“Ramiel, did you hear about the Colosseum show this day?”

Ramiel grunted, his large hands picking up rotten fruit after rotten fruit. The vendor stared at him with apprehension and a bit of frustration.

“No, Baraqiel. I have not.” His nose wrinkled as he put down a fuzzy object that was supposed to be a fruit, “You have insufficient sustenance. Get some.”

The vendor’s grumblings faded away once Ramiel turned and walked with the fidgeting Baraqiel down the busy Roman street.

“It’s all over the place, Ramiel! I’m surprised you haven’t found out yet. You know everything.” The other angel continued to babble on. Know everything? Sure. Ramiel could think of a lot of things he wished he had known were coming. But the thing about being given visions from the Devine, was that they came sparingly and sometimes without much clarity. Like the last time, he was in the middle of bathing an-

“Two women. Can you believe that? These Romans are more bloodthirsty than some of those Huns you talk about with the others. Do you really suppose that they will rise then fall so quickly? I will gamble fifteen sheep that they conquer that northern area as well. You know, the one they shall call Russ-.”

“Baraqiel.” Ramiel stopped walking to face his brother.

“Yes?”

“Stop.”

“Forgive me…”

“What was that you mentioned about two women?” Ramiel crossed his arms, glaring unnecessarily hard at the sheepish looking angel. Warrior of God his ass.

“Two Christian women. They are being fed to the lions.”

Women? And Christians. How far would the emperor go to rid himself of this rising religion? Ramiel would soon lose count of these martyrs. Especially since the Son had already died and risen. Humans were pathetic. But he kept this thought to himself.

“Ramiel, Baraqiel. Brothers. There’s bad news.” Aramoros suddenly paced forward, nudging himself through the crowd to get to them.

Baraqiel turned with a lazy grin, “Yes. We know. Women are being thrown in the pit this day.”

As Ramiel shook his head, Aramoros glared at the smiling Baraqiel, “No. It is more personal,” He looked each way before leaning in closer, “We are Fallen.”

Both of them froze on the spot, their spines stiffening. Baraqiel’s face harbored a shocked expression while Ramiel looked more suspicious.

“We? Whom do you mean by we?”

“All of us.”

“All of us?” Baraqiel looked left and right as if searching for the perpetrator who had possibly snitched to the All Mighty.

Aramoros nodded silently, almost gravely. Ramiel, honestly, wasn’t surprised.