All His Angels Are Starving

Jenny couldn't help but scream. It was a guttural response, a deeply rooted instinctive response to something that seemed straight out of her worst nightmare. She could see into the creature's head. Her light shone on the exposed flesh and what Jenny swore were the glistening gooey remnants of its eyes.

She swatted the angel with her shield, stumbling away till the back of her feet found the steps. She threw her hatchet, aiming for the angel's head. The edge struck a pale shoulder, and the angel dropped. It hissed in pain as it tried to claw the hatchet out.

Jenny didn't care. She turned and ran up the steps as fast as she could. The male Imperfect Angel was almost out of the wall. The female had become even more horrifying. This was too much. She was going to grab the boy and get to the third floor and figure something else out.

At the top of the steps, she saw the sac was no longer on the floor. That must’ve been why the male hadn’t joined the fight earlier; it had secured the sac to the ceiling with the others. They looked like giant grapes, each one a blob of pinkish-whitish flesh that reminded her of raw chicken breast. They glistened in the light, and blood dripped steadily from the newest one. The drops hit the puddle of blood beside the boy. Blooded was what Eve had said. She shivered in disgust.

The boy on the floor was unconscious but still breathing. His neck injury didn’t look too good. A part of her wanted to throw him to the angels. Something to distract them while she escaped. The thought made her shake. She glanced over her shoulder where the female had managed to rip out the hatchet. It sniffed the air, turning, trying to find Jenny.

The male wrenched its arm out of the wall. With a roar, the angel dropped to one knee, and Jenny winced at the sound. She'd nearly cut through the large creature's leg. There was no way that leg could support any of its weight. Both angels were hurt, but she knew they could rip her to pieces if she gave them the chance.

Light filled her hand, and the hatchet flew back to her. The male touched the female's face, and the angels seemed to shush one another. Are they... talking?

Her flashlight shone on the male's face. Its eyes were shut, its chin pressed to the female's forehead. Then it blinked. Its brows furrowed. Its nostrils flared as it hissed, squeezing its eyes shut. It pushed the female aside and then clambered forward, using its arms to pull itself up the stairs. The injured leg dragged and bounced on each step, leaving behind a trail of blood. But that didn’t seem to slow it down at all.

Jenny glanced quickly at the stairs to the third floor. Her hopes of escaping evaporated.

It was barricaded with mangled bodies. Students and teachers and naked Tarnished Angels piled on top of each other. Did they stock up on food? She’d never climb over all the bodies before the Imperfect Angel reached her.

Crying out in desperation, she struck the angel in the face with her shield just as it was about to grab her. She struck it again, a punching motion, and the shield clanged hard against the angel’s cheekbone.

She knocked its arm away then kicked it in the chin. She’d aimed for the throat, but her kick launched the Imperfect Angel a foot off the stairwell, flipping it onto its back.

It crashed on top of the female angel, and they both tumbled back down the steps. She knew a kick wouldn’t be enough for something so high-leveled, but a part of her wished she'd broken its neck. It could’ve just done her a favor and died.

She grabbed one of the bodies blocking the doorway to the second floor. It was a girl. Probably a freshman or a sophomore with braided hair and a once-cute pink cardigan. She was lying on her back, her eyes open and bulging, her exposed chest a mess of blood and flesh.

Jenny didn’t recognize the girl. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. Jenny dragged the body with one hand, holding on to the girl’s ankle. The body slid easily with all the blood slickening the floor, and Jeny used the momentum to swing it around and lob the girl’s body at the two Imperfect Angels.

The body landed on the male just as it was about to get up. The female angel screeched and savaged the girl’s body with its claws, and Jenny turned away, feeling sick to her stomach. Only one more body blocked the doorway now. It was the boy, who was still alive. She couldn’t just throw him to the angels.

But what would be waiting for them on the second floor? What if there were more Imperfect angels? Maybe she could use the boy as bait.

Fuck. Her heart pounded. Indecision made her dizzy. She just had to get out of this stairwell, she told herself. The metallic stench of blood clogged her nose and lungs, burning at the back of her throat...

Her eyes went wide. Burning...

She'd forgotten her new skill in the frenzy. She had no idea how it actually worked, but it was worth a shot. Would she just cough up a fireball?

What if she only managed smoke?

