In a place far from the Demon Realm, a group of angels of the highest hierarchy descended to the land for a very special occasion, the 7-cycle – Anglican – birthday of the Holy twins, Serine and Elara, who, even at such a tender age, had received the grace of Metatron – God of Wisdom, Light, and Healing. They were like reflections of each other, with pink hair, emerald green eyes, halos that shone like the sun, slender white wings, and wearing dark blue dresses with black details.
It was their first time on solid ground, so they couldn't contain their excitement.
"Look at this grass, it's as green as they said! And so soft!" – Elara crouched, running her hand over the enchanted grass – "Touch it, see for yourself!"
"I don't know if it's a good idea to mess with it… what if there's some creature?" – She kept her hand close to her body, hesitant.
"You're so fussy! Give me your hand!" – she grabbed her sister's hand, pulling her toward the grass.
"Aaaah!" – She screamed as she was pulled and fell to the ground.
Everything happened so fast, and suddenly they were rolling joyfully over the fresh grass, admiring the trees, leaves, and sky; everything seemed so magical. This was certainly the best birthday they had ever had.
"The sky down here looks different, doesn't it?" – asked her sister, lying on her back.
"To me, it looks the same, just a giant blue ceiling."
"You, huh…" – She huffed at her sister's dull answer – "Look, doesn't that cloud look like a hand?"
"You're right! It really does…" – she felt a chill run down her spine.
Why does that cloud look like a hand…? I… I don't remember it being like this… Has it always been a hand…? Serine was pulled from her thoughts by her sister, who kept calling incessantly.
"Hey! Serine! Are you listening? I've been calling you for ages!" – She looked displeased.
"Huh? What?" – She was already sitting on a white chair, surrounded by sweets arranged on the table before her.
"Hmph!" – She huffed, composing herself to explain her plan – "See that tree over there? How about we race to see who gets there first?"
"Don't you think it's too far? What if something happens to us? We can't stray too far from the guards." – she asked anxiously.
"The guards will pay attention to us, that's their job after all. And besides, if something happens, we can use our powers, we're Saints! Nothing will happen to us, trust me!" – she exclaimed confidently and smiled, hands on her hips.
"You're right…"
Lies… it's a lie… liar… LIAR! LIAR! LIAR! LIAR! LIAR! LIAR!
The girls flew toward the tree as fast as they could. It was a fierce competition, they were so close, overtaking each other by little and then being overtaken again, until Serine pushed Elara, making her spin through the air, gaining a significant lead and touching the tree first.
"That's not fair!" – exclaimed the loser.
"If you don't know how to lose, why did you propose the race then? Hmph!" – She crossed her arms.
"I didn't lose! You pushed me! That's cheating!" – she pointed at her sister.
"You should have said earlier, you didn't say there were rules!" – she mocked.
"Hey!" – she exclaimed irritably.
The two chased each other around the tree, with Serine teasing her sister, saying she would never catch her. The twins continued until they reached the top, when Elara caught her sister, grabbing her, and both fell into laughter. They landed on the tree, observing the surroundings.
"Wow! Look at this view! You can see everything from up here!" – Their eyes sparkled at the privileged view.
"Really! From up here, you can only see tiny… points…" Her smile disappeared instantly, and her eyes widened.
Serine froze when her gaze met his, a figure completely still among the trees, staring at her intensely with golden eyes. His skin was completely black, as were his horns, large and thick as if pressing heavily on his head. His vibrant red hair fell like a waterfall down to mid-thigh, he wore tight high-waisted black leather pants, heeled boots, and a puff-sleeved black shirt with white details, as if trying to hide but not completely. Only his scorpion tail moved. His presence felt so familiar, even though she had never seen him, and it exerted such pressure on her, as if she could be crushed into a pancake at any moment.
In the blink of an eye, he disappeared from her sight. The atmosphere lightened, and everything seemed normal again. She turned to her sister, who maintained a neutral expression while watching her; she had never seen her like that, it all felt so strange.
"Are you okay?" – She asked, worried by her sister's unusual behavior.
No answer came—at least not immediately—Elara just moved on the branch and grabbed her arm firmly, squeezing it.
"You're hurting me, what's wrong with you?"
"Remember…" – His voice came out as a whisper that sent chills down her spine.
"Wh-"
There was no time to question it before she was pushed by her sister down the tree. As she fell, time seemed to slow, and her twin had vanished. Her wings, which had once flapped splendidly, carrying her to great heights, seemed useless now. Time flow returned to normal when she hit her back against a branch, ricocheting across several others, each impact seeming more painful than the last, until she finally collided with the ground. Groaning in pain, struggling to breathe due to her right lung being pierced by a rib, she looked at her arm, which had exposed bone protruding from her wrist, feeling her life drain with each passing second as her eyes grew heavy and finally closed.
When she opened them again, she was already standing, leaning against a tree on the ground, hiding from someone—or rather, something… In her sight, a little distance away, was her sister wearing different clothes and displaying a pair of black horns, along with two angels, guards, probably novices visiting the surface due to a visit from one or more high-ranking angels. Running her hand over her head, she also noticed horns, the situation was so familiar…
I remember this… it was the day that… Elara died… Serine thought, observing the scene.
