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Chapter Five

By morning, I was chained in front of the Archangels' courtroom. The familiar room arched around me, giving a 360 degree chance to view my public humiliation. Because the Originals rarely attended regular trials, I was to be tried by my "peers". Peers being the bunch of stuffy archangels who silenced me whenever I spoke, and glared at me when I questioned the Word.

"Archangel Jev Cipriano," spoke the head judge. "You are being tried for: leaving Heaven without permission, being an accessory to the murder of a human, and desiring the flesh of a human. How do you plead? Can you defend yourself?" His voice echoed across the chamber. I'd never realized how frightening and isolating it must be to be tried right here. In fact, I didn't recall there ever being a trial like it, at least in my own lifetime.

"Guilty." Sighs and gasps echoed around the room. "It was an accident! I never intended for anything to happen, I swear! I only tried to defend the woman; I helped her because I feared that she might be harmed again after he woke, or that someone else might harm her!"

A voice spoke from another side of the room. "He is only young. I can see that he is shaken, and upset, by what happened."

"Regardless," the head judge. "This woman, Katharine Lowry, she was in fact a murderer. From our studies of her, she has killed a husband before, and planned on killing this one as well. By following her down, you literally gave her God's aid in murdering one of his own creations." My eyes widened in shock. So wrong, I told myself. She'd been evil; a temptress, and I'd fallen for it.

"I didn't know…I just saw what was happening and I reacted…" I whispered.

"Inexcusable!" Faces turned, to see the known liberal Pepper Friberg stand from his seat. Normally he defended those who were in trouble; why did he have to pick my case to decide to be harsh?

"He broke sacred rules, and must be punished!" I was becoming indignant at his words.

"He beat her! Is it not against 'sacred rules' to be cruel to another human?" I shouted.

"It is not our place to interfere with human-" he began. I exploded.

"Then what exactly is our purpose? What is all of this for? Why are we supposed to be worshipped, and depended upon, if we are so powerless? Are we so weak?" There was silence in the courtroom. I was a mere two seconds from having blasphemed God along with the Archangels, and everyone knew it.

Jev, what have you done to yourself? I heard Nehemiah whisper in my mind.

The head judge spoke, cutting off Pepper from responding. "You were reported by an angel who witnessed you leave. She made sure we were aware of your previous behavior as well."

I felt an extreme wave of hatred, and I turned to see Dabria, her nose up in the air, glaring at me.

"Dabria…no…" I murmured.

"You also desired the murderess, as was observed." I looked to see a guilty Ezra and Nehemiah.

Dabria saw you leave, and when she told on you, she made sure that they knew we were your friends. We were forced to speak. Nehemiah answered.

As I looked around me, I began to see the way that everything was going to end. The Archangels glared at me; some insulted by the way I'd questioned their authority, and the ones that always hated me sneering in their seats. This was their doing; this public humiliation. They were, I realized, killing two birds with one stone with this trial.

The word "guilty" began to travel around the room.

"Jev Cipriano, you are guilty. You relinquish the title of Archangel. You will be removed from our sight at once." The gavel came down, and I was dragged, cursing and screaming, from the hall. I was taken to a dark room, where I was chained to a rock, and my back lay bare.

They wouldn't…I begged silently. I began to struggle, knowing that I couldn't let them do what I thought they were going to do. Two Avenging Angels grabbed my arms, pinning me down to the rock.

"Pull out his wings, Ezra." One commanded. I froze for a moment, and began to struggle even harder.

"Ezra! Ezra, don't do this! Don't let them do this to me!" I knew it was supposed to be insult to injury; that one of my own best friends would have to deal this blow.

Why couldn't you have just listened to Nehemiah? He whispered tearfully. I'm so sorry, Jev…

I felt his boot in my back, and it felt like they were pouring hot tar onto my skin as he pulled my wings out, one and then the other. I collapsed in shock, and they unchained and dragged me away. I saw Ezra drop to his knees, letting go of my wings.

I was barely struggling when Nehemiah ran to me.

"Stay back, Angel of Death," one warned. Ignoring them, quick as lightning, he clipped my Archangel's chain around my neck. One of the soldiers kicked him in the stomach, away from me. Holding his stomach, he stared straight at me.

They made us talk, Jev! Forgive us, please! That necklace is yours; it rightfully belongs around your neck, regardless of how the other Archangels feel!

I could barely give him back a whisper. It isn't…your fault…

Finally, I was lifted by my arms. In a quick, silent motion, they hauled me off of Heaven's edge, and I fell towards the Earth.

I opened my eyes. I couldn't move my body; everything felt heavy. All I could remember was screaming every second on the way down, and blacking out the moment I hit the ground. I was in an open field, proven by the grass swaying around me. My first emotion was this gnawing, empty feeling; as if I was hungry, and wasn't where I was supposed to be. I tried to lift myself off of the ground, but I couldn't do it. My arms weren't moving. Then I saw the horrible truth: my arms were moving. I couldn't feel them. I realized that I couldn't feel anything. Not my body, not the wind, not the ground…nothing. Heartbroken, I let out a silent scream. Miserable, and more pissed off than I'd ever been in my existence, I dragged myself across the field towards the sounds of water. It was a hard, eerie experience; I could sense everything around me, enough to know where things were and how to hold them, but I didn't know if I was touching something until I stared right at it. Eventually, I landed at a river. I tried to touch the water, but it didn't matter. I was isolated from the world around me.

Something silver flashed by me, and landed on the gravel where I lay. I began to reach for it, and it was a frustrating task because I never knew if I was holding it until I opened my hand. After a few tries, I was able to see what it was. It was a simple silver ring. In fact, it was one of the rings that Katharine Lowry's husband had dropped when he went into the river. The phrase "what goes around, comes around" had never been so real to me until that moment. My choices had come full circle. A silly, impulsive, stupid choice, a choice I'd never had the right to make, led to this half existence. I couldn't take it back; I'd be forever stuck without the ability to feel, or the chance to go home.

I was struck with an emotion that I'd never felt before. Hate ran through my veins, choking me with anger. I hated so many things. I hated the Archangels for humiliating me, taking my wings, and leaving me without a home. I hated Dabria for opening her damned mouth. For a moment, I even hated my friends for talking. Then I realized that they'd tried to help me, but I didn't listen. They'd respected my right to choose, even when they knew I might choose wrong. It only made me hate myself even more. I was forced to live with myself, live with knowing that I'd had everything, and I'd given it all up just for love. No, not love, not for that witch, but to prove a point to myself, and to the Archangels.

I then felt a huge sense of loneliness. I was now dependent upon myself; I needed to learn how to survive. And after I learned how to survive, I needed to quench this hatred in myself. I needed revenge. I also sensed that I needed a body. I vaguely remembered the Book of Enoch; something about Nephilim and immortality. With this new motivation, I was able to push myself off of the ground. So, my new goals were a body, money, and a place to live. I was determined to get these things for myself; I refused to let the Archangels think that they'd defeated me.

Walking, I eventually found a road, and then a sign.

Loire Valley

Chateau de Langeais

I realized that this would be where that woman; no, that snake would have lived. She owed me a favor; she owed me more than a favor. Considering I had all eternity to look for what I needed, I decided to start there, and I began to stumble down the road.