The Angel's Sacrifice

The Angel's Sacrifice Ch. 12

I snap awake. I mumble incoherent words as I search the desk with bleary eyes. Its pitch black and I can't see anything. I grope the desk, trying to find the lamp. I feel the switch and I pull up.

A soft glow bathes the desk and my "work". My eyebrows knit together as I blink slowly. I could have sworn I had a page of notes here a second ago, I think as I look around me. I wipe my face to get the sleepy crud out of my eyes. I hear a soft crinkle as the soft parchment folds in front of my face.

I raise my eyebrows slowly, still half-asleep. The paper comes farther down my face until it finally drops to the surface of the desk. I look at in confusion. Then I see the drool stain.

Attractive.

I roll my eyes as I yawn. After the first three pages, I quickly learned that the best way to digest all the information was to do it the hard way: note taking.

Luckily, the book was divided into chapters. I had skipped to the Fallen/Dawn section. No point in reading stuff I already knew about. I look at the scribbles and skim them over.

~ all "Heavenly" beings have bright eyes

~ Fallens have a Trance ---> human = do whatever Fallen says. Hard to break Trance, usually need help

~ Angels and other peeps can "blend" into their surroundings, aurora dims, wings "disappear" etc

~ aurora = feelings that you feel around that type of Angel

There's more but it's blotted out by the drool stain. Sighing, I turn back to the book to read more.

"When an Angel has sinned or has done something terrible, they are transformed into a Fallen (see page 764). Before they reach that stage, they undergo changes; much like a caterpillar. This process usually takes five or six years depending on the sin.

The duration between Angel and Fallen is called "Dawn" before it's the beginning of a new life.

A Dawn's wings are white with black spots. Wings are a good way to tell how long one has before becoming completely Fallen. The blacker, the less time.

There is a way, however, to redeem oneself and become Angel once more. A Dawn must have a person, a lover, sacrifice themselves in a pure deed (see page 897). This will reverse the effects and one will become fully Angel again.

Alas, the blacker the wing, the more true the love has to be. Dawns usually have a Fallen work for them as a servant. Dawns, while they have the power of both Angels and Fallens, are still weak. (See chart, page 2). The Fallen's job is to do whatever the Dawn commands them to do..."

I take a moment to jot down a few notes. I turn to page 764 and look it over. That is, until I stumble upon paragraphs of horrifying information:

"Fallens are pure evil. They harm the masses in catastrophic ways. The Black Plague was started by one of the weaker Fallen. Fallens have one driving desire though. They want to feel happiness.

It is physically impossible to feel happiness if you are Fallen. This does not stop these dark creatures however. They prey on humans who are full of "light", so to speak, and feed off of their soul.

The myth of vampires spurred from a Fallen kissing a vain of a human victim. Similar to Dementors, the Fallens will kiss their victims to suck the very happiness from them.

They succeed, but they still don't feel happiness (see above). Often, the Fallen, after the failed attempt, will slay their "prey".

In these last moments of life, the victims will be surrounded in a dark fog of hate and depression.

It's very difficult to get back these happy thoughts that were taken away."

I sit in the chair, digesting this information. It all makes sense now. The eerie fog I felt so clearly those first few days, Lance kissing me... It all makes sense. Lance has been trying to steal my soul from day one! Trying to suck the happiness from me, making me do things I wouldn't normally have done, among other things I'm sure.

And Jack, acting so strangely. Could Fallens have power over their Dawns as well? I hurriedly flip through the pages until I find the answer.

Yes.

This means I’m in even more danger than I thought and Jack isn’t safe.

Jack!

I jump up. He's in as much danger as I am! Why this concerns me so much, I have no idea. Soul searching is for another time.

I sprint to the door and run towards the west wing.

I tear up the castle, trying to find the stairwell. I spot it, and take the stairs three at a time, not caring if anyone or anything hears me.

Finally standing in front of Jack's wooden door, I resist the urge to barge in when I hear whispers.

"Kill her now!" Lance hisses.

"No!" Jack says firmly.

"She's not falling for you. She can't and she won't. You've wasted too much time on her. Kill Fae and find a new girl," Lance's voice takes on a hypnotic tone.

A beat of silence.

My heart races.

And Jack answers, "...Yes... kill Fae..."

My blood runs cold.