Cain's ghost was weak and wouldn't be much help until a proper tether could be made. Zayl and the Witch Doctors were already working on it. It was a good three months before Cain was solid enough to hold a decent conversation from what they were able to make for him to remain. Itherael was balancing his time between talking to Cain and remaining at Anaurael's side. He needed to be around her for his energy to keep her balanced. They were currently in her chambers, and Cain had argued his point to finally meet with her. Anaurael knew it was time, too, as much as Imperius detested it.
"I am surprised to have not known of you sooner," Cain said to Anaurael when he saw her for the first time. "And, from what I was told, you had my book delivered to you, too! Heh! If I knew that, I would have easily traveled to where you lived and found you."
"It was important for her to not be found," Izarius said. "It would have compromised many things. I was the one that brought your book back to you. I had to make sure that you were in a deep sleep before I could put it back in your travelling pack."
"Did you now?!" Cain asked with amazement. "Ah, if only I knew that, too! So much knowledge I could have gained!"
"We know," Itherael chuckled.
"It is good to see you again, though," Tyrael sighed. "There is much we have been trying to tell you so far. I hope you got everything."
"I have small understandings. The Prime Evils are bound in various stones again. And Greed! Oh! I never expected him of all creatures to assist like this. But...my heart still aches for Leah. Surely she must be out there like I was! Can we search for her? I mean, it is true that Diablo may have damned her soul in the end, but she had no recollection of this at all. She was an innocent."
"I know," Tyrael said with a grim look. "Zayl? What do you think?"
"I don't know, in all honesty," the Necromancer frowned. He had to be around for Cain to appear, since he held the binding artifact. It was much like how Malthael needed others around to appear where he was needed. "I wish I had an answer for you. It was a risk to find you, Cain. And, if it wasn't for Malthael, we wouldn't have fully found you. He was able to identify you."
"I have seen Malthael. He is as curious of me as I am of him. It is a shame that he did such to humanity. Or attempted to, I should say. Anaurael was correct that much of humanity's inner Light would have been vanquished. It would have been a waste," he sighed.
"What did you think of Anarius?" Anaurael asked with a small smile. Imperius was holding her in his lap while she ate. He wasn't pleased with the meeting, but he endured it for her. Cain was clearly fascinated with Imperius and had quite a few questions, but even he knew that it wasn't time to really ask anything of the moody Archangel.
"He is truly Anu reborn. I am...humbled on meeting him. To know that such Light is still as pure and undiluted as it should be within his form is something I could never have dreamt of to have witnessed firsthand! And I do remember him reaching out to me. I did want to talk to him, but he couldn't stay. And, when I did see him a bit ago, he did ask me a few questions on attempting to try and become reborn as an angel. As much as I would be delighted to the task, I also feel a bit of uncertainty. It is a shy form of a miracle that I am here and able to remember my long life. It is another to feel that I may be lost again if such a thing was tried. New forms may give way to new memories. I may be reborn, but it may not be me, too."
"And that is always such a risk," Itherael agreed with him in full. "But, as many mortals have proven, sometimes risks must be taken in order to see the full value of the goal."
"Quite true! Well, let's see what I can do as a ghost first. The rest can come later," Cain chuckled. "There are certain benefits to being a ghost."
"As well as dangers," Zayl frowned. "At least my contact with you can shield you from most of them. Humbert is good at monitoring such things."
"Nothing's gonna steal you!" Humbert said confidently.
"And I appreciate that," Cain said. "However, we are running out of time. If Diablo has truly returned, it's just a matter of time for him to appear again. You encountered him before. He survived your attack. He may have learned what he did wrong. We need to see what forces we currently have available. I understand that the High Heavens have been rebuilding. Would it be possible for me to witness this event? Or has the time passed?"
"We should do a Lightsong," Anaurael said to Imperius. "Now that I am with offspring again, we should get this done. I do feel it's important."
"Very well," Imperius said.
"Oh. Before we go, Cain, do you recognize the necklace that Anaurael is wearing?" Tyrael asked. At this, Cain frowned and leaned forward on his ghostly staff to study it. At how her necklace shimmered at recognizing him, he was was surprised.
