Kai wants nothing more than a peaceful, quiet life. Not the path of heroes that bask in the spotlight, nor the path of villains that are riddled with blood.
But the Gods deem even that a luxury for him.
He knelt among a sea of ten thousand newly appointed Angels, Supernals who are among the lowest of the low in talents, while cradling a weak body to his chest. All are listening to a cold-faced demon man who speaks on a mass of cloud.
The demon man who took a part of his soul.
"Supernals are not the chosen ones." His voice was thunderous, imperious, a lion among men. "Mankind was blind, and its ignorance has pampered you. They would say Gods choses the Supernals. That every Supernal are guardians of humanity. This… is the fallacious religious doctrine that we have outgrown."
His sharp eyes swept the aspiring Angels and then stared directly at Kai. The blue sunlight shaded his masked face into a demon of the arctic depths. "You Angels are liabilities. You are the clog to the divine arteries. You are hoarding the spot for the true chosen ones. You are a waste of divine potential," He pauses—narrowing his eyes to make sure Kai understands. "You are less than normal humans.
"The paradise beneath us," He looked to the side. From the clouds, they could see the cityscape where they all had lived up until half an hour ago. "Those glittering cities. Those peaceful lives. They are an illusion. You believe you were chosen? No, you are not. Our Great Oracle, the Daughter of Phoebe, has cleared our ignorance. Gods do not choose. Gods invest. And humanity is given the liberty to manage it."
Kai's eyes are now blurry from the tears.
The coldness against his arms can be felt to his bones. He feels nauseous. He wanted to vomit, but he couldn't peel his eyes away.
"You have lived unbloodied long enough. Now it is time for you to pay the price you are due," the demon man lifted his chin and squared his shoulder. His long white hair flutters, "Welcome to the First Sky. Your sin of existence… shall end here."
Kai wiped his tears and branded the demon man's face into his mind.
To make sure that even in a thousand years, he wouldn't forget the face.
The demon man believed impure Supernals are weak. He believed Kai and many others like him were frail, a waste, less than a human. But he is wrong. In the myths of gods, even mortals could prove to be wondrous. And Kai will show him that his belief is wrong.
…
"It's your fault for being late," A woman in a formal suit behind a receptionist desk said as she adjusted her glasses. "This is the most important day for people your age. You should wake up early. No excuse for being late."
Kai clenched his fists, but his face remained neutral.
He was late to his awakening ceremony. The day when young people at the age of eighteen would be tested for their divine bloodline that would determine their position in the higher society. But it wasn't his fault. His own classmates, bullies, thought it would be more fitting for him to be late because of his panda eyes rather than always being the first one to arrive.
They locked the door to his apartment with a spell. He couldn't get out until he was already late.
It was frustrating, but he didn't throw a tantrum. Didn't shout curses.
Endure and swallow.
Even when the woman ranted about discipline, he didn't say a single word.
"Just go back home," the woman looked at the computer screen. "Your name is Kai… Odd, you don't have a last name. Either way, the last Demon Supernal in your family tree is your great-grandmother," She stood up, boasting her towering seven and a half feet height, and looked him up and down.
Kai is a little bit over seven feet, shorter than her.
All Supernals showed signs of their bloodline even before the ceremony. Showing signs of being greater than normal humans.
One being unnaturally taller.
"You're a Supernal, alright. But with your family tree, I doubt you'd have five Divine Locks in you," the woman sat down again. "Just go home. Being an Angel is the same as being a Demon, anyway. It might even be better for someone like you."
It was true.
Angel and Demon Supernals aren't that different. One work in the sky and the other underground.
But Kai couldn't afford to be an Angel. That would mean leaving his big sister to live on the clouds.
"Can you please let me in?" Kai asked, trying hard not to sound begging. "I'm only ten minutes late."
"Oh, you're late?" A familiar voice seeped into his ears.
Kai turned and saw a smirking man a foot taller than him with a muscular build and blood-red hair. Arrogance masked as confidence reeked from this man. He is a classmate, Marcel. Both his parents have traceable lineage to the God of War, Ares.
And Kai also suspected him to be the one who did the spell from his smirk alone.
"Never thought you'd actually be late for once," Marcel scuffed Kai's ink-black hair like a little brother. "But then again, what's good about the ceremony for you other than confirming what you already knew? That you're barely a Supernal. Go home and take care of your poor sister. That's all you're good for, anyway."
Marcel shoved him aside and looked at the woman.
He raised a thumbs up, and the woman nodded, allowing him to enter the massive heaven's gate.
Kai turned to leave. No need to stay any longer and talk to the woman.
It was pointless.
Begging would not change anything.
Kai exited the high school and headed back home.
Being an Angel is the same thing as being a Demon. Or at least, that's what he told himself.
Ever since the Blue Void appeared, people who successfully awakened their bloodline and became a Supernal have two paths ahead. Either become a Demon or an Angel Supernal. As far as he knew, the two occupations had the same duty.
Protect humanity.
Monsters birthed from the Blue Void wanted to massacre the surface, and these Supernals are guardians of humanity who kept them at bay. Becoming a Demon is preferable for most since they can still live on the surface and mingle with modern life.
