House of the Angels

“You!” he exclaimed.

“That’s right.” Sally chortled wickedly. “In the flesh.”

The angels were shocked. Totally and utterly shocked. Out of the rafters came Hillary, Kane, Damon and Nero who joined Sally’s side, spitting insults and jeers at the angels.

All of a sudden, the demons fled in terror, charging out the windows and up to the rooftop, hollering and shrieking with fright. The angels thought it odd that they had fled away so quickly, but when they turned around they found something that hadn't been there before. A veve, with its complicated curls, twists and vinelike shapes, had been drawn on the walls in fresh blood.

“Sybilla did you……?” Joseph began before Sybilla cut him off.

“I swear to Jesus I didn’t do it.” She answered, putting her hands up in defense.

None of them had. There was no trace of blood on anyone’s hands, save for what was beginning to dry and crust over on their clothes. As odd as it was, the angels had little time to worry. They managed to coax the ghosts into coming out of their hiding places and lured them into the jar before hastily making their way to the rooftop.

They threw open the door and no sooner had the angels made their way out to the roof than they spotted Sally and the others trying to make their escape. The night was beginning to fade away, turning the sky a dusky purple with the moon still a glowing bloody red as the wretched, filthy beings skidded to a stop.

“We should’ve killed you years ago.” Anne snarled. “Cowardly snake.”

“I would’ve just come back.” Sally retorted. “You’ll never be able to kill us, no matter how hard you might try.”

“There’s where you’re wrong.” Anne told her. “Evil dies, but good always endures.”

The demons rushed for the angels once more, but Anne threw her hand up and conjured a protective shield around them all. The demons were thrown to the other end of the roof but sprang back to their feet in a few short seconds.

“Face it brimstone breath,” Anne said. “You don’t have a hope left.”

“Do I now?” Sally hissed.

With a snap of her fingers, huge vines shot up out from under the roof and coiled their way around the angels in a tight lock that nearly sucked their life’s breath out of their lungs. The leaves resembled the heads of vipers that hissed and spat in the faces of the angels.

“Frankie….” Anne croaked.

Francis tried to reach the lighter in his back pocket but it was no use. No amount of wriggling or writhing would get him anywhere. But when all else had failed, he turned to another solution.

“Illuminabant!!”

All of a sudden, the plants burst into flames, the snakes hissing and turning to singed ashes as the angels broke free of their grasp. The fire and flame did no damage to any of the angels, in fact it was quite the opposite. As hot as it was, the flames did not singe their skin.

“There has to be something that can kill them.” Hillary groaned with frustration.

“Looks like now’s your time to shine Hillary.” Sally told her. "Show these little cockroaches who's the real boss in these parts."

Hillary let forth a shrill whistle and the creature that came forth at her command struck a horrible terror into the angels as a massive, black paw reached over the roof ledge. A huge, three headed dog with glowing eyes snarled and barked as it climbed up onto the roof to do its mistress’s bidding.

“Sick!” she ordered.

Cerberus, the three headed monstrosity, charged right for the angels who nearly scattered. But before the beast had a chance to get to them, Dan swung his hammer and with one swing, he felled the beast with a thunderous *CRACK!!!*.

“Good swing Dan.” Sybilla chuckled when the beast fell dead at their feet.

“Been practicin’ for a while.” Dan replied. “Maybe I’ll be good enough to play for Boston.”

The game of wits continued as the angels and demons threw everything they had at each other. But at the last minute, things took a turn for the terrifying. The black bat creatures were back and leading them into battle was Sally, her daughter and their cohorts. Nonetheless, the angels charged on into the fight, rousing all the strength they had left in them to kill the wretched creatures.

Grey and Hillary faced off against one another, fists flying and every hit stinging like wasps. Grey swung his leg right into Hillary’s side before she dragged him down to the ground. He rolled and shoved her off of him, springing to his feet and drawing the pair of sai from his belt.

“It’s just you and me now bitch!” Grey declared, spitting a stream of blood from his mouth.

Hillary lunged at him with her jagged blade but Grey quickly disarmed her and knocked it away. The fight intensified as the two turned back to using their bare fists, heels, elbows and knees. Grey felt the life slowly being sucked out of him as Hillary caught him around the neck with her arm.

“Oh I'm gonna enjoy killing you, Grey.” She hissed in his ear. “And when I do, I’ll make sure that you go down in a blaze of hellfire.”

“If I’m going down,” Grey croaked. “You’re going with me!”

Using all of his dead weight, Grey shifted his feet and fell over the edge with Hillary. He could hear the others calling out his name, their voices slowly trailing into the distance as he kept falling….falling…..falling.

