Buildings, both collapsed and torn asunder, were nothing but grim decorations. Their broken appearance mirrored that of the humans who scattered into the protection of the angels. Families, groups of friends, and lone survivors slowly left the places they hid in. For a moment in time, every denizen of the city was reduced to a quivering child in fear of an unknown monster.
With the combined efforts of the Soul Angels and the Heart Angels, the humans were escorted and gathered in front of the city hall. This was the largest space where they could be accommodated since the majority of the town was in ruins. A small girl with a teddy bear cradled in her arms wobbled around on shaky legs. Her eyes were wide with terror but laced with a calm trust in her surroundings. Tracy, spotting the lone child, broke from his conversation with another angel and flew towards her. The girl buried her face in the small teddy bear as soon as she caught sight of Tracy. She trembled even more.
Tracy knelt down before her. "Hey," he said. His voice was calm and gentle. The girl took a peek at him, then covered her eyes again. "It's okay. Are you trying to find your mommy?"
The girl started to shake less. She revealed her face now - a tear ran down the side of her face. She sniffled. Tracy frowned.
"I'll help you!" he said enthusiastically. He grinned widely, then patted her on the cheek. The girl smiled. "Let's find your mommy." Tracy held out his hand to the girl. She grabbed it with her tiny fingers and giggled.
"Me... Karen," she said proudly. "Karen." Tracy lifted her carefully and placed her on his shoulder.
"Alright then, Karen. Let's find your mommy." Tracy held her defensively, afraid that she might fall. The girl rested easily on his broad shoulder, though. "I'll help you find your mommy, Karen. When we do, help me find someone else, okay?" Karen stared blankly at him.
" 'Kay," she said. "Who... who is?" she stuttered, trying to piece together her question.
Tracy chuckled lightly. "His name is Michael. Maybe with you, we can find him - right?" He poked her lightly in the stomach. Karen let out a burst of laughter. Tracy looked up to the sky. He let a sigh escape him.
"It's a long way down when your hopes are high as mountains," he whispered.
Karen just stared blankly at him.
---
Surno and Andrew marched side by side. Andrew smiled maniacally, holding himself back from throwing a sucker punch at his companion. Surno held a steely gaze that melted anything it landed on. They arrived at the city hall in a few minutes. Angels flying in the sky were shouting out to each other, sending out orders and messages where they needed to be. Andrew snorted at them.
"I guess we're back to 'harmony,' eh? I always expected Peter to fail, to be honest." Andrew hid a cynical smile. Surno closed his right fist, which was still holding his mask. It cracked into a thousand pieces. Andrew laughed. "Does that mean I can't have my own opinion?" he mocked.
Surno shut his eyes. "No." His hand was still quivering with pent up anger.
Andrew nodded. "I won't bother ya anymore - for now. Go and play the big bad leader, Surno; seems like this lot needs one." Andrew stopped walking and crossed his arms, looking the other way.
Surno stopped also. He cast a glance at Andrew. "You deserve this one." Andrew turned, then found a clenched fist cracking him in the middle of his face. The punch knocked him out instantly, and he crumpled onto the ground. A nearby human male winced. Surno cracked his knuckles and smiled smugly.
A Heart Angel landed next to Surno, folding in her wings as she did so. Her eyes glanced at Andrew's unconscious body then to Surno's bloody hand. "Here's the report on casualties, sir," she said, shrugging the shock off. "It's pretty bad." She handed him a folded piece of paper.
Surno looked at her for a second. He grunted, then ripped the paper into shreds. The Heart Angel lowered her head.
"Sir, I'm sorry for, uhm," Surno stared at her morbidly with blue eyes. She shifted uneasily. "May I be excused?"
"You asked?" Surno questioned. He shut his eyes then nodded. "You should know, though." Broken pieces of his ceramic theater mask sifted through his clenched fingers. "I never take reports." Surno opened his eyes, revealing a red hue now. He avoided eye contact with her.
"Leave," he commanded. She bowed hastily, then flew up into the sky.
Surno sighed. The same human male who stood by gazed at him with awestruck eyes. Surno returned the stare.
"You're such a badass," the human said. Surno felt an odd sensation overwhelm him; he broke out into laughter, losing his self control.
---
Greg filed into an empty street. His eyes darted everywhere. He spotted a Soul Angel. "Hey! Come here for a second!" he called out to the female angel.
She turned around. "Is that you, sweet Greggie?" she said. Greg strained his eyes to make out who it was. Lily.
Lily flew towards him. She stopped a few feet before him, then landed into a sitting position. Greg spotted a deep wound at her side that still bled. He also saw multiple cuts on her face and to her legs. Lily tilted her head to the side. "Are you staring, Greggie?" Greg blushed reluctantly.
"No!" he cried. "I was observing your, err, the status of your health and I, well, wanted to assess that you were oka-" Lily cut him off.
"So you were staring, hmm?" she teased. Her thin lips formed into a smile. "You've gone from a determined warrior down to some pre-pubescent kid who can't control his hormones!" Lily laughed uncontrollably.
Greg sighed. Taylor stirred in his arms. "Keep your voice down," he said. "You saw what happened earlier, right?" Greg walked over to Lily, then sat down with Taylor still in his arms. She dropped back into a deep sleep.
Lily placed a hand on Taylor's head. "Yes, I saw. Did this girl catch sight of it too?" Greg shook his head.
"I'm glad that she didn't. I can't even fathom the suffering she'd be in," he whispered. Lily held back a laugh.
"You're becoming quite the man, Greggie. Just look at you!" Lily said softly. Greg looked at her quizzically. "I heard from others that you assumed Peter's role, right? Just for a little bit. You also took over the majority of the duties in the City of Guardians - right?" Lily smiled through the blood on her face. "And now you've gone soft over this poor girl here." Lily sighed; however, the sigh sounded pleased more than sad.
Greg hummed. "Hmm. I don't quite see what you are trying to say, Lily." he placed his hand over Lily's hand on Taylor's head. "I caught the gist of it, though - but you're wrong, Lily." He stared at her with empty eyes. Lily brightened up at his touch and felt weak in her chest at the same time. "I only worry for Taylor because, well... because..."
He trailed off into silence. Lily turned away, smiling to herself. "Because it's the right thing to do?" she said for him.
Greg nodded. "Have you seen Taylor's father?" he asked. As if on cue, Mr. Robins came running down the street. He let out a sigh of relief as soon as he saw Taylor. Mr. Robins ran up to Greg, smiling with all of his heart.
"Thanks for watching over her, sir. Can you do me one more favor?" he asked as Greg handed Taylor over. She still didn't stir.
Greg's eyebrows perked up. "What's that?"
Mr. Robins held Taylor tentatively. He covered one of her ears with his hand. "Please keep it a secret from Taylor." Mr. Robins left without another word.
Greg closed his eyes. Lily grabbed his hand softly, then squeezed it. Greg returned the gesture.
"So, what do we say to everyone?" Lily asked. "We can't just lie about him. It's-"
"-not the right thing to do," Greg said, finishing her sentence. "I know, I know. We shouldn't say anything about Michael. End of story."
Lily and Greg stood there on the outskirts of the city, side by side, hand in hand, knowing who the other was for once in their lifetime.
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