I made my way out of the outpost, hoping I was heading in the right direction. I knew that they placed me somewhere not too incredibly far, but nobody seemed to have given me much information on where exactly I had to go. I decided to take to the air to see if I could see anything, but my night vision only allowed for me to see so far ahead, so I returned to the ground. I sighed, it looked as though I was going to have to hoof it for now. The path close to the outpost was well maintained and easy to walk on, but it may have been rarely traversed.

  I continued walking for what had seemed like hours. I had started to wonder if I was going to run into a village of some sort, so I flew into the air again to see if I was able to make anything out. Despite knowing I might not, I did it anyways. In the distance, I could see what potentially could have been lights. I returned to the ground, started to jog. Despite being able to move easier in this new armor, it made tink sounds as I jogged. I wasn’t sure if this would’ve alerted anyone to my presence.

  As I got closer, I heard a male voice shout:

  “STOP! WHO GOES THERE?!”

  I stopped running, remaining silent for a few seconds longer, trying to see if I could pinpoint the location of the voice. I focused my vision and noticed a couple of Elven soldiers ahead of me. I placed my hands slightly up in the air to indicate I wanted no trouble and walked forward slowly.

  “Thaddues, of the Holy Kingdom, I am just passing through. I have no quarrels with you, nor your people, and just wish to pass through.” I shouted, stopping as they became more humanoid shaped within my vision.

  “You are not welcomed here, Thaddeus of the Holy Kingdom. Your kind has caused us problems in the past. Step forward anyways as we only smell one of you.” The voice said, sound irritated.

  I continued to slowly walk forwards until I was approached by several Elves dawning golden armor, spears and a lantern. I placed my hands further into the air.

  “I do not want problems. I am just passing through, just let me pass and you’ll probably not see me for a few days.” I said, trying to remain calm.

  They walked around me a couple of times. One of them disarmed me of my sword.

  “Ah, the insignia of Michael. Probably the only decent one of the scum. Under normal circumstances, we would turn you away or tell you to go around. However, we shall let you pass as you are wearing armor suggesting that you work directly for him. While he’s still scum, he’s nothing like Gabriel or the others. A guard will accompany you to the other side of the village where he will return your weapon upon you leaving.” One of the guards said, sounding less annoyed than before, but still annoyed.

  I nodded at the guard, slowly lowering my hands after my sword was removed from waist. I followed the guards into the village. On the outside, there was a set of dual log fences that towered over me by at least twice, and I was already towering over the elves alone. I looked at the elf escorting me. He was about knee-high in comparison to me and I could see bits of his hair peaking through part of his armor, it was silver in color.

  “Excuse me, Elf, may I ask something?”

  “Is it about the walls?”

  “Yeah actually. Did you guys build this?”

  “Not exactly. We used magic after cutting down the trees to get them into place. We created such large walls as a deterrent to keep potential enemies out. Our village is… well, it’s complicated. We try to rely on each other as much as possible. The nearest forces to us are your kind and we’d rather stay away from that.” The tone of his voice indicated he didn’t have any problems talking to me.

  I looked around the village as we walked. There were a lot of small one-floor houses, some had lights on, indicating that someone might be awake. I noticed in one window, there was a child staring at me as I walked past. I waved. The child quickly ducked down below the window.

  “Let’s try to keep this on the downlow angel.” The guard requested.

  We continued walking for another few minutes before finally reaching another gate. The guard shouted something in Elven. A few moments later, the door opened, and my sword was handed back to me. The guard didn’t say anything, and neither did the others nearby. Once I was outside, the door fully closed, I reattached my sword back along my waist.

  As I was walking away, I looked back, wondering if they’d allow a small party of Angels to come through later as I anticipated I would have to come back through here unless I found an alternative way. Off in the distance, I could see that the sun was coming up and it was confirmed when my night vision started to slowly return to color.

  Ahead of me I saw I was approaching a hill, but what made it odd was a few bodies of armor laying around with dried blood. It didn’t smell fresh, so I had to assume that these bodies were old. Getting closer, I had recognized the armor as one of the escort guards. I looked behind me, looking at the Elven village. “If they were hesitant to let me through, did the guard I met back in the kingdom itself come this way?” I wondered to myself.

  Upon closer inspection, I discovered some of the arrows embedded into their armors. I pulled one of them out, taking a close look at it. They had the same distinct black arrowheads, long wooden shaft, with their fins made of wood. I held the arrow, facing me, and slammed it into my armor as I wondered if this would pierce mine as well. To my surprise, it did not. However, I also had no idea of the strength of whomever shot this at these guys.

  I was curious though, so I took my sword out and gently pressed it into the armor of the slain guard, only to find out that their armor was leather, with a very thin metal lined on the outside. I placed my sword back into its sheath and took a knee. I checked this guard to see if he had anything important on him. In his hands, he was clutching a note. After carefully removing his fingers from the clutch, I looked at the note to see if it may include important information.

  “If you aren’t one of us and you found this, please know it was an inside job and those with the package who remain alive possibly set this up. If you find the package, you’ll also find the traitors.”

  I glanced up, looking around. Was it possible that these arrows were the work of my own kind with ill intent? Would I be able to determine if there were actual traitors with the package? The whole situation didn’t sit quite right with me, but I knew I had to carry this out. I checked one of the other bodies and found he was still alive. However, before I could think about healing him I would have to remove the arrows, but that would have killed him. I thought about my options, but while I was thinking he looked at me, eyes barely opened.

  “Master Angel… package is safe, but other guards… traitors….” He whispered, before he went limp.

  All three angels had a small badge on their armors, indicating their possible affiliations. I didn’t recognize it, but that was expected as these guys came from a whole different area than myself. I placed them into my bag, kneeled a few seconds longer, before returning to my walk. I had assumed that since these bodies were here, I would probably find more as I went. At this point, my head was on a swivel, and I was taking deep breaths in occasionally to see if I could smell anything different.

  I continued walking, seeing bloody footprints heading from where I came. It looks like that whatever those three had been running from, they wanted to escape quickly as they ditched their heavier gear to run faster, which is possibly how the arrows punctured them. However, there were no other prints along the path or in the grass. I looked up at the sky, but didn’t see anything other than some dark looking clouds passing by the sun occasionally.

  I stopped again, removing my helm, listening to the sounds around. Typically, in Elven and Human areas, there was various sounds of wildlife. Not even a peep from any potential wildlife that may had been out in the area. Which made me wonder what could be lurking in the woods. So now, I was focused on both the sky and the woods surrounding the path, wondering what would jump out at me at any given time.

  I decided to pick up the pace, knowing full well the sound of armor was going to draw attention from any potential threat or friend nearby. I figured instead of sneaking around; I’d try to draw them out. I managed to run for quite a while as I found myself just outside of another village. Nobody was watching the door, nor could I see anyone watching from the ledge behind the wall.

  I knocked hard on the door, making several loud thumps.

  “Hello?!” I yelled.

  There was no answer nor any sound from inside the village itself. I decided to fly over the wall itself and land just on the inside. Something instantly felt off as it looked as though the village was just abandoned suddenly. On the bench just inside, two spears leaned against a weapons rack with a bowl of some sort of soup, flies occasionally landing in it.

