Chapter 5: Nas

Lilith crept by us, studying our bodies while her power paralyzed us. I figured out how she did it. When she used her power, a halo appeared, and the last time I saw her, the night she claimed to save us, she had a dark green halo. I remembered a buzzing in my head before falling asleep. I’d seen this kind of thing in books, mostly used by people with magnetic manipulation powers. She was manipulating the iron in our blood to paralyze us. The other night, she used it to make us sleep. I didn’t understand how, but I knew she was manipulating iron and other metals in our bodies.

I was trying to be like Shawn, putting on a brave front, but inside I was freaking out. Omarion summoned his power, which allowed him to imprint words on objects and manifest the properties of the word. He had to use his staff, though. I remembered that his staff could break into three sections, with one end having a spear. His halo was a bright aqua blue, which he still managed to hold onto despite Lilith’s hold. I couldn’t see Aaliyah or Jasmine, but I imagined Jasmine was being defiant, and Aaliyah was probably trying, but as scared as I was. Then Lilith stood before me.

“How did you figure out my power? It could have been anything—telepathy, sleep control, mind control.”

I looked at her and forced a weak smile. “If it were any of those, I believe the effect would be faster. We wouldn’t see it coming. Your method takes time—a short amount of time, but still enough to feel the initial shock of it.”

“Hmmm. I like it. Very observant.”

“I would like you more if you freed my friends and me.”

“I’m sure you would.” She said, walking toward Omarion. He didn’t look panicked anymore. I imagined he was putting all his focus into maintaining his weapon, halo, and power. They were all connected, and if anyone would have figured it out, it would have been him. To me, he was the smartest. If we were all experts, then Jasmine’s expertise was law, Shawn would be technology, Aaliyah would be psychology and me? Communications. Omarion would be archaeology. Omarion was in a bunch of academic committees and almost had a full ride. He was the investigator among us, while I was essentially a spy. That was the difference between us. If anyone would have figured out her power, other than me, it would have been him—or maybe Shawn.

Lilith stalked up to him and smiled, looking like a creepy doll. She was taller than all of us, like a runway model. She was skinny, pale as a demon, with exaggerated curves like a Barbie doll. She had long raven-black hair, and golden eyes, and wore a black robe with red trim. The dark green halo above her shone, making her as bright as Omarion.

“How is it that you can use your halo?”

From my perspective, Omarion looked like he was deciding whether to focus on his halo or answer her question.

“I… had… to… focus.”

“Oh, so if I…” She pulled a rapier sword from out of nowhere, its hilt glowing green, and pointed the tip near his throat. “…distracted you, then you’d lose it?”

Almost on cue, Omarion’s staff and halo disappeared. He looked scared, but mostly ashamed—just like earlier when we were all stripped down. I knew he didn’t feel comfortable, and I was a bit mad at Jasmine, too. She’d told him he wasn’t taking care of his “temple” that God had given him. I was sure she meant well, but there’s a difference between being blunt and being rude, and to me, she was rude. She told him, “You’re fat and need to lose weight, or else God won’t love you.” Worse, I knew he had a crush on her, and I knew her words affected him, even if he didn’t say it. I was new to the group this year, but I found my place as the jokester, which made me seem extroverted. I was using it to hide my insecurities. I just wanted to feel like I belonged, so I didn’t argue much and tried to keep things light. That’s how Shawn, Omarion, and I grew close over the week. If there was anything I was good at, it was observing people and their actions, so I felt guilty because I knew Omarion felt like a failure.

“Oh, so you did have to focus,” Lilith said. “Do any of you even understand what is happening?”

“No, but I’m sure you’re going to tell us,” I said.

She smiled. “Acting brave isn’t the same as being brave.” She walked up to Shawn, tracing her finger down his arm and chest. “You should be more like this one. His strength is in his eyes and arms.” I couldn’t see Shawn’s face, but he’d jumped in front of everyone when she showed up. I was about to do the same before she paralyzed us.

“I’m not your type,” he said in an icy low tone.

“You’re right. You don’t even know how much you are.”

“Are you a demon? You look like those things in the alley,” Jasmine asked. She was right; they were similar, but I could see a difference in Lilith. For one, she wasn’t skeletal-looking—at least, not yet. Second, the demons didn’t have halos.

“No, child, but to some, I might be.”

“Then what are you, and what do you want from us?”

Lilith walked by me and stopped to answer Jasmine, face-to-face. “I want to know how you five are manifesting halos, but it now seems you don’t even know what you are. I had my suspicions, but your own ignorance has been a revelation.”

“What did you mean earlier when you said you saved us?” Jasmine was trying to stall for time, and get as much information as she could.

“That man you were consorting with was dangerous,” she smiled. “More dangerous than you’ll ever know. I would like to tell you more, but you wouldn’t be able to handle the truth.”

“Is he okay?” Aaliyah asked.

“She speaks,” Lilith responded. “Yes, I’m… interviewing him.”

“How could he be dangerous to us? We were just trying to help him,” Shawn asked.

I thought about that night, how those demons were attacking him. Where was she when it happened? I also remembered that he’d been yelling. We were the only ones who could hear him, the only ones who could see him and the demons. We fought them and won. After that, she appeared, knocked him out first, then us. We woke up here. I kept focusing on those memories and also remembered seeing flashes of a coyote, of Egypt, of Moses in the bush. Why would I think of something like that then?

Looking at Shawn, I wondered if he’d thought the same. I focused on the memories that flashed before my halo appeared, and it hit me. I was sure the others were thinking the same, but maybe we were too scared to say it. We knew we weren’t dead, but we knew two things: we fought demons, and we, along with Lilith, had halos.

“When there are demons, there must be angels,” I whispered, but Lilith, standing next to me, heard.

“Angels? Demons? Sounds like you may be ready after all.” She sauntered to the front. “You’re right; I’ll give you that much for now. I’m an angel. The man you helped? Also an angel.”

“But we’re not angels,” Jasmine said.

“No, you’re not. You’re not even Nephilim.”

“Because we aren’t giants,” Shawn said, “and our parents are human.”

“Yes. I guess you’re ready then,” Lilith smiled. “You’re right—you are human but able to manifest a halo. You’re being used as hosts, but for some reason, I couldn’t find any angel possessing you. It’s almost as if you were born with angel abilities. That’s why I have you here—I need to figure out how this can be. Even the Nephilim couldn’t manifest halos, but if I had to guess, I’d say you’re some type of artificial Nephilim. Until I can figure that out, I must keep you here.”

No one said anything, but I kept thinking about Moses, Egypt, and the coyote. She meant to keep us trapped. I could feel the same energy from that night now.

“Focus on that night,” Shawn said out loud. “In my memories, I saw an ibis before the halo manifested.” He sounded desperate, but I understood his plan. If he saw an animal and then manifested his halo, then maybe the same could happen to us. We were trapped now, but if one of us had a halo, we might be able to free ourselves. I focused on the memory of the jackal and my fear of dying here. The energy flowed through me, and I could feel the warmth of the light above me as daggers appeared in my hands. Shawn had an axe.

Lilith looked surprised, but not afraid. “Yes, very good. You’re learning to manifest your halos, but you have to concentrate. Too bad you humans are susceptible to iron. My powers barely affect other angels, you know.”

I could feel her trying to slow the iron in our bodies, to make us pass out. Just like Shawn, my weapons disappeared. I saw Shawn and Omarion drop, and the last thing I saw before my eyes closed was Lilith standing in front of me, smiling.

“You’re stronger than you look.”