I sheathed my sword and walked through the halls of Heaven. My footsteps echoed throughout the empty halls, sending shivers up my spine. I finally reached the main hall and strode up to the giant door, stepping past the guards with spears readied. I shoved open the door and stepped inside, closing the door behind me. I felt the stares of the other angels of the garrison as I walked along the golden carpet. Whispers filled my ears as I came closer to the leader of my squadron. Once I reached him, I kneeled on one knee and bowed my head, both of my hands finding their position on the hilt of my sword.
"The task is done, sir. What is my next command?" I stared at the carpet below my feet, staying silent as my commander stood before me.
"Stand, Levii." I did as I was told, but kept my head down, not making eye contact with my superior. "Look at me." His booming voice almost caused me to flinch, but I controlled myself as I slowly looked up. My eyes met his, blue meeting brown. He looked me over for moment, taking in my battered up appearance. "You have no further duties for now. Wash up and get rest. You'll need it for when I do call you down for another mission." I nodded and stood up straighter, wincing a bit as I did so.
"Yes sir." I waited for him to give me the cue to leave, and promptly spun around on my heels, walking back out of the commons. I passed the guards once more with a curt nod and continued on my way, back to my quarters. I wandered the halls for a while, the bright white lights acting as comfort as I finally clambered up the golden staircase to my room. I pushed the door open and closed it, making sure to lock it in the process. I made my way into the bathroom, turning on the light and staring at my reflection in the mirror. My usual sandy blonde hair was matted and stained with my blood. My pale face was covered in scrapes and bruises, along with dried blood from both myself and the enemies. My normally pearly white wings were also coated in thick layers of blood. My armour was battered and almost not functional. A knock on my door brought me back to reality. I opened it and saw my friend, Hazel, standing there grinning.
"Hey there, Levii. Looks like you got yourself into some trouble on your last mission." I shrugged and stepped aside to allow her to come in. "Get yourself clean, and then I'll help take care of your injuries." I gave a hum of affirmation and went back inside the bathroom, quickly stripping and stepping into the shower. I felt the hot water hit my back, and I immediately relaxed. I watched as dirt and blood spiraled together as the water washed it down the drain. I began to wash myself, the soap stinging as it entered my cuts. I quickly finished up and dried off, wrapping a towel around my waist and leaving the other towel draped around my neck. The cool air of my room sent shivers up my spine as I stepped out into the hallway. I made my way into the bedroom, and saw Hazel leaning against the wall, the medical supplies piled up in front of her.
"Hey." She raised her head up at the sound of my voice and smiled. She motioned me over and I took a seat on my bed next to her. Her hand reached out and lightly brushed the feathers of my wings.
"Oh, Levii." She lifted some of my feathers, a few falling off as I winced in pain. "What were you doing to get cut like this?" She grabbed some gauze and cotton before getting to work on patching me up. She worked quickly and gently in order to keep from hurting me. After she bandaged my wings, she moved on to my torso, shaking her head as she stitched up the slash across my chest. "You're going to get yourself killed one of these days, you know?"
"It's part of the job. There's not much I can really do, but obey orders." She scoffed and grabbed my jaw, forcing me to look at her.
"Just please be careful, okay? I don't want to lose my best friend just because of some stupid orders." I tensed up at her usage of the word 'stupid.'
"Shh. Someone could hear you." She sighed and nodded.
"I know. I just think it's awful that some of us were made, just to fight battles. It isn't fair."
"If we weren't made for this, then there wouldn't be anybody who would fight. It's okay, Hazel. I don't mind my role and neither should you." She sighed once more and leaned her forehead against my shoulder. Her choppy brown hair tickled the skin around my shoulder and I pushed it back behind her ear. "Hey, let's just chill. I don't have any missions for a while, so we can catch up on what I missed." She smiled and nodded, gathering the medical supplies and cleaning up. I got up and walked over to my closet, pulling out an oversized T-shirt and some baggy grey sweatpants. My feet dragged across the carpet as I walked back to the bed. Hazel hopped on top before crawling under the covers and staring up at the ceiling. I joined her and started playing with her hair. She gave me a weird look and I just rolled my eyes. "Shut up and let me play with your hair. It's soft." She snickered, but let me continue. I took a deep breath and inhaled the smell of her shampoo. "You changed it."
"Changed what?"
"Your champoo. It used to be strawberry something. Now it's some mint smelling stuff."
"Yeah, so? I'm not allowed to change my shampoo every now and then?" I chuckled and shook my head.
"Of course you are, I was just making a statement." She hummed in acknowledgement and I dropped my hands. I rolled so that I was also facing the ceiling and let my eyes flutter closed. The last thing I felt before drifting off into a restless slumber was Hazel shifting and draping her arm over my stomach.
