Prelude

Back when the earth was still young, God's angels watched over the daily lives of every living thing. Four angels had the task of watching and contolling the elements. As time passed these angels began to envy the others and started hating one another. Finally, on the day God rested, they attacked one another. Chaos rained down from the heavens and great devistation occured. Lucifer, God's favorite angel, saw this and rushed to disturb Gods rest. God was furious with the four angels and cast them out of heaven. He bannished each angel to different parts of the globe, where they were to stay for all eternity. At least... that's what God intended.

Chapter 1 The Meeting

"Class! Everyone shut up!" Mrs. Draim yelled and the noise ceased. "Thank you. Now we have some new students who just transfered into district. The first is Vann Grieg, shes just transfered in from Norway. Would you like to say something to the class?"

The gangly girl shoke her blonde head and gazed silently around the classroom.

"Okay then, Mary, raise your hand Mary. Please sit in the desk next to Mary, Vann." Mrs. Draim said with a smile and waved her into the class.

"Our second student comes to us from Bahrain, Hawa Israfil." She said as she motioned for the silver haired boy to step forward. She whispered something in his ear and he muttered back a reply.

Erin Gael found herself inately bored with the mornings slow progression. She could care less about new students, when she could be diving into the worlds hidden inside todays literature selection, The Odyssey. Around her people were now whispering in rushed voices. She raised her head curiously to see what was up. The pencil she had been holding slipped from her fingers as she stared at the boy next to Mrs. Draim.

His gaze travelled around the room boredly and paused on her. His red eyes widend slightly then quickly became bored again.

"Class! Thank you. Our last student is Kasai Tenshi and he comes to us from Japan. Erin!"

She jumped in shock and looked at Mrs. Draim, who motioned for her to raise her arm.

"Kasai, please sit in the desk next to Erin. Now thats it for news, so lets start todays lesson..."

Erin blushed slightly and smiled at Kasai. He raised an eyebrow and didn't give her a second glance.

"Figures," Erin mumbled ands tried to focus on the lesson. The thing was, when she looked him in the eyes, she could have sworn he was just like her. But then again, not many teenagers had wings.

Chapter 2 Heavenly Encounters

Hawa's gaze might have been focused on Mrs. Draim's writing on the whiteboard but his mind was racing. The air told him he was not alone. It had told him to be weary. His equals were near.

The girls next to him where whispering back and forth about his strange appearance. He shrugged it off and continued writing. He was far from normal by any standards and he could care less. Although admittedly, being a silver haired 17 year old with grey eyes hadn't exactly made living in Bahrain easy. His family sent him to the states under the pretense that they couldn't stand to see him treated the way he'd been. But he knew they were ashamed of him. He tried desperately to heal their hearts but it never worked.

He flexed his fingers and remembered when he first learned he could heal things. His parents refused to tell him why he was the way he was. He heard rumors in school about fallen angels, which where mentioned in the Qu'ran. After some reading he knew he was special. He knew he was blessed. And then their words of hate didn't hurt as much.

The bell rang and shook him from his memories. He picked up his books and headed towards the door. Suddenly he collided with someone and they both stumbled backwards. When he looked up all he could see was cold sapphire.

"Uh, sorry. Guess I wasn't paying attention." He said as he straightened and got a better look at the girl.

"Hawa, right?"

"Yea..."

"Stay the hell out of my way next time." Vann scoffed and walked away.

Hawa just stud their starring as she walked down the hall.

"She's just..."

"She's just what?" Kasai said as he slapped Hawa on the back.

"Huh? Oh, nothing..." He let his sentence trail off still gazing past Kasai's shoulder.

"We still on for after school?"

"Yea. Catch you later?"

"Sure."

"See ya then."

"Yea..." Hawa waved absently as he rushed to Calculus. He hadn't understood how Kasai knew he was the way he was. Maybe its because Kasai was just like him. The thought that there really were others out there was extremely exciting.

As he sat down he noticed Vann in the corner. He couldn't shake the feeling she was special too.

