Snowscape Trilogy Page 8

  Smiling wide, “We weren’t far and saw the smoke. I live only to serve, Ambrosia. And you wouldn’t have been charred. The fire was only set to draw you out. They cannot kill you, you are immortal.”

  This jarring new concept set a question on my lips, but I suddenly jumped as the front door slammed shut. “Riel.” Violet said calmly.

  Samandiriel sauntered in freshly showered and bereft of the soot I had last seen on him. He now wore soft dark blue jeans, and a loose fitting white T-shirt that stretched across his formed biceps. He was also once again wearing the dark rimmed reading glasses that hid the true nature of his eyes. Sam walked into the kitchen and barely glanced in my direction. “Are we rested and ready?” he asked Violet. The rested part resonated within me and I had the dawning suspicion that Samandiriel must have known what had occurred in his sister’s bedroom while he was gone. Heat rose to my cheeks.

  “Yep,” she answered, standing up and looking towards me with an apologetic shrug. Sam walked out without a second thought. It could not have been more obvious that he was ignoring me.

  I dumped my remaining coffee into the sink and followed Violet out the front door following their shadows to the car. Getting in I realized that Violet had once again effortlessly evaded answering all of my questions about the true nature of why Nathaniel and Samandiriel were protecting me.

  Chapter 13

  I didn’t ask where we were going. In all honesty it didn’t seem to matter. I was suddenly so exhausted I couldn’t keep my head up so I curled up in the backseat of Sam’s SUV under Violet’s jacket and fell into a deep sleep as the sun was continually rising in the distance.

  When I opened my eyes I found myself in a vast expanse of desert that bordered the shore of a narrow river. Without concentration I knew it was the Nile and I could tell that I was alone. “Nathaniel?” I asked barely above a whisper. All that returned to me was the soft sound of water lapping against the shore and the wind bristling past with each grain of sand. “Nathaniel?” I asked louder. Where was he? “Nathaniel!!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. Nothing. Frustration building up inside me I closed my eyes and focused on his face. His soft iridescent eyes and black cowl swept head. I was the master of this realm. If that was true then I would be able to find him.

  I pressed my eyes deep in concentration and could smell the change in the air. I could smell the moss and the deep dark greens of the woods. I felt ground crunch beneath bare my feet and when I opened my eyes he stood in front of me. A soft smile touched his face. “Impressive,” he said simply.

  “Where were you?”

  He looked confused. “I was right here. Waiting for you. We don’t have much time and you are already being hunted. The easiest way for you to learn right now is to create a little desperation.”

  I nodded. “Great. Seeing as how my best friend is dead and I am on the run with a demon and an immortal human that tends to lie all of the time, I would consider you successful at making me desperate.”

  He grimaced slightly and his aggressive demeanor fell from his stance. “Are you safe?” I nodded with slight trepidation. “You’re with him?” I nodded again. He turned away with a sigh and suddenly disappeared.

  “God dammit,” I swore under my breath. I close my eyes and let the cat and mouse game begin. I chased him through several landscapes and places. Each catching only a fleeting glances of his black attire before losing sight of him altogether. Time lost all meaning as I chased him through and through and I could feel myself begin to grow weaker although not in the physical sense of the word. After what felt like hours I had found myself besides a park beach that sat within the confines of what looked like Central Park. I could see the skyscrapers jutting up in the distance and could taste the burnt smell of hot dog vendors nearby. I had once visited New York when I was just out of high school and had considered moving there even. I had found the city dirty and congested, but still full of wonder and people. The whole town with its hustle and bustle had made me loose all sense of comfortableness, leaving me open and vulnerable. I left within two weeks and had made my way north towards Maine.

