《Grant Me Thy Arrow》


 [Chapter 0 - Prologue]

    ¡°What did you do this time, Cupid?¡± A small boy with wings on his back flew over, landing on the soft clouds that cushioned his feet. He had hair the colour of sunshine and eyes that reached as deep as the sea. He was wearing a white toga and sandals that strapped perfectly around his feet like they were made just for him.


    A light giggle rang in the sky, like the soft tinkling of silver bells. ¡°Me? I didn¡¯t do anything, Michael. You know me, I¡¯d never do anything that¡¯d get me in trouble,¡± came a cheeky response. It was from a chubby baby sitting comfortably on an adjacent cloud. His feet were dangling off the edge of the cloud and he swung them back and forth without a care in the world. On his face hung a childish grin that complemented the playful glint dancing in his eyes. He was dressed in the same attire as the boy and had wings on his back too. Compared to the young boy, this baby was of a much rounder frame. If he hugged his knees to his chest, he would really look like a perfectly shaped peach. But the most obvious difference between them was the bow and arrows strapped to the rotund baby¡¯s back.


    A faint scoff could be heard in response and rolling of eyes that seemed to be audible too. The young boy named Michael clearly knew it would be too good to be true if the baby hadn¡¯t made a ruckus today. Heaven was basically Hell with Cupid around. If sinful souls thought being sent to Hell for the worldly sins they committed was sheer torture, having to dance around in Cupid¡¯s palm would be even worse. Spending a day with Cupid would eat away at one¡¯s lifespan and they¡¯d be grateful for every little thing that happened in their lives, even the bad experiences they might¡¯ve had in the past. Nothing, absolutely nothing, could compare to the tragedy Cupid brought to others. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    But to say Cupid was sheerly and utterly pure evil was an over exaggeration. Cupid merely fell on the scale of extreme mischievousness. He didn¡¯t act with the intention to harm, but merely to satisfy his own cravings to play tricks. He found joy in other people¡¯s momentary sufferings, a term loosely used because it was more of driving them round in circles and up the wall. Their annoyance was his satisfaction and joy, the nectar to quench his thirst. And the worst part was his actions were justifiable and permitted by the top brass. In fact, they were the ones who gave him his current role and free reign over his antics. He was the trickster, the jester, their lackey, and their naughtiest child. Even so, everyone highly valued the work he did, though sometimes he would take things one step too far.


    ¡°Well, if you really must know, I¡¯ll tell you what happened. But before you get to hear my wonderful tales, what¡¯s that on your head, Michael?¡± A larger grin curled up on Cupid¡¯s face as he pointed at Michael¡¯s head. The young boy frowned, unable to comprehend what Cupid was questioning him about. But that frown quickly turned to panic as he felt something cold on his head. A sinking feeling dawned on him and his sixth sense told him he shouldn¡¯t touch whatever it was precisely because he couldn¡¯t see it.


    Michael waved his hand and a cloud appeared in front of him. Water droplets condensed to form a thin, shiny layer, reflecting Michael¡¯s appearance within.


    ¡°CUPID!!! WHAT DID YOU DO?!¡± Michael roared, cheeks flushed red with anger. His golden locks were no longer golden, nor were they locks. Instead, a huge, slimy red octopus was wriggling and caressing his crown!

 [Chapter 1 - Alcohol or Waterfall?]

    ¡°Hey Mimi, why do you think I always get dumped?¡± A woman asked, her voice slurred. She was slumped over the bar counter, resting her head on one arm dejectedly. She gazed sideways at the beer glass sitting in front of her, watching as the dim lights bounced off the glistening water droplets. With her free hand, she trailed her slender fingertips along a falling droplet before it disappeared into a puddle under the frosted glass.


    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault, Jian. Well¡­ I mean¡­ Maybe it is? You¡¯ve never had strong feelings for the guys you were in a relationship with. I just think, maybe, you were unfair to them. They threw themselves at you, but with your cold exterior and demeanor, it¡¯s no surprise they¡¯d eventually give up.¡± The woman named Mimi helplessly shook her head, her short red locks bobbing around her cute rounded head. She reached out and grabbed her bottle of cider and took a sip before looking at the forlorn figure seated on the bar stool to her left. Under the dim, sensual lights of the bar, her friend looked exquisitely beautiful. The sad vibe surrounding her seemed to bring out a different kind of beauty to her otherwise average looking self.


