Pandemonium resembled a gray, dead landscape of death. The only plane where Heaven and Hell met to fight their battles, it was littered with skeletal corpses from both sides. Anaurael stared at the expanse of death silently. The place felt familiar, but only because of the visions that Imperius gave her. When her eyes touched on the corpse of a fallen angel, she felt a tinge of pain, but Imperius rested a hand on her shoulder to give her a form of gentle guidance to refocus on her other surroundings.
"I will check for the most concentrated areas," Imperius said.
"As will we," Auriel nodded. Itherael wielded his sword and vanished off to hunt with her. Izarius, Mithus, Azarius, and Darius settled around Anaurael and her parents protectively. Imperius rested a hand on his ward's shoulder again, nodded to her, and vanished off to start hunting. As much as he wanted to show some affection to her, he didn't want the demons there to get an idea about her. They could try to use her against him in some way. The ones there were trapped, but they survived for a very long time. They were cunning and quick to attack. Ilerael and Lilaurael seemed a touch excited now. It had been too long since the thrill of battle called to them.
"Let's move," Ilerael said. "Be silent. Swift. And kill quickly. Always be alert. Remember your training, my daughter. This is the real deal."
"Yes, Father," she nodded.
"There!" Lilaurael hissed at a massive demon that already ran at them. It was a war-scarred Oppressor, and it stretched out its massive, skeletal wings, as it bore down them. At first, Anaurael panicked. Then she saw her warrior brothers shout and hold it at bay. Her mother brought it to its knees with a few shots from her bow. Her father skillfully lopped off an arm and turned to beckon to his daughter to finish it quickly.
"Hurry!" he shouted. At first, she was stunned. Then she felt Imperius encourage her. He empowered her with is Heavenly Wrath, and she shouted as she charged. Her spear struck true and clove off the demon's head in one blow. The rush she got was exhilarating.
"Well done, daughter!" Lilaurael said.
"A just blow!" Izarius praised.
"There are more!" Darius warned. Azarius and Mithus were quick to form a barricade. Just as the numbers seemed too much, Imperius slammed down and killed the entire wave. As much as Anaurael should be speechless, she actually watched how he coordinated his attack. When another wave, smaller in numbers, appeared to attack, she teleported out and slammed down in the same manner to smite them all. Her parents were speechless now. Imperius was exceptionally pleased.
For the next three hours, she trained fiercely here. When she felt overwhelmed, her parents were there to support her. When she felt she was at her limit, Imperius fueled her with his Wrath. Auriel and Itherael lured many over to them and helped slay the stragglers that tried to run. As they worked together, Gurzick watched silently with a bit of pride. He wasn't harmed by the other demons. That was something that was instinctive to happen. After a while, he got an urge to go back to Sanctuary. Greed wants me to see an old acquaintance of his.
Gurzick pouted, but knew it would be quick. He would be back before Anaurael's training was over. He teleported to New Tristram and made his way to the back of the village near the docks. It was here that he saw the old jeweler, Covetous Shen. The elderly man looked over at the sight of Gurzick mildly glancing at all the sparkling gems on the counter. When he went to grab one, the old man caught Gurzick's hand with a wicked smile.
"Ah! I caught you! You tried to steal from me, eh?" he crowed.
"I find!" Gurzick scowled and jerked his hand back. "Find things!"
"Well, I call that stealing," the man said. "Finding is when you find something on the ground. Stealing is when you take it off my counter. At least, I see it that way."
"Shen, you old goat!" Greed cackled from the crown. "It has been too long."
"Greed? Ah! You are here? Through this one now?" Shen blinked.
"No, no. I talk through his crown. I thought I would reestablish our friendship. That is, if you wanted to do that," Greed smirked. "I work with trades now. Through this one only, though."
"Oh? Is that so? Then what was trying to take my gems all about just now?"
"If it isn't food that gets your attention, it's your gems. I know how to get your attention," the demon lord chuckled. "Anyways, have you seen the new ward? The child?"
"Child? What child?" Shen frowned.
"The ward of Imperius?"
"What? Well...no. I keep watch over my gems, because of your followers. It's what I tend to do. Unless I'm eating. Or sleeping. Or in town..."
"Yes, yes," Greed snorted. "Anyways, I was hoping to do a trade with you. A good trade."
"It may be possible. Eh, depending on what it is, of course," he shrugged.
"I need a gem. A good gem. Any will do. I actually need a lot of good gems. The more the better. For me? Mainly. But, also for the child."
"Is this your child?"
"Not really. But, I like her. She doesn't hurt my followers, and she helps me find more things."
"And, what would I get in return? My gems are mine, too, you know. I can't let you have all of them. Such a thing would be heart-breaking to me," Shen started. Then his eyes bugged out at the platter of slow-roasted meat, peppered bird eggs, and small stuffed vegetables that appeared from another goblin.
