12

The night actually passed quietly.

Chris and I were both surprised about that. We'd expected to at least hear Jade and Saffron fighting here and there during it. But remarkably, both remained very quiet.

Coming downstairs the next morning, I saw that the house looked normal. There was no sign of the events from the night before when I peeked outside. The ground wasn't even damaged anymore. Saffron and Jade had covered their tracks well.

Zane was in the kitchen, putting away some dishes that he'd just washed as I came in there.

"You're up early this morning." he commented, giving me that same friendly smile he always did.

"I wasn't that tired and actually got a decent night's sleep. Chris is still sleeping though." I answered.

"So, he did come back. That's not too surprising considering everything that's been happening." Zane noted.

"That's true." I agreed, sitting at the bar and watching him.

Zane finished what he was doing, then sat down across from me, "I saw that Saffron reappeared last night as well. Looks like they've finally set him free."

"Yeah. It seems like he had some pretty good timing too. Will was hurt pretty badly." I admitted.

"Indeed. He had a nasty wound from those angels. I'm rather surprised that they didn't take off his arm with that one. But Will's always been good at avoiding substantial damage. It's a talent he has when it comes to fighting." Zane assured me.

"Is he doing any better this morning?" I asked him.

"Don't worry. He's doing much better now. I'm sure it's already started healing too. He just needs to make sure that he gets some rest today." Zane assured me. He looked around for a moment before continuing, "But I must say that I was surprised over that battle too. Christoff certainly didn't hesitate on fighting those angels, even when he was clearly being outnumbered. That's a fool's fight for a Shadow Wing."

I knew he had a point but decided not to say much to it. Chris would've done it anyway considering it involved me. I had the feeling that he would've faced down just about anything at this point if it meant protecting me, possibly Hell itself.

But as I thought of this, I realized something too.

"Hey, speaking of last night, where were you? I didn't see you anywhere around the house."

"I wasn't here. I went out for an event with some of my artwork and ran late getting home, but I wasn't quite expecting to come back to all of what I did. I especially didn't think that I'd find two Fallen who had decided they were crashing at my home. At least they agreed to clean up the mess that was left in my yard, although that was probably only because they wanted this home to remain safe and hidden." Zane explained.

"Are they still here?" I asked, looking around us. I didn't sense Jade or Saffron anywhere, but that didn't mean anything. I was learning that the ones like them were good at hiding when it suited them.

"No. They've decided to disappear again. No doubt they're up to something or another. The ones like them aren't the types to just sit idle, especially when the angels are active." Zane answered.

"I see."

I glanced at the nearby windows. The sun was shining brightly, and I could hear the birds singing. It looked like the start to a perfect day.

"By the way, there was something I've been meaning to ask you as well." Zane suddenly added.

"Oh, what is it?" I asked, snapping back to attention. I'd almost let myself get lost in my thoughts again.

Zane smiled at me, not noticing my drifting. That or he simply chose to ignore it.

"I know you've had a lot on your mind recently, but I thought perhaps I could give you a bit of distraction. Last night I happened to get some exclusive tickets to a private art showing for artifacts from the Japanese Meiji period. I wondered if you'd like to come with me tonight." he offered, holding up a pair of tickets that he'd pulled from his pocket.

"That sounds fun, but I'm not sure that Chris will be up to me going anywhere without him for a while. He's gotten a little funny about that with everything that's going on." I admitted.

The invitation was nice, and I knew that I probably would've enjoyed it, but the memory of the last time I went out with Zane was fresh in my mind too. I really didn't want to chance another run in with his monstrous father.

"Don't worry. I have two more tickets, considering that I was planning on inviting him and Will to come as well. I don't see where it would hurt us to get out and enjoy a nice evening together. There's nothing that says we can't all be friends and actually act like it." Zane reasoned.

"Well, I guess. But do you really think they'd want to go to something like that?"

"I don't see why not. Chris is pretty artistic, even if he doesn't like admitting it, and Will enjoys unique and historic art. That's the biggest reason they like staying here with me. They like seeing what I can come up with."

Now he had my attention, "Chris is an artist too?"

"He is. He's actually a very good one. You should ask him to draw a picture for you some time. I'm sure you'd like it."

That was interesting. I never would've imagined that Chris was an artist. I really needed to get him to talk to me more about things like that.

"Maybe. I guess I could go with you if they're coming. It does sound fun." I nodded.

