So⊠where to begin? It's hard for me to say when it all truly started, because I don't remember. Even the teachers who witnessed the beginning tell the story differently.
Well, I'll start with my beginningâmy first memory.
It was morning, and a man was holding my hand while carrying my sister in his arms. Honestly, I don't know who the man was. I don't remember his face, his clothes, or his voice. I just remember him repeating over and over that we would be safe and that I should take care of my sister. I was too young to understand what was happening, but he said it so many times that it's probably the only reason I remember it.
He brought us to the door of a monastery and handed us over to Sister Eva. We never saw him again.
The nuns and priests raised us. Even though we were safe, warm, and fed, I can't bring myself to feel grateful. They raised us strictly, teaching us to live according to faith and the Bible.
We lived together until we were ten years old, when they separated us. Boys and girls weren't allowed to live together. We saw each other during classes and on Sundays at Mass, but we weren't allowed to interact. The only time we could talk was during meals, under the watchful eyes of a dozen nuns.
We weren't allowed to swear or talk about anything undesirable.
We learned how people lived outside through books we passionately read and hid. If a nun found a book, comic, orâGod forbidâa risquĂ© magazine, we were harshly punished.
You're probably wondering why we lived this way.
We found out when we turned fifteen. That's when we were confirmed and became "religiously of age."
They told us that humanity had gone in a very bad direction. That the number of people choosing not to live by God's rules was growing. Murders, wars, rapes, deceit, homosexuality, violence, disrespect for others and for God Himself, theft, and other sins had become everyday occurrences.
They told us that God decided to bring about another "flood", but in a harsher way. That He chose to hit the reset button again, but this time to teach humanity the true extent of His wrath.
The version most often repeated says that one day, above New York, the clouds turned red, and from them emerged God's army, led by Archangel Michael. They massacred the entire cityâwomen, children, the elderly. No one survived. It was a shock to humanity.
Unfortunately, it didn't end there. It happened again. After New York fell, so did Paris. After Paris, Shanghai. Then Cairo. Then BrasĂlia. Millions dead, massacred.
Humanity plunged into panic and despair. Some prayed for forgiveness, while others gave in to even greater sins. Everyone awaited the end in their own way.
But the end didn't come.
The passage was suddenly closed.
No one knew how or why for a full two years. The world was in chaos. Armies patrolled the streets of nearly every city on Earth. Even they likely didn't know if their role was to maintain order, fight the newly formed gangs, punish sinners, or prepare for God's army.
After a year, a frail, hunchbacked old man appeared in public for the first time. He drew the attention of the media by literally floating in London, speaking in a thunderous voice.
He spoke of humanity's corruption, then of humanity's capacity to love. He said everything revolves around love. That love is the reason for all the good and bad things that happen. If you love something and it's taken from you, it births hatred, sorrow, anger, and despair. Without love, there's nothingâneither good nor evil.
He said humanity was worth saving and begged us to understand why he did what he did.
The man revealed he had made a Pact with a demon, allowing it to coexist within his body if it would close the gates. The demon agreed, but, of course, there was a price.
The old man had only been 19 when his entire family was slaughtered in the Cairo massacre. He survived only because he had been away on a trip. He was devastated, having lost everything, even his 5-year-old brother, who hadn't even lived long enough to commit a sin.
He wanted revenge but knew he couldn't achieve it alone. Desperate, he performed a ritual to summon a demon. In exchange for closing the gates for five years, he promised the demon 50 years of his own life.
He explained that his body couldn't keep the passage closed for long. All the demons want to escape from Hell, but none of them are powerful enough to keep the gate sealed for an extended period. In three years, he said, he would die, and his demon would return to Hell.
He asked humanity for a sacrificeâto summon demons or find rebeled angels, learn to live with them, and use them. To prepare for war and defend our children, our future. To ensure we would not be eradicated.
Then, he descended and collapsed.
For three years, he lay in a coma before he passed away, just as he had foretold.
After his death, the passage reopened, this time above London. God's army marched again, led by Michael.
But this time, they encountered resistance.
The old man had allegedly left behind a book containing all his knowledge about demons, and humanity had used it.
While many people were corrupted by demons, leading to great crimes and unrest, those strong enough to resist their influence became nearly invincible on a human level.
Michael's army was caught off guard and defeated.
Anticipating their return, humanity performed a ritual and partially sealed the passage once more. This time, archangels couldn't pass through. Without their leaders, the angels were disoriented, but still powerful, and they continued their advance.
Since then, battles for humanity have raged across the Earth.
And now, we come to why Maria and I live here.
Scattered across the planet are monasteries that raise and train children to grow up without sin, making them capable of summoning angels who will also fight on the side of the angelsâbut for humanity. A sinless humanity.