Fallen Angels Read online

  “An ovum from each of them, to make a baby,” she said.

  “Baby?” I asked.

  “Seems Devon Pazuzu is still doing genetic experiments,” she answered.

  “Oh my God. Maya?”

  “That was the scariest thing she had ever encountered in her life. She has always put herself on the edge, daring to see how far she would go,” Kayla said. “To stay in that cage, only to find death as her reward? The thought of how close my sister came to that end horrifies me.”

  “We have to stop him from doing that to anyone else.”

  “Yes, we do,” she answered, reaching her hand out to mine. Instinctively, my fingers twirled in hers and I held her hand across the table. She gazed at me for a moment and my heart literally jumped.

  “Hey, you kids go out to the garden. I gotta clean up in here,” Ms. Maggie said as she poured the contents of one of the pots into a huge container.

  “You need any help?” I asked.

  “Thank you dear, but I got this down to a science. Be a lot faster with you two out of the way,” Ms. Maggie told me. I shrugged at Kayla, who followed me out to the garden, carrying her teacup.

  Kayla waved a hand and lights illuminated in the decorative foliage bordering the outside of the garden. I heard the screech of an owl, probably bothered by the lights scaring away its prey. Kayla rounded a corner toward a large outdoor courtyard. It was well furnished with comfortable chairs and tables. Toward the residence was a smaller interior courtyard with a fountain bubbling with water.

  The air was calm and the trees stretched out, partly hiding a bright moon. Birds flittered here and there through the trees, surprised by our arrival. Another cast of Kayla’s hand and a torch ignited on the wall overlooking the garden.

  “The mosquitoes can be a terror out here,” she said and slid into one of the oversized chairs. She placed her cup on a side table. I sat at a chair across from her and gazed out into the distance.

  “How do you do that?” I asked, motioning at the torches.

  “Oh, that’s simple.”

  “For you.”

  “I’m sorry. Some of the things you’re capable of are amazing. I keep forgetting you’re new at this.”

  “Maybe,” I said unsure of what she was talking about. I didn’t feel like I knew anything. “But I can’t turn on the lights.”

  “It’s simple, really,” she said. “What have you learned so far?”

  “Rene taught me earth.”

  “You began your earth training? Oh, good,” she said. “So this will be very easy for you.”

  “Okay, show me.”

  Kayla reached out and the lights around the garden twinkled and went out, then they came on again.

  “Come here,” she said. I did. She smelled like gardenia and honey, and I shivered in the warm night air. “You know how you can feel the earth’s energy beneath you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Everything has its own energy. Some of it is ambient and is given by the sun. Then there is cosmic energy. That is stored in rocks and water.” She reached out and the lights danced at her fingertips.

  “Other things create their own energy. That’s the aura of every living creature you feel on the planet. This world is absolutely alive with energy,” Kayla went on and suddenly her personal aura lit up, brilliant light surrounding her.

  “Every creature is attuned to it and accesses it in different ways. The Malakhim are especially good at channeling the power around us,” she said, still glowing dazzlingly. Her light dimmed again.

  Kayla held my hand in hers. I felt her fingers around mine, and I could feel the energy as the lights around the garden blinked. She sent a bit of herself out, joining it with the energy of the little diodes in the garden, lighting them and sending a bit of energy back, completing the circuit. Then she willed them to turn off as the lights gleamed off and on in the darkness.

  Through the trees at the edge of the garden, I noticed specks of light heading directly toward us. They darted into and around the trees and up high into the air. Kayla smiled as pair of tiny creatures dove out of the sky. They glowed like little candles. One of them circled me, quicker than a hummingbird. Then they stopped and I saw that it was a humanoid creature about four inches tall. It had long wings extending from the middle of its back. Its eyes were bright and inquisitive and looked at me with curiosity.

  “Jakoa. This is Matthew Rising,” Kayla told the little creature as it regarded me thoughtfully. The second brightly glowing creature darted at me and stopped inches from my face. It reached out and touched my nose with its slender hand and looked inquiringly at Kayla.

