Angelblood - Retribution

Chapter 31 - At The Edge Of Twilight (Draft)

Once I asked: At this one foggy morning,
When we silently meet in the afterlife,
How shall I recognize you among all the shades?

You replied: - Remember, I am the one,
Who, with tired steps and no haste,
will pass you, with a covered face.

- Veronika Strélerte



It grows colder and colder as they approach the stars. The breath of the angel has long since formed a gentle fog in front of her face. Silently the boat rides the blueish northern lights even further into the unknown. She still stares back even though she cannot see the ground anymore. Her mind is with the demoness. It is hard for her to let go even though she tries to imagine how she will gain happiness with Semangelof. She is sure that he will take care of her and that her wounds will heal over the time. The angel takes a deep breath and stares into the darkness which is only separated from them by the flowing band beneath the wooden planks her feet firmly rest upon. The chill of the cold air consumes her inner self as she breathes in. Slowly she turns around as the boat begins to slow down. A long wooden pier appears first as just a shade under the veil of the night. Then the vessel comes to a halt at it's end.

"We have arrived?" She asks but all the reply she receives is a nod from the ferryman.

His hand raises in a fluid motion to point down the pier as the small child hops on the creaking wood. The angel stares at the short creature. She did not expect her to be another passenger. She was sure it was the ferryman's child instead. The silver colored armaments encasing her body squeal during her attempt to follow the youngster and she almost gasps as she reaches for her hand and steps close wrapping her small fingers around her own gloved ones. The angel instantly turns her head and looks down to the girl who replies with a disarming smile.

"Shall we?" She asks with a happy tone in her voice which confuses the angel even more. Why is she so happy? Her life must have been terrible to feel such a relief to be dead.

"Let's" She replies and nods while her own hand wraps gently around the soft skin of the tiny hand. Without haste they begin their journey into the unknown and as they walk along the pier not knowing how long their walk will take the angel turns her head once again to the child.

"How did you die?" She asks with a charismatic tone and without looking at the woman the girl replies: "I did not die."

The angel stops and a step later so does the youngling. She turns to the angel who goes down on one knee to avoid the rudeness to make the child look up to her all the time. Also this enables her to look at her grey eyes more clearly.

"What do you mean you did not die? Did you choose to come here as I did?"

The child smiles and nods. "I did do so a very long time ago."

"A very long time ago? Are you like the ferryman? Someone who guides the dead?"

The girl looks toward where they came from. "Charon you mean?" She smiles but shakes her head. "No. I am not like him." Her other small hand brushes over the angels cheek, the woman's expression bathed in total confusion. "I am the one you have been looking for angel."

These words make the angel even more lost and after taking them in for a moment longer she feels herself letting go of the girl's hand.

"You are Death, aren't you?"

The girl nods and keeps on smiling at the woman in front of her. "Eresh I am called here most the time. A short version of Ereshkigal. But I have been known by many names. Hel, Hekate, Laima, Rohe, Oya and Yami to name a few."

"Why did you play the shy and timid one when we met? Why this charade?" The angels voice becomes a bit more stern after trying to get a grasps on the situation.

"I have heard so much about you. I wanted to see if your heart is pure and untainted." The youngling reaches for the angel's hand again and wraps both hers around one of the leathery gloved ones.

"My heart is neither pure nor untainted. It is cold and black..." She is interrupted mid sentence. "... all I want is revenge." The child finishes the angel's sentence who glares at the young one in front of her.

"How do..." The woman begins. "...you know?" The girl once again finishes her sentence.

The angel is about to start another sentence but this time the girl is even faster. "Stop it!" She speaks the woman's mind.

"Enough!" Again the youngling catches her thoughts.

The woman raises her hands in a defensive manner showing her palms to the child who nods in reply.

"You have forgotten a lot in the many years you have been walking the world of the mortals, my friend." The youngling speaks with a more serious tone now then turns as a man approaches from the other side of where they came from. "There is whom you have been seeking for. I asked him to join us so he can help you to remember."

The angel stares toward the spot where the girl is gesturing to with a slight raise of her head. An old man in long torn robes walks closer. His longer white beard reaches down to his collarbone and his warm darker brown eyes meet those of the woman. He comes to a halt in front of the two while the angel gets back to her feet.

"Metatron I guess?" She asks while she looks at him up and down trying to take in all details and possible hints of weapons or wings but there is nothing like this. The robes and his face under the hood give her an impression of a christian monk. Even the traditional rope around his hip is not missing. The old man replies with a bow of his head.

"Please let me know what all this is about and then I need to know where to find Shekhinah. I was told you might be the only one who knows where to find her."

The man looks to the girl then back to the woman. "You really do not remember, do you?"

The angel shakes her head slowly in confusion.