  I drew my sword and slowly started making my way through the streets. I found a house that had an open door. I lightly knocked on it, whispering “Anyone home?”

  As I went in, it appeared that there were signs of a struggle as there was torn bits of clothing, sword marks in the walls, a couple of broken lanterns. Looking further, I noticed a spot of blood. I bent down to take closer look, seeing if perhaps there were any further clues as to what could have happened here. After just staring at it a few moments, I decided that there was nothing I could do about it. I needed to continue.

  I slowly made my way to the door, checking both ways to ensure that I was still alone. The village that once held a moderate sized population, was barren with no inhabitants and was as quiet as a graveyard at night. It was incredibly eerie being there. I continued making my way to the other gate, occasionally hearing shutters flapping around in the wind.

  Just as I neared the gate, I noticed it was unlocked and wide open. It struck me as strange that the entrance on the other side was locked and closed, but not this one. I had started to wonder if I somehow got lost at some point. Other than three bodies I had found, there were no further indications that those three passed through here. I looked at the sky again, gauging to see how much time I spent out here so far. It was still about midday, and I had no clue if I was, but I was told it would be a couple of days walk.

  I decided to take to the air as I figured I wouldn’t have any more run ins with strange villages. If I kept the path in sight, I should be fine. I had barely started my ascent into the vast sky, the sound of thunder shook throughout the sky, causing me to go back down as I determined my chances of be struck by potential lightning flashes could hinder my progress. While I had the ball in my bag still, I did not want to risk getting stuck in it.

  As I landed, it started to rain heavily so I made my way into the trees. They towered over the path, with heavy branches. I figured during this time; it may be good to rest for a moment or until the rain cleared up. The wind was starting to really pick up, and the rain was bone chilling. I slowly ascended into the tree and found a large branch that allowed me to easily sit on. It was still unsettling that the whole forest was silent, and I continued to wonder what could be lurking within.

  I closed my eyes, hoping to see if maybe by focusing on my other senses if I could detect anything living nearby. I started to drain out the sound of the storm and allowed my mind to see if I could detect anything living near me. The trees… the grass… the energy the lightning storms emitted… I continued to scan for energies with my eyes closed before I sensed someone, but they were off in the distance. Far off into the distance, but other than the first village I stumbled upon, I had not seen actual life. But something about these life forms seemed familiar, as if it may have been the one Gabriel sent me out for.

  I wasn’t sure how long this rainstorm was going to last for, but I also didn’t want to nap as I was a one-person rescue party, and the longer I took, the more dire things potentially became for the female. I decided to just brave the storm for now. I hopped out of the tree, allowing myself to gently fall to the ground and regain the path. Thankfully, the boots were closed toe, preventing water from seeping in, and the padding prevented water from engulfing my feet.

  I continued walking until it started to grow dark out. I was feeling a bit on the cold side, but the constant walking helped keep me warm. Ahead of me, I noticed a shimmer on the ground. I ducked down, never losing my eye on the object. It wasn’t moving, so I drew my sword and moved closer to the object. As I inched closer, I could see that it was attached to a body. It was a dagger sheath, with the dagger still in there.

  I rolled the body over, what was once an elegant silky robe, was just now just covered in mud and blood. I removed the mask from the bodies head region, revealing a female human’s face with a red marking on their forehead. I started searching her for clues about who she may be. Attached to her shoulder piece, I found an angelic marking indicating she was a servant to the Kingdom, as well as a little badge that I ripped from her clothing and placed into my bag. Even if she’s just a servant, I wanted to at least report their deaths.

  I looked around for any other bodies, to which I found six more, which were mostly servants and an escort. I removed all their badges, pacing them into my bag and lining their bodies up as I didn’t have the luxury of taking time to burry or burn them. I took another look around the area, noticing quite a few bodies littered the area, suggesting that I may have found the spot. Also saw a few abandoned and ran down looking homes, which seems like it would be a good place to hold up in.

  I slowly walked over to the homes, when someone emerged from the home.

  “HALT! TURN BACK NOW OR PREPARE TO DIE” yelled the voice.

  “F’ali’e e’ feh” I responded, which roughly translates to “Friend or Foe?” in ancient angelic.

  The would-be attacker sheathed his sword.

  “E’la ahs kor lida” he said, which translates roughly to “We live the day.”

  “We live the day” was a general response you’d give to indicate you’re friendly. The language was rarely spoken, let alone taught. I didn’t know how I knew the language; I just knew I did. I looked at the guard, he looked as though he hadn’t slept in days and was running on empty. He looked at me.

  “Master Michael sent us his right hand? What would he possibly want from Michael, Master Angel?” he asked, sounding confused.

  I tilted my head slightly.

  “Oh, no, I am actually Gabriel’s right hand, but I had to visit Michael’s castle as I needed to fill an armor request and inquire about something with his blacksmith.”

  He looked at me again.

  “Oh… my apologies Master Angel, for mistaking you. Please, help us. We have the future servant down below in a cellar with another Master Level angel such as yourself.” He said, kneeling.

  I thought back to the note. There was no mention of another Angel like me that was supposed to be attending, only the escorts. I motioned for the guard to take me where this future-wife of Gabriel’s was. He tapped a spot with his sword, and a light peered through the floor. They quickly ushered me in. In the opposite corner of where the guards were sitting sat two females.

  “Which one of you is the ‘Package’, and are you okay?” I asked, wondering if they had any wounds.

  One of them turned towards me, kneeling. “Master Angel, my name is Anatasia, I am the servant to the one called ‘Antharian’, one of many princesses within the lower realms. She experienced a few slices during the attack, but she’ll be okay until we can get to a master healer.” She said, sounding regal.

  “Anthar…ian? Is that your name?” I asked.

  Antharian nodded softly, adjusting the elegant pink veil to cover her face more fully that she wore. Underneath the soft-pink silky gown she wore, it was obvious she was wearing armor. This took me slightly by surprise, as typically females weren’t granted to wear it. But I guess since she was going to be married off to Gabriel, it made sense.

  I grabbed at her arms, rolling back her sleeves to see how bad the cuts were, removing the field dressings that the escort placed on her. She expressed her disproval with my actions as she made a heavy sigh noise. I placed my hand above her arm, healing her cuts. She turned her head towards her arm, letting out a soft gasp, before throwing removing the veil from her face. She rolled her other sleeve up quickly, ripping off the bandages on that arm and placing it under my hand. After that was done, she spent some time feeling her arms.

  “Thank you” she quietly whispered.

  I looked up at the guards.

  “Excuse me, but I would like to talk to the package and its personal servant in private. Go make sure our exit is safe!” I demanded.

  They quickly went back up to the first floor and I heard them all walk out of the house.

  “So… which ones do you suspect may be traitors? I’ve ran into information stating one or more of them might be trying to kill you or something.” I asked, keeping my voice to a minimum.

  Antharian’s servant spoke up, still kneeling.

  “My lord, none of these guards have tried anything. We were ambushed further down the road and were ushered here. A few took off in hopes of getting word back. Seeing as a right hand has come, I feel as though we’re in capable hands if they try anything.” She said, sounding as if she was reassuring herself.

