A scream shattered the first moment of the battle, tumultuous chaos rising in a shatter of reality. Catarin pulled her blade from a screaming Nihilist, silencing the wench with another twist of the metallic blade in her other hand across the woman's throat. The battle had begun only a few moments prior when Elohora herself gave a call to the Celestines and Paladins to come to the aid of the Supernals. Behind Catarin, Raziela lay still on the ground with a few cuts on her glowing skin. Finding the Nihilist woman she had just killed advancing on the Supernal sent Catarin into an uncontrollable rage. Her heart thudded against her chest, both her blades held up for three Geomancers who turned towards her with a killing lust evident in their beady eyes.

"Get the light bitch!" one of them cried, raising a staff of rock towards her. He stepped towards her, his eyes large. His breath caught in his lungs, a peculiar look of hesitation screwing itself across his features. He opened and closed his mouth before an ear splitting scream escaped moments before his body simply exploded outwards, sending blood and organs across the ground. The other two Geomancers looked at the ground and then to Catarin, believing she had killed the man. They both raised their staffs and brought them down on the ground hard, causing the earth around them to emit a shriek of rage. Catarin readied herself, sweat pouring down her face.

"You will not have Raziela!" Catarin shouted, and as if qued, an arrow sped by her face, only inches away from piercing her cheek, to strike one of the Geomancers directly between his eyes. He fell to the ground, a quiet whimper escaping his lips before the life faded from his limbs. Catarin glanced behind her shoulder, finding Metea glaring at the last Geomancer standing before them. Are you all right, Mother? came a mental voice within Catarin's mind, its presence filling her entire body instantly. She knew that presence, knew well the power of a healer quickly assessing wounds and internal damage. She thanked the Light that her daughter was here and was safe. Aye. I'm all right. Did you do that to that Geomancer? she asked, turning her attention quickly to the Geomancer who stood before them, tendrils of smoke spiraling about his staff.

Metea didn't have time to answer, the Geomancer making a short motion with his staff before a large boulder rose up from the ground at his feet and sent itself speeding towards Metea. A quick move of her two blades cut the boulder into several smaller pieces, cutting through the rock as if it were nothing more than soft leather. She caught the sight of an explosion of light behind her, before an archangel placed itself between the Geomancer and the two of them. The angel smiled benignly to the man, who watched it with an expression of awe written upon his face.

"Child of earth, hear my words. Depart from the ways of sin and free yourself from turmoil. Accept the Light and all things shall be made peaceful both within and without," the angel said quietly, her long blonde hair twisting about her as if caught in an ethereal breeze. Catarin watched him closely, her grip on her blades tightening in case he made the wrong decision; he did. His face contorted into complete rage, but before he could react, the archangel moved without being seen. She wrapped her arms and long, white wings about him. He stood as if in shock, his mouth ajar. A preternatural silence wrapped about the two, before his body fell limp within the angel's arms. A single tear fell from the angel's beautiful face, its lips kissing the forehead of the Geomancer before the two of them disappeared in a vortex of light.

Catarin watched the angel vanish, her breath catching in the chilled air. Damn. I've seen that happen so many times, and yet, I never get used to it. She shook her head quietly, sensing Metea approaching from behind.

"It is done, Mother. Methrenton and the others are safe," Metea said quietly, patting Catarin's shoulder before she turned her attention to Raziela behind them. Yes, but for how long? Catarin couldn't help but ask to herself, watching her daughter tend to Raziela's wounds and awaken the slumbering Supernal. She sheathed her blades, cursing the Magnagorans for a persistence that bordered on fanaticism. She never understood them, never understood their desire to destroy the Cosmic Supernals and all that they stood for. She oftentimes pitied them, her blades finding their marks on some Magnagoran's throat. The doctrine of the Light spoke of sympathy for the enemy; a type of sympathy that was given to someone lost to the wage of war. However, this war wasn't seeing an end any time soon. A spiral of light wound itself behind Metea, her archangel appearing with a heart wrenching sadness apparent in her eyes.

"The mortal has found a proper burial, Metea," the archangel said quietly, her hands clasped before her. Metea looked up to the angel and smiled thankfully, raising a hand to take the angel's hand in her own.

"Thank you, my friend. I know it is hard, but he is at rest now," she assured the angel, who could only smile in acceptance before she turned her head and stared off towards the horizon. Catarin watched the two for a moment, unable to comprehend the patience and the courage the two shared and showed. She always found the angels of the Celestines almost eerie in the way they protected their charges, always defending the Celestine at all costs. Raziela smiled and looked down to Catarin, who turned her attention to regard the Supernal.

"You have served the Light well, my daughter," Raziela spoke, reaching a hand out to brush gently against Catarin's forehead. A sense of euphoria and love awoke within her, sensing the touch of the Supernal and her blessing. She turned her smile to Metea, who stumbled as if struck by an immense force. Metea gave a gasp, motes of light rising from the air about her. Catarin quickly unsheathed her blades, placing herself before Raziela and gathered a defensive stance. Chuckling softly, a man appeared from a vortex that ripped itself open a few feet before the two women. He smirked, his face marred by several battle scars that only added to the demeanor of the most feared man in Magnagora.

"Murphy...," Catarin hissed, spinning her blades around herself before bringing them back to her sides.

