Chapter Two

When Cassie woke, everything was quiet. Rays of sunshine came in through the blinds and for once, it seemed like everything was right. But as Cassie got out of the bed, she knew it wasn’t. She walked out of the room into the small den that connected to the kitchen where she found Klaus, sitting on the couch with his legs crossed, wearing no shirt. His hair was everywhere; Cassie assumed he’d just gotten up as well.

He yawned and then glanced over at her. His eyes still held the same emotion from last night when Cassie told him to leave. “We should get a move on.”

“We? I’m certain I told you that we’d go our own ways in the morning.” Cassie replied, her eyes narrowed. As she said it, she hoped he’d disagree and stay with her. Instead, he stood and pulled his shirt over his head.

“Fine. I’ll go my way and you’ll go yours.” He raised an eyebrow. “Just be careful. There are those out there that will tear you to pieces.”

Cassie was confused. She’d only seen angels, and all they did was slit throats or put a blade through your chest. “Are you talking about demons? Come on, Klaus. I haven’t come across anyone who’s seen one. It’s just angels that are here, waging war against us.”

There was something dangerous that flickered in his eyes and Cassie suddenly felt like there was possibly something else out there. Klaus just shrugged. “You’d be surprised about how well they blend in, Cassie. Satan isn’t red with horns and a tail. Demons don’t wait in the shadows until they can attack from behind. We’ve all heard that angels were gorgeous creatures that watched over us. But you’ve seen them as clearly as I. Nothing is as it seems anymore.”

Klaus was right. “Do you still want to go separate ways?” Her voice was quiet and she wasn’t sure he’d heard her, but when she looked up, there was a grin on his face.

“You didn’t think I’d just let you face the big bad monsters all by yourself, did you?” He still held his grin, but his eyes showed fear and a danger Cassie wasn’t sure she wanted to face.

The two of them found canned food and packed Cassie’s bag with it, along with water, and sharing a can between them before they set out. As they walked along the quiet, empty streets, Cassie couldn’t help but wonder where she was. She’d never paid much attention to the cities or towns she’d been to in the last few weeks. She glanced over at Klaus, who was humming quietly to himself, his eyes darting every which way.

Any other day, Cassie would have loved the quiet, but something felt off " she felt like they were being watched. “Klaus!” She hissed, pulling him into an alley.

“They’re following us, Cassie. We can’t afford to get trapped in an alley.” He spoke low and quick, his eyes never leaving the only way out of the alley. He grabbed her hand and pulled her back out of the alley, walking at a quick pace. Glancing over her shoulder, Cassie could swear she saw something or someone. Klaus abruptly turned left and the two of them came to a large forest, just outside the town. “There’s a church on the other side, do you understand? You get there and you stay there.” He put both hands on her shoulders. “If you value your life, Cassie, you do not leave that church.”

“Where are you going?” She didn’t want to sound desperate; she’d survived for weeks on her own, but for once, she finally felt safe with Klaus around. Now he wanted to leave.

He was quiet for a moment. “Just trust me, Cassie. I can’t come to the church now, but I promise. I’ll come get you, okay?” Klaus leaned forward so his mouth was right at her ear. “I’ll knock on the doors four times. Only when you hear that, do you open those doors.”

Klaus waited for no reply as he took off in the opposite direction, leaving Cassie alone and wide-eyed. Taking a deep breath, she told herself she could do this and took off in a full sprint towards the forest. Her heart was thumping against her chest and ringing in her ears as fear took over. It seemed like forever as she ran through the forest, careful to not trip over roots or branches. Finally, she could see the church through the trees.

It was old " at least a hundred years old. Most of it looked like it would fall apart at any moment and Cassie thought Klaus must have been crazy thinking this would be safe. But she still pushed the doors open, ignoring the scraping noise it made as the doors dragged against the wooden ground. As she stepped inside, she was in awe. It looked nothing like the outside; stained glass was still all around and there was no sign of dust or a cobweb anywhere.

She walked slowly. Cassie hadn’t been in a church since war had started and she had begun to stay away; what God would allow his angels to bring wrath upon his creations? As she walked towards the front of the church, she noticed a painting. It was a woman with long black hair, clad in armor on her shoulders, arms, and legs. A sword hung at her hip and one was in her hand, both with wings on the hilt of the sword. Behind her, there was a large arm coming from the clouds and wings from higher above. Below the painting it read ‘The blood of Heaven and Hell will reign down on Earth when the times come for her arrival. When her power awakens, war will rage until she is in their grasp. Peace will follow, but as will death.’  As Cassie got closer, she gasped; the woman in the painting was her.

À

Klaus stood in the middle of the street with his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes narrowed towards a car. “You can come out, brother.”

A low laugh made the hair on Klaus’ neck stand, but he ignored it. He watched as his brother came from around the car, clapping slowly. “I see you’ve found her. Well done, father will be proud.”

His brother looked nothing like Klaus, who took more after their mother. Instead, his brother had pitch black hair that hung to his shoulders and pale blue eyes that seemed to stare through people. At the mention of their father, Klaus’ hand instantly moved towards the sword on his hip. “You should be careful, Jonah. There are things out here that can tear you apart.”

