Uriel and Ellie were watching Adriel, who was producing yellow petals to bloom from the bark of a tree. Coming closer, the vibrant flowers released a sweet scent under the warmth of the sun. It reminded me of the first time I encountered Zeekiel in his bird form, and I couldn’t help but marvel at the sight, just as I had then.

  Uriel praised his young sidekick after Adriel had finished his task, allowing him to take a break. “You may go play now,” the giant said, letting the boy keep the scythe, before turning to us with a smile. “Dana didn’t stay with you?”

  “She had to go out for a bit,” Zeekiel answered.

  As my thoughts lingered on the enchanted scene, Uriel turned back to me, a hint of concern in his voice as he said, “Oh well, I was looking forward to seeing her. I wanted to discuss relocating you with her. I’m worried about keeping you safe without a barrier,” he replied. “Archons can do as they please because we don’t use the source the way humans do.”

  Confused, I glanced over to Zeekiel and Ellie for clarification, and noticed Raziel was still on the fringe of our grouping.

  “Using magic,” my dark winged escort explained, moving purposefully in front of Raziel.

  “Can I do magic?” I asked eagerly, my previous dread fading as I turned back to Uriel.

  “Possibly,” Uriel said. “I explained some of it the last time we talked, when I told you to keep your necklace on.”

  “The guardian angel thing?” I asked.

  “Mmm, yes,” the giant hummed. “Once you find angels meeting your level who share an aligned aeon, then you’ll be able to take a vow with them, swapping those portions of your souls, you’ll start gaining more powers,” Uriel explained. As Uriel raised his black-gloved hand, a glint of excitement danced in his eye. “That reminds me why I wanted you to come. I have something for you.” He beckoned us to accompany him further to where he leaned down to reach into the crevice at the bottom of an enormous rock structure.

  My heart pounded with anticipation as I watched Zeekiel and Ellie help Uriel pull out and lower down a long wooden chest from the dirt.

  I caught Zeekiel glancing at me before Uriel said to me, “It’s yours now.” The giant’s voice was gentle despite his deep, rumbling voice. “Well, go ahead and open it. You’ll find it interesting,” he urged to my hesitation.

  Caked in moist soil, I unlatched the rusted clasps, and as the lid swung open, Zeekiel stepped back, allowing Raziel to take his place.

  Inside, the wood was still polished and the bubbled-up blue fabric within appeared pristine, although with some small fragments of dried foliage and twigs scattered throughout. Puzzled by its odd shape beneath the cloth, I unraveled the folds around what seemed like branches.

  “Sorry,” the giant said, leaning in and tearing everything away for me. “I’m realizing how long it’s been boxed up. Oh, yeah…That’s a lot of growth.”

  He broke off some thick twigs to reveal a metal blade beneath it before he handed it to me. The top blade was a sideways crescent with much of it covered in bark, and the only uncovered part was a smaller upside-down crescent fork at the bottom.

  My face sunk into the leaves as I held onto the warm wood. Fresh white flower petals were everywhere, releasing an inviting scent reminiscent of my mom’s perfume.

  “Should you really be giving her that?” Ellie questioned, raising an eyebrow at the giant.

  “This is hers,” Uriel said, gesturing to me as he leaned back against the rock.

  “Yeah, but it’s what they’re looking for,” she muttered softly.

  He shrugged and calmly asserted, “They’ll get it one way or another if she’s captured. At least this way it’ll be useful to us.”

  “What exactly is this?” I asked, examining the notches that appeared to once be carved details.

  “The Moon Staff, it’s one of the ten Celestial Guards, just as the scythe is. The archons chosen to hold them were to keep peace and stability to all the Worlds under The Kingdom. Both you and that Guard possess Saniel’s soul; it’s yours.”

  My eyes widened in shock as I beheld an object that could only be produced from my dreams. I couldn’t help but imagine what the hero previous to me was like holding such a weapon.

  The weight of responsibility to help them pressed the question, “What can it do?”

  “Its abilities are limited until you find the right teachers to vow with,” he said. “For now, Elliel will teach you how to defend yourself. As the holder, you already possess the ability to release consumed ones.”

  “No way!” The petite young woman beside him exclaimed in disbelief.

  “It’s a perfect pairing,” Uriel argued, turning his attention towards her specifically. “The consumed ones can’t harm Zeekiel; they only crave archons that haven’t been infected yet. You’re not immune. Arianna, on the other hand, is safe from them. Together, you can protect each other.”