  “Yes Sala-Ul, he is the one,” Kayla told the little creature.

  “Matthew Rising, allow me to introduce you to Sala-Ul and her retainer, Jakoa. Sala-Ul, this is Matthew Rising.”

  “What are they?” I asked and at that, Jakoa twittered in my face.

  “Sala-Ul is a princess from the Ka Planetary Alliance and Jakoa here is her personal guard. They are the Kaga-Da-Ril and are observing this planet. Although they are a who and not a what,” Kayla said. Jakoa waggled his finger and chittered threateningly. I stifled a laugh; wouldn’t be too healthy to upset a royal bodyguard.

  “I apologize to your Princess Sala-Ul,” I told the little humanoid. “I mean no offense.” I bowed toward the princess. Jakoa exhaled crossly and flew to Sala-Ul’s side, regarding me with suspicion.

  “Sala-Ul, if it pleases you, I will continue our lesson.” The little princess nodded and flew to a perch on an overhead branch. The little army of humanoids took watch around her.

  Kayla turned toward me and once again held my hand in hers. I felt her power and I felt the stones in the garden holding the warmth from the sun. She flicked a finger and a slight tingle of power extended out and the small stone brightened with an inner light.

  “It’s a simple process. Each thing has energy. Earthbounds spend too much power sending energy across large power grids through metal cables. That is much too wasteful. These light stones store the sun’s power within itself, which we may then access by sending a tiny bit of our energy to put the stone into an excited, illuminated state, causing it to light up internally,” she said intently, like a teacher instructing a child. “Now you try.” She waved her hand and the entire garden became dark, except for the illuminated Kaga-Da-Ril watching us from above. The little creatures’ glow bathed us in a mauve light.

  I reached out and sensed the light stones. My energy extended out and they began to glow. Then suddenly, popping sounds, much like firecrackers, rang in the night air as the small stones exploded throughout the yard. Bits of rock flew everywhere. Sala-Ul’s people flittered away from the garden to avoid the sharp, flying shards. A group of the little humanoids stood steadfastly before Sala-Ul, protecting her as she sat there calmly. Jakoa twittered loudly again and I knew he was telling me to cut it out, dumbass. I dropped my hand, discomfited by my efforts.

  “You’re using too much power, too strong.” Kayla said in her intoxicating accent. She looked at me and asked quietly, “May I?” I nodded and I felt her mind in mine, searching.

  “Try again,” I heard her say. I reached out my hand toward the light stones and this time, I felt her dampen the energy I sent out. It was like cool water washed over a fire until the stones below still gave off warmth but did not burn. The remaining light stones brightened and glowed.

  “I can feel the stones,” I said jubilantly, lighting each stone randomly. The garden lit triumphantly. I felt Kayla regress, leaving my mind as I played with the lights around the foliage, making them dance. The Kaga-Da-Ril clapped appreciatively at my display, some of them flying out in the garden, dancing around the blinking lights, twittering with laughter.

  After a few moments, I noticed Kayla had sat back down. She sipped at the cup of tea and looked troubled. I had no idea why she would be.

  “Kayla, are you alright?” I asked.

  She considered me silently and then took another
sip. The light stones stopped their dance but remained lit as I sat across from her again.

  “What happened to your mother?” she asked.

  “My mother passed when I was very young,” I answered. I didn’t mention how much of a hole not having a mother left. It still stung even after all these years.

  “What have you been told about her?”

  “My father told me once she was beautiful and one of the kindest people he knew. He doesn’t like to talk about her; I think it’s too hard for him,” I answered. The feeling of being alone so often in the world, without a mother and with a father who was often gone welled up in me.

  Kayla watched me silently, taking another sip from her cup.

  “What about your father. What is he like?”

  “He’s a military man. Always gone, but when he is around, he is very strict. It wasn’t the easiest of childhoods, but like anything, it could have been worse,” I answered. “Why do you ask?”

