“A being posing as an angel,” Isaac said as he and Zeke dropped Gerardo from their arms onto his double bed. They turned him over onto his back. “What would the angels want with a being like that?”

“I don’t know,” Zeke replied, “but we can’t hand her over.”

“Because…?”

“Because Vee said—”

“I see, say no more.” Isaac laughed. “You’re so intriguing, Hezekiah.” Isaac scouted the contemporary master bedroom tinted with a grey and brown color palette.

As Isaac looked around, Zeke walked over to the door, closed it, fished out the black marker from his pocket, and drew the sigil on the door quickly. He opened the door and the occult hospital spawned on the other side. The sconces were already lit. “After you,” Zeke said.

Isaac looked over at Zeke and then took notice of the beige stone clad waiting room. “How magnificent,” he said. Isaac walked to the door and entered. Zeke followed.

Zeke closed the door behind him and the clear air, heavenly warmth, and smoked chamomile fragrance welcomed him back.

The howling, demented laughter disrupted his calm.

Ugo sat on the timber sofa, slumped forward, and plugged his fingers into his ears. Two stuffed backpacks were placed on the floor beside him alongside Zeke’s medical bag.

“Ugo!” Isaac exclaimed as he approached him with open arms.

Ugo stood up and uttered, “Um… hey—”

“Everything is going to be okay,” Isaac interrupted and assaulted him with a hug. Pulling Ugo’s head down and cushioning it with his chest. He patted his head gently. “We’ll save her.”

“Yeah, thanks, really appreciate it,” Ugo muffled.

Zeke looked around. “So, AJ isn’t here, yet, huh?”

Ugo pulled himself away from Isaac. “Nah.”

“Okay, then.” Zeke pulled out the pouch from his pocket.

“Oh!” Isaac exclaimed. “Good thinking, Hezekiah!”

Zeke moved to the arched door frame, and Isaac followed. The sconces ignited.

“What gives?” Ugo asked and caught up to the two.

As they walked down the stone hallway, the laughter grew louder and cryptic. They stopped at a patient room door, and Zeke opened it.

Like uncovering stereo speakers on the highest volume, the laughter blasted into their faces, and they trod into the room with the sick laughter scratching their inner ears.

Eldora was on the floor on her side, with a quarter of her body encased in stone. Her arms were petrified upwards with the palms open and close together. From her knees to her feet, it was all stone. Two large stone wings protruded from teared spots on the back of her sweater.

“Oh, God,” Ugo gasped.

Zeke, Ugo, and Isaac approached her. The straps of the bed were ripped apart. Tears and saliva slid sideways from her bloated, laughing face. The side of her face was soaking in a puddle of drool and teardrops. They pulled her up and grunted along the way. She was as heavy as an actual marble stone statue, and when they placed her back on her mineralized feet, she stood erect and sturdy like a monolith.

Zeke avoided looking at her and focused on the pouch in his hand. “This won’t cause any unwanted side-effects, right, Isaac?”

“No. Just throw some dust onto her face.”

Zeke opened the pouch and grabbed a handful of dust. “Lo siento, Mamá,” he muttered and then stepped back and tossed the dust in her face.

The laughter silenced immediately. Eldora’s eyes closed and her chin dropped to her chest, but she remained glued to the floor, and only light, peaceful breathing came from her. Zeke grinned as he stared at her; she looked to be at peace. Without taking his eyes off her, he cleared Ugo of any further confusion. “It’s some magic dust another member of the Tainted Generation provided. She’ll sleep until we wake her up and won’t require any maintenance of her physical needs. I used it on dad, too.”

“Alright then, cool.” Ugo said. “Sandman’s dust, eh?” He gave Isaac a thumbs up.

“There are instances of people under the same magic-induced sleep to share dreams,” Isaac mentioned, “so Mrs. and Mr. Morata might be enjoying each other’s company in the ethereal realm as we speak.”

“That’s good,” Zeke said. He turned back to the door. “Now let’s go wait for AJ in the…”

Naomi was standing at the door with Ugo’s backup phone in her hand. The boys froze and held her blank stare. She was like a kid waiting at the door of their parent’s bedroom after having a bad dream.

