The sky cracked open with a violent roar, and from the rift, a lone figure descended toward the earth like a fallen star.
Kurai's once-radiant wings, the symbol of her grace and purity, had been burned away to cinders, leaving only the scorched remnants of what she once was. Her body, a burning comet, plummeted through the sky, her descent a blur of flame and agony as she tore through the atmosphere at an impossible speed. The air around her screamed as fire licked at her form, her body wracked with pain.
Her memories of Heaven flashed before her eyes like fading fragments of a dream—Michael's cold, pitiless stare as he cast her out, Uriel's lifeless form lying in the blood-soaked halls of the celestial citadel, and the crushing realization that she would never again return to the paradise she had once called home.
And then—impact.
The force of her landing shattered the earth beneath her, sending a shockwave through the empty alley. The ground cracked wide open, and a deep crater formed at her feet. Dust and debris settled around her, the only sound the soft hiss of her body cooling from the fiery descent.
For a moment, everything was still.
A shadow moved through the dust.
A stranger, a young man in his late twenties, cautiously approached her. His breath was heavy, his steps hesitant. He stopped a few paces away from her, unsure whether he should help or retreat.
"Hey… are you okay?"
His voice was low, hesitant. He knelt beside her, reaching out to check her pulse, his fingers brushing against the burnt skin of her arm. He flinched at the heat emanating from her.
Then—
Her eyes snapped open, glowing crimson with an intensity that pierced the darkness.
A feral scream tore from her throat, raw and guttural, a blend of rage, agony, and something far darker.
"DON'T TOUCH ME, YOU FILTHY MONKEY!"
The man recoiled in shock, stumbling backward as his initial concern twisted into disgust.
"Fine then!" he shouted, his voice dripping with irritation. "Last time I try to help a crazy bitch like you!"
He turned his back to her, muttering under his breath as he stalked away. "Should've just left you there to die."
The words seemed to cut through the thick haze of Kurai's mind like a knife.
"What did you say?!"
Her grip tightened around the hilt of Michael's sword, still clutched in her hand, the blade gleaming with a deadly glow. The weapon was an extension of her fury now, the only connection to a past that had been torn away from her.
Before the man could react, she moved—faster than the human eye could follow. Her sword pierced his stomach with terrifying precision, the blade sinking deep into his flesh.
The man gasped, his mouth working as blood spilled from his lips, his eyes widening in disbelief.
Kurai leaned in close, her voice soft but chilling, the sound of death hanging in her words.
"Oh… dying comes so easily for your kind, doesn't it?"
With a twist of her wrist, she drove the sword deeper into his body, savoring the sensation of life draining from him. As he slumped forward, lifeless, his body jerking with the final vestiges of life, her crimson eyes flickered to a reflective surface—a shattered mirror among the debris.
She froze.
The woman staring back at her was no longer the same.
Her once-golden hair was now a dark cascade of shadows, jet black and disheveled, falling like ink around her shoulders. Her soft ocean-blue eyes, once symbols of her purity, had been replaced by a piercing crimson glow, glowing with power and malice, and a quiet madness.
Kurai's fingers trembled as she reached up to touch her face, tracing the unfamiliar contours, as if she couldn't believe what had become of her.
"Is this… me?"
Her breath caught in her throat, and a slow, sinister smile spread across her lips, curling at the corners.
"I'm no longer weak."
The memories of Heaven, once so vivid and clear, now felt like distant echoes—fading, irrelevant, like a past life that no longer mattered. What remained was a hunger, a desire to claim power, to shape her own fate.
With a swift motion, she grabbed a lock of her long hair and sliced it off with Michael's sword, letting the strands fall to the ground.
The action was symbolic—letting go of the past.
"I will save my brother."
Kurai moved through the streets with purpose, blending into the shadows. She wasn't entirely sure where she was headed—only that she needed to find Hikaru, and quickly. She didn't care who was looking for her; she was beyond redemption now.
Then, she saw movement above.
A celestial figure, a scout angel, hovered in the sky, his glowing form cutting through the night. His gaze swept over the streets, searching. Hunting.
