I had to jog to keep up with her. She flew through the trees, her pearly wings glistening with moonlight. I had always wanted to see them but I felt she was exposing her identity. Did she want us to know what she was?

“Hey!” I yelled up at her. “Don’t you think people will see you?”

She ignored me as she always did and flew faster. I pushed branches out of my way and winced as thorns sliced my flesh. I felt twigs snag in my hair and snap. I growled, “At least slow down a little bit! Please!”

Suddenly, she plummeted to the ground and landed on her feet with a thud. I felt the earth beneath my feet shake slightly.

She folded her wings behind her with a whoosh of wind and glared at me with cold, dead eyes. She wasn’t the angel I thought she was. She was more of a…demon.

She sat down under a sturdy tree and sighed.

“I guess we’re taking a break then.” I said, plopping down beside her.

After a minute of silence, I spoke quietly. I didn’t know if she was listening. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was even and steady. She was most likely asleep already.

“About what you said earlier,” I said. “About us mortals needing all the help we can get…what did you mean by that? We’re perfectly capable of surviving on our own. We’ve been doing it for millions of years. And you may be an immortal being from above but what good can you do?”

Her eyes flew open and she stared at me as though I had said the world was ending. I shrunk away, wishing I had kept my mouth shut. She was an angel but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to hurt me.

“You do not understand.” She said.

I frowned. I wasn’t dumb. Was that what she thought of us “mortals”? That we’re all brainless animals? Savages?

“What do you mean? Well, of course I don’t understand. I don’t understand because you haven’t told me anything.”

“It’s complicated.”

“I’m listening.”

She sighed again, heavily. I wasn’t going to let this go so easily. She was going to tell me if I had to make her tell me. She turned to me and whispered.

“He is back.”

“Who is?”

“The one of flame and ash.”

“And that is…?”

“The Devil.”