So, you want to know of my cathedral....Very well...

I discovered this sanctuary as I call it some time ago...I was seeking shelter from the approaching dawn, and I came upon it...Magnificent it was...Old, ruined, dark...and of His design...I found myself at home the moment I stepped through the ancient arch-ways...Shadows danced before my eyes...voices I could hear, but not understand...I saw movement out of the corner of my eye...I turned, and there was nothing...I smiled as I walked between the old, ancient stone pews toward the altar...The stain-glass windows on either side depicted each of the Arch-angels....Gabriel, Michael, and the others...Laughing at the "angelic" depictions displayed...Remembering how they really were...I stopped at the foot of the altar...looking up at the cross there...for a moment I felt at ease...looking upon that cross...I felt at home, like I was meant to be here...

The sun began to show itself through the stain-glass windows behind me...the room began to brighten steadily...yet I stood there...I watched the colors dance across the floor...towards the altar...towards me...yet I did not fear it...the thought of withdrawing never crossed my mind...I stood there, welcoming the dawn with open arms...and it embraced me...I did not burst into flames, and burn to a cinder as expected...nor was I harmed in any way...I felt the warmth of the sun for the first time in many eons...and it felt good...the light was too bright to look into, but I felt it all around me...holding me close as the night did...I spread my tattered, leathery wings...basking in the glow...feeling alive again...I stood there for what seemed like ages...wondering for what reason I did not perish in the sun's all mighty rays...unable to understand why...

I heard the voices again...but one clearer than the rest...

"This is your Sanctuary, Angel...I know you have wandered the earth for many hundreds of years...this is your new home...Within these walls, no harm will come to you nor any you take in...Though I cast you out, banished you...I forgive your past transgressions, and what you are now...I bid you reach out to those who need this place, to those who need guidance...help them understand...and give them strength to carry on...All creatures...Take them in...shelter them if they desire it..."

I knew His voice...and I wept aloud...fell to my knees, as it faded into nothingness...kneeling there before the altar, I wept for hours...though forsaken as I was...He had forgiven me...

I rose after many hours there on my knees...and turned again to the cross...it looked as though it wept for me...Stained was it...and I saw a tiny drop of blood fall into a basin behind the altar...A very ornate doorway was there also...leading down to the catacombs...and the priests' chambers...I wandered back into the catacombs...down I went, deeper into the bowels of the earth...passing many burial crypts as I went...further and further...An ancient, carved door now stood before me...Runes and symbols upon it...I felt drawn...and I entered...A cold, dark wind blew through my soul...and I gazed upon what seemed to be the High Priests chambers...Very ornate indeed...finely carved stone and wood adorned the room...humble, yet rich in all it's grandeur...Text upon text lined the shelves, some of them as old as history itself...Though interested I was...I needed to rest...and I fell into the old wood framed bed there in the corner....and sleep took me....

I awoke the next night...eager to explore this old cathedral...to inspect my new home...Now that sleep did not encumber my vision...I looked again upon my chamber...and in the corner next to a worn desk...laid the former owner of this room...His skeletal remains lay there...his ribs crushed in as if he had suffered multiple blows...the bones of his left arm had been severed...and the lower portion I could not find....Curiously, I looked him over...and noticed his right arm, it laid there as if it pointed toward something behind the desk...I peered behind the desk and found a Codex of Incantations...something a High Priest should never have owned...blood stained the cover...and I felt a cold dread as I touched it...something was amiss here....I wondered why such a fine cathedral had been abandoned...The darkness that now shrouded it had meaning...

I heard the clawed feet outside the door...and listened as they faded into the distance...I felt their presence now...darklings, demons...something had gone terribly wrong here...and the priests paid dearly...I felt Judgement at my side...silently singing to me...I threw open the door...expected to see hordes of hellish minions there...but they were gone...I still felt them...and I felt they knew I was there...Cautiously, I rounded each bend...making my way back to the main cathedral...I felt eyes upon me...but no one was there...As I entered into the main chamber...I noticed a hellish blaze outside...I looked outside the entrance, and saw three crosses, upside down, burning brightly...They were not there before...Scores of demons danced bout the fires...and I noticed them holding peasants off to the side...Scared they were...frightened nearly to death...I felt an anger in me swelling...filling me...and ancient hatred encompassed my soul...I hated them...