"Wonderful. We'll make the plans to do it then." Zane said, getting up.

As I watched him, I wondered if I was making the right choice. After all, Saffron and Jade did say that one of us was a traitor. But he was also inviting Chris and Will. If Zane was that kind of person, why bring us all at once? Will and Chris were strong fighters, and now Saffron had shown back up with Jade. Setting a trap like that would've been far too obvious.

"I guess you're making plans without even asking the rest of us?"

I looked over to see Chris sitting down beside me. Funny, I hadn't even heard him come in there.

"You obviously overheard what I was saying. I couldn't see you not agreeing to go when you knew Ariana would want to." Zane informed him.

"Not really. But it's still imposing, and you know it." Chris argued.

"There's nothing imposing about a nice evening out." Zane countered.

Here was go again, I thought.

It was odd, but I was beginning to notice that Zane and Chris really didn't get along that well when it came to me. It wasn't just the whole thing with Zane's father that had started it. Those two seemed to have very different views of how I should be treated and taken care of.

But I tried to push all of that to the back of my mind. Time to stop them from another long debate, and I knew just how to do it: Distraction.

"By the way Chris, you never told me that you could draw too." I said, looking over at him.

Thankfully Chris took the bait, "It's not something I do that often. But I could show you sometime if you like."

I noticed Zane glancing at us from the corner of my eye but didn't think anything of it. He probably just didn't like that Chris might steal his thunder now that he was awake. But he didn't act any different, instead continuing on with us as he always did.

The morning would continue to pass quietly after all of this, although it still took some convincing for Chris and Will to completely agree to come with us. Will hadn't really been that interested. He made that opinion known right away as we sat outside that afternoon.

"I don't see where this whole thing's such a big deal. It's just a bunch of old pottery and what not." he complained.

Zane frowned at him from across the table, "Of course you'd look at it that way. It's culture, and it certainly wouldn't hurt you to take in some once in a while."

"What? I never said that I wasn't into cultural things. I just don't see where I need to go to some showing of old stuff like this. Besides, what haven't we already seen in the last three hundred years?" Will defended.

"You're going. If I'm going, then you're going." Chris told him. He didn't bother looking at him as he stirred his drink.

Will made a face at him, "And why should I?" he challenged.

"Because if you don't, you'll be hurting Ariana's feelings. I know that's the last thing you want to do." Chris answered.

The table became quiet. Zane was smiling now. He knew that he was winning this one. Chris had already agreed, and now it looked like Will was about to as well. As for me, I did feel a bit bad about dragging them into all of this, but I still really wanted to go.

Will finally conceded, "Fine. I guess I'll go then."

"I knew you'd both see it our way." Zane chimed.

"Nothing like forcing us." Will complained.

I watched as he rubbed his arm, "How's your arm doing now?" I asked him.

"It's starting to get better. It's beginning to heal at least, but it still hurts. Wounds from White Lights typically do hurt longer." Will admitted.

Zane agreed, "Indeed. They're the polar opposites of what we come from, so they cause a worse reaction in wounds for us then most things."

"Speaking of, have you seen any sign of Jade or that other one around today?" Chris asked him.

Zane shook his head, "Not at all. I've been a bit surprised about that. I would've thought that Saffron would stick around more now that he's free. He certainly was looking to see Ariana for a long time before this. It seems rather odd."

"It doesn't matter that much to me. Besides, if he's anything like Jade, I guess he'll just show up whenever he feels like it. Apparently, he always did when I was a kid. I can even remember some nights where I was going to sleep, and he'd decided to appear from out of my closet. I'm not sure why I didn't put two and two together then." I admitted.

Chris shrugged, "Usually we don't when we're kids, and they don't always tell us either unless they absolutely have to. Jade didn't tell me until my family was killed about exactly what he was, and even then, I didn't understand it until I became a lot older." he explained.

"Yes. You did know Jade before that terrible tragedy, didn't you? I'd almost forgotten about that." Zane noted.

"Yeah. I didn't really know him that well, although he did come around enough for me to know that he was my father. The rest of my family never interfered with him either when he was there. He kind of made it so that he ruled the house when he showed up." Chris went on.

"They knew he was there?" I asked.

Chris sat back a little, "I don't remember a whole lot about back then, but yeah, I do know that they'd see him. I think they knew exactly what he was. But then, so did my mother, although she was never too concerned about it for whatever reason. I guess she was just one of those stupid women who actually believed that a Fallen could love her."

