Emerial

            I had taken out my pocket-sized notebook and was writing lyrics when I noticed that my cousin Shadriel was looking down. We were up too far to be able to see what was happening on the ground. I went back to writing and ignored Shad.

“Hey Em, are you seeing this?” Shad asked.

“No.” I answered. We had been sitting up here waiting for my dad to contact us about a new assignment when we heard a bunch of growling. Growling that loud could only mean one thing, werewolves.

“Come on man. A new goddess is down there. She just put Selene in her place.” Shad said.

“I don’t care. It’s none of our business.” I said.

“It’s my business.” Shad said.

“No, it’s not Shad. Did your parents or the Big Guy tell you to look out for her?” I asked.

“No. But my she wolf is down there.” Shad said.

“What is it with you and that she wolf anyway?” I asked.

“I think she’s my other half.” Shad said shrugging his shoulders.

“We don’t have those Shad.” I said a little disappointed.

“If we have humans in our bloodlines we do.” Shad said.

“What?” I asked.

“Yea. My mom told me that because she was the daughter of a Nephilim that I had some humanity in me. And that that little bit of human blood in me means that I will have a soulmate.” Shad explained.

“No shit?” I said.

“No shit.” Shad said.

“How do you know that she wolf is your soulmate and not just some hot chick you want to bed?” I asked.

“It’s like you’re being pulled and then when you look at them everything else goes away. All you see is that person and nothing else matters.” Shad said.

“Seriously dude.” I scoffed.

“Dude, Em, I was making out with this fine ass woman and all of a sudden I feel this pull. I thought it was the big guy calling. So, I prayed, and my dad answered and told me to leave God alone. So, I went back to making out with the chick and I felt it again. This happened like three more times before I pushed the chick away from me. When I looked at the girl again, she wasn’t as pretty anymore. Her face hadn’t changed at all, I just didn’t want her. And the pull was stronger, I followed it. She was outside talking to some other she wolf. She sniffed the air, looked at me, and growled before she turned and ran into the woods.” Shad said.

“She growled at you?” I asked.

“Yep. I think I saw her when I was making out with the other chick. And I’m not a wolf. I’ve seen her a couple more times, but she won’t talk to me.” Shad said.

“Aren’t werewolves supposed to be really aggressive and possessive when it comes to their mate?” I asked.

“Yea. I think she can tell I’m an Angel though.” Shad said.

“You think that matters? I thought a mate was the only thing they cared about once they found them.” I asked.

“I don’t know man. She just growls and leaves whenever I get close. I tried to chase her once, but she lost me.” Shad said.

“Well, don’t go down there now. You have no idea what those Gods and Goddesses will do to you.” I said.

“Why would they do anything to me? They have seen us before and never cared.” Shad said.

“You mess with a she wolf while they are all around a New Goddess and shit might hit the fan.” I pointed out.

“Aren’t you even a little curious about the New Goddess?” Shad asked.

“No. She’s none of my business. And neither is anyone else. The only one that you even have business with is the she wolf and that’s it. If the Big Guy or our parents tell us to check it out, then we go down there. Not until then.” I said.

“Geez, how are you all business up here and all goofball down there?” Shad asked while he was pointing down from the cloud they were hanging out on.

“Rapping is an outlet but also part of my Angel duties. You know that Shad.” I said.

“So fucking bitches and hoes and murdering other rappers with your words is part of your Angel duties?” Shad asked sarcastically.

“I rap about more than that and you know it. I have to throw in the trivial shit to keep the labels happy.” I said.

“Alright Emerial, keep telling yourself that.” Shad mocked.

“I will Shadriel. Now let’s go.” I said.

            Just as we were about to spread our wings a noise caught my attention. It was a slight giggle that turned into a full belly laugh and I had to know who it had come from. Shadriel noticed this and turned to smile at me.

“Something caught your attention Em?” Shad asked.

“Did you hear that laugh?” I asked.

“Yea, it came from where the New Goddess and my she wolf are.” Shad said.

“What is your she wolfs name? You can’t keep calling her “she wolf” if she’s your soulmate.” I said.

