PATH OF THE STAR HUNTER

Wearing the same emotionless expression as always, Katya swung her long crystal spear, fracturing space itself like a mirror, thus slaying an immense horde of demon beasts rushing in her direction.

Using her signature move, Katya changed position by flapping her wings and teleporting into the distance, only to find another horde of demon beasts running rampant.

The scene was so familiar that the feeling of repetition could almost be nauseating, but Katya didn’t flinch; she was a Celestial, and fighting these creatures was part of who she was. Demonic beasts, like Demons, were the very embodiment of depravity and destruction; they were the antithesis of the Celestials. Katya had fought them for as long as she could remember.

Although demon beasts were weak compared to most Celestials, their numbers made them dangerous. Demonic beasts were an extremely difficult plague to eradicate, constantly attacking worlds with endless numbers to overwhelm anyone who tried to resist.

In the thousand years, Katya had lived, not a few Celestials had fallen prey to the demon beasts’ numerical advantage. However, Katya did not flinch when she saw the tide of bloodthirsty monsters; on the contrary, the heroic spirit within her burned brighter.

As Katya prepared to eradicate everything with her divine fire, gathering energy in her six wings, something forced her to change tactics. Like other battlefields Katya had been to, there were still residents of this world hiding in the rubble, trying to survive as the titans battled overhead.

It was precisely because of the presence of those people that Katya had to stop; more specifically, it was because of the four-year-old girl running away from a ruined building that was now being engulfed by the tide of demon beasts.

With a flutter Katya appeared next to the girl, quickly taking her in arms before being forced to repel the nearest demon beasts with her spear. It was like seeing a fairy tale come true for the little girl, where the beautiful angel came down from heaven to save good girls like her from evil monsters.

.....

In awe of her, the girl lost sight of her surroundings as she used her four small arms to cling to Katya’s waist. After brandishing her spear and creating another wave of spatial fractures, Katya focused on the girl in her embrace. The girl had pale pink skin, four arms, and an adorable face with little insectoid features like ant fangs and cute antennae sticking out of her forehead.

This was the first time Katya had looked closely at a child of this particular race, but Katya’s mind only registered two things of importance: adorable appearance and pure soul. To tell the truth, the Celestials did not care about things like race; for them, all beings capable of harboring traits of nobility and light were worthy of their protection.

In the first instance, the Celestials were at war with the Demons, not because of their intrinsic differences as a species; instead, the Demons’ undying desire to destroy, corrupt, and consume forced the Celestials to clash with them to protect others from the Demons. In any case, such details had long since ceased to matter; the war would never stop, not while anyone was left standing.

Katya felt the fire inside her grow in intensity, seeing the little girl tremble in her embrace and seeing the world in ruins around her. How many orphaned children had she rescued? How many battlefields had she been to? Katya couldn’t remember the answer to any of these questions.

In a moment of rest, the girl asked Katya a question. “Miss angel, are you going to save us?”

It was not a request or a plea; it was merely the innocent question of a little girl, a question born of naivety; still, those words felt so heavy to Katya.

Unable to ignore the girl, Katya answered. “Don’t worry, I’ll get you to safety.”

Katya hadn’t answered the question, but the girl was too naive to notice; all she heard was that the beautiful angel lady would take her to safety.

Katya was about to make a move when a pillar of white light fell from the sky. From the pillar of light came half a dozen Celestials ready for battle. Within seconds, the area around Katya was cleared, giving the archangel of balance a much-needed reprieve.

According to Katya’s estimations, the planet would be retaken by the Celestials by the end of the day, although the conflicts would continue for a couple more days. The planet would be safe again, at least for a while, but that wouldn’t bring back the dead, and Katya knew it.

As was routine, as soon as there was some peace, the evacuation of civilians began, but Katya did not stay to see such efforts; she was too busy looking for a friend to whom she intended to deliver the child in her arms.

It didn’t take long for Katya to find her friend, a female angel with a petite and slender build, with pink hair just like her two wings. Unlike Katya, whose six wings emerge from the center of her back, her friend’s wings appear from the lower part of her waist and wrap around her waist like a skirt of pink feathers.

