“Hey,” Candice greeted Zephyr as he waited outside Laura’s room. It had been an uneventful day, so much so that he had not even seen Raziel at all. “Do you watch the news?” she asked him.

“No,” Zephyr answered.

“It might interest you,” she pointed out, taking his hand and leading him to the staff common room. Picking up the remote, she switched on the television. “There’s an hourly update; the next one should be in ten minutes. Maybe they discovered who that guy was.”

“What guy?” Zephyr asked.

“You’ll see,” Candice said mysteriously. “Would you like a drink?”

“Just a water, if you don’t mind,” Zephyr politely responded.

Ten minutes later, the update came on, as Candice had predicted. “The second coming of Christ?” the news reporter asked. “At six o’clock last night, a figure was spotted resting on the crucifix of the Magister Church. Although upside-down, he was resting in the shape of the cross, with his arms spread out. Only moments later he was seen falling. A spectator caught the event on a handheld camera, but loses sight of the figure as he falls behind some buildings. Although many people rushed to the scene, the figure was not seen again, nor his body found. Here is the camera footage.”

Zephyr watched as a grainy picture covered the screen. As the figure fell, he recognised the figure’s long hair lashing at his face. He noticed the twitch from the figure’s back. He caught sight of a dagger beneath the figure’s coat. The manner in which the figure fell was strikingly familiar. “ Leon…” he muttered.

“You know him?” Candice asked in surprise.

“Kind of. He…” Zephyr trailed off as he realised he could not disclose the details of how Leon had helped him through Hell to reach the Wilderness. Besides, he could not even remember why he was in Hell in the first place. “We’ve run into each other before. We’re rivals, I suppose.”

“Rivals in what?”

“I’m not too sure…” Zephyr turned back to the television.

“It was only eight hours later that Daryl Green, who walked free only last week after being accused of raping Laura Davies, was cut down in the middle of an alley. Spectators are unsure as to how the man was cut down, for the perpetrator did not appear to have a weapon. One witness informs us that the figure labelled himself an Angel of Judgement. Although nobody got a clear look at the figure, it is said that he whispered ‘justice has been served’ to an onlooker. Could it be that the heavens are offering retribution for the sins of the world, or is this a new religious cult trying to invoke faith? Perhaps we shall soon know.”

“It doesn’t make sense…” Candice whispered.

“What doesn’t?” Zephyr asked.

“Laura is assured she has a Guardian Angel protecting her, Daryl being murdered, a man falling from the roof of the tallest church in the city and disappearing… It just… doesn’t make sense.”

Zephyr smiled, knowing he would never be able to explain. “Perhaps you shall soon know,” Zephyr whispered before standing up. Looking out, he saw Raziel talking to a nurse outside Laura’s room. Beside him were two angels disguised as humans, and Zephyr recognised them as the breed of angels in charge of reprimanding renegades. Cursing, Zephyr looked over at Candice. “I have to go,” he said, before rushing out of the door and again returning to the roof.

Aware that he had to move fast to escape undetected, Zephyr wasted no time in drawing his wings and taking to the skies. His goal was to reach the outskirts of the city, for it would take the angels at least a few hours to track him there, and he could then deny that he was ever at the hospital.

As he flew, he caught sight of another figure in the clouds. Unsure as to whom it was, Zephyr trailed from a distance, tracking the angelic being through the night skies. The figure swiftly darted to and fro, making it almost impossible for Zephyr to keep the figure in sight, but the figure soon came up to a large building. Somersaulting, the figure withdrew his wings and stood on the roof.

Zephyr realised it was the church, and came to rest on the large crucifix. He crouched on the top of it, his wings fully flared and his gaze on the figure on the roof.

“Hey, look up there!” a voice yelled from below. Zephyr looked down to notice a group of humans gathered below, all pointing up at Zephyr and whispering among themselves. By the time Zephyr returned his gaze to the rooftop, the figure was slowly walking to the edge. Zephyr leapt off the cross and walked up to the figure, a definite half-angel.

“Empyreans,” the man spoke, his eyes flicking to the skies.

“Dex?” Zephyr asked in disbelief. Dex lowered his head and gazed upon the streets below, smiling as the people watched him in anticipation. Spectacularly, the half-angel flared his wings so that all could see, before dropping off the rooftop and darting into the night sky, pulling up to become enshrouded by the clouds.

“Zephyr Leoné, halt!” Zephyr turned around to find that the angels had tracked him.

“Where is Raziel?” Zephyr asked.

“Doing his job, like you are supposed to be.” Zephyr opened his mouth in protest, but was at a loss for words. The angels continued their edict. “You have been warned to avoid human contact. Do not reveal your powers to the humans, or we shall invoke swift retribution. Also, do not befriend the renegade half-angels. They are now wanted criminals; you are to kill them on sight.”

“I thought I was destined to lead them?” Zephyr asked.

“Whilst they were still loyal to Heaven. They have now become more dangerous to the human race than the Hellians were, and they must be stopped. It is a burden I am afraid I must ask you to bear.”

“What’s the situation?” Zephyr asked.

