Inception (The Reaping Chronicles, 1)

by Haviland, Teal

  Gabrielle shrugged. “I don’t know. How ‘bout you, Nate. Anything else you want to add?”

  Nate shook his head. “No, not really. But I agree with Nonie. I don’t think I’ve ever had the dreams unless I was with Lucas. Until a few nights ago. And like Nonie, I also hadn’t dreamt about them in a really long time.”

  She turned back to Lucas. “And for you, these dreams have continued without a break in frequency?”

  Lucas nodded.

  Gabrielle picked at the food on her plate. She was sure, now, which of the Gentry were visiting. After several minutes, Lucas interrupted her thoughts.

  “Gabby, are they just dreams or something else?”

  Gabrielle looked at all of them sitting around Emma’s kitchen table. They had the same expression on their faces—a jumble of curiosity and apprehension.

  “You aren’t having dreams. You’re experiencing encounters with the Gentry. I don’t know why, though. It helps to know what kinds are visiting you, but I’ll have to do some digging to find out the reason, or reasons, they’re coming around so much.” She looked at Lucas. “Especially where you’re concerned. This seems to be more about you than Nonie and Nate.”

  “The Gentry? I thought you were going to tell me that they were fairies or something. What are the Gentry?” Lucas almost sounded relieved.

  “You would call them fairies because that’s what they’re commonly referred to by humans in today’s world. But don’t let them hear you call them that unless you want to make them mad. As a human, you don’t want to make them upset with you. They can be edgy and unforgiving. It’s rude, insulting, to call them fairies. They prefer the Gentry, the Old People, People of Peace, Pixies, the Seelie, the Fair Folk, and that’s only some of the names.”

  Nate held a finger up to get her attention. Gabrielle could see from his frustrated demeanor that it wasn’t going to be easy to convince him about this, either. “You said it helps to know what kinds are coming around. How many different kinds are there?”

  “There are four classifications of the Gentry—hosts of the air, people of the mounds, dwellers of the waters, and those that live in the depths. But there are many types of Gentry within each of those classifications.”

  “What kind are we dealing with?” Nonie asked.

  “Unfortunately, they’re from the depths.”

  Gabrielle waited for the next question. It was Nonie who asked.

  “Why’s that bad?”

  “If I had to choose, they’re the ones I would want to come around the least. Even though you can’t ever be sure of the intent any of the Gentry have until whatever they’re doing is over, the ones from the depths are, more often than not, up to no good.”

  “Why’s that?” Lucas asked.

  “The Gentry are the offspring of fallen angels and humans. So they have powers people don’t. But, because they’re part human and part fallen angel, it’s hard to predict where they’ll fall in the spectrum between good and evil. They tend to make it easier for us to tell because they’ll choose to live closer to, or further away from, Yahuwah depending on their natural dispositions.”

  Lucas looked at Gabrielle, confusion written deep in his expression. “Sorry, love. You’ve lost me.”

  She wasn’t making this clear, but it was confusing to explain. “First of all, Lucas, this doesn’t apply to you. Emma didn’t fall. She chose to become human, and Yahuwah granted it to her.” Gabrielle waited for Lucas to show he understood, which he did with a relieved smile and nod. “Basically, the Fallen have varying degrees of betrayal that caused them to be cast out of Heaven; some are more treacherous than others. Similarly, humans have varying levels of good or evil that lives within them. Depending on the combination of the fallen angel and the human, you can have anything from fairly good Gentry to evil Gentry that result from the coupling. Do you follow me so far?”

  Gabrielle looked to each of them, and they all nodded. She then turned to Ben and Lizzie, who also nodded, but remained in a state of quiet attention.

  “The best of the Gentry are the hosts of the air, which is why they’re found closest to Heaven, then the people of the mounds, next the water dwellers, and lastly, the ones that live in the depths—the closest to Ramai and Hell. It’s especially unwise to trust them. Do you see how the best of them live closer to Yahuwah, and then it goes downhill from there?”

  Everyone nodded again.

  “From what you described to me, Lucas, I believe the first ones are the huli jing, the second are most likely dwarves. The huli jing are definitely not to be underestimated, but dwarves are quite foreboding and dangerous. If dwarves are visiting, there’s definitely a wicked intent, even if they haven’t done anything physical … yet.”

  Lucas put his elbows on the table and rested his forehead in his hands. “Great … vampires and little people are after me.”

  “They aren’t always little, Lucas. Your observation was correct; they can change their size anytime they choose. That’s why the Gentry have been described so differently throughout the centuries. Sometimes small and other times the size of humans and every size in between. All are correct, but none are accurate a hundred percent of the time.”

  Nate pushed his chair back and stood to lean against the kitchen counter. “So, Gabrielle, do these Gentry all have supernatural powers? What can they do?”

  “The powers they possess vary from classification to classification. And the different types of Gentry within each classification have different abilities. Even within those specific types, the abilities will vary to some degree with some being more powerful than another of their own species.” Gabrielle knew this topic would cause them a great deal of confusion. “It would be too time consuming and way too much information to retain right now if I told you all the specifics. But because the Gentry are part angel and, therefore, have Divine blood, their abilities and powers are great. Add to that the knowledge of magic and the use of nature’s Elementals that they’ve learned over thousands of years, and they’ve become a formidable order.”

