1 - The Weeping Flame

"An angel cannot sing without her demon to listen. A demon cannot wage darkness without his angel's chains. Neither can reap upon the world without kindling the holy fruit of their union. Yet when these spoil in parades of ruin, the weeping flame will show the way."

—First Angel Mahiru

The sea drowned in the sky's merciless gray as a pale sliver of white dipped its head into the bleak waters. A shadow rippled across the sky the deeper the light slowly sank into the abyss, dusting the streets in a muddied film. As the shadows creeping overhead thickened, flurries of pale green dust swirled through the air—mindless in their dance forgotten by the light. Mika wrinkled his nose as green light tickled the tip of it until it fluttered away without a second thought. He watched the wind puppeteer the lights over the edge of the steel scarp rimming the edge of where the sea crashed into the bay and sighed.

Blue and black roof flints circled around Silica as if embracing the island's neck in a bed of never ending gems, only to creep off near the bay—always near the bay. Mika's gaze skimmed over the city idly. Mere flickers of rooftops winked back at him under the graze of green dust. The boy let the glowing dust dance across his hand as the pale emerald nipped at his gloved fingers, ever so carefully searing away the black cloth.

Heaven's stars, he thought bitterly, shaking his hand free of the lighted dust. He stared at the ash lingering on the thin burns of his gloves solemnly. If only I could be where you are.

"Save the dreaming for day will you." Mika glanced down from his perch at dark pools shooting him an icy glare. Lacus balled up a black cloak in his hands before tossing it up. Mika snatched the cloak from the edge of the wooden perch with a sigh. Lacus clucked his tongue. "Is that all you're good for? All you ever do is sigh."

Mika's lips tugged into a small smirk as he swung his legs over the perch. He pushed his self off the edge, landing on his feet with a soft thump.

"Is that all you're good for?" Mika chided lightly, pulling the cloak over his shoulders. "All you ever do is complain."

Lacus's eyes narrowed on the other. He turned on his heel, slapping his hand against the back of Mika's head. Mika flinched while Lacus stuck his tongue at him. The blonde rolled his eyes as they exited the makeshift tower into the main frame of the Pit. "Real mature."

Mika shielded his eyes from the pale gray light flooding through the courtyard. He squinted at the light waning behind thick bars overhead The two's boots kicked up small dust storms in their wake as they reached the towering wall stretching around them. Mika glanced at the muddled reflection caught in the glistening steel, pausing for a millisecond to stare into dull grey and blue. The remains of his reflection waned to the light dipping past the pit and melted down the side of the wall. Mika watched his reflection turn to black and drip to the ground to mingle at his feet, now shying away from the light that crept towards it.

"We don't have all day Mopey." Lacus snapped. Mika scurried towards him and the others when Lacus yelped at the hand smacking his head. Lacus whipped his head at him, growling, "The hell Rene?"

Mika swallowed down a chuckle as Rene lowered his hand with a blank stare. "Hand slipped." He shrugged, folding his hands back behind his neck. He sauntered towards the end of the courtyard with Mika and Lacus behind him.

As they neared the end of the courtyard, Mika bit the inside of his cheek. He stared up at the thick gate before them inscribed with black intricate symbols. He curled and uncurled his fingers, swallowing around the knot slowly tangling in his throat. A lifetime of this, and you still get chills.

A light rap against his forehead roused Mika from his thoughts. Mika pouted slightly at the daunting stare Rene shot down at him as he tapped a metal staff against his head again.

"Okay, I got it." Mika groaned. He grasped the staff from Rene, the heaviness of it instantly lifting as he shuffled it from one hand to the next. Rene's eyes roamed over Mika for a moment and nodded before nudging Lacus and his self down to the other end of the courtyard. Mika watched the two become blurs around the vast stretch of the Pit, both standing at their respective gates.

Mika's fingers ran over the bulges and curves of his staff, finding a sliver of his muddled reflection along the ashen metal. A low whine caught at Mika's ear drums and he brought his gaze up to the daunting gate towering over him. Bright copper began to burn through the symbols that waned against the gate. The symbols grew brighter, almost blinding, while morphing from their original positions before dashing up and down the gate.

Mika's eyes squinted at the shuffling symbols when a lone piece of metal slid to the side of the wall.

"You look jittery." The man grunted through the opening.

"Haven't I always?" Mika replied flatly, eyes locked on the gate.

"Only when you're about to do something stupid."

The corner of Mika's mouth twitched into the faintest of smirks before smoothing out into a line. "You sound concerned."

"Hardly."

The whining of the symbols grew louder as the sun set deeper into the horizon. The shadows in the pit grew thicker, clinging to Mika's heels while the symbols shone.