  It was odd to me that I felt only Antharian’s energy. For her servant, it wasn’t a surprise as humans typically had little to no energetic signature and weren’t nearly as easy to detect. But the others, they weren’t human and should have been easy to detect, unless Antharian wanted them to be found. In the long run, I could empathize with her as Gabriel was a terrible person and viewed females as his personal playthings.

  I looked at them both.

  “I need you to stay here for a moment. Antharian, I could detect you from a distance, but the others I couldn’t. Something doesn’t feel right about this. I’m going to go question them. Don’t come out until I return for you two.” I whispered.

  Antharian pulled back her veil, revealing her sky-blue eyes and blue/white feathers. Her beauty stunned me. I had considered maybe not returning with her, but had I ran away with someone to be claimed by Gabriel, I would have been hunted down and killed, along with her. In the long run, it would not have been worth it.

  “Master Angel, kill them all. You’re different than they are. You can still take us to where we need to go. But please, kill them.” She whispered, with a tone in her voice that surprised me.

  I emerged from the cellar door, drawing my sword. Quietly looking to see where the guards were at, hoping I could take them by surprise. I noticed them huddled together, quietly talking with each other and knew something felt off immediately. I was hoping field intel would have been inaccurate, but it was apparent that the note I had found was potentially correct as they turned towards me, swords raised.

  “We shall not be accompanying you back to the holy kingdom, as we have the numbers, and the princess here will fetch an amazing price elsewhere. Your armor indicates you’re part of Michael’s army and it’s well known that his soldiers die quickly. So, prepare to die” one of them said, sounding confident.

  I smirked as it dawned on me that because I donned Michale’s insignia on my armor indicating to them that I was weak, and they thought they could take me. I reached into my bag, taking out Gabriel’s insignia, holding it clearly for them to see.

  “Sorry guys, I guess I should’ve placed my true badge on. I am Gabriel’s Right hand, not Michael’s. My armor was a last second mishap.” I said, sounding a tad arrogant.

  The guards looked at the badge, their eyes widening as they came to realize that I was not who I thought I was. At this point, I assumed that most of my kind knew who I was regardless of which part of the kingdoms they lived in. I took a step closer to them, sword out at the ready. One of them rushed towards me and tried to strike first. My blade struck his blade, causing sparks from the force of our blades connecting. The other three stood frozen, just watching.

  I kicked him square in the chest with my left foot, causing his ribs to break. He dropped his sword, howling in pain before hunching over, before his screams of pain stopped. I gently tapped him with my food, causing him to fall over backwards. I looked at the other guards.

  “Well?” I asked.

  The others drew their swords but made no movement. They stood there, locked up by fear and uncertain about if they would survive this encounter. I motioned for them to come at me, which caused one of them to pull themselves together enough to run at me with his sword far above his head. I was curious about the strength of my new armor, so I raised my arm to block his attack. To my surprise, my armor stopped his attack.

  “Shame for you, I suppose.” I said.

  I lowered my arm, swung my sword, cutting off his head. As it dropped, the other two sheathed their swords and kneeled, both started to beg for their lives. I looked at them, and had considered saving them but chose to slay them instead as I was certain they might try something later and I couldn’t risk it. I removed the badge from my armor, placing it back into my bag. I turned around and saw Antharian and her servant had been watching.

  “Very well. Let’s get going then I suppose.” She said softly.

  I leaned down, picking the insignias from their armor up and tearing a piece of cloth from their armor off. I wanted to keep their insignias separate in hopes it’d be easier to explain to Gabriel what had happened. I also gathered a couple of their swords, handing one to Antharian and one to her Servant. Under normal circumstances, they weren’t allowed to carry weapons and while I could handle anything that came our way, having a couple of extra swords wouldn’t hurt.

  The human servant looked at me, confusion in her facial expression.

  “This sword is too long for me to wear.” She stated.

  I held the sword up next to her.

  “Oh, yeah, I guess it is. It’s fine. If something happens, I’ll do what I can to keep you protected.”

  She nodded.

  “Well, lets get out of here, follow me. If we don’t stop, we should be able to make it back to an outpost in two sun cycles.” I said.

  The two of them nodded and set off from the direction I came. I informed them to stay behind me a tiny bit in the event something popped up. I assumed that Antharian didn’t have any sort of training in fighting as females weren’t permitted to learn how to fight. I found myself glancing back occasionally, ensuring that they remained behind me.

  As we were walking, Antharian spoke up.

  “Excuse me Master Angel, we need to make a quick stop.”

  I turned around, curious about why we needed to stop

  “Is something wrong?” I asked.

  “No… it’s just that my assistant has to use the bathroom.”

  I looked at the assistant, confused. It never dawned on me that humans had such needs at all. I watched as the assistant removed her robe, handing it to Antharian who smiled at her approvingly. I was curious as to what this entailed and tried to follow them just within the trees and saw her lean against a tree. While trying to get a closer look, I stepped on a branch prompting Antharian to quickly turn her head and gave a glare that could have potentially killed me with how sharp it was. I turned around, taking the hint that maybe this was a female thing, and that maybe it would be wrong to watch whatever what was going on.

  After a few moments, they started walking towards me indicating that they were ready. I took the lead again, listening for any new sounds. I figured since it was mostly clear along the way here, it’d probably be clear on the way back other than the villages I ran into. As I was thinking to myself, I felt a tap at my shoulder.

  “Master Angel, may I ask your name?” Antharian asked.

  “Thaddeus. My name is Thaddeus.”

  “Lord Master Thaddeus, I overheard you were Gabriel’s right hand, but you are wearing the armor of Michael’s right hand. Did you do this on purpose, knowing that you’d face less resistance?”

  I stopped walking abruptly, so abruptly that she ran into me. I turned around, looked at her as she backed up.

  “No. It was accidental as I didn’t think I would need this special armor for this mission originally, but then one of the scouts who made it back had these wooden arrows embedded in him, and the smith at Micheal’s castle knew about them. But truthfully, donning his armor has paid off. I ran into an Elvish village who let me pass, despite disliking our kind. Had I been wearing the marking of Gabriel; I probably would have been another full sun cycle or two.”

  She looked surprised but stepped away from me. I figured this to be a sign to keep moving, especially since the sun started to down over the horizon.

  “Antharian” I said, glancing over my shoulder.

  “What is it Master Lord Thaddeus?” she asked, in a soft tone.

  “The sun is going down. Are you able to see in the dark?” I asked, hoping she could.

  “Not exactly m’lord. I can see a few feet in front of me, but I cannot see in the dark.” She said.

  Antharian pulled her servant close to her.

  “Human eyes somewhat have night vision, but she can’t see all that much either.” She said.

  I started to wonder if we should stop for the night, having two in my care who couldn’t see at night could be problematic, but if I remained slightly in front of them, things should be okay.

  “Stop walking a moment.” I stated.

  I turned around.

  “So, from here to where you two are, are you able to see that far at least in the dark?”

  Antharian and her assistant looked at each other, then glanced back at me.

  “Yes m’lord. We can see at least a swords length in front of us in the dark.” Antharian assured me.

