The Hunt
Chapter 17
Choices
What are choices? Technically
the word choices is defined as an act or instance of choosing; selection. In
life we have to make many choices. Choices like when to get up, what to wear,
what to eat for dinner, when to go to bed, etc.
We make choices so often that we don’t ever realize how important each
and every one of them are, how they shape and affect our life every day. Some
choices however are major. They don’t just shape our everyday life, but they
also alter our future. I never thought much about choices before. I made them
without carefully thinking them through, but then again don’t we all do that. I
soon found out thought just how important making informed choices were.
~ Joey’s P.O.V~
I woke up in a very soft bed surrounded by blinding white
blankets and pillows. I sat up an seen
the morning sun light shining through the huge windows and reflecting off of
the white bedding. I looked over at Michael and seen he was out cold still. I
got up and grabbed some clothes and went in to the bathroom on my side of the
room. After a quick shower I walked back into the room and seen Michael had
rolled over but was still fast asleep. I shook my head and checked the time,
7:15am. Walking out of the room I was
careful to shut the door as quietly as possible. The hall outside seemed bigger
and harder to navigate last night. I
needed to find my dad so I could ask him about my sister and I didn’t want
Michael there to overhear it.
I walked aimlessly around the massive building till I ran in
to a familiar face. Zayden was standing in the hall way looking out a pair of
windows that stretched from the floor and ended in an arch at the ceiling. “
Hey.” I greeted him. He turned his head then looked back out the window, “
What’s up?” he asked. “ Um, looking for Mich– my dad.” “ Try the conference room. Down the
hall on the left.” He instructed me. I continued down the hall and found the
doors that led to the room we had been
in yesterday when we first met the arch angel Michael. I knocked but got no
answer so I placed a hand on the knob
and turned it slowly. The door wasn’t lock so I opened it slightly and heard
voices. “ Michael I don’t think the boys
are ready for that kind of training.” I heard someone say. “ Gabriel, we need
them in our army. Lucifer’s followers are growing more active here lately, we
need to be ready for an attack at any moment.” My dad snapped. “ You need to
think this through. Last time you thought the he was preparing an attack you
prepared thousands and the training injured many, only to find out it was a
false alarm. Please brother listen to reason.” Gabriel pleaded. “ You don’t
understand. It’s my job to protect everybody and I can’t risk it not being a
false alarm. Ready the recruits, training starts tomorrow.” I heard I sound
that sounded like someone slammed their fist on the table. “ You are being
unreasonable!” Gabriel accused. “ No Gabriel your being over protective!” “ Are
your sons going to be joining this
pointless ‘army’?!” Gabriel questioned. “ Everyone
is joining.” Another voice joined in now, “ Guys we have a visitor.”
Suddenly the door swung open and exposed me standing there eavesdropping. I
swallowed nervously and said, “ I can come back later when you’re not… ah…
busy.” Michael looked at me and I wanted
nothing more than for the floor the swallow me up. “ That’s fine. I’ll come
find you after I’m done.” I walked away and ran back to the room. After making a few wrong turns I finally found
Michael and I’s room and burst in. Michael was up now had just walked out of
the shower only half dressed. “ For Christ’s sake Michael get dressed we need
to talk now.” Michael threw on a
shirt and I told him about what I had overheard. “ An army?” he asked, “ Like for real an army?” I nodded, “ like for
real a legit army.” “ Against Lucifer?
The devil?” I simply nodded again. Michael ran his hands nervously through his
hair. I hung my head and thought about
what had happened. On day I was happily flying around with the remainder of my
family and the next I felt as though a knife of betrayal had been thrust in to
my chest. I looked at Michael who had ceased pacing and flopped down on the bed
opposite me. By the looks of him he felt the same way I did. “ What are we
going to do?” I asked him. For a long time he sat there and I began to think he
hadn’t heard me, then he looked at me a shrugged hopelessly. “ We can’t stay
here.” I stated sadly. I wanted nothing more than to remain here, but was I
willing to join the so call army and at what cost? “Agreed.” Michael sighed. I
was about to ask him what he thought we should do to leave but the doors to our
room flung open and our father walked in with a grim face. He looked from me
then to Michael and back to me, then spoke, “ undoubtedly Joey has told you
what he overheard.” Michael stood up and angrily snapped at the other Michael,
“ Ya. He did. How dare you! Bring us up here just to be part of some stupid
army!” Our father looked indignant and curtly told his son, “ that was not the only reason I brought you up
here but is certainly your duty as my son to protect those who need it as I
have been doing for many years.”
