I just realized now that I forgot to put a release date in the chapter previews for like the past 4 chapters… I'm going to go in and fix them all.

Anyhoo, it seems that summer is coming to an end, and I will be busy again, this time even more so with University level work. There's a chance I might update during the year, because there's a lot of freedom that comes with the U, but don't expect too much from me XD

RiviPSP: I made no progress at all since last chapter. In fact, I haven't played at all this week.

I picked up the new Atlus game Luminous Arc a few days ago. It plays okay, though I recommend turning off the touch screen controls and just using the buttons, because sometimes the targeting system is screwy. The opening, however, is breathtaking… the anime sequence completely puts Children of Mana's opening to shame (the art looks better and it has its own Japanese opening theme, like an anime series), and approximately on par with the opening for Final Fantasy 3. The voiceovers are a nice touch, but it's a shame that they couldn't voice every scene (it would take too much space), and couldn't give the option of dual languages (takes up even more space XD).

Well, that's enough talking! Here it is: Chapter 28! (math nerds, don't take that the wrong way…)

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The green-haired Grim Angel, Isaac, flew directly at Ein, pointing his axe-like diviner at him, rapidly gaining speed until he was almost a blur. Ein decided he would fight along with him to see how powerful the Grim Angels were now before throwing out a surprise attack to disarm his opponent.

Nearby, the black-haired angel had charged at Ledah, but not quite as fast. Ledah watched as he neared, and parried the first blow, but the sheer power of the blow caused him to stagger slightly. He saw the angel ready another blow and leapt out of the way just in time. The hostile angel studied him closely, as if trying to figure out Ledah's identity. After trading a few more blows, he jumped away. "I thought you looked familiar," he said to Ledah. "You're Ledah, aren't you? One of Asgard's most powerful Grim Angels?"

Ledah nodded. "I, however, no longer serve Asgard. I believe the Magi's intentions to be corrupt, and so I cannot believe in them. By the way, you have a name too, don't you?"

The other angel looked confused. "I know that you lost your emotions to receive your diviner. Why do you act this way? Why do you doubt the intentions of the Magi if you have no emotions?"

"Because friends here opened me. I am no longer the solitary, emotionless angel. My emotions have returned, although I'm still not quite used to them yet. And by the way, you didn't answer my question."

The angel paused. "It's Dearka," he replied. "I find your story a bit hard to believe. The Ledah that everyone revered in Asgard was independent and didn't have friends. He usually operated alone, but he was sent on a mission to Riviera two years ago with a novice angel named Ein, who was reported dead not long after the mission began. You yourself were also reported dead somewhere along the way."

"That's quite the story," Ledah remarked. "You see, that's the very reason why I can't trust Asgard anymore. Everything you just said was a lie except for my history of independence. I, in fact, am Ledah, and over there is Ein." He pointed at Ein, who was in the middle of a battle with Isaac. "Sometimes his incredible growth stuns even me."

Meanwhile, Isaac had been launching blow after blow at an incredible rate, but Ein was able to parry or dodge them all with some effort. Instead of becoming tired, however, Isaac seemed to become faster with every blow, and Ein was starting to feel as if Isaac had already surpassed Ledah's level and was inching his way towards his own level. Ein suddenly slashed out at Isaac's weapon, locking the weapons together with their irregular shapes. Isaac struggled to free his weapon while Ein yanked at it.

After a short struggle, the weapons suddenly became loose, causing the two angels to fly apart. Ein spun around in midair and swung Oracion in Isaac's direction several times, producing small blades of light that sped at him. Isaac managed to regain his balance and slashed his way through the blades of light to charge at Ein again. Trying a different tactic, Isaac decided to speed past Ein while slashing and quickly turn around to attack from behind. Ein caught on quickly and turned around to lock Isaac's axe again. Frustrated, Isaac pushed his handle up and down, causing the weapons to lock even further.