    Jian sighed in response and grabbed the handle of the glass before chugging the foamy beverage down her throat. She couldn¡¯t deny what her friend said because somewhere deep in her mind, she agreed with Mimi. The reason why her ex-boyfriends dumped her was as clear as day. Her detachment and distrust towards all of them was reason enough for anyone to call it off. All of her friends could see it, and so could she. But she was in a constant state of denial, refusing to admit that she was incapable of feeling as human as they did.


    ¡°Hey! Hey! You¡¯re going to get wasted if you drink so quickly. I don¡¯t want to be hauling your drunk ass back to your apartment and have you vomiting all over me!¡± Mimi frantically cried out as she snatched the glass away from Jian. Her friend mumbled something out in protest, fumbling to take her drink back but failed. Mimi shook her head and looked at the bartender apologetically as she handed him the half-empty glass. The bartender gave her a slight smile in response, as though this was something he was used to seeing every night.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    ¡°It still hurts, though. Mimi, it hurts. My heart. It hurts. I don¡¯t know how much heartache I can take anymore. Every time I think he¡¯s the one and I¡¯m about to open up to him, he¡­¡± Jian¡¯s voice cracked as she struggled to find the words to express herself. ¡°Every single one of them end things with me. I can¡¯t act weak like other girls do, I can¡¯t pamper them like other girls do. But I did have feelings for them, just like any other girl out there!¡± Jian cried out as tears started swelling around the edge of her eyes. Her face was flushed. Was she drunk, or was she so emotionally driven? Maybe it was a mixture of both, but with the faint scent of alcohol lingering around her, it was hard to tell.


    ¡°I can¡¯t take it anymore. I don¡¯t want this¡­ this thing called love. I don¡¯t need it. Who needs love anyway? I sure as hell don¡¯t need it. All that¡¯s going to happen is me getting hurt anyway, so what¡¯s the use?! They¡¯ll all cheat and go for girls that fawn over them and nod their heads like obedient does! Ah...¡± Jian slurred out, the tears accumulating around her eyes finally breaking loose out of their sockets and trailing down her reddened face. She slumped over the bar counter again, banging her forehead haphazardly along its edges.


    Mimi draped her hand around her friend¡¯s shoulders and rubbed her left arm gently. She really pitied her friend, she really did. Jian wasn¡¯t a bad person, that much she knew after getting to know her over the years. Of course, it wasn¡¯t easy for Mimi to associate herself with Jian because Jian had what was known as the standard ¡°resting bitch face¡±. No doubt, Mimi was terrified of Jian when she first met her in college. It never would¡¯ve crossed her mind that they would end up being close friends after so many years. In fact, Jian was the only other friend she still kept in contact with after all of them parted their separate ways. How they became friends was a story left for another day because right now her dearest friend had her heart broken again and was passed out drunk.


    ¡°Jian, hey Jian, wake up! ¡­ Seriously?! After all that, you¡¯re going to make me carry you back again???¡±

 [Chapter 2 - Upstigans?]

    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you followed them back,¡± Michael said, glancing at Cupid from the corner of his eyes as he delicately removed the octopus from his head. He didn¡¯t do so with his hands though because no way in Heaven was he going to touch that disgustingly slimy animal with his bare hands. The red squirming sea creature was now floating several meters above his head. In its place was his beautiful golden hair that reached his nape along with some kind of barrier stopping the octopus¡¯ juices from dripping down on him. A faint golden light shone on him after he twirled his finger and flapped the white wings on his back. The first motion was to return the octopus to where it rightfully belonged whilst the second was to dry his soggy hair.


    Cupid stifled a laugh as he watched how Michael repugnantly treated his dear pet. He knew how his fellow Angel was somewhat of an automysophobic. Actually, that might be an extreme term to use. He just really disliked getting dirty or coming in contact with anything that seemed to be remotely dirty. In any case, Cupid love messing around with Michael because his reactions were comedy gold. At least, in his eyes they were.


