Moonless Nights

"Get lost, Isaana." Zagiha stood between her and Hana, crossing his arms. "I don't have time for your nonsense. There's a matter of life and death!"

"Life and death, eh? You're an awful liar." Isaana gave the peregrine falcon a little scratch on the head and stepped forward. "But it's not you I want to talk to. I don't negotiate with terrorists. I only want to exchange a few words with the girl."

"The girl?" Zagiha looked back at Hana. "What could she have to offer you? And how did you find us anyway?"

"Hmm." She smirked, and petted the falcon once more. "A little bird told me."

Hana suddenly made the connection. She remembered the falcon she saw back in the alley. She didn't think much of it at the time, but now it made sense. That bird followed them and reported back to its master.

"You stalked us?" snapped Zagiha. "Unbelievable! That's blatantly illegal!"

"Stalk is such a strong word, isn't it?" Isaana chuckled. "I prefer to phrase is as 'gathering intel.' It's not like you haven't used your Angel to spy on other Gods before."

"I'll get us out of here," Hana whispered to Zagiha. She raised her staff and chanted, "Oh Gods of the Earth and Sky, hear my prayer and bestow upon me your blessings: Lanua lanue!"

The stones glowed brilliant silver.

"De~nied. Womp womp womp!" At the very last millisecond, Isaana extended a finger and motioned toward the aura, pulling it forward like a thin thread. With a quick flick, she broke the thread and the magic destabilized, causing the glow surrounding the two to peter out. "I'm the Goddess who controls all magic in the world, remember? Do practice faster chanting, dear."

"This is the neutral zone!" Zagiha hissed. "And really, there's something urgent…!"

"Uh-huh." Unceremoniously, she grabbed him by the shoulder and flung him with extreme force into the wall. The bricks cracked and broke into dust, collapsing around him, burying him in a cloud of plaster and rubble. "Do men ever shut the hell up?"

Hana didn't answer her. She just stared at her moon-eyed in stunned silence.

"All right, now we can have our chat! Haamiah told me that someone told you some information about your brother's location." The falcon glared at her. "Why don't you share it with me, all right?"

"N-Never!" Hana ground her feet into the dirt and raised her staff, pointing it at the Goddess.

Isaana snorted. "What are you going to do with that, bonk me into submission? If you haven't noticed, I've got the upper hand here."

"I'll never tell you a thing!" Hana growled. "I don't know why, but you want to kill my brother."

"It's the best thing for the sake of this world."

"What could he do to endanger it?"

"All right." Isaana let out a deep breath. "I tried playing good cop. Now let's be bad cop. If you won't tell me nicely, then I'll just have to force it out of you!"

With a few more gestures, she pulled several strings from the surrounding plants and buildings. They glowed a rainbow of hues. Unraveling them from their sources, she shot them at Hana, wrapping them around her neck. They tightened.

"Now be a good kid and spit it out, huh?"

"N-No!" she gasped.

"Ugh." The magical threads tightened some more, and more, and more…

A blur rocketed out from the pile of rubble and punched Isaana in the face, sending her flying back a couple meters. She lost control of the threads, releasing Hana. She fell to the ground, gasping for air. Zagiha landed on three limbs. He wiped the blood off his face with his free hand. "You ruined my outfit," he said.

Isaana stumbled, steadying herself by slamming her foot against a wall. It disintegrated at the force. "Leave it to you to go for the sucker punch." She grinned through a bleeding mouth. "So you intend to fight me?"

Zagiha stood up. There was a flash of sparkling light, and a giant mallet appeared in his hands. "You already declared it," he said. He brought it down, just stopping halfway.

"Ziggy the nerd's challenging me to a duel. Never thought I'd see the day." Isaana reached into her boot and pulled out her dagger. "So much for the neutral zone."

"That agreement was waived the moment you attacked me." He span around, swinging the mallet at her. Isaana jumped up and dodged, landing a side swipe on him. Zagiha braced himself and retaliated with another swing, but Isaana kicked him in the stomach, forcing him back again. Grinning wildly, she whipped out the dagger and slashed at his throat. Zagiha reacted in time, turning so that his cheek took the damage instead.

