The Fallen Ones (The Fallen Angels Series Book 1) (3 page)

Ilyana:

After what feels
like barely any time at all we arrive at Levi’s cabin, it is old and cozy
looking in its own right. There is a small garden off to the side and there are
vines growing up the side facing the sun. I immediately feel safe and start to
relax. I look around me and see that it is only Ephraim with me. The
realization makes me tense up and as soon as he notices, he looks to the ground
and offers me his hand to get off the ATV, I take it and thank him. For a moment
I don’t know what to say, as distant as he can be, there is something so
comfortable about him I nod to his ATV “Where is Alya?” he scratches the back
of his head and looks at me “She felt it would be best if she went ahead of us
to the Enclave, to begin preparing for your arrival, we knew you would be
coming our way eventually, but this has progressed at a speed I don’t think any
of us were prepared for.”

I nod my head
and realize we are already at the door and I am still holding his hand. I
immediately and awkwardly let go as Ephraim reaches to knock on the door.
Ephraim catches my actions and for a moment I think he looks upset. After a few
moments of no one answering, he turns the handle and goes in “Stay close behind
me, I don’t see him, but I want to make sure everything is ok.” I step over the
threshold behind him as we slowly walk around the house “I don’t sense anyone
here, he must be out catching dinner.”  For some reason I feel relieved, my
nerves are raw and meeting someone new isn’t exactly something I want to do
right now. “Well, if he isn’t here, should we really be here? I don’t want to
intrude on anyone.” He laughs under his breath and raises his eyebrow at me, I
look at him quizzically and wait for him to explain but he just stops abruptly
and starts walking to a small room across from the main bedroom. “Here is the
room you can use, there should be a full bathroom through that door and the
closet should have some clothes that you can fit. Make yourself at home, I am
going to go find Levi. It is still early so he shouldn’t be back for some time,
take as long as you need.” He turns to walk out the door and shuts it behind
him, the room immediately feels empty without him. Whenever he is in the room
his energy takes up all the space, I struggle to focus and breathe when he is
around me, but his absence leaves an emptiness I can’t explain, how can he put
me so on edge and at the same time bring such a sense of peace? Maybe it is one
of his gifts.

I walk over to
the closet and find the strangest combination of clothes, many of them look
older than me, but there are new packs of tank tops, t-shirts & underwear.
I finally settle on a dark pair of jeans, usually pants are short on me, but I
believe they should be the right length. I search the bathroom and am relieved
to find a full garden tub, and lots of girly smelling concoctions that look
like soap or bubble bath. I settle for lavender – it’s calming, and I need calm
right now. I take off my too big pants, and awkwardly fitting tank top and begin
to sink into the bath tub, I almost instantly feel better, I lay back for what
feels like only a few minutes and before I know it I open my eyes to find that
it is starting to get dark outside and my water has gone cold. I must’ve fallen
asleep.

I begin to let
the water out and step out, I reach for the towel rack and pull out what I had
believed to be a towel only to discover that it is nothing more than a small
hand towel, I remember the small closet outside the bathroom door and almost
groan. I decide to practice my new senses and see if I can detect anyone at the
house, I don’t think anyone is there and after I listen for a moment, I decide
to make a run for it. I race for the closet without looking and immediately run
into a man I have never seen before. I scream in horror and he smirks at me in
amusement “Well, I thought this was going to go quite a lot differently but
this is a pleasant surprise!” he says with a Irish sounding lilt I can feel my
face redden and I begin to reach past him to the closet while muttering apologies
only to hear the bedroom door slam open and see Ephraim racing towards me.

It all happens
before I know it, the man I presume to be Levi is grabbing me and pushing me
behind him for cover and Ephraim is charging towards him in anger, he quickly
pushes him out of the way and plasters himself against me, I would be relieved
but now I am even further from the closet and towels I am so desperately
wanting, my body is not visible anymore but I am acutely aware of the fact that
the only thing between myself and the most beautiful man I have ever seen is a
thin layer of his clothing and there is an Irishman that won’t stop laughing.

Ephraim is the
first to speak, I can see his body relaxing and he laughs a full, laugh that
shakes his entire body “Ah, Levi, I can’t believe it’s you! I was looking
everywhere for you as soon as I got here but I just couldn’t find you, I was
worried the wild had finally gotten to you.” I feel slightly shocked, I have
seen angry Ephraim, scary Ephraim and maybe even smug, sarcastic Ephraim, but I
have never seen “bromance” Ephraim. The lightening of his mood is palpable.
“Ay, Brother. No need to worry about me here in my little corner, safe as can
be! I have been worried about you, out there chasing down the big bad wolf,
it’s been too long. But I can see you’ve had your hands full with other
things.” He nods to Ephraims arm that is protectively covering me and I feel
all the heat rise to my face both of them begin to laugh hardily and I seize
the opportunity to race and grab a towel and run to the bathroom.