His words caught me off guard. Stupid enough to think that a Fallen could love her. It made me think about Faith Kent. Yeah, that could've fit her too. I knew what I'd seen in my visions. Faith Kent had been blindly devoted to Saffron. I believe that she may have truly loved him. Even though it was so stupid to me, maybe it wasn't to her. It was just something natural that came from her heart.

Will seemed to agree with my unspoken sentiments, "You know Chris, it's not really that they're stupid. It's simply what was in their hearts. Besides, you've heard of different kinds of things mixing throughout the centuries. There's really been nothing wrong with it if it's all in the name of love. At least, that's most of our opinions."

"And love created the ones like us, who are born to die. That's everything that's wrong with it." Chris countered.

"Now, now. Let's not start this. It's been a nice afternoon and it's going to be a nice evening. Got it?" Zane ordered, shooting them both a more serious look.

A nice afternoon and a nice evening. In a way, I kind of hoped that he'd be right about that one. We needed something good to take our minds off our worries; and trust me, by then we had a lot of them. Getting out would definitely do us some good.

That was my hope that evening as we walked down the long sidewalk towards the public arts building. However, even while walking there, I sensed that little undertone of uncertainty. Looking at the long evening shadows being cast from the surrounding buildings; I couldn't help suddenly thinking that they felt a bit ominous.

"So, remind me again why we agreed to this?" Will was saying.

"You agreed because you said you wanted to spend time with us, and you can't do much else while that arm's still healing." Zane told him.

"Point taken I guess." Will sounded a little pout out.

"Are you sure you're okay doing this?" I asked as I looked over at him. I felt a bit bad now. I shouldn't have asked him to come if he was in pain.

"I'm alright. It's just a bit sore. I'll be fine." Will reassured me.

"I think you're just trying to milk this a little more. I know it's just about healed now." Chris commented.

"I am not. In case you're forgetting, I'm not as strong as our almighty prince. I don't get the luxury of healing within a day or so from such deep wounds." Will protested.

"Whatever. If you say so, but I still say you're fine." Chris grumbled.

The arts center resided in an old manor house. It was a very beautiful place. A huge chandelier hung in the foyer and large solid wood double doors led into the different rooms that were being used for the exhibits. The floors were done in dark hardwood, as well as the stairs leading to the second floor in the room near us. There weren't a lot of people there, but that was just fine with me. I'd never liked big crowds.

Chris looked around us, "May as well see what we can see while we're here. Why don't we meet up down here in half an hour?" he suggested.

"Sounds fine to me. Just remember what we talked about." Zane reminded him.

"Yeah, yeah." Chris replied, not bothering to look at him.

Zane and Will then walked off. I watched them leave, feeling a bit nervous. I wasn't really sure of why. Something about splitting up felt a dangerous to me all of a sudden. Without thinking, I reached up and held my pendant.

That's right, I reminded myself. Everything will be fine. I still have my link to Saffron to call for help, and Chris is here. Everything will be fine. Nothing will happen to me.

"Come on. Let's see what they have." Chris suggested, taking my hand so that we could walk around.

I agreed, letting him lead me. This place was filled with some beautiful pieces of art. There were exhibits of beautifully painted pottery in the next room we entered. I felt like everything from this time period was incredible. No wonder a lot of the world history professors referred to the Meiji period as the rebirth of Japan.

But as I stood there, I thought about what Zane had said.

"Hey Chris, what were you and Zane talking about back there?" I asked.

"It's nothing too important." Chris replied, "He just likes to remind me of some things he thinks I should remember."

"It feels like Zane takes care of a lot of things with us." I commented.

"Yeah, he does, but it's just his nature. He's always been the type who wants to take care of others. It's strange really, considering who his father is. Astaroth has never cared about anything, even all of the children he's created throughout the centuries." Chris went on.

That was right. Zane did have half siblings. I remembered him saying so, and that Astaroth had killed them all.

"Did Zane have a lot of brothers and sisters?" I asked Chris.

Chris shook his head, "There's been maybe twenty or so born to his father throughout the last five hundred years, but like I said, Astaroth has a bad habit of not really caring much for his kids. He expects them to be strong and made it his duty to test them when he felt the time was right. If they weren't strong enough to beat him or at least hold their own, he killed them; although there's also been at least three that I've heard of that took their own lives before he got to them. Guess they were too scared to face him and what might have been their fates." he explained.

"We can do that?"