Chapter 3 The Beginning

"Ah... Sweet solitude." Erin sighed as she adjusted herself under her favorite willow tree in the park. Spending time alone wasn't something new to her. It was her only solace from being her families star member.

Sighing, she pulled out The Odyssey and dove in to escape from reality.

"Is that all you do?" Vann called as she approached Erin.

Startled, she looked up and replied, "Only when I want to escape."

"Escaping is the cowards way out." Vann muttered with disdain.

"Huh..." Erin's eyes widened as she looked up at Vann.

"Never mind. Did he tell you to be here too?"

"Who? And no... I'm always here after sc..." Her voice trailed off as Kasai and Hawa walked up.

"What's going on?" Erin stud up and looked around in surprise.

"That’s what I want to know." Vann looked at Kasai.

"You haven't been told the reason you are the way you are?" Kasai said in a small voice.

Shock registered on the girls faces.

"I don't know what your talking about." Vann murmured as she crossed her arms and slouched.

"You can't feel it?

Everyone turned in shock towards Hawa, who blushed slightly.

"What do you mean?" Erin asked tilting her head slightly.

"We're all the same."

"Except for the fact we've got boobs and you've got pecks..." Vann muttered sarcastically and Kasai snickered.

"Well this isn't exactly the place to show off. Erin, you're the native, is there somewhere more private we can go?" Kasai sighed in boredom and glanced at Erin.

"Sure. Follow me." Erin replied hurriedly. She was surprised he even remembered her name.

She lead them several blocks down and stopped.

"How ironic." Kasai mumbled and walked up the church steps. Inside, Erin lead them to a conference room.

"Are you sure we should be in here?" Hawa asked nervously.

"It's alright. Dad wont mind." Erin smiled as she opened the door and waved them inside.

"Dad? You mean..."

"My father is the pastor here."

"I bet he feels blessed as a holy man for having an angel in the family." Kasai stated starring curiously at Erin's face.

"How...wha..." Erin stammered in shock.

"Personally, my family thought it was a burden." He said as an after thought and leaned back against the counter. Behind him, his large eggshell wings stretched out lazily.

Chapter 4 Recognition

"You're... one of the four... too?" Erin stuttered as her mind reeled.

"Man you guys are slow."

"Hawa, you... and you Vann?" Erin’s eyes widened.

"Its... beyond words, to how happy I am that the tales are true. To know that I'm not alone." Hawa smiled as his tan wings unfolded themselves and fluttered naturally to his side.

"Guess there’s no point in denying it any longer." Vann sighed and stretched out a onyx expanse of feathers.

They all starred at Erin as she reveled in the information overload. Shyly, She stretched out her chestnut wings and folded them to her side.

"This is... unreal..." Erin murmured.

"Look's and feels pretty real..." Kasai replied looking around.

"If my family hears about this they'll all have heart attacks." Erin's voice hitched slightly.

"So... what now?" Hawa asked nervously.

"Oh... I don't know... how about we find out alittle more about each other?" Kasai smirked and flicked his fingers towards the sky. Orange and yellow flames hovered in his palm.

Vann glanced around the room and gestured towards the holy water. It shot across the room and dowsed out the flames in Kasai's hand. She smirks superiorly.

Slowly, unsure if this was the right thing to do, Erin walked over to the browning plant on the window sill. She placed her hands over it and slowly lifted them upwards. The plant greened and blossomed into a full thriving lily bush.

Hawa, noticing the blister on Vann's hand, walked over and brushed his fingers over it. Vann gasped as she starred at him in wonder. The headache she'd had seemed to drain right out through his touch.

"Earth, water, fire and air... just like the writings said..." Erin's eyes widened in recognition.

"The writings? What writings? Kasai asked starring intensely at Erin.

"You... didn't know?

"Where are they?"

"Only my Dad knows... He brings them out every year on my birthday."

"We need to talk to your father then." Kasai said as he stud up and his wings disappeared.

Chapter 5 Preach

"You all really should have stayed there. His office is tiny." Erin muttered angrily.

"It'll be fine." Kasai replied unconcerned.

Erin stopped in front of the familiar brown door and knocked twice.

"Yes?" A voice called out.

