Early in the morning, they set out for home. It was a peaceful day, and the group made steady progress with only a few breaks, during which some even swam in the warm sea. They reached the Fortress late in the evening, where Vesaria was already waiting for them.

  “Welcome. Go and rest, all of you. Captain, I expect you in my residence in an hour,” she said.

  After greeting the guardians and exchanging a few words about the journey, Vesaria retired to her quarters.

  “Am I in trouble?” Rendil asked Elion.

  He just shrugged. “Let me know how it goes. Maybe it’s just the usual report,” he said, waving a hand.

  Rendil escorted the squads to the barracks, and they had dinner together. The teams had done a good job and deserved a break. Board games came out and, as on other nights, everyone had fun. Rendil quietly slipped away and headed straight to the room where the commander was already waiting for him.

  “Sit down,” she ordered, pointing to the chair across the table. Papers and reports lay strewn across the surface, already prepared. A quill rested beside a small glass of blue liquid and an empty inkwell. Next to it stood a cup of raspberry tea; a faint fruity aroma drifted from it, mingling with the smell of parchment and old woodsmoke in the room.

  “Tell me the mission in detail,” she said.

  “After we set out, we marched twelve hours and made camp at a defensive position with three entry points. The enemy revealed themselves. Executed the ambush strategy. Their unit was a mix of six succubi and incubi.” She picked up the quill as he spoke.

  “They also attacked us with hellhounds and several barons. By blocking all the entrances with Captain Synaa, we were able not only to repel both aerial and ground attacks but to completely neutralize the enemy.” She held his gaze, the quill spinning slowly in her fingers.

  “The transported Light remained intact, but the squad suffered significant losses. We pursued the last incubus to his nest and defeated him, and then closed the Rift through which Lilith had tried to break through. The return journey went smoothly; we encountered no further enemy activity.” He finally exhaled.

  “And nothing else happened?” Vesaria regarded him, one eyebrow rising.

  He nodded. “Yes, we also encountered Naamah, Lilith’s daughter, and two helions. With Captain Synaa’s help, all the enemies were eliminated and sent back to Hell.”

  Vesaria sighed.

  “Rendil, I don’t want to beat around the bush. You know Synaa already gave me a detailed report. I know she wanted to withdraw twice, and you didn’t let her either time,” she said calmly, though her eyes hardened slightly.

  “Yes. I analyzed the situation and believed that, with the right tactics, we could defeat the succubi. However, I admit that during the pursuit it might have been wiser to retreat; if I had known then that Naamah was there...”

  She put the quill down hard, her palm hitting the table interrupting him as he spoke. “Your task was to identify the enemy, not eliminate them!” she cut him off. “If it hadn’t worked out, we’d be back at square one. We could have sent more captains with a strategy the enemy would already have figured out! And who knows if another tactic would have worked!” She stood up, gesturing sharply to the side.

  “Lilith might have broken through and we wouldn’t even have known. We could have lost two captains at once.” Her voice rose.

  “I couldn’t leave the others there!” Rendil protested.

  “The first decision was debatable, maybe even right, but the second was pure foolishness and arrogance! You shouldn’t have engaged! We knew where the enemy was hiding; we could have sent someone stronger and come prepared for the next fight. Your mission was accomplished.” She exhaled and dropped her gaze for a moment, then looked back.

  “After your decision, Synaa should have left you there and reported everything to us. Yes, she’s equally at fault! She shouldn’t have returned for you. The fact that you won in the end was only thanks to sheer, let me repeat, sheer, luck. If she had at least made the right decision, we’d only have lost one captain. Still just one, who recklessly charged ahead!”

  “But now we don’t have to send anyone else and we still have both captains. The enemy was defeated,” Rendil argued.

  Her came down on table, she leaned closer. “Yes, but only by luck!” the commander shot back. “You weren't supposed to win that fight. That's what worries me. This path leads to pride, Rendil. One day your luck runs out, and everyone pays for it.” She pushed herself back and took her seat.

  Anger churned in his chest. Was it at her or at himself? He didn't know.