  Excitement coursed through me at the thought of being able to fight back. “Yes! I want to learn,” I asserted eagerly.

  Ellie shook her head adamantly. “You don’t need to,” she insisted before turning back to Uriel. “I can protect her. Don’t let his incompetence make me look bad.” The metal lady’s eyes slitted in Zeekiel’s direction.

  Zeekiel opened his mouth, ready to react, but Uriel physically dismissed their argument by waving his gloved hand between the two of them.

  “That’s not it at all,” the giant said. “I just don’t want to see you lose an opportunity to gain more strength.”

  “You too?” Ellie said as her fingers tightened into fists at her sides. “I’m strong enough.”

  He stepped closer, his eye searching hers. “I know your strength and capabilities. That’s not it at all.”

  A flicker of frustration crossed her face before she looked away. “I’m not helpless.” Uriel reached out, but she stepped back.

  His hand hovered in the air for a moment before he let it drop. “Alright, but remember, I’m here if you need me.”

  She threw up her hood and shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket before she spoke. “May I go now?”

  The giant nodded and allowed her to leave without a fuss.

  The metal lady picked up her pace as she walked away, her steps brushing across the grass echoed in the quiet. We watched her leave until Raziel called after her, his voice breaking the stillness. “Ellie, wait!”

  Zeekiel and Uriel shared a glance of surprise, as the four-winged prince attempted to pick up his pace to keep up with her.

  The eye-patched, hobbling giant turned back to Zeekiel with an exasperated sigh. “I need you to keep both Dana and Arianna safe for now.”

  Zeekiel’s tanned shoulders lifted to a shrug. “That’s fine. What ruffled Ellie’s feathers?”

  “I was hoping Elliel would train, Arianna. I talked to her about when Arianna chose to stay and she’s been distant ever since.”

  Uriel and Zeekiel glanced over towards Ellie and the four-winged angel walking off. Raziel was close to her, consuming her petite body behind his wings.

  “She’s distracted,” the dark-winged void mumbled.

  “Let her be,” Uriel advised. “If she’s comfortable talking to him, then so be it. She’ll come around.”

  Zeekiel agreed before I bobbed my head towards him. “What about you? Can you show me how to fight?”

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  My escort studied me before saying, “Out of luck there. I can’t teach you what I use. Anyway, if that blade touches me, I’m done for.” He pointed to the bottom crescent fork close to his bare foot and urged, “So be careful.”

  “What are you, a consumed one?” I said sarcastically, moving it away from him.

  A smirk lifted on his lips and eyed me cheekily. “Did you think I was an angel?”

  “Oh…I just assumed,” I said, feeling the heat at the tips of my ears.

  I must have looked as embarrassed as I felt as he offered, “Don’t worry; you’re not wrong. That’s what the Guard does, it kills angels. Remember that monster you saw in your room?” I nodded slowly. “It was an angel once. That’s what the sickness is. It devours their body using their soul to create the beasts they turn into. I’m what happens when someone aligns with the ink; a demon.”

  As Zeekiel revealed the truth of what the Guard did, I couldn’t help but feel a mix of emotions. The monsters I was supposed to kill were once angels, the same as those who were helping me.

  The embarrassment of not piecing it together sooner overshadowed a different thought. He said he was a demon, yet he seemed harmless compared to the monster that attacked my mom.

  “Zeekiel,” Uriel said, looking at him sharply with his one eye.

  “What?” he said. “I’m not going to hurt anyone.”

  “No reason to talk about it, then,” Uriel offered. “I need to feel secure that you won’t cause problems at Dana’s.”

  “Don’t think I’m capable? I saved her twice now.” He put up two fingers and puffed up his wings. “That’s two more than Ellie.”

  “You’ve been nothing but a headache,” the giant admitted, stumbling, but accepted Zeekiel’s help for leverage before we walked back. “I also don’t like the fact you snatched Arianna before Elliel could take care of it. Surely scared and confused everyone with your stunt. I need to feel absolutely confident I can trust you,” Uriel offered.

  “I’m not going to hurt anyone,” the demon repeated as his violet eyes flicked quickly from me back to the ground.

  “Dana will let me know if he steps out of line until we can move you,” Uriel assured me.

