Chapter 5: Howling
The cold bit into the side of the sheer mountain cliffs as tufts of white blanketed the world around it. The wind was howling and shifting the drifts of snow, making it hard to see much of anything in the distance.
Alex Lannon stood on the ledge just outside the opening to Gabriel's domain. The fur trim on his jacket kept fluttering up and tickling his chin. It reminded him of a moment when he was a child. It was a moment when Michael was actually comforting to him; something that didn't happen often while Alex was growing up.
It had been winter in Vega and he was about twelve years old. There was a cold snap and Alex had been shivering uncontrollably outside of one of the shelters in the main square, waiting in line for his next meal. He didn't know where the archangel came from, or how he had even seen him in the throng of shivering people, but suddenly Michael was standing in front of him with a warm jacket and new shoes. As per usual, the archangel's expression was hard to read and his gaze was unblinking and all encompassing. Alex could barely look up at the tall imposing figure, let alone reach out and take the clothing.
Somehow Michael understood that and after a moment, he kneeled down and gently helped the boy, his own expression softer than usual. Alex was in awe of the angel, staring at him, studying the angel's face with his mouth slightly agape. He didn't quite understand why the almighty archangel of Vega was paying him any notice at the moment. It wasn't the first time he'd encountered him of course as Michael had always somehow been in his life over the years, but Alex didn't understand why or for what purpose. The fur trim on that warm jacket tickled his chin as Michael had zipped it up. Alex remembered how Michael had paused and looked at him with a serene smile on his face. It changed the angel's whole demeanor and it made Alex feel special for once. Almost as if he were loved and cared for.
And then the angel stood up, breaking the moment. Alex remembered staring up at him and trying to mumble, "Thank you," but instead botched it, stammering as Michael's face was stoic once more, turning to eye their surroundings. Looking back down at him, Michael coolly instructed, "You must sleep inside tonight. If you cannot find shelter, come to the Archangel Corps. You'll be sorted out. Tell them I sent you." The look on his face was of concern and sternness. It seemed strange at the time. Now, of course, Alex knew better. Michael was only taking care of his precious Chosen One. Of his potential redemption.
Alex squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, listening to the howling that the wind was making around him. It was whipping through his hair and making him feel alive again, something that had been lacking for the past few weeks. The memory of Michael and his fury in the House Thorn lab surfaced once more, definitely not for the first time since Alex made his journey to Gabriel's aerie. The expression on Michael's face as he woke from his rage was ingrained in Alex's mind. Every time he remembered that look, it was gut wrenching. Alex would suddenly feel ill and often had to take a moment to compose himself. After all that the angel had taught him, it had boiled down to that moment. And it had hurt.
Where was Michael now? Alex had wondered where he had flown off to. He didn't really know how to contact him or what to do next. Standing in that lab with broken and dead bodies and poor Louis… Alex shuddered for a moment. It could have been Michael. Becca Thorn could have done that to Michael.
Alex opened his eyes and took a deep breath of the cold air.
"Planning your escape, are you, Chosen One?" Gabriel's voice seemed to creep over him like the cold wind. Alex hadn't noticed his presence, but he would bet that the archangel had probably been standing in the entrance way for a while, keeping tabs on his new protégé.
Turning to the angel, Alex plastered a small smile on his face and tried to remember to be placating. "Of course not. Where would I go anyway?"
Gabriel studied him for a moment, leaning against the nearby stone wall, his arms crossed. "At this point, without wings, it would be suicide." He motioned to the swirling snow and lack of visibility.
Alex nodded at him and strode past him, back through the entrance. "And we wouldn't want that, would we?" he said, in a rather sarcastic tone.
Gabriel actually laughed and turned to follow him, clapping him on the back. "Oh, Alex. You're quite amusing when you want to be, aren't you? Why don't we go see what Furiad has for us today, hmm?"
Alex tried not to cringe when Gabriel touched him. It took a lot of effort to always pretend to be amiable and excited by whatever new "adventure" Gabriel came up with. He knew that the angel was probably testing him to see how far his new allegiance would go.
Damn it, Michael. You were right. Alex thought, chastising himself again for coming all this way and staying here. If Noma wasn't still under Gabriel's control and Alex could find some way to walk away from this gilded cage, he would already be across the country by now. Unfortunately, this plan, which they had come up with before Michael had lost himself, was a long shot. At first, Noma had given him an ear-full for even contemplating this plan at all.
