The practice of saying that two people or things with quite similar characteristics are like “two peas in a pod” is one of the most misleading, commonly made misstatements—given that no two peas are exactly the same. The differences are numerous, and upon close examination an infinite number of details like exact size and shape will invariably be revealed. Closer to the truth would be to suggest that the peas look the same—at first glance.

  And, naturally, not all eyes are blessed with the same powers of observation. The eyes of the angels, as it happened, sent exceedingly more information to their brains than did those of the Minors. They therefore had access to a much greater number of details and nuances about their surroundings. So, the angels and, of course, the demons, were acutely aware of the fact that no two objects in all of creation were exactly alike.

  This rule, though simple and quite easy to comprehend, had just one exception. No eye, not even with the help of all the other senses, was capable of differentiating the two angels whom Asius was studying intently at the moment.

  Their swords clashed, withdrew, and found each other again in a simultaneous attempt to overcome and defeat their opponent. The flames that wrapped around the blades left an orange trail where they swept through the air. A faint whistling sound accompanied their movements, indicating to an experienced ear their velocity and location.

  “Seeing the Twins training has always been, for me, one of the most impressive spectacles in existence,” commented Zaedon while his eyes followed the burning traces drawn in the air by the swords.

  Asius nodded in silence, never taking his gaze off the sublime battle scene unfolding before him that was holding him completely captivated. The light from the flashing of the blades and the bursts of flames were reflecting off his red hair.

  The swords clashed again and a blue flash momentarily lit up the contenders. Both had their wings extended, enabling them to perform the indispensable role they played in the combat positions being used. Having lost the ability to fly, their choreography for fighting had had to be revised, eliminating any moves that required flight. But their wings were still essential for balance, for finding their center of gravity in certain stances that would otherwise have been impossible to adopt. The Twins were engaging in this training session because they were of the opinion that there was no better way to progress than to try to beat one of their own.

  The Practice Room was one of the sections of the School that could be reached by going up through one of the Channels. It was comprised of more than five thousand different platforms suspended at different heights. Less than half of them were accessible by hanging hallways laid down by the Framers after the Wave. The rest of the platforms were no longer used since restoring other parts of the Nest currently had a higher priority. The angels had no way to access them since the Wave had robbed them of their ability to fly.

  All the Practice Rooms were made in the same design. The only difference between them was their size and capacity. A central platform floated at the lowest level. It had neither walls nor a ceiling, and in the middle of it was a round area marked off by a circle where the contests took place. Near the circle was a single chair set aside for the Healer, without whom no session could take place. About ten feet up, encircling the training area, were small, suspended observation discs. Behind the Healer’s chair at the edge of the central platform was a series of rectangular marble pieces, with each one placed a little higher than the one before it and spaced apart so they were not touching. These constituted the steps of a staircase by which angels could go up to the first observation disc. From there, to get to the other ones they had to use the hanging hallways that tied them all together in an enormous ring.

  The Twins continued their dance on the training field in what appeared to be a never-ending fight. Their movements exactly alike; their feints, their attacks, and their parries happened in the same order, giving the spectators the feeling they were watching a single angel in front of a mirror. They moved a few yards apart from one another and traced perfectly identical flaming semicircles in the air. The fiery arcs blazed through the space that was between them, each searching for its intended target. They crashed together in midair halfway between the two angels, then disappeared in an explosion of fire. From that moment on, the symmetry was gone. One of the Twins attacked while the other defended. The attacker jumped back, drawing a new line of fire while his feet were still in the air. Flames shot out as he landed lightly on the floor. The defender reacted in the blink of an eye, tucking his wings as he crouched down. The curve of the flame passed over him without touching him. As it landed at the edge of the circular combat area, it dissolved in a flash. Spherical waves spread out from the protective barrier, covering the fight scene like a dome. It was a security measure that took care of two basic necessities; it both isolated the combatants so the spectators would be in no danger and kept the training from taking place if there was no Healer present since Healers were the only ones who could activate and deactivate the protective barrier.

  “Their rapport is almost impossible to fathom,” commented Asius from the observation disc.

  “I don’t think they’ll like leaving the Nest,” said Zaedon pensively.

  Asius didn’t seem to notice Zaedon’s comment. His eyes were glimmering with admiration as he watched the Twins in action.

  The session was almost over. The training circle was full of fiery lines that formed all kinds of runes. They would soon have no room left to maneuver. Asius and Zaedon had arrived after the training had already begun, but after thoroughly examining some of the symbols, Asius knew they’d been fighting for quite a while.

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  After a rapid series of attacks and parries, the Twin that was taking the initiative at the moment caught the other angel with the point of his sword, opening up a deep cut on his arm that extended from his shoulder to his elbow. This immediately stopped the fight. The Healer reached out his arm, and his hand glowed with a white halo. The angel’s wounded arm lit up for a few seconds and, when the light went out, there was no sign of the cut. Even his clothing was like new. The Twins then put their swords away.

  “I’m done,” announced one of them.

