<span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: georgia;"><em>"Azreal!" Ariel laughed as she looked at him, eyes sparkling in the sunlight. She looked around the clear skies as she chased after her dearest friend. It didn't matter how fast she ran; Azreal was always a few steps away from her. But wasn't that the way it always was? He was faster than her. And he was always on a mission!<br/><br/>Except that...as they continued to fly through the air, the skies were turning dark and there was an eerie feel to the air. She didn't like it. "Azreal, we have to go back," Ariel murmured, fear laced in her voice. But it didn't matter how fast she flew, she just couldn't catch him. And he was too far for him to hear! "Azreal? AZREAL!" A scream lodged in her throat when she saw her beloved friend disappear before her.<br/><br/>She was alone. Very alone.</em><br/><br/>Her eyes opened slowly, hoping (for a weak second) that when she opened them, she would see sunlight. She would be able to see the beauty that was once the Heavens and she could go outside, and see her Brothers and her Creator. And her dream had just been that...a dream. Instead...she saw darkness. The sounds of agony and pain, the heat and dry air...fire. She hated fire. <em>No,</em> she quickly corrected herself, <em>not hated. Disliked. She disliked fire.</em> Ariel slowly shifted in her cell into a sitting position, wrapping her arms around her soiled white skirt and then -- as added protection -- wrapping her wings around her petite frame.<br/><br/>How long had she been here? She couldn't remember; but there was a certain sense of panic that came over her today. Whether she had been here two days, two years or two millennium...this was the last day the cell would hold her. Hazel eyes regarded her surroundings silently. How long had it been since she last talked? The only ones she ever spoke to were her Brothers and now, knowing that Azreal was gone...she didn't even speak to them.<br/><br/>Azreal; her dear friend. How she missed him. Tears still came to her eyes as she thought about him. The injustice of his death! It had been that day, that dreadful day...that Ariel had learned what sorrow was. When the Archangels had been captured, she had been silent and indifferent. When news of what was happening in the world reached the Underworld, she had been stone-faced. But news of her friend's death? <em>That</em> had broken her; she had wept. She felt her heart being ripped out of her chest and she had cried with such desperation that even now, she was still a bit confused by it. Why was she in so much pain over the loss of a Brother? Yes, Azreal was a dear friend, one of her closest confidants...but he was still just a Brother. She hadn't understood it then...and she still didn't.<br/><br/>What she <em>did</em> understand was that...she was getting out. Today. Tonight. Whatever time it was; Ariel was done being held captive and she was going to leave Hell and go fight for humanity. Because her Maker would want that; and she still lived to serve Him.<br/><br/>Lucifer was so selfish! Her eyes blazed with anger and her fists clenched into fists as she thought about her misguided Brother. How could he bring such destruction to a world that He wanted them to protect! And Azazel...so eager to follow Lucifer's command. She scoffed as her jaw clenched, trying her best to still the anger that lurked within her heart. She didn't want to let the anger consume her; then she would be no better than them. And she was not going to let them bring her down.<br/><br/>She closed her eyes and forced herself to relax, to stop thinking of everything going on around her and to find a way out. Running fingers through her hair, Ariel squeezed her eyes and suddenly her head snapped up and for the first time since her imprisonment, she felt a burst of hope. She slowly came to her feet and walked towards the bars of the cell. She knew she had a matter of minutes to do this; the demons and vampires moved throughout the walkway checking in on them periodically.<br/><br/>Reaching out a hand through the cell bars, Ariel looked at the demon who held the key to her cell and using the dry wind in Hell, she propelled him towards her, eyes narrowed, focusing entirely on what she was doing. As soon as his body slammed against the cell, she grabbed the dagger from his hip and jerked it out to plunge it deep inside his neck. Hazel eyes were emotionless; working towards the freedom that she wanted.<br/><br/>She barely registered his surprised scream before she was jerking the dagger out of his flesh and reaching for the key that he kept.  Ariel shoved the key in the lock and turned it, pushing the dead demon to the floor as she pushed open the door. She stepped out, looking left and right in a moment of panic before she took off towards the right.<br/><br/>Killing the demon and escaping the cell had been the easy part; getting out of Hell undetected? Not so much.<br/><br/>But she wasn't going to be taken captive; not again. So with a high jump, Ariel spread her wings and took off, her eyes scanning for a way to escape her prison.</span>