Death of an Angel

Aether, of the Angels of Eldenar knelt by his bedside, repeating to himself the Mandates Unbreakable. A breeze from the open window dared to silence his whispering devotion. Today was an ill day. To Aether, the air reeked with the smell of heathen magics. He knew the scent well, for it was his duty to stamp out such evil. The unseen energy flowed through the morning like a river of power. It urged Aether to feel it, to keep it... To use it.

"Do not indulge in the power of the Forbidden." Aether said, breaking the near silence. This was the first of the Mandates, a commandment from the Ageless One Himself; to stand firm against the corruption that lurks in every heart that beats. To resist the temptation to invoke one's own will by the means of the arcane, the druidic, and the tainted miracles of the Old gods.

Shame overcame Aether. For even as a Twin Wing among the Eternal Emperor's faithful Angels, Aether felt the temptation of the Forbidden magic swirling within his chest. He spoke the Mandate again, forcing out the temptation. As he did so, his fists clenched letting his nails dig deep into his palms. The pain freed his mind from the grasp of evil and ill intent. Aether let out a breath in relief. He did not enjoy the pain, he simply rejoiced that his faith held firm.

"Do not corrupt that which is simple," Aether repeated the second Mandate Unbreakable. This one he did not struggle obeying. He knew far too many good men who stumbled in their understanding of this mandate. Aether, however, knew it's meaning. Evil thrived in obscurity. Lies required many words, manipulation blurred definition, but truth needed nothing more than simple clarity. This Mandate was tied close to the first. Magic was to be a tool to the children of the Ageless; but like the hearts of men it could become corrupted by the evil that wished to destroy Eldenar and their god. Evil sought to complicate and twist one fragment at a time. To complicate was to corrupt.

"Do not forsake the protection of the Ageless," It was yet another reminder for Aether to resist temptation. Their god had done much to protect them, to nurture them and let humanity thrive. To turn astray from the law and faith was to defile the gifts that god had given them. As a Twin Wing, Aether's faith was above the common man and even above that of common angels. Yet ambition for further faith, drove Aether to yearn to join the Six Wings. They were the third and highest rank among the Angels of Eldenar and only the most devout and most faithful ever joined their ranks. Indeed only 3 remained to watch over the Angels. The rest of the Six Wings dwelled in the Citadel of the Everlasting Eye to forever guard the Ageless Throne and serve the Ageless One. To be a Six Wing was to be the very will of the Eternal Emperor himself. Lesser men could watch over the kings of the Nine Cities, Aether would serve the Ageless One more directly. He simply needed to overcome this lingering temptation staining his faith.

Aether rose to his feet. His white robe rustled quietly in his movement even over the creaking of wood under his shifting weight. A knock came to the door, but Aether knew what it meant even before the messenger told him. A crusade was beginning. Evil had been found and it was time for those who were faithful to cleanse it from this land. Aether opened his wardrobe and took out his garments. He was not a warrior of steel and shield and so he required no armor. Instead, Aether donned a cloak of silver thread of a feathered design. It was split at it's middle to flutter down as two cloths joined and separate. Aether tied the cloak across his chest and around his feet. When he stood again, his feet were covered by the silver wings. Two wings would cover the feet of the holy. It was the first line of the Pilgrimage of Eldena, it spoke directly of the Angels in their full glory. This garment was the symbol of the Twin Wings.

Aether put on sandals so his holy feet would not bless unworthy ground, then he strode off to vanquish evil.

***

To his delight, Aether approached the cavern alone. This crusade was for him and him alone. He had been commanded to seek out a witch who had used forbidden magic. Glancing at the dark tower that hid the noonday sun, Aether let loose a smile. The Eastern Spire of the Everwatch had done well to spot the witch in her defiling act. He couldn't help but feel gratitude for the help they had been for his crusade. Turning his attention to the cavern, he slowed his pace to a walk. The dim lit interior echoed with whispering voices. The heretics themselves must know he is coming. This, of course, mattered not. The Ageless One had gifted Aether with magic, thus there would be no escape from justice.

The slapping of his sandals on stone caused the whispers to fade into a silence that swayed on it's noose as it hung in the air. Aether followed the light through the cavern path until it opened up into a large interior. The body of a troll sat against the far wall, lacerated and lacking much skin. A smattering of dark blood on the wall itself remained as a testament to where the troll's head had once been. A hoard of bits and bobbles filled this room. Chests and barrels of the troll's things were piled in every nook and crevasse available. This mattered little to Aether. For three figures were the victims of his attention. And unfortunately for them, they were bloody, weary and in no shape to fight.

"I told you, they'd come!" A youth said. His emerald eyes shimmered with magic even as he glared at his companions. "This is all her fault!"

"You don't even know who it is!" A feminine voice replied from underneath a red hood. She placed a hand on the youth's shoulder. "Let us at least talk to them."

The third figure remained silent under the gaze of the youth and Aether. The bulky warrior kept a hand on the hilt at his side and watched Aether intently behind the long dark strands of hair. Aether approached and as he did the hooded woman gasped recognizing the Silver Twin Wings.

"Where is the witch?" Aether said. He needed only the defiler, not her allies. Aether eyed the woman among the companions, but the woman shook her head.

"I am but a healer," she said, voice shaking. The youth and the warrior gave no answer. Aether stepped forward and gestured for the woman to approach. She cautiously did so, walking with her arms raised and palms exposed. "We can explain why they sent you here. Can we talk?"

