Archanghel: Tale of the Universe

Chapter 18

Miniel did his best, he poured all his powers and strength. He held Xandriel close to him while still looking ahead. After minutes of flying, he was now feeling tired. The flight was now slowly taking a toll on him. Slowly, little by little, the barriers around Xandriel were disappearing.

His struggles then multiplied when his body started to burn. The heat was melting his skin and there was no blood or anything that was gushing, but the pain was excruciating. He was turning into ashes and the tips of his fingers were dispersing with the wind. A moment later, Miniel could now see the outline of the concrete highway. They were getting near, so Miniel gathered all the energy he had and fled the remaining gap they had from earth.

Miniel flopped down the pavement but he put Xandriel above him so she would not touch the ground. No one realizes that they have reached the earth aside from the angels. Miniel was still in his angel form and Xandriel was still a soul. A few Guardians looked their way and gathered around them.

Miniel was in a worse state. He was almost unrecognizable. There were only a few of his body that were still intact and the resemblance of his wings had already disappeared. But in the end, he still managed to fulfill his duty.

“You did it, Miniel.”

That alone didn’t get past the angels. One of the Guardians crouched down to look at him and examine Xandriel. When he was finally done, there was a warm smile that emerged from his lips.

+++

I tried to open my eyes and recollect my memories. The last thing that I can remember was Miniel hugging me and putting me to sleep. After that, there was a total black out. Even the moment where Satan spoke to us was a blur.

“The nekros just gained consciousness, Samuel.” I heard a voice say from my left. There was a shuffling noise that followed.

When I turned my head and squinted at the images before me, I saw Miniel’s face. He was sleeping and his face was tattered and beaten. Beside him were some angels that also had huge wings. When I looked at my left, there were angels too. My gaze landed on the one that was crouching beside me. He was smiling at me.

“Are you the prophesied girl to bear a nephlim?” He asked and I answered him with a small nod.

He might be a Guardian; they all might be. He had the same soothing voice and he was also giving off a warm feeling. I tried to open my mouth to speak but no voice came out. My body also felt beaten and I couldn’t move.

“Don’t push yourself just yet. You have just survived a danger and it’s still taking a toll on you.”

The angel got up and nodded at some angel behind him.

“I’ll take the nekros to the body. You take care of Miniel,” After saying that order, he bent down and picked me up, bridal style.

“Daniel, I’ll leave everything to you now.”

With that, he fled with me in his arms. When we’re already high up in the air, that is when I realized where we are. We are not in the cave anymore, there are angels around us, and most importantly, I can already see skyscrapers around us. I tried to look down and there I saw people walking and doing their business. They were oblivious that we were up in the air flying.

“M... Min... iel...” I managed to croak out. My voice was hoarse and papery.

The angel looked down at me and smiled. There goes the signature smile of guardians again.

“Don’t worry, Miniel will survive. He is fine, he just needs some time to heal.” He assured me.

I tried to look back as the image of Miniel’s disfigured face popped into my mind. Is he really okay? He's not dead? I was itching to ask the angel holding me but my voice was still stuck in my throat. He was probably well and just needing some rest. He is an angel after all. I don’t think they will die.

“Everything will be just fine.” He must’ve seen the look on my face.

I just looked at him and sighed. There's nothing much I can do right now. I can only trust them and get back my strength. He flapped his wings so much for us to speed up to wherever he wanted to take me. Cold wind kissed my cheeks. The surroundings passed through my vision in a blur. It was just like when I'm riding a rollercoaster and all I saw around me was a blurred silhouette of the infrastructure and scenery.

There was some kind of relief washed through my body when I realized that I was not in hell anymore. That I was back on earth and not in that sinful and dangerous place. I was now far from any demons that might harm my existence. I'm safe, finally. And that is all because of Miniel.

The angel slowed down, indicating that we were probably nearing our destination. Ahead of us, I could see the top of a hospital. There was a huge red cross on the side followed by the hospital’s name. A few floors below the rooftop, there was a line of balconies that was connected to the ward. We landed on one of the balconies. Inside the room was a woman in her mid-twenties sleeping on the bed. There were tubes connected to her and there was a man beside her, her husband maybe. He was holding her hand tightly.

