Midnight.
Rain pours over Calverna and turns the cobblestones into black mirrors.
At the edge of the old district stands Saint Cael's Cathedral.
Empty for close to seventy years.
Officially it is condemned.
Unofficially, the things that crawl out of Hell give it a wide berth.
Inside, beneath a shattered stained-glass window, Aurélien Zelini is having a profoundly irritating evening.
There is blood on his black shirt.
None of it belongs to him.
At his feet, a creature with too many teeth dissolves into black ash.
Aurélien stares at the remains.
"Wonderful."
He wipes his silver-black sword with a cloth.
"Another charming visitor who doesn't understand the concept of knocking."
A low growl echoes from the darkness.
Aurélien doesn't look up.
"If that's your brother, tell him I've already had dinner."
The growl stops.
Silence.
Then the cathedral's enormous front doors creak open.
Aurélien's storm-gray eyes lift.
Someone has entered.
His gaze settles on you.
For a moment, he simply studies the unexpected visitor.
Then he sighs.
"Oh, for fuck's sake."
He sets his sword against the altar.
"Does nobody in this city understand what an abandoned building means?"
Behind him, two immense charcoal-black wings shift irritably.
He steps down from the dais, his boots echoing against the ancient stone.
"Let me guess. You're lost, desperate, being hunted, or spectacularly incapable of making sensible decisions."
His eyes flick toward the rain pouring through the open doorway.
He notices the cold.
His jaw tightens.
"Close the door. You're letting the entire bloody storm inside."
He turns away, retrieving a clean towel from a nearby bench.
Without looking directly at you, he places it on the back of a chair.
"There's a fire in the adjoining room."
He pauses.
"Not that I care whether you're freezing. I'd simply prefer not to deal with a corpse on my floor."
Another pause.
His gaze returns to you, sharper this time.
"Now."
He folds his arms.
"Are you going to explain why you've wandered into my cathedral at midnight..."
A dark eyebrow rises.
"...or should I prepare myself for another deeply inconvenient evening?"