CHAPTER 8

Arius' first day of school had been interesting to say the least. He had already decided that he didn't like history of government. Math, Science, and English were alright, but gym was his favorite. They were currently doing a unit on running, and he was honestly surprised at how fast some of them could run, Jaida included. She was the best one out of them.

During lunch he had sat with Jaida, Amy, and Seth. Jaida and Amy had spent most of the time talking amongst each other while Seth shot Arius small glares from time to time. It's not like it bothered him much. No matter how hard they tried, humans weren't in any way threatening to him. He knew he could easily take all of them out, so no matter how much Seth glared, Arius just didn't care. He only arrogantly ignored him.

Currently Arius and Jaida were leaving the English room, their last classroom of the day. However, school had already been out for an hour. Jaida had wanted to stay back in order to finish her homework before she got home, and she had explained the importance of it to Arius. Needless to say she had made sure that he finished his as well. Now they were on their way out, heading down the hallway. Jaida was talking to him about something, but he wasn't paying her too much attention.

"I finally found you," a voice whispered in his ear, and he froze, his crimson eyes widening in surprise. Jaida stopped as well, noticing how bewildered he looked right now.

"What's wrong?" she asked him curiously. He was glancing around the hallway, seeming almost nervous.

"Did you hear it?" he asked her, staring right into her bright eyes.

"Hear what?" she asked, answering his question with one of her own. He didn't bother responding and instead turned around and ran down the hallway. Jaida followed after him, having a pretty easy time keeping up. He was heading towards the end of the hallway where there was a staircase that would lead to the roof. She followed him up the stairs and then through the door he had so forcefully thrown open.

Jaida was instantly met with the wind in her face as it tossed her hair around. She didn't remember it being quite this windy this morning. She wasn't sure why Arius had come here, but she noticed that he was now walking away from her. She was about to follow after him when he abruptly stopped and glanced back at her.

"Stay there," he ordered forcefully, and she obeyed. She wasn't about to get on his bad side. She could see how tense he was. If something was upsetting him this much, then it couldn't be good. "Come out!" he shouted with a snarl. "I know you're here!"

Jaida just stood there, watching, when the wind suddenly seemed to pick up, whipping her hair around her. She suddenly felt a bit cold as the breeze stung at her bare skin. She noticed that Arius was staring into the sky now, his fists clenched tightly as he stood in a fighting position. He was obviously expecting something…or someone.

Jaida gasped as she looked a little higher, seeing what he was staring at. There was something floating above them, but it was too far away. That changed, however, as the creature plummeted to the world below at a mind numbing speed. It landed perfectly on its feet, and that's when Jaida finally saw exactly what it was that had Arius so worked up. Before them was a man with long, unkempt blond hair, the color of the sun. His eyes were as blue as the sky he had come from, and his robes were a snow white. He was dressed very similar to the way Arius had been the day she had found him. This man, however, was in every way different. Upon his back was a pair of white wings, the wings of an angel.

"Finally," Arius snarled. "I knew you were here somewhere, Lucius." The man, Lucius, only smirked in response before letting off a rather cruel sounding laugh.

"I can't believe it," he began, giving Arius his best smirk. "The council must really think I'm a problem if they sent you again. Unfortunately, even if you are a top ranking Deslyan, you're no match for me. You never have been." Arius cracked his knuckles, giving off a smirk that was nearly as wicked as Lucius's.

"We'll see about that," he stated as his nails seemed to increase in length, becoming more like claws. In a single moment, his black wings shot out from his back. He flexed them a bit, not having extended them for quite some time.

"I'm surprised," he began, "that they sent you to a planet like this. It's small compared to some of the others."

"You should know why," stated Lucius. "The human race is rather pitiful. It doesn't deserve to exist. That's why I'm a bit curious as to why you're here. I thought the Deslyan council would agree." Arius only gave an arrogant laugh as he flexed his claws a bit.

"Don't kid yourself," he told Lucius. "We're nothing like you cretins. You can't just go around wiping out planets. You have no right to play the part of a God!" Lucius only smirked, but his eyes began wandering the rooftop. His smug look fell a bit when he noticed Jaida standing a ways behind Arius. She was watching them both with interest more so than surprise. She didn't seem to be afraid at all.

"A human," he said with a wicked looking smile, seeming rather amused. He then returned his attention to Arius. "I didn't think a Deslyan could allow a human to see them like this. You're breaking the rules." He waved a disappointed finger at Arius, but he quickly returned his interest to Jaida. He extended his hand, his palm facing up. Jaida watched in awe as a ball of yellow light seemed to spring up from nowhere, now clutched in his hand. "How about I just get rid of her, and then we can continue this battle?"