Chapter 2

They say when you die, your life flashes before your eyes: a series of events that were important and meaningless; events that shaped and broke you.

The only thing I saw was the ethereal blue of his eyes. The way they gazed at me with such concern. Concern for a perfect stranger. It was all I saw in the darkness that held me captive. There was nothing…. nothing but the blue of his eyes - just those blue eyes in that endless darkness.

Time was meaningless. I could have been there for a decade or three seconds and I would never know the difference. Time, along with every other sense, was non-existent. There was no sensory input of any kind. I wasn’t asleep or awake. I simply was.

I don’t know how long I layed there till my senses came back, one after the other. Sound was the first to return. I could hear my shallow breathing in the utter quiet. Touch came soon after. I was laying on a hard cool surface, my naked body covered by nothing other than a soft cloth. Slowly, I opened my eyes to be blinded by the whiteness of the room. I cautiously sat up and tied the black sheet around me.

I inspected my skin and was shocked not to find burn marks and blisters. My hands went to my dark locks to find the waves undamaged and soft. A slight glow to my skin caught my attention, causing me to move my hands to inspect it. I was amazed, yet slightly scared that when the light caught my skin a certain way, it seemed almost translucent and glowing, like fire. As if there was fire dancing just underneath my skin.

“Ah, my child. It’s good to see you awake.” A deep soothing voice spoke into the quiet. My head snapped in the direction to see two men standing in the corner of the room.

The room seemed to be made of smoke that would shift and change if I looked too closely at it. The man who spoke was beautiful, achingly so. He was tall, with golden hair and skin. His face was flawless and almost too perfect. His eyes were a fiery cold green and what drew all my attention to him were the ethereal white wings spreading from his back.

The man beside him was the dark to his light. He was slightly taller than the first man, standing at 6’3”. He had a lean muscular build, broad shoulders and a strong jaw. His hair was as black as night, framing his face and making his grey eyes stand out. The wings coming out of his back were black; so black they shone with rainbows, like oil on water.

“Where am I? Who are you?” I was surprised to find that my voice was clear. I stared at them in shock, my mind barely comprehending what I was seeing. 

“You know who we are my child, or more importantly, what we are.” The white winged man smiled at me gently as he walked towards me.

“No. That’s not possible. It can’t be.” I stood from the table quickly, my legs weak from lying so long. “I’m dreaming. I’m at the hospital. I have to be. This is just a drug-induced hallucination,” I whispered as I clutched the sheet closer to me.

“No my child, you are not dreaming. You never made it to the hospital alive. I am sorry my child,” he spoke as he came to stand in front of me and pat my hair soothingly.

“No... I’m - but he - I’m dead,” I choked out as the panic rose like bile at the back of my throat, and tears sprung to my eyes.

“No, you are not dead. You are stuck in between. You flatlined on the way to the hospital. They managed to bring you back but you slipped into a coma. You are still alive my child, but just barely,” the man explained, taking a step back.

“So… I’m still alive... I can wake up?” I murmured, my voice quivering with an emotion I couldn’t even begin to understand,which only added to my confusion.

“Yes you are dear. And you can go back, or move on. The choice is yours.”

“I can go back? How?”

“A simple choice. If you choose to go back we would like you to work with us. But if you choose to move on, then you will…  and your life here is over.”

“What do you mean, work with you?” I was so confused and utterly overwhelmed. I didn’t want to believe this winged man. I didn’t want to believe I was practically dead. That would be way too damaging to the psyche. 

“The world is falling into darkness, Haven. Humans are selfish and they only think of themselves. But you, Haven, are different. With no thought of your own safety you rushed into that fire and saved that child. You sacrificed yourself for her. We need more selfless people like you if we are to win this coming war,” the man explained as he slowly paced the room, his presence making it seem small.

“What?!” I squeaked, my voice high with panic. “You want me to help you with a war? But I’m human. I’m nobody.”

“You are not nobody, Haven. You are very important to us. We would like your help. The choice is yours. All you have to do is say ‘yes’ or ‘no’.” He stopped moving and his green eyes bore into mine.

I lowered my gaze to the floor, completely overwhelmed. They needed my help. “They” being Angels. What the hell else would they be? This made no sense. I was beyond confused as I looked up at the man with black wings. Throughout this entire thing he had been silent and his face was expressionless. Now however, his grey eyes sparkled with a silent plea. A plea for what, I had no idea.

In that moment I wasn’t seeing his grey eyes, I was seeing another man’s blue eyes shining with concern for me. It was his blue eyes that prompted me to answer the white winged man.

“If I say yes, what happens?”

“You become like Ezra.” He pointed to the dark winged man beside him. “You will become a Guardian, a warrior and you will do our bidding. There will be people that need to be saved. You will be granted wings like Ezra and he will help you with your tasks. He will watch over you. You will wake in the hospital and go on living your life until we have a need for you.”

I contemplated his word, knowing that I wanted to help. I didn’t want to move on, I wasn’t ready. Mostly I was scared. I took a deep breath and looked up into his green eyes.

“Yes.”

He smiled and placed his left hand on my head. The next thing I knew, my back exploded in white hot searing pain. I screamed and fell onto all fours. Ezra strode forward and placed his hand in the middle of my back. When the rough skin of his fingers touched my back, the pain vanished.

Ezra helped me stand and when I lifted my hand to touch my shoulder blades, my fingers met the softness of feathers. I gasped and turned my head to gaze at the inky blackness of my wings. I stared up at Ezra in wonderment as his emotionless grey eyes held my gaze. He placed the first two fingers of his right hand on my forehead. As soon as he made contact with my skin, my body grew heavy and weak with exhaustion. As I collapsed he caught me, holding me in his arms as once again, darkness claimed me.