Fallen 1: Berlin

Chapter VI: War in the City

Sage was disturbed by the sudden muffling of sounds that came from the other side of the office. She looked up from the computer and stretched as a couple of people dressed in overalls with tech-gadgets came in. Nellie gave her a quick yet tight smile as she instructed the team to the office Berlin showed her that morning. That caught her attention as she looked at the time only to find out it was going to four. Sage was not used to leaving work at such a time. She never left work before seven. At that moment she still had so much energy to continue working. She had already done so much for Berlin’s schedule but she was a perfectionist and wanted everything to be in place, something that Robert grilled into her.

“And this is the office.” Nellie told the woman who followed behind the construction team.

Sage envied her shiny locks brown locks around her shoulders. She reminded her so much of Charli when it came to dressing up.

“Do you have any preferences for your new office, Sage?” Nellie suddenly asked her after showing the office to the woman then approached her.

“Huh?”

“Berlin asked me to ask you if there are any preferences that you would like for your office.” She explained and Sage could tell by the tone of her voice that she was getting a little impatient.

Sage shrugged her shoulders and turned to the woman who looked more excited than a child on Christmas. “Surprise me.”

The lady chuckled softly. “I am Candice Devon, by the way.” She extended her hand to Sage.

“And I am Sage Hillary.” Sage accepted the hand and she had a good grip.

“We will work on your office this evening and tomorrow you will have a brand-new office to work from—” She looked around Berlin’s office and frowned a little. “I never took Berlin for someone who would work with a PA though.”

Nellie stared at Sage for a moment then said. “He doesn’t.” She turned towards the door and started her way out.

Sage’s eyebrows snapped up to her hairline. She could detect a little hostility from Nellie but she wasn’t there to make friends. She was there to pay her dues and live a normal life with her mother somewhere with good air and warmer people. Sage pursed her lips and started collecting her stuff from the desk while Nellie and Candice went on with their muttering about the new office.

Sage felt that maybe Nellie wanted that office but Berlin decided to find someone outside the office to be his PA. She needed to prepare herself mentally in dealing with her.

After making sure everything was in place, Sage turned to them and smiled.

“Well, have a great evening.” She said.

Nellie and Candice turned to her and Candice waved to her but Nellie just dismissed her and turned away. Sage made her way out as a message entered her phone:

Drinks at Ash’s Pub this evening. No more excuses, Sage. I am sending you the location.

A smile appeared on her face as the elevator binged and she stepped in. For once she was going to show up for the outing with her friends without lame excuses as the ones she had at Robert’s. These were the two ladies and one guy she had the privilege of meeting at the university and they had been friends ever since. She needed to get home and prepare for the night. She knew it was a Tuesday night but she knew how to control her alcohol consumption.

Just as she stepped out of the building, a familiar red Ferrari pulled up in front of her. The valet stepped out and as she moved back in surprise, she bumped against a warm hard chest.

“Heading home for the night?” It was Berlin and he stood behind her with his hands in his pocket.

Sage swallowed hard as she looked up at him and was reminded again just how conspicuous Berlin was. She gave him a nod and stepped away from him, muttering her apologies. Berlin looked easy going, not as formal as Mr. O’Connor yet he was the employer. Sage still could not wrap her mind on how established he was because during the time that she was working, she took some time to just research on the GB group and their assets. She was thoroughly impressed by the amount of success Berlin had achieved yet he was so young. It was motivation for her that smart working actually paid. Berlin had investments in all sorts of businesses, but security and arms was top. In security, he provided physical as well as cyber protection for his clients.

“Want a ride?” He asked her casually as the valet handed him the keys.

Sage’s eyes widened. “In that?” Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine entering a Ferrari. It was red and shiny, almost forbidden. Sage was used to public transport and at that moment, she was five minutes late for the bus going her direction.

A frown marred Berlin’s face and his dark eyes gazed confusingly at her. “Is it that bad?”

“No, no, no! That’s not what I meant.” Sage stuttered as she shook her head vigorously and waved her hands in disagreement. “I mean, it’s such a clean car and I…” she looked down at herself and pursed her lips.

Berlin chuckled a little, the timbre of his voice reverberating against Sage’s skin, sending shockwaves down her spine. Berlin moved forward and opened the passenger door. “Get in.”

