Beyond the Darkness

Beyond the Darkness- Chapter 2

"You think they'll be okay with Fallen angels in their home?" he questioned.

"I don't know, but where else do we have to go to?"

We took to the air after walking a few miles away, being sure to fly above the clouds to avoid being seen. The crisp, cool air whipped around our faces, while the ember sun shone down on our backs, warming us. Slowly but surely, the moon appeared and the sun disappeared. We lowered ourselves and watched the varying patches of ground as lights in houses flickered off. We flew for several hours until we reached a long stretch of forest.

"Almost there. I remember flying above this forest," I told Lucifer.

We continued flying until we spotted a small light, signaling a house. I tucked my wings in and spiraled down to the ground. Lucifer followed, and we pulled our jackets on.

"Ready?" I asked.

"Ready," he replied with a grin.

Together, we cautiously approached the house. I knocked on the door, and after a few moments it swung open. Carla, clearly tired but nevertheless surprised, stood at the opening.

"G...Glace? Is that you?" she asked. "Where were you?"

"Yes, it's me. I've been in New York, but the terrorist attacks..." I began to reply.

"Terrorist attacks? What terrorist attacks?" she interrupted.

"Terrorists have been crashing planes into buildings in New York," I said.

"Oh my. Are you okay?" she asked, concern evident in her voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I helped him out from under the debris from one of the planes,” I responded, motioning to Lucifer.

"Are you okay?" Carla inquired with a worried look.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a few scratches, that's all," he replied.

"You two should come inside and then we'll talk," Carla said. "Brent! Get in here! Glace is back."

Brent came down the hallway of the meager house and into the living room, where we stood. He welcomed Lucifer and I, and leaned against the wall as we sat down on their small sofa and talked.

"So what exactly happened?" he inquired.

"Terrorists have been destroying buildings in New York. Glace found me beneath rubble that had come down upon me, and we decided to get away from New York and come to you. We didn't know where else to go. I apologize for most likely interrupting your sleep, but we need a place to stay. Would you mind us staying here, or do you know of a place that we could go to?" Lucifer asked.

"That's deeply concerning. Yes, you may stay here. We have one extra bedroom, and one of you could sleep out here on the couch," Brent replied, pointing at the faded blue couch we were currently resting upon.

"Thank you, thank you both so much. We will repay you," I said, truly thankful for them letting us stay.

"No need to thank us. You seem to have had a tiring day, perhaps its time you rest," Carla proposed. Lucifer and I agreed, and soon our group dissipated and we all went to sleep in our separate areas.

The next morning, I awoke to the sound of clanging in the other room. I got out of bed and observed the house more carefully than last night. It was small with low ceilings and shiny wooden floors. It was well kempt, but scarcely decorated. Most of the walls were a bare white, and the rooms had little furnishings. I got up and threw on my jacket to hide the feathery appendage jutting out from my back.

I wandered into what I thought was the kitchen because Carla was attempting to make what I figured were pancakes.

"What'cha doing?" I asked nervously.

"Breakfast!" she said with joy and thrusted a plate with something burned and black on it in my face.

"Thank you," I said in the most convincing voice possible.

"You're welcome. Will you wake up your friend?" Carla asked.

"No need to," Lucifer walked into the room with, I have to say, extremely funny bedhead.

I stifled my laugh with a bite of pancake. Big mistake. It took all my self-control to swallow it and not spit it back on my plate. Then I took a HUGE gulp of cold milk. Much better.

"Well," I sighed. "I'm going to go get dressed."

"Ok," Lucifer and Carla said at the same time, just as a groggy Brent walked in.

I silently walked back to the nice room they were letting me sleep in. I yanked on a pair of jeans and realized my shirt was torn from the journey through the woods.

"Carla?" I called down to the kitchen. "Can I borrow a shirt? Mine is torn."

"Sure!" Carla yelled.

As I waited while she got me the shirt, I pulled my right wing in front of me and stroked it. My hand glided slowly but easily over its feathery softness, with my fingers trailing across the top of my wing. There, the feathers were less prominent and the bone resided inside the membrane that held the wing together. I tried to remember what my wings were like when they were white, but I couldn't. Sighing again, I stood up and looked in the mirror. I didn't think my physical appearance had changed much, but I couldn't be sure. I hardly remembered Heaven, much less my angelic looks. Suddenly, the door clicked open and I spun around quickly, eyes wide open, to see an extremely shocked Carla in the doorway.

She opened her mouth to scream, but I ran over to her and covered her mouth. I closed the door and pulled my hand away.

Her eyes wide, she whispered, "What are you?”