Fledgling: Book 1 (Afterlife) (6 page)

Pointing to the man on the bed, I say, “He couldn’t face the guilt of his conscience, so he ended his life.” I look at him searching again for judgement. I cannot see any. I continue, “He had good inside of him too. Maybe, just maybe, with the right circumstances he might have changed.”

He shakes his head, but I still do not see any criticism in his eyes. I hold on to hope that he might understand. “But we have been trained and are under strict instructions to fill them with a conscience. We cannot deviate or else we will break the rules.”
 

My hopes crash and my heart drops. I turn away and face the bed. “It’s okay. I shouldn’t expect you to understand.” I shake my head. My heart is crushed. My best friend doesn’t understand, so neither will the rest of the fledglings at the base. “Why don’t you go on ahead to base? I will follow soon.”

My arm is pulled gently from behind. “Hey. I do understand. You have just been through a lot having your first mission ending in death, and all because of something you did to follow of your training. I get that. I really do.” He spins me around to face him and looks me in the eyes. He reaches his hand up and strokes my hair around my ear. “But you can’t just not obey the rules. It will be the end of you. I don’t want to lose you . . . my new best friend,” he inserts at the last moment.
 

I look at him and try to smile. His eyes hold concern.
 

He continues, “We will work it out together. Okay?”

I nod. I know I haven’t come to a conclusion, but having someone who understands and to share my concerns with — well, that’s a good start.
 

“What about Yellow?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “This has to be our secret. Leave Yellow out of it.”

I nod.
 

He grabs my hand. “Come, let’s fly back. Despite your unhappy ending, we did good today. You should be proud."

- Chapter Five -

Down below, I see our old stomping grounds. Our tropical island lies and waits for our return. My eyes scan the area below. Yellow is back along with a couple of others. We land and let our wings air. It is nice to not have to put them away.
 

We approach Yellow. She is standing at the edge of the island looking over the water.
 

“Hey, Yellow,” I say trying to sound casual. “How did you go?”

She spins around to face us. “Hey, Blue and ahh . . . multicolour.” She squeals and runs forward to give us a hug.
 

I smile. They still haven’t figured out what to call me. It would be a lot easier if the Archangels would allow us to use our human names. They have their rules, and they are to be abided by—even if they are old fashioned. The archangels had been around since the beginning of time and knew best. So no names it is until we earn one.

“So did you protect the human?” Blue asks stepping back from her embrace.

Her eyes sparkle. “I sure did. It was so satisfying.” Her eyes fall on Blue’s bare chest. “Didn’t you go to Paris?” She crosses her arms.

He nods.

“And you still didn’t grab a shirt?” She cocks an eyebrow while scrutinising him.

He shrugs. “Hey, I went to work, not to shop.”

She shakes her head and her blonde hair flicks onto her face, aided by the wind. She retrieves a gold pin from her yellow bodysuit and pins some of it back. “How did your missions go?” She looks at both of us.

“Like you said — satisfying,” Blue says without a pause.
 

Her eyes turn to me, and I do my best to concentrate on the joy of returning the girls to their families. I look at her and smile. “It was such a wonderful feeling to help the two young girls back to their family.”

“You had children?” Yellow squeals. “Oh how exciting and rewarding.” She runs forward and throws her arms around me. “And you said two?”

I finish the hug and step back trying to get some air. “Ah, yes. Well, no. I was to protect one child, and when I was protecting her, I was able to rescue another approximately the same age. It was just luck. You know, at the right place at the right time.” I feel awkward under the friendly interrogation, and I didn’t want to let on about my conscience receiver. I try to change the subject. “So, is Archangel Michael here yet?” I turn away from her to look around and to hide my face. I didn’t want to force the happiness anymore.
 

“I believe he's coming back every afternoon to give out new missions to the returned angels. You have returned just in time. From what the others were saying, he should be here shortly.” She gazes around the immediate island like she was looking for him.
 

“Have you talked to the others who have returned?” I ask.

“Sure have. Everyone seems happy with how it all went. How did you find the whole transferring of the conscience thing?”

“Ah,” I say. I don't want to go into the detail.
 

“It was a little strange,” Blue answers for me.
 

She reaches forward and touches Blue on the forearm. “Wasn’t it just? I saw flashes of their life pass by me. It was fascinating seeing someone else’s life flash before your eyes.”

“Fledglings.” The call sounded behind us. We turn our heads to see Archangel Michael standing not far away.
 

“Jeez! Where did he come from?” Yellow blurts out and giggles placing a hand over her mouth.
 

We turn and all the fledglings are surrounding him. Butterflies fill my stomach and a tightness forms in my throat. He stands still, watching us intensely as we move forward. I stick by Blue. For some reason, he makes me feel safe. It is probably just a comfort thing.
 

When we have moved to our positions, Archangel Michael steps forward to the first being on the left. This fledgling is Orange. He stands straight and tall with the orange tints in his red hair glowing in the sun. His clothes are different shades of orange and unlike Blue he wears a deep orange T-shirt. He waits as the archangel approaches.
 

Archangel Michael looks him in the eye and places a finger on his forehead. A white light shines from the tip and into Orange’s head. It only lasts a couple of seconds, but it makes me feel uneasy. I don't understand what he is doing, but it can’t be good.
 

