Chaser of Faith

I woke up in the middle of the night, sweating. I needed water. My throat felt closed-up from thirst. I coughed to try to clear it as I got out of bed and slowly made my way to the door. I had one hand on the wall of the hallway as I walked to the living room.

Where did I get water?

I looked around the room, but saw no water source. I decided to try outside. The heat was scorching, even though it was nighttime. The sweat beaded across my forehead and my neck, falling to the straps of my dress. I headed to the back door, opening it slowly. I was hit with a bright light, surprising me. I squinted and tried to let my eyes adjust to the sudden sunlight, making me even hotter. I held up a hand to shield my eyes. I stepped down the stairs, nearly blind.

When I opened my eyes fully again, I let my jaw drop in shock. I was home. The smell of fresh-cut grass and summer flowers followed me as I took steps further into my backyard. I looked behind me. It was my house, the same way it used to look, just as I remembered it. My heart felt light and I took in a deep breath, smiling in disbelief and turning to face the yard again.

“Is this… real?” I asked myself.

“Is what real, kopela mou?” I jumped at the sound of my mother’s voice coming from the deck behind me. I spun around to see her closing the screen door behind her with her shoulder. Her hands were full with two glasses of pink lemonade. I didn’t say a word. I just took in her appearance. She smiled at me, her bare feet padding softly on the painted wood of the deck, coming to join me on the grass. I looked down at myself. I also had bare feet, and my old yellow summer dress that I used to wear in high school. My hair was tied back in a ponytail.

“Mom,” I breathed out, still feeling disbelief. She handed me a glass, and wiped the glass’ condensation from her hand to her shirt.

“Claire,” she laughed at me. I smiled brightly. Her hazel eyes shone in the sun, the flecks of gold shimmering. Her short, black hair was curled and held in place with a stiff, white headband. She sipped at her lemonade, studying me as I studied her. She held out her hand, smoothing my hair back. I closed my eyes, appreciating her soft touch. “You wanna tell me about it?”

“About what?” I asked quietly, opening my eyes to her once more.

“Those angels,” she said as if it were obvious. She took her hand back, turning and sitting on the steps of the deck.

“What about them?” She took another sip of her lemonade and placed it next to her.

“You know you can’t trust them. I’m proud of you.” I didn’t say anything for a moment.

“You are?” I asked cautiously. She nodded, her expression convincing.

“Of course. You’re completely right. You can’t trust those men. I’m proud that you aren’t falling for their tricks. They’re dishonest and I’m afraid for you, Claire.” I walked towards her and joined her on the steps, setting my lemonade next to me as well.

“Well, what do I do?” I asked her, biting my lip.

“Running away is the right thing to do,” she said, tucking a stray piece of my hair behind my ear. Her words, surprisingly, did not comfort me. Running away? Is that what I was doing? “I just mean,” she added quickly. “Staying with those angels is going to bring you nothing but pain.”

“But where do I go? What am I going to do?” I asked, my pain showing in my eyes and mouth, twisted with anxiety. My mom took my hand.

“Trust humans. You can only trust humans. The creatures of this planet do not care about you. They will always choose themselves and their own kind over you.” My heart stung with that thought.

I’m alone.

But I knew she was right.

“Where are you, Mom?” I asked, staring down at her hand.

“You’ll find me soon, Claire. Trust the humans. But you have to go,” she whispered. I blinked and looked up again. She was gone. The sun was gone. I stood up fast, alarmed, but I was suddenly disoriented. I fell from the steps, gasping.

I jerked awake, sitting up and gasping for air. My hair clung to my sweaty skin and the skirt of my dress was half-way up my torso. The sheets of the bed were pulled to the other side of the mattress. I had clearly struggled in my sleep. I took in deep breaths, pulling my dress down and sitting up in bed. It was morning.

I took in a few more breaths, wiping the sweat from my face. I curled up in a ball on my bed, closing my eyes. That dream felt so real. My mother’s face was still fresh in my mind. It was so good to see her, even if it was just my imagination. I wanted to go back to sleep, just to see her once more. I wanted her presence again. I felt so lonely.

I opened my eyes again, staring blankly at the window. What if I just left? I asked myself. Run away.

“You have to go.”

I took in a breath as I realized I had stopped breathing momentarily, looking away from the window and shaking my head.

Not yet. I couldn’t leave yet. I had some more work to do.

I got out of bed and got ready for the day, leaving my dream behind.

-*-

Rahmiel was gone for the day. Serving his punishment, I assumed. Adriel had made me breakfast again. Nicholas was not with us. I asked Adriel to confirm some of the legends of vampires. He told me, he believed, that they couldn’t be in the sun and they could only be killed by a wooden stake through the heart. Nearly every other story was false. He said the vampires had started a lot of fake rumors to keep themselves safe.

