Taming the Darkness

by Sarah Carter

  “What are you going to do?” The priest gasps.

  “Well, if you don’t repent, I pull your soul from your body and deliver it to hell. Once you’re in hell, you will be tortured by demons. The ultimate punishment. Hell is exactly how you picture it, but probably a lot worse. It’s torture, but not just physical. They torture your soul. Your very existence.”

  He quivers. “I can’t…I can’t go through that.”

  I kneel down next to him. “Repent then. Save your soul. Repent before God.”

  “I’m sorry,” the priest whispers, tears streaming down his face. “Please, give me guidance to change. Please Lord. Give me the strength to change. I’m so sorry. I will turn myself in. I will confess, not only to you. I don’t want to do this anymore…” He cries softly.

  The smell of death starts to lessen. “You can save your soul,” I whisper, touching his head. He may truly repent. That rarely ever happens. “Save yourself. Give yourself over to God.”

  The priest nods his head. “I give myself over to you Lord. Save me. Give me the guidance. Help me save my soul.”

  I take in a deep breath. The smell of death is barely there. It actually makes me smile. It’s an amazing thing when a soul is saved. It so rarely happens. I do want them to be saved. Taking them to hell always makes my stomach turn. They all deserve hell, don’t get me wrong. Each and every one of them has done vile and evil things, but if they can change, if they can save their soul, it still feels good. Bending over, I whisper, “Now realize, this is not a permanent rescue. In an instant, it can all disappear. You need to change your ways. Redeem yourself in God’s eyes.”

  Still shaking, the priest nods his head. “I will. I swear before God, I will change. I’m going to turn myself in. I know I will go to prison, but maybe that’s where I am supposed to be. Then the temptation isn’t there.”

  “You have to change in here,” I say, pointing to his head. “As much as you need to change in here.” I put my hand over his heart. “This doesn’t happen very often, I will tell you that. Most people don’t truly repent and they go to hell. Take this opportunity to make a difference. Change who you are. You can be more than this. Save yourself, just not for God, but for everyone around you.”

  He looks up at me. “I will. I will make it all right.”

  “You can’t,” I reply. My face falls and I look down. “The damage was done to the children, but you can spend the rest of your life trying to pay back. Make a difference.”

  The priest looks up me with watery eyes. “I will change.”

  Suddenly, there’s heat. We spin around. Azrael is standing there. “Hhhheeellllooo cupcake.”

  Everyone makes a circle around Avery. The priest screams. I turn to him. “Run. Go now.” He scrambles up and takes off.

  Azrael looks around. “Awww, look, The Breakfast Club has come to save the day.” Leave it to Azrael to make a pop-culture reference with almost every entrance.

  “Shove it, Azrael,” Wyatt growls.

  He looks at him. “What are you going to do about it?”

  “I can slice and dice you,” Wyatt replies. “Take you a year to put yourself back together again.”

  A smirk twitches on Azrael’s face. “Never gone up against a level 10 demon, have you?” He taunts Wyatt.

  I throw out my arm and my seraph blade blazes to life. “No, but I have, and I can kill you.”

  Clapping his hands together, Azrael laughs. “We have so much history though. How could you possibly want to kill me?”

  “I don’t like you Azrael,” I snap. “Never have.”

  His eyes twinkle. “The darkness is strong in you, Raven. It sings. You just need to harness it. You could be so great. Strong. Undefeatable.”

  “There’s light inside of her,” Avery yells. “The light can overpower the dark.”

  Azrael turns his gaze to Avery. “What do you know about it boy? You didn’t even know about any of this a couple of days ago. Your hours are numbered.”

  Katerina takes a stance. “You will have to get through all of us first.”

  “You overestimate your abilities.” Azrael purrs. “You may have your insignificant army, but I have warriors that will decimate you without a single thought.”

  We all look around. Shadows start to creep out all around us. Demons form in front of us. Not all level 10, so that’s good. I look at Azrael. “I will kill you. Right now.”

  “As the humans would say, bring it darling. I would like to see if you’re really good at follow through.”

