Opening A/N: Welcome, dear readers. For those of you unfamiliar with me, I am Donjusticia, master of the written word, breaker of his and other's sanity, creator of laughter, destroyer of legitimate shipping pairs, thorn in the side of Shimmering-Sky, and harbinger of the Earthbound Immortal's return. For those of you who are familiar with me and my past works, *waves hand* "hi."

This has been an enjoyable month for me. Not only do I have big plans for my other stories, but thanks to the help of my coauthor and dear friend, Shimmering Sky, we have both come up with an exciting new story idea!

Since the introduction of the "Blue Angel" manga read by Specter from "Yu-Gi-Oh Vrains," I have been curious about what the entire story might have been, which Aoi drew comfort from as a child. One thought lead to another, and this concept was born. And so, based on the small tidbits of info shared by Specter regarding the plot of "Blue Angel," Shimmering-Sky and I give you our own interpretation of what that story might have been. Themes, at times, may be a bit darker than what would traditionally be shared in a children's series, but it is our hope that you, our dear readers, can find the same kind of hope, inspiration, and joy from this series as Aoi found from her book. Enjoy.

S-S A/N: Hi everyone! I don't have any sort of fancy introduction (unless you count being that one author who wrote a lot of depressing Zarc/Ray fanfics and also angsts daily over Royai, Shirlulu, and SuzaEuphy as "fancy"), so I'm really just saying hi. I'm super excited to be helping Donjusticia make his ideas into a reality, and I hope all of you guys enjoy it too!

Blue Angel

Trailer 1: Blue

She wakes up feeling cold, eyelashes brushing against the gritty dust as the world comes into focus around her. It's dark, with only the light of a pale moon bleeding through the gnarls of twisted trees to provide illumination. She is lying face-down on the ground, left hand hovering just above a cool and quiet brook lapping over moss-covered pebbles.

She sits up when she hears a loud high-pitched shriek in the distance, something hammering against her chest as a feeling of immense fear washes over her. Feeling the need to leave, she gets unsteadily to her bare feet, falling against a nearby tree for support before examining her surroundings. All around her is thick forest, legions of immense trees blocking her view of any of the surrounding area with their dark twisted branches. She does not know where she is, yet she feels the need to immediately leave, before something dangerous arrives, so she plunges into the thick branches of the thicket.

Pressing onward, she brushes aside scores of thick twisted branches, which cling to her skin, deep blue hair, and the thin slip of fabric she is wearing over her body. Fumbling in the darkness, her bare foot catches against a gnarled root, and before she can stop herself, she falls forward, hands and face breaking her fall against a pile of sharp rocks.

Yelping in pain, she instinctively brings her hand to her mouth, trying to assuage the sharp stinging feeling, and tastes something strange. Withdrawing her hand to look at it with the dim moonlight, she sees something red leaking from the skin.

From the depths of her memory, a voice speaks to her.

"Blood, the ichor of life that animates the humans. If they lose too much, they die, so they fight hard to preserve it. We, being immortal, have no need of it."

She shakes her head in disbelief, trying to recall what is going on. She is astonished to find that she can recall almost nothing, why she is here, where this place is, or even who she is. But she is certain of one thing right now.

I am immortal! This should not be happening! I should not be bleeding!

She racks her brain, trying harder to remember, but only short fragments come to her.

I am an angel. I live in Elzya, the city of angels. The world beneath Elzyan is Niolem. I am sworn to protect it and the mortal humans who live there. My name is…my name is…

But she cannot remember her name, or anything from her past. She remembers all sorts of facts, the names of objects such as "tree," "rock," "dirt," "moon," and "darkness," she remembers languages and how to count, she knows of abstract concepts like "good," "evil," "eternity," and "the gods," but if she tries to remember anything about who she is or her past, she sees only an immense fog. She is absolutely certain that she is what is called an angel, an immortal being of purity, and yet, as she looks upon her blood-stained hands, and feels the cold and fatigue of her body, a different word comes to her mind.

Human.

She shakes her head in desperation. It is all wrong! This is all wrong! She is not supposed to be human. If she is human, then that would mean she was mortal, and if she was mortal, then that would mean she was fallible. This had to be an illusion, a dream. At any moment, she would awaken from this distortion and remember who she really was.

But as she sits there, the illusion continues, a chilling wind blowing through the rustling branches causing her to grow colder and more fearful. Against her chest, she feels the beating grow stronger, and a new word comes to her.

Heart. A human organ used to sustain life. Prone to failing and causing immediate death.

