Panic creeps between my toes, up my spine and spreads to my heart. It feels like someone has yanked the only solid ground I had right from under me. Now I’m floating away into the abyss. Anytime I ever felt that way, I always had Aaden. Now I don’t have him. All I have is Randy, and I’ve just been told he’s about to be taken away.

“Mom, you can’t take Randy. Please, you can’t!” I shout as I stand up and latch onto her.

“I tried to reason with the other Council members, but I’ve looked at the pattern and there’s no way around it; Randy has to die.”

“No, he doesn’t. Please, I need him. He’s my friend.”

“Honey, I know how much he means to you, and I’m sorry it has to be this way.”

“No, it doesn’t have to be like this. You have to talk them out of it. Randy can’t die, Mom, please.”

“Believe me, if there was a way to stop this from happening, I would. You know that,” she pleads.

“How can you take him from me? He’s my only friend. He’s a good guy; he has never hurt anyone,” I shout at her.

“You know death isn’t always a punishment. It’s a part of life, Pryor.”

“It’s not fair! Randy can’t die. You have to do something,” I beg.

She goes to take my hand but I pull it away.

“Pryor, please try and understand.”

“I understand, Mom. My only friend in the human world is going to get killed by you.”

“It’s a very complicated pattern, and Randy needs to die.”

“No, I’m not gonna let you take him,” I reply, running down the stairs.

She runs after me. I make my way into the kitchen where my father is watching over Sam, who is setting up the game.

“Dad, did you know what Mom’s going to do?” I ask, devastated.

“She told me. Reesie, your mom spent hours looking at the pattern on the Bytrin. There’s no way for Randy to stay alive. I’m sorry.”

“No, stop saying that. Randy is not going to die,” I shout.

“Can we play now?” Sam asks, looking up at me.

“Dad, please, you can’t let her do this,” I beg him.

“Pryor, you know we’ve come to love Randy too,” my mom says behind me.

“You love him so much, you’re willing to kill him?”

“Pryor, that’s not fair. Your mom doesn’t have a choice,” my dad reminds me.

“Randy has never done anything to anyone. He’s just a good human and he doesn’t deserve to die,” I plead.

“Sometimes to keep the balance of good and evil, good people have to die too,” my mother says.

“Don’t feed me the company motto, okay? Randy has nothing to do with good and evil. He’s just a human with good math grades and bad skin. What could he do to the balance of good and evil?”

“You may not know why but for some reason Randy’s life has to end. There are millions of others just as good as Randy who have died. That’s just the rule: death is natural and unstoppable.”

“Then break the rules,” I shout.

“Reesie, you know I can’t do that,” she says.

“Why not? I read all about the missions you and Dad went on. You and the Guardians broke every rule there was. In fact, all you guys ever did was break the rules,” I remind them.

“Pryor, this is different,” my mom says.

“No it’s not. You broke the rules to be with each other. So you can break the rules to save my friend. He’s all I have.” My voice cracks.

I really hate that because it means I’m on the verge of tears. Angels can’t cry but since both of my parents were once human, some human traits linger with me and the other Norus.

“Carrot, we love you. You and Sam are the most important things to us. If we could do anything, anything at all to stop you from feeling this hurt, we would. You know that,” my mom begs.

“You don’t get it. Randy is the only reason I didn’t lose it when Aaden—please, don’t take him from me. Please, I’ll be good. I won’t fight anymore. I won’t talk back, please, please, Mommy.”

I grab on to her tightly. She embraces me back and tells me she loves me. I pull back and look into her eyes. She looks over at my dad, pained and deeply saddened. My dad looks back at her with regret.

“I know how much this hurts, believe me,” she whispers.

My dad comes over to us and strokes my hair.

“Mom, please don’t take Randy.”

“I’m so sorry, Pryor; it’s out of my hands.”

“Liar! If Sam and I were about to die, you would move heaven and earth to stop it. Randy doesn’t get that kind of consideration because he’s not a Noru or a Guardian. Well he may not have powers but he’s my best friend and if he dies, I will never forgive you!”

My parents knock on my door repeatedly, but I don’t let them in. Yes, they are both strong enough to blow down my door effortlessly. Yet they don’t. I guess they think I need time to be alone. They are wrong. What I need is a way to save Randy.

I spend the next few hours poring over old books trying to figure out a way to stop death from coming for my best friend. I find nothing useful. Exhausted, I plop down on my bed and bury my face in my hands.

That’s when I hear footsteps just outside my door. Then I hear multiple voices. I raise my head up, get off the bed and head over to the door. I open it just enough to get a look at the group gathering in the kitchen: the entire Guardian team. 

