The Angel That Could Not Fly

The Angel That Could Not Fly
(Carol’s Story)
written by
J.T. Brandon


Long, long ago and far, far away there was a most magical village of Evol nestled deep in the heart of the kingdom of Srorrimon. Evol was a very special village indeed; for it was the last terrestrial domain where Angels lived among mortals. Only those with the innocence of a child or the pure heart of a lover could pass freely through its gates. So loving were the people of Evol that Angels resided there in perfect harmony with their mortal friends since time immemorial. Those that lived within the village of Evol reflected the beauty and serenity of their lives in their smiles and their souls. Evol was the most wonderful place imaginable and all who had knowledge of it sought to live there.

Under the seventh moon, during the season of the Sun, unto this land was born the most beautiful angel ever beheld. She was named Lorac, daughter of Melc and Annaibaf. Lorac lived in the house of Droces with 11 siblings comprised of 3 sisters and 8 brothers. Lorac’s father, Melc did not have an angelic ancestry. Annaibaf, Lorac’s mother could only recall one angel in her lineage born unto her great, great grandmother. An ornate gold locket had been passed down from generation to generation in the lineage of Annaibaf to be worn by the next angel daughter. The sacred locket was to be placed on her neck to remain there forever. Lorac was the next angel daughter born unto the house of Droces and therefore the locket was placed on her neck never to be removed. The locket was etched with twelve symbols not of the native tongue of the kingdom of Srorrimon and no one had ever decoded the encrypted message.

Lorac was loved and revered by her family and friends. The house of Droces was known in the village of Evol as not possessing monetary wealth and the blessed birth of an angel brought great pride to the modest family. All that knew of the angel would travel to the house of Droces to gaze upon the child.

This beautiful angel child only too quickly grew to become a charming young angel woman. Lorac’s graces were well known throughout the land; all of the eligible suitors knew of her trusting soft brown eyes, her flowing hair like the mane of a lioness, her hypnotic smile and her goddess like form. Of the young bachelors of Evol who sought the hand of the angel Lorac, only one was successful in capturing her interest. He was the mortal called Trebor from the house of Senoj. Trebor was not well known in the village of Evol; however Annaibaf knew of the wealth of the house of Senoj and therefore supported his intentions. Lorac, having the heart and soul of an angel, could only see the good in Trebor. Her own lineage would not let her realize that Trebor was not to be trusted, for the house of Senoj was known to lack the love and commitment needed to partner with an angel. Trebor wanted the hand of Lorac in a jealous way. He became obsessed with the beautiful woman angel and wanted her for his own. It became more important to Trebor to ensure that no other mortal would have her than it was for him to truly love her. Lorac could not realize nor understand the jealousy of Trebor. Lorac partnered with Trebor and she was soon with child. Plans were made for the two to marry during the third moon in the season of Renewal.

Now it should be known that Melc and Annaibaf, not being experienced in raising angels, were not aware of two very serious consequences of their daughter Lorac entering into marriage with Trebor. Firstly; if the love between Lorac and Trebor was not a pure and honest love, then the two would be banished from the village of Evol for as long as the two were wed. Secondly, and equally as devastating was that an angel is only granted the right of flight when she reaches the age of three decades plus four and is loved unconditionally by her partner.

Lacking this ancestral knowledge, but knowing Trebor to be the father of Lorac’s unborn child, Melc and Annaibaf blessed the marriage plans of Lorac to Trebor. And so, the two were wed during the third moon in the season of Renewal.

Over the next 5 cycles of the seasons, Lorac bore two beautiful daughters for Trebor; albeit rare; both were angels. Having two angel daughters born unto the same family in the village of Evol was almost unheard of. Normally this would have brought great pride and personal wealth to the family of Senoj but Tebor had become even more obsessed with Lorac and was not pleased with the birth of his angel daughters. Trebor wanted all of Lorac’s attention and was not willing to share even her maternal love for her children. This jealousy of Trebor’s quickly became apparent throughout the kingdom and following a meeting with the elders, Trebor, Lorac and their daughters Cim and Lek of the house of Senoj were banished from the village of Evol.

Lorac was greatly shamed by her family’s banishment from Evol and she lamented over her family’s loss. But Lorac could not blame Trebor for she loved him with the heart of an angel. Lorac decided that she would try very hard to please Trebor and continue to be a loving mother to her young angels.

Lorac was equally shamed that she was unable to use her wings to fly; a fact that Trebor was only too quick to point out when he was displeased with her. Under the cloak of darkness, Lorac would attempt to use her angelic wings to fly but alas, she could not. Her wings had become weak and could not support her now fragile form. No matter how she tried she could not fly. She could not rise above her terrestrial prison that Trebor continued to build around her. While lying in her cold bed, between tears of loneliness, Lorac would pray to her God to free her from her pain. She could not see the jealousy of Trebor through her angel eyes and she thought perhaps she was to blame for her loneliness. Lorac was convinced that she could not fly because of some crime she had committed; some marital deed she had not completed; surely this was a punishment that she deserved and must endure.