To her growing distress, she involuntarily does something very human.

She begins crying.

Tears blue as the ocean begin pouring from her eyes as she struggles against her growing sense of fear and helplessness. Angrily wiping at her leaking eyes with her fists, she forces herself back onto her feet.

"I am an angel!" she shouts to the darkness. "I am not weak! I have no time for weakness! Whatever is happening right now, I'll figure it out, and I will fix it!"

She clenches her fists and grits her teeth together, trying to ignore the bright blue tears still digging ridges into her dirt-smeared cheeks, and proceeds onward until she comes across an open part of the forest, somewhere where she can spread her wings and take off, take off and leave Niolem to return to Elzya.

She flexes the muscles on her back.

And realizes that her muscles end at her shoulders.

"My wings…" she whispers to herself. "No…no…NO!"

Desperately, she feels her back, trying to feel the feathers that should mantle her back like a cloak. But there is nothing, not even a wound to suggest that they were ripped from her. She feels the urge to flee, to go anywhere to escape this nightmare.

Only, she has no idea where to go.

Another high-pitched shriek in the distance of the forest catches her attention, and now, she can hear the faint sound of something big moving through the forest, as if it is chasing her.

Instinctively, she breaks into a run, blindly rushing without wings to carry her out of the forest, the shrieks growing louder and closer as she continues her flight deeper and deeper into the woods. In the rush of fear and adrenaline that courses through her body, she nearly forgets about the memory loss plaguing her as she continues running with all her strength, heart beating against her body with renewed vigor as she pants for breath.

The screech is closer now. Louder. Behind her, she can hear the sound of vegetation crunching as something immense plows through the thick forest, screaming, snarling, and grunting with building rage and aggression. As she continues running, she realizes that whatever is pursuing her, it is gaining on her. She looks around, wondering if she should try climbing one of the trees, when she suddenly slips over the edge of grassy slope and begins tumbling down a hill.

Limbs flailing in a desperate attempt to steady herself as she rolls down the wet grassy slope, she suddenly has all the wind knocked out of her as her back comes crashing against an immense bolder, which abruptly stops her tumble. Gasping for breath, she gets back up onto her feet…

when the thing that is pursuing her emerges from the forest.

Glaring down at her from the top of the hill with eight glowing yellow eyes, she recognizes an animal that her memory tells her ought to be boar. But the thing that paws at the ground, steam billowing from its tusked snout, is far too twisted and mutated to be anything like the boars she remembers. There is an immense gash in its flank, exposing bone and organ as a mass of twisted red roots like tentacles writhe over the wound to cover half the creature's body. Its tusks are immense, and covered with a membrane of sticky red malformed flesh. Its front hooves are half-rotted and covered with fungi, and it has two immense tails, one of which has a flower-like mouth on the end, which snaps and foams at the air.

Frozen in fear, she can only gaze at the twisted monstrosity before it charges down the hill at her.

Breaking from her stupor, she vaults over the boulder to put the immense rock between herself and the boar before sprinting down the hill, arms flailing as she struggles to maintain balance. Behind her, she can hear the boar effortlessly plow down the hill before vaulting over the boulder, strong hooves helping it to effortlessly traverse the sloping terrain.

Turning her head around while running, she catches a glimpse of the boar charging towards her, and instantly rolls herself out of the way as the monster leaps, just barely missing the creature's powerful tusks and the snapping mouth on its second tail as she takes another tumble down the hill, managing to stop herself with her feet before running in another direction. Glancing to her right, she sees the boar struggle against the momentum of its charge, taking longer to regain its feet before resuming its pursuit.

She continues running, desperate to get away from the horrific monstrosity, when she suddenly finds herself screeching to a halt, feet slipping against the wet grass as she flails and falls on her back.

Just a few feet from her is a sheer cliff, that looks like it was dug up by an immense worm. Off in the distance, she notices what looks like thousands upon thousands of twinkling lights on top of an immense mountain with a flat top. Upon closer inspection, she realizes that it must be a city, a human city.

Looking upon the dazzling sight, she feels strangely drawn to the city, when behind her, the sound of the boar grabs her attention.

Turning around, body trembling with fear, she faces the monster, which is pawing the ground with irritation, mouth foaming with rage is its eyes glow with supernatural light and its root-like tentacles and tails writhe. Looking to her right and left, she realizes that the boar has her cornered.

The boar charges.

Without even thinking, she throws out her hands in a defensive jester, hoping to deflect the impact with her bloody palms.