  The Healer gestured with his hand and the protective barrier silently vanished. That gesture turned into another that was faster and more complex, and the lines of fire that were still hanging in the air disappeared. The Twins left the circle side by side, perfectly in step, tucking away their wings at exactly the same time.

  “Thanks for the session,” said one of the Twins to the Healer.

  A drop of sweat rolled down his forehead, then down the edge of his cheek and into his beard. An identical trail of sweat was visible on the other Twin as well. They were both six-and-a-half feet tall and had long, blond hair. Their skin was slightly tanned and their eyes were a brilliant green. Their faces were both delicate and serious, and rarely showed any emotion. They always dressed in plain colors, and their arms were always bare. Today they were wearing light-colored, sleeveless tunics that fit tightly across their chests. A silver belt gathered the tunics at their waists and from there fell to below their ankles, with a slit up the middle of the front. The only garment they always both wore were two plain armbands that went from their wrists up their forearms to their elbows.

  “I see you’re still in excellent shape,” Asius commented to them as he came down the floating marble steps.

  He had had previous dealings with the Twins and knew there was no reason to address them as if he were talking to two different people, so he couldn’t congratulate the one who had inflicted the wound. Asius recalled that everything about his first interactions with them had left him confused. It hadn’t been possible to tell them apart at all. Up to the tiniest detail, the two angels were identical—their voices, their clothing, the way they moved—everything was the same. And it wasn’t just that they shared these commonalities; it was as if they were, in effect, a single angel. They spoke of themselves only in the first person singular, and it was impossible to know which one of the two would be the one to answer in any given moment. They even answered to the same name: Yala.

  “I still need to improve, but thanks anyway, Counselor.” The Twins bowed their heads simultaneously in a gesture of appreciation.

  “I have a mission for you,” said Asius. “We urgently need you.”

  Yala raised their eyebrows, looking intrigued.

  “I’m listening,” said one of them.

  “I imagine you know that the Fallen have captured Diago,” explained Asius, speaking to the only one who’d spoken up to this point. The Twins nodded. “Well, we’re going to look for him and I’m counting on you to help me.”

  “That means leaving the Nest,” the other curtly responded. Asius turned toward him. “I’ve never been on Earth. It might be more useful for you to get help from someone who’s already been there.”

  “Don’t worry about that. We won’t be alone,” he clarified. “It’s your strength and your skill I need to save our friend.”

  “In that case, you can count on me,” was Yala’s brief reply.

  “Excellent. I’ve never doubted your bravery,” he said, satisfied. “We should go to the Threshold now. They’re going to test the Shield of the Citadel and I want to be present. After that, we’ll leave this plane and go look for Diago.”

  Asius waved to the Healer and went to the edge of the platform, extended his wings and glided down through the air of the Channel. Zaedon and Yala landed shortly after him, then followed behind him, walking in silence next to one another.

  No one understood exactly the full scope of the special bond that united the Twins, but there was no doubt that it transcended mere physical appearance. Yala had never offered any explanation to anyone on the subject and had made it abundantly clear they did not like to talk about it. On one occasion someone had pressed the matter, pointing out how helpful it would be if they took the necessary measures for others to be able to tell them apart—like dressing differently and using different names. This was apparently more than what the Twins deemed acceptable, and it had taken ten angels to keep Yala from showing that busybody just how vehemently they disagreed with his unsolicited opinion. After that, no one ever again even so much as hinted at something like that, at least not in front of them.

  They were in the Second Sphere of the Nest, where the School was. Since the Citadel was in the Threshold in the First Sphere; to get there they had to go to the Orbs, which were the only mode of travel between the seven spheres of the Nest.

  The Orbs were a most unique element of creation, the only one that not even the angels understood. Neither the Travelers nor the Framers had access to its secrets. Both could activate and deactivate the Orbs, but that’s where the knowledge about their functioning ended. The Orbs’ greatest secret was that they were the only known form of matter or energy that could exist in two different places at the same moment in time, thus allowing travel from one sphere to another.

  The Framers could modify any part of the Nest except the Orbs, which had existed since the beginnings of creation. When the first generation of angels populated the seven spheres, the Orbs were already there. They were the work of the Elder, and he never revealed their secrets to anyone. In fact, a Framer had once tried to investigate their essence—a blatant violation of a direct order from the Elder—and his punishment served as an example that, in the future, no one should ever again express that kind of curiosity.

  Asius stopped and waited for Zaedon and Yala who were following a little farther behind. A spherical globe that was some ten feet tall was resting in the center of a small, placid lake. The three angels walked across the water out to the Orb. Silent bolts of lightening streaked across its surface at regular intervals, signaling that it was activated. Inside it they could see a distorted image of the Citadel, as if they were looking at it through a window streaked with rain.

  The Counselor was the first to go into the Orb. He felt something liquid flowing over him. He closed his eyes for only a second, and when he came out the other side the distorted image had become real; he was in the Citadel, more specifically, on the second level. Zaedon and Yala came out of the Orb shortly after. None of them was wet.

  “The test of the Shield is about to begin,” declared Asius, looking up. “Let’s hurry.”