"Fuck it," she whispered. The male roared behind her. It was climbing up the stairs again, everything shaking. Jenny turned to face it, wiping the sweat off her brow. This time, the female angel was on top of the male’s broad purple back. Blood streamed in ribbons down one of its pale arms. Its empty sockets seemed to be staring right at Jenny.

She clenched her teeth, trying to use Ignite, but the angels were getting too close. “Fuck it!” she shouted, stomping forward on her left foot. She launched her hatchet straight at the female's head with as much desperate strength as she could muster. Savage throw.

The air rippled. Wind teased her sweaty face. The hatchet spun towards the female’s bloodied face. That was when the male jumped, its purple covering shining. The other angel fell off its back, and the hatchet hit the male right in the chest.

It gasped, choking on its breath as it grabbed the hatchet’s handle. The sharp edge was buried deep, and the angel’s purple covering was cracked. The creature’s face writhed in agony; its eyes shut tight. Then it fell forward, landing facedown with a heavy thud. Jenny winced as the edge of her hatchet burst out of the angel’s back.

A high-pitched wail erupted from the other angel. It was so shrill and gut-wrenching, that Jenny slammed her palms against her ears, nearly hitting herself with the shield. Every bone in her body seemed to rattle from the wailing. Before she knew what was happening, the female Imperfect angel was in her face.

Its pale claws brushed her helmet, tearing the flashlight loose. Light spun in every direction as the flashlight clattered away. Then the angel’s elbow connected with Jenny’s lips, and she tripped over the boy.

The angel sniffed once, then reached blindly till it found Jenny’s arms. Breathing heavily, its chest heaving, the angel pinned Jenny down. The look on its face, even without eyes, was one Jenny knew well: agony. The angel was consumed by fury or pain, or some bitter painful mixture, and Jenny couldn’t help but feel responsible. Like she’d done something unforgivable.

Tears slid down the sides of her head as she stared into the nightmarish sockets. Her lips were bleeding. Her teeth ached. But she felt she deserved worse.

Why aren't you attacking? Jenny looked past the angel's horrible face at the sacs on the ceiling. A drop of blood fell, sparkling in the light from wherever the flashlight had fallen, and splashed onto the angel's dark hair.

The creature brought its face next to Jenny's and sniffed twice. She could smell the rot of its breath, could see the blackened state of its gums. Blood squirted out of its eye sockets and splattered Jenny's face. An involuntary whimper slipped through her lips.

Fuck you, she whispered. She was shaking, with fear and anger and hurt. Then she realized the angel was trembling too. Was it trying to cry? Could they even cry?

It had her completely pinned down. She could move her hands, but her arms were stuck to the floor in the angel's fierce grip. Its knees dug into Jenny's sides, keeping her legs locked. She strained, trying to break out of its hold, but she still didn't have enough power.

It was going to feed her to one of its babies, wasn't it? That's why it kept her alive? Even though she'd killed its mate?

The angel's face was so close to her own, she couldn't help but sob. This creature had clawed its eyes out to protect its young. Was it driven by love? Jenny thought about Susan. About Oliver. This time it wasn't anger that flared up in her chest. It wasn't bloodlust. It was just fear. She didn’t want to die. She wanted to keep her promise to Susan. She wanted to survive this bullshit.

Ignite!

The thought enveloped her mind. Warmth rose like a storm cloud from the back of her throat. The muscles of her throat convulsed painfully like she'd swallowed steaming hot ramen too quickly, and she screamed right in the angel's face.

Fire burst out of her mouth.

Once, she'd gone to use the bathroom during Calculus and ran into some girls she'd shared joints with before. They were having fun with a spray can of Febreeze and a lighter, making a makeshift flamethrower, and setting napkins on fire in the sink. She’d thought it was cool as fuck. Stupid, but cool. The fire had looked so pretty fickering in the bathroom mirrors.

That was how her fire streamed out. As though someone had squeezed her throat and forced out blue and orange flames, lighting up the entire stairwell. Waves of heat made the air tremble. Her eyes stung and watered. She couldn't even see the angel's face anymore. It was a shifting dark silhouette in the fire. And all the while, Jenny was screaming.

As soon as she stopped, she gasped up one final puff of flame and then saw what she'd done. The female angel's entire head was scorched. Its once-pale covering was now gray and falling apart like charcoal, exposing twisted burnt flesh. All that was left of its hair were short burnt strands with smoke drifting off its head. It let out a wheeze, the blood on its face had boiled away, its sockets dry and empty. The creature was still alive.

