Heaven was in disarray. For a single message was spreading through the angelic realm like a wildfire, and the Angiris Council was already assembled as they discussed the urgent matter at hand. Or at least, with the absence of one of its members.

Or perhaps… discuss, was a generous term for it.

"It is not a problem of ours, we won't send any of our warriors into Sanctuary, not with the latest assault of hell itself!", Imperius was pacing around within the council chamber, his voice almost thundering against the walls. Itherael watched with a growing concern when it became evident that another heavy debate would arise in the next moments.

"It was with the help of the Nephalem that we were able to repel hell's invasion in the first place! If Malthael has fallen into madness and is now wreaking havoc within Sanctuary, then it falls upon us to protect the innocent and return the favor!", Tyrael did not back down even as Imperius stopped in an instant before he faced the former Archangel with barely suppressed anger. And yet, he hesitated with his next words, something that did not go past Tyrael and even Itherael.

"... it was through humanity that hell's invasion was even possible.", his tone had lost a part of its bite as he turned his head away, almost as if he were pondering about something.

"Even if you don't want to help humanity, Malthael is now in the possession of the Black Soulstone, and with it, he is now holding the key to the prison for the Prime Evils. And we have no idea what he is planning to do with it.", Itherael watched silently as Tyrael tried to reason with Imperius, the latter having grown silent in an internal debate.

Normally, Auriel was the one who was holding the council together, and it was her voice of reason that had always managed to prevent one of these heated debates to turn into a full blown conflict. And even though Itherael was slightly amazed that it didn't turn out like this without Auriel's calming effect, he still couldn't fathom where she might have gone so suddenly.

It was unlike her to simply disappear like that…

"Urzael and the Death Maidens have requested to search for Malthael and to retrieve him. Don't believe that I am considering this for the protection of humanity, but in his current state, I cannot entrust him with the Black Soulstone.", for once, Tyrael almost heaved a sigh in relief when they finally managed to agree upon something, an occurrence that was most unusual. Truthfully, Tyrael had not really believed himself that it would turn out like this…

"Then it is settled. As long as there are no other concerns?", both of them looked back at Itherael, who had remained silent the entire time, until Imperius finally asked the question that was constantly occupying the Archangel of Fate.

"And where is Auriel?", a certain amount of tiredness was seemingly seeping through his tone, almost as if he prayed that there would not be another issue he would have to deal with at the time being. But when several moments of silence passed, and none of the three were able to answer that question, Itherael glanced at the ground in hesitation.

"She has been gone for a while, I will be heading back into my library to try and find any evidence of where she might have gone within my scrolls.", Imperius didn't argue before he dismissed them, wanting to ponder about the current events further.

"Then we should not waste any time, it would be devastating if she were not to return soon. We will hold another meeting soon, we need to discuss our lack of defences. And until then, it is crucial that Auriel will be back."

It was not long until Itherael finally returned to the Library of Fate, not wasting any time in finding the scroll he was looking for. Every living being and future event was written down within them, for there was nothing that was not written by destiny. At least, that was what he had always believed… until he realized that the Nephalem were an exception that he couldn't understand, for their path was not written down within any of his scrolls.

And the moment he searched for a trace of Auriel, he froze when he made a discovery that almost caused him to drop the scroll onto the ground.

For the thread of Fate that was surrounding her… it was intertwined with the fate of another…

"How is the reconstruction of the Heavens proceeding?", Arcos's voice was still hesitant, yet, it was far more open now than the night prior, and much to Auriel's delight, he did not shift away from her to create any more space between them as they walked side by side together along the outskirts of Westmarch, the walls of the town being visible in the distance from behind the cover of the many trees that were surrounding them.

They refrained from being too near the city, for as Auriel had expressed, she wanted to refrain from having to disguise herself in order to walk amongst the humans, and neither did she wish for any other presence.

"It is a slow process, but with the help of all of your efforts, we will be able to recover nonetheless.", shifting her gaze towards him, he witnessed that her full attention was upon him as she tilted her head ever so slightly, and he almost believed to hear a small amount of hesitation within her voice when she carefully began to speak her mind, pondering about her every word.