I was really surprised to hear that Shadow Wings could commit suicide. But then, I'd assumed that we were at least somewhat immortal. It must not have been an easy thing to do.

"Yeah, it can be done, but if they do it, it has to be something really drastic, and it has to destroy either your heart or your brain. If not, then it's not going to work. The healing process starts too quickly for anything else to work." Chris told me.

I shivered in spite of myself. What a horrible thought. But I could kind of understand too. The Shadow Wings like Zane came out of horrible circumstances and may have had horrible fates awaiting them. If we were considered damned anyway, then suicide wasn't so out of the question.

Chris hugged me from behind as I thought of this, "You don't need to keep thinking about all of that. You're still alive, just like the rest of us. We all keep living and we all hope that we end up finding a reason for this existence. I believe that every living creature does, and that keeps them going."

I enjoyed the closeness as we stood there. Chris had become much more affectionate since opening up to me the night before. It was a welcome change.

"Chris, do you really think something bad is going to happen to us?" I had to ask.

"I don't know, but whether it does or not, I'm still going to keep my promise to you." he answered.

"You wouldn't turn on me, right?"

"No. I told you that I love you, and I'll never leave your side for as long as I live."

I was about to say something else, but all at once, an odd feeling came over me. It was like the whole atmosphere around us had suddenly become heavy and electrified. Chris released me from his embrace, cautiously looked around us.

"What's going on?" I asked, feeling a bit of fear rising in me.

"I don't know, but something's not right. Come on. Stay close to me. We've got to find Zane and Will." Chris responded, taking my hand and keeping me close behind him as we left the room.

We found the main foyer completely empty and looking much darker. There was a death-like silence around us. The lights appeared dimmer, and long shadows seemed to move over the walls. I stayed close to Chris, feeling even more frightened now.

"What is this? Where did all of the other people go?" I asked.

"Looks like there's been a spy after all. We've been lured into a trap."

Chris was angry as he formed his sword in his hand. I couldn't believe it. This just couldn't have been. There was no way Zane would betray us like this. He'd done so much to help us; to help me. Why would he lead us into a trap? I was certain that it went against everything he stood for.

A strange knocking resounded through the room, causing us to take a step back. The shadows seemed to move across the darkened floor, seeping upwards into the writhing shapes of creatures with cavernous eyes and mouths that opened to reveal flames within them. They screeched as they saw us.

"Damn it, it would have to be Shades!" Chris muttered. He looked around us, catching sight of the stairs in the next room, "We've got to get out of here. Shades are hard kills, especially when they're in a group like this. They'll tear us to shreds if they can get a hold of us."

The Shades drew closer as we moved. They glided towards us, leaving deep scratches in the flooring with their claw-like hands. Chris swung his sword at one as it got too close. The blade passed through its arm, causing it to fall off. The thing shrieked, its cry echoing through the large room. Jumping back, it clung to the wall near us as the arm regenerated.

We finally made it to the door, getting into the room that had the stairs.

"Get upstairs. I'll be right behind you. If you can make it to a window, open it and fly out." Chris ordered as he slammed the double doors shut and locked them. We could hear the Shades pounding against them from the other side.

"But..." I started.

"Just go! I'll hold these things off long enough for you to get away!" Chris interrupted.

I didn't want to leave him all alone down there, especially as I saw the doors begin to splinter as I turned to run away, but I also knew better than to disobey. I had formed my spear that I'd learned to make so that I could defend myself, but I didn't think I'd have much luck in holding them off for very long. I certainly couldn't fight as well as Chris could. I'd only be in the way.

I headed up the stairs and down the long hallway. It was darker now, and I could feel the electricity in the air intensifying. To top it off, it seemed like all the windows were gone. I felt desperate now, and tried to use my pendant to call Saffron, but it wouldn't work. Was some kind of unseen force blocking it? Was that even possible with a Heretic Stone?

As I reached the next turn, I suddenly felt someone grab my arm and pull me down into a side closet.

"Be still!" a familiar voice ordered.

As they did, I saw lights wiz past us in the open space I'd just been in. They were the same kind of lights I'd seen when those angels had attacked us the night before. It was a good thing I'd been pulled down to that hidden spot or I would've been hit dead on.

I turned and saw that it was Zane who had grabbed me.

"How'd you get here?" I asked, feeling dumbfounded.

"I was up here when I realized that the atmosphere had begun changing. It looks like they pulled a fast one on us. Those tickets were bait to lure us in here." Zane replied, letting out an exhausted breath.

