Page 20 of Saints & Sinners

On the second day of officially joining the Warriors, I stood there, hiding behind Lucas, as Azrael paced in front of us. His suit was once again immaculate, with his hands clasped behind his back as his gaze swept over the rows of Warriors standing before him.

“You should all know by now that a Warrior doesn’t just train to ascend,” he said and paused in front of a girl. “A Warrior trains to become an Authority—a Celestial soldier in theSecond Orderof the angelic hierarchy.”

I shifted uncomfortably on my feet. There were four orders in the angelic hierarchy I knew of. Authorities happened to be part of a group up there with Seraphim’s.

“Their purpose is to prevent the destruction of life, to protect the Celestial realm,” he continued, pacing once again. “And all of you that were born with the gifts of a Warrior are given this opportunity to train for more than just power—you are here once again to become Authorities.”

As he walked past us, his gaze briefly fell on me, failing to use Lucas as my personal hiding spot. My throat tightened as he gave me a cold, assessing look, and the Warriors around mesnickered quietly.

Luckily, Azrael moved on and addressed the group. “Now, the upcoming competition is not just about the brute strength that you Warriors possess. I will be analyzing each and every one of you. And those who do well will see their names posted in the common room of their sector every two weeks.”

The anticipation among the Warriors was palpable. They were all buzzing in hopes of being selected now that the role of ascending was on the line. Even Lucas straightened up and puffed out his chest as if he’d been preparing himself for this very moment.

“Cain.” Azrael’s voice rang out across the muddy pit, cutting through the hum of sparring Ascendants. “Dunn, step forward.”

Silas grinned, his cocky swagger on full display as he stepped forward. Hunter followed reluctantly as his sharp grey eyes scanned the crowd briefly, pausing just long enough to land on me.

I froze under his gaze, unsure whether the flicker of emotion I saw was irritation, a warning, or something else entirely. Whatever it was, it was gone before I could name it.

“Demonstrate to the rest the use of shielding,” Azrael ordered. “Show me how you can absorb the force of an attack and convert it into energy for a counterstrike.”

Hunter and Silas nodded, positioning themselves opposite each other.

I leaned into Lucas, whispering, “Is Azrael an Authority?”

“He used to be.”

I frowned. “Used to be?”

“He left that position to teach Warriors on Earth instead.”

That only left me with more questions than answers, considering how important it seemed to be if one became an Authority.

I sighed, focusing on what Silas and Hunter were doing instead.Silas was the first to attack, his power surging toward Hunter like a wave of heat. Hunter moved seamlessly, raising a shield of energy. The force of Silas’s power seemed to absorb into the makeshift shield, glowing briefly before Hunter pushed it right back at Silas.

Silas barely blocked it in time as the energy from the shield sent him flying back. He groaned as he landed on the muddy ground and rolled onto his side.

I was suddenly annoyed, wishing that could have been Hunter on the ground instead. I wasn’t sure why his lack of reaction to winning or demonstrating how good he was at the counterattack infuriated me. I wanted him to be smug so that I could have another reason to dislike him, but he just stood there like he wanted to leave already. Like it all meant nothing to him.

Azrael turned to everyone else and began instructing others to practice.

I glanced at Lucas and smiled. He didn’t return that smile.

He scratched the back of his head, not meeting my gaze. “Um, I—” he stuttered, and my face fell. I understood what he was trying to get across without even needing him to explain it.

“It’s okay,” I said softly. “You can partner up with someone else. I think I’ll just go and practice my hits.”

“You sure?” He grimaced. “I’m sorry, Grace. If I wasn’t terrible at shielding, I would go with you and practice other stuff, but—”

“I know.” I offered him a weak smile. “Now go, find a partner before you get stuck with Matias.”

Lucas looked over his shoulder before giving me an apologetic glance. “As soon as I’m done, I’ll come help you.”

A lump tugged at my throat, making me unable to speak as I nodded and watched him run off to someone else. I sighed inwardly and made my way toward a practice dummy, far from all the Warriors in the pit.

I felt utterly humiliated as I snuck a glance over my shoulder.Azrael’s instructions echoed in my mind, but all I could hear was the sound of barely concealed laughter from the others. I punched the dummy half-heartedly, the impact sending a dull vibration up my arm.

I had to remember that I asked for this.Iwanted to join the Warriors, and it was allmydoing.

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