Gabriel allowed a single tear to escape, needing to keep her sight focused on what would soon be lost to her all over again. On his shaking knees despite his battered body, with his face raised and eyes on her, Gabriel wanted so badly to fly down to Lucifer and wrap him in her arms. She wanted to tell him her faith in him and in believing that everything would be better had not died. Even more than that, and after all Lucifer had done to save her, she wanted to plead her case with God. Plead that their maker lift Lucifer up and give him the chance to repent and redeem himself. Though she knew there was no point. God’s mind was decided, and nothing Gabriel could say now would change that. Lucifer had to learn a lesson. One that—for now—was eternal.

The last few monsters across the gaping hole fell as Michael and Remiel fought with all they had left. And then the ground shifted, reforming not by Remiel’s hand but by Michael’s on top of his brother’s.

As Gabriel’s sight of the angel she had held the most hope for shrank, she smiled down at him. Tears fell freely with her words. “You have my forgiveness, Morningstar. Please do not squander it.”

The grassy earth continued to grow, chunks and rock reforming as they rolled up from below to become solid once more. Michael came toward her, his body healing of gashes and his hand at Remiel’s back helping the drained angel forward. Though Remiel looked at her with empathy for all she had lost, Michael’s narrowed stare over her head demanded her attention. With a deep frown, she twisted on the ground, her body aching and bitten arms stinging as she followed their stares to look behind her. Her eyes widened in disbelief. Not every one of the monsters was gone. Down on their knees, twelve men in total surrounded them, their heads bowed in reverence.

Suddenly Lucifer’s look of wonderment before he sacrificed himself to save her made sense.

This was what Lucifer had seen, and the reason he had said she was right.

“You bow to our God?” Michael looked from one to the next as if he could not believe it either. “You surrender to His will?”

In a snarl that was more animal than human, one replied, “I do.” The rest made similar vows in grunted agreement or a hissed, “Yes.”

Gabriel, though glad for any to surrender, felt saddened by the many monsters that had refused. So many lives—souls—now lost. So many below that could sway Lucifer to continue his destructive ways. Weak on her feet as she pushed upright, she moved slowly to the first that had spoken, feeling the residual power that waited inside of her to be unleashed. The power that kept her going on in this moment. A name whispered in her mind along with God’s plan for these surrendering monsters. She smiled. “Rise, Lord Bathory.”

The man did as told, but as his face lifted, she saw he was not quite a man. He was young. The same boy Lucifer had spared when she’d confronted him outside that camp. “I am no Lord, winged creature. Before this,”—he ran his hands that were now dried of blood down his body—“I was a peasant.”

Gabriel’s smile was as bright as the sun that waited back in Babylon for them. “No longer.” She touched the young man’s cheek and his eyes widened as a spark of light absorbed into him. Moving on, she said the men’s names and ordered them one-by-one to rise before delivering their gift. Once done, she watched each of the men as they looked down at themselves, knowing they felt the phenomenon of God’s power with the realignment of their souls and consciences. “You twelve will be royalty. The beginning of a new race.” Blinking the sweat from her eyes and forcing her legs to hold out, she nodded back to Michael and Remiel, requesting their help.

Without words, they each knew what she wanted, and responded by clicking their fingers at once. Darkness fell as the smoky campsite returned. A gentle morning breeze swept in as the trees untangled themselves. Light speared through the border of thick trunks. The twelve men cringed, their hands coming up as if to ward off the danger.

“You returned our souls only to kill us?” the man named Ruthaven stammered.

“God is nothing like the monsters inside of you that you are now able to control,” Michael answered as he slung a supporting arm around Gabriel as she weaved on her feet.

“He is your savior,” Remiel added, bowing his head and joining his palms.

The light grew brighter, the sun rising fast as if eager to deliver something great. As glorious beams broke over the canopy of trees, the twelve men threw their arms up to cover themselves.

And were not burned to dust.

“You are free to walk amongst the light once more,” Gabriel announced, unhinging herself from Michael despite how badly she needed physical support. She watched as the men slowly lowered their protective arms when they hadn’t burst into flames. As they stared at her with awe, Gabriel fought gravity to retrieve the angel sword she must have dropped when Lucifer saved her, the weapon that had traversed with them. Holding the jeweled hilt, she pointed the tip down at the ground. The prop helped balance her—and then it blazed to life with blue light.

Remiel stepped to her other side, placing his hand on her shoulder to lend her all the strength he had left. Understanding sparked in his eyes and he nodded. His voice was strong as he spoke to the men. “So long as you abide by your promise.”

With Remiel’s help, Gabriel lifted the sword, then she drove it down into the earth. Twelve power-filled blue bolts struck out, one at each of the men. They all cried out as they were hit, falling down to their knees. Gabriel staggered too, but Michael’s sudden hold around her shoulders kept her upright even after Remiel’s touch left her. She took a few deep breaths, too weak to brush Michael off as she leaned on the hilt of the long sword. “I name you The Twelve. The first of the saved race.” She rushed on as the ground seemed to tilt beneath her and her head swam. “Blood is your weakness, and though you need it to survive, know that taking even a single life will bring about your end. From this day on, you are a new and pure race. Remain with light and control your hungers…or be cursed for all of time. Welcome to your new lives—as the first vampires.”