His words brought reality crashing down on me, "Liar! Why the hell did you bring us here?! You knew all along that this was a trap, didn't you?!" I accused as I stood back up.

It was no coincidence that this had happened. Zane had betrayed us. He'd led us right into a trap.

"What?! I had no idea that they were planning such a thing! I simply followed the invitation I'd gotten at my last showing! I get them all the time!" Zane defended. He stood up and looked around, "What's happened to Christoff? Where is he?"

"He's down there fighting off those Shade things or whatever he told me they are!" I answered.

Zane stared at me in shock, "They've sent Shades as well?"

We both heard the sound of wings as he said that. Chris landed near us within seconds, using his wings to create a powerful gust that threw the oncoming Shades back down the hallway.

"Now's a fine time to deny any involvement Zane!" he confronted him as he stood up straight. I could see where he'd ripped open the back of his shirt when he'd brought out his wings.

"I said that this is none of my doing! I wouldn't betray us to the powers that would kill us! I would never believe that they wouldn't kill me as well!" Zane protested.

"Then how do you explain all of this?" Chris challenged, looking back as we heard more shrieking from the nearby stairwell.

"I don't know. I don't know how they knew we would all come here tonight. The invitations to this were private. Even if I came here there was no guarantee that you and Ariana would, or Will for that matter." Zane reasoned. He looked like he was grasping at straws with this. Could he have been telling the truth?

But we had bigger things to deal with then blame at that moment. I was reminded of that by the horrible sounds coming closer.

"Don't you think there might be a better time to deal with this? Those things are coming back." I informed them.

Chris let out a frustrated breath, pointing his sword at Zane, "You'd better tell us the right way to get out of here, or I'm going to drive this sword straight through your heart." he threatened.

"I swear to you that this isn't my doing!" Zane snapped back, "But there is a large ballroom up here, and off of it are balconies. If we can get to them, then we can fly out."

"It's worth a shot. Let's get moving. Hopefully we'll be able to find Will too." Chris said as he took my hand.

He looked back, and we followed his gaze to see the shadows twisting and moving towards us from the end of the hallway. The Shades were coming back, now fast and angry. The three of us began to run. There was no way that we'd be able to face this huge group of them. We were dangerously outnumbered.

The ballroom that Zane had been talking about wasn't that far from where we were. We slammed the large door closed as soon as we got in there. The Shades slammed against it, and we could hear them scratching and muffled screeching; but the heavy door held them back.

I immediately froze as I turned to look at the room we'd come into. The floors and walls all looked like they were made of glass, and there was no furniture in there. My eyes widened as I stared, the vision from before flashing through my mind.

Oh my God, it was the same. The dark, shadowed shapes coming after us, Chris pointing his sword at Zane; and this room, the room that looked like it was made of crystal. It was all the same.

Zane was staring in disbelief too, "What... what is all of this?" he managed.

Chris pulled me behind him, "You know damn well what it is! You led us into another trap!"

"No! I swear this is none of my doing! I had no idea about any of this!" Zane protested, backing away from the point of the sword. He was in too much shock to draw a weapon of his own to defend himself.

But before anymore could be said, another voice interrupted us.

"Of course it wasn't him. It was me."

The three of us turned to see a black winged figure walk out from behind one of the glass columns. I couldn't believe my eyes.

"Will?" I whispered.

"You did this?!" Zane said in disbelief, "But... why?"

Will smiled at us, "Honestly Christoff, do you really think that Zane has the spine to turn against his own kind for his own salvation? He barely managed to survive before he met you." he commented.

Chris's eyes narrowed in anger as he looked at him, "Why this? What could they have possibly offered you to make you turn against the ones who've stood beside you?"

"Why you ask? For a just a little bit of salvation, of course." a deep voice answered.

A large mass of light appeared from the ceiling, floating down behind Will. It turned into the form of a beautiful man with light blonde hair and blue tinted wings that matched his eyes. He was very tall and strong looking, dressed in gold plated armor.

"Judiel!" Zane growled, his wings bursting out. He swung his hand to the side, forming his sword. It looked a lot like Chris's, though the black flames seemed brighter. That could've been for how angry he'd become. No doubt he didn't like that he'd almost been blamed for the situation we were in, or that our so-called friend had done it.

Judiel wasn't moved by any of this, "So, you do recognize me." he noted.