I decide the
best course of action is to dress myself and pretend like nothing happened, I
also make a mental note to never trust my awesome Nephilim sensing “gifts” ever
again. I dress myself completely and take as long as possible before going out,
my hair is almost fully dry and I smell something delicious cooking. I start
towards the living room and feel my cheeks beginning to redden again. I have
never felt so small or uncomfortable in my entire life. I try to get Sasha’s attention,
I realize the men are distracted messing with the fire and she is lapping up
all the attention she can get from Levi. She ignores me and as stupid as it is
I begin to feel jealous, for the first time ever I can see Levi’s face. He is
Ephraim’s opposite in every way, he has lines in his face from smiling, a
strong, pointy nose, dark blonde hair and light blue eyes, I even see a few
freckles, I never thought of freckles as attractive but on him it fits
perfectly. He is tan from the sun and has some stubble on his face. He is warm
and inviting and exciting. As I am taking everything in - I feel someone
watching me and notice Ephraim staring at me from the distance, he looks
dangerous, primal and perhaps something else, jealous? My heart stops beating for
a moment and my skin begins to flush, I instantly feel more relaxed and begin
to let go of my previous discomfort, usually when a man like that can’t take
his eyes off of you it makes you feel small or insignificant, but I can’t help
but feel more secure knowing I have his attention, and for the first time I am
clean and put together, my hair is not in tangles and my clothes fit me
perfectly.

I hold my head
high and walk towards him in the living room. I click my tongue at Sasha and
once more she ignores more, I roll my eyes and stick my tongue out, Levi
catches the expression and begins to laugh “I don’t believe we have been
properly introduced, I’m Levi.” He reaches out his hand with a smile, I am
impressed at his ability to maintain eye contact, I take his hand “I believe
you have me at a disadvantage, my name is Ilyana, but I think you already know
that.” I say as I look down, unsure of myself, he laughs at my insecurity “Ay,
and so much more!” he walks to where the living room and the kitchen meet and
pulls out a bottle of I don’t know what, and begins to pour some into a small
glass and offers it to me, I take it and smell “It’s brandy” he says and smiles
I mutter under my breath something about how I usually expect a drink before
the main even and not after and the room suddenly erupts in laughter, this time
I can’t help but join in. As rough as this journey has been so far, my lavender
bath has left me feeling more revived than I have in some time and I can
finally relax and let myself be comfortable for a moment, no matter how brief
it may be.

I take a seat
close to Sasha and let the brandy warm my body along with the fire. Ephraim
walks over and hands me a bowl full of something that looks like stew and
smells delicious, I waste no time digging in. I am starving and feel like I
have been at battle forever, for a moment I let myself hope that it is only
temporary and things are about to get better. My breath catches as I look at
the fire and realize this is my new life and nothing will ever be quite the
same and I may not have many moments of comfort in my future. I look around the
room and realize that Levi has left me and Ephraim to ourselves. I look up at
him knowing that I will find his eyes looking back. Without any hesitation he
begins talking in an understanding, calming tone.

“I know this has
been a rough journey for you, Ilyana. But I want you to know I am here to do
all I can to protect and prepare you for all that is to come. You can relax
here, Levi is a good man and he has numerous enchantments on his property, no
one can find this place that is not meant to, we are safe for now.” I let go of
my breath and begin to drink some more brandy after a moment I remember to ask
him about Alya, he informs me that she is good and busy at work preparing the
Enclave for my arrival. “How long do I have before you have to take me there
and train me?” he scratches the back of his head and eases into his seat “There
has been a change of plans.” I start to feel slightly anxious again, but know
that the brandy is effectively numbing the feeling. I nod for him to continue
“It turns out, we really need Levi’s help to train you, we weren’t quite
expecting that, but we are going to stay here for as long as we can until the
leaders force us to bring you back. We are safer here, apart from everyone,
than we are there in the middle of them all.” I wonder for a moment and think
back to all he has said “Do you mean WE are safer here or that the other
Nephilim are safer with me here?” he looks surprised for a moment “A little of
both, actually. But here we can work on your training and you won’t be under as
much pressure to perform. You are young and usually there is more time before
we bring new Nephilim to the counsel, we prepare and train, and generally they
have a good sense of who they are and what they are capable of.” He takes a sip
of his brandy and leans towards me and begins speaking in a lower voice “You
are different though, Ilyana. We hope that we never find out all that you are
capable of, but in case the time arises that we need to, I want you to know how
to control your abilities as much as you can. This is the safest place to learn
that and as much as it pains me to say it; Levi is the best person to teach
you.” I wait for him to pull away but he doesn’t, he slowly starts to lean
forward and I know that this is the moment, he is about to kiss me, and I am
about to let him when Sasha jumps up past me and runs to the door that Levi
just opened and is coming in through, I look at the floor and back to Ephraim, only
to see him staring at his brandy as though it has betrayed him and he sets it
on the end table closest to him and pushes it away. If I were smart I would do
the same, instead I decide to finish mine in a quick swallow and I immediately
get up and walk to the bedroom to sleep for the night, I refuse to make eye
contact with anyone, the boldness I was feeling earlier has been replaced with
disappointment and frustration, I walk past Levi abruptly and lift my hand to
wave as I say goodnight without turning back, I click my tongue at Sasha, but
she betrays me again, it looks like I will be sleeping alone tonight. The
thought irritates me.