"I do! I had only seen it once before it was locked away! This relic was quite coveted, you see. It took great skill to craft it and enchant it. Only the most powerful of our Horadric mages were able to-"
"It's time to do the Lightsong," Imperius grunted and rose up with her. He didn't like hearing the old man banter off. Anaurael just pursed her lips together and laughed quietly.
"Tell me what the necklace is about later. I am curious of its history, and I look forward to the conversation," Itherael said to the disgruntled ghost. Tyrael was laughing softly and shaking his head. Even Zayl was trying to keep quiet about it. Humbert was snickering, though.
While Cain witnessed his first Lightsong, Willis was trying to focus on the statue he was repairing in the old temple. At the sudden tap he felt to his shoulder, he looked up to find Byden looking down at him. "Hello, Willis! I have someone you need to meet."
"Do you?" the youth asked and wiped off his hands from the coarse dust.
"I do. And, on meeting him, you'll have a pretty big choice to make. Are you ready? It took him some time to get here. He was halfway across the world when he got my message," the Crusader chuckled. Willis nodded and was gestured to follow him. Another Crusader with blond-brown hair touched with grey was standing in the distance. His armor looked standard for any other Crusader, but his flail looked a touch more massive in size. Even the shield he bore looked intense, and his face was lightly marred with scars. He was a much older man to show how lucky he was to have kept himself alive for so long. Even the armor looked relatively ancient, on a closer inspection, but it was kept in excellent repair.
"Greetings. My name is Torsin. I heard you wanted to speak with me?" the tall, broad man nodded and sat down. Even his voice was strong in tone and seemed to be filled with a wary form of caution. "Come and sit with me. I'm a touch weary from all the travel. I came here as quickly as I could."
"Oh. Of course," Willis said and sat down. "Um...what were you told?"
"That I had a possible apprentice. And, should you accept it, you cannot back out of it. If you did, I'd be forced to kill you. And it's only because I will be sharing secrets with you, as I teach you what I know. So, you see why I have to be cautious about this, and it's why I have to be so blunt and to the point on this matter. I do hope you understand and choose to decline my offer.
"Now, if you did agree, here is what would be expected of you. You would carry my very name to your death. So, if I fell in battle, your name would become Torsin. You would wear my armor, bear my weapon and continue my Crusade from where I left off. It's the same thing I did from my Master before me. And it was done from his Master before him. I'll teach you all I know. Various secrets will be granted for you to train with under my guidance. You will eventually need an apprentice of your own to teach, if you ever come across one, but that's if I should I fall in battle and you take up my place. And the apprentice must be male for it to be viable for your cause. Female Crusaders get female apprentices. I hope it makes sense.
"If you fall with no apprentice to take your place, everything my name represents falls with you. And, should you accept, you will be leaving your whole life behind. You may never see anyone ever again. It's a big choice to make. It's why I am telling you all of this now. I want you to think it over very carefully," he said in a calm and gentle tone. "As eager as I am to have you as my apprentice, this decision cannot and will not be a forced one. You must accept it as your own, as I have long ago."
"Maybe he shouldn't have to think it over," a feminine voice said from behind him. Torsin turned, and his jaw dropped at the sight of the hovering angel that had appeared for him. Byden ran an armored hand over his face. He knew that Nikauriel was watching him from the pool and must have sent word out to see what would happen. "You have called to me. So, here I am."
"He was in the process of claiming a possible apprentice..." Byden sighed.
"He can still train the young one, if he wants. That is fine. But, I shall be with him from now on. My name is Lisaurael, and I have just been born for the Gardens of Hope. I specialize in fortification benefits," she said and revealed her intricately made two-hand staff of ivory and gold. She was a defensive spell caster and healer. She would compliment him well.
"I see. Well..." Torsin looked over at Byden's perplexed face. "Is there something I'm missing? You apparently know something."