With a burst of energy, a beam of blue light erupts from her palms, striking against the boar before it can hit her and sending it flying into the air before it lands roughly against the ground, paws flailing in the air. Astonished, she looks at her hands before a memory surfaces.

"Go down to Niolem, my angels, purge the corruption that festers there. You are among the strongest of my servants. I know you will not fail." A beautiful woman with long white hair and shimmering robes instructs her. In another instant, she sees herself doing battle with an immense hideous monster, ten times the size of the flailing boar, her palms shining with light as she unleashes her power against it.

The boar regains its feet, angrier than ever, but she doesn't care. She is no longer afraid. Getting up on her feet, she faces off against the monster, unconcerned by the fact that she can neither flee nor draw a physical weapon against the creature. She is an angel. She has the power to defeat abominations such as this. And even if she doesn't, what good would come of her being a coward?

"Creature of corruption!" she calls, stretching out her palms while struggling against the growing sense of fatigue consuming her limbs. "As an angel of Elzya, I condemn thee to oblivion! Come and face me!"

The boar bristles, snout working furiously as a plume of steam rises from its foaming mouth. With a demonic shriek, the boar rumbles forward just as she throws at her palms, preparing to blast the boar into ashes with her angelic powers.

Only, when she throws out her hands, instead of blue energy busting from her palms, a sphere a bright yellow fire catches the side of the boar, causing the monstrosity to shriek in agony, tentacles and tails writhing before its entire body goes limp as flames consume it. It takes her a moment to realize that she was not the one who cast the fire.

"Depart, demon!" an elderly but powerful voice calls to her left as the smell of ash and smoking meat fills the air.

Turning her head to her left, palms outstretched defensively, she faces the newcomer, a tall old man riding a muzzled chestnut horse. The man is elderly, with a short white beard and bald head and is dressed in plain brown robes and a hood, a moon-shaped crest hanging about his neck while his hands clutch a large wooden walking stick with a sun crest at its top.

"Who are you, human?" she demands, keeping her hands outstretched.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance as well, Blue Angel." The man warmly replies, trotting up closer to her, staff drooping down to the horse's side as his arms relax. "I am Archbishop Iudex. I was sent here by your leader, Archangel, to collect you. I'm glad I arrived here in time, you must have had a quite the eventful night." He indicates the burning boar. "You aren't hurt too terribly, I hope?"

She doesn't reply to Iudex's question. One thing the man has said stands out to her.

Blue Angel…that's my name. There's no doubt about that. I can sense the truth of it. But then, how does he know?

Keeping her palms raised, she addresses the man.

"I don't know anything about you." She growls. "Why did you come here and how do you know my name?"

"I am charged with the rather unenviable mantle of keeping Niolem's corruption at bay." Iudex patiently explains, not seeming the least bit phased by Blue Angel's harsh tone or aggressive posture. "Not unlike your own holy mantle, good angel. As a fellow guardian of Niolem, I was the one Archangel contacted with the news that you had arrived here. I set out to find you and retrieve you before harm befell you."

Blue Angel listens to the man, face fixed in a cold stare. Much of what he is saying sounds right, and she has memories of human guardians and how they work alongside the angels to maintain peace, but she can't be sure.

"You still haven't answered my other question." She growls, stepping towards Iudex, palms still outstretched. "How do you know who I am?"

Archbishop Iudex chuckles at this, eyes twinkling with amusement.

"My dear angel, forgive me, but you are obviously not too familiar with humanity. You would be hard pressed to find anyone with hair as deep a blue as yours, and would be even harder pressed to find anyone with the ability to shoot holy fire from their palm without the aid of a magical item. Erm, speaking of which…" he continues, dismounting from his horse before approaching the carcass of the boar with his staff raised.

Blue Angel keeps her eyes and palms fixed on the man as he approaches the dead boar, seemingly examining it. Out of the corner of her eyes, she sees that the fire has gone out and that blood-red vines have started to sprout around the boar carcass at an alarming rate, slowly entwining themselves around the husk of the animal. Muttering under his breath, Archbishop Iudex aims his staff at the ground before firing a plume of flame into the carcass of the boar, incinerating the writhing vines and causing what little flesh remains of the boar to fizzle and burn until it rises into the air in a cloud of ash.

"It's dead." Blue Angel tells the archbishop, not sure what he is doing as he continues to burn away even the charcoaled skeleton.

"Quite right." Iudex replies, nodding his head in agreement while continuing to burn the corpse. "Hopefully this time, it will stay dead. Burning the bodies seems to be the only way to ensure no arcane corruption actuates them again."

