The large doors towards the Angiris Council chambers opened once again, and for the first time, Arcos could lay eyes upon its interior as he entered alongside Auriel, the latter brushing a tendril of her wings against his back in a reassuring manner. Tyrael and Itherael were already present, and once the doors closed again, Imperius turned around to look at the pair as well.

Even if his expression didn't outright reveal it, internally, Arcos was beyond uncertain, feeling utterly small and out of place in a sacred ground that was hosting every single meeting of the Archangels. But a single glance behind Imperius revealed what he had been looking for, the portal leading towards what Tyrael had labeled as the fields of Pandemonium. He didn't know what he truly had to expect… all he knew was that Angels and Demons had battled each other in these fields for many centuries…

However, his thoughts were soon interrupted once Imperius began to speak, his voice far from being welcoming, just as it had been the case even when the Heavens were still under attack.

"Where have you been before, Auriel?", having braced herself for exactly this, Auriel did not hesitate to answer outright, refusing to hide her previous intentions when she finally chose to act upon her instincts. Still, there was no need yet to tell more of the truth than it had to be…

"I have done all I could to aid the Nephalem in his endeavor to repel Malthael's forces.", her voice was calm and steady, unafraid and all the more determined for whatever Imperius may throw at her in response. She could feel Arcos glancing at her in concern and anxiety, but she merely allowed one of the cordes of her hood to subtly wrap around his hand. She knew that he was undoubtedly blaming himself for the potential consequences that she may now be facing, but it was her decision. And she would never regret it.

"You have ventured towards Sanctuary on your own accord?", the rise in volume was undoubtedly there, as well as the irritation. Tyrael looked as though he wanted to step in, and yet, Auriel merely took a step forward before she held her arm slightly in front of Arcos, showing that she would not back down from standing against Imperius if it meant to protect and defend him.

"I have, and it was my decision alone, one that you will have to inevitably accept."

Auriel's voice left no room for argument, and for the first time, a tense silence reigned in the entire chamber. Normally it was Auriel's voice that helped to soothe the arguing between Tyrael and Imperius, normally it was her voice that brought clarity and peace…

… but now it was set for a single purpose, and to challenge it was something that no Angel would ever wish for, not even Imperius.

His gaze wandered to the Nephalem as he shifted his head, but his thoughts remained concealed to anyone but Imperius himself, even as the silence prolonged.

Until suddenly, the portal behind him began to shift, and its colour began to change.

The first creature that emerged through it was immediately cut in half, for Imperius had summoned his lance in the blink of an eye before he swirled around. And it was not a mere creature, or a demon…

"He is attacking us…!?", the moment more of the Death Maidens and reapers emerged through the portal, Imperius charged ahead and slammed the hilt of his lance onto the ground, the shockwave scattering the emerging foes considerably. Both Tyrael and Itherael immediately joined in on the fight, the reapers recklessly engaging the Archangels with a complete disregard for their own lives.

And still, Auriel kept to Arcos's side once the first reapers began to approach them too, using Al'maiesh as whips to strike anyone who dared to come close while Arcos resorted to place traps onto the ground in order to immobilize their opponents for a brief amount of time, enough for Auriel to finish the rest. Thus, even in the face of more and more reapers, the pair stood back to back against each other, resulting in an inseparable force that fought as one. And one by one, the reapers fell against them, regardless how recklessly and desperately they tried to extinguish the light of hope.

A notion that did not go past the figure that was watching them from the shadows, one that knew better than to make the same mistake. And suddenly, a force of immense power separated them, the shockwave causing both Auriel and Arcos to scatter away from each other as they fell to the ground.

Desperately trying to regain his orientation from the impact, Arcos gritted his teeth as he struggled to balance himself upon his arms. All until a dark figure entered his vision even as it was still blurry, and before he knew it, he was slowly being lifted from the ground once the sharp tip of a sickle pierced through his armor.

And he came face to face with the dark and empty gaze of the Angel that was standing in front of him, the dark hood concealing the very face of death itself. Ever so slowly, Malthael tilted his head to the side as he gazed at Arcos, the latter feeling every ounce of his breath being taken away by the malevolent Angel that was holding him in its grasp.

Until suddenly, a dark voice seeped into his mind, echoing deeply through his entire being.

"There will be no suffering anymore in death… the world will be in peace…"

…

A sharp pain coursed through Auriel's entire being as she tried to get back up from the ground, and she knew that it did not originate from herself. Gathering every ounce of her strength to recover from the violent force that had broken them apart, she lifted her head to desperately try and find Arcos until her eyes fell upon the sight that unfolded in front of her.

