The morning dawned bright and cold. I shivered as I stood in the woods, wrapping my coat around me tighter. The snow occasionally fell from the tree branches hanging over us, breaking the silence that hung in the air. My black boots were matted with snow, making my feet cold despite how thick they were. This was the last place I wanted to be on a day like this, but I had no choice. There were things that had to be done, and if that meant trudging through the cold, snowy woods, then so be it.
Zane looked around as he stood near me, "Seems like we're in the right place; at least with the feelings I'm getting." he noted. He didn't seem bothered at all by the cold.
"I hope you're right. It's a lot colder out here then I thought it was going to be." I complained.
I shivered again as more snow fell from the tree branches, tiny flakes of it floating around in the frigid air.
Zane chuckled, putting an arm around my shoulders, "Don't worry. We'll be done with this soon enough, then I promise I'll take you to a nice warm place to have some dinner."
I blushed slightly as I looked away. I wished he wasn't this kind to me at times. It made me feel guilty over my lingering feelings for Chris.
I managed to swallow the lump that was trying to form in my throat, "Yeah, that sounds nice." I agreed softly.
Zane let me go and walked ahead. The snow crunched under his feet as he moved. He finally stopped at a familiar object sticking out of the snow-covered bushes. It was the pillar that I'd found months before.
"Ah, this must be it."
"It is." I confirmed as I walked over beside him and brushed some of the snow away, "This was the first thing I found when I stumbled onto that house."
"It must have marked where the driveway once started. More than likely, Jade had it all covered up once the incident was over. It was probably easier to make the house look abandoned, especially after the fight those two probably had." Zane surmised. He stood up straight again, "Come. Let's keep moving."
The two of us slowly made our way through the snow-covered underbrush, and within moments, the house came into view. I stopped and stared, memories flashing through my mind. Old memories of what once was.
Now that I had awakened, I could tap into Saffron's memories of back then. I could see when he and Jade had first brought Faith Evans there. It had been a bright and sunny spring day. The birds had been singing in the trees as they pulled up in that old time car, and everything had looked perfect.
But the picture in my mind quickly faded, and I saw the house begin to age and deteriorate rapidly. This was what had happened after Faith Evans died. There was no need for them to keep the house up anymore, so they'd allowed it to begin rotting away.
Zane gently touched my shoulder, "I'll guess that you can see what once was."
I managed to nod, a coldness returning to my soul with that memory, "They went to a lot of trouble to do this, then they just abandoned it when she died." I told him.
"That's how they are, but that one soul is still remaining. I think it's about time to release poor Lacy Manson from her pain, don't you?" Zane suggested.
I was about to respond when we heard movement from the nearby woods. Both of us turned towards the sound, and to my surprise, we saw a figure walking out of the woods on the other side of the house. It was a young man. Even from our distance of maybe ten feet away, I could see that he was very handsome, with honey colored hair and clear sky-blue eyes. Dressed in a nice dark button-down coat and dark pants, he stood out against the white of the snow around him.
Zane stepped in front of me as the man saw us and stopped. It seemed like he hadn't been expecting to see us there either.
"I didn't realize that others were coming here." he commented. His voice was a bit lighter than I'd thought it would be but felt like it fit his looks.
"Neither did we. Why are you here? Did you come looking for this house as well?" Zane asked him.
He was staying on guard, not acting too aggressive with his questions. He was probably trying to feel this man's intentions out. Well, he was a man in looks. I was certain from the feeling I got from him that he wasn't truly human.
The man gave us a friendly smile. I could see his breath like smoke in the cold hair as he spoke to us.
"Yes, I was looking for it, but it's taken me longer than I thought to find it. I didn't realize I'd run into others here either. How odd. You're like me, aren't you? I can feel that much, but I'm certain that we haven't met before, and you don't look like you're from one of the other families."
"Other families?" I repeated, looking at Zane.
Zane backed down a bit, putting an arm behind my back, "So, you're from one of the clans. This has suddenly gotten interesting. Did they send you here to make sure that we didn't fail?" he asked him.