  Jakoa flew down from his perch and twittered to Kayla.

  “Yes, of course,” she said to the little creature. “Sala-Ul, thank you so much for your visit tonight. It was a pleasure seeing you.” Sala-Ul nodded and, with the rest of her retinue, flew back past the light stones and into the darkness.

  “I wanted to thank you for what you did for Maya.” Kayla stood. “Sometimes she is infuriating, but she is my sister, my twin.” She took a few steps farther out in the courtyard and looked out over the garden beyond. “I would do anything for her.”

  “I think George deserves more of the thanks,” I said.

  “You were the one who got everyone to go. Besides, I think my sister is giving him enough thanks,” she said with a wry grin. She walked behind me and I felt her hand on my shoulder.

  Her touch was light and tentative. I clasped her hand in mine and turned toward her. I was just about to stand when we heard the most annoying thing I could imagine.

  “Why don’t you two get a room?” George yelled. He stood there in an oversized pair of pajamas and grinned like he had just stolen a whole jar full of cookies. Yeah, the bastard only felt better when he had a chance to really piss me off. Kayla’s hand pulled away and she retreated back into the kitchen.

  I sighed and thought that now would be a really good time to kick George’s ass.

  “So you feel better, prick?”

  He smiled. “Yeah, I’m good.”

  “So why you bothering me? She’s beautiful, man!”

  “I’m out for just a little bit and you suddenly have delusions there, Matty boy,” George said. “Besides, Maya called and said Kayla needed to get back.” I was about to show him exactly what I thought of his timing when I saw him cringe in pain. Good for the punk, but it wouldn’t look too good if I knocked some sense into someone who may have saved my life.

  I couldn’t stand the thought that I owed the guy for saving my life, not once but several times. I had no better friend than George, but it was a guy thing. I would have to get that figured out quickly. Either that or get much better at fighting these things that keep popping up.

  George looked at me with a strange expression. His face looked thoughtful, like it might crack from the strain.

  “Brother, be careful with that one,” he said solemnly.

  “Who?” I asked.

  “Kayla.”

  “Why should I watch out for her?”

  “She’s not one of us,” George said, his face unfathomable and distant.

  “Ms. Maggie said something about her being a Princess and not from around here,” I told him.

  “Yeah, something like that. It’s just that her parents aren’t really cool with us and all.”

  “You mean, Malakhim?”

  “No, I mean those here on Earth, especially those that came back.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Many Starborn dreamed of returning to Earth. My family came back hundreds of years ago and started a new life here.”

  “And so?” I asked.

  “There were also plenty of humans that didn’t want to come back. They think of Earthbounds as lower-based creatures. They resent everything about this planet because it connects them to animals. You ever hear about those weirdo Christian Fundamentalists and how they act when someone tell them we’re evolved from monkeys?” I nodded. “That’s exactly how they feel about having ancestors from here on Earth,” George continued.

  “But what does that have to do with Kayla?” I asked.

  “Kayla and Maya come from a very powerful galactic family that would like nothing better than to see this planet blown up.”

  “What? Then why is Kayla here?” I asked. “If her family is such an enemy, why would their daughter be here?” It didn’t make any sense to me. Then again, nothing I had learned in the last few days made any sense anyway. Why stop now?

  “Because Kayla and Maya demanded the chance to be here. They wanted to learn of our history, wanted to see what makes all of us human. So after correspondence with your aunt, the Pendrake Family sent her and Maya here to study. They will return home when their studies are completed.”

  “How long is that?”

  “End of the summer. When that happens, we’ll be on opposite sides.”

  “That sucks.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  “What’s up with you and Maya?” I asked.

  “I don’t know. We had this talk and I guess we’re cool with things the way they are, you know?”

  “Yeah, I guess so. Hey, it’s not like I knew Kayla very well, now did I?” My stomach churned as I said it.

  “We got other problems, too. After what happened with Maya and Devon Pazuzu, the Pendrake family is demanding that Pazuzu be brought to justice.”

