Chapter 37

It was early in the morning, and Zack was still in bed. Sleeping in for him was rare so they didn't bother him. When noon rolled around Yu went to check on him. She entered the room quietly and crawled under the sheets wanting some loving.

Lilith witnessed Yu walking to the estate and was on her way to see what they were up to. When she came through the door she saw Yu desperately trying to wake Zack up. Yu was crying on his chest while Lilith went to his side quickly.

While examining Zack she realized his breathing was extremely shallow, and his color was off. There was also a black lump at his shoulder. It was polluting his veins in the surrounding area to a pitch black.

"He won't wake up." Yu cried.

Lilith bolted out the door heading for Valan's last location. Word quickly spread that Zack was severely ill. A variety of medicinal herbs were used, but nothing worked. Then Valan attempted using magic but it also failed.

Any attempt to hell Zack could bring color back to him momentarily, but it would rapidly fade. Naomi finally arrived as she examined Zack closely. Holy light flooded the room causing Lilith to leave for the hall. The veins began to recede but the lump remained.

"That lump is pure chaos, and most angels would die swiftly with that coursing in their veins, but his body is fighting it." Naomi continued her treatment with no change to the lump.

"His body must have continued to heal, and attempted to fight it off like a virus. If he had detected it sooner he could've purified it himself. To spread this much in only a few hours is frightening...Lilith would be the only one here who could draw it out." Valan said as he fetched Lilith from the hall.

Valan returned with Lilith explaining the cause. Samuel showed her how to manipulate chaos before, but she wasn't good at controlling it. Lilith was preparing to fetch him, but they mentioned it would be too late. Lilith was the only choice they had to save his life. Everyone was cleared from the room except Lilith and Naomi.

"I'll make an incision, and then you will have to draw it out, but that's when the trouble happens. If we can't dissipate it before it expands were done for. For this to be avoided we need to work in unison, but that could still harm you." Naomi cautioned.

"Hurry up and do it," Lilith replied without hesitation.

Naomi enveloped a dagger with holy energy as she cut across the lump. Lilith placed her hands forward sensing the chaos seeping out. She was struggling to control it, but it still flowed out slowly. Zack began wincing in pain as it was being removed forcefully.

Lilith saw him in pain and calmed herself as she refined the flow to continue. Zack no longer struggled as she increased the output. The chaos was starting to take form in the room making Namoi take action.

As the holy light filled the room Lilith struggled to keep focus. The chaos continued to increase forcing Namoi to push harder. Lilith was shaking as her skin began to smoke. Naomi saw this letting up.

"Keep going!"Lilith demanded.

Lilith's face was covered in pain as her right arm began to sizzle. At this rate death was certain, but as long as she didn't falter Zack would live. Lilith had spent her life being selfish until meeting him. Zack showed her the value of helping others, and the joys it could bring. The people here needed him to survive. There was no way she could look Tanya in the eyes and say Zack was gone. With all this in mind, Lilith's resolve was clear as she increased her effort as the lump began fading.

'I won't let you die.'

The room was flooded with chaos as Naomi was forced to get serious. If the chaos gained even a little ground it would rapidly devour everything around, and its expansion could put everyone at risk. The white light flared harder as Lilith's face displayed a painful expression.

Kaya walked in chanting in elven extending her hand to erect a barrier between Lilith. It reduced some damage to Lilith, but it wasn't enough. Kaya continued forward trying to increase its strength as her mana was rapidly being consumed.

Following behind to offer support was Destiny, Ren, Yuki, and Yu. They got in between the light just before the barrier shattered. They were attempting to shield Lilith but this caused the chaos nearby to drain their vitality. Naomi saw their resolve in the face of death and continued.

They all linked together shielding Lilith as she forced the remaining darkness into the room. All of them seized tightly from the pain but didn't dare let go. Naomi's light covered the room extinguishing the darkness as everyone dropped to the ground exhausted.

Lilith was unconscious, but only her arm was damaged in the process. Zack's color returned slightly, but his wounds still weren't healing. Naomi was fatigued but still pushed to heal Zack's remaining wound.

'Just a little more' Naomi winced.

Their efforts weren't in vain as Zack's color returned putting everyone at ease. Yu crawled into the bed clinging to his arm before resting her eyes. The others copied this as Valan tended to Lilith's wound. Once her arm was bandaged they lifted her carefully into the bed next to Zack.

That day everyone stayed inside the walls waiting for news. Vicente was patrolling the area with Soralan for any threats. He heard his friend narrowly escaped death and wanted to defend this place till he recovered. Tanya was keeping all the kids busy, and making sure everyone stayed positive. She was trying desperately to be strong like her brother.

'Please be okay.' Tanya glanced at Zack's home.

Later that night Zack finally awoke. Wondering how he lost a day he was preparing to get up, but something was clinging to him. Zack looked down seeing his partners around him. Lilith was facing him and slowly opened her eyes. When Zack placed his hand on her cheek a tear went down Lilith's face. While he wiped the tear from her cheek she touched his shoulder. This is when Zack saw her bandaged arm.

"What happened?" Zack investigated.

"Just a little burn that's all. Nothing you can do about it, and I'll be fine in a day or so." Lilith smiled.

Zack uncovered the bandage seeing her scorched arm. Lilith tried to cover it, but he pulled it close. Closing his eyes he focused on Lilith's arm. The gold light enveloped her, but it didn't burn. The time it took was way longer than his attempts on others, but he needed to be cautious.

Lilith was amazed his power didn't harm her. It's never been recorded of an angel healing a demon. The divine power was always meant to be fatal to their kind, but Lilith was healing just fine. As the glow enveloped her arm Lilith felt a warm sensation putting the pain at ease.

"Was this because of me?" Zack asked.

"When we left you this morning you were fine. I checked your body thoroughly as usual and noticed nothing. We were letting you sleep when Yu found you dying in the bed. You had a mass of chaos stuck in you. Your body seemed to extinguish most of it, but a small piece remained. Your healing had stopped functioning from overworking, and that's when it must have grown as it slowly spread towards your heart. You're okay now, and that's all that matters. Now let's go back to bed." Lilith smiled as she kissed him.

Zack noticed his bed filled with women close to him. Most of them seemed to be unwounded but he could feel the remnants of chaos. All of them risked their lives to save him. Closing his eyes Zack felt how weakened his grace was.

It would replenish like always but it was never this low before. Zack had enough in the tank to cleanse his friends. A gold aura covered the bed ridding the impurity from them, but now he could only use magic. Zack held Lilith tightly in his arms as they drifted to sleep.