Aiden’s eyes then switched directions.
There, at the edge where light t darkness, was Michael.
The Archangel was positioned at the boundary of the encroaching void, with both hands stretched toward the wall of darkness that had already consud half of Ah’ and threatened to spread further.
Michael’s teeth were gritted in strain and his entire body trembled from exertion as golden light poured from his palms in waves, pressing against the darkness in a desperate attempt to hold it back.
But it wasn’t enough.
The darkness pushed harder and Michael’s knees buckled slightly as he fought to maintain his stance.
He was losing ground.
Aiden disappeared from his position, making an instant reappearance directly beside Michael.
Right then, the darkness was pushed back several ters in an instant, forced away by Aiden’s overwhelming presence alone.
He then lifted one palm toward the encroaching darkness and his power surged outward, releasing a force far greater than what Michael had been able to muster.
It slamd into the darkness like an invisible wall, causing it to recoil imdiately.
Michael felt the pressure lift off him like a weight being removed from his shoulders. He collapsed onto his knees, and his hands hit the ground as he gasped for breath.
But the darkness wasn’t finished yet.
As though it developed consciousness, the shadow released from itself a roaring sound that shook the fabric of Ah’, then surged forward again with renewed aggression, pressing hard against Aiden’s power.
Aiden felt the force push back against him. His eyes narrowed as he pushed harder.
The darkness roared one final ti, but Aiden didn’t seem moved. Instead a he said the word, "Destroy."
White cracks of light began forming across the surface of the encroaching darkness. It started as thin fractures at first, like glass beginning to shatter, but they spread rapidly, branching outward in every direction until they covered the entire mass of darkness completely.
There was a distorted wail of fury and pain, then it began breaking apart into blips of black and white light that faded almost instantly.
The aftermath of the battle left Ah’ in a good asure of ruins. The golden starlight that once ford halos around the city’s dos and towers had even vanished.
Aiden and Uriel stood beside the other amidst the wreckage, staring at the destruction around them.
"This was Lord Shadow’s way of retaliation," Aiden said.
Uriel said nothing, but her face carried a look of deep sadness.
Michael and Raphael walked toward them, looking utterly exhausted from both battle and grief. Raphael specifically had visible bruises sustained from battle.
Uriel and Aiden turned to face them, and right then bothangels bowed deeply.
When they raised their heads, Michael spoke first, "Thank you, King of Dragons."
Then he turned to Uriel and said, "Thank you, sister."
Aiden gave no particular reaction except stare at them both.
Uriel nodded in acknowledgnt, then asked, "How many?"
Raphael’s jaw tightened before he answered.
"Our numbers were halved."
Uriel’s expression contorted in pain and she fought to keep her composure.
"There’s one more thing," Raphael added.
Uriel looked up at him sharply.
Raphael hesitated for only a mont before saying, "Ramiel too."
Uriel’s eyes widened.
The tears she had been holding back finally broke free and rolled down her cheeks. She clenched her fists so tightly as she trembled with frustration and grief.
Aiden stepped forward imdiately and took her into his arms, embracing her gently.
——
A few monts later, when emotions no longer ran high.
Michael continued the conversation. "I admit I have an inability to understand how the Herrscher of Shadows was able to send his power into this place without being noticed."
"We would have known as angels if a Herrscher erged through the barrier of our universe. We should have felt it the mont his presence crossed over."
He sighed frustratingly.
Aiden remained silent for a mont. Then he said, "When I looked at the past occurrences of this place, I saw what happened."
Michael turned toward him, genuinely curious now. "What did you see?"
Aiden’s eyes narrowed slightly as he began to explain.
"Even in a place like Ah’, filled with the brightest light imaginable, it is impossible for that light to reach everywhere."
He gestured vaguely at their surroundings. "There will always be corners where the light fails to penetrate. Small spaces, edges of surfaces. Shadows cast by even the smallest objects."
He let that sink in for a mont before continuing.
"And where there is even a single shred of darkness left... the Herrscher of Shadows will always exist."
There was a brief pause as Aiden turned to face both Michael and Raphael directly.
"Whether it be our universe, his, or any other, it doesn’t matter. That fundantal truth about his existence is exactly what he exploited to corrupt this place with his power."
Raphael’s expression darkened as he began to understand it too. As chief guardian of the Archangels, this hit him personally.
Aiden continued in a grim tone. "It’s how he sends his soldiers who easily infiltrate our universe, going almost unnoticed. They don’t need a gate or a portal, they simply erge from any shadow they can find."
"There’s also another thing," he added. "The Shadow Universe is the nearest one to ours. That proximity grants him much better control," Aiden explained.
"That is why he was able to use a level of power strong enough to corrupt even you angels, forcing the weaker ones into becoming his soldiers."
It was true that not all angels were on the sa level of strength as each other, but hearing that spelt out to him in this manner, put a frown on Michael’s face.
Aiden then turned towards him and added;
"The only reason you were able to withstand the shadow’s power for as long as you did is because this is not his universe. The rules here place his strength at a disadvantage."
"Were you to be in his own world, or had he co here himself, even with the rules not in his favor—you would have fallen far too quickly."
A shudder ran through Michael’s body without him even realizing it.
Uriel shook her head slowly. "Of all of them... he was supposed to be the least hostile one."
Aiden’s gaze shifted toward the distant skies now.
"The last set of shadow soldiers we destroyed brings the total count to over five thousand since he began infiltrating. This was a reminder that his silence is not weakness."
Michael exhaled and crossed his arms. "Sothing has to be done about this. If not, we’ve already set in motion a war with the Shadow Universe, and we are anything but ready."
"On that I agree," Aiden said. Then added, "Which is why I’ll be going to Lord Shadow myself."
Uriel’s head turned toward him imdiately, with terror filling her widened eyes.
"What?"
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