Chapter 168: Three Years

Grace stepped out of the room and stopped dead in her tracks.

The Dominion looked… different. Fuller. Where once marble hallways echoed with emptiness, now angels crowded every corner. They chatted in groups. Trained in open courtyards. Flew overhead in organized formations.

“What the hell?” Grace blinked.

“Surprised?” Mara guided her forward. “After your fight with Azrael, things changed. Fast.”

They walked through a plaza Grace remembered as a battle zone. Now it buzzed with activity. Angels in various colored robes mingled freely. Gold with blue. Pink with black. Colors that would have meant faction wars three years ago.

“The Veil angels,” Grace started.

“Many came back.” Mara nodded. “After you purified Azrael, they realized Sin energy was a dead end. Most renounced it. Begged to return.”

“And Celestia let them?”

“I’m as surprised as you are. Half the Dominion was ready to execute them. The other half wanted reconciliation.” Mara smiled. “It was Celestia’s choice in the end and she… Well, she recalled how you chose to purify Azrael rather than kill her, and chose to follow in that example.”

[My bleeding heart strikes again.]

They passed a training ground. Grace’s jaw dropped.

Seraph stood in the center, barking orders at fifty new recruits. Her bright, flaming hair was longer now, tied in a longer warrior’s braid. The recruits – a mix of former Veil angels and fresh faces – scrambled to follow her commands.

“FASTER!” Seraph’s voice boomed. “Demons don’t wait for you to catch your breath!”

Diana prowled between the recruits. She’d grown her hair out too, though it still barely touched her shoulders. When a recruit’s form slipped, she corrected it with rough hands.

“Sword up! Guard tight! You think a Primal gives a shit about your feelings?”

One recruit – clearly former Veil from her grey wings – stumbled. Diana caught her.

“I said guard TIGHT, not fall on your ass.” But Diana’s grip was steady. Helpful. “Again. Do it right this time.”

“Diana volunteered to help train the converts.” Mara noticed Grace’s shock. “Said someone had to make sure they didn’t stay weak.”

“That’s… surprisingly mature of her.”

“Don’t let her hear you say that.” Mara tugged Grace along. “Come on. More to see.”

They entered a garden area. Grace nearly tripped.

Venus lounged on silk cushions, surrounded by a dozen Love Sisters in various states of undress. She demonstrated something with her fingers that made half the group blush.

“The key is rhythm.” Venus’s voice carried. “Too fast and you lose sensation. Too slow and they get bored. Watch.”

She beckoned Alia forward. The redhead bounced over eagerly, already pulling Zephyr by the hand.

“We’ll demonstrate!” Alia chirped.

Before Grace could process, Alia was on her back with Zephyr between her legs. Venus narrated technique while the new Love Sisters took notes. Some literally had scrolls out.

“See how Zephyr uses her whole tongue? Not just the tip. And Alia’s response—”

“FUCK YES RIGHT THERE!” Alia’s enthusiasm echoed.

Grace swallowed.

[Some things never change.]

“The Love Sisters expanded their training program.” Mara coughed. “Very… thorough.”

They hurried past. Grace caught glimpses of more changes. Angels who’d lost limbs in the battle now had crystalline replacements. Buildings damaged in the fight had been rebuilt and looked stronger than they had before.

The medical wing was just as busy. Compassion Sisters moved between beds, tending to angels Grace didn’t recognize. Many had corruption burns or Sin energy residue marking their skin.

“New arrivals?” Grace asked.

“Daily.” Mara’s expression darkened. “Not all Veil angels surrendered. Some went rogue. They attack anyone they find, Dominion or mortal. We’re still cleaning up.”

In the center of the ward, Petriel directed the chaos. Her green hair was pinned back, golden eyes focused. She guided another healer through purifying corruption from a patient’s wing.

“Gentle pressure. Let your energy flow, don’t force it.” Petriel’s voice had gained confidence. “The corruption wants to fight. You have to soothe it away.”

The junior healer nodded. Light flowed from her hands. The corruption faded slowly.

“Perfect!” Petriel beamed. “You’re getting it!”

She turned and spotted Grace. Her professional composure cracked.

“GRACE!”

Petriel crossed the room in three strides and hugged Grace tight. She’d grown taller in three years. More filled out too.

“You’re awake! Really awake!” Petriel pulled back, tears streaming. “I helped treat you but your corruption was so deep and we didn’t know if—”

“I’m okay.” Grace squeezed her hands. “You did great.”

“I learned from the best.” Petriel wiped her eyes. “Are you heading to see Celestia? She’s been…”

Petriel trailed off.

“Been what?”

