Raphael couldn't move.
Memories crashed over him like a storm, making his heart pound wildly in his chest.
He remembered.
Every moment.
Every sensation.
The screams of heaven. Thunder tearing through the air. His own wings, stained with blood.
And Elissa.
Her eyes, filled with tears, as she stood before him.
— You have to leave!
Her voice still echoed in his mind like a ghostly whisper.
She had tried to save him.
But he fell.
— Raphael.
Elissa’s quiet voice pulled him back to reality.
He blinked, meeting her gaze.
She was watching him with concern, her fingers still clasped in his.
Raphael shuddered, feeling the darkness inside him growing, spreading its wings.
— You… were my reason. — His voice broke.
Gabriel nodded.
— And you still are.
Raphael turned to him sharply.
— Why didn’t I remember?
Gabriel sighed.
— Because it had to be this way. Your punishment wasn’t just falling. Heaven erased your memory so you would never know what you burned for.
Raphael clenched his jaw.
— But now I remember.
— Yes. — Gabriel’s smile was slow, knowing. — Now it’s up to you.
Raphael felt the pulse of power within him.
Power that had always been there, but now—now it was becoming his.
His hands trembled.
— Am I… a monster?
Elissa stepped closer, her palm gliding over his cheek.
— No. — Her voice was full of tenderness. — You are who you were meant to be.
Raphael covered her hand with his, closing his eyes.
It felt like he was standing on the edge of an abyss.
But if he fell again…
He wouldn’t fall alone.
Gabriel watched them with an unreadable expression.
— Decide quickly, Executioner. Time is not on your side.
Raphael slowly opened his eyes.
They were no longer the same.