"Where is the witch?" Aether asked again. There was no response, so Aether concluded that it must be this woman in front of him.

"There is no witch," She said. The lie spurred Aether to action. Quick, he thought, before she can put me under a spell!

Aether felt the rush of heat run down his arm. As the flames pricked his fingertips he raised his hand towards the witch before him.

"NO!" the youth shouted, but it was too late. White flames burst from Aether's hand engulfing the figure before him. The light blinded him until the cleansing fire faded. Before him smoking in charred anguish lay a corpse. But it was not the witch's corpse. The body of the youth's eyes glimmered and faded. His afterimage faded from where he had been standing originally. He had used arcane magic to teleport to where the witch had stood. Aether looked down to see the witch scrambling to her feet just outside of the charred ground.

Aether growled in disapproval, but had little time to adjust for the warrior charged him. Aether barely dodged the sword before letting go a burst of magic. The pulse paralyzed the man and Aether stepped back in triumph. That too was cut short as pain erupted from his back. Aether spun to see that the so-called healer held a crimson stained dagger. However in his haste his magic holding the warrior dropped.

Aether turned towards the larger threat and let loose a stream of flames. His aim was off. The flames shot past the warrior who's blade tore through the front of his shirt. Aether's wings fell to the ground covering the body of the youth. Aether stepped back clutching his chest. Another burst of pain came from behind him, but he ignored it for now.

Aether concentrated, forming 7 pulses of magic into razor thin darts. These followed his command and pierced the warrior two through his eyes, two through his shoulders and three through his heart. The man dropped his sword and fell over dead.

The witch screamed behind him, but he turned in time to dodge her final stab. Aether grabbed her wrist, twisting it and forcing the dagger out of her hands. He grabbed her weapon and ran it through her heart. She stumbled for a moment, meeting Aether's eyes in a final look of pain, grief and despair. She slumped face down onto the cavern floor to bleed out.

Aether felt sickened by the devotion of the witch and her companions. He longed to burn them all away, so that there would be no trace of even their corpses. He raised his hand, summoning the fire that burned within him. Yet before he cast his spell, there was a rustle of movement. He turned and watched as a child stumbled from behind a barrel. The girl was no more than 7 years old.

"Barryl?" She said. "You don't look good in white."

Aether said nothing standing still.

"Why are Mary and Darren sleeping?" she said, looking at the corpses at Aether's feet. She looked up at Aether.

"I," Aether strained to get the words out. "I am not Barryl."

"Oh, then where is he?" She said looking around. "Are you Mary's friend? She said I should wait for her friend to arrive. Do you know Mary?"

Aether trembled. Perhaps the healer had not lied. He stared at the dirt covered child. Was this the witch he had been set to kill? Was this why the companions were willing to die to protect a witch? The conviction inside him faltered. His devotion to the Mandates Unbreakable had been true. He had not strayed from the guidance of the Ageless One. But if that was true, why did his soul retch at his actions? Staring at the child, Aether knew in his heart that he had committed more evil following the Mandates than this witch child had committed in her heresy.

            Yet it was his duty to cleanse her. She looked up at Aether and his heart ached at the pain this child did not know he had caused. Aether could not condemn this child for indulging in the Forbidden for how could she know it was wrong? How could he fault her for giving in when he, as disciplined as he was, still felt the temptation to use such magic.

Aether fell to his knees in front of the child. She stared at him, confusion in her eyes. To not kill a breaker of the Mandates was to break the Mandates themselves. Here, at the crux of his crusade Aether betrayed everything he believed.

"You must run, child." Aether said. The third Mandate echoed in his mind damning him for his choice. Do not betray the protection of the Ageless. His words sealed him as a heathen as much as this child was. Aether closed his eyes, letting tears run down his face. His devotion had been broken, as doubt destroyed what little belief he had left.

"Why?" She asked. Aether opened his eyes. The child remained staring at him in confusion. She then noticed the blood that ran down Aether's shirt. "Are you hurt?"

Without waiting for an answer, she reached out and the air rushed with magic. Aether's flesh knit itself together and healed. From outside the cave, Aether could hear the distant sound of the Everwatch signaling that Forbidden magic had been found. Aether looked at the child. A resolve in him formed. He no longer trusted that the Mandates could free him from temptation and evil. But he would not turn to evil. He would seek a way to save this child from the Forbidden magic. 

"We must go child," Aether said, rising to his feet. She did not argue this time. Taking his hand, the child followed Aether around the corpses of her protectors and towards the entrance of the cavern.

"Where are we going?" She asked. Aether pondered this question himself. He had no direction save for the understanding that they could not remain here.

"I do not know," Aether said. "But we cannot stay."

"Why?" She asked.

"Because Angels will come to kill you child." Aether said bluntly.

"Why?" She asked.

"Because they must," Aether said.

"Will you stop them?" She asked. Aether stumbled over a rock as the question distracted him from their escape.

"I," Aether said in a low voice. "I will try, little one."

Aether and the child stopped at the entrance to the cavern. His white robes were stained with blood and ash while the child's dress remained coated in dirt and filth. Hand in hand they stood gazing at the dark Spire of the Everwatch. The tower glowed red against the now cloud covered sky. In his heart and mind, Aether made a new Mandate that he would not break. He would protect this heathen child until they found a way to cleanse themselves of their sins.