The Hunt

The Hunt

Chapter 16

Blood Brothers

~John’s P.O.V~

They were late as usual. Claire and I were sitting in our room flipping through tv. Michael and Joey were supposed to meet us down her at noon and it was way past that.  “Maybe we should go check on them?” Claire suggested. I checked my watch, (1:37pm). I huffed, “I suppose we can.” Though secretly I was worried. They were never this late. We walked up to their room and knocked on the door. No answer so I tried the door handle. Locked. I stood there and the maid walked up the hallway. I approached her and said, “ Ma’m? My brothers and I had a fight yesterday and I can’t get into the room cause they locked me out.” She smiled and laughed alittle, “ I’ll unlock it for you sweetheart.” She walked over and slid the master key into the lock. The door clicked open and she patted me on the shoulder as she left. I walked in and heard Claire gasp behind me. They were gone. Their clothes were here and the T.V. was still on. The coffee pot was in to floor and the beds were unmade, but there was no sign of Michael or Joey. We searched around the room for clues but found none. Giving up I sat on the bed and Claire sat beside me, “ Where do you think they went?” I shrugged. “ Do you think something kidnapped them?” She asked. I stood up and checked the windows and door for forced entry but found none. “ If that’s the case then what ever it was had to have appeared out of no where into the room take out both Michael and Joey and leave again – with both oh them – and not leave a single trace.” I said. “ Is there anything that could do that?” She asked. I wracked my brain and paced the floor. Then I thought of the only thing I knew of that had the power to do that. “ Claire we gotta make a trip home come on.” I said grabbing their stuff and headed out the door.
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~Joey’s P.O.V~

I groaned.   I had just woken up and this hotel bed was so uncomfortable. My neck was stiff and my back hurt. I had fallen asleep with my hands behind me and the ached. Plus sleeping in the sitting position wasn’t helping… wait what? I opened my eyes and my head shot up. I was sitting in a chair with my hands behind me and I couldn’t move. I was in an all-white  empty room. I opened my mouth and yelled, “ hello!”  “Ouch that was my ear! You don’t have to yell it’s not going to do any good.” “Michael?” I said softer. “ No you idiot. Its Santa Clause… of course its me!” he hissed. We were sitting back to back against each other. My panic was calming down a bit, but I was still jittery. “ Where are we? What happened? Why can’t we move?” I asked him. “ I don’t know, I don’t know, oh and, I don’t know. All I know is there’s no rope binding us so it must be some kind of magic.” He said. “ So what do we do?”  He didn’t answer.  “ Who was that dude in the Hotel room,”I aksed him.  “ I don’t know. He appeared out of thin air and I jumped up knocking over the coffee pot. Next thing I know he’s beside me and when he touched me I blacked out.” “ Same. Sorta… I heard you knock over the coffee pot and got up to turn on the lights. When I got them on he’d put you over his shoulder and came after me.” “Okay so let’s see Demon maybe?”he hypothesized. I thought about this, “ could a demon knock us out by touch?” I asked. “ Hmm…  not that I know of.” He said. We both sat there and thought about what that could have been. “ I got nothing,” I said. “ Me either.”

We sat there for a while before two double doors appeared out of nowhere in the wall and a man walked in. He was wearing a white mid –sleeve shirt and black pants. He had light brown short curly hair, and dark grey eyes. He walked fully into the room and my heart stopped. Behind him protruding from his back were two large light beige-ish color wings. “ Of course.” Michael said, “ Angels.”  The man raised his hand and snapped his fingers. The pressure that had bound my wrist had suddenly disappeared and I could move.  I jumped up and Michael did the same. We uncertain looks and then turned to the man. “ Who are you?” he asked. “ My name is Zayden. I’m the son of the arch angel Gabriel and the  goddess Phobe. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He walked closer and looked at us like one might examine an animal in a cage. Which is what I felt like knowing we were trapped here in this room with him.  As he got closer he looked to be about my age or maybe a year older. “Alright you two follow me.” He command and began to walk out the door. Michael and I followed slowly and kept looking for ways to escape, but found none.