  “What are we supposed to do, Gabrielle? How do we protect ourselves?” Nonie asked worriedly.

  “As frustrating as it is for me to keep saying this, you do nothing. At least not right now. You can’t do much as humans unless you have Divine protection. The Gentry won’t normally attack a human unless provoked. They value their anonymity, like the Qalal. It’s better for fantastical creatures to exist only in the imaginings of humans. If their reality is discovered, especially in the days we’re in now, they risk substantial losses of their own kind as well as their homes. Even though they are powerful and have abilities far beyond a human’s, they can be killed. They aren’t completely immortal, but they do heal quickly. Unless you destroy them, they’ll continue to regenerate. It’s better if you just keep acting as you always have—like they’re only a dream. Just pay more attention now. The more information you can give me about what they’re doing, what they look like, and what they’re saying—if you can understand them—will help me to get to the bottom of this.”

  “Gabrielle,” Nate said in a slightly agitated tone, “since you’re an angel, why can’t you just find out what they are doing and what they want by twitching your nose, or snapping your finger, or whatever it is you do to find stuff out?”

  “I assure you, it won’t be by twitching my nose or snapping my fingers. The only thing that’ll possibly hinder me in finding out what’s going on is if Yahuwah doesn’t want me to know or if it’s Ramai’s doing.”

  “But isn’t God more powerful than Satan?” Nate pulled himself up to sit on the counter.

  “Without a doubt, Nate, He is. But He has an agreement with Ramai, allowing a fair fight—so to speak.”

  “An agreement?” Nate’s eyebrows raised, matching his rising voice. He was definitely irritated. “You mean God—m
ade a deal—with the devil?”

  “Yes, Nate. That’s exactly what He did.”

  Nonie got up from her seat and made her way to her brother as if she intended to either support him or calm him down. Maybe both. As soon as his sister pulled herself up next to him, his demeanor relaxed.

  Ben and Lizzie had adjusted their positions, leaning in closer to the table.

  “Gabrielle,” Nonie held her voice in a calm tone, and Gabrielle was glad she was taking the reins of the conversation away from Nate. Gabrielle didn’t want this to become a heated argument because he doesn’t understand all that goes on in Heaven. “What kind of deal did He make? And … why?”

  Lucas was more interested in the conversation now, too. Gabrielle realized this was information she still hadn’t shared with him.

  “When Ramai defied Yahuwah, one of the reasons was because he didn’t understand why Yahuwah favored humans. In particular, he didn’t understand why He gave them free will. Ramai was bestowed with more favor than any other angel Yahuwah created. He gave Ramai tremendous power and beauty. One of the things He charged Ramai with was taking care of Earth. Only Yahuwah himself, and Ramai, know exactly what came about to cause him to rebel, but we do know he wanted to be exalted higher than Yahuwah. Ramai argued with Him about how humans weren’t worthy of His favor and forgiveness. Ramai is extremely prideful and arrogant, and that’s his downfall. He felt Yahuwah favored humans more than him—he couldn’t share Yahuwah’s love with people, and he didn’t feel they should be held in as high a regard as he was.

  “While Ramai took care of his duties protecting Earth, his feelings for humans darkened as he spent more and more time among them. When he rebelled against Yahuwah, he gathered a third of His angels to attack with him. You already know Ramai and the other rebelling angels were defeated and cast from Heaven permanently. Before Yahuwah expelled them, though, Ramai asked for the ability to prove he was right and Yahuwah was wrong to hold humans in such high regard and favor. Yahuwah agreed to allow Ramai to keep his powers on Earth to try to sway humans toward the evil and sin that lives within them, while Yahuwah’s angels do what we can to keep love and righteousness growing inside you. Ramai is convinced he’ll win this battle because he believes humans, as a whole, will turn away from Yahuwah’s love.

  “Since Yahuwah is all knowing, he also agreed to let Ramai and his legions operate with a certain amount of obscurity. In this way, He is allowing for humans to truly have free will with little interference from Him. Just as Ramai is sure humans will fail—Yahuwah is sure you won’t. But He won’t force anyone to follow Him, and since this was the way He felt before Ramai asked for His cooperation, He agreed.”

  Gabrielle took in their expressions. They all looked deep in thought and tired.

  “Does that make it any clearer?”

  Nate shook his head. “I still don’t understand why God would make a deal with an angel who betrayed Him so thoroughly.”

  “One of the first things that will help you to understand Yahuwah, and what He does and doesn’t do, is to try not to understand at all.”

  “Huh?” Lucas said as he made an exasperated gesture.

  Gabrielle knew it was difficult for humans to understand why Yahuwah lets what they considered bad things happen, but she was hoping Lucas would be more accepting of what she was saying, especially with what she knew about the decision he’d have to make in the future. His scowl showed the agitation that he wasn’t speaking with words, but Gabrielle was able to hear it anyway.