“Dextyrious Xander Ark has begun randomly attacking angels spread throughout the city, including those who are undercover. Leon Necredor is making no attempt to suppress his angelic abilities. Illyria Destiny is missing, presumed defected. It appears that the leftover remnants of the Empyreans are forming a revival. Be on your guard, for they will no doubt be after you. I suggest you split up with Raziel and occasionally rally with him to disclose information, so that both of you become much harder to track.”

“Then that is what I shall do,” Zephyr responded, politely bowing his head in respect.

Again, Zephyr found himself outside Laura’s room. He realised he had not been foreseeing as many murders, and wondered if it was a result in his interest in the woman. He slowly stepped into the room, to say goodbye, for he knew that he bore a burden too great to drag her into.

“It is forbidden to maintain contact with a human.” Zephyr spun around to find Raziel sitting in a chair next to the wall.

“Raziel, the half-angels, did you hear?” Zephyr asked, changing the subject.

“Of course I did!” Raziel snapped. “Those traitorous fools! They shall pay for their treachery!”

“Wait, one of them mentioned the Empyreans. Could it really be that the Empyreans are staging a return?”

“You fool,” Raziel muttered under his breath.

“What was that?” Zephyr asked.

“Of course the Empyreans aren’t staging a revival. You wiped every last one of them out, remember? Even our prisoners. You killed them all.”

“Oh yeah…” Zephyr muttered. “Why was that, though?”

“Excuse me?”

“What got me so worked up that I wiped out all traces of two armies? I mean, there would have been a reason, right?”

“I’m afraid I don’t know your motives,” Raziel answered. “It is imperative, though, that such a rage is prevented again, for you endangered the entirety of the human race and even our forces were unable to calm you.”

“Kind of hard to prevent when I don’t even know the cause…”

“Mmm,” Raziel agreed, nodding slowly.

“Can I get you a drink?” Both half-angels turned to find Candice standing in the doorway.

“Zephyr, do not get attached to this woman. Not only for your good, but for hers, too.” Having said that, Raziel bumped past Zephyr and left the room, leaving Zephyr to explain things to Candice.

“How much of that did you hear?” Zephyr asked.

“You… you killed them all.”

“The Empyreans and Hellians…” Zephyr muttered.

“Why?”

“I’m part of a secret army. It’s so secret there’s not a single human being on this earth that knows of it, unless they are a part of it. Originally, there were three armies, to form a trinity. For reasons unknown, two of these armies turned and began attacking innocent civilians. I was sent to stop them, and I did so.”

“But… you don’t know why, correct?”

“That’s not entirely true. When I replay my memories, I see a unicorn. I’m not sure what significance it holds, but I know that creature has something to do with my past.”

“Unicorns are a symbol of rebirth. Not unlike a phoenix, the only time a new unicorn is born is when an old unicorn dies. Perhaps it’s a symbol that you were reborn. Maybe they erased your memory?”

“Maybe…” Zephyr agreed. “Anyway, it’s not important. How’s Laura?”

“She’s fine. I told her about the baby today. It broke her heart. She tried to hide it, but she couldn’t fight the tears. Actually, the only reason she’s asleep now is because she took some sleeping tablets.”

Zephyr glanced over at the woman. She began to stir, and Zephyr realised she was waking up. He tried to walk past Candice, but she stopped him.

“Please. It’s time you met her.”

Dex leaned on the edge of the rooftop, gazing down at the pedestrians below. He smiled as a young man came into view. Even from this distance, Dex could see the man’s blonde hair. He could distinguish the man’s blank stare, and wicked smile. He noticed a bounce in the man’s step.

Stepping up to the ledge, Dex closed his eyes, counting backwards in his head. As his target neared the building, Dex leaned forward and fell from the rooftop. He knew the dangers of such a manoeuvre, but it filled Dex with a sense of belonging, a meaning to his life. Without such exhilaration, he knew he would have never lasted as long, for he would have lost the will to live long before. Somersaulting, Dex flicked his wrist and drew his sword, slicing directly down the man’s back.

“Long… live… the Empyrean reign…” the man gasped, knowing instantly who had struck him as he slowly faded to the Void.

“Long live the half-angels,” Dex replied, shoving the Empyrean’s face into the ground. Looking around, he smiled at the onlookers before flaring his wings and taking to the skies.

Leon breathed in slowly, his body filled with peace. His gaze was on the stars, and despite his cold nature, his heart yearned for such feelings. Gazing back down at the rooftop, Leon slowly removed his hands from his pockets. Dashing forward, he sprinted to the end of the building before leaping high into the air. Spreading his wings, Leon glided through the air, subtly shifting his weight to angle his flight path. Leon felt his left wing burning, and he turned to try and discover the reason.

Looking behind him, Leon found he was being trailed by three angels, and they were firing bolts of energy at him in an attempt to restrain him. Smiling, Leon dropped his right shoulder and slipped through the air, rapidly losing altitude. He knew the angels would not follow him past the point of detection, for they feared the humans had enough power to at least deal a crippling blow to their army should they be discovered.

Leon was not worried, though, and he slowly flew lower and lower, until he flared his wings and softly touched on the ground. He had landed in a dark alley, undetected, and he smiled as his hands slipped into his pockets, and he slowly walked onto the path.