Confronting the Fallen (24 page)

“
Now
I know you! You are the Broken One. Sariel.” Its voice was
hushed; now it squeaked rather than shrieked and Chris was reminded
of a small child caught doing something wrong. “But this cannot
be. You cannot walk the Earth, not you.”

“
But
I do, little one. I do. My one-time brother has gone too far and now
our Father has responded.”

The
wraith drew itself up and its form blazed brightly again. “It
matters not! If you defeat me, I shall go back to Hell and tell my
master of your presence. He will be warned and will hunt you down
with all the forces at his command. And they are limitless.”
And it laughed mockingly at Sariel.

He
returned the laugh. “I think not. There are only three beings
in Creation who are old enough to destroy any angel, other than my
Father. You should know that, Fallen. I don't think you will be
telling your master anything after tonight.”

“
No!”
the monster shrieked and swung its weapon at blinding speed toward
them.

Sariel
stretched his arms out and stood there, almost in the shape of a
cross. His one good wing rose up and out behind him. And from some
place deep within came a blast of silver light, so bright that Chris
was surprised he wasn't blinded by it. There was a hint of incense
and chanting, hymns being sung from a far distant place. And yet
there was no sound at all.

The
light slammed into the wraith, smashing it back and down to the
ground. Its weapon was blasted to pieces and it wailed and writhed as
it was suddenly consumed in silver-tinged flames. The creature roiled
and convulsed, seeking to hide from the consuming light. But there
was nowhere to run, and then it was gone.

Nothing
was left of it but some burnt grass and the stench of rotting meat.
The field was quiet and empty and Chris was himself again. He blinked
once and fought back a wave of weakness. He felt dizzy for a moment
and took a deep breath and waited for it to pass. Then he ran over to
Jacob, who was curled up on the ground. He was himself again as well.
As Chris approached, he heard his friend sobbing. He knelt down and
put his hand on Jacob's shoulder.

“
Hey
Jake, what's wrong? Are you hurt?”

Jacob
turned his head away. “No, I'm okay.” He wiped a hand
over his face and tried to stand. Chris helped him up and held his
arm until he was steady enough to stand on his own. Jacob looked at
him, a devastated expression on his face.

“
We
failed, Chris. Janariel and me. We failed. Our first fight ever and
we couldn't take that monster.” He turned away and looked over
at the two shapes at the far side of the clearing that Chris assumed
were the remains of the undead he'd heard about earlier. “I'm
useless. Janariel was waiting for me to take charge, to finish that
thing off, and I couldn't do it. I couldn't!” He shook his head
and ran a hand across his forehead. He looked at Chris again.

“
Sariel
and you were amazing, Chris. You guys took out that wraith with no
problem at all. Janariel's never seen that kind of attack before.
What was it?”

Chris
felt the answer bubble up into his mind and knew that Sariel was
giving him the information indirectly.

“
It
was the light of Heaven, Jake. Apparently, these fallen angels just
can't handle it. At least, the less powerful ones can't. It actually
destroyed that creature. One of the perks of being a firstborn child
of God, I assume.”

“
Destroyed?
Wow. I didn't know you could destroy an angel, Fallen or not. That's
scary.”

“
Yeah,
well, Sariel didn't want it going back to its master and telling him
that a firstborn archangel was walking the Earth. The longer the
enemy is in the dark about that, the better.” He gave Jacob a
little shake. “And don't beat yourself up. Sariel said that you
and Janariel did very well. You need more practice and, the next time
you go into battle, don't go alone. Angels aren't lone warriors,
Jake. Only Sariel fights alone.” He hesitated. “He's like
me, I guess. He's used to doing things by himself.”

Jacob
nodded back at the house and the two friends made their way slowly
back toward the gate.

“
Yeah,
maybe. But it wasn't fear, Chris. That much I know. Janariel was
totally brave when he faced that thing. More than me.”

Chris
snorted. “I didn't see any fear from either of you, Jake. I
thought you guys were amazing. Seriously. So don't sweat it.”
He pushed his hair back with a shaky hand. “Whew. I'm really
hungry now. Is that weird or what?”

Jacob
laughed as they entered the yard. “It's not weird. I was told
that after a fight, we've used up a lot of energy interacting with
our angels and need to fuel up.” He looked surprised. “Huh.
I'm starving too.” They both chuckled.

The
guards met them in the middle of the yard. Jacob told them that the
danger was passed and one of the guards called it in. The lights
returned to normal, the metal covers rolled up off of the windows and
the guards headed back to their posts.

Chris
and Jacob greeted the pack and thanked Eliza and her family for their
help with a lot of patting and stroking. The dogs licked them and
barked happily and then they headed back on patrol, Eliza leading the
way with great dignity.

The
two friends entered the house and were met by a group of people
including Judge Hawkes, Martin and Tyler, who immediately lavished
praise on his best friend. Jacob blushed and tried to stop him.

“
I
didn't do anything, Ty. It was all Sariel and Chris.”

Tyler
frowned and poked his friend in the chest. “Hey, we saw all of
it on the monitor. You held that thing back until Sariel could help
you. It was a group effort.” He turned and looked at Chris.
“Wasn't it?”

Chris
nodded sharply. “Absolutely. That's what I've been trying to
tell him. Without Jake and Janariel, I don't want to think what would
have happened.” He grinned at Jacob. “So take the
compliment, Jake. You earned it.”

“
Yeah,
well, whatever. Thanks, guys.” He looked at the judge, who was
smiling at the three friends. “You think we could bother Chef
for some food, your honor? We're starving.”

Judge
Hawkes laughed gently. “Whatever you two want. You've worked
hard. I doubt if there will be another attack tonight. I'll want to
talk about the event with you both, but that can wait until
tomorrow.”