"... it would be a joy and my pleasure if I could lead you through the Heavens once more, I would wish for you to see it without the corruption of hell infesting our home.", while it was not a lie, she was only telling a part of her true thoughts, or at the very least, she would have worded it differently in her mind… true it was, she wanted him to see the beauty of the Heavens in its full glory, but at the same time, it was her hope that she could slowly but surely lead him to grow fond of the angelic realm, of her place of origin.

The mere thought of leading him through her gardens of hope caused a wave of glee and joy to spread within her, but she knew that such intentions might very well only manage to overwhelm him for the time being… she needed to be more patient. And until then, she was more than happy to spend time with him on Sanctuary, even if it was her greatest wish to take him with her one day…

However, she witnessed the way he was suddenly glancing at the ground, seeing his troubled expression. He stared back at her when she gently placed a gauntlet upon his hand, tearing him out of his thoughts.

"What is bothering you?", her voice sounded once more in a way that almost earned her a small gasp from him. For he was still… not used to feeling all of this…

"I keep remembering the images of Angels who were corrupted when I stepped through the corrupted Heavens… these Angels… how… how did they so quickly succumb to the corruption of the demons…? Is it really possible for them to corrupt even the will of an Angel…?", his voice almost turned into a silent whisper near the end, and Auriel could almost feel the fear that was beginning to take root within him.

He stopped when he suddenly felt her placing a hand upon his shoulder, causing him to turn his head back towards her.

"It is the truth that every living being is susceptible to corruption… but evil can only prevail over those who give in to despair. Hope will never abandon you, it is the light that fills the springs of courage, and illuminates even the darkest of souls.", he shuddered when she closed any last gap that remained between them, her hands slowly but surely gracing against his cheeks.

"... and thus, I want to be that light that shines upon your life… I… I shudder at the thought of what would happen if you were ever to fall into despair…", his gaze was bound to her own as he stood frozen within her touch, a terrible feeling coursing through him when he witnessed the way her voice was beginning to tremble. He didn't want that…

"As long as I live, I promise that I will never allow this to happen… so please, promise me… that you will never abandon hope.", Arcos was silent as she gently traced an armored finger against his cheek, his eyes glancing at her hand for the briefest of seconds until suddenly, he gazed back at her with an emotion that began to burn brightly within them.

"... then promise me the same.", before Auriel could think about his words, a small but genuine smile suddenly grew upon his lips before he slowly leaned into her touch, and she could feel the way his eyes began to fill with a liveliness that only managed to make her inner feelings overflow with joy.

"Promise me that you will never abandon it as well… promise me that you will always be the light of hope that has shown me the good of this world.", and before long, she leaned her head against his own, intertwining their hands together.

"I promise."

And yet, their peace was disrupted the moment their attention was drawn towards the distant city of Westmark where smoke was suddenly beginning to rise into the air, signalling the outbreak of a large fire. And it didn't take long until even more trails of smoke followed, appearing in various places around the entire city.

"Something is wrong…", Arcos instinctively reached for the bow upon his back, but he froze once he witnessed that the sky above the city was suddenly starting to darken, more and more clouds preventing any sunlight to shine through.

But he was not the only one, for Auriel could sense a darkness from within the heart of the human settlement that was unsettling her, for she could not fathom what the reason could be for such a disturbance…

And yet, Auriel could see the way he was regarding the city in the distance, a burning desire to help reflecting within his eyes. And for a brief moment, she glanced towards the sky, her hand starting to clench.

Tyrael had once claimed that, if their laws were truly preventing them from acting, then he would no longer accept to stand amongst them as their brother. And once her gaze returned towards Arcos, she finally decided to do what she should have done so long ago.

Nothing would stop her anymore from standing together with him, for she would never leave his side again.

Vicimus: I'm glad you liked it!

TinyBoxMew: In this case, why should I not make an entire story out of it?

The Brutal Legend: It's always ironic for me when I realize that, a few years back, I was not interested in Diablo at all either and now, it's one of my favorite games to play, as well as to write about. When I think about it, it was the exact same with Three Houses. As always, I'm very grateful for your support and I'm happy you liked it!