A sulfuric stench threatened to suffocate her. And fire still flickered overhead. Jenny stared in horror at the sacs on the ceiling, all of them wriggling, all of them burning. She could hear faint cries and wails, and so could the angel.

It raised its ruined head, its entire body shaking as it lifted its arms. The angel was on its knees, as though it were praying. One of the burning sacs dropped from the ceiling and burst to Jenny's left. It was like watching a jar of strawberry jam hit the floor. Gooey wet stuff splattered her face and armor, and the angel crawled off Jenny to sort through the ruined sac. Chunks of it were on fire, burning steadily all around.

Jenny's throat hurt. Her lungs ached, and she rapidly sucked in air, hyperventilating as she watched the angel bring something small and lumpy out of the sac. She could see little limbs struggling, and that was more than Jenny could bear. Pain and heartbreak and a retching sensation bubbled up in her throat.

Another scream burst from her lips. Ignite! Ignite! Ignite!

Fire billowed out of her mouth as Jenny got on all fours. She scorched the Imperfect Angel even as it raised an arm in defense and held the baby to its chest. Jenny didn't care. White hot rage clouded her vision, and she turned her head this way and that, screaming and scorching everything around her as she stood to her feet. Jenny paused only to inhale, her shoulders heaving, and then she roared more flame into existence.

The other sacs fell into the blaze, bursting open, as Jenny, the angel, and the little creatures in the ruined sacs all screamed in agony.

You’ve defeated Imperfect Angel (Level 19)

Experience has been awarded:

+100 energy

You’ve defeated Fetal Angel (Level 0)

Experience has been awarded:

+2 Energy

 

Leveled up!

Jenny Huang, Level 12 -> Level 13

+3 Stat Ponts

 

When she couldn't anymore, Jenny stopped, her shoulders shaking. She was breathing hard, drenched in sweat. Ashes floated all around her. Little flames flickered, and countless shadows danced across the walls.

You’ve defeated Fetal Angel (Level 0)

Experience has been awarded:

+2 Energy

She received several notifications about the Fetal Angels, and she pushed those thoughts away. All that was left of the Imperfect Angel was blackened bones, burnt to a crisp. Several sets of smaller bones littered the floor around it, as well as another full skeleton that Jenny at first thought was the male Imperfect Angel.

You’ve defeated Human (Level 1)

Experience has been rewarded:

+200 Energy

"No!" she whispered, dropping to her knees beside the bones. She glanced over her shoulder. The purple Imperfect Angel lay where it had fallen, near the stairwell with the edge of her hatchet still sticking out of its back.

This skeleton could only be the boy. The boy she'd tried to save.

"No," she said again, her bottom lip wobbling. Her throat constricted. She couldn't breathe. She touched his ribcage and it crumbled away. His grinning skull stared back at her.

Jenny jumped to her feet and backed away. She bit her lip, tears streaming down her cheeks. She squeezed her shield with her other hand so that the edge cut into her palm. What have I done? What the fuck did I do? Eve? I messed up. I messed up. A sob escaped her. Eve. I can't breathe. I can't... No. It was an accident.

It was an accident!

He was going to die anyway. There was no way to save him. I had to... There wasn’t...

She turned away from the charred bones. Then she heard a groan. It was the male Imperfect Angel. She'd never gotten a notification of its death. She looked down at its purple muscular form. What was going through its head? It made that shushing sound again. Was it trying to speak? Was it mourning its mate and children?

It’s their fault. It was their fault the boy died.

The creature had to be near death. It wriggled, and blood gushed from its back. It was struggling toward the dead.

She remembered asking Eve if angels love.

All beings experience suffering.

Jenny wiped away her tears. It was unfair. It was so unfair. If the angels just wanted to have children, couldn't they do it without killing her schoolmates? Without putting everyone through this hell?

Golden light flashed and the hatchet appeared in her trembling hand. Blood dripped down from its edge. She clenched her jaws, glaring at the purple creature as it lifted its head.

Its purple covering shone brightly as flames flickered behind her. Its eyes were wide, all white and empty, but it seemed to be accusing her of what she'd done. She raised her hatchet and brought it down on its head with a crack.