"Of course we'd know you. You were the one that killed most of our families." Chris responded, taking a defensive stance in front of me along with Zane.

"That is true, but as I recall it, I only killed heretics who shielded forbidden children." Judiel corrected.

"A murderer, that's all you are! Those were human lives you took!" Zane shot back.

I noticed the wall near us beginning to morph. From the distortion came another Shade. It was much larger than any we'd seen outside of this room, a billowing giant of a shadow with sharp claws and burning cavities for eyes. A loud, screeching roar came from its huge mouth as it appeared, but it didn't move to attack us. It instead slithered back and forth on its long tail as if anxiously waiting. Judiel seemed to have control over it.

"What's this all about anyway? Why recruit one of our own? You've never done so before." Chris pointed out.

"Isn't it obvious? Because having a Fallen Child on our side is perfect for our needs." Judiel responded. He put an arm around Will's shoulders, "What better way to attract them then by offering them something that they would want more than anything? Your former friend here certainly wouldn't pass up the opportunity to regain what he once had, not to mention he gave us all of the information we'd ever need about your newest addition."

The anger seeped into Chris's voice as he spoke, "So those angels were sent to see if she was really there, and to see where I was. I'm not stupid about any of this Judiel. I know you've been aiming for my head for years."

Judiel smiled, letting Will go, "Of course. Not to mention I had to see where that father of yours was. Even catching that other one coming out of captivity was well worth the loss. After all, contending with the Dark Ones is a chore that we do not need to take on unless it must be done. This way is much easier."

The Shade slithered back and forth a little more rapidly. It was itching to get to us now, but Judiel was keeping it held where it was like a hungry caged lion. I could also see the smaller Shades appearing in the corners of the room.

"So, this is what it comes down to. You'll send the monsters after us instead of doing it yourself. You've become nothing but a coward." Chris scoffed.

"Of course not. The monsters are only for your friends here. You I want for myself, and that girl will serve as a display of our power."

I screamed as I was suddenly lifted high into the air by an unseen force. I was thrown towards Judiel, who flew into the air and caught me in one swift motion.

"Ariana!" I heard Chris yelled as we landed, but before he could move towards us, the giant Shade jumped in front of him and Zane, effectively blocking their path.

Judiel held me by the back of my neck, squeezing so hard that I couldn't move. I felt terrible pain when I tried, like my neck was about to break.

Will looked shocked as he saw this, "This is not what we agreed to! Let her go!" he protested.

A flaming black whip appeared in his hand. He tried to use it on Judiel, but it shattered in the air in front of us. It was as though it had hit an invisible shield that was surrounding us. Will stared at it, his eyes wider now. This appeared to be the last thing he'd been expecting.

Judiel was unmoved by any of it, "You really thought I could spare her? She is the daughter of one of the most powerful Fallen to escape the Abyss. We can't just let her off with a simple kill, and sparing her is out of the question." he told him.

"But she's innocent! She knows nothing of her heritage! She only recently changed!" Will argued.

He pulled the remains of the whip back, shattering some of the glass floor in front of him. As they floated up in the air, they swirled around him and flew at Judiel's head with a quick swipe of his hand.

Again, the blow never came. The shards were destroyed as they hit another invisible shield around us.

"You are one to speak of heritage boy. You were foolish enough to believe that I would actually bring back that girl of yours. Your own heretic father abandoned his children long ago."

Judiel held up his free hand and slowly closed it into a fist. All I could do was gasp as Will feel to the floor, holding his shoulders my he was in tremendous pain. It was as though he was crushing him without even touching him.

At the same time, Chris and Zane were trying to get past the Shade, but they weren't having much luck. I cried out in pain as Judiel turned away with me. My neck was aching. I was starting to get worried that he may end up breaking it if he kept holding me like this.

"Come along now. My time is short here." I heard him say.

I tried to struggle again him and free myself, but his grip was far too strong. This is it, I thought. I'm going to die just because someone I thought was my friend made stupid choice.

Judiel took a few more steps, then suddenly stopped. I was thrown to the ground as he spun around. I managed to turn onto my back in time to see him hold up a hand to stop the flaming black sword coming down at his head. Chris had somehow gotten past the giant Shade, and now he was aiming to take on Judiel.

But Judiel caught the sword with one hand, easily holding it back, "So, you're not giving up this time." he scoffed as he threw him back.