For many seasons, Lorac accepted her gilded cage as the life she was meant to live. She concentrated on the well being of those around her and she practiced her angelic ways when friends and family were in need. She raised her daughters to be beautiful young angels. Both Cim and Lek found love with fine young mortal men from the village of Evol. Their loves were pure and on their birthday of 3 decades plus four, both of Lorac’s angel daughters spread their wings for the first time and were able to fly from the bonds of Trebor. It was a bittersweet moment for Lorac each time one of her angels flew to freedom and returned to the village of Evol. Lorac was pleased that her daughters could fly and that they had a pure love but even her angelic heart could not protect her from the longing to also be free. Why could she not use her wings to fly? Why must she be punished so long for something that she did not understand?

Lorac kept in close contact with her mother Annaibaf, whom she loved dearly. Annaibaf, weak with illness, came to stay with Lorac during her last days. Lorac remained by her mother’s side for weeks as she slowly released her grip on life. The two talked of many things as she lay dying; Annaibaf confided in Lorac of her displeasure in the way Trebor had treated her and how she hoped that one day her little angel would be able to use her wings to fly away from him. Before Annaibaf passed away she told to Lorac a life’s lesson that her mother had told to her, ”To become truly free, you must reflect upon yourself”. Lorac took this last bit of advice from Annaibaf very seriously and in the years to come always looked within her self for the answers to life’s questions. Lorac truly believed that she was to blame for her failed marriage and she continued to love Trebor more than she loved herself.

The passing of Annaibaf was a painful loss for Lorac and she knew that she must find a way to break free of the prison that Trebor had created for her. But alas, her angelic heart forgave Trebor for his wrong doings. By this time Trebor had become so completely consumed by his control over Lorac that the little angel often thought of death as a way to fly to freedom.

Lorac had suffered great losses during her life; the loss of her home in Evol; the failure of her marriage, the death of Annaibaf; the lack of love that angels so desperately seek and the reality that she would never fly. Surely she had displeased her God so completely that she must be punished forever!

Lorac was not aware that her God had been by her side since the day she was born unto Annaibaf. Her God had listened to her every prayer. Her God had watched and waited for the right moment when Lorac would be free to give herself to a pure love. You see; an angel cannot turn away from a love that she has committed to, no matter what the consequences, until she has exhausted all possibilities of that love becoming pure. Only after every attempt has been made, can an angel leave a committed relationship with the grace of her God. As an angel, Lorac knew this instinctively.

Lorac spent one hundred seasons desperately trying to change Trebor’s jealous love to a pure love but she could not. Finally, Lorac had exhausted all possibilities available to her. In desperation and the need to survive, she left Trebor and the house of Senoj during the seventh moon in the season of the Sun. She travelled alone finding her way back to the gates of the village of Evol. To Lorac’s surprise, she was welcomed into the village by all who knew her. She could not understand why she was allowed into the village when her God had punished her for so long. Surely she was no longer pure of heart. Lorac stayed with her brother Noj in the house of Droces as she healed from her losses.

One day, Lorac’s brother Noj invited his friend Ret to come to his home to break bread with his family. Ret was not sure he could accept this kind offer but a higher force guided him to leave his work and attend his friend’s dwelling. Although Noj and Ret had been friends for many years, that evening when Ret entered his friend’s house of Droces, he saw Lorac for the very first time. Her smile took Ret’s breath away; he could tell from the radiance of her beauty that she was an angel. Lorac and Ret fell into conversation of their pasts, their futures, their wants and desires as though the two had known each other for many seasons. Surely her God had brought these two together.

Ret and Lorac were inseparable for a complete moon. Lorac learned to laugh again, to cry again and to love again. The two fell deeply in love and their love was a pure love.

But still poor Lorac could not fly. She would try in the confidence of darkness to spread her wings to fly but she could not. Lorac could not understand her dilemma. Her angel daughters had flown to safety from the house of Senoj when they turned 3 decades plus 4 and yet she could not fly herself. Her love was pure with Ret and yet she still could not fly. How could her own lineage, her own Mother and her own God forbid her of an angel’s right to flight? Lorac never complained to Ret of her inner turmoil but their love was pure and Ret was aware that Lorac was flightless although he never once mentioned it.

After falling in love with the beautiful angel, Ret asked Lorac if she would accompany him to the kingdom of Srorrim, which was quite different from the kingdom of Srorrimon. Lorac thought it would be exciting and agreed to go. After half a globe of travel, the two arrived in Srorrim where they planned to stay for 7 suns. Lorac was exhausted from travelling and decided to retire. Ret heard a blood curdling scream from Lorac and he ran to her side. Lorac was sitting on the edge of the bed looking straight ahead as if she had seen a ghostly figure. Ret called to her several times before she acknowledged him even being in the room.

“What is wrong my love?” begged Ret.
“Why are you so fearful?”
“Look to the wall” cried Lorac in a terrified voice.
“What form is this before us that we see?” she begged.
“Why, it is we two my darling.” assured Ret.
“You are looking at our reflections in a mirror!”

