"Sunlight sunlight. Guide my steps, star of God."
"Next step, sir?"
"Every country, every land. I'll conquer this planet."
Ismael went down the hill and joined the ones training on the sand, recognizing familiar faces.
"It would have been really sad if I had been taken down up there, huh?"
"Ismael? By God is that you?"
"The real deal."
The face of Gloria lit up with the sunlight, and for a moment she didn't look decomposed anymore. She never looked more alive than now with all of the tears she let go, with all of the emotion she let out.
"I had to kill Basil Morgan. Like I said, easy work. East was the way for sure."
"You...even in death you're still not tired of your wife, huh?"
"Never will be. Raven, happy to see you. Alice as well."
"We'll tell you everything you need to know about Capucine and the rest. And you'll tell us everything that happened to you. Leave nothing."
For hours they exchanged. Ismael was troubled but the others were even more worried about him than he was of them. Overwhelmed with happiness he knew better than to be blinded with joy and lose sight of his goals, yet he whispered, while the girls were talking, "look at the road, angel. I'm still blind." "I'm sure you want me to look at her too, no?" Ismael blushed a little bit and walked a bit faster.
"Ismael, you didn't explain that thing on your coat?"
"I made this myself. I mean with Sebastian. The four represents the four comrades we had, Raven included. The swastika in the middle is the well-being and the clarity of mind, the possibility to be better and to better myself."
"You don't sound tormented."
"That...well, what can I say? Another woman wants me."
"Ismael, this sounds serious. She's profoundly demented. This sin thing is not real."
"It is serious. She's able to burn those she marks, how do you call that?"
"We have an immortal blind sniper with us and you ask me that?"
"Ladies, please. Let's focus on what we know. Capucine wants me as Torment, the Eigth Sin, but also seeks the sins she deemed useless and burned. We attack as soon as we can. She sounds like she's disconnected from the mortal realm, unable to understand how tyrannic she is. It won't be possible to convince her by words. We'll have to use actions, the type of action that breaks her view of the world. We'll have to make a slight turn to see a friend, not too far away. Angel, guide us if you will."
"With pleasure."
On the road, Ismael slowed down his aggressive pace to aline with the rest of the group.
"How did the two of you managed to get back on track after what happened at C.Y. Lens?"
"Mael, please don't think that I'm so simple, I can forgive. Especially given the context, and that she suffered too."
"No, this is what I'm talking about. I knew I could learn something from my wife. I tried to be more mature and more dignified after I died. And I think you could help me acheive this, being better than me."
"You sincerely mean that? I was alive after Raven tossed me in that tomb, Capucine took me out. I hated that until I saw Rave. There I knew I wasn't alone, even though we were enslaved."
"Sloth, she said, huh? I'll show her what it is."
"Who is that friend we're visiting?"
"Geulsang Zhao. You will understand when you see him, trust me. He's one of a kind."
"Did he also brutalize you?"
"Of course he did, Raven. Everybody did at some point. Look."
"Something happened to these people."
They ran and asked, easily concluded than the youngsters they were conversing with had been caught by Capucine. Ismael asked his angel to heal the wounded and in a hurry they had to leave them behind, immediately they left and joined the place.
"The ITS?"
"ITS?" Gloria asked.
"Yes, the Interstate Train Station, only a handful of lost souls use those, and at this point I'm not even sure how it still works."
"He has to be here", assured Ismael. "Geulsang Zhao! Show yourself, drinker."
"He's talking with someone else? That's unexpected, but not too bad. Strategically speaking we could use that."
"Ismael, this is Lilifa, she's an official arms dealer from Hyefa, a southern easter region of Laggoon Les."
"Glad to meet you, please excuse the horrible appearence. Me and my friends are leaving to kill Capucine. Or negotiate. We'll see when we get there. And we're going to need your help."
"If that's negotiate, I don't want to miss that. Forward it is."
