Wings of Dusk & Dawn
                       
                             Part 2 : What to do when death comes ?


Trigonometry class had just ended and the weekend was now ahead for the St. Joseph students. Anna and Doven walked by a statue of an angel fighting a snake with a spear on the school grounds. They had talked about their homework and their plans for the weekend. Doven said his goodbyes because he had to go to his part-time job. When he tried to cross over the street he was pulled back by his arm by a rather handsome stranger clad in black with piercings. The oddest thing about him were his eyes. One was bright green and the other ruby red.

“Excuse me, but what the heck are you doing?” Doven asked, trying to be polite but audibly surprised.

“I’m an angel of death and I’ve come to collect your soul!” said the stranger with a strong set voice.

For a few seconds Doven looked at the stranger with a confounded expression and then suddenly broke out into a laughter. Doven couldn’t help himself. He kept on laughing until he nearly cried. His arms were around his stomach because it was hurting. Anna joined the pair and asked Doven who his new friend was.

“He says he’s an angel of death and that he has come to collect my soul.” Doven answered.

“Heeh wow.” was all Anna replied before she dived in her bag and got a book called: angels of death, death gods and shinigami’s. Anna was actually taking him serious, but had her doubts about this stranger.
“He doesn’t look like one. For instance, he doesn’t have a long black coat and look there’s meat on him. And if he was an angel he’d have a scythe and wings and I don’t see any of those either.”

For each argument she pointed at her book and showed them a picture.

The stranger looked clearly annoyed and explained to them with a short-tempered voice that everything in that book was obvious bull and that he wasn’t going to leave until he had Doven’s soul.

Doven straightened his demeanour and apologised. He had reconsidered the strangers words, for it wouldn’t have been the first time he was approached by unearthly beings. Lost or earthbound souls have come to him for his help before and malicious spirits had chased him around, so it wouldn’t be that curious to him that an angel of death would exist. He was suddenly entrapped by an ominous fear. Had his time come already, would this be the end? Doven wasn’t sure yet if he was ready to say farewell to this world, his friends and family. Doven gave Anna a weak smile, said that he’ll see her tomorrow, took the stranger’s hand and ran off with him. When they were a few blocks away, Doven came to a halt and turned to face this person who claimed himself to be his death.

“Just who the hell are you and what do you want from me?” Doven demanded from him puffed out.

“I’m called Raven and you already know what I want from you.” He said with still some agitation in his voice while leaning against the wall.

“But why, why me, why now? I’m perfectly healthy and I haven’t gotten into an accident or been murdered” He thought out loud while pacing up and down.

“All I know is,” Raven interrupted the panicking Doven “Is that I was given an order from above to collect your soul.”

Doven looked confused at Raven again and shouted “What order? ” Shaking his open hands.

“From above, that’s how the system works.” Raven tried to explain, keeping his cool.

“System you say, you mean they sit behind desks and have their own secretaries too?” Doven nearly cried out in disbelief.

“Don’t know. Never been up there before.” Raven plainly replied.

Doven sighed and sat down on a bench a few steps away from where they were standing. He sunk his hands in his hair and hid his face. For a minute or two he was quiet and didn’t move nor blink and then suddenly rose up and said  “That’s it, I’m not going. I’ve got better things to do than just plainly go out like a light for no reason at all, I still need to why I’m here.”

Raven was rather shocked by this sudden decision and refusal. He was not happy how this situation was turning out and didn’t really know how deal with it. All he wanted was to convince Doven to go to the netherworld. He was allowed to take his time, but he was failing in his quest. If only he were more subtle. He didn’t dare to think about the consequences if his father learned about his failure. This was one dreadful thought accompanied with a dark cloud of misery. He was loosing his temper at the thoughts and couldn’t keep it in any more.

“Look you’re fucking coming with me if ya like it or not and I’d rather not use force!” Raven bellowed at Doven.

But their shouting intermezzo was put to halt when both heard a shrill cry. They saw a bleeding woman run with little imp-like devils chasing her. She kept on crying for help, but no one seemed to notice.

“Tsk, crap.” Raven cursed under his breath. “You stay here and don’t move.” he ordered Doven.

He walked towards the little devil bunch and in red-black shaped light, materialised two revolvers with curved blades underneath their barrels in his hands  and shot some of the little devils through the head and chest. This astonished Doven a great deal, for he hadn’t expected guns to appear out of the blue. The Imps immediately ceased their hunt and gathered to form a strong front.

“He killed our comrades, he wants to destroy our clan, kill him, eat him, destroy the enemy!” They kept on saying, each time louder and louder in a canon effect, until it became haunting. After the canon was over they leaped towards Raven and tried to attack him, but they weren’t successful against his firepower. Some were unfortunate to explode entirely and some were lucky to just loose a limb or less.