I was nervous to be with Adriel for the day once more. But, I was mentally prepared to combat his cunning charm and manipulation.

“Tell me about the King,” I ordered as I washed off my plate in the stream in the backyard of the cottage. Adriel stood behind me, leaning against a tree, watching me. I glared at the plate in annoyance, but didn’t let it show in my voice.

“What about the King?” he asked, teasing me. I rolled my eyes, but looked back at him and shot him a small smile.

“Who is he? Is he a good king? Do we also have a queen?” Adriel sighed.

“Ugh, boring,” he moaned. I rolled my eyes again as I finished washing my plate. I stood up, drying it, and walking back towards the house. He followed closely. “You wanna go open the vampire’s blinds and see what happens?” he asked excitedly. I frowned deeply.

“No, that’s awful, Adriel.” He sighed again.

“I like you better when you’re angry.” I glared at him.

“You told me you’d teach me about the planet. The King and politics are part of it.” He sighed once more, loudly and dramatically, throwing his head back.

“There are three kings of Aksan- three brothers, the sons of the first Saniat King, Rohathro San, who ruled over all of Aksan when there were fewer beings on the planet. When he got older, he decreed that his sons Ymet, Jey, and Simon would take over the land.” We sat in the grass again, basking in the sun. Adriel was lost in thought and I concentrated on his story.

“They divided Nanimat into three countries to begin with,” he continued. I layed down on my stomach, looking up at him, using his big, dumb head to block the sun. “The eldest brother, Ymet, took most of the land- the middle of the continent. The second eldest brother, Jey, seized the eastern country, Jag. And the youngest, Simon, inherited the western country, Sithen.” He pulled at the grass, piling pieces on my back. I smiled in spite of myself. “Now, Ythe, our central country, used to be much larger. But, when the angels of Heaven and Hell came to this planet and tried to match the powers of the Saniat, Rohathro San struck an accord with the angels.

“Ythe was separated into three parts, becoming three separate countries. Vow is the northern country, dedicated to the angels of Heaven. Rath is the southern country, dedicated to the angels of Hell.” Adriel sprinkled some grass on my hair, and I swatted his hand away, brushing the grass out of my hair, smiling again accidently. I sat up and scooted away from him.

“This treaty that the All-Seeing King, Rohathro San, had struck with the first angels who settled here, saved this planet from certain destruction. Most of the world lives in harmony today. Angels are typically welcomed by all. However, King Ymet is a jealous, greedy, selfish king,” he said gravely. He scooted closer to me, poking my feet. I tucked them underneath me quickly, shaking my head at him and glaring. “He was angry that his father gave his land to the angels who did not belong to this planet.

“To this day, King Ymet punishes angels as often as he can. His wife, the Queen Lillian, is an angel from Leraust, who had grown up in Heaven. She’s an angel of Vow, pushed to marry the king in order to… secure the ties, between our races. She is punished everyday in a loveless marriage.” I knitted my eyebrows, frowning. Adriel gently grabbed the edges of my dress, feeling the fabric with his fingertips. My hand twitched to hit him, but I restrained myself. A small part of me wanted to trust him.

“Anywho,” he continued, letting go of my dress, and tracing his fingers along my hands and fingers. “King Jey, who resides in Kost, is wed to Queen Halle, a Pentixiat from Zonmay in the south of his country. And King Simon, who resides in Herith, is unwed still. I have heard good things about both kings. I’m certain they’re kinder than their eldest brother, at the very least.” Adriel pulled his hand back and he fell dramatically backwards, laying in the grass with his wings stretched out wide under himself, staring up at me. “Questions?” I took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. I tucked my hair behind my ears.

“Rahmiel works for King Ymet, doesn’t he?” Adriel raised his eyebrows. “As part of his punishment?” He turned his head to the sky, closing his eyes and putting his hands behind his head.

“Yeah.”

“What does this punishment entail?” He frowned slightly, not speaking for a second.

“He takes on the King’s and his court’s negative emotions. They… have done many bad things. And so it falls on Rahmiel.” His lips suddenly twitched upwards into a ghostly smile. “He absorbs all the negative energy like a sponge. It ruins him,” he drawled, opening his eyes and looking at me again. I pressed my lips together, uncomfortable. “Anyway, he only has another 187 years left of his punishment. He got off far too easy,” he said darkly. I stared at him blankly, his eyes didn’t leave mine. “More questions?” I blinked, thinking of the questions that have been building since I arrived to this planet.

“I noticed that there are markings on the door… What are they?” Adriel took in a breath.

“They’re Nythen symbols,” he sighed out. “Devada ro. It means ‘protect all.’ My sister was very gifted with Nythen charms.” I stayed silent but opened my mouth, struggling to find something to say.

