by JK Ensley
Daichi smiled. “No, Naga. They cannot.”
“So…” She sighed loudly. “You ready for this meeting of the minds?”
“Does Jophiel have to come?”
She chuckled. “I fear he will show up, invitation or no.”
“And Munenori?”
Jenevier glanced back at him, a tight-lipped smile wrinkling her lips. “He is a part of this, Daichi. We all are. Yes, Munenori’s presence will be required as well.”
He leaned back against the sofa, but didn’t speak.
“If this is anything close to what I think it is… no realm will be left untouched.” She took his hand, gently squeezing. “We all need to be on the same page, Daichi.”
The gorgeous blue Angel let his head loll to the side, glancing back at her. “Can it at least wait until sunrise? I wish to spend a bit more time… just the two of us.”
Jenevier smiled, leaning over against his chest, wrapping her arms around him. “As you wish, Daichi. We will save these worries for tomorrow. Today… let us live in the past for a bit.”
*****
“Dammit all, Uriel,” Apollyon roared. “You see from only one perspective—Naga is the Angel of Death, therefore she must do all the killing. She has only been with us but a breath in time. Who would you have put this off on, prior to her arrival?”
Uriel snorted. “Hmpft. This coming from the creature who chooses to always remain on the sidelines when duty comes knocking. You cannot just wear the uniform, Brother. You gotta play the game.”
Apollyon snorted. “Forget not the parable of the hammer thinking everything is a nail. You always want to bang away like a Neanderthal. Naga is not your nail. Every problem that arises—it is not her job to fight or kill. Especially not for you.”
Uriel rolled his eyes and sighed. “You are just biased where she is concerned.”
“As are you,” Apollyon hissed.
Gabriel smiled softly before speaking. “Neither one of you are necessarily wrong in this.” He glanced toward Uriel. “It is true that your default setting is to blame your little sister for every wrong, use her to rectify every problem.”
Apollyon smiled then.
Gabriel turned to the gloating Prince of Hell. “And you, darkest of my brethren, do not forget her purpose. Naga is blessed thusly… to do what it is that needs to be done.”
“Yes,” Jophiel said, smiling as he turned toward Jenevier. “You have been darkly blessed, little sister.”
Jenevier rolled her eyes and looked away, but the instigating Arch would not be deterred so easily.
Jophiel smirked haughtily. “Pretty little jackass of all trades… master of none.”
“She is Master of Death,” Yui said, taking her hand in his before turning to face Jophiel. “Mind that yours is not the next soul she reaps.”
“Rawr,” Uriel said as he elbowed Jophiel. “Perhaps that pretty little ninja has some teeth after all.”
During the noisy exchange now happening around the table, Raphael leaned over and whispered in Jenevier’s ear, “Wow… this has turned into a right fine mess.” He gently yanked one of her curls. “Precious little sister, you have put a literal spin on getting in bed with the devil.” He chuckled. “Have you ever seen such posturing, such arrogant possessiveness?”
Jenevier turned to her dark-haired angelic brother and gently bumped her forehead against his. “My success in choosing mates… should be an inspiration to all women.”
Raphael and Jenevier shared a quiet chuckle, before the loud crash of Uriel’s fist meeting the table caused them to jump.
“Apollyon,” Uriel said through a snarl. “To stop the unthinkable, you must be willing to do the unspeakable.”
“Those are my words.” Apollyon glared at the enraged Arch. “Why don’t you try turning them on yourself, Uriel? Take the bull by the horns then—do the unspeakable. Trust me, Brother. It feels sooo good.”
Uriel raised a single perfect eyebrow. “Was that a challenge? Or a threat?”
Apollyon smiled coolly. “Take it how you will. But know this, Brother. Our truce is over at the bottom of that teacup… drink slowly.”
“That is quite enough,” Jenevier said. “We have veered way off our intended path.” She glanced around at her gathered brethren. “We should stay on task. No more bickering. Eyes on the objective, boys.” Her gaze met Uriel’s just as he started to open his mouth. “Shut it, Brother. Do something different for a change. Try listening… just for today.”