The bleeding woman ran screaming past Raven but fell to the ground. Doven hated to watch helplessly and ran to her aid and asked her if she was alright. She kept on wailing how much she was in pain and that she wanted it to stop. Doven felt pity for her and reached out to her with his soul. He closed his eyes and held the woman tightly in his hands. A bright light began to envelop him, a light that healed the woman and salvaged her sorrows. She caressed his cheek and then disappeared into nothingness. She had passed on. Raven was shocked to witness this revelation. He had figured out what Doven really was and he had wished he had never taken on this job. The little healing hadn’t gone unnoticed by the devils either.

“Angel meat! angel meat in our midst, so fresh and tender! angel meat.” they said with their crackling sharp voices in choir.

Raven would have preferred he hadn’t had to fight for someone other than himself, for fighting for another made him care about that significant other and the last thing he wanted was to care for his charges.

“ Idiot get away from here.” Raven yelled at Doven still shooting at the imps.
“I said run!.”

“No, why should  I run?!” Doven asked Raven almost in tears.

“‘Cuz these freakin’ bastards are after you, that’s why!” Raven replied the tearful question.

“Then why are you fighting them! You don’t even know me!” Doven had sunk with his knees to ground  in disbelief, he just wished this day would end, that someone would pour a bucket of ice-cold water over his heretic head and wake him up from this hell-hole.

“Because you’re my charge and I need you.” Raven said quite calmly, but awkward, in between his shooting without blinking or change in his concentration.

Those small words  made Doven snap out of his dishevelled state and opened his eyes. He didn’t really understand why it did, but for some reason he thought he could trust Raven. In his eyes Raven was no longer the stranger who would cause his demise, but the one who might gave him a real reason to live. Doven rose up  and saw the world around him as clear as crystal. He had finally understood this world and the meaning of fate. Raven stopped shooting at the imps, for their numbers had diminished, when he saw Doven get up, though he still felt compelled to shoot the remaining ones. Doven asked him to stop for they formed no more threat to them any more. Raven didn’t want to listen and showed his justice arrogant side to Doven and told him that if he didn’t, more would come.

But Doven didn’t want to hear that and explained himself in his gentle natural usual way “Hatred calls for hatred, they too also just want to live, they are just as afraid of dying as I am.” He hoped that that would fume down Raven’s temper and bring him to no-killing-reason. It did, but it didn’t  leave his mind. He made his revolvers disappear into nothing, walked back to Doven and dragged him by the sleeve of his jacket into the street.

“You should leave from this city.” Raven suggested with an authoritative tone.

“Why ?” Doven asked feeling rather uncomfortable.

“Why he asks, I’ll tell ya why! ‘Cuz of your compassionate naïf nature those imps are gonna spread the news that you’re a Nephilim and it won’t be long before all Hell and Heaven hears it and come looking for you moron!”

“I’m a what ?” Doven asked in a childish manner.

“A half-breed.” Raven responded, trying to comprehend how little Doven knew about himself.

“Eh ?” Doven snorted, raising his brows.

“A half-angel” Raven said through clenched teeth, putting a lid on his temper. He needed a cigarette.

”Oh!. Yeah right?” Doven didn’t believe he was that important, so it almost sounded like he laughed at that comment, which he tried his best not too, being aware of Raven’s temper now.

“What do they teach kids these days!” Raven retorted.

“It’s not like you’re that much older than me.” Doven said.

“I’m 72 in human years” Raven shot back, sounding almost insulted.

“Kay, didn’t expect that.” Doven uttered while sinking his hands in his pockets. He had a hard time believing that too, because what he saw didn’t compare to what he was processing in his head.

“That’s not of any importance, what’s crucial is that your life is in danger” Raven declared to Doven, trying to convince him.

“No I’m not going anywhere.”

This really wasn’t Raven’s day he thought to himself. Rejected twice in one day.

“I’m not going to run any more, I’m sick of it” Doven exclaimed with confidence that was covering doubt.

Raven felt like he could smash his own head senseless through the wall being a spectator of such stupidity. He gave up, it wasn’t worth the hassle discussing with someone who had a death wish. Maybe this could turn out in his favour. He sighed and crossed his arms. “ Fine I’ll stay with you, but only ‘til you die, then your soul’s mine” He said with a pout looking away.

It made Doven cheery on the inside. He felt jubilant that this person, who he hardly knew for two hours would stay with him till his dying breath, for eternity. Though eternity was different for Doven as it was for Raven, but it was all the same to him. He still had hundreds of questions he wanted to ask Raven, but those could wait for now.