My mom must have called them. Even though my mom doesn’t really go on missions with them anymore, all of them are best friends and usually gather when there is a crisis. I guess killing your child’s best friend counts as one.

I sneak out into the hallway and stand just outside the kitchen to listen in. It may be a good thing that the other Guardians are here. Maybe they can talk some sense into my mom. If there’s anyone she would listen to, it’s the angels standing beside her.

During their missions, they became very close. Especially Uncle Rage and my mom. Uncle Rage has dark hair, jet-black wings, and a dangerous smile that reminds me of Aaden.

Aaden...

Uncle Rage is Aaden’s dad. He’s also the First Akon. That means he’s the top-ranking demon among demons. He shoots these crazy fireballs that kill on impact. He used to be really bad. He tried to kill my mom a few times but then he fell in love with Aaden’s mom, Ameana. She was an angel and he changed his ways to be with her. Unfortunately, Ameana died in battle.

I wish I had met her. She sounds so badass from all the stories I’ve heard. Another super badass would have to be the gorgeous Japanese and Korean angel standing next to my mom, Miku.

Miku has an alter ego named Redd. Redd came about when Miku lost her twin brother, Rio. She was in such deep rage and despair, evil took over her body and she Turned. Turning is what they call it when an angel becomes a demon. It’s rare but it does happen.

Anyway, Redd is a cool, evil, “kill or be killed” chick. She has red wings and black eyes. Although Miku was able to fight off her evil side, the tips of her wings still remain red; we are told it’s because she still feels guilty about all the killing she did when she let Redd take over her body.

While Redd is evil and Miku is good, Miku herself has been known to be very wicked. Her power is her voice. When she sings to anyone, they literally start to rip their hearts out. How cool is that?

In fact, Miku caused so much havoc my dad calls her “Pretty deadly.” Although she takes pills to suppress her evil side, even now when Auntie Pretty walks into a room, some angels shiver.

The truth is Auntie Pretty is a super sweet Guardian. She knows where to do all the best shopping and she let me rummage through her closet when I was little.

Her husband is my Uncle Jay. Uncle Jay has skin the color of nightfall. He has a big cocky grin that always makes things better. He wears hot shades and sneaks me and Sam out of the house so we can joyride in his car at one hundred and fifty miles an hour. And one time he actually let us drive. I felt like my heart was in the back of my head. The wind was going by so fast, I thought Sam and I would hurl. It was awesome.

Uncle Jay’s power is speed. It’s called Gliding, as I said before. He can walk from here to the other side of the world in seconds. And even though we aren’t all officially related, Miku, Jay, and Rage are my family. That’s why I’m hoping they will help my mom see the light. 

“C’mon baby girl, stop pacing and be easy,” Uncle Jay says to my mom.

“I can’t, okay? My daughter is hurting and I can’t make it better,” she replies.

“Emmy,” my dad calls out as he places a calming hand on her shoulder.

“Have you and the rest of the Council gone over the pattern enough? Maybe you guys are missing something,” my aunt Pretty says.

“Miku, we have looked over the pattern again and again. Randy needs to die,” my mom says.

“You can’t keep Pryor from this pain,” Uncle Rage tells her.

“How is it I can stop the world but I can’t stop my own child from hurting?”

“Come on, yo. You know it’s not your fault. You can’t just fix everything for them. Carrot is young, but death comes to everyone and she will have to accept that,” Uncle Jay says.

“I know you’re right, honey, but if something happened to our twins...I don’t know that I could just stand by and let it happen,” my aunt confesses. 

“Yeah, I know I couldn’t sit back and watch anything happen to Aaden. I’m sorry this is happening,” Uncle Rage tells my parents.

“She came into the kitchen with this desperate look on her face. She reached out to me to make it better and...Jay, she’s my kid. How do I protect her?” my dad asks.

“I’m gonna be real with you, you can’t protect her—not from this,” he replies.

My mom sighs heavily and the sky darkens outside. The more upset she gets, the more the clouds start to roll in.

“Randy means the world to Pryor. How can I just take him from her?”

“Emmy, human teens lose their friends all the time,” Uncle Rage says.

“Yes, but their friends aren’t usually killed by their moms. Why am I Death? Why not Fate or Time? I’m failing my daughter.”

“Baby, you’re not failing her,” my dad says, pulling her into his arms.

“Marcus, she’s so young. How do I make her understand? What do I say that won’t break her heart?”

My dad turns to Uncle Rage and addresses him.

“Were you able to find anything that could help?”

“Marcus, I’ve looked everywhere and it’s exactly like we thought: Once the Bytrin has a fixed pattern of who will die, it’s done. The being has to die.”

