SAFE HAVEN
*Gideon*
“Better to reign in Hell
than serve in Heaven”
John Milton
“It won’t survive,” I said, taking Abigail’s rose. She insisted that we plant it outside my window. I didn’t know why. I knew it was only going to die there, but when she kept telling me to do as she said, I reluctantly gave in—mostly because I wanted to get her away from my bedroom. After that rather wow make-out session we had, I couldn’t look at her without wanting to rip her clothes off.
I was also angry, mostly at Tristan for almost kissing her, but I decided to pretend that I didn’t care. As long as she loved me, I could overlook our imperfections. Well, until I saw Tristan again, and I’d kick him hard in the face. Come to think of it, where the hell was he?
“Just dig a hole,” she said.
With a wave of my hand, I made a little bit of soil appear where we were standing. I was sure nothing could survive in that soil because it looked so dry.
“If it dies, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” I pierced the ground, creating a hole for her. The heat that rose out was so strong that I felt like I was on fire. I pulled Abigail away from it and then planted the rose for her.
“See,” she said joyfully, looking at the rose. The soil around it was sweltering, but the rose remained the same. “This rose represents our love,” she said. “Unless we lose it, it will never die. I’m sure of it.”
“Come on, Shakespeare,” I teased and led her back into my room.
When we entered, I heard Princess Sela and Valoel downstairs. I didn’t hear Tristan, though, so I was sure he hadn’t returned.
“Look, a shooting star!” Abigail shouted, pointing to the sky. The moment I saw what she was pointing at, I froze.
“That’s no shooting star,” I said, jerking her to the side.
Valoel walked up to me with Princess Sela, and we both asked simultaneously, “Where’s Tristan?”
Abigail asked, “What do you mean about the shooting star?”
I felt a rush of guilt.
“It’s a falling angel,” Valoel clarified.
Abigail pulled away from me as she tried to make sure she understood Valoel. “A falling what?”
Valoel explained in a strained voice, “A falling angel. Every time an angel is about to die, a star falls. We call it the angel’s soul.”
“So why are you asking where Tristan is?” Abigail asked.
“That star, Abigail, shines brighter than any star I’ve ever seen,” Valoel answered, but Abigail looked like she didn’t understand what that had to do with Tristan.
“How surprising is this?” I was quite annoyed. “Tristan forgot to tell you that he is the most loving, caring, and protective guardian angel alive?” This time Abigail’s expression swapped confusion for shock.
“You can’t mean…?” She stopped and searched for words. “But he was just here.” She pointed to where Tristan was before he left. “He was just here.”
“Did he tell you where he was going when he left?” Valoel asked Abigail.
“He said he was going to visit someone named D because she had some answers,” Abigail answered, and both Valoel and I instantly knew why a star had fallen. Something must have happened to Tristan in the Underworld.
I was surprised. D had the answers? Why hadn’t she just come over and told me? Sela, who stood beside Valoel, seemed to be frozen permanently in shock. I made a chair appear and sat down when I realized I couldn’t allow myself to panic. Tristan was probably about to die. I wouldn’t have to share his emotions and thoughts, and definitely not Abigail. Best news ever!
“Who is D?” Abigail asked tentatively.
I relaxed. “Evil. Like me. She’s the Grim Reaper.”
Abigail looked troubled. “Why would Tristan visit the Grim Reaper?”
I smiled, putting my legs up. “Beats me, but do tell me when you find out.” I laughed, and everyone turned to look at me.
“You seem relaxed,” Valoel said, her fear giving way to panic.
“Why shouldn’t I be?”
“Because without Tristan here to guard Abigail from you, she’s as good as dead.” I hopped off my chair in shock. I couldn’t explain the pain I saw flash in Abigail’s eyes, because I was sure she knew that what Valoel was saying was true.
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” I headed for the window. “He better not be dead when we find him.”
I was a different angel from what I was when I met Abigail, but I could never be sure if the old Gideon would try and hurt her, and having Tristan lurk around was the only reason I thought I could stay with Abigail. I knew if I ever tried to hurt her, he’d protect her.