Zayden led us to a set of large mahogany doors that towered over us by about ten feet with huge wooded door handles. He reached forward and opened the doors. They swung open lightly and I could see the people inside. There were several people sitting at a table staring at us.  “ Welcome to the Angels Den.” Zayden said and beckoned us in. He started at the end of the table and said, “ This is Trya. ( an African skinned woman with light brown eyes and straight black hair. She had s young face, but her eyes revealed her true and old age.) And this is Sable ( an Asian girl who look to be about 20 and also had black/brown hair, but had unusually purple eyes.) And Riley ( A red head with yellow orange eyes and pale ivory skin.).” Zayden then walked over to the other side of the table and said, “ This is Maliki( A man with gray hair but a young face and navy blue eyes) Raphael ( A man with blonde hair and hazel eyes.) And my father Gabriel ( The man from the hotel but here he had golden eyes) and this is the arch angel Michael.” He said gesturing to the man in the middle of the table. He had Chocolate brown hair and ice blue eyes. His red v-neck shirt hugged his body and his hands were balled up on to table infront of him. He was looking at us and I started to feel incredibly nervous so I crossed my arms over my chest.

“Okay everybody.” Michael said and the others stood and left. Michael and I were left standing in front of the doors looking at this man who had stood up out of his chair and easily stood 6’7”.  “ Who are you?”  Michael asked. “ My names Michael. In an arch angel and command the other angels in Heaven. I’m also your father.”  Michaels mouth dropped. I stood there thinking so Michael has an angel for a father. “ So why am I here?” I asked, surely they’d want to talk alone. “ Because I’m your father also Josef.” Now my mouth dropped. My father? No. “ My father’s dead.” I said angrily. He sighed, “ No Josef. I’m you father. I met your mother years ago on a beach about week before she married your father.” He paused, “ I told her the truth about who I was, what I was, and she still liked me. I spent the entire week there. She  had had a fight with you father she told me that she didn’t know if she was still getting married. And well the rest is history.”  I still didn’t fully believe him, but he seems so honest about it I was sure. “ Josef, Michael, why do you think neither of you bare any resemblance to the man you thought was your father. And why do you think you two look so similar?” I looked at Michael and he looked at me. We both realized it at the same time; how we had the same facial structure and the same body build. I look back at him, “ Wait where did my hair color come from?” Random question I know, but I was the only one with jet black hair. “ I once had black hair when I was younger. That was he only trait you caught from me that was plainly visible.”  I didn’t know what to think, but I knew he was telling the truth. I looked at Michael – my brother – to see what he was thinking. I saw it on his face, he believed it too. “ What about Sam and Kayla?” he asked. “ No they are not mine. They are you moms’ husbands’ kids.”  He turned his head to the side, then rubbed his eyes and sighed, “ I’ll be back,” he informed us and walked out looking annoyed.  He left Michael and I standing there stunned and unsure what to do. “ This is awkward.” I said.  “ You think?”  Michael snapped. I sat down in a red cushion lined bench the stood out from the wall by the door where we were standing.  Michael sat down beside me and said, “So we’re brothers?” “ I guess” He put his head in his hands and said, “ Dude that makes me feel twice as worse about that fight.”   I sat there silently, because I had no idea what to say. I was still in shock. That’s when my father and another man walked in.  “ Boys this is Ezekiel. He’s the Wings expert. Help you with your wings.”  “ Wings? What wings?” Michael asked. “ Hm… No wings yet?” Ezekiel said, “ Well this isn’t going to be fun. Come here boys.” We hesitantly walked towards him and stopped a few feet away. “Okay so we have to ‘ sprout’ your wings. You should have gotten them around fourteen but I guess since you weren’t in touch with your father it hasn’t happened yet.” He continued, “ This is probably going to be slightly painful but you’ll live.” “ How painful?” I asked. “ You have to grow two new body parts. How painful do you think?” I winced at the thought. “ Okay  oldest first I guess. Come here Michael.” But Michael didn’t move. In fact he appeared to be frozen to the spot. “ Oh for heavens sake.” Ezekiel said and walk over to him. “ It’s ok son.” Michael the arch angel said.  Ezekiel placed his hands on Michaels shoulders and they started to glow gold. Michael yelled and jumped away from him. When he grasped the edge of the table to hold himself up I could see his shoulder blades moving beneath his shirt. I gasped and started to back away as Ezekiel approached me. “ Now Josef it going to be okay.” He said but I knew better. I look around wildly for escape. Michael had fallen on to the floor and was writhing in pain on the floor. Ezikiel had grown tired of trying to approach me and snapped his fingers. Suddenly my body seized up and I couldn’t move. “ That’s better,” he said. He walked over and place his hands on my shoulders and positioned his thumbs over my shoulder blades and rubbed them in three small circles in different directions. At first nothing happened, but then I felt my back start to get warm and them burn almost like my shirt had been set on fire. My bones felt like they were breaking and popping. I could feel them slide and move under my skin. By now Michael had passed out and I was about to follow however I stayed awake long enough to hear Ezekiel and Michael talk about how long this would take. I black out after hearing it would be several hours…