  “Ellie needs to straighten out her feathers then,” Zeekiel mumbled. “Because I’m not following you guys back to the Sanctuary.”

  Uriel nodded. “I had a feeling you weren’t. We’ll have to take Arianna down to the other Sanctuary south.”

  “Sanctuary?” I inquired.

  The giant explained that he had a home back in place they called ‘The Ring’. “It’s a realm where the modern dragons live.”

  Zeekiel, who was now on the opposite side of Uriel, kept his eyes ahead and explained, “They have sanctuaries there for angels. It’s easier for them there.”

  “What about Dana?” I said.

  “That’s up to her,” Uriel explained.

  The pain of separation battled against the excitement of a new magical world. I was already still trying to cope with being separated from my home. Now I had this mystical tree branch thrust into my hands and tasked with learning how to slay monsters.

  As we were coming back, the entirety of the field ahead of us was filled with vibrant yellow flowers, so many that I thought for a moment that we were going in the wrong direction until I saw Adriel and Raziel standing together. The petals were larger and brighter than any flowers I’d seen before, stretching out like roads of gold.

  “What’s all this?” Zeekiel asked Raziel as he approached both of them first.

  “Adriel did it,” the four-winged angel replied proudly. “He could fill this entire area if he wanted to.”

  The petals felt silky under my fingers, their sweet fragrance pulling me in closer as Adriel beamed silently at the praise until Uriel came up behind us.

  “You teach him how to overdo it like this?” the giant asked over to Raziel.

  The prince looked confused. “Well, it was more encouraging than teaching.”

  “Try to be more mindful of how much energy he’s using. When he collapses, he’s asleep for days.”

  “With wings like he has?” Raziel asked skeptically.

  “He’s not like us,” Uriel started. “He’s still very strong, but prone to burnout.”

  “I already knew he wasn’t like us. He’s too young, but his wings are incredibly healthy,” the angel remarked. “Is he your son? What have you been feeding him? And what was the mother like?”

  Uriel seemed reluctant, but he answered regardless. “Yes, he’s mine. But there is no mother because he wasn’t born, he was created.”

  “Ah,” Raziel responded, disappointed. “I gather that means there’s not much of you left inside that robe.”

  Uriel’s eye widened in surprise before his lips turned up into a smirk. “Still enough left,” he said casually.

  “How did you gain the energy to do this?” Raziel asked with an edge of suspicion.

  “Something that’s no longer usable,” Uriel replied.

  “Why go through that? You’re lucky you’ve survived.”

  Uriel sighed. “I’m sick, anyway. There isn’t much more time until I’ll have to be released myself. Someone still needs to be around to help carry on the scythe.”

  Zeekiel next to me huffed and started to walk away. Since Dana had left me in his care, I didn’t think much of it to trail after him, so I was confused when he expressed, “Why are you following me?”

  I didn’t know how to respond, so I whispered an apology and attempted to walk away. Before I had the chance, he latched onto my wrist and let go just as quickly. His hand felt like plastic, lacking any heat or texture. “Do what you want. It’s just annoying listening to him talk about being sick.”

  “Oh. Why?” I asked as I watched him climb up effortlessly into a tree.

  “It’s just irritating listening to people think they’re righteous in sacrificing themselves to become a monster,” he said before reaching down and extending his hand towards me. “Coming up?”

  I wouldn’t have reached him even if I stood on my toes. “Yeah, that’s not worth breaking my neck for,” I mused, craning my neck to look up at him.

  He suddenly tensed and swore under his breath as he looked past me. “Here comes again…”

  Tracking his gaze, I noticed Raziel getting closer until something dropped in front of me. I peered down at Zeekiel’s black tank and was about to retrieve it.

  “You don’t need to pick it up.” He said, while keeping his gaze on the advancing figure while he spoke.

  I turned up to him in surprise. There was shadowing to the tone of his body, but there wasn’t any circular discoloration on his chest or a belly button on his abdomen. “Sorry,” I said, looking back down awkwardly. “I was just going to leave it off the ground.”

  “Too late,” he grumbled as Raziel closed in on us.

  Unlike Zeekiel, I could feel Raziel’s company approaching. It was more than just hearing his walk, but an energy that radiated off of him that raised the hairs on my skin.

  Raziel pleaded, “Please come down.” Neither of us spoke as we waited for a response that never came. My heart sank when Zeekiel’s silence repeated when Raziel called him again.