“We need to leave for the Underworld,” Valoel said.
“I’m coming with you,” Abigail said firmly from behind me.
“The Underworld is a dangerous place, Abby,” I responded. “You can die in an instant. There is more danger there than any other place in the universe.”
“I’ll be fine,” she said.
“I’ll get the war angels,” Sela said, and then she vanished.
I asked in shock, “War angels? War?” The last time I saw war angels, they were after me, and I had to destroy the center of Grands to get rid of them.
Valoel answered, “Nobody goes into the Underworld without an army.” Suddenly, I didn’t want to ask anything involving the word war.
Abigail and I stood looking at each other. If there was going to be a war with the Underworld, there was no guarantee that I would see her again. “Let me take you home, Abby,” I offered with a tone that sounded more demanding than suggestive.
“Don’t start, Gideon,” she snapped angrily. “I don’t want to go home. I want to help find Tristan, and I’m not leaving until we do.”
“Abigail, I’ve tried very hard to keep you alive, and I am not about to lose you to a bunch of demons and unknown magical creatures.”
“If there’s going to be some kind of angelic war because of—”
My finger was already on her lips. “There is not going to be a war because of you.” What’s with her and Tristan thinking everything was their fault? Great, one more thing they had in common!
“But Tristan! He was here,” she sounded angry and sad. “Why does my presence keep hurting everyone I care about? First my father and Felix, and now Tristan?”
“Because you’re with me,” I told her. “Let me take you home.”
“Not without Tristan,” she said stubbornly. Of course she didn’t want to leave without Tristan! She wouldn’t let me hit him either for almost kissing her. Why did they almost kiss? No, I didn’t want to know the answer to that question.
“Let her come. We’ll need all the help we can get.” That was Valoel’s solution?
“Let her come? Are you insane?” I glared angrily at Valoel.
“You can’t use guns in the Underworld. That realm and ours are different from yours, but you can use a sword and an arrow,” Valoel said.
Valoel wanted her to join the army? Did she forget Abigail was a human? So what if she could hold a sword—that didn’t make her the next freaking King Arthur!
Was Valoel trying to get her killed? Anyway, wasn’t trying to kill her supposed to be my job?
I walked to Abigail. “Abby, let me take you home. I need to know you’re safe and—”
Abigail cut me off. “Gideon, I’m not leaving.”
“The angels are ready,” Valoel said. Then with a snap of her fingers, we were standing in front of the Grandinian Palace.
“It’s Gideon!” someone shouted the very moment we appeared. I looked up. The sky was filled with war angels. There were thousands of them, all floating just above us. They stared at me with fear lining their faces. Some of them looked like they were ready to flee. Abigail, who stood beside me, stared at me in shock.
“He’s with us!” Valoel shouted to them.
“With…with us?” one of the war angels stammered. “He’s here for…for Tristan, too?”
“Yes, we are all here for Tristan,” Sela answered, hovering in the air with the angels. Sela was dressed in silver armor, and the warriors around her were all dressed in black.
“Gideon doesn’t like Tristan,” someone else said.
“Yes, but he’s…” Sela couldn’t get a word out because all the warriors started talking at once. All of them were voicing their opinions about how I couldn’t be trusted. They were getting on my nerves, and the only reason I stood still and said nothing was because Abigail was still staring at me. I could only guess at what was going through her mind.
Another one shouted, “We can’t trust him!”
At the sound of the angel’s voice, I appeared in front of him and didn’t say a word as I ripped his heart right out of his chest. He died instantly and fell to the ground. Those around him quickly flew away from me.
“Anyone else have some concerns to share?” I shouted at the warriors with the heart still in my hand, blood dripped around my fingers.
“We…we were…” The angel who murmured this started screaming because I began inflicting pain on him with my mind. He went down on his knees as his screams got louder. In the moment, I realized how much I’d missed killing and how easy I could change into the monster I was before.
