demons…

I sat up that night staring at the stars.  My new balcony was wonderful and the view was amazing, but still my mind battled inside itself.  My memories were flooded with the strange creature’s pale face.  He was a beautifully designed demon, as most vampires were, but something about him haunted my thoughts.  I had met others of his kind, but none had ever affected me so greatly.  I was drawn to the monster in ways I could not explain.
I was a soul-devouring demon, and vampires were soul-less creatures damned to wonder the earth forever.  Why had this…Daniel affected me so?  I shook my head slightly as I remembered the fragrance of his breath, and his skin.  The delicious fantasies they placed in my head had made me helpless – only able to watch as my instincts caved in on top of my falling form.  
As I watched the stars fall around me, I realized that I hungered to know more of this creature.  He was so deep, dark, and unreachable, and that fact scared me.  I thought back on the way I had felt ill at Kristi’s party, and I remembered how Daniel had been the cause.  I also remembered how my mouth had filled with venom when I had first caught the smell of Daniel.  He pumped a toxic flame into my veins, and, despite how wrong it was, he fascinated me.  
I thought rapidly.  I needed answers, but where could I possibly find them?  I highly doubted the libraries had any hard evidence on vampires, and googling was out of the question.  4,578,932 hits of useless information were not what I needed.  
Suddenly the idea hit me.  Kristi.  I did not need to know about vampires, because the appealing mystery was Daniel, not his kind.  Who was better to question than a gossip-leader like Kristi?  After all she knew him so she probably had a significant amount of information about him.  
As the sun rose in front of me, I chuckled maliciously.  He had probably been sent by Lucifer to destroy me, but I would undoubtedly win this fight.  If Lucifer thought a vampire would sway my decision, then he would soon find out how powerful I was.  I felt my eyes sparkle darkly, and as I smiled my fangs blossomed.  The sun hit my pale form and illuminated my now black eyes.  I threw my head back and laughed viciously.  Daniel Sinclair would never call himself my destruction.  

The rest of my weekend flew by in a blur, and in what seemed like seconds, I found myself trapped in boring classes that only hindered my discovery of a weakness.  I made it very apparent that every passing second added immensely to my discomfort.  I could tell my teachers thought my behavior was improper, but human instinct told them not to try my patience.  Some piece of them knew I could destroy them effortlessly, but that piece was locked away in their subconscious.  
I was hungry for knowledge of my enemy.  I needed to understand the delicious nature of Daniel.
I leapt excitedly when the final bell rang for lunch.  In a joyous mood that I did not fully understand, I bounded down the stairs and into the cafeteria.  Just as I had hoped, Kristi was there surrounded by her group of jocks.  As she sat down, I happily skipped to the seat beside her, and sat down gracefully.  A few of the jocks allowed their mouths to drop, but I ignored them.  Kristi was my object.
“The party was wonderful Friday,” I said with a false cheeriness that sounded strange in my throat, but Kristi was immediately won over by my mood, and I soon found myself listening to every detail of Kristi’s night.  Still I mustered through her dull tales with a grin, and appropriate nods and giggles.  
“So,” Kristi said in a prodding tone.  “I saw you leave with Daniel.”  A few of the jocks gave a pouting look when they heard this sentence.  “Did you go back to his place?”  Kristi asked.  
“No,” I said in all honesty, not catching the immediate meaning of her question.  
“You went back to yours?” Kristi asked in a shocked voice.  Suddenly, her implications hit me, and, for a moment, I found myself at a loss for words.  
“No,” I said feeling insulted and hurt.  A kind of glimmer appeared in the disheartened jocks’ eyes, but I pushed forward.  “I am not that type of girl,” I told Kristi candidly.  The glimmer disappeared again.
“Oh,” Kristi blushed.  “Sorry.  I thought…well…I know he can be really persuasive.  That’s all.”
“That’s okay,” I said persuasively, another false grin painting my face.  “No hard feelings.”
Kristi smiled contented, and began rambling about how she understood my morals, but she did not exactly agree with them.  My mind was ready to when I finally decided to interrupt her.
“Does Daniel seem strange to you in any way?” I asked quickly as Kristi was diving into more details about her love life.  
Kristi seemed slightly taken back, until she realized what I was asking.