  I sat down on the bench to take a moment to rethink my strategy. Nathaniel was trying to teach me something here, and it was becoming clear that it was not simply to follow him around like a puppy dog. I rubbed my hand over my eyes and cleared my mind. He had told me that I could evolve; take over the landscape I found myself in. Every time I wanted to I would find myself by Nathaniel’s side, he would know I was there and then leave. With a jolt it hit me. I grinned to myself in satisfaction before closing my eyes. I pictured him standing there in front of me: the soft black folds of his robe caressing down his perfect frame. I could see the dark sweep of his strait black hair as it fell in a messy tousle against his face.

  When I opened my eyes I saw him standing in front of me. He made to move, to leave just had had countless time before, but his eyes widened as he realized that he couldn’t. He couldn’t move, couldn’t blink, and couldn’t breathe. I could not control him but I could control where we were. A soft field surrounded us but every blade of grass stood perfectly still. Every grain of pollen stayed floating upon the breeze without movement. It was as effortless to me as was breathing. I held my hand up to him, feeling each molecule of the air fall through my fingers. The power that I felt was euphoric as I stared at him. Suddenly a deep longing overtook me and I could taste his kisses on my lips. I recalled the feel of his fingers delving deep inside me and I was overcome with a sensual need to have him touch me again.

  I reached up and ran my hand down the length of his arm. He could not speak, but I saw his eyes follow me with pride and fear all the same. I slowly ran my fingers down the soft crushed velvet as I had longed to do for every moment of every dream I had had since birth. I was in complete control now and I wanted nothing more than to torture him with the same sense of anticipation he had always held over me. I walked around him, circling like prey and I could see the fear in his eyes grow. This was not the outcome he had expected. I leaned in close to him and spoke gently into his ear. “You’ve tortured me my whole life, you know: the unanswered questions; the longing to know the truth” I stopped and stared into his opal eyes and I could feel the air stretch against me as he fought and pushed with all of his essence. “I have you.” I trailed kisses down his cheek and to the nape of his neck. My hands ran down both of his arms and despite the force I held over his body, a ripple of ecstasy skimmed across it. I lost myself in his scent as I nestled my lips into his collarbone. My hands reached down and I could tell was enjoying my attentions. As desire overtook me and I pressed myself against him, I could feel his will fight against me in a sudden surge of power. For the briefest second I lost my concentration and dropped my control out of the stillness of the air.

  Nathaniel quickly grabbed my wrist and held it behind my back, nuzzling himself into the crock of my neck. “You’ve done quite well. But you have to be careful the power does not overtake you.”

  I flinched back as if doused with a cold bucket of water, but Nathaniel held me tight and close against his frame. All sense of power, anger, and frustration I felt suddenly rinsed out of me and sunk into the earth. Abhorrence set upon me as I realized what I had just done. Not just held him in my grip, but the sense of absolute authority I had let overpower my mind. I looked to him, confused. Suddenly frustrated tears started streaming down my face and I spoke “What just happened?”

  He stood assessing me for a moment, ignoring my tears before dropping my wrist and stepping back. “The power that you hold. It all stems from your emotions. That is both a curse and the danger. You felt out of control of yourself?”

  I nodded, trembling; I turned away “Yes. As if any emotion I had ever felt was intensified to the extreme.” I blushed, the former thoughts rushing back into my head, and I turned away from him.

  He walked around me and held my chin up examining the pink that had just come rushing into my cheeks. “The feelings you feel are real, and y
our own, but they will cause you to act out in ways that you would normally not. While the emotion is yours, you will lose the intellectual sway you hold over them. Your power is derived from the core root of empathy you share with all humanity, but you will have to be careful to not let the desires others feel overtake you. That is the way it is in dreams. A human feels things more intensely here. They are braver, stronger and usually more fearful. You are stronger than most and therefore your emotions can cause you… upheaval.”

  I looked him in the face with a sigh. “I’m sorry.”

  The word trailed off as he laughed and kissed me chastely on the lips. They stung with pleasure and need and I could see in his eyes that he enjoyed the torment it caused me. “Do not be sorry, my little clover. I am both proud and flattered by the attentions.” He traced the pattern of my tears with a finger down the side of my face and I pulled away before he could distract me more.

