Chapter 6 - Feathers of Baal
The sky above Valkyros City belonged to monsters now.
Smoke consumed the heavens in rolling black waves while burning debris rained across shattered streets below. Entire buildings collapsed beneath spreading firestorms caused by the Falling Star impact, and through the choking ash came the screams of winged creatures circling overhead like vultures descending upon a dying world.
Only these vultures carried knives for feathers.
And hunger for human flesh. he evacuation had completely broken down.
Civilians flooded through ruined streets in blind panic while Iron Oath soldiers desperately tried to establish defensive lines around transport convoys. Emergency sirens still screamed throughout the city, but they were nearly drowned beneath explosions, gunfire, and the horrific shrieks echoing from above.
One of the winged creatures dove through smoke suddenly.
Fast.
Far too fast.
The monster slammed into a line of retreating civilians with enough force to tear bodies apart instantly. Black wings folded inward around its skeletal frame while hooked talons ripped through flesh like wet paper.
Blood sprayed across the pavement.
A child screamed.
The creature’s crimson eyes snapped toward the sound.
Then an assault rifle burst shattered its skull apart.
Elias Rook lowered his rifle smoking from sustained fire.
“MOVE!” Golden Hound roared toward the civilians.
“DON’T STOP RUNNING!”
His silver-marked armor was already stained black with soot and blood while his long military coat whipped violently behind him in the heated wind.
Another creature descended immediately toward Elias.
Its wings spread wide.
Then thousands of razor feathers launched outward.
Iron Oath soldiers died instantly.
Their armor failed completely as sharpened black feathers punched through steel plates, throats, visors, and exposed flesh alike. One soldier collapsed twitching with dozens embedded in his chest while another was pinned directly to a transport vehicle through the neck.
The creatures did not simply attack.
They harvested. Kael Mordren moved through the chaos with terrifying calm.
The battlefield almost seemed slower around him.
A flying monster swooped low toward a group of trapped recruits
Kael vanished.
A blur of black armor and red cybernetic light flashed upward across broken concrete.
His katana carved through one wing completely.
The creature spiraled screaming into the street before Kael landed atop its back and drove hidden blades through its skull repeatedly until it stopped moving.
Another monster fired feather projectiles toward him.
Kael twisted sideways unnaturally fast.
Most missed.
The few that struck embedded directly into his shoulder armor.
He glanced down briefly.
“…Rude.”
Then he launched himself forward again smiling like a psychopath.
Nearby civilians watched him in horrified awe.
One young recruit whispered shakily:
“…Is he even human?”
Another Iron Oath soldier answered immediately.
“Barely.”
Lucien Vale stood frozen beside a collapsed transport tunnel surrounded by smoke and screaming civilians.
He could feel everything.
Every death.
Every terrified heartbeat.
Every unnatural presence crawling through the city.
And above all else
the thing in the sky.
Watching him.
Waiting.
Lucien’s hands trembled.
The air around him shimmered faintly with pale blue light.
Not visible enough for most people to notice.
But Elias noticed immediately.
Golden Hound sprinted toward him through gunfire.
“Lucien!”
Another explosion thundered nearby.
A group of civilians stumbled from a burning building directly into open street
just as three winged creatures descended toward them.
Too fast.
The civilians would never escape in time.
Lucien saw it happen before anyone else.
A little girl tripped near the street center.
Her mother screamed trying to pull her up.
The monsters folded their wings inward preparing to strike.
And something inside Lucien finally broke.
The light erupted.
A shockwave of radiant white-blue energy exploded outward from Lucien hard enough to blow ash and smoke across the entire street.
Every soldier nearby turned instantly.
The air itself vibrated.
Feathers stopped mid-flight.
The winged monsters shrieked violently as if suddenly afraid.
Lucien slowly lifted his head.
His gray-blue eyes now glowed softly with impossible light.
And behind him
something appeared.
At first it looked like a child.
Small.
Floating slightly above the ground.
Then the wings unfolded.
Radiant white-blue wings spread outward through smoke and fire while flowing spectral robes moved like liquid light around a small angelic figure hovering protectively behind Lucien.
The being’s face remained partially obscured beneath glowing light
but its eyes were ancient.
Far too ancient.
The battlefield froze.
Civilians stared openly.
Iron Oath soldiers lowered weapons in disbelief.
Even Kael stopped moving for half a second.
“…Oh,” he whispered.
“…that’s new.”
The little girl looked upward toward the floating entity.
“It’s beautiful…”
Then the angel moved.
Little Light vanished instantly.
A sonic boom cracked through the battlefield.
One of the winged monsters exploded apart midair in a burst of radiant energy before anyone even saw the angel reach it.
The second creature turned to flee.
Too late.
Little Light grabbed it by the throat and unleashed a blinding beam of white-blue light directly through its chest.
The creature disintegrated instantly.