“We are not even certain what is happening,” Munenori said. “Opinions should be withheld until all we know has been revealed.”
“Yes.” Jenevier nodded. “It is as he says. Dofarel confirmed Vindicus’s suspicions.”
Her gaze met the enchanting sapphire Angel she had once named as husband. He gave her a closed-lip smile.
“The Elf King knows not how…” she continued. “…but the veil between realms is dwindling.”
“Yet, the celestial seals have not been broken,” Gabriel said. “This I well know.”
“Some other force is at play here,” Munenori said. “Something that has the ability to affect every realm.”
“Or someone,” Jophiel added, turning toward Jenevier. “Tell me, little sister. Where have you been playing about recently? I haven’t heard any of your latest adventures.”
“Mama hasn’t been playing about anywhere.” Tenshi narrowed his gaze. “Cast one more stone her way… and neither will you.”
An almost palpable silence fell over the room. Tenshi was an unknown force, a definite wild card, especially where his mother was concerned.
“My son speaks true.” Apollyon lifted his chin. “The Angel of Death spends her time watching, lurking about within the clouds. She has caused no harm.”
His words snapped Jenevier’s attention back to the speaking Angel. Apollyon’s intense sapphire gaze was fixed upon her.
“But how— How did you know?”
Apollyon smiled. “Always do I seek you, Anicee. The clouds are the only place you go that I cannot follow. You have changed, little one.”
Jenevier blushed. “I didn’t realize anyone else knew.”
“These self-absorbed creatures would never notice,” Apollyon said, glancing around at the other Archs. “Their minds are on their mission only. I am certain they have passed by you thousands of times.”
“They have,” she whispered softly.
Apollyon smiled. “They noticed you not, for their hearts are not continually upon you. Mine is.”
Daichi cleared his throat. “Very well. Shall we proceed, Naga? Tell them what it is you have discovered.”
“Well, to be honest… Vindicus was the one who brought it to my attention. I hadn’t even noticed. He heard murmurings from all realms leaking into the Nether.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I couldn’t get his words out of my mind… nor the crease they left upon his brow. I sought out the Elves. They seem to know a lot about the mysteries of the universe. At least, they act like they do.”
Raphael snorted out a laugh.
“When I met with Dofarel, he sang his thoughts into mine.” Jenevier turned to Munenori. “Have you ever done that, Senpai?”
He smiled, shaking his head. “No, Naga. I do not go amongst the Elven ones.”
“You should try it sometime.” She turned to Yui, taking his hand in hers. “When their tune starts, you are swept away into this magical kind of euphoria. It is breathtaking, enchanting. All your worries and cares simply evaporate into nothingness.”
“That sounds amazing,” Yui said, tucking a curl back behind her ear.
“Oh, it is.” She smiled brightly. “It was hard for me to come back to reality. Dofarel said—next time—he wouldn’t release me at all.”
“Then you will not be returning to the Elves,” Tenshi said coolly. “Did you tell Nilakanta what that pointy-eared King said—that he would keep you?”
Jenevier shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t remember. I told Nilakanta all
the secrets that had been revealed to me. Besides, Dofarel was only teasing me. Why would I tell my Dragon such nonsense?”
Tenshi turned to Duhrias. Her sworn Knight immediately perked up at the blue Angel’s piercing glare.
“Inform her Dragon,” Tenshi said pointedly. “If she hid this from him, he can take it up with her later.”
Duhrias only gave him a sharp nod in response.
Jenevier glanced from her son to her sworn Knight. “Wha— I don’t keep secrets from Nilakanta. And… who do you two think you are?”
“We know exactly who we are,” Tenshi said. “We are your protectors.”
“But—”
“Do not fight me in this, Mama. We will speak on it no more.”
Jenevier paused—speechless, dumbfounded.
Gabriel softly, gently cleared his throat. “Naga… tell us what Dofarel revealed.”
She swallowed hard before pulling her gaze from her sons. “Umm… Dofarel said there is much chatter concerning the veils. No one seems to know what is causing it, but the effects are obvious within every realm.” She met Gabriel’s concerned gaze. “If the seals are intact, and no entity is responsible… then, the Elven King surmised that it must be magical in nature.”