  I turned back around and started walking again, hoping that the night wouldn’t bring about any surprises. We spent all night walking at a reasonable pace, stopping occasionally to let the female human find a tree or a bush to use here and there. On the way back to the second village I discovered, I noticed that a body I pulled off the path earlier was back on the path. I turned around, placing a finger over my lips indicating to the two to remain silent and motioned them to stay in place.

  It was pitch black as the moon wasn’t out that night and while I could see, the lack of light hindered my night vision. As I was trying to focus on what was directly in front of us, I felt a tap on my shoulder. This time, it was the assistant.

  “Excuse me sir, m’lady wanted me to inform you that she smells someone in the woods here directly to your left and that they may be in the tree.” She whispered.

  I shifted to my left. Out of the corner of my eye on the right, the body was there. I figured maybe this was an ambush. I retrieved my sword out as quietly as possible and started to mess with the body with the other. As I had hoped, the sound lured someone out of the tree as I saw a human jump down from a low hanging branch and started to slowly sneak towards me.

  “Human, be warned. We are a convoy of Holy Order warriors and we out number you. If you wish to engage, you shall not survived.” I sternly warned them.

  They stopped, frozen in place, before eventually running off deeper into the woods.

  “Antharian, how’d you know they were there?” I asked, wondering how I couldn’t sense them, but she could.

  “Lord Master Thaddeus, those born in the wild or in such areas such as the Holy Order Kingdom, do not bathe and while you do not smell too terrible yourself, he did, and I could smell them once we got closer.” She stated, trying to sound as if she wasn’t trying to offend.

  I nodded slowly. I guess since I was so used to the smell, it’s not something I had ever thought about. It also occurred to me that I should probably bathe more. I think in the entirety of the years I was alive as an Angel, I only bathed once or twice. Nobody ever told me it was a requirement, or maybe it was, but because of my position under Gabriel, others were too afraid to tell me.

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  As we got closer to what I thought was the abandoned village, I was surprised to see lights on and guards standing out front. I hunched down to stay out of sight, wondering what was going on. I looked behind me, the two females behind me also hunched down. I looked back at the village, trying to figure out what to do.

  “What’s the matter, Master?” Antharian whispered.

  I turned back to her. “This place was abandoned last I came through here. It was empty and there were indications of a fight and suddenly there’s people here. Our options are we can cut through the forest, or we can try to go through the village.” I replied.

  She went silent for a moment before inching closer to me until she was by my side. I noticed as her eyes closed, lifting her nose into the air. I found myself staring at her face, feeling flutters in my heart. I did not know why I felt so odd being this close to her. Her nose, even making sniff-sniff sounds, excited my brain. Now that she was so close to me, I could smell her fragrance- like fresh roses after a gentle rain. She ducked her head back, looking at me straight in the eyes. I was awestruck by her eyes, as they showed that she was a gentle person at heart, sweet and possibly young by our standards. I hadn’t really seen her face until now, and I was frozen by her gaze.

  “Is there something on my face, Master?” she asked, rubbing her face with her hands.

  “N-no. Sorry, I was lost.. in thought.” I hesitantly said.

  “Okay… well ahead of us, I’m not picking up any scents. So, either that village keeps themselves clean at all times, or they are spirits who have refused to move on.”

  I looked back at the village. It was odd to me that it could have potentially been filled with people who refused to die. But I figured it was worth a try as going through the village would take just several moments compared to going around through the forest. Plus, I didn’t know what lurked within the forest. I stood up, grabbing Antharian’s hand and placing her hand on the sheath of my sword. My heart fluttered a bit. I had never felt a hand this smooth.

  “Stick close to me. In fact, I want your assistant between us.” I said.

  She nodded and her assistant ran between us.

  We started walking forward slowly, until we hit the light. Several of the guards looked at us, but didn’t say anything. The gate opened, revealing several more guards, who motioned for us to come inside. As we got closer, I realized Antharian may have been right. At least, I think. I wasn’t quite sure, as where normally a face would be, there was no facial features for anyone. No eyes, no mouth, no facial hair, no nose. Nothing.

  “Psst, Master. These may be friendly spirits. Try not to stare at them though, as it may upset them.” She whispered into my ears.

  The flutters in my stomach started to fade as I was wondering if I had make a mistake coming in here instead of deciding to take the forest head on. With the gate closing behind us, it was too late. As we came to the center of the village, several stood in our way. I looked up.

  “Please, continue to let us pass. We are just passing through.” I calmly stated.

  One of them lifted a hand into the air, forming a thumbs down with their fist.

  I knew my sword would probably be no good here as none of my swords had any special properties. I started to think of other options, when I remembered the Angelic bow technique that Gabriel had taught me. I held out my hand, closed my eyes and envisioned it. I reopened my eyes as I was holding this large, long-bow, pulsing blue and white energy. I created an arrow and pointed it at the faceless man.

  “Look, I don’t want to hurt any of you, I just wish to pass through peacefully. I don’t want to cause any trouble.” I said, as I started moving forward.

  The spirits slowly started to back up. Antharian and her assistant each grabbed me, hold different sides of me. Antharian ducking, as I’d occasionally sweep from left to right. The faceless followed, but at a distance while a couple others walked backwards from us towards the gate. We could see the gate getting closer, and as we finally reached it, we stopped. I aimed the bow down at the ground.

  “Allow us to leave please. Again, none of us want to harm any of you. We just want to be on our way.” I stated again.

  One of them turned around, motioning in a circular motion with their fist. I raised my bow again but lowered it after I heard the gate being opened. The faceless spirits moved aside and as we went out; I turned around holding the bow aimed as Antharian and her assistant jogged down the path a bit. Once the gate was closed, I stopped focusing the energy needed for the bow, allowing it to dissipate into thin air. Antharian and her assistant were stopped up ahead.

  “Are the two of you, okay?” I asked while rolling their sleeves up and removing their face coverings.

  They both nodded and after finding no signs of fresh injuries on them, I left them alone.

  I decided to walk in the back as Antharian’s sense of smell proved to be a valuable tool. She’d occasionally stop to sniff the area out in front of us. Time dragged through the right, making the darkness feel like it was going to last an eternity. I could see daylight breaking, but it didn’t seem quick enough. To my surprise, other than the ambush it was a rather calm night.

  “Anatasia, are you doing okay?” Antharian asked the human assistant.

  “My feet are a tad bit sore from walking at your paces, m’lady, but I’ll be okay.” She replied.

  Antharian stopped and looked at me.

  “Master Angel, I’d like to stop to allow my assistant to rest if that is okay with you.” She requested.

  I looked around again, wondering where we could possibly stop and take a quick break. We were still in a heavily forested area, with no real place to relax.

  “M’lord Thadeus, if you can get me up into a tree, I’ll gladly sit on a branch.” Anatasia said.

  I examined the trees, noticing they towered over us, and were ginormous in size. I walked over to the closest tree, kneeling before it and placing my hands together. Anatasia walked over and stepped in my hands. I looked at her as she nodded before tossing her into the air where she grabbed at a branch. Antharian came over next, and while she could have easily jumped up herself, I repeated the process for her before jumping up into the tree myself.