“You must be Naomi!” Isaac cheered. He rushed to her. “The angel…”

Naomi shuddered and cowered as she analyzed Isaac. “You’re an angel!” She accused.

“No, silly! I’m human,” Isaac corrected with a warm smile. Naomi didn’t seem all too convinced, but it didn’t unnerve Isaac. He pointed back at Zeke and Ugo. “I’m just like them. A Healer of the Tainted Generation.”

Naomi studied Isaac harder and then gave in. “I see… so you’re a part of Zeke’s team, too!”

“Naomi, what are you doing out of bed?” Zeke asked.

“Dude, she’s allowed to stretch her legs, y’know,” Ugo said.

“I want to help,” Naomi said, determined.

“With what…?” Zeke questioned.

Naomi walked up to Zeke and pushed the cell phone into Ugo’s chest.

Ugo put his hand over Naomi’s and squealed, “She’s touching me…”

Naomi gazed sternly at Zeke from up close. “I want to help with your mother’s case. Please, there must be something I can do to help!”

“Oh, so now you’re interested in doing something useful.”

“Zeke!” Ugo snapped.

Naomi withdrew her hand from under Ugo’s and the phone slipped. Ugo caught it in the nick of time.

“I can’t give you info, but there must be something outside of that I can do to speed up the curing process,” Naomi begged. She stole a glance at Eldora. “Her laughter, it was painful and terrifying to hear. She must be in so much pain. I was in pain, too, and I’d like to get rid of any pain someone else is going through. Pain is horrible.”

“That’s the point,” Zeke said.

“Right now, our next course of action is finding a Puritas Flor from a Sub-Realm,” Isaac explained.

“Isaac!” Zeke barked.

“‘Puritas Flor’... ‘Sub-Realm’? I know what those are!” Naomi proclaimed. “I’ll come with you!”

“I vote for yes!” Ugo yelled. “We need to have a proper party for this to succeed.”

Naomi moved closer to Ugo and stared up at him with her bright, wide, guileless eyes. “A ‘party’? I have heard of the grandiose celebrations, but I have never been to one, though… I could only hear from within the cage whenever they celebrated.”

“No, that’s not the kind I was talking about… wait, that’s awful.” Ugo put the cell phone into his pocket. “Parties are super fun and we need to throw one after all this crazy mess is over!”

“And I can come right?” Naomi asked with her smile extending.

“Of course! We have to and we’ll take tons of photos!” Ugo turned to a disapproving Zeke. “Can you imagine how everybody in school is going to react? Those freaking nerds are going to be so jealous! And Michelle is going to be green all over with envy when she sees me and Naomi together. She’ll be begging for me to take her out on a date.”

“Who’s Michelle?”

“The girl I am currently after,” Ugo said arrogantly, as if Zeke should’ve already known.

“I thought that was ‘Skylar’!”

“Skylar is old news, Mano. Don’t you read my social media posts?”

“No.”

Naomi raised her hand. “What’s ‘social media’?”

“It’s a wonderful place you can go to remind yourself why you hate yourself,” Zeke said.

“Don’t listen to him, Naomi. He’s too cynical.”

“I guess the stress comes from always thinking too much,” Naomi said.

“Hah! She already realized it on her own!” Ugo chuckled.

Isaac approached them. “Someone like Naomi could be a big help just in case anything unforeseen happens.”

“The only reason the angels haven’t ransacked this place is because it’s warded,” Zeke reminded everybody. “The moment we step out of here, Nananiel will show up, kill us all, and take Naomi back.”

“No…” Naomi whimpered.

“Yeah, very bad, remember?”

Isaac held out two fingers and hit Naomi on the top of her head.

“Ow!” Naomi yelped. She put her hands on her head and pouted.

“There, she’s warded and cloaked,” Isaac said.

“That easy, man?” Ugo asked.

“There’s no need to doubt my abilities, Ugo. I am the Vicar after all. Anything about angels, I have mastery of. Now, they can’t locate her at all no matter where she is, like us Healers.” Isaac gave Zeke a look. “We’re on our way to a Sub-Realm that is hard to detect for some angels, and Naomi’s presence is completely invisible. We’re more than safe now.”