“ When were you going to tell
us?” Michael asked. I looked them. Father and son angrily glaring at each
other, one stood slightly taller than the other but they looked so identical. “
Soon.” He looked sad and I could see he
was fighting between being a leader and being a father. “ And you,” He
addressed me, “ I didn’t want either of you to find out this way but it seems it’s
too late. Though in the future I’d hoped you’d show more restrain of sharing
details without knowing the full story. However I suppose now that the cats out
of the bag we should discuss this.” He walked over to the window and began to
tell us about his army, “ Many years ago at the beginning of time Angels lived
in peace with each other. Then He – my father – made the humans. Many of us
were okay with them but one of us loathed them. He was jealous of my father’s
love and adoration of them. One day he started secretly building an army and
over time he ranks grew large. Lucifer prepared a brilliant attack. Terrible,
but brilliant. The eve of the beginning of his war my father warned him to call
it off. He refused and we cast out… by me. I pleaded with him to stop but he
refused and I had my orders that I had to follow. I forced him out and he out
up a good fight, but in the end I was stronger. Anyway he’s gaining power again
and I believe he planning an attack again. That’s why we need an army.” He turned back to us with immensely sad eyes.
“ And if we refuse to join.” Michael asked, but he was longer angry. “ Then
there is only one other option.” “ Which
is?” He looked at Michael like he didn’t want to tell him but said, “Remotio
alarum.” Michael and I exchanged
questioning looks. “ I translates to: wing removal. It’s when your angel half
is, well not removed but push back in to the deepest pits of your self and you
are unable to access it. Almost like it’s gone.” I’d only known about my angel
blood for a day, yet thinking of the possibility of losing it all together made
me panic. I could tell Michael felt the same way. “ Okay fine say we do chose
to stay. Can we visit out finds and tell them what happened so they don’t
worry.” “ I suppose that could be arranged.” Michael and I exchanged looks
again. He gave me a tiny nod which I returned and then he turned to the other
Michael and said “ Fine.Okay.”
~Johns P.O.V~
“Nothing in this one.” Sam said as she tossed another book
aside. “Keep looking,” I mumbled. “ Are you sure its angels?” Claire asked as
she absentmindedly flipped through the pages of a book older than I was. “All
the signs point to angels.” I told her.
As soon as a seen there was little signs of struggle I knew that it had to
be a very powerful thing, but the key
point was how it got in and out of the room without breaking a window or opening
a door. Ever since Claire and I got back we’ve been shifting through a library
full of books about angel to learn how to summon them. I picked up the next book Angels: A guide angels and their history.
An angel (from the Greek ἄγγελος -
aggelos) is a supernatural being or spirit, usually humanoid in form, found in
various religions and mythologies.
The theological study of angels is
known as "angelology". In Zoroastrianism and Abrahamic religions they
are often depicted as benevolent celestial beings who act as intermediaries
between Heaven and Earth, or as guardian spirits or a guiding influence.
The term "angel" has also
been expanded to various notions of spirits found in many other religious
traditions. Other roles of angels include protecting and guiding human beings, and
carrying out God's tasks….
Okay now how do you
summon them? I thought. “John I think I found something!” Sam exclaimed and
handed me a book.
How
I call an Angel
Use
at your own risk
What
you need:
An
offering (Gold, blood, etc.)
Holy
oil
Holy
water
Fire.
What
you do:
Draw a circle
on the floor about five feet in diameter with the holy oil. Inside the circle
place the offering.