"You're slow, Ziggy!" Isaana mocked, throwing a flurry of bladed punches at him. Zagiha blocked them by crossing his arms, wincing in pain every time they landed. Every time she jabbed, she forced him back a little. "You fool! You're the weakest fighter out of the eight of us! And I'm one of the best. You should know you couldn't win a fight against me." She sneered, drilling a front punch between his eyes. But this time, Zagiha was prepared. He caught her arm and twisted it roughly, pivoting to the side and throwing her into the air. Summoning his weapon, he repaid the earlier favor by striking her in the gut, walloping her upwards.

Isaana flipped in midair, landing on the edge of a building's roof. With a savage smirk, she launched herself back at him with unbelievable power. Zagiha was quick enough to avoid the brunt of the blow, but she caught him by the foot. Zagiha gasped in pain and grabbed her ponytail, jerking it back as he laid punches and kicks into her, tumbling into the dirt.

"I might be the worst fighter," he spat, shoving his boot into her neck while he yanked out her hair, "but I'm the cleverest, and you were wide open."

"Why?" she gasped. "So you intend to protect the boy? You know as well as I do his destiny! I knew it." Isaana smirked, despite his vicious onslaught. "You're exactly who I thought you were. Well then. I'm going to exterminate the harbinger Silvio Sabatka and seal you away so you can't destroy anything else!"

"No matter what you say, I'm not that person!" Zagiha cried. Isaana kneed him, freeing herself, and she stood back up, preparing her stance.

"Then why are you constantly getting so close to that girl?" She jabbed her thumb at Hana. "You know who she is! You know what she can do! Every time, you're the one by her side first!" She dodged another swing of his mallet, striking him in the hip.

"Because! It's because!" he stammered, retaliating by stomping on her foot.

What were they talking about? Hana wondered. What sort of nonsense were they going on about? But what she knew was she had to do something. Zagiha was losing.

"Hah! Of course I know already!" Isaana turned his weapon against him plowing it into his c.h.e.s.t. Grabbing his legs, she threw him upwards, jumping high into the sky to pummel him back into the ground. "Zagiha, you sentimental old fool! You're protecting Silvio because his sister's your replacement goldfish!" She guffawed, laying into him with her high heels. "You know that this Hana's not YOUR Hana!" She stomped on him over and over again. "You know, Ziggy, we're a lot alike. I'm basically you, but better. You know why that is?" She lifted him up by the collar and spat in his face. "Because you love humans, Zagiha. I don't. You form precious relationsh.i.p.s with them and adore them, but it's useless! They just die, Zagiha! We outlive them all, so there's no use fussing over any of them! What's the point?"

"I know that!" he howled, shoving her away. "I know they're here for only a short time compared to us, but if I was able to love them at all, I'd never consider that a waste! You're the pathetic one, and you've picked this idiotic fight when there are lives at stake!"

"Oh? So you care about human lives that don't directly benefit you now? That's news to me. After all, who was the one that started the Continental War five hundred years ago?"

"I…" Zagiha returned blows, but Isaana blocked them all.

"Thousands of people died back then, and it was all your fault. You don't like humans. Only a few who are willing to like a bitter husk such as you back. Because why did you start the conflict? Because you were mad people weren't worshiping you! I mean, I was the one who put an end to your senseless carnage." She punched him in the face.

"You think I don't regret that?" he screamed, grabbing at her throat. He couldn't reach it. "Humans can change, and they've taught me that I can, too! But you haven't changed. You're still the same ruthless bitch you were way back when!"

"Keep telling yourself that, Zig-zags." Isaana locked him in a half-nelson. "But there's no way you could ever redeem yourself for what you did. The only reason you protect humans now is to ease your conscience. Once more, you use them for your own selfish purposes. At least I'm not self-righteous like you."

He glared at her with his bruised and swollen face, but he didn't have a reply.

"And this girl, you're using her to fill the void in your heart as usual, even if it means endangering everyone else." Isaana kicked him in the eye, and he stumbled backwards, slumping against a wall. "But that's precisely what you want." She kicked him again. "It feeds into your plans perfectly, destroyer!" Again. "Deceiver!" Again. "Murderer!" And again.

Zagiha was helpless against her.

"I'm going to lock you back in the Celestial Realm, so you can't plunge this world into flames ever again, False One!" Grabbing her knife, she lunged it at his c.h.e.s.t.

… Only for it to be knocked out of her hand fifteen meters away by a silver streak of light.