"Like I said," Greed giggled. "I know how to get your attention. Either through food or gems. So, I will go with food. I will provide you with meals unlike any you have ever had before in exchange for gems that would be of the same quality of the food provided. Do we have a bargain?"
"I will give over this in exchange for this meal," Shen agreed and pushed over a large, flawless ruby. Greed thought and snorted his distaste.
"I need larger gems. Either add a few more, or give me one larger one."
"Oh! You always drive the hard bargains!" Shen scowled. He added an amethyst and a topaz to the ruby. This was accepted. "How often for this?"
"As often as needed. When you see a good meal, you will know that I need gems. Nice to work with you again," Greed giggled, and Gurzick came to. He collected the small payment, nodded, and teleported back to Pandemonium to let Shen enjoy his new meal. When Gurzick got back, he saw Anaurael and Imperius work cooperatively to slaughter an entire horde of demons that were holed together by Itherael and Auriel. Anaurael was a touch exhausted now, and Imperius knew it.
"Well done, my ward! Well done! We shall train here every so often to help you build more stamina. Come. Let us retire back to Heaven," Imperius nodded.
"Yes, Imperius," she nodded. Her parents were exceptionally pleased. Even the warrior angels were excited for her. Auriel and Itherael were impressed. When they left for Heaven in the portal that Imperius made, the surviving demons began to plot. They saw the ward. They now planned a trap for her next visit. If they could bring Imperius to his knees, then it would be worth the effort.
Back in Heaven, though, a small victory celebration was done. One of the rooms was converted into a mild feast hall for Anaurael and her parents. Izarius and his angelic brothers catered it fully. When Lilaurael got up to stretch her legs, Itherael confronted her.
"Lilaurael, may I have a word with you?" he asked.
"Oh. Surely, brother. What is on your mind?" she smiled.
"I was speaking with Anaurael earlier. I mentioned something to her that I felt I needed to bring up with you," he started. "It is a touch embarrassing, but I feel the need to know."
"Very well," she nodded.
"How, exactly, do the pleasures of the flesh work?"
"Oh..." she blinked and found herself blushing. "Well..."
"As I have stated," he chuckled softly. "it is a touch embarrassing. Think of it as knowledge for myself. I merely wish to know, so that I can understand."
"True. Okay," she said with a deep breath. She carefully explained to him what she could. He compared what Anaurael told him on merging with Imperius's Song and what he was being told now. It was two completely different experiences.
"Very interesting," he admitted. "Thank you for telling me."
"You are welcome," she nodded.
"I may ask Ilerael for his side, though. A comparison."
"Let me get him," she chuckled. She walked over to her husband, kissed his cheek, and whispered to him. He looked at her like she was crazy, shook his head and sighed. Letting her sit down, he walked over to Itherael to look at him with an amused glance.
"Only for knowledge purposes," Itherael promised.
"I know. She told me," he sighed. "But...why?"
"I have been curious for some time. To try this myself? No. Only to gather what knowledge I can for use in my Library. As much as I could try to see for myself in Sanctuary, such a thing is blasphemous. At least, with you being a pure angel, it is not as bad as it would seem to me," Itherael admitted. "It feels, almost as though, that it is safe to know through you."
"All right," Ilerael said with a heavy sigh. In the same careful manner that Lilaurael spoke, he explained everything the best he could. The curiosity was there for Itherael, but he would never bring himself to even remotely try anything that was said. It was purely for knowledge only.
"Thank you. I informed Anaurael that I would show her Talus'ar in my Library of Fate. When she has time, I will do as I said," Itherael nodded.
"I will remind her to seek you out," Ilerael chuckled.
"You should stay here and rest. I am sure that another room can be prepared for you and Lilaurael. It can be done. After you both rest, it may be safe for you to rejoin Tyrael," he said.
"Thank you for the offer. I am sure we will accept," Ilerael smiled. As the mortal angel left, Itherael chuckled to himself on a job well done. They would produce another offspring here in Heaven. The talk he had them do had sparked a fire within them both. It was the whole reason for bringing up the topic. Anaurael always wanted a sibling. She would soon get her wish.
His Scroll had brought up a very interesting fact. The first offspring they had on Sanctuary was special to Imperius. That was needed, but it used up all of their Heavenly reserves for future offspring in Sanctuary. All of the others needed to be created in Heaven. They would be normal offspring, though, but they would thrive on Sanctuary's soil once they took root in Lilaurael's womb. The Arch of Heaven had to empower their future unions from now on for them to be effective. He would let them know when another offspring was set in motion, but only if they went to him to question their assumptions. Then he could safely check his Scroll of Fate and confirm their suspicions.
He was a bit worried that other angels were already planning to see what they could do. It was also why he wanted to let Lilaurael and Ilerael discover this needed fact for future offspring on their own. He couldn't be the one to simply tell them outright. If they discovered it, then the knowledge would pass on safely. Would they be allowed back in Heaven to fulfill such a thing? He was unsure. Time would always tell, as everyone said time and time again.