In front of a golden statue in the tower’s garden, Sariel was sitting on her ankles, knees pointing straight and legs together. Her hands rested on her lap while her back was arched, her gaze focused on the statue’s face. It was a featureless face. No one dared to portray the Creator—it was impossible after all. “Creator,” Sariel said and lowered her head. “I’m … not sure what to do anymore. The council has been eliminated and I can’t find any appropriate replacements. The number of archangels without a hint of sin is too low.”

A white butterfly fluttered through the garden before landing on Sariel’s hand. Its wings flapped lazily as it walked along her knuckles. Sariel was careful not to disturb it. Was this a sign from the Creator? The butterfly circled around the back of her hand a few times before stopping at her wrist. A buzzing sound shattered the peace, causing the butterfly to flee. Sariel’s mind blanked as she raised her head. The buzzing noise continued to drone on. Her brow furrowed as she reached into her bag and pulled out a rectangular metal box.

The box was an invention by Hailing Academy. Headmaster Hailing had said it was a communication device designed by one of his professors that could replace carrier pigeons, but it was the first time after the initial test that it actually did something. Sariel had wanted to award the angel who invented it, but it turned out she had passed away as a volunteer carrying out the capital’s orders. Headmaster Hailing had improved on the prototype for his deceased subordinate and submitted it in her stead. Her death was truly a loss for the angels, but it was another reason amongst many to eliminate the rebels.

Sariel frowned at the box and pressed a button. The metal lid swung open, revealing an iron sheet with blue letters burned into it. The buzzing noise stopped, but the letters continued to form, creating a message that caused Sariel’s face to pale. It read, “Rebels attacking. Have 30 archlings. Strong siege weapons. Walls won’t hold. Two existences beyond archangel. Genius (insane) tactician. Look west with your power. P.S. I’m captured. Don’t message me.”

The box grew warmer as the letters faded away. Sariel sighed and closed the contraption before storing it inside her bag. Her eyes closed as her palms pressed together, her head lowering in prayer. Within her vision, a dark circle formed, encompassing the capital. There were hundreds of white lights, but she ignored them as she compressed the circle into a spear, thrusting it beyond the normal borders. She gasped as the vision in her mind revealed dozens of gray flames and even some black ones interspersed throughout the first sector. She urged her power forward, traversing the whole first sector. Sweat formed on her brow and rolled down the sides of her face before dripping from her chin. Soon, her vision extended past the wall separating the first and second sectors. Thousands of black flames were clustered in one place at varying elevations as if there were a group of sinners on a mountain, but they were overshadowed by two monstrous black flames at the peak. They were of equal size to the three black flames in the tower; no, if Sariel could compare them side by side, she’d say they were a little smaller. Though the flames were black, one of them was giving off a white light, but Sariel wasn’t quite sure what it meant. However, she did know that the message she received wasn’t a false alarm.

Sariel’s eyes opened as she wiped away the sweat from her face, using the back of her sleeve. She stood up and took one last glance at the golden statue before heading inside the tower. She walked up the stairs, ignoring the empty council room, until she arrived at the locked metal door. It unlocked with her necklace. It was noon, so the inhabitants of the room would be sleeping, but Sariel went in anyway. The sound of snoring filled the room. The words of her predecessor rang throughout her mind as she sat on the couch against the wall.

“You’ve lived in the tower with me for two decades now. Aren’t you curious about the locked room at the top? I know you’ve never checked it with your power; otherwise, you wouldn’t be so calm. There are six existences living there, existences powerful beyond your imagination, corrupted by sin … or you could say saved by virtue. They’re guardians of sorts, but they’re unable to leave the room … under normal conditions.” After her predecessor told her that, she had been brought to the room to meet them for herself. She had fainted once she saw them. When she woke up, she was lying in her room with her mentor by her side, her forehead covered by a wet towel.

Sariel sighed and shook her head, causing one of the people to stop storing. The unassuming sloth demon sat up and rubbed his eyes. “Sariel,” he said. “It’s rude to watch people sleep.”

“Good afternoon, Creed,” Sariel said.

“Is it?” the demon asked and yawned.

“Afternoon?”

“Is it good,” Creed said, his voice flat. “Isn’t it just an ordinary afternoon?”

“It was a greeting,” Sariel said and sighed. “You know that.”

“And you know I hate wasting energy on unnecessary things,” Creed said. His eyes fully opened. “What do you want?”

“There’s a way for you to leave the room without consequences,” Sariel said. The snoring stopped. The five other people sat up, no trace of weariness in their eyes.

“Really?” Creed said with a dry voice.

“I can let you out,” Sariel said and nodded, her hands clenching. “But you have to do something for me. And you’ll only be given a week before the consequences come back. If you succeed, I’ll let you out for a year.”

“Why haven’t you told us this earlier?” Uriel asked, untangling her hair from her horns.

“There was no reason for you to leave,” Sariel said. “All of you are natural disasters.”

“So we can leave now because there’s a reason?” Uriel asked, narrowing her eyes.

“Who cares?” Camael asked. “I just want to get out of here. Tell me what I have to do.”

“Not you,” Sariel said and bit her lower lip. “Only Creed and Uriel.”

Camael blinked. “The fuck? Are you messing with me right now?”

“I’m serious,” Sariel said and stared Camael down. “If you leave, that means Levy goes with you, and Levy can’t go with you because that’d be counterproductive to saving the world. If Raphael leaves, he’ll only try to find his eyes. Creed and Uriel are the best candidates.”

“Creed’s a sloth!”

“Uriel’s diligence will balance it out,” Sariel said. “I’m sorry, but I’ve already made this decision.”

“Levy wants to kill her,” Levy said and pouted. She tugged on Camael’s sleeve. “Can I?”

Sweat rolled down Sariel’s back. “This is why I can’t let Levy out,” she said. “And you should know the consequences for hurting me are the same as the ones for leaving the room.”

“Say something, Raffi,” Camael said and snorted. “Aren’t you as upset as I am?”

Raphael shrugged. “She’s right. If I was going to go outside, I’d only look for my eyes,” he said. “You’re supposed to be the patient one. Why are you throwing a fit? I’m going back to sleep.”