  “What’s the point of this?” I asked.

  “I’m trying to help you learn.”

  “But learn what? What is the point of all of this power? What good does it do heaven or hell to have me working on either side? I don’t understand what I am supposed to do.”

  “You remember our discussion on the power you hold over the human mind?” I nodded, unclear of what he was telling me. “Your destiny lies in two paths going forward. You can either help your fellow humans or hurt them. Angels want you to help guide them to the choices they could make that would fulfill their lives, their destiny, and their happiness. And demons. Demons usually just want power. The immediate want is what drives them forward. They don’t tend to look at the bigger picture like angels do.” He hesitated before finishing his thought “I never did before I met you.”

  I felt the world suddenly crash around me. I had always known this hadn’t I? “You’re a demon?” I asked in a whisper.

  “Yes. I was at one time. Long before.”

  “Long before what?”

  “Long before I gave up the power of both heaven and hell for you.”

  “Is that why your eyes don’t burn?” He nodded. “I don’t understand.”

  Grimacing he shook his head. “Nor do you need to at this point. What you need to do is to practice what you’ve learned. Come, Ambrosia,” he grabbed my hand, “let us add a human being into our next lesson. Time waits for no one, angel or demon, and our time is growing short”

  I pulled my hand back and I could feel my cheeks redden and I dropped my eyes as I thought of what I needed to ask him. “Wait. What about us? Violet told me to come into my full power I must remain… ‘Untouched’…. what we’ve done…”

  My eyes cast down; I could feel him draw closer to me. He lifted my chin slightly and the opal iridescence of his eyes bore into my soul. “Ambrosia, love. “ He smiled slightly and kissed the corner of my mouth before leaning close to my ear. “You are a prize I am willing to fight to win. Haven’t you ever cheated the odds into your favor before?” I could hear the smile in his voice as I saw a glimpse of the demon still inside of him. “Besides, it was only ever a dream.”

  Suddenly, I awoke with a start as Violet was gently shaking my arm. “Amy, I’m sorry to wake you up, but we needed to stop for gas and I though you should get something to eat. We won’t be stopping for a while.” She was right that I was famished. I looked to the clock and saw that it was close to 6pm. I had slept most of the day away.

  I went into the gas station to use the restroom, grab a sandwich and to grab a few moments alone with Samandiriel. I wanted to talk to him alone without Violet around before another awkward silence choked us in the car. Glancing the periphery of the shop I could not see his moppet of blonde hair anywhere in view but as I was at the register paying for my on the go dinner a whiff of sulphur startled me. Smiling I turned, “Sam-” It was then I saw Sam was outside talking heatedly with Violet at the edge of the gas island. The sulphur grew stronger as I looked into the burning blue eyes of gas station attendant. Suddenly everything went black before I could scream.

  Book 2

  Samandiriel

  Chapter 1

  “Riel, just talk to her. Enough with this prissy, immature posturing you and Nathaniel must constantly do. Tell her the stakes and that she must choose before the day of her birth.” Violet’s voice grated on his last nerve, but she had a point as ever. He would not have kept her around for over a century if she had not proven her usefulness countless times. However her usefulness often times came with an ear-shattering headache. “Samandiriel,” she paused for a moment considering her next words. “You love her. She loves you as well, even if she does not remember it. Honesty is the only thing you can count on the fight the darkness that is coming.”

  He brushed the hair off of his damp forehead and noticed once again how hot he felt all of the time now. “Things are not as simple as they seem to you. Nathanial – “

  “Fuck Nathaniel strait back to hell. You are not giving Amy enough credit of her own. Nathanial is surely hedging his bets; you should be hedging yours. Once the cards are all played then you will know who takes home the prize, but until then you have to fight. This is not just a battled between heaven and hell anymore.“

  “Isn’t it? She made her choice long ago, as did I. This is the sacrifice we have both made for the future of the human race. God would not see it done any other way. You know this.”

