Chapter 2:

The first thing that hit him was the smell, and he crinkled his nose at the revolting stench.

It reeked as though something had died in here.

Then, he looked down, and his look of repulsion turned into one of surprise.

Why was there a hole in his shirt?

And why was he surrounded in dried blood?

As he studied the burn marks marking the edge of the hole in shirt, he remembered.

He'd died in here.

The black wings, the light spear hurtling towards his chest.

Amano Yuuma.

Issei.

He winced as the scene of the boy's death appeared in his mind again and another pang of sorrow hit him.

Issei didn't deserve that. No one did. To have his life cut short because some higher power decided so… He clenched his fists… That was something he could never agree with. He wanted to know why. What wrong had Issei done to earn such a fate.

So many questions he needed answers to. Red had said to go to the church. He didn't trust the entity, but for now, he had no other leads. So the church it was.

But first, he needed to shower and change his clothes.

When the doors of the Church slammed open, Raynare was surprised. She'd expected the Longinus boy, Issei to show up, sprouting some heroic nonsense of justice and kindness, to take the nun back. Which would end in complete failure, because the nun was already dead, her body crucified on a cross standing at the altar.

Instead, she found another boy she'd already friggin' killed as well waltzing into her territory.

Why was everyone she was killing coming back to life?

"You." She ground out. "Don't tell me you turned into a Devil as well?"

Around her, the other Fallen looked up in mild curiosity at the blue-haired guest – she hadn't told them about this one, it seemed unnecessary at the time. How was she supposed to know he was going to come back?

"No. I did not." The boy looked confused, before an expression of anger took over when he saw the body hanging on the cross. "At least… I do not think I did."

"Then… How are you alive again?"

This time, the blue-haired boy did not respond, merely shrugging as he took one step after another towards the altar of the church.

She did not do anything, ordering the other Fallen to do the same. They watched in curiosity as the boy removed the restraints binding the dead nun from the cross, before gently laying her onto the ground.

How curious, the cross did not seem to burn the boy when he touched it. Clearly, he was no Devil… so how was he still alive? Did she really miss his chest? Impossible, there had been so much blood, he definitely died.

"She is dead." He said.

"Yes." She replied.

"Did you kill her as well?" He asked.

"Yes." She said again, though much more immediate than before.

There was a momentary silence as the boy closed the nun's eyes, before leveling a stare right at her, and she suddenly felt the need to raise her guard. A light speared blazed to life in her hand, prompting Kalawarner and the others to do the same.

"You should stop doing that," the boy warned, "killing humans."

She resisted the urge to laugh, "are you threatening me?"

"Maybe," the boy shrugged, and paused for a moment to think about what he wanted to say next. Staring straight into Raynare's eyes unflinchingly, he asked, "why did you kill Issei?"

"He was born with something he shouldn't have. Same with the nun, so both had to die."

"That's not a very good reason," he said, but this time she could hear the agitation in his voice.

"I don't need a good reason," she yawned, "I kill humans when I feel like killing them."

"Someone will stop you one day, and you'll pay for what you did."

This time she did laugh, "And who is that someone going to be, you?"

The boy looked unsure, "maybe."

She cocked her head at him and smiled. "Then I'll have to kill you now, won't I?"

He looked up to her and she flinched.

In her experience, in the face of death, there were three kinds of people.

The first was the most common, those who were afraid of dying. There would be desperation in their eyes, and their fear could be seen by how their whole body trembled. Some would wet themselves, others would desperately try to run away to escape their death. The boy had been like this the first time. She liked these kinds of people, they made killing fun.

She didn't like killing the second type of person: those that accepted death. Those that would sink to their knees and place their necks on the chopping board themselves. That took away all the fun from killing, there was no hunt, no thrill, only the act, which brought little satisfaction. They got boring fast.

The third kind was the rarest, those that could look death in the eye and still stand undaunted. They would hold their ground, unflinching and undeterred. They always had the same eyes, that defiant gaze that simply said bring it on.

The exact same pair of eyes she was staring at right now.

