Ethereal

Chapter 20

Outside, everything was still just as bright. As odd as it was for there to be no sun, the silvery light that covered the land was rather comforting, because it meant that I wasn't alone. Although, it was another thing that set me apart from the humans. No human could stand here like I was, gazing across a world covered in angel light. They would go insane, like my mother had. Or worse, they could die.

Even though I knew that I wasn't alone here, it was very quiet. I couldn't see any angels around me. Although, when I looked up, I could see a couple fluttering around. I wasn't sure if they were flying closer to the ground, or my eyesight was still improving – but suddenly I could see them more clearly. I could see each individual beat of their wings, they were no longer a silvery blur. I remembered how Noah had told me that angels hardly ever walk – they didn't need to.

Even so, a couple of angels landed near me a few moments later. I watched them for a second, wondering what they were doing on the ground. They were each kneeling down and scooping something up off of the ground. After they'd gathered a fair amount of it in their arms, I realised it was chunks of the cloudsoil.

I looked down at the soil beneath me, it was solid and immoveable. It proved to me just how strong the angels were. I wasn't sure that I'd be able to dig it up with my bare hands, and I was already far stronger than a human.

Stronger than a human, but not as strong as an angel. As nice as it was that I could be included in this world, I was never going to truly fit in. I mean, I stuck out like a sore thumb here.

All the angels were clothed in pristine white garments, and then there was me, wearing a dark purple shirt with black jeans.

I sighed and carried on walking. I decided to venture past the five buildings that housed the angels and see what was beyond. Behind the towers was a huge clearing, and I wasn't sure if it was just me, but the mist seemed a little thinner here, and colder too.

On the left edge of the clearing, close to the drop, the ground seemed a little more golden, and on the right, a deeper tone of silver than the rest of the mist. I found myself wandering towards the golden side, and I felt an involuntary shiver go down my back as I approached.

I wondered why it was so golden here, it was a big contrast to the silvery tones of the rest of Heaven. The golden mist was thicker, like the rest of the mist in Caelum, and it gently spilled over the edge.

A gust of wind passed across me as an angel flew close by, carrying a few words. "I pray for Travis, I hope that he finds success on his task. I pray for Catherine, that you protect her as she searches the Earth..."

I looked up across the clearing, and I saw a small figure crouched on the other end. I wandered towards her slowly, recognising the slight frame as that belonging to Jasmine.

Up close, I could see that she wasn't crouching, she was kneeling on the silvery patch, praying, facing out across the drop.

"I pray for Noah, that he finds his answers. And I pray for Emilia, that she is kept safe, that no harm should come to her."

Jasmine must have known I was stood a few metres behind her, though she didn't acknowledge me, she had her head bowed for a few more minutes.

Eventually, she rose to her feet as though she were light as a feather, and spun on her heel to face me, smiling warmly. It was hard to believe how long it had took me to realise what she was, right now, dressed in white, even without wings, she was glowing. It was so obvious, that she was an angel.

"Emilia." She greeted, holding out her arms to embrace me. I hugged her back eagerly, glad to find a friend here. "I was just praying for you."

"I didn't know that angels prayed." I commented, trying to repress the blush rising to my cheeks – I was touched that Jasmine cared enough to pray for my safety.