“You mean things like demons with tails and little horns and sharp teeth? Oh brother, I’m frightened. We both know the angels are scared of us more than anything.” Jonah took a step towards Klaus, who pulled the sword out and pointed it at him. “Have you told her yet? Does she know you can’t step into a holy place or say His name? Has she found out you’re the other terrible monster that has helped destroy her world?”

Klaus glared at him. “You will be silent, little brother. I am not here on a mission for father; this is my own.”

Jonah grinned, winking at Klaus, as he walked slowly around him. “This war is far from over. We have found her before the angels; we can win this and no more have to die.” The two stood staring at each other, Klaus with his sword up and Jonah with his hands in his pockets. “I very much would like to go home; these mundane clothes bother me.” He looked Klaus up and down. “Though, that leather jacket suits you just well. Perhaps you’re meant to suffer here instead of at home.”

“Be silent, brother!” Klaus stepped forward and pressed the tip of the sword to Jonah’s throat. “You will leave here and not follow us.” With a smirk, Jonah stepped back and bowed before disappearing, leaving nothing but smoke behind.

As Klaus stood alone once more, he placed his sword back at his hip, and couldn’t help but think of what would happen now. His brother would return to their home and tell the others, and then the streets would be roaming with them. Cassie would be in more danger than she was already and Klaus would face death. A noise brought Klaus from his mind and he spun to come face to face with his father.

À

Cassie had been sitting in the church for what felt like forever. She had the idea to leave, but the way Klaus had looked at her when he asked if she valued her life scared her. She had walked through the large church and there was no sign of anyone being here in the last few weeks. As she played with one of her daggers, she heard something come from the back of the church. Getting to her feet, she pulled the other out of her boot and walked towards the noise.

She rounded the corner and a small body jumped, knocking over books and scrambling backwards against the wall. “Please don’t hurt me!” He was a child, no younger than ten with shaggy brown hair and brown eyes.

Cassie bent down and leaned back on her heels, holding a hand out to him. “Don’t be scared. What’s your name?”

As the child reached a hand out, Cassie saw his eyes flash black and she jumped back. He smiled and got to his feet, now holding one of the daggers she’d dropped. “I’ve finally found you.” She slowly got back to her feet, in a fighting stance with one dagger. “My master will be proud that I have done what his son wouldn’t.”

He lunged at her and she spun, lashing out the dagger. From his screech, she knew she’d hit him. “You belong to us now, Cassie Harrison. Come freely and you will meet no harm. Fight and face death.” He hissed, twirling the dagger in his hand. Though he had the body of a young child, she knew she was facing someone skilled.

“How do you know my name?”

“You’re the mundane, silly girl; the one prophesized to bring peace once more.” In one swift movement, he’d moved around her and slashed her lower back, causing her to fall to one knee. “But we won’t accept that change.” Breathing heavily, Cassie got back to her feet and took a step towards the boy. When he tried to get behind her again, she brought her elbow to his nose. As he was stunned, she stepped towards him and pushed the blade into his chest. He laughed and his eyes flashed between brown and black. “Be warned, Cassie, we are coming for you.”  

Angry, Cassie twisted the dagger and his scream echoed around the church, the same moment the doors opened. She watched him drop to the ground, not even bothering to see who was coming in the church. Blood covered her hands and she felt sick. “Cassie!” Klaus’ voice rang in her ears as she doubled over, the canned food from that morning coming back up.

She could feel her hair being held back and a warm hand on her shoulder, holding her up. When she finished puking, she backed away from the body and Klaus, her eyes never leaving the young boy. “I killed him.”

Her voice was emotionless and her eyes were dim. “You had to. It was you or him, Cassie.” Glancing at the body, he shook his head. “We have to go.” He quickly ripped a piece of his shirt and tied it around her stomach, covering the cut on her back.

Cassie watched as he pulled the dagger from the body and she wanted to double over again, but Klaus was right; they had to go. She allowed him to pull her from the church, heading away from the town they’d come from. As the two of them walked, Cassie could see a glimpse of something on Klaus shoulder. It was red and irritated and she could see dry blood around it. “What happened?”

The two of them stopped and Cassie grabbed his shirt and pulled it down before Klaus could stop her. There was a large jagged cut from his right shoulder heading down into his shirt, like it had been made with a jagged edged blade. Black markings surrounded the cut and continued down his arm. Klaus finally shook her off and pulled his shirt back up, stepping around her. “Don’t worry about it. What did that boy say you to?”

“He knew my name, like you did. He told me I was prophesized to bring peace.” She laughed with no emotion and moved her hair from her face before realizing she still had blood on them. She had killed a child.

As if Klaus could read her mind, he said, “He wasn’t human, Cassie. You did what you had to do to survive. I told you that there were things out there that would tear you apart. That was one.”

“That was a demon? That child?” Cassie’s voice broke.

“It wasn’t a child. It would have had you die slowly and painfully. You cannot afford to see that monster as human.” Klaus looked at her with sad eyes, like he’d said something he regretted. As the two walked on, she realized he was right. That boy wasn’t human and she had done what she had to do to survive. But how long before there was no way to wash the blood from her hands? 

Reviews

[Laura Lynn Close]

What a chilling world this is and can be sometimes. I wonder why we have these worlds of angels and demons. Is the the world so ungracious. I think it may be because we are so far removed from nature and the city. Great character names. Great writing.