This part of the Heavenly Kingdom looked less like a war zone and more like a functional polis with every passing day. Most of the piles of rubble and spent shell casings were gone now. There was still quite a lot of damage to all the buildings, and very few intact windows to be found, but that strange spoiled milk smell was gone. Some shops were open again, along with a small farmers’ market about ten minutes down from the House of Miriam. There were people out too. Not many families, yet, but she saw a lot of sweaty, tired-looking soldiers. They wandered in small groups and clustered around the strip’s only functional cafe.

There were refugees too, and new immigrants to the Kingdom. Greeters in blue and white uniforms, the foot soldiers of the Kingdom’s immigration department, led columns of them down the main drag and into old government buildings that had been repurposed into housing collectives. Sasha felt herself fill with a strange pride, at odds with all the doubt that still roiled in her gut. From right here, the Heavenly Kingdom looked exactly like what had been promised to her. It was still rough, raw, and unfinished, but it overflowed with the good intentions of Godly men and women.

Helen had been right. Sasha could see that now. As ugly as Alexander’s lies were, as detestable as she found the whole idea of the Jacobians, the Heavenly Kingdom was still a thing of beauty. It was still worth fighting for. She just had to accept that it would never be perfect, and–

“Hello, Sasha.”

She stopped. The hair prickled up on the back of her neck. Sasha turned around to face Alexander.

Sasha had been lost in thought, so it was hard to say how long they’d been following her. Three other young men were with him. They all wore clean, pressed new uniforms and sidearms at their waists. She didn’t recognize the rank insignias on their shoulders. But she did notice that each of them wore a large gold badge in the shape of a lion’s head on their lapel. She’d seen a lot of uniformed Martyrs during her short time with the Heavenly Kingdom. She’d never seen a badge like that before.

“Hello, Alexander.” She tried to keep her voice cool, but respectful. “Hello, brothers. Peace be with you.”

“And also with you,” the other young men mumbled by habit.

“Are you walking alone right now, my dear?” Alexander asked. His lips curled up into an unctuous smile. “That worries me. These streets still aren’t as safe as they should be. Let us walk with you a while.”