Gray Clouds

Chapter 6 - Condemnation.

Eli had felt a sense of hope and excitement hearing Detective Lavaire's real name. He was here to help.

"You're a detective?" Eli asked, staring in awe. "How come the authorities haven't already taken care of The Community?"

"From outside the city, Ramora Lane looks like an ordinary neighbourhood that just so happens to have mostly religious residents." Sky replied, his eyes looking elsewhere as he scanned the street nervously. "Even though we've always had suspicions, we couldn't just take action. After we were alerted by a man that The Community was a cult, I finally got permission to be sent in as a spy and prove it from the inside."

"A man who escaped...?" Eli muttered. He recalled something his father had told him on their way to The Church:

"He's been caught trying to betray The Community. He's been Condemned."

"Where is he now?" Eli inquired, his curiosity heightened.

"He's not here?" Sky cocked his head to the side, his eyebrows knitted in concern. "We met him at the street next to here. He was later brought back in by another person. We haven't seen him since."

"He's... He used to be my old Companion." Eli stammered, lowering his voice. "My dad told me he was Condemned."

"Condemned?" Sky's expression became more serious, his frown tight. "What does—"

"Don't even bother. He doesn't know, either." Gray spoke up, and both Eli and Sky jolted.

Eli saw Sky's eyes widen as they laid on Gray, interest and surprise sparkling in his eyes. "...So, this is your Guardian Angel?"

Eli blinked, staring up as Gray smirked. "You said that only I could see you!"

"Woops, my bad." Gray shrugged, laughing a little. "I should've told you that I can reveal myself to other people at will, only if they have their own Guardian Angels."

"Gray..." Eli grumbled, shaking his head. He sighed, answering Sky's question. "Yeah... This is Gray."

"Nice to meet you, Gray." Sky nodded towards the Guardian Angel, his hand reaching into his hood. "This is—"

The metallic, almost hypnotising ring of a church bell echoed loudly, nearly knocking Eli's skinny body off his feet.

"Scheiße!" Gray exclaimed angrily, covering his ears from the bell ring. "This place really is a living hell! No wonder you want to kill yourself!"

"What was that?" Sky gasped, the little rat he had in his palm retreating back into his white hood.

"We have to go inside now." Eli replied, waving his hand to signal them to follow him. "Remember. Don't speak, do not frown, and do not speak ill about The Goddess. Trust me, for your own safety."

Sky and Gray shared glances at each other, but they did not ask questions as they quickly headed inside The Church.

It was as if the natural noise of the outside was instantly sucked into a black hole the moment Eli stepped inside The Church, isolating the sound of his and Sky's footsteps slapping against the cold, tiled floor. For what it was, The Church's interior was breathtaking. The wooden pews were perfectly rowed together at the sides, intricate flower carvings decorating their sides. The stained glass windows lined the cobble walls, giving new colour to the natural light outside that beamed The Church, casting a spotlight on the lectern at the front. Each window had a different portrait or display of The Goddess, a beautiful lady with flowing, long blonde hair under a white veil and white robes with hanging sleeves.

"Woah. I must say..." Gray whistled low, scanning the room. "These crazy people are real good at interior decorating. Very spacious, too. Plenty of space to stretch my wings."

"You're lucky you're an angel, otherwise you'd be breaking the rule of silence." A tiny voice said, and Eli did a double take to the rat hidden in Sky's robes.

"Oh yeah, I guess I should do the introductions since Detective here can't." Gray pointed towards the rat. "That's Squeaker."

"No it's not." The rat huffed in annoyance. "It's Rune."

Eli and Sky sat down at one of the pews, along with the other quiet uniformed members. Eli heard something click next to him, and he looked down to see Sky holding a speaker-looking device he's never seen before. He was tempted to ask about it, but he snapped his lips shut when he remembered the rule: Do. Not. Speak.

A minute of silence passed until Eli saw movement at the front, recognising his father at the lectern. The light from the stained glass window behind him gave his silhouette a holy glow.

Eli zoned out for most of The Ceremony, the edges of his lips fighting to stay upright on his face. All he heard was his father's droning, on and on about The Church's duty to serve The Goddess. His body subconsciously responded to the rituals he was supposed to do while Gray, Sky and Rune observed and tried to follow along. His attention was only snatched back when he heard his 'name' called out at the end of The Ceremony, loud and clear in his ears compared to everything else he heard before.

"...My daughter, Julia, as you all know, has been influenced by the outside world's tainting values and sins." Eli's father announced, and Eli felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment as faces turned towards him in unison. "She believes that she is a man, rejecting the body that The Goddess has given her."

"This is a serious sin, and we have been working on your recovery through therapy. However..." Eli's father's voice became soft and sad. "It has been many months, and we still haven't seen much progress. I'm afraid that The Church has decided that you are to be Condemned for your inability to be saved."

Eli flinched as the word 'Condemned' was uttered. What?

"Julia, if you'll come to the back, please." Eli's father bowed to the crowd, walking to the back door.

Eli stood up, nearly falling over because his legs felt like lead. Sky stared at the mysterious door, patting Eli's shoulder lightly as he walked to the front. Each step was loud and rang in his ears, the silence of The Church making the lump in his throat more suffocating. All eyes were on him, more than he was ever used to. Eli was convinced he would've died on the spot if it weren't for Gray, who was walking beside him. Eli took Gray's hand, writing on his palm with his pointer finger.

"I'm scared."

Gray's lips straightened grimly, his wing raising up like a curtain behind Eli. An attempt to shield him from the eyes of The Church members.

"You'll be fine." Gray reassured confidently, giving Eli a smirk. "Remember, you've got the best protector you could ever have, Starboy."

Eli smiled in response before he and Gray stepped inside the room, his father walking with them and closing the door. He smiled, not because he had to follow the rules this time. It was a real smile. Who knew Gray could be less than annoying sometimes?