"I do. Ah, we need to talk. Willis, think over his offer. It is a permanent position for the rest of your life, if you do decide to do it," Byden said and had Torsin rise up to follow him to a secluded area to talk. Lisaurael simply moved to hover behind her chosen mate to listen calmly. When Torsin felt her rest her armored hands on his shoulders, he felt oddly comforted. As though I fit with her.
Now that he was getting filled in, Willis had walked over to where his father was fixing up another statue. "Dad, can we talk?"
"While you help me, we can talk just fine," Harvey said and chiseled out an imperfection. "What's going on?"
"Um...the Crusader came by to show me another had come about. To be an apprentice to him," Willis started. At this news, Harvey put down the tools to stare at his son to continue. "If I agree, I might not get to see you again. You or Ma. Um...I don't know..."
"I figured that much. It's a life of risk, from what I heard. And it's up to you. You can either live out your life at my side to repair wondrous things, or go off and search for something that may never exist. I'm sure you'll make something of yourself. And, who knows? Maybe you'll send me some odd thing from another land! But, it's true. I might not get to see you again. And, if you're not sure, then you shouldn't go with him," Harvey advised.
"An angel just came down for the new Crusader, too," Willis frowned. At that, Harvey crowed with laughter and slapped his knee. "What's so funny?"
"Willis, I get to keep you for a bit longer while another one shows up for you!" his father grinned and pulled his son close to hug him. "I doubt he'll take you on as an apprentice with a new wife!"
"But...ugh..." Willis sighed and gaped at the knuckle-rub he got to the top of his head next. "Stop that! Geez, Dad!"
"Now get back to work on that statue, boy!" Harvey grinned and picked up his tools again. He was secretly relieved that his son wasn't going anywhere. He worried over his son enough, as it was. Willis just scowled at his father and looked over at the two Crusaders. At the sad look Torsin gave the youth now, he knew his father was right.
"I'll tell him. These angels are pretty adamant that they give us the apprentices we need," Byden laughed softly. Torsin could only sigh and agree in full.
"You can teach us your skills, and we can pass on your knowledge to your offspring with us. All of your teachings will be safe and kept secret," Lisaurael promised.
"I made a vow to only teach my apprentice," Torsin said and gave a light stretch to his back from sitting for so long. Then he winced. It appeared to be from pain. Now Byden took complete concern at this. Lisaurael now hovered over him protectively.
"Are you wounded?!" Byden gaped.
"Perhaps..." the older Crusader grunted. He was hoping to avoid any form of talk about this. "There was a pack of demons that I encountered in my travels. A year back, that is. It's an old wound that comes back now and then. I had made sure the area was cleared before setting up a camp near Caldeum from my travels, they always charge far too much at their inns, and I got jumped from the waiting pack of Lacuni demons. My armor was off. I had to clean it. They must have been wandering through looking for food. Luckily, I was able to blind them all and take them out."
"Take him to Heaven, and ask for the salve," Byden said to the protective angel. She nodded, wrapped her arms around Torsin's waist, and teleported them away. At the sight of Nikauriel appearing, he shook his head. "You saw all that?"
"I did," she nodded. "And you were correct in assuming that I had Lisaurael look in the viewing pool. She told me she felt called by someone. I wanted to help her out. I am glad she found him. But, for Torsin's wounds, did you want me to help out with him?"
"Please do. He's an older one of our Order. I don't want him lost," Byden admitted. She nodded, gave his cheek a soft caress, and vanished away. Lisaurael had already claimed a Heavenly room for her chosen mate, and he was helped out of his armor. At the mottled scarring across his back, she could tell why it gave him so much pain.
A Lacuni huntress had clearly leapt onto him and managed to tear into him. Most of the flesh healed, but the mottled scarring was deep and hindered quite a bit of his movements. He was lucky to be so resourceful in his fighting prowess to have kept such an injury hidden away. Healers did try to help him, but the wounds were very deep when they were fresh. They were also likely infected from the creature's claws at the time.
Nikauriel was quick to appear with an intense healing salve, and she nodded to Lisaurael to give her the privacy needed to help him heal. She needed to bond with him, too. Now Lisaurael asked, "So, you were camping? I just want to make sure of what happened. Talk to me."
