*???*

[Kaguya City, Kuroriku]

I stared up at the sky as thick clouds blotted out the sun.

"Seems like a bad omen," I said in a low voice. I placed a hand on my chest and stared at the palace. For a while now, I'd been feeling a sense of dread. "Are you alright, little brother?"

"Why don't you go and find out?" a female's voice echoed in my head.

I smiled. "Right. That's probably the best course of action. Let's go see how my little brother and nieces have been doing."

I emerged from the alleyway. My eyes shifted to something moving in the darkness behind me.

"Come out, demon!" I said, spinning around. My blue bead necklace transformed into a short knife.

"You can sense me?" a green creature with enormous bat-like wings said.

"Of course, I can. I'm part angel."

The creature moved back. "Even those who are part angel struggle to see us these days. They are unable to tap into their angelic strength."

I rubbed the side of my neck. "Right. People have become more materialistic as of late." I used to be one of those people.

The creature receded further into the shadows. "Here, I thought that I could use you."

I snickered. "If you had met me a few years earlier, you probably could've." I leaped into the alley and stabbed the demon in the head with my knife. "Begone, demon. May the divine have mercy on your putrid soul."

The demon's wings and legs twitched as it started to turn into dust. Flakes of shadow and light floated upward. It didn't seem all that bad, but anyone who wished to use another wasn't a great person either.

I lowered my eyes toward the alley floor. That included me; I once turned into a monster. When I died, would I be allowed into heaven if that was the afterlife I chose? Even if I picked reincarnation, would I be reborn as a demon or a ghoul?

I touched my face as I landed back down. It was silly to think that I would even be given the option. Heaven was only for the enlightened.

"Child," the voice from before said. "Don't let your sins weigh you down. Our God is a merciful one. Those who have confessed their sins and look to him will surely be allowed into heaven."

I closed my eyes. Mom used to say that during our religious studies, but I always had a hard time believing in it. Were our sins indeed washed away simply by confessing them and believing in the Sky Father? Weren't acts of repentance needed?

"Your mom was right," a second female voice said. "Sure, acts of kindness are important, but it begins with oneself. If you wish to save as many people as possible, you need to walk the path. I think it's better to walk alongside similar people."

Similar people? The image of my wife and oldest son when he was a baby popped into my head. What were those two experiencing right now?

I chuckled and walked out of the alley once more. "Right, that's why I came to see my little brother."

Brother, I know that you're struggling too. I'm not sure if I can save you, but I'm going to try. After all, you were the only one who never abandoned me during my time of need.

***

[Years Ago]

I dug through a trash can, looking for food to eat, but other than inedible trash, there were only orange and apple peels. It would've been nice if I could at least have found some beer. I need to get some alcohol soon, or I would go crazy.

I slapped my forehead. I needed to let go of it, but it was hard. Whenever I finally thought that I had gotten over it, I would relapse. One time, I even assaulted some guy walking at night to get his twelve-pack.

"Why are you digging into the trash?" a voice called out. I gasped and saw a man in a crisp navy blue suit walk toward me. We shared an uncanny resemblance, even though we weren't identical twins.

"Little bro," I said, mouth wide open.

He ran a hand through his light brown hair. "I've told you not to call me that! We're only a few minutes apart!"

I grinned. "Regardless, you'll always be my little bro."

My brother removed the sunglasses he had on, revealing a set of hazel eyes. "In the same vein, you'll always be my older bro." He put his glasses into the front pocket of his suit and pulled out a slice of walnut bread. "Here, Aza. Eat this instead of that trash."

My trembling hands reached out for it. "Thanks, Osa," I said, my eyes starting to tear up.

He grumbled. Osa also hated me calling him that.

I gulped and pushed the bread back into his hands. I shook my head.

His eyes widened a little. "What? You're not going to take it?"

I averted my gaze. "I don't deserve it. Not after what I did to my family. Trash like me deserves only to eat trash."

He clenched the bread. "You think that self-pity will change things?"

I closed my eyes and laughed weakly. "That's funny to hear from you."

He gasped. "Sure, I abhor my weakness too, but..."

I opened my eyes and saw that he had turned around. "Osa?"

"But I don't wish to leave you in this state. Rosa's birthday is coming up soon. I thought that maybe you could come."

He was inviting me to his daughter's birthday party? Couldn't he see how I was dressed? Or smelled, for that matter.

"I would just ruin it, especially if there's alcohol there," I responded, turning away.

"Fine. If you don't feel like coming, I won't make you. But if you change your mind, then please let me know. I'll get you some fresh clothes and a place where you can wash up."

"Thanks, little brother, but I'm where I belong."

He took a deep breath and threw the loaf of bread toward the trash. "Eat it!" he said before running off.