Sprinkle the offering with the
holy water. Say the incantation listed below and then as you say the last word
drop your fire (usually a match) And then quickly exit the circle and light the
oil on fire.
Incantation: alatum
ens et servus ad deus i praecipio vos accipere hanc oblationem, et apparent me intus tuus circulus
Note: This will trap the angel that is in the
closest proximity if they are on
earth.
“Okay…
seems easy enough.” I said. “Easy? John what exactly is your definition of
easy?” Claire asked. “We have everything
we need.” I said as I lifted a solid gold cross and chain from under my shirt. “Where
did you get that?”
“Nicked
it off a vampire once.”
“A
vampire? What was a vampire doing wearing a cross?”
“Beats me. No you get the holy oil and the holy water. Sam and I will clean up a spot for the circle.”
“Beats me. No you get the holy oil and the holy water. Sam and I will clean up a spot for the circle.”
Clair
got up and headed out to the garage. “Alright, lets move the table against the
wall and the sofa over there.” I instructed. “ Okay.” We began pushing the
table and I asked,” Are you okay Sam?” She didn’t reply until the heavy table
was pushed against the wall between the door and window. “ I guess. I’m just
worried what they wanted with Michael.”
“I
don’t know Sam.”
“ What if this doesn’t work.” I shrugged “ We keep looking I guess.” We started pushing the couch against the wall and Claire walked in with two jars. I took the holy oil and began creating circle in the center on the cleared space. I took off the necklace and placed it in the center of the circle. Taking the holy water I dipped my hand in it and flicked the water on the chain. “ Okay hand me the matches.” I stood over the chain, matches at the ready. Claire stood in front of me outside the circle so I could see the words. I began, “alatum ens et servus ad deus i praecipio vos accipere hanc oblationem, et apparent me intus tuus circulus” At the word I lit the match and dropped it. As it hit the chain the chain erupted in blue flames and I jumped out of the circle and waited. Nothing happened. We stood there and Claire said, “ Maybe we did something wrong?” Though we both knew I hadn’t. Just then we heard a ringing noise like you hear when your ears… well ring. “What is that?” Clair asked. I shrugged. I got louder and louder. After a minute or two it was so loud we had to cover our ears. The lights started to flicker and the room shook a little bit. Light came in through the window like the sun was on top of the house. Even though it was dusk out. Now I has hunched over and Sam was on the floor with her head between her knes trying to block out the sound. Claire’s face was twisted like she was in pain. I understood because the sound …. Hurt. The suddenly with a loud Bang! The power went out, the sound stopped the house shook violently knocking me to the ground.
“ What if this doesn’t work.” I shrugged “ We keep looking I guess.” We started pushing the couch against the wall and Claire walked in with two jars. I took the holy oil and began creating circle in the center on the cleared space. I took off the necklace and placed it in the center of the circle. Taking the holy water I dipped my hand in it and flicked the water on the chain. “ Okay hand me the matches.” I stood over the chain, matches at the ready. Claire stood in front of me outside the circle so I could see the words. I began, “alatum ens et servus ad deus i praecipio vos accipere hanc oblationem, et apparent me intus tuus circulus” At the word I lit the match and dropped it. As it hit the chain the chain erupted in blue flames and I jumped out of the circle and waited. Nothing happened. We stood there and Claire said, “ Maybe we did something wrong?” Though we both knew I hadn’t. Just then we heard a ringing noise like you hear when your ears… well ring. “What is that?” Clair asked. I shrugged. I got louder and louder. After a minute or two it was so loud we had to cover our ears. The lights started to flicker and the room shook a little bit. Light came in through the window like the sun was on top of the house. Even though it was dusk out. Now I has hunched over and Sam was on the floor with her head between her knes trying to block out the sound. Claire’s face was twisted like she was in pain. I understood because the sound …. Hurt. The suddenly with a loud Bang! The power went out, the sound stopped the house shook violently knocking me to the ground.
I
stood back up and looked around, in the kitchen stood three figures. All males
by the look of it. I stood up quietly.