"I was camping one night. Cleaning my armor, as I said. I had to wade through some muck in the deserts. I thought I was heading to Dalgur Oasis, but it was just a long stretch of mud flats. Of course, my armor was getting weighed down. That night, I found a shady spot among some trees and set up a small camp. I thought I had secured the place down thoroughly," Torsin sighed and winced at the salve being rubbed over it. When he felt something tingling, he became a touch alarmed. "What is that stuff you're putting on me?"
"A powerful healing salve," Lisaurael chuckled, as the foaming started. "Do not worry. You will heal perfectly fine. Just rest now. We shall get to know each other after you heal."
"I was really hoping to get an apprentice," he sighed and felt drowsy from her pleasant massaging. The healing sleep was starting to affect him. "I'm...starting to feel my age. In truth."
"And, with me, I will ensure to help you get your apprentice. Likely in the form of an offspring," she said gently. Now he looked at her with surprise. "You were told what to expect?"
"Yes, but..." he faltered. Now she leaned over him to regard him in a stern, gentle way.
"We have a connection. A bond. Shall I prove this to you?" she asked. He swallowed, but he nodded. At the kiss she shared with him next, he realized that she was right.
"I never thought there was someone out there for me," he whispered.
"Your inner Light burns so brightly. It is what brought me to your side. Do you have any doubts about us now?" she asked with a hint of worry.
"None," he muttered and pulled her close. "But, now I have to wonder. All of the Crusaders...we all share the same Light..."
"Let us find them. I am sure they will call other angels to their sides," she chuckled and sat down on the bed to let him rest his head in her cloth and chain mail armored lap. She rested an armored hand in his hair. "Rest now and heal."
"Yes..." he sighed and managed to drop off into one of the deepest sleeps he could have ever remembered. Back on Sanctuary, Byden was apologizing to Willis.
"I am sorry," he sighed. "I can have another Crusader show up for you."
"No, it's fine. Something tells me that, with every one of them found, an angel will just come down and swoop them up," Willis said with a small chuckle. "Maybe it's for the best that I stick to this line of work. It's honest work, and I can still see the world this way."
"Now that's an excellent way to see it," Byden nodded. And it also gave him an interesting idea. "And I do wonder if you're right about my other brothers and sisters of the Crusade. If other angels will find them attractive. Something tells me they just might. I may be able to bring it up to Nikauriel. She can find out for sure."
"Nikauriel?" Willis frowned.
"That's the name of my partner. She's due to give birth to my offspring in a month. Could be sooner than that, now that I think about it. Um...actually...I think I need to get back to Heaven now. We'll talk more later," Byden muttered. At this said, it was Izarius that came down to retrieve him.
"We need to go!" the Archangel said. Byden was already nodding and let himself get taken to the Crystal Arch. He saw Nikauriel there standing among the pillars. Vincent was there and watching Zynaurael with complete concern. Even Jozin and Kalgor were watching their mates. They had started to act strangely just moments ago. Sohar was concerned for his angelic mate and had her join them for now. He couldn't see what was going on, but he hoped for an answer like the others.
"THEY ARE READY TO GIVE OUT THE LIGHT THAT WAS CREATED IN THEM FOR SO LONG! WE MUST ASSIST THEM! IT IS TIME FOR THEM TO DO JUST AS MY MOTHER DID TO GIVE ME NEW LIFE," Anarius explained.
"So...she is ready to give birth! I thought so," Byden frowned.
"At least it's not life threatening. They will all pull through," Kalgor nodded.
"Good," Vincent muttered. Jozin nodded with complete agreement. Lou-yu was there with his partner, but she had only recently begun to show the signs of pregnancy. He still wanted to know what she would go through, and she was hovering next to him with complete attention.
"Can we get our Champion here?" Mai asked from where she was with her son in her arms. Tobirael was with her to help her if she needed it.
"I will fetch the Nephalem," Izarius nodded and vanished away. Anarius was standing with the readying female angels to show he was there to give his full support.
"I had to come with!" Myriam said when she appeared with Izarius and the Nephalem. Lyndon, Kormac and Eirena had insisted to appear, too, and they were brought along by Darius.