“So there’s absolutely no way around it?” my aunt asks.

“No. Well, actually there is, but it’s not a good path to take,” he says.

“Wait, there’s something that can be done?” my mom asks.

I have to force myself to stay where I am and not leap into the kitchen and ask one hundred questions.

Steady Pryor; stay calm and just listen. 

“Rage, what do we need to do to stop Randy from dying?” my aunt asks.

“I don’t know.”

“Then how do you know it’s a bad path?” my mom asks.

“Because it starts with setting up a meeting with Oden.”

“Oden? I’m a member of the Council, I can’t get involved with—”

“Emmy, we know. That’s why I said it’s a path we can’t go down,” Uncle Rage says.

Who’s Oden? Why can’t we meet with him? How can he help?

“You’re going to have to let her go through this,” my aunt tells them.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything, Rage. Maybe I should have just let it happen,” my mom says.

“No, we’re already keeping something from the kids. We don’t need to add any more secrets,” my aunt says.

What secret? What are they keeping from me and the other Norus? It must be bad if they have decided to keep it from us. The Guardians and my parents have always told us what was going on. They never want us to be in the dark about what’s happening in the Angel world. Yet this time, they are choosing to hide information from us. Why?

“Have you ever tried to tell her, Marcus?” my aunt asks.

“It’s been calm for years. There’s no reason to think the new evil is here,” my dad replies.

“The Council already told you, the new evil is coming,” Uncle Jay says.

“That was a while ago. We haven’t heard anything. It’s been really quiet. If anything, the demons are too busy fighting among themselves to even appoint a new evil.”

“I think you guys should tell Pryor and Sam. They need to know,” Uncle Rage says.

“I’m not going to drop another bomb on my daughter,” my mom snaps.

Everyone in the room grows silent. The thunder and lighting begin to crackle outside.

“Sorry guys,” my mom says.

“It’s okay, baby girl. We know this is hard for you,” Uncle Jay says.

“We will tell the kids the secret later. Right now, Pryor has enough to worry about. She’s about to lose her only human friend and no amount of power is going to take her hurt away,” my mom says.

“Hey, have you guys heard about the Alexi?” my aunt asks.

An Alexi is a beautiful silver bird that appears when a female angel is pregnant. It takes the seed out of her body and takes the baby, or Sib, as we call it, to a place in the light called Noni. Alexis are immortal and stunning to behold in the air.

“What about the Alexi?” Uncle Rage asks.

“They’ve been disappearing,” my aunt responds.

“How is that possible? Alexis always know where they are going,” my mom asks.

“All I know is at least three of them are missing.”

“It may be nothing. They may be injured and need time to heal. Alexis can’t be killed, so I don’t think there’s a reason to worry,” my dad says.

I don’t have time to listen to the rest of their conversation. I sneak back into my room, put on my sneakers and my leather jacket, and take off into the sky. I’m headed to Randy’s house. It’s time he knew the truth about my family and me. I wanted to wait, but the fact is I will need his help to save him.

I don’t know how Randy will take the news that he’s supposed to die. I’m guessing he won’t be inviting me in for snacks. But I don’t care how hard it is for him, he will have to learn the truth. I will do whatever it takes to save him. And if that means turning his whole life upside down, then that’s what I will do.

I have been standing outside of Randy’s apartment building for about ten minutes. I could ring his bell and tell him to come down. Or I could text him and have him come outside. Or throw rocks at his window and let him know to come meet me. So why have I not done any of these things? Simple. I don’t have a good opening line. 

You can’t just walk up to someone and say, “Hey, I’m an angel. And um...my mom is the Angel of Death and she’s going to kill you...like, soon.”

Wait, why can’t I say that? It’s the truth. Randy’s a tough kid underneath it all. He can handle what I have to say. I mean, what’s the worst that could happen?

Okay, so this is the plan: I text Randy to come down and meet me. I tell him all about me, he’s a little shaken but all in all, he takes the news well. Then I get him to promise to avoid all potentially dangerous activities so Death doesn’t come for him. There. Simple.

I text him that I’m waiting for him outside, and a few moments later he appears before me. He’s smiling and looks at me suspiciously.

“Hey, what’s up? You okay?” he asks.

“Yeah, I just need to talk for a sec,” I reply.

“Okay, usual place?”

“Yeah.”

We head down the block to the abandoned playground. Somehow sitting on rusty swings and kicking dirt with our feet makes it easier to tell each other our secrets. We head towards the swing set where Randy will learn the truth about me. But we never get to the swings because a massive dark Powerball lands right in front of Randy. He goes catapulting lifelessly into the air...