With another burst of fire, the rest of the bones dissolve into a pile of ash before the Archbishop finally stops and faces Blue Angel.

"We must leave here now." Iudex warns. "The forests outside the city are especially unsafe at night. It's a little too far to reach Timberholm, but my sanctuary is protected with strong enchantments. We should be safe there. Come along."

He mounts his horse and offers his hand to her, but Blue Angel holds still.

"You cannot stay here." Iudex warns, gesturing for her to take his hand. "Who knows what else might be hunting you."

"I don't need your help." Blue Angel growls. "I am an angel, I can stand on my own."

"On the contrary," Iudex replies, looking her over, "you look like you can barely stand on your own two feet. Using your power like that in your current state might have saved you from being skewered, but it seems to have drained you considerably. Had I not intervened, you would have likely exhausted yourself before the boar killed you."

Blue Angel blinks away some sweat that is pouring down her forehead while trying to keep her knees from shaking, growing increasingly frustrated by her bodies inexplicable weakness. She doesn't want to think that he's right, and yet…

"Had I intended you harm, I would have let the boar kill you." Iudex remarks, as if reading her thoughts.

Surprised, Blue Angel drops her palms, arms filled with a sudden immense aching, and regards the man. Feeling a sudden wave of cold, her skin begins to involuntarily shiver.

"I know it is a lot for you to take in, noble angel." Iudex continues, taking off his outer cloak and offering the garment to her. "But you have become mortal. You must have food and shelter, or you will perish."

Blue Angel eyes the cloak suspiciously, wondering if the man could be planning something, but a second shivering from her body convinces her to take the cloak and wrap it around herself. She is immediately grateful for it, as an almost instantaneous warmth caresses her freezing arms and shoulders. Looking up at Iudex, who is watching her, she immediately feels embarrassed by her show of weakness and straitens herself up, throwing her shoulders back before regarding him with a more dignified expression.

"I thank you for your consideration." She stiffly acknowledges, "But I do not need-…"

A sudden rumbling from her belly interrupts her sentence. Confused, she clutches her gut as a new feeling of pain twists her insides.

"Porridge is cooking over the hearth." Iudex hums, gently taking her hand in his before lifting her onto the horse. "We can discuss more over dinner."

…

Iudex leads Blue Angel down the canyon, which he calls Rootway before they follow the winding path towards the city, dark trees surrounding them on all sides. No more creatures molest them, but Blue Angel keeps her palms upraised just in case. As they come nearer to the city, Blue Angel's eyes widen as she realizes that the mountain the city is standing upon is not a mountain at all, but the stump of an immense tree. From the distance, she can make out a complex network of ramps, stairs, and roadways carved into the tree's bark like the tunnels of carpenter ants, the paths eventually leading to the flat top of the stump where the city sprawls to the very edge, until more buildings and houses are built into the side of the stump's bark, supports holding them in place. Looking more closely, Blue Angel can see the remnants of immense roots at the base of the stump, and realizes with a jolt that Rootway must have been carved out anciently by one of those gargantuan tendrils of wood.

"It was a cataclysmic time when the world tree fell." Iudex comments as he notices Blue Angel's stare. "Many of my ancient ancestors thought that the world had truly come to an end. Still, it is surprising how well humans can adapt."

Humans. That word again.

Archbishop Iudex's comment causes Blue Angel to begin thinking about her own weakness again, how horribly human she now feels.

"Why am I here?" she asks as they begin ascending up a pathway out of Rootway before walking along a pathway in the woods, "Why do I feel so weak?"

Archbishop Iudex is silent for a moment, head hanging down as he continues walking.

"How much do you remember, Blue Angel?" he asks.

Blue Angel pauses, feeling suddenly ashamed. Hanging her head down, she says nothing.

Iudex sighs.

"You have been cursed, Blue Angel." He calmly explains, "Cursed to become mortal and suffer all mortal weaknesses. A spark of your angelic power, however, remains, and I intend to help you master it. Perhaps, if you can regain your full power, you may be able to rid yourself of your curse."

Blue Angel slowly digests the information as they approach a large wooden wall with a sun and moon crest engraved into a large wooden gateway. Raising his sun and moon crests into the air, Iudex begins chanting before his crests and the symbols on the gateway begin glowing and the gates open.

"Welcome to Angel's Haven." He announces, smiling as he takes her hand and leads her through the gateway. "Until you are free of your curse, please, make yourself at home here."

