Angel of Demons

Once there were three angels named TIME, GRIEF, and PAIN who went down to earth with a mission to free a captive named HUMAN from the cruelty of an exiled angel named MISERY. However, the angels were not the best of friends, and they had their own differences. TIME led the team; he was patient and determined. PAIN was melancholic. In fact, she felt compelled to accomplish the mission as she didn't want to leave the comforts of heaven. GRIEF was indecisive. One moment he would agree with TIME, but would side with PAIN in an instant whenever PAIN decides on her own.

Finally, the three angels faced MISERY. Their hearts were crushed to see HUMAN in deep affliction. Furious, TIME demanded MISERY to release HUMAN. Enraged to see the most powerful angel, MISERY grabbed HUMAN and pointed a knife at the latter's throat. He offered TIME to hand over PAIN as a bargain, but TIME refused. Instead, he took out his sword and prepared to kill the enemy. Unexpectedly, PAIN rushed to MISERY's side and threw her arms around him. TIME couldn't believe his eyes. PAIN revealed that she and MISERY were secret lovers and confessed that she was the sole accomplice to all of MISERY's crimes. Taking all chances he could get, TIME fought with MISERY and defeated the latter. With a heavy heart, TIME and GRIEF returned to heaven with HUMAN.

After an exhausting and long journey, the three finally arrived at heaven's gate. They waited for the gatekeeper to open it, but the gateway remained closed. Eventually, the gatekeeper appeared and allowed only one angel whose foot had touched the earth to return to heaven. HUMAN was caught in a had to choose between TIME and GRIEF, and it was an extremely arduous decision for him to make since he wanted both angels who saved him to enter the gates of heaven with him. Much to their surprise, GRIEF took a step back. Before he threw himself back to earth, he spoke softly in their bewildered eyes.

"You have suffered more than you could bear, HUMAN. You need TIME to heal."

My name is Amber-not my real name though. The truth is; I don't really know who I am, where I came from, and who my parents are. I just woke up one day on the side of the street, covered in my own blood and gasping for air.

The dogs and cats nearby were licking my hands and feet like I was their most sumptuous meal ever. No, I wasn't a rotten corpse yet. In fact, I could still feel my heart beating, though I could sense it fading. If I had only known my time of death, I would rather rot in hell than in the garbage. Crap!

Slowly, I opened my eyes and got up realizing that I was lying on an imaginary bed with strangers around me. They were wearing white robes and were looking at me with furrowed eyes. Their faces were so close to mine I could smell their breaths.

"Would you all mind getting out of my face? You look creepy with your stinky nostrils," I said in a low voice.

The strangers looked at each other and moved backwards. And oh, did I mention they all looked the same? Funny. I was starting to think that this place they called heaven is a racist for having no women.

"Ahhh, I miss fresh air. So . . . where am I?" I asked.

"Welcome to heaven." One of the strangers stepped forward.

My eyes narrowed. "And you are?" I asked.

The stranger cleared his throat. "Welcome back to heaven, Micca. My name is Barachiel, head of the army-" he answered, extending his hand.

"My name is Amber. Not my real name though, but it's definitely not Micca either," I cut him off. "And your name sounds hilarious just like the name you're calling me."

Barachiel ignored my comment. "Archangel Micca, have you finished your mission?"

"I told you my name is Amber. And even if it's not my real name, don't you ever call me Micca!" I snapped. "And what mission are you talking about? Why am I in heaven? Am I dead? Holy moly. I never thought that selling drugs in my whole life would send me to heaven! I should have done eviler things then, huh? Perhaps I could go to the rooftop and smoke a cigarette while watching the beautiful view of the earth down below!" I scoffed.

He looked at me and smirked. "Have you forgotten why you were sent to earth? This vessel you are using is not yours, remember? Sooner or later, you'll give up on her," he said. Triggered, I immediately got up and out of the . . . whatever kind of bed.

"What are you talking about?" I said, rolling my eyes. "I am just a human being with a fake name, and all I do is close a deal with those drug people and-"

"And you have corrupted this girl's body, soul, and spirit," he cut me off. "You were too busy enjoying the lust of the earth that you fell for it until you lost your mind. Drugs, theft, sex, murder . . . name "And profanity. The earth has consumed you with its evil nature, and you have forgotten that you used to be pure and the most powerful angel in heaven."

it. You all did it."

"That is absolutely bull-"

"You must be crazy. Most powerful angel, huh? If I was the angel you're bubbling about, then why don't I remember it? Why don't I have wings? Why don't I have powers? Why don't I have that white ring light on top of my head?"