Naomi grabbed Zeke’s arm and pouted at him. “Can I go now, please?”

Ugo hunched down and pouted at Zeke alongside Naomi. “Yeah, please?”

Isaac followed suit. “Please, Hezekiah?”

Zeke groaned. “Okay, fine…”

They threw their hands into the air and cheered.

“Now, little lady,” Isaac said. “What will you bring?”

Naomi looked down at her splotched and tattered clothes. “All I have is what I have on me currently.”

“Poor thing, she’s been stuck in those clothes for a week or so,” Ugo lamented.

Zeke sniffed and grimaced. The stench Naomi was putting out was foul and overwhelming.

“I don’t mind, but if it’s bothering you, then I can just journey with you without wearing them.” Naomi started loosening her tie.

“Sure!”

Zeke smacked Ugo on the back of his head. “Would you calm down?” he sighed and said to Naomi, “You’re not going to walk around naked. Humans don’t do that.”

Naomi halted. “Oh.”

Hurrying footsteps arose.

AJ appeared by the door, panting, equipped with a travel backpack. “Hey, guys!” She froze in horror when she noticed Eldora. “Oh, my God…”

“AJ!” Isaac exclaimed. “Just in time, you brought extra clothing, right?”

“Uh… uh… y-y-yeah,” AJ stammered while staring at Eldora.

“Good, you’re going to let Naomi burrow some. You help her get changed in her room.”

“Huh?”

###

Zeke, Ugo, and Isaac settled in the waiting room. They were doing what they could to remain calm. Isaac stood before the altar singing a silent prayer, Ugo played on his handheld, and Zeke rummaged through the contents of his backpack and medical bag, making sure everything was there.

“Let’s go,” AJ announced as she walked into the room alongside Naomi.

Zeke and Ugo got up and scanned Naomi. She was wearing a black striped tracksuit and it was hilariously big on her, but it made her look even more lovably petite than she already was.

“Hopefully, you can run around in that without tripping,” Zeke said.

“I’ll be fine, Zeke. Thank you for your concern,” Naomi said.

AJ held up a large empty spray can. “I used a shower-in-a-can to get rid of the stench.”

“Those things actually work?” Ugo said bewilderedly. “Okay, that is more shocking than discovering magic is real.”

“Amen,” Isaac said aloud and walked away from the altar. “Good, good, everybody is ready, right?”

“Yes!” Naomi shouted.

“Fantastic.” Isaac pulled out a jagged knife from his back pocket, alarming everybody.

“Isaac…?” Zeke muttered with fear.

“It’s okay, remain calm,” Isaac said and then swiped the teeth of the serrated blade across his palm in a swift motion and then squeezed his hand shut. As the others stared wide-eyed, Isaac sauntered to the door, leaving a trail of blood. He opened his palm and dabbed his finger on the fresh wound. He plastered his wet finger on the door and drew a sigil.

It was a ridiculously complicated symbol and Isaac painted with effortless speed, dabbing his finger in blood a couple of times to continue. It had multiple vertical and horizontal lines, and swirls, and looped lines, and dots at specific places.

It took him nearly a minute to finish. Isaac heaved a sigh of exhaustion.

“Dude… we have markers,” Ugo said.

Isaac stared back with a blank face. “Oh! Silly me!” He laughed. “Let’s go.”

Isaac grabbed the handle with his non-wounded hand and turned it.

A screen of blinding white light shone from the door. Zeke, Ugo, and AJ shielded their eyes.

“Who wants to go first?” Isaac asked.

“We’re supposed to just walk into the light? Usually they tell you not to, but whatever,” Ugo said. He marched into the light. “Heavenly angel babes, here I come!” Ugo cried.

“Wait, does Mora think that there’ll be angel women there?” Zeke asked. “Who told him that?”

“You know that nobody did, he’s crazy,” AJ said.

“Who’s next?” Isaac asked.