"You have been here before. Do you not remember?" The man asks and looks at the woman who indeed thinks that this place feels familiar. She hesitates then nods but the confusion does not leave her face.

"There has been war on earth since mankind inhabits it." He begins. "They are fighting and killing each other since they exist."

"And this is why I send their souls to this place. Is this how I came here before?" She interrupts the man as he tries to explain.

He shakes his head and raises his hand to signal to her to keep her questions for later.

"Please let me continue." He starts again and the woman accepts.

"Before you became an angel of death you have been a guardian. One who enjoyed to protect and to love, during your time with Myriel, the short period while you were happy with each other. Only after she broke your heart you became bitter and turned into an angel of death. Am I correct?" His voice is soft and gentle but he seems to know her story.

"This is true." She replies.

"Do you remember what has been before you met that human?" He asks and looks at the angel with his warm but demanding eyes. She can feel his strong presence.

The angel tries to remember. "I have been guarding the humans. Protecting them and guiding them." She replies but realizes that her memories are vague.

"Are you sure?" The man just asks and by doing so she feels even more uncertain.

"I think so." She says and looks at him a bit more worried. Something is wrong.

"You asked me how to find Shekhinah." He points out and the angel has a sudden strong feeling of unrest. His words lead to an impression she is not willing to accept.

"Are you trying to tell me that it is me?" The woman asks with a shaking voice but he gestures a disagreement.

"No. You are not the queen." He replies and the angel feels relieved but the following words strike even harder after the short moment of mental rest. "You are her daughter."

Saying these words he pauses and let the angel, who looks at him in disbelief, takes them in. After a while of thinking she looks at the girl who nods at her to reassure that the words are true. Then she looks at the man again.

"My mother is Lilith." She finally speaks and after another moment of silence she adds: "At least this is what I was told."

"Lilith and Shekhinah are the same person. She had many names. One of her oldest is Uraš or Urasch and her daughter is called Inanna; or Ishtar if you prefer to be called this way."

The angel backs off from the two and instantly feels everything being so surrealistic and unreal. Her feet slide backwards and she almost slips off the wooden planks below her.

"This is..." She breathes deeply. "This is not real. This is not true." Her voice reflects her disbelief. "Why would my mother send me here to find her while she is standing right next to me?"

The man nods to her. "I understand your confusion Inanna." It is the first time that anyone ever calls her by a name as much as she remembers and surprisingly it feels wonderful and right.

"She did not send you here to find her." Metatron then answers her question. "She sent you here to find yourself. When you fell in love with Myriel you no longer wanted to be a goddess. You wanted to be able to live with her and for this you asked your memories to be wiped and replaced with those of an angel so you can live with her in Canaan."

"Why not make me a human then?!" She snarls at the man still in total denial.

"And how would you have explained your immortality?" He asks and makes the woman think once again.

"Why this charade? Why did she not come to me right away? Why all these secrets?" She asks him.

"Your mother is in danger. She has been gone for a very long time because she did not want to be involved in all the politics and intrigues anymore but as you decided to forfeit your powers to be with a mortal and then someone played you to destroy your happiness she became active again to find out why someone wished you to be hurt. So she started to investigate and while doing so she placed breadcrumbs for you to follow in case you want to change your mind and be able to defend yourself more easily again. She could not walk over and reveal herself to you right away because she did not know if and how much you have been corrupted."

The angel rubs her chin thinking. All this begins to make sense.

"Inanna it is then?" She asks.

"Well yes, but your powers and memories...." He points out the issues.

"What about them?"

"I can not give them to you nor can Eresh." He looks at the girl for a short moment then directs his words back to the woman. "Only Urasch can do so."

The angel nods while she walks closer again. "What about Myriel?"

"You still want to be with her?" The child asks and Inanna nods to her with a fast reply.

"More than anything else."

"Are you sure about this? The longer you are with her the more you will forget about who you are and the harder it will be to take your old place." Metatron says.

"I trust in you and my mother. There will be a way but first of all I want to love again." The woman says and smiles warmly toward the other two.

"Is this what you desire most and with your heart?" The man asks once more.

She nods in a firm manner and with a stern voice she replies: "This is what I desire." Her eyes are locked at those of the man and so she can not see the dagger Eresh draws and only feels a sudden pain in her chest. As she looks down she realizes the dagger piercing right through her armor and into her body.

'I am sorry.' Is the last she sees the child forming with her mouth but the words are not spoken. Then it turns dark as everything fades.

---------------------

An agonized scream suddenly breaks the silence.

"Medicus!" A surprised female voice yells and a moment later footsteps can be heard. "She's waking up!"

*** End of book one ***
*** Book two "Angelblood : Requiem" is in my head but I need to find the time to write it down. So stay tuned ***