millochi

[millochi]

Prologue - Jax

Jax would never forget his first demon. It was scarred into his mind.

He’d been with Ambrosia that day. They’d crept away from the city of Heaven, out into the rolling meadows beyond the city to lounge in the lush grass. They didn’t have wings, not yet, so they stared up at the rocky bottoms of the suspended islands that floated aimlessly through the sky like lazy clouds. Jax had brought his guitar, and the comfortable shape fit under his arm as he plucked easily at the strings. The soft music mingled with the sweet, earthy smell of the tiny white flowers growing around them. He wasn’t playing any song in particular. Just skipping through tunes, humming along, ad-libbing words as he went.

“You’re getting good,” Ambrosia murmured.

Jax felt a glow of pride in his chest. He snuck a glance at her. She was on her back, bright orange hair splayed around her like a pool of fire.

“Of course I’m good. I’m good at everything, Amb.”

Ambrosia scoffed, rolling her eyes.

“Sure.”

The comfortable quiet settled over them again, and Jax went back to singing. He found himself following a familiar tune, and after a moment, Ambrosia joined in, tracing the words they both knew by heart.

“What do you think those lyrics mean?” she asked as the last note rung out.

Jax shrugged.

“I dunno. Never thought about it before.”

“You don’t think about the words you sing?”

“Not really.”

She smiled at him, her special kind of delicate smile that was wild around the edges, and Jax was sure if he closed his eyes, he could draw that smile from memory.

“We should head back,” she said. “They’ll probably be wondering where we are. We should’ve been training while we were out here.”

Jax took a deep breath of soft air. He’d been ignoring the weapons they’d carried out with them, nestled in the grass.

“I don’t want to train right now.”

Ambrosia turned to him sharply, but he kept his gaze trained carefully on his fingers as they played the strings.

“Jax,” she said, and he almost winced at the panic in her voice.

“Ok, ok, sorry. I didn’t mean it.”

She glanced around, like she was scared of someone hiding in the grass.

“Jax, please,” she whispered. “If you-... If you don’t graduate with me, if you don’t get your wings and become a Valkyrie with me, Jax, I don’t know-,”

“Amb,” he interrupted, mustering the most reassuring smile he could. “I didn't mean it. I know, ok? We just have to train a little longer, become full Valkyries, and then I can slack off then. I know.”

She eyed him warily.

“... I’m just scared,” she said. “You… you’re a temperance angel, right? You can’t indulge in what you want like that.”

The music fell dead at Jax’s hands. He stared at the flowers beside his bare feet for a long time, at the tiny flecks of yellow pollen dusting the perfect white petals.

“You’re right. You… you’re right. Thanks.”

Ambrosia gave him that wild smile again, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

“Sorry, but you’re not sinning that easily,” she teased lightly. “As long as I’m around, you won’t become a Fallen angel.”

Jax smiled back, running his hands through his hair.

“Ah, Ambrosia, you really should’ve been a Guardian.”

“If I was a Guardian angel, I wouldn’t be able to keep you out of trouble.”

“Keep me outta trouble? Pft. When do I ever get in trouble?”

“All the time?”

“Nah. Never. But, since you asked me so nicely, I guess I’ll let you stick around. Your life would be tragic without me in it, I know.”

She rose to her feet, scooping her spear out of the grass. Jax eyed it, the fine golden tip and razor sharp edges.

“Well, if you really feel like enriching my life, get up. Train with me.”

Jax wanted to argue, but he swallowed the urge. She was right. One of his virtues was temperance, so he had to be careful of the gluttony constantly snapping at his heels. If he let himself slip, if he indulged in too much of what he wanted, he would be cast from Heaven, all the way through the Lost Fields and down to Hell, left to rot with the rest of the demons and Fallen angels. He couldn’t let that happen.

So even though he internally protested, he stood up as well, crushing flowers beneath his feet as he grabbed his bow. He and Ambrosia had been created together, a pair of future Valkyries, soon to be tasked with guarding the gates of Heaven. They were designed to complement each other, to be as compatible as possible. They were partners. If anyone else had asked Jax to put down his guitar and pick up his bow, he would have protested. But it was Ambrosia. So, he knocked an arrow and drew it taught.

“Alright, alright. I’ll... uh, how about I shoot at something, and you try to break the arrow before it hits the target.”

Ambrosia dropped into a ready stance, watching him keenly. She looked natural with the spear in her hand. Jax had only fired one shot, which Ambrosia caught easily, before a shadow descended upon them.

“Oh good. I thought you two might be out here slacking.”