“
Excellent.
C'mon guys, let's hit the kitchen.”

They
made their way down to the kitchen. When they arrived, Chef was
bustling around the room, pulling out dishes and pans, stirring pots
on the stove and opening and closing the refrigerator.

“
Aha,”
he cried dramatically when Chris, Tyler and Jacob entered the room.
“I knew you would be hungry after your victorious battle! Come
in and sit down and let me feed you.”

Chris
grinned. “How did you know, Chef?” he asked as they sat
down side by side at the long counter that ran along the wall.

“
Quite
simple, Christopher. It was broadcast to all monitors. There are
cameras along the walls, of course, and I assume the judge allowed
the images to be piped into the house. Very exciting stuff, I must
say.” He stopped and looked closely at Chris and Jacob.
“Although I doubt that exciting is the word you two would have
used at the time, is it?”

Jacob
shrugged a bit. “No. I think scary is the better word, Chef.
Some warrior I am, to be too scared to fight.”

Before
Chris or Tyler could jump in, Chef strode across the room and looked
down at Jacob with his hands on his hips. Chris was reminded of just
how big the man really was.

“
I
will hear none of that nonsense, Jacob. The best fighters are those
who fight with fear. It is human. It is natural. It sharpens the
reflexes, increases reaction speed, heightens perception. Only a fool
enters into battle unafraid. And fools don't live very long in
combat.” He reached down and put his large hand on Jacob's
hunched shoulder. “A brave person is someone who carries on
despite their fear, not someone who has no fear. Remember that.”

Jacob
looked up and saw Chef's stern look turn into a wide grin. He smiled
tremulously in return. “Thanks Chef,” he whispered. “I'll
try to.”

Chef
gave his shoulder a little shake and went back to his cooking. “See
that you do,” he said as he began stir-frying some vegetables.

“
Feeling
better?” Tyler asked his friend quietly.

“
Yeah,
I am,” Jacob answered as he watched Chef. “He always
knows just what to say, doesn't he?”

“
Yes,
he does,” Chef said from across the room, without turning
around. “He also has excellent hearing.”

The
three teens exchanged surprised looks and then burst out laughing.
Chris found that the tension he didn't even know he had locked up
inside seemed to dissipate. Jake was right, he thought. Chef was a
very wise man.

Soon
they were tearing into loaves of oven-fresh bread, huge plates of
stir-fried beef and vegetables mixed with Chef's own secret sauce and
large glasses of ice-cold juice. Cherry pie with ice cream followed
for dessert. Chef knew that all of them liked coffee and served mugs
of it along with the pie.

He
sat to one side as they ate, obviously enjoying their appetites and
their constant compliments on his cooking.

Near
the end of the meal, Chris brought up something that had been nagging
at him.

“
Chef,
do you think it was Angelica that set those monsters on us tonight?”
Tyler and Jacob stopped eating and listened closely.

“
Oh
yes, Chris. Of that I have no doubt.” Chef sighed sadly. “She
was always impetuous, our little Angelica. Too quick to act, too slow
to think. Just as well for us since she deserted our cause for the
enemy's.”

“
You
knew her, Chef?” Tyler asked.

“
I
did, Tyler. A scared little rabbit when the judge brought her into
the house that first time. All alone in the world, she was. And
jumping at every noise. Once she was here a while and realized that
we only meant her well, she blossomed. Attached herself to Judge
Hawkes and, I think, came to regard him as a second father.”
Chef took a sip of his coffee. “But there was always something
twisted inside. Something...not quite right. Perhaps her angelic soul
was a traitor from the beginning. Who can know? But you see what she
is now. She went from loving the judge and this house to hating him
and everything we stand for.” He shook his head wearily. “Love
and hate truly are two sides of the same coin, I suppose.”

“
That's
horrible, Chef,” Jacob said, aghast. “Betraying someone
you love? How could anyone do that?”

“
Jacob,
my lad, you're quite young yet. You all are. But betrayals happen all
the time in this crazy world. People are imperfect, and everyone's
motivations are different. All I know is that it happened. And the
judge was wounded, deeply wounded, by her traitorous act. But to his
credit, he carried on the fight. I don't know whether I could have
been that strong in his place.”

Chef
finished his coffee and took the cup over to the dishwasher. “At
any rate, that's enough gossip for one night. I think you lads should
get some rest. You've more than earned it.”

At
Chef's words, Chris suddenly felt as if someone had dropped a ton on
to his shoulders and exhaustion swept over him. “Gees, Chef,
did you spike our food? I can barely keep my eyes open.”

Jacob
yawned widely. “Yeah, me too. That coffee must have been
decaf.”

Chef
chuckled and Tyler grinned at his friends.

“
Just
the aftermath of the battle, boys,” Tyler said. “Same
thing happened to me the first time. C'mon, I'll walk with you in
case either one of you decides to curl up and sleep on the floor
somewhere.”

With
weary waves, Chris and Jacob said good night to Chef and headed for
their rooms. Tyler followed along behind them. Chris never did
remember the walk back but he did think to take off his shoes before
collapsing into bed. That night he had no dreams; at least none that
he remembered.

The
next day, Chris was informed that the judge wanted to speak with him
at two o'clock. He assumed that they were going to discuss the battle
with the wraith and he wondered what the judge thought of the whole
thing. Chris wasn't quite sure what to think himself.

He
kept looking down at his hand and staring at the ring firmly attached
to his finger. Chris had tentatively tried to remove it, but it was
clamped firmly to his flesh. He suspected that it had lodged itself
on to the bone in his finger. It still looked horrible but Chris was
grateful that there was no pain. Well, Sariel did warn me, he
thought.

When
he walked into the judge's office at two, Chris almost ran into Jacob
coming out.