On the other side of the wall is a modest wooden chapel, a large stone tower with a broken bell at the top looming over the humble building. Barns, wells, smoke-houses, farms, and orchards surround the chapel while multiple lanterns hanging from the rafters of the buildings and wall provide light.

Iudex leads her inside the chapel, navigating through several hallways until they come to a simple dining hall with wooden tables and chairs, and a large fire blazing within a fireplace with an iron cooking pot hanging over the roaring flames.

"I am not well-versed in the culinary arts." Iudex apologizes, guiding Blue Angel into one of the chairs before she can protest. "But hopefully this will at least be nourishing."

He sets down his staff before retrieving two wooden bowls and a ladle from shelfs fastened into the walls and approaching the pot. Ladling some of the liquid inside the pot into one of the bowls, he takes a tentative sip, face grimacing before he smacks his lips.

"Mmmmmmmmmmmm…nourishing." He sighs before ladling some more liquid into the second bowl and setting it before Blue Angel.

Blue Angel stares at it, feeling liquid leaking out of her tongue, but hesitating to touch the bowl. She recalls what food is, and knows that it is something all mortals must partake of to continue living, but she isn't quite sure how it works.

Iudex, on the other hand, seems to know exactly what to do. Taking his bowl in both hands, he blows on it before raising the bowl to his mouth and loudly slurping it in with his mouth.

Hesitantly, Blue Angel tries mimicking him, carefully blowing on the liquid before tipping the concoction against her lips. The instant her mouth makes contact, some instinct takes over, and she finds herself gulping down the food before she can stop herself. The concoction causes her tongue to recoil slightly, but it is warm and it fills up her belly, causing the pain writhing within her guts to slowly dissipate. She almost thinks she might enjoy food.

"Careful, good angel." Iudex cautions with a laugh. "I wouldn't do for you to choke to death."

The mention of death immediately causes Blue Angel to remember the full reality of her curse.

"Why did I become mortal?" she asks, wiping some of the liquid from her chin with the back of her hand before examining the cat on her palm, remembering how the sight of her blood had horrified her earlier that night.

Archbishop Iudex's eyes darken as he looks down to stare at his entwined fingers, looking deep in thought.

"I do not know, Blue Angel." He eventually replies. "You would not remember, of course, but we have met before."

Blue Angel looks up at him. "Is this true?" she asks, wondering why she can't recognize him.

"It was nothing very special." Iudex replies, waving away her question. "I merely had brief contact with you during your other, erm, missions to Niolem. You were a very good angel. Strong, clever, powerful. You saved Timberholm many times from the corruption that threatens us."

"But what happened?" she probes, desperate to know more.

Iudex sighs.

"I only know that you had come here to perform another mission." He slowly replies. "Your leader, Archangel, told me that something that happened that you had…uhm…well…"

His voice trails off, but Blue Angel understands. Slowly, a memory surfaces.

She is standing before a radiant angel with white hair, Archangel, the first of the angels, their eternal leader.

Archangel is looking down at her, sorrow and disappointment in her eyes.

"What you have done is a crime, Blue Angel." She explains. "It pains me greatly, but for your transgression, you shall be cast down to Niolem, where you shall dwell with the mortals until you have atoned for your sin."

There is a flash of light, and then-…

Blue Angel finds herself trembling, tears coming to her eyes once again.

"There must be a way for me to atone!" she pleads, grabbing the Archbishop's hands. "I'll be willing to do anything, if I could just-…"

Her voice trails off as she realizes the gravity of her situation.

I am being punished for something I did until I make amends for it. But how can I make amends if I don't know what I did!?

"I believe I may be able to help you." Archbishop Iudex soothes, patting Blue Angel's hands. "I will tell you how you may return to heaven one day, but first, it is late and you must rest. I have sent out others to search Timberholm and the forest, but we may need to go ourselves if we are to find the others."

Blue Angel eyes the archbishop, confused by his last statement?

"Others?" Blue Angel asks.

Archbishop Iudex raises his eyebrow.

"The other angels." He replies simply. "Your fellow guardians."

Ending A/N: Thank you all for supporting this work. Tomorrow, a new chapter will be posted, in which we meet one of Blue's fellow angels. Thanks once again goes to Shimmering-Sky for her help with this project. A special shout-out also goes to my younger sister, and third team member, who insists on being named Cachoo (don't ask why), and who is also creating a comic book version of this series. I'll share links with you all when she is finished with a project, but let me just say that I have seen her work so far, and it is fantastic, so there is a lot to look forward to.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!