Archola touched down in the soft grass, her Archangel robes fluttering about her. Jax couldn’t help but stare at her wings, his bow string going lax. All angels had wings, unless they were still in training, but most kept them hidden when walking around Heaven, since they got in the way. Archola was small, one of the smallest angels Jax knew, with short black hair and clear eyes, but her wings made up for her height. They stretched behind her, long and sleek and intimidating and magnificent. Her feathers were a beautiful white sheen, but when light angled on them right, they shone with every colour imaginable, a constant shimmering rainbow that trailed behind her. Fitting for an Archangel.

Archola noticed him staring and put her arms on her hips.

“You’re acting like you’ve never seen them before.”

Jax shook his head, gracing her with a smile.

“I can’t help it. They’re gorgeous.”

She just rolled her eyes.

“Stop trying to flatter me.”

“I’m not. It’s true. If I wanted to flatter you, I’d tell you how beautiful your hair is today, or how fabulous those robes look on you.”

Archola shook her head, sighing. Ambrosia prodded him gently with the handle of her spear. Jax just laughed at them.

“Alright, ladies, I’m sorry. What’re you doing all the way out here anyway?”

Archola’s expression visibly darkened.

“Gamal has caught a demon.”

Jax felt the whole world twist around him, contorting slightly, the sun suddenly less warm.

“Gamal did? How? Where? Where? Archola, a demon in Heaven? How did it get in, where did it go, what does it-,”

Archola held up her hand, and Jax forcibly bit back his questions.

“It was in the Great Library. Gamal found it trying to get into the forbidden section.”

Jax was at a loss for words. His tongue was too heavy, full of too much he wanted to say. He knew demons existed- of course he did, he was created to defend Heaven from them. But he’d always assumed Heaven was impregnable. That the Valkyries that guarded the gates would always win the battles. Demons were an abstract thought in his head. Something he was aware of, but didn’t affect him. To hear of one so close, within Heaven, made the breeze stirring the flowers feel cold.

“Can we see it?”

Ambrosia asked the question softly. Her lips had gone pale, and she pressed them together in a grim line. Archola nodded.

“That’s why I’m here. I want you two to come with me, to see a real demon. To understand why you’re training, and what your duty is.”

The walk back to the city was silent, but Jax couldn’t help the flicker of adoration that sparked him as the shapes of the buildings broke the horizon. He adored Heaven’s city. It was made of white buildings and lined with soft, cobblestone paths, narrow and intimate. Every wall was painted with brilliant colours, pictures flowing from building to building until they walked in between one giant mural. The city was built on a mountain, and at the crest, sat the Palace of God. Jax had never been inside, since no one but the highest ranking angels could, but every time he woke up, he would gaze out his window at the spiraling towers and golden roofs. The city was warm, friendly and familiar. Jax never wanted to be anywhere else.

It was jarring to walk through those jolly streets with the weight of their destination hanging over them. Angels called out to him in greeting, waving, laughing, and Jax waved and laughed back. But every time he turned to face Archola, he was reminded. And it sapped any flicker of joy from his mind.

They made their way to the base of the mountain, where the gates sat proudly. They were so big that even when Jax tilted his head all the way back, he could only just see the tops of the intricately ornate structures. Archola had told them once that they were designed for God himself to walk through. Now, though, there was just a small circle of Valkyries at their base, weapons drawn, focused on something in the ground.

As they approached, Jax craned his head to see. He was taller than most of the others, so it wasn’t hard. What he saw came as a shock of cold water to his system. When he’d pictured a demon, he’d imagined a monstrous figure, something that loomed over him with talons and fangs and horns, something that smiled with malice and shrieked with rage.

This looked like a girl huddled in a ball.

She was smaller than him. Smaller than Ambrosia, even. She did have horns, but they were small and straight, barely jutting out of her messy brown hair. Her hands and feet were bound tightly, and a blindfold was covering her eyes, but she wasn’t struggling. She was barely moving, just sobbing quietly, occasionally taking a deep, shuddering breath.

“That is a demon?” Jax murmured in astonishment.

“Yes,” a cold voice cut in. “It is a demon.”

Jax turned to see Gamal approaching them. The Cherubim looked as neatly presented as always, his blonde hair combed carefully out of his eyes.

“Gamal,” Archola greeted, surprise in her voice. “You’re here? I thought you would be checking the forbidden library.”

“I did,” he replied curtly. “Nothing was taken. I caught it outside. It couldn’t have gotten in, anyways.”

“Are you sure? If it did take something-,”

“Of course I’m sure.”

Archola looked a little taken aback by his harsh tone, so he sighed, unfolding his arms.

“No one has ever gotten into the forbidden library without permission. Please, believe in me. There is no way this demon got inside without me noticing.”

Archola narrowed her eyes, but before she could say anything, the demon called out.

“Thoth? Where are you?”

Her voice was cracked, trembling under the weight of the Valkyrie’s weapons.