“So you noticed that too?” she said in an unreadable tone.  “Daniel does have certain qualities that are quite…weird.  For once thing he is so pale, but he never seems sick.  Also, no matter how much heat is running, his skin is always cold.  He doesn’t like being touched, by anything.  It is so weird, but he is always so graceful.  I have never seen him trip or fall – I don’t even think the boy can stumble.”  I laughed with Kristi as she pointed out Daniel's peculiarities, but inside I felt horror loom as I perceived the traits of a demon.  
“How long,” I asked Kristi still striving to smile, “has Daniel been here in New York?  Or is he a native?”  Kristi laughed and shook her head.
“No,” she began, “Daniel is not from here.  He moved here from Seattle about a year ago.  I met him during a very difficult time in my life.  He comes over to my house a lot since he moved, but other than that he does not really hang out with people.  I thought for a while that he was interested in me, but now I know that is not true.  Daniel doesn’t date.  Something about ‘pettiness’ that he cannot stand, but anyway, he is very weird.  It is so strange that he left with you.  That is something Daniel normally doesn’t do.”  Kristi stared at me blankly awaiting my response.  I quickly jumped into gossip mode.
“As soon as we left your house,” I began honestly, “Daniel told me that he lived in the opposite direction of where I lived, so he went his way and I traveled mine.  Nothing happened after that.”  Kristi seemed confused to hear my statement, so I repeated my earlier statement dealing with certain types of girls.  
“Where does Daniel live?” Kristi asked me a few seconds later.  I stared at her in horror.  I had no idea, and she would know if I lied.  I found myself cornered into telling the truth by human.
“Well,” I said in a rather shaky tone.  “He did not give a precise location, but when I told him where I lived he said he lived the other way.”  Kristi’s face was unreadable.  “Where does he live exactly?” I asked in a concerned voice.
“I don’t know,” Kristi said blankly.  “I have never been to his home.  I think he is either an orphan or he ran away from home, because his family is never around, but I have no clue where he lives.”  
It was my turn to stare blankly.  Daniel, who had visited Kristi on numerous occasions, had never once taken her back with him.  This behavior was peculiar for that of a vampire.  Normally vampires did not grow close to humans, but even though Daniel had, he still retained too much distance to be understandable.  It was obvious that Kristi did not know what Daniel was, but she still knew enough to know that he was really strange.  Daniel's actions made no sense.
Kristi shot off on another rampage about her love interests, while I pondered her statements of Daniel.  He came from Seattle, a place of no sun – perfect for a vampire.        
The end of lunch came slowly, but when the bell finally sounded, I walked out of the school building, gliding off down an alley.
The only good thing about lunch was Kristi was that I discovered the connection between Daniel and Kristi, but I was unsure of how that helped my case.  Connections with humans, distance between him and others, attacking a demon but allowing it to go free, none of Daniel's actions made sense.  I left school extremely bothered.  The creature had more layers than I had imagined possible.
I turned a corner and ended up on a main street of New York, but still I walked dazed.  People swarmed around me, but I could not force myself to care.  I walked blindly down the crowded street, and blindly into conflicts beyond my comprehension.  


Near twilight I finally looked up and gazed into another spectacular sunset.  It seemed as though He painted the scenes for me, but I knew in my heart that joy such as that held no place for me.  I was a scavenger – I hunted for my joy, and when I found it, I stole it from others.  He could never help me again.  
It was in the sunset that I caught a glimpse of the demon in my peripheral vision.  When I turned to look wholly upon the demon, I found him gone.  I shook my head hoping that the sun’s rays were playing tricks on me, but deep inside I knew that I was not that fortunate.
I quickly continued down the side-street, walking away from the glaring sun.  ‘No,’ I thought to myself.  “Not here.”  My mind began running rampant and thoughts of my last battle plagued my head.
I darted around another corner, and came face to face with the demon.  
The creature was larger than the first messenger.  Where Azabain had been elf-like, this creature was very wolf-like.  Its eyes were yellow, and it too bore massive talons.  Patches of fur were missing, and the animal bore the scars of many battles.  
I looked around for others, but the demon and I were alone.  I quickly developed claws and fangs, and I was debating on how this demon would taste when he struck me.  