Isaana dropped Zagiha and turned, making eye-contact with Hana, her knees shaking, her staff still smoking.

"R-Remember me?"

"Good aim, Girl Sabatka!" Isaana chirped. "You were always one of my most talented students. You seem a little rusty, though. You could've overtaken your uncle in raw magical ability had you stayed at my Temple."

"I'll never worship you," Hana spat. "I don't care about being the best at magic. I just want my brother back! Why do you have to interfere? You did your job, now leave us alone!"

Isaana huffed. "Hana Sabatka, you do realize you're defending the False One, right? You know the guy? Destroyer of humanity, incinerator of worlds?"

"Zagiha-sa is not the False One!" Hana shouted. "If he were the False One, he wouldn't be trying to protect the people, but it's probably too late now, and it's all because of you! And there's no war, so why would the False One awaken?"

"You moron! You absolute moron! That's what the False One does. He tricks, lies, and turns you against your friends!"

"You...!"

Suddenly, a humongous beam of light flared down from the heavens to the battlefield.

Both Hana and Isaana span around, shocked.

The light encapsulated Zagiha, his hands pressed together as if in prayer. A golden halo surrounded him.

"Oh, you dirty dog," Isaana said. "So you're going to use 'that.'"

Zagiha didn't reply. His eyes glowed and the light twisted into the shape of a complex mandala, folding around him. There was another blinding flash of light, and the mandala covered the sky. Zagiha floated in midair. He looked far different than usual. His hair shone brighter, his eyes glowed, and a pair of ethereal golden wings trailed out beyond him.

"Releasing your true form?" Isaana guffawed. "How cheap. But all lawyers are slime balls, I guess." She crouched down to jump, but when she released, they didn't leave the floor. She tried again, but once more she failed. She couldn't move. Isaana looked around in alarm. From the center of the mandala, there came a tracking beam. And it aimed directly at her. "Gah!" For the first time, she lost her composure. "Haamiah! Obey your master! Destroy the False One!"

The peregrine falcon, all this time perched upon a rusty support beam, obliged and flew down, twisting and distorting into something unrecognizable. And it grew bigger and bigger until it was as large as the buildings.

The bird turned into a monstrous abomination, with twenty sets of wings and a gaping maw slobbering right in the center of the chaos. It shrieked a terrible shriek and launched an attack at Zagiha.

Aren't Angels supposed to be pretty? Hana thought.

Zagiha didn't flinch. He drew his weapon and at the speed of light, dodged its attack and summoned his weapon, swinging it 360 degrees. And this time, a golden laser extended from it, destroying every building in the area.

"Praesidio!" Hana barely cast the shield spell before the rubble crushed her.

But the Angel, Haamiah, wasn't so lucky. The beam sliced it in half, and with another shriek, it disintegrated into specks of light.

"Why, you…!" This time, Isaana summoned her own weapon, the bow and arrows. Fletching all of them at once, she sent a volley of them at him. Again, faster than anyone could blink, he dodged them all.

Cuts appeared all over Isaana's body and she screamed in pain. "What is this? What sort of power…?"

"Capital punishment, " he replied. "If you continue to attack me, your body will break down into a pile of limbs and gore." Zagiha pointed at the tracking beam. "But blood, ugh! Disgusting! I'll just annihilate you myself!" Lifting his hand, he activated it. "See you in a few weeks."

But at that moment, something went very wrong. The mandala shattered and returned the sky to its natural color. His wings broke apart as well, and the glow surrounding him fizzled into nothingness. Zagiha's body went limp, and he crashed to the ground.

"Ah-ha!" Isaana broke free from her bonds and walked up to him. Zagiha struggled to get up, but he only had the strength to flail around a few times before collapsing. "Baby Gods like us don't have the power to be in that state for long. And look what happens when you use that ability." She nudged him with her foot. He didn't respond. "Ziggy, the winner of the duel isn't the one who shows the most raw power. It's the one who doesn't tire out. I'll take you out in just a second. But first, the little nuisance."

Isaana drew more magical energy from the environment and formed it into a ball of energy, pulsating above her outstretched palm. She canceled the shield spell and aimed the ball at Hana.

Hana flinched.

Her voice trembled. She knew she had no chance winning against Isaana, but she had to stand her ground somehow. "Oh Gods of the Land and Sky, hear my prayer and bestow upon me your blessings…"

"Hana is using Silva magnificentium," said Zagiha. His voice barely sounded above a whisper, but both of them heard it.

