Gino smirked as blood trickled from his hands, his white robe was tainted with red as if he had just dipped into a pool of blood. He strutted towards the Holy Seraphim's mansion, both souls and Angels of Angelicus that he passed by shuddered at the sight of him holding a dead human's head.
Angelicus is a place between heaven and earth that divides and maintains the unending flow of human lives. This is where the souls who left their human body are rebornーor what humans call death. The souls are given a second chance to live with the angels as the lawmakers. Before entering heaven to become a pure angel, they must first redeem themselves from their mundane impurities by living in Angelicus.
Gino scoffed at that thought and muttered to himself, "Fuck them holiness. All white and dark angels are the same. They only think of themselves."
He was not the law-abiding type yet ever since the Angel Council entrusted Stellar as a baby for him to raise, he promised himself that he would be the perfect role model for her. He always knew there was something suspicious, especially how Stellar's body matured and how he needed to report her condition to the Angel Council weekly. But he didn't question any of it. He knew they would take her away from him if he starts asking questions.
Nonetheless, they exiled her to live with the humans and as Stellar's guardian, he will follow her even to the mundane realm if that's what it takes to keep her safe.
Gino barged inside the Holy Seraphim's mansion, the blood from the head he was carrying stained the white marble floor at his every step. It was a huge Victorian mansion painted in white and gold, guarded by almost fifty Archangels but no one moved a step to stop his foolish action. He just scoffed. Only the Holy Seraphim could see the past, the present, and the future. He already knew of his arrival even before Gino could even think about it.
When Gino reached the Holy Seraphim's office, he didn't bother to knock and kicked the huge wooden door open, his blood-stained footprint stamped on the pristine wood.
The Holy Seraphim's image came into view as he did. He was sitting on his desk, facing the door as if expecting someone, and he calmly placed some documents on top of his desk before looking at Gino's desperate and wrecked image, his blue eyes devoid of any emotions.
"I've been waiting for you, Gino." Seraphiel crossed his arms, a black cape was sprawled over his white robe.
"I'm sure you were." Gino threw the human head and it rolled over to then Seraphiel's feet, "I have a question before your Archangels bring me to the council."
"Stellar is my Nephilim." Seraphiel directly answered, knowing full well what Gino's question was.
Gino gritted his teeth and smiled bitterly, "You answered that so easily when you have ignored her all these years. What kind of Father are you?"
Seraphiel smiled softly, unaffected by Gino's words, "I have responsibilities to fulfill in Angelicus. I cannot be a Father to her that is why I asked the Angel Council to have you as her guardian."
"Bullshit. Why me?"
"Because you hate dark angels. You are the only angel that I know who would not turn her over to them. You understand that, do you?"
Nephilims' are the Dark Angel's only means of survival. Because they were cast out from heaven and became a Fallen One, the divinity in the Nephilims' blood keeps them from turning into soulless demons. Once they become a Fallen One, they are left with no other choice but to offer their soul to Miachus' dark princeーthe only Dark Angel born with pure blood. In exchange, once the dark prince drinks the Nephilim's blood, it also feeds the souls of the Fallen Ones that were offered to him and the Nephilims who were bitten by the dark prince become Dark Angels themselves.
"If Stellar is bitten by the dark prince, as the daughter of the Seraphim, she will become a huge threat not only to Angelicus but to heaven itself." Seraphiel continued.
Gino clenched his hands into a fist, "Then why did you not send Stellar to Scieldan? She will be protected by her own kind there. "
Seraphiel remained indifferent and shook his head, "No one should know whose Nephilim she is. There will be chaos not only with the Dark Angels but also with the other Nephilims if they knew we kept her in Angelicus and I was pardoned from becoming a Fallen One. Her existence itself is a threat and they will wage war."
This time, Gino was not able to control himself and charged at Seraphiel, giving him a huge blow of his fist to the face. He then pulled him up by the chest, "I can't believe you! All of you just think of her as a threat to your so-called divinity! You're just as scum as those bastards who wants her blood."
A small but bitter smile appeared against Seraphiel's lips, the first time that he ever showed any kind of emotion. He then wiped the blood trickling from his torn lips with the back of his hand, "Don't you regret any of this, Gino? You killed not just one human but ten so that you'll be cast out from Angelicus. You want to stay by Stellar's side to protect her but you will soon become a Fallen One and you'll start craving for her blood."
Gino scoffed and pushed him back, "I am not like you." he then walked over the bloody head on the carpeted floor and to the door. Just before he reaches the exit, he stopped and looked back at the Holy Seraphim, "Stellar is worth it, Seraphiel. She is worth every sacrifice." then left without waiting for his response.