"Dad? Can I come in?"

"Sure hunny."

Erin pushed open the and gazed at her father. He had his back to her and was preparing for the next Sunday's sermon.

"Dad, we need to talk."

"Erin, what’s..." His sentence faded off as he turned and saw the crowd. Hawa closed the door to give them more privacy and made the office feel like a coffin.

"Who are your friends?" Mr. Gael asked curiously.

"Their my equals..." Erin covered her mouth in shock and wondered why that came out of her mouth.

"Equals? You mean..." Knowledge dawned on his face as he slowly stud up. Erin gently unfolded her wings and the others followed suit.

"Mother of all that's holy..." Mr. Gael's eyes widened as his hand fumbled for the crucifix around his neck. "But... how? What are you doing here?"

"They just..."

"No." Mr. Gael cut her sentence off forcefully. "You're not supposed to be here. You were never supposed to meet. What have you done?"

"What are you talking about Dad?" Erin asked in shock. She had never heard her fathers voice take on that tone.

"The writings said..."

"That’s why we came to see you. We want to know the truth." Kasai cut in without flinching.

" i The truth? /i The truth! If i God /i wanted i you /i to know the truth he'd of..." Mr. Gael stopped mid sentence and starred at Kasai. The others turned curiously to look too but he looked the same to them.

"Forgive me." Mr. Gael murmured and rubbed his cross. He pulled out a key and unlocked a side board. He reached in and grabbed a very old looking leather book. He set it on his desk and sat back down with a somber expression on his face.

"What do you want to know?" He asked in a voice that suddenly sounded exhausted.

Chapter 6 The Truth

They all stood there in silence as if they couldn't move. All at once, they started asking questions rapidly and in pitched voices. Mr. Gael held up his hand and silence befell on the room.

"Who ever is the youngest may ask i one /i question first."

They all looked at each other as if daring the other to go first.

"18..." Kasai sighed finally and knew he was screwed.

"17!" Erin and Hawa said triumphantly at the same time and then turned to look at each other curiously.

Vann smirked. "16," She turned to Mr. Gael, "Why were the angels reincarnated... well into us? I thought angels lived forever?"

"When God cast them from heaven and bound them to their separate corners of the earth, the angels lost their immortality. They were cursed. Cursed to live there for all eternity, being reincarnated over and over, never to find rest for their tainted souls."

Erin and Hawa looked at each other with raised eyebrows. Erin stuck out her fist as an invitation and after a short round of rock-paper-scissors, Hawa turned to Mr. Gael.

"What did they do to earn such a fate? The scriptures said something about great devastation that fell from the heavens."

"That is all that's mentioned in the writings also. What ever they did, it caused a great many of lives to be lost."

"Is that why we were never supposed to meet?" Erin asked silently with her head cast downwards.

"Yes." Mr. Gael sighed sadly.

"What are our real names?" Kasai asked with a hint of desperation in his voice.

"Real names? You mean..." Mr. Gael's eyes widened. "Their not mentioned either." He said solemnly and rose to place the book back in its home.

Chapter 7 Music

Lounging in the corner of the senior lounge, Kasai starred off in the distance while Asian Kung-Fu Generation blasted out of the head phones around his neck. He couldn't get the feeling that Mr. Gael knew the truth out of his head even though a week had passed since then. He could feel it burning in his heart. This great yearning to find out who he really was.

The person he thought he was before his family threw the truth in his face, was what others see now. He'd always been comfortable with himself despite his odd appearance. Though truth be told, he wasn't that odd on the Japanese rock scene. His naturally orange hair seemed somewhat normal in the crowd.

The scene had quickly become his home, it was the only place he seemed to belong. Being abandoned at the age of 15 hadn't been easy but he'd dealt. He'd made a name for himself. It was because of the scene that he'd made enough money to come to the states to get a real chance to make something of himself that his family could be proud of.

But now... he had no idea what was going to happen. He had a real family now, who were all just like him. Everyday after school he had hung out with Erin, Hawa and Vann. He could be real with them and not worry about what they thought. For the first time he could laugh without caring.