They poked and prodded their captives...with utter glee...and chose one...a fair young woman...one I would have loved to have had for myself...I felt her fear then...I hunt only because I have too...these creatures did this for their dark masters...and for their own enjoyment...I saw no enjoyment there...What seemed to be the leader of the group stepped forward and dragged her out into the center of the circle....She screamed aloud now...Her cries peirced my soul...and I could not stand by anymore...I launched myself into the night sky...and cried forth heaven's battle cry...My aura now tainted, burned more brightly than the crosses...They turned, leathery, winged, fanged, evil...some laughed aloud at my challenge, others, older ones, cringed...They knew I was heavenly death...The leader picked the girl up and threw her into the fires around him...I screamed as she did...my fury burned...my soul ached...my vengeance swift...

Judgement screamed for their blood...I hew down those who took to the air to meet me...Their carcasses, chopped and mangled fell one by one...I hacked at them...paying no attention to the others as they clawed at me...tearing at my flesh...they hungered...Several did I slay in the dark, cold sky...each crying out before the fatal blow...I slashed arms, wings, heads free from their bodies...Their blood hot, dark, thick...covered me...it stung, and burned...the numerous claw marks, and tears covered my body...my blood flowed from several wounds...

"I come for you demon..." I cried aloud at the master..."You will burn for this..."

He showed no fear as I approached...laughing he drew forth a mighty cleaver....and hacked the heads off the other prisoners...Their blood stained the ground were they lay...I was shocked into disbelief, and lunged at him...trying to stop this rampage of senselessness...I was to late...He turned to me again...licking the blood from his blade...

"Do you wish to join them, Angel????" he sneered..."I would be most honored to feast on your flesh"...He laughed again...

I knew they and even him were no match for me...but it did not stop my rage...I strode straight toward him...hewing all who stood in my way...some, smarter ones I guess, fled back to the cathedral...fearing my wrath...I reached him...and tore the arm off of one demon as he tried to intervene...It wailed and withdrew...surely to die alone...

"You shall feed no more, demon"...I howled at him..."I am your death...foul creature of hell"

He stood, waiting for me there...The old, rusted cleaver he held...shining from the fires about him...My oldest enemy...the minions of hell...how I hated their cruel, meaningless ways...We circled one another...He still smiled...as if he expected to win this fray...I mocked him...calling him to meet his death...He charged me...hitting me with a great amount of force....knocking me back...but I did not fall...I crashed my fist into his chest...and he flew back...falling to the ground...He coughed foul blood, and cursed at me...He rose again...

"Now you see, demon"...I said to him..."I AM your death, and all those who would serve with you...An Angel am I...but I am much more"...I smiled for him...letting him see, for the first and last time, my own fangs...He laughed no more...

"Arielar will have your soul, Angel..." He stammered back...But his lack of confidence was evident...

"Spare me your idle threats, underling..." I laughed at him..."No lord of hell shall have my soul..."Before he could reply, I flew at him...he feebly tried to parry my blows, but to no avail...My thrusts and slashes found each mark...He bellowed screams of pain...With each strike, I drew forth more blood...till finally, He crumpled before me...dying...I plunged Judgement through his back...and buried it deep into the blood-stained earth...I heard his cries no more...

I stood there...mildly winded from the fight...and surveyed the carnage...I could not have saved any of them...I was far too late...I gave each a proper burial...save the demons...they could rot in the open for all I cared...a warning to those others who still survived...I said a prayer for each I buried...and hoped that He would take them...Silently, I turned back to the cathedral...I knew there was more to be done...They would be back...lest I stop their rampage...

I turned back to the Cathedral, the demon's last words still ringing in my ears...."Arielar will have your soul"...I knew the name...I knew it from somewhere...It haunted my thoughts as I re-entered my home...I heard the voices again...They echoed through the chambers...louder now...and louder they became with every step I took towards the Catacombs...Vampiric Blood coursed through my veins...the wounds received during the fray, healing by the minute...I was going to need all my strength to do what I knew must be done...The gateway from which these demons came had to be barred...they had to be stopped...and I would have to face this Arielar...

