Everything was going so well, it made me feel guilty. Like a tightening hand trying to suffocate me from the inside. I was achieving many of the goals I had envisioned for becoming an adult. After training with Ellie and Raziel, I’d help work with Meddy cooking and wrapping up food for the community. I lived without my mom, and the thought of moments that would have made her proud weighed heavily on me.

  At night, sitting by the fire laughing along with the people I consider my friends, shame would catch me off guard. I was enjoying myself. How could I even allow a feeling when I had to worry? Not just for my mom, but Dana, too.

  One morning while Ellie was teaching me how to roll safely with my staff, we were all giggling as even the four-winged angel joined in with me. The sudden rumblings of a growing crowd interrupted our laughter, making us all halt to watch with curious concern.

  Though baffled by the events unfolding, my eyes lit up as I saw my first actual dragon. With bodies almost like a horse, each one of them possessed antlers, like I saw in the next town over. Their scalded skin shimmered like glitter in hues of green and purple and their white feathered tails and wings glowed like gold in the sun.

  Alongside the breathtaking sight were a group of human-like figures, their gray olive uniforms sucking away the bleeding watercolors I imagined from the dragons. They worked with purpose as they hammered posts into the dry, rocky dirt. Despite the many uniformed guards moving in different directions, everything appeared well-organized.

  Ellie and Raziel watched silently, but I felt a sense of panic as I noticed some from the Sanctuary who in the area started to rush off. No one ran, but there was an emergency in their movements.

  “Is everything okay?” I asked, waiting for anyone to answer me.

  Ellie’s eyes squinted. “I’m not sure.”

  Raziel observed, “I don’t know what they’re doing, but they’re on the line.”

  “The line?” I asked.

  “The border of the Sanctuary,” Ellie answered. “We should probably tell Gibel.”

  The angel nodded, but also explained what I had seen too: “I think people are already running to tell him.”

  “So we should just go back to practicing?” the metal lady asked.

  Raziel looked up. “That’s your choice, Master Elliel,” he said with a small chuckle. “It’s almost eleven.”

  I laughed too, but only because her cheeks blossomed into a deep red. “I could probably find out what’s happening at Meddy’s,” I told them.

  Before we all departed, Ellie raised her arm briefly, whispering to me. “Oh! That’s Mia,” she said. “That’s the other reincarnation.”

  Towards the lake, following where Ellie had gestured, I noticed it was the same young woman from last week with the umber-winged man. Mia was swimming while her escort was swishing the water with a stick.

  “And her angel, Paul,” Raziel added.

  “Wait, she has an angel already?” I blurted out as we started to walk together.

  “Yes,” Raziel replied, a hint of intrigue in his voice. “She’s quite interesting.”

  “How?” I asked.

  Ellie injected, “Zeekiel said she smells like someone of celestial descent.”

  “What does that mean?” I asked, observing their fight.

  She explained, “Only children born to two angels can bear children with humans.” She also divulged that there was another Sanctuary on my side of the realm that tried to keep records for descendant lines.

  “So does, like, each sanctuary have its own purpose?” I mused.

  “Trade and information,” Ellie replied.

  Raziel added, “That’s how we used to set it up back home.”

  “It’s not like that now?” the petite young woman asked.

  “Although they’re still under The Kingdom, none of them are obligated to reveal or share their advancements,” Raziel explained.

  I questioned, “They? How many worlds are there?”

  Ellie stood by my side, equally intrigued by the four-winged angel’s information.

  “There are nine worlds now,” he said, “each with its own unique beings and advancements.”

  “The Kingdom manages nothing?” Ellie asked.

  Raziel shook his head, “Sammael made The Kingdom only a symbol. The other Worlds rule themselves now.” He looked off until his face met mine and he smiled. “Saniel fought to keep all of them together, so that everyone could share the future together.”

  A breath caught in my throat. Despite all the apprehension I got about Saniel, he said her name without pause. Almost praising that ideal.

  “Are they all different?” Ellie wondered.

  The angel nodded. “They are all founded on what suits us, but each realm has its own unique landscape and wildlife. We’re adaptable to different climates and gravity for flight.”

  Ellie’s eyes widened with awe and excitement. “How is flying?”