  I assisted Anatasia into an adjacent tree branch as I sat with my legs hanging off the branch. Antharian shifted herself to lean against me, and I felt my heart flutter as I could feel the warmth of her against my shoulder.

  “M’lord, I’m feeling a bit tired, and it’s been a couple of moon cycles since she has slept as well. Please allow us to rest a bit before continuing.” She said, yawning.

  I looked up at Anatasia, the branch large enough allowing her to lay on her side. I figured maybe this would be a good time to allow them to rest as I knew they possibly weren’t used to having to walk this much, nor planned on being out longer than the amount of time they had been. Plus, with them being alive, and in my care, I determined that a few hours of rest would not hurt.

  Sitting there in that tree, listening to the light breaths from both females was quite relaxing as I watched the path to see if anyone or anything passed by. To my right, I heard what sounded like galloping of horses off in the distance, and it was coming our way faster. I chose to remain still as the thunderous roar of hoofs hitting the ground drew nearer. As they ran by, it appeared that the villagers from the Elven village were in a hurry to get somewhere.

  Antharian woke up due to the sound, holding onto my shoulder as she turned to look at the noise coming from down below was. She looked horrified as she sniffed at the air.

  “My lord, I smell a mixture of blood and smoke. Then with how quickly they are riding away, it’s possible their village came under attack.” She said, sounding worried.

  I hopped out of the tree, and quickly stood to the side, trying to get someone to stop and tell me what was going on. One of the guards from a few days before, covered in blood, stopped and blew into an antler-like horn. Bawoooo, Bawooo. The once fleeing elves stopped with others looping back to see what was happening.

  “Master Angel of Michael. We require your assistance. Our village came under attack, causing us to flee. Some of us didn’t make it, but others are injured. Our village is being held by those who attacked.” The guard said.

  Antharian hopped out of the tree.

  “Master Thadeus, typically I’d say we shouldn’t get involved, but seeing as we will have to pass through their village, we should attempt to help them retrieve it” she said, as she was removing her cloak, revealing her armor.

  I looked back at the tree, motioning at the other branch. Antharian looked back.

  “Between myself, you and our Elven friends here, she is not combat trained. Please do not tell anyone, but I can fight if need be.” She said, pulling a sword from its sheath. “Not very well, but I know the basics. Also, Elf, bring forward your wounded. This Master Angel is also a healer”

  The guard yelled “Bring the wounded here!”

  A few soldiers, children and other adults came to where we stood. I prioritized the children first. One of them had her leg dangling, indicating it may have been broken. It never occurred to me how large I was in comparison to an Elven child as her head and top half of her body easily rested in my hand while her legs went halfway to my forearm. I focused on healing her leg, it felt as though it was broken in several different areas but after it was restored, her leg went back to normal, and she was able to walk again.

  She looked at me, wiping tears away from her eyes. Her, what I assumed, father looked at her.

  “Now young one, what do you say to the kind angel?”

  The little girl, still looking at me, hugged my hand.

  “Thank you…” she said, shily.

  I nodded, and moved onto the others, which mostly had small knicks and light burns. I was not too keen on being involved in a battle that wasn’t mine to fight, but these guys did let me go through their village and I would have to pass through it anyways to get back to the outpost.

  “I want you to muster up whoever can fight and ensure they are armed. I shall assist in getting your village back as repayment for your kindness from earlier.”

  The guard shouted out to the others, more and more people came to where I had stopped them on the path, armed with a variety of weapons varying from field hoes to swords, and a couple of with bows. It wasn’t a huge force, but I figured with myself and Antharian leading the charge, we could potentially retake the village with the ragtag bunch we had managed to assemble.

  Antharian gathered some sticks and stones and requested the guard to give a general layout of what to expect. We spent a few moments getting a general idea of how many enemy combatants there may be, approx. layout defensive positions and what they were armed with. From the sound of it, they had medium armor with mostly swords. After we had finished discussing it, it was determined that Antharian and I would remain in the front while the Elven forces stayed behind us until we could get them safely into the village and eradicate the threat within.

  We could see light smoke coming from the village as it was just over the next hill. When we got to the hill, I brought forth my Angelic bow and scanned for any visible targets. I noticed one, so I created an arrow, took aim and pulled back as far as I could, letting go as it curved slightly upward to the air and eventually hitting the target smack dab in their forehead. The arrow vanished as the body fell to the ground.

  Antharian looked over at me.

  “Are you only a Right Hand, Master Angel? You show the skill beyond of what you are.” She said, sounding amazed.

  I nodded as I lined up another shot and took out another guard at the gate who didn’t realize the other guard watching the door as well had fallen. I took another look around, not seeing any more sentries before motioning the Elves behind me to follow us. We quickly crouch-walked our way to the gate. I gently pulled at it, but it appeared to be locked from the inside. Despite the walls being towering over us, it was a very minor inconvenience as I jumped into the air and glided my way over the wall.

  In the town center, I could see several large humanoid creatures huddled around a mixture of injured guards and civilians. While up there, I saw a female elf naked, trying to escape one of the humanoids and could hear her frighten screams. I aimed my bow at the at man, took aim, and fired. I watched as the arrow went straight through his heart. The female looked around, confused, before noticing I was in the sky. She scurried away into a nearby stable, hiding within the hay.

  I landed just within the gate, next to both bodies. I quickly moved them out of view, then removed the large wooden beam they used to secure the door, quietly placing it against the wall and opening the door. I waved at Antharian and the make-shift militia indicating that it was clear to approach. They slowly made their way towards me while I watched down the road to ensure that we remained undetected.

  We slowly made our way to the center of the village. By the time we reached the center, everyone was standing with their backs facing us. I decided to push through a couple, making way to the pile of the Elves still alive. I pulled up my bow again, aiming it directly at who I assumed was the leader of this hostile force that invaded.

  “If you lower your weapons, you will live. If you refuse, you’ll all die.” I said, trying to sound as authoritative as I could.

  Antharian and the others followed behind me, forming up behind me in a defensive formation. I continued to stare a tall figure in the eyes. Looking into his eyes, I could see that he looked aggravated by our interruption, and we stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. He cleared his throat.

  “These elves do not belong to the holy kingdom, so they are fair game. Begone and we shall forget about this. These lazy good for nothing pointy ears refused to pay us in food in exchange for our friendship. This is their fault, not ours. Had they just given us the food we requested, we would not have had to resort to this.” He said, his voice suggesting he was trying to be intimidating.

  I glanced over my shoulder, seeing a bunch of Elves who were injured or dead scattered through-out. While it was not part of my mission, I did promise to assist the Elven village as they were kind enough to let me through despite my affiliation. I knew I was doing the right thing here. I looked at the Elven guard standing to my left, gave him a wink.

  I reached into my bag, retrieving the Gabriel badge, placing it on my armor.

  “You are interfering with the Right hand of Gabriel in completing a high priority mission. If you do not back down, you will be killed. This is your final warning.” I yelled.

  Antharian and the others raised their weapons, ready to strike. Those who were sitting down stood up, raising their fists, indicating they would also fight if needed. I was hoping retrieving the badge would have been enough to cause these guys to completely back away, but it occurred to me they probably would have just came back once I left.