“Ebony.” Shad answered with a wistful sigh. Just then my dad linked me and said that the assignment had been called  off. I let him know what we had witnessed. That there was a new goddess and that she had attracted werewolves.

“Maybe we should go down there, and you can finally talk to her.” I suggested.

“What happened to ‘We should stay up here until The Big Guy or our parents tells us otherwise’?” Shad mocked.

            Just then my dad landed next to us. He walked up beside us and looked down to see what they were staring at. When he looked back at us, he was smiling. Shadriel and I both looked like guilty kids that had been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

“Michael, Dad.” We greeted him.

“Emerial, Shadriel, I see you’ve noticed the New Goddess. Do you know her name?” Michael asked with an amused glint in his eyes.

“No sir.” We answered.

“Perhaps we should go down and introduce ourselves.” Michael suggested.

“Won’t they see that as a threat?” I asked.

“Not necessarily. I’ve met Gaia before. She should see our presence as God’s curiosity.” Michael said.

“Which one is Gaia?” Shad asked.

“The Brown-haired woman in the green dress that’s giving off the wild aura.” Michael said.

“Have you ever met any of the others sir?” Shad asked.

“Selene and Hades. Selene sometimes has business with us and Hades, well Hades is the keeper of the dead.” Michael said.

            With that Michael spread his huge wings and took off. Shadriel and I did the same and followed him down. The largest of the men turned and smiled when he saw us. I wonder who that God is, I was thinking when we landed. As we walked over to the group, I felt an odd pull towards the New Goddess.

“Hello, Michael and friends.” Gaia said.

“Hello, Gaia. This is my son Emerial and his friend Shadriel.” Michael said.

“This is Eros, Selene, Hades, Craig and his wolves, and my daughter, Aria.” Gaia introduced everyone.

            She was beautiful and definitely felt as wild as Michael had described her aura. Eros aura was just as powerful as Gaia’s, but they all felt dim when compared to Aria’s. She had a lot of power coming off of her and yet it felt somewhat dull around the edges. Just as I was about to say something, I heard a growl.

“Ebony, please talk to me. Don’t run away again.” Shad said.

“Ebony, do you know him?” Aria asked her.

“Unfortunately. He’s my mate.” Ebony said with a sigh.

“Oh, wow, what did he do?” Aria asked.

“He was making out with another she wolf when I found him. He didn’t even stop when he saw me. It took him a whole ten minutes to push her away to come and find me.” Ebony said, her wolf was starting to show in her eyes.

“Dumbass.” Was all Aria said.

“In my defense I didn’t know what was happening. I mean I knew I was making out with the girl, but I didn’t know what the pull was and where it was coming from. It’s not the same for us Ebony. We can’t just sniff our mates out. We have to follow the pull and when we make eye contact with them the bond solidifies.” Shad tried to explain.

“Is that true Michael?” Aria asked.

“You shouldn’t address him directly.” Shad and I said at the same time. “Michael is an Archangel and the leader of God’s army. He deserves more respect.”

“Emerial, Shadriel, Aria is in her right to speak to me directly. She maybe a New Goddess but her power speaks for itself. Yes, Milady, what Shadriel said is true. But only for the Angels that have human blood in them. For Angels like myself, well, we don’t have soulmates.” Michael said.

“Thank you, Michael. And please call me Aria.” Aria said.

“Do you feel it Emerial?” Eros asked me.

“Feel what?” I asked.

“The pull boy.” Eros said smirking.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I said.

“Eros, as in Cupid?” Michael asked.

“Yes.” Eros said smiling.

“Who is my son being pulled to?” Michael asked with a slight smile.

“My great granddaughter.” Eros answered.

“Aria is your great granddaughter?” Michael asked surprised.

“Yes, and she only found out she is a Goddess this morning.” Eros informed us.

            I was surprised to say the least. I turned to say something to Shad only to find him begging Ebony to let him hug her. I let out a small laugh I felt someone come up beside me. I looked out of the corner of my eye to see Gaia smiling at Shad and Ebony. She put a hand on my shoulder and leaned in close to whisper in my ear.

