Earth Angel (Angels and Seers: Book One)

by Stephanie Woods

Chapter 16

  “Sam! I need a break. Can’t we just stop for a few minutes?” I beg as he dodges the thrust of my rubber dagger one more time, sending me stumbling into the kickball outfield. I look around at the army of four dozen seers and a dozen angels we’ve gathered on our makeshift training ground in the playground behind the local elementary school.

  Most of the humans look tired, but determined. All of them are obviously in better shape than me. With ten years of daily yoga and chasing five-year-olds around nine months out of every year, I thought I was in excellent condition. For a regular person, I suppose I am. But the seers and angels we’ve recruited with John and Linda over the past six weeks are warriors. The humans are all part of John and Linda’s family, and have been raised training daily for battle; their knowledge of the overall angel community meant they always realized a situation where they would have to fight against or with angels could happen one day, and preparation was key. I feel impossibly inferior next to them.

  The angels never seem to tire out at all, and are even more expert fighters than the seers. I am painfully aware of being the odd person out, and my muscles know it, too.

  The two Nature Angels who were with us at the casting of the cloaking spell are each leading a regiment, one with John as second in command, and one with Linda. Their names, I soon discovered, are Jacob and Jared. They’re part of a group of their kind who have been protecting the upper northeastern wildernesses of the world since long before humans walked the planet. Both of them have known the Londons since the European settlement of this continent.

  There are about 100 Nature Angels just for this area alone. The angels we’ve recruited so far have come from their ranks, and more have promised to arrive soon, once they’ve completed their current assignments. Many of the local Elemental and Messenger Angels have also pledged their support as soon as they can re-arrange their work assignments to get away to join us. Unlike the Earth Angels, the Nature and Elemental Angels have to keep up a more constant level of work to the natural world in their care in robust condition, and the Messenger Angels are constantly moving from one place to another. It’s difficult to pin them down, but they know what’s at stake here; we know we can count on them to be there for us as quickly as they can arrange it.

  Sam and I make up a regiment of our own, having elected to train solely together until our numbers expand in a significant way. Eventually, we will co-lead our own regiment of top fighters. For now, we train in the same area as the others and do the same exercises, but work one-on-one instead of in a group.

  In fact, Sam insisted on training me himself. As much as he respects everyone who has joined us, he doesn’t trust anyone else to prepare me to face Jonathan and his minions on a battlefield. He firmly believes that since he has actually fought Jonathan, he is the best candidate to be my teacher. No one argued with him. The angels among us may not be part of his kingdom, but both they and the humans among us all know our special designation by the archangels. I get the impression everyone here will do what either one of us says, when it comes right down to it.

  I’m not surprised Sam is looking at me with such exasperation now. He’s the only one in the village who would dare to, but I wouldn’t really blame anyone who was training with me if they were frustrated with my progress. It’s not the first time I’ve begged for a break since we started doing this. Sixteen hour days of training with only one day off a week is worse than being in the Army! A person can only take so much, and I’m obviously able to take far less than anyone else here.

  “Lucy,” he says, his patient tone belying his expression, “we’ve got to keep it up. Jonathan won’t show any mercy when we battle him. I can’t let your safety be compromised. You need to be ready when he comes, and you’re not. We must keep training.”

  “Sam,” I plead, sweat dripping down my face and into the crevice between my breasts, the light red tank top and black Lycra shorts I’m wearing doing nothing to keep me cool, even in the exceptionally crisp Vermont summer. My long hair is done up in a high ponytail and my neck is still raining sweat down my back like a waterfall.

  “This is ridiculous,” I say, patiently. “Look at me! I’m a wreck! I’ve been trying so hard to keep up with the rest of you, but I just can’t. Every human has their physical limits. I am way beyond mine. My muscles hurt so badly, I don’t think I could walk back to the house without help, and it’s only across the street! I’m thirsty and hungry and I need to just sit down for a few minutes, for the love of God! Please, have some mercy. I know Jonathan won’t show any, Sam, believe me, I do. But you can!”

  I bend forward and put my hands on my knees, shaking the perspiration out of my eyes, and take some deep, restful breaths. Even the few minutes I’m taking to beg for a break is a welcome respite from the non-stop movement I’ve been at since before dawn. It’s now well after noon, and I have no idea how the other humans aren’t ready to break for lunch yet, or just break. To a man, and that includes the women, they each look like they could go on like this all day. Well, not me!