  “Can they do that?”

  “They will get the Galactic Council to look into it, but if the Galactic Council decides against Pazuzu, the only thing that’ll do is start the war, and we’re not ready.”

  “So are you saying we shouldn’t have saved her?” I asked bitterly. “Because, dude, that was not an option!”

  “No, of course not. You’re not listening. If we didn’t save Maya and she died, the Pendrake family wouldn’t have stopped until the planet was rubble.” He scratched his head. “What I am saying is that with the force the Pendrake family is going to put on the Galactic Council to punish Pazuzu, the war may come sooner than we thought. Both of them could care less what happens to us here.”

  “Well, that’s just great. I thought I had enough problems already.”

  “Let’s go inside. It’s cold out here.”

  “I’ll see you inside in a bit,” I said. George walked back into the house.

  I stayed outside for a little while longer as the air chilled. I played with the light stones, turning them off and on in the way Kayla taught me, thinking that the world just sucked.

  Chapter 25 - Enkadu

  “…Time I am, Destroyer of Worlds, and I have come to engage all people. With the exception of you, all soldiers on both sides will be slain.”

  Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 Verse 32

  The sun crept through the window like the finger of God and the weariness of my mind was only eclipsed by the fatigue of my aching body. Something scratched at the door. I pulled the blanket over my head, hoping that I could sleep until next week.

  I stretched and the ache turned to blistering pain. My ribs never did completely heal from the beating Tuli gave me. Maybe I should have Ms. Maggie or Aunt Emily look at it. Fix me up with some of that space medicine. It just never seemed like the right time.

  The scratching intensified, and somehow I knew exactly who, or should I say what, it was. “Bailey! Let me sleep, you good for nothing dog!”

  At that, the bedroom door opened and Bailey ran in. I didn’t think he’d be able to reach the door handle, much less open it. But nothing surprised me anymore. I felt the small dog jump up on the bed.

  “Now, that is just rude,” the dog said as it tugged at the blanket. I pulled i
t tighter to me. “Get up, kid, or I’m going to pee on you!”

  Instantly, I pulled the blanket down and was met by the soft, wet kiss of dog.

  “Oh, that is just disgusting! What do you want?”

  “Sausage!”

  “You woke me up for sausage? You little creep!”

  “What better reason to wake you up? Besides, it’s already six in the evening.”

  “You’re kidding?” The dog jumped up and down on the bed. I didn’t understand if it really was a dog, or something else. Whatever it was, it was definitely a pain in the ass.

  “Nope, so get out of bed and let’s have sausage.” Bailey jumped off the bed and ran down the stairs. The smell of something frying wafted into the room and my stomach growled. I headed toward the smell.

  “Well, good morning, sleepyhead! You hungry?” Ms. Maggie asked. The smell of frying chicken was absolutely heavenly. My stomach rumbled and Ms. Maggie cackled, “You don’t have to tell me twice.” She grabbed a plate and placed two large pieces of the still sizzling chicken between mashed potatoes and topped it off with some cole slaw.

  “Umm, thanks,” I said, taking the plate to the table. I ate noisily. The chicken was just as good as it looked. Bailey stared up through the glass table, so I broke off a piece and threw it down to make him happy.

  “Matthew! Will you stop feeding him?”

  “He keeps asking me for some.”

  Ms. Maggie waggled a wooden spoon in my direction. “What do you mean, asking you? That’s a dog.”

  I was about to argue when I felt a sharp nip at my ankles. “Hey!”

  “Shhh,” the dog whispered, then winked at me.

  I sat there dumbfounded, looking between the lady at the counter and the little Jack Russell at my feet.

  “Matthew, I’ll be right back. Don’t go feeding that dog,” Ms. Maggie said as she left the kitchen. My attention turned immediately to the dog at my feet.

  “What the hell was that about?”

  “Kid, you’re not going to believe it if I told you.” I wasn’t sure how it was able speak so clearly. Its mouth wasn’t shaped like a human’s, but the words were crystal clear.