"No. I came here to check out rumors that I'd been hearing about a haunted abandoned house in these woods, but I'm afraid that I'm not quite understanding you on some things. You're calling me a clan member, yet you feel very similar to me, and the others like me." the man responded, taking a few steps closer to us.
"That's because we're not like you. We're not from a clan. We're Shadow Wings, some of the original Nephilim born to the Fallen." Zane informed him.
The man stared at us as he heard this. He didn't look upset or angry. Instead, he looked genuinely shocked.
"You're both Shadow Wings?" he confirmed.
"Yes, we are." Zane verified.
I looked at him to see that he still had a defensive look on his face. It was obvious that he wasn't willing to trust this man.
Yet I was instantly curious. This man was from one of those clans that the other Shadow Wings had talked about. Now that I looked at him, I could see where his looks may have come from. He was a beautiful man, just like Kinsley had been.
"What's your name?" I spoke up.
"Ariana, now's not the time..." Zane started.
"It's Michael. Michael Renaldi." the man interrupted. To our surprise, he closed the gap between us and held out his hand in a friendly gesture.
Zane looked at him for a moment, then conceded, "Zane Hedel, and this is Ariana Benson." he responded as he shook his hand. I didn't miss the slightly begrudging tone in his voice.
Michael ignored it if he noticed, "It's nice to meet you both. I admit this is the first time that any of us have ever been able to meet any of the Shadow Wings, but I see what we've thought before is correct. You're not that different from us at all." he commented.
I studied the man in front of us as he spoke. He was right. He didn't seem that different from us. In fact, it felt to me like we had a lot more in common than we may have realized. It made me think that perhaps other than dark distinction, Fallen Angels and Pure Angels weren't that different.
Zane glanced at the house, "Well Michael, beings you're here, I'll go ahead and tell you that the rumors you've heard about this house are true. There is a spirit trapped in here, and your leader Kinsley is requesting that we free her." he explained.
"Ah, you mean Kinsley Martell. It's been quite a while since I've seen him, but this doesn't surprise me. Not after how they're saying he's trying to help the Shadow Wings." Michael admitted.
"You know about all of that?" I asked.
It didn't escape me that he'd spoken of Kinsley like he was known to him but not family. That and his last name. Michael must have been from one of the other clans. Kinsley wasn't the one who created him.
"I know what we've been told, and I will say that we're standing behind it. After all, we know what it's like to not exactly belong, even if we haven't had it as bad as the Shadow Wings." Michael responded, giving me a gentle smile. It warmed my heart a bit. Michael seemed so open and friendly, almost as much as Kinsley had been.
Zane gave him a displeased look, "I think we've had enough formality for now. It's rather cold out here, and we have a job to do. Will you be tagging along Michael?" he asked him.
It was obvious that he was trying hard to stay polite, but I could understand why too. Zane had lived a lot longer than me, and he'd never seemed that fond of the idea of the clans and how protected they were. To him, seeing one like Michael may have been a bitter pill to swallow.
Michael didn't seem bothered by this bit of hostility, "Yes. I've come all the way out here, so I'd like to finish this as well, although you will have to fill me in on a bit of background with this spirit. I'm afraid that none of them have been that forthcoming with some things lately when it pertains to their plans on the Shadow Wings' salvation."
"I suppose it wouldn't hurt anything to speak of this while we find a way in." Zane agreed. The three of us started walking towards the house. Zane continued as we walked around the side towards the back where the rotting deck was, "To put it simply, this house was built back in the 1930s by a pair of demons who entered into a contract with a human woman. It was done to exact revenge against her abusive husband. The spirit here is from that time. She was the mistress of the husband, whom one of the demons killed. Unfortunately, he chose to keep the soul for himself and hid her here, so we've come in hopes of freeing her from her torment."
Michael nodded as we stopped at the stairs, "I see. It sounds like something a Fallen would do. The story sounds familiar too. Tell me, what was that woman's name who made the pact?"
"Faith Evans." Zane answered.
"Ah, yes. I do recall hearing about this. From what I know, my nephew became involved in that situation several years ago. He actually helped free her soul from the cycle of death and rebirth it had been put in." Michael told us.
His words made me stop dead in my tracks, "You mean your family was the one who helped her?"