  With a flick of my wrist, I throw a dagger at Azrael with all the energy I can muster. He disappears and the dagger sinks into the wall behind him. Suddenly, the demons swarm. The other reapers flick out their weapons and it’s quickly a full-scale battle. I grab Avery and pull him against me. We run to the other side of the alley. I pull out my seraph blade and turn around. Azrael is right there. He grabs for Avery. I swing around and cut off his hand. Azrael screams like nothing I have ever heard before.

  “The fires of hell, ASSHOLE,” I scream. He disappears and Avery looks terrified. The other reapers are holding their own against the demons. I press Avery against the wall and put myself in front of him.

  “Did he really just lose his hand!?” Avery gasps.

  Looking down, I say, “No, he took it with him. It will heal.”

  “Shit,” Avery snaps.

  A demon comes for us. Level 6 or so. He jumps at Avery. I spin around and cut off his head. His body bursts into flames and melts away. “They just don’t get it,” I spit out.

  “Never going to get used to that,” Avery yells. “Never going to get used to any of this.”

  Suddenly, the demons start to disappear. There are body parts everywhere. Some demons are dragging themselves across the ground, but everything disappears within a few seconds. No one moves. Julius finally says, “We should get out of here.”

  “Yes, let’s get into a crowd,” Israel agrees. We all break out into a run to get out of the alley. We skid to a stop when we get back on the street. Everyone looks at us. Humans can’t see our weapons if we don’t want them to, but they back off anyway. Nothing like six reapers with surging energy. The crowd naturally disperses around us.

  “We need to get going,” Katerina says.

  I nod my head. “Yeah.”

  “We should stop and eat,” Wyatt states, looking around. “While we can.”

  “Do you think I could really eat after that?” Avery gasps. “I just saw a bunch of demon guts.”

  “Sissy,” Wyatt teases, winking at him.

  Turning to Avery, I say, “You need to eat. We all need to eat and take a minute.”

  Finally, Avery nods. “Okay.” We start to walk through the crowd. I suddenly feel Avery take my hand. I look down at it and then up at him. He glances at me. “Keeping you as close as possible.”

  I have never held someone’s hand before Avery. We’ve held hands off and on as we’re dragging each other around place to place. But this is different, especially when Avery laces his fingers through mine. A warmth starts to spread across me and a tingling in my chest. I frown. What the hell is that about? I hate that this contact feels so good. I have to remind myself that proximity is essential for his protection.

  Finally, we come to a hot dog stand. The guy at the stand widens his eyes. Wyatt says, “We need seven hot dogs.”

  He stares at us for a few seconds. “Now,” Katerina states. The guy immediately goes to work. She turns to us and whispers. “I’ve never seen that many demons at once.”

  “I know,” Israel says. “That area may need to be cleansed.”

  The world around us suddenly stops. Avery jerks in surprise. We spin around. Raphael is standing there. “Raven,” he says, nodding.

  I tilt my head. “Have you come to bring us some news? Something to help?”

  Smiling, he says, “You have made some progress.” He looks around at the other reapers.

  “No shit,” I drawl out.

>   He looks around at all of us. “This has been a good move.”

  I roll my eyes. “Are you going to help us?”

  “Yes,” Raphael replies. “A place for you to rest tonight.”

  “That’s it?” I snap. “A place to sleep?”

  With a little wave of his hand, Raphael says, “You need rest for the journey.”

  “Not some angelic intervention?” I growl.

  “This is an intervention,” Raphael says. “It will keep you safe for a day.”

  “What good would that do us?” I snap.

  Raphael smiles. “You need to rest.”

  “Why just not save us? Why not just help us along the path?”

  “It’s a journey you need to take,” he replies. “If he is to save the fallen, he needs to continue on this path.”

  Avery furrows his eyebrows. “So, I need to go on an adventure to save the fallen. Why just not tell me what I need to do?”

  “This is what you need to do,” Raphael says. “But, you need to rest first.”

  Throwing up my hand, I say, “Where are we supposed to rest?”