And it was then that utter horror overcame her.

Auriel cried out in sheer agony the moment Malthael ripped the very soul from his face, gathering it around the tip of his sickle before he dropped Arcos to the ground, his body only remaining as a lifeless shell. It fueled her with an unquenchable rage and despair, and before she knew it, she ignored any and all pain as all that mattered was to kill the Angel of Death for what he had done. And to retrieve his soul.

And yet, before Al'maiesh could even touch Malthael, he disappeared the very moment Auriel was about to reach him, his gaze having merely shifted towards her in the last few moments before he vanished in a sickeningly blue light.

The moment she touched back upon the ground, she returned her gaze back towards Arcos before she rushed to his side, kneeling against him before she took his form into her arms, lifting his head to gaze upon him.

And all that she was met with… was his lifeless expression.

"... no… no…", her voice quivered as she brushed a finger against his cheek, her own body beginning to tremble as she gently shook him. But she never received a response, and she never would.

It was not long after the last of the reapers had been slain that both Tyrael and Itherael shifted their attention towards them, witnessing a sight that rendered them utterly speechless. And not even that, for the moment Imperius laid eyes upon the scene in front of him, not even he could find a single word.

"... don't… don't leave… I…", despite all she knew, she didn't cease to gently shake him as nothing but desperation and despair gripped at her, her own body having long begun to tremble as she sobbed. All until a tear began to fall from her face, a single drop of liquid light. And only more followed in its stead.

She was weeping, the very Aspect of Hope was… crying…

Tyrael was the first to slowly step closer, his mind wandering to a dreadful thought. To forcefully rip the soul of a mortal from its body, it resulted in nothing but…

"He has gone too far with this, if he should attack us once more, then we must be-", Tyrael closed his eyes with an irritated frown before he turned his head towards Imperius with anger in his expression.

"What we need to do is to track Malthael down and to retrieve the Nephalem's soul, we need to put an end to him once and for all instead of merely trying to protect ourselves!", Imperius slowly balled his armored hand into a fist, all while Itherael watched on with dread at the sheer disturbance of their unity, his gaze turning ever so slightly to the weeping and broken form of Auriel.

"Nothing is more important than the protection of our-", albeit finally, Tyrael could take it no longer and his voice all but echoed within the confines of the chamber.

"If we don't act now and prevent Malthael from destroying his soul, then Auriel will perish as well!", and it was then that Imperius visibly tensed, the utter shock evident in his every movement. Tyrael was aware of the fact that he would sooner or later be able to connect the dots, if he hadn't done so already, but if he hadn't learned of this now, he doubted that Imperius would have backed down. And thus, he revealed part of the connection that was binding both Auriel and Arcos together.

However, even if they should truly manage to succeed in retrieving his soul from the grasp of death itself, even if it meant that Auriel would continue to live… there was no guarantee that Arcos would ever awaken again. And if that was truly the case, then the fate that would befall Auriel afterwards would be even worse than death.

And yet, his train of thought was interrupted the moment the portal towards Pandemonium suddenly began to crack, the assault from before having severely damaged it in the process.

"This can't be happening now…!", Tyrael cursed under his breath as the portal began to fade in and out of existence, not being able to remain stable for much longer. They needed time to gather the Heavenly Host if they wanted to have a chance, for if they would senselessly charge ahead without any help, then-

-his eyes widened once he witnessed the way Auriel spread her wings and lifted from the ground, her gaze solely trained upon the portal ahead. And he could not even reach out his hand in time before she already flew towards it, not allowing anything to stop her.

"Don't! You are weakened…!", however, even as he spoke these words, her entire form had already vanished within the portal, and Auriel was gone. Alone… consumed by nothing but desperation and despair in her intent to track down the Archangel of Death and to end him herself.

And before they could act as well, the portal had already collapsed.

AngelicWisdom: Then I hope it didn't disappoint, for now is the time where I keep everything open towards the end and the focus will be entirely upon her.

The Brutal Legend: I can only mention it again, if it wasn't for that kind of input and interest, I wouldn't be so sure about writing for every fandom that I would really like to write about. And I am pretty sure that if it wasn't for that, I most likely wouldn't have written something for Xenoblade as well, even though I enjoyed it immensely. So, once again, a huge thank you for all of your efforts as well. It's what keeps me going in the first place.