Angels, on the other hand, live on the clouds.
None has come back down.
Nobody knew why, but many believed life up there is better than life on the surface.
But it's only a rumor. There's no documentation on how Angels really lived up there in the sky.
Once one tastes living in Heaven, there's no point in going back.
Kai arrived back at his place, a run-down two-bedroom in the suburban area.
He breathed for a few seconds. Once he was ready, he knocked on the door.
"Hold on!" A muffled voice rang. "Coming!"
The door opened after a telling pause, revealing a woman barely entering twenty. Her hair was a cascade of molten gold. Her eyes held the verdant secret of Adam and Eve's first garden. And her skin was the serene porcelain of moonlit cloud.
She was breathtaking.
Sadly, there are walkers under her armpits to support her weak legs.
She is Kai's sister, Bella.
Aphrodite is jealous of her beauty and seduced a car to run her over about two years ago.
Ever since, he had been going to school and working at night as a courier to support them—and pay her medical fees. One day, she would be able to walk again. Kai believed it. And seeing how her legs were fuller now, the tireless nights became worth it.
"Did you get into a fight?" Bella frowned at the bruise on the corner of Kai's lips.
"Something like that," He shrugged and walked past her.
Before going back, he waited for the awakening ceremony to conclude and attacked Marcel.
It's the last day of school, so it's his only chance.
He lost, of course. But winning is not the point.
"I have a surprise for you," Bella followed him as he crashed onto the couch. He seemed to be in a bad mood. "Right, today is your awakening ceremony. How did it go? Hold on, let me guess…" She pressed two fingers on her forehead, narrowed her eyes, and pointed her other hand at Kai like she was reading his mind. "Angel?"
"Spot on," Kai threw his arms overhead. "What's the surprise? It better not be another goldfish. You already killed three."
"I'll save it for when you're in a better mood."
Bella threw herself onto Kai, landing directly on his stomach and knocking the air out of his lungs.
She then proceeded to tickle him, which ended up with them wrestling.
It stopped when she faked hurting her legs.
Kai felt awful and helpless a second ago, but he forgot everything whenever he was with his big sister.
Later that night, Kai received an email from Olympus.
He was drafted as an Angel at the Eventide Academy at Cloud Colony Alpha. Colonies are basically a city in the sky, created on a massive, naturally occurring magical cloud from Mother Nature. Early in the morning, an established Angel would pick him up.
Surprisingly, the email stated that he ought to bring his sister with him.
It was good news.
Kai didn't know if there was a social welfare for new Angels, but this is good.
At least he wouldn't need to be separated from his sister.
"See?" Bella hugged his waist as she snuggled on the bed. "Everything is going to be fine."
Kai smiled a little and looked out of the window. He stared at the night sky, especially at the small blue sphere in front of the full moon, the Blue Void, and then at the drifting clouds. It happened about two years ago.
One day, he suddenly could no longer feel sleepy, which was weird.
His body doesn't need sleep, but he always feels tired.
Even if he does close his eyes until morning to try and sleep, it makes nothing better.
He always knew he'd be a Supernal.
His sister grew rapidly, which was a sign that she, too, would become a Supernal. She cleared six and a half feet before reaching eighteen. That alone made him certain that they're going to become Supernals, and he should be right.
But her growth suddenly stopped.
It happened right after the accident.
Kai and Bella shared identical features. Black hair. Pools of abyssal black eyes. However, after the incident, her features faded. Her hair is now summer blonde. And her eyes became chips of brilliant emerald.
Now, strangers often even mistook her for his girlfriend as they shared no visible trace of blood anymore other than their similar facial features.
Her Patron God abandoned her. Both knew, but neither had ever said it out loud.
Today, he should've known which Patron God chose him.
But it didn't go as planned.
Later, once he reached the academy, he'd make sure to check his bloodline.
"Still, I feel uneasy." He mutters silently.
Early in the morning, Kai and Bella woke up very early and got ready to be picked up.
Both were now standing in front of the apartment complex, waiting for the established Angel to show up.
Soon, a figure descended.
He is an eight-foot-tall mighty man draped in a pompous black and golden robe. A horned red demon mask covered his face, and he wore winged boots that allowed him to fly. From the mask alone—this was no Angel Supernal. He is a Demon Supernal.
Kai unconsciously grabbed Bella's hand and pulled her close.
"Are you Kai?" the demon man asked.
"Yes," Kai answered. "I thought an Angel would be the one picking me up."
"Is there a problem?" He crossed his arms.
"No!' Bella answered for Kai, shaking her head. "No problem at all!"
"Bella, the email said—"
"Shush. It doesn't matter if it's a Demon or an Angel. Let's be positive."
Helpless against his sister, Kai allowed the demon man to wrap his strong arms around their waists—and blasted skyward. Wind rushed against their face hard. All around, Kai could see other new Angels being brought to the clouds.
Thousands of them.
Each would be going to either Cloud Colony Alpha, Beta, or Charlie.
It's going to be a new life starting from now. Kai swore he'd work harder for his sister.
Heaven is a place of riches and fulfilment, and he was excited to see it with his own two eyes.
Unfortunately, heaven is not his destination.