Terror locked Azrael's muscles. The shadow-thing loomed over him, tendrils of darkness writhing like living smoke. Up close, he could see details that made his mind recoil—fragments of bone and metal embedded in its writhing mass, faces that appeared and dissolved in the roiling black, mouths that opened and screamed without sound."What—" he started to say, but the creature lunged.A pseudopod of concentrated darkness slammed into his chest, lifting him off his feet and hurling him into the brick wall of an abandoned storefront. The impact drove the air from his lungs. Stars exploded across his vision as he crumpled to the sidewalk, tasting copper.The thing advanced with deliberate slowness, savoring his terror. Those burning eyes never left his face."Three years we searched," it hissed, voice like nails on slate. "Three years since you crawled away to hide among the cattle. Did you think mortal flesh would mask what you are?"Azrael tried to stand. His legs wouldn't obey. Blood ra

Azrael stared at his reflection in the men's room mirror, trying to will away the flame-cracks beneath his skin. Two hours of sleep had done nothing to diminish them. If anything, they seemed brighter now, pulsing with each heartbeat like a neon sign advertising his inhuman nature.He'd called in sick to the warehouse—first time in three years—but couldn't bring himself to skip Professor Morrison's Contracts class. Routine was the only anchor he had left to his human life. If he started avoiding normal activities, what would be left of Alex Kane?The university's Law building hummed with its usual pre-class energy. Students clustered in the hallways, comparing notes and complaining about reading assignments. A few nodded at him as he passed—he wasn't particularly social, but three years of showing up and keeping quiet had earned him a reputation as reliable, if distant.He chose a seat in the back corner of Morrison's classroom, pulling his jacket sleeves down to cover the worst of th

Maya Torres had always prided herself on being observant. Three years of journalism school had trained her to notice details others missed—the micro-expressions that revealed lies, the inconsistencies in official statements, the story beneath the story. But nothing in her education had prepared her for phantom wings made of fire and ash."What are you?" The question hung in the air between them as the last of the divine spell faded from the classroom. Around them, students were beginning to stir, blinking in confusion as if waking from shared dreams.Azrael struggled to his feet, sweat beading on his forehead from the effort. The ghostly wings flickered and vanished, but Maya had seen them clearly. Impossible as it seemed, she knew what she'd witnessed."I'm nobody." His voice was rough, strained. "Just... just Alex. Same as always."But even as he spoke, she could see the lie in his storm-gray eyes. This was not the quiet, distant classmate she'd known for three years. This person ca

The creature's words hung in the air like a death sentence. Maya pressed herself deeper behind the steel beams, her heart hammering against her ribs as those terrible copper eyes swept the construction site. The thing moved with predatory patience, savoring their terror like fine wine."Our lord wants you back in the pit," it repeated, each word dripping with malevolent satisfaction. "Three years of hiding among the cattle ends now."Azrael stepped out from behind their cover.Maya grabbed for his arm, but he was already moving, walking into the open space between the concrete pillars with his hands raised in apparent surrender. The creature's tentacle-eyes focused on him with laser intensity, and she could see satisfaction ripple through its armored form."Finally," it rumbled. "The mighty seraph accepts his fate.""I'm not going anywhere with you." Azrael's voice carried that strange harmonic quality again, the authority of someone who had once commanded armies. "Tell your lord he c

The silence after chaos always felt wrong.Azrael sat on the edge of his bed in the dim studio apartment, head in his hands, trying to process everything that had happened in the span of a few hours. The construction site was a smoking crater now—he'd seen the news footage on Maya's phone during their panicked flight across the city. Official reports blamed a gas leak explosion, but the scorch marks formed patterns no earthly fire could create.His wings had finally retreated, folding back into whatever space they occupied when dormant. The flame-cracks beneath his skin had dimmed to a faint glow, barely visible unless he concentrated. But he could still feel the power thrumming through his veins, eager to be unleashed again."You need to eat something." Maya emerged from his kitchenette holding two cups of instant coffee and a sleeve of crackers she'd found in his nearly empty cupboard. She'd been fussing over mundane tasks for the past hour—making coffee, cleaning his scrapes with a