  How am I going to keep Darkness from him?

  The thought was not one she could dwell on, and she didn’t feel she had the mental energy even if she wanted to.

  “Look. Yahuwah is all-knowing. There’s no other in the universe who is. There’s so much He sees that we don’t, and because of that, He allows certain things to happen and disallows others. That’s why He’s God. It’s not our job, whether angel or human, to understand Him. What He asks of us, what our job is, is to have faith. Faith that there are reasons why and that He always has our best interests in mind. Our faith in Him, and all He does, makes Him the most joyous.” She paused to look at all of them again. “Is that really so much to ask of the One who created you?”

  Gabrielle was weary from the discussion, and she still had a lot to take care of. She needed a break from all of the talking—the explaining. If she were honest with herself, she’d admit she wasn’t only trying to convince them of Yahuwah’s good intentions—she was beginning to question them herself. She’d never doubted Him before. She didn’t know if the thoughts, the uncertainties, were a result of the information Amaziah had given her or if it was because of her human feelings and emotions interfering. Maybe it was a combination, but it was upsetting. She wanted to leave her human form and just be an angel again, at least for a little while—shed all the tethers that bound humans to their mental turmoil.

  “We have enough to digest for one night,” Nate said as he hopped down from the counter. “It’s getting late, and I still have school stuff to do before I can go to bed—not that I’ll be able to concentrate. Or even sleep.”

  “Yeah,” Nonie agreed with her brother. “I have things to do, too.”

  Lucas got up from the table, and they started toward the door. Gabrielle nodded her goodbye to the Daniels family. She was spent and didn’t want to move.

  She heard Lucas say good night and close the door, then his footfall, much slower than his normal pace, as he made his way back to her. He was as wiped out as she was. Probably even more so. He walked up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders, then bent down to softly kiss her neck just below her ear and whispered into it.

  “I have some things to get done, too. Do you mind if I get started? Or, would you like to talk some more?”

  Gabrielle did need to talk to Lucas. But she didn’t even know where to begin. Things were so much worse, and far more complicated, than he knew right now. And he thought he knew everything he was facing. Her heart felt as if it was being squeezed in someone’s fist. He’d already seemed so upset about Yahuwah’s deal with the devil. She wasn’t sure he needed to hear it right now, anyway. There didn’t seem to be a need for him to know tonight.

  “No. You go ahead and do what you need to, and I’ll get to my work. I still have a lot I have to take care of myself. Even more now that I know about the Gentry’s visits.”

  Gabrielle stood up and faced Lucas, wrapping her arms around his neck, then pulled back enough to look in his eyes.

  “We have plenty of time for more talking.”

  She leaned toward him to meet his lips and closed her eyes, once again, aware that she wasn’t sure how much time they really did have together. No matter how much was theirs to enjoy, the clock was counting down. She thought she could hear the seconds relentlessly ticking, getting louder as the time given for her to accomplish her goals grew shorter. She tried to block it out, but it was still there. It didn’t make it go away—didn’t make it less real. It was just like her love for Javan—as much as she tried to ignore it, it remained. She couldn’t deny that she still loved him. And she couldn’t deny that her time with Lucas, who she also loved, was slipping away. When it did, she’d lose Lucas.

  Just like I lost Javan.

  Chapter Sixty-six

  Gabrielle ~ Something to Consider

  Gabrielle left Lucas as soon as she could. She’d never felt the need for space more. Not to get away from Lucas, she just needed time to herself to clear her mind. When she escaped her human form, it was much easier for her to think clearly.

  She thought back to all she’d learned over the past several days, especially the evening’s conversation. It disturbed her that the Gentry were interested in Lucas, Nonie, and Nate, but knowing the decision facing Lucas, the reason for their interest would likely be traced back to Ramai—trying to find ways
Lucas could be swayed toward him. Her instinct told her she was right. She needed to discover what they were trying to accomplish.

  The devil is in the details.

  The saying had never had more meaning to her than now. The devil seemed to be in every detail, behind the scenes of every obstacle Lucas faced. She felt a shiver trail down her spine thinking of Ramai being so interested in Lucas—so involved in his life.

  There wasn’t much she could do to stop him from pushing Lucas toward what he desired, though. She was a powerful angel, but Ramai was more powerful. However, she did have a much larger arsenal now. She suspected her new powers would be needed when she faced the things coming for Lucas, things lurking in Shadows that had been around him his entire life, and it was only going to get worse.

  As torn as she had been about falling for Lucas, she believed that Yahuwah wanted her in his life. She couldn’t have as big of an influence on him if they weren’t close.

  He knew we’d fall in love … He must have wanted us to.

  Anger crept in again. Having another she loved taken from her as she knew Lucas would be—as Yahuwah knew—was a crushing blow. She pushed the negative feelings down, wondering how long she’d be able to.

  Not in a hurry to get to her Heavenly duties, enjoying her freedom—more mental than physical—she moved over the landscape, leaving the rolling hills of Tennessee and the flat fields of southern Georgia. There was somewhere she wanted to go, and before long, she began to see the outline of the coast.