ZEFFO

The trio encountered many Probe Droids as they walked through an old scrapped engine. When they came out on the other side it was nothing but ruins inside of a ship. Cal saw a dead Stormtrooper and hovered his hand above it. This intrigued Diane.

She'd heard Cal and Cere talk of an 'echo in the Force'. So she assumed it was probably one of those.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Trooper was killed by a lightsaber," he replied.

He looked up and saw a platform in front of them.

"Could I hitch a ride?"

Diane followed his eyeline and nodded. There was an elevator at the end of the hall —waiting for them.

"I think we're getting close," Cal told her as the door closed.

"How do you know?"

"I noticed it since we got here. This feeling in the pit of my stomach."

"Is it good or bad?"

"Honestly. The closer we are, the worse I feel."

Diane pursed her lips.

"I have a question," he said. "Y-You don't have to answer it but I'm curious."

"Okay."

Cal took a deep breath and looked at her.

"How old are you?"

Diane paused and lowered her gaze to the floor.

"Five thousand...and six hundred years old."

"What?!"

Diane looked at him, startled by the sound of his voice.

"Y-You're five thousand years old?!" Cal was freaking out. "And you've never come to 'the mortal world'?!"

"No," she answered. "Not until now."

"Holy kriff!"

"How old are you Cal?"

He looked at her.

"Eighteen."

"That's very young."

He laughed. "For a five-thousand-year-old, yeah."

The elevator came to a stop and the doors opened.

"I'm guessing this is the dig site Cere was talking about."

Cal faltered in his steps as he trailed behind her.

"Guess it is."

They saw a group of Stormtroopers on a bridge.

"Wanna do the honors?"

Diane flew to the bridge, and took out the Stormtroopers, before returning to fly Cal to the same spot.

"I love angels," he said.

Diane shook her head and carried on.

"Left or right?"

"Uh...right?"

Diane held Cal and flew them out and around until she landed in front of an elevator. But suddenly she felt a pull.

"Cal."

"Yeah?"

She turned around and froze. Cal noticed and saw a man in white armor. It wasn't the kind a Stormtrooper would wear. It looked much older. He had a hand over a metal sword and the other was placed upon it.

"Diane," he said. "We must speak."

Diane looked at Cal and whispered in his ear.

"I don't know how long this will be. So when you reach the tomb or the Mantis, pray to me."

"H-How?"

"Say my name."

Cal nodded his head and hurried into the elevator. When he was out of sight, she turned to look at the Archangel.

"I see you've accustomed well to the mortal world."

"I know why you're here Michael, so cut to it."

Michael nodded his head.

"You understand what they're going to do to you...right?"

"Michael—"

"Daniel is worried. I know they won't say it, but they are."

Diane bit her tongue. The archangels always had "she" or "he" and it was always lower-class angels (like herself) that were referred to as "they" or "them". (Only she was now a "she" due to her female vessel.)

This was an observation that she had just made and was now aware of.

"Why did you leave?"

Diane sighed.

"...You know, Daniel said you were always compassionate toward the mortal world. He said that when you visited and scouted planets—"

"What?" Diane gave him a look of disbelief. "I've never done that."

Michael stopped.

If angels could get flustered, Michael definitely was.

"What do you mean you 'don't remember'?"

As far as the Archangel was concerned, this angel's mind was wiped to an extent.

"What is your first memory?"

Diane paused.

"Meeting Laila and joining Team Eighty."

It was at that moment that Michael learned they had completely wiped Diane of almost their entire life up until the point when she was demoted, only leaving remains of when she talked to Daniel (since none of the memories were concerning).

Did this mean that everything she'd known her life to be was just...a lie? Why would Heaven do that to her?

Then, an unspeakable thought crept into her mind.

"Diane?"

The angel held both hands out and said something in another language. Before Michael could get to her, he felt his body fade and when he opened his eyes, he was back in Heaven.

Meanwhile, the angel herself was so caught up in her own mind that she almost missed a prayer.

DIANE!

⸻╳⸻

"An Astrium." Cal paced, BD now resting on Diane's shoulder. "That's what we're looking for next."

"What does it do?"

"It's a key."

"To what?"

"To a vault on Bogano."

"Well, kriff."

The trio were heading back toward the Mantis.

"The Second Sister."

"What about her?"

"Did you...overhear Cere and I's conversation from a few days ago?"

"If you're talking about the time when she mentioned her past, then yes."

"The Second Sister is Trilla."

"Oh." Diane frowned. "Why didn't she say so?"

She noticed Cal's jaw tick.

"I don't know," he said. "Anyways, we should probably check in with them."

He glanced at her ear and noticed her comm was gone, but didn't say anything.

"Cere?"

Static filled his ear.

"She's not responding." Diane's face paled a little.

"How do you know?"

"It's very loud. I can hear it."

His face turned slightly red out of embarrassment. "R-Right."

Neither said a word as they took the long way back until they reached the same icy slope that Diane was so utterly fond of.

"Hey, there's a few cliffs that'll help us."

Diane grabbed Cal and flew them to the ledge.

Then, something grabbed Cal and she saw her friend unconscious on the floor. BD-1 was chirping, trying to tell her something.

Diane looked down to see a small ball by her foot. Sparks flew and darkness overtook her.