Michael seemed surprised by my reaction, "Yes. He just happened to run into the girl, and it wasn't something we could leave alone. I'll take it you must have known about this beforehand too."
"She should." Zane responded, "Her father is the Fallen who started that cycle."
Michael stood there for a moment looking at me. I wondered what he was thinking. Finally, he spoke again.
"Now I get it. Well, I didn't get to see him myself, so I suppose it may have been harder for me to put two and two together, but I do recall hearing Malakai say that there was a rumor that he had a child with one of the reincarnations. Looks like it was true."
"I'm going to guess that Malakai is the name of your Seraph." Zane noted.
"He is." Michael confirmed. He carefully walked up the stairs, then offered me a hand, "Be careful not to slip. You don't want to hurt yourself."
"Thanks." I responded.
Michael certainly was different than what I'd expected one like him to be. He seemed very kind, and I didn't think it was an act.
Zane glanced over at us, trying the handle of the glass door, but it was stuck tight.
"Looks like we're not getting in here. Perhaps we could try that old porch." he suggested.
"Why don't I give it a try? I've found that I'm pretty good with things like this." Michael offered, stepping beside him. We watched as he grasped the handle and closed his eyes. A click suddenly came from the other side of the door, and it opened inwards as he turned the handle, "Looks like I've still got it."
"You're a telekinetic." Zane noted as Michael opened the door all the way. The smell of must immediately hit me. It was a lot colder this time, but still smelled the same.
"It's a family talent, but I'm sure you both have talents of your own." Michael responded.
"Indeed. You'll just have to see for yourself." Zane agreed, smiling back at him.
The house was dark as we stepped inside. There was a death-like silence all around us. I glanced at the old kitchen, seeing that nothing had changed since the last time I'd been in there. I walked over to the island and looked down at the handprints embedded into it. Back then, I couldn't understand what in the world I was looking at. Now I knew. This had been done by Jade in a fit of rage right before Faith Evans had died. He'd slammed his hands down on the counter during an argument with Saffron, and it left imprints there for the rest of eternity.
Michael took a few steps forward, "My, my. This must have been an incredible house back then." he commented quietly.
"Nothing but the best. All of them prefer it that way." Zane told him. He closed his eyes, taking in the feel of the house, "She's still here. It seems that she's trapped in the far back bedroom. Looks like Chris was making sure that she couldn't get out to hurt anyone else."
"It seems that some of you have been here before, although I suppose with our lady's involvement it would make sense." Michael noted.
"I didn't even know what this place was when I stumbled onto it the first time. I didn't know who I was either. I only found out about it afterwards." I explained.
I looked at the opening to the den room and shivered slightly. That woman was still here. She was trapped in that back room, but she was still here. My memory of her was crisp and clear, and I dreaded having to face her again.
Zane walked over beside me, his footsteps echoing in the empty house, "It's okay. I'll make sure that nothing happens to you, but we need to do this now."
I agreed, following as he and Michael walked into the den. The room was big, and to our right we could see the long, dark hallway that led to the back bedroom. We could feel the electricity in the air. It was the static kind and was so strong that I was sure all of my hair was starting to stand on end.
Michael took a step forward and looked at the closed door at the end of that hallway, "She's a very angry and confused spirit. It's almost pitiful." he whispered.
"No kidding. It's the state they've left her in. So, are you ready to face down one like her Michael?" Zane asked him, a slight smile on his face now. No doubt he wanted to see what a clan Nephilim was capable of.
"Of course. Let's go." Michael replied without any hesitation.
I followed them as we slowly walked down that hallway. It was much darker, and the air was filled with electricity now. It also felt warmer. I reasoned that it may have been from the fire of Lacy's spirit. Saffron had burned her to death.
It had been so cruel when I'd allowed myself to see it. Lacy was in a mental hospital at the time because Jade had nearly driven her insane. But this woman also carried a deep faith within her and had been able to figure out that Jade and Saffron were evil beings. Somehow, she'd opened a communication with the angel who was trying to help Faith Evan's soul, but she'd made a mistake when she'd let Saffron know about it. Late one night, he returned to the hospital and possessed the body of one of the men being held there. After killing a night nurse and leaving his room, he'd found some accelerant and matches in a utility room, then broke into her room and doused her with it.