Ein dug his heels into the ground and channeled energy into his arms. He pulled his weapon up, dragging Isaac's diviner and Isaac with hit, pushed it through a vertical semicircle. Isaac hit the ground on Ein's other side with a thud and released his grip on the diviner from the shock. Ein saw his chance and pulled away the diviner from him, gently pulled it off, and threw it to the side. He pointed his weapon at Isaac as he slowly rose from the ground.

"Have you had your fun?" Ein asked. "That's quite enough. I have no intention to hurt you at all."

Isaac scoffed. "Heck, dude, you're soft." Fully recovered from his slam onto the ground, he stood up tall. "So what are you gonna do? Interrogate me?"

"Something like that," Ein replied. Ledah walked up to them with Dearka following him. "How was it, Ledah?" Ein asked.

"He decided to stop attacking me once he found out who I was," Ledah responded. "We've had proper introductions. This is Dearka."

"Dude, what the hell are you doing?" Isaac yelled at Dearka. "Are you siding with our enemies too? You're so gonna get owned by Orion."

"Isaac, we need to talk with these two," Dearka reasoned calmly. "They are—"

Ein held up his hand to silence him. "Leave it to me." He turned to Isaac. "Have you realized? This here—" he pointed to Ledah. "—is a Grim Angel from Asgard. I, myself, was also once a Grim Angel."

Isaac glanced between the two. "Yeah, I dig, but you have white wings."

"I'll get into that later. Take a good look at him, though, and see if you recognize him." Ein gestured to Ledah, who simply stood there.

Isaac studied Ledah closely for a full minute. He then closed his eyes for a short moment, and then opened them and sighed. "I have no idea."

"Does the name 'Ledah' ring any bells for you?" Ein asked.

"Huh? No way! You're that Ledah?" Isaac cried. "The one who died two years ago?"

Ledah nodded. "I don't know what happened, but I'm very much alive, as you can see."

Isaac almost did a double-take. "Holy crap! Dude, you're, like, famous in Asgard! Like, the one-man army who defeated demons alone and stuff like that! But the Magi reported that you died back then. How does that work, man?" Isaac scratched his head. "None of this makes sense."

Ein chuckled. "Have you heard of the Retribution?"

Isaac perked up. "Dude, everyone in Asgard knows about the Retribution! It's that thing that unleashes the power in Riviera and completely owns it, yeah?"

Ein nodded. "Two years ago, Ledah was assigned to the task of actuating the Retribution alongside a novice angel. That novice angel was reported dead before he even touched foot on Riviera's soil, isn't that right?"

"Totally, man. It's kinda sad to hear, though. Like, failing the mission before even arriving at your destination? It's gotta burn." Isaac still seemed to be completely oblivious to Ein's identity.

"That angel isn't dead," Ein continued. "He's quite alive. However, he is no longer a Grim Angel."

Isaac looked at him quizzically. "What the heck are you talking about, man? That makes no sense! You speak no good English, man!"

It was all Ein could do to keep from laughing. "I am that angel that accompanied Ledah two years ago. The report that I was killed is a complete lie."

"Yeah? I still don't get… wait a minute. You're Ein? Like, that Ein? No way, man." Isaac shook his head. "That can't be right. Ein was wingless, and he wielded the diviner Einherjar. You're not wingless, heck, you have white wings. And you don't carry a diviner, you carry that killing machine there." He pointed at Oracion, which was softly pulsating with a dim white light.

Ein nodded. "You know your facts. As a Grim Angel, I was wingless. Recently, though, I went a level beyond Grim Angel. In other words, I'm not a Grim Angel anymore. They call me a Light Angel now."

"Ohmigawd, man, this is too much for me." Isaac floated in the air and crossed his legs. He placed his elbows in his lap and his face in his hands. "So you're saying that something big happened and now you're just an angel? It still doesn't explain your sword."

"This isn't a diviner anymore. Apparently it's called an Angel Blade. My blade's name is Oracion." Ein spun his weapon around in his hand. "Is this all making sense? As Grim Angels, our duty is not to destroy Riviera. It is to protect Asgard."

Dearka nodded in agreement. "I think he's right, Isaac."