The animal had thrown its paw across my face, but its claws were not extended.  The creature was toying with me.  I clutched my face and stared in horror.  This time Lucifer had sent a much stronger demon to do his bidding.  
As the devil leaned in for another attack, I scrambled to my feet and smashed my hand into the creature’s body, but my attack had no effect on the imp.  I thought I heard the fiend chuckle as I ducked narrowly avoiding another collision with its paw.  I quickly adapted my animal instincts and hunkered down to the creature’s level.  We would now fight eye to eye.
“Just like master said,” the demon said as he pounced.  Blood drained from my face as I realize Lucifer had told the animal what I was capable of, and I leapt forward evading the imp’s form.  Swinging my hand around in a desperate measure, I struck the animal’s face.  Blood poured from the wound, but it hardly noticed.  It was winning.  
A spiked hand ran down my back tearing the skin around my wings.  Malicious laughter erupted as I screamed in agony.  Night had fallen, but still the creature remained, fighting and using energy endlessly.  I was weakening, but still I fought.  
As another jagged paw made contact with my back again, I used all my strength to grab the animal by the fur and slam him into a wall.  I quick snapped its neck and without waiting for a sign of death, I walked away swiftly.
Almost sprinting into the dark, I found myself fearful.  Lucifer was watching me, and I did not know how.  He was finding methods of defeating me, and that fact terrified me.  Lucifer clearly stood with an advantage.  
As the truth hit me, I sped up my already fast walk.  I was being hunted, but I was too horrified to glance back.  Instead I darted into the alleys hoping to loose whatever was stalking me.  Footsteps began to sound behind me, but all I could do was increase my speed.  Eventually they died down, but still I lost myself further in the alleys, hoping to confuse the scents.  It was late into the night when I finally stopped to assess the situation.  
Shocked as I was that I had run, I found myself alive unlike what would have been left if I had stayed.  Lucifer was sending more demons.  He would never let me go so easily.  I shuddered at the thought, but a familiar fragrance touched my nostrils, and I knew all too well what stood behind my somnolent form.       
“So we meet again little demon.”  The voice bore certain coolness, and I quickly found myself disturbed.  I spun around and met Daniel's black eyes.
“You,” I murmured quietly.  An evil grin broke out across Daniel's face, and panic touched my eyes.  I did not know enough to stand any chance of defeating him.  This creature would win.
As though my thoughts were voiced, Daniel responded harshly.
“Yes, child,” he spoke in a rough voice, “this demon would kill you in a heart beat.”  His words paused my thoughts for a brief second.
“Would?” I asked cautiously.
Daniel's grin faded for a split instant, but another devious smile painted his face.
“Yes, would,” he said in a content sort of voice.  “If I had come to kill you, I would win, but seeing as how that was not my original intent, I do not believe you will die tonight.”  I shot him a confused glance, which only added to Daniel's humor.  
“You hunted me down,” I began questioningly, “but you do not want to destroy me, even though you tell me you could?”  The words sounded more confusing when I spoke them aloud, but I made no attempt to clarify them.  I only interpreted the lines that Daniel fed me.  
Daniel's face bunched up in frustration.  His dark eyes seemed to loose their gleam.  
“I…wanted…” Daniel began with difficulty, “to find you but…I want to kill you…just…uhmm…not…uh well…not now.”  My eyebrow shot up in disbelief, only causing Daniel to abandon the truth.  “I think maybe I should kill you now,” he spoke annoyed.  
Without warning a dog-size creature shot from the darkness, landing in the empty space dividing Daniel and me.  I took a brief glance noticing almost immediately the missing patches of fur, bared teeth, and glowing yellow eyes.  My eyes shot to Daniel's unbreakable gaze, and I rapidly uttered the one word that explained everything.
“Run.”
I watched as Daniel's figure blurred and disappeared, relief washing over me when I realized he was safe.  Leaving second glances to fools, I too turned and sprinted away.  I was only a short distance before I heard footsteps behind me.  Shooting my head around for an instant, I saw Lucifer’s imp gaining speed behind me.  I immediately sped up, running for the nearest alleyway, intent on loosing the creature.
