PROLOGUE II

Ancestra felt no danger as she rushed to the village, but just in case she did run on all fours like a dog to help her arrive sooner.

'Johannes looked scared…' She thought. Closing her eyes and relying on her instinct to guide her, she listened carefully to her heart to assess her emotions.

Thump. Thump.

Thump. Thump.

Two beats in succession, pausing for a small moment, and another two beats. Her dad told her it was normal to have this pattern, but…

'I wonder if Johannes' is beating faster…' Ancestra sighed then shook her head.

'No time to be distracted. They might be in danger now and I'm just halfway to the village.' She shrugged and forced her limbs to go even faster.

Ancestra didn't have a firm grasp on time. For all she knew, it had already been past five minutes. For all she knew they'd already died. The thought sent chills down her spine. She wondered if she had Light magic that can heal wounds like her mother's as she went faster.

The parents in the village were all outside, looking around for their kids. They even had a small feast ready for the children. Ancestra bit her lip. Zanien was the first to spot Ancestra rushing into the village like she's a dog.

"Ancy, sweetie! Where've you been? Where's the kids?" asked Zanien, kneeling down and wiping Ancestra's sweat.

"They're… at the border of… Xenaron… and I think… demons…" Ancestra tried to explain, but she fell on the ground by her backside due to exhaustion.

"What?! Xenaron?!" Zanien exclaimed, looking at the direction where Ancestra came from.

"…!" When she did, the feeling of fear struck the peach-haired angel. Her three hidden sets of wings on her revealing themselves in response to the danger.

"…Mom?" Ancestra looked at her mom when she didn't speak after she shouted. The same look of fear that Johannes had was now in her mother's usually brilliant and chipper expression.

"Armaros! Sinsear found us!" She shouted to the male, who just came outside the house. Upon the mention of the name, the father's expression went from lax to grave in a heartbeat.

"There's kids in the border of Xenaron, and she's planning to kill them!" Zanien shouted, the urgency in her voice enough to shake Ancestra. Armaros vanished in an instant, and only the gust of wind could tell that he went ahead to save the kids with his daughter's tracks on the dead soil to use as a guide.

'Kill…?' was the only word she remembered from her mother's shouting. Her eyes widened like saucers, but her mind was eerily still. She was reminded wounds and the blood on Julie's body. Going unnoticed, a small bud was planted somewhere in her body.

"Mom…?" Ancestra tugged on her mother's silver white sleeves. Zanien found her having the same expression she had when Julie was dying in her arms.

"It'll be alright, little Ancy. Mom and Dad are here. No one will die." softly comforted the mother, stroking Ancestra's raven hair.

"Johannes…" Ancestra tried to speak.

"Johannes? The little blonde boy? Ragnar's child?" asked Zanien.

"He said… I should go and… warn you and Dad…" Ancestra continued shakily.

"And… he… he said he'd… try and protect everyone…" the little girl finished, burying her shock into her mother's chest.

"…!" Zanien felt her heart stop for a moment.

"Dear, look at me." Zanien cupped her daughter's cheeks. She tried to hide the fear in her expression with a strained smile.

"Mom… wait…" Ancestra had a feeling that-

"I have to help Armaros. Protect the village when we're away, okay?" Zanien kissed her on the forehead. The mother stood up and pulled Ancestra to stand up with her.

"Remember the meaning of your name, and what your father and I taught you. I'll cook you a meat steak when we come back, okay?" Zanien hugged her child, her eyes watering. Before Ancestra could notice, she wiped her eyes. Zanien let go of her daughter and proceeded to fly with haste to follow Armaros.

"Mom…! N-No…!" Ancestra tried to reach out to her mother's back, decorated with three sets of dove white wings. A feather fell from one of them, which the little girl caught. It was weightless and looked beautiful. However, whenever she looked at it, her eyes welled up with tears.

She looked around her and found the village parents in a small cluster in front of her. Their expressions were mixed with worry and fear when they heard the name Sinsear.

"Do you know anything about this, Elena?" asked one of the fathers.

"A-about what?" the girl stuttered.

"That you and the other kids planned to go to the border."

"T-they only told me after they planned…" She admitted.

"…" the father lapsed into silence.

"We can't really blame you…" He said, rubbing his chin with his hand.

"Where's Johannes? My boy!" A red-haired six-foot male with bulging muscles came out from one of the houses.

"Ragnar, you idiot! Haven't you heard yet?" one of the mothers shouted at him.

"What, does it involve Johannes?" asked the male.

"Yes it does! He and the other kids are at the border of Xenaron!"

"WHAT?! MY BOY, IN THE BORDER OF XENARON?!" Ragnar repeated, surprised.

"Ancestra here came back to warn us by your boy's suggestion." said the mother.

"Little Ancy did?" Ragnar neared the small girl. He knelt down and looked into her ruby eyes.