"Please, you pathetic wench. Do you honestly think you can kill me? Step aside. I'm not here for you," he waves his hand nonchalantly towards Catarin, as if dismissing her. "I want her." He pointed the same hand towards Metea, who stood next to Raziela.

"What business do you have with her?" Catarin asked, not moving from where she stood. Murphy looked at her for a moment and canted his head to the side, watching her with a look of amusement on his face.

"That last Geomancer you just killed was my son-in-law. An eye for an eye, as they say," he said with a grin, shrugging his shoulders casually. "Now step aside Catarin and give her to me."

"You'll have to get through me before I ever let you touch my daughter," she hissed in response, tensing her body to the point that it hurt. Murphy turned his attention again to her, a booming laugh echoing out from through the air. He put a hand to his side, his laughter threatening to pull him down to his knees. The laughter stopped abruptly, his head slowly rising to catch the stare of Catarin.

"As you wish."

Murphy moved as if possessed, his hands grabbing a two handed blade from his side and spinning it above his head. Catarin quickly stepped aside, pulling her own blades up above her and bringing them down towards Murphy's throat. He countered and brought his blade to sweep deftly at her knees. She jumped, inches from having her knees cut clean from her legs. She looked down to Murphy, gasping as she saw his fist coming towards her face. The impact jarred her senses, sending her flying backwards and landing in a heap of unconscious limbs. Metea looked from her mother to Murphy, who spat on the ground and wiped the spittle from his mouth with the back of one hand.

"Now, my dear. I believe you and I have unfinished business to attend to," he said courteously, grinning from ear to ear as he bowed mockingly. Metea grasped a medallion that sat on her chest tightly, chanting a liturgy below her breath. Murphy stepped towards her and screamed in shock, as Metea's spell found its mark directly in the middle of his chest. He fell to the ground as the cosmic fire burned at his black armor and cursed loudly. "Don't make this anymore difficult than it needs to be, my dear. You're only prolonging the inevitable." He rose to his feet and dusted off the remnants of the fire, frowning at a small dent the original blast had left in his armor. "Now that will cost you an extra moment of misery." Metea went to take a step back, keeping herself firmly planted in-between Raziela and Murphy. Raziela placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, causing to look up to the Supernal's face. She saw that the Supernal was watching Murphy with something akin to sadness in her softly glowing eyes, lines marring her face. Metea turned her attention back to Murphy, watching him swing his two-handed blade about him. She closed her eyes and began chanting another spell beneath her breath. Murphy approached her and placed a hand over Raziela's hand that grasped Metea's shoulder just as her spell ended. She opened her eyes slowly to catch Murphy's with her watch, catching him in mid swing of his blade. The spell wound up about her in torrents of power, causing the livid rage that burned in Murphy's eyes to catch with a start.

It wasn't strong enough to stop the blade, however. She closed her eyes again, feeling Murphy's breath hot against her face. A sense of peace settled within her, causing her fear to quiet itself and flee from her mind. The blade never came, however. Metea opened her eyes again to find Murphy staring at her dumbfoundedly, an odd expression on his face.

"You and I are not done," was all that he said before he sheathed his blade, turned around, and walked off into the distance. A vortex opened and swallowed him whole, leaving behind a small trace amount of Taint before it vanished entirely. Confused, Metea watched him vanish. She looked up to Raziela, who was staring down at the ground at her feet. She looked to where the Supernal was staring, and to her utter shock and horror, saw the archangel she had called friend and ally for so long lying quietly in a pool of blood. She screamed defiantly, kneeling down quickly to pull the angel's head into her lap. Using every ounce of her own power, she sent wave after wave of healing light into the angel's body. Tears flooded her vision, as she continued to try and pull the angel back from the grasp of death.

"Please, no. Oh gods, please no," she whimpered hoarsely, sending every inch of her own power into the angel's body, as her tears dripped down her chin and onto the angel's perfect face. The angel's eyes fluttered open, a soft smile appearing on her face as she gazed up adoringly at Metea. She lifted a hand and brushed a finger along Metea's cheek, tears streaming down the finger and down the hand.

"Shhh. Do not weep, my beloved friend. It will all be all right," the angel whispered softly, her gaze quiet and still. Metea grasped the hand with both of hers, placing a kiss upon it. The angel smiled at her, though her eyes slowly closed and her hand went limp in Metea's hold. One final sigh escaped passed her lips before her head fell to the side and the life slipped from her in that same breath. Metea gathered the angel to her, pulling her up to her chest and rocked back and forth. She screamed in torment, her tears washing over the angel's still face as she clutched the angel to her. At first, she did not notice the hand of Raziela upon her shoulder nor did she notice Catarin get to her feet and stand quietly a few feet away. The only thing she noticed was the pain of loss that wracked at her senses, with the eternal horizon as the only voice that spoke the name of the lost. She continued to weep far into the night, the stars rising and the sun setting within its bed of somber memories. No other tears were shed; no words of remorse were given; only the deathly silence that hung in the night sky and the stars that sang quietly of the story of love that would last far into the reaches of eternity and beyond the edge of time.

I love you

EDIT: Murphy uses hammers, there's quite a story there but apart from that minor discrepancy, awesome stuff.