"Lilifa, are you coming with us? It might be dangerou-"
"Let's kill this girl."
"Fine? Surprised me."
"Geulsang Zhao already knows the way from the ITS to the castle, he's done it before."
In a matter of twelve minutes spent running, the party reached the final destination. The gates were opening as they were advancing towards them, meaning she knew they were coming after her, and one door after the other, Raven was leading them into the main room. As they arrived, said-room was filled with even more colorful toys and giant cubes and balls of every size. On top of all this mountain of child-like items of every sort, a young woman was sitting like a cat, licking her hands as if they were paws. She had a hairband with cat ears.
"You've finally made it, congratulations! And you did bring me new people, as ordered."
"They're not here for you, Capucine", Ismael announced with a high voice. "We — none of us — on this planet exists solely for your amusement or your fake ideas."
"You've brought me Ismael? The Torment? Such good work, Raven and Alice!"
"I am not the Torment, I am not the Eight Sin. My name is simply Ismael. I come from Cressenie and I used to sell weapons, briefly. I was involved in the Killing of Nara, where I've massacred hundreds if not thousands of people. I am not special, I am nothing."
"Is this because of the way these two girls talked about me? How evil."
"They simply told me about your ritual and how to access Heaven by force."
"It is a possibility."
"Fantasy."
"Fine. My final fantasy. My absolution. My ultimate and only goal in life. To see it through to the end."
"It?"
"My vision."
"You're doing all of this because you had a vision? Are you insane? People die for your vision to get into Heaven?"
"No strength required, no more strategies, no more scheming. No more of that blood spilled. Once I reach Heaven, no one will suffer anymore, at least not by my own doing. I'll be free, and you will be freed of me."
"People don't always represent the sins you think they convey."
"If I see that they convey one sin or another, then I assure you, Ismael, they do. You don't understand spirituality."
"I do. More than you think. I expected a little bit more respect and enthusiasm at the idea of meeting me in real life."
"There it is, right there. Pride. Personified."
"I am Greed."
"Why choosing a sin when you can choose the Lord?"
"He chose me first. He chose me. ME. I belong to the superior, high-up plane of existence. So many killers, here, and yet, and yet, I, was entrusted with a compelling mission, told to measure up sins and collect them, and in unisson, have them recite a sentence so I could ascend upwards."
"So much confusion. You think that because of your holy mission, any of the killings you do is somehow instantly forgiven. This is immoral and untrue. You are not saving your soul or anyone else's. You are making your own fantasy a psychopathic reality by reaping innocent souls."
"I won't start you with the term "innocent", but I'll have you know, I am quite the favorite of whatever deity controls this planet. This world. I will kneel before Him, yes, but right now, you will kneel before me."
"The concept of a deity having a favorite makes no sense at all. You can't properly and officially document such a fact, because it isn't one. You also can't back up those claims. Unmark my wife and Raven, they will not lead you to Heaven, they can't. You have to understand that even if we wanted to, we couldn't. Only God Himself can accomplish something so holy."
"I do not mean to sound morally superior. What I "claim" is true, but explaining it feels like teaching advanced physics to a wall."
"Your hypothesis is not the issue, perhaps you're right and in which case, have it your way and go to Heaven. But the fact that you have to spill blood to reach a holy place is nonsensical to begin with."
"It's because you've made the grave mistake of thinking that Heaven was for the good."
"I'm not following."
"Heaven was made for us. But not all of us. You think bad people go to Hell and good people go to Heaven. You sick individual. Heaven is for those who have been marked by it. End of it. You were not marked? You're not going. Some of us have visions, they know what they have to do to get there."
"That sounds profoundly unfair."
"Because it is. See now, you're getting it."
"This is not the truth, I refuse to believe it."
"Deny all you want, Mael. The thing is, you have an angel, you're basically saved. You'll go to Heaven and see me up there. Now. Please. Everybody center yourself in."
"I thought you killed your sins?"