And he lit the match.
I pulled myself back from those visions as Zane reached down and slowly turned the doorknob. The door was very old and creaked loudly as it opened. The room it opened to didn't really look any different from the rest of the house. It simply appeared to be a very large bedroom.
We could see what was once a beautiful king-sized bed with the headboard resting against the far wall directly in front of us. The room had been painted white, though the paint was faded and peeling now. An old dresser was standing near the bed along with a small oak nightstand. Beside us was an old writing desk with molded papers scattered on it. A large cherry wood bookshelf with old books was sitting by it. Two of the four shelves had collapsed, leaving a mess on the floor in front of it.
But we saw no sign of Lacy Manson's spirit. The only thing we did see was a dark, somewhat round stain on the floor near the left side of the bed.
Zane took another step in, "Looks like she's hiding. She must be afraid with what she's feeling from us." he reasoned.
"I wouldn't doubt it, especially with Ariana here. With her bloodline being from the one who killed her, I'd imagine that she does carry a certain fear of her." Michael agreed.
The stone around my neck began to glow. I had almost forgotten that I'd pulled it out to rest against my jacket before we left. I had kept it out in case I needed Saffron's protection. Well, if he'd decide to protect me.
"As it should be." Saffron interjected.
Michael looked over at me. He didn't seem surprised to see the stone glowing.
"So that stone's a way of communication. I had a feeling about that one when I noticed it." he admitted.
"You're very intuitive, but I'd expect no less from one of Malakai's. You are a Sapphire Nephilim, and Malakai is quite a high-ranking Pure Light. To think that we were once what he liked to call good friends." Saffron chuckled at his own words.
"All of you were apparently great deceivers, but you do realize that what's being done here is what must be." Michael reasoned.
"If you insist. I will not stop any of it, but I also have no intention of releasing this woman's soul of my own free will. That you will have to do on your own. That is, if you are so able to cleanse it." Saffron boasted. Then he was gone.
I could hear the familiar, horrible cracking sounds starting as he vanished. They were coming from that dark stain on the floor. I took a step back behind Zane, gently holding onto his arm. He squeezed my hand, reassuring me that he would protect me.
As we watched, a deformed, burned hand reached up out of the stain. It slammed hard onto the ruined floor, and I could see the rest of Lacy Manson follow it up as she pulled herself out. That horrible, burned face was the same as I remembered from nearly a year before. She moaned as she pulled herself out, her bones snapping and cracking as she stood up and hunched over on the other side of the hole. The room grew very warm as she stood there, staring at us with her wide, frightened looking eyes.
"The demon! The demon's face!" she screeched as those eyes fell on me.
A fire suddenly erupted on the desk beside us. I jumped back with Zane, and thankfully it didn't burn us. It died away again just as quickly as it came, leaving a scorch mark on the side of the desk.
Zane immediately acted, holding out his hand and forming a black whip, "Enough of this." he muttered, flicking his wrist and wrapping the whip around Lacy's waist. It bound her deformed arms to her sides. She screeched in anger at him, more fire erupting around her.
Michael stepped forward and slipped off his coat as this happened. I heard the ripping sound of his blue dress shirt as large wings came out of his back. But they weren't like ours. They were a beautiful shade of blue, just like his eyes.
Lacy's spirit struggled harder against the whip as she saw this, and I could sense the fear from deep within her.
"Stay away! There are no holy ones!" she screamed.
"I'm afraid you have it wrong. No one here wants to harm you, so calm down and listen to us. Only you can free yourself." Michael told her.
I noticed that he seemed to be a little more serious than he'd been before we walked in there. There was a set look in those beautiful blue eyes, and his tone sounded much sterner.
Lacy stopped for a moment, staring him down as she bent her head back. The leftover strands of her dark hair partially covered her right eye.
"Demons with human faces. Even you claim to be holy, just like he did, but he didn't help me. No one helped me and he murdered me!" she growled.
