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- MELAHEL -  The angel of healing and health.

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Hareth begins to tell us how he met Hailey during his journey to find the academy.

— I was assigned to kill the red creatures that venture too close to our camp, he explains.

— A camp? Hadrien repeats. So you're not alone, he asserts.

He scans the area around us, eyes narrowed, then looks back at Hareth.

— We're few, and we're searching for a protected place called Faëre.

— The academy, I murmur.

He immediately turns to me, his eyes shining with hope.

— Then you know where that place is?

— Yes, that's where we come from, I confirm.

— Get to last night, Hadrien begins to grow impatient, his hands still clenched. How did you meet her?

— We had stopped for the night. Another angel and I were supposed to keep watch while the rest of the group rested. That's when we heard red creatures in the forest. I decided we should split up. So I went to take a closer look, but when I arrived, a battle had already begun. She was fighting the creatures with a sword similar to yours, he says to Hadrien, glancing at the celestial sword he carries.

Imagining Hailey fighting a group of demons alone pinches my heart, and my fingers nervously tap the center of my palm as I wait for the rest of the story.

— Of course, I went to help her. This girl was incredible, she was fearless. Once the red creatures were driven off, I approached her, and that's when she attacked me. She seemed consumed by a furious rage, unable to tell the creatures from me.

— Hailey doesn't give her trust to just anyone...
Or maybe she too sensed the power radiating from this black angel and got scared?

— The surprise of her blow made me lose the weapon I was holding.

— That explains why her sword was on the ground, lost.

— When her blade lit up against me, I could see an unnamed anger in her eyes.

He looks at Hadrien.

— She had the same determination as you, little angel. She didn't stop, she kept coming back at me.

That's just like Hailey, I'm sure of it.

— In the midst of the chaos, I understood one thing. She kept striking with all her strength, but her blows seemed powerless. I easily dodged them all, talking to her to reason with her, but in vain.

He pauses briefly, catches his breath, and gives Hadrien and me a regretful look that makes me fear the worst.

— She kept pinching the side of her stomach before throwing herself into the attack. At that moment, I understood... She had been injured.

Hadrien shifts, clenching his jaw so tightly I can see him tremble. He really seems to be worrying for his little sister.

— I'm discovering other sides of his personality and I find myself questioning who he really is. He plays the role of the womanizer, but in truth, he's so much more than that.

Hareth resumes his story, noticing the blond's impatience, who's probably about to explode with rage.

— Another group of red creatures arrived and threw me off balance. She took the opportunity to run away.

If I had arrived earlier that night when the battle started, I surely would have found her.
I bite my lower lip, imagining the worst for her.

— Do you know where she is now? I ask.

— I do. After our encounter, I managed to catch up with her by flying. She was hiding under a tree... unconscious.

— Damn it ! Hadrien exclaims, finally exploding.

He steps forward, fists clenched, grabs Hareth by the collar, forgetting that the angel before him just beat him hands down. But Hareth lets it happen, perfectly understanding Hadrien's pain.

— What did you do to her? he yells at him.

Our faces clearly show the anxiety we feel. Hareth lays a soothing hand on Hadrien's shoulder and says calmly:

— Don't worry about her, she's in good hands. I immediately took her back to our camp. My companions are taking good care of her.

Hadrien releases his grip and steps back.

— Take us to her, he orders.

— Wait. And the others? I ask, remembering our companions in the library.

— Either way, neither of us can get there to warn them.

They're bound to worry if they don't see us here any longer. We shouldn't split up more than this.

— You don't need to fly to reach the center, Hareth cuts in.

We look at him, waiting for an explanation.

— There's a second exit, which also serves as an entrance.

He points to a large rock at the foot of the mountain.

— If you go around there, you'll find a big hole in the stone, wide enough for a person to pass through.

— What are we waiting for? Hadrien says.

Without waiting, he dashes off in the indicated direction.

I follow him in haste, but Hareth grabs my arm.

— What...

— I'm coming with you, he insists.

— You don't have a choice anyway, only you know where Hailey is.

He lets me go and we resume our route, catching up with Hadrien.

There are a lot of bushes at the foot of this cliff, and I wonder how they manage to grow on such rocky soil.

Without realizing it, I brush past a plant that grazes my leg and starts stinging me. When the tingling becomes stronger, I yelp in surprise.

Looking at my ankle, I see it's turned completely red and is starting to swell.

— What is this? I grimace.

Hadrien hasn't stopped when he hears me cry out, but Hareth, who was near me, does.
He crouches and takes something from his pocket, puts it straight into his mouth, chews it, then spits it out onto a leaf he plucks from the big bush beside us.

Before I understand what he's doing, he crouches at my feet and applies his mixture to my wound, which is burning more and more.

— What is it?

— Don't move, it's a felse to heal you.

— I could've just eaten it, why apply it like this?

He smirks at the disgust on my face, then answers:

— Does it still hurt?

I pause to think, and I'm surprised to realize the pain is completely gone.

— No, how... so fast?

— Yes, this way your external wounds heal faster.

He removes the rest of his poultice, still crouched, and, as if by magic, I no longer see any swelling or marks.

As he stands up, I thank him for healing me.

I smile at him, starting to think he's not so dangerous for us after all. Or at least, that he has a heart—unlike Hadrien, who didn't even bother to glance at me after my cry of pain.

I still see him searching for the entrance, unconcerned whether I'm okay. I resent him, not even sure why.

We resume walking, following Hadrien ahead of us, and that's when we find the entrance.

I can't help but open my eyes wide, realizing what's before me. This image of a cave carved into the rock reminds me of my vision.

