The Above || Completed

50 Bravado

Maddison's POV

The guards that my father said had been on the third floor must've retreated. There was no one in sight. We weren't letting our guard down, but I didn't expect the next ordeal to happen so quickly. One minute the lights were on, the next they were all I could see imprinted on the darkness. A gas must have been released and a few seconds later, the lights surged on again. I looked back at the host of angels standing behind me.

"Maddison..." Dad's voice reached me as I looked down at the bodies on the floor.
Evangeline was one of them. Yuriel and Daniel, too. They'd been in favour of peace, willing to serve the cause. They didn't deserve such a fate. Those damned council puppets.
"What do we do?" A panicked voice.
"Fight." An angry growl.
I spoke before anyone could agree. "Their deaths will not be in vain. We will get justice."
"Oh, yeah? And which one of us is next?"
"The quicker we move, the less casualties we will need to worry about. Now, move," I said impatiently. Though I felt as though I might collapse from the pain I felt for their deaths.

We walked down to the door of the room most likely to be holding Aeron. The door was made of ice like most doors in the building. But knowing Aeron was behind it; it was just so much more significant.
Luziel placed his hand on my shoulder. "We'll be right here by your side."
I nodded. "Your role will be to apprehend all the guards. Get them out of the way. Just don't get poisoned."
"Yes ma'am!" they said in unison.
I sent out a blast of energy to break down the door. A shard of glass flew past and grazed my cheek, leaving blood exposed on my face. It was a sting. Nothing close to pain. But it was good. Pain was good. I dare say I wanted pain. Especially when I saw that vile woman's face staring back at me from the doorway.
"Venus," I said, loud enough so only I could hear.
She stepped back and opened her arms. "Welcome!"

I leapt without thinking, reaching for her throat. I wanted to kill her. It was this irresistible urge I couldn't fight off. She took my parents from me, my best friend, my fellow angels, my love... She needed to pay with her life for ruining mine. I wanted to have her blood on my hands, so at last I could ruin every bit of cynical perfection I saw in her. A guard struck me down as my hands closed around her infuriatingly smooth, slender neck. I was yanked back by a pair of powerful arms. It turned out to be Aeron, not some guard. I scrambled out of his grasp.
"Aeron." It was meant to emerge as a question, but instead arose as a statement.
His blue eyes overlooked me with apparent surprise mixed with guilt and love. Their message was so profound, I forced my own eyes away. My angels had managed to apprehend the guards, but Venus was left to me. What confused me was the lack of restraint on Aeron. Nothing but guards? He must've been Venus' pet until now.

"What is it, Devonne?" Venus taunted.
I scowled. "I didn't come to fight, Venus."
"Came to join in on the fun?" she asked, trying to spite me.
It was revolting. I tasted bile at the back of my throat.
"I came to get my accomplice back," I replied.
Venus came closer. "I'm afraid I can't let you."
"I don't know if you've noticed but you're entirely outnumbered," I said, feeling bloodlust boil beneath the surface of my skin.
"Have you bothered to ask yourself whether he wants to leave?" she countered.
An eerie silence fell over the room, an empty stone room. Empty for all but a bed in the far corner.
Cool. So Venus has a sex chamber.
I hated having to listen to what Venus had told me. But maybe she was right. Aeron could no longer meet my eyes. His hair looked like it always did when he'd just got out of bed. A brown mess of wire. There were dark circles under his eyes, tainting his paper white skin. It made me angry, what it all looked like. Venus did this on purpose. But I wanted Aeron to say something, to tell me it wasn't true, that I was being deceived. There was this infuriating silence and I wanted so badly to break it. Aeron seemed as though he was afraid. I wanted to scream.
But my next sentence emerged as a whisper. "Say something, Aeron."
He finally looked at me with tears in his azure eyes. "I have to stay."
Venus began cackling as I said, "No, you don't. You can come with me. We're here to save you."
"Oh, Maddison, don't you get it? He wants to stay here with me," Venus said as though I were a two-year-old.
"No, he doesn't. You're keeping him here with something," I said, growing furious.
She moved toward him, placing her dainty hands on Aeron's shoulders. "The only thing keeping him here is the promise of a good time." And she nibbled on his earlobe like it was something more delectable then chocolate.

It was getting more and more difficult to convince myself that Venus was messing with my head. I had just watched Aeron stand there as she treated him like he belonged to her. Aeron couldn't want to stay here but he hadn't denied a word that Venus was saying. Was she ever really going to execute him?
"Maddison." My father shuffled forward, still holding his guard.
"What do I do?" I asked.
His eyes darted from left to right before he answered, "I think you're going to have to fight her. Whether Aeron has anything keeping him here or not doesn't matter. You just need him out of here. Fight her, keep her distracted. We'll knock out her guards and get Aeron out of here," he explained.
I felt nerves strike me. "You're sure?"
"Yes. Trust us, you're not alone." He winked.

I took a deep breath. "I'm not leaving this room without him."
"You can join us," Venus said, attempting to mock me.
"Unfortunately, I'm a little stingy with my belongings. I don't like to share," I said, my voice soaked with bravado.
"Oh?" She dismissed Aeron and he stepped back.
"We're doing this the hard way, Venus."

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Zachariah's POV

My squad just had to consist of all the vengeful angels. I had to avoid chaos but how? For now, there were just words but soon they would turn to action. If only Maddison were here. Perhaps I could try being like her.
"Listen up, there won't be any violence. We stick to the plan," I ordered the group.
The angel that killed the guard gave me a murderous look. "You can still say that after seeing what they've done?"
"Yes," I said confidently, pained by the implications. "We need to keep whatever leverage we may have. The council are responsible for what happens once we negotiate."
"Not if their poison gas kills us before then," he countered.
"They clearly don't have enough to kill all of us or they would've released it already. We have to keep moving with more caution," I said.
He stepped closer to me. "One more incident like this and I'll kill whatever's in my way, including you. Understood?"
I glowered at him and nodded.

We continued on our way to the head office, our guard up in a way it hadn't been before. I pushed forward hoping that Maddison was almost done saving Aeron. It would be nice to have a friend around. The corridors were still clear and we even took the elevator up to the top floor. No one, not a soul, even crossed our path. I wondered when they would strike again and whether we'd be ready. It would end up in a bloodbath if we weren't. The door to the head office was wide open. A very sinister welcome. The council was mocking us, though they should've been afraid. Although perhaps they'd lost that common sense over the many centuries of oppression. We'd be sure to make them remember. The room was dark and filled with empty chairs surrounding a long, narrow table. I signalled for the rest of my squad to hang back. If this was a trap, I didn't want any casualties. I stepped into the room and was met by no threat so I let some of my caution dissipate. I beckoned to my fellow angels so they filed in.

And just as they did, the door slammed shut behind them and the dark room was lit up. The chair at the head of the table spun around the way it would in a movie. There, with a glass of whiskey in his hand, was an old man that I could've sworn looked just like that doctor...

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!!Author's Note!!

I just want to thank those of you who have stuck with the story until now. You are so patient and thank you for having a genuine liking towards my work. This is really all I could ever ask for.

Remember to leave your votes and comments if you wish.

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