Chapter Eight
Oct. 12th, 2004 12:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
maderrStill kind of rough, but eh. I'll brush up all the new chapters this weekend.
Boss is out today, so I'm slacking a bit to write (not that there's really anything to slack off on).
**A small note, since I'm not ever sure I made it clear. Ruman is called 'the recorder' b/c it's his job to record the sins of every soul bound for hell. Among the Angels of Death, he's the only one I know of off hand that does this particular task. In traditional Islamic lore, he works closely with the angels Nakir and Munkar, who rip souls from the grave. Erm, starting to ramble. But if there's anything you want to know (b/c a couple of people have asked about stuff) just ask away.**
Again sorry for the roughness.
An alabaster hand trailed slowly up coal black skin, and Ruman smiled as Nakir, still fast asleep, moved closer to him. His other arm was wrapped around Munkar, both dark angels pressed against his sides with their arms tangling across his chest. He stroked his fingers slowly up and down Munkar's side, laughing softly to himself as the ticklish Munkar began to squirm in his sleep.
Munkar was the first to wake, blue eyes dark with sleep and displeasure as he wriggled free and moved out of reach. "I guess you're feeling better."
"One hundred percent," Ruman smiled and reached out to grasp his arm, tugging Munkar back to him. "Do I get a kiss?"
"Only if you insist," Munkar's frown vanished.
"Oh, I most definitely insist," Ruman had barely finished speaking before Munkar's lips were on his, warm and eager, with an edge of desperation as if he were still trying to reassure himself Ruman really was okay.
A sharp pinch to his side made Munkar jerk away, breaking the kiss, to glare balefully at his twin. "Why'd you do that?"
"Because you're hogging all the fun," Nakir responded before kissing Ruman in his turn. Munkar made a face at his brother's back, and settled for caressing whatever bits of pale flesh he could reach.
Ruman made a sound much like a purr as Nakir pulled back to press kisses to his throat and along his chest, his own hands roaming over the twins' midnight skin. "Satisfied I'm all right now?"
"No." Munkar reached up to kiss him, harder this time, biting at his lips as if in reproval. "What happened, exactly?"
"Oh," Ruman frowned, "Is it story time already?"
"We can't stay long anyway. If Az or one of the others finds us slacking off, we'll be lucky to come away with just our wings torn off."
Ruman sighed, and pulled them both close. "There isn't much of a story to tell. Azrael's been busy of late, and when he's not busy he's too restless to work. I thought I'd take care of some of his work for him. And came across Azza, who for all his time spent in Punishment, is still lethal as Hell."
The twins frowned, tracing the faint, faint scars that still ran along Ruman's chest and arms. "He had the element of surprise," Ruman smirked briefly, "But I still got him before he finally finished the fight." He grimaced, "Clearly I'm getting soft. That will have to be fixed. I think I've been relying on the two of you far too much."
"Hardly," Munkar said. "You don't need us for anything, except to bring you fresh souls to terrorize."
Ruman only laughed and nipped his ear. "Seeing as I'm the one who was attacked, would you be so kind as to tell me why I was attacked?" He took in their hesitant expressions, "Or does this have to do with those Stars that I don't know you have?"
Nakir and Munkar nodded.
"I see. What's going on? Anything I can help with?"
"Gabriel's been kidnapped. We haven't been able to find him. But Harut, Marut, Azza and Rabdos all seem to be involved. We don't know if there are more."
"Three Punished and a Demon?" Ruman looked impressed, "How did the Punished break free?"
"Don't know. None of them will stand still long enough for us to force an answer out of them." Nakir shrugged, "Unless someone else has figured it out and we haven't been told yet."
Ruman grinned, "Then I guess you'd better not stay much longer."
"We had to make sure you were okay."
"You knew I would be. I've had worse...just not for a very long time."
Munkar shook his head, "You looked awful, Ruman. And no renegade soul has ever injured your wings like that. Can you even fly?"
"Well..." Ruman ignored their glares, "Not quite yet. But they'll heal in another day or so. The rest of me is just fine." To prove he kissed each one in turn, leaving them breathless and dazed.
"I guess so." Nakir conceded reluctantly. He looked at his brother, "Come on, we've been lazy long enough. I'm guessing the search is still on."