“Gideon, stop!” I heard Abigail shouting from beneath us. The warriors turned to her and then back to me. “Please stop.” She looked like she just saw a ghost.
“Make no mistake. I’m not here for Tristan,” I told the angels and then dropped the heart in my hand. I stopped torturing the angel beside me, and he stopped screaming. I flew back to where Abigail stood. The moment I appeared beside her, she took a step away from me.
“Abigail, I…”
Abigail shook her head. I could see the rest of her body trembling as well. She looked so scared. “You said you’d change,” she whispered fearfully. “You just ripped…you…” She couldn’t even get the words out of her mouth, and suddenly I regretted killing that angel in front of her.
“I am changing. I’m trying to!” I said, but she just shook her head again.
“No, Gideon, you just like the idea of changing!” She shouted angrily at me. “You were so close.”
“Abigail…” I took a step closer, and she took one back.
“Let’s just go find Tristan.” She said bitterly as she looked away from me.
Valoel said to the war angels, “Sela and I will leave with half of you, and Gideon will lead the other half.” She turned back to me. “Abigail, you can take this.” She snapped her fingers, and a white, winged horse appeared.
“Pegasus?” Abigail asked in wonder.
“No. Same species, but it’s not Pegasus,” Valoel laughed. Abigail continued staring at the horse with wide eyes. “All you have to do is hold on tight to him, and you’ll be fine.”
“Abigail, get away from that thing. You could get hurt!” I shouted. Valoel grabbed me when I tried to reach for Abigail.
“Gideon, she’ll be fine.” She went over to Abigail. “Here you go.” The moment Valoel spoke, a quiver filled with arrows appeared on Abigail’s back. The next thing I knew, there was a bow in her hand.
“Valoel, have you been around her?” I pointed at Abigail as if she couldn’t see us. “The girl is almost as bad as Tristan. She’ll see all those lost souls in the Underworld and feel sorry for them, and get herself killed. She’s weak and—” Valoel caught an arrow inches before it pierced my forehead.
I turned in surprise to gape at Abigail. She lowered her bow when she saw my stunned face. Did she almost shoot me with a freaking arrow? She was angry at me for killing an angel neither of us knew, and she knowingly tried to kill me?
“You’re quite fatal, aren’t you?” Valoel was also staring, intrigued, at Abigail. “I guess you two are meant for each other after all.”
“I told you. I want Tristan back.” Her eyes never once left mine. The Abigail looking at me wasn’t my awkward, loving Abigail. This one looked deadly.
“Abigail, these arrows are poisonous,” Valoel lectured. “Next time, don’t aim it at the people you don’t want to paralyze—or worst, kill.”
Whoosh.
The next arrow Abigail let fly was caught again by Valoel. This one missed my heart, but not by much. “We’re wasting time talking when Tristan is out there! And I’m not missing my target one more time. I swear it!” Her eyes looked possessed. And there wasn’t a hint of deceit in her words.
Valoel sounded scared when she said, “Abigail, calm down. I’m sure Tristan is all right.”
All that anger was because Tristan was MIA? Wait, did Abigail try to kill me—twice—because of Tristan? I knew she wasn’t just angry because we were wasting time. She was angry at me for killing that angel.
“Get ready.” Valoel flew into the sky toward Sela, leaving me with Abigail—rather, what was left of her humanity.
“I’ll be fine.” Abigail said and stared at me for a brief second before she walked back to the horse. In a moment, Abigail was sitting atop the horse without even trying; then she looked into the sky and mouthed thanks to Valoel. She rode the horse into the air next to Sela and Valoel.
I seriously hated this freaking turn of events, where Abigail scared me and I was off to save Tristan. Since when did saving people and wanting to protect my girlfriend become part of my daily routine?
Sela gave a sharp command, and the angels in the sky divided into two halves. I wondered what Daligo said when Sela came for the war angels, or if he even knew.
I flew up to command my assigned party of angels. As soon as they saw me, they put space between us.
Below me, half of the war angels hovered together with Sela.