The third monster shrieked and fired thousands of feather projectiles wildly
the small angel spread one glowing hand.
Every feather stopped midair.
Then reversed direction.
The monster was shredded by its own attack.
Silence spread briefly across the battlefield.
Lucien stared upward breathing heavily while Little Light floated protectively above him surrounded by drifting particles of radiant energy.
People began whispering.
“An angel…”
“No…”
“What IS that?”
Some soldiers looked inspired.
Others looked terrified.
Kael looked fascinated.
Elias looked worried.
Because he knew Lucien.
And he knew what happened whenever Ghostlight used too much power.
Then the sky split open.
Darkness descended across the battlefield unnaturally fast.
The smoke clouds above Valkyros twisted inward violently as something massive emerged from within them.
Huge black wings spread across burning skies.
A towering hooded figure descended slowly through ash and crimson firelight while dark energy spiraled around its body.
The temperature dropped instantly.
The winged monsters still alive retreated behind the figure immediately like obedient animals before their master.
The entity landed atop the ruins of a shattered skyscraper overlooking the battlefield below.
Tall.
Monstrous.
Its black robes moved like living smoke while curved horns protruded from beneath a skeletal hooded face glowing with crimson symbols.
Then the creature smiled.
Rows of unnatural teeth became visible beneath the darkness.
The city seemed to recoil from its presence.
Lucien felt cold suddenly.
Ancient cold.
The demon’s burning eyes locked directly onto him.
Onto Little Light.
And for the first time since arriving
the creature looked surprised.
The demon hit the sky like a living nightmare.
Its enormous wings erupted outward with explosive force, scattering smoke clouds across the burning recruitment district while civilians below screamed and fled through ruined streets.
The creature moved impossibly fast for its size.
One moment it stood within the crater.
The next
it collided with Lucien’s smaller astral angel high above the city.
BOOM.
White-blue energy exploded across the night sky.
The shockwave shattered nearby windows.
The little angel spun backward through the air before catching itself gracefully, glowing robes flowing behind its smaller radiant form.
Below, thousands watched in horror and awe.
Soldiers.
Civilians.
Young recruits.
Children who had arrived dreaming of heroism now witnessed angels and demons fighting above their city.
The winged demon laughed.
Its voice sounded wrong.
Layered.
As if several creatures spoke through the same throat.
“Interesting…”
The burning crimson eyes beneath its hood focused directly on Lucien standing below among the chaos.
“Not human.”
Lucien felt cold immediately.
The thing was looking through the projection.
Looking directly at him.
The little angel raised both glowing hands.
Radiant energy erupted outward in multiple beams.
The demon twisted midair with impossible agility while the blasts vaporized entire sections of burning cloud behind it.
One beam clipped its wing.
White-blue fire exploded outward.
The creature hissed violently.
Then smiled wider.
Below them
the battlefield worsened.
More winged monsters descended from the crater.
Dozens now.
Their shrieks echoed through the district while black feathers launched downward like storms of knives.
SCREEEEEECH.
Soldiers died instantly.
A Heavy Metal mech lost visual sensors as razor-feathers shredded its armored cockpit.
An evacuation truck crashed after both drivers were pierced through the skull.
Entire streets became kill zones.
The creatures hunted civilians deliberately.
A winged monster crashed through a hospital window nearby.
Screaming erupted inside moments later.
Another landed atop an armored transport and ripped through the roof using hooked claws before slaughtering everyone inside.
“They’re targeting the weak!” Elias shouted.
Golden Hound sprinted directly into collapsing debris while gunfire thundered around him.
His silver-marked armor already carried blood and dust from earlier fighting.
But his calm blue eyes never wavered.
A family became trapped beneath a fallen transport as feathers rained down around them.
Elias moved instantly.
He grabbed the side of the overturned armored vehicle with both hands
and lifted.
Steel screamed.
The enormous transport slowly rose off the trapped civilians through pure Steelborn strength.
“MOVE!”
The family scrambled free just as Elias threw the vehicle sideways into an approaching group of Baalanian fanatics.
CRASH.
The transport flattened three of them instantly.
One surviving fanatic charged him screaming.
Elias shot him twice center mass.
The fanatic kept running.
“…Not one of these people again.”
The fanatic smiled wildly
then exploded.
BOOOOM.
Black fire consumed the street.
Elias shielded the civilians with his own armored body as debris blasted across his back plating.
He barely moved.
Nearby, Kael Mordren was having significantly more fun.
The Steelborn infiltrator sprinted across wreckage while laughing like a psychopath.
“YOU PEOPLE ARE INSANE!”
A Baalanian warrior swung a massive curved blade toward him.
Kael ducked beneath it smoothly, sliced the man’s knee apart, then stabbed upward through his jaw in one fluid motion.
Another enemy rushed him from behind.
Kael casually grabbed a dropped pistol without looking
and fired backward directly through the attacker’s eye.
