I glided through the throng of angels, their luminous forms a blur around me. My wings shimmered, catching the celestial light in iridescent flashes. Whispers trailed in my wake.
"Seraphina..."
"Look at her..."
"So beautiful..."
Their words slithered into my ears like serpents. Did they not see the darkness that lurked beneath my porcelain skin? The sins that stained my soul? I forced a benevolent smile, the mask I wore to hide my true face.
A commotion ahead drew my gaze. An angel struggled with an overflowing basket of glowing orbs - prayers from the mortal realm. His wings fluttered frantically as he tried to keep the delicate spheres from spilling onto the clouded ground.
Without thinking, I reached out to steady the basket. "Let me help you with that," I murmured, my voice honeyed poison.
The angel's eyes widened. "Oh, Miss Seraphina! I couldn't possibly..."
"I insist," I said, gently taking the basket from his trembling hands. The weight of countless human pleas pressed against my palms. How easy it would be to crush them, to snuff out their fragile hopes...
I carefully rearranged the orbs, my fingers caressing their warm surfaces. "There," I said, handing the basket back. "All secure now."
"Thank you, Miss," the angel breathed, awe shining in his eyes.
As he scurried away, I felt the familiar ache of loneliness gnaw at my heart. Would anyone ever truly know me? Or was I doomed to wander these hallowed halls alone, my true self hidden behind a veil of false purity?
The crowd of angels parted around me like mist, leaving me isolated in a sea of light. Their reverent gazes felt like knives, peeling away my carefully constructed facade. How long could I maintain this charade before the darkness within me burst forth, tainting everything it touched?
I spread my wings, preparing to take flight. Perhaps in the solitude of the highest spires, I could find a moment's peace from the crushing weight of expectation. As I leapt into the air, a haunting whisper carried on the breeze:
"Sera... are you there? Are you watching me?"
My heart stuttered. That voice... so familiar, yet impossible. I shook my head, banishing the phantom words. Such thoughts led only to ruin and damnation. I soared higher, leaving my doubts far below.
But try as I might, I couldn't escape the growing sense that something momentous awaited me. A crossroads approached, and the choice I made would determine not just my fate, but that of all the realms.
Heaven's light suddenly felt cold against my skin.
As I alighted on a cloud-wreathed spire, hushed voices drifted up from below. I peered down, my curiosity piqued despite myself.
"Prince Gideon of Aspen," an angel whispered, her voice trembling. "They say he's amassing an army of the damned."
"Hush," another replied. "Speak not his name lest you summon his darkness."
I leaned closer, my heart racing. Prince Gideon... why did that name send shivers down my spine?
"He seeks to overthrow the divine order," a third angel added. "A fallen soul, beyond redemption."
My gaze swept toward the earth realm's lens, searching, There - a figure cloaked in shadow. Could it be him?
I spread my wings, gliding silently closer to the screen. The figure turned, and I caught a glimpse of long blond hair framing a face both beautiful and terrible.
*Don't look,* I told myself. *He's evil. Corrupt. Everything we stand against.*
But I couldn't tear my eyes away.
Prince Gideon's piercing blue eyes seemed to darken as I watched, reflecting an unfathomable depth of pain and fury. What horrors had he endured to carve such anguish into his very being?
I lingered, mesmerized by the darkness that clung to him like a second skin. In that moment, I understood the true meaning of temptation.
My breath caught in my throat as Prince Gideon's gaze suddenly locked onto mine. His lips parted, and in a voice like velvet over broken glass, he uttered, "Sera, are you there? Are you watching me?"
My heart fluttered wildly, wings trembling. How did he know my name? could he see me? I'd never spoken to him, never even been close before. Yet the way he said it - "Sera" - sent tendrils of warmth curling through my chest.
*This is madness,* I chided myself. *He's evil incarnate.*
But I remained frozen, caught in the gravity of his stare. There was something in those fathomless eyes - a flicker of recognition, of longing - that belied the stories I'd heard.
I tore myself away, pulse racing. I needed answers.
"Azrael," I called, approaching a nearby angel. My voice quavered. "What do you know of Prince Gideon?"
Azrael's face darkened. "Why do you ask, Seraphina?"
"I just... I'm curious. The others speak of him with such fear."
Azrael sighed. "He was not always as he is now. Once, he was a beacon of light and love. But grief can twist even the purest soul."
I leaned closer, hungry for more. "What happened?"
"He lost his wife," Azrael whispered. "And in his desperation to reclaim her, he made a pact with forces beyond our realm. Now, he's bound by darkness, forever seeking to fill the void in his heart."
As Azrael spoke, I felt a chill settle over me. Not of fear, but of a strange, unbidden empathy. What wouldn't I do for love?
*No,* I thought. *Don't let his tragedy sway you. He's chosen his path.*
But as I glanced back to see Gideon, alone amidst the darkness, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to his story than anyone knew.
The voices came in the night, a sibilant whisper that crept beneath my consciousness. "Seraphina," they called, "come to us."I tossed in my bed, wings rustling against silken sheets. "Who's there?" I murmured, but only silence answered.
The call persisted, night after night, until I could bear it no longer. My feet carried me to the edge of the Celestial Gardens, where light faded to shadow. The Veil of Twilight, they called it - the boundary between Heaven's radiance and the forbidden realms beyond.
"This is madness," I whispered, even as I took a step forward. The voices grew stronger, a chorus of seduction and warning.
I hesitated, heart pounding. "I shouldn't..."
With a shuddering breath, I plunged into the darkness.