"Do you want to save them like Johannes is trying right now?" He asked softly, but the weight of his words was enough to crush the little girl.

"I-I…" Ancestra stuttered. Ragnar was disappointed.

"Do you have a good mother?" asked Ragnar.

"Y-Yes…" Ancestra weakly replied.

"Louder. Do you, Ancestra Elena Enicillis, daughter of Zanien Esentaria, have a good mother?!" shouted Ragnar.

"I-I do!" Ancestra replied in surprise.

"Do you have a good father?" asked Ragnar again.

"I do!" Ancestra replied, more resolute this time.

"Tell me his name." said Ragnar.

"Armaros Gennaha!" Ancestra spoke.

"Tell me one thing they taught you." commanded Ragnar.

"My mother taught me the meaning of my name, and my father taught me that strength without control is a mad beast, while strength with control is discipline!" She matched the strong orange eyes of the large, red-haired male with her young, crimson eyes.

"…" Ragnar glared hard at Ancestra.

"…" Ancestra returned the glare.

"Then no matter what happens, you will save them. Am I right, or do you prove Ragnar's words wrong?" asked the male.

"I will save them." Ancestra breathed in, and out. The fear and emotions she was experiencing earlier were now gone. It was replaced with ferocity and calmness.

"Then I will protect the village. You help your parents out there." Ragnar scooped the little girl with his hand, picking her up from her stomach with his hand. Her waist was wide enough for him to grip.

"Be careful when you land, little Ancy." He warned the little girl.

"What?" asked Ancestra, before Ragnar threw her into the skies like a javelin, piercing through the cloudy sky.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!!! I'M FLYING!" Ancestra screamed out of excitement instead of fear. She couldn't remove her arms from her sides from the speeds that she was flying.

If anything, its miles faster than her travelling back to the village from the border. The nearer she got; she could sense the creeping feeling of fear. Maybe not as hard as Johannes and her parents, but Ancestra could finally relate to them, even just a little bit.

When she lost speed, she started to descend down. The feeling of wind brushing past her was stronger when falling compared to rising. In a few seconds, she could see the dead soil moments before landing. Dipping her head and flipping her legs to turn her body to land feet first, she planted her feet strongly after sliding on the ground.

Her legs feeling the stress and tension of muscular pain, she immediately scanned her surroundings. Ancestra almost screamed from what she saw. Torn limbs, small bodies torn in half, and blood scattered everywhere. She could only hope that they aren't who she thought they are.

The air was still, and imminent danger could come around any corner. It didn't help that her vison was blocked by a barrier of fog which was not here earlier. The silence was filled out by Ancestra hearing her own heartbeat, which for anybody did not help. But they're not Ancestra.

The little raven-haired girl treaded carefully with her hands balled into fists. Due to the fog, the sounds of what seems to be battle was spread around her, making it hard for her to figure out where it was she needed to go. While her eyes were closed, her small legs bumped into something. She opened her eyes.

"…!" Ancestra jumped back and tripped on herself, seeing Lucius' clothes. It was full of scratches, soaked in the dried blood of his headless body. Her eyes widened in surprise, her breath escaping into a small gasp. And just as it went out of her lips, a large claw swung itself at her direction.

Her body moved faster than her mind can process it. Ducking and rolling out of the way, Ancestra scraped the ground to find her balance. After getting on her feet, a large mass was already on top of her just a meter away from crushing the small girl. Her footing uneven, she failed to get enough distance when she jumped out of the way.

Her left foot got caught with one of the towering black creature's limbs, effectively crushing it with a disgusting sound.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!" Ancestra's heartbreaking scream of pain rung out to the entire foggy wasteland. She felt her body heat up exponentially due to the surge of adrenaline. She tried to get of the crushing palm that incapacitated her only to have her senses thrown upside down.

She was lifted by her broken foot upward and spun around for her to see who or what it was. The thing that grabbed her feet she could not describe, the primary reason being that her feet was crushed and all she could feel was broken bones poking and lacerating the tissues and muscles. She grits her teeth to bear the pain, tears streaking down her eyes and falling to the ground.

The creature before her looked to have the head of a wolf with the jaw size of a mutant crocodile, with human body-looking muscles and limbs, with claws as long as shortswords. It had glowing red eyes that could devour a normal person, as if their towering size and height wasn't enough.

The beast scoffed the pain, the impact of her kick at the very least enough for the seven-foot tall beast to unhand her. It didn't even seem to faze the beast before her. Though she couldn't move as effectively as she wanted to, it was better than her being neck deep into the jaws of death. The beast lunged at her with terrifying speeds she could only dream to keep up with.