“Yes, sir.” The command jolted Sage into action and she found herself unable to refuse him even if she wanted. She removed her handbag from her shoulder and clutched it in front of her while Berlin place his hand above the car door to make sure she did not knock herself as she entered. After she was cozily in the car, Berlin closed the door and walked around it before he entered and started the ignition. It purred into life and Sage quickly reached for her seatbelt.

“Nellie tells me that the design team is already working on the renovations to your office.” Berlin stated as he eased the car into the road.

Sage gave a nod. “Yes, I left when the team entered—” She quickly turned to him. “But I was able to do most of the work. I have synchronized your schedule with your digital organizer so that it alerts you for every event fifteen minutes prior and if it is outside the office then thirty minutes. You have a meeting tomorrow morning. I have printed out the necessary documents and left them on your desk. I have also sent a copy of your documents to your email as well as Mr. O’Connor’s so that you look through them before tomorrow. I have also—”

“Why are you working so hard on your first day, Sage?” A smile appeared on his face as he turned his dark eyes to her and there was a moment that Sage was sure she forgot the breathing process. “What else did you do?”

Sage swallowed hard and said softly. “I wanted to say that I also had breakfast at the common room, and it was really good, sir—I mean Berlin!” She flinched recalling that he asked that she addressed him by his first name.

“I’m glad you liked breakfast…they serve lunch as well. Don’t skip lunch, Sage.” Berlin said as he maneuvered through the streets towards where Sage lived.

Sage gave a nod then frowned as she turned to him. “How do you know where I live?”

“It’s in your personal information.” He assured her as they stopped at a red light. “Besides, it’s my job to know that kind of information about a person.”

He made a good point. If he is in the security business, he needed to know as much information about those who surrounded them. She was also good in getting information. She worked for a while as an assistant records keeper for Robert. She knew some of his secrets, but she was not as petty as him.

“By the way, I wanted to thank you again for this opportunity.” She told him. She thought that after the whipped cream and coffee on the window shield the last person, he wanted to see was her. Sage was naturally clumsy. Walking straight without bumping into something or someone was a little challenging for her.

“Don’t mention it.” He said as the light turned green again and they went on their way.

There was a moment of awkward silence between them that had Sage wringing her hands together trying to find a good subject to talk about when Berlin bit her to it.

“I almost forgot. Since you will be handling a lot of my issues at the office, I want you tell me whenever a Miss Elise Ferry calls or makes an appointment to see me.” Sage turned to him and nodded but she could not help seeing the scowl on his face.

“Okay…is she an important client?” Sage asked.

Berlin took a deep breath and shook his head. “No, she’s a friend.”

Sage was fairly sure Miss Ferry was more than just a friend to Berlin. He hesitated when he was answering her question. Sage concluded that maybe she was his girlfriend. He must have felt uncomfortable sharing such information with his new employee. She did not know why but somehow the aspect of Berlin having a girlfriend made her a little disappointed. She was sure that she was not the only one who felt that way.

She saw the way Blake, Harley and Nellie reacted to him. They would not have been happy to know that he was taken…but then they have worked there a long time, they must have seen her from time to time.

Miss Ferry was one lucky woman, Sage thought, because for the short time that she spent in Berlin’s presence she knew he was a good guy. A sigh echoed in the space between them. Oh, why were the good ones always taken?

A chuckle rang in her mind. She did not really think that Berlin would be single. He had the looks, the money, the lifestyle. Of course, ladies were queueing up to date him.

“Tired?” He looked at her, concern registering on his face.

Sage quickly shook her head and waved the thought away. “No, my mind is just wandering everywhere. There are some things I just can’t understand.”

“Such as?” He prompted.

“Why me?” She had been wondering that for a long time because she never believed in luck. She believed everything happened for a reason. She believed that whoever she met along the way was someone who had something to teach her and always came at the right time. Mr. O’Connor came at the perfect time for her.

She watched as Berlin’s eyebrows snapped up to his hairline. “You preferred to stay with the file tosser?”

Sage could not help it but found herself bubbling out in laughter. Berlin’s expression was monumental. “That’s not what I meant. I mean, I am not qualified as a PA. In fact Charli is a thousand times better than I could ever be. Why me and not her?”

 “Because it was you being attacked by Robert, not her.” Berlin spoke as if that sentence explained everything.

