They walked out of the inn and onto the street, heading towards the center of the city.

It was still early in the morning, though later than Anna usually liked to leave, and the streets were already full of people. The first few streets they walked down were new for her, so she looked around as they went, peering into windows to see what was inside each building when she could.

After walking for a few minutes, they reached one of the streets she’d used the day before to get to the central cathedral, and she stopped gawking in the windows. She spent the rest of their walk staying close to the others, making sure she didn’t lose track of the others in the crowd.

Unlike other cities she’d visited, this one didn’t seem to have separate boundaries for the rich and the poor. It was as if the city had been built by dwarves instead of humans.

They reached the cathedral at the center of the city an hour later, and the party just stared up at it in awe.

“It’s like a fortress and a temple at the same time!” Voekeer said.

“That’s because it is, or rather, it was. This was a fortress-monastery before the mage wars, and during the wars, they took in as many refugees as they could. That’s actually how this place became a city,” Elaine replied.

“I thought that most temples were destroyed during the mage wars. Why was this one left alone?” Anna asked.

“Because you could break an army on this place, lass,” Thokri replied.

“You think so?” Anna asked.

“Aye, the lads in here are all holy warriors, wearing blessed armor, and waving around blessed weapons. Even an army of mages wouldn’t stand a chance,” Thokri replied.

“Oh, okay,” Anna said.

They walked up to the gate. The guards looked them over and then waved them inside without so much as a second glance.

Inside the walls of the fortress, a few fortified structures were scattered around the courtyard. The structures were dwarfed by the grand cathedral that sat directly in the center of the grounds. Its spires seemed to pierce the very heavens, and a golden radiance shot out from the peak of the tallest one.

Wow! It looks even prettier on this side of the wall!

The whole party stared up at the cathedral for a few moments before looking away.

“I believe that is where they sell blessed items,” Barika said.

She started to walk towards one of the outbuildings, and the rest of the party followed.

It doesn’t look like somewhere you buy stuff to me. Barika must know something I don’t which wouldn’t be all that surprising.

The building was a squat fortified structure that clearly predated the cathedral by several thousand years. They walked up to the already open entryway and stepped into the ancient structure. The air was thick with incense, and the chanting of men could be heard. A priest in a white and gold robe walked over to them and bowed.

“How can we help you?” he asked.

“I’m in need of a good quantity of holy silver as well as blessed oils,” Barika replied.

“Might I inquire as to what you plan to use them for?” he asked.

“I’m crafting amulets to protect against dark sorcery,” Barika replied.

“Ah, well, if that’s the case, then would you be interested in having us craft them for you?” the priest asked.

Barika rubbed her chin for a moment.

“Would you be able to get sixteen of them finished in two weeks?” she asked.

The priest thought it over and then nodded.

“That shouldn’t be a problem,” he replied.

“Then I think we’ll take you up on that offer,” Barika said.

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“Excellent, please follow me so we can work out the details,” he replied.

They followed the priest farther into the building, passing various workspaces until they reached a small office. There wasn’t enough room for the whole party, so Barika, Lyreen, Elaine, and Arthur joined the priest inside, leaving the rest of their companions in the hallway. Anna looked around while they waited and noticed a large amount of divine power flowing out of one of the rooms.

I wonder what’s going on in there?

She walked over to the room and peeked inside. Several men were pounding a large sheet of metal into shape while a priest poured divine power into it. She watched as they worked the metal, transforming it into the backplate of a cuirass.

Oh, this must be where they make the holy armor for paladins! I wonder if that means Lucus’s armor was made here?

She wondered for a moment what had become of him and the other paladins she’d met when she’d first arrived in Oldforge.

I wonder if they ever found the chosen one? You know, I haven’t heard any rumors about anyone finding him. I wonder if he’s still missing, or if they’re keeping him hidden from the Dark One. I just don’t get why they would have to, though. I mean, I understand the Dark One is supposed to be really dangerous, but the chosen one was sent by the gods, so why would he be scared? If he’s anything like Barika or the paladins I’ve met, he should have no problem dealing with him.

“Come on, lass!” Thokri said.