  Was she right? Did I risk too much?

  She sighed. “Rendil, I’m not going to take any disciplinary action against you, but please, take my words to heart. As a captain, you can’t be this reckless anymore. Your power is growing; you’re no longer a lieutenant, but a captain; you have to start thinking like one.” Her gaze held steady on him.

  “Don’t get me wrong, every life here is incredibly valuable, but this is a war of resources. If Hell exhausts us, they’ll take another Gate and our Light will weaken. You must not be reckless!” She paused, her hands clasped together, elbows resting on her desk.

  “I want you to think like a captain and minimize losses in a clearly lost situation. People here don’t die forever; you’ll see them again within two months. Save the most valuable, but when you have to retreat, do it!” Silence filled the room. Only the fireplace crackled.

  Anger boiled inside him; he didn't know if he was angry at her or at himself. He sat with his head down, nervously drumming his fingers on his knees.

  “You have my permission to leave now; tomorrow we begin training.” She glanced at the door.

  Rendil met her eyes for a moment, unable to find words, then bowed politely and went straight to his residence. He was on the verge of exploding, his heart pounding wildly as he paced the room, replaying the situation in his mind. Did I endanger myself and Synaa? Should I have retreated? With these thoughts, he lay down on the couch and stared at the ceiling, reflecting. So far, staying and fighting had always paid off; it had gotten him to where he was now. But is it time to change perspective now that I’m a captain? Should I start thinking differently? Should I really become some kind of manager, trying to save only the most valuable and write off the weaker ones? He spent the whole night lost in these thoughts.

  By morning, he still had no answers. He dragged himself to the barracks, where Synaa was already waiting. Her tone was stern:

  “I know you probably hold it against me, but I did it for your own good. If it helps, I’m sorry.”

  “No,” Rendil said calmly. “I have to apologize. You’re both right. But you have to understand... I don’t know what it’s like to be an angel from the beginning of time. For me, it’s hard to be here; as a human. I died and suddenly found myself in the middle of this war. Until now, I’ve risked everything I could, and that’s exactly why I’ve gotten stronger. But now...” He let out a long breath.

  “Now I’m in a new situation. I don’t fully appreciate my own value yet. That’s exactly why I put us in danger. On the other hand... I’m doing everything I can to get stronger. Maybe not always the right way, but I’m trying.” He looked at her.

  “I understand,” Synaa replied.

  “No, you don’t,” Rendil cut in, sharper than he intended. “You can’t imagine what it’s like! If I were here like before, when the reward was to join your loved ones, I’d fight, but by completely different principles!” He grabbed a stone beside him and and hurled it into the water from where he sat.

  “Watching your loved ones from the sphere, seeing how their trials turned out, how their lives go, maybe even seeing grandchildren; not being part of it would be brutal, but at least I’d know they’re living a full life and could watch from afar.” He anchored his eyes to the sandy ground.

  “Now, when they’re frozen in time, it’s really bad. My eternity goes on, while their fate is to end in Hell, no matter what kind of people they were. And can I even slightly influence it?” He closed his eyes. “Yes, but that’s exactly why I don’t know if I can retreat. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to... Honestly, I don’t even know how I feel anymore; it’s crazy.” After that he kept silent.

  She was no human, but an angel of eternity, yet still she put her hand on his shoulder. “I try to understand. But as a captain, you always have to act like one. I believe that next time, whatever you choose, it will be the right decision.” She gave him a warm smile.

  “I need to let all this sink in. I won’t solve it in a day,” Rendil admitted.

  Synaa nodded and together they headed to the barracks. At breakfast, Elion joined them.

  “So, did you get chewed out?” he teased.

  They both shot him a look, and Elion laughed.

  “Weeell, I’m just kidding...” His eyes darting to the sides.

  “Is this seat free?” he asked, and when they showed him a chair, he happily dug into his Bavarian pork knuckle.

  “What’s your training plan, Captain?” the lieutenant asked.

  “Today I have my first session with Vesaria.” He lifted a cup and took a sip.