In an instant, a spear of light exploded to life in her palms, and in the next instant it was sent hurtling into the air, straight into the boy.

She hated the third kind.

A quick leap to the side saved his life. He had seen Amano Yuma tense, and instinctively dodged to the side. He looked at his original position, at the spear of light that was buried into the ground. It vanished, dissipating into many golden flakes.

"He's pretty agile," noted one of the Amano's companions, a man wearing a trench coat and hat.

"How about you shut up and help me kill him," snapped Amano.

A small blond girl who had sat unnoticed on one of the benches got up, and began to stretch. A wicked grin appeared on her lips. "Finally, I've been so bored."

Minato took a few steps back as the other two, the man and a provocatively dressed woman began to get to their feet as well. Things were looking bad. Escaping was not an option. If all of them were like Amano and had those black wings with the ability to fly, he would be stopped before he could even reach the doors.

Either way, thinking about his last encounter with her, he would most likely die tonight.

Then again, he'd probably come back to life anyway, right? But still, dying was painful and he'd rather avoid that.

His thoughts were interrupted by the flying shafts of light that screamed past him.

"Oi oi, are you gonna stand there all day? It gets boring, you know if you don't put up a fight, or at least try to run away." From the air, suspended with a raven pair of feathered wings, the man looked annoyed. "But if you want a fast and quick death, I don't mind, either. This is all so troublesome, anyway."

Minato grit his teeth. This was all Red's fault. That thing had to have known that there were four of Amano-like creatures lurking in the Church. Stupid thing had sent him to his death instead of answering his questions. Speaking of which…

"Can I ask…," he posed to them while dodging their spears, "what are you guys?"

There was a pause as all four of them stopped their assault and looked at him curiously.

"Can't you tell? The black wings, the light spears…" Probed the man, and upon seeing his confused look, "you know… Fallen Angels?"

He shook his head. At least now he knew what they were.

"I thought you died and managed to revive yourself. Clearly you are part of the supernatural world, are you not?" Asked the small blond girl.

"I don't actually know how I came back to life… And no, I was not aware of the supernatural world until I was killed by her." He pointed to Amano Yuma.

Next to her, the other black-haired woman had a thoughtful look on her face. "Perhaps he has a Sacred Gear that only recently awakened?"

Amano Yuma shook her head. "No, I checked. I detected no energy from him. He's a regular human, at least physically."

"Maybe we should ask one of the higher-ups? Like Kokabiel or even Azazel-sama. They might know what's wrong with him…"Wondered the man again, but a look of realization dawned on his face, "but that means we got to bring you to them alive. That's even more troublesome. Then again, if we kill you, maybe you'll revive just in time for them to study you?"

He didn't like where the conversation was going.

"Either way," Amano ignited a light spear in one hand, "We've still got to deal with you."

He needed a plan, and a good one, fast.

Five minutes later, when he was still plan-less but somehow still alive, he realized they were just toying with him. They taunted him, throwing their spears just slow enough that he could dodge and run. He was tiring, and he still had no clue what he could do.

"How'd you know we were in the church anyway, if you didn't even know we were Fallen Angels?" asked Amano in the air lazily, throwing another spear at him.

Leaping to the side, he replied, "erm… a friend told me? Said the answers I was looking for would be at the church. He didn't say you would be here though."

Amano snorted. "Some friend you got. Sent you straight to your death."

"Tell me about it."

This was good, conversations like this would lower their guard.

"Did you at least get your answers?"

"Some of them," he admitted, "but not enough."

Amano laughed, "That's the universe for you, always making sure someway somehow, you're always fucked."

He wanted to disagree, but the universe wanted to prove Amano right. His leg got caught on a step, and he tripped forward. There was searing pain from his leg, causing him to scream in agony. When he looked down, he saw a shaft light pinning his left leg to the ground, before it disintegrated in a yellow shower of sparks.

It wasn't pretty. The heat from the spear had cauterized most of the wound, but there was still a lot of blood pouring out from the whole, he could see his bones, and the scent of burnt flesh tainted his nose.

