Infinity: Rising of the Soul Weavers

"Huh?" The second Holy Angel was confused and embarrassed, but he quickly explained what had happened when he had broken through to the Holy Angel rank and was blessed. "Well, I didn't actually see the Supreme Deity… Her Grace was hidden behind a veil of magnificent white radiance. 

"With that being said… she… her voice, I remember very clearly… she was calm yet somehow seemed cold and icy…"

"Wait what?" A third Holy Angel suddenly realized something was wrong. "The Supreme Deity was calm and warm during my blessing, like a mother seeing her child.

"Back at that time, she even patted my head, disregarding the many years I've lived and treating me like a youngster…"

"Yes, me too! She treated me very nicely" A fourth said.

"Me as well! She was extremely warm and kind…" a fifth angel said.

"Well, I guess you all understand now…" Kayla interrupted as she was beginning to feel her body weaken even more. "The Supreme Deity the young Holy Angels met is not the same one the old Hole Angels have met.

"Think about it, you're only ever allowed to have a presence with her once you hit the rank of a Holy Angel. Yet, back before the war you mentioned taking place a long time ago, Hole Angels felt her warmth and saw her face.

"However, after the war, the new Holy Angels could only hear her icy voice… this only means one thing; the two are not the same!

"In other words, the real has been replaced by a fake! Your Lords, Michael and Gabriel, don't want anyone to know about this, hence why they try to keep the Supreme Deity's exposure to a minimum.

"Otherwise, the old Holy Angels, some of which are here, would quickly realize that something is wrong!" Saying that, Kayla looked expectantly at the few angels who had spoken earlier.

The angels on the other hand, although have expected the final conclusion about their Supreme Deity by now, were left with complex and inexplicable expressions

"...What do we do now?" The lead Holy Angel asked with some hesitation and difficulty.

"Well, if I may make a suggestion," Kayla quickly answered. "Why don't you join me? I work for one of your lords; Lady Raphael, and we're planning on unveiling the secrets and misdeeds the two other Lords have been concealing!"

Hearing that, the angels all had a gloomy look on their faces, each deep in their own confused thoughts.

"Hm, Lady Raphael has always been nice to us," one Guard Angel said after giving it some thought. "She never treated us with disdain like the other lords do."

"Yes, Lady Raphael has always been nice to us," another called. "Although she looks at us coldly and doesn't speak much, I've never seen her treat any of us harshly…"

"I am quite familiar with two Holy Angels that work under her," one Holy Angel suddenly shared. "The two always boast about how kind their Lady really is in comparison to the other Lords…"

"Enough!" Suddenly, a voice filled with supreme mana interrupted everyone's chatter. "This girl has only said a few words, yet everyone has already begun to doubt their Lords! Are you all traitors who have been implanted by her?"

Hearing that, the angels who dared to speak previously all looked down in shame.

Everyone had felt that something was not right. How could it be that two of their Lords have betrayed their Supreme Deity and were associated with her murder? Something definitely felt off and is still very unsettling.

"Hear your own words!" The owner of that violent cry continued. "What are her claims, that the Supreme Deity has died? Didn't you Holy Angels see her, with or without a veil, what's the difference?

"Warm or cold, what's the difference? Who are you to doubt her Grace? Not to mention that the change had happened after the war, which means that her Grace may have suffered some injury which prevented her from being her usual self!

"How are you so quick to judge betrayals or to shame the other Lords in favour of Lady Raphael? Didn't you hear that Lord Raphael had some previous problems with our Lord, Lord Michael? What if this is all a trap prepared by her?"

"Presumptuous!" A thunderous voice spread suddenly throughout the void, shaking everyone's hearts. Well, everyone other than Kayla, strangely.

Looking at the few newly emerging winged figures, Kayla grinned. "They are finally here…"

With her clone being connected to her main body -and her skill: Parallel Processing- she obviously knew about Maya's subordinates heading towards her: twenty Guard Angels and Seven Holy Angels.

"Who dares to belittle our Lady!" The same Holy Angel, with the same thunderous voice, spoke again. He was evidently one of Maya's subordinates and he was a loyal one at that. "Lady Raphael is the most benevolent, yet you dare speak ill of her?"

"What about Lady Raphael?" One of the Holy Angels under Lord Michael spoke with a loud voice. "She has already decided to make enemies from Lord Michael, she is our enemy now!"

"Decided to make an enemy of your Lord? Are you disregarding the fact that your Lord has had a hand in the killing of her Grace, the Supreme Deity?" Maya's subordinate shouted in return. "How about Lady Uriel? I've been there; I've seen her state.

"Lord Michael has attacked her without a valid reason and cut off seven of her eight wings. Not only that, but he also attacked her with the intention to kill!

"Currently, she is fighting for her life with the help of some of our Lady's friends. If not for them, Lady Uriel would have already lost her life!" 

"Exactly, didn't I already show you the recordings?" Kayla quickly added. "Why are you so persistent in the first place? Wait… did your Lord tell you about the truth about what happened back then? Are you also traitors working with him?

"Hehe, I should have thought of that… some of you here are already aware of everything Michael has done, isn't that right?"

Hearing that, the angels under Michael suddenly looked at each other in strange expressions that were filled with doubt. It appears as though not all of them were aware of Lord Michael's true intentions…

"Alright, since you already know what the issue is, I'll leave you to it," Kayla suddenly said. "Lord Raphael's subordinates, you'll be the judge for their characters. Some of them will be able to help us so don't be harsh. 

"With that being said, I suggest that every angel under Lord Michael's command must undergo a test in order to make sure that they are not traitors. After all, a test in front of everyone's eyes should be a fair way to differentiate between innocent and guilty…"

Saying that, she sent a private whisper into one of the Holy Angels under Maya, apparently the leader.

Of course, this whisper was not physical, but rather originated from the inside of the angel's head with the help of the Cyber Particles that have been inserted into his body.

At the moment, those angels under Maya's command were not their true selves. Although they technically are still the same, they are fully under Kayla's control.

Regarding this matter, although previously during her 'fun' time with Raven, Maya thought that Kayla would kill them all, this obviously didn't happen for real. 

The truth, though, was that with her control over them, she could easily manipulate their memories and switch the truth around as needed. So although alive, they're Kayla's ultimate faithful subordinates now.

"Do you understand?" Kayla suddenly inquired, confusing those angels who didn't belong to Maya.

"Yes, Lady Kayla," the lead Holy Angel, under Maya's command, said with a bow. "Since we don't already know who is a traitor amongst them, they will all be required to undergo the test you indicated and only those who pass will be part of us, thus giving the option to redeem themselves." She quickly explained once again out loud in an attempt to expel any suspicion.

Saying that, she could not help but glance at the area around her. Around the two groups of angels, and around the position of the space that previously belonged to Earth, countless invisible Cyber Particles were floating around.

Those Cyber Particles were the reason Kayla had predicted the arrival of Michael's subordinates in the first place, followed by the arrival of Maya's forces.

And, this test Maya's Holy Angel spoke of, of course, was nothing more than to allow some of these Cyber Particles to penetrate their flesh and take a hold of them.

Well, for the angels themselves, this will be called an endurance test or whatever Maya's angels come up with, but in reality, every participant in this test will pass and become Kayla's subordinate… she'll make sure of it!

At that point, to her, it didn't really matter what their origin was and whether they knew of Michael's actions and betrayals. In fact, it may even be better for her if they did know since that information would be transferred to her after she takes full control over them...