Their backs were facing us and the shortest one was closest to me. I quietly
snuck up on him and lunged. I heard him gasp and choke as I locked my arms
around his neck and chest. I see the largest one raise his arm and make a fist.
As he did this I felt an invisible hand grab me and I was flung against the
counter and held there. Then the lights
came on.
~Joey’s
P.O.V~
I was back in the kitchen. I was
dark, the power was out. Suddenly a weight crashed down on me. I felt a arm go
around my chest and another go around my neck cutting off my air. I couldn’t breathe
of a second before a Michael raised his arm and my attacker was thrown off of
me. I stumbled forward and then turned around to see John pinned invisibly to
the counter. I looked at him and he looked at me. “ John! You attacked me!” I
yelled. “ You know him?” Michael asked. “ Yes.” The other Michael and I answered.
He lowered his arm and John jumped forward. Sam and Claire rushes forward and
grabbed Michael and I into a tight hug and I heard someone sob. : Calm down we
were only gone for a day or two.” Michael said. Claire pulled back and said, “you’ve
been gone for a week and you disappeared!
We were worried sick! We thought you were…..” “We’re fine.” I reassured
her. “ So what the hell happened?” John
asked. “ Um well,” Michael started, “ This is our…. Erm…. Father.” He gestured
to Michael. “ Our?” John said. “ Joey and mine.” Sam’s and Claire’s mouths
dropped. “ Your brothers?” John asked. We nodded. “ This is nice and all but
what did we come there for?” our dad asked. “So who or what are you?” John
asked. “ I am an angel. An archangel to be exact. My name
is Michael.” Johns eyes widened and he said, “ you dad’s the archangel Michael?!” “ Yes.” “Oh my…..gosh.”
Sam said with a nervous look at Michael. The I realized something. “ Claire,
you said we we’re gone for a week. What do you mean?” Michael interjected and
said, “ Son time in heaven moves slower than time on earth.” We all stood there, nobody knew what to say
or do. Finally Michael said, “ So…. We just wanted to let you guys know we were
okay.” More awkward silence followed his
words. Nobody knew what to say or do now. Finally Sam asked the question we all
wanted to know, “ what now?” We all looked at each other. I looked at Michael
who looked ad John who looked at Dad. “ We go back now.” Dad said. “ What?! No!”
John said. “Look we came here so you could check in. We’ve done that. Now we
have much to do so lets go.” He said more
forcefully. John stood there glaring at
Michael. “ Look,” I said, “ We already agreed to go back, okay?” John looked at
me, “ you what?” “ We agreed to go
back.” Johns eyes got red and he looked away, “ go then.” “What?” He looked up and I could see tears forming in
his eyes “ Well go on get out of here! Go back to heaven! Or where ever you
came from!” “ John, come one don’t be like that.” Michael said. “ Johns right.” Claire said quietly, “ the longer
you stay the harder it will be.” Sam who
was looking at the floor looked up and said, “ No. Don’t go!” “ We have to.”
She started crying and looked back at her shoes. “Come one boys.” Dad said. “It’s
time to go.” I looked around John was staring angrily at Michael, Claire wouldn’t
look at us at all and I suspected she was crying, and Sam was inspecting her
shoes and sobbed occasionally. “ Alright,” Michael said, “ Bye I guess. Sam be
good.”No body responded. Our dad put one hand on each of our shoulders and the next second we were gone.
~John’s
P.O.V~
They
were gone. And I didn’t care anymore. Sam and Claire both walked away and went
to bed. I stood in the kitchen and I could
hear Sam crying from down the hall. A heavy weight had settled into my stomach
and I wiped a random tear off my cheek. We didn’t need them anymore, but even
as I said it I still missed them. I took a deep breath and sighed. What’s done
is done, I reminded myself. I turned off the kitchen light and went in to my
room. I looked around the shabby room. It wasn’t that bad I guess. I had a wooden
dresser and a king sized bed by the window. I sat on the edge of the bed and
looked at the dark sky and wondered what they were doing now. “Well,” I said to
myself, “ At least they’re safe.”