“Who is she?” I asked.

The guardian assisted me when I tried to stand on my own and walked towards the glass window. My knees would almost have buckled if it weren’t for him. He made sure that I was balanced with my body before he answered me.

“She was Rachele, Cleo’s wife. That man, Cleo, is where the boy named Janus’ soul is. He was the companion that the messenger had arranged for you.”

I looked at the man. He said that was where Janus’s soul was. He looked nothing like Janus. Maybe because he was different from Janus and Xandriel. Totally different person. I sometimes hate it when I contradict myself and have not enough energy. I may be wasting too much here.

“Your soul is still not fine because it got affected when you escape hell. You can take a rest first before you can enter Rachele’s body. No one was going to scold you for that, I can assure you.” He continued.

“ Will everything be fine? What about Miniel?” He smiled at me and pat my shoulder.

“Daniel brought him to Paradise and He will heal him. For now, you can focus on your mission and replenish your strength. Your battle is not over yet, there is still more to come.”

I looked at the woman sleeping on the bed and then at the man beside her. Is he really Janus? Well, there’s only one way to find out. I walked towards the woman. I was initially shocked when I just got passed through the glass. I continued until I was standing right beside her.

I looked back at the angel and he gave me an encouraging smile. I then bent down to hold the woman’s hand. My own got sucked in and blended with her body. I sat down beside her and put my feet up, our bodies were colliding and then I heaved a deep breath before I aligned myself with her.

Then there was a beat and warmth. My whole body feels heavy and weird. My throat was burning and my head was pounding along with my heart. For the second time today, I opened my eyes. At first, all I could see was a blur of white. I tried moving my hands, but lifting a finger was an impossible task. This woman might have been in a coma for a long time. I also tried to open my mouth but my lips were stuck with each other.

I should’ve listened to the guardian and took a rest. This body and my soul were both in a bad situation and it was not helping at all. I tried to lift my hand again. On the second and third tries I failed, but on the fourth try I managed to lift my pointing finger.

Janus stirred beside me. He looked at me groggily and stared. He stared at me for a good minute before his eyes went wide and his jaw almost dropped.

“Xandriel? Is this real? Are you really awake?” He asked me, unbelieving. His voice was low and almost in a whisper, but I still managed to hear it.

Even his voice was different and unfamiliar. It was laced with hope. Is he really waiting for me to wake up? I wanted to answer him and asked my questions but my lips were still stuck and lifting my pointing finger took all my strength away. He might have sensed my struggle and quickly stood up.

“Stay still. Your body has yet to recover. I will call the nurse and be right back.”

Janus disappeared from the field of my vision and then I heard the click of the door. I also heard him shouting for a nurse. I briefly closed my eyes and when I opened them again, Janus was now back and then there was a woman behind him, probably the nurse. The nurse whispered something to Janus and Janus left my side again. The nurse was checking something beside me. Another person appeared, the doctor. He asked about my condition from the nurse before looking down at me with a smile.

“Thank you for waking up, Mrs. Rivera. Your husband had been waiting,” He was still smiling as he tried to ask me to answer him and check my condition. I did all my best too to respond, which was a great task.

“You’re stable for now, Mrs. Rivera. We still need to observe you. Your body is still in bad condition and it might take a while for you to get up and go again. But we’re on to a great start. Congratulations, Mrs. Rivera.”

The doctor turned to Janus and congratulated him also. They talked for a brief moment before he and the nurse left Janus alone.

“You’re awake. Really awake. Where have you been?”

As soon as the door closed, Janus bombarded me with questions. He had a worried look on his face and he sighed in relief. He was searching my face as he waited for my response. I opened my mouth and nothing came out but a groan. Janus flopped down on the chair beside me and held my hand tightly. He placed it on his cheeks as he buried his face in my side.

“You can tell me all that later. You're awake now and safe. That’s all that matters.” Janus said with relief. He rubbed my hands on his cheek as he now looked at me.