Jumping to the side with all the strength she could muster, she almost forgot that one of her feet was crushed. And when she landed on that foot and accidentally gave it force, it spurted out blood.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!" Ancestra screamed helplessly in pain once again, feeling her vision becoming grayer. Her heartbeat pulsated faster and faster as she saw the beast run at her with bloodlust. She thought she was dead. These demons were far more than she could handle.

'I'm sorry…' Ancestra thought. She slowly blinked her eyes, feeling her strength leave her body.

Until a piercing pole of light eviscerated the beast in one instant. She saw it crash and slide towards her until its snout touched her other foot. After that, she closed her eyes due to weakness, the coldness of the environment becoming in sync with her own temperature. Her fair skin tone rapidly lost color due to exhaustion and blood loss.

For what seemed to be an eternity, warmth and relief surges her body. Slowly opening her eyes, a peach-haired woman with a worried expression greeted her vision. She seemed to be shouting something.

"…cy! An…! Ple… n't… ie…" Ancestra almost couldn't hear anything, but she recognized this voice. It was the voice that told her to remember the meaning of her name. Zanien, her mother.

"Oh god, Ancy!" Zanien's face was warped in worry as she exhausted her magic into healing Ancestra's wounds. She exerted a dizzying amount of magic to return Ancestra's broken foot to normal. If it was merely dislocated this wouldn't be as taxing, but her broken foot was one step away from becoming unrecognizable.

"Please wake up, dear…" The mother pleaded, sweating profusely due to the amount of mana she's burning.

"How is she?" Armaros asked, looking around the area for potential threats.

"Her skin was pale earlier, but she's somewhat fine now. Have you seen Sinsear yet?" asked the angel.

"Not yet, I'm afraid. All she's sent are Oberon's pawns. You're exhausted, aren't you? Rest for now. Take care of Ancestra. I need to look for her." Armaros combed Zanien's flowing hair to comfort her,

"I swear I'll come and assist you when Ancestra's come to. Hang in there, Armaros." Zanien smiled at him, before he took off. Ancestra coughed a bit of blood, her broken foot already back to its unbroken state. She blinked slowly, the crimson in her eyes returning.

"Oh, Ancestra, sweetie you're safe! Oh thank God…" Zanien breathed a sigh of relief, combing her daughter's raven locks to provide comfort.

"…Mom?" weakly spoke Ancestra, trying to stand up. Zanien didn't even have to use force to prevent the girl from doing so.

"Don't push yourself, sweetie. You just almost died. I'm so glad I found you…" Zanien hugged her daughter firmly, hearing sounds of battle nearby. She warily kept watch in the direction she heard the sounds. A terrifying roar occasionally pierces through the fog around them.

"I… couldn't… save…" Ancestra tried to speak, warm tears streaking down her cheeks. Zanien stroked the girl's back.

"You tried, dear. Even we couldn't come fast enough to save them." Zanien bitterly admitted.

"Is… Johannes anywhere…? Is he… safe…?" Ancestra pushed Zanien away from the embrace a little, looking at her mother.

"I'm afraid I couldn't see him anywhere, Ancy. I'm sorry." Zanien apologized, hugging her daughter.

"Oh…" was all Ancestra could say.

The dead soil rumbled from a strike so strong that it blew away all the fog. Ancestra saw large, black bodies scattered around all over the place, the same as the one who broke her foot. Limbs, torn body parts, and blood of the other children were scattered around the place. She could recognize all of them, and as a child, there was almost nothing as horrible as this.

"Don't look, Ancestra! This isn't something a child to see!" Zanien hugged and buried Ancestra into her chest, looking around for Armaros and Sinsear, the one hunting them. Or more specifically, two.

The ground vibrated once more, but this time in intervals. Like someone or something is walking on it. Armaros was a six-foot male with a good physique, but not as robust and bulky as Ragnar. However, the one Armaros is fighting, rather, the two, are larger than them combined.

Standing at nine feet, hunched down to seven and a half feet, is Sinsear, a dragonoid. Dragonoids are the human versions of the Dragon race, considered to be superior to their ancestors. And before Armaros, a mere archdemon, stands against one of the Three Collectors.

"Hiiiiii~" A cheery, sticky, and childish female voice rung out from Sinsear, or more precisely behind him. Out from the dragonoid's scaly shoulders popped a blonde, red-eyed devil with large protruding horns. She wore an ornate black set of armor that was fitted to a dress, with dark, raven-feathered wings that was darker than the shadows. She had a betraying innocent smile.

"Liuth Sinsear, at your service~" hopped the fallen angel down from Adabbon, instantly appearing before the mother and daughter.

"Don't touch them, Sinsear!" Armaros bellowed with a loud voice.

"Adabbon, if you can, please~" Sinsear commanded the dragonoid, bringing down a swift claw on Armaros.

"SINSEAR!" Armaros shouted strongly, giving Adabbon a rage filled punch in the stomach, forcing the dragonoid to its knees.