  Sam approaches me and lifts my head up with a finger under my chin. Even after hours of tough physical activity, he looks as fresh as if he just stepped from a shower, and he smells like a meadow. I shudder to think how I must smell, and do my best to not notice, or get too close to him.

  “We are the leaders in this war,” Sam says gently. “You must be equal to the task. You’ve got it in you. You just need to access it. I don’t understand why you haven’t already. The physical training should have brought some of your powers out by now.”

  “Maybe the archangels were wrong. Maybe I’m not meant to be a leader,” I say with a hint of dejection. “Just because they decided I have some special powers that make me a good candidate to defeat Jonathan doesn’t mean they’re right. Look at these people, Sam! Now look at me. I can’t do what they’re doing. They are born soldiers. I’ve always been a pacifist. I was willing to train and do this, I really was, but I am not made for it. I’m sorry, Sam, but I’m just not!”

  I’m practically in tears at this point, frustration overtaking me like a runner who has been on my heels for an entire race. “I’m so sorry, Sam, I just can’t do this!”

  Weeks and weeks of training with swords, daggers, hand-to-hand combat, spears, and even halos--those things make formidable weapons when used the right way--of running, doing gymnastics, weight lifting, and all kinds of other Olympic-style activities with only short breaks for water and meals, then sleep, and doing it all again the next day are finally catching up with me, and I can feel myself on the verge of hysterics. The last thing I want to do is cry in front of Sam or seem even weaker to him than I know I already do. His hopes are so closely pinned on me being his partner in this. I can’t bear the thought of disappointing him. I just know I cannot do another thing today. I’m not sure I’ll ever be up to the task of becoming a soldier ready to take on an angel army.

  I will make easy prey for Jonathan on the battlefield. Thank goodness I at least know how to shift away to safety. Maybe it’s better if I just go home and do grassroots recruiting from there. I can find seers and angels to send here and strengthen the movement. It’s possible that’s what the archangels envisioned for me, and Kira and Aaron misinterpreted it. After all, I’m a good recruiter and community leader. That is the perfect job for me in this war, not this physically excruciating battle training.

  “You are meant for this, and you can do it,” Sam says, softly. “I know you can, even if you don’t. You are a seer. You have powers you don’t even realize yet just from that simple fact. There are all kinds of other, unique powers in you, too. I told you when we first met that I could feel them emanating off you. All of this physical work should have prompted your subconscious to unlock and reveal those powers to you. That’s why I brought you right into this instead of meditation and working with magic, which would be the usual way. I thought this method would be quicker. I see now those powers are buried more deeply than I imagined.
But they’re there, Lucy. They create a ripple in space around you. No one else here has that, you know. You can do far more than you realize. It’s in your DNA. You are the leader of the seers on this planet. They all recognize it. Surely you’ve noticed how they all defer to you, how they look at you with such respect? Even the other angels look at you like you’re something special. It’s time you realized it, too. More importantly, you need to start believing in yourself as we all believe in you.”

  “But what if your confidence is misplaced?” I feel so defeated. He tips my face upward, and I close my eyes, not wanting to look at him. The feeling of shame at my own physical weakness when so many people are depending on me to save them is overwhelming.

  “It isn’t,” he assures me. “We can all sense it. You could, too, if you’d let yourself. Your kind and mine can always sense a born leader. That’s you, Lucy.”

  “But I’m so exhausted,” I protest. “My body is telling me what my brain has been trying to for days. I’m not up to this task.”

  “You are,” Sam insists. “I’ll prove it to you.”

  That gets my attention quickly, and I level him with a suspicious look. “How?”

  Any time an angel tells you he will prove something to you, be prepared for something akin to a miracle. Trust me on this.

  “I wanted to wait until you discovered your powers on your own, but I see now you need assistance. That’s perfectly all right. You had no knowledge of even your most basic seer powers, much less your special leadership ones, until you heard the archangels’ prophesy. You might still uncover them on your own, but I can’t bear to see you suffer needlessly anymore, and frankly, we don’t have time to wait. Trust me and what I’m about to do, Lucy, and I think you will be pleasantly surprised.”

