Part 1
Year 6501 AC, Month 9, Day 23
Celestial Realm, Outside Ellua, Goddess of Nature's village
On Tomir’s worst days, he slowed down his reactions just a bit and wondered if one of the caeles would finally take him out. He hoped they would. He wondered if he’d lose his other eye to them as well.
On good days, he pushed himself. Made it a point to see how much damage he could inflict. It didn’t matter that the caeles had once been his kin. After all, they’d turned their backs on him and his, first. All because Tomir and many others were servants to gods who’d rebelled against the Creator.
It was a bad day. Cuts and injuries accumulated as the battle waged on in a field outside of the Goddess of Nature’s village. It was the army of Xania, Goddess of Treachery, of which he was a part, against Ellua, the Goddess of Nature’s army.
It felt so routine to Tomir, celestials were hard to kill. Since it was the gods sending their servants to fight, none of the battles really meant anything. The only use was for the gods to hold these fights like petty victories over one another’s heads. 60 years of this with no end in sight had Tomir tired and frustrated.
The only thing that soothed his soul was that his little brother was safe in the mortal realm, away from the fighting. Even if Tomir disapproved of the choice Malik had made, taking a mortal wife, he was still relieved his brother was happy.
Through the cacophony of the battle, Tomir heard it. A high-pitched wail that chilled him to the bone. It seemed everyone else could hear the noise as well, because all fighting around him had ceased. Caeles and relictus alike were looking for the source of the noise that was piercing their eardrums.
Then the earth started to shake, pitching the combatants to the ground. A cracking noise like the sound of a whip split the air as the wailing continued and Tomir watched, horrified, as the earth opened up 30 metres to his right. The celestials nearby who’d been thrown to the ground were dragged into the hole. Their screams made Tomir shiver in a way battle never had.
Another crack sounded and another hole opened in the earth close by, swallowing more people, caeles and relictus alike. Three more cracks opened around the battlefield that had everyone scrambling to move away from the areas.
Then the wailing stopped.
Silence fell over the area for a few seconds before the air behind the caeles shimmered and shifted. Out of the air stepped more caeles being led by a large man covered in a black god-mark that ran all the way across his bare chest. Large black wings, made of pure magic, shimmered on his back, pointed like daggers.
Everyone had turned to look at the newcomers. Tomir remembered hearing the man referred to as The Arbiter. He was the greatest servant of Thoen, God of Justice.
The man spoke, his voice deep and filled with barely leashed fury, “The Silent God is dead. Killed by a reprobi!”
Cries of anger and protest started up from the crowd of celestials. Tomir found himself wanting to join in but the anger had choked him. It hadn’t escaped his notice that The Arbiter had used the term ‘reprobi’ to refer to those unlucky enough to be cursed. It was a term they all hated, not that the caeles would ever care about that. More importantly though, a god was dead and the relictus were being blamed for it. Tomir hadn’t even known gods could die.
All around the battlefield the air rippled again and then caeles and relictus alike began to pour onto the bloodstained grass.
There was a second where Tomir caught a glimpse of a caeles with short, golden hair who’d just stepped out of the air and his heart jumped into his throat. He’d really hoped they would never meet on the battlefield.
And then the fighting began again.