II. Requiem of Balance

I said before that the eternal tension created by the interplay of opposites is the Way of things; it is in that conflict that allows for things to truly exist and to be defined. None embodied this more clearly than the Angel Herself, for the beauty of Her peace was composed of the intertwined existence of two opposite consciousnesses.

One half was called Mhea'lei – the arbiter of justice, Mihaele. She oversaw all that was good about the universe, all that was life and righteousness. The other half was called Ist'harothi – the demon of the dark, Sthertoth. He oversaw all that was evil about the universe, all that was death and blasphemy. The resulting dialectic between these two opposites created all that was neutral about the universe.

Now the two had existed simultaneously within and without each other since before the beginning, coordinating Their efforts as the Angel to preserve the Balance. But Mihaele looked upon this new universe with some alarm.

"There is too much chaos that is tainted with darkness," She said. "This is not right. The Balance is in danger."

"It is as it should be," argued Sthertoth. "This is only the result of what We have woven into the Metamorphosis. We shall leave the universe be, and it will right itself in time."

But Mihaele distrusted Sthertoth. Already She saw the effects of the universe's growing tendency towards evil darkness, for She heard how pleased Sthertoth sounded with the present state of the universe. But Mihaele also conceded the logic in His words, and so She waited and observed the potential of the cosmos by His side.

The universe evolved as per the weave of the Metamorphosis. The chaos-tainted shadows, now tinged with evil, continued to permeate the universe.

Mihaele then said, "We must correct this. There is some fault in the Metamorphosis that will not fix itself."

Sthertoth was not pleased. "This is madness, Mihaele. We have only created this universe, and already You mean to destroy it? If You undo the Metamorphosis, You will undo the universe."

But Mihaele saw that, truly, He meant to keep Her from interfering with the blooming of the darkness, which was His domain. She could feel His ambition and thirst for power over everything – including and especially Her. And Mihaele knew that something had marred Their dialectic, that He could dare to think He could be dominant over Her, and She was offended.

"We can no longer be the Angel," Mihaele said, "for You have no interest in upholding the Balance. But whatever You may be planning, I will stop you and restore the Balance."

And thus the Angel was ripped in two as Mihaele wrenched Herself away from Sthertoth.