The Guardian Angel (The Guardians of Nine Heavens #1)

Chapter 27: Paradise Lost

Elijah! 

I almost shouted in my thoughts and turned to the direction the scream came from. I could already see shining lights - the celestial angels - gather around that place. I knew such a commotion would only mean really bad news.

Adam and Eve got frightened too, but they had a different reason - they got scared they might be caught in the crime they had committed. Furthermore, as they had already tasted the fruit of Knowledge, they came to know how shame felt and flushed up when saw each other's bare bodies. 

"Ugh, put something on! You look like a savage beast!" Eve was disgusted.

"You look rather... beautiful..." Adam's cheeks grew red as he contemplated Eve's breasts.

"What?!" Eve flared up and quickly covered her chest with her red hair, "Look away! How shameless!"

"More importantly, how can we evade the angels' and the High Forces' rage when they find out what we've done?" Adam asked, now feeling shame for their deed.

"Well, we'll just blame it all on the snake, I guess," Eve shrugged. "After all, it was he who offered me to eat the apple. He told me all about its power".

I sighed - there was no hope left. They had already fallen low. They felt shame for little things. What's more, they were ready to blame everything on third parties when they had made decisions on their own. It couldn't be helped - they were already beyond salvation. I shape-shifted back into my original form: the black-winged angel of destruction and death, holding the deadly scythe.

"You're sure you want to blame it all on me?" I asked.

Hearing my freezing voice, both Eve and Adam looked up at the tree branch just to get assured it was I talking with them all along, and gasped in shock and dread.

"You!" Adam exclaimed.

"Wh... Why did you do this?" Eve got angry - so it was an angel tricking them all along?

"I tested you to see if you were really worthy to live in the Garden of Eden," I shot my cold gaze at them, "You failed. Feel shame for what you've done".

"You cheated! You tricked us!" Adam grew no less incensed, "You must feel shame, not we! How could you deny the command of the High Forces and fall so low as to trick humans?"

"Hush, worthless mortal! You are not to judge, especially now when you've fallen below heavenly level. I tested you humans to see if you could be trusted. It seems you could not. That is why Elijah felt pain - you are no longer innocent. You never were truly innocent from the beginning!"

They were going to object when three celestial archangels, my brothers - Michael, Gabriel and Raphael - flew down and seized all the three of us with their light powers.

"Huh? What's going on?" Adam and Eve got frightened - the angels had already found out about their crime?!

"How's Elijah?" I asked Michael, the one to have subdued me as I could not be overpowered by any other angel.

Michael puckered:

"He's dead".

"No!" 

It couldn't be! The angel of innocence - this kind young man - was really dead, all because of my wanting to test these two worthless mortals? All because I intended to help them find their true selves? All was my fault?!

I hung my head, feeling guilty and desperate. Tears gushed from my eyes:

"I'm a wretch..."

"You cannot judge such a matter all by yourself. It includes an angel's death, so the only true judge can be the High Forces," Michael told me. "Follow us".