“Hard on herself.” Petriel bit her lip. “The corruption she absorbed. We can’t remove it. Any of us. She says it’s fine but—”

“I’ll talk to her.” Grace had an idea why normal healing wouldn’t work. “Where is she?”

“The Memory Pools. She spends most of her time there now.”

Grace hugged Petriel again. The healer smelled like herbs and sunshine.

“I’m glad you’re okay.” Petriel whispered. “We were so scared.”

“Takes more than some corruption to keep me down.”

They separated. Petriel returned to her patients while Mara led Grace deeper into the Dominion.

“Three years.” Grace shook her head. “Feels like yesterday.”

“Well, you were unconscious, after all.” Mara stopped at an intersection. “The Memory Pools are that way. I should check on the new arrivals.”

“Thanks for everything.” Grace caught Mara’s arm. “For staying with me. For taking care of me.”

Mara’s expression softened. She pulled Grace into another crushing hug.

“Don’t scare us like that again.” Her voice was thick. “I haven’t gotten to pinch your cheeks enough, hehe.”

“H-Hey!” Grace gently pulled back as Mara did just that.

Grace watched Mara leave. Then she headed for the Memory Pools.

The ancient part of the Dominion felt unchanged. Same crystalline walls. Same sense of age. But now Grace noticed details she’d missed before. Cracks in the stone. Faded murals. Signs of time even angels couldn’t stop.

She found Celestia exactly where Petriel said. The Archangel sat at the edge of the largest pool, staring into memories Grace couldn’t see.

“Celestia?”

The Archangel turned. Grace’s heart sank.

Celestia’s rainbow wings were still grey with black edges. Her hair was still silver. Dark circles ringed her eyes. The corruption hadn’t spread, but it hadn’t faded either.

“Grace.” Celestia stood slowly. “You’re awake.”

“Yeah. Just now.” Grace approached carefully. “How are you?”

“Alive.” Celestia’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “Which is more than I probably deserve, given how badly I failed in the fight against Azrael.”

“Don’t say that.”

“Why not? It’s true.” Celestia touched her corrupted wing. “I used Sin energy. Became the very thing I swore to fight. And yet, I was still too weak to defeat her on my own.”

“You were trying to protect everyone.”

“I was trying to prove I was strong enough.” Celestia’s laugh was bitter. “I wasn’t.”

They stood in awkward silence. Grace studied the corruption marring Celestia’s form. It wasn’t spreading, but it wasn’t natural either. It had bonded to her essence.

“The Compassion Sisters tried everything.” Celestia noticed Grace’s examination. “Divine healing. Purification rituals. Even some of Petriel’s new techniques. Nothing works.”

“Because they’re not strong enough.”

Celestia blinked.

“What?”

“You carry too much Sin energy,” Grace explained, theorizing in real time. “It feels like you already have way more than it would take to turn a normal angel into a demon. I think you’d need someone with massive purification power to extract it without damaging your core.”

“Someone like…?”

Grace grinned.

“Someone who absorbed thousands of years of Sin energy and lived.”

“Grace, no. You just woke up. You need rest—”

“I need to help my friend.” Grace stepped closer. “Let me try. Please.”

Celestia hesitated.

“Alright.” Celestia sat back down. “But if it’s too much—”

“It won’t be.”

Grace knelt beside her. She placed both hands on Celestia’s wings, right where the corruption was deepest.

[Here goes nothing.]

She activated Aura Cleanse. She found the exact spots where Sin energy had bonded to Celestia’s essence. Gently, carefully, she began separating them.

Celestia gasped.

“That… how…?”

“Shh. Let me work.”

Thread by thread, Grace unwove the corruption. It fought her. Tried to spread to her instead. But Grace had held worse. This couldn’t even begin to compare with Azrael’s corruption.

Slowly, she compressed each strand of Sin energy and dissolved it.

Minutes passed. Sweat beaded on Grace’s forehead. But slowly, surely, the black faded from Celestia’s wings.

“Almost…” Grace pushed harder. “Got it!”

The last of the corruption dissolved. Celestia’s wings blazed with rainbow light before settling into their natural shimmer. Her hair slowly turned back to its usual rainbow colors.

“I…” Celestia touched her wings in wonder. “The weight is gone. I can breathe so much easier.”

“Told you I could help.” Grace sat back, exhausted but satisfied.

Celestia tackled her in a hug.

“You’re too much.”

“Hey, what are friends for?”

They stayed like that for a moment. Then Celestia pulled back, composing herself.

“You asked about everyone else.” She stood, helping Grace up. “There’s someone you should know about.”

“Azrael.” Grace remembered. “What’s happened with her?”

Celestia’s expression turned complicated.

“That’s… hard to say.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…” Celestia sighed. “Let me explain.”

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