“‘Thoth’?” Archola echoed. “What is it talking about?”

“No idea,” Gamal replied dryly.

“Thoth!” the demon cried again. “Please- I’m sorry!”

“It’s begging,” Jax noted numbly. “It’s scared.”

“It’s not scared,” Gamal corrected. “This is an Imp. They exist purely to enter the human realm and wreak havoc. Cause family to turn against each other and friends to betray one another. It’s incapable of emotion. It’s just trying to play on our virtues.”

“No!” the demon shrieked. “No, I’m not- I’m sorry, Thoth, I super am!”

Jax couldn’t help the slight pang at his heart, hearing the demon cry.

“Don’t take pity on it,” Gamal warned, noting the look on Jax’s face. “No matter how it looks and sounds, that is a demon.”

“I-I know,” Jax said, taking a deep breath, trying to bring feeling back to his face. “It’s just… I didn’t expect it to look like…. This.”

“They don’t have true forms,” Gamal told him. “They can take any form they wish. It looks like this to attempt to to lower your guard. Don’t be fooled.”

“You know a lot,” Ambrosia mused softly.

“Well, I am the keeper of all knowledge,” Gamal replied. “It would be foolish for me not to know something like that.”

Movement caught Jax’s eye. The demon was struggling to its knees, facing towards them. The Valkyries surrounding it all grew tense. But the demon didn’t make another move, just faced Jax with trembling lips.

“Don’t make me go back,” she whispered. “I just- I’m sorry. I don’t wanna go back. I’ll- He’ll hurt me. I’m scared. I’m real scared. Thoth, please, I’m sorry, don’t send me back, please, please don’t.”

Archola sighed unevenly.

“I think that’s enough,” she decided. “This is even getting to me, and I’m an Archangel. Throw it out.”

The Valkyries nodded their affirmation, moving to grab the demon. The demon, seeming to realise what was happening, started pleading again.

“No, please, no I don’t-,”

She was yanked along the ground. Jax watched as she started to struggle, to strain against the binds. He frowned, watching the way the rope around her wrists strain, begin to fray.

“The rope-,”

He didn’t have time to finish the rest of his sentence. The demon broke free. It lunged at him. Jax felt a sudden moment of weightlessness, of his thoughts scattering out of his mind. He needed to move. But he didn’t. He just stood there, eyes wide. The demon reached for him. There were writing calluses on it’s fingers.

Then he blinked, and it was on the ground, a spear jutting through its neck. Ambrosia stood over it, driving her speer deeper in, her eyes wet as she watched blood bubble up through the demon’s teeth. It struggled, clutching at the spear tip. It sounded almost like it was trying to keep speaking, to keep begging. The Valkyries moved quickly, grabbing the demon’s hair and pulling it off Ambrosia’s spear. Despite the wounds to its neck, the thing kept twitching, pawing weakly at the Valkyrie’s grip as she was hauled towards the gates. Jax watched them crack open, spilling silvery mist into the clear air of heaven. He coughed, blinking rapidly, and by the time he could see again, the gates were shut, and the demon was gone.

He hadn’t even realised he’d fallen to the ground. Ambrosia offered him a trembling hand, and he accepted it, letting her pull him to his feet.

“I thought you said it was secure,” Archola said harshly. “If it weren’t for Ambrosia’s reflexes, Jax could’ve been injured!”

Gamal adjusted the collar of his jacket, clearing his throat.

“It was secure. I’m not sure-,”

“Well, you better be sure next time. That was inexcusable!”

Gamal pressed his lips into a thin line, lowering his eyes. Archola just scoffed at him, turning to Ambrosia and Jax.

“Are you two ok?”

Jax nodded, but he barely felt the movement.

“I’m… Yeah. It didn’t touch me.”

Ambrosia just nodded. Archola sighed, her shoulders sagging slightly.

“I’m sorry. I should’ve intervened. I don’t have my weapon on me, but Ambrosia… you shouldn’t have had to do that. You’re not even through with your training yet.”

Ambrosia shook her head.

“It… I would’ve done it anyway. Even if you had intervened. This is… what my training is for, right?”

Archola frowned at her, but spoke anyway.

“You’ll make a fine Valkyrie one day, Ambrosia Heart. Make sure you don’t fall before that happens.”

Ambrosia bowed slightly.

“That’s high praise from you. Thank you.”

Jax wasn’t really listening to them. He was too busy gazing at the gates. His thoughts hadn’t fully caught up with everything that’d happened. He kept hearing the demon, seeing the demon, in its human body, begging with her human voice. He kept seeing the blood seeping out of the clean stab wound in its neck. He kept seeing her eyes, the look of terror frozen on her face.

The moment was scarred in his mind.