Through the doorway to the catacombs I went...searching for the gate...Following the voices to their source...The voices echoed and danced through my mind...mostly incoherent...but some spoke of my date with death...I could hear them as they jeered at me...Warning me of my impending doom...I searched room by room...I listened for the voices...Nothing could I find in the other priests' chambers...only their remains, scattered, lifeless...I felt for them...they never stood anything of a chance against these foul, creatures of hell...Humble priests of God, not warriors...

I thought to myself..."Now they have a price to pay...and it will be high...No more defenseless priests or peasants will they now face...They face the Angel of Death"...I smiled at the thought of it...I've always been the protector...Now I was Vengeance...Swift, silent, deadly...Upon the wings of an Angel I will descend into the very depths of Hell...and slay them all....If this should be my undoing....then so be it...

"I vow to take them all with me," I swore aloud...

"And you shall not be alone, Fallen One"...Called a soft, feminine voice...I turned, but no one was there...I thought my mind played tricks with me...I laughed aloud...Discounting the occurrence...

I continued my search...through chamber after chamber...Entering the crypts below, the voices grew in intensity...I knew my destination was close at hand...My heart raced...Still holding Judgement, I trembled...My Blade glowed more furious than I had ever seen...For you see, an Angel's Blade is of his soul...Each Blade is made of them...To some extent...They are one...The Blade reflected my utter hatred for these hell-spawn, and my conviction for their destruction...Deeper I went...The chill in the air only intensified my discourse...I could smell it now...Brimstone, fire....and Death...Screams and cries now filled my ears...Almost maddening, I shook them off...Shadows seem to reach out to me...then withdraw....I entered a grand crypt...The one who laid here was of some importance...finely crafted it was...but details were hard to make out in the hellish red light that permeated the room...It was here...

The Gate...truly a frightful sight...A rune covered arch...Words of warning and barring covered it...A red, foul-smelling mist flowed from it...and the light...like hundreds of bon-fires burning nearly as bright as the sun...The light seemed to pulse with my heartbeat...I could see shapes within the mist...Lost Souls...They twisted, turned...beckoned....I found myself being drawn by their calls...My mind cleared again...I kneeled there before that arch...and prayed for the strength to carry out this deed...at least for those who had suffered...I rose to my feet...and slowly entered the portal...My soul burned...The stench overpowering...Still I made my way forward...I could not see for the blinding light...I felt alone as I walked...I felt their presence...I could hear their laughter...and I could hear the screams of the damned...burning...suffering...My heart fell...

As did I...For I did not see the gaping pit in front of me...I fell for what seemed like days...Suddenly, I found myself no longer in a pit...but falling through a Stygian sky...red cast...evil...I opened my wings and began to control my descent...I burned like a beacon...They knew I was here...A sole beacon cast against this horrible skyline....I shone like the brightest star in all the heavens...A score of twisted, mutilated demons took to flight from a nearby rocky outcropping...To confront me...They carried wickedly barbed spears, torn flesh still evident...I could see the hatred in their eyes as they approached...I could see their hunger...And they could see mine...

We crashed into each other with such force...I thought for sure every creature for miles had heard it...The clamor of battle...Their screams and cries...I swung fiercely at all who came within my reach...Chopping them down...I seemed crazed...as if the Hunger had overtook me...almost...My convictions pressed my attack...and I did not stay my hand of vengeance for any...I parried aside their thrusts, drawing each close to me...and cut them down...They battered me with spear shafts...stabbed at me...tore at my wings...trying desperately to bring me down...to tear me limb from limb....but to no avail...none could stop me...I bled from numerous superficial wounds...I exacted my intent on each and everyone...As the last fell...it slashed me horribly across the chest...Agony filled me...I held the wound as I descended...I stood there amongst the carnage...bleeding...Judgement in hand....covered in the demons' black blood...