“Is there really going to be a war? Is Tristan going to be all right?” I heard Abigail ask Valoel.
“Yes, dear,” she answered. “Yes, there is.” Then she focused on the war legions. “Remember, nothing you see in the Underworld is truly real,” Valoel shouted into the air, and her voice was as powerful as any true leader.
Sela led the way, and half of the war angels flew after her.
“Gideon! Be careful!” Abigail called. One of her hands clenched the medallion I gave her. Valoel flew in a wide arc and zoomed after Sela. My eyes met Abigail’s for a brief second before she put on a brave face and sped off after Valoel and Sela.
“Anyone who finds Tristan should let me know,” I commanded the frightened angels. “I’ll kill him myself if he’s still alive.”
INFERNO
*Abigail*
“Politicians start wars.
Men fight wars.
Governments win wars.
But the innocents loses war
For it is them who hurts the most.”
Melody Manful
Abigail, breathe in!
You can do this. You are doing this for Tristan!
My father once said, “The greatest dangers you can get into are the ones you see coming. The ones that just happen are merely roads waiting to be crossed.”
Well, Dad, I literally just walked into a very great danger—how was that for a lesson?
Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.
I almost hurt Gideon. I didn’t mean for him to look at me as if I were dangerous. I just wanted Tristan back, and he wouldn’t quit talking about how weak he thought I was!
How did I even get here? I had been a good girl. Okay, maybe not perfect, but did almost kissing my boyfriend’s nemesis merit this? I was on a flying horse, in the middle of oblivion, and I was afraid of heights.
When Gideon asked to take me home, I almost jumped at the opportunity, but I remembered what my father once said: “Cowardice isn’t a dereliction of duty but rather a part of our humanity. However, only the brave ones are known for their humanity.”
Gideon thought I was weak. That I would see lost souls in the Underworld and feel bad for them. What he didn’t understand was that no one was innocent once you were in a war—you were there to either kill or die.
The warriors speeding in front of me were all dressed in black. Back at the palace when I first saw them, none of them wore a smile. They looked menacing. I didn’t want to turn around to see what was going on behind me. Frankly, I didn’t want to see Gideon. At the moment, he scared me more than the idea of actually heading into the Underworld.
I didn’t know what lay ahead of us, but I knew from the look in Gideon’s eyes earlier that the trip was going to be dangerous. I knew if I wanted to help Tristan, I would have to stay and fight. But would I survive? A part of me wished I wouldn’t, not after I took part in the deaths of my father and Felix, and then there was Tristan. I was positive that if we hadn’t almost kissed, he wouldn’t have left.
“Your father and Felix’s deaths weren’t your fault.”
I had no idea how Valoel ended up beside me, but she startled me when she spoke.
“And Tristan going to the Underworld wasn’t your fault, either.”
“I almost kissed him, and—” I held tighter unto the horse.
“It’s not your fault,” she said once more.
I didn’t know what came over me. “I love him,” I whispered and then bit my tongue.
“Who, Gideon or Tristan?”
My heart skipped a beat. “I love—” Without waiting for an answer, she flew away. I tried to continue my speech to myself, but I wasn’t sure which name was supposed to come out.
“I’m a murderer. A liar. And a soon-to-be heart breaker,” I said to no one.
Pain gripped my heart, but I didn’t know if I was upset because of how I felt or if I was mourning for what I was about to lose.
“We’re here!” Valoel shouted, and I looked down at a labyrinth. Underneath us, in front of an iron gate, stood who I was sure were the Lumenian warriors. There were thousands of them, all clothed in grey. When I saw them, I knew that there truly was going to be a war. And the best part was that I was caught right in the middle of it, and if I was lucky, I’d even get to die for causing trouble for those around me.
“Stay close,” Valoel told me as she helped me off the horse. I followed her as she headed over to the angels who all stood behind the gates. I could hear screaming voices around us, souls crying for help, and I understood why Gideon said I couldn’t handle the Underworld. He was right, hearing the painful cries made me want to stop and help them.
“Princess,” one of the angels said, bowing to Sela.