"Enough! As the head of the army, I will send you back to earth. You shall complete your mission or else, we shall all die."

"You tell me what the hell is going on or I'll shoot you with this goddamn pistol!" I raised my voice, pointing my finger at Barachiel while the other angels were anxious. I almost laughed looking at their faces as they reminded me of those yellow minions in a movie. I chose to smirk instead.

"Shoot me with what? Your finger?" Barachiel scoffed.

I looked at my finger and realized I wasn't holding a gun. Surprised, I searched for my weapon in my pocket but couldn't find it.

Before I was able to talk further, the smirking Barachiel touched my forehead with his forefinger. In an instant, I suddenly froze and started to see images in my head-a vivid flashback.

Two years ago

Micca

I was sent to earth to fulfill my mission-to find heaven's most precious soul, Human. However, it was difficult for me to find him since the earth had limitations for angels like me. I tried to look everywhere and asked every living thing I would meet along the way.

"Have you seen Human?" I asked a cat who turned out scared and ran away. I tried to ask other animals-horses, dogs, chickens, pigs, skunks, worms, and ants, but they all ran away from me. Do I look scary?

I traveled further and tried asking the trees, plants, rivers, rocks, and waterfalls, but no one had ever found Human. Surprisingly, I came to a place lit with bright lights and filled with human beings who were clothed with garments but whose minds were full of lustful desires. Of course, I could see darkness in their hearts through my divine eyes.

"Ugh! What disgusting creatures! I thought the earth was created beautiful. Turns out I'm wrong. Pft! I had to find Human and get out of this filthy place," I muttered.

I stood on the sidewalk and looked around. I wondered why I couldn't find trees, rivers, oceans, and other creations our Creator in heaven had made on the fourth day when he made the earth. My eyes caught something wide above me. It had a photo of a half-naked angel with wings, holding something white in her palm. On her side said in bold letters:

Angel Soap.

Cleanse your body. Cleanse your soul.

"Excuse me, have you seen Human?" I asked in a loud voice.

When it didn't respond, Barachiel answered me in my head.

That's an object, Micca. You will never get an answer from that thing. You need to find a vessel. A human being with a pure soul to possess.

"Oh come on, Barachiel. This is unbelievable. We know that possessing a human being is the most dangerous thing ever. Are you going to have my soul tainted and eventually lose myself as an angel?"

You planned for this, didn't you? We all agreed to it. You're supposed to be the angel of intelligence, Archangel Micca. There's not enough time. If there's another way, then do it. But if you can't think of anything better than possession, you have no choice but to find a human being with a good and pure soul. That's the only way to track Human.

"Told you I-"

Suddenly, something bumped into me. It was such an unexplainable force that I fell on the ground faster than the wind. Lying on the ground, I started to feel heavy; both in heart and body. It was overwhelming that it felt like I was a different being. Just then I felt something hit my face and saw two men punching me all over, and I didn't know why.

"Wait, can you see me?" My mouth was bleeding.

"You effin' idiot. Of course, we can see you. We saw you steal this bag filled with millions!" one of the two said while holding a black bag in his hand. The other one was pointing something at me. I reached out to touch it curiously which made them look at each other and scoff.

"You nuts, Amber? You must have hit your head or something when we knocked you down, huh!" the other man said.

"Yeah, you're acting sh**! Come on, buddy. Let's go," he said, still pointing the black thing at me.

The two ran away and left me trying to get on my feet. Struggling, I walked towards a door with a sign saying Haven's Café and went in. A woman in her forties showed up, holding a tray and said. "Are you sure you need food and not a doctor?"

"You can see me too?" I asked.

"No I don't. I shouldn't be talking to you because I don't see you, right?" she said while taking me to a table. "Have a seat. I'll give you something for your bleeding mouth and bruised pretty face, young lady," she added before leaving.

I looked around and saw others looking at me. I smiled at them as I stood up.

"Have you seen Human?" I asked.

Everyone seemed puzzled and looked at each other. Nobody uttered a single word and continued sipping a . . .

"You want a cup of coffee too?" The woman appeared. "I can see you looking at them sipping their cups. Seriously, do you want some?"

"No. I don't know what coffee is, Angel," I replied.

"Well, coffee is-oh, you called me an angel! That's so sweet of you. Here, let me put some ice on your face. You must have been into a fight, young lady. A girl like you should stay away from trouble," she said. I flinched as an ice cube touched my face.

"Ouch!" I screamed.

Everybody looked at me again but immediately returned to their business-the cup of coffee as the woman said it was called.

"This city is filled with gangsters, you've gotta be careful. With a costume and make up like that . . ." she paused. "You could be mistaken as a notorious juvenile."