It was not surprising when two Archangels patiently waited in the hallway as soon as Gino left the Holy Seraphim's office. The moment they noticed his presence, one of them moved closer.
"Gino, your presence is highly needed in the Angel Court."
The Archangel's voice was steady. Their actions do piss him off sometimes. They're like walking robots since they have fully submitted their earthly feelings. Archangels are, after all, soldiers of Angelicus.
"You don't have to make a red carpet bon voyage for me, you know."
As Gino's image disappeared from the door, Seraphiel slumped himself on the swivel chair behind his desk then faced the ceiling to floor glass window. The warm sunlight traversed through the glass. He smiled sadly, leaned his back on his chair, and closed his eyes.
"Indeed, Gino. My daughter is worth every sacrifice."
ϔϔϔ
Vicky walked through the dark streets with a duffel bag full of clothes that she had just briskly stocked up inside. She didn't have ample time to change her clothes after she'd drugged her roommate and she was still wearing her uniform in the Academyーa one-piece uniform with a red ribbon which is unable to protect her from the chilly night of the city. She exhaled some breath exchanging from her right hand to her left to somehow keep up with the chills that she felt.
Walking for about an hour, the feeling of numbness on the sole of her feet was unbearable that she has decided to sit down for a while. Running away from the Academy seemed like freedom for her.
Angel and Human relationships were prohibited and if an Angel breaks that rule, they'll become a Fallen One and their Nephilim children will be sent to Scieldan Academy. But despite it being an Academy, for Vicky, it's also like a cage so that the Fallen Ones couldn't get in touch with their children.
Rather for Fallen Ones to not turn their children into their kind.
It was after fourteen years of Vicky's existence that she suddenly found out that she was a Nephilim. It was a direct stab in the chest. The life that she had lived and the person that she had once thought she was being all but fake. A cover-up of her true form. She doesn't know what to believe anymore, not knowing who are her allies and who are her foes.
Warm tears started to stream from Vicky's eyes. She wanted to look for her father. He's the only angel who could help her. Staying in that Academy made her feel like a caged bird. Powerless. She hated what she was. Being a half-human, half-angel felt like a curse.
"I prefer dying." she murmured to herself.
"What a great night isn't it?" a carefree, husky voice said.
A man in about his late twenties sat beside her. He was wearing a black sweater and cloak. His hair was as white as snow which entices her to touch it but there was something unusual with this guy. Vicky could feel it in her Angel's blood.
"Who are you?" her voice unintentionally croaked with the terror that she felt. There was something strong in him and it's not in her favor.
"Me?" The guy pointed to himself casually, "I'm your savior. An element of justice."
"Element of justice?" Vicky repeated.
She stared at his black eyes which suddenly turned red. It was a red moon on a calm starry night. Beautifully dangerous. It was piercing her, seeing her as a whole inside and hypnotizing her senses.
Vicky's eyelids started to feel heavy.
"I will save you." he whispered, closing his face unto her ears, "We will help you."
"You're my savior..." Vicky murmured as if enticed by the mystery of this guy in front of her.
Yes. "My savior will help me. I'll leave everything to him." she thought.
The guy grinned, "That's my girl."
It didn't take another more second when his face leaned against her neck and she felt a pricking pain. However, it wasn't an excruciating kind of pain. Instead, she felt ecstatic and it was consuming something away from her before everything turned into darkness.
"Have you enthralled her already?" Victor asked as he swung the new-fallen girl's unconscious body in his skinny arms. His voice was low and sullen and his black silky hair was covering half of his white pale face that no one had ever seen.
"It's good." Rave casually rested both of his elbows on the bench rest and crossed his legs, "She's ours now."
Victor spread his huge black wings, "I'll take her to Miachus. Be sure to come back before dawn."
"Fine." Rave waved his hand up in the air to shoo him away.
"Before I forget." Victor added, "We have a new member of the family. And I tell you, he can't be easily tamed."
"Who?" Rave's eyes flickered in excitement. If there is a new Fallen One then it is most probably another White Angel who has sinned and created a Nephilim.
"It's Gino."
The sound of the mere name made Rave scoff in disbelief, "You serious? This is big news. Don't tell me he has a Nephilim."
Victor grinned and shook his head, "He massacred ten humans inside a prison. No one knows the reason why. The police are in chaos right now because they could not find the culprit."
This time, Rave's sharp eyes grew wide in disbelief. He sat straight and rested his elbows above his knee. He laced his hands together and covered his mouth, grinning triumphantly, "I didn't know that fucker has the guts to kill a human." After a few seconds, a loud set of chuckles echoed, "He never ceases to amaze me. Now I'm curious what made him do the very thing that he hated the most."