  “Ooooh, she looks strict. I hope she won’t be too hard on you, haha!” Elion said with his mouth full.

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  “She can’t be tougher than my last teacher,” Rendil laughed; and at that moment got a smack to the back of his neck.

  When he left the barracks, Rendil saw Vesaria flying down from the Main Tower. She hovered low, wings stirring dust, and beckoned him to follow.

  Her silver helm had a T-shaped opening that showed only her emerald-green eyes. All her dark brown hair was hidden beneath it, making her even more imposing.

  They flew away from the fortress to a nearby islet, where they were to work on his sword fighting.

  Vesaria turned to Rendil: “A two-handed sword is wide and heavy; it carries enormous power but also weaknesses. If you want to be a full-fledged captain, you must understand these weaknesses and learn to use them to your advantage.” He watched her in awed silence as she spoke, the sun gleaming off her majestic armor and waves breaking behind them.

  “Remember: this weapon is made primarily for offense, not defense! We’ll train every day without a break until you become a true captain and I’ve taught you all the techniques you must master. Now get ready; face me!”

  Without hesitation, she unleashed a barrage of attacks on him. She came at him from all sides, and Rendil finally grasped her sheer size and pure, untamed strength. He couldn’t keep up; his sword flew from his hand and he landed on his back, defeated.

  “Where do you think you made a mistake?” she asked.

  “That I’ve never trained with this before?” he guessed.

  “No. You got your first lesson right at the start; think! Pick up your sword!” He barely had time to grab his weapon before another flurry of attacks came at him. He dodged from side to side; the exchanges went on for a while. He didn’t know what he was doing wrong.

  What first lesson? I have no chance of blocking her attacks and I’m constantly on the defense... Wait. That’s it. The sword is meant for offense.

  So instead of defensive forms, he went on the attack. Their swords clashed until his flew from his hand again, he stood there, defeated.

  “Excellent,” she said. “This is the true strength of your sword. Remember that! You’ll use it for defense too, but first you have to change your mindset. Think about how to attack, not how to defend!”

  Rendil didn’t know how to apply all this in practice, but he was ready to follow her advice. After a while, she said, “Now come, let’s have lunch.” She pulled wrapped sandwiches from her Lumion. “For training, you need strength and food!” she declared and handed him one; then they dug in.

  “Did you ever fight in your life?” she asked him.

  He just shook his head. “Only in games, and in the real world I was more of a leader, but in a completely different sense. There are similar decisions in people management, but here those choices carry far more weight.”

  Vesaria thought for a moment, then said: “I do appreciate everything you've done. And I'm trying to understand your perspective.” She grabbed his arm and looked at him. He stopped chewing and looked back with his cheek full.

  “You’re used to taking risks and know it often pays off. I’m extremely grateful for that move against Leviathan. But you have to realize these are high-stakes gambles that can yield big payoffs, and the price of failure is higher still; when you lose, the consequences are immense.” She squeezed his arm harder and shook it a bit.

  Rendil replied with humility but resolve: “Yes, I understand. I have already talked about this with Synaa. I believed I was risking everything not just for my family, but for those billions of people down there. I know the price of failure is enormous, and next time I’ll definitely be more cautious.”

  “That’s good,” she said. “Now come, let’s continue training!”

  They trained like this every day. He learned forms and stances, feints, dodges, spins... “Crowd control: that’s another thing you have to master. Your attacks are wide and strong; you need to master them so the potential of this weapon in your hands shines!” The high captain’s words echoed in his mind The commander was relentless; it felt like training with Carlos again. Yet even Vesaria's rigor didn't match Synaa's, as his infirmary visits could attest.

  Time flew by and he continued to visit the barracks to see his charges. One evening, while they were having dinner, the main doors opened and Lorian walked in. Everyone at the tables greeted him and raised their glasses.

  “So, did you get some sleep?” they asked with a smile. Lorian made his rounds, greeted the others, and finally sat down beside them with his drink.