Alya:

As
soon as I arrive to the enclave, I am ready to spring into action, to clear a
room, to approach the elders and maybe, just maybe, to get a little rest. What
I didn’t anticipate was that the elders would approach me, I have never seen
them anywhere other than the receiving hall and yet here they are, standing
outside of my apartment facing me, while I am still a mess. I invite them in
and feel embarrassed immediately, as much as I enjoy luxury, my recent travels
have not left me much time for maintenance, my air conditioning vents smell
stale from lack of use and my lounging room is covered with paperwork and files
that have long been closed. I work up my nerve and finally speak when I realize
they will not be sitting “To what do I owe the honor of your visitation?” they
radiate power and take their time in answering, the first to speak –
unsurprisingly, is Marcus, he has long been my favorite, he is the most
approachable and I agree with him on almost all of our political issues. “Alya,
please relax, you are not in trouble. We’ve come only to learn of the one you
traveled with, we received word from your brother that he found her by
following her trail of destruction and he met her at the closest port. We have
heard she has received no formal training.” I begin to breathe lighter, they
already know, I wish Ephraim would have informed me, but this does remove a great
deal of pressure Julius seizes the opportunity to chime in and I am shocked to
see a slight look of excitement on his face, usually when a being has lived as
long as he has, they are unexcitable and have a constant look of stoicism
plastered on their face “Yes, we have learned of her, but I do not see her
here, is she not still with you?” he asks questioningly.  I begin to lose my
nerve again as I realize they don’t know everything “I had Ephraim take her to
Levi’s home in the wood. She was in no condition to come here and I felt a
strong need to prepare the court before bringing her here.” Julius look of
excitement is now completely gone, he gestures with his hand for me to
continue, I grab at the back of my mind to make sure I don’t leave out any
details, I begin I find myself looking at the ground as I answer, unsure how
exactly I can say it “I have never felt another being more powerful. When she
is around, I lose focus, I read her powers and what is normally a hum is a loud
buzz, she is projecting so much power and has no control over it. Not only was
it difficult to focus mentally, but physically, my powers dampened, it took a
full 14 hours to arrive here and by the second hour I had a full migraine and
was barely able to stand. When we arrived, I was able to leave my boat for a
short time and as soon as I got away from her I began to recharge and finally
feel good enough to function. She is a kind girl, a powerful girl, but her lack
of control at a place like this could cause absolute chaos.” Marcus got a
troubled look on his face and nodded as if he was anticipating this “And what
of your brother, Ephraim, how is he able to handle this?” I laugh and shake my
head as I realize how absurd my brother will sound “Ephraim, is Ephraim. He
feels her power as well, it baffles him and frustrates him. He views it as
another challenge to surpass. He is existing on aspirin and frequent short
breaks. But he believes as he trains her it will also be an opportunity for him
to become even more centered.”

After
a long pause, Guinevere speaks up, she is the oldest and some say the most
powerful among all our elders, no decision is ever made without her approval
and attaining her seal of approval is no easy feat she looks at the elders
surrounding her and whispers under her breath “This is exactly what I was
afraid of, the time has not come yet. She MUST obtain control over her
projections before we bring her here or we will all be obliterated.
Alya
, you
have done well. Keep her away for now, we can send guards and teachers to train
with her and she can work with your brother in her spare time. As for Levi, he
no longer stands beside us but he still may have some valuable skills he can
impart to her, if he is willing to work with her alongside your brother and our
trainers, he can come here for breaks, but until she has more control, she is
not to be brought within a hundred yards of the facility.” I nod in
understanding and find myself smiling, it is not often I am praised for doing
right, I have a bit of a reputation for being the black sheep in our family.  I
realize quickly that they are already walking at their slow, deliberate pace
out of my front door. As the door shuts behind them, I begin to lean into my
wall, with no clue what to do, until I hear my phone ring and realize it is a
good moment for me to call and inform Ephraim of what we must do, then I have
to order some real clothes be sent to the poor girl and pack my bag in
anticipation of rotating with Ephraim at some point, my head starts to pound at
the thought of it.