She looked over to see the dwarf waving for her to follow. The others had finished with the priest and were now gathered in the hallway. She walked over to join her friends, and they all walked out of the workshop together.

“I know this might sound kind of strange coming from me, but I’d like to check out the cathedral,” Elaine said.

“There’s something I never thought I’d hear,” Barika replied.

“Trust me, it’s not something I’d usually say, but that isn’t just any temple. It’s one of the oldest human temples in existence! It predates the mage wars by a few thousand years!” Elaine said.

Barika laughed.

“Well, that’s as good a reason as any I suppose,” she replied.

The older woman put her arm around the necromancer’s shoulder, and they started off for the cathedral.

It’s hard to believe that those two hated each other when we first met.

They followed the pair through the massive entrance. A pair of huge bronze doors lay open on each side and had half of a stylized sun cast into the center of each one. The inside of the cathedral was constructed of solid marble with gold inlaid into the stone.

At the far end of the room sat a statue depicting the god of light sitting on his throne. The wall behind the statues was painted to look like the divine realms. Her eyes followed the painting which spread all the way to the ceiling. The painting there was mostly obscured by a massive cloud of divine power that swirled around above their heads. In the center of the cloud, she noticed some kind of disturbance but couldn’t quite make out what it was.

You know, this kind of reminds me of when I saw those men in the invisibility cloaks.

Her curiosity got the better of her, and she summoned one of her eyes.

“What are you doing, lass?” Thokri asked.

“Put that thing away, child!” Barika said.

“What is that?” Arthur asked.

All around her, people gasped and murmured, but she paid them no mind. Instead, she gazed up at the disturbance with her eldritch eye.

“Uh, has anyone ever seen something that looks like a bunch of burning wheels inside of other burning wheels that has six wings that are covered in eyes before?” Anna asked.

The being turned and looked down at her, suddenly becoming visible to the naked eye. Everyone in the cathedral suddenly fell to their knees and bowed their heads, leaving her staring up at it alone.

It floated down from the ceiling and hovered a few feet off the ground right in front of her.

“Greeting, strange one. I am the Archangel Zerachiel, servant of the lord of light. Who might you be?” it asked.

“I’m Anna,” she replied.

“Well, Anna, what brings you to this holy place today?” Zerachiel asked.

“Oh, well, we came to get some holy silver for amulets, but we ended up just having the craftsman in the workshop make them for us. After that, my friend wanted to see the inside of the cathedral because it’s so old, and here we are,” Anna replied.

“For what reason do you need holy amulets?” Zerachiel asked.

“Oh, we’re going to lift a curse over a whole kingdom, and the curse caused miasma to appear all over the place,” Anna replied.

“A worthy reason if I ever heard one. I wish you luck on your quest,” it said.

“Thanks, so what are you doing up there anyway?” she asked.

“My lord commanded me to maintain the barrier around this holy city,” Zerachiel replied.

“Oh, so it’s you! I was wondering where all of the divine power was coming from,” Anna said.

“Indeed, so then, I have to get back to my task,” it replied.

“Okay, It was nice talking to you,” Anna said.

“It was a pleasure to speak with you as well,” Zerachiel replied.

It floated back up to the ceiling and then vanished. Everyone in the temple started to stand back up and look around confused. She sent her eye away quickly and then helped Barika to her feet.

“What happened?” Barika asked.

“I met an Archangel,” Anna replied.

Barika gave her a look and then nodded.

“Well, that would explain why I can’t remember the last few minutes,” she said.

“You can’t?” Anna asked.

“No, child. The words of an angel can only be remembered by those they were meant for, so anyone else that might overhear them will forget instantly, and an Archangel’s very presence is so powerful that they can make mortals forget they even saw them,” Barika replied.

“So, what do you remember?” Anna asked.

“I remember walking into the temple, and that’s about it,” Barika replied.

“That’s about all I remember, too,” Elaine said.

“Same with me,” Voekeer added.

It was the same for the others. No one recalled anything after stepping through the doorway.

“You know, I think I’ve seen enough of this cathedral,” Elaine said.

“Aye, let’s get out of here before something else happens,” Thokri replied.

The rest of the party voiced their agreement and walked out of the cathedral.