"I get to see children! Oh, I hope they are cute!" Eirena beamed.
"Ah, I doubt they will be children, if being summoned like this," Kormac chuckled.
"I think he may be right," the Nephalem nodded. "They could be fully grown."
"Well, let's stop idling about and see what happens," Lyndon beamed.
"Quiet!" Myriam scolded at him. It was another reason why she was there. It was to keep a sharp eye on him. When Gurzick appeared to wave, Tyrael walked over to him.
"A very special event is starting. Just stay out of the way, and you can watch," he said.
"Oh! How delightful!" Greed giggled from the crowd. "And how is your old friend?"
"Cain is doing better now. Thank you for the artifacts you found to help stabilize him," Tyrael nodded. "I'm sure you were quite happy when he was able to start telling you of the various items you brought him? I know you were quite pleased."
"Of course, of course," he seemed to dismiss it. "Anything for the girl to Sing! And, eh, yes. Yes, I was quite pleased with how he was able to help me sort some of my treasures."
"Ah, can I ask you for a favor?" Byden asked when he approached Greed with his idea in mind. "Wait. You actually owe me a favor."
"Drat! I was hoping you would forget. But, yes, I will grant you the returned favor," Greed sighed and chuckled. "What is on your mind?"
"I'd like you to find the rest of my brothers and sisters. The others of the Zakarum faith of the Crusader march. Angels may be able to pair up with them, and I'd like to see how many are still left alive," Byden said. Now Tyrael's eyes lit up with the idea.
"Oh..." Greed mused. "That would be a worthy favor. Okay. I shall do this for you."
"Thank you," the Crusader nodded.
"Should Talarine be here?" Anaurael asked Imperius.
"Hmm. This event does not truly concern that one. She is busy enough. We have already taken away too much time. We need this to happen now," Imperius said and started to Sing. Anaurael nodded and began to Sing with him.
Zynaurael was the first to show signs of stress, and Vincent's eyes were locked on her the whole time. She shouted, and a brilliant Light burst forth from her. It solidified into a tall, female angel that was just as lithe and deadly as her parents. Her wings had an odd tinge of darker blue with the silvery blue to show she was going to be a lethal fighter for the High Heavens. Her hood had a sharp, upwards angle to it that was gilded with gold. Her form looked like it was made in hard leathers and tough cloth, but her legs were skirtless to be exposed to show she would be an excellent runner, if needed. She even had an odd, cloak-like form of a tabard that was white with gilded gold embroidery coming off her back that attached at her shoulders with an elegant form of warning. She was clearly his daughter.
"Sire," Vincent's new daughter said with a nod. Her tone was soft and very dangerous to hear, if anyone was her prey. She recognized him by the Light she shared with him. This was how the new angels knew who their fathers were.
"Do you have a name yet?" Vincent asked.
"Not yet. I was hoping that you would name me," she said. When Zynaurael walked over with a touch of exhaustion, Vincent nodded with relief.
"We'll name you later," Vincent said and let his angelic mate rest against him.
"And that is the difference! The ones birthed this way need to have names chosen for them. I also see that they lack weapons," Cain mused with fascination in his ghostly form. "It's as though they can choose what they favor to use the most and specialize in that particular choice."
"So it appears to be," the Nephalem smiled at the sight of Cain. Their attention was diverted to Salauriel now, and Kalgor was on edge when she trembled with a slight form of pain. She shouted right after that for a brilliant Light to form from her and materialize into a large, male angel that looked just as massive as Imperael. Heavy armor that seemed to be made of gold mixed with steel decorated his form. He actually wore a helmet to show how armored he was meant to be. Even his wings seemed to burn like a fiery form of molten-white rage to show he'd charge into the enemy without any form of hesitation. He turned on his massive, armored boots to see Kalgor's grinning face of approval.
"Sire! Who are we to crush?!" he grounded out.
"When we know what you wish to fight with, we will find out. And I will help train you in the ways of honored fighting," Kalgor nodded. His son did help his mother move to stand with them now. It showed he would only be gentle and warm to his friends and family. He was extremely honorable.