"Oh whoops. Would you believe me if I said wasn't actually aiming for that to hit you?" Asked the man, who was starting to descend now that their target was immobilized. "Oh well, it was going to happen sooner or later anyway. Might as well get it over and done with."

Like a pack of vultures circling a dying animal, the four of them hovered over him.

"What should we do?" asked the small blonde one, "capture him alive or just kill him?"

Tapping her chin, Amano Yuma thought about it for a while. "How about we kill him, and we see if he revives, you know, to make sure it wasn't just a onetime thing."

Enough is enough.

The words rang out in his mind.

It hurts us just to see how pitiful your current state is.

We have broken the barrier that separates us from you temporarily.

Now allow us to come to your aid.

This wasn't good. He was in shock, and losing too much blood if he was hearing voices now.

Hearing voices? Just wait until you see the hallucinations.

Then he was shoved aside. Not physically, but spiritually. It was an interesting experience to watch your own body from the third-person's perspective.

Wait. Then who was in first-person?

Raynare was somewhat disappointed. She didn't understand what was going on either. The first time she thought the boy had simply been at the wrong place at the wrong time, so she had killed him. Then when he had come back from the dead, she had immediately assumed that he was someone of significance. But he was not. Aside from his apparent immortality, he was disgustingly human.

She watched him squirm on the floor, his hands clutching his wounded leg, a grimace on his face. All of a sudden, he stopped, and a pair of glazed eyes stared up at her.

Had he passed out from the shock and blood loss?

Her instincts were suddenly screaming at her, and she automatically hurled a light spear at maximum velocity at the prone boy. Around her, the other Fallen had felt something similar, and immediately retreated upwards.

They wouldn't believe what they were seeing.

Lying on the floor, the boy had a fist clenched in front of his face. In that fist was her spear of light, buzzing dangerously before fizzling out of existence.

The boy sat up, and studied the palm that had caught the holy spear. Raynare's eyes widened when she saw that it was unmarred: no burns or cuts.

Impossible.

The only ones immune from the holy effects of the light spears were Angels.

"Who are you? You are not the boy from earlier, you are merely using his body."

"Is it not customary to give your own names before you ask that of others?" The boy spoke, but with a different voice, one far more luscious and eloquent then the one before.

"Raynare." She said.

Around her, the other Fallen did the same.

"Dohnaseek."

"Mittelt."

"Kalawarner."

The boy frowned. "I only recognize the man. You were a Librarian, weren't you? If I remember correctly, your job was to maintain the Heavenly Archives."

Dohnaseek looked surprised, as were the others. "Yes, that was my role."

The boy looked genuinely amused and confused. "How in the name of Heaven did you Fall if you had a job as boring as that?"

"I… gave humans knowledge from the Archive that I should not have given." He admitted.

"Ah," the boy noted. "So you're one of those Fallen. Like Azazel."

"Excuse me?"

"You liked humans too much."

"Ahem," Raynare coughed into her hands. "You seem to know so much of us, but we know nothing of you."

"Oh, pardon me," the boy chuckled, "just an old Angel trying to keep up with the times. There's really no point in me telling you my name, I'm sure it's been forgotten in the annals of history."

Raynare narrowed her eyes. Old Angels were strong Angels. "What is your relationship with the boy, is he your host?"

The being shook his head. "No, the boy is me, and I am the boy. Now, I'm rather fond of this boy and his body," and pointing at his injured leg he said, "and look what you've done."

Sighing, he raised a hand and hovered it over the wound. The Fallen watched in amazement as his palm began to glow with a green mystic energy. Flesh began to grow, blood vessels re-knit themselves together, and pink healthy skin stretched over to cover the wound, making his leg look good as new.

"What. Was. That?" Asked Kalarner.

"Healing magic, my dear." The boy smiled.

"I know that, but how? Only six-winged and higher Angels can use healing magic."

"Perhaps I am an Angel with six-wings or more, then?"

"You're not taking us seriously." Raynare said, unhappy.