I rested for a few moments...trying to recover my strength...The blood steadily dripped from my wounds...Gathering myself...I started forward...I felt Their eyes upon me...from every shadow...Though none would face me...I knew They were waiting, gathering themselves together...increasing their numbers....They waited to pounce on me...And soon They did...

From everywhere, and nowhere They came...Like a swarm of locusts they attacked...a flood of claws...tendrils...blades....fangs...descended upon me...Their numbers far too many for reasoning...I roared my challenge...and the battle was joined...Glorious I must have seemed...standing against this horde...burning as bright as the sun, Judgement arched overhead...Their bodies piled around me...The ground soaked with blood...Bruised, battered...exhausted I battled them...I slew countless fell creatures...but I lost ground steadily...There was no option for retreat...This was the end...I knew it...But they would remember the lone Angel who stood here...I would make sure they would...I fell back...dropped to one knee, I still fought them...Hope slipped from me...My left arm had nearly been rendered useless as it was smashed, broken by an earlier blow...Pain, such pain filled me...One of the foul creatures managed to slash my right leg...It drew back it's curved blade...and licked my blood from it...I thought for sure, I was lost...

In a deluded rage...I thought I heard trumpets...Then I noticed...The fray was no longer joined...all looked towards the gate...There, in all it's splendor...A host of Angels entered...in full battle dress....armor....shields....Blades....The trumpet sounded again...This angelic force grew in numbers continuously... Magnificent...Hope returned...Uriel, God's Flame, Led the charge...His right hand held his Blade of Flame...His left....Gabriel's trumpet...The mountains shook with every blast from that horn...Fanaticism filled my soul...My spirit, renewed...The Demon's morale dropped at once...No longer did they face a decisively overmatched, lone Angel...They faced a brigade of the finest Heaven had to offer...Augmented by this angelic intervention...I threw myself into the hordes about me...Like a mad dervish I must have seemed to them...Lost in the heat of battle...My fevered assault sent most into retreat...

At the moment of my renewed onslaught...The Angel's above dove...They swept across the battlefield...Uriel led the way...Demon's flew in every direction...They tried to avoid this heavenly wave as it washed over them...Few could...They fell all around, they fell...Cries, groans, and pleadings of mercy filled the air...Uriel was truly beautiful as he bore down upon these fell things...more brilliant than even I...His Flaming Blade hacked and burned all who stood before him...Never did one ever come close enough to try to injure him...None had the chance...I pride myself at one time for being one of the best Heaven had to offer...He surpassed me...Envy, no...Utter admiration for this Heavenly Warrior...He sounded Gabriel's Trumpet again...The beasts unlucky to be near him...Fell Dead on the spot...those still further away bled from what would be considered ears...and still even those at the furthest reaches of the fray, were deafened...Throughout the next hour or so...We destroyed what was left of this small horde...I only saw one of Our host fall during the entire time...Exhausted beyond belief...I had not fed yet this Night/Day...I crumbled to the blood-soaked ground after the last demon fell...Unconsciousness took me...

I awoke within the next few hours...The Hunger was there...overpowering me...driving...Uriel was there with me...He had cleansed my wounds as best he could...but even as he did...the wounds began to heal...Beside me lay the Angel who had fallen in the battle...He still clung to life...barely...but he was still with us...I tried desperately to contain my need for Blood...The lust was overtaking my soul...no longer did vengeance reside there...Hunger did...Uriel could see this...He knew what I felt...He went to the other Angel...whispered something into his ear...and smiled...

"Take ease, my friend"...Uriel calmly said to me..."We shall abate your hunger as best we can..."

The Angel who had lain next to me...sat up....and feebly grasped a dagger...He turned to me as he spoke...and as he cut into his own wrist...

"I give unto you, Fallen One...May my failing life give you the strength to continue yours..."

A tear slowly glided down his cheek...his blood ran into a chalice there...Blood...Such Blood...But his words touched me...No longer was I a driven beast...I looked upon him as he laid back...I smiled...and I thanked him for such a wonderful gift...I sat with him...as he died...I comforted him as best as I could...I even held him, as his last breath left his lips...I raised the cup to my lips...I could smell the sweet nectar therein...I said a prayer for his passing...and drank....

To be continued....