“Magical?” Jophiel furrowed his brow. “Who do we know who can wield that kind of magic?”
“Well, it’s not the Elves,” Jenevier said.
Raphael turned to Munenori. “Your descendants claim great magic.”
“Yes.” Munenori nodded. “I do not believe this problem involves the people of Iga, but I will check it out, nonetheless.”
“I do not believe it’s the Shinobi,” Jenevier said. “I met with them at length. They seemed genuinely surprised by the news.”
“What about the first and second layer realms?” Daichi asked. “They are made up wholly of magical races, are they not?”
“Yes, they are,” Gabriel said. “But even with their power combined, they could not deplete the veils.”
“…Deplete,” Uriel mumbled. “Perhaps that’s it.”
Everyone turned toward the speaking Arch.
Uriel smiled. “Perhaps we shouldn’t focus on the wielders of magic, but on the users of magic. Turn your thoughts toward that, my kinsmen. Perhaps someone has found a way to tap into magic, into the magic of the veils.”
“Perhaps,” Gabriel said. “But it would have to be an enormous amount—that which has been stolen—for it to cause such a change within the veils.”
“Perhaps someone is collecting magic,” Raphael said. “Storing it up somewhere.”
“Yes,” Jophiel agreed. “But who could do such a thing? Where could they hide it that we could not see?”
“What of your stalker, Naga?” Daichi said. “Could he manage such a thing?”
Jenevier shrugged her shoulders. “I know nothing of the man.”
“What stalker?” Tenshi demanded.
“Tell him, Naga,” Daichi coaxed. “Tell your son about the man with eyes like fire and ice.”
Jenevier turned, wide-eyed, toward her former blue Blessing, giving him a what are you doing look. Daichi only winked at her.
“Spill it, Mama. You know better than most—secrets only cause problems. They do not solve them.”
Jenevier sighed. “It isn’t a secret. Not really. The subject just hadn’t come up.”
“Yet, now it has,” Yui said softly. “Come, Madam Empress. Tell us all we do not know concerning the man.”
“That’s just it,” Jenevier said. “I know nothing of the man. He approached me in the clouds, as I was returning from Earth. He admitted to having followed me around for years… since the day of the great battle here on Jinn.” She glanced toward Apollyon. “And he has apparently made every step I have, from that day until this.”
“What?” Uriel furrowed his brow. “You mean… he is watching us. Here? Now?”
Jenevier shrugged her shoulders again. “I know not. I guess he is. He said he ever watches me.”
“To what end?” Tenshi asked.
“I know not, my son.”
“You said he approached you in the clouds,” Raphael said. “Is he Angel?”
“No.” Jenevier shook her head. “He has no wings. I know not how he travels. He is Nephilim.”
“Nephilim?” The Angels gasped in unison.
“He said he was Nephilim—the last of his kind.” She turned toward Tenshi. “He was the one who kicked over the tree—the one who upset Cherie.” She then glanced over at Yui. “The shadow we saw on our balcony. He thought you were hurting me. That’s why he showed himself.”
“A Nephilim?” Jophiel whispered, mostly to himself.
“She must be mistaken,” Uriel said. “They have all been banished to Sheol… ages ago now. There are none left among the layers.”
“I am only telling you what he told me. Rixx said he was the last of his kind—”
“Rixx?” Gabriel asked.
Jenevier nodded. “Maza Vespar Rixx—the last Nephilim… tasked with ever watching me.”
“Tasked by whom?” Daichi asked.
“I know not.” Jenevier sighed. “He approached me, told me his name, that he had been watching me, and then offered me his help.”
“Help in what?” Raphael asked.
“Help concerning my acclimation into Angelhood, I suppose. He said he could relate to the things that were troubling my heart—told me I would need my strength to face a coming darkness.”
“What coming darkness?” Apollyon asked.
“He did not elaborate. He only mentioned it, then said that souls were being bartered for.”
“Bartered for?” Munenori said. “You withheld that bit from me.”
