"Great, so this guy killed his three daughters for nothing," Jay says, clearly disgusted.

"Demetri was a smart Demon. He was sure the Council would never give him that kind of power. Still he wanted to see what was inside. When he was finally able to open the Amulet, there was no power to be found."

"So, even if the story was true, there's nothing in the Amulet," Marcus says, mostly to himself.

"Yes, but he was victorious in that he was able to open it."

"He had to kill his daughters, how is that victory?" I ask.

"His daughters are alive and well."

"How do you know?" Marcus asks.

"I am one of them," she smiles sweetly and signals off to the side. Just then two other girls appear on the elevated platform. Aside from different hair styles, all three of them look exactly alike.

"This is my middle sister, Choice," Chance says.

Choice's shining silver hair frames her perfect face and cascades down her back. Judging from the smirk on her face, she is enjoying the attention as she takes her seat in the throne beside her sister.

"And this is my youngest sister, Charity."

Charity is a carbon copy of her older sisters, except her silver hair is in a ma.s.s of shimmering, loose curls. She is biting her nails as she heads to her throne. She never looks up at us, only at the floor. Once they are all seated, Chance addresses us: "We are the daughters of Isis and Demetri. As you can see, our father cast the Dy out of us safely. We will show you how to do the same for the one you love. The question, First Guardian is this: If we help you, will you help us?"

"I will give you anything," Marcus vows, still shocked at the sight of the triplets.

Bemused, Chance answers him.

"No, Guardian. We don't require anything from you. We require everything.

CHAPTER SIX: ADAM CITY.

"My father was worried that we weren't born with wings. He thought maybe they would appear later. That was not the case. As the years went on, we simply never gained the ability to fly. My father was certain we were cursed by the Council for the actions he and my mother took.

"Than one day, he stumbled on to this area and was shocked to discover that his daughters weren't the only ones who had powers but no wings. Thousands of beings were created the same way.

"It was then he uncovered the secret that the Council had been hiding: humans and Angels have been mating for several Cycles. Their offspring are Angel/Human hybrids called 'Quo.' The Council feared the Quos would put the world off balance. In addition, they didn't want breeding between Angel and human to become common practice.

"So they cast the Quo people out here only miles from the violence and lawlessness of Terra. Our family is the only one to have had wingless children born of two winged beings. That made us much talked about. In addition, my father helped build the city and worked tirelessly on behalf of the Quo people.

"So when it came time to elect a leader, naturally they chose him. My father had a best friend and advisor. The advisor became known as the G.o.dfather of Adam City. Together the two of them built a thriving place where outcasts were made to feel welcomed. They raised us to believe that even though the Council had deserted us, we were not worthless.

"They instilled in us the notion that we are only as limited as our minds. There is nowhere wings can take us that sheer determination cannot. Together they were strong, resourceful, intelligent beings. They lead us for many Cycles.

"The Council put a Trimeter at the entrance of Adam City. This was done long before our family came to live here. The Trimeter reads our DNA. No one who is Quo can leave Adam City. For years my father and G.o.dfather tried to find a way to free us. It took them many Cycles, but finally they were able to combine the right mixture to fool the Trimeter. They poured the mixture into the Amulet for safekeeping, and planned on freeing the city the next day.

"Unfortunately, my father became seriously ill. We did all we could to tend to him. G.o.dfather was beside himself with worry. The entire city prayed for their ruler's health and well-being. But nothing worked. Soon, my father was stricken with a serious case of dementia.

"He believed everyone around him was out to destroy him. In his confused state, he put the Amulet on a Port and sent it to parts unknown. He did this thinking no harm would come to him so long as he was the only one who knew where it was. The illness took my father's life before we were able to find where he had sent the Amulet.

"G.o.dfather was able to come up with another mixture; unfortunately, it was too weak. It was only able to fool the Trimeter long enough to get him out. He has been in search of the Amulet with the original mixture for many Cycles now. While he is away, I am leading the Quo people. Although he is not here with us, G.o.dfather has never forgotten us. He has labored and risked everything to set us free.

"Finally all of his hard work has brought us to this moment. G.o.dfather has located the Amulet. It's in a place that is too treacherous for him to travel. We would like you and your team to go on his behalf and get it."

"Where is it?" Marcus asked.

"In the Pyron fields."

"That means the Amulet is with-"

"Yes. The Amulet is with Kairo."

I know in my soul I will have nothing but regret when I ask the team this question...

"Who's Kairo?"