  “It’s a shame that it has to come to this.” I said.

  Unless it was necessary, killing wasn’t something I was too interested in doing. This was my way of giving back to the generosity of this village. I glanced over at Antharian, who looked at me and nodded. I nodded back and suddenly, she was halfway in the air and performing a kick that sent the head to one of the attackers heads clean off.

  Upon landing, she turned kneeled in front of me, back to me. She looked up at the one having a staring contest with me.

  “My master will do far worse if you do not comply.”

  He looked at the others as he raised a makeshift spear into the air.

  “ATTACK!” he shouted.

  To nobody’s surprise, him and his men froze in place. I put my bow away, pulling my sword from its sheath.

  “Well, that settles it. C’mon everyone!” I shouted.

  The Elves rushed around me, hitting these beings with whatever they had in their hands. Antharian slashed at another, removing part of his arm and head. He fell backwards while the Elven militia I brought back took care of the others. In a matter of seconds, the Elves retook their village with little to no help from me. I don’t think that they realized that Antharian and I barely lifted a finger and that they did all the work.

  One of the elves pulled a horn from his bag, blowing into it to indicate that they had retaken the town. We could hear everyone return as the sound of horses echoed into the small valley we were in. Anatasia rode up to, hopping off the horse handing Antharian her silk cloak, and veil.

  I turned my attention to the Elven guard and bowed.

  “I am terribly sorry about deceiving you. I am Thadeus, Right Hand to Gabriel.” I said.

  He placed his hand on my shoulder.

  “Master Thadeus, of the Holy Kingdom, your apology is forgiven. Everything you helped us achieve made up for that tiny lie. Please, if you’re ever passing through again, you will be always welcomed among our village.” He said.

  Before I left, I made sure to heal the remaining injured people as I didn’t want to leave with them still hurt. While I couldn’t fix the trauma endured that day, I could at least help them feel brand new. Once I finished, we thanked them for their assistance, and we took our leave. As we looked back, a couple of children including the one with the broken leg, were waving. We waved back before we continued with our journey back to the Holy Order’s outpost.

  The way back was uneventful, other than the occasional stops for Anatasia’s needs. But after what had happened back with the Elven village, it was nice to stop only to allow her to use the bathroom. Neither her nor Antharian said anything to me on the way back. They followed closely behind me, talking about how things may or may not be once we reached our destination.

  We finally reached out the outpost and as we walked in, I noticed there were different types of guards compared to the last time.

  “Master Angel, we are happy to see you retrieved the package and her servant. My name is Captain L’ar. A few others and I from the Holy Order Special Forces were asked to wait for your return. Had you taken another day or two, we would have assumed the worst” the captain said.

  “Captain L’ar, please open the portal so we may return.” I stated, a bit frustrated that it wasn’t opened already.

  I started to get an odd feel from the captain as he walked up towards Antharian.

  “Ah, is this the wench? Do you think… do you think Gabriel would mind? You could just turn back; claim she was pillaged by the ones who attacked her escort.” He said, grabbing her arm, and sniffing her.

  “Captain, unhand her or I shall execute you on the spot.” I shouted.

  Antharian looked incredibly distressed and was actively trying to pull away from him but couldn’t escape his grasp. He licked at her face, smiling, hand still on her arm. I warned him again, sounding sterner. He didn’t break what he was doing, so I pulled my sword from its sheath and cut his arm off.

  He let out a scream, trying to stop the blood from pouring out of his elbow. His subordinates rushed over to his side, unsure what to do. I removed the hand from Antharian’s arm and tossed it at the captain. Antharian grabbed Anatasia and ran behind me. She placed the sword I had given to her in my left hand, which I raised towards the captain.

  “For your actions, you have been branded as a traitor to the Holy Order and as the Right hand of Gabriel, I sentence you to death.”

  His subordinates stepped away from him. I swung for his neck, taking his head clean off. I turned towards his men, who were all now kneeling with their heads facing the ground. They didn’t appear to want to fight, so I left them alone. I started to search the former captain’s body to see if he had some sort of code for the portal on him. To my misfortune; he didn’t.

  I looked back at his men.

  “Anyone know the portal code to get back?” I asked.

  One of them stood up, nodding, walked over to the portal and moved around a couple of stones to which it powered up.

  “My lord… the portal back to the Holy Kingdom is open.” He said.

  I looked at him, motioning for him to go first. I was not quite sure I could trust these guys either since their Captain appeared to have been a scumbag as well. This one went through the portal but shortly returned with the portal master that sent me here. He looked at the body, then at the underlings before turning his attention to me.

  “Master Angel, please come through with the package and the package’s servant.” He said.

  I leaned down, taking the insignia from the captain’s cape, placing it with the insignias that had betrayed the cause. I figured that he should be known as a traitor. I turned around to Antharian.

  “You two go first, I shall be behind you. I want to ensure that you two aren’t sent somewhere else the moment I get through as there have been too many surprises already.” I whispered.

  Antharian nodded, grabbing Anatasia’s shoulders and having her lead the way. I followed closely behind as the portal master was the last to re-enter the kingdom. Upon arrival, there was another portal, but it wasn’t supported like these portals.

  “Master Thadeus, the portal is a stand-alone portal. The three of you are wanted back at Gabriel’s castle immediately. I took the liberty of setting this up to ensure a quick and safe return. It’ll take you to the bottom floor.” The portal master said.

  I gently shoved on Antharian’s shoulder. She hesitated, but eventually they started walking into the portal while I remained close behind. Upon entering the lower floor, the portal closed behind us. I was a bit apprehensive to have to give Antharian up as there was something about her that made me feel incredibly happy. Despite the rough journey, I had felt as though she was worth being sent out to rescue and getting to spend the last couple of days with her felt as though it changed my life. Had Gabriel not already have claimed her, I may have tried my luck.

  I motioned for them to follow me up the stairs. I hesitated at every couple of floors as I knew that the closer, I got to Gabriel’s office, my time with her would be up. I had not felt sadness quite like this before, but I knew I had to focus on a possible verbal report to Gabriel upon arrival. As we came to the top floor, I double checked to ensure Antharian had no weapons. During this time, I had been so preoccupied, I didn’t realize I was carrying the other sword in my left hand. On her hip, the sheath flapped along with every step she took.

  I pointed at the sheath along her side, to which she looked down, untied it from her armor and handed it to me. I then checked her for any obvious signs of injuries along bare parts of her skins, only to find that I enjoyed how she felt but found no signs she was injured. I pulled both sets of badges from my bag, keeping them separate from one other as I planned on handing those over to Gabriel.

  I stepped towards the door, knocking loudly.

  “Enter.” He said through the door.

  I opened the door, motioning for Antharian and Anatasia to enter first. Antharian went in, looking at the ground before kneeling before Gabriel. I felt great frustration at this.

  “Master Gabriel, I am yours to do with as you please” she said, sounding monotonous and as if she suddenly lost the will to live.

  I started to wonder if I made a mistake by bringing her back here. With how thick the forest was, and making friends with the Elven people, they probably would have helped keep us hidden deep in the forest and we could have worked together with them. Her and I could have started a new life, deep in those woods and could have made it seem like we were killed, potentially hauled off somewhere. At that moment, I was having an internal freakout as I came to realize that I possibly made the biggest mistake of my life.

