"Raphiel, you do know that me and Satania are demons right?" Vigne said incredulously, as the girls lounged in Raphiel's spacious living room.
"Of course." Raphiel answered plainly.
"So HOW do you expect us to get into heaven! Let alone get even close!" Vigne yelled exasperatingly.
"Might I remind you that Satania made it to the gates of heaven." Raphiel added.
"Yeah and failed miserably." Gabriel replied, clicking away at her MMO game.
"The point being we can go that far. And don't worry, we won't be using such a ridiculous method." Raphiel stated.
"Hey! I thought that was a pretty good plan!" Satania said.
"I wouldn't call taping on a halo a plan. That disguise wouldn't get you past a mall security guard." Gabriel deadpanned.
"I'd like to see you do better NEET angel!"
"Girls focus. So theoretically if , and that's a big if,we were to go through with this, how would we get to heaven?" Vigne asked.
"Simple! By using the back doors instead of the front doors!" Raphiel exclaimed cheerfully.
"What?" the other three in the room questioned in unison.
"In order to normally get to heaven one would use the centralized portal, namely the gates of heaven to speak. And while most angels would use the gates, the most powerful of us can travel between heaven and earth at will, like Zelel can. I assume the same is true for hell?"
"Yeah, it's pretty similar, what's your point?" Vigne asked.
"Well simply put, supposedly there are smaller 'gates' that can be created by these beings every time they warp, and sometimes if they visit a place frequently the portal will linger even after use." Raphiel said.
"So if we go to a place where angels like big sis would visit we'll find a portal to sneak into heaven right?" Gabriel added.
"Exactly. Let me borrow your laptop for a second Gab." Receiving the laptop from a grumbling Gabriel, Raphiel continued her spiel while searching the web. "If I remember correctly..yep! There's a town that was extremely religious in its heyday, Al Cielo."
"That's all the way in Italy! Isn't there a place in Japan we can go to?" Vigne asked.
"If we use any possible recent locations we might tip off the higher ups in heaven. Our safest bet is a town that's been lost for decades. An old residual portal that hasn't been used in ages is more discreet."
"And if there's no portal?" Gabriel asked.
"Then at the very least we get to spend a week on beautiful sand beaches and have fun! And I will let the deans know it was a "medical emergency" as to why we were gone for a week."
"I'm not so sure about this." Vigne muttered.
"Oh no! I accidentally bought the tickets already and can't return them!" Raphiel smiled sheepishly.
"Of course you did." Gabriel muttered.
"Hold on, 1200000 yen for each ticket?! Raphiel are you insane?!" Vigne asked incredulously.
"Oi, Vigne didn't you know? Raphi's family is loaded. She could've bought the airport if she wanted too."
"Well you already bought the tickets, and if everyone's fine with it then I guess it's alright. Gabriel, Satania?"
"I get a free vacation and miss classes for a week so I'm good. What about you melon pan for brains?"
"STAY BACK!" Satania screeched. "Stay back? From wha-OH MY GOD!" Gabriel yelled. All three girls jumped out the way as Satania summoned her scythe and swung down hard. The back end slammed into the table, shattering the defenseless object into pieces. The sharp impact broke her trance, and as quick as it was brandished, her scythe had disappeared.
"Ugggh,...guys, I had another vision. Some crazy chick was about to swing at me with a sword... whoa, what happened to the table?"
"YOU HAPPENED! Thank god I moved my laptop!"
"Sorry Raphiel...wait what were we doing again?" Satania asked.
"Well, we were discussing how we're definitely going to heaven to figure out why you keep having these dreams. We're leaving in two days, so everyone begin packing as soon as possible." Raphiel ordered.
"Got it." Gabriel mock saluted.
"I'll make sure she actually does it." Vigne replied.
"The airport is closer to Satania's apartment, so we can all meet up and then take a taxi there. Everyone fine with that?" Raphiel stated. "Sure." Gabriel said while Vigne and Satania nodded along. "That settles it then. Now enough serious business! I'm getting a bit bored so let's marathon a show!"
"Do you have something in mind?" Vigne asked.
"How about Yuru Yuri?" Raphiel suggested.
"NOOOO! That show is boring as hell! It's only a group of girls doing normal things for like, 12 episodes straight!" Gabriel complained.
"Well it's happening so no more whining." Vigne said as she turned on Raphiel's TV and started streaming the anime.
"I'm knocking out then before that trash can beat me to it." Gabriel said as she let herself sink into the carpet floor.
After a long but comfortable 16 hour first class flight, the girls found themselves in the huge expanse of the Aeroporto Internazionale di Napoli. Arriving at the ripe hour of 1PM, the airport was swarming with tourists and locals alike, as they ran to and from gates and terminals.
"Guys look at all these tourist attractions! We could go to the Maschio Angioino or Dell'Ovo castles, the beautiful beaches, eat the world's best pizza, or see the Duomo di Napoli!" Vigne exclaimed excitedly as she browsed through the pamphlets.
"It's reeeaaaally weird that a demon would want to go visit an old church, the best pizza humans have to offer sounds like a good idea though." Gabriel added.
