Colin's posts

"I-" Gabe started to say, before he flinched slightly.

"Ngh." he grunted heavily, as Erica got closer and put her hand son her shoulders.

"Gabriel...?" she said quietly.

The next thing she knew, the two were suddenly surrounded by a pillar of light... though it seemed less welcoming that the one he usually used... and she then found herself, and Gabe, in the backyard of Aimee and Uriel's home.

Before she could say anything, however, Uriel came bursting out of the house, sword at the ready.

"I was WONDERING how long before you-!" he started to say, but then stopped abruptly.

"...Gabriel? Erica?"

"...there is." Gabe responded.

"There is a way to reverse and undo it." he told her.

"Or... rather, there is one individual that would be able to do that." he then clarified.

"..." he was then silent and looked away.

At that moment, Erica knew who he was referring to, and it made her heart sink:

Emelie.

"...." Gabe was silent for a moment.

"They got my halo." he told her.

"There are two ways an angel or archangel can fall." he then said. "The first is to genuinely lose your way, and are no longer pure, hence the expulsion from Heaven." he explained.

"...the second is to have their halo corrupted from without." he then said further.

"...and one has corrupted my halo."

Gabe almost collapsed to the floor when that happened, but only fell to his knee, and Erica managed to land on her feet.

"Ngh..." he growled.

"Damn it." he cursed.

"...." he was then silent, before looking at Erica.

"Are you all right?" he asked her.

"Are you hurt or anything?"

Gabe narrowed his eyes as he was told one was incoming.

"Hang on." he told her.

He felt her grip tighter that little bit more, pivoted his foot, and kicked off to the side, just as the Fallen lunged for them. The lunge missed, and they ended up kissing the floor, with Gabe stomping on their lower back as he then continued.

"Any more?" he asked.

"If not, we're teleporting ASAP."

Gabe looked at her and nodded.

"Right!" he called back, leaping to his feet and running towards the door, scooping Erica up as he did so.

"We need to go someplace safe." he told her.

"And the safest place I can think of right now, is with my brother." he said further.

"The Fallen will NOT be able to stand against the might of TWO archangels." he reasoned.

Erica could see that Gabe was internally at war with himself. He didn't want to hurt Erica, but he also knew that she was right. The Fallen needed to be stopped here, before they succeeded in whatever it was that they had planned here.

"Just go!" one of the remaining yelled at the one holding Erica.

"Take her and go!" they shouted.

This seemed to be the spurring on that Gabe needed, and he threw his sword towards the head of the one holding Erica. The Fallen forced Erica to duck when HE did, but as soon as that happened, she suddenly felt their hold on her become a LOT weaker. They were almost frail now.

Which was because the hilt of the sword ended up catching on the halo, and effectively 'ripped' it off his head.

"Oh, we'll MAKE you help." the one holding her said.

That's when she noticed something; even though she'd been suppressing her arm, and had been successful at it, the mana in it was still pulsing. And she recalled a fallen saying that they 'felt something' earlier.

However, before anyone could say anything more, Gabriel summoned a blade in a beam of light into his hand, and whirled it around, slashing at the shins of the Fallen that were close to him, but making sure to avoid Erica.

This downed about 3 of them, and the one holding Erica growled.

"Stand down or I break her arms!" he threatened.

"Erica!" Gabe cried out, before he was hit by another barrage of the mana blasts, causing him to yell out in pain again.

"Stay down, we outnumber you." a Fallen told him.

"And we'll only get stronger, thanks to this girl." another said, referring to Erica.

"Soon ALL of us will be stronger. And we'll finally be able to bring this world down!" yet another declared.

Gabe then shakily got to his hands and knees, growling slightly, but trying to form a plan.

"Got i-" Gabe started to say, before 3 blasts of mana hit him in the back, causing him to cry out in pain, and fall to his hands and knees for a moment, as they heard laughter from where they came from.

"He was right." one said.

"I feel it." the second one agreed.

"Damn it." Gabe cursed. "Those were strong." he said, as the one he had been stepping on rolled away and glared at him.

"Think you can protect her?" they asked. "Then try." they said, aiming a blast at Erica, which Gabe managed to jump in the way of, causing him to cry out in pain once more as it hit his chest.

Her plan worked, and she managed to push him back, causing him to let go, and the both of them to fall to the floor.

Just as she screamed out mentally, another one appeared, standing beside her, and looking down at her.

"You can try all you like, but you're not getting out of this." they said... just as a hand grabbed his throat, and threw him down to the floor as well, stomping on the back of his head.

"Not if -I- have anything to say about it." Gabriel growled.

"Damn it!" the one that she had kicked cursed.

"Michael warned us about this!"

She heard him scream out in agony, and when she pulled it back and ran, she heard him fall to the floor again.

"Damn it!" he cursed.

She left the kitchen and turned a corner, when she suddenly saw a beam of strange light form in front of her, revealing ANOTHER Fallen.

"Surprise!" they yelled, lunging forward and grabbing both her wrists.

"No stabbing for you! Not on THIS Fallen!" he declared.

"AH!" the man screamed out in a bit of a muffled tone, as he stumbled back and fell to the floor with a thud.

"Son of a BITCH!" he yelled, writhing about for a moment, before scrambling to his feet.

"THAT'S it!" he then said.

If she were to look, she would notice something VERY distinct about him... the cracked halo above his head.

And she would know what that meant, too.

"Broken legs time!"

She scanned the kitchen, and saw her phone on the table there, where she had left it. She started to make her way over, but she hadn't taken more than a few steps, before she suddenly felt like someone was behind her.

Then, just as instantly, a hand grabbed the wrist of the hand she wrapped, and another hand clamped itself over her mouth. Hard.

"Do not move. Do not struggle." the one behind her hissed.

"Cooperate, and I won't have to break your legs." he threatened her.

"Understand?" he then asked.