The pink and childish-looking female angel was named Myrilla; she was Katya’s best friend. Myrilla didn’t just look innocent; she also didn’t wear a majestic weapon or sturdy armor as Katya did. Myrilla was wearing nothing but a cute, loose, revealing outfit with a big pink heart-shaped brooch in the center of her chest.

Myrilla noted the approach of Katya and the child in her arms, causing her to have a faint expression of sadness that soon faded. Showing an energetic and cheerful attitude, Myrilla walked over and directly took the girl in Katya’s arms before greeting her friend.

“I see you have another little cutie with you, Katya. I’d say it’s good to see you, but this is the ninth world I’ve seen you fighting on the front lines. Aren’t you planning to rest?”

Almost by magic, the girl fell asleep as soon as she entered the embrace of Myrilla, who caressed her tenderly. Katya didn’t find this strange; she knew very well the kind of powers Myrilla had.

If she were someone else, Katya wouldn’t have answered or explained, but Myrilla wasn’t someone Katya could say no to. “I was too long away, unable to do anything; Now that I’m back, I can’t sit still.”

Myrilla was silent for a moment before letting out a small giggle. “You are always so serious. I still think you should rest; the war will not end while you are gone... The war will never end.”

Myrilla’s last words were somber, uncharacteristic of her, but Katya knew very well how brutal this war was for someone like Myrilla; her nature made things more complicated and painful for her.

Capricious as the wind, Myrilla changed the subject of conversation. “I almost forgot, Katya, I think Soi Fong was looking for you; Have you talked to her yet?”

The stoic armor around Katya crumbled, quickly giving way to an awkward and insecure attitude. “I do not want to talk about it. I have no idea what that girl is thinking; things like love are out of reach for someone like me.”

Katya regretted opening her mouth as soon as she finished speaking; using the word love was taboo in front of Myrilla. However, Katya didn’t get the answer she was hoping for, and instead, all she got was an amused look from Myrilla.

As if sensing something behind her, Katya turned around, seeing Soi Fong, the person they were talking about just now. Soi Fong’s inky black hair contrasted sharply with the pair of white horns that protruded from the sides of her head, but it wasn’t the horns or the yellow eyes with sharp pupils that gave away Soi Fong’s true nature; it was her draconic wings.

Soi Fong belonged to one of the four most powerful races in the universe, the dragon race. Truth be told, with her tyrannical lineage, Soi Fong was as strong or even stronger than Katya herself, but that didn’t affect how she treated Katya. That would never happen because Soi Fong was once the helpless girl rescued from a dying planet by Katya, just like the girl Myrilla now carried.

Only a blind person would not notice Soi Fong’s infatuation with Katya, a feeling that overflowed almost as much as her intimidating draconic aura. Still, Katya had only a sense of discomfort in response. It couldn’t be helped; love wasn’t something Katya understood, at least not the kind of love Soi Fong had for her.

A hint of disappointment and pain crossed Soi Fong’s yellow eyes, but her mood remained the same; for her, just being able to see Katya again was already a great blessing.

“I heard you recovered from your injuries, Katya.”

“Yeah, I got some help. I’m glad to see that you’re still as healthy as ever, Soi Fong.”

“I’m not the fragile girl you used to take care of; I’ve grown up. I’m a full dragon now.”

“You are certainly no longer a child. what are you doing here?”

“I heard that a border world was under attack; I came to help and try my luck. I wanted to find you.”

There they were again, those eyes full of love, so pure and intense, those eyes that confuse Katya so much, but today there was something different. Katya didn’t know if it was her imagination or something, but for the first time, Soi Fong’s emotions didn’t feel so foreign to her.

Unknown to Katya, the divine spark she stole from Cecilia was changing her, giving her more than just an increase in power but also changing the intrinsic nature of her existence. As Katya had explained to Desmond, she was a shadow, a Celestial-reborn aspect of the original Katya. This aspect didn’t count with part of the original Katya that knew how to love.

Katya didn’t know that by blending Cecilia’s divine spark with her own, she would evolve to become more than a shadow, though the process would take time. Little by little, Katya was becoming something different, something more powerful, more complete, something capable of influencing the age to come.

In the meanwhile, Myrilla was completely dumbfounded, not wanting to believe that tiny, almost insignificant pink speck that she saw in the spectrum of Katya’s heart. For the first time since she could remember, Myrilla questioned the reliability of her skill.