"The only Demon Angels are forbidden to kill," Jay informs me.

"Why can't you guys kill him?"

"Politics," Marcus says bitterly.

"I don't understand."

"The Council worries killing him will make them look as if they are showing favoritism towards good. Also killing Kairo would severely enrage Lucy, causing her to be even more destructive."

"Why does Lucy care so much about Kairo?"

"He's her son."

Like I said: Nothing but regre.t "Um...no one ever told me Lucy had a son!"

"She's didn't give birth to him, she created him. The two of them had a falling out and she banished him to Pyron."

"Okay, so how bad is this Kairo guy?"

"Kairo is-"

"Nothing to worry about," Marcus lies. I know he's lying because the others are exchanging quick, worried glances at each other.

"You're saying there is a whole race of people that the Council has been hiding?" Rio asks.

"Yes, we have been held here."

"Why would you want to leave this place? It's beautiful," I volunteer.

"It's a prison!" the middle sister snaps. We all turn to look at Choice.

There's a sort of frenzy behind her eyes.

"Forgive her, Choice can be rather tempestuous," Chance confesses.

"It's okay," I say awkwardly.

"Once you have obtained the Amulet and bring it to us, we will cast the Dy out of the human," she a.s.sures Marcus.

"When you're free what do you plan to do?" Jay asks.

"Many of us will remain here in Adam City."

"Then what's the point?" Jay pushes.

"The point is we are beings like any other and we have the right to choose where we live," Chance says clearly with an ice-cold certainty.

"Chance is very pa.s.sionate about our freedom. She can be a lot to take," the youngest, Charity offers gently.

"Who is this G.o.dfather? We need to speak with him," Marcus says.

"He only speaks to those whom he wishes. You do not summon him. He summons you."

"We're not going on a mission for someone we've never laid eyes on."

"I understand. Lakom will show you out," she says casually, as the three sisters get up from their thrones and start to leave the room.

"Wait!" Marcus leaps to his feet.

"Yes, Mr. Cane?" all three say at the same time.

"Are sure you can do what your father did and cast the Dy out?"

"Certainly."

Marcus addresses her with a steely coldness.

"If we get this Amulet thing and you can't fix my girl, I will destroy you, your city, and every d.a.m.n thing in it."

"Agreed."

Chance has her sisters give us a tour around Adam City. We follow them towards the back of the temple and through a set of double doors. Adam City looks just like any bustling metropolis. The only difference is, everywhere you go, you see people using their powers.

Across the street from the temple, a lady disappears and reappears just in time to prevent her toddler from crossing the street on her own. A teenager uses his camouflage powers to leap out and scares his friends.

A block away, a man effortlessly lifts up his car and squeezes it into a parking s.p.a.ce. In a grocery store nearby, a clerk does inventory by suspending fruits in the air and counting them. And a school of kids spill out into the schoolyard making a game of throwing fire at each other and blocking it with their super-powered shields.

As the sisters walk through Adam City, they are met with smiling faces. But when the Quos see the team walking along the streets, they all stop and stare. Most of their attention is fixed on the Guardian's wings. Jay smiles at them but he gets nothing in return.

"They take time to warm up to winged ones," Choice explains.

"It's crazy to see how freely they use their powers here," Miku adds.

"It's hard to get over the 'no wings' thing," I tell the sisters.

"When you have great powers, you don't need wings," Choice replies, with a slight disdain in her voice. Marcus and I exchanged a look. He caught her tone, too.

"My sister means to say, we're all gifted. Wings or no wings," Charity explains.

"Well, we know what Chance can do, what about you, Choice?" Rio asks.

A smile creeps into Choice's face. She stops walking and goes over to Ameana.

She stands to the right side of Ameana, holds her hand out as if she is "calling" for something from inside Ameana head. A few seconds later, a stream of long silvery thread seeps out from Ameana's temple and gathers in Choice's palm. Then Choice throws the thread against a tree. The tree turns into a pile of ashes instantly.

"Wow," I whisper under my breath.

"I collect thoughts. Anger. Hate. Fear. I take them and turn them into-"

"A weapon," Jay finishes.

"Something like that," she says coyly.

Jay stares back at her hard. I thought I would defuse the tension by focusing somewhere else.

"So Charity, what's your power?" I ask.

"Um...well, you can Glide, right?" she asks Jay shyly.

"I can Glide and Convince," he replies.

"How far can you Glide in a second?"

"About half way around the world."

"Take my hand, then try to Glide."