The truth was that it had a reached a point where Charli no longer tolerated Robert’s anger and Robert stopped tossing things to her. Charli had the patience of a sloth crossing the road. Nothing could make her get out of her pace of doing things because she learned that whether she did a good job or not Robert always had something to criticize.

It was no wonder after his wife died, Robert never remarried. No one could stand being in his presence for a long time.

“How could you stand that kind of treatment?” Berlin asked almost reprimanding her.

Sage did not understand why he would get upset over it when he didn’t know her. “I have personal reasons.” She breathed in hard and turned away from him, watching as the cityscape changed. Shorter but crowded buildings began show up. The streets got narrower and the good views disappeared. Sage’s building came to view as a train passed above them on the steel flyover.

Sage got a glimpse of Berlin looking cautiously around him. Truth be told, it was not the mostly sightly and popular neighborhood, but it was relatively safe. Berlin did not need to worry…then again, Sage bet Berlin had never come to such places given that he was her employer.

“Thank you, Berlin.” Sage said as she undid her seatbelt and stepped out the car. She gave him a quick wave before making her way to the building. She was thankful there were not many people in the streets so that they did not catch her coming out of such a fancy car. "See you tomorrow."

                                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Berlin waited outside Sage’s building until he made sure she was inside safely before he turned to his ringing phone. It was Lucian.

“New job has just come in. A transportation job. There’s highly valuable cargo coming in tomorrow night. We need to transport it out of the city. The client is coming in this evening.” Lucian explained.

Berlin nodded as he eased his car forward. “Do we have time to meet him before the professor’s dinner tonight?”

“Yes, we do.” Lucian assured him.

Just as Berlin stopped at a junction in front of him, he saw someone familiar—a person who was able to tap into his guardian side without even trying. Fiery veins emerged on his skin and trailed up his neck to his head. His eyes flared as the heat sizzled against his skin. Berlin saw the other male smirk before disappearing behind the shadows of a narrow alley.

War.

Berlin jumped out his car leaving Lucian talking to himself and raced through the dark alley. Laundry lines above him full of all sorts of garments blocked the sun from reaching the ground. The air was thick and heavy, filled with the scent of rotting food and the sewer. Berlin slipped between abandoned wooden crates and the large steel waste bins as he searched for War.

Berlin knew he did not have the right to search for him because he was no longer part of the elite army of the Skies but either way, he wanted to know what was happening. The last time Berlin and Cai talked; War was in the south but suddenly he was in his city. That made Berlin a little queasy. The horsemen always appeared where the clock of destruction was going to begin synchronizing events that would lead to the destruction of the race. If War was there, then it meant Berlin’s city was one of the places in the grand plan to bring about the apocalypse.

That also meant the new platoon of guardians aiding War were somewhere there.

Berlin reached the end of the alley that was sealed shut by a brick wall and punched it in rage. Where did War disappear to? The horsemen always had mysterious abilities and teleportation could be one of them. They were cunning but always played within the boundaries given to them by the Power. One thing Berlin was sure of was that the horsemen did not feel anything because they reveled in chaos. They loved the blood, the screams and the beg for mercy, something Guardians needed a strong stomach for.

Guardians were created to be judges so compassion was in their make up to assure the Power that they could make sound judgements. Despite that fact and the fact that Berlin and his team were most ancient and experienced in such things, the Power refused to listen to them concerning the human race.

“You are breaking protocol, Maxiel—oh wait, you don’t go by that name now. You were stripped of it after you defied the Power. But can I still call you that?” A voice behind him drawled and Berlin felt his guardian react again.

He turned to War as the fiery veins appeared on his neck and skin and his eyes flared with fire. “War.”

War was dressed in a black suit and a blood red shirt inside. His auburn hair was in place, locks coming down and framing his angel face. His cherry eyes glittered with amusement as inclined his head lightly toward Berlin. “You are still a sight to see, Maxiel.”  

“What are you doing in my city, War?” Berlin gritted his teeth as he fought against the urge to embrace the full transformation. It hurt because it had been a while since Berlin took that form and it left the places on his back where his wings were torn off throbbing.

War shrugged his shoulder. “You know the drill, Maxiel. I am here to do a job that should have been done thousands of years ago but you decided to save humanity.”

“In my city?” Berlin growled.

War gave a nod. “In your city. You never asked why Raphaelis—that motherfucker—is here?”