  “So how did it end?” he asked. “Last thing I remember was seeing there was no backup behind us. We held off what we could, but it was a massacre... Then everything went red.”

  “Weeell, ” Elion grinned. “We didn't exactly retreat. Rendil and I went on a rescue mission and climbed the cliff. It was this madman's idea,” he said, pointing at Rendil. “I joined later.”

  “That’s really crazy. If I heard right, the captain was shouting that Leviathan was there...” Both nodded.

  “So, are you both fresh from the Tree like me?” Lorian asked.

  “Weeell, not exactly,” Elion continued. “Our mission was successful!” Lorian almost choked on his drink. “Not that I’m not glad, but how? And you both survived?”

  Elion nodded.

  “Wait, you look a bit bigger,” Lorian said, eyeing Rendil.

  “Yes, that’s exactly it. This lucky guy managed to get wings!”

  “What?!” Lorian looked clearly shocked and was searching for the right words. “Congratulations! So you’re a captain?!”

  Rendil grimaced. “Yes. The commander is beating the soul out of me every day now.”

  “And which squads do you command?” Lorian asked mouth half open.

  “Radion’s. Our rescue mission was partly successful. Captain Radion will be on the Tree for many years, “Rendil finished.

  “And how did you finally defeat him?” Lorian took another sip.

  “It was all a trap,” Elion said. “There were three more lords: Aamon, Abaddon, and Azazel. Thanks to this expert, Archangel Michael, Uriel, and our Ariel found them in time. When the lords saw them, they didn’t even fight; they left Leviathan and a bunch of legions to their fate!” His eyes gleamed under his thick red eyebrows as he spoke.

  “So we won?” Lorian pressed further.

  “Yes, you could say it was a victory.” Elion nodded.

  “What else did I miss?” He turned his head from Elion to Rendil.

  “Nothing big,” Rendil said. “Some minor skirmishes, including one recently with succubi: Lilith and her daughter.”

  “What, how?” He lifted up from the bench a bit.

  Rendil scratched his head. “Nothing huge. They were ambushing our supply squads bound for smaller forts. We were supposed to find them, and we did. I took another risk, but we won. I got chewed out and can’t afford to be so careless anymore.” His grin stretched from ear to ear.

  After this summary, Lorian just stared at Rendil. Everyone laughed.

  “All right, we’ll tell you the details,” Elion declared.

  And so they chatted late into the night. When they went to bed, Rendil slipped away to the place where the high captain trained him. He practiced everything she taught him, usually until morning. But today, someone interrupted him.

  “Ahem, what do you think you’re doing?” Synaa's voice cut in, strict as a teacher catching him cheating.

  “Uh, training?” he answered uncertainly.

  “It’s not good to train alone; no one checks you and you can pick up bad habits...” She moved toward him.

  “I don’t want to waste time talking,” he continued, “I need to become a full-fledged captain as soon as possible!” He looked her dead in the eye.

  At that, Synaa hid her wings and said: “Next time, just ask! On guard!” She lunged forward with her dagger.

  That’s how he got a teacher for the nights as well. He wasn’t sure if he should be happy about it, because now he’d definitely end up in the infirmary.

  The days flew by; during the day, Rendil trained with Vesaria, at night with Synaa. He improved quickly. Then, one day, Vesaria announced: “That’s enough; it’s time to teach you to master Light attacks at the captain level.”

  “All right, let’s do it!” Rendil exclaimed.

  Vesaria began to explain: “As you’ve noticed, the more you deepen your connection with the Light, the better you can control it and gain new abilities. Soldiers master the technique of summoning Light and focusing it into their weapons and shields.” She pointed to his blade.

  “Lieutenants can use basic attacks, sending Light at the enemy, usually a Light Beam or a Light Crescent. Their connection with the Light is weaker, so using such an attack causes them to stagger briefly and it takes longer for them to recover.”

  I remember these times well. Fire an attack, then stay completely open.

  “As a captain, you can use Light attacks fairly often and without harm. I’ll teach you the basic techniques, but over time you may develop your own; they can be very individual.” She looked around.

