"Isn't this better?" Asked the angelic being, her voice bemused. "You need not worry about your father. He's at peace now; same as you. Isn't calming and freeing?"

Annie's lips trembled, yet all emotions left her body. She fell to her knees, powerless and broken. The tears kept flowing though, because deep in her heart, she knew what emotions she should feel.

Deep breaths passed through her lips as the tall angel began walking away. However, her laughter continued to echo inside Annie's mind.

Her hands shook as gradually she became angrier. The young girl's eyes turned bloodshot, and with slow movements, she climbed back to her feet.

"I'll kill you! You're not Goddess Seraphine, and all imposters shall die!"

With that, Annie began sprinting towards the peaceful angel. She glanced back at the running child with a surprised expression, but soon another light chuckle escaped her lips.

The light blue glow in her eyes brightened, and Annie's mad rage came to a sudden halt. She fell face first into the ground, as all will to fight forcibly left her body, leaving her with the horrid feeling of tranquility.

"Stop hiding, you miserable fool! You couldn't have made your presence more obvious, so get your ass here and fight me!"

A deep voice's laughter reverberated throughout the rubble field buildings. A few dozen meters away, a tall man appeared wearing crimson armor and carrying an overly large greatsword. His blood-red eyes stared into the angel's light blue ones.

"Come now, Peace! We've been fighting this battle for thousands of years; I can get bored sometimes too!"

Peace snorted and shook her head upon hearing the man's shameless words.

"I didn't think you were such a coward, kind of ironic considering you're War!"

War took step after step, while laughing his ass off at Peace's remark.

"Well, who said wars are only fought fairly? Most people who initiate wars never even step onto their own battlefields! Please don't educate me about being a coward! Most winners are cowards, since they're the ones who survive the calamity I bring!"

As War finished his speech, he arrived near Peace. Only a few meters separated them, and Annie still lay in the middle, her eyes gazing at the bright Gateway above.

Hatred and peace argued in her body, confusing all her senses. Her mind still worked the same, though. She wanted to help her trapped father and avenge everybody who caused her dear mother's death.

However, no matter how hard she tried, her body remained unresponsive. The two overbearing auras cancelled each other out, yet Annie stayed immovable.

"Come now, War! We've been through so much. Don't tell me you suddenly changed your nature. Did those few thousand years of sleep make you a wuss?"

Peace brandished her lance while insulting War. However, the tall man didn't act offended. He cut through the empty air with his greatsword, while the blood-red glow in his eyes brightened in anticipation.

"Wuss, eh? Says someone so pathetic! Fine, let's end this charade. I was never amazing at fighting with words, so let our bodies do the talking!"

The air crackled with anticipation as both fighters took fighting stances. They didn't act like lifelong enemies; their words sounded like rivals, who had been fighting since primordial times.

This battlefield wasn't anything special in their aged eyes. They've taken part in thousands, millions of wars, so another one didn't make much difference… At least that's what they believed, but this battle wasn't like any other…

Before their usual joust even began, something happened. Something that would change the course of Rome's demise… A young girl began sobbing…

Both Peace and War ignored Annie's crying and begging, her voice like a gentle breeze amidst a tornado. It got lost in the explosions, shouts, screams, yet it still reached the right person…

"Please… Please, Goddess… Please save my father… He doesn't deserve to die… He should live, even if mom's already gone, and I'll soon follow… Please, help him… Save him… Please…"

The bright light from heaven above, darkened as shadows manifested around Annie. The overbearing aura of Peace and War got abolished as a pale woman wearing shadowy armor appeared above the seven-year-old.

With a gentle smile, she reached out her hand for Annie. The young girl wasn't certain whether she should take it.

The woman also noticed her hesitation. She let her shadowy armor dissolve near her right shoulder, revealing her white skin in the pattern of a seven-pointed star; the Angelic Order's symbol.

"My name is Faith, our Goddess Shadow. I've heard your prayer and came to help on my Lady's behalf!"

Faith's voice sounded pleasant and calming, but not forceful. Her smile suggested kindness, and her behavior inspired trust in Annie.

The young girl's eyes moved between Faith's dark eyes and the seven-pointed star on her shoulder. Her small trembling hands reached out slowly and grasped the Shadow's own.