"I did. But you brought some more, and I realized, with you here, I don't need them. I need you. You are the most important component of this performance. You will give me access, whether you like it or not."
"Nobody's participating, Capucine. Nobody. You'll never have your way. Come and fight if you even can."
"Gross. I don't use weapons."
"What do you even do? You burn people? Is that your only asset?"
"Yes, Mael. Look at your wife, for exemple. I could kill sloth and still be granted access. That's how unfair it is."
"Funny thing about that is, you won't."
Ismael unseathes a gun from inside his coat and shoots Capucine, the bullet is blocked by the angel. After the trigger is pulled and the violent, resonating sound stops, a heavy silence thrones.
"Sebastian. Explain yourself."
"Ismael, she is Marked by Heaven. You have a warning for now, but next time I'll have to leave back to Heaven, leaving you on this planet blind."
"You gotta be kidding me. So this is true? What about maturity? Dignity? Soul, heart, good actions, love for others, compassion, care?"
"You will get into Heaven, Ismael. You just have to let others have their chance."
"But she's about to kill everyone, Sebastian. Do something!"
"It is necessary."
"At the expense of all my friends?"
"Yes, we obey those Marked by Heaven."
"What the actual fuck is going on. What the fuck is this? This is torture in its' purest form. There's nothing I can do. Geulsang Zhao, Lilifa, Raven and Gloria are going to die today for good because I decided to get some help? Think. Relax. There's a way out of this."
"There is no other way out of this, Ismael."
"Don't let her discourage you. She can do all of this because she abuses her position. I just have to do the same."
"Sebastian, I understand. See, I put my weapon down. I just want to say, as someone who is also Marked by Heaven, I'd like to make a proposition. I hereby renounce to my position as Marked by Heaven and sentence myself to Hel-"
"Stop this now. Do not make me abandon you, Ismael, you depend on me. Capucine is Marked as well, but she has a higher rank than you in the hierarchy."
"Two birds with one stone, even three, one intel added to the list with that. I almost brought myself to Gehenna with this method, but it was worth it. Now I know I can't have my way like her and I know why. Moreover, she doesn't expect me to betray my own angel who cannot hear my thoughts as long as they are not honest prayers. One quick hand gesture to Raven. There it is, now she's moving towards the group, acting like she's talking strategies or whatever. In reality, she's activating Blitzkrieg."
"Blitzkrieg won't activate, Ismael."
Terrified, Ismael could only stand in silence and wait for an explanation.
"Blitzkrieg won't launch because I've made it mine. I've made it special. Because I've buried Genova's body in it. You will never know if her soul is in Heaven or Hell, but don't blame me, had you been a better friend, you would know. But you tried to kill her instead of catching up to her. You know, like a real childhood friend did. Raven told me. "If this whole thing had a name, what would it be?" She said Gift of Ismael. I understand. Nice name, kinda catchy. But that's not entirely it. I would sum it up like this: "childhood friends become snipers, all sharing the same trauma." Pretty good, right? You belong to me, slave. You all belong to me. Gosh this is exciting. This is like my last moments on the planet before leaving for Heaven! It's similar to preparing for vacations, and you're outside waiting next to the car, and all the lights of the city are on, and it is beautiful."
"Capucine, stop. Stop this now."
"Sorry? Now you're begging?"
"Capucine, how did you bury Genova's body in Blitzkrieg?"
"When I marked you of my symbol on your soul. I could ask anything of you and you said yes to everything and more. You basically told me where to find the children. I used their Replicas and I was able to acheive such feat."
"Capucine. Where are the children."
"You really said yes to everything."
Geulsang Zhao, reading the room, was actually giving informations and commands to Lilifa who lashed at the angel, blocked his way, allowing Geulsang Zhao to call out to Ismael, waking him up so he could throw himself at the angel. He had made a quick gesture to him and he realized what he was doing. But because Ismael saw it, so did the angel. Lilifa, struggling, noticed something moving behind her through peripheral vision. Ismael took notice of it and gazed, only to scream at the top of his lungs: "THEIGON. DRY HER."