"You know you could lose your job," Mika stated. "Talking to me like this."

A heavy thud thundered within the gate; a series of stones and gears falling in and out of place filled the air as the symbols moved faster along the surface. Mika caught the man's chuckle through the thundering and shifted his head at the opening. Through the miniscule shelf bleeding more darkness into the Pit, the man tilted his head to the side. The copper light coming from the symbols cast a dull gold across his face. Dark brown hair framed the man's face, lighting his eyes a bullion gold brown as he grinned down at Mika.

"I don't have to be afraid of that." He shouted over the gate's violently whirring.

Mika blinked quizzically, blindly staring past the man. "And why's that?"

The man's grin twisted into a smirk the moment the symbols came to an abrupt halt. "Someone's gotta make sure you don't destroy us all."

The gates trembled outward with a groan, sending a rush of wind whipping past Mika. The light rush in his veins slowed to a mild thump as he drank in the darkness blanketing the street before him. Mika narrowed his eyes and stepped out of the Pit; the lone torch overhead the gate sparking to life with white flames the moment he did. The gem at the tip of the staff mirrored the torch's glow, snaking down the metal while a jagged edge pierced through the top.

"Be back—" The man started.

"—before the torch dies. I know." Mika finished. The hairs on the back of his neck rose as the last restraints of the Pit tugged at the back of him. He rested his forehead against the staff and sighed, "Pray for light."

"Pray for flight." The man sighed back. The two murmured in unison, "Let the heavens be my guide me through this night."

In Mika's mind, a chain clinked quietly in a pool night; its chime echoing through his mind as the chain shattered—and the world's doors opened.

Mika blinked once, twice, then bit back a gasp as the shadows devouring the ground lifted. His boots—a burning ivory, he noted absentmindedly—tapped the cobblestone street beneath him. The man raised his fist out towards Mika, and whispered, "Purify, my flame."

Mika flinched at the command and sprinted down the street towards the darkness. His frame melded with the shadows when an earsplitting roar rattled through the air. The man clucked his tongue irritably and looked up to the green stars glaring down at him.

"Let the hunt begin."

Θ

Blurs of dark blue flashed by Mika as his boots tore across the street. The twists and crevices overlaying the city merely pulsed by him in dull shades of blue. Yet in the maze entrapping him, one thing led him further down the path. He sniffed sharply, grimacing ever so slightly at the pungent odor of smoke and decaying flesh.

He clenched his staff tighter and came to an abrupt halt at the corner. He pressed his self between towering buildings into the short alleyway. He pressed his free hand against the wall as he inched down the alley. Mika's brows furrowed at the wall before him, catching a dull crimson dripping down the dark blue light of the stone. He pressed his fingers together, shivering at the thick substance leaving a lukewarm sting through his gloves.

Mika swallowed thickly, retching at stench of the ooze that burned his nostrils. He stumbled back against the wall. "Disgusting," he grumbled.

His nose wrinkled at the new wave of air brushing past him. The stench grew stronger at the end of alleyway, leading out towards the center of another close knit street. Mika moved down the street and stretched his head around the corner of the alley. His brows arched at the unfamiliar gold overlaying the blue illumination in his vision while a saccharine scent made his mouth water.

This wasn't here before. He thought. Gold dusted the front of the building's door and windows, stark to the faint blue that had long since seeped into the stones and bricks. Must be a new shop.

His eyes suddenly narrowed at the bright red staining the gold shadows of the window, tracing the contours of broken glass. Mika crept forward into the open street towards the building. He silently slipped through the door, or where it was supposed to be, and frowned at the papers littering the floor along with overturned tables, and deep scratches in the walls.

Mika eyed the crimson lining the wreckage that lead towards the back of the shop as his lips thinned into a tight frown. He carefully stepped over glass scattered over the floor, the scent of smoke, flesh, and sweetness burning through his nostrils. Red tracings on the tattered floor and walls grew brighter with each step until Mika came to an abrupt halt.

Mika's free hand immediately grasped his stomach—clenching his side tightly as if it would keep the roiling bile churning within at bay a moment longer—as the heavy curtain of shadows lifted. The boy's eyes watered at the overwhelming stench permeating from the raw carnage before him.

A slurred chorus of snarls and pants filled the air, falling from the bone, white jaw of the creature. Its claws firmly held onto the torn cheek of its prey while burying its muzzle into the wound stretching across its stomach. The creature reared its head up, flicking its black forked tongue across its blood drenched lips before diving back into its meal. Through the crimson glow splattered along the walls and floors, Mika could depict the blinding red radiating off the creature's huddled frame—the thick black swirls tracing its back to the tip of its tail telling the boy all he needed to know.