I ran at full speed, but still the footsteps came, ceasing for only a brief moment.  The alleys curved and I dashed into the hidden side streets, but still they came.  I ran for what seemed like hours, never slowing.  As I lost myself in the passageways, I felt myself weakening.  I could not go on much longer – I was failing.  As I made a sharp turn into a different alley, the footsteps behind me ceased, but still I trudged onward, in hopes of escaping them permanently.  
Making another sharp change in my path, I found myself colliding with a solid mass.  Panic choked me as the creature caught me and slammed me harshly into the wall.  Gasping for air, I found myself unable to escape the toxic fumes that invaded my lungs.  The aroma was so sweet – so delicious.  Dark eyes pierced through the night, staring at me intently.
“Daniel,” I choked, the pangs of hunger taking over my mind.  My wings exploded from my back, and venom flowed down my throat.  He was too close – something was going wrong.  
“Lani,” he breathed heavily.  I felt him press his weight onto my shoulders.  “Lani,” he spoke barely above a whisper.  I watched in horror as he proceeded to bow his head toward my neck, fangs extending as he went.  
My spiked hand struck his face, ripping the skin near his eye.  
Daniel roared fiercely, tightening his grip on my shoulders.  The fumes filled my mind as he exhaled roughly.  I was too hungry and too weak to resist my hungry cries, but Daniel leaned in, resting his cold figure against mine.  I was trapped.  
“You will be mine,” he spoke defiantly.  “You cannot win.”
With his last words in the wind, his mouth reached for my jawbone, but I quickly curled my feet up from the ground.  In an instant, Daniel flew against the opposite wall, a move only effective if I could remain on my feet.  The night’s exertion hit me roughly and I crumbled before Daniel's sturdy form.  My pain forced me to bow – hurt and weary I laid on the ground.
“Lani,” Daniel whispered once more in a strained voice, but when I raised my head, he was gone.  I sank into exhaustion, breathing heavily, unable to move without causing pain.  As I lay hopeless on the ground, the rain that had threatened all day fell heavily from the skies, pounding my shattered form.  

“Little angel,” God called from the rose garden.  “Alana.”  A small girl approached Him, and God gently held out His hand. The young child began to turn away, but God’s strong hand caught the angel’s tiny arm.  “What is wrong child?” God’s concerned voice asked.  
Alana shook out her blonde waves and began to absentmindedly braid portions of her hair. The blue of her angelic eyes sparkled magnificently in the afternoon sun.  Her soft pale face glimmered with sadness, but her beauty still pierced bright.
“Father,” the young angel spoke at last.  “I am so sorry.  I sinned.”  A tear fell from Alana’s eye as she spoke of the tragic mishap.  
“Lani,” God spoke in a solemn whisper.  “I forgive you.  I always will.”  The girl jumped slight with fright.
“I have never done something like this before and I intend to never let it happen again!” Lani cried in dismay.  “God!  Please!  I do not ever want to disrupt Your plans for the human couples again.  I will never touch another project of Yours!”  God’s eyes darkened at the girl’s words and Lani began to wonder if He trusted her.  
“Alana,” God began in a poignant voice.  “Please do not promise what you cannot keep.”  The little angel raised an eyebrow questioningly, and God quickly spoke again.  “I do not want you to lie to me, child.  I will always love you, but eventually…”  God’s voice quietly faded, and Alana looked on in concern.  
“Eventually what God?” the small child asked with hurt.  
The eyes of God darkened deeper.  A cold breeze shook the leaves of the roses, and as He gazed upon the bloody blossoms, His smile vanished into the oblivion.  
“Nothing dear,” He said gently, knowing more was to come.  The pair walked through the garden in silence, until a question arose.  
“Alana?” God asked hesitantly.  
“Yes?”
“Why is it,” God began in a genuinely curious tone, “that you sought refuge in the rose garden after you sinned?”  The little angel pondered His words carefully before answering.
“I guess,” she began with uncertainty.  “I guess something about the roses call me to them.  Something about the beauty that is trapped among the thorns entices me.  I feel…at peace when I am surrounded by the beautifully fated flowers.”
God gazed at the striking seraph and in wonder placed His arm around her.
“It is amazing that the lovely and virtuous creatures find themselves among the thorns.”

I first moved when I realized I was lying in a puddle.  My body ached along with the pain that pierced my heart.  As I studied my dripping form I allowed myself to feel the pain.  My face, already wet with rain, bore the salty stains of tears.  