~Michael’s P.O.V~

I saw my son’s on the floor and I felt guilt and regret for being the reason they were in pain.  I was going to tell them sooner but I didn’t know how. Plus they were happier where they were. But they needed me now. I walked out and found Gabriel standing outside and he said, “ How’s it going?” “ As expected.” I said. Zayden was standing behind his father  and I looked at him, “ Zayden I need you to help them figure things out.”  He nodded and walked into the room. “What’s wrong Michael?” Gabriel asked me.  “ Do you think I should have waited to tell them?”  “ I think you waited too long brother.” Gabriel had told Zayden on his thirteenth birthday. Zayden’s ‘parents’ had divorced and his mom was an alcoholic so Gabriel went down and brought him back up here and he’s  been up with us ever since. “ I don’t know. I almost didn’t want to tell them but I needed to.”  Gabriel patted me on the shoulder. “ It was the right thing to do Michael. They needed their father. They would have figured out they were different eventually.” I nodded and walked away.

I went in to the throne room of my Father and kneeled down. Father? I thought.  Yes my son?  The reply came. Did I do the right thing?

 That depends.

 On what?

Are they happier? Are you?

Yes. I’m happier with them here and I don’t know how they feel.

My son, you are a father of two children. I am a father of many. I think I can sympathize with your fear for  them, but if you are happier then chances are they will be too.

Thank you, father.

I stood up and walked out. I went back to check on my children and seen that they were sitting up on the floor breathing heavy but they had their wings.

~Joey’s P.O.V~

“Extraordinary!” I heard someone say, “ I’ve never seen wings grow that fast! It was what twenty minutes? Insane.”

“Oooh,” groaned. My head was pounding and my shoulders were sore. Growing wings was a painful job. I pushed myself up on to my elbows and sat up. My vision was blurry and I felt sick. I looked around and seen Michael sitting up a few feet away from me. His shirt was torn and barley hanging on his torso, because of the large, white feathered wings that had grown out of his back. The lights in the room made them seem to glow and looking at them hurt my already throbbing head. I looked away and seen Zayden sitting on one of the chairs looking at us. Ezekiel was still going on about it happening so quickly. Zayden looked at him and rolled his eyes  then stood up. He walked over  to Michael and helped him up. Then me helped me up. I stood up and room spun. I blinked a few times and tried to regain my balance.  Zayden handed me a shirt and I looked down. My shirt was in the same condition as Michaels and was about to fall off. The shirt Zayden handed me was equipped for a person with wings. “ Try spreading your wings. They won’t be as cramped. There’s a mirror over there if you want to see them. One of a kind I’d say.” I  walked over and looked in the mirror. I couldn’t see them well since they were folded against my back so I tried to move them. Nothing happened. I concentrated on trying to control them and I felt them move. I took a deep breath and moved my sore new wings apart. They had about a nine foot wing span and were jet black, like my hair, but the last row or two of feathers were a dark almost bronzy brown. I turned around and realized that. The Michael had walked back in. “They suit you.” He said. I didn’t look away from the mirror, but I saw him walk up behind me. “How do they feel?” I didn’t know how to describe it. They felt odd, but also in a way they felt good. Like I’d always had them but never knew about them. “ They feel… perfect.” I responded. “Good.” He turned and walked over to talk to Michael. I continued to look at my wings and move them to get the feel of them.  “ Ready for a test run?” Michael asked. I turned and he was standing by the door with Michael. Yikes that would take some getting used to.