Once finished with the white light, Archangel Michael steps back and places a hand on Orange’s left shoulder. “Good work fledgling. You have served well.”

A smile creeps onto Orange’s face. He looks relieved.
 

Archangel Michael summons the small cloud in between his hands and reaches in, withdrawing a shiny bean for Orange. Orange takes it and swallows as our leader moves along to Blue. Blue stands straight with his royal blue wings folded down his back as the archangel approaches. He places a finger on Blue’s forehead while he looks deep into his eyes. A white light passes through the finger just as it had done to Orange.
 

I am panicking. He's reading their minds. How am I going to bypass this? I can’t let him see my conflicting thoughts over the conscience implants — he would be so mad. I have to find a way to block it, and quickly.
 

Blue’s finger touch lasted only a few seconds. Archangel Michael pulls away and places a hand on Blue’s left shoulder. “Good work fledgling. You have served well.”

I am happy for Blue, but I roll my eyes out of sight. Of course, Blue has served well. He always does. Archangel Michael prepares the bean for Blue’s next mission and then steps toward me. My palms are sweaty. I am glad I don’t have to shake his hand. I am still wondering if I can block my conflicting thoughts.
 

His sapphire blue eyes are boring into mine. It feels awkward, but I have no choice. The finger touches my forehead, and a warmth seeps into my skin around that point. I can see my mission in front of my eyes. I see the replay of the man’s life, bad and good, pass in front of me again. I feel the sickness that came with the visions and then the face, the haunted face of my victim. The vision passes to the two young girls and their families and the joy of returning them safely home. I then see the hospital and the dead victim who had taken his life.
 

The warmth leaves from my forehead, and I realise he has removed his finger. He did not see my conflict over the inserted conscience, but I am not breathing a sigh of relief yet.
 

My eyes study Archangel Michael’s expression, trying to pick up any emotion. I cannot read him. He reaches forward and says, “Good work fledgling. You have served well; you saved an extra Innocent as well as the allocated one. But, you should never check on the victim of our punishment. You may not like what you find.”

I can’t hide the frown. I am confused, but he doesn’t seem to notice. He holds his hands together and forms the cloud. Reaching in to grab hold of my shining bean, I take it and swallow. My stomach warms the second the bean reaches it. I hope this mission will not turn out with such a bad ending.

Archangel Michael progresses along the line of fledglings. Even though I passed, I am the only one with the correction. The others all have the simple ‘Good work fledgling. You have served well’.
 

Am I the only one curious about what happens to our victims, or was I the only one who had someone die? I had to see what happened to my victim. The look on his face after the process is plastered across my mind.
 

With the final fledgling completed, Archangel Michael stands in front of us. He almost looks proud.
 

“Well done, Fledglings. You have all protected your Innocents. Go forth and complete your new mission with confidence.” He looks at each of us individually. “Might I remind you to come back to base as soon as you have completed your mission.” His eyes fall on me. “It is not wise, or encouraged to visit the receiver of the conscience.”
 

I try to hold his gaze, but so many mixed emotions are flowing through my body. How can I care for one person but not the other when I see goodness in both?
 

His gaze finally leaves me as he walks away while pacing. I sneak a quick look at Blue. He turns at the same time. His deep blue eyes express concern, but he puts on a smile for me. I can see he is trying to make me feel better.
 

In my peripheral vision, I see Archangel Michael turn back and head our way again. I spin my head to the front, and so does Blue. We are soldiers, fighters for the angel army; we are supposed to stand at attention.
 

“Fledglings, you are dismissed,” Archangel Michael finishes.
 

I exhale; glad it is over. At the same time, I worry about my new mission and how I am to handle the conflict of interest.
 

Blue steps toward me. He is about to talk when something barges me on my right side. I turn to see who it is. Yellow is centimetres away from my face.
 

“You went to check on your victim?” Yellow blurts out in a whisper. Her face is in complete shock. “Are you mad? You are going against the rules and good advice, causing yourself trouble.”

I take a step back gaining some personal space. My shoulders slouch forward. “I know. I shouldn’t have done it.” Forcing a smile I try to look sincere. “Don’t worry. I won’t do it again.”

“Well, I should hope not. You are playing with fire doing silly things like that. I would hate to lose you, or know you are locked up in the abyss. I couldn’t think of anything worse. Promise me you won’t do it again.”

“It’s alright, Yellow. Stop stressing. I won’t do it again.” I look deep into her golden brown eyes, making a promise I know I won’t be able to keep.

- Chapter Six -

My next mission is in Prince Albert, South Africa. The atmosphere couldn’t be more opposite to the city of London. It is a small town in the middle of a desert. I have gone from extreme cold to extreme heat. The streets are empty of vehicles and people. It is a quaint little town in the middle of the rolling hills at the gateway to the Great Karoo.
 

I land in a secluded place behind some trees. To make myself look human I fold away my wings. The fresh smell of early morning fills my nose mixed with the scent of blossoming flowers. I walk down Church Street past the Dutch Reformed Church. My intuition tells me I should walk this way. Despite the place seeming so dry, established bushes grow between the buildings. The street is lined with a mixture of shops, galleries, antique stores and a handful of restaurants. The houses surrounding are a mixture of Dutch, Karoo, Victorian and French homes and other styles with which I am not familiar.