"Osa..." I hadn't gotten a chance to ask him how he was feeling. His wife and brother-in-law had recently died.

I picked up the bread from the trash. My tears drenched the plastic wrapping. Why was I so damn selfish?

***

['Present']

"Hey, is that who I think it is?" a voice called out.

My eyes widened as a gray-haired man in a black suit dashed over to me. He grinned. "It is you!" he said.

"Sato," I said.

He grinned as he looked me up and down. "What's with that shabby look? Planning to audition for the role of a sage or something?"

"Who is this, Daddy?" the girl trailing behind him asked.

"This is Musa," he said, patting my shoulder. It had been ages since anyone had referred to me by my stage name.

I removed Sato's hand from my shoulder.

"I wish that I could catch up, but I got a place to be at."

Sato stepped away and smiled. "Alright, man. I won't hold you up." He grabbed his daughter's hand. "Let's go get you that ice cream, Maya. Though keep it a secret from your mom. I'll never stop hearing the end of it if she finds out."

Maya pouted. "Right. She doesn't want me to get fat."

I remembered when Sato, me, and the other boys tried to make our debut. We couldn't eat sweet foods. All we were given were salads. The producers didn't wish for us to become fat. Still, I adored sweets. Sato and I would sneak away and get some.

Even after we became an official band, we were still held to strict dieting standards. Not that I followed them. One of our peers ended up developing bulimia. Meanwhile, I developed an acute stress disorder from all of the pressure to be perfect.

I stopped. "Sato. You need to talk to your wife about that. Remember what happened to some of us."

Sato glanced over his shoulder. His eyes seemed sad. "I've tried," he whispered. "She won't listen."

I stared at Maya. "You need to try harder. For the sake of your daughter."

He sighed. "I'll try."

I leaped into the air and spread my silver wings. "You better. Bye, old friend," I said before taking off.

The wind rushed through my long silver hair as I flew toward the palace. Sato was right about me looking like a sage. I needed to get a haircut later.

Sato, there was something off about him. There was a demon aura hanging over him. I probably didn't notice as I could not sense demonic energy like I did now.

Sato, are you becoming a demon too? I'll save you after I'm done saving my little brother from that fate.

I sped up, unleashing a sonic boom from breaking past the sound barrier. Several guards appeared as I came within range of the palace.

"Who are you?" one of them asked.

I came to a halt and smiled. "You don't remember me? I'm the King's older brother."

The female guard's eyes widened. "Wait, you're Prince Azami?"

The male guard narrowed his eyes at me. "Yeah, right! You don't look anything like a prince."

I sighed. Figured that something like this would happen. Thankfully, I had proof on me. I raised my hand to show off my cyan beaded bracelet.

"Wait, isn't that one of Prince Azami's angel tools?"

I smiled at the male guard. "You think?"

He raised his head and gulped. "Pardon my rudeness, your majesty."

It had been a long time since anyone had used such formalities around me. Didn't like them very much growing up, to begin with.

"Please call me Aza," I said, flying past them. "Well, I'm off to see my brother."

"Wait, the King isn't here," the female guard said.

I glanced over my shoulder. "He's not? Is he patrolling the streets?" Brother liked dressing up as a cop for some reason. Wanted to say that it reminded him of his time in the military, though he didn't like The Service much. Several of his colleagues had perished in the war.

"He went to Xeleria."

"The realm of magic? What for?"

"You've been out of the loop, so maybe you aren't aware, but we're currently at war. The King and other world leaders have been keeping it a secret from the general public."

My eyes widened. I recalled reading a newspaper detailing a massive explosion north of Shirayuki. The ground around Grand Chasm had given way. The site looked as if meteors had rained down, melting the thick layers of ice. Despite that, they labeled the cause unknown.

Hopefully, he hadn't lost anyone close to him in the current conflict.

"Do you know when he'll return?" I asked, turning around completely.

The pair shook their heads.

"No idea. I assume it's as soon as they can consider the target safe."

I crossed my arms over my arms. "The target?"

"Of the enemy, nor ours. They're after something in that world. What that is, we haven't been told," the female guard said.

I stroked my beard. "I see..." Guessing that they don't want the information to leak out. Recalled that the two were quite the blabbermouths, so it was wise of my little brother to not tell them everything.

I continued flying toward the palace.

"You're going to wait for him here?" the female guard asked.

"Yeah. If it's not too much trouble, I would like to get a change of clothes and shave my beard off."

"Of course, sire! I'll contact the royal barber right away."

I smiled. "Thanks."

My eyes returned toward the towering palace. It'd been years, but I'd finally returned home.

**Solar Note: Hope that you've enjoyed the prologue and this first chapter. Let me know your thoughts on the story thus far and click on that star if you enjoyed it ^^.**