Qliphoth.

This word came to Michaela’s mind when she saw the darkness envelop the world beneath her. It wasn’t a foreign term surprisingly. She must have heard it at some point in the past, but its meaning was lost to her.

Still, it felt like the right word to call that maelstrom of darkness. Not the dark clouds that engulfed the skies of Northern Grandis, but the spiraling storm that appeared above the Capital of the Diavola Kingdom.

“Darkness of that level is incomparable to what the Memento Mori possesses. Strange. I recognize it from sight alone, but don’t recall its significance. That thing… Qliphoth, wasn’t that what I saw guarding the black orb?”

She didn’t know for certain. Time was on her side here as she soared above the blanket of darkness. The Arbiter travelled from the nearest Hyperlink Relay Site towards the largest mountain in Grandis; Mount Saris. The Hyperlink Relay Site was located at the front lines just before the Northern territories.

One did not need to imagine the utter splendor she exuded in the eyes of the reinforcements that arrived through the same channel, as this occurred just moments earlier.

Justica Arms personnel knew that there was an existence who Beholder Galia served, but very few had the liberty to see them in person. The Arbiter’s name was known widely throughout their ranks as a deity that all Beholders answered to. But to see her in person instilled sheer reverence unlike any other.

It was no exaggeration to say that they were truly in the presence of the divine. The injured Justicers of Galia, who were amongst the most fiercely loyal to her, bent down on a knee in absolute submission.

Repenters didn’t even recognize what they were looking at. Those who did were blanched.

The line between fear and reverence was a blurry one, but there was no better person who embodied it better than the Arbiter. While the Amalgam was feared and respected by those in the Nexus and the Ateliers, the Arbiter came across as a fathomless being.

The sheer reverence was maximized by her twelve sacral wings, seven tails, pale-white hair and golden eyes that clearly belonged to a higher being.

While the Amalgam had not punished the Beholder, the Arbiter did and killed many important Atelier personnel in the processes. This was why she was regarded with more fear than the Amalgam currently, although Michaela knew that this was already in the process of changing.

That said, Michaela observed the world around her as she flew towards the base of Mount Saris. Far in front of her was the downpour of Sins that emerged from Uriel’s wings. Beneath her was the blanket of darkness that consumed the skies of Grandis. Further away was a pale, floating landmass whiter than snow.

It was like a part of the arctic north had been cut out and made to float above the smoke. Michaela knew what it was. Although time was on her side, it would not remain that way if she went to deal with it herself.

That Corrupted belonged to the Beholders.

* * *

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The Sins of Wrath took a handful of archetypal forms. The bloody humans with cupped hands and crimson wings; the Vexed Consanguinities were but one example.

Michaela recognized this form as one of the transformations humans had once taken long ago during her failed elevation of humankind.

Faux Angels were the first Sin-like beings to be born into this world. As a result, it was no wonder why the Sins of the Subcut Layer resembled failures of the past. Both tapped into the primordial sins of mankind, sins that were deemed to plague humanity long before the inception of the Original Sin that Elysia cursed all life with.

Michaela had always believed that evil was a part of humanity’s blueprint. No matter what shape, form, deposition, or status changed this fact. She sensed Sins of Wrath sprouting from the recently deceased bodies kilometers away.

This was Michaela’s first time being exposed to the Sins since becoming an Archetype so it should not have been possible to sense their existence. In the first place, how did she know that what she was sensing – even out of sight – were the Sins?

Experience, of course.

But it was also perhaps like being able to feel one’s gaze. Her instincts could not be denied, and her feathers rustled in the presence of the Sins.

The sight of overflowing monsters brought back unwanted memories. What occurred in Grandis was apocalyptic in scale, but insignificant compared to the common tragedies of Paradisio.

“I was the perpetrator once. My feathers descended across Paradisio. Markers were born because of my intervention. Those would be the Sins of Pride in this age… How peculiar, that none of mine tended to survive the ordeal, but Uriel’s gave birth to new species of monsters.”

One such surviving species was Vampires.

* * *

Vampires did not exist in the world of Elysia until Uriel’s deployment. Her unique Ability that allowed her to manipulate inferior blood was called Rupturing. This Ability was different from what Vampires possessed, but it was an undeniable fact that Vampires originated from people who once had this ability.

Only those who were deemed to have acceptable blood to stand beside Uriel as her own ‘elevated’ humans were granted this Ability and were given the name of the Honored Ones. As Vampires were originally puppeted beings entirely subservient to the Honored Ones, they were seen as inferior.

Furthermore, the Blessing didn’t recognize the Honored Ones as Vampires, much like Enoch. She didn’t require blood as nourishment. Blood was simply a means to an end and a tool to illustrate her authority.

Moreover, Rupturing could only be passed on through a single direct heir, whereas Vampires were originally born through blood rites. Vampires seldom knew their origins. They were simply Demonic beings – as the world put it – who preyed on humans.

* * *

Michaela had two worries coming into the battle.

The first was whether she would be powerful enough to take Uriel on in the first place. Michaela’s reign over the old world occurred only because of her strength as a Star. Currently, Michaela only held a fraction of her original power.

This included how the Arbiter’s tails no longer wielded the powers of her Angels.

Secondly, Uriel was in the possession of Lailah’s flaming great sword. If there was a weapon that could pierce the heart of a god, then it was that. Since it was designed to defend the Captured Star from all threats including Angels, it would be highly effective against her.

It was problematic, but Michaela’s eyes never turned away from the crimson star ahead. The source of her losses, suffering and despair were caused by that light. The resignation that once corroded her was replaced by a tingling sense of thrill.

The closer the Arbiter approached, the more she could feel the presence of something watching her. The summit of the mountain was wider than she expected. It was like staring out into a mountainous desert. The ice caps were either melted or dyed red, and spires that had been left untouched for hundreds of years toppled in the wake of Michaela’s approach.

Her mere presence shook the very foundations of the Sins. The pale feathers that fell like snow from her glorious wings destroyed them, leaving behind a pool of purified blood. Suddenly, she stabbed all seven of her tails into the earth and dragged them along the ground like a rake, eliminating as many Sins as possible as she headed towards the lip of an enormous caldera.

Her avian ears, which looked like hair flaps on the side of her head, rose sharply like a pair of upright knives. Her combat instincts kicked in as she slowed her approach, knowing well what resided on the other side.

Uriel…