  “Thadeus, I knew you were the right one for not just this task, but as my right hand. Once I get a guard up here to show these two to their quarters, I shall have a talk with you as I would like to discuss how the mission went and if any others came back. Not like it’d be a big deal though if they didn’t as they were just lower-level scum.” Gabriel said, with a smirk on his face.

  I nodded. I could hear someone coming up the stairs. I assumed that word traveled quickly that I had returned with Antharian and her servant and that it was potentially a guard coming to escort them. Gabriel stood up, removing Antharian’s veil and silk cloak. He looked at her armor, smiled and slowly removed it. Underneath her armor, she dawned a cloth strap over her chest and small skirt over her midsection.

  “Ah! Perfect, very good.” He said, going behind her and placing his arms around her. “This one is perfect. I knew they saved their best for me. This is probably the most perfect one to have ever come out of that forsaken place. Good to see they gave me their best. Look at her Thadeus, she’s still so young too. Unlike these other slaves, who are past their prime.”

  There was a knock on the door. I moved over to allow Gabriel to see more clearly behind me. Gabriel waved for the guard to come in. The guard kneeled in front of me, as if I had called him there. I stood him back up, pointing over to Gabriel as he was there to assist him, not me. The guard apologized and squeezed between me, a chair and the females.

  “My apologies Master Gabriel.” He said.

  Gabriel let go of Antharian, making his way over to the window, thinking for a few moments before turning around.

  “Guard, I want you to gather these two here and take them to the Garden. This female of mine is extra special and should receive the best area I have under my control. Ensure that she gets a decent sized room and make it clear that she is not to leave the grounds under any circumstance unless she has an escort from my right hand here, or from myself personally.” He said, sounding as though he suddenly had a whole personality change.

  The guard nodded, standing up to bow, and grabbing them both. As Antharian passed me, she gave me a look that indicated she felt betrayed by me. I felt incredibly remorseful as I knew that Gabriel didn’t deserve her and I knew that while I did the right thing in Gabriels eyes, it was morally wrong, but it was better than the alternative.

  “Close the door.” Gabriel said.

  I walked over to the door, gently closing it. I started to think about it and thought it was odd that he had no servants up here for a change to open/close the doors or to entertain him in his weird perverted and twisted ways as he normally did. As I turned around, I sat down in the chair.

  “So, tell me young apprentice of mine. How did it go?” he asked.

  From my bag, I pulled the insignias of those were deemed as traitors and explained to him about how some of the escort guards were hoping to have sold Antharian off to Slavers, or worse. I also explained what had happened with the captain at the outpost. By the end of giving him the bad news first, he was furious but was glad in my handling of them.

  I pulled out the insignias for the others, letting him know that these were from the ones who fell in battle trying to protect his soon-to-be wife.

  He looked at me.

  “My precious right hand, you have done more than what was expected. While I disapprove of you wearing the armor of Michael, it appears that you did that to trick others thinking you were weak. Had you clearly indicated you were my right hand, they may have acted differently. Good on you for deceiving them the way you, allowing you to see their true colors. Was there anything else that happened?”

  I thought about it for a moment. I would rather than Elven village not be known to Gabriel as I didn’t want him to order a takeover of those who inhabited the village. The less he knew, the better. But I also started to think about it and had scouts scouted the area, they would have known about both villages already unless the scouts cut through the forest.

  “No, my lord, that is it.” I said.

  He reached down into his desk, bringing out half a bottle of Angelic wine. He pushed it towards me.

  “Here, this is for you. It’s not full, but the rest of it is yours. From this moment on Thadeus, you will be reassigned. Given what you told me, and with me not being able to watch that slave 24/7 like I would like to, I have decided that you’ll be her personal guard. While you were away, I had all your personal belongings including your slaves, sent to your new residence. There are six floors under the main garden. She will have the top floor, while you and your slaves will have the other five. Her servant will also be assigned to you. You may use her for your personal gratification, chores, or whatever you please.”

  I picked up the bottle, swishing it around.

  “Master Gabriel, are you sure there isn’t a full bottle I can have?” I asked. “After-all, I did rescue someone dear to you and took out quite a few traitors that would’ve caused you problems later down the road. I went through a lot to ensure the safe return of that slave for you.”

  He gave me a sharp glare, but I ignored it as I was trying to see if I could push my luck. While still glaring, he reached into his desk and placed a full bottle on the desk. To my surprise, he threw the half-full bottle out the window. He stood up, turning his back towards me.

  “Thadeus, you’re lucky. Any other person to talk to me that way, I would have them killed. But not you. You are too valuable, and I’m afraid you know it.” He said, sounding furious.

  “Thank you, Master Gabriel, I appreciate your kind heart. I shall do my best to ensure the safety of your slave. I should probably get going.”

  I stood, grabbed the bottle of wine and made my way out the door. Gabriel didn’t say anything as I exited, but I could feel he was fuming from the ears. He thought I would be completely obedient to him, but I knew I could have possibly taken more advantage of that whole situation but chose not to. On my way downstairs, I checked the floor that was given to me. Elise, Selyse and the others weren’t there. In fact, there was no sign of them being there anymore. I shrugged and continued the way down to the very first floor.

  Upon reaching the ground floor, there was a servant of Gabriels waiting for me. She approached me, but surprisingly didn’t kneel nor bow. It was rather odd but relieving as I constantly hated being kneeled and bowed to constantly. She looked up at me.

  “On their way out, Selyse asked me to take you to your new quarters Master Thadeus. She also stated that if it was just you, to not worry about bowing or kneeling as you didn’t like the formalities.” She whispered.

  She turned around, motioning for me to follow her. We walked out of the main doors. She pointed to another large building off in the distance.

  “You’ll need to go there. I can’t leave Gabriel’s castle unless you escort me out, but you’d have to escort me back. Sorry m’lord.” She said, sounding as if she had committed a crime.

  I turned towards her, placing my hand on her head.

  “Thank you.” I said.

  The sun was starting to set, so I decided to make my way over there. In a way I was filled to the brim the with excitement as I would get to spend all my time with Antharian and see the others. I had survived countless missions, figuratively freed a small handful of clients and had managed to somewhat get revenge on Gabriel for what he did to me early on and now I get to be around someone who I felt weird around but was happy to be in her presence. But most of all, I would be able to finally return to Selyse and the others.

  I watched as the sun slowly went down under the horizon before carrying on the long walk from Gabriel’s castle to the garden center. But I also started to wonder what sort of tasks waited for me in the future, as I was not fully convinced that I’d remain out of combat. It would be only a matter of time before duty called, or at least that’s what I thought.

  As I was walking, I noticed someone approaching me from my right. I stopped walking, slightly turning to my right, trying to figure out who this could be.

  “Halt!” the voice said. “Identify yourself. This is a restricted area.”

  “Thadeus, Right hand of Gabriel.” I shouted back.

  The sentry came closer to me to confirm. I removed my helm so he could get a better look at my face. Once he realized who I was, he bowed and apologized before quickly running off. I hadn’t realized that this area was under heavy watch, but given the circumstances it should have been obvious as to why.