*THWACK!!!* The two of them landed on something that broke their fall the moment they hit it. Grey felt every inch of his body and to his relief he was unharmed. The same however could not be said of Hillary. He hopped onto the ground, dusted himself off and took one last look at her body that lay upon that fence.

“Payback’s a bitch, isn’t it?” He muttered.

Grey unfurled his brilliant coal black wings and flew straight back up to the rooftop.

The scene was one of utter chaos, hideous batlike creatures battling with the angels, Sybilla and Anne fighting off Sally while the rest fought on with whoever happened to challenge them. The din of the frightening face off carried far and wide across the bayou, the clanging and scrape of metal against claws mixed in with the cacophony of shrieks as demon after demon fell. The angels were overwhelmed by the thousands of hideous creatures in their midst, the never ending legion always springing up from wherever it could as though they would be drowned in a black wave.

Just when the angels thought their demise was imminent, a blinding blue light flashed and knocked them all on their backs. Sally’s minions, Damon, Kane and Nero all went up in flames as the blue light consumed them and shredded their forms, their shrieks going unheard as all around them was silenced.

When the flash died away there stood before the angels two of the oddest figures they had ever seen. One of them stood well over six feet, his hair cropped short and his deep blue eyes ablaze with power. The figure’s armor was that of a centurion, the red of his tunic a deep crimson and his wings a blinding white. So brilliant was this frightening apparition, that even the angels were struck dumb with fear. Beneath his sandaled feet lay Sally, writhing and wriggling to break free as she struggled under the dead weight.

The other figure shocked Sybilla to her very core. It was the same one Kyle had seen in his fever dreams, his dark skin and face painted with marks of white that looked like a skull and bones. His long dreadlocks hung loosely from his head while several jars were tied to his thick wooden cane.

“Papa.” Sybilla gasped.

Sally writhed and croaked beneath the feet of the warrior, trying to free herself but to no avail. He kept a vicelike grip on her to make sure she didn’t try and escape.

“Sally Caulfield!” The angel thundered. “It is by order of the Heavenly Father that I, Michael, give you your punishment for all you've caused. From this day forward, you are to become the slave of the loas! You will be shown no mercy! You and your brood are doomed to become their slaves for all eternity.”

Sally begged and pleaded but it all fell upon deaf ears. The great angel drew out her black soul from its vessel and those of her daughter and minions, casting them into one of the jars on Papa Legba’s cane as the Caulfields' corporeal bodies burned away to nothing. The battle was over. The batlike creatures had become nothing more than a pile of ash and soot. Then Michael turned his attention to the other angels who sank to their knees and hid their faces out of respect.

“On your feet.” He ordered, his voice patient and calm.

The angels looked up and stood in the presence of this towering being. The rising sunlight gave him a strange halo as the sun began to climb higher and higher into the vast Louisiana sky.

“You’ve all given more than could ever be asked of you.” Michael spoke, noting the battered and bruised faces that looked up at him. “The hardest tasks are done and now is the time to rest. But there is one matter the two of us wish to see through to the end.”

“Aye,” added Papa Legba. “Where be the spirits that were freed from this horrid place?”

Sybilla handed the jar off to Dylan who then handed it off to Papa Legba. Out of the jar came the colorful orbs that slowly took the form of the ghosts, men, women and children who appeared as though they were once again living, breathing humans. The morning sunlight shown down upon them all, their gaunt and haggard faces disappearing before the eyes of the angels who were filled with an overwhelming joy.

“Thank you all for what you’ve done.” Sister Eunice spoke.

“We couldn’t have made it out without your help.” Added Luther, his arms around Jolene.

“It’s because of you that now we are free.” Hank said gratefully.

“No amount of thanks can ever repay all of you for what you’ve done. This truly is selflessness, pure, unfaltering selflessness….a virtue that pleases God.” Papa Legba concluded to Sybilla. “Should you ever need help mambo, don’t be afraid to seek us out.”

“I won’t.” Sybilla replied.

Papa Legba turned to Michael when he had finished speaking to Sybilla and the others. “Shall we go?”

“I think so.” Michael answered. “I suppose we’ll all be seeing each other more often?”

“Maybe.” Anne answered, though she wasn’t so sure.

“I have a feelin Annie’s right.” Sybilla chimed in. “Though I can’t say for sure.”

“Den until we meet again, take care mambo.”

The angels each thanked Michael and Papa both for their help. They watched and bade farewell to the ghosts as they followed the strange pair up into the open clouds with the early morning sun streaming down onto Bayou St Therese.