Chapter 1

1

 

Midnight.
I slowly awoke to the sound of rain tapping endlessly on the academy roof. It was still too early to be awake; the sky was pitch black and the trumpets had not uttered a sound since the night had begun. 
I sat up and stared emotionlessly into the dark corners of the room, sleep deprived and exhausted as hell. But it wasn't the rain that was keeping me up.

The thought of my union’s attitude lingered in my head. They never listened when you called them out on something. They repeated mistakes time and time again. They were not the people I could go to with issues. Yes, I was a battle angel, with a duty to protect and serve the kingdom of Cerserice as many times as necessary, but I hated this stupid place. Not even the fact that they gave us extra strength to keep us alive in battle was enough to convince me anymore. As much as I loved fighting to save my kingdom, I wanted to represent something I was proud of being in.

I wanted to fly away to another place; fight for a better place. But I knew very well that it wasn't an option. The time of war had come again. My strength was needed for the academy again. For a rumour of an uprising against us on the Earth below had spread among the tongues of the fearful...and the fearless.

My eyes diverted to a black-haired boy of nineteen, snoring loudly on the bed next to me. His name was Artemis Bessel, the biggest show-off in the whole academy and a real pain to deal with. He thought he was   'the bravest of all angels.'
Downright pathetic. That's what I thought of him anyway.
It just so happened that every time we made contact, there was conflict.

We were natural enemies; he thought he was better than me, I thought he was completely out of his mind, and we never seemed to ever get along. It had been that way since the very beginning; ever since I had joined the union.

Even now he was irritating me.
I got up and kicked him hard in the ribs. He groaned, but soon enough, he stopped snoring. Problem solved.

I went back to watching the rain slide effortlessly down the window panes.

 "Why can't I live in peace like everyone else?" I thought.
Hours went by slowly, but it was only towards morning that my body begged for sleep. 
I sighed, lay my head back down and closed my eyes. In a few hours I would train, just like every day, with sleepless nights following behind.

The rest of the night passed like a blur and I was soon awoken by the sound of blaring trumpets.
The noise echoed through the sky and rung in the ears of everyone in the academy. Most got to their feet at the first call, despite being sleep-stricken and half awake from the night before.
Those who weren't awake could barely open their eyes. I was included.

The bright light of morning streaming through the window knocked heavily on my eyelids, forcing them open for briefly.
It was ten to nine; a second call of the trumpet was due. Still I lay there, knowing the guards would soon charge in and drag us out of bed themselves if we refused to get up. But I was too tired to do anything.
Like predicted, trouble soon sauntered my way and the doors of the academy swung open furiously. Then a guard marched in, pulled me up by the collar and shouted me down.
"AERYN KITKERIN!" He yelled, "GET UP!”

I looked at him, my eyes opening and closing slowly. “I am up.”

He gave me a foul look as he left the room, dropping me to my knees. Great. My first warning to training in the rain.
The third and final trumpet sounded after the second had gone, and by the time I had got to my feet, almost everyone else had made their way to the assembly. That left me and the remaining few alone in the dorm. I looked at them impatiently as they slowly wandered their way out of the room, following swiftly behind.

We soon arrived at the assembly unit. As I pushed the doors open, the whole room turned their heads and stared.

"You're late," the chief growled.

I refused to reply and pushed past those I was with. Artemis chuckled softly, shooting me a smirk of pleasure as I moved towards my place. My eyes darted towards him. I clenched my fists, promising myself to deal with him once we were out of assembly.

After making my way to my seat, the chief began to speak.
"Now, every angel in this room knows very well about the uprising that has taken place on the earth below, correct?"

The majority of the room shook their heads, but my lips remained sealed. I knew.

"If not, then I shall explain," He began again. "The human race is one of many superior races with intelligent minds, used for the good...and the evil. You see, there has been a discovery among the humans; one that puts our kingdom in danger. They have found our land. I know not how, but I do know that they have located our race and are on their way to bringing  something great and powerful that could lead to the destruction of Cerserice!"

The whole room burst into fits of terror and anxiety. I watched every face turn from curiosity to despair and saw every family of angels suddenly break apart. It was horrible. But I was expecting it.

For years we had lived in fear of the human race and their ability to one day locate our kingdom. It was only a matter of time, and I went out of my way to search my land for rumours and information a few days back. I soared the sky and turned over torn newspapers. Nobody ever read them, so when there was news of the humans, of course nobody knew. But I told no-one when I found out; I knew how rumors spread and I didn't want a certain someone to find out and get way ahead of themselves again.

I looked around the room as the chief quietened everyone down and continued the speech.
"But that is why, my dear angels, we have The Cerentine Union; the greatest battle angels in the kingdom. They will protect you. I will protect you. We will all be safe. Don't panic any longer."

A burst of relief suddenly filled the air as the assembly cheered for our union. But moments later, my eyes and the chief's locked together, staring each other down - both knowing his words offered no guarantee to our safety. Then I looked away, upset that he fed our kingdom sugar-coated speeches on a regular basis. He saw my anger and ignored it, and I was left to bottle up my thoughts once again.

Artemis saw my anger too and took the opportunity to silently mock me; sending me smirks and unloving smiles. I chose to ignore him, as the chief had done to me. Then I glanced around the room, forcing myself to smile and wave to those who cheered for our team.
I had to lie to them about their amount of safety, but it was for their own good. If it meant peace and preparation for the kingdom, I would agree to do whatever the chief requested. 
Whether it would work or not.

 

Author's Note

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