I walked over and we followed our father out of the room. “ So what should we call you?” Michael asked. “ Um, well I am you father, so I guess you could call me father. Or dad. Whichever you prefer. Or I suppose if that was too uncomfortable you could call me Michael. But that might get confusing.”

“ Okay, dad.” Michael said. We exited the building and walked outside. The place we had been in was the size of a castle. It had several towers and the highest one went above the cloud line so the top couldn’t be seen. “ Well, lets get started.” Our dad turned towards us. “ When I was just learning how to fly millenniums ago I learned that it was best to go at it at a run then once you’ve built up speed try to push off and catch air to fly.”  He stepped out of the way and instructed one of us to start first. Michael looked at me and then took up a running stance. He sprinted forward and ran several feet be for jumping in to the air. He spread his wings and hovered for a minute before falling forward on his face. “ That was good son. Next time try pushing with your wings more. Joey. Your turn.” I swallowed nervously and then with out hesitation I zoomed forward. I ran for a few moments and then jumped up. Unfortunately I had the same pitiful results as Michael. I had gone up for a moment then fell back onto my feet and stumbled some before falling on my hands and knees.   I stood up and walked back over to the Micheals. “ Okay. Watch I’m going to fly to the top of that tower there. Meet me up there okay?” “ Okay.” We both said. Michael took of in to a run and then leapt into the air. He spread his wings out the moment his feet left the ground and then thrust them a few times to gain altitude. Michael and I ran forward at the same time and copied his steps. We jumped up and spread out our wings. Instantly I felt a jerk and push upward with my wings. I stayed up in the air and looked at Michael who had also managed to stay up. He nodded at me and we thrusted our wings to meet our dad on top of the tower. We few higher and higher until we hovered slightly about the tower then brought our wings in and lightly touched down on the roof. “ Very good. I knew you had it in you.” He said proudly. “ That was amazing.” Michael said. “ I know.” Dad replied. We spent the rest of the day flying around  the sky and hanging out with each other.

After a while we got tired so we decided to turn in. Zayden lead up to a room that was huge. It was easily half the size of John’s entire house and had two four poster beds with white bed linens. In the back of the rom there was a giant flat screen tv and by the windows there were two wardrobes against the walls. I walked over and opened one and seen all the clothes were my size. I looked at Michael and he looked at me. We both randomly started laughing so much I doubled over out of breath from laughing. We finally stopped laughing and looked back at each other. “ Can you believe it?” Michael asked. “ I don’t know, dude. This is a whole new level of unbelievable.” I said. “ Ya, but still it seems pretty real. Do you think we’re hallucinating or something?” He asked. “ No… I think this is real but, wow who’d’ve thought.”  I said. “ I know. Us brothers. No offence but I’d have never thought that.” He told me.   “ Me either.” I confessed. “Wow. I guess we’d better go to bed cause I’m exhausted.” He said. “ Wait! What about John and Claire? We just left them there. They’re probably worried.” “ I forgot about them.” Michael said. “ Me too.” I said guiltily. “ I guess we’ll talk to Micha– Dad in the morning about going back.” I agreed and changed in to night clothes. I laid down and processed todays thoughts; A new dad, an new brother, and wings. It was almost too much to process in one night. I didn’t know how I felt about Michael being my brother. Did that make Sam my half sister? I wasn’t sure. I laid there and thought about Kayla. How was she? Could my dad fix her? I decided to ask him in the morning.  I heard Michael’s breathing slow and I knew he was sleep. I closed my eyes and drfted in to a dream where I was flying and soaring through the clouds with my dad and Michael. Maybe I hadn’t lost my family after all.

 

~Authors Note~

Yay! Two updates in two days! I’m on a roll. Lol. Anyway OMG the secret it out. I  hope you like this one I was so excited to write it. I’m really happy with this one and was so into finishing it that I was working on it nonstop for hours. Well hopefully I’ll have another chapter in a about a week!

                                      ~Jayfeather1997