My Angel Girl

It was a relatively normal day on Flame Island. The molten rivers bubbled lazily, casting an orange glow across the ever-growing city of castaways. Demons and sinners alike bustled about, constructing buildings, forging weapons, and bartering their souls' worth in crude markets. Kikidori leaned against a jagged rock formation, bored out of his mind.

"Why does being a ruler have to be so... dull?" he muttered, flicking a piece of stone into the glowing river below. "Flame Island is up and running, everyone's too scared to mess with me, and there's no chaos worth my time. This is hell."

He sighed, tilting his head back to stare at the endless void of sky above. His thoughts wandered to Ere'ana.

"Bet she's just sitting around in Heaven, singing some dumb song or something," he said to himself, though the corner of his mouth twitched upward. "Would be nice to see her, though."

Without much more thought, Kikidori spread his blackened wings and shot into the sky, the force of his takeoff sending sparks flying. He didn't care about the consequences of sneaking into Heaven—boredom was a worse fate than any angelic punishment.

Moments later, Kikidori came hurtling through the skies of Heaven like a falling star, crash-landing into the soft golden sand of the heavenly beach by the lake. The golden lake shimmered under the celestial sun, its surface reflecting an almost blinding radiance.

"Ugh," Kikidori groaned, his voice muffled as his face was buried in the sand. "Why does everything have to be so damn bright here?"

Not far from his crash site, Ere'ana had been sitting peacefully, her feet dipped in the golden lake as she hummed softly to herself. Her peace was abruptly interrupted by the loud thud of Kikidori's landing.

"Kiki?" Ere'ana gasped, rushing over to the cloud-like sand where Kikidori was awkwardly stuck.

"Mmph! Help me out, please," Kikidori said, his voice still muffled.

Ere'ana bit back a laugh and extended her hand, pulling him out of the sand. Kikidori stood, brushing the golden grains off his tattered black cloak.

"Thanks, Ere," he muttered.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, her voice a mix of concern and surprise. "You know you're not supposed to be in Heaven."

Kikidori shrugged. "Got bored. Thought I'd drop by. Literally."

Before Ere'ana could scold him, a voice called out from the distance.

"Ere'ana, what's going on over there?"

They both turned to see three Archangels approaching, their golden armor gleaming under the heavenly light. Ere'ana's heart sank.

"It's nothing!" she said quickly, stepping in front of Kikidori. "You don't need to—"

"Shut up, Ere'ana," one of the Archangels snapped, cutting her off. "You're the weakest Archangel here, so stay out of this."

Ere'ana flinched at the harsh words, her eyes darting to the ground. Kikidori's jaw tightened, and his glowing purple horns seemed to flare for a moment.

"Oi," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "Why are you talking about Ere'ana like that?"

The Archangels turned their attention to Kikidori, their expressions shifting from annoyance to outright mockery.

"And what are you supposed to be?" one of them sneered. "Some fallen scum that crawled back up here to cause trouble?"

Another Archangel laughed. "Pathetic. You couldn't even hold your own against us if you tried."

The mocking laughter grated on Kikidori's nerves, and before he could stop himself, he swung his fist. His punch connected with one of the Archangels' jaws, sending him stumbling back in shock.

"Big mistake," the Archangel growled, wiping a streak of golden blood from his lip.

Before Kikidori could react, the other two Archangels summoned their weapons—gleaming spears of light—and raised them.

"Stand down!" Ere'ana shouted, stepping in front of Kikidori again.

"Stay out of this!" one of the Archangels barked, shoving her aside.

The situation escalated further as the Archangels called for reinforcements. Within moments, principalities and powers began arriving, their radiant forms filling the beach. Kikidori's glowing purple horns dimmed slightly as he realized he was outnumbered. His face dropped, and his wings twitched nervously.

"I, uh… gotta go," he muttered.

Without waiting for a response, Kikidori spread his wings and shot into the sky, flying as fast as he could toward Flame Island.

"After him!" one of the Archangels ordered, and the celestial warriors took off in pursuit.

Kikidori pushed himself to his limits, weaving through the glowing clouds of Heaven and diving into the dark void of space. His heart pounded in his chest as he glanced back to see the heavenly host still chasing him.

"Why do I always get myself into these messes?" he grumbled.

As he approached Flame Island, the chaotic energy of the realm seemed to create a barrier, forcing the celestial warriors to halt. The Archangels, principalities, and powers hovered at the edge of the void, glaring at Kikidori as he landed safely on his volcanic home.

"Cowards," Kikidori muttered under his breath, watching as the angels reluctantly retreated back to Heaven.

He let out a long sigh of relief, his wings drooping as he sat on the edge of a jagged cliff. "Barely made it out of that one alive."

As Kikidori caught his breath, a small flash of light appeared nearby. He turned to see a glowing soul materializing on the island. His eyes widened in disbelief as the soul took shape.

"Oh, for the love of…" Kikidori groaned.

Standing before him was a Chihuahua, its tiny body trembling as it barked furiously at him.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Kikidori said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Of all the souls that could've shown up, it had to be you."

The Chihuahua barked again, its high-pitched yapping echoing across the molten landscape.

"Great," Kikidori muttered, crossing his arms. "Welcome to Flame Island, little guy. Hope you enjoy your stay."

The Chihuahua yapped again, clearly unbothered by Kikidori's sarcasm.

Kikidori sighed, running a hand through his hair. "This place is turning into a circus," he muttered.

As the Chihuahua darted off to explore its new fiery surroundings, Kikidori couldn't help but think back to Ere'ana. He knew their meeting on the heavenly beach would cause trouble for her.

"Damn it," he muttered. "Why can't things just be simple?"

With a heavy heart, Kikidori stood and gazed out at the fiery horizon of Flame Island, wondering what chaos tomorrow would bring.

The end of Chapter 20.