"Are you always emo or do you do it to get fawned over by the pretty girls?" Erin snickered as she sat and stretched out next to him.

"For the girls of course." He smirked.

"Whatcha thinking about?"

"Nothing to awfully important."

"Must have been something bad or your eyes wouldn't have been as sad as they were." She poked and angled her head slightly to look at him.

"Just remembering the past." He replied, not looking her in the eyes.

"Mmm..."

He sighed and looked in the opposite direction. "Growing up, all I had was music. My family decided having an angel boy in the family was too much of a burden and ditched me when I was 15. The music scene became my home. I miss it."

"Sometimes... everything seems wrong. The ideals that everyone is taught are so ingrained into our minds that we believe that's the only way life can be right. But... you can't live with out feeling alone, sad, mad, or hurt. It's alright to hold onto a grudge as long as you don't let it consume you. It's not your fault life seemed to throw you all the bad things. You have to look at what you have now and be grateful, because it could always be so much worse." Erin commented as she tilted her head from side to side slowly.

Kasai was silent for a moment then turned to look at her. "Thanks."

"No problem." Erin tilted her head towards him and smiled.

Chapter 8 Mercy

"See you guys later." Vann said as she turned away from the group to head towards her house. She preferred to walk alone. In the back of her mind she worried that if she got to close to them they'd end up like her parents.

Sickness swelled up as she remembered that very cold day that changed her life.

"...Vann!" Hey Vann, stay with me..." Hawa's voice said urgently as she moaned.

"What... why am I on the ground?" Vann asked painfully as she sat up and placed her hand on her head.

"I was walking out of the shop because I'd forgotten my backpack and I saw you collapse." Hawa sighed as he ran his hands over her hair to make sure she wasn't hurt.

"Hawa," She swatted his hand away, "Don't touch me."

"Alright..." He held up his hands defensively and sat next to her on the sidewalk.

"I'm okay."

"Not in your heart your not." Hawa said softly.

"How dare you..."

"I didn't feel it. Not like that anyway. I could feel it in the wind."

"The wind? What kind of stupid fool do you take... "

"You don't have to believe me. That's okay. But it's the truth. That's why I saw you, because the wind told me you were there and in pain."

"You're crazy."

"Maybe I am." He shrugged. "But that doesn’t change the fact that I can. You can read the water can't you?"

"I'm sorry."

Hawa looked over at her in shock. "W...why?"

"Why?" Her voice hitched sarcastically, "Because I'm rude and mean and..."

"Kind, caring and a little stubborn sometimes." Hawa cut in with a faint hint of a smile.

"That's not true. If it was my parents..." Suddenly she doubled over sobbing into her kneecaps. "Because of me. Their dead because of me."

"Come here..." Hawa opened up his arms and she leaned into his chest. "Tell me what happened."

"It was winter. The worst one we'd seen in years. I was 5. I insisted that they make me a real dinner for my birthday with real party decorations and a real cake. They... we went out in the blizzard to get to the store and... we hit an ice patch and..." She wrapped her arms around him and cried some more into his shoulder, "... When I woke up the snow had stopped, it was so beautiful. Then I realized I was on the roof of the car and I looked over to the front and they... they were... were..."

"Shh..." Hawa cooed and rocked her back and forth. "Its not your fault. They were grown adults who chose to go out that night instead of waiting or telling you no. If you're going to blame anyone, blame fate. Fate took your parents away, not you. It wasn't your fault." He held back his own feelings of sadness and held back on his want to heal her heart.

"Thank you." She mumbled awhile later and finally looked him in the eyes.

"It's alright. Wanna walk home together?"

"Sure."

As they walked away, a man walked out of the shop and watched them with a grim expression.

Chapter 9 Revelations

"No, no. Absolutely not." Vann shook her head from side to side.

"Awe come on!" All three of them said at once.

"No! You're not giving me a birthday party." Vann scoffed and wrapped her scarf tighter.

"Why not Sugar Plums?" Hawa asked as he slipped an arm around her waist.

"You know I can't stand that." She gave him a jab with her elbow then snuggled closer. "Because I don't want one."