Sela asked him, “Is there a problem here?”
“King Babylon saw the fallen star and sent us here, but we can’t enter because the gate is locked.”
Sela didn’t get a chance to answer because Gideon’s voice called out from behind us. “What are you waiting for?” he asked irately, appearing beside us. I wanted to go over to him, but Valoel took my hand and stopped me.
“The gate is locked,” Sela said, and then out of nowhere, a tiger and a lion appeared in front of the gate. I tightened my grip on Valoel’s hand.
Gideon smirked when he saw the animals. “Panic and Pain,” he said. “I knew D would send you to do her dirty work for her.”
I knew the story of the Underworld, and I’d watched Hercules enough times to know that Pain and Panic were Hades’ minions. What I didn’t know was that they’d be vicious animals.
Gideon walked to the animals. I almost screamed for him to stop, but I bit my tongue when I remembered he wasn’t human. “Pain!” Gideon called. “Where is Tristan?”
I watched bewilderedly as the animals transformed into people—a woman and a man, both approximately in their twenties.
“Gideon, welcome,” the man, Pain, said with a smile. He backed away as Gideon approached.
Gideon asked, “Do you want to open the gate, or do you want me to?” He didn’t wait for an answer. Instead he released a powerful flame that erupted against the iron. The gate cracked open with a loud, grating sound.
“Don’t make me ask you about Tristan’s whereabouts one more time,” Gideon threatened, and then suddenly, with a flick of Gideon’s hand, Pain levitated in front of him.
“He’s on his way to see D,” Pain wheezed in a choked voice. “Please don’t kill me!” he cried. There was a crash as Gideon threw Pain hard on the ground and made his way to the gate. Gideon took another step, and then two swords appeared out of nowhere. Pain and Panic blocked his way.
“You cannot enter,” said Panic. “And don’t try to fight, because you’re already surrounded.”
Sure enough, when I glanced around, I saw that all sorts of creatures surrounded us—the kind that looked like they’d died and come back to life. They were nameless creatures I had never before seen, not even in horror movies or my worst nightmares. All of them had dark eyes and icy breath, and they carried fierce weapons. Their faces showed anger and nothing else. I squeezed my eyes shut, blocking out the sight of them. I figured if I couldn’t see them, then my fear would lessen.
My breath was now coming out sharply. Terror raced through my body as the screaming around us became louder and louder.
“Abigail, hey, breathe,” Valoel whispered beside me.
I forced myself to open my eyes. “I’m fine,” I lied and inhaled deeply.
“Sorry about this, Gideon, but I’m afraid no one is going home today,” Panic rasped.
“It’s time!” Pain shouted.
Suddenly, spears flew in every direction. Both the Lumenians and Grandinians held weapons, and some were able to shield themselves before the spears hit them. But others fell screaming from the sky. I didn’t have time to shield myself, but luckily for me, Valoel had my back.
“I love killing,” Panic told Pain loudly from inside the gate as it began closing. Gideon was quick, though. He managed to blast the gate into flames again and rushed inside. Valoel, Sela, some Lumenians and Grandinians, and I managed to leap inside with him before the gate was magically replaced and closed.
The area we entered looked like a battlefield. It was a large field with heat and steam emerging from the ground beneath.
Valoel let go of my hand and flew high into the air. “Brothers!” she shouted, and immediately all eyes turned to her. “We have less than two minutes before that gate opens again.” She pointed to the Iron Gate. “Now hear this: thousands left for war, but only nine will return.”
Valoel’s words froze me in my spot. Not one of the warriors made a sound.
Gideon stood beside Sela, and both of them watched Valoel.
Valoel continued her speech, “Brothers, I’m not going to promise you tomorrow. The truth is, we are going to die, and the best we can do is to take as much of D’s army with us as we can!” The warriors cheered. “Do we want our families to weep tomorrow for their loss?” Valoel asked and the warriors shouted together, “No!”
