002: Guardian Angel

On an open plains, a young boy with long, white hair gazed at mother nature. Everywhere he looked, his eyes would twinkle like a star. 

'This is amazing. The trees are taller than hills, the mountain pierce the distant skies, the clouds looks as soft as cotton, the lakes and rivers are clearer than glass, and the air is gentle and fresh… but I'm sleepy… and hungry,' the boy frowned. 

Looking around, the boy saw that there was a tree relatively close to him, so he ran toward that tree. When he saw the bright red apples hanging from its branches, he didn't think twice to jump and reach for it.

"Damn it!" 

Unfortunately, he was too short to reach the fruits.

"Now I'm even more sleepy and hungry!" The boy complained, and deciding that he had enough, he lied on the ground and closed his eyes.

"ARGHHH!" 

However! The boy shot up, yelling in agony with tears gushing out like a stream. When he saw everything around him, he paused, panting for air as his heart gradually calmed down.

"Where… where am I?" the boy mumbled and looked down. "I'm naked!" Immediately, he crossed his legs and looked around like a child who was caught naked in his room. "Eh?" However, the boy felt like he was missing a part of his body…

"Where's my…?" Surely enough, when he uncrossed his legs, he saw that he was missing his reproductive organ. "Did I become a girl?" Doubtful, the boy carresed the gap between his thighs. "Smooth… there's nothing there… at all. How do I poop and pee, then?" He asked himself, more curious than alarmed. For some reason, all his panic from earlier was vanishing into thin air.

"Hmm, I guess that's one less thing to worry about?" The boy rubbed his hair, not knowing how ordinary people should react to this. Even in his… other memories, he didn't know much common sense.

"Am I dreaming? Or did I die?" The boy wondered. In his mind, there were two memories. Fortunately, in both of his memories, he had the same name. 

Ezikiel Angeles.

The first set of memories were like a dream, fragmented and incomplete. He remembered living in a run-down building with a lot of other kids and a bitch of a woman. He remembered going to school and always being late. He remembered making a friend. 

'Or was it that someone tried to become my friend? Sigh, doesn't matter now. The last thing I remember is a sea of pain,' Ezikiel furrowed his brows.

The second set of memories he has was more vivid than the first one, mainly because it was too brief, lasting for only a few minutes. That's right, the second memories he has started from when he awoke in the middle of a vast plains.

'What should I do now?' Ezikiel wondered and subconscioiusly laid down. The name of his only friend kept repeating in his mind like it was trying to wake him up, but he couldn't respond to it no matter how much he tried… 

Well, he didn't do a whole lot, he only lied on the soft and comfortable soil. Just as his eyelids were about to curtain his eyes, he heard a voice.

"Your guess is correct, little Angel. You died, and was lucky enough to be reborn," a voice which sounded as deep as an empty well echoed behind him, but Ezikiel wasn't the least bit startled. All he did was "lift" his head without bothering to sit up, gazing at the beautiful man behind him with an upside-down perspective.

"You're beautiful," Ezikiel said, trying to supress his drowsiness. The man was taller than him, but aside from that, they looked nearly identical. He and the man both had waist-length white hair, crimson red eyes, and smooth white skin. 

'Hold on, does that mean I look beautiful too?' Ezikiel wondered, when he felt that something was wrong.

'Something's weird. I never saw what my… current body looks like, so how can I be so sure that we look identical?' Ezikiel was doubtful, yet mo matter how much he tried to reason with himself, he couldn't dissuade himself from believing that the man looked nearly identical to him.

"Well, thank you for the praise, little angel," the tall man smiled. "My name is… Zeikeli. I am one of the Guardian Angel of the 'Veinstar Realm'. May I know your name, little angel?" Zeikeli asked, and Ezikiel stared at him with a blank look.

When Zeikeli mentioned the "Guardian Angel" part of his sentence, Ezikiel finally noticed the massive white wings of the man. 'How did I notice those before? Each pair of his wings is bigger than himself!' Ezikiel couldn't form any words with his tongue, so he resorted to staying silent.

"I… see," but for some reason, Zeikeli nodded his head as if he gained some sort of enlightenment. "Then, you must've forgotten your name… wait, nevermind. Nevertheless, I will name you, little angel."

Seeing Zeikeli's kind smile, Ezikiel was about to refuse the offer and correct Zeikeli, but he paused bfore he could. 'He… doesn't know I kept some of my memories,' Ezikiel thought. While he was lazy to the core, he was by no means stupid. He wasn't a good person either, rather, he was a little of a sociopath. 

A lazy sociopath. 

'Can I use this to my advantage?' Ezikiel mused, but his thoughts were cut short when Zeikeli opened his mouth.

"Welcome to our homeland, Veinstar. From now on, you shall be named as Ezikiel Angeles," Zeikeli said, but Ezikiel noticed some twitching in Zeikeli's lips.

Though, that wasn't his main focus. 'How does he know my exact name when I was on Earth? Is it a coincidence? No. Unlikely.'

But Ezikiel didn't show any duobt in his eyes, but instead acted "awed" at his new name. "Ezikiel Angeles, such a nice name, thank you!"

"I know right? Ahem!" Zeikeli cleared his throat. 

"All right, before I forget. I am here to give you an important mission, angel Ezikiel," Zeikeli said.

'Angel Ezikiel, huh?' Ezikiel thought and glanced behind him by rubbing his eyes as a cover. 'But I don't have angelic wings.'

"A mission?" Ezikiel asked, curiosity leaking out of his eyes like a gyzer. 

Zeikeli laulghed. "I, Guardian Angel of Veinstar, dare give the title of 'Guardian Angel' to Ezikiel," when Zeikeli said those words, Ezikiel felt dizzy, but he held on. He could see that Zeikeli wasn't done speaking. "Ezikiel, your duty as a Guardian Angel is to direct and guide humans of the Earthstar Realm. Good luck on your journey, little angel," Zeikeli said and carresed Ezikiel's hair.

'Fuck. Giving me work all of a sudden… at least give me some directions!' Ezikiel thought before passing out.