Chapter 1

Wings of gold and violet spread wide. Zadkiel grunted when they felt the joint pop. They'd slept far too long.

They gazed around in an attempt to assess their position. They'd drifted near to an explosion of stardust, red and pink everywhere. The name was in their mind in an instant.

Eta Carinae.

"Oh, my sister," they breathed. "My dearest sister, why have I forsaken you?"

The Fallout of the first War was incredible. Horrible, yet incredible. It had seemed the stars themselves were crashing down upon that little planet. It was both mere moments and an eternity before Hell had made itself known.

Then the animals came. And the humans. Oh, those wonderful, strange little creatures. The destruction they so easily could cause. Zadkiel had witnessed the first Death. They had joined their brother in escorting that first soul to his afterlife.

They had witnessed the Flood, begged for Her to at the very least save the children. That was when they realized the horrors of Her wrath. They had heard the children begging for help, seen the terror in the hearts of each of them.

And when that boy was to be sacrificed? No, they could not let that happen. They were the Righteous One, after all. Whatever it was they did, it was for what was right.

And yet, they knew their siblings would not see it as such. With that boy's life saved, they knew they had to flee. They hid amongst the stars.

The fact they'd drifted here, to that first nebula their sister had created, was no coincidence. They had to return.

For the greater good.