The little angel boy had just tested his wings, like the others in his class. Despite him being the first who had been able actually to lift his entire body off the ground, the others laughed about him. ‘Too big, the wings.’ They said. And the boy got discouraged…
He decided he had to grow into his wings as fast as possible and wished he didn’t have to go to school anymore.
When the teasing and mocking didn’t stop, the teacher finally had to halt the bullying.
During one of the flying lessons, he removed the breeze from under the bullies’ wings, and the entire gang fell to the ground… and they fell hard.
After the groaning and moaning finally stopped, the teacher told them harshly: “Now, get up, you lot.”
They followed directions and stood before their teacher, who paced up and down. “I’ve had it with you all.” He stared at them; his already dark brown eyes got darker. “We were working hard for you all to get into the air. The one who does the best job is the one none of you respects. He would have been the only one keeping himself in the air during the wind drop. None of you could do that. I strongly recommend you study more, and you might ask him for help instead of laughing about him and giving him a hard time.”
The teacher eyed one of them in particular. “Shane. Don’t even think I don’t know you are the leader of that pack. I insist you concentrate on your studies and your soon-to-be-seen progress, or I will have to report you.” He turned to all in the group again. “If you’re too stupid to think for yourself and follow this jealous hypocrite of a boy, so be it. If you want to get somewhere in this life, you might want to start using your brain.”
The bullies shyly eyed Deonur from the side, and he didn’t budge. He looked at them, but there was no smile or mocking on his side. It was just a mild curiosity in his eyes.
It took years of further development to understand that they could have had a strong bond with this calm and highly versatile boy… but they weren’t smart enough to recognize that.
The bullying flared up again when the class was much older, and they were flying close to the mountains to test their flying abilities in that area.
The teacher overlooked Deonur, not because he wanted to be cruel, but because the boy was so calm, quiet, and modest, he was barely visible… and when he flew in front of trees and rock, he disappeared. His breathtaking, strong wings, the color of a Golden Eagle’s, blended in so perfectly that the teacher could not see his student.
*****
The Senior Class of that year’s Divine Army had just had their final exams and celebrated by spending some time on Earth. They were a bit overenthusiastic and wanted to prove to each other how good they were as angels… They flew through cities and tested their wings, but also helped two groups against thieves, broke up a fistfight between several people, supported a group of ladies who had to bring in the hay, and walked around, spreading smiles and making the one or other female heart jump… until one of them disappeared.
They had agreed to meet at a particular spot where they had landed to return home together. They knew, technically, they weren’t permitted to go down to Earth unsupervised yet. But their teachers occasionally looked the other way, provided the final exams were passed.
The group had yet to learn where to look for the missing youngster until Deonur asked. “We were quite a group coming down here. Who is the missing one?” One of the others said quietly: “It’s Shane.”
To everybody’s surprise, Deonur didn’t hesitate. “Well, we better hurry up and look for him. The more time passes, the worse it gets. But we don’t have to stay here. Let’s say five of us are searching for him, and the rest go back home – but please, inform Nicholas. He needs to know, and he can help or send us help. No matter what Shane did or did not do, he’s still an angel, nearly of age, and he doesn’t just disappear with no trace. Something serious has happened. I feel it in my guts.”
The others looked at him with growing respect. It seemed very much the boy they had ignored most of their school time suddenly showed he would have been a valuable member of their group and a formidable friend if they hadn’t been so jealous.
*****
The search took several hours, and just when they discovered a group of bad-smelling creatures who had abducted Shane, Nicholas found them.
“Oh, that’s not good.” He whispered. Deonur nodded. “We can’t sneak up on them and hope to get him out. They’ll disappear with him, and we won’t see him again for a long time. I didn’t consider this to be a danger. I’m so sorry.”
Nicholas shook his head. “It’s not your fault, boy. It’s mine. I have responsibility over you, and I let you go. But let’s think about what to do.” One of them whispered desperately. “They’re getting prepared to leave. Are these demons?”
Nicholas nodded grimly. “I’m afraid so. I called for help, but it will take a moment for them to show up.” Deonur smiled. “I can help. But you will have to trust me… all of you.”
Nicholas frowned. “What do you….” Deonur shook his head. “No time to explain. Grab the lot and go home… Shane and I will meet you in our classroom.” With these words, he took off, no even a ‘swoosh’ of his wings betrayed his presence… the feathers were as silent as the one of an owl.
The teacher nodded, satisfied. “He’ll be a phenomenal spy one day.” He thought by himself, then he took the entire group and disappeared.
Deonur flew a circle and waited for his chance… just when the ugly creatures pulled Shane up to his feet, Deonur saw that the brutal demons had bound Shane’s wings; one of them held Shane’s right arm, the other one half-heartedly the left one, Deonur quietly flew down… His speed was breathtaking, but he needed plenty of strength to lift his classmate and gain height again to disappear.
He shot out of the dark like a cannonball, grabbed Shane’s waist with his muscular legs, and took off. He didn’t waste any time looking back… he knew he had to leave immediately. His solid and well-trained wings carried the two angels higher and higher into the clouds. Deonur had torn the ties off Shane’s wings, and the boy and himself could finally teleport to the school of Divine Army. They landed, heavily breathing in front of the building.
Shane coughed, straightened himself up, walked over to Deonur, and looked into the young man’s eyes before finally calmly saying roughly: “Man, that was a hell of a ride. I don’t know how you managed to fly that quietly. I’ve never seen any other angel do that.” He took a break; then, he finally held out his hand. “Thank you, Mate. Thanks for saving my sorry butt from hell. I don’t know where I’d be without you.”
After a moment of hesitation, Deonur’s face cracked into a smile; he accepted Shane’s handshake and said: “You’re welcome.”
Shane nodded, and suddenly his eyes seemed to water a bit. “Listen, Man… If you ever need help, no matter when, in what situation, or where… call me – and I’ll be there, that I swear.”
Deonur smiled a bit. “Are you the teeniest bit touched?” Shane shook his head. “Bullshit… I got dust in my eyes.”
They laughed when they entered the classroom where Nicholas was waiting with the rest of the group.
Immediately their classmates surrounded them. “How…” – “What happened?” – “When…”
Deonur didn’t feel like talking much about that episode, and he just nodded, found his teacher’s eyes, and then quietly disappeared. When Shane went looking for him, he didn’t see him anywhere.
Later that evening, Nicholas met with Raphael. “That boy is remarkable, isn’t he?” Nicholas nodded. “I can only recommend him for the highest possible education to prepare him for a spot in the ‘Council of Twelve.’ This boy would be a phenomenal spy for the Archangels.”
Raphael smiled. “Thank you for your recommendation, Nicholas. We will surely keep an eye on him. But let’s find out what he will become first. Maybe his destiny is entirely different? None of us knows.”
*****
When Deonur’s birth flower opened, not only the regular group of school senators and experts were present. The group included Raphael and Michael. When Deonur spread his wings, these beautiful, strong wings, in the color of a Golden Eagle, they both looked at each other and smiled… One day, this boy would join their Council… but this was for later… many millennia later…
*****
(Sub-story to ‘The Council of Twelve’ series by A. J. Alexander – Copyright Aurora Jean Alexander, February 2023)
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