Chapter 4: What is a Choice?
Niall’s P.O.V.
‘I sent him back.’ That was the thought that plagued my mind.
It wasn’t his time to be here. I had given up my life to save theirs, but my body became a shell of pure evil. If he didn’t stop it soon, I would be corrupted here and join my body and be evil. I couldn’t allow that to happen. He needed to save me along with the others.
I miss them all. I miss hearing their laughter, their jokes, and their serious life comments. I miss my brothers.
I turned around and began to walk back into the nothingness of the After. I passed many angels who have been here for longer than I’ve been around.
They will never know what the world is like anymore till judgment comes to the universe. I pitied them. So many heroes that have been forgotten by mo—
‘O gosh, will I be forgotten?’ I thought to myself.
My mood fell just thinking about being forgotten. Time keeps moving, but memories only last so long for everything except the most powerful beings.
I will be alone here until the time that I am saved or that… Nope, I will be alone forever.
**
Zayn’s P.O.V.
As I wondered the city looking for what I felt like I was supposed to be looking for, I felt an odd chill. My eyes scanned everywhere, but it didn’t come from anything living. It felt like the moon was watching me through a hole in the clouds. An odd celestial glow poured down around me making me look truly like a ghost.
I gazed up towards where the celestial body in space was supposed to be, but as soon I did, the light faded behind dark clouds. I wondered why I felt like it was staring at me. The rain continued and I looked down at a puddle. The sparkling of the stars far away beyond my reach appeared in the puddle for a brief sudden before rippled caused by the wind disturbed the water.
“I feel like I am going to fail this task Niall.” The muttered words left my mouth and suddenly became aware of how much truly depended on me and the other lads. The wind picked up around and my neck turned skyward again.
This wasn’t an ordinary storm. This storm was the beginning of everything that was to come. This was the storm that raged inside all of us as we waited for the chess board of hell to be set.
“Am I strong enough?” I asked myself out loud.
Thoughts raced all around as the wind picked up even more. It seemed like the wind was catering to my despairing thoughts. The more I thought about death, failure or other such things; the more it raged.
“Niall said that every choice we make determines a different outcome or rather that is what he was trying to say.” I began talking to myself to make sense of Niall’s words. “If I made the choice to come back, what was the reasoning behind it? I thought it would be great coming back and living, but how can I live if I’m dead to the world? Am I dead to myself? Is this just a figment of my thoughts telling me that I’m dead and all I must do is open my eyes?” I sighed as more questions came to me.
“Niall said as humans, we have the free will to make a decision, but as angels we are to follow orders. Does he mean—“I finally figured it out.
Niall never wanted me to make the decision based as an angel to stay with him. That was a totally human choice because I still wasn’t dead. If I followed orders, how could I have saved him?
“Well played Niall, well played.” I grinned toward the sky as more raindrops fell. “I’m sorry I ever thought you were wrong Niall. Your idea of will isn’t about follow orders, it’s about the choice to do something and change an outcome. Changing an outcome can change the future save you. I’ll be damned leprechaun; you are a smart ass fellow.” I chuckled to myself and began to walk toward the faint glow of light on the horizon.
The walk seemed to be tedious, but a back thought kept poking at me. How were the other lads? I sighed and kept trudging forward before a conversation near me stopped me.
“The storm is only expected to get worse.” I heard someone say. I stepped closer toward the voices before something to my right caught my attention. My eyes widened in horror as I saw the tuff of blonde hair coming closer to where I stood.
‘Holy shit! He sees me!’ My mind screamed at me, but the closer he got, the more of him that faded. I titled my head to the side as he walked through me and the voices suddenly stopped.
I turned back in the direction that the voices had been. I ran toward the spot and saw something that made my technically dead stomach turn.
Niall stood over two people with a bloodied knife. Blood poured from their bodies like a small stream. Both stomachs ripped open, organs falling out. A small cough from one of them made Niall shift his attention. He carefully stepped over the second body and bent down toward the first. I heard a faint ‘please’ from the first and he sliced what could only been the windpipe as I heard a gasp, followed by an even faster torrent of blood flowing.