Naomi shot her hand into the hair. “Oooh! Me!” She bounced up to the door and walked through the light.

“I’m next,” AJ said, and walked up to the door. She passed through the light.

“Hezekiah…” Isaac teased.

“Yeah, okay.” He looked down at his medical bag and hardened his grip on the handle. He grunted with a nod and approached the door. It was like staring into the beaming white eye of an industrial flashlight, burning his cornea, and causing a massive headache.

A hand touched Zeke’s back, and he was thrusted forward.

Zeke stumbled into the white blaze and squinted as he was surrounded by a world of milk white glow. He blinked continually until the white luminosity dimmed; a brand new world came into focus.

Pure white cumulus clouds floated in the pale blue sky and off in the distance, a massive cathedral towered over a sea of opaque clouds. It was a complex gothic masterpiece that would put any architect in tears. A supernumerary collection of wondrous spires and flying buttresses capped with pinnacles topped the ghost marble structure with a hint of steel gray.

The longer Zeke stared at the glorious building, more of its beautiful features were unveiled. The towers were geometric perfection, a multitude of arched windows, some of them had long bridges connected to them that stretched beyond, and there was a giant glazed rose window near the top.

A door slammed shut. Zeke spun back and saw Isaac standing in front of a white door attached to nothing. It dissipated into nothingness not long after.

Isaac walked past Zeke and approached the others, who were a couple of feet ahead, observing their peaceful surroundings.

They were standing on a bridge that was a beauty to behold; the surface was decorated with rose and holy cross relief carvings and on either side were railings with decorative foliage.

“What do you think?” Isaac asked them as he spread his arms wide and twirled like an overenthusiastic real-estate agent.

“I think it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” AJ said in awe.

“Yeah, dying and ending up here wouldn’t be so bad,” Ugo said.

“I’m happy to hear that!” Isaac said excitedly.

Ugo moved up to Isaac and put his arm around him. “So, Isaac,” he put on a sleazy look. “Where’re the angel girls at?”

“There’re currently no residents I’m afraid.”

“What?”

“Sorry.”

“Not even like, I dunno, hostile angelic monster babes?”

“You realize angels don’t have genders, right?”

“Wait, what?” Ugo froze with a twisted expression.

As Naomi and AJ approached Ugo, they tested his stupor by poking him all over. There was no reaction. Isaac returned to Zeke.

“This is amazing,” Zeke admitted.

“How do you feel?”

It was a cordial atmosphere. His ears were blessed with a calming quiet. The temperature was neither too hot nor cold. Just right.

“I feel like I am in Heaven.”

“Alright!” Isaac pointed at the cathedral. “Our goal is to get to the very bottom of that cathedral to gain access to the garden. The Puritas Flor is there.”

Zeke peered down the bridge they were on. He couldn’t see the end; a smoky haze blurred the rest of the path.

“Walking down this bridge will lead us to an entrance, right?”

“I sure hope so,” Isaac said and then turned away. “Friends! Let us start walking.”

AJ tapped Naomi on the shoulder and walked alongside Isaac. “Come on, Naomi.”

“What about Ugo, will he be okay?” Naomi asked.

“Ugo will never be okay, just leave him.”

Naomi glanced at Ugo and caught up to the two.

Zeke picked up the pace and slapped Ugo across the face on the way. “Mora.”

Ugo groaned back to life and caught up to Zeke. “It’s like the universe is doing whatever it can to ruin my dreams, man…” Ugo spilled.

“Dude, you’re literally in Heaven, and you dare to have perverted thoughts? Wait, a minute...” Zeke stole a glance at Ugo’s backpack. “Did you bring anything… gross…?”

“Ezequias!” Ugo shouted. “How dare you—no! How dare thee accuse me of something so depraved? I am not a total degenerate, okay? Did you really think that I’d sneak porn magazines here?”

Zeke gave Ugo a stern look. “What kind of games did you bring?”

Ugo’s expression turned vacant. He remained silent for a few seconds, looked the other way, and sped up to the rest of the group.

“Mora, what is wrong with you?” Zeke shouted.

Ugo turned back. “I’m a human with needs, man!”