I had fallen so far, and I was lost so deep in my peccadilloes that escape was in vain.  I was frozen and the lines of reality blurred.  I should have been empty or hollow, but instead sorrow grief and horror flooded my veins.  I did not belong in this world, but I was trapped in purgatory, swallowed by my destiny and engulfed by my past.  I slowly lifted myself off the ground, and as I stood, fresh waves of pain washed over me.  
“Poor little creature,” a shrilly voice cackled from behind me.
I quickly spun looking desperately for the demon, but once I found the yellow eyes, terror pulsed through my body.  
“I think she sees me,” the creature purred harshly.  “Aseana thinks little demon should die.”  The catlike creature smiled wickedly, and I felt my blood run cold.  “Aseana thinks creature should die now.”
The demon leapt before I could move.  Its paws sank deep into my skin, and my black blood emerged from my alabaster skin.  In an instant the creature relinquished its hold on me.  My arm stung, and as I gazed down I found that a small section of my skin was missing.  I looked at the cat in horror, but the creature simply grinned and held the piece of skin high enough for me to see.
“Aseana will destroy her shred by shred if she has too.”
Growling profusely I leapt onto the creature.  It sputtered and snarled, but I threw my hand into its head, silencing it.  Trepidation pulse through steadily to my heart, and as I stood and gazed at the dead creature, I noted the simplicity of the kill.  I slowly began to turn and walk away from the lifeless demon until the shrilly voice stopped my cold.
“Little demon did not believe Aseana could die so easily, did she?”
I allowed my eyes to view the horrific demon, and in a split second, I found myself perched on top of the huge cat.  I felt my wings tear open as Aseana flipped my tiny frame on to the ground in front of it.  A strip of my back stung with the pain of being torn to shreds, but my fangs flicked ominously in the dark.  Aseana laughed boldly.
“Little demon fights Aseana,” the creature spoke still laughing.  “Now Aseana destroys demon!”
The cat-like creature lurched at me, but I ducked forcing Aseana to crash into one of my spiked wings.  The imp howled in anguish as my talons pierced its skin.  The glowing eyes turned to me with fear as I began to laugh.
“Not if I shred you first!” I said maliciously, brandishing a section of the creature’s fur tainted skin.
A low growl humming in its throat, Aseana replied cackling, “Master will not be pleased that little demon hurt his dear Aseana.”  Anger exploded from the creature suddenly struck me hard across the jawbone.  I staggered backwards and the wretch seized its chance.  
I abruptly found myself pinned against the ground by piercing claws.  Aseana struck me again across the face, tearing off another section of skin.  I then felt my leg sear in pain as the demon’s hindquarters removed a considerable segment of skin.  I screamed in agony clawing desperately at Aseana’s face.  The devil ended up grabbing my left hand in its massive teeth, crushing my hand until I heard a small snap.  I felt the earth rumble, humming with a kind of dark laughter.  As the demon tore a piece from my wrist, I found my other hand, and I quickly seized Aseana’s neck.
A gigantic paw ripped down my face, catching my eye in the swipe.  I roared in anguish, but I remain focused even through the temporary blindness.  Clutching the cat’s face with my injured hand, I twisted the creature’s head with sound speed and force, and a loud crack echoed throughout the alley.  
Aseana’s body became limp, and the gigantic creature fell on top of me.  The imp’s soul escaped, and I lay helpless on the ground, almost buried beneath a massive pile of fur.  My breathing hit the cold night air harshly and my rib cage tinged with pain.
My heart pounded heavily as I rolled the demon’s body off of mine.  Blood was trickling down my cheek, and the places where skin was missing burned dully.  Lucifer was still hunting, but now he was hunting to gain my advantage – he was hunting to kill.  Azabain had been a messenger, but Aseana was an executioner.  Lucifer wanted my head displayed in his caverns as a kill.  
I felt soreness reach my muscles as I stood, turning to watch the carcass erupt in flames.  The smoke rose and the light from the fire illuminated my honey eyes.  My wings curled into my back again, and my fangs and talons contracted.  To any person walking by I was just a girl watching flames devour something.  
Quietly I turned from the smoke, and quickly I faded into the surrounding shadows, destined to abandon the light, and condemned to follow the dark.