Gabriel's Child

Gabriel's Child;;Chapter Thirteen

I opened my eye lids slowly as the darkness welcomed me into its realm. Everything was blurred and I failed to identify my surroundings. I couldn't lift my head it felt far too heavy. I was able to shift enough to realize that I was lying in dead leaves. Where was I again? Small shuffling shifted the decaying life around, it seemed to be coming towards me. Fear filled my stomach, what was going to happen to me?

The movement stopped near my head. There was a shuffling and two small thuds on the earth.

She spoke, "do you know where my mommy is?"

My head was pounding, my body felt heavy,"What?"

My vision cleared up a enough for me to identify that a little girl was beaming down at me, "Could you be my angel, please?"

"Your angel? Why would I...how can I?" Why does this conversation sound so familiar?

"Hey, sweetheart, could we not play this 'why this' 'why that' game?" the boy's heaven like voice nagged at me.

Another voice? When he get here? "Sweetheart?"

"Yes, Sweetheart wake up", the soothing voice called, "wake up". I could see clearly now his bright purple and demanding eyes piercing through the night, "Wake up sweetheart, now!"

The sudden change in tone shook me out of slumber. I shot up straight out of my bed, stuffed animal on the sheets tumbled to my side. I was breathing heavy and my heart was beating rapidly.

"Phoebe! Phoebe are you okay?" a now concerning voice asked, their hands instantly on my shoulders.

My eyes took their time to adjust to the light of the room since I had gone so long without it. Once they did I found myself in my room with three god-like men, one of which was my Uncle Micheal, and my mother. My mother's ever loving expression of concern was plastered on her face, "Phoebe", she repeated, "are you okay?"

My eyes shifted in a lazy sort of fashion from my mother to the three men at the foot of my bed, "Yes mom I am okay. What's going on? Who - "

I quickly realized that I had spoken soon about my condition because something with a boulder like force slammed into my head. I groaned and leaned back down onto the bed. The girl, the woman, the voices, the darkness, Death, it all came back. Everything that seemed to be blocked or fractured had all come back.

"What's happening to her is she okay?" My mother asked frantically of the men at the foot of my bed.

"She's fine," one responded in a reassuring tone, "she's starting to regain all the memories that Thanatos block from her mind."

"Thanatos? Who's Thanatos?"

A different voice that I identified as Michael answered, "He's Death, one of the four horse men. He's not too keen on letting people, or in this case Nephilm, he encounters remember the fact that he let them live. If any non-immortal being ever encounters him it usually means their time is up and Death has come for their soul."

"What?" My mother voice had shift from concern to a mix of shock and anger, "Are you telling me that you sent my daughter to her death? That she was supposed to die in that forest?"

"No, Athena calm down," the other man said. This man's voice didn't sound like the others it sounded welcoming and extremely loving, "Michael didn't try to get her killed. He was following orders. Sending Phoebe to the forest was the only way to test her potential strength. Thanatos wouldn't be allowed to kill Phoebe there's no way we would have let our daughter die."

Those words 'our daughter' struck something in me like an indescribable mix of anxiety, fear, and shock. I ignored the pain enough to push myself up so I was sitting up in my bed. My hands shook as I took up the stuffed bear that lay next to me as some sort of comfort.