The Veil (1)

Formless smoke covered the world in a veil of thin screen. Its color was as black as the void of a night sky, threatening to consume the light of the sun that illuminates it. Few of these smoke stretched from the sky, invisible in the eyes of its inhabitants and slowly enters through the ears of its victim. Zuhariel watched closely as the fog possessed its victim, watching their souls death throes as they invade the unsuspecting host as it continually thumb their phones in rapid succession.

It was 2020, the year of modernity has reached its peak. The Heavenly Hosts were cut off by half and mostly, the Angelic Legions now rely on the Protectorate Legion for the enforcement of Earth and other Heaven's colonies. Zuhariel was fascinated by these 'Hybrids'. United under one Legion, thousands of Protectorate Regiments fought one common enemy without even knowing that there were others like them throughout the Multiverse, unaware yet effective all the same.

However, his confidence with them has been put the test for more than once. They were Humans granted with abilities of an Angel that belonged to the Choirs of Powers, they can be assholes sometimes with no regards for their fellow Human lives.

Who was he kidding? They were no longer Humans at these point but demigods of the battlefield that even Zeus or Satan could not repress.

He glanced at the Protectorate beside him who possessed the weird name of 'Blackshot'. His name was stenciled on the right pauldron of his armor, beneath the detachable golden cross. He was both a valued tactician and a warrior at the same time. Clad in black and gold Praetorian Battle Gear, the Protectorate silently watched the spinning globe with him.

"The Dawn Watch." Zuhariel of the Legion of the Unanswered Penance said, attempting to begin a conversation to the stoic Protectorate.

"The first duty of the Angels." Blackshot replied. "Where I should have been below, killing things."

"Had it not for the Dawn Watch you wouldn't be called to kill anything, Protektovare."

"Yes." Blackshot replied, feeling proud when the Angel mentioned their name in Minor Enochian.

"What do you have in mind?" Zuhariel asked, sensing uneasiness in Blackshot's mind.

"My brothers have uncovered something held dearly by US SpecOps." He paused, thinking if he should trust the Angel but if he coerced him in helping them, that could have been an advantage. "We learnt them experimenting with human augmentations and such. I guess they were going to fight the Commies with them."

"What will you do then?" Zuhariel asked once more.

"The second batch of PALADINs were already deployed elsewhere across the globe. Our relationship with the SpecOps' Paranormal Division weren't exactly that good but on more than one occasion, we have aided one another. That black veil, we could destroy that in an instant."

Zuhariel grinned. "What do you intend to do, Commander?"

"You'll see." He paused. "Why don't you join us?"

"Sure." Zuhariel nodded. "After the Dawn Watch." The Angel's face was covered with a rectangular headgear. His golden eyes glowed beneath the thin viewing slit of his face plate. The black cross in his chest was distinguishable in the far distance and the cloak behind his wings were that of velvet crimson. Each and every plate attached to his body and the wolf pelts that decorated his armor were stained in dried blood from millennia of battles.

"Let's liberate the world from depression." Blackshot said as he watched the possessed kill themselves in brutal death.