The cool metal stung against Mika's fingers the harder he clenched his staff. As the sickening slurps and crunches that flooded the kitchen wore on, the boy caught the faintest hint of a sniffle. Peering over the creature's shoulders, a woman trembled against the far corner of the kitchen.

She clenched her white dusted knuckles along tattered skirt around her legs. Her breath hitched at the back of her throat, throwing a shaking hand over her mouth as the creature's teeth chomped down on the skull of the man he devoured—thick drops of blood spilling from its muzzle. The woman choked on a scream at the black oozing across the floor, mockingly reaching out to darken her shadow.

The creature gulped loudly and rotated its shoulder around the room until it landed on her. Her eyes widened at the smooth, muscle pulsing on the side of the creature head as it blindly turned towards her. The woman's heart clung to her chest, beating ruthlessly at the cage of bones to flee.

"N-no," she whispered, wincing at the watery voice strangling out of her throat. Her heartbeat roared in her eardrums as its thin, fleshless lips smacked together and crept closer. Some untouched bud buried deep within the woman's bosom and mind suddenly flowered, weeping its midnight dew into her veins as a newfound voice cried, "Stop! Please!"

Flecks of blood flew across the woman's face as the creature's puckered sockets gleamed down at her. The rapid beating of her heart matched the pace of the heavy breathing fanning over her face. She caught a sliver of her reflection amongst the razor sharp rows of teeth glinting in the dying moonlight as the realization of what the flowering bud within her sank painfully into her bones; the worst kind of death there could be in Silica:

Fear.

An earsplitting scream raged from the woman's throat as the creature threw its jaws towards her neck. Yet, the woman merely felt the creature's teeth graze of her jugular. The creature grunted quizzically at the pain sizzling down its back and twisted its shoulder behind it. The black eye sewn into the colossal meat narrowed on the wisp of smoke dancing off the tip of a staff.

The creature turned its head around to stare at the boy at the edge of the door. Mika lowered his staff albeit below his chest as the creature's growl shook the building. The creature turned its body fully towards him and crept forward.

"That's it," Mika murmured under his breath. "Come to the darker sinner." The creature bathed its lips in blood speckled saliva, flashing its teeth at the boy as he smirked, "What are you waiting for?"

The creature barked, digging its hind legs into the floorboards and pounced. Mika gritted his teeth, grunting at the iron nails digging into his shoulders. His body crashed through the kitchen walls and straight through the front of the building; shattered bricks and wood flew out with the two. Mika winced at the air flying out of him as his back slammed into the ground—feeling the cobblestone crunch beneath him.

Before Mika could register the pain exploding down his spine, he ducked his head at the claw swiping across his face. He raised his staff up towards the creature who pushed its claws down on the metal rod. Mika wheezed as the staff pressed down on his neck, feeling the moist, slobbering breath of the creature roaring down at him. He shakily gazed at snapping red jaws before raising his leg. He slammed his foot up into the creature, sending it flying down the street with a startled yelp.

Mika coughed harshly; his lungs greedily sucking in as much air as they could, no matter how rancid it was. He struggled to his feet, resting his weight against the staff, and rubbed his neck. His brows furrowed, rubbing his neck again as a bruise quickly rose across his flesh. Mika's lips teetered into a frown and winced at the cut throbbing along his bottom lip.

The creature let out a thundering growl as it punched its claw into the street. The eerie wail crossed roar made Mika raise his gaze up at the creature struggling to its feet. It ducked its head down at its midsection, where a black puncturing bruise tore through. It turned its head back at Mika and roared once more.

Mika narrowed his eyes at the creature scratching its claws across the ground. He forced his lips up into a light smirk.

"My brothers are going to be all over me for this thanks to you." Mika kicked the end of his staff up, twirling it in his hand before catching it. He pointed the jagged crystal edge at the creature. The creature crouched low as Mika whispered icily, "Have it your way, demon."

The creature's claws crunched into the ground, flinging a storm of cobblestones in its wake as it charged at Mika. Mika watched the creature rage across his maze of blue and gold buildings. He pressed the heel of his boots hard against the ground when the creature flung a claw out at him. Mika ducked back and forth as the creature continued to fling out at him.

The creature released a slobbering growl as the boy dodged from its attack again. It raised it claw up in the air, curling the iron nails into a fist, and slung it down over the boy's head. A wave of pain instantly rippled up the creature's arm. Its shoulder rolled over to peer over its fist to find Mika's forearm raised over his head—pushing the creature's fist away.

