Cherri blinked at the moaning angel on the ground. He had fallen from the sky, startling Cherri as she went about her night of negotiations with the faction heads. His scream had nearly given her a heart attack. “E-excuse me,” she said and prodded Pyre with her foot. “Are you alright, insane benefactor?”

“If no meant yes, I’d be fucking great,” Pyre said through gritted teeth. His arms were underneath his body, bent at odd angles, while bones protruded from his shins. “There’s a white orb in my bag. Take it out.”

Cherri bent down and rummaged through Pyre’s leather bag. Her brow furrowed before she turned it over, causing a mass of pipes, notebooks, and screaming plants to spill out. At the very top of the pile, there were three orbs: a gray one, a white one, and a red one. She picked up the white one. “This?” she asked and offered it to the sweating angel.

“Are you daft? Does it look like I can move my arms?” Pyre asked. “Squeeze it, point it at me, and inject mana into it.”

Cherri pursed her lips as she squeezed the orb. It glowed with a white light. “Uh, benefactor? It’s an orb. Which part of it do I point at you? All the sides are the same,” she said and rolled the orb around in her hand. Blood continued to pool out of Pyre’s body, the puddle oozing towards Cherri’s hooves.

A red wing smacked Cherri’s head, causing her to cry out. “Give it here,” Cory said as she snatched the orb out of the aggrieved centaur’s hand. The harpy held the orb over Pyre’s body and activated it. White tendrils snaked around the old angel’s limbs, correcting his bones and stitching his skin back together. The orb dulled as the light faded away. Cory snorted and tossed it at Cherri before placing her wings on her hips. “Was that so hard? You just have to use the right side. Gah, centaurs are so slow. I have to ask the harbinger to rethink her decision.”

Pyre dusted himself off as he stood up. He gathered up his pipes and the plants which were trying to crawl away before tying his bag around his waist again. “That was terrible,” he said and rubbed his chin. “I think I just found a new form of torture for those prisoners.”

“But you’ve done worse?” Cory asked and tilted her head. She was curious about Pyre’s methods once. Once. After the first time, she never went back to the prison. “Are broken bones really that much more painful?”

“No,” Pyre said. “I meant I should replace the dwarves in charge of healing with centaurs.”

“Oh,” Cory said. “The new commander is wise. Anyways, why were you trying to fly? You don’t have wings.” She muttered to herself. “I guess he isn’t very wise then…?”

“Palan and Raea are fighting up there,” Pyre said, ignoring Cory’s comment. “I suspect we’ll hear some loud explosions or curses very soon.” He pointed at Cherri. “Bring your archbishop here. I heard he’s adept at healing. Able to bring back the dead?”

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Cherri bit her lower lip. “The archbishop is currently resting in bed,” she said. “He overdrew his mana while helping Palan. Besides, Palan and Raea won’t hurt each other too badly, right?”

“It’s not for them,” Pyre said and rolled his eyes. “It’s for you. You think the ceiling will hold up if they seriously fight up there? You still haven’t cleaned up the scraps from earlier.” The half-angel gestured at the bloody rocks strewn about.

“B-but,” Cherri said as her shoulders hunched over. “The archbishop is really weak right now. He needs his rest.”

“Yeah, let him rest,” Cory said and nodded. Cherri’s eyes widened. She hadn’t expected the harpy to agree with her. “It’s better if no one’s around to revive the centaurs after they die. They’re already way too similar to cockroaches. No need to make them as resilient too.” The harpy nodded before preening herself.

Cherri stamped her foot on the ground and straightened her back. “I’ll bring the archbishop here right away!” she said and whirled around.

“Did you mean to do that?” Pyre asked Cory.

“Do what?”

Pyre shook his head. “Sometimes I can’t tell if you’re actually dumb or not,” he said.

“I’m not the one who tried to fly without wings,” Cory said and shrugged.

“Fair enough,” Pyre said as he rummaged through his bag. He discarded the pipes that had shattered on impact. It was a good thing he always carried spares. He found a nearby boulder to sit on where he could observe the stars through the hole in the ceiling and lit up a pipe.

“Why are the harbinger and her mate fighting?” Cory asked and tilted her head, perching next to Pyre. “That doesn’t make sense, does it?”

Pyre chuckled. “You see,” he said and lowered his pipe, “people don’t make sense. We’re all crazy. That’s what makes us normal.” The old angel shook his head. “Raea doesn’t need a reason to fight Palan other than teenaged angst. Palan acts logically in his own twisted way, but he can only act illogically when faced with Raea. What makes sense doesn’t matter. What matters is what is actually happening.”

Cory scratched her head with her talon. “I guess this is why you’re the new commander,” she said.

“Because I’m a genius,” Pyre said and breathed out purple smoke. “Why don’t you fly up there and check on the progress of the fight. Be careful though.”

“I’ll do that,” Cory said as she stood up and spread her wings. “There’s something mesmerizing about the harbinger’s powers. I want to watch.” She leapt into the air, speeding up the hole in the ceiling.

Unsteady footsteps caused Pyre to turn his head. The archbishop was wobbling over with Cherri’s support. “You called for me?” the archbishop asked while wincing.

“Just a precaution,” Pyre said and nodded.

“You know I can’t use my powers at the moment, right?”

“Not with that attitude,” Pyre said and snorted. He handed the archbishop a separate pipe and screaming plant along with his orb of wrath. “Smoke this for a bit. It’ll help you recover.” The archbishop made a strange expression, but he complied. His body stopped trembling as his eyes unfocused. Cherri bit her lower lip, refraining from speaking.

“Gah!”

Cory’s shout drew the trio’s attention towards the ceiling. Raea’s and Palan’s bodies fell to the ground with a sickening crack. “Holy moly, that was scary,” Cory said as she circled in the air before landing next to the two corpses. Her head tilted to the side as she nudged them with her talon, flapping her wings when a burst of flames jetted upwards from Raea’s chest. “Guys? Hey. Harbinger? You alright?” Her forehead wrinkled as she turned towards Pyre. “Uh…. I think they’re dead…?”