Last of Daylight

2.1 In The Dark Where My Enemy Waits Patiently

The beautiful girl with brilliant blue eyes. The sweetest smile... She would save Cinder.

Yes.

Yes.

It was worth the Justice's ire to have laid eyes on salvation. Eyes the blond man now lowered to the ground as he bowed on hands and knees to the procession. Enforcers weren't permitted to view their gods. Overhearing the Night King's heavy boots was blessing enough. A reward for the blond man's loyal defense of this compound and the precious secret within.

How many had he killed to protect the Icari?

Dozens. Surely. And all their faces flashed through his eyes—The couple necking in the woods, homeless people seeking a place to sleep for the night, and the occasional curious trespasser. Spies made up the bulk of his victims.

The blond man killed for the Icari without knowing what they looked like. The eternal Night King and his Silver General. Like the blue-eyed girl, they must be beautiful to look upon...

He glanced up—for a second, for a heartbeat—and turned his eyes down.

Beyond human.

The Enforcer knew Heaven existed for angels were among them. Could he make it to their feet and kiss them before the Justice caught him? Would she revoke his claim to eternal life if he dared break rank?

Could he contain himself either way?

The blond Enforcer bolted onto his feet and ran through the crowd of kowtowed cultists.

"Stop!"

It didn't take long for someone to notice, but the Enforcer was only four meters from touching divinity—

Powerful arms swept him up and held him back. "No! No, please! Master!" Tears sprung to his eyes and blurred his vision as he reached for the angels. "Please..."

But the Night King turned his back and walked away with his blood female. More Icari worked about the courtyard, carrying gigantic crates between them onto train cars.

The Silver General's eyes stared through the Enforcer as other members of the Cult of Night wrestled him to the ground. Staring into such purity was mesmerizing until the Justice stepped between them.

From her short height, she looked down her nose at the blond Enforcer to say, "You are out of line."

"How could I deny such beauty?"

Behind her, in the most angelic tenor, the Silver General called, "Bring him."

The Enforcer's voice broke as fresh tears poured. "Thank you. Thank you."

The Justice's smile was twisted. "Oh, I wouldn't go that far." She nodded, and the cultists tied his hands and ankles together.

This was fine. He would bask in the presence of sheer glory. Even as they dragged him roughly to the Justice's office, the Enforcer counted his fortunes for this opportunity—

And there it was.

The Silver General assessed the Enforcer with careful intelligence behind a gorgeous countenance of eternal youth and wisdom.

The Enforcer wept on his knees and muttered his thanks to the cosmos repeatedly.

It didn't even offend him the way the General pointed at him and asked, "Is this what you call security, Justice?"

The short woman said, "We foster unquestioning loyalty, but for some, it can become overwhelming in its concentrated dedication."

"Angels... And blue-eyed salvation."

The Silver General pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, which prompted the Justice to shift her weight in a nervous gesture. When the god hiked up his slacks to crouch to the Enforcer's height, a distant chorus sang.

Blessed.

"Did you go near the blue-eyed Progeny girl?"

The Justice scoffed. "None of my congregation would dare—"

"Such beauty and pure love. She will save Cinder," the Enforcer repeated his truth.

The icy look the Silver General shot the short woman made her tremble. It frosted the elegance of his cadence as he said, "Resolve this. We can't have your people undermining our efforts after millennia of preparation. Let me put it to you frankly—The invasion carries on according to plan or no 'eternal life' for you."

Between one blink and the next, the General gripped the Enforcer's throat and squeezed like an iron vice. All the while, he kept his eyes on the short woman.

Enraptured, the Justice bowed. Her voice came out on a breath as she said, "Yes, Master."

Inky blackness engulfed the blond man's vision as he gasped for air.

Please, look at me.

Please, grace me with divinity one final time.

When the Silver General turned and faced the Enforcer, clarity brought him peace.

The Enforcer would meet the same afterlife as those he'd murdered, with no hope of finding true Eternity. And that was okay. It was worth this short time among angels, worth the years of his life listening to Cinder's Verse, and worth the momentary pain of the General snapping his neck.

The angels would win this day.

Amen.