My eyes search around me for the selphies, but they're not here.

— Marie.

A whisper.

— Marie.

It happens again and a shiver runs through me and then I realize. Is it the angel from my vision?

— Join me, he whispers.

All of a sudden, my body no longer responds. It moves forward into the mountain's darkness. I can't see a thing but I keep walking.

— Where are you going, angel-girl? Hadrien asks.

Only now does he worry, that one. Too late, I'm already inside, and I can't turn back.

— Keep going, the voice continues.

This voice sounds clearer and clearer to me, broken but stronger.

My heart races, my body seems to belong to someone else, but my mind is still my own, and I don't like what's happening at all.

— Let her go ahead, there's no danger. The library is protected by an ancient spell against red creatures' attacks, Hareth reassures.

I hear them following me step by step.

In this darkness, I can still feel a draft, rather warm, but mostly damp. A smell of grass rises to my nose, like grass after a rainy day. It's a strong smell I don't particularly like.

The further I go, the wider my pupils become, reacting to the light of these blue crystal stones appearing more and more as we move deeper in.

Another clue suggesting my vision was right.

I approach them.

— Keep going, Marie, the voice orders.

We arrive in a slightly larger space, and before us stand stairs. Some climb up, others descend.

— We have to go up if you want to find the rest of your group, Hareth suggests.

A tension pulls me toward the path leading underground, my eyes fixed on the stairs opposite the ones Hareth proposes.

I want to go down! And I can't break free from this trance.

As my body moves toward the opposite direction of the library, Hareth approaches me, too close, and once again I feel his aura press on my soul.

Gently, he lays his hand on my shoulder, and I immediately come back to myself. His aura pressed on my soul and helped block the manipulation that voice was imposing on me.

Did he notice my state?

Hadrien goes first and runs up the stairs. Hareth nods for me to follow, and I do so in silence, leaving the question unanswered.

Halfway up the stairs, which we've been climbing for several minutes, my breathing grows heavier, labored.

A gigantic library gradually reveals itself as I climb the last steps. It has been built into the heart of the mountain. It's magnificent.
I can't escape the wonder filling my eyes as I take in all those books lined up on shelves carved into the stone.

Under my feet, a dark red carpet brings softness and comfort to each of my steps.

The high ceiling is entirely covered in blue crystals of various sizes, bringing an extraordinary light. Their reflection is not only blue, as in the cave's corridors, but also sends back some rays of the sun, surely reaching down from the mountain's summit.

The walls are so perfectly carved.

At the center, a long table with rounded edges, also made of stone and fused with the floor, is surrounded by stools built from the same material and using the same technique.
A large chandelier, far more imposing than any others decorating the ceiling, lights up this stone table.

What surprises me most are the few stained-glass windows, identical to those in the academy's library. They bring a familiar, almost ordinary touch to this magical place, making us almost forget we're at the heart of a mountain.

— Hayden, his brother calls.

They're here.

Seeing us, they approach.

— How did you get here? Liam asks.

Before any of us can answer, Hayden spreads his wings and, with a gust of wind, lands behind me.

The meeting of the two strongest black angels I know stands face to face.

One smiles, while the other shows a clenched jaw.

— Step back, Hayden warns.

— Calm down, my brother. He's with us, Hadrien reacts.

Hayden lets nothing through and stays in the same position.

Watching them, something deeply unsettles me.

They...

Now I know why Hareth seemed so familiar the first time I saw him.

He... looks like him.

Their features share similar traits.

— Wow, I whisper.

The word slips out of my mouth unintentionally.

— Bro, I already tested him. You can let him go, he's clean, Hadrien says, joining his beloved, who smiles at him upon seeing him.

He had been pretending not to care about her, but more and more, he's dropping his mask of the untouchable guy, owning his feelings for her.

— I don't mean you any harm, Hareth declares.

— Who is he? Who are you? Hayden asks in an unhappy tone.

He doesn't take his eyes off him, not even blinking.

He's right. The black angel before him can move faster than a blink over short distances.

— Just a traveler, he replies to defend himself.

— He wants to find the academy. He and other angels traveling with him, Hadrien adds to explain.

I see this answer isn't enough for Hayden, so I decide to give the most important information so we can move forward.

— Let's go, we know where to find Hailey.

Hearing her friend's name, Ambre joins the conversation.

— Where is she?

— She's with Hareth's group in the forest, Hadrien explains. We must go immediately.

— Why is my sister with your group? What did you do to her? Hayden yells, grabbing Hareth by the collar.

He reacts just like Hadrien earlier.

— I didn't do anything to her, Hareth defends himself.

He plunges his gaze so deeply into his that I feel like he's trying to reach his very being.

— My instinct tells me not to trust you, he states clearly.
At least he doesn't hide it.

— He saved her life, I report.

— Let him go, he's the only one who knows where she is, Hadrien points out.

Liam, who until now had remained an observer, immediately heads for the exit we used and rushes down the steps first.

Hadrien, also impatient, grabs Ambre's hand and does the same.

Then it's Hayden's turn. He folds his wings and grabs me in turn.

His hand is warm.

— Go ahead of us! I want to keep an eye on you, he says to Hareth.

Hareth leads the way and we follow him.

Going down the steps is so much nicer than climbing them.

I see Hadrien, who remembered the exit, and I see them taking the corridor outside.

When my back faces the steps leading into the earth, my body freezes, which also stops Hayden, who's still holding my hand.

I want to go deeper down!

I slowly turn and find myself in a trance again.

What is pulling me so powerfully into the depths?