"So what are you saying, dude?" Isaac demanded. "You want us to join you and get served by Orion?"

"That would be for the best," Ledah replied. "We have no wish to fight with you. We just want peace."

"We aren't going to force you to join us," Ein added. "Think over your decision. If you don't want to join us, you can return to Asgard. If you do that, the next time we meet, we will be enemies."

Isaac scratched his head. "Man, you guys are just too soft," he grumbled. "I'm not used to this kinda treatment, ya know? I don't wanna think about this. It's gonna give me some bad headache. I'm gonna return to Asgard. And next time, I won't hold back!" He sauntered over to where his diviner lay and picked it up. He shook it around in the air a few times to get the dirt off, and then flew off into the air with a small wave of his hand.

Dearka watched in disappointment as Isaac left. "I don't know what I should do," he murmured. "Isaac and I are very close friends, and we look out for each other." Ledah and Ein watched and listen as Dearka looked up at Isaac's disappearing figure. "What should I do?" he asked. "I'm liberal enough to understand new things, but him? He's always honor-bound to his duty and refuses to alter his mission course."

"Can I ask you something?" Ledah spoke up, continuing when Dearka nodded. "What did Isaac lose to obtain his diviner?"

Dearka was silent for a full minute as he thought. "Well, basically, he… lost the ability to reason."

Ein looked puzzled. "I've never heard of that before," he remarked. "The ability to reason… So he can't use logic anymore?"

"That's the bare minimum of it," Dearka continued. "But if you think about it, that ability to reason goes much further beyond that. You lose the ability to make the correct decisions, to think things through, to make plans… it goes on and on."

"I see," Ledah murmured. "It's a lot more serious than losing your emotions, then. Emotions might influence your decisions, but it doesn't prevent you from making the best decisions."

"That's interesting," Ein said. "How about you, then? What did you lose, Dearka?"

Dearka was silent for several seconds. "I'd rather not say right now," he finally replied. "It's hard to even think about it."

Ein nodded. "That's fine. But look, it's your decision and your decision alone on what you want to do, but you will face the consequences of your actions. If you decide to stay and fight alongside us, you may have to fight Isaac. If you decide to go with Isaac, you will have to fight us."

Dearka nodded. "I understand. It's quite a pain to have a partner who can't reason."

Ledah chuckled. "I know how that feels."

Ein gave him a sideways glance. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, nothing. Anyway, Dearka, you must make your decision soon. In the meantime, would you like to introduce us to the final member of your squad?"

"This is definitely something I never expected to be doing," Dearka remarked. "In Asgard, we're all given the impression that sprites are just as bad as demons, but it turns out that we're more like demons than you sprites and angels are. Anyway, yes, I'll introduce you."

Dearka led the way to the two other female angels, whose eyes were still locked. "Will it be okay to disturb them when they're like that?" Ein asked worriedly as they approached. To his relief, Hope heard his approach and turned her attention to him.

"Oh, hey again… um, what happened?" She eyed the three approaching angels nervously. "No, don't tell me… you were able to convince Dearka?"

Ledah nodded with a grin. "It's great to have new allies."

Dearka chuckled slightly. "Anyway, the fourth member of our squad is Melinda. Do you think you can figure out what she lost for her diviner?"

Melinda stared at Ein and Ledah without a word. Her eyes seemed to probe into their minds, as if trying to read them. Ledah studied her closely. "I can sense quite some power from her, but I don't have any ideas on what she lost."

Ein had been looking her over as well. "I'm stumped, too."

Hope shook her head sadly. "What Melinda lost… was her ability to speak."

Ein did a double-take. "Wha… are you serious?"

Hope nodded. "Melinda and I share a close bond, so we're able to communicate through telepathy, like you and your familiar," she explained. "You can say I act as her voice sometimes."

"I see." Ledah nodded. "It's nice to meet you."

Ein repeated Ledah's words and nodded too. Melinda bowed in their direction.