"Where have you all been looking?"
"Mostly in Heaven. They pop up here trying to figure out who all the Stars are - or so we guess. But we have no idea where they might be hiding. Earth is big place."
"Not really, given the circumstances."
"How do you mean?" Munkar paused in climbing from the bed, moving again only when Nakir pinched his side. "Stop that!"
"Stop lazing about," Nakir slowly began to dress, his attention more focused on Ruman than on his clothing.
"Think about it," Ruman said as he sat watching them. "Punished exist in a kind of limbo - neither Fallen nor Righteous. But if they've broken their Punishment, they're going to start to Fall for their defiance. So they need a place that would slow that process. And then there's Gabriel. He should be able to break free of anything."
The twins cursed. Nakir yanked a black sweater over his head, not bothering to do more than rake his hand through his hair to straighten it. "Unless they're keeping him completely immersed in the dark. He'd grow weak."
Nearby Munkar grunted, "Brilliant lot we are." He finished lacing on his boots and stood, "Come on, let's get going. That doesn't narrow our search much, but it should help some."
"I'm sure most of the Archangels have already thought of it," Ruman said.
"Maybe, but maybe not. We've been focusing on capturing the punished. Some of us could be narrowing down the field." The twins kissed him goodbye, but Ruman held them as they tried to pull away. "One more thing."
"What?" Munkar frowned.
"Don't go exacting revenge on Azza."
The twins glared at him. "Not an option. We're going to make him pay."
"I said don't do it. I'm the one he attacked, it's my decision as to whether or not he should pay for it. Not yours. I got in a few hits bad enough to call us even - and I won't have you two harming and possibly killing another angel. It's uncalled for."
"Ruman!" Munkar jerked away. "That isn't fair."
"Let it go, promise me."
Nakir grimaced, but nodded. "Fine. We'll leave him alone."
Munkar glared at his twin, but fell silent at the look his brother sent him. Ruman kissed them again, and watched them go.
He winced briefly as he turned on his side, finger touching a wound on his back that was still healing. Unseen because he was in bed, his wings throbbed and burned as they slowly healed. Unknown to the twins, if the fight had not ended when it did, the wound inflicted by Azza would have outstripped his ability to heal.
*~*~*~*
The twins landed on Raziel's balcony and were admitted by Hochmel. "How goes the search?" Nakir asked.
"Slowly," Raziel said from the desk. "Now that you two have returned - how is Ruman? - I'm sending you to Earth. If there are further attacks in the City, we can handle them just fine." He rubbed his forehead, "So far it seems we're dealing with just the four. Israfel says she has new information, but everyone is so scattered...I'm sending the two of you to find everyone and call them together. We don't want the Fallen in Heaven if we can help it, so find a secure place on earth to meet. We'll stay here," Raziel indicated himself, Hochmel, and Vreviol, "So you at least know where to find us."
"I really wish we could just summon people," Munkar groused. "I'm getting sick of all this running around. Why can't we just look for Gabriel?"
"That's one of the things I want worked out. We've been going about this far too haphazardly. Now that we know who we're up against, we can begin to refine our methods. Hopefully everyone will have new information - that's been our greatest problem all along. So get going, the sooner you get them all the better."
"Going, going."
Nakir sighed as they launched themselves off the balcony, "I'm beginning to wish we'd just stayed with Ruman."
"Only beginning? I've been wishing that since I woke up." Stars began to shimmer on their foreheads as the twins willed themselves to earth. "Where should we start?"
"Let's get Af and Hemah - they can help us gather all the rest."
"Right. They should be the easiest to find anyway." Nakir grinned wolfishly, "And who knows? Maybe they were good bait and managed to draw out the Azza we're hunting for."
"You promised Ruman we wouldn't do anything to him," Munkar reminded him sourly.
"Yeah, but Af and Hemah didn't promise anything. I'm sure they wouldn't mind doing us a small favor."
"True," Munkar grinned as their stars flared and they were taken to earth.
Boss is out today, so I'm slacking a bit to write (not that there's really anything to slack off on).