“Aria maybe a new goddess but she was raised human. Be gentle with her, her father’s self-loathing has driven him away from her just this morning.” Gaia said before she walked over to the stubborn love birds.

“Ebony, he is your soulmate. He needs you as much as you need him.” Selene said exasperated with the two.

“He hasn’t been with another woman since he saw you Ebony.” Gaia reassured her.

            After Gaia had started speaking to Shad and Ebony Selene walked back over to Aria.

“Shall we start our training now?” Selene asked.

“Um, that depends on what you have in mind?” Aria said a little unsure.

“How about we start with something you have already done. We just make it intentional this time?” Selene suggested.

“Ok, what have I already done?” Aria asked.

“You’ve already commanded us all to obey. Very rarely do I submit to a God or Goddess’ command but yours was stronger. I should have been able to resist a little and I couldn’t, even though the command was directed at Craig.” Selene said.

“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean to but at the same time I could feel my power trying to break through again. I want, well no, I need to keep everyone safe while I’m figuring my powers out. Craigs challenge was too much. By the way, I have never growled at anyone in my life.” Aria stated as her cheeks turned a very bright red.

“Ah, but how did it make you feel to let it out and have us bow because of it?” Selene questioned with a smile.

“The growl felt like I was flexing a tight muscle and the bowing felt like a release of that same muscle.” Aria answered.

“Good. It should feel natural for you. I know that it is very new, and a lot of things will catch you off guard, as long as those things feel natural though then we will know that it is something you are meant to do and not something you are forcing.” Selene said.

 “Alright. Where do we start?” Aria said with determination.

“I’ll command the wolves first. After a few times of you watching and listening it’ll be your turn.” Selene said. She then turned to the wolves and called them all over. “I’m going to command you all to shift to your wolves and back while Aria watches. Then Aria is going to try. I know she has already commanded us, but she needs to be able to do it on purpose in order to not let it get out of control again.” The wolves all said they agreed, and they walked to the side to remove their clothes.

Aria was a little taken aback when she saw them all naked. Selene saw her and giggled. “One of the few things the books get right is our easiness with being naked. It’s either be comfortable or spend a lot of money on clothes.” Aria giggled with Selene as the wolves lined up in front of them to start.

            Aria watched as Selene commanded the wolves to shift and shift back. She saw how the Alpha tried his hardest to resist the commands and then ultimately gave in. It was fascinating and a little intimidating, especially knowing that she could do that to Selene herself. As Aria watched she was also well aware of everyone else watching her. Selene noticed this as well and called Aria over.

 “Aria, why don’t you come and try now?” Selene said as she waved Aria over.

 “Ok, what do I do?” Aria asked.

 “Just give a command.” Selene said, like it was the easiest thing in the world.

 “Like I would for my dogs?” Aria asked. I smiled when she asked that. Of course, she wouldn’t understand the difference between werewolves and dogs. Although her dogs did look like they could have been shifters.

 “Well, I guess so, yes.” Selene said.

 “Alright.” Aria said thinking of a command to give.

 “Start with the Alpha.” Selene said with a smirk.

 “Craig, Shift.” Aria said. But nothing happened. He didn’t even flinch like he did when Selene commanded him.

 “You didn’t command him. Your dog’s listen because they already respect and love you. This will be very different. You need to be firm but also understand that they will not be as willing to please you, if at all.” Selene explained.

 “Hmmm, ok, I think I got this.” Aria said. “Craig, SHIFT.” Aria commanded and Craig started to shake before he fell to the ground and shifted into a beautiful huge wolf. Selene clapped, jumped, and laughed when she saw this. I was shocked at how quickly he shifted with Aria’s command.

 “You are a natural. Now let him shift back.” Selene said.

 “Craig, may I approach you first?” Aria asked him.

            Craig let out a low growl before he saw the sad expression on Arias face. Then he huffed and nodded his big wolf head to let her know it was ok. When Aria was close Craig could feel the waves of power emanating from her body. She wasn’t even aware of it. He started to understand what it was he had been trying to resist. It was like Selene’s power on steroids but with a touch of softness. When she was face to face with Craig, she reached her hand out and asked if she could touch his fur. He nodded again and when Aria touched him, he felt the softness of her touch in both her magic and her presence. The look of awe on her face was enough for him to be content. As she was pulling her hand away, she said softly, “Shift back please Craig.” It wasn’t a command but it felt the same and so he shifted back.