  Without another word, and before I can ask any more questions, he places his left ring finger against the lower middle of my forehead, right on my third eye chakra. I feel a slightly cool, tingling sensation run through me from head to foot, and then the feeling of floating upward. I close my eyes involuntarily, but I know my feet aren’t touching the ground. He’s levitating me, and there’s something else, too. The cool tingling spreads over every inch of skin on my body, making the hairs stand up everywhere. The pain and soreness vanishes from my tortured muscles, my thirst is quenched, the hunger that’s been gnawing in the pit of my stomach for hours dissipates, and I feel an energy and strength forming in me unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in my life.

  The longer he keeps me floating in place, the more power I feel building in me, until I actually do feel like a superhero who could easily take on the world and kick its ass. I even sense my already taut and firm muscles growing slightly larger and harder, and I’m almost certain the many, many bruises I’ve accumulated over the past few weeks are disappearing. My heartbeat slows to a low, strong, steady beat, and my concentration narrows to focus entirely on the spot Sam is touching. I see a white light emanating from my third eye, and I know deep in my soul that it is power. My own personal power as a seer, and it is formidable, just as the archangels predicted.

  It was in me all along, just as everyone said. Sam just activated it. Suddenly, everything is clearer to me than it’s ever been. I can see my life, my heritage, and my abilities all laid out before me like a map. This power is in every seer, part of who we are, but mine is bigger, stronger, and more nuanced, with added, special abilities. How incredible! I could have accessed it at any point. I just didn’t know it was there. Sam quite literally led me to it.

  For the first time since we started training, I feel like the leader I’ve continually been told I am.

  I also feel ready to train again. Heck, I feel ready to take on the world, the galaxy, the whole universe, if necessary. Oh man, let anyone try to hold me back now. It can’t be done. I am a force of nature. And Jonathan, you’re going down!

  Suddenly, and without even feeling it, I am on my feet again, and I open my eyes when Sam withdraws his finger. As I look at the world around me, it’s like I’m seeing it for the first time. I swear, the colors are brighter and the sounds and smells are heightened…food probably tastes better now, too. Then, I see Sam smiling beatifically at me. And a bit smugly, too. But to me, he is the most beautiful sight of all.

  “How long did you know you could do that to me?” I ask wondrously, and just a bit accusingly.

  “Always.” Sam’s smile turns into a mischievous grin.

  “And you didn’t because…?” I leave the question hanging in the air. I want an honest answer. Why did he let me suffer for weeks and let me think I was worthless as a warrior before showing me my real power? It seems kind of cruel, though I know Sam is the exact opposite of that word.

  “Like I said before, I wanted you to discover it on your own, through the training. I did discuss it with John and Linda. I thought at first maybe they should be the ones to teach you to access your seer powers. We are all curious as to how they will differ from other seers, as you’ve been prophesied to be so powerful. But, they felt like our time was best spent training, and that you needed to work with us and become physically strong before working on discovering and honing your seer skills. They thought your powers would come out in training, too. I still think they would have, eventually. But I couldn’t let you go on being miserable. Seeing you suffer was actually hurting me, Lucy. It was time to show you.”

  “I didn’t do anything to you, by the way,” he says quickly, anticipating my next question. “I just opened up your awareness so you could see and access it all for yourself. It was like opening a book for you, nothing more. The contents of the book were already inside you, ready for you to see and use. And you did. How do you feel?”

  “Wonderful,” I admitted. “I can go on training now. I can do anything.”

  “I know.”

  “I want to show my family. They may not have the extra powers I saw in the light, but they do have standard seer powers they can learn to access and use. We need all the people we can get to join us. Let’s bring them here. They may need my protection, anyway, especially if Jonathan finds out they’re related to me.”

  “I’ve been thinking the same thing. We’ll talk about it more tonight, after dinner. You’re right about them needing your protection, and I should have thought of it when we came here. Forgive me for being distracted. But I see it clearly now. Being here is the best place for them, even if they don’t train with us. There are non-seers here who are all playing their part in keeping the camp going; your family could join them if they prefer. We’ll leave it up to them, but they should have all the information.”

  “Absolutely,” I nod in agreement.

  “For now, though, shall we continue our epic battle?” He means training, and he raises his golden blond eyebrows in mock jest at me, waiting for my consent.

  “Let’s do it,” I say, pulling my rubber dagger out of its sheath at my side and assume my fighting posture once more. This time, I’m going to keep going, and I’m going to win some of these skirmishes. The powers within me tell me so, and I know it’s true.