  His lips widened across his entire face as he looked down at her and explained how flight was different depending on the world. Ellie and Raziel’s conversation was interrupted when they noticed Gibel running by. The metal lady quickly called out to him, asking what was happening, but still sprinting and holding up his long wrappings, Gibel yelled back that he didn’t know.

  Raziel was the first to leave our group, saying he was going to begin training Mia. He hoped Mia could put up a proper, temporary barrier over the Sanctuary to protect us. I was jealous, but tried to be casual, telling him “good luck”.

  Ellie walked with me the rest of the way to Meddy’s where she dropped me off before going to her job in gardens. Apparently Gibel asked her to help get rid of some tempered rabbit looking rodents that were doing a lot of damage.

  I knocked on the door to announce myself before walking in. In the livingroom walking in Adriel was reading some comic books spread out on the coffee table and could help but smile. The kitchen was already exuding the smell of warm spiced food and breads when I turned in finding Zeekiel sitting at the table.

  In front of him was an object that almost looked like a record player with a gramophone attached. Though the box was pure metallic and no pin for a disk, instead it held different colored orbs that illuminated as he rolled them around in their sockets.

  “What’s that?” I asked him, putting my staff down and putting on an apron.

  Frustration curled in his brows. “An ancient phone.”

  “Phone?” I asked, leaning closer to look at it.

  Meddy at her island huffed and stormed over, rolling all the balls into the right place as it produced a static noise. “Just keep it like that. If someone calls, I’ll hear it.”

  I asked, “Are you guys trying to figure out what’s going on?”

  “Did you see it?” she asked. “Was there really an army?”

  “I mean, it was a lot of guys, but I wouldn’t go that far,” I said.

  She nodded before eyeing doing Zeekiel. “What did you do?”

  The demon rolled his eyes back. “Nothing they should know about.”

  Meddy hissed his name between her teeth and groaned.

  “You know I wouldn’t put you and this place in danger,” he promised.

  His words didn’t release the tension from his body as she went back to packing her food. I slowly approached to help her.

  “Ari,” she started, her voice strained and tired. “I’ll take the deliveries out today. Could you keep Adriel busy?” She leaned in closer and lowered her voice. “Uriel’s not doing well today and I don’t want Adriel to go back home right now.”

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  We finished up wrapping everything and storing it into the storage she’d attach to her bike. Once she was ready to head out I asked Adriel if he wanted to do anything or if he was content reading.

  He gave an overly expressive, thoughtful face before announcing he wanted to make his own superhero suit. I was glad to help, as it reminded me of my own experience when I spent days deciding on my color scheme.

  Meddy mentioned there was more spare cloth in the attic that we could use for our project. Zeekiel helped me out by taking the bins out to look through when I asked, “How old is Adriel, really?”

  “Human years?” he asked. “About nineteen.”

  “Oh, I don’t know why I expected him to be older. That’s weird, he’s, like, the same age as me.”

  “Not really,” Zeekiel said. “He’s a split, so he’ll grow faster than a Mother-born, but still slow.”

  “A split?” I inquired.

  “That’s how he was made,” the demon replied. “The reason Uriel looks like he’s falling to pieces is because Adriel’s got them. It’s a practice of splitting your soul.”

  “Like cloning?”

  “Eh, this is a lot more gory,” he explained. “I promise you, spending months of focus on turning your body parts into a baby isn’t a carefree soar. Plus, that’s the kind of magic that comes back at you.”

  I handed him down another box. “What do you mean?”

  “I’m not the one you should ask questions to about magic,” the demon said. “It’s not my expertise.”

  “You really didn’t learn any magic?” I said, disbelieving him.

  “No,” was all he replied with before calling Adriel over to rummage through the fabrics and clothes.

  After the young sidekick took his pick of some stuff, I taught him how to sew, giving him tips and tricks to ensure that our sewing was precise as we pieced things together.

  The young angel was thrilled with the mask I created for him and insisted on having a cape. I wanted to protest its impracticality in an actual fight, but I decided not to ruin his fantasy. He wanted a green motif, ending up looking more like an adorable elf than the reaper I had envisioned to match the scythe.