With a firm but gentle pull, Annie found herself standing once more. Her bloody, tattered dress danced in the wind as the nearby explosions intensified.

Annie yelped and hid behind Faith's leg as Peace and War's battle finally began. For the past minute, they had been watching each other, but now they exploded into movement, beginning their personal war for the millionth time.

Peace shot forward, her lance held straight. War's joyous laughter echoed as his greatsword pushed the lance off-course and he slashed down vertically.

The angelic knight sidestepped and hit the demonic knight's side, sending him stumbling. She giggled as her wings propelled her towards War, aiming to impale his chest.

The lance's large tip met with War's greatsword. He used the wide blade of his weapon as a shield.

Peace, with her momentum suddenly halted, jumped back, just as the greatsword split the ground wide open. His weapon must've hit a waterline, since the moment the blade hit the ground, a tall tower of scalding water burst out, raining on the opposing knights.

Neither seemed to mind the steaming shower as their blades met once again, raining sparks. The ground crackled beneath their feet as both creatures fought harder than the concrete could withstand.

Debris flew away in a circle as Peace's wings beat the air, propelling her dozens of meters into the air. While flying, she turned towards War, and her lance began glowing light blue, the same as her eyes.

Thousands of glowing energy lances appeared all around Peace, each one ten meters long and way thicker than her own weapon. They slowly began spinning as they propelled forward, aiming right where War stood.

The tall man laughed as his greatsword burst into dark crimson flames. His blood-red eyes burned with fervor, and the flames on his sword extended a few dozen meters away.

The energy lances shot towards him, so fast the air itself exploded. However, as they approached War, he simply swung the gigantic flame weapon, and swept away the lances.

The edge of the crimson greatsword even came close to hitting Peace. The woman reacted quickly enough though, and raised her glowing lance, blocking the enormous weapon with ease.

Her lance also grew way larger as the light blue energy extended towards both ends. She used the enormous lance to stab into the ground, destroying multiple blocks worth of remnant housing.

War jumped off the ground faster than the lance moved. He flew above Peace and slashed horizontally, his weapon burning ever fiercer. A wave of dark crimson flame shot forward, further destroying the surrounding area.

The screams of people mixed with the exploding buildings and the laughter of Peace and War.

The waves of crimson flames came close to reaching them, but strange shadowy barriers halted their approach. Like a ramp, the flames changed direction and went upward, saving the terrified civilians' lives.

Similar sudden saves happened all over Rome. Sometimes a shadow barrier, saving civilians from deadly rubble; other times, shadow spikes growing from the ground, eliminating angels, demons and anything hurtful in between.

Many survivors praised their Goddess for these saves, which made Faith content. She smiled gently while glancing down at the small child still clutching her leg.

She raised a large sphere of shadows the moment Peace and War began fighting. Both Annie and the rubble where her unconscious father lay stayed safe.

The explosive sounds grew more intense with each passing moment. It seemed this was only the warmup for the battle between Peace and War.

Annie whimpered upon hearing each new sound. However, she calmed down as Faith placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. The pale woman bent down, her dark eyes staring at Annie's tear-stained, dirty face.

"Don't worry. Everything will be fine. Our Goddess is close and will save everyone. However, we need to leave this area by the time she arrives, since her wrath will destroy everything, including us if we get into the crossfire!"

The young girl nodded and walked to her father's stuck, unconscious body. She knelt down beside him, keeping a quiet, reserved expression. Her hand gently caressed his dirty face, while she glanced up at the Shadow.

"I already lost my mother. I would never ask Miss Shadow to save her, but my father isn't dead yet… He's my only remaining family, so I'll only leave if you can save my father too!"

Her voice sounded small, yet in Faith's eyes, it carried more power than even the strongest of beings. It was rare to see someone love a person so much that they would rather perish with them, then survive on their own.

Faith smiled brightly at the girl's resolve and gently patted her on the head…

"I would never dream of leaving him behind. However, I have to warn you. My way of movement is anything but comfortable, so prepare yourself and take a deep breath."

Annie nodded, a bit of fear appearing in her eyes. However, the relief of knowing her father would be okay, took away all her doubts and reservations.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, the world disappeared…