"Business before fun you guys. Don't worry though, we will be heading towards one of the tourist locations. . A little up the mountain will be what's left of Al Cielo. After checking in at the hotel and lunch we can catch the next tour bus." Raphiel said.
"Then let's get going already! The faster we get to Al Calo or whatever the faster these damn visions leave!" Satania said, already pushing past people towards the exit signs.
"We need our luggage first." Gabriel deadpanned.
"I KNEW THAT!" Satania screeched, now running in the opposite direction.
"Normally I would let her get lost, but time is of the essence. Let's catch up to her before she ends up on the other side of the airport." Raphiel said.
The rattling of the old diesel engine graced the bus passengers with a nauseating gasoline smell as it tugged its way up the gently sloping trail. The noise of the city grew faint and was replaced by the quiet of open skies. The tires screeched as the tour bus slowed into its first stop.
"How much longer till we get to Al Cielo?" Vigne asked tiredly, the jet-lag seeming to have caught up with the group. Both Vigne and Raphiel were fighting off the urge to sleep while the other two girls failed in their war, Gabriel resting on Vigne's shoulder while Satania was unceremoniously glued against the window, her hair sticking against the side of her face.
"Hopefully soon, maybe we should have rested first before heading out." Raphiel said, struggling to stifle a yawn that just slipped from her mouth.
"S'cuse me, but y'all said you were heading to Al Cielo?" said the grown voice.
"Yes. Are you locals?" Raphiel responded in broken Italian as best she could.
"Oh heavens no, me and my wife are from the U.S. of A!" the man chuckled, responding in English.
'At least I don't have to struggle talking to him.' Raphiel turned fully to see a thin elderly man roughly in his sixties wearing khaki shorts and a loose, bright button up shirt. Riding next to him was a woman in similar age range wearing a white sundress and thin glasses. She also seemed to be as easy-going, wearing a gentle smile on her face.
"We're heading there later. Me and the missus did some tomb exploring in our prime and we're crossing Italian ruins off our list! The locales believe the town ended up the way it did because of 'la maledizione del Vesuvio' or the gods' rage or somethin like that."
"The ...curse of Vesuvius?" Raphiel translated, while Vigne paled visibly.
"Oh don't worry your pretty little faces. Just locale superstition is all. Well that's what I would say but history and facts don't really add up. And the government and people avoid it like the plague."
"What do you mean?" Raphiel asked.
"Historians say the town saw the bad side of WWII and got caught in a bombardment, supposedly as Spain's revenge for Guernica. But there's no visible destruction or explosive residue on the ruins. One day the town's full of devout priests and is a huge holy site, then the next day POP! Everyone's vanished and it's a ghost town. No bodies, no screams. Just a crumbling cabal with kinda intact buildings." the woman answered smiling.
"It sure has a ...'colorful' history." Vigne responded. "That it does. And that history is still a ways out. You girls get your rest, we'll wake you up when the bus arrives." Not even blinking on the kind old couple's offer, Raphiel and Vigne joined Gabriel and Satania in their rest.
"Satannniiiiaaaaa ~ Wakey Wakey~" the voice sang over her.
"Mmmm...5 more minutes."
"That won't do at all~ I SAID WAKE UP!"
"Ugh, fine I'll - ACK!" Satania gagged as the owner of the voice suddenly wrapped her hands around Satania's neck in a vice grip.
"W-why...are..you...doing...t-this?!" Satania gasped, eyes bulging.
Her lungs burned, screaming for air.
She clawed at the hands around her trying to pry the mysterious woman off her to no avail.
"It's time to wake up from your silly delusions little girl. Ha ha ha HA HA HA HA HA HA! WAKE UP WAKE UP WAKE WAKE UP WAKE UP-"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH" Satania lurched back into her seat screaming hysterically.
"Oh gosh I'm so sorry! Did I startle you?" A kind old lady filled Satania's vision, one whose wrinkles were scrunched up in visible concern.
"W-where am I?"
"The...tour bus? Your friends were trying to wake you up since the tour bus came to your stop, but you weren't moving." the lady responded.
"Uhhh...thanks, I guess." Satania replied as she began clambering out of her bus seat.
"Is yer friend okay? She looked more frightened than a pig at a barbeque!"
"She's been under a lot of stress lately so we thought a vacation might cheer her up." Raphiel replied.
"Hopefully it helps 'cause it looks like she needs it."
"Thank you for both your info and help." Vigne said to the couple.
"Don't think nothing of it. Y'all take care now, and don't forget to take tons of photos. They last longer!" "Have fun exploring the ruins!" The girls waved to the old couple as the tour bus passed out of their vision.
"No turning back now." Raphiel stated.
"We've passed that point a LONG time ago!" Gabriel shot back at her.
The ruins of Al Cielo towered over them, almost as if the city itself was reaching for heaven.
A/N - Hello! FFN needs to add a author's note section like A03, it felt weird not having authors notes so I'm gonna start writing them in the chapters! I hope all of you enjoyed reading so far, and I'll see you in the next chapter. Stay safe!