Page 387 of Castings & Curses

The meteorites were too small to see, but they were loud as they hit the shield. I spotted several larger ones as they hit it. They were still smaller than tennis balls, but large enough to be a threat. I glanced back into the building but there was no sign of anyone. Riga couldn't get down the stairs quickly anymore, magic or not.

Outside might not have been the safest place but I trusted in Riga's shielding. She was experienced with magic and I knew she understood what she was doing with it.

I heard something larger strike the shield, and that was when my heart was in my throat, because I saw a crack form on the shield's surface. Oh, this wasn't good! Several small meteorites smashed through. One took out the back gate, leaving it a splintered mess. I hoped Gracie, the neighbor's cat, was well clear of it.

I rushed back inside the building and extended my powers, trying to bulk up what remained of the shield. It was difficult, and I didn't feel strong enough. I knew I'd need a ritual to properly protect us, but it would take time and I wasn't sure we had it. Someone had to be doing this, directing the meteor shower our way.

I turned to rush back up to Riga's room when I felt all the locks on my powers loosen. Turning around, I threw a massive surge of energy up into the shield, reinforcing it moments before a far larger meteorite struck it.

For now, I didn't ask how… or even who had helped me. I just did what I could to keep us all alive and intact until the meteor shower passed.

I left the physical shield in place for hours after, but created an exit in the side of it when people needed to come or go. It felt so good to have my powers back, and I could tell they extended much further than my ability to protect us.

My desire to play, at the heart of my nature, was growing too. It was a strange feeling under the circumstances, but as a being of chaos, the sense of freedom was exhilarating. I knew I'd never let the angelic hierarchy lock up my powers again, given a choice. My days as a muse were done.

* * *

I walked around Enchant,checking out the damage the meteorites had caused. The ground was littered with small pieces of rock, many embedded in the earth, and shattered glass. Several of the windows had broken, including the main window out front. As it was, it seemed on par with a bad hail storm. Every car parked outside the premises, beyond the coverage of the shield, had broken windows. It could've been so much worse.

Someone had obviously made a strong effort to clear the board of certain people. I had to wonder if Enchant had been targeted solely because of me. Whoever had done this clearly wasn't averse to hurting or killing other people to achieve their aims, and they had a side of cruelty to them.

I sat outside in the beer garden on a sun lounge for much of the afternoon, a silent sentinel protecting this place and its patrons. Enchant was quiet, unsurprisingly, but it grew busier as the day went on. I waited for Aurelia and the archangel Raphael to return, while wondering if they ever would.

AURELIA

"Aurelia,I'm glad you're alright," the archangel Raphael said as he lay in the hospital bed, covered in hundreds of slashes that had been cleaned, but continued to bleed.

His wounds hadn't been bandaged, because — as an angelic being — he would be healed magically instead. In fact, he'd probably been partially healed already. I was shocked at his condition and the damage he'd sustained. I wondered how injured he'd been when he was brought back to heaven.

He was a kind and loyal archangel. He surely didn't deserve this.

"I was attacked in the air," Raphael said, though his voice faltered. "I think it must've been another angel, but they were so powerful. I don't know who it could have been. Not many of us could fight like that, and only a limited number are on Earth at a time."

I nodded, but I also knew they didn't have to be assigned to Earth. It didn't take that long to come and go from heaven when your wings could carry you at breakneck speed.

"Did you see what your attacker looked like?" I asked.

"No," he replied. "It was dark and they wore a mask covering their face. I couldn't see through it — just their eyes. I don't know what they were, because they were more powerful than any normal angel, but they couldn't be an archangel. There are only seven of us, beyond reproach, and we know each other well. I'd have recognized them — I'm certain of it."

I put my hand on his arm reassuringly, and sent him a steady stream of healing energy. I wasn't as proficient a healer as he was, but every little bit helped. The light of his spirit seemed to shine a little more brightly from my efforts, but the condition of his wounds hardly changed.

The cuts must've been deeper than I thought. I wasn't even sure they were physical wounds. Most likely, they were spiritual and this was their physical manifestation. The angel-born were very different to mortals.

"Where is Melinda?" he asked as he lay there, barely moving.

"She was asleep back at Enchant," I said. "I didn't leave her side until around half an hour ago."

"It can't have been her then," he said. "I don't know how they found me. Not only am I hard to track but the pin would've disguised my presence."

"The pin," I commented aloud. "Do you still have it? I should get it analyzed."

I took it from him, and just as I was thanking him, a young, female angel flew into the room. She looked no older than twelve or thirteen, and her hair was dark brown and worn in a ponytail. Her appearance probably wasn't a true reflection of her age.

"The city of New York is being attacked with meteorites," she said. "Most of them are on a trajectory for the bar called Enchant."

"Oh no," I exclaimed. Drawing on magic, I quickly opened a viewing portal to the mortal world, which looked down on the scene.

I saw the falling meteor shower, with the magical shield surrounding Enchant. And I saw Melinda standing out there in the garden, watching it fail.

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