Angel's Ascension (Book One)

Chapter 2: The Devil's Call

The day after Lucy's encounter with Ignis, she had taken to the front yard again and began to train vigorously.

"All this training gets so exhausting and it doesn't feel like I'm making much progress." She stopped to catch her breath, sweat continuously dripped off her forehead. "That warning he mentioned...it's still lingering in my head. I should go do something to get my mind off it."

Lucy wiped the sweat off and began doing stretches. Her muscles felt relieved and the straining had quickly subsided. Cheyanne then stepped out on the porch and waved.

"Yo Lucy! Can you go pick us up a movie from the rental box? We can chill in my room once you get back, I may also have some clothes that fit you!"

"Sure! I'm up for a movie and trying out some new clothes. I'll be back in a sec, Chey!"

She started running down the dirt road towards town. Cheyanne caught up quickly and handed her twenty dollars in cash.

"Hold on you grounded angel! You forgot that we buy things with money here!"

Lucy mumbled and stuffed the money into her pocket.

"Oh right, I forgot earthlings buy things with paper, remind me why coins are lesser in value? They're made from metals and this, it's just fragile paper. If my wings weren't crippled, I wouldn't need to use this crap."

Cheyanne crossed her arms and smirked before she let out a snicker.

"We don't need the news up your ass and making a scene on the internet. I can already see the headlines for tomorrow: Local movie rental box robbed by a disgruntled angel who can't fly!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm gonna get that movie now. See ya in a few!"

As she ran further down the road, a faint presence in the distance alerted her. She felt a severe chill run down her spine and perked her ears up. Lucy looked around trying to sense it and continued to run.

"That's odd, it feels like something is closing in on me. Could that mean Ignis? Or maybe his father is coming to fight me himself?"

Eventually, she made her way to town and saw the rental box in a store. She entered the building and saw a large counter with a set of tables scattered out through the building.

"What can I get you this fine evening miss?"

A scrawny employee was managing the counter, he appeared to be taken aback by her ragged attire. Lucy looked over at him, then she went up to the machine.

"Uhh, I'm trying to rent a movie. Great, I left without asking her what to get."

"Take your time miss, it looks like you need it."

The employee kept staring at her clothes, then her burnt wings. She glared at him which made him turn away and whistle.

"Ugh, there's so many to pick from. What about this one? It has some 'Bigfoot monster' attacking humans."

Lucy scrolled through the menu and past hundreds of movies.

"Cheyanne told me a lot of things since I've arrived, but it's all still new to me. She likes horror and comedy, so maybe that Bigfoot movie is what she'll like?"

Soon a hulking figure entered the building, his head just inches away from the ceiling. Employees in the back balked at his sheer size, then the room grew ice-cold. This made Lucy's arms and legs feel numb from the sudden drop in temperature. He sat a few seats away from Lucy who shivered convulsively and noticed his presence felt similar to before. It was the same cold that she had sensed through the dry air.