Chapter 149: Into the Abyss

Grace stood in Mara’s healing chamber, trying not to fidget as the older angel examined her wings.

“You’re tense.”

“I’m not tense.”

“Your feathers are literally vibrating.”

Grace forced her wings to still.

“Better?”

“Marginally.” Mara’s hands were warm as they traced along Grace’s wing joints. “When’s the last time you slept properly?”

“Define properly.”

“More than six hours.”

“Uh…”

Mara sighed. The sound carried all the exhaustion of someone who’d been trying to keep young angels alive for centuries.

“Grace…”

“I know, I know. Self-care is important. Can’t save the world if I’m dead on my feet.” Grace had told herself the same thing.

“I was going to say your left wing is slightly strained. Probably from that thing you do where you barrel-roll mid-flight for no reason.”

[Oh.]

“That’s… not usually intentional. I just suck at flying.”

“Still?”

“It’s rare that I actually get to practice. Usually I’m out on a mission, or…”

Mara smirked.

“Or riding Diana’s face?”

“M-MARA!”

“Mhm, mhm.” Mara’s hands moved to Grace’s shoulders, pressing gently. “Anyway… tell me about this mission.”

“The Void. Apparently, it’s located in some western desert. A cave system, I think.” Grace tried not to melt under Mara’s touch. Her hands were doing magic to the knots in Grace’s shoulders. “Celestia briefed me yesterday.”

{Yesterday}

Grace sat across from Celestia in the Archangel’s private chambers. The room always made her feel small. Not just because of the soaring ceilings or the way light seemed to bend around Celestia herself, but because sitting here meant important things were happening.

“The Void is different from the other Pillars,” Celestia said without preamble.

“Different how?”

“The others, the Root, Tide, Flame, Tempest, and Mountain, they were created to hold more conventional emotions. Rage, loneliness, indecision.” Celestia’s rainbow wings shifted, catching light that shouldn’t exist. “The Void was created to hold… nothingness.”

Grace blinked.

“Nothingness?”

“Emptiness. The absence of feeling. The moments where Eternia felt hollow.” Celestia’s expression went distant. “Humans have those feelings often, do they not? A sort of… aimlessness. It’s located deep within the Sunless Caverns. As usual, there’s a community nearby, but deeper, where the Void is, no light reaches there. No sound. Angels who’ve ventured too deep report feeling… drained. Like pieces of them were being pulled away.”

“How do you fight that?”

Celestia’s smile was sad.

“As much as I’d love to help, that is, of course, your job to figure out. I have not the faintest idea.”

Grace shifted in her chair.

“What else happened to the angels who went too deep?”

“They came back different. Quieter. Less… themselves.” Celestia’s fingers drummed against her desk. “Sister Hera went down three months ago. When she returned, she could barely speak above a whisper. Said the silence was so complete it felt like drowning.”

“Any other cheerful details I should know?”

“The cave entrance is marked by dead earth. It’s difficult to get things to grow there. The animals avoid it entirely.” Celestia stood, moving to the window.

“And people live there?”

“Indeed. The cave’s entrance acts as a sort of bottleneck that made it easy for humans to avoid and occasionally repel demons. So, there’s always been a community there.”

Grace felt a chill run down her spine.

“Okay… Anything else I should know?”

“Nothing I can say. But, I have faith in you. You’ve proven remarkably skilled at understanding what each Pillar needs.” Celestia turned back to her. “By your own words, the Root needed acknowledgment. The Tide needed companionship. The Flame needed release. The Tempest needed stability. The Mountain needed change.”

[Okay. Just figure out what the Void needs, then. Easy.]

{Present}

“Sounds delightful,” Mara said, her hands still working magic on Grace’s shoulders. “And you’re taking…?”

“You, Alia, and Zephyr.”

Mara’s hands paused.

“Me?”

“Yeah… I-I mean, unless you’d rather not—”

“No, no, I’d love to.” Mara’s expression was unreadable. “Hehehe,” she wrapped her arms around Grace from behind, making Grace flinch. “Just a tad surprised.” She got closer, her lips hovering near Grace’s ear. “And here I thought you’d forgotten about me.”

Grace swallowed.

“We leave in a few hours. Meeting at the western cliff.”

“Very well,” Mara stepped back. “I’ll be there.”

—

Grace found Alia and Zephyr in the rookie wing, packing. Or rather, Alia was throwing random items into a bag while Zephyr watched from the bed.

“Do we need three sets of massage oils?” Zephyr asked.

“You never know when you might need emergency massage oils.” Alia answered and then held up two identical pink outfits. “Which one?”

“They’re the same,” Zephyr shrugged.

“No, this one has slightly more translucent fabric.”

“Aaaaaaah. Obviously the slutty one then.”

Grace cleared her throat.

“We’re fighting an existential void, not… opening a brothel.”

