Beneath the purple mist

A spark of hope

While the kids were training their stamina Aleksei watched on from the corner of the training grounds. It had been months since the spy woman had showed up and the information she gave them caused a stir in their plans. They thought they'd have more time but Morningstar was making an army of her own. An army of elite trained soldiers that supposedly could fight even the angel children. That is how Morningstar refered to the five kids she created in her first attempt at tempering with angel genes.

It had turned out the captured angel was still alive, held underground in a facility made to contain a god-like creature. The angel was held under strict conditions, conditoons good enough to keep it alive but not enough to give it any strenght to fight.

That was good, if Aleksei's research was correct, the cursed weapon that held Theo's soul requiered something of equal value in exchange for Theo's soul. The spirit told him that much on that faithful day.

However, there was a trick. Nothing in the world could be of equal value as Theo to Aleksei, so he dug more and found out that, if there is no equal to the lost soul, the trade must be made by spilling the blood of a holy creature, a creature that was not to be harmed even in the worst of cases, a creature so divine only gods could be above it. An angel's blood must spill in order for Aleksei to take back the soul of his beloved, a part of his own soul.

"My king, you seem distant. Are you well?" Ayana asked him suddenly, he didn't notice her approach.

"I am just thinking about our strategy." he assured her, thinking about what she would think of him if he really did spill the blood of a holy creature. Or worse, if he was forced to do the only alternative. He didn't want to think of it, he knew the answer.

Ayana studied his face for a while, she grew more comfortable around him in these past years, some would even consider the two to be friends.

"I have brought what you asked for." she finally said, opening her bag and giving him a handful of small bottles and bits of paper with notes written on them.

"Thank you, if you would join me inside for a moment." Aleksei said and turned on his heel, Ayana followed.

They made their way into the throne room and Ayana was shocked to find the glass casket opened and the sword, that usually rested on Theo's chest, now laying at the table.

Aleksei placed the bottles onto the table, taking the five viles of blood samples from each of the kids and puring them all into a small bowl. Ezume and Ayna had taken the blood samples as part of their research on the kids' abilites.

"If I may ask, what are you doing, my king?" Ayana asked, concerned.

"I want to test a theory of mine, and if I am succesfull I will know how to bring him back to me, to us." Aleksei explained and saw Ayana's eyes water at the thought. She would give almost anything to have her friend back.

Almost anything, but she was in Aleksei's eyes that he was willing to give up everything in this world to bring Theo back, and it scared her. He would really leave the whole world to burn if it meant getting Theo back, even if after that there would be no world left to live in.

Aleksei placed his open palms over the bowl and put every last bit of his strenghts into separating the angel blood from the rest of it.

After some time and a lot of effort there were a few droplets of golden blood levitating in mid air, amitting a strange glow all around.

"Put the sword underneath them." Aleksei instructed and Ayana did so, holding the blade just below the few levitating droplets.

Aleksei let them fall and the sword stood upright on it's own. The strage figure appeared before him again.

He had not taken a good look at it the first time he saw it but now he could see that it had no face and it's body was covered in wounds and gashes, all of them still bleeding. Of course, the curse inside of the weapon takes the same blows as the weapon itself, only the curse cannot heal so it is left bleeding and hurting forever. That is why they are so bitter and demand such high sacrifices.

"What is it that you want? If you do not have the price I named you have disturbed me for nothing." the smoke formation spoke. Well more like echoed.

"I have an offering, something much better then thousands of the souls. A soul and blood of one angel." Aleksei offered.

Ayana let out an audiable gasp, she knew he would do it without desitation but saying it out loud sounded so wrong.

"The blood of an angel? Are you truly ready to kill a creature so divine and pure, for the sake of one little human?" the smoke asked him.

"You have no idea, the things I would do for that one human." Aleksei answered.

"Interesting." the smoke said. The formation turned around and took a look at Theo, who seemed to get just the tiniest spark of colour in his cheeks.

"Is it enough?" Aleksei asked again forcefully.

The formation turned back around to look at him before speaking again. "It will be."

"Can he be brought back? Just for a moment?" Aleksei asked before the formation disappeared.

The smoke figure seemed intrigued at the question, it's faceless head turned to observe Theo once more, before facing Aleksei again. "At a price, as everything else."

"Name it." Aleksei said firmly.

"A fair exchange, you give me a soul, and I give you your human back for a day and a minute. Seem fair?" it asked.

"Very. Ayana, call up the spy prisoner." Aleksei ordered.

"Why not her?" the curse cut in.

"Because, a soul is a soul, all the same to you who it came from." Aleksei simply said, sounding as if he were in a terrible rush.

"My lord-... You don't mean..." Ayana stuttered.

"Go!" the king yelled and the small girl ran out.