There was nothing left to the world. Nothing except dirt and light. Cities were ground to dust, trees burned to nothing, taking like with it. The serene perfect world the Angels had spend eternity building was gone. The Angels were scattered, the Council was destroyed, and the Silence was struggling against a hopeless war. There is nothing. A wasteland of burning hatred fueled by greed.


And I, Mara, watched my past unravel. Humans took everything from us. They destroyed our kingdoms, our cities, our life, our temples and prayer grounds, our schools for the children and our homes for the living. It was the kind of betrayal that made Angels, Silence, and Council turn from the Creator, to break ties with the fabled human who made our species and embrace the Shamed
There was no longer a pace got the Angels in the hell the plant had become. Humans had destroyed the lush gardens, the diamond and gold cities, temples and alters made of precious gemstones dedicated to the Creator. All that remained to my home was dust. Sand stretching as far as the eye can see, nothing breaching the flat ever-distant horizon.
Humans and their greed, their desire for value at the expense of a face not unlike theirs. With their guns that hurt and their smoke that choked, there was nothing the Silence could do to peacefully defeat them. Now the whole planet paid for their destruction and craving. Every Angel, Citizen, Silence, Council, Shamed of the planets cities were either lost, dead, dying, or caged in an encampment somewhere over the sands. What was there to live for anymore?
The Shamed, the dark rebellion. The fire of pure hatred in the hearts of Angels, Council, or Deserted Silence. Those who began dastardly plots to avenge the planet by overrunning Earth, the decimated home of the human race. So many had joined, it crossed my mind many times to join as well, but my duty and purpose of life was to protect the planet and Citizens.
It pained me to let my eyes wander the destruction left by humans. I remembered years ago, meeting my mate Corvinus in the spot I stood now. All that was left of it now was dirty brown ash where there used to be soft green grass and the pained loss of Corvinus’ death.
He had been sitting silently at the table, his pale hands shaking as he raised his cup to drink. I had walked in the room, suddenly away of his distraction. I had asked him what was wrong and he raised his blank face to mine, his cold trembling lips kissing me as the door behind us banged open. Humans poured in, shouting orders to each other.
Hands grabbed me and yanked me back, away from Corvinus. I screamed for him and struggle away from my restrainers, but by the time my hand had clamped down on the humans shoulder Corvinus had flown backwards. I had been too late, my robes tripping me as I stumbled backwards.
There hadn’t even been a sound. It felt as if I were watching the horror before me unfold in slow motion. My mate crashing backwards. Red blooming over his chest. His head cracking against the quartz counter. I had fallen to my kneed. My heart beating so fast I half expected it to rip out of my breast and flutter to the sky. The smell of my mates scarlet blood filling the house, corrupting the pristine air with metallic tang of life essence. A pained wail escaping my throat. What was this brokenness in my body, I thought, it felt as if I was too weak to take one more breathe of air?
And I stood, staring out at the ruins of a once strong and prosperous race. The history of Angels was gone. The Council was presumed dead, the Silence-for all I knew- was being forced to surrender the war, and the Shamed sat on a bounty of hatred and vendettas.
So I spread my wings. Pain ripping through my body as the metal feathers shoved their way out of my skin. I cried out, gripping my tattered robe in my hands until my knuckles bloomed white. The pain began to subside and I relaxed, crumpling to my knees. Behind me my large wings spread, glinting and glimmering like a million different materials in the hot sun.
As an Angel, I was sworn to protect the planet, the Citizens, the Council. It seemed as if I had failed. A voice in the back of my head screamed I did not deserve my wings. Raising my face up to the burning, blinding, relentless sun I released a cry. Shoving my body heavy with my detailed feathers sharp as knives, I stood. I flapped my wings furiously, raising a choking cloud of sand as my feet left the ground.
I would not fail. Somewhere out there were the human men who killed Corvinus. Somewhere there was an encampment where they held the one thing I cherished over duty to the planet, to the Citizens…they held my daughter.