Jenevier turned toward the Guardian Angel of Jinn. “Apologies, Senpai. I only just remembered it. Rixx mumbled a few more parting words, but I was too angry—didn’t catch the whole of it.”
“So…” Gabriel paused. “It seems perhaps this Nephilim is the source of our problems. He hinted at too much to be innocent in this.”
“Yes,” Raphael agreed. “And as far as bartering for souls, that can only happen in—”
“In Sheol,” Apollyon said through a growl.
Jenevier turned toward Uriel. “Tell me more of Sheol. You and your smirking brother, there.” She motioned toward Jophiel. “You bade me go to Sheol once… told me ancient things were bound there.”
“That they are,” Jophiel said. “Creatures as old as time itself… and many newer ones as well.”
“Do you think that’s where Rixx lives?”
“No, Naga.” Raphael gently patted her hand. “You cannot just walk in and out of Sheol, little sister. Once you are sentenced to that place, there you remain.”
“But…” She looked back to Uriel. “You said I could go there, and return as well.”
“Yes.” He nodded as he said the word. “But that was when you were yet human. Sheol is not for humans. Father left a passageway back, a loophole of sorts, if the human was pure enough to find it.”
“You are no longer human,” Jophiel added. “And no longer pure, either.”
Tenshi growled at the Arch. Jophiel did not respond.
“I can come and go there,” Apollyon said.
“Only because you should be chained there as well,” Raphael snapped.
Jenevier jumped, due to the unusual outburst. She furrowed her brow at the dark-haired Arch she favored above them all.
Apollyon laughed. “Careful, Raph. You don’t want your precious little sister to see you as you truly are.”
“She saw you as you truly are,” Jophiel quipped. “That did not temper her desire… now, did it?”
Uriel chuckled. “The truth in that lies down there in that handsome blue Angel she calls son.”
When Tenshi made to stand, Jenevier jumped to her feet. “Stop it! The lot of you! We have gathered here to prevent discord, not wallow in it.”
“She speaks truth, Brothers,” Gabriel said. “Besid
es, she has already felt Raphael’s icy touch. Have you not, little sister?”
Jenevier reclaimed her seat, looking down as she did. “Yes,” she whispered. “I have had a taste of what Raphael is capable of. It was bitter indeed. I do not wish another.”
“And that was but a nibble.” Gabriel smiled warmly and winked at her. “Imagine the whole feast.”
“I’d rather not,” she mumbled.
“Raph,” Apollyon said through a growl.
Everyone turned to look at the terrifyingly beautiful Prince of Hell.
“What did you—”
Raphael held up his hand, cutting Apollyon’s words short. “I did not do what is now playing about in your mind. Like she said, it was but a nibble.”
Apollyon narrowed his gaze. “Why?”
When Raphael refused to answer, Gabriel took up his part.
“We came for a sunrise visit. We startled her. She feared for her Daichi… attacked our chocolate-crowned brother over there.”
“She didn’t really attack me,” Raphael mumbled. “Only started to. Gabe restrained her before I could…” He paused. “When things had settled down, she came back to apologize.”
“Yes.” Gabriel smiled sweetly. “She told him she was sorry and that… that he was beautiful.”
Raphael shot his golden brother a seething glare. Gabriel continued, somewhat amused.
“And when she touched those treasured brown locks of his—”
“Stop!” Raphael snapped.
“What?” Apollyon said. “What did you do to her, Raph?”
“He scrambled my brain,” Jenevier whispered. “I had a headache for days.”
Jophiel laughed. “All because she touched your hair? Hell, I’ve been trying to get her to do that to me for ages.”
“Hush,” Uriel whispered to the other Arch, motioning toward Tenshi… and the sapphire power now pulsing around him.
“It wasn’t because she touched my hair,” Raphael grumbled.
“No.” Gabriel tilted his head and smiled again. “The fact that she admired him, called him beautiful… couple those sweet words with such a tender little touch, and—”
“Gabe!”
When Raphael shouted, Gabriel bit his bottom lip and tried to contain his coming chuckle.