Rave wiped the tears of laughter from his eyes before going back to Victor, "Go on first, Victor." he grinned, "I'll make sure to be there to welcome a dear old friend."
It didn't take another minute when a sound flapping wings could be heard and Victor strode off with the new fallen girl. They have been doing this for centuries. Looking for allies and preparing their army against the White Angels. White Angels have always been at the top while they were cast to the Dark side. Compared to them, they have always been the weaker ones until they found their ace card, Nephilims.
Being the only child of the Dark King Tyrannus, Rave is the only one who can enthrall Nephilims and drink their divine blood to make them a Dark Angel. He has the power to entice every being he meets whenever he wishes.
Sin is his pleasure. Temptation is his being.
Rave stood up and paced through the dim streets. It's not surprising for every being to gaze in his direction every time he passed. His enthrallment becomes a seduction for humans as well. Girls giggling and boys looked at him with awe, it's what happens every time.
ϔϔϔ
As soon as Gino stepped inside Miachus, Dark Angels looked at him with their piercing, deadly stares. It made him twitch his lips.
Lowly beings.
Miachus is the altered version of Angelicus where Dark Angels lived. A dark world created by sorrow and hatred. It was situated in one part of the earth with neither ordinary mundane nor the white angels could see.
Lifeless trees and fields welcomed him. Souls who feed on hatred were crawling on the earth, yearning for help. Gino grimaced. This is the main reason why he doesn't like the slightest bit of idea being there. But he has to endure that deceitful cavern, even to the extent of becoming one of theirs, to protect Stellar and divert their attention from her. He needs to know their every move.
"This way." Jacob said in a monotone while wearing that frowning eyebrow of his.
He was the Dark King's right hand and has that authoritative aura in him. He looked like he is currently in his early thirties but looks can be deceiving sometimes. Based on his dominance and how he handled himself, he is probably more than a hundred years in serving the Dark King. There was also a huge scar beneath his shoulder-length burgundy hair, evident enough that he has been in a few wars already.
They both walked inside a huge mansionーor more like a rundown huge mansion. Two Dark Angels opened the huge door at the middle of two gargoyle statues, bowing their heads as Jacob passed. As soon as they entered, souls seated on every corner of the place were scattered all over begging for help. They were lost souls who don't have any place to go. Souls of sinners that were not able to redeem themselves and exiled from Angelicus.
While they were pacing through the middle of the crowd, one girl stood up in front of them. She was wearing a white gown with blood-stains on her clothes and holding a brown bunny in her left hand.
"Help...me..." the girl said in an almost whispered voice.
Instead of answering, Jacob raised his right arm forward and motioned it to his side which made the girl fly swiftly to the side and slammed against the wall. The other souls cried in fear as they saw her soul turn into dust. As if nothing happened, Jacob continued walking on the huge staircase.
"Woah. What was that all about?!" Gino was frantic with what he just witnessed. She didn't even do anything and was just asking for help.
"Lowly souls shouldn't stand up against a Dark Angel. Keep that in mind Gino." Jacob frigidly answered.
He scoffed, "Yeah right. But destroying a soul is another case. Is that even justifiable?"
This time, Jacob stopped and faced him. His dark brown eyes looked rigidly at him, "Says the Fallen One who massacred humans."
Gino grimaced.
"You're now in Miachus, Gino." Jacob continued. "You will become a Dark Angel like us. There are no such thing as good or bad things in here."
The fact that Jacob just pointed out made Gino clasped his hands into a fist. He's a Dark Angel now. A being like Rave and Jacob. A being that he hated the most.
"Look who's here." a familiar voice from above said. Gino didn't need to look at whom the voice came from. Based on the cockiness, there's no doubt about it.
Gino put on a sarcastic smile, "Why, it's nice to see you too, Rave. How long has it been? One hundred years?"
Rave gave a sneer back at him and flew in his direction. It happened so fast that his face was close to his in just a matter of seconds. This guy really doesn't know how to back out from a fight.
"And what does the Holy Seraphim's pet doing here? Has he found another pet to play with?"
"At least I'm not some petty bastard who's afraid to see his Daddy." Gino mocked, stressing the Daddy part. He knew how much Rave hated the Dark King. The very person who killed his mother after giving birth to him and tortured him all his life. No wonder he's always running away from Miachus every time the Dark King visits.
Rave instantly choked his neck, in a blink of an eye, he was already pinning him hard on the door a few meters away from where they stood earlier with a loud bang. The souls around them gasped in shock, moving away from the fighting Dark Angels.