**A small note, since I'm not ever sure I made it clear. Ruman is called 'the recorder' b/c it's his job to record the sins of every soul bound for hell. Among the Angels of Death, he's the only one I know of off hand that does this particular task. In traditional Islamic lore, he works closely with the angels Nakir and Munkar, who rip souls from the grave. Erm, starting to ramble. But if there's anything you want to know (b/c a couple of people have asked about stuff) just ask away.**
Again sorry for the roughness.
An alabaster hand trailed slowly up coal black skin, and Ruman smiled as Nakir, still fast asleep, moved closer to him. His other arm was wrapped around Munkar, both dark angels pressed against his sides with their arms tangling across his chest. He stroked his fingers slowly up and down Munkar's side, laughing softly to himself as the ticklish Munkar began to squirm in his sleep.
Munkar was the first to wake, blue eyes dark with sleep and displeasure as he wriggled free and moved out of reach. "I guess you're feeling better."
"One hundred percent," Ruman smiled and reached out to grasp his arm, tugging Munkar back to him. "Do I get a kiss?"
"Only if you insist," Munkar's frown vanished.
"Oh, I most definitely insist," Ruman had barely finished speaking before Munkar's lips were on his, warm and eager, with an edge of desperation as if he were still trying to reassure himself Ruman really was okay.
A sharp pinch to his side made Munkar jerk away, breaking the kiss, to glare balefully at his twin. "Why'd you do that?"
"Because you're hogging all the fun," Nakir responded before kissing Ruman in his turn. Munkar made a face at his brother's back, and settled for caressing whatever bits of pale flesh he could reach.
Ruman made a sound much like a purr as Nakir pulled back to press kisses to his throat and along his chest, his own hands roaming over the twins' midnight skin. "Satisfied I'm all right now?"
"No." Munkar reached up to kiss him, harder this time, biting at his lips as if in reproval. "What happened, exactly?"
"Oh," Ruman frowned, "Is it story time already?"
"We can't stay long anyway. If Az or one of the others finds us slacking off, we'll be lucky to come away with just our wings torn off."
Ruman sighed, and pulled them both close. "There isn't much of a story to tell. Azrael's been busy of late, and when he's not busy he's too restless to work. I thought I'd take care of some of his work for him. And came across Azza, who for all his time spent in Punishment, is still lethal as Hell."
The twins frowned, tracing the faint, faint scars that still ran along Ruman's chest and arms. "He had the element of surprise," Ruman smirked briefly, "But I still got him before he finally finished the fight." He grimaced, "Clearly I'm getting soft. That will have to be fixed. I think I've been relying on the two of you far too much."
"Hardly," Munkar said. "You don't need us for anything, except to bring you fresh souls to terrorize."
Ruman only laughed and nipped his ear. "Seeing as I'm the one who was attacked, would you be so kind as to tell me why I was attacked?" He took in their hesitant expressions, "Or does this have to do with those Stars that I don't know you have?"
Nakir and Munkar nodded.
"I see. What's going on? Anything I can help with?"
"Gabriel's been kidnapped. We haven't been able to find him. But Harut, Marut, Azza and Rabdos all seem to be involved. We don't know if there are more."
"Three Punished and a Demon?" Ruman looked impressed, "How did the Punished break free?"
"Don't know. None of them will stand still long enough for us to force an answer out of them." Nakir shrugged, "Unless someone else has figured it out and we haven't been told yet."
Ruman grinned, "Then I guess you'd better not stay much longer."
"We had to make sure you were okay."
"You knew I would be. I've had worse...just not for a very long time."
Munkar shook his head, "You looked awful, Ruman. And no renegade soul has ever injured your wings like that. Can you even fly?"
"Well..." Ruman ignored their glares, "Not quite yet. But they'll heal in another day or so. The rest of me is just fine." To prove he kissed each one in turn, leaving them breathless and dazed.
"I guess so." Nakir conceded reluctantly. He looked at his brother, "Come on, we've been lazy long enough. I'm guessing the search is still on."
"Where have you all been looking?"
"Mostly in Heaven. They pop up here trying to figure out who all the Stars are - or so we guess. But we have no idea where they might be hiding. Earth is big place."
"Not really, given the circumstances."
"How do you mean?" Munkar paused in climbing from the bed, moving again only when Nakir pinched his side. "Stop that!"