Zane kept the whip pulled tight around her, making sure that she couldn't move, "You're blaming all of them, are you? I can't say I'm surprised. You're so set on blame now that you can't even see that you could be set free from all of this."
"What could you do?!" Lacy challenged, her thick voice even more course as she spoke in anger, "You were born damned just like that heretic's child behind you. She even has his face and eyes. His wife damned us all and made her!"
All at once I heard a loud snapping sound. The whip was fraying with the heat and beginning to break. Zane let it go as it did, grabbing me and moving me to the side so that the leftovers of the whip didn't hit us.
Michael didn't move. The fragments of the whip hit an invisible shield that he'd brought up around him. It was obvious that he wasn't an amateur when it came to this. He didn't even flinch as it happened.
Lacy lurched towards him, her body snapping and cracking as she moved. The whole thing brought back the memory of that day that Chris had saved me. A part of me was almost expecting to see him appear at any minute in the doorway to drive her back again.
Michael stood his ground as Lacy stopped just inches in front of him. She stared at him; her wide, bloodshot eyes unblinking.
"Even without the darkness, an abomination in the world." she hissed.
Michael remained unphased by her words, "I've been called that quite a few times in my life, but I'm really no different than anything else that exists. Don't you think it's time to give this fight up and come to reason?"
Lacy batted his hand away as he reached towards her, stepping back and screaming as fire surrounded her again. It was bright and hot, and Michael had to back away while holding an arm up to shield his face and eyes.
Zane stood in front of me, bringing his wings out to shield us. I was a little surprised to see that the heat and fire couldn't burn them.
"That's enough of this!" he yelled.
In a quick movement, he'd grabbed Lacy's throat through her flames, slamming her back into the far wall. The green of his eyes turned a shade of red as he held her there.
Lacy struggled hard against his grip, her body contorting in all different ways; but nothing she did, including making herself flaming hot, was working to get him to let her go or even loosen his grip. The fire wasn't even burning his hand.
"That is enough." Zane growled, "You will learn to back down to us and stop being defiant when your fate was already written. There was nothing back then that a simple guardian could do to save you. He couldn't even save what was his to guard in the first place. So back down or I'll break you over and over until you do!"
I stared at this, feeling rooted to the spot that I was standing in. I'd never seen Zane act this aggressive before, but at the same time, I understood why he was doing it. It was what was needed now. He needed to release that dark part of him in order to subdue Lacy's angry spirit. It was probably the only way to do it.
Lacy screeched as she struggled against his grip, her fire glowing brightly around her again. I could see it burning the wall and exposing the wooden paneling underneath. She obviously had no plans on backing down to him.
But as I watched her, a vision flashed through my mind. It was her, standing in a crowded room and looking at Faith Evans, who stood at the opposite end of the same room with a tall, well-dressed man. The man was very handsome, but cold looking as well. His eyes especially sent a chill through me. They were the mean, dark eyes of a man hiding a very sadistic side.
Faith was looking down towards the floor, not even interested in the conversation going on around her. I felt a bit sorry for her as I watched this. It was easy to tell by her downcast eyes and tense posture that she was a very tortured woman in her personal life, and it felt like Lacy was sensing the same thing. I could hear her thoughts as she looked at her.
Maybe he's lying. Can someone really do that to themselves? What if he's lying? Will he hurt me too? But I can't get out of this now. He'll never let me walk away...
I suddenly knew what I had to do. Force was never going to get through to Lacy. Saffron had made sure of that when he'd killed her. But there was one thing that could, and it was something that I was certain only I could do, so I ran over there and wedged myself between Zane and her thrashing spirit.
"What in the world are you doing?!" Zane asked me in disbelief, "You can't be here! She'll burn you!"
I ignored him, reaching between them and grabbing Lacy's left hand, which was clawing at the wall. It was incredibly hot, and I could feel my hand burning as I held hers, but forced myself to keep holding on.
Lacy screamed as I did, and the visions flashed before my eyes. That was right. Lacy wasn't a bad person back then. She was just a young woman who had fallen in love with a married man and allowed him to use her. Even though she doubted him, she didn't know how to get out of the situation she was in, and seeing him die like he had and being attacked herself that night, she'd been determined to show the world that she wasn't crazy. She'd tried to use her faith in God to expose Faith Evans and make the demons go away, but she'd never anticipated how powerful Fallen Angels could be.