“Your sister?” I repeated slowly.

“She tried to protect herself and Rahmiel from the Magistrate. The charm protected any point of access- the door, the windows- from enemies trying to find them. It worked. The Magistrate never got into the house.” I bit my lip with a frown.

“The closet is a point of access, too?” He raised his eyebrows.

“The closet? You found symbols on the closet?” I swallowed, my throat feeling dry, and nodded. He looked at me thoughtfully, narrowing his eyes. “Ue divade oto nemen.” I frowned deeper, furrowing my eyebrows.

“What?”

“Nothi-”

“No, Adriel. Stop hiding things.” I inched closer to him, feeling brave. I put my hand on his. He seemed surprised by my touch. He looked at me curiously, almost suspiciously. “How can we get closer if we aren’t honest with each other?” I asked coily. My heart fluttered with fear, but I tried not to let it show. I smiled warmly, begging for his trust. His expression softened. He put his other hand on top of mine.

“Nice try, xe.” He took my wrist in his large hand, lifting it away from himself as he sat up. I frowned, trying to take my hand back. He inched himself closer to me, bringing my hand to his chest and putting his free hand at the base of the back of my head where it met my neck. He tangled his fingers with my hair. My heart pounded now. I tried to push him away with my hands, but he barely noticed. His wings spread out wide behind him, seeming to act like a counter weight against my strength.

“Adriel,” I pleaded.

“What? I thought you wanted to get closer?” he laughed at me. “Don’t lie to liars,” he said pointedly. He let go of my wrist and stood up. He offered me his hand. I glared at him, standing up myself.

“Stop speaking other languages in front of me,” I stressed as I pushed him childishly. “It’s annoying,” I said with another push. He laughed at me.

“Oh now we’re shoving? What are you, five?” He started walking towards the house. I stayed put, glaring at him as he walked away. “Well, are you coming?” he called back to me. “Don’t you wanna know what Rahmiel is hiding?” I raised my eyebrows again, standing up straight.

I looked up at the sky. The sun was well past the halfway point in the sky. It had begun its descent. I started after Adriel and met him at the door. He held the door open for me, smirking knowingly at me as I pushed in front of him to get into the house. I crossed my arms at him.

“What could Rahmiel be hiding?” I asked him cooly. He smiled widely at me.

“Dunno. I guess we’ll find out, won’t we?” He wandered down the hall and turned into my room.

“Hey!” I called to him. “Get out of my room.” I found him at my closet, inspecting the outside and inside.

“Where’s the writing?” I rolled my eyes.

“It’s at the bottom, it’s right there.” I took the door and closed it, pointing to where I had seen it. I was shocked to see that it was gone. “But-” I stopped myself. Why did this keep happening? “He- he must have done something. It was there. It was right there. I know it was.” He looked at me seriously.

“I need you to think hard, Claire.” He took my hand, bringing me to the window. He pointed at the writing there. “Did it look exactly like this?” I tried to remember. I closed my eyes. I brought myself back to my first day here, finding my room for the first time.

“I… I don’t know.” I shook my head, feeling frustrated. “It looked the same to me.” He looked to the desk in the corner of the room and found a pen. He started writing on his hand. I furrowed my brows and pursed my lips thoughtfully. He showed me a string of symbols that matched the writing on the window.

“Devada ro. Protect all.” He took his hand back and started writing just under it. He showed me once more when he finished. “Divade ro,” he said darkly and clearly. “Hide. All.” He brought his hand closer to me. “Could this have been what you saw, Claire?” I looked into his bright green eyes that were full of determination. I swallowed nervously and looked back to his hand. I stared at the symbols. Both charms looked very similar.

“I suppose it’s possible that that was the one I saw.” I shrugged at him, shaking my head. “I really can’t be sure, Adriel. I’m sorry.” He licked his lip and bit at it, looking away from me in thought.

“He had moved a few things out of this room before you moved into it.”

“He had to move some old junk from this room,” he had told me.

“It's also possible he moved the closet when you weren't here.”

”He’s a hoarder. He doesn’t throw anything away.”

“She used to live here. This used to be her second room.”

”He makes terrible choices and never seems to learn from them.”

“He’s hiding something. I just don’t know what.”

“And it has to do with Namina?” I asked slowly.

“Maybe. Either way, I’m going to figure it out.” He brushed my hair back, off of my shoulders. He put his hands on my upper arms, squeezing them gently and stroking my skin with his thumbs. “He might finally lose his grace.” He smiled madly, his eyes had gone empty again.

“His grace?” My words were slow still, cautious and nervous. I placed my hands on the back of his hands, keeping his eye contact and trying to bring him back.

“He’ll fall from grace and become a fallen and be banished to Earth for all eternity,” he sang. “And I will be free.”