  ?The first attack I’ll teach you is the repeated Light Crescent technique. You already know it from your time as a lieutenant. The secret now is to be able to perform three such attacks in a row without significant strain on your body. Let’s pick a target...” She pointed with her finger: “Let’s try that rock.”

  The chosen boulder sat among a small cluster of similar rocks near the beach, giving him plenty of targets to blast.

  Rendil exhaled slowly and shifted his weight forward.

  They trained like this for weeks, then months. Rendil learned to send multiple Light Crescents in succession, to shoot splitting Light arrows, to hold his focus through exhaustion. With each session, his connection to the Light deepened and his strength grew.

  Two whole years passed; Rendil kept improving until one day, as he and Vesaria were sitting at lunch, she announced: “Today is our last training session. I’m assigning you back to your unit for reconnaissance and escort missions.”

  Rendil thanked her and hesitated a moment, then said: “I’d like to ask... What’s the real difference between a captain’s, high captain’s, and archangel’s Light attacks?”

  Vesaria fell silent for a moment. “When you’re promoted to captain, your connection with the Light deepens, but with each rank, your maximum potential from it increases. While you can send out a few of these attacks, high captains keep their weapons infused with Light.”

  “And archangels?” Rendil asked.

  “I don’t know if you’ve seen Ariel’s arrow barrage, but while you can shoot three projectiles at once, she can loose thousands, and they’re far more powerful and much more durable. The difference is truly immense.”

  “There’s one more important thing,” Vesaria began, her voice suddenly taking on a mystical tone. “A halo isn’t just a decorative symbol of our purity, but a living indicator of determination and energy. The more we put into the fight, the more strength and willpower we show, the more intensely it shines.” She paused for a moment and looked him straight in the eyes.

  “As a captain, when you fully focus and let everything inside you ignite, your halo blazes with holy fire. For high captains, the glow expands into a massive wreath that surrounds them like a ring of Light in the most intense moments.” Her voice softened.

  “An archangel’s halo is impossible to miss; holy fire blooms above their head into a crown that drives darkness to its knees.” Rendil was quiet; only waves breaking on the sand could be heard behind them. “This flame commands respect even among demons; it’s a sign of our strength and proof that the Light is always stronger than darkness.” Vesaria paused, as if the greatest battles were playing out before her eyes.

  “Remember, Rendil: it’s a sign that you’re giving everything in that moment. And when your flame burns at full strength, everyone around knows they stand before someone willing to lay down their soul for the Light.”

  She put a firm hand on his shoulder and added, “You must always give your all and focus on your own contribution. You’ve long known that even the strength of one person here can make the difference.” The sun reflected in her eyes as she spoke.

  “You’ve had several missions where you prevented greater catastrophes; keep that in mind. There’s no point comparing yourself to others or thinking about what could have been. Such thoughts only lead to jealousy, and that doesn’t belong here.” Her stern face softened into a smile.

  “Thank you, High Captain! For everything,” Rendil said sincerely.

  “I know your new abilities will matter in the battles to come, so you’ll repay the Light for what you’ve learned. May your Light shine true!” Vesaria proclaimed.

  “And may yours shine true as well,” Rendil replied, and a sense of peace settled within him that he hadn’t felt in a long time.

  After two years of intensive training, Rendil’s fighting skills improved drastically. At night, he still practiced with Synaa and during the day he was fully devoted to missions. t was mostly calm watch duty. Aside from a few minor skirmishes, nothing major happened. When they weren’t training, they enjoyed this little paradise: swimming in the lagoons and savoring rare moments of peace.

  Eleven years had already passed since they arrived at Fortress of the Golden Sunset. One evening they were transporting Light to a nearby outpost.

  Rendil kept watch from the air, his armor shining under the sun with bright Light. As dusk settled, he landed among the others. The squads set up tents as usual and posted guards, then gathered around several campfires to eat dinner, and talk. Rendil made a habit of patrolling the area and checking on the guards.

  Suddenly, he heard something unusual: a quarrel at one of the fires.

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