The burning in my hand faded as I saw all of this. Lacy's spirit was fading now, almost like she was burning out. Her body turned more of a greyish blue, billowing slightly as it did.
Zane stared up at her, his eyes turning back to normal as he began releasing his grip. Lacy slipped down to the floor in front of us, still holding onto my hand. A deep sob came out of her as she kept her head down. It seemed to echo in the room as we stood around her.
"Now it seems we're finally able to get through to her." I heard Michael say.
He knelt down beside me and gently held my hand, forcing me to let Lacy's go. I hadn't even realized until then that I was still holding onto it. The skin on my hand was badly burned and hurt so much that I thought I might be sick. But when Michael put his hand around it, the pain instantly went away. When he let go, the deep burns were gone. It looked like they'd never even been there.
Michael then turned his attention back to Lacy. I stared at his wings as he did. His wings were nothing like ours. They were beautiful and pure looking. The blue feathers shined even in the dim light. It was a sobering reminder of just how different we were from him. Michael was born from the holy. We were born from the damned.
Lacy didn't move as he knelt in front of her, "Now you understand that no one is here to hurt you." he told her in a gentler tone.
"I don't understand. How can a monster have a child? How can monsters create children that can be good?" Lacy whispered.
She looked up at me as she spoke. Even though she was still horribly disfigured, her eyes were nowhere near as wild now. They instead looked very sad and confused.
"Because we're not the monsters we're made out to be." Zane responded, kneeling in front of her too.
He laid a hand over her eyes. As soon as he did, she began to glow again. But it wasn't with fire. Her body glowed and transformed back into a normal looking person's. She was a very pretty woman with long dark hair and doe like brown eyes. She was still dressed in the off-white hospital gown she'd been wearing on the day she'd died.
Michael smiled at him as he stood up beside me, "It seems that you have more abilities than you've been letting on." he noted.
"I do. I wouldn't have agreed to do this if I didn't know for certain that I could free her." Zane admitted. He looked back at Lacy, "Now you understand everything. We are not the same as him, and he will never free you from the torment he's left you in, but I can. Ariana could as well, but she has not yet realized the ability due to her youth. She was simply able to cut through the haze of your insanity quicker than I could and clear your mind. That is enough to allow me to do this. But now you must make your choice. Either you can choose to let your vengeful thoughts go, or you can remain trapped here for the rest of your afterlife."
Lacy stared back at him, looking startled. Her pale form glowed slightly in the dim light, flickering in and out.
"I can go?" she whispered.
Zane nodded, "You're free to go if you can let go of your vengeance against those from the past."
My Heretic Stone got warm as he said that. It lit up brightly, commanding attention.
"And you really believe she's capable of that? She was a pitiful soul before. She even committed the sin of adultery knowing full well what she was doing. Nothing good is awaiting her from here." Saffron stated in a very matter of fact tone.
I don't think any of us were surprised that he was doing this. No doubt he would try everything in his power to keep her now that we were about to set her free.
Lacy immediately backed up against the nearby bed. The look of fright was clear on her face. I wondered how many times Saffron had returned there to torment her since she had died. The thought made me angry.
"Who says she can't be free because of that? Isn't it possible for everyone to ask for forgiveness?" I challenged him.
I heard Saffron chuckle, "Forgiveness? My dear, I think you're forgetting where you come from. There is no such thing. Just as this redemption for your kind. Kinsley's following a pipe dream. It will never be allowed. But you already know that, don't you Zane? And you're well aware that this woman won't go free once you release her. It would've been better if you'd just eliminated her completely before Ariana interfered." he continued.
Zane looked at my stone, shaking his head, "You'd just love me to give into my truest nature, wouldn't you?" he muttered.
"Indeed. It's who you are, just like the rest of them. You are no better than that father of yours and you are well aware of it."
I'd heard enough, "It doesn't matter what you say now. We're letting her go. You've had her long enough."
"Is that so? You really think you're capable?"