  After a while, I finally reached the door to the new building I was going to inhabit. I took a deep breath as I reached for the handle and opening it. Upon opening the door, this floor had a giant L-shaped couch on it with a fireplace against the western wall, a giant chandelier hanging above the couch. The floor had this elegant carpet under the couch. The warmth of the floor started to hit my face, making the experience feel surreal. I had never experienced anything like this before. The walls were made of stone, while the floor appeared to be made of wood. It was mind blowing.

  Coming down a set of stairs, I saw Anatasia.

  “Oh, Master Thadeus, welcome back. Please come in. I have met Elise, Selyse and the others. They have retired to their quarters.” She stated. “Well… all but Selyse. She is in your room. She appears to have a strong liking to you” she teased.

  “Thank you, Anatasia.” I said, as I closed the door behind me before heading towards the couch.

  I attempted to remove my armor but hadn’t realized it all connected together in the back.

  “Antasia, could you assist me? I need you to undo the back of my armor for me.”

  She walked over to me, and I kneeled as she was far smaller than I was. She struggled a bit but eventually got it. Once I was able to remove the chest piece, I felt free. I hadn’t realized just how hot it was in the armor as I felt like I was frozen to the bone even with the fire going. Antasia must have noticed as she tapped at my leg.

  “Excuse me, Master Thadeus?”

  I looked back at her.

  “Master Thadeus, I will assist you to the bathing room as I’m sure it has been quite a while since you last bathed, and you are shivering a bit. Please follow me up to the third floor and I shall assist you, m’lord.” She said.

  “If you could just show me, I can wash myself.” I stated.

  “Master Thadeus, you saved us from those monsters and helped that village of Elves out. Washing you is the least I could do for you.” She insisted.

  I sighed, knowing that I probably wasn’t going to be able to change her mind. She led the way up the stairs to the third floor and through a large wooden door. To my surprise, the bathing room was bigger than I expected it to be. Elise and one of the other servants were there as well. Upon entering, they looked at me and waved.

  “Ladies, that is no way to greet your master.” Shouted Anatasia.

  I placed my hand on her shoulder, she turned her head.

  “Anatasia, is it just me in this place with all of you females?” I asked.

  She nodded.

  “As long as it’s just me, you are all free to do what you want. While the others see you as servants, you are all free to do as you wish, but please remain in character when we have visitors. Elise, Selyse and the others have already received this speech from me, but I want every to feel as comfortable as possible. In addition, I will not pressure anyone to do anything they do not feel comfortable with. While you are technically now my servant now, my only expectations of you are to relax a bit.” I explained.

  She looked at me, seeming confused. But nodded.

  “Okay m’lord. At least let me clean you, as I think you’ll feel better once you are clean.”

  I nodded and found a corner to sit in as she sat behind me along the ledge, legs dangling in the water while she rubbed my shoulders with some sort of cleaning solution that smelled like fresh daisies. I started to relax a bit while she quietly hummed to herself. I found myself staring Elise and the quiet one, splashing each other and having a carefree time. It made me smile a little bit.

  Just as I was about done, Elise swam over to me, sitting in my lap facing me.

  “Master… are you sure you don’t me?” she said, as she placed my hand over her chest.

  “Elise, I would like to remind that you that even though you are considered my property, I will not take advantage over you or any of the others. I will remain truthful to my word” I said.

  She looked at me, bewildered. I was probably the first male angel that did not want to take advantage of them.

  “Let me ask you a question, Elise. How many other masters have you had?”

  She placed her head on my shoulder, I could feel her heart beating as she rested closer on me. She started to rub her face against mine. With my hand still on her chest, I pushed back slightly but it appears she was lost in thought as she fell backwards, going completely under the water momentarily. I felt her place her hands on my knees, and push against them to bring herself back up.

  “HEY! That was mean!” she said playfully. “But to answer your question, I’ve gone through at least twenty different masters and each of them wanted my body. Do you not like my colors? Are they ugly to you? Would you prefer a human-like form?” she asked, sounding frantic.

  I let out a laugh, and I even heard Anatasia chuckle slightly from behind me.

  “Elise, it has nothing to do with you or your looks. You are all beautiful in your own ways, It’s just that…” I cut myself off, I had no clue myself as to why I kept denying all their advances.

  She looked at me curiously, waiting for me to finish my sentence.

  “Honestly, I don’t know. I feel as though I’d be taking advantage of you all as I feel like you have all been conditioned to be this way towards your masters. As if it is expected.” I said, wondering if it sounded weird.

  To my surprise, Anatasia spoke up.

  “Master Thadeus, it is in my opinion that you’re far kinder than any of the other Master Lord Angels that I have seen. The way you talk to us is far kinder than I have heard any male angel speak to our gender. You talk with us as if we’re equals. Even I find myself wanting to repay you for your kindness with my body as I feel like you deserve it.” she said with a rather flirtatious tone.

  I looked over my shoulder.

  “You too, huh?”

  “Mhmm.” she said, shrugging. “Oh, Lady Antharian is a bit upset with you. While we understand you had to do what you did, she’s not too happy about being given to Gabriel of all people. But from the sounds of it, she’ll hardly have to see him, and we have been informed you’ll be in charge of her until Gabriel takes her. Given the circumstances, I’m sure he will be busy for quite awhile trying to figure out the issue with all the traitors.”

  After she said that, I had a crazy idea go through my head. I wasn’t sure how it would work out as I wouldn’t be able to fight an Angel at Gabriel’s league for ownership of her. The more I thought about it, the more I came to realize that maybe chasing after her was pointless. I pulled Elise back on my lap and hugged her. At first, she was confused, but she wrapped her arms around my head, smiling and I felt her face go warm.

  “Master, you and the others should get out of the bath. You guys have been in here for awhile now, and if you don’t get out now, you’ll take longer to dry off.”

  I let go of Elise, lifting myself out of the bath. As I got out, I felt incredible, my feathers and wings were shimmering. I thanked Anatasia for the wonderful job she did. As I exited the door, I came to realize that I did not know where my room was. I turned around, but Anatasia must’ve known what I was about to ask as she walked around me.

  “Follow me, Master.” She said.

  She led me up to the fourth floor.

  “That first door on your left is yours. Across from you, Selyse and a couple of others. On the next floor, Lady Antharian along with myself and a couple of others. If you need anything, please do not hesitate to ask. We are willing all hours of the night and day.” She said, bowing.

  I thanked her, wondering if Selyse was going to be already sleeping my room. However, I noticed there was four doors on this floor all together. I walked over to the other door near my room. On it, the sign read “Library & Storage”. I opened the door slightly to see various books lining the walls along with a table and chair in one corner. I wanted to explore the options I had but opted to return to my room instead for the night. I closed the door.

  When I opened the door to my room, it looked nearly the same as it did in Gabriel’s castle minus the loft. I looked around the room. A large bed, a single small window, an armor and weapons stand, along other random furniture. I glanced at the bed, and to no surprise, Selyse was fast asleep there. I decided she had the right idea, so I crawled into bed next to her, closing my eyes as she scooched closer to me, making a sound that indicated she was happy.