Elissa couldn't breathe.
Gabriel’s words echoed in her mind, tearing her consciousness apart.
"You fell because you loved her."
Impossible.
It couldn’t be.
She shook her head, taking a step back, but Gabriel only watched her with grim satisfaction.
Raphael, however…
He looked as if the world had collapsed beneath him.
— I… loved her? — His voice was barely a whisper.
Gabriel nodded.
— You didn’t just love her. You rebelled for her.
Raphael clenched his fists.
— That’s a lie.
Gabriel smirked.
— The truth is rarely convenient, Raphael.
Elissa looked at him, searching for any sign of deception.
— Why don’t I remember?
— Because it wasn’t in this life. — Gabriel took a step forward. — You were different. Your souls have met before… and every time, you were his downfall.
Raphael exhaled sharply, as if trying to remember… but all he found was emptiness.
— It’s impossible, — he whispered.
— Remember. — Gabriel held his gaze. — Remember who you were.
Raphael recoiled.
— No.
But something inside him wavered.
Elissa saw it.
She saw his breath falter, the shiver that ran through him.
His body remembered.
His soul knew.
And then, without thinking, Elissa stepped closer.
— Raphael…
He looked at her.
There was so much pain in his eyes, so many questions… and something else.
Something ancient.
Elissa gently touched his hand.
— I’m here.
Raphael tensed… but didn’t pull away.
And then the pain surged through him like a wave.
Flashes.
A scream.
Wings burning in the heavens.
Black blood spilling over stone.
And her face.
The same as now… but not quite.
He remembered her.
Always.
Raphael was breathing heavily, gripping Elissa’s hand as if afraid she would disappear.
She looked at him, understanding in her eyes.
— Do you remember? — she asked softly.
Raphael tightened his hold on her fingers.
— Yes.
Gabriel smiled.
— Welcome home, Executioner.