"I am, and if you try to stop me, then I'll take this stone off." I threatened.
I knew that this would more than likely be the best thing to use against him. Saffron had told me many times that he'd made this Heretic Stone just for me. It was his best connection to me, and I was his greatest treasure.
Saffron fell silent as he heard me say this. It was like it had shocked him.
Zane stood up straight again, "You're well aware that she can destroy that stone anytime she wishes, and if she does, then you've lost your greatest connection to her aside from blood. I don't think you want that right now, so you may as well give this one up. It's over Saffron." he told him.
Another moment of silence passed, though the stone remained in its glowing state. Then Saffron finally relented.
"Very well. Release her if you will. I'm tired of her as it is."
I didn't miss the anger in his voice as he vanished. It made me wonder if we'd pay for this later.
Lacy stared at us, looking amazed at what had just happened. She slowly stood up, not able to face us. Her form shifted in and out of the light.
"You would do all of this... just to save me?" she whispered. It was so soft that we could barely hear her.
"There's no reason for you to be stuck here. It wasn't your fault that you got involved with all of that back then." I reasoned.
"But I... I may not be able to go anywhere after this. I knew what I did then." Lacy confessed. I could see translucent tears running down her cheeks.
Michael stepped over and gently tilted her head up to look at him, "And it will all be okay. All you have to do is ask for forgiveness and mean it from your heart. Trust me on that one. I've seen it before, and I know how it works. If you truly mean what you say, then you have nothing to worry about. You can finally go to where you're meant to be, and I'm sure that there are many who have been waiting for you for a very long time." he told her.
Lacy stared at him with wide eyes, then a grateful smile crossed her face, "Thank you. Thank you so much."
"Of course. It's why we exist now." Michael responded, smiling back at her.
Lacy looked back at me, "I'm so sorry about what I did to you before. Can you forgive me?" she requested.
I felt a bit of warmth within me now. Lacy had never been bad. She was just so tormented that she couldn't see past anything more than what had happened to her.
"I do. Just be free. It's all over now." I told her.
Lacy smiled, looking down again. As she did, her entire being began glowing in a bright, radiant light. It lasted maybe ten seconds, then she was gone.
The house was eerily silent as we stood there, but at the same time, I could feel where the heaviness had lifted. The room we were in even looked lighter. It was just another old, abandoned house now.
Zane looked at my hand, "You're a talented healer Michael, and here I thought Sapphire Angels were more fighters than healers." he commented.
Michael looked amused, "We typically are, although a few of us have a talent with healing as well. At least the older ones like myself tend to. But I'm surprised. You're fairly powerful yourself."
"So you've noticed."
Zane seemed to be downplaying all of this, but I knew the feeling I was getting from him. He didn't trust Michael. I wasn't too sure if that was a good thing. With what I had gotten from Kinsley before, we may need to work with these clans if we wanted to save our kind. Either way, I didn't think having them as enemies was going to benefit us.
With all of this in mind, I spoke up, "Can we talk about all of this somewhere else? It's really getting cold in here."
"Yes, of course. I think it may be better if we got back to your old home for now. Would you care to join us, Michael?" Zane offered. It sounded a bit begrudging.
Michael again seemed to ignore his attitude towards him. He nodded as he walked over to the far side of the room and picked up his coat from the floor, bringing his wings back into his shoulder blades as he slipped it on.
"I don't see where it would hurt anything. I'm staying here in town for another night or so, and it's not that long of a walk back to the hotel from this area. Besides, I'm rather curious about the two of you, so I think I'll visit with you and ask what I'd like to know."
"You're not nosey at all, are you?" Zane commented. He put an arm around my shoulders and walked us out of the room.
"I wouldn't call myself that most of the time, but I'm not passing up the opportunity to know more about what they like to call our opposites either." Michael responded as he followed.
Outside of the house was still very cold, but the sun was starting to make its way through the branches of the surrounding trees. It gave the snow a sparkling quality, and the world felt alive again.
But at the same time, there was a tension in the air. It was like the world was now anticipating a great change. Something very big was coming very soon, and it had all started from the moment we came there and met Michael Renaldi.