  “Samandiriel, God is not fighting against you. He is giving you a chance to fight for yourself now.” She placed her hand gently on his arm and giving it a light squeeze before walking to the front of the car and leaning back on the still warm hood.

  Shoving the gas pump into the heavy metal slot he stood for a moment in much needed silence taking stock of the situation. The Colorado air was thinner and held the brisk nature of the British Isles that he missed. Funny, how he suddenly thought longingly of them. His heart had been broken there, his spirit taken and misshapen into the demonic creature he now found himself to be. But it was his home more so than any other place had ever been. His heart had broken, but had also been born there.

  With a deep sigh, Samandiriel, former angel resigned himself to his current fate and to his sister’s good will. “Where is she?” he asked over to her quickly scanning the distance for Ambrosia’s perfect form.

  Violet, feeling as though her mantel had been won, smiled slightly. “I think she is still inside.”

  Sam glanced up towards the market and an immediate feeling of dread overtook him, clouding his thoughts, the smell if sulphur strong in the undercurrent of the air. The room was empty and he rushed into it, a blur of fire and anger. He could taste the char on his lips as easily as he could still smell the breath of her clover-scented skin in the air. They had taken her while he was too busy preoccupied over his emotions. Her love had blinded his senses as they always did. Had it not been for his inability to keep her safe in the first place Nathaniel would not be the one enticing her every night. It would be he she still dreamed about. A blinding rage fell upon him as he closed his eyes and took in every scent and feeling he would be able to gather from the empty store and despite their ripped and tattered shape, Samandiriel, former angel took to the sky in the waning light to look for Ambrosia Ross, master of dreams and keeper of his heart.

  Chapter 2

  The setting sun did not aid in his quest. He followed the scent of sulphur for as long as his shredded and feeble wings would carry him but after an hour they gave out. He fell; cursing to a valley floor nestled deep within the Rocky Mountains. As he lay on the jagged edges of the deep ravine, he watched the sinking sun finally set behind the Western sky and contemplated his next move. He took out his cell and saw that Violet had tried to call him. Only once, and he smiled despite his deep seeded aggravation. She knew him too well it seems. He would call when she was needed which was how their relationship had always been. He was sent to watch over her and had lost her almost as soon as the quest had begun. Despite his want to wallow in the self-pity that seemed comfortable
and inviting, Samandiriel knew he needed to take over, more drastic measures. He needed to talk to Nathaniel. With resolve he walked up the nearest facing mountain range he could traverse. The rushing rains had carved out deep crevices in the valley and it was an easy climb for him since he spent a large potion of his earthen life actively making himself stronger for the fight that was only now starting. He did not need to climb far: just high enough that the force of his inertia would knock him into unconsciousness. As a demon, sleep was not required of him and he had spoken the truth to Ambrosia that he could not cross into the dreamscape where Nathanial ruled. He had never actually attempted such a thing, but he knew that Amy’s time would run short. If the demon hoard were smart they were keeping her unconscious and without REM sleep so should could not alert human or angel protectors. Nathaniel would not be able to reach her, but he would know their plans. He had been a demon for over two millennia.

  The higher he climbed, the more the breeze stirred and cooled the sweat off of his brow. The dark blond curls were plastered to his forehead as he wiped the sweat from his brow before running into the creases by his eyes. He was grateful for a moment to be without the glasses that hid his nature from the world. He was just about high enough, perhaps a kilometer above the valley floor before he stopped and rested his back, pierced into by the sharp outline of the rocks. He breathed deeply and pressed his back into the jagged enclave until he could smell blood running down his back. The wings had torn through his shirt earlier making him now a spectacle to behold. Limp wings, dripping with blood, his strong arms now filled with fatigue and sweat.

  “God, help me in this quest, “ he quietly prayed, the first time since he had taken on the mantle of the demon he now had become. Without hesitation he leapt from the edge and tumbled, brokenly down to the bottom of the valley floor.