Sky Fall

Chapter Fifteen - Wickedness Lurks in the Shadows

Chapter Fifteen - Wickedness Lurks in the Shadows

Five hours had passed, and the bookshop lounge area was a complete mess. Books were littered on every available surface, and parchment covered in Aziraphale's elegant cursive that dealth with Armageddon was thrown about. Azirphale was pacing the lounge area and had two books in each of his hands. His eyes went back and forth between each book, scanning them. He would occasionally stop pacing and furrow his eyebrows in concentration as he read whichever book, and then he would return to pacing. His lips moved silently as he read the intricate passages, absorbing every detail with meticulous care. Aziraphale looked stressed beyond imagination. While the two other occupants in the room looked completely different.

Crowley was spread out on the couch, flipping through one of the books. He looked the very essence of relaxed. Crowley had both his legs crossed over the other, and his fingers were tracing the top pages of his book in a lazy manner. Every few moments, Crowley would steal glances in Alexandria's direction. Despite the gravity of their situation, he found himself captivated by her presence, unable to shake the feeling of admiration that stirred within him.

Alexandria was still sitting at her desk. One of her arms was propped up on the desk, and her head rested in her hand. She was beginning to grow tired from the extensive reading. She would catch herself falling asleep and shake her head, trying to wake herself up. She had already scanned through 4 books and had a handful of notes from each of them. But the problem was that each of the books she read would talk about Armageddon in riddles or dance around the topic and not dive deep into it. It seemed like even humans themselves did not know what would happen once the time came for the world to end. After scanning the same page for the fifth time, Alexandria closed her eyes and let out a long sigh, pulling Crowley's attention from his book. He observed her quietly.

Alexandria looked at the grandfather clock near the window and noticed that it was 6:47 p.m. She looked outside the window and noticed that the street was just as busy as usual. The restaurants along the street were in full swing, accommodating the dinner rush that lasted from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The sun was on the verge of setting, and the parts of the sky she could see were beautiful shades of pink, orange, blue, and purple, signifying the end of the day. She sat at her desk, and the setting sun bathed her in a warm glow, she felt a sense of peace wash over her. The colors of the sky seemed to dance and merge together, creating a breathtaking masterpiece that filled her with awe. Each hue painted across the canvas of the heavens filled her with peace and she smiled up towards the sky and admired its beauty.

Without warning, the peaceful moment disappeared. The hairs on Alexandria arms rose, and the back of her skull tingled as if some unknown force was trying to enter her mind. She brought her hand up the back of her neck and massaged her head. The tingling sensation moved from the back of her skull to her temples.

Alexandria rose from her desk, leaned both arms on it, and used them to uphold her body. She moved her head around her neck and tried to crack it, hoping that would help with the feeling. But it did not do anything. Then, a voice in her head emerged and told her to make her way to the window. In a trance, Alexandria made her way to the window.

Crowley watched Alexandria with concern, noting the exhaustion evident in her posture and expression. He could see the strain of their research weighing heavily on her, and a pang of guilt stirred within him for not offering her more support earlier. Despite his initial reluctance to dive into the task at hand, he knew he couldn't sit idly by while Alexandria struggled.

Crowley rose from the couch with a determined expression. He coughed to get Aziraphale's attention, gesturing his head to look at Alexandria. Aziraphale looked up from his book and looked at Crowley, who was silently, telling him to look at Alexandria. Aziraphale looked at Alexandria, and he could sense something was not right.