Chris managed to land in a back slide on the glass floor, glaring at him, "You think I'm giving her up to you that easily? I've waited all of this time to find her, and I'm not about to let you kill her!" he declared.

"Foolish boy."

Judiel flapped his large blue wings. Chris managed to stand up against the strong gusts coming from them, but just barely.

"Chris!" I yelled as I tried to get up, but it felt like I was being held down by some strong force. I could barely even life my head against it.

"You of all of them should know that you are outmatched, yet still you attempt to come at me. I don't know whether to call you brave or stupid." Judiel went on, throwing his hand down and sending a bright white light straight at him.

Chris immediately tried to shield himself, but the force of it was far too strong, and he was thrown back against one of the far walls. I felt the tears in my eyes as I heard the deafening sound of him hitting it. When he fell back to the ground, I could see an imprint left in the wall where he'd hit.

Judiel walked over and picked him up by the collar of his shirt, "You've been a thorn in my side from the day you were born. I'm going to enjoy erasing your insignificant existence."

I struggled as hard as I could against the force that was holding me, but it felt like it was pushing down harder as I did.

I can't watch this, I thought. I can't lay here and watch him die!

It was no use. Whatever way he was holding me down there, I couldn't break free from it.

But just as I thought it was all over, I felt someone come and lean over me. The hold suddenly released as they grabbed my wrists and pulled me up to a sitting position.

"Come on!" Will ordered, getting up on one knee, "We've got to get you out of here!"

"What are you...?" I started.

"This wasn't supposed to happen. The plan's gone completely wrong. Come on; let's get you away from here before he kills you too!" Will interrupted.

But before either of us could move, Will stiffened.

"Get away!" he yelled, pushing me back.

It was just in the nick of time. The Shade had made its way up there and thrust a clawed hand through his chest. I screamed as he was tossed aside, and it turned towards me. I'm not sure of how I managed to get up and run, but it was right behind me. Before I knew what hit me, it grabbed my leg and slammed me down. I stared in horror as it moved over me, those inky eyes just inches from my face. This was it. This was how I was going to die. That vision had been foretelling all of our deaths.

But that death blow never came. The Shade suddenly bolted up and let out a horrible screech as it was cut straight down the middle. I stared in shock as Chris pulled his sword from the dead creature, turning back towards Judiel on shaky legs. He was very badly injured. He could barely stand, and his clothes were stained with blood. I believe that it was only by sheer will power that he was able to do what he had just done. He was determined that he would protect me until the end.

For what felt like an eternity, Judiel just stared at us. I doubt that he'd ever expected for any Shadow Wing to be able to kill a massive Shade, especially when they were hurt as badly as Chris apparently was.

But before he had a chance to make any more moves against him, a dark energy suddenly filled the room. I managed to get up and catch Chris in time to keep him from falling onto the hard floor as black smoke billowed up between us and Judiel. As I suspected, it turned into Jade.

"So, this is where you hid them. Clever, using one that you thought may have enough weakness within him to do some of your dirty work." he commented.

Judiel didn't look intimidated as he regarded him. He just smiled.

"Would you expect any less of me? I know how well you hid that boy before. Only someone with his trust could have led them to me so easily."

"You realize you've made a dire mistake in doing this. Did you think that I wouldn't intercede after all of this time?" Jade growled. He was clearly getting ready to go on the offensive. I even saw his eyes beginning to glow red in his anger. He raised a hand at the angel near us.

Judiel held up his hand, forcing him to stop and listen, "I'm well aware of that, however, I have no desire to fight you or any other Fallen at this time. I've gotten what I needed here, and above all, I also believe that the damage is done. So farewell Corrupted One, until we meet again."

With that, he swung an arm around and disappeared in a brilliant flash of golden light.

"Damned coward." Jade muttered. He turned and looked at us.

Near us, Will lifted himself up with one arm, holding the hole in his chest tightly with the other. I could see a large pool of blood forming under him.

"Chris!" he managed to call, though it only came out as a gasp. He seemed to be realizing how badly he was hurt, and how awful everything had turned out.

Jade walked over and looked down at him, "You're a fool boy. You led your own right to him this time without thinking it through, and all for orders."

Will looked away, shaking his head and coughing up some blood, "Go ahead and kill me then. I think I've earned that much. Maybe then I won't have to follow his orders anymore." he responded weakly.

"You don't deserve as much." Jade said coldly, turning back to me and Chris.

"Jade..." I started, carefully letting go of Chris to stand up.