  With his outfit finished, Zeekiel lifted the young boy above his head, enabling him to pretend to fly without flapping his wings.

  Amidst their laughter, jealousy crept in, pulling me back in time. I felt like a kid again, watching my friends play with their dads and siblings and the questions I’d ask my mom. Statements that made me cringe now, recalling them, like “Why can’t I have a dad?” or “Can I have a sister?”

  She’d always joke, “You got me, pumpkin, and I’m not going anywhere.”

  Behind my sunglasses and pretending, I hid all my dark thoughts in acting as the villain.

  I scoffed over to Zeek and Adriel, a playful smirk lifted on my cheek. I raised my staff and joined in with my role. “You have all these people protecting you,” I said dramatically. “But you still can’t defeat me.”

  Adriel gave me the name Miss Magnolia Moon.

  We had fun for a while, and even Ellie eventually joined us where we had a pretend playful fight where she defended the young boy.

  Eventually, Raziel entered the yard, accompanied by Uriel with the scythe. As soon as I noticed the handsome angel, I dropped my act, feeling childish. Embarrassment washed over me as his piercing eyes looked our way.

  “I need a break,” I mumbled awkwardly, trying to gather my composure as I made my way over to greet them.

  Raziel explained that he saw Gibel, who told them to wait for him and Meddy to get back and found Uriel on his way here.

  It wasn’t too long of a wait when Meddy came riding in on her bike with Gibel behind her.

  Gibel gave Uriel a warm smile first, saying, “Good to see you up and about. How are you feeling?”

  Uriel nodded weakly. “I’m doing alright. I just came to find Adriel.”

  “I told you we could take care of him,” Gibel said, lowering his voice and leaning in closer. “You should consider letting him stay here soon.”

  Uriel hesitated, his eyes flickering with uncertainty. “Not yet. I want more time with him.”

  “You’re risking his health, Uriel,” Gibel remarked quietly, his concern evident.

  “He’ll be fine,” Uriel assured, waving the gray-winged angel’s words away physically with his gloved hand.

  Gibel pursed his lips, but didn’t press the matter any further, diverting his attention to the rest of us. “It seems none of us are allowed to leave. We have soldiers patrolling our town.”

  “Why?” Raziel questioned.

  “Archons have taken over some portals. The government and Aldraka are upset.”

  Adriel was already snuggling up to Uriel’s side. “So why are they here?” the giant asked.

  “The dragons know now we have what the archons want,” Gibel explained.

  “So they’re trying to present us as a sacrifice to get rid of them,” Uriel surmised.

  The gray-winged angel nodded. “I thought the same.”

  Ellie injected, “Then we should leave. Ari and I-”

  Gibel stopped her. “Will be in a prison and then handed over.”

  “I’m working with Mia to make a barrier,” Raziel started. “And I think I found a way for Ellie and Ari to do the vow.”

  Gibel nodded. “It’s our only plan now. Raphael’s is still swarmed. Dragons won’t go anywhere near it. They’re pissed. Any wrong move and they’re done with us.”

  Meddy kindly offered everyone the chance to stay and eat, but I chose to back out to make a meal with Ellie.

  “I’ll walk you guys back,” Zeekiel offered.

  “Let me,” Raziel insisted.

  The demon huffed, “Allowing you a moment of peace would contradict the torment I enjoy witnessing from you.” The demon smirked before rolling his eyes to me.

  “Could you help Meddy clean up in my place?” I asked Zeekiel. My tone was pleasant, but my eyes matched his slanted, assuming gaze. The demon begrudgingly agreed and headed inside. I sighed and turned to Raziel, who had been observing our exchange with a slight smile on his lips.

  “Sorry,” I said, feeling embarrassed by the situation.

  The four-winged angel shook his head. “It’s not your fault. I don’t think he’ll ever trust me.”

  Ellie chuckled. “That’s an understatement.”

  We continued our walk in comfortable silence, the sound of our footsteps on the rocky path was the only noise.

  Eventually, Ellie broke the silence. “How…how long would it be after the vow that I get my wings?”

  “I would assume it’ll be quick,” Raziel said. “You have a lot of potential power in you. All you need is a little boost.”

