Chapter 6: Shaken and Stirred
Ano lay sprawled on his bed, one hand resting over his eyes, still reeling from his encounter with Michael. Was it real? Could an actual angel have appeared to him, or was he simply overtired from practice? He had tried to tell his dad about it over breakfast, but his dad had only chuckled, patting Ano on the shoulder.
"That's what happens when you're juggling rugby, school, and night services," his dad had said with a grin. "You start seeing angels."
Unable to get a serious reaction from his father, Ano called up his best friend Vivian, convinced she'd understand.
"So, Viv, last night, I met an angel."
There was a long pause on the other end of the line, and he could practically feel her rolling her eyes. "You know, Ano, this is a new level. I didn't know you were thisdesperate for attention," she teased.
"Vivian! I'm serious!" he replied, feeling a bit silly even as he said it. Her laughter on the other end of the line quickly dispelled any notion of her taking him seriously.
"Alright, angel boy. I'll play along." He could hear her stifling more laughter. "What's he like? Let me guess, wings? Halo? Smiting powers?"
Ano groaned. "Forget it," he muttered, hanging up. He'd never live this down.
Trying to shake the whole thing off, he decided to chalk it up to an extremely vivid dream. Maybe he'd had too much caffeine before bed. That was until he went to take a shower the next morning.
Stepping into the bathroom, he turned on the hot water, hoping it would wake him up and help him shake off this surreal haze. Just as he was washing his face, a familiar voice echoed in the misty air.
"It wasn't a dream, Ano."
Ano jumped, nearly slipping in the shower. He turned, and there, as calm as could be, stood Michael, his figure translucent in the rising steam.
"W-what are you doing here?" Ano stammered, eyes wide. He pulled a towel off the rack, half-heartedly covering himself as his cheeks burned with embarrassment.
Michael raised an eyebrow, seemingly unbothered by Ano's panic. "I thought we'd established that I'm your guide. There's no need to be modest."
Ano shook his head, staring at him in disbelief. "That doesn't mean you can just show up whenever you want! This is my private time!"
The angel merely shrugged, as if privacy were a concept he couldn't quite understand. "I am here to prepare you. Our time is short, and you have much to learn. Your journey will be fraught with challenges, and you must be ready."
Ano groaned, covering his face with his hands. This was too much to process before breakfast.
"Look," he said, frustration evident in his voice. "Can we at least talk after I've gotten dressed?"
Michael nodded, giving him a slight, amused smile. "Of course. I'll wait outside."
As the angel left, Ano took a deep breath, letting the reality sink in. It hadn't been a dream after all. This was real. Whatever was happening, he wasn't just imagining it.
A little while later, dressed and still trying to wrap his mind around everything, Ano found Michael waiting for him in his room, as if he'd never left.
"Alright," Ano began, "so let's pretend I believe all this. What do you mean by 'preparing' me? Preparing me for what, exactly?"
Michael regarded him with a serious expression. "The Game. You, and twelve others, were chosen to represent the Creator's champions. You'll be faced with challenges that test every part of you—your mind, your strength, and most importantly, your faith."
Ano raised an eyebrow. "Challenges? Like, what—fighting demons or something?"
Michael didn't answer directly, but his silence spoke volumes.
Ano sank onto the edge of his bed, rubbing his temples. "This… I don't know if I can do this. You've got the wrong person. I'm just a regular guy. I'm not special."
Michael's expression softened. "No one is born ready for a destiny this grand. But you were chosen for reasons that even I may not yet understand. You have the potential, Ano. That is why the Creator chose you."
Ano was silent, his mind whirling. He wasn't sure he could live up to such expectations, but there was a part of him—a tiny sliver—that felt strangely honored.
"Well, I guess I don't have much of a choice, do I?"
Michael's small smile returned. "You always have a choice, Ano. That is the nature of free will. But I believe that you will find the strength to see this through."
Despite Michael's departure, Ano felt a strange sensation—one of both weight and purpose. The rest of his day was a blur as he tried to go about his usual routine, but everything felt different. As he walked to school, he found himself glancing around, half-expecting to see otherworldly figures lurking in every corner.
When he finally met up with Vivian, she greeted him with her usual smirk, but he could tell she was still amused by his story from earlier.
"Hey, angel boy," she teased, nudging him with her elbow. "Seen any more celestial beings since this morning?"
Ano rolled his eyes, trying to mask the fact that he actually had. "Laugh it up, Viv," he muttered, feeling a little self-conscious.
But their conversation was cut short when a heavy feeling settled in the air around them. Ano paused, looking up at the sky, sensing a shift. Vivian noticed his sudden silence and followed his gaze.
"You okay?" she asked, frowning.
"Yeah, just… felt something weird."
Elsewhere, high above them in a realm beyond mortal sight, the twelve other angels gathered again. They each took a place in a circle, waiting in anticipation as one of them stepped forward.
Uriel, her silver aura bright against the background of shimmering light, spoke first. "Each of our champions has now been chosen. The roles are set, and soon, we must present them to the Creator."
Gabriel nodded, his face calm and resolute. "They may not yet understand their purpose, but they will. Each one has the spark needed to endure what lies ahead."
Sariel, the angel of secrets, had a thoughtful expression. "Some of them may crumble under the weight of their destinies. They are human, after all. They will need our guidance—now more than ever."
Michael, though absent from the gathering in body, remained present in spirit, his thoughts on Ano. His faith in his charge wasn't yet fully formed, but there was something about the young man, something hidden beneath his doubts and insecurities. Only time would reveal what made him worthy of the Creator's choice.
As the angels dispersed, a sense of solemnity hung over them. Each one knew that soon, their champions would be thrust into a world they could never have imagined, a world that held both wonder and terror.
Back on earth, Ano felt a shiver run down his spine, a sense that something larger than himself was drawing closer, just out of reach. Vivian gave him a questioning look as they approached the school gates.
"You sure you're alright, Ano? You seem… different today."
Ano took a deep breath, managing a shaky smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just… got a lot on my mind."
But as he entered the school grounds, he knew that his life was never going to be the same. The first step had been taken, and now, whether he was ready or not, the journey had begun.