  “An old chapel,” Raphael replies. “Angelic runes have already been put up. The place is secure.”

  “Why can’t we just hide in there until this is over?” I ask.

  He shrugs. “Then he won’t discover how he needs to save the fallen.”

  “Can’t you just tell him?” I drawl out, rolling my eyes.

  “No,” Raphael says. “Like I said, you need to discover your light and he needs to go on this path.”

  I stare at him. “Raphael, you are a pain in my ass.”

  Raphael smiles. “I’m doing what I am allowed. You know I don’t make the decisions myself. You have a path to follow, as does he. As do all of you,” he says, looking around at the other reapers. “Harness your light to defeat the dark.”

  “So, this isn’t just about me and Avery,” I say.

  His eyes turn to me. “This is about it all. All worlds. Heaven…hell…Earth. It’s about all of them. Bringing balance back to us all.”

  Avery throws his hands up. “How am I supposed to do that with darkness emanating out of me?”

  With an angelic smile, Raphael says, “You are not as dark as you’d like to think.”

  “Told you so,” I snap, throwing a look at Avery.

  He presses his lips together. “I still have a hard time believing any of this.”

  “I’m supposed to tell you to remember The Neverending Story,” Raphael says. “It took the boy to the very end of the story to figure it out.”

  I snort. “What does that have to do with anything?”

  There is a moment of silence and I look at Avery. I can’t even describe the look on his face, but his eyes are watery. “My sister…”

  “She wants you to know she’s okay. She’s been okay this whole time. Your mother welcomed her and she has been at peace.”

  “I’m confused,” I state, looking from one to the other.

  Avery turns to me. “My sister had to have read that book to me twenty times. We would imagine a world like Fantasia. Something great, with adventure and love. Something we didn’t have.”

  “Ohh,” I draw out. “So, you don’t believe me, but you will believe Raphael.”

  “He’s all full angel and majestic like,” Avery says.

  My eyes couldn’t roll any farther into the back of my head. “Whatever.”

  “Eat your hot dogs,” Raphael instructs. “Then your necklace will guide you where you need to go.”

  I put my hand to my neck. I had forgotten it was there. “This will guide us.”

  “Yes,” Raphael says. “It gives you more strength than you realize.” He bows his head. “Good luck.” Then he disappears.

  The world starts moving again. “Seriously!” I scream. “That’s what we get!”

  Everyone around us kind of stares at me. I glare at them right back. “We should eat and then go to wherever this chapel is,” Wyatt suggests.

  “Yeah,” I grumble. The man hands us our hot dogs and we silently eat. Okay, I was way hungrier than I suspected. “Alright, let’s go,” I say as everyone tosses their remnants in the trash can. I hold onto the necklace and grab Avery’s hand. “Ready?”

  Everyone nods and we disappear.

  Chapter 9

  We land in a building. Angelic runes blaze to life. Avery looks around. “I expected an ancient temple.”

  “Obviously, we’re not high rollers,” I snort. We are in the chapel part of the church. “We should look around.”

  “I need a bathroom,” Avery whines. “I’m going to EXPLODE!”

  I laugh. “I bet. Come on.”

  “We will stand watch here,” Wyatt says. “If Raphael put up these runes, they will hold against Azrael.”

  “Good point,” I say. “Let’s go, Avery.” We head through one of the doorways. It’s a hall. It leads back into what seems like a house. “Huh,” I say, spinning around. “This is different.”

  “Are we still protected?” Avery whispers, looking around.

  I walk over and touch the wall. Runes blaze to life. “It seems as this whole place is protected.”

  “Let’s find a bathroom,” he whines.

  We continue through the house and finally, we come across a bathroom. “There you go.” Avery darts inside and slams the door. I sigh and run my fingers through my hair. Okay, I’m gross. Seriously. I haven’t showered in days. Of course, neither has Avery. Maybe they have towels here. I step farther into the house. I see a bedroom. Good, Avery can sleep. I think I may need to sleep, too. This has been exhausting, and though I’m a reaper, I need to rest once and while, too.

