Everything hurt; I felt like I was stuck in stone, constricted from moving freely. I coughed, hacking out my lungs with blood splattered all over my mouth. My eyes didn't want to open, and I refused to see where I was. I felt it, along my frostbitten and scarred skin where the stone beneath me burned into my flesh. The ache was strong, pounding my head in a dull ache.
Voices.. someone was talking. More than one voice for sure, I wanted to open my eyes to do something instead of lying here useless.
But I didn't want to..
I didn't want to see anything, hear anything.. be anything.
"What do you plan to do?" A sharp hush fell over the room. The familiarity of the voice told me it was the Warrior Goddess. "We can't just leave her here like this! She's too dangerous!"
"Then what do you suppose we do then?" A sharp hiss, Minerva. "Send her back to the Underworld, where the lords could do the same thing all over again? Who do you think will be next?"
"Don't speak that way!" Terra sounded angry; her voice was closer to me, yet I still couldn't open my eyes to see.
"Terra.." Laetitia tried to sound calm, "Everyone, please..."
"None of this would have happened if Vienna had not been cast down to the Underworld."
"So you're blaming us?" Ballona bellowed out, it would have made me shrink if I weren't in so much pain. "She was the one to stab Janus through the heart!"
"The Gate Goddess is gone because of her. Not us." Minerva spat out.
I let out a soft wheeze, using some of my strength to curl into a ball. It hurt, and I deserved that. I deserve to feel that pain, to cry myself hoarse, and be blinded by the world that I shouldn't be a part of.
Terra let out a noise. The sound of movement came closer. "You two are blind. Stupid."
"Excuse me-" Loud steps sounded, accompanied by Ballona's voice.
"You heard me," the Mother Goddess said sharply, her voice close to me, making me feel as though I was on the verge of opening my eyes to grasp what was happening. "You thought only about order, not about what needed to be done. Minerva," she inhaled sharply. "I know you represent order and wisdom, yet you showed none of it in your decision. Did none of you realize what was going to happen when you sent Vienna down there?"
"What are you talking about?" The Euphorian Goddess sounded worried.
The sound of wings fluttered before the Mother Goddess spoke again. "Janus loves that angel; he loves her so deeply that she was willing to seek the help of the Lord Goddess to undo the Transition and descend into the Underworld for Vienna. However, it backfired once the angel fell under the lord's influence."
What? Janus.. she, what lords?
"Vienna was already connected to the Underworld somehow; sending her down there made it worse. And none of you stopped to think it through!" Her yell was loud; it could almost shake the ground on which I lay.
Silence stretched on, and not even the sound of shuffling wings or movement could be heard.
Until a voice broke through it, smaller than the others. "An angel is coming here." All of them turned somewhere, breaking the silence that shifted towards a direction.
"Angels.." Laetitia said softly, "What do you come here for?"
"We want to see Vienna," it was Rory, their voice strong.
Hearing the murmurs of agreement from Seth and Bridget, along with the soft pawed steps of Casper, I couldn't hold back any longer. I forced my eyes open and let out a soft groan of discomfort. I wanted to sit up, but my arms felt too weak to support me, so I fell back down, wincing from the movement.
"Vie-"
"You cannot come in." Ballona let out, the sound of steps before the whooshing from a wing.
"They may," Terra answered, and silence went on before the angels ran forward. Towards me?
I still didn't know where I was, and my limbs trembled every time I tried to get up. It was so much easier to just give up. I wasn't given much of a choice; a few pairs of hands came to help me up, and I muffled a cry.
"Vienna.. Vienna!" Bridget cried out.
"Give her some time," Seth warned, my head pressed against his chest. Rory stayed behind me, giving their warmth I could lean back into.
I felt Bridget take my hand, and a few silent sobs echoed in whatever we were in. "I'm sorry, Vienna.. I'm so sorry.."
Casper whined, digging his snout into my lap. The urge to pet him was strong, just as strong as my desire to talk to my friends and assure them that it wasn't their fault. They had done nothing wrong; it was all me and my naive mind, which I had no control over. I allowed the demon to overtake my thoughts, convincing me of things that had never been true…
"Angels.." Minerva was closer this time, and I felt all of them tense. "You cannot stay here with her."