"Please, help me! My sister and I… demons… demons took us… they're close, save us…" – She cried desperately, clutching one of the guards' clothes – "I want to go back… I want to return… take me home… please…"
The guard she held staggered backward, gathering courage, and violently pushed her to the ground, drawing his sword and pointing it at her, shouting:
"Step away from me! Filthy creature!" – His sword trembled, but he tried to maintain composure.
"What…? I'm Saint Elara!" – She tried to explain but it fell on deaf ears.
"How dare you try to deceive us with Saint Elara's appearance! Damned demon!" – The other guard shouted.
He then created chains with his divine power, wrapping them around her, restraining her wings, arms, and legs, burning her skin and frying her flesh, making her scream in agonizing pain.
"Today will be your end! Return to the hell you came from!" – He raised his sword, striking repeatedly, accompanied by his companion.
The girl tried not to watch, tried to flee, cover her eyes, but always returned to the same spot, to the same scene, to the same memory.
"Please, help me! My sister and I… demons… demons took us… they're close, save us…" – She cried desperately, clutching the guard's clothes.
...
"Today will be your end! Return to the hell you came from!"
Serine twisted in anger, knowing she couldn't help her; it was just a memory… a very painful memory… something that happened long ago, and no matter how many times she was forced to witness it again and again, it always hurt… it felt real every time.
"You can end this if you want, seeing her die repeatedly brings you so much suffering, finish it. Here and now…" – The same figure as before leaned toward her, handing her a dagger.
The hybrid felt the pressure on her body again, stronger this time due to the proximity. Her trembling hands placed the blade against her chest, piercing slowly; tears streamed down her cheeks as it went deeper. She couldn't stop it, she no longer had control over her own body. She tried to resist, but her efforts seemed useless… she would really die now, because she was weak, in body and soul.
No… I can't move like this, all my effort, everything I went through to get here just to throw it all away? No… I still have to fulfill my role… avenge my sister… no… NO! NO!
"NO!" – she screamed, regaining control of her body – "Aaaah!"
She turned quickly, attempting to strike him, but he dodged. Seeing this, she grabbed his hair, making him stumble forward, bringing them closer, then drove the dagger into his left eye, making him groan in pain.
Serine stepped back from him, who was already standing, removing the dagger from his eye and tossing it to the ground. His expression was furious, teeth gritted.
"You little brat! I'm going to kill you!" – He exclaimed, blood pouring down his face.
Driven by rage, he searched for the girl in the surroundings, now with limited vision, creating a blind spot. Knowing this variable, the girl suddenly appeared on his left side through the air, striking him with a spinning kick before he could react. She landed on the leaves and retrieved the dagger, hiding in the forest again.
"Will you hide forever? Fight me face to face!" – He shouted furiously.
She felt his aura grow stronger, realizing what it meant to be a Primordial… to be able to exude so much pressure, even in a copy… it was truly surreal.
Even feeling pressured, she didn't hesitate. Using a tree as a springboard, she projected herself toward him, striking precisely in the heart from behind, knocking him down, continuing to attack until a huge pool of blood formed around him.
A mark appeared on her right arm, a spiraled scorpion tail; she watched the body disappear and sighed.
"I… did it… you really are the worst… Satan…"
…
"Master, 03 has woken up!" – said one of his assistants.
"I'm coming." – He released the instruments – "I think you should meet her while she rests."
He picked up Kazumi, carrying him to the dorm and stopping in front of a door marked '03'. Upon opening it, Lilith was sitting on the bed, surrounded by six little girls, similar to her, but none exactly the same, in color, haircut, clothing, or tail.
"Barn, and… who is this?" – She asked, noticing the two at the door.
"Oh, this is Kazumi, a new… research subject, let's say." – He placed the boy on the floor.
"I see…" – She responded tiredly.
"How are you feeling?" – He sat beside her on the bed.
"A little weak… I don't even think I can stand, but I'm happy." – She looked at her still trembling hands.
"That's good, I'm glad you're happy, of course." – He placed his hand over hers – "So, how was the test?"
"Horrible, he made me relive my sister's death multiple times and tried to make me kill myself, just remembering…" – She clutched her pants.
"I imagined it would be like that, I'm sorry… I tried to make him change his mind, but I think I only made him more irritated with me." – He nervously touched his hair.
"Even if it didn't work, thank you for trying…" – She smiled at him, laying her head on his lap.
He stroked her hair, relaxing her body, as if this scenario were part of their everyday life.
"Rest a little more, your wound hasn't fully healed, and your soul isn't stable yet. I worry about you, it hurts to see you so weak." – He gave a sad smile.
"Really? Then I'll follow your advice… I don't want to worry you too much… it would interfere with your work." – She closed her eyes, snuggling in his lap.
Barn didn't respond, just closed his eyes and continued stroking Lilith's pink hair. It seemed like a very intimate moment. Kazumi watched the two; they seemed so close and as if they had known each other for a long time. Not wanting to interrupt whatever this was, he quietly slipped out the door, leaving the two 'alone.'