Chapter 2. The Yellow Crystalline

Another massacre had happened at the fifth Quadrant's borders. The first commander had sent some of the Alphas to assess and control the situation. The unusual fact about this particular uprising was that extremist angels and not demons had been responsible for it. They had attacked a small demon town in the middle of the woods and killed everything that crossed their paths. The number of extremist uprisings was growing in number every day, to the concern of the two Third and the dismay of tired Alphas.

The Alpha camp was at the borders of The Capital, at the center of Shinshi's territory. It was strategically located to enable the Alphas to reach any place inside Shinshi as fast and easy as possible. It resembled a fortress, with its high stone walls, austere rooms, and highly armed fronts. Muscled angels and demons shared rooms, bathrooms, and food inside the fort. The camp was probably the only place inside Shinshi where demons and angels had achieved a sense of civilized cohabitation. In the end, they depended on each other to remain alive during their battles.

The sound of alarms coming alive woke Seunghyun from his slumber. The angel hissed as he stretched the still sore muscles of his wings and let out a deep, disgruntled growl. It was unfair, he thought. He had just been fighting against the extremist Angels the night before and definitely deserved more sleep.

"Why?" Seunghyun covered his ears with his hands, folding his body into a fetal position over the bed's hard mattress.

"Squad!" resonated the voice of the first commander of Alphas' third squad, the angel Tsuyo, in the distance. The sound of a door slamming against the wall was the only cue for the bodies and eyes of the tired Alphas to rose into attention.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," Minzy grinned as she patted Seunghyun's shoulder. Her short red hair that contrasted with her wine red and black feathers was messy and put into a bun that hid the horns pointing out of her head. His female demon Alpha friend was strong, stronger perhaps than other male Alphas. She surely knew that as she carried herself with enormous confidence.

"Shut up, you demon!" Seunghyun slammed her hand away as he pushed himself off the bed. The figure of the commander Tsuyo could be seen marching down the dormitory corridors as he assessed his disgruntled soldiers. At the sight of his commander approaching, Seunghyun quickly put on a greyish vest to cover his chest and stood still, fighting to keep his eyes open.

 "Why are they calling us?" he whispered, barely moving his lips.

"Look at your wrist," Minzy winked.

Seunghyun lifted his pale right wrist, and his eyebrows rose at the sight of a new mark that he was sure hadn't been there the night before. He sneaked a glance at the rest of his Alpha squad and saw that many of his fellow soldiers shared similar stupefied faces while looking at their own wrists.

"What is this?" he turned to look at Minzi with pinched eyebrows. The female demon was standing still with her arms behind her back.

"How am I even going to know? Ask the Tsuyo," she rolled her eyes. "I found out about my mark this morning as same as you,"

Seunghyun's reply was interrupted by the bark of commander Tsuyo's voice.

"Tomorrow and the rest of the week, train wagons transporting the visitors to the quadrants will arrive at their destinations!" Tsuyo stared at his soldiers while his intimidating brown wings extended behind his back, demanding attention, "Each of you was assigned to each of those visitors."

A displeased murmur arose between the crowds of sleepy Alphas. Some twisted their mouths, annoyed. Others subtly lifted their hands in the air with frustration, and others batted their wings in anger. They had been notified about the new mandate from The Capital. Understandably many had been skeptical about the security arrangements to maintain those visitors safe. Some had even suggested that the Two Third would probably enforce double or triple shifts to protect those unarmed angels and demons between jokes. It seemed now they had not been too far away from the truth.

"Oh, now we are babysitters," Minzy broke in laughter, showing her sharp fangs and then winked at Seunghyun, who rolled his eyes.

"Each of you now has a mark on your wrist, which acts as communication between you and your sheltered. Whenever they meet danger, you'll be informed by your bond, and your new task will be to provide them with help and protection. Is that clear?" Tsuyo's eyes were severe as he stared down at his men and women warriors.

A cry of "Yes, sir!" reverberated inside the dormitory, making the floor's dust tremble. A pleased smile was all acknowledgment that the commander Tsuyo gave before he left the room, and his departure triggered the boiling of murmurs and bothered whispers.

"Is this true?" Seunghyun hissed as he ran a wet finger over his arm in an attempt to erase the mark, but it remained imprinted in his skin. "For Gabriel's sake! I was not born an Alpha to end up being a babysitter of a weakling," he let his body slump again over his bed, "To think they woke me up for this."

"Oh! Come on, kid! It is not like we are going to be walking behind them like bodyguards… It's just when they are in danger. Poor youngsters, they are forced to move out of their quadrants in such dangerous times," Minzy murmured. A yawn escaped through the female demon's lips as she stretched her demon's wings. "In fact, my sister is out there too, she is one of them. I'm glad they are giving them at least some protection," her eyes shone under the dim light of the room, and she stared at the distance, pensive.

Seunghyun's frown disappeared from his face as he observed Minzy in silence. After a few seconds, he sighed and hit the mattress with his hand softly.

"Let me sleep."

Minzy clicked her tongue and whispered something close to "narcissist" as she walked away.

Seunghyun had been born as an Alpha Angel in the Fourth Quadrant. His wings were silver and had one of the most massive wingspans seen on any Alpha angel, which he was very proud of. He was brought by his father to the Alpha camp at ten to initiate his training as a soldier. Minzy, on the other hand, had joined the Alpha camp much later. Seunghyun did not know much of her, but he knew at least that family was essential to her.

Seunghyun heard the sound of familiar steps approaching his bed, and he sighed again.

"At least we are protecting our own species," murmured Maeum, one of his long-time friends and partners at the camp. He was also from Quadrant fourth, and while his wings were narrower and less robust, his mind was quick and smart. A few years back, he had been promoted as the head of Military tactics.

"What if we refuse?" Seunghyun gruntled as he accommodated his left wing that was twisted in an uncomfortable way behind him.

"I doubt we have that option," Maeum shook his head and sat over the bed next to Seunghyun's. He leaned down to take his boots off, "If anything, they will maybe assign an