Rory hiccuped, and Bridget sobbed even harder; her grasp grew tighter.
"Minerva." Terra let out a sigh, "Let them be." It was then that I heard something close. The Mother Goddess came forward, and I think she knelt in front of us. "Angels, I hope you understand what has happened, right? You know what the fallen angel had done."
"But.." Bridget hiccupped. "It wasn't actually her... was it?"
"It was both her and the lord," Terra let out mournfully. Her smell sent my heart soaring at the way it comforted me.
"Can she still be redeemed?" Seth questioned with uncertainty.
Terra did not answer right away; a brief silence passed before she did. "I am not the one to choose that."
"Why is she still so.. bloody and hurt? She is obviously in a lot of pain, goddess. Why can't you help her?" Rory let out sobs, their strong arms around my shoulders with a slight hold that almost made me wince.
"I apologize, angel. My ability to heal is not as strong as... Janus's... which is why most of her injuries are not healed." She sucked in a breath. "It also has something to do with the Underworld and its current hold on her. She is both an angel and a fallen."
"Is the Gate Goddess really gone?" Bridget let out a voice. I couldn't stop myself from twitching at the mention of her.
Terra didn't answer right away, and I felt all of them shift in the dense room. "I cannot answer that."
I felt Seth nod along, rubbing his fingers along my side where he could hug me tighter. "She.. what's gonna happen next?"
"..."
"You... I cannot know for certain, so I can't say anything."
I felt them stir and shift beside me. Bridget cried even harder, and Casper let out a whine. I wondered if he had healed. Although I couldn't see him, I could feel his warm fur, and I didn't smell blood—well, I smelled a little bit of blood, but it was from me, as I could feel it covering my body and along my lips.
"Can we say our goodbyes?"
"Of course," Terra gave a soft voice. The sound of her shifting to stand up was paired with a door opening. "I do not know if she will wake up, but she can still hear you if you want to say anything to her."
"Thank you, Mother Goddess," Bridget said before the shifting of wings settled.
"Of course, my angels." She left, and the sound of her voice gave way to an array of silence as all my friends stayed quiet, holding me.
I really wanted to say something, but every time I tried to work my throat to speak, it would sizzle and burn, so I gave up. The same was true for my eyes; it hurt too much to try to force them, so I had to stay silent and just listen as my friends began to speak.
Speak to me.
"It never should have happened to you, Vienna. You didn't deserve all this pain or all of those lies." Seth leaned his head against mine and kissed my temple. "I know you didn't mean to do it… You would never want to hurt anyone on purpose."
Bridget rested her head on my other shoulder, gripping my hand tightly. "It wasn't your fault. Please don't think it's your fault!" She buried her face into me, not caring that I was still bloodied and probably smelled horrible. "You're our friend. You've always been our friend."
"You're not dangerous! Don't let anyone make you think you're dangerous!" Rory's hands curled around my waist from behind, their head resting against my back. I could feel one wing shift; I had no feeling in the other.
"We're friends.. we always have been." Bridget gave a slight smile that I could feel against my skin.
I wanted to smile back, to thank them, to say anything..
Yet I could only have a soft smile on my face. That was the least I could do so they would know I heard them, understand them, and that we were friends. I understood them, even if I couldn't tell them that. I wanted them to know that I didn't hold them responsible.
I couldn't blame them..
They did nothing wrong.
. . .
I felt everything shift. I stirred slightly before stopping halfway, my muscles protesting even from that minor movement. I halted altogether, missing the warmth of all my friends who had been with me. This time, I was alone in the same room, lying on my chest with only one wing draped over me.
Suddenly, something opened, and the voices of the goddesses returned. I mentally groaned at the sound of their voices. I did like Terra; her scent was strong and comforting. In contrast, the presence of Bellona and Minerva made me tense up, shaking from the power they exuded. Laetitia usually remained quiet, occasionally chiming in to support Terra before falling silent again.
I heard Minerva first. "The angels had left?"
"Yes. They wished for Vienna to wake up, but she had shown no sign of waking up."
She didn't say anything to that, I could feel something loom over me before it was moved away by more footsteps. "Janus had contacted the Lord Goddess more than once. You knew that, didn't you?"
