We Are The Fallen

Heaven was never meant to be like this.

But on that day, even the air itself reeked of smoke and blood.

For a place that was supposed to represent hope and peace, it was anything but during the massacre.

Angels flew through the skies screaming. Some fought and fell where they stood. Others hid, praying they would be spared—but mercy did not exist that night.

Not for them.

He was stronger than any of them. Smarter. Faster. Unrelenting.

That was why they called him Heaven’s weapon.

“Uriel! They’ve found us—we have to go!” the woman shouted, her voice shaking with panic.

Uriel quickly scooped his daughter into his arms.

“W-What’s going on?” the little girl asked, fear trembling in her small voice. “Why is everyone screaming?”

“Shh...” Uriel soothed softly, holding her closer as another distant scream echoed through the halls. “Everything’s okay, sweetie. We’re just going on a little trip.”

The woman beside him looked toward the burning corridor, panic written across her face. “Where are we supposed to go?”

“To the mortal realm,” Uriel answered immediately. “We’ll be safer there. No one should be able to detect us.”

Her expression tightened. “And what if he senses her?”

Uriel’s jaw clenched for a brief moment. “We’ll be fine—as long as she doesn’t use her powers,” he said firmly. “Once we get there, we’ll figure everything out.”

Suddenly, a deafening crack of thunder shook the walls, followed by the screams of angels falling in battle. The little girl flinched violently and buried her face into her father’s shoulder.

The woman’s breathing became uneven. “How are we supposed to get out of here without him catching us?”

“We fly straight to the gate,” Uriel said. His voice was calm, but urgency burned beneath it. “And if anything goes wrong...” His eyes locked onto hers. “You take Sera and go to the mortal realm. Don’t look back.”

Her face fell instantly. “No. I’m not leaving you. We go together.”

Uriel turned to her fully then, his expression stern enough to silence the fear threatening to consume them both.

“Satine,” he said firmly, “if something happens and I have to fight, you take her and leave. Both of you. I mean it.”

Satine stared at him in disbelief, tears already spilling down her cheeks, but after a moment, she gave a shaky nod.

Uriel gently cupped the side of her face.

“Nothing is more important to me than the two of you,” he murmured softly. “If anything were to happen to either of you… there would be nothing left of me, my dawn.”

He rested his forehead against hers for a moment, silently cherishing the warmth of her touch as though he feared it could disappear at any second. Then he pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead before finally pulling away and returning to their horrifying reality.

“Come on,” he said quietly, tightening his hold on Seraphina. “There’s no time. We have to go.”

The three of them stepped outside—and into chaos.

Their home had become a battlefield.

Bodies littered the once-golden streets, wings stained with blood, the air thick with smoke and ash. Angels they had once laughed with, fought beside, called family... were gone.

Seraphina let out a frightened cry at the sight.

Uriel immediately pulled her closer against his chest, covering her eyes with his hand. “Don’t look,” he said softly, though pain laced every word.

Another scream echoed through the heavens.

There was no more time.

Uriel and Satine spread their wings and launched into the air, flying as fast as they could toward the gates leading to the mortal realm. Wind whipped around them as the sounds of battle thundered behind them.

When they finally reached the gates, a frantic woman came stumbling toward them with a little boy clutched tightly in her arms.

“Wait!” she cried desperately. “Please—take my son with you. Please!”

Uriel and Satine exchanged a look.

“I’m sorry, Elara,” Uriel said reluctantly. “We can’t. If he comes with us, he’ll be in even greater danger.”

“He’s already in danger!” Elara snapped, panic and grief breaking through her voice. “If he stays here, he’s as good as dead. He’s slaughtering everyone—there’s no mercy left in him.” Tears streamed down her face as she held the boy tighter. “Please... take my son. Maybe one day he can help protect her.”

Satine’s eyes softened as she looked at the child trembling in Elara’s arms. He couldn’t have been older than Seraphina.

“He’s just a child,” Satine whispered. She turned toward Uriel. “We’re bringing him with us.”

Relief flooded Elara’s face instantly. “Thank you,” she breathed shakily. “Thank you so much.”

“This isn’t wise,” Uriel muttered under his breath to Satine.

“How can we say no?” she shot back quietly. “He’s our daughter’s age. If the roles were reversed, you know you’d pray someone would do this for us.” Her voice lowered. “And this is happening because of our daughter... because of what she—”

“Enough, Satine,” Uriel interrupted sharply. “We need to move.”

Elara carefully set the little boy down in front of her, kneeling to his level despite her trembling hands.

“Xavier,” she whispered, brushing his hair back gently. “You need to be a good boy for Mommy, okay? You’re going to go with these nice people now. They’ll take care of you.”

The little boy’s lip quivered instantly. “But I don’t want to go,” he cried. “I want to stay with you.”

Elara’s face broke, tears slipping freely down her cheeks. Still, she forced herself to smile for him.