Originally, Noma would go to Gabriel and make him understand that Alex had turned against Michael, that he would be open to Gabriel's influence. And then Alex would eventually go to Gabriel to offer his allegiance, and learn as much as possible about the tattoos, perhaps even what he was meant to do as the "Chosen One" and why Gabriel was so set on Alex joining him in the first place. But Michael had warned him, sternly, that Gabriel would use every manipulative tactic possible to get Alex to do what he wants. They hadn't quite finished the plan before Michael actually did do something that made Alex rethink his allegiance to the archangel.
As he walked alongside Gabriel, Alex couldn't help but rub his chest for a moment. It felt like something heavy was sitting on it, as it usually did when he started thinking about Michael and everything they had gone through. Although Alex sometimes had trouble understanding the archangel and his tactics, he had still always respected him. He was a father figure to him, despite all the tough love and harshness over the years. The tears Michael had shed in his childhood home were genuine and Alex knew that the angel had lost complete control of himself when he saw one of his own kind tortured in the manner that Louis had been.
Alex had to believe that wherever Michael was, he was remorseful and probably trying to come up with another plan for redemption. He had to believe that the Michael he knew was still somewhere out there. Looking over him from afar, planning to intervene when it was most needed. He had to believe that.
"New Delphi has been organizing, Gabriel." Furiad's voice broke Alex's pensiveness.
They stood by a beautifully crafted long dining table with Gabriel now lounging in an oversized ornate dining chair with one of his legs over the armrest. He was crunching into an apple and staring at Furiad who stood rigidly nearby, hand on a large colorful map laid out on the table. Gabriel hadn't been all that forthcoming with his plan for New Delphi, but he had been sending angels to scope out their resistance capabilities. It was clear he had at least three angels already inside the settlement, hidden among the humans.
"Organizing how?" Alex asked. New Delphi was still a mystery to him. He had lived in Vega his entire life and Gabriel's aerie was the furthest he had traveled. He had heard rumors of the chaos and the outlaw life that New Delphi had to offer, but he had no clue as to how it actually was there.
Furiad glanced at the Chosen One. The young human irritated the angel. He wasn't sure if it was because of Noma's connection to him or that he was a human who had so much sway over all of their actions. What was so special about this mortal vessel? His stoic face stared coldly at him for a moment and then looked again to Gabriel, ignoring the question.
Gabriel couldn't help but chuckle at Furiad's reaction, but he needed the angel to cooperate. "Answer the question, Furiad."
Alex tried not to sigh loudly. It was clear that most of the angels didn't want to have anything to do with him. Noma was the only smiling face that he had seen in the last few weeks. Well, other than Gabriel's unnerving grin.
"They have soldiers. They will no longer be lawless at this rate. Someone has taken hold as a leader."
"Soldiers? Really?" Alex asked, shifting closer to the table and the map.
Gabriel munched on his apple, watching both of them as he thought. It was clear the archangel was debating something. Or perhaps plotting his next step. "And the leader? Is it who we think it is?"
"Unconfirmed." Furiad kept an eye on Alex as the human got closer to the map. The map was of North America and had several markings across the continent. Vega was clearly marked, as was Helena to the south. At the top northwest part of the continent, further inland rather than on the coast like Helena, was a scribbling, clearly denoting where New Delphi was established.
"So what? All of a sudden an army of soldiers invaded and took over? Or one of the crew bosses got stronger and recruited some of their outlaw friends to be part of a new army?" Alex asked, pulling the map closer, noticing Furiad tensing, clearly not happy that he had touched his precious map. Crew bosses were supposedly vicious leaders that were in charge of criminal syndicates. They seemed to be the ruling class of New Delphi and most citizens supposedly kept to their smaller chaotic ventures, trying hard not to piss off the crew bosses.
Gabriel shifted his leg down, sitting normally in the chair as he finished chewing his apple and then chucked the core over his shoulder onto the floor. An 8-ball scurried into the room and picked it up, then quickly disappeared out through another doorway across the room. No one acknowledge the 8-ball's presence. Although now used to the strange way that Gabriel's loyal 8-balls acted like servants, Alex still bristled at the way they shuffled and moved out of fear around the archangel and himself.
"I need to know if it is true, Furiad. I need to know if our plan will be thwarted by him." Gabriel said, frustrated.
"Who?" Alex asked, looking up at them.
Furiad didn't move, but Alex could tell there was a shift in his already agitated mood. He didn't know if Furiad really was loyal to Gabriel, or if he just threw his lot in with him because he wanted to be rid of humans. "You haven't told him, Gabriel?"
Gabriel gave him an exasperated look. "Does the Chosen One really need to know everything?"