"I did." Terra's voice stood firm.
"Why did you not inform me? Inform anyone about it, and we could have stopped it."
"Stop what?" The Mother Goddess let out a hiss, wings fluttering as she moved. "None of that could stop what happened. I already told you that if you kept Vienna up here, nothing would have happened. The Lord Goddess only did one thing in all of this."
"Oh, please, the Lord Goddess always does more than one thing," Minerva growled beneath her breath, making me stir softly. "She is the root of all problems regarding both Heaven and Hell."
"That's rude."
The new voice startled both of the goddesses, mostly Minerva, who I could hear take a few steps back.
"What are you doing here!?" She hissed out, and the dark voice gave a low chuckle.
"I think it's quite rude to blame all your problems on me. It wasn't my idea to break the Transition; Janus wanted to do that just to see her little angel." She let out a dark, giggly hum. "Now, where is that little one? Oh, there she is!"
Her voice grew closer before it was stopped by the whip of wings. "You cannot approach her."
"She looks kind of rough. Are you a goddess not taking care of your angels?" She giggled, and I heard Minerva scoff. "Oh, right. None of you can guide her; the only one who could is gone."
"She's not gone." Terra gave a soft whisper.
The dark voice, whom I assumed to be the Lord Goddess, chuckled darkly. "Right, anyway, why not let me speak to her?"
"Why do you want to speak to her?" Minerva hissed out, and steps sounded a bit farther back. "Whatever you're planning, I think you should drop it. The Gate Goddess is already gone. The more you do, the worse things will get."
"What are you talking about, Minerva?" She let out a puff, "Didn't you assume it would be best to send her to the Underworld, where it just made it worse?" A giggle followed by an agitated growl. "You don't need to worry, all I wish to do is make a deal with her. You can't redeem her, right? I can."
Silence went on, a shuffle of wings and hair swinging before Terra spoke. "We cannot. Nor do we think you should do it. What do you want out of this?"
"I want to give Janus peace." That was her simple, short answer. "Now may I?"
The goddess must have moved since the door closed, as the room suddenly went dark. I could sense her presence, even though I couldn't hear her footsteps or the rustle of wings that she likely had. I couldn't listen for her. However, her cold aura was powerful, and the chills running down my spine felt very real.
"Little angel~" Her voice was close this time, and I stirred.
The pressure over my body broke through, and I was suddenly falling. Falling so far down to the deepness of darkness that I was desperate to swim out of it. I grabbed for anything, giving up as I just dropped further and further.
I lay helpless, body trembling in the way I floated around in the dark abyss. I believed I was alone; I had to be, there was no one else here. Only me and the darkness..
"And me," a voice called out, pulling my attention to a new figure before me. The voice was disorienting, filled with a multitude of others overlapping each other, some at higher pitches than others. In front of me stood... a tall goddess?
Her eyes were hidden beneath long purple bangs, a shade both vibrant and much darker than my own. She wore a broad smile, revealing long, sharp teeth that contrasted with her dark skin. Her wings were large and imposing, a light yellow color, and she boasted tall, smooth horns that emerged from her hair. Adorned in a long black robe, which was tattered at the edges, she wore several rings and bracelets on her wrists but was barefoot. Her hands were elongated and clawed, reminiscent of a demon's claws but larger in size. A demon-like tail, similar to her horns, whipped around behind her, complete with sharp spikes.
She let out another deep chuckle, stepping forward while I had to float around. I looked around, seeing nothing but darkness and her. "Where.. where am I?" I also realized that my body didn't hurt as much anymore; it was a little sore, but nothing was painful enough to bring me to my knees.
"You're in my mind. It's just nothing, so don't worry about it." She shrugged her answer, sitting down with her legs crossed. Her wings cupped behind her; showing nothing but her pointy teeth. "Now, I have been wanting to talk to you for a while in Vienna."
"Who are you?" I ignored her words, trying to force a glare, but it was weak.
The goddess let out a laugh. "You know who I am."
"What do you want?"
Her smile grew even larger, stretching along her face in a freaky way. "I want something from you. But if you don't choose to give it to me, that's all up to you."