Ezra
Kayla slept peacefullyin my bed, her reddish-brown hair sprawled across the pillows in a silky wave I longed to stroke.
But I didn’t want to disturb her.
She’d exerted a lot of energy today, and she needed this time to heal.
It hurt to leave her, my soul irritated by the notion of parting ways after joining so completely. However, I needed to see Raphaela about this cuff. And I wanted to talk to Mietek as well.
I bent to press a kiss to Kayla’s forehead. “Rest,” I whispered. “I’ll be right back.”
She didn’t respond or even flinch, too lost in her dreams to surface.
It would be so easy to tap into her mind, to find out if she dreamt of me at all, but I didn’t want to intrude.
Instead, I used my wings to silently propel me from the room and off the balcony.
I soared over the vibrant green landscape, heading toward the heart of the city, only to frown at the various creatures lying dead along the way.
Vultures, I recognized. They were birdlike demons and a royal pain in the ass to kill. The bastards shot venom from their beaks and possessed wings as large as my own.
Fortunately, these were all dead.
But I had no idea they could leave the underworld.
The same could be said about the dead Cyclops near the city gates.
And the multitude of slain demons on the streets inside.
“Fuck,” I breathed, shocked by the display of mayhem taunting the otherwise peaceful landscape.
There didn’t appear to be any fallen angels among them, just annihilated demon minions.
Which meant no one had brought a holy blade with them to this fight.
And there weren’t any shadow beings called into existence here, either.
“Ezra,” Zerak greeted as he met me in the sky.
I’d been so focused on the sights that I hadn’t noticed his ascent. “This is madness.”
“Indeed,” he agreed. “But we are back to just over one human year before the balance is at risk again.”
I frowned at him. “Back to a little more than a human year?” I’d lost track of time and years after the last however many days or weeks. It was impossible to keep up with the constant shifting in the balance.
“Your union with Kayla gave us more time.” He uttered the words without emotion, his silver-gray features giving nothing away. “Unfortunately, it’s not enough to stop the inevitable. But it just may save us.”
“You’re starting to sound like Fate,” I muttered.
He blinked. “I don’t work with prophecies, Ezra.” With that flat statement, he took his leave, not even bothering with a formal goodbye.
Sighing, I continued onward to Raphaela’s home near the center of the city.
I landed on her balcony, my wings ruffling in an angelic version of a knock.
No one replied.
I poked my head inside to find her rooms vacant.
