"We can get him in," said Nate. "Our person in the Church will help. We've got a plan in place that will put him close to the gate without attracting notice."

"Yeah, great," said Electa harshly. "And even if it all works, what happens if standing next to the gate doesnt kill him? The angels dont arrive, and everyones seen that shes the reason why--are they all just going to say, Oh, well, and go home?"

The agents didnt answer. Electa glared at them. "They'd kill him, and you know it," she said in a low voice. "A small army couldnt keep him safe in that situation." Then she saw the truth on their faces, and her jaw hardened. "Oh, except that you dont think thats going to happen, do you? You think the gates going to blow her to pieces, no matter what."

There was a long silence, and then Sophie let out a breath. "Vexin, shes right, its tremendously dangerous. The gates reaction when the angelica touches it is likely to be...quite violent."

Vexin only started shaking harder. He took his hand back and stared down. "..." He then let out a quiet breath, voice so quiet it was close to silent. "...What's the loss of one life if it saves hundreds of others?"

"No way you're doing this," said Electa. "Seriously. He's not doing this."

"There's more, though." Sophie glanced at Nate, who nodded.

"Angels are creatures of energy," he said. "We all come from the same original source. So we're individuals, but we're also linked--whenever an angel dies, we all feel it. If the gate is closed and the wall disrupted, then those left in our own world would perish soon. With casualties on such a massive scale, its only a matter of time before the angels here would perish as well. We couldnt survive for long with so many of us gone."

"Doesn't that mean....you would...?" He said, looking to Nate.

"No, I wouldn't survive," said Nate. He fell silent, tapping his fingers together. "The betrayal of my own kind isn't a thing I take lightly," he said finally. "But whats happening is abhorrent. Even if its to save ourselves, we angels cant cause such death and destruction to another race; we simply dont have that right."

Another time, Electa might have been impressed by Nates selflessness; as it was, she just wanted to strike him. "Yeah, thats really noble, but youre not the one taking the risk here, are you? Youre asking Vexin to do that, when nothings even certain."

Sophies voice took on an edge. "The thing thats certain is that if we do nothing, more angels will invade our world. If we act, we at least have a chance to destroy them all."

Vexin said nothing for a bit, staring at the stone in his hand. His thoughts where shifting, worries floating to the surface in his mind.

Electa felt icy knots form in her stomach as she watched Vexin.

He swallowed before speaking, voice wavering. "A-a chance is worth i-it to take a shot."

Sophie leaned forward, watching him intensely. "Vexin, time is already extremely short," she said. "If you agree to this, then we need to leave immediately, so that we can brief you and get things ready."

"Vexin, no," said Electa. She gripped his arms. "No. There is no way that you can do this. Just no way."

He looked to Electa, his eyes held fear. Worse fear than even being held at gun point. "Electa, what other way is there to stop this? If there's a chance, we have to take it." But he was shaking.