The boy cocked his head. "You weren't taking the boy seriously, either."

"I can rectify that." She warned. Immediately, twin spears of light blazed into life and were sent flying at the boy, who stood unmoving and unfazed by them.

"Weak."

With a swing of his hands, both spears were deflected away, embedding themselves into the walls of the church with a thunk before disappearing.

The Fallen stared at him with renewed vigor and determination in their eyes.

"We definitely need to get you to Azazel-sama."

The boy frowned. "I'd rather not. We weren't really on good terms the last time I met."

"Then this will be the perfect opportunity for you to rebuild your bridges." Dohnaseek said, "if you come willingly we won't have to fight at all, and I'm sure Azazel-sama will give you mercy."

Raynare immediately knew Dohnaseek had said something wrong. There was look of malevolence on the boy's face, and he suddenly began to glow. Power exuded from his body in waves, and it was so strong that she could feel herself getting pushed back.

"I want to make one thing clear before we settle this."

The boy began to float in the air as the first pair of wings erupted from his back. Pure white wings that put even the most beautiful swans to shame. They were huge, taking up almost the entire width of the church, and bathed the entire chamber with holy light.

"The difference between you and me,"

The second pair of wings burst forth.

"is the same as comparing a matchstick to the Sun."

Then the third.

"Do not think you can even begin to comprehend my power."

Then the fourth.

"By the time we are done,"

Then the fifth, and Raynare began to tremble.

"You will realize that before me…"

And finally, a sixth pair of wings emerged, and Raynare lost any will to fight, and dropped straight to the ground.

"You are nothing."

Issei ran and he ran and he ran.

He had to make it. Asia's life depended on it.

Behind him, Kiba and Koneko looked at each other, surprised at the sheer amount of determination Issei was showing. Their latest teammate was finally demonstrating some promise.

The church was right ahead, but something felt wrong.

It wasn't the silence. They were in an abandoned part of town, it was normal. There was something strange in the air. There was the smell of smoke and fire, but more than that, there was a strange atmosphere around the church that simply repulsed him.

"That's a holy aura, Issei." Kiba told him from the side. "Most churches have them naturally, but it's unusual for it to be that strong, especially since this church has been abandoned for such a long time. We're Devils, so we instinctively feel uncomfortable in the presence of holiness. But don't worry, you will get used to it with time."

He nodded. Running up the stairs to the door three at a time, he stopped right in front of the doors, waiting for Kiba and Koneko to catch up.

At his signal, they charged, and he kicked the door open.

"ASIA!" He shouted. And then he stopped, at a loss for words. So did Kiba and Koneko.

"What…"

Asia was there, lying at altar, but he couldn't tell if she was alive. But she was not the only one. He watched in shock as Arisato Minato, who had been absent the past week from school, lay the body of Amano Yuma – no – Raynare on the ground next to another three prone forms. He realized he recognized two of them – Dohnaseek and Kalawarner. They must have all been Fallen.

What was going on? It looked like there was a giant battle. The furniture was battered, and strewn all over place. The entire interior of the Church was scorched and burnt, as if there was a giant explosion. There were holes in the wall, most likely from light spears. Evidently, the Fallen had been fighting someone, and the only other person here was Arisato-san, who looked none the worse for wear.

Finally, the blue-haired boy noticed his presence, and their eyes met. He watched Arisato-san's eyebrows reach to the top of his hairline.

Arisato-san raised both hands in a placating manner. "I… can explain."

Next to him, Kiba crossed his hands in front of his chest. "Explain then, Mr. Transfer Student."

There was a moment of awkward silence.

"Actually… I can't."

"I thought so…" Kiba sighed, and taking out his phone he began to dial, "I'm going to call Rias. Something tells me she's not going to be happy about this."

A/N: SOoooo... tell me your thoughts please? Personally I feel it's alot better in terms of the writing. Plotwise it'll be kind of similar still, so don't worry about that. If you see any errors, do tell me ASAP please.

As always, do Read'n'Review, Fav'n'Follow, the next chapt will be up soonnn