Revolution

Chapter 12: Alone

A child from heaven descended to earth,
eyes of gold blessed with a curse.

Suddenly those words started to mean something. Up until now, Althea had thought her eyes were the outcome of a mutant gene, or some kind of horrible disease that was brought upon her as a child. Or maybe those were only excuses she used to convince herself that she fit in with the other children. So she wouldn't feel like a 'freak.'

But now she truly was a freak.

Without knowing the full prophecy, Zeb had explained to her that all angels had golden irises. Even those without wings. And as she repeated the words of the prophecy in her head, she couldn't convince herself that she was normal anymore.

"But you said that when angels lost their wings, they become..." Althea lip wavered, "demons."

Zeb arched a brow and in one swift motion, grabbed her left wrist and turned it over to reveal that the once-purple veins were now polluted with a black pigment, twisting its way up her arms. He examined it with a hesitant look before letting go and allowing it to fall limply by her side.

"Being a demon isn't entirely bad," Zeb reassured, clearly not seeing the situation from the same angle as she did, "Your immortal now, unless someone kills you. But, if you die, you'll get condemned to the deepest pits of hell."

"Peachy." Althea groaned, rubbing her face in her hands and wishing she could just suffocate in them.

"There's also one more thing," his voice was a low crackle. Althea looked at him with sunken eyes, preparing herself for the absolute worst. "Demons have the ability to trade features with humans." Her eyes widened with pleasant surprise.

"How?"

"The person either has to be dead or willing to complete the trade. You alone can cancel it at anytime, even if you're on the other side of the world." He smacked his teeth together, trying to recall more information, "grab my hand and I will show you."

Reluctantly, she grasped it.

"I, Zebediah Morningstar, want to trade my eyes."

"Uh um, yes. I mean, I accept."

She felt her hand tingle, as if electricity was running through her skin. Then without warning, her vision tunnelled and blurred into a canvas of white. The sensation disappeared a few seconds later, leaving her slightly lightheaded. And much to her surprise, a pair of golden eyes were staring right back at her. Her mouth dropped open in shock, unsaid questions spilling out into the silence.

"Tomorrow I will teach you how to reverse it." He took the dying candle and made his way up the steps, "But it takes a great deal of energy and I don't want you collapsing in my basement."

"I don't think I can sleep." Althea told him honestly, sliding down the wall and feeling the area around her eyes. "I don't think I'll ever sleep again."

"Don't be stupid," Zeb grunted, staring at her with consternation, "I'll let you stay here for the night, but don't write this into your routine." He looked at her with uncertainty, as if he wanted to say something more, but decided against it at the last minute. Instead he gave her a good hearty scowl and closed the door to the basement so that Althea was left sitting alone in the dark.

***

She didn't know when she had fallen asleep, but she knew that it wasn't enough. Her muscles were like magnets pulling her towards the ground and her eyes were just as heavy. Well, they technically weren't her eyes anymore. Even though she had spent most of the night thinking it over, Althea still couldn't believe that she was a demon. Imagine that as a conversation starter.

She laughed bitingly at the thought and pried open the front door of the library. Strangely there were no soldiers around that day and she was able to luxuriously stroll across the road.

"Did you hear that wacky old man is gone. And so are the guards! Apparently he kicked one of them, he must have really been nutty in the head."

Althea stopped.

"Of course I heard. His screaming was so loud, it woke up all of my kids, " another high pitched voice reached her ears, "I can't believe they thought he was the 'chosen one.' Let me tell you, the blood took all morning to clean. Good grief!"

Suddenly the world slipped out from under her, her head pulsed with dread and she felt the sharp taste of bile cut her tongue. Their words filled her head like a swarm of wasps. That's why he wanted my eyes. That's why he wanted to wait to change them back.

"What I'm really confused about is Chief, I mean, he stood up for Zeb and now they're both chained up somewhere. Where was he, may I ask, when my brother was being whipped? Talk about equality."

The women continued bickering, but Althea heard none of it. Her hands flung out for support, but caught nothing but air. She felt her throat tighten and beads of sweat marched down her face. As horrible as it sounded, she prayed that they had died quickly. Never before had she felt so drunk with shock and dizzy with grief. The world was tilting dangerously now and her vision blurred. Althea was as able to form one complete thought before her head hit the ground.

I'm all alone.