That was a mistake. With one swift movement, he had knocked me into the wall. I felt the wind get knocked out of me as I fell to the hard floor. Pain raced through my entire body. It felt like all of my bones had broken simultaneously.

"And you I don't want to hear another word from. You are the cause of this mess. If he hadn't brought you into existence, then they would not have mobilized again!" I heard Jade say through that immense haze of pain.

"Jade, please don't! It's not her fault!" I heard Zane yell.

It took me a moment to realize that he was now sitting beside me. He was cut up from the Shades but didn't seem too terribly bad off. At least not compared to the rest of us.

"Get away from her boy before I do the same to you!" Jade threatened.

I saw him move to strike at me again, but before he could do anything, it felt like an earthquake hit the room, violently shaking and cracking the glass. Jade leapt back as a dark shadow lashed up at him from the floor. It melted back into the floor again, then billowed back up with Saffron appearing from it.

"That's enough. Let them be Jade. This isn't their fault, and the one who led them here is badly wounded. It may do you better to tend to your own before he actually does die." he ordered, glancing at where Chris was lying.

"Chris?!" I whispered, trying hard to pull myself up.

But Zane wouldn't let me move, "Stay still. You're badly hurt." he whispered in my ear.

I didn't realize until later that he was trying to keep Jade's attention on Saffron. He knew that if it was directed back at us, then Jade may attempt more harm in his angry state.

Saffron remained firm in front of us. I had the distinct feeling that he was now guarding. He probably knew all too well how angry Jade had become, and that there was a real possibility that he'd try to kill us because of it. I managed to look up a little more and could see the shadows lifting around us, dancing like licks of flames in the air.

"Back off Jade. Don't make me fight you. You have your own to tend to, so let mine be. Me tearing into you now will ensure that boy's death." Saffron warned him as he pointed to Chris.

Jade stared him down, then seemed to concede. He let go of his attack stance and walked over to pick up Chris's limp body.

"Very well. I'll spare her today, but you keep that girl away from him. This is her fault, and I won't see my own killed because she thinks she has his heart." he warned Saffron.

"Strong words when it's already too late." Saffron muttered.

Jade didn't bother saying anymore. We watched as black flames suddenly erupted around him and Chris. It encircled them, and in an instant, they were gone. I stared at where they'd been. There was so much damage to the room, and I could see a lot of blood stains all around us. The cold reality was beginning to set in fast and hard. The vision I'd had weeks before had come true. We had nearly been killed, and Chris may have even been dying.

Saffron came over and knelt in front of us, "Now, now. Be still. You don't want to make that wing any worse." he told me. He reached behind me and snapped my right wing back into place. I heard myself scream as the pain shot through me. The funny thing was that I hadn't even realized my wing had been broken until then.

Zane looked over at Will, who was lying near us, "What about him? We can't just leave him to die." he reasoned.

Saffron seemed to think it over, "Normally I'd say to let him die, but I can't overlook what's happened either. He took a deadly blow for my own, even after attempting to betray her." he said, sounding thoughtful. He walked over to Will, kneeling down beside him, "Are you still able to speak boy?"

Will barely opened his eyes to look at him, "Not much longer." he whispered.

"Very well. Then tell me, was this all really under orders?" Saffron asked him.

"Yes. You know as well as all of them that I cannot deny him. He knew that Judiel wouldn't figure me out until it was too late, so he told me to use him for info on the hunts." Will whispered. His breathing was becoming much more labored now.

Saffron nodded, "I see. Although I must say that jealousy also made you quite a mess with this, didn't it? If it wasn't for that, you wouldn't be on the verge of death now. But really, it is a waste to have such a powerful Fallen Child die like this. For that I cannot grant your wish today. You'll have to live on, and you'll remain obedient to me over him, or I'll rip your heart out from your chest myself next time."

Zane stared at Saffron as he lifted Will up, "You mean you're saving him?" he asked in disbelief.

"He can prove to be useful, just as you can. So, let us get moving. Are you healed enough to bring Ariana?" Saffron responded.

"I believe so."

Zane stood up, then picked me up since I couldn't stand on my own. My legs were shaking far too badly, and not just from being hurt.

"Good. Then let us get moving. We're going to need time to regroup and allow the three of you to heal." Saffron ordered.

Through my haze of pain and sorrow, I watched as we went out to the balconies and the night sky opened up above me. The horror was over for now.

But the pain of living on was just beginning, as well as my journey to find my true self.