  Finally, Avery comes out. “I feel much better.”

  “Good,” I say. “There’s a bedroom.” He goes and looks in and I follow. That’s when my eyebrows raise. There are clothes and towels on the bed.

  “Is it like angels to give us hotel amenities?” Avery snickers.

  “I guess,” I laugh along. “You should take a shower. I will go talk to everyone else.”

  He shakes his head. “No way, you aren’t leaving me.”

  “The house is protected,” I reply.

  “Uh uh,” Avery says, continuing to shake his head. “I’m not going to be stranded here like a sitting duck.”

  Rolling my eyes, I say, “What? I’m supposed to be in the bathroom with you?” Avery just looks at me. “You have to be kidding me.”

  “Well, what if a demon gets through? You are the only one with a seraph blade,” he points out.

  “So, you need me to hold your hand? Listen, I need to shower, too. You sure as hell aren’t going to be in the bathroom with me.”

  There is a moment of silence and then Avery says, “Please? Listen, level 10 demons are after me. I need to be protected.”

  “Why don’t we just take a shower together?” I sarcastically retort. He just looks at me. “No, Avery. No way in hell.”

  He quickly shakes his head. “I…no, that would be a bad idea.”

  “I will sit in the bathroom with you if you really are that scared,” I sigh. “But, what am I supposed to do when I shower? There are six reapers in the chapel. You can sit with them.”

  Avery leans in. “I don’t know them.”

  “You barely know me,” I counter.

  “I trust you,” he replies, looking into my eyes. “I don’t trust people, but I trust you.”

  Exhaling, I run my fingers through my hair. Then a vision of Avery having sex pops into my head and I realize we are in the shower together. Everything in me tightens. Finally, I snap out of it. “Whoa.”

  “What?” Avery rebounds, looking concerned.

  “Just a stupid vision,” I mumble. “Just get into the shower, Avery.” The last thing I need to do is go into the bathroom with him. What was that vision about anyway? I’m not supposed to seriously get into the shower with him.

  He touches my arm. The vision pops back into my head. Abrupt
ly, I pull my arm away. “What?” Avery asks.

  “It’s nothing,” I mumble. “Go grab what you need for your shower.”

  “You look annoyed,” Avery says. “What was the vision?”

  Looking at him, I snap, “It doesn’t matter. Go. Get. Your. Stuff.”

  Avery eyes me skeptically. “Alright.”

  I turn away from him. What in the hell is going on? I haven’t had a vision in over 24 hours. Please tell me sex with Avery is not part of the prophecy.

  “Raven,” I hear. I look up. Avery is standing there. “You look more pissed off every second that goes by. What was the damn vision?” I sigh. “Just tell me.”

  Barely mumbling, I say, “We were in the shower together.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes,” I growl. “Doesn’t mean it’s going to happen.”

  “Can you shower with your seraph blade?” Avery asks.

  With a light laugh, I say, “It’s kind of part of me. It’s not something that I physically carry. It’s attached to my soul. So, when I need it, it’s there.”

  “Interesting,” Avery exhales. “You know, we can shower together and not have sex. It may be the safest thing.”

  “How many high school cheerleaders did you run that line by?” I snort.

  He puts his hand on my arm. “I’m being dead serious. We both need to shower. Azrael might pop up and grab me. Don’t you think it would make the most sense?”

  “You went to the bathroom without me and were just fine,” I retort harshly.

  “That was like a minute. I’m going to be standing in the shower for a while. I feel disgusting.”

  Ugh, I have to agree. “Me, too.”

  “It would be the safest,” he barely whispers, looking down.

  “You just want to see me naked,” I state, staring at him.

  Avery grins. “Well, maybe, but that’s not really the reason I want you in the shower.”

  “This is stupid and absolutely not going to happen,” I growl. “We have the strongest angelic runes around us. Even Raphael says that it’s safe.”

  He looks me in the eyes. “Please. It would make me feel the safest.”

  “You know, I have never been naked in front of anyone,” I emphasize.