"Come on Vann... I promise to make you the mother of all birthday cakes." Erin bribed as she threw her free arm around Vann's waist connecting the four of them.

"You guys..." She whined, "Why are you ganging up on meee...."

"Because we care." Kasai smiled.

Vann sighed exasperatedly, "Alright..."

"Woot!" The others yelled triumphantly as they rounded the corner to the park. Suddenly Kasai and Hawa stopped. The girls, held back by their arms, looked back quizzically. The guys were starring straight ahead with a mixture of shock and fear.

"What's the..." When the girls turned it was as if their vision tunneled and they saw everything that had been. The man standing there walked slowly towards them.

"Lucifer." They all gasped at once.

Chapter 10 Memories

"So the memories are still there." Lucifer drawled out with a hint of a frown on his hansom face.

They all stud as if they where frozen to the ground, looking at the man they had never met and new everything about him at the same time.

"Why are you here?" Kasai asked finally.

"For the same reason you are. Fate." He replied tilting his head in boredom.

"That means..." Erin's eyes widened, "Why?"

"Pride."

"But you..."

"Right now isn't the time to reminisce about the past. I've been told to give you all a message."

"From..." Hawa found himself unable to say "God" and just meekly gestured towards the sky.

"Yes." Lucifer replied starring at each of them in turn.

"Well then, just... get on with it." Vann gestured annoyed.

"As you wish, Azrael."

"What did you call her?" Hawa said protectively and pulled her closer.

"That’s my name." Vann answered airily like she had amnesia and looked up into his eyes. "That’s my true name."

"Quit playing games with us, Lucifer. Tell us what you need to." Kasai's voice was hard as he also increased his grip on Erin's shoulder.

"Ah, I see Gabriel still hates it when God sends someone else to do his dirty work." Lucifer commented as Kasai's face was washed with shock and recognition.

"You four, the holy four who betrayed the lord while consumed with greed, your sins will never be forgotten. You were told that someday you would be called upon for a task that only you four could do and that would redeem your pureness. There's a war brewing between the holy messengers of heaven and the deviants of the underworld. Soon this place will be full of demons who will be after the last five fallen angels whose power still remains to protect the world. They will try to take everything you call home away and then take you down one by one. Your choice, and only your own choice Gabriel and Uriel," He nodded to Kasai and Erin, "...Azrael and Raphael, your choice is either join myself in the battle or give up and die."

They stud there still entwined and gazed at one another. Slowly they all nodded and turned towards Lucifer. "We fight."

Chapter 11 The Past

"Come on, what's it say?" Kasai grumbled as he tried to look over Erin's shoulder.

"Just shut up already. Do you want to translate this?" Erin said angrily as she looked up from the ancient writings Lucifer had given them.

"I would, but you seem to be the only one who can read it." Kasai snapped back as he paced.

"That's not my..."

"WILL YOU TWO KNOCK IT OFF!" Hawa yelled and glared at the now shocked pair. "Kasai, leave her alone and Erin, for God sakes, hurry up. Fighting is what they want, we need to be a i team /i ."

Defeated Kasai threw himself into one of the arm chairs in the conference room and stared out the stained glass window.

"I can't believe he wants us to be ready to start fighting so soon. He just told us two weeks ago! We don't even know what we can do!" Vann muttered frustratedly.

"Yes we do." Erin's voice sounded awed as she looked up from the book. Everyone stared at her in anticipation.

"' This is the last writing I shall write as myself. We've made a terrible mistake. Our battle was long lived and devastating. Gabriel, guardian of vengeance and fire, set much of the lands to torch. Azrael, guardian of death and water, drained the lands of all liquids causing wildlife to wilt away and animals to dehydrate. Raphael, guardian of mercy and air, made giant funnels of wind that ate everything in its path. And I, guardian of Knowledge and land, I maliciously caused great cracks in the land that swallowed everything above. We were fools. Consumed with greed, we did something that will never be fixed. We're being punished rightfully and without mercy. This is my last writing here in the eternal paradise. I regret everything. Seeking repentance, Uriel.'" Erin's voice faltered as she looked up with tears in her eyes.