For her?
For Hikaru?
It didn't matter. He had seen too much.
With a burst of speed, Kurai shot upward, her body a blur of motion. In seconds, she was above the scout, her foot crashing into his chest with brutal force.
The impact sent him careening down, slamming into the alley below, the sound of his body hitting the ground reverberating through the night air.
The scout groaned, struggling to rise, his eyes wide with shock and fear. As he turned to face her, his voice barely a whisper of disbelief.
"Lady Kurai…?"
The recognition in his voice only fueled her rage. She stepped forward, her crimson eyes blazing.
"I heard rumors that you had fallen into darkness… but I didn't want to believe it," he stammered, his hand tightening around his weapon. "But now that I see you like this… I have no choice. I must slay you."
Kurai tilted her head, her lips curling into a cold, savage smirk.
"You can die trying."
She charged.
Their swords met with a clash of steel, sparks flying, the noise ringing out in the night. Her movements were still hindered by the weakness of her fall, but she fought with the ferocity of a predator, each strike calculated, every moment a step closer to ending this fool's existence.
The scout moved faster, his blade slashing across her shoulder with a deep cut. Kurai hit the ground, gasping, her blood mingling with the dust below.
But she wasn't finished.
The scout stood over her, his blade raised for the killing blow. "You were once a great archangel, Lady Kurai…" he sneered, looking down at her with a mixture of disdain and pity. "But now look at you." He scoffed. "After I finish you, I'll deal with your pathetic excuse of a brother."
The words hit her like a thunderclap, and something inside her shattered. Her breath slowed, her body tense. Her vision tunneled, and in that moment, nothing mattered except him.
"No one lays a finger on my big brother."
Darkness erupted from her body. Shadows twisted and coiled, wrapping around her arm like serpents, and from the dark tendrils, a weapon formed—her fingers flexed, and the weapon materialized, a long, wicked chain ending in a massive, jagged scythe blade.
The scout's eyes widened in horror.
Kurai whipped the chain forward, the scythe blade slashing through the air, wrapping around the scout's neck. With one swift motion, she yanked him down, slamming his skull into the concrete.
Blood splattered in the street, a grotesque spray that painted the walls and the ground.
But she didn't stop there.
She stomped on his head, again and again, each impact punctuated by a sickening crunch. A twisted, dark laugh bubbled up from her chest, a sound devoid of humanity.
Finally, she stepped back, her breathing slow and steady, as she regarded the lifeless body at her feet.
"Oh my… even one of these filthy humans could've put up a better fight."
The scout's body twitched, his limbs stiffening in death.
Kurai scoffed. "Weak."
Her white and gold robes, once symbols of her celestial grace, were now torn and soaked in blood—a reminder of the angel she once was.
She raised her hand, and darkness swirled around her like a living thing, twisting and shifting. The shadows seemed to respond to her call, curling around her body like a protective shroud. When the darkness receded, she stood tall, her form completely altered.
Her new outfit—a tight black leather suit that clung to her body, sharp and unforgiving—was a reflection of the monster she had become. Her hair was now cropped short, styled in jagged, uneven strands. Her crimson eyes gleamed with newfound purpose.
"Much better," she muttered, running her fingers through her now-shortened hair with a smirk that was equal parts vicious and satisfied.
She moved through the streets with lethal grace, her gaze sharp, searching for something—or someone. Her heart pounded in anticipation.
Then—there he was.
Across the street, walking alongside a human, was Hikaru.
Her brother.
Her light.
Her purpose.
A whisper escaped her lips, barely audible in the stillness of the night.
"Big brother…?"
But as she stepped forward, her progress halted.
Hikaru was floating.
Mamoru—her brother's companion—was speaking to him, responding as though nothing was unusual. The eerie silence surrounding Hikaru was palpable. He had no physical form. No one else could see him.
Kurai's fists clenched.
He had no physical form. Only Mamoru could see him.
Her crimson eyes narrowed, a sneer forming on her lips. She had found him.