    ¡°What do you think? Obviously, I did. Now, I wouldn¡¯t be Cupid if I didn¡¯t, right?¡¯ Cupid clicked his tongue and shook his head disapprovingly. ¡°You know me. I¡¯ll go down to Earth as and when I like. Celestial beings bore me. Humans, on the other hand, are more interesting, don¡¯t you think so? Look, they¡¯re at our mercy. We can control them as we please and bend their will to our every bidding. What humours me even more is that they can¡¯t see us. They think it¡¯s this imaginary thing called fate controlling their lives when it¡¯s actually just us tugging at their puppet strings.¡± The playful expression on Cupid¡¯s face was momentarily gone and in its place was nothingness. Michael couldn¡¯t read the brief blank sheet on Cupid¡¯s face, but it wasn¡¯t long before his mischievous friend had an impish smile hanging on his lips again. It was rare for Cupid to be anything but jovial, so Michael was puzzled when Cupid learned to have such a strange emptiness to the vivid play his facial expressions would act out.


    There were things Angels couldn¡¯t do and wouldn¡¯t do, purely because it was in their nature not to do so. They would not pry into another Angel¡¯s past unless the situation called for it, but that too was extremely rare. The reason being that an Angel¡¯s past revealed all their weaknesses and most importantly, their true name when they were human.


    Transcendent beings from Heaven and Hell were all humans in the past. It was some strange ritual the Upstigans had to go through before immortality became their one and only reality. The way this worked was that unlike normal humans whose lives would end after they circled the cycle of life and sealed the loop with death, the death of these otherworldly beings would signify their rebirth. Their souls would return to the hollow shells up above or down below where their lives would continue, but not as they once knew it to be. Surprisingly, most of them didn¡¯t hold any attachment to their past lives. They bore the memories of their human selves, yet their ties were severed. It was just like an out-of-body experience, a faraway dream even. They would view their memories through someone else¡¯s eyes as though it was something that felt familiar yet foreign and distant.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    The logic behind this ritual was for them to experience worldly sufferings so that they wouldn¡¯t commit the same mistakes humans did. After all, with great power came even greater responsibilities. Angels were the saviours of humanity, whereas Demons were punishers of the damned. They were to judge humanity and balance out the scale of good and evil. One might think a world consisting solely of good would be a utopia, but reality wasn¡¯t so kind. Humans were made to suffer and it didn¡¯t matter how self-content one was because at the end of the day, they had their own breaking points. Moreover, humans weren¡¯t engineered to be exact carbon copies of the perfect human. If they were, wouldn¡¯t they just be robots who had no sense of identity?


    Back to the point at hand, Upstigans were clear slates when they were reborn, but the strongest mortal fear lingering in their souls would be their Achilles heel as Angels or Demons. That wasn¡¯t all. Knowing a Upstigan¡¯s true name would mean being able to look up their past and binding them to a mortal body. Both were equally terrifying, but binding transcendent beings to a mortal body would mean making them go through another round of suffering. No matter how Demons loved punishing people, going through mortal suffering would be the worst punishment they could get. For Angels, they¡¯d like to live without any pain if necessary. Cupid¡¯s pranks were harmless. Sure, they were annoying but he didn¡¯t wish harm upon them. But with an eternity to kill, what was he to do if not play pranks on his fellow friends and poor, unsuspecting humans?


    ¡°You know we¡¯re not supposed to tamper with humans for fun, Cupid. That¡¯s not our job. They¡¯re fragile beings that need patient guidance. We¡¯re meant to observe them and put things in the right place when they fall out of order,¡± Michael chided, but knew his words would fall on deaf ears.


    ¡°Yes, Mother Michael. We must abide by the rules blah blah blah. But where¡¯s the fun in that?! Surely you must think it¡¯s fun to toy around with humans. As long as the scales are balanced, anything goes! You know what makes humans tick. Love!¡± Cupid winked and kicked himself off his cloud. He flew over to Michael¡¯s side and swung his arm around his friend¡¯s neck, catching him in a loose neck lock. ¡°Love, Michael, love! Don¡¯t you see what love can do to humans? Love can do wonders! It can make or break a person and that¡¯s what fascinates me so. It¡¯s my new project and really, I can¡¯t wait to see what happens. Humans, they¡¯re really so stupid it¡¯s riveting. ¡± Cupid¡¯s eyes sparkled as though he¡¯d found the most precious gem.


    Michael rolled his eyes at the nickname his friend gave him and sighed in exasperation at the overflowing excitement oozing out of Cupid¡¯s wings. Clearly, he didn¡¯t share the same sentiment. But no matter, Cupid would narrate his adventures whether Michael liked to hear them or not. ¡°Leave the humans alone, Cupid. But why do I bother? You¡¯re not going to listen to me anyway, so do continue your story so I can leave before the sun sets.¡±