“No!” she continued. “Tomorrow, we want them to toast to our victory!” The warriors shouted in agreement. “So raise your swords, brothers, and fight! Fight and kill!” The warriors raised their swords and shouted cheers. “We are at war!” Valoel threw her hands into the air, and then suddenly, the sky was filled with flaming arrows, all of them heading toward the gate.
The gates blasted open the moment the arrows reached it, and then chaos started. My eyes met Gideon’s before he disappeared. I drew my sword and inhaled deeply as the chaos around me grew intense.
Valoel appeared behind me. “Abby, you have to fight. Kill anything and anyone you don’t know,” she said.
“The warriors, why don’t they care that they will all die?” I asked, trying my hardest to block out the cries around me.
Valoel smiled and said, “It’s simple. Any angel would rather die for Tristan than live, because without him, none of us would be alive. He’s our savior. The warriors would rather have him live to protect their families than live themselves and die with their families.”
I didn’t understand. “But what are they afraid of? What is it that only Tristan can save them from?”
“Gideon,” she replied, and then she was gone. She left me alone, standing in the middle of a battlefield.
It seemed that whenever I thought Gideon couldn’t be all that evil, I was proven wrong. I hadn’t known Tristan or Gideon were that powerful and feared. I was terrified, but I was also highly alert. I clasped my medallion, breathed in deeply, and joined the battle.
The first creature my sword slid into turned into ash, and I almost dropped my sword and ran. But, with the thought of Tristan on my mind, I moved though the creatures like they weren’t terrifying and dangerous, sliding my sword through them.
“Abigail, watch—” Valoel warned, but she was too late, my hand was already bleeding from a gash. I screamed out in pain.
The creature behind me, who looked like a human, smiled evilly when I looked at him. His breath was filled with smoke, and his eyes were cold, unnatural orbs. He raised his sword again, and I blocked it with mine.
After I slit the creature’s throat, it too turned into ashes. I ducked just in time to avoid what looked like a green light flying past me. It hit one of the Grandinian angels behind me, and immediately the angel turned into ice. Seconds later, he shattered into a thousand pieces.
Spears flew toward me from every direction. Both the Lumenian and Grandinian warriors were skillful. All sorts of colorful illuminations flew from every direction. Many creatures, both Underworld warriors and angels, fell from the air and turned to dust upon impact. There were screams of pain, and I even heard laughter. Smoke billowed from nooks and cracks.
“Is that a human?” someone behind me asked. I didn’t have time to turn and look because a sword swung right in front of me.
“In the name of the devil, it is!” It was Panic who answered.
“But what is she doing here?” a male asked.
“I don’t know,” Panic answered. “But I am about to find out.”
“Abigail!” Gideon shouted my name, and I turned around just in time to dodge the arrow Panic sent flying at me.
When my eyes met Panic’s, I drew my own arrow and I let it fly. I watched as the arrow went straight toward Panic, not stopping until it pierced her chest. She cried as she fell. Gideon stood somewhere at the far end of the battlefield, looking at me with a shocked expression.
I didn’t have time to enjoy my victory because suddenly I was sinking.
I screamed as I slipped into a tornado swirling down into the ground. “Help!”
“Abigail!” both Sela and Gideon shouted at the same time.
I watched as they rushed over to me, both of them killing everything in their path. I yelled as I tried to free myself from the vortex pulling me into the earth.
Gideon and Sela were almost halfway to me when Sela screamed in pain from an arrow Pain threw at her. The weirdest thing was, Gideon also screamed when Sela did. I watched as both Sela and Gideon fell on their backs. Both grabbed their left shoulder, where the arrow hit Sela.
Out of nowhere, Valoel was beside Sela. Gideon looked confusedly at his shoulder and at Sela before he stood and angrily hurled a fireball at Pain. The flames kicked Pain off his feet when it hit him. Pain fell hard on his back and yelled. Gideon started rushing toward me again, but the tornado started spinning out of control, and then I was falling down, down.
“Gideon!” I screamed as I fell deeper until suddenly everything went dark, and I was whirled into the deepest darkness imaginable.