“My dearest Lorac” Ret explained, “There are no mirrors in Srorrimon, but in Srorrim almost every room has a mirror. Have you never seen a mirror before?”

Lorac had never travelled before and had never vacationed with Trebor. Lorac replied cautiously grasping on to Ret’s shoulder, “No my darling. I have never seen my image in a mirror before. I have never seen my own beauty nor the beauty of my wings. I have never seen the colour of my eyes nor the way my hair falls across my neck. This is so new to me; it is truly overwhelming”.

Ret held his angel in his arms as she cried tears of joy at her revelation that indeed she was a beautiful angel woman as she had always hoped.

Ret had known all along Lorac had never been to the kingdom of Srorrim and had never seen her image in a mirror. He knew that Lorac must look upon herself to heal from the pain of her losses. As Lorac gained her composure, Ret went to her side and held her hand ever so gently.

“Lorac my love, I confess that I have brought you here to confront your fears and
for you to look upon your beauty for the first time. Your joy makes my heart sing and
for this reason I share tears of joy with you, but I have one more request of you this day.”

“What is your request my dearest Ret”, Lorac replied. “For I will do anything you ask of me; you have brought me such joy!”

“Lorac; I want you to read your locket as it appears in the mirror and then I swear I will never ask another thing of you that is so painful”.

In the many seasons that Lorac had worn the locket no one in the kingdom of Srorrimon had been able to understand it. She held the locket in her hand and looked directly at the inscription: “ F L E S R U O Y E V O L.“ How could this scramble of symbols mean anything she thought. Lorac looked into the mirror before her. It was the first time she saw this particular view of her sacred locket given to her by Annaibaf so many dreams ago. Lorac slowly read the inscription to Ret.

“L O V E Y O U R S E L F” read Lorac astonished. She held the locket close to her heart as she fell to the bed in tears.

Ret held Lorac for hours rocking her in his arms while she shed tears for all the pain held in her heart for so many seasons. Lorac cried for a full sun until she came to the realization that she was not to blame for her failed marriage. With this newfound freedom all her pain was gone. When Lorac was still and all her tears had been shed she stood in front of the mirror and saw a most miraculous sight.

Her beautiful wings had become strong and were fully open!

Her pain was gone and she felt strong and independent. For the first time since Annaibaf had placed the locket on her neck, Lorac felt confident that she could fly. Lorac held her hand out to Ret who sat nearby watching with astonishment the peaceful glow that emitted from her face.

“Ret, my sly fox” said Lorac calmly, “You have known this all along; you knew that I have always had the power to fly but I needed to love myself first. I have had the power through my ancestry; my mother gave to me the secret of my flight the first day I was born when she placed this locket on my neck and again just before she passed away telling me to reflect upon myself. Ret, you knew I needed to see myself for who I really am before I could fly. Thank you dearest Ret; for these are the reasons that I love you so.”

“Ret, will you accompany me to the balcony?” beckoned Lorac.

Ret took the hand of his love and went with her to the balcony. He had never seen her beauty so clearly before. Lorac held Ret’s hand as she climbed to the railing. He could feel her small hand trembling in his. Could she fly after so many seasons had passed? The morning sun shone threw the soft white feathering of Lorac’s wings as Ret stood silent. Lorac turned to Ret and smiled one of those smiles that only an angel can and she fell from sight over the balcony’s edge.

Ret rushed to the balcony edge; not in fear but rather to see his love’s first flight. He knew as he had known all along! Yes, Lorac could fly! After all those seasons she could indeed fly! A great joy filled Ret’s heart as he watched his angel play as a child angel might; hiding in the clouds and chasing rainbows. Ret’s eyes filled with tears of joy as Lorac waved to him from the heavens.

Ret watched enviously from the safety of the balcony as his beautiful angel flew silently for hours. He knew that now Lorac loved him more than she needed him. He knew that they would indeed have a pure love for as long as they both would live.

Lorac flew every day from that day forward which of course is the birth right of all angels. Ret and Lorac lived happily ever after in the village of Evol near her angel daughters and their families. From time to time, Lorac and her daughters Cim and Lek would go flying together as angels do; something that they enjoyed sharing perhaps more than most angels!

Ret and Lorac lived together and loved together for many seasons. Their God, so happy that his angel had found a pure love, granted Ret and Lorac's final wishes. During the fourth moon of the season of the Sun, Ret and Lorac passed away in their sleep while they held each other. The two had asked this of their God because they could not bear to live even one day without the other. Unbeknownst to Ret, many years before on the day of her first flight, Lorac had made a special request to her God. It was an unselfish request as would be expected from an angel and was therefore happily granted.

Every year on the anniversary of Lorac and Ret’s death, during the fourth moon of the season of the Sun, Lorac’s special request is granted. On this day, if you are pure of heart, look carefully to the heavens and you will see Laroc and Ret flying together hiding in clouds and chasing rainbows. You will know them, for Lorac is the angel wearing the locket.