“Now, now,” she whispered shakily. “You’re going to be brave for me, alright?” She pointed toward Seraphina, still clinging to Uriel. “Look—they have a little girl your age. See? Maybe you’ll even make a new friend.”

“But I don’t wanna!” Xavier stomped his foot, tears spilling from his eyes.

Satine stepped forward then, crouching down beside him. Her expression softened as she gently took his small hand into hers.

“Come on, sweetheart,” she said quietly. “We have to go.”

As Satine carefully led him away, Xavier looked back over his shoulder at his mother one last time.

Elara stood there watching him go, already knowing it would be the last time she would ever see her son.

Suddenly, a blood-curdling scream ripped through the air.

They all turned just in time to see the blade of a massive scythe piercing straight through Elara’s stomach.

For a moment, everything froze.

“Mom!” Xavier screamed.

He struggled violently against Satine’s grip, trying to run to her.

The scythe was ripped free, and Elara’s body crumpled lifelessly to the ground. Standing behind her was a towering figure cloaked in darkness, the enormous weapon resting easily in his hand.

Abaddon. The Destroyer.

His expression remained eerily calm, emotionless, but his cold eyes locked onto Satine with terrifying intensity.

A chill swept through the air.

“Go. Now!” Satine shouted, shoving Xavier toward Uriel and Seraphina. “I’ll hold him off!”

“Satine, no!” Uriel yelled, horror flashing across his face.

Satine turned toward him, tears shining in her eyes despite the determination hardening her expression.

“Take the children and go,” she said firmly. “I’ll buy you time.”

Abaddon took a slow step forward, the blade of his scythe dragging across the ground with a sickening scrape.

There was nothing in his expression.

No anger. No hatred. No mercy.

It was as if he couldn’t feel anything at all.

“I’m not leaving you here with that thing!” Uriel shouted, fury and panic mixing in his voice.

“Then you doom our entire family,” Satine fired back, tears streaming down her face. “Now go!”

Power suddenly erupted from her hands, streams of fiery light surging toward Abaddon in a blinding wave.

He deflected it effortlessly.

Then, with terrifying speed, he moved.

The blade of his scythe sliced clean across Satine’s midsection before Uriel could even react.

She froze.

A gasp escaped her lips before her body collapsed to the ground lifelessly.

“NO!” Uriel’s scream tore through the heavens.

At the same moment, Seraphina slipped from his grasp and ran toward her mother’s body.

“Mommy!” she cried desperately, too young to understand why any of this was happening.

“Seraphina, no!” Uriel shouted in horror.

Abaddon stood motionless as the little girl threw herself beside her mother, sobbing uncontrollably.

And for the first time that night... something changed.

A strange feeling twisted inside him.

Like something buried deep within him had suddenly awakened.

His gaze shifted slowly from the crying child to the destruction surrounding them—the burning skies, the bodies scattered across the streets, the blood staining Heaven itself.

It was almost as though he were seeing it all for the very first time.

As if he hadn’t caused it.

As if only now he truly understood what he had done.

Then his eyes returned to the little girl crying over her mother’s body.

That image—her broken sobs, her tiny hands gripping Satine’s lifeless form—would haunt him for the rest of his existence.

Uriel rushed forward, scooping Seraphina into his arms before turning to face Abaddon fully, grief and fury radiating from him in equal measure.

“If you want to hurt my daughter,” Uriel growled, his wings flaring wide behind him, “you’ll have to go through me first.”

Abaddon stared at the little girl, something unfamiliar swelling inside him—something he couldn’t explain.

For the first time in what felt like forever... he felt.

“Go,” he said quietly.

Uriel froze, confusion flashing across his face. He didn’t understand why Abaddon was letting them leave, why Heaven’s deadliest weapon suddenly stood down.

But he wasn’t about to stay long enough to question it.

Tightening his hold on Seraphina, Uriel grabbed Xavier with his free hand and fled toward the gates.

And just like that, they left the Heavenly Realm behind.

Their home. Their family. Their entire lives.

Gone in a single night.

Abaddon remained where he stood, watching them disappear into the light.

He had failed his mission.

The girl—the one he had been ordered to kill—was still alive.

And deep down, he knew exactly what that meant.

He would be cast out of Heaven for disobeying a direct command. Stripped of everything he had ever known. Branded a traitor.

But after what he had done that night... he no longer cared.

He would never serve Heaven again.

Never step foot in it again.

His gaze drifted to Satine’s lifeless body lying in the bloodstained streets, and for the first time in his existence, guilt clawed at him like a living thing.

That little girl’s cries still echoed inside his mind.

The sound of something pure breaking.

And he had been the one to break it.

His hand tightened around the handle of his scythe.

From this moment on, he made himself a silent vow.

He would protect Seraphina from both Heaven and Hell.

No matter the cost.

Even if it cost him his life.