Page 9 of Forging Darkness

Saying you are of great interest to us isn’t an understatement. Finding a Nephilim that isn’t already a part of our community is extremely rare, but with the differences you present . . . Well, all to say, we’d like to find out as much about you as possible.”

I nod, wishing she’d just get to the point.

Up until now, the Council has only requested that I continue training, which I’m also thankful for, but I worry that it’s only a matter of time before they require something of me I don’t want to give. That’s why I have contingency plans in place in case things go south. Not even Ash knows about the bugout bag I stashed under my bed, or that I learned where the keys to the academy vehicles are kept in case I need to nick one.

“A Nephilim of seraph descent isn’t just unusual, it’s unheard of.”

“My parentage hasn’t been proven yet,” I point out.

My friends, along with Sable and Deacon, are the only people at Seraph Academy who know the suspicions about Camiel. So far, all we have to go off of is Tinkle’s word. And although I don’t think the Celestial would outright lie, he does have his moments of confusion and purposeful misdirection. Anything short of the great and mighty Camiel dropping from the sky and declaring me his daughter is going to be hard for me to believe. It’s the main reason why I think finding him should be a priority.

Sable tips her head in acknowledgement. “And because of that, the Council feels like the best way to move forward with this situation is for them to meet you.”

Boom, there it is.

I’m not exactly jumping up and down at the idea of meeting the oldest Neph in each angel line, but worse things have happened to me.

Sable shifts again, and clears her throat for the second time.

“Is that all?” I prod. “They just . . . want to meet me? What exactly do they think that will accomplish?”

“Yes, they want to meet you. You are extraordinary in ways we don’t fully understand. And from what Deacon tells me, you’ve only begun to tap into your abilities. I can’t fully speak for the Council members, but I believe they’re searching for some understanding of your powers and limitations.”

“Limitations?” A snake of unease slithers in my belly. Sable didn’t say anything unreasonable, but even so . . . “When will they be coming?”

“They aren’t coming here. You’ll be traveling to their compound to meet them.”

The bottom of my stomach drops out.

“You’re sending me away?”

“No, no. It’s not like that at all.” Sable waves a hand through the air, dismissing the idea. “It will be a quick visit. I’ll be coming with you, and we’ll return to the academy together after the holiday break. I think this will be a good thing for you. You’ll get a chance to see more of our world, get a better understanding of where you come from. And maybe after meeting them, some of your fears about the Council can be put to rest.”

Standing, she rounds her desk and leans back against it. I have to tip my chin upward to hold eye contact.

“I’m not going to lie to you, Emberly. We’re at a bit of a dead end. We haven’t been able to uncover any of the mysteries surrounding your heritage. Tinkle has certainly been helpful, but the information he provides us is sporadic at best, and unverifiable.”

“Any luck tracking down dear ol’ dad?”

Sable shakes her head. She’s told me more than once Nephilim don’t have a way to communicate with angels, but that shouldn’t stop us from trying.

“If your father truly is a seraph angel rather than a Fallen or Nephilim from one of the other represented lines, you’ll have your own spot on the Council. That alone should give you an incentive to want to meet them. And we still have a big question mark when it comes to your mother. None of the reported fatalities around the time you were abandoned were female angel-borns who had recently given birth or were even reported as pregnant before their deaths.”

Pushing off her desk, Sable crouches in front of me and takes my cold hands in hers. “I think it’s a good idea to shake things up a bit and see if we can find any new leads. I told you we’d do our best to try and learn about your history, and I meant it. I believe this is the natural next step.

“The Elders have millennia of experience under their belts. They’ve seen things the rest of us haven’t. I’m hoping that if they see you transform, it might trigger something in their memories. If the information Tinkle provided us proves untrue, perhaps our original conclusion has some merit and you are actually a descendant of the angel line. And maybe there are more of your kind out there. Maybe you aren’t the only one after all.”

I’m glad Tinkle isn’t here to hear his word questioned. He’d probably take it as some sort of challenge and transform into a unicorn in Sable’s office.

“Have any of the Council members ever met a Nephilim from the angel line?”

The corners of Sable’s lips pull down in a frown. “Those Nephilim were said to be a very protective group. Even before their line went extinct, they kept to themselves.”

Disappointment saturates my body and leaks through my voice. “Why were they declared extinct if they were always a private group? Maybe they just went into hiding or something?”

“Their village was found over two thousand years ago. It was a massacre. Not a single angel-born was found alive. Declaring their line extinct was a fair assumption to make at the time, but it may very well have been an incorrect one.”

“That’s a big ‘oopsie.’”

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