"Stop lazing about," Nakir slowly began to dress, his attention more focused on Ruman than on his clothing.
"Think about it," Ruman said as he sat watching them. "Punished exist in a kind of limbo - neither Fallen nor Righteous. But if they've broken their Punishment, they're going to start to Fall for their defiance. So they need a place that would slow that process. And then there's Gabriel. He should be able to break free of anything."
The twins cursed. Nakir yanked a black sweater over his head, not bothering to do more than rake his hand through his hair to straighten it. "Unless they're keeping him completely immersed in the dark. He'd grow weak."
Nearby Munkar grunted, "Brilliant lot we are." He finished lacing on his boots and stood, "Come on, let's get going. That doesn't narrow our search much, but it should help some."
"I'm sure most of the Archangels have already thought of it," Ruman said.
"Maybe, but maybe not. We've been focusing on capturing the punished. Some of us could be narrowing down the field." The twins kissed him goodbye, but Ruman held them as they tried to pull away. "One more thing."
"What?" Munkar frowned.
"Don't go exacting revenge on Azza."
The twins glared at him. "Not an option. We're going to make him pay."
"I said don't do it. I'm the one he attacked, it's my decision as to whether or not he should pay for it. Not yours. I got in a few hits bad enough to call us even - and I won't have you two harming and possibly killing another angel. It's uncalled for."
"Ruman!" Munkar jerked away. "That isn't fair."
"Let it go, promise me."
Nakir grimaced, but nodded. "Fine. We'll leave him alone."
Munkar glared at his twin, but fell silent at the look his brother sent him. Ruman kissed them again, and watched them go.
He winced briefly as he turned on his side, finger touching a wound on his back that was still healing. Unseen because he was in bed, his wings throbbed and burned as they slowly healed. Unknown to the twins, if the fight had not ended when it did, the wound inflicted by Azza would have outstripped his ability to heal.
The twins landed on Raziel's balcony and were admitted by Hochmel. "How goes the search?" Nakir asked.
"Slowly," Raziel said from the desk. "Now that you two have returned - how is Ruman? - I'm sending you to Earth. If there are further attacks in the City, we can handle them just fine." He rubbed his forehead, "So far it seems we're dealing with just the four. Israfel says she has new information, but everyone is so scattered...I'm sending the two of you to find everyone and call them together. We don't want the Fallen in Heaven if we can help it, so find a secure place on earth to meet. We'll stay here," Raziel indicated himself, Hochmel, and Vreviol, "So you at least know where to find us."
"I really wish we could just summon people," Munkar groused. "I'm getting sick of all this running around. Why can't we just look for Gabriel?"
"That's one of the things I want worked out. We've been going about this far too haphazardly. Now that we know who we're up against, we can begin to refine our methods. Hopefully everyone will have new information - that's been our greatest problem all along. So get going, the sooner you get them all the better."
"Going, going."
Nakir sighed as they launched themselves off the balcony, "I'm beginning to wish we'd just stayed with Ruman."
"Only beginning? I've been wishing that since I woke up." Stars began to shimmer on their foreheads as the twins willed themselves to earth. "Where should we start?"
"Let's get Af and Hemah - they can help us gather all the rest."
"Right. They should be the easiest to find anyway." Nakir grinned wolfishly, "And who knows? Maybe they were good bait and managed to draw out the Azza we're hunting for."
"You promised Ruman we wouldn't do anything to him," Munkar reminded him sourly.
"Yeah, but Af and Hemah didn't promise anything. I'm sure they wouldn't mind doing us a small favor."
"True," Munkar grinned as their stars flared and they were taken to earth.
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Date: 2004-10-12 11:32 am (UTC)And as I said last night--this chapter makes Sammie happy. (Though 7's still my favorite.)
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 11:55 am (UTC)They are. I love N&M, they're fun to write.
thanks, hun. Thankee, Sip!no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 01:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 01:26 pm (UTC)Yes,Ma'am.
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 02:19 pm (UTC)Am I just weird?
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 02:37 pm (UTC)Seem normal to me.
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 06:30 pm (UTC)::sighs:: so much wonderful goodness.
::squirms:: oh! what's going to happen?! and i am so diggin those twins ^______^ work your mad writing skills! ::snoggles::