  “Wish my progress was as quick,” I murmured, and Raziel hummed in inquiry. “I remember Zeekiel saying it takes a long time to obtain an angel at your level.”

  “Not just a long time. Over your natural lifetime. With the right angels, you can extend it,” he clarified.

  “Over? If I manage that, then you’ll be cursed-”

  “I’m aware,” he replied, smoothly cutting me off.

  “...longer…” I finished. “Were you aware when you told me you’d help me achieve that goal?” I asked.

  He nodded, a small smile playing on his lips. “What happened wasn’t your fault. If this is what you want to do, I won’t oppose it.”

  “But then you’re going to be… stuck with me…” I trailed off, feeling guilty.

  “It’s just the way things are,” he replied as his eyes held mine, the warmth in them strangely comforting. “And maybe it’s not so bad, being tied to someone like you.”

  His words caught me off guard, sending my heart racing as I looked over at Ellie. His compliments felt almost too perfect. I stammered a grateful response and quickly pushed my sunglasses further in, ensuring I hid my eyes and the vulnerability I felt.

  “I guess I don’t mind being attached to you either,” Ellie teased.

  I laughed and asked Raziel, “Do you have an ability that would translate to me?”

  “I can do any form of magic,” he answered, his voice softening. “I was the last Mother-born, and created to be the shield to the next King. The moment they’re born, I was meant to protect them, teach them, and my powers were to be used by them. If I had to guess, it would just increase or advance anything you’ve already learned.”

  His gaze was intense, as if he was trying to peer into my soul. I felt a shiver run down my spine. His closeness, his words, everything about him, were perfect. But a part of me remained wary, questioning his true intentions.

  “That’s... impressive,” I managed, forcing a smile. “But why would you go to such lengths for me?”

  Raziel’s smile faded slightly, replaced by a look of sincere concern. “If you succeed, you make me stronger in return.”

  His words were tempting. I wanted to believe him, but a nagging doubt lingered in the back of my mind. Was he really looking out for me, or was he just using me for his own gain?

  Or was I just letting Zeekiel’s paranoia get to me?

  Once we arrived back at our destination, Raziel told us goodnight. Ellie and I settled in, cooked and just as I thought I was going to relax, Ellie made an unexpected request asking me to help her with her back.

  She wanted me to accompany her to the bath, and her request caught me off guard. She seemed just as embarrassed making the request as I felt in accepting it. But I couldn’t let go of the opportunity to gain friendship bonus points. Whatever she wanted, I would accept.

  Despite my initial hesitation, I agreed to accompany her to the lake. The ground beneath our feet grew soft and damp, the grass tickled my ankles as we made our way towards the lit building.

  She led me to one shower where she slowly removed her t-shirt. She looked off into the distance, taking a breath as though gathering the courage the next moments would require. Not even the night could hide what she was going to show me as she revealed the tightly wrapped bandages around her chest holding small, damaged wings against her body.

  They were only the remnants of the idea of what wings should be as I examined the shriveled and featherless skin.

  “Why do you wrap them so tight?” I asked.

  “I can’t move them, so it’s uncomfortable when they flail around,” she explained, “especially during fights.”

  I concentrated on giving her the best clean I could, and her words stopped me cold. She avoided my gaze while she spoke, “I asked Raziel to teach me how to do the ritual.”

  My hands halted mid-movement as the realization set in. “Are you saying you want to make a vow with me?” The surprise in my voice was evident.

  “If it works, Raziel told me I could fix my wings,” she explained.

  A surge of excitement and anticipation welled up within me. “That’s amazing!” I cheered.

  Her voice turned serious, and she confessed, “I just don’t want to disappoint both of us if it doesn’t work. I’m not an actual angel, and it’s almost insulting why they want me to choose you. But it’s something that’s been worrying me.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked, rinsing the soap, preparing for another lather.

  “Uriel and Raz said humans don’t have a vibe as low as you; they think it’s a wasted chance.”

  A laugh broke through my lips. “We literally just vibe together. We’re going to be the greatest force in the universe.”

  Her laughter joined mine as she remarked sarcastically, “What would we even do with so much power?”

  I didn’t hesitate with my answer, my voice steady and sure. “Help people, of course,” I justified.