            I was so happy to be and Angel in that moment. Being able to hear everything the wolf was thinking put my mind at ease while he was so close to Aria. I watched as Aria commanded the wolf to shift and then went to pet him. I was completely focused on her and didn’t hear my father talking to me. It wasn’t until the Wolf shifted back and Aria turned away from the now naked man that I registered the sound of my father’s voice.

 “EMERIAL!” Michael said.

 “What?” I responded.

 “Watching the new goddess quite intensely.” He smirked.

 “Did you see the way she commanded the wolf? He couldn’t even resist. I have never seen that happen before.” I said in awe.

 “It is part of Aria’s powers. I can’t wait to see what else she can do. But for now, I must leave and report back to Father. You two may stay here as long as Gaia and Eros are fine with it.” He said knowing that both Gaia and Eros could hear him.

 “It’s fine with us Michael. Go attend to your duties.” Gaia said waving him goodbye.

 “She is a sight to behold, is she not?” Eros said to me.

 “I’ve never seen a goddess come into their powers before. Why are her powers dulled though?” I said and asked.

 “And you most likely never will again. Unless of course, Aria has children.” Eros said more to himself than to anyone else. “What do you mean dulled?”

 “I can sense power levels in super naturals. I know that you and Gaia are more powerful than Selene, Hades, and the Wolves, but Aria’s powers are higher than yours but with a dull edge. Is she ok? Can she have kids?” I asked.

 “Aria’s powers were bound when she was a child. Yes, she can have children. Why do you ask?” Eros laughed. That caught everyone’s attention. Aria even turned to find out what was going on. As soon as her eyes met with mine, she felt the pull. It was a slight tugging from her heart towards mine. She didn’t even know she was walking when Gaia stepped into her path.

 “And where are you going?” Gaia asked Aria.

 “I don’t know.” Aria said confused as to what had just happened.

 “Ah, I see you’ve found him.” Gaia said with a knowing smile, as she looked at me.

 “Found who?” Aria asked.

 “Your other half.” Eros answered. “Are you sure Gaia? The boy?” Eros asked.

 “I’m sure Eros. Don’t you feel it?” Gaia asked him.

Eros concentrated and then a shocked look came upon his face. He quickly hid it with a bright smile. “I see now.” He said.

“I don’t know about that. It’s probably just because he’s an Angel. I’ve never seen one before and he looks a lot like the rapper Rial.” Aria said. Aria then turned when she heard Craig come up to her and they started talking. I can’t believe she knows who I am.

            Just then a hand smacked my back, and I knew my father was standing next to me. Eros walked up on my other side. They both turned me towards Aria. She was talking with the wolf named Craig. I didn’t like the way she was smiling at him. It pissed me off.

“Go and talk to her.” Michael said.

“She’s only talking to the wolf because you haven’t given her your full attention. She wants to talk to you, but she is shy. Lesser men have hurt her. Do not be one of those men Emerial.” Eros warned me.

            They both gave me a shove forward. My wings came out to help steady me and Aria saw them. She completely ignored Craig and walked towards me. She put her hand out to touch one of my wings and then quickly pulled her hand back blushing.

“I’m sorry. I know better than that. Your wings are beautiful.” Aria said.

“Aria.” I said. When she looked up into my eyes, I knew we both felt it. It hit us both, hard.

“Emerial.” Was all Aria said as I pulled her into my arms and wrapped my wings around us.

            She giggled as I leaned in to kiss her full lips. They were soft, like two clouds, she smelled like Vanilla and Coconut and fit perfectly into my arms. She sighed when our lips met, and her knees went slightly weak before she stood tall.

            While we were wrapped up in our own little world, and my wings, we heard a very loud growl. Aria immediately broke the kiss and backed out of my wings so that she could see what was going on. I turned around and what we saw was shocking and confusing. All of the she wolves were glaring at her. Craig was trying to get their attention, but they wouldn’t listen. Selene was also trying to get their attention. When Aria saw this, she pushed me behind her and glared at the she wolves.

