I ask myself the same thing…
How did it turn out this way?
The walls around Seraphine shattered violently as she fell, unable to control the awkward, unfamiliar weight of her wings. They flailed uselessly, throwing her off balance as she plunged from the rooftop of the four-story school building.
Glass burst into the air like glittering shrapnel. Metal and wood shrieked as the building twisted, cracked, and collapsed inward, like gravity itself had blinked off for a moment, and the world had forgotten how to hold itself together.
It started with… I think—
Thud.
Her back struck the ground with bone-cracking force. Jagged wood, broken concrete, and twisted metal rushed down to meet her. A thick rod of rebar tore through her thigh, as the pain flashed sharp and cold. Her breath vanished in a flash of pure pain and agony.
Her wings snapped instantly on impact, and the bright halo above her head chipped, its glow sputtering.
She tried to scream out in pain, but nothing came out. Only gasping, ragged breaths and blood escaped her lips.
More rubble fell. Larger. Heavier. Pounding her limbs, her ribs, her stomach. Until a steel beam fell from the top floor, and crushed her chest with a sickening crunch. Her bones shattered like glass with each blow.
The crushing weight on her chest, along with her fractured ribs piercing her lungs, rendering Seraphene unable to breathe, just as she felt what's left of her lungs fill up with blood.
She tried—tried to open her eyes one last time, to at least try to remain conscious. But her vision was stained red, her world blurry and drowned in warmth. Her thoughts slowed as the pain of being crushed dulled her senses.
...It was the halo?
"Seraphine!!"
I-I never should've signed that contract… What was I even thinking? Rotting in purgatory would've been better than this… That furry little fuck…
"Seraphine, call out to me!"
Why couldn't it just let me die…?
"I'm coming, just hang in there!"
Metal clinked and clattered somewhere above her, faint but growing louder.
"I CAST… REMOVAL!!"
They abandoned me… What was I meant to do!?
The noise shifted—grinding and scraping echoed in the dark, followed by a sudden stop in the sound of splintering wood.
I had to take it… I wasn't strong enough for the withdrawals; they were too much!
"Please! Call out to me!"
It's their fault... They're the reason I'm here!
"Ahhh! Damn it!"
I should've used a fucking shotgun!! Make sure I couldn't come back—even if I signed that damn contract!
Footsteps pounded above. Glass crunched under hurried movement, and the sound of moving debris.
Please, God… Or whatever you apparently are… I haven't prayed to you in years… But please…
"Oh Fuck!"
The sound of a chunky liquid splashing on stone, with her violently coughing just after.
"Come on… This has to work!"
A frenzy of rustling followed, sounding like glass bottles clinking together.
Please, God… Rid me of this immortality and let me die!!
"Please work…" Priscilla's voice murmured, followed by the soft sound of liquid being poured.
Is that…?
No—no, please…
Priscilla, don't!!
The massive pool of blood surrounding Seraphine began to retract, drawn back into her broken form. She gasped faintly as sensation returned—first a tingling, then a deep, unbearable pressure throughout her body.
A feral snapping echoed from within Seraphen as her bones shifted, cracked, and reknit. Each drop of that Holy Water was pulling her body inward, dragging each shattered piece into place.
The pain was blinding.
Her torso twisted violently, bones grinding with every convulsion, while her limbs spasmed in grotesque, instinctive jerks. Muscles reknit, tendons found their anchors again, and nerves flared back to life with a fire she could neither escape nor contain.
She winced, eyes fluttering open just in time to see the last of the blood vanish beneath her skin. A wet, rattling gasp tore through her as her lungs—crushed moments ago—inflated sharply, reclaiming air.
Her mouth opened wide, and she screamed—a raw, guttural sound of pain and rebirth that ripped through the air like a strike of lightning.
Her spine snapped straight with a sickening crack. Her chest reshaped itself first, followed by the rest of her upper torso, then her abdomen, and finally her limbs, each one jolting into alignment.
Priscilla stood frozen, watching the horror unfold. The bottle of holy water slipped from her trembling hands, clinking against the broken concrete floor—but somehow, the glass did not shatter.
The tremors wracking her body faded, and the violent convulsions ceased. Seraphine lay still—her form seemingly restored, though her leather jacket and jeans were left tattered from the collapse, but still held enough structure to remain on.
Then, with a sudden jolt, she sat upright and unmoved by the wreckage around them.
Then, without a second thought, Priscilla threw herself forward, wrapping Seraphine in a sideways embrace.
"I knew the holy water would work!" she cried, her voice trembling with joy and relief.
But Seraphine just stared ahead, her expression was blank and her eyes were distant, as if still trapped somewhere between worlds. A beat passed. Then another. Her right arm, caught in Priscilla's grasp, remained limp.
So slowly, her left hand rose.
She reached toward her halo. Her fingers closed around it, and she drew it down toward the sightline in front of her. The moment it passed her face, a soft shimmer of light folded inward—like a veil being pulled away. The chipped side and fleeting glow indicate its damage.
Her angelic form unravelled.
Gone were the radiant wings and divine glow.
Seraphine laid the halo beside her as she collapsed back onto the rubble, now just observing the sky as it cleared from its dark red-ish hue back into a beautiful sunset haze.
This ought to be a long contract…