She looked at me and clucked her tongue repeatedly. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. You are a gangster," she said while I remained confused, trying to digest her foreign words and the things around me.

"Haven, can I ask for cheese, please? And creamer too." A girl raised her hand.

"Yeah sure, honey. In a minute," the woman responded, still holding the piece of cloth with the ice cube in it.

"Why are they calling you Heaven?" I asked.

Haven stood up. "Because I am your angel." She laughed but received no reaction from me. "I guess it's not funny, huh? Yeah, I suck at jokes. Here, take this."

"Yeah, thank you," I said, looking at the bowl of ice.

"That's yours," she said. "You can stay here if you like, but I need to go back to work. The door is open for you anytime," she said with a smile.

I got up, holding the bowl of ice. "I have to go and find Human. Thank you for this."

Haven gave me a confused look and the air was clothed with silence. "Don't I look human, young lady? Well, if the name of this person you're looking for is Human, sounds unique by the way, you can start looking for her at the birth registry office just in case her name was considered as a legal name. If you need anything, I'm just right here." She smiled while I stayed silent, processing her words.

"Still confused? Never mind," she said before turning away.

I walked out the door with the bowl in my hands. Without knowing where to go, I continued to walk on the sidewalk like a lost prey in the world of predators. It was the first time that I saw the sunset with the mesmerizing bright lights around me. The noise on the streets . . . Well, they were deafening that I had to cover my ears, letting go of the bowl in the process. The ice cubes scattered everywhere that some were already stepped on by countless people passing by. Everything was too strange to take. I knelt down and picked up the ice cubes to put them back in the bowl, but someone picked them up hurriedly-a young boy dressed in dirty clothes. Seeing his pitiful situation, I smiled and let him take all the ice cubes. He looked funny munching on them like there was no tomorrow and ran away.

Seriously? Why does everybody run away from me? I huffed. I never thought that this mission would feel like a punishment. Am I being punished?

My thoughts were distracted when I felt my stomach rumbling. I wondered what it was until the boy who took my ice cubes handed me something.

"Do vampires eat burgers?" the boy asked. Ugh, his high-pitched voice was hurting my ears.

"Vampires . . . what?" I asked, looking at the piece of bread with some grass on it.

"You must be hungry. Take if before I change my mind-"

"And run away?" I cut him off before grabbing the soft object he was offering me. "What's this?"

The boy laughed. "Giddy. My name is Giddy," he said, extending his hand to which I didn't respond.

"Listen, Giddy. Your name sounds strange just like my stomach. I felt like I needed to shove something into my mouth. What do I do with this piece of sh*t you're giving me anyway-" I gasped. "Did I just say profanity?"

The boy shrugged. "You've just said it. Shove it into your mouth. And yes, you've just said the dirty word 'sh*t'," he said. "Hunger is a human thing. Once you possess a human body, your mind and soul will immediately mix up in no time. You will start to feel human emotions-pain, hunger, confusion, hatred; everything human. And the most disgusting of all, love. Everything that your vessel has: language, mindset, feelings, desires, lust, name it. You and your vessel will become one. And the worst? You will lose your 'angelic identity'. Never ever fall in love with a human." I froze at his words for a moment.

"Holy cow!" I exclaimed. "You're an angel? I didn't know any angel named Giddy in heaven."

"It's not my real name, of course!" The boy laughed which made my jaw dropped. "It's Gideon. I think your vessel is starting to eat you up now, Micca. You've gotta be careful. Your language is the purest that I've ever heard from the most powerful angel the heaven has created."

"But why are you here? Let me guess, Gideon. A mission?" I asked.

"Yes, I was tasked to be your guide, your majesty," he said sarcastically.

"My guide? Ha ha ha! You even suck at choosing vessels, man. Seriously? You're using a 10-year-old boy's body?"

"Uh uh. This boy has a pure and untainted soul, Micca. Unlike yours . . . a female drug syndicate? Seriously? I bet your soul will burn in hell sooner than you could ever complete your mission. And you're right, this vessel is ten years old."

"I did not choose this body! I am a man! Why am I in a female's body?!"

"Ha ha ha! It sounds like this red-haired gangster of a human body possessed your angel being then, huh?" Gideon laughed boisterously. "You're supposed to possess, not to be possessed!"

"Yeah, I think so." I sighed while he continued laughing.

My stomach suddenly rumbled loudly for the second time, making Gideon glare at me.

"Well, well. I think the only thing that remains masculine in you is your stomach," he said before handing me another soft object to shove into my mouth. "That's called 'burger'."

"Are burgers for angels?" I asked, but he vanished into thin air.