"Hey! I'm standing right here. What are you not telling me?" Alex asked, sternly. Something shifted on his arm and he knew immediately that it was the tattoos. They did that occasionally, especially since he came to Gabriel's. They seemed to be trying to tell him something, but unfortunately, he was never alone long enough to look at them. And he was not about to let Gabriel know that they were communicating with him. The archangel was already too interested in them, constantly trying to get Alex to slip up and spill more information than he intended.
Gabriel stood up and stretched in a feigned lazy way. "Oh, it doesn't really matter to you anymore, Alex."
Alex tried to puzzle out what he was insinuating as Gabriel stepped closer to Furiad. The other angel looked like he wanted to step away from him, keeping his eyes trained on Gabriel.
"Furiad, confirm it and report back to me." Gabriel shoved Furiad roughly in the chest. "Don't come back until you know for sure."
The red-armored angel immediately disappeared out of the room, not hesitating to put as much distance as possible between himself and the archangel.
"Who is in New Delphi, Gabriel?" Alex asked, pointedly.
Gabriel studied Alex for a moment and then a grin spread across his face. He had a glint in his eye and it was clear that something malicious was on his mind.
"Really shouldn't matter who it is, Chosen One. You're here to hone your skills and do as you're told."
Alex stared at him. "Is that what I'm doing here? Because you haven't told me anything I didn't know already. You haven't 'taught' me anything new! I'd be better off with Michael at this point!"
Gabriel visibly bristled at his brother's name, which was exactly what Alex was going for. He retorted in anger, "Michael is useless! You have no idea what he's done, his inabilities… you want to go back to that? His motivations are not as pure as you once thought! But you know that, otherwise you wouldn't be here!"
"Why are you so focused on New Delphi? What the hell do you want with me?" Alex yelled, losing his ability to control himself. The tattoos were moving rapidly, making his skin crawl. It pissed him off because all he wanted to do was take his shirt off and see what they would tell him. Maybe they'd give him something that would finally help him. Or at least point him in the correct direction. This feeling of being lost was driving him crazy.
Gabriel crossed the few steps to Alex and roughly grabbed him by the neck, squeezing just enough to get his point across. His own blood rage was hard to keep in check sometimes, and he had to remind himself to be careful with the Chosen One. With anger distorting his face, he growled, "Hell? What do you know of hell? When the slaughter starts again, Alex, you will understand exactly what hell is."
Alex's heart was beating so hard, he thought it might actually burst from his chest and fall onto the floor. The idea of that was so absurd that he had the urge to smile.
And then it dawned on him that that was exactly what he should do. Unhinged. It was exactly what Gabriel would not expect. And so he started laughing.
Gabriel looked confused for a moment, defusing his own anger. "You think that is funny, Chosen One?"
And Alex laughed even harder, making him seem even more deranged. He choked out, "You have know idea…about anything, do you?" Alex reveled for a moment at the archangel's strange expression.
It confused and then infuriated the archangel for a moment, causing Gabriel to tighten his hold on his neck, strangling the laughter right out of Alex. "It won't be so funny when the Flood starts again. You are still human, despite the message from Father written all over you. You think you're immune?"
Alex was having a hard time breathing so he hit Gabriel uselessly in the chest, hoping he would let go of him finally. It made the archangel grin at him again, reveling in the power that he had over Alex. Gabriel yanked him closer and harshly whispered to him in his ear, "You have no idea what is coming."
And then he slammed Alex to the floor, letting go of him at impact. Stunned, Alex tried to move away from the angel that was looming over him with that disturbing grin of his. Coughing and gasping for air, Alex slowly regained control of himself as he sat up, shuffling backwards.
"It would be best for you to know your place, Alex. If you would only see things my way, then you wouldn't have to walk around here, pretending all the time. Do you really think I didn't know that you are not fully committed to our cause? I'm not blind, Alex." Gabriel put one hand on his hip and another hand waggling his finger at Alex as if he were a teacher chastising his student. "Your precious Noma…tisk tisk…be very careful what you do, Alex. Noma might regret your actions as much as her own."
Alex took a deep breath and scrambled to his feet, keeping his distance, smartly so.
"No words now, Chosen One?" Gabriel inquired.
Sighing, Alex shook his head.
"Besides, would you really want to be in New Delphi? It's full of criminals. Distasteful." Gabriel said, almost seriously, and then he smiled, that mischievous glint back in his eyes.
"Why? Were you planning to send me to New Delphi?" Alex asked, fishing.
"You did say you were thinking about returning to Michael's tutelage," Gabriel said as he walked to the nearby doorway that the 8-ball had previously scurried through.
"What do you mean?" Alex asked, confused. "Is Michael in New Delphi?"
"Let me know when Furiad returns." Gabriel said over his shoulder as he left the room.