Niall turned around and lifted his gaze toward where I was standing. He raised his eyebrow and cocked his head back in total confusion and somewhat fear.
“Zaynie?” He said softly as he took a step closer. I stood frozen in my spot, not out of terror, but out of confusion as well. “No, it can’t be.” He shook his head and took a step back. “You aren’t real. I killed you. I damned myself even more!” His voice cracked at the last part.
I wanted to say something, but the thought that he could see the dead was even more disturbing. He currently was in his human form and therefore, truly couldn’t see me unless… My eyes widened in horror. Niall was almost fully a demon from all the killings. Demons and angels can see the dead. Niall’s eyes suddenly flashed red and he was in full armor with his sword ready.
“Niall I will not fight you like the last time.” I held up my hands. I watched carefully as Niall’s gaze shifted from me to someone behind me.
“GET AWAY FROM HIM PUNY FALLEN ANGEL!” The amount of power given off from the voice from the thing behind me made me shake. I turned slowly to see Death standing behind me with his scythe in hand. He glowed a pale sickly green with a blackish-red ball of energy that was at the tip of his weapon.
“Death,” Niall sneered. “You don’t frighten me Master Horsemen. I know for a fact that you can’t intervene because of the divine codes.” Niall smirked as he finished his sentence feeling satisfied that he was right.
“That is true, but it doesn’t forbid me from doing this.” He raised his scythe and threw a green bolt at Niall making him vanish.
I just stood there fearing for my life. Death turned his gaze toward me and despite him taking a calmer pleasant demeanor; I still was shaking.
“Peace little one, I don’t come to harm you.” His voice was void of emotion. “I came to save you by choice.”
I raised an eyebrow at his comment. “Niall said that because of the divine codes you couldn’t intervene, but yet, you did. Why?”
He chuckled slightly at my question. “Little one, I by law, am not allowed to save you. That is up to fate, but that doesn’t mean I can’t challenge fates will. You would have died if fate saw fit, but death doesn’t always answer to fate. Remember the human saying that you can cheat death?” I nodded. “I am Death. I control that fate just like anyone other super powerful being controls something. I just made a choice.”
“I keep hearing this talk of choices. From Niall and you. What is a choice?” I asked feeling I knew, but somehow I didn’t feel like it also.
“A choice is the decision you make when given multiple options, yes?” I nodded at his words. “So what is a choice to a divine being?” I blinked my eyes rapidly in confusion.
“Uh, picking what’s wrong and right?” I asked giving him a basic answer.
“Correct, but why choose one or the other?” He asked.
“Both have different outcomes and one is clearly a better option.” I replied with a little hesitance.
He shook his head with a small smirk on his face. “No young one. Neither is a better option. Both can have totally negative results or positive ones. We make the decision on what works best for mortals. One could end an entire culture, but save six other cultures or one could kill all, but a family. We have to make a moral choice. Yes, even divine beings have morals, be it that they are different, but we do. We make choices, not based on our needs, but humanity and their needs.”
“I still don’t get it.” I replied after listening to his confusing answer.
“Zayn, your choice on what happens isn’t because of your angelic side; it’s your humanity that is making that choice. Your angelic side is just influencing it. Your choice to come back isn’t one of following orders; it’s one of love for family. You would do anything to save your family, would you not?” He asked while looking at me with one huge orange-black eye.
“Yes I would, no matter the cost.” I replied without any hesitation.
“Then best of luck Zayn.” Death said as he vanished into the wind and rain that continued.
“Love is the answer? GAH, I HATE PLAY ON WORDS!” I shouted into the air as a clap of thunder filled the air.
********
*UNEDITED*
Yes I am sorry that this chapter is awfully confusing, but it's the way it had to be written.
Read what Zayn is thinking about and what Death says. Key something in their for a future chapter. :)
(Let me know what you think please.)
FINALS ARE DONE AND IT'S SUMMER!! FUN, UPDATES AND SO MUCH MORE O.O.... AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
*WOOT*