"Do I want to know what his daughter could look like?" Lyndon muttered under his breath.
"Shut up," the Nephalem growled at him. Attention was now diverted to Jozin when he saw Sylauriel start to shiver with control. The Singing got louder to comfort her, and she cried out when the Light now spilled from her. It reformed into a well-built, slender male angel that was covered with heavy, white cloth with gold lining. He appeared to be nimble, quick, and able to dance through his enemies just like his father. Even his wings were a beautiful, brilliant sheen of white, but they also flickered with orange to show how powerful he was when at full capacity. He turned his cloaked head to where Jozin was and nodded with recognition.
"Sire. I am now here," he said in a rather gentle tone.
"As I see. And I am proud to see you," Jozin smiled and welcomed his son to stand next to him. Sylauriel now moved to stand with them and lean against her mortal mate to rest. Myriam was simply grinning widely at all of this, but when her eyes settled on Nikauriel, the others followed suit.
Byden's angelic mate gave a hard shout when the Light spilled from her next to reform into a seemingly muscled angel covered with gilded gold steel. He did bear a hood, though, and his wings were the purest form of white that anyone would ever see. A white tabard with gilded gold lining, much like the style of Tyrael's from his Archangel self, was seen next to go down his chest and waist. When he turned to walk over to his father, his movements were straight with a sense of purpose and full of a sense of urgency to show he knew what had to be done.
"Sire, train me in what you can," his son said. Byden rested a hand on his arm and nodded.
"I will teach you all I know," Byden vowed. Nikauriel now walked over a bit unsteadily, and their son moved to help her stand by them to rest. Sohar was calmly watching his angelic mate start to tremble. But Anarius stopped the Lightsong.
"SHE IS NOT READY TO GIVE BIRTH TO HER LIGHT JUST YET. SHE IS STILL A MONTH OFF. WE DO NOT WANT YOUR OFFSPRING TO ARRIVE EARLY. IT MAY CAUSE COMPLICATIONS," Anarius said softly. Taylauriel only hovered with a sense of relief. The early birth would have caused her far too much pain. There was some pain for the others, but hers would have doubled from the Light that was still trying to finish manifesting within her.
"Come. We can rest," Sohar said and led her away. She only nodded and had to lean on him a touch, as she hovered next to him. She was fully drained from the ordeal from keeping her offspring within her. She was able to fight off the urge to let it come forth early. Anarius would monitor her from afar. In the meantime, the newly born angels were introduced to Anaurael and Imperius to show support and get fully claimed into the Angelic Host as a form of kin. Titharius would help them train and let them choose what weapons would work best for them. Names would need to be decided on, and that would also be done in due time.
For now, Cain was still showing a touch of worry. He feared that Diablo was already getting stronger. The longer it took them to figure out what was happening with their forces, the more time Diablo had to strengthen his new forces. He had learned what he could do and what he couldn't do. He improved the defects he had. Diablo had also let his newly possessed body have a touch more free reign to ensure that when the time came that there would be no hesitation when he took over. He could talk from the body and do everything else just like the last one. He just didn't have the Soulstone jammed into the forehead again. That was now a last-ditch resort.
He also had his goblins hunting down Greed's goblins. But, Greed was already aware that this would be done. He would have his goblins run right into other monsters, heroes, and other hazards rather easily. Diablo didn't know how a Greed Goblin truly worked. That was his primary handicap. At the same time, he was having the goblins explore wherever they could. There was only one thing that they came across of that had his complete interest. They found one of the flawed Soulstones.
When it was brought to him, in a carefully bundled bit of cloth to keep from touching it, he had hunched over it from the fattening form of the new Baroness. He caught the scent and smiled.
"Adria. My most loyal servant. I have found you again at long last. I have a new purpose for you, and you will do my bidding. Do you understand?"
The stone shimmered to show he was heard. She was waiting to hear what needed to be done. She would serve her master without any complaints. He had a new plan in motion, and he had to ensure it was fully underway before he was found out and stopped.