Genesis: Falling Angel Read Free Page A

and drink. They fought like animals over scraps. Everyone looked human, though some of the “humans” had silvery eyes. The flag rippled in the wind, showing a deep green background with a black wolf’s head. A man was shown lastly. He was dark-skinned with silvery eyes and a cruel smirk.
    The fourth was the absolute worst. If I was capable of feeling nausea, I would have been very ill. The citizens were hardly clothed. The immortals were more human in appearance, though they still were fairly easy to tell apart.. Mortals had half-lidded eyes, stumbling about as though drugged. Some non-humans were a bit easy to spot with their pale skin and fangs, walking confidently among the needy humans. There was no fighting, no pain, only pleasure of the most sinful nature. There were demons that fed off of such pleasure, dragging humans into dark alleys or even feeding in public. The flag was a golden eight-pointed star on a purple background.
    The council was gasping with horror at all of the appropriate times, but it was obvious that most were just bored. Humans were of no concern to them. Unless God ordered them to interact with humans, then there was no real point. I tried to mask the scowl creeping onto my face with a look of horror.
    The next few cities were shown, but I could no longer pay attention. Toward the end, Gabriel whispered in my ear, “These are unsettling images. Perhaps you should wait outside?”
    At first I believed he was showing concern for me. I met his gaze and found that he merely wante d to see if I had given up. His little show was all for me! This angered me slightly, and I shook my head. “No, I’m fine. I want to hear what the council decides.”
    He tensed, though nodded and turned to address the council. I loved him as I loved all of my kind, but he angered me more than anything. Sometimes I wished to express my thoughts. I wanted to tell him that his pride could only be matched by Satan himself.
    However, that would be a great accusation.
    “As you have seen,” he began, “the Gates of Hell have been opened. Until now, demons have only slipped through to the earth in small numbers. Even then, we drove them back. Now, they are the dominant creatures on our Father’s earth.”
    “So what is to be done?” Michael asked. His companion was idly standing by him, her fingers running through his silvery hair as though she meant to braid it. I briefly pitied her. She was as bored as I was with the rules.
    “A group of us will be sent to one of the seven cities. One is to be a vessel , an angel in human form to carry the weight of his angelic brethren. In other words, the vessel will be a host to several angelic souls until they are released to fight the enemy. We are to capture Lilith’s soul and remove her from the earth. This involves a brief descent into Hell, though the stay will not be permanent. As a human, the vessel will experience emotion unlike anything we’ve ever known. There would also be pain, a great deal of it. There is more to this mission, though it will be information given solely to those who volunteer.” He reached into his robes, pulling out a small, crystal bottle filled with a black liquid. “This will trap you in human form until you experience your descent. Upon drinking it, you will be cast from Heaven into one of the cities. The others who volunteer will enter your new mortal body and remain dormant until they are called upon.”
    The crowd was silent.
    “No one volunteers? It is the will of God that we save his creation, though he will not force you to risk yourselves for them. He pleads with you, however. You are, after all, His most trusted servants.”
    No one spoke .
    “I will go,” I said softly. If no one else would help the mortals, then I would.
    Suddenly, Gabriel appeared angry, protective. “You will do no such thing. I will go alone, since my brothers and sisters are silent.”
    “Did God tell you to deny me the right to volunteer?” I