  I moved around the tree and spotted his shorts hanging on one branch. “He’s gone,” I breathed.

  With only Raziel and I now, I felt too intimidated to face him. I focused on the clothes in the tree to avoid any eye take, but instead of leaving, the prince drifted closer to examine my curious gaze.

  My heart raced, and I cleared my throat before I asked, “Didn’t believe me?”

  He lifted an eyebrow and replied, “I didn’t take you for a liar. You were just so intent on that tree.”

  I pretended not to be embarrassed and lied to offer an explanation. “Um, I was thinking it might be possible to get it down.”

  He surveyed the ground and took a moment to pick a rock. “Might want to stand back.”

  I chuckled. “You really think you can get that down with a rock?”

  He flashed me a warm smile and my cheeks flushed as we shared a look. “Can’t know if we don’t try,” he said.

  He hummed it up and sent the rock through the air. It hit the branch perfectly but unfortunately did not dislodge the clothes. I was glad to take his advice in moving back as the rock bounced back and landed with a thud on the ground.

  “Maybe aim at the spot that’s already hanging off?” I said and attempted to demonstrate by throwing another rock which fell far off from the target.

  “I think I understand what you mean,” he laughed.

  He used the same rock to target the spot I suggested and as the stone went through, it took the clothes down with it. “Nice shot!” I cheered.

  Raziel picked up the shorts and handed them to me, and for a moment I was confused until I remembered I implied I wanted to get them down. I threw it on top of his shirt and rolled a heavier rock on the pile to weigh it down.

  “So,” I said as I looked around for any sign of Zeekiel’s large black bird. “What can you tell me about Saniel?” It felt like everyone, not just Zeekiel, didn’t want to talk about her.

  Raziel suddenly became as shifty as he scanned around us and even lowered his voice. “Do you know how angels and dragons are born?” he asked, and I admitted no before he explained. “Mother used to create all of us until Her death. She was producing the next King when it happened. And without a rightful Mother-born King, Saniel tried to claim Zeekiel was chosen to be the next king. People believed her.”

  My skin prickled with anticipation. “How?”

  Raziel said hesitantly, as if he didn’t want to tell me more. “If you want more about Saniel, you should really ask Zeekiel.”

  “So I’ll never know…” I said, hoping he’d break.

  “He can still hear us,” the prince revealed. “I’m trying not to make it worse between us.” He gave a light chuckle, but I knew he was serious, so I left it alone.

  “Might have to wait until we go back home,” I said, looking out towards the other trees to see if I could find the large black bird. “Well, Dana’s home,” I corrected.

  “At least you have a place to consider home for now,” he said.

  “For now,” I emphasized. “Uriel wants to move me again.”

  “Oh?”

  “Says there’s a sanctuary, and he wants to shield me in a bubble.”

  “A bubble?” he questioned. “So it probably wouldn’t be the one Ellie and I are at.”

  I shrugged. “You’ve been hanging out with Ellie?”

  “Not really. Doesn’t seem like anyone wants to talk to me. Makes me wish I was home, but I can’t go back. Not yet.”

  “Same. I miss my art supplies,” was all I could say in console to him.

  “I understand,” he nodded. “I miss my books.”

  “And my bed,” I continued.

  “Yes,” he gushed. “None of the beds are comfortable here. My wings don’t fit and I feel like I’m being stabbed through the stomach.” I laughed, but both of us stood in silence until he announced, “I should go, now. I only came to talk to Zeekiel again. He didn’t beat me up this time, so that’s progress.” His smile radiated across his face as he bobbed his head. “It was really nice meeting you, unexpectedly comforting knowing I’m not the only one who misses home,” he said with sincerity.

  Keeping my composure, I nodded back. “Yeah, same.”

  The hours dragged on as I waited for Dana to come back and pick me up. I spent that time with Adriel, and although I was curious about his powers, he persuaded me to play games with him, teaching him some I played when I was younger.

  When Dana finally arrived, my anticipation turned to dread when I saw the worried looks on their faces as Uriel pulled her aside for a private conversation. Though I couldn’t hear them, both of them appeared tense with a heated energy in the movements of their hands. I waited, expecting Dana to tell me goodbye, but she came back and smiled as she said, “Come on, we’re going home.”

  ?????°???°?????

  Next Chapter Saturday 3/22