Both angels turned to her with matching grins.

“Everywhere is a brothel when you’re a Love Sister.”

“That’s—” Grace stopped. There was no winning this argument. “Just be ready in an hour or two.”

“We’re always ready.” Zephyr stretched languidly. “Question is, are you?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’ve got that face again.”

“What face?”

“The face.”

“I don’t have a face.”

“Everyone has a face, Grace.”

“You know what I mean!”

Zephyr sat up, crossing her legs.

“It’s gonna be fine, Grace. We’re coming to help.”

“Look,” Alia said, abandoning her packing to walk over. “We get it. You’re the chosen one. The only angel who can kill demons permanently. The triple-affinity miracle baby.”

“Please never call me miracle baby again.”

“But we’re not useless.” Alia poked Grace’s chest. “In fact, we’re your seniors~ We’ve been angels longer than you. We know what we’re doing.”

“I know you do, I just—”

“Worry a lot. It’s okay.”

Grace deflated.

“Maybe.”

“Therapy exists, you know,” Alia said.

“I don’t have time for that!”

“Fair point.” Alia grabbed Grace’s face, squishing her cheeks. “But promise you’ll chill out!”

“Mmph.”

“Promise!”

“I pwomise.”

“Good.” Alia released her. “Now help me decide which lingerie to pack.”

“Why do you need lingerie for a mission?”

Both twins stared at her.

“Right. Love Sisters. Stupid question.”

—

Grace looked around the room. Clothes everywhere, half-packed bags, and what looked like enough personal care products to stock a small shop.

“Are you two actually ready for this?”

“Are you?” Zephyr shot back.

“I’m serious.”

“So am I.”

“I… Well… I don’t know,” Grace replied.

“Really?”

“I don’t know what it’s going to try,” Grace sat on the edge of the bed.

The twins exchanged a look.

“Grace,” Alia said gently, “are you scared?”

Grace opened her mouth to say no, then closed it.

“Yeah. A little.” Grace sighed. “The others tried to corrupt me or burn me or tentacle me to death. This one’s going to…” Grace trailed off, staring at her hands. “What if it takes pieces of me and I don’t notice until it’s too late? What if I end up… ’not me’ anymore?”

Zephyr moved to sit beside her.

“So what’s the plan?”

“I’ll let you know when I have one.” Grace laughed, but it came out shaky. “I keep thinking about Sister Hera. She went in there and came back… wrong. What if that happens to me?”

“It won’t.”

“How do you know?”

“Because you’re stubborn as hell,” Alia said. “And you’ve got us watching your back.”

“You’re not going in there with me.”

“No, but we’ll be right outside. And if you start acting weird when you come out, we’ll smack sense back into you.”

Grace looked between them.

“Promise?”

“Promise,” they said in unison.

—

An hour later, Grace stood at the western cliff with her assembled team. Mara had traded her usual flowing robes for practical combat gear that somehow still managed to emphasize her… assets. Though, Grace did let her know that ideally Grace herself would be the only one fighting.

“Everyone ready?” Grace asked.

“Born ready,” Alia chirped.

“Technically reborn ready,” Zephyr corrected.

“Same difference.”

Mara just nodded, her expression serene and just a little bit mischievous.

“Right. So. Western desert, bit of a long flight. The cave entrance should be marked by—” Grace paused, trying to remember Celestia’s exact words. “—an absence of life that feels wrong.”

“Specific,” Zephyr muttered.

“That’s literally what she said.”

“I’m not doubting you, just questioning Celestia’s guidance skills.”

“Well, we’ll know it when we see it, for sure.”

Grace checked her equipment one last time. Blade of Dawn at her side, Stardust Veil secure on her arm, Earthshaker Gauntlets fitting snugly on her hands.

“Everyone got their supplies?”

“Check,” Alia said, hefting her pack.

“Check,” Zephyr echoed.

“Check,” Mara confirmed.

Grace spread her wings. The left one twinged slightly, reminding her of Mara’s earlier warning.

“Let’s go.”

They dove.

The flight started pleasantly enough. Clear skies, warm air currents, only minimal demon activity below. Grace found herself relaxing into the rhythm of it, wings catching thermals as they headed west.

“So,” Alia called out, pulling alongside Grace. “What’s the plan when we get there?”

“Find the Void, figure out what it wants, try not to die.”

“Solid. Love the specificity.”

“I’m open to suggestions.”

“Orgy?”

“Alia.”

“What? It would have worked with the Tide!”

“That was very specific circumstances—”

“Grace literally fucked her into submission,” Zephyr added, flanking Grace’s other side. “Set a dangerous precedent if you ask me.”

“Nobody asked you.”

“I’m just saying, now every Pillar probably expects the special treatment.”

[Please stop talking about my sex life while we’re flying to potential doom.]

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