“What is your problem?” She asked them.

“Who do you think you are? You flirt with our Alpha and then you go and kiss an Angel?” One of the she wolves growled out. I rolled my eyes at that. She wasn’t flirting with him.

“I wasn’t flirting with your Alpha. I was talking to him. I was making sure I hadn’t hurt him when I commanded him to shift. I also wanted to make sure that I hadn’t insulted his wolf.’ Aria calmly explained.

“Liar! You were flirting with our Alpha.” The she wolf screamed.

“ENOUGH!” Aria said. I could feel her purposely direct it only at the she wolves and saw that they were the only ones to bow. “I am not a liar and I was not flirting. As for my kissing the Angel, who’s name in Emerial, my mother just informed me that he is my mate.” Aria said.

“How dare any of you growl at Aria. You saw and felt her power earlier and yet you still challenged her. Are you insane or suicidal?” Craig yelled.

“I’d say they are all just plain stupid.” Selene stated.

“Stop you two. I know wolves are protective and you are their Alpha, Craig. I see how they would think I was flirting with you. They aren’t the first ones to make that mistake. And knowing I have Eros power of love, I’m sure it won’t be the last. You can get up now.” Aria said to the she wolves. “What are your names?”

            As the girls got up one by one, they stated their names. The one that had spoken was named Kerry, the others were Macy, Kelly, and Maria. They all had marks on their necks, so I knew they were mated. Watching Aria defend herself and me and then command them all was hot. I was doing everything I could not throw her over my shoulder and take her into the house. I think she sensed it because she turned around and smirked at me before turning back to the wolves.

“I think I’m done with the wolves today. Craig, do you have a Luna?” Aria asked. Did she not see the mark on his neck, or does she just not know what it means?

“Yes.” Craig answered right away.

“Oh good. Does she know how to fight? I know the books I’ve read are probably all wrong, but I’ve also seen that some things might be right.” Aria said. Well, that explains it. She only knows what she’s read about werewolves.

“Yes, my Luna is a warrior. Would you like to meet her?” Craig asked.

“I would. But I would also like to have her train me, if she agrees of course.” Aria said shyly.

“I think that would be a good idea.” Selene chimed in.

“I will ask her. At the very least I know she wants to meet you.” Craig said.

“Do you still have my number?” Aria asked.

“I do. Actually, my Luna has it. Paisley, her name is Paisley. She took the number from me. At first she was pissed but then Selene popped in and explained that you were a goddess and that you had no idea we werewolves.” Craig said.

“Well, have Paisley give me a call so we can set up a meeting. I can’t wait to meet her. I think its best if you and your pack leave now. I’m having a hard time calming down this time and I don’t want to hurt anyone.” Aria said.

            Craig smiled at her and all the wolves got dressed. They all then turned and bowed to Selene and Aria. They waved at the wolves as they disappeared back into the woods. The whole time Aria had been speaking she had been glowing a golden green. I wasn’t sure if I should touch her but when she said she was having trouble calming down I couldn’t resist. I reached out and put my arms around her and pulled her to me. Everyone gasped when they saw me do it. They all had a look of horror on their faces. I didn’t understand until Gaia smiled and sighed in relief.

“What?” Aria and I asked at the same time.

“Aria, you’re glowing again. Emerial wasn’t here earlier when you were glowing and burned my hands.” Eros said.

            Aria turned around and looked at me. I was perfectly fine. No burns or anything else wrong. She took her time checking me over and checking me out. I smiled at her and smirked just to see if I could make her blush. It worked, she turned a bright shade of light red and then she looked down and away from me. I didn’t like that. She shouldn’t look down or away. She’s a goddess not some silly child. I could understand what Eros meant now when he said, ‘lesser men have hurt her’. They probably felt her power and wanted to control it. That pissed me off and I gently put my hand half under her chin and on her cheek to guide her eyes back up to mine. I then utter a movie line that seemed very appropriate.

“You look down to no one.” I told Aria as I gazed into her eyes.