Blood sprayed across the burning street.
Kael sighed dramatically.
“I miss fighting professionals.”
Then three winged monsters descended toward him at once.
Kael glanced upward.
“…Oh good.”
The creatures unleashed a barrage of razor-feathers.
Kael moved instantly.
He blurred through the storm of projectiles with terrifying reflexes, black stealth armor twisting between feathers that punched through concrete behind him.
One feather sliced across his cheek.
Kael touched the blood briefly.
Then smiled.
“You hit me.”
The first winged creature reached him.
Kael jumped directly toward it.
His katana flashed once.
The monster split apart midair.
Kael landed atop the falling corpse, kicked off it, then drove his blade through the skull of a second creature before stealing its momentum to flip behind the third.
The last monster turned too slowly.
Kael decapitated it.
All three corpses crashed burning into the streets below.
Nearby recruits stared at him in complete horror.
Kael noticed.
“…What?”
Then the sky darkened.
Everyone looked upward.
Hundreds of black feathers suddenly spread across the clouds above the district.
Not projectiles.
A storm.
The winged monsters circled overhead in organized formations now.
Hunting patterns.
Military tactics.
The realization chilled every soldier present.
These things weren’t beasts.
They were coordinated.
Intelligent.
The demon wizard hovered above them all.
Its massive wings spread wide against the burning sky while dark energy rippled across the battlefield beneath it.
Then the creature raised one clawed hand.
Every winged monster screamed simultaneously.
And descended.
The civilians broke.
Panic exploded across the district.
People ran blindly through fire and collapsing buildings while Soldiers of the Iron Oath desperately tried maintaining evacuation routes.
Lucien watched the chaos helplessly.
Too many people.
Too many enemies.
His breathing became uneven.
The little angel hovered protectively above the city while dozens of flying monsters dove toward civilians below.
Lucien’s hands trembled.
He hated this.
The screams.
The dying.
The fear.
Elias suddenly appeared beside him mid-battle.
“Lucien.”
The younger operative looked up shakily.
Golden Hound placed one armored hand firmly against his shoulder.
Calm.
Steady.
Protective.
“Look at me.”
Lucien forced himself to focus.
Elias pointed upward toward the burning sky.
“You save who you can.”
Another explosion thundered nearby.
The demon wizard roared overhead while winged creatures flooded the district.
Elias’ blue eyes hardened.
“We handle the rest.”
Then Golden Hound charged back into the battlefield.
Lucien stared upward.
The little angel floated above the burning city like a star surrounded by darkness.
Then
for the first time publicly
the astral being unfolded its wings fully.
Radiant light exploded across the heavens.
The entire district illuminated white-blue.
Every civilian stopped.
Every soldier looked upward.
The angelic projection no longer resembled a weapon.
It looked divine.
Beautiful.
Terrifying.
Its voice rolled across the ruined district like thunder.
“You…”
The demon slowly stepped forward atop the collapsing tower edge.
Black wings expanded wider behind it.
“That light…”
Lucien instinctively stepped backward.
Little Light floated protectively in front of him.
The demon stared intensely at the small angelic projection.
Then its expression changed.
Recognition.
Not complete recognition.
But enough.
Enough to make something ancient inside that creature hesitate.
“…Impossible,” it whispered.
Kael immediately looked toward Lucien.
“…Why does the demon know you?”
Lucien looked terrified.
“IT DOESN’T.”
The demon suddenly laughed.
A deep horrifying sound that echoed across the burning city.
“Oh…”
Its massive wings spread outward fully.
“So that is why they sent us here.”
Black energy exploded outward from its body.
The remaining winged creatures shrieked in response and flooded into the skies around it like a living storm.
Below, civilians screamed as darkness swallowed the battlefield once more.
Then the demon pointed directly toward Lucien.
And declared in a voice that shook the ruined city:
“COME.”
Little Light’s wings unfolded wider.
Lucien slowly rose from the ground surrounded by radiant energy.
The crowd watched in stunned silence as the quiet young operative ascended into the burning heavens to face the monster waiting above the city.
Angel light against demonic darkness.
Heaven against Baal.
And high above Valkyros
war truly began.
The demon wizard froze midair.
For the first time
its smile faded.
Lucien slowly raised his hand.
The little angel mirrored him above the city.
Then both fired simultaneously.
A colossal beam of radiant energy erupted skyward.
The heavens split apart.
Winged monsters vanished instantly inside the blast.
Clouds vaporized.
Light carved across the night itself.
The surviving civilians below watched in stunned silence.
Some dropped to their knees.
Others cried openly.
One young recruit whispered through tears:
“…An angel…”
But the demon survived.
The towering creature burst through the fading lightstorm, wings burning, body damaged but still moving.
And now
it looked furious.
Its burning eyes locked onto Lucien completely.
Then the demon pointed directly toward him.
Every surviving winged monster turned simultaneously.
And charged.
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