The sniper at the door shoots a bullet at Capucine, which forces the angel to protect her, and all of them are flying at her. In an instant, crying, Ismael cuts off the eyes of the angel, and inserts them into his empty orbits. Rising up, he sees Capucine with his own two eyes, realizing she had made him kill his own angel, his one and only way to Heaven.
"You had a wife and yet I am the first woman you decided to gaze upon."
"Gloria picks up her sword and climbs the piles of cubes of color to reach Capucine, no success, the mark makes her stab herself and she falls on the weapon, bleeding out impaled.
"This is beyond catastrophic."
"What are you going to do, Ismael? Save your wife or kill me?"
"She'll be fine, she's like me. You, on the other hand, you're alive. Weak."
In a last, final moment of adrenaline, Ismael shoots Capucine, thinking the distance between the two is enough to kill her point blank, but Raven, controlled by Capucine, jumps in-between, protecting her.
"You've killed two of your own, today."
"Raven? Raven, talk to me. Raven don't die."
"The time where you actually become Torment. TORMENT. This, is where I rise up both in soul and flesh to Heaven. This is it This is it! God Efalis, allow me in your kingdom!"
Ismael looks deep within the eyes of Capucine and is baffled at the sight of it.
"A black circle with thorns on it. In her white eyes. Kenza is looking to ascend, just like her."
Raven, held by Ismael, purges blood out of her body, as Ismael himself looks at the scene where humans appear and start killing people, they have black wings and thorned halos and their smiles are sadistic, full of power and pride. They have the same eyes and are completely corrupted by madness. One of them flies forward, he's smaller with half-long blond hair on the sides, hands in his pockets. He's wearing a thick green blazer over a white shirt. His eyes are green, large and almost inhuman.
"Capucine, I am here to take you with us. You now belong to Paradise. You will be able to influence the people of Earth and torture them to your heart's content with no consequences. Ismael, my name is Efalis. Find me at some point in your life if you can. Do your best to stay alive and well, and know that you can still attain Paradise, if you are sadistic enough. After all, that's why we gave you an angel, because we saw potential in you. Know that we reward murder and death. If you are good enough to us, we will send you a black angel. Until then, kill. Kill for me."
They all leave through a powerful and piercing light, both brightness and sound wise. Geulsang Zhao, the only one who survived, grabs Ismael and leaves with him. The young man was traumatized and couldn't speak, but his friend took him to his place and organized a few of his stuff to let him sleep comfortably. That night he had monstruous nightmares, cold sweats and partial temporary amnesia, but he managed to push through and sleep enough to heal physically.
Top of the morning, Ismael wakes up at the blaring light of the glassed roof, remembering the death of all his comrades. Only the blood and their faces come back to him in silence. He rises by using the fence and sees his coat on the ground, tears it apart and throws it in the river. He joins Geulsang Zhao outside, breathes in the fresh air and enjoys the sun. His friend gives him a cigarette and he takes it, smokes it and recovers language.
"I will kill Efalis."
"Yeah, me too, Ismael. Me too."
They packed up their stuff and Ismael shared half of his weapons with him. He comes back to the cross where he put the body of John and tears apart the flag, also in pure, disturbing silence. He then proceeds to use his phone to immediately contact Kenza.
"John, is that you?"
"It's Ismael. I'd like to sign in."
"Ismael. Awane talking. Keep the phone, we'll reach you from time to time to guide you to us. You really want to join in?"
"Yes."
"Yes who?"
"I don't know."
"Yes Mistress."
"Yes Mistress."
"Good. Know your place."
"I know what you're looking for. The angels with the thorned circle eyes. I saw them. I was at a massacre. I'll give you all the details once I'm here in person."
"Good boy. My pervert. My own little pervert."