"Don't get your panties in a twist, Arma, I won't do anything~" Sinsear teased in a menacing manner, kneeling down to Ancestra. The dragonoid led Armaros away from the three women, the father unable to do anything to either defeat this beast in front of him or risk his life getting the fallen angel off his wife and child.

"You look reaaaally adorable~ I love your eyes, they're the same as me~! You see, Zanien? Do you see that we both have preeeetty red eyes~?" Sinsear pressed Zanien, who was looking at her in fear. She nodded in fear, but Sinsear wasn't exactly wrong.

'Ancestra…' Zanien held her daughter tighter.

Ancestra, the girl in subject, was still buried in her mother's chest. So how did Sinsear see her eyes? Ancestra broke into a cold sweat, her body lightly trembling in the face of a higher power, higher than her parents combined.

"As per the Contractor's bounty on the Archangel of Light and the Power Grudge Archdemon, I will be collecting your heads~ is that fine, Zan?~" The weight of the fallen angel's words were not proportionate to how spunky and positive her tone was, creating a contrast that is eerie and provoking. It didn't help that she asked permission to one of the bounties herself to present them a choice.

"…As long as you don't hurt my little girl." Zanien gulped, feeling belittled and underestimated. Sinsear isn't presenting a choice; she was letting her know that no matter where they hid or ran, she will still find her. And the impossibility of it being so slim sent shivers down the peach-haired angel's back.

"Mmmm~… Well, she's hella cute, so sure~ why not~?" Sinsear agreed easily.

"Alriiiight~ please crane your head forward or backward as you see fit~ I'd like a clean separation from your neck and head, y'know, just to keep things clean~" Sinsear chuckled from happiness, while Ancestra shook like a brittle patch of makeshift sticks being blown away by a tornado.

Zanien craned her neck forward, burying her face into Ancestra's hair. She closed her eyes. Zanien remembered all the times she and her daughter had bonded together, ever since she was in her belly, the first time she gripped her slender finger, when she taught her how to crawl and walk, to speak… Tears flowed from her eyes as she sobbed. Soon, she started crying.

"M… M-Mom…?" Ancestra blurted out nervously, another bad feeling she notices. No, this was worse. It was levels worse than when she saw her mother leave to go here. It was… much worse.

"Okaaaay~~ Don't move now, this might be bloody~" Sinsear had her hand straightened like it was a blade, waving it sharply at Zanien's neck in one fluid motion. Like hot knife through butter. Maybe even worse. Like a sharpened blade through human skin.

'Remember your name, Ancestra. I love you. Always.' Ancestra heard her mother's voice in her mind. She jerked her head up, to see Zanien smiling. From her neck slowly spilled blood, and the child could see every passing second of her mother's head falling into her hands.

Ancestra's eyes widened.

Her throat felt dry.

Her mind was blank.

She was unable to comprehend what just happened in the past few seconds.

"Ah…" A small cry came from Ancestra's lips.

"Ahh… Ahhh… ahhh… M-m… mo… mom…?" Ancestra could not believe what just happened. She cannot believe what just happened. She turned the head in her hands to face her. She was still smiling, but one thing was different. There was no more life in her shining golden eyes.

Zanien is dead.

Beheaded by Sinsear, her head in the hands of Ancestra, her innocent daughter.

"Alright~ thank you for your cooperation Zan~! Ahhhhhh~ I love it when they die peacefully, no extra work for lil' ol' Sinny~"

"SINSEAR!!!!!! YOU BITCH!" Armaros screamed in rage, charging at the fallen angel at an unprecedented speed.

"Y'know~? Like this one~" Sinsear complained, waving her hand just when Armaros was about to make contact with her. His body flew into Zanien's headless corpse and Ancestra's shaking body, toppling, and covering them as he was cut in half so cleanly.

"Haaaaaah~ as much as I love passionate men like you, Arma, y'all are really just kinda, annoying, y'know~?" Sinsear sighed, walking over to cut his head like it was her past time.

"Ancy, was it?~ What a nice nickname~ I'm sorry, but I'll be taking your parents and, uh, well…~" Sinsear walked to the three, bowing down to look at Ancestra in her stunned, confused state.

"I'll be wiping Man's Last whatever from the map, aight~? Also I'll take your arm since I can't kill ya. Have fun, ya hear? Come and get me if you can~" Sinsear then left with Adabbon, his large and heavy steps shaking the dead soil until they walked far enough for the small earthquakes to quiet down.

Ancestra laid there, bathed in her parents' blood, surrounded by her father's insides.

She was too surprised and shocked to cry, so she laid there.

Unmoving.

Her eyes welled up with countless amounts of tears, blurring her vision.

She cried silently until she was too tired and fell asleep.

In the midst of the once merry family of three, a rose made of blood blossoms into life.