"Anyway, Ein, I think we have some other things to attend to," Ledah reminded Ein. "Those three really did a number on them…" He turned his attention to the girls nearby, and Ein followed his gaze.

Cierra had long since dispelled her weak shield and was now cradling Soala's head in her lap. Soala seemed to be sleeping peacefully. Nearby, Serene and Lina were sitting down beside Fia, who lay on the grass, one hand holding her rapier by her side, and her other arm draped over her forehead, eyes open and looking up at the sky. Lina had her head leaning against Serene's shoulder with her eyes closed, and Serene leaned back, supporting herself with her arms behind her. Serene's scythe lay on the grass beside her, and Lina's bow lay next to Lina.

The five angels walked up to where Fia lay. Ein leaned over sharply with his hands behind his back and stared directly into Fia's eyes. Fia smiled up at him. "Thank you, Ein."

"I should be thanking you," Ein replied as he rose back up. "Thanks to you all for protecting the village while we were gone. I'm sorry, I didn't expect the attack to arrive so quickly and thought we might be able to get them before they reached the village."

Serene grinned at him without moving from where she sat. "Hey, don't blame yourself. Our leader can't be apologizing all the time."

Ein smiled. "Thanks, Serene."

"By the way, where's Rose?" Ledah asked. "I don't see her with you."

"Rose stayed back in the village," Fia explained. "Don't worry, she's in much better shape than we are right now."

"You can say that again," Cierra remarked. "Say, it seems like you've managed to get them to switch to our side." She gestured at the three new angels.

"I'm terribly sorry about our fight," Dearka said, bowing. "I'm Dearka. This here is Hope, and that's Melinda." He pointed at the girls as he introduced them. "I hope we can all get along."

"Wasn't there one more angel with you?" Fia asked, puzzled.

Dearka nodded solemnly. "Isaac has returned to Asgard. We couldn't convince him to stay with us."

"That's regrettable," Fia said. "Does that mean you'll have to fight him later?"

"Most likely," Dearka replied sadly. "He's much more powerful than I am. He may be formidable if you ever face him again."

"Well anyway, I'm glad you had a change of heart," Serene said. "See, Ein? I told you seduction won't be needed." She grinned and winked.

Ein could feel his cheeks heat up and the confused stares of their new allies, and tried to quickly change the subject. "R-right. Um, well, I think we should all be going back to the village. It's just about time for lunch."

Hope decided not to ask and took Melinda's hand. "Let's all go, then."

Cierra gently nudged Soala awake. Soala's eyes fluttered open, and she rubbed them. "Wh-what's going on?"

"It's time to head back," Cierra answered gently, looking down at her. "Can you walk?" Soala nodded weakly and stood up, draping her arm over Cierra's shoulder for support.

Nearby, Serene tried to avoid waking Lina. Instead, she put her hand under Lina's head to support her as Serene rose to her feet. Once standing, she scooped up Lina in her arms. "Ein, do you mind carrying the scythe and bow?"

Ein nodded. "That's no problem." He picked them up, holding them in the same hand as his own weapon, and turned to Fia, who had gotten to her feet. "I'm glad you're okay," he whispered to her.

Fia blushed slightly. "Oh, you worry too much." She smiled and took Ein's hand, locking their fingers together. "Is this okay?"

Ein grinned. "Of course." He gently pulled Fia along, and the two of them led the way back to Elendia, hoping that CoCo was able to make a huge meal again.

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A/N: Oh dear, I see more filler coming in… and I was telling myself that I need to stop with the filler material (Bleach, anyone?) XD

I'm so tired lately… that might explain why the humor's practically halted. I think the humor was much more present in previous chapters than this one… I can't think of jokes anymore or something XD

Hmm, Melinda… I don't know what made me pick this name. It just popped up amongst other names that started with "Mel"… Melissa, Melanie… and Melinda just stood out.

I wonder if it's accepted that someone lose his/her ability to think or speak for a diviner?

On the next chapter of The White Wings…

Chapter 29: Another Discussion (Release date TBA…)

While eating lunch, Ein and party try to figure out a plan to counter Orion.