Virta stepped out of the shower, dried her slender body, and slipped into a shimmery, nearly see-through slip of a dress.
It wasn't usual angel attire, but it made her feel a little bit human: It was something like Mandi would wear to a club on Earth.
She sipped on a glass of Substance as her thoughts turned to her earlier conversation with Mick about The Fallen Ones, or demons, as they were better known: Angels who had rebelled and were cast out of Heaven.
She shuddered at the thought of such evil; such wickedness.
As much as she longed for a life of her own, she realized that she'd been pretty sheltered up to this point. She wanted freedom, yeah, but she couldn't imagine going that far. Her rebellion was fairly harmless compared to what the Fallen Ones must have done.
She shook her head as she paced the room. Falling out of Heaven? On purpose?
She leaned over her desk and switched on the computer. Having information always made her feel better. Sure, many sites were banned from her, but thanks to her techie friend, Mick, she could bypass many of the firewalls and find a little info on taboo subjects.
She knew that sometimes she craved knowledge as a baby craved its mother's milk. She felt as though she lived in ignorance. Was it really bliss – to live in ignorance? No, whether the truth hurt or not, there were some things she just had to know.
Finding the search platform she needed, she typed in a few key words: Fallen Angels, Demons, Devils, and waited for the hits to come back.
It didn't take long. There must have been thousands of websites on the Fallen Ones. But she only had access to one, the first one on the list. It was called Demons Dot Com, and from first glance, it looked like it had enough info to keep her busy for a while.
She wavered only for a moment, fear biting down on her as she hesitated to click on the forbidden link.
She clicked.
Up popped a flash introduction with depictions of monsters and vile creatures, accompanied by shrieks and screams, and blood dripping down the page. She nearly had to turn her face away from the horrible images. Within seconds, however, it had finished loading, and she clicked "Enter".
She'd never actually seen a demon in real life before; didn't even know anyone who had. But from what she was reading about them, she knew she never wanted to be within a light-year radius of one.
At least they were forbidden in Heaven, according to this source. She felt more relief to know that they certainly wouldn't get past the security at the Office.
She nervously fingered dark strands of silky hair as she clicked on another link. It contained thumbnail photos of Hell's top demons. There was even a warning to Mid-Level Angels - who were supposed to be the only ones with access to this site - to always be on the alert for them. They were to report to Upper Management immediately if one of these devils was spotted.
She glanced through the thumbnails, not really interested in seeing hideous faces that might haunt her nightmares for eternity. But one thumbnail photo in particular caught her eye.
Instead of depicting a monster, it was a photo of an incredibly handsome man. Perhaps the webmaster made a mistake in using this picture instead of a Big Bad Demon, she reasoned. Her curiosity got the better of her.
She clicked the link and braced herself for what ugly, hideous creatures she might see. She was not even prepared for what she saw.
He was the most stunningly good-looking man she'd ever glimpsed, and he was staring out of the photo with dark, liquid eyes. He made even the few upper-level angels she'd met at the Office Christmas parties look a little, well, ordinary.
He was enormous. Seven feet of tight, muscular body. He had thick, dark hair, tousled up all over sexily. His skin was smooth and lightly tanned. Well, not all of it was smooth. She noticed some scars on his body, but they just seemed to add to his rough appeal. He had eyes of coal that looked like they could burn through your soul. His lips were full and sensuous. She found herself wanting to brush her fingers against them.
Now why did I think of his lips like that? She instantly questioned herself. He's told countless lies through that mouth; Seduced many young virgins through the ages with those lips. His lips are evil, just like the rest of him!
Still, there was no denying his strong physical appeal. Her body trembled. Whether from fear or excitement, she didn't know. Maybe a little of both.
This was definitely an Ancient One. Just by looking at him, she could tell he wasn't created yesterday. A glance at his bio confirmed that he was older than civilization itself. This also added to his mystique. She'd always had a thing for older men, though.
She could barely stop staring at his face on the screen. If he mesmerized her this much now, how much more sway would he hold face-to-face? Such power, she thought. I bet he could make females – angel or human – do whatever he wanted with the black magic in those eyes.
She continued through the photos. He had to have been one of Satan's Higher-Ups, there was no doubt about it. He looked combat-ready in some of the pictures, sporting army fatigues and boots. Sharp, deadly weapons were strapped to his incredibly manly body. He held a large gun in one hand. Hard muscle rippled under tanned, sweaty flesh. A deadly gleam was in his eye, and his chin was set as firm as stone.
The man in this photo would disembowel you with the flick of a wrist, step over your dying body and go eat a breakfast of human babies without batting an eyelash, she thought with a shudder.
The caption beneath each photo verified her worst suspicions, describing terrible deeds the demon committed, including rape, torture, terrorist acts, homicide and angelicide. She couldn't bear to read all the details of his operations; she was too afraid.
She knew she should discontinue this and finish getting ready to go to Mick's place. But she couldn't seem to stop herself from looking.
She thought it was wiser to face her fears, not run from them.
And angels shouldn't have to be afraid, she thought. Especially not in Heaven. If I'm not safe in Heaven, then where am I safe?
The demon was shown in different clothes and different settings. Always, he looked to be the one in command, and very comfortable with power and authority. She turned back to his biography information.
To be prepared, one must know thy enemy, she thought. All I'm doing is arming myself with information. This is probably the same stuff they teach in those classes. Maybe I should give those classes a chance after all. God forbid I ever have to tangle with a demon even half as powerful as this one.
She trembled at the thought, even though she knew she had all of Heaven's resources to back her up if she did get in trouble. This creature of exquisite evil could never touch her here.
The bio said that he had started at the very bottom of Heaven as Clerk I at the Office. Just like me, she thought.
But he had quickly worked his way up to Power, specifically Third Choir. He was originally involved in Dominations.
What do I know about that position? She wondered. Aren't they the very oldest of the Old Ones? I wonder what I did with that organizational flow chart they handed out in orientation? Darn, I probably threw it out a long time ago. She tapped her fingers to her forehead in thought.
The demon had advanced to the highest levels of the angelic system before Falling. She looked for information about why he had been banished, but saw none. But what she did find chilled her to the core of her being.
No!
Her breath caught in her throat. The document stated that he had -willingly- Fallen!
A tremor of icy cold ran down her back, and she had to turn away from the computer for a moment just to be able to breathe again.
Getting kicked out of Heaven was the ultimate Bad Thing that could happen to angels, she knew. But nobody, nobody should ever willingly Fall!
What a depraved, iniquitous, treasonous creature this must be!