"Don't you dare say that again, Gino." Rave's voice was stern and his black eyes were turning red, "Your soul will be mine. Know your place."
A cough escaped Gino's lips before he managed to sneer at him, "Guess I've hit a nerve right there."
"Stop it, you two!" Jacob's voice gave out an authoritative command, making the souls around them submit.
But not the two of them. Never.
It reminded Gino of that night. The night when he died hundred years ago. The cold drips of rain and the stinging pain of the gunshot wound were still fresh in his mind, but Rave's betrayal made him feel a lot worse. Rave's red eyes that night that enthralled the human to kill him was the last thing that he wanted to forget. To always remind him that Rave was the darkest of all Dark Angels, the only one with pure blood and wickedness.
They have been waiting for this time to come. To meet and finish what they have started. Hatred and betrayal piled up all these years. They had always been rivals ever since their friendship ended a hundred years ago.
Rave was about to land a punch on Gino's face when Jacob immediately stopped his hand, holding a tight grip on it.
"Stop it, I said!" Jacob's voice this time was more threatening like he was about to turn them into dust. Right there, right now.
It took him a few seconds before Rave clicked his tongue and removed his hand on Gino's neck. He then walked away, "We're not finished yet, Gino."
"I'll be waiting for the day, Rave Donovan." Gino mocked him.
Rave just gave Gino a middle finger without bothering to look back. On the other hand, Jacob shook his head, "Children."
Jacob then walked Gino through a huge room upstairs. It was dark, with candle lights and all. Not to mention that it gives Gino an eerie feeling. There were eagle images engraved in each cornerstone, which gave it a strong atmosphere.
As they were about to go inside a room in the farthest corner of the hallway, a Dark Angel with raven hair opened the door, carrying an unconscious girl. But Gino's eyes grew wide in disbelief upon recognizing who that girl was.
"Vicky! Why is she here?"
Even though the answer was pretty obvious, Gino couldn't believe his eyes. Why is a student of Scieldan Academy here? Their security in protecting the Nephilims was very strict.
The raven-haired guy answered with a smirk pasted on his face, "Isn't it obvious newbie? She's one of us now." he then looked at Jacob and bowed, "We have already made the Ritual of Regeneration."
Jacob nodded, "Good Job, Victor. Now bring her to her room."
The guy called Victor nodded and made his way to wherever the hell he will take her.
"Your turn, Gino." Jacob said.
Gino furrowed his brows in confusion, "What will I do?"
"Make a pact between you and Miachus."
"What pact? But I'm already a Dark Angel, right?"
"Being a Dark Angel doesn't mean that you already belong, Gino. You have to be reborn as a child of Miachus." Jacob explained and without any warning, he pushed him to the door, inside a dark room where Vicky had just come from.
Gino walked inside a candlelit room without knowing what will happen. There was a strong scent of burning candles and a faint smell of dried blood. Upon entering, Jacob closed the door, leaving him all alone inside.
Or not so alone.
Gino gasped as three hooded guys suddenly walked in front of him from the shadows. They had this foul smell and their face looked like wolves. Their face was crinkled with long hairy mouth and a few stitches were done in their closed bloody eyes.
"What are you?!" Gino's voice stuttered and moved a step backward. For the first time in his life, he felt a strange sense of fear.
They grinned at him and whispered against his ears, "You don't know who we are?"
"Poor guy."
"They call us the heifer." the three of them randomly answered in a creepy hushed voice.
"Heifer?" Gino repeated.
"Yes, yes."
"We're the necromancers of Miachus."
"And we will be your door to darkness."
They chuckled eerily and grabbed his wrist, "This way newbie." They then pulled him inside a pentagram made of candles, "Stand still. We will start the ceremony."
"Wait. What ceremony?" Gino staggered.
"What kind of mess am I seriously in? And what's with these unearthly creatures?" he thought.
One of the heifers hissed at him and all the three of them danced around like loons making Gino drowsy. His knees suddenly weakened and stumbled against the floor. One of them pulled out a knife and walked closer to him. Gino tried to fight but he felt powerless. A few seconds later, there was a cringing pain in his chest and one of the heifers grinned menacingly at him as he pulled the knife out of his chest.
"Wha...what are you doing?" Gino gasped for breath.
"Experience death all over again." one of them murmured.
"And once the moonlight comes to place."
"A new angel will be born."
"Darkest among the darkest."
"Feed with the humans' hatred."
Lastly, one of the heifers whispered against his ear, "And live in the dark for eternity."
Gino coughed and yearned for air as his eyelids got heavier by the minute, "Ste...lly..." he lastly said before his eyes closed and his ragged breaths eventually stopped.