What? Hana thought. A spell that made fruit tastier? WHAT?

But Isaana seemed to buy it, hook, line, and sinker. She laughed out loud. "Hana? Really? Silva magnificentium won't do anything in a fight!"

"… Claras ardeat!"

A strong silver beam blew her off her feet.

"… Eh?"

"Hana doesn't need to chant the mantra before casting spells," Zagiha said.

"Of course!" replied Isaana. "Nobody needs that dumb mantra." She cast the barrier field that was used during the duel with the Lord Superior. "Wait… what? What did you make me do?"

What was going on? Hana was confused, but she used to opportunity to knock Isaana back with another Claras ardeat.

"This spell is Auris vermis," Zagiha continued.

"What? That makes rocks sing smooth jazz." Isaana buckled over in laughter. "Useless! Remember your education, Girl Sabatka!" And she still laughed even as she was buffeted around.

"These spells aren't hurting you."

"… These spells aren't…"

The effect wore off for a moment, and Isaana returned to seriousness. "You…!" she screamed. "How dare you use that power against me! I…!"

"Hana's using Et rosea."

Hana understood now. Somehow, Zagiha was using his magic to convince Isaana that Hana was using useless spells when in reality, she was attacking her. He lied, but she was compelled to believe him.

Isaana couldn't stop laughing at Zagiha's suggestions, believing with all her heart Hana was a complete idiot while vines held her down and pebbles pummeled her. With Zagiha's words and Hana's magic, they dealt rapid-fire damage.

But the moment Zagiha became tongue-tied, she snapped out of it.

"Enough!" Isaana shouted, and she broke free of the vines. Summoning her weapon once more, she shot an arrow at Zagiha. It slashed across his throat, cleaving his tongue apart. Crying out in pain, he writhed on the ground, blood spilling all over. "I should've taken you out first. Oh well. Okay, Hana, you've had your fun. Time to be disciplined!"

Zagiha's body glitched like a hologram.

In her peripheral vision, Hana saw someone creep from the shadows. Was that… Professor Ffion? Was she here to land the killing blow? No… Ffion was far too gentle with that. Hana decided to gamble, and distracted Isaana by raising her staff once more.

"Your Holiness!" Ffion whispered to Zagiha. "Don't let your physical form destabilize. Or else that's it for her!" Zagiha glanced at Hana, and he nodded in understanding, unable to speak. "Will medicinal herbs help heal a God?" she asked. He shook his head. Ffion wrung her hands. "I'm sorry about my mistress. She's very… but I can't sit around and let her do something this cruel! Oh, what do I do? What do I do?" She looked at the staff in her hand and pressed it against Zagiha's body. "I've never tried this spell before, so here goes… Translato imperium!" And with that, the enchanted stones in her staff glowed pink, and transferred some of her magical power into him. His tongue healed and his wounds repaired themselves slightly. But that was all Ffion could do. No human had enough magic to sustain a God.

It was enough. Zagiha stumbled to his feet.

"Thank you," he said. "Now get out of here before she notices you betrayed her!" Ffion nodded and teleported away.

Zagiha summoned his hammer while Hana had Isaana engaged in battle. But instead of striking the Goddess, he drove it with all his might into the ground, sending a thick cloud of dirt into the air. It obscured everything. Zagiha dashed forward and grabbed Hana, stifling her coughs with his arm as they retreated.

"What are you doing?" she asked when he let go.

"Running and hiding!" he said. "There's no way we can beat her! For now, let's alert the Capitol District."

Hana looked up at him. Zagiha still bled, and she was so tired from casting she barely held on to her staff.

"But where are we going?"

He dashed out of the slums, galloping through the streets into an affluent area Hana never visited before. "Here," he said. He smacked open the door to a law firm and hurried them inside, slamming it shut behind him.

A man consulting with a woman turned around at the loud noise, and screamed with horror when he saw Zagiha's wounded and bloodied state. He ran out of the office faster than a cheetah, his screams growing fainter the further away he got.

"W-What?" The woman stood up from her desk, approaching them. "Zagiha? Is that you? What are you doing here? What happened to you?"

His face smeared in blood, Zagiha gave her a toothless smile and waved a broken hand. "Hi honey," he said.