HOPE 「GOJO SATORU X OC」≫BOOK II≪

T E N

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Chapter Ten: Angels

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HE exhaled slowly. His palms rested on his thighs and he knelt before the marbled statue of Mary, the Rosary beads wrapped in his right hand. His shoulders relaxed as he closed his eyes. The candles lit across the table were the only source of light in the dark chapel, casting a dim glow over the marble flooring he knelt on.

He joked around with his sister before, telling her that he would pass as a Demon Hunter for how much he'd tagged along with her. She taught him how to shoot a gun, how to hold a knife, how to weild a longsword, and how to hold his fist so that he wouldn't break any of his fingers when he hit something. She taught him how to hide, how to conceal himself in the open. She had taught him exactly how to be a Demon Hunter, without actually letting him do so.

He wasn't able to see demons before. He was only able to see them when they allowed themselves to be visible, almost always right before they struct. But a few days ago, at the school, he knew that something had changed. If he was able to see all those demons, then so should everyone else. But they hadn't.

He knew Akeldama had dealt with strong demons before. He watched her take beasts triple her size down right before his very eyes. She may have been injured a few times, but in the end, she has always walked away as the victor. She has never lost to a demon before.

But Satan himself? That was an entirely different story. Even if he hadn't stepped foot in a church in years, or picked up the Bible, Nathan knew what kind of horrors lay at the Devil's feet.

He didn't understand why now, of all times, these things were happening. It was beyond him, but now, he knew that he had plunged himself headfirst into it all.

He opened his eyes when he felt a hand on the back of his head. He turned his head, tilting it up to look at his sister. Her hair was twisted in a braid along her back, and he knew that Gojo had been the one to do it. Aki didn't know how to braid. She was wearing a pair of sweatpants and an oversized shirt, no doubt belonging to the white-haired male.

"While I'm proud of you for having the courage to step up and do this, Nate," Her voice was soft and quiet. "I think you've made a very big mistake."

"I didn't have a choice, Aki," He said, his gaze turning to the beads in his palm. "I knew you were down there when you didn't show up by the next day. I couldn't just sit around. Look at the state you were in when I summoned you when I did. Any longer, and you would have been dead."

"I know," She ran her fingers through his hair. "But it doesn't justify all of the things that are about to come. You will never rest again. You will never be able to live normally again."

His eyes grew heavy. "Being a Hunter...it's why you never stayed in one place, isn't it? Why we were constantly traveling. Why you constantly tried shoving me away from you. Why we always got into fights. Why you starting drinking and smoking."

"When you take the oath, you're are agreeing to give up your humanity here on Earth. You and I are not longer human, Nate. We're ethereal. We cannot populate ourselves with the normal people of this world."

"If we aren't human," He whispered. "Then what are we?"

She walked forward, her touch leaving him. He watched as she stepped over the altar, walking around the statue of Mary. Her fingers slid across the smooth marble, her eyes closing. Nathan gasped, turning his head away at the bright light that formed in front of the statue. After a moment, he turned his head back, his eyes widening.

A blue orb hovered above the statues palms, the stone eyes glowing a bright blue. Aki turned her head to the boy.

"Our blood runs directly from God himself," She said. "We are descendents of the Holy Trinity. We are not human, nor demon, nor wandering spirits. We..."

Nathan made a sound of surprise, stumbled back as the orb twisted into a mass of wings and eyes. His eyes widened, his gaze flashing across  it. He couldn't tell one set of wings from the next, and his stomach swirled at the sight of the disembodied eyes.

"...are Angels."

He watched as the tip of her finger brushed over one of the wings. He gasped as the veins under her skin glowed, illuminating her porcelain skin with streaks of gold. She moved her hand away, and the orb vanished, her veins returning to normal.

"Angels? My, you're one naughty Angel then,"

Aki lifted her head, watching as Gojo entered the chapel. He grinned at her, making her roll her eyes at him. She stepped down from the altar, holding her hand out to the boy. He took it, allowing her to pull him to his feet.

"We are not considered full angels," She said, crossing her arms over her chest as he approached. "To be fully recognized as an Angel, you need to reach Enlightenment."

"Enlightenment?" Nathan echoed.

"A point in time in which a Demon Hunter connects directly with God himself, recieving his full blessing. Enlightenment is a moment in which a Hunter becomes one of the Lord's Knights,"

They all faced the door, watching as Simon entered. His helmet rested against his side, allowing the crown of golden hair to be seen. His spear was safely resting along his back, and his other hand rested on the hilt of his sword.

"You were a Demon Hunter?" Nathan's brows lifted.

"Many, many years ago," The man chuckled. "Long before anyone living on this Earth was born."

"Just how old are you?" The boy questioned. "A couple hundred years?"

"I was born in the year the Jesus Himself was crucified," Simon grinned slightly. "I am 1,990 years old."

"Holy Sh—"

Aki slapped her hand over the boy's mouth. "You are in a church, Nate."

His 'sorry' was muffled by her hand. She simply shook her head and removed her hand from his mouth. Gojo draped his arm over her shoulder, making her lean into his side.

"And you are incorrect, Akeldama," Simon said, making her turn her head to him.

"What do you mean?"

"The two of you are Angels, though you are bound to this Earth. When you reach Enlightenment, then you move to an Archangel," He said.

"Then how come we don't have wings or anything?" Nathan asked, looking over his shoulder as if a pair would spontaneously sprout from his back.

"Like I said, you're bound to Earth. Should you reach Heaven, then your wings would sprout."

"This is too much religious talk!" Gojo said, throwing his hand up. "Who cares about all that stuff?"

Aki chuckled, her hand resting against his chest. "You're right. It's enough talk about this. We should be heading home."

"Safety in your travels, Hunters," Simon bowed his head.

"Don't work too hard, buddy!" Gojo called, making the woman elbow him in the side.

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