Read Online Archangel Evolution by David Estes - Free Book Online

moldable child that he had hoped to use for a
few specific purposes and then throw out with the trash. Now the
boy was an enigma. A question mark. An unsolvable Rubix Cube.
Dionysus liked that the boy was ruthless, like he was, but he was
also unpredictable. The margin for error in the War had grown so
slim that Dionysus couldn’t afford to have loose cannons on his
side of the battlefield. But he also didn’t want to destroy David
either, because his instincts told him that there was something
truly special about him, something that if harnessed and honed
could give the angels the edge, and help them finally defeat the
demons once and for all. The way he had shut up Johanna was a prime
example of what he was capable of. He wished he had David around
for the past few years. Johanna and Sarah’s girl-power duet had
been a thorn in his side on numerous occasions, making it difficult
for him to get plans finalized, strategies ratified. If he had had
David, he could have simply tapped the kid on the shoulder,
signaling him to spout threats until they gave in.
    No, the boy was not a good guinea pig. He
had, however, considered using the newest member of his inner
circle, the one who with a whip of her blond locks and a seductive
smile could steal the hearts of most mortal men—Cassandra. He was
most inclined to use her because she was a woman. From
experience—particularly from his dealings with Johanna and
Sarah—women were a liability. A chauvinist by nature, Dionysus
believed women were most valuable for sex and child-rearing. Rarely
did they have leadership potential. That being said, he thought
Cassandra might be an exception. By her actions thus far, she had
demonstrated her unquestionable loyalty. As for the leadership
potential, before Dionysus had selected her, she was already a
rising star in the angel army. He would hate to waste such talent
if his little experiment went awry.
    Clearly he wouldn’t choose one of the current
Archangels, although Johanna and Sarah provided some temptation,
nor were any of them stupid enough to agree to it. That left Lucas. Ahhh, Lucas , he thought. His do-it-all guy, his yes-angel,
his new Gabriel. The truth was, while Lucas would score a 10 for
tenacity, dedication, and demon hatred, he was likely near the back
of the line when they were handing out brains. Unfortunately, he
wasn’t half as smart as Gabriel, but at least he wasn’t a traitor.
Lucas was someone Dionysus could trust, and he would readily agree
to the experiment, regardless of the dangers. If the experiment was
a monumental disaster, it would be a small loss as Lucas was highly
replaceable, and if it was a success, Dionysus could count on Lucas
to wait patiently for the rest of them to undergo the same
procedure before he did anything stupid.
    Just as Dionysus was thinking that his guests
should arrive any minute, the large portal at the south end of the
room opened without so much as a creak. The double-trio entered
ceremoniously in order of seniority. Percy followed Sarah, who
followed Johanna to round out the Archangels from the old regime,
and his newest Archangels came in height order—Lucas, Cassandra,
David—which was, coincidentally, in order of age and army
experience as well.
    Each of the Archangels had one thing in
common at the moment: They were swiveling their heads around and
around, taking in the unequivocal beauty of the room in admiration
and awe. That is, except for David, whose eyes never left
Dionysus’s. The smallest angel in the room was smiling. Not a
wow-this-is-so-fun-being-an-Archangel smile, nor a childish
I-smile-at-everything smile; instead, it was a knowing smile. Like
he was inside Dionysus’s head and knew exactly what the room had
been built for and who it would be tested on. The smile, while
located on the face of a school boy, was a far cry from a school
boy smile. It was intense, rather than happy-go-lucky; heavy and
dense, rather than pure; evil, rather than good. Dionysus