Cairo was Raphaelis in his past life and War hated him with a passion.

“He is not a part of it, War.” Berlin objected.

War sighed as he placed his hands in his pockets and said. “He is a part of it if he is here while the clock is synchronizing events, making sure everything is acted upon on time—” War looked down at his wrist watch and smiled. “And everything is right on time.”

Berlin knew how precise the clock of destruction synchronized things with meant there was nothing they could but hope to finish the punishment before the last bell sounded. “Who are the new guardians for the job?”

“I’m not going to tell you that. You are in no position to ask me for such information. I just wanted to warn you to stop looking for me. If the need arises, you would not like the action I take against you. I will retaliate against you, Maxiel. You just need to work harder on finding your truelove, regrow your wings and fly back home.” War said.

Berlin gritted his teeth but there was not much he could say. He could not stop War even if he wanted to. What he needed to do was to look out for the signs of his influence in the city. He had worked with War on many missions to the point even the slightest action could alert Berlin of War’s plans.

“It was nice seeing you, Maxiel. I wish it were during better times.” War said as he removed his hands from his pockets and a severe look appeared on his face. “It’s unfortunate that I have to tell you to stay the f**k out of my way. I’d hate for something to happen to you.”

Berlin scoffed. As if War was feeling remorseful for that. “I’ll find out what you are up to, War.”

War clasped his hands together giddily and said. “Can’t wait…” He saluted Berlin and turned around before disappeared in between his strides.

Berlin quickly returned back to his car and grabbed his phone before calling Cairo. It was a long shot trying to call Cai knowing fully well that he could just ignore him but Berlin needed to know how he was connected to War. It was not a coincidence that Cai and War were in Berlin's city at the same time. The Power never did anything random. 

"Yeah?" Cai's cool voice came through.

"War is here, in my city." Berlin spoke tightly to his brother.

There was a long pause before Cai answered. "The f**k he is here. Why here?"

"I don't know and he didn't stick around for me to interrogate him further." Berlin said.

"What, you spoke to him? He allowed you to speak to him?" Cai asked in surprise. It was a surprise indeed because being cast out of the Skies by the Power meant they lost a lot of their rights.

Berlin grunted softly. "Actually he told me to go f**k myself but my point is he is here and he knows you are here as well. I have a feeling whatever mission you were given to come do here has something to do with the clock of destruction. Why are you here Cai?"

"It's classified." Cai mumbled then breathed hard and said. "Everyone has their life to live and their jobs to do. Just because my job has brought me to your city doesn't mean I am here to mingle. I still hate your f*****g face but once I am done with my job, I'll be gone."

"That's not the point, Cai. The first bell of the clock of destruction has already rung and War is walking in the streets of my city. I know a new platoon of guardians is around here somewhere aiding War with his work. We need to find out what is happening and prolong it as long as possible."

"Why do you care so much about whether the human race lives or dies? They are not your family, we are. For once can't you chose your own kind over people full of greed?" Cai asked, his anger echoing through the phone. 

"When you chose to come down from the Skies with me, it was because you agreed with my judgement--"

"I didn't agree to anything, Berlin. I was forced to come here with you because we were in the same team but I have lived long enough with the humans to know that they will never change. The greed for more in their hearts in inherently engraved to the point that they can't change their way even if they wanted to. At this moment, all I want is to go home and if that means aiding War to eradicate the race to do so then so be it." Cai said then paused for a moment and said. "You really need to rethink about what you want in life, Berlin. True love is a joke and the human race will die whether we like it or not. We can't keep fighting a losing battle."

What Berlin liked about Cai was that he was an honest person, but at that moment the truth stung like a b***h. 

"Good bye, Berlin." Cai hung up. His resolve rang in the words and Berlin knew that if Cai met any of the new Guardians, he would happily rid that world of the humans. That left Berlin in a cross road;

He could ignore mankind and follow his teammate in sitting back and letting the race get eradicated or he could continue with his determination to save them before the last bell of the destruction clock rang, hopefully finding his truelove along the way and earn his rights as an Elite Guardian. He needed to hear from Nebraska, Ottawa and Bucharest as well. He didn't want to make the same mistake he did years ago when he grounded his entire platoon on earth.

Berlin raced back to the office in preparation of that evening's client meeting as well as the professor's dinner party. He was going to deal with his teammates later.