Mika forced his arm up against the mass of muscle, flicking the wrist of his other hand to fling his staff into the creature's adjacent arm. The creature let out a warbled wail at the crystal edge slicing through its arm, staggering back. Its black orb widened at the detached arm writhing against the ground.

The creature gritted its teeth, viciously cutting through its lips. It steadied its weight against its lone arm. The creature focused its black orb at Mika as it lapped at the black liquid oozing from its severed shoulder. The nails of its claw hardened into long slits, crushing the stone beneath it into mere dust. Pressing its hind legs into the ground, the creature leapt into the arm. It extended its claws out towards Mika's head with an inhuman cry.

Not yet.

Mika eyed the shades of red pulsing wildly through the creature when his eyes locked onto a shred of white tearing through its midsection. Not yet. As the tips of iron began to graze Mika's forehead, the white tear of the creature's midsection widened. Gotcha!

Mika leapt from the ground, spearing the edge of his staff into the white wound. The creature let out a garbled wail as the crystal tore through its slabs of sewn muscle. The flesh of the creature began to sizzle, thick whirls of smoke ravenously devouring its frame. Its black orb flicked at the shadows around it before locking its gaze on Mika.

The orb shook violently as it stared down into the endless violet abyss bleeding through the boy's eyes. The blinding swirl burned into the creature's orb, causing a ripple of shock racing through its limbs. The creature flung its hind legs and arm wildly, ignoring the searing burn growing deeper in its side when Mika narrowed his eyes into slits.

"Silly demon," Mika whispered. The creature froze at the eerie, detached words falling from the boy's mouth. Mika tilted his head up to glare directly at the creature's orb. His lips tenderly brushed against the lidless orb, the slime sticking to his skin as he murmured, "You should have stayed in hell."

The creature barely had time to shriek when it felt the crystal blaze hotter. The creature's midsection swelled instantly before its body burst. Shreds of flesh flew through the air, painting the street black as blood and twisted entrails splattered across the torn stone.

The wisps of smoke once holding the creature curled back around the head of the jagged crystal. The gray gem glowed white as the smoke dispersed into it. Mika sighed deeply, flicking the staff to the side to shake the blood sticking to it off.

Mika froze his shakes as a shuffle pricked his eardrums. He turned to the dismantled building, catching a flicker of the woman's pale, mint-blue frame stagger against the crumbled stones.

"I-is," she stumbled over the tight knot of her tongue. "Is it gone?"

Mika stared at her with a sigh. "Yes." He watched her crumble her blood soaked sleeves in her trembling fists, her teeth tearing into her bottom lip. "Who were they?"

The woman flinched. "W-what?"

"I said," Mika turned to her. "Who were they?"

"M-my…my father and..." She swallowed hard, choking out, "son." The woman gazed at him with wide eyes that slowly flooded over with tears. She raced towards him, burying her head into his chest. "It's not fair! He was just a boy!" Her fists clenched the front of his shirt, smearing blood down the black debris coating him.

"You…you killed it. You killed it with your own hands." She hiccupped. Her nails dug into his shirt and nipped at his chest. "Bring him back." She raised her gaze up at him, the black ooze and ash trickling down his face seeming eerily—natural in her eyes. She pounded her fists against his chest fiercely, crying, "Bring him back! Bring them back! Bring my family back Luk Kae!"

The woman's pounding slowly weakened until her arms dropped to her sides; her screaming withering into weak sobs. She rested her head against his soiled shirt when he murmured, "They weren't."

The woman flinched, raising her startled gaze up at Mika. Before she could say anything, Mika rested his gloved hand over her eyes and whispered softly, "You woke from a terrible dream. You're father passed years ago. He felt no pain with you by his side." He let the staff lean against his shoulder as he curled his other hand around her head. He shushed her whimpers, combing his fingers through her tangled hair. "You've yet to bear children, yet when you do you will love them with all your heart."

The woman trembled against his hold until her shoulders fell slack against him. Mika pulled away from her, cradling his staff in his hand once more. The woman's eyes dilated before her pupils grew wide.

"Of course," she mumbled distantly. "It…was just a bad dream." Mika watched her turn on her heel towards the building. "What a mess. I have to get this cleaned before…morning."

Mika gazed at the woman stumbling over scattered stones, barely wincing as fresh cuts pricked the soles of her feet, and wander into the building. A lone tear pooled at the corner of her eye, dripping into the blood splattered across her cheek. The boy gazed at the frail drop mix into a whirl of clouded crimson until it fell from her flesh—leaving a bare shred of flesh ready to be tainted once more.

A/N: Thank you for reading :) Also, OOCness to ensue for some characters.