned and followed Doll, but not before turning to look over her shoulder and say coldly, "I won't sit here and be cozy while others like me run and die. Either they find sanctuary, too, or I die with them."
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"Hello, Barbiel." Uriel greeted her as she stepped out of a ship. "Why the ship?" He asked Raphael, who followed Barbiel.
"Because I've got a few that need tending to, and I couldn't afford to leave them behind." The Wind Angel said as he wrapped one arm around Barbiel's shoulders. She blushed and was unable to look Uriel in the eye.
"It's okay, Barbiel. You won't be judged here." The Earth Angel said calmly.
"… Thank you for letting me hide out here." She said softly. "… Where is Nema?"
"… She is more than likely in the library again. I would advise leaving her alone for a while. She became… enlightened… about her kind yesterday and since then has been less than amiable." Uriel said cautiously.
"… I see." Barbiel said quietly, sharing a goodbye kiss with Raphael and waving him off as he made to leave.
"… What are you all doing?" Raphael cried. Several I-Children had begun to flow out of the side door like an avalanche of red-eyed snow. They all began speaking at once.
"We heard you speaking to Barbiel on the way here…! You are keeping one of us here!"
"When you are finished healing us we will only be put back into danger… we want sanctuary, too!"
"Give us sanctuary, sanctuary!"
The mass of I-Children cried and Uriel was amazed to see as many as 30 I-Children limping or even crawling out.
"… I can't… I can't give you that…" Raphael sputtered and tried rounding them up as well as he could. For a moment he was lost in a flurry of white, but once Uriel stepped in to help, they were soon, regretfully, pushed back into the ship. "… I wish that I could leave them here…"
"It would jeopardize all hope of saving Barbiel. One load of I-Children and you will soon need to send them all here. It will be noticed."
"… Yes. I know." Raphael sighed and guided one last I-Child into the ship. "… Thanks again, Uriel."
"You're welcome."
And with that Raphael left, having to herd a whole 30 I-Children back to where they had originally been left.
… Or was that 31?
Nema looked nothing like herself, as she rushed along in a white slip, bare feet, and her hair done up in a ponytail so sloppy one would have never imagined her wearing it. But she wasn't even sure if this would work. It was mere luck that she had just rolled out of bed. She had looked out the window and was amazed to see the ship and the flood of I-Children, and it only took a few seconds to slap her ivory strands into a messy mass and pack the necessary clothing into a white bag.
She needed to find a way to break off… Raphael was going to notice her at some point and then it was back to Hades. Nema wouldn't take that. They were out to save her, but she had a completely different agenda.
She saw a door on the other side of the hallway, and she decided to go for it while Raphael was busy trying to keep someone else from running off.
Nema thoroughly enjoyed her hunches, sometimes. She'd found her way into storage. There would be some kind of door that she could drop out from whenever they landed. But for now, all she was concerned with was wearing the clothing she wanted to wear. She unzipped her white bag in tore the elastic out of her hair, taking off the slip, throwing on her undergarments, her black skirt, her dark red tank top. She stomped into her boots and tied them with abnormal speed, and ran the brush she kept in the bag through her hair. The only thing left was her mini-crown, and she had to take out Michael's shirt before finding it and tying it onto her head.
Now there was nothing left to do but wait for the landing. Nema toyed with the fabric of Michael's black shirt. Since coming to Hades, she had found it hard to wear the shirt she had once clung to for dear life. It belonged to a man who had allowed her to fall prey to dangers and cruelties, a man who had allowed her to be raped. And yet, it was the same man that she had been crazy enough to care about. Crazy…. Crazy, indeed. She had fallen in love with a man who had let her life become Hell.
Even now, as she came to grips with these facts, she could not deny that she still wanted to be with him. Just think… She was going to Heaven. And somewhere in there, Michael was chained up because he had slept with her. If she could find a way, she wanted to bust him out. Surely he would want to help her liberate her kind. He wouldn't deem her ambitions impossible… he would make them a reality with her.
And in the end… when he made it all real with her… she would forgive him of his neglect. She forgave him… even now.
Nema's ears popped, and she wondered if it was because the ship had gone up high enough to have that effect on her, or if it is was because the ship was actually making its descent. Regardless, she was getting closer and closer to Heaven. A place revered by humans as a true Eden. But when Nema reached there, she would be a fugitive. A runaway living on dreams spurred by injustice and anger. Would she even make it far? Would she ever even get to begin to make her hopes materialize?
She felt a lump in one of the pockets of Michael's shirt and pulled it out. Her rosary had suffered from the fall that brought her to Hades, but here were the first five white rosary beads, attached to the Angel Crystal cross. She gripped the cross in tight, white fist and closed her red eyes. Feeling the cross pressed against her flesh made her think of Michael, and she poured her fear into her clenched fist. What would Michael do? Who cared if she hadn't known he was the Devil's brother… She knew something more important than that. She knew his spirit; she knew the way he thought. And so… if Michael was about to become a fugitive…
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'Michael… if you were me… what would you do?'
The Fire Angel tugged on his chains as he felt sleep leaving him. And yet, he felt like he was waking up to Nema's voice. If only he was.
'I am on the brink of life and death, now… There is no turning back. My only option is to run… But I've definitely created my own mess. I need help to get what I yearn for… And I wish you were with me. If you were me… what would you do?'
None of these words were making any sense to Michael. He doubted Nema was actually before him, talking, for he was still chained. Waves of sleep still tugged at him… Was it a strange form of a dream? Well, then it was better than most… at least he was hearing the voice that belonged to Nema.
'I wish that you were here to tell me… what you would do…!'
A small smile pulled on Michael's lips. 'Feh…! That's easy! The only option is to run? So run!'
What he didn't know was that somewhere else in Heaven, Raphael's ship had landed, and though Nema had not literally heard him say what he thought, the idea traveled to her and gave her hope. And so, filled with courage, Nema unlocked the door and dropped down from it, making sure to close it so no one could guess she had been there. And she ran.