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[h1][color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b][u]Pain[/u][/b][/color][/h1]
[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dE3F6sybNJk](Mood Music)[/url]
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[color=gray]Auriel felt the raindrops patter at her face as she looked up to the gray clouds. The metallic ping of rain on steel armor filled the silence around her. The rain was light, but rumbles of thunder and flashes of lightning in the distance told of a harsher storm ahead, and it was approaching her. Auriel could hear troops behind her marching and calling out commands. But her golden eyes remained on the storm as it came closer. She could hear the loud war cries and screeches of the fiendish horde as it marched beneath the dark, twisting clouds. Auriel had encountered them five times before, with each force stronger and larger in number than the last. This was no different. Auriel gripped her spear tight and looked over her shoulder to call one of the captains, [color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]"Captain Balthazar."[/b][/color]

When she looked back, she saw the troops massacred. Spears broken, shields splintered, and banners torn as bodies strewn the field. It was a gruesome sight which made Auriel's heart sink and her breath catch in her throat. She quickly snapped her head back toward the storm, only to see herself surrounded by the horde. Auriel raised her guard, only to find her spear had disappeared from her hands. The creatures all stared at her with murderous intent in their eyes. Auriel spread her great white wings and thrusted up into the air. She was well above the horde before she looked back down to see cities burning in the distance and chaos running rampant. Anxiety filled her heart, how could this have happened? The waves hadn't begun yet, why was everything in ruin?! There was another flash of lightning, followed immediately by the roar of thunder. She looked back to the blackened clouds and saw chains swirling down from the tainted heavens. They were coming for her. Auriel tried to fly away from them, but they caught her before she could make any significant distance. Auriel felt a chain wrap around her ankle, then around her neck. She struggled to catch her breath while staying airborne, but when more chains wrapped themselves around her wings, she cried in pain. She knew to stop moving her wings, but she was too afraid of falling back into the horde below to follow her own advice. The chains tightened like snakes around their prey, and she felt the bones in her wings snap. More lightning flashed as she let out a loud cry of pain. The chains continued to tighten, uncaring of the pain she was enduring. There was another snap, a crack, and a pop as her wings were crushed in the chains hold.

Auriel began plummeting to the ground, and before she made solid impact with the surface, she awoke. Auriel gasped and reached out to grab at something real. She found her spear laying next to her. Auriel's breathing was heavy and rapid as the shock of the nightmare of the lingered. Her eyes darted around to take in her surrounding, seeing her companions fast asleep and the fire smoldering. A gentle breeze passed through the leaves of the surrounding trees and the night's creatures called in the distance. Tears ran down her Auriel's cheeks, but she wasn't crying. Her wings throbbed with pain, and she felt like her stomach was replaced with a bottomless pit. She rubbed her eyes and took a moment to collect herself, then she quietly slipped out of her bedroll carefully to not wake the others. Auriel took her spear and made her way out of the camp. She needed to clear her head. It wasn't the first time she had experienced that nightmare, a twisted and exaggerated recounting of her lowest point.

[center][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RuNp3dkMDQ](Mood Music)[/url][/center]

Auriel emerged from the trees to a short ridge. It was only a few meters high, but the was still nice. Below her was the field they had trained in the day before with a river snaking its way through. She could see the glow of Melromarc's lights across the field, and the traveled road leading into the city with weary travelers moving through the night on it. Auriel felt that breeze again, but this one was a little stronger than before without the trees surrounding her. Her feathers caught some of the air which made her stretch them out a bit. Auriel wiped some of the drying tears from her cheeks and brought her hands together in prayer. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]"Holy Ones of legend... Grant me the strength for the road ahead, protect me from the horrors I will encounter and shield my friends from harm... Let no pain overcome them. Please."[/b][/color]

Auriel raised a hand into the air, and immediately the space around it began to glow with white light. The lights swirling around her hand before eventually resting in the palm of her hand in a small orb. She waved her hand to the side, releasing the holy energy over herself. Auriel felt invigorated as the healing magic rushed over her body. She shivered a bit and felt a tingling sensation in her wings. Auriel spread her wings some more and tried to push them against the air, but she was greeted with a lance of pain. She clenched her jaw and kept moving her wings, trying to fight past the pain. She eventually stopped when the pain became too great, and used more healing magic on herself. Auriel let the magic pass over her before trying again, flapping the angelic wings in the wings hoping she'd take flight. No luck. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]"Why wont you heal?!"[/b][/color] she said desperately to herself, [color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]"I want to fly again!"[/b][/color]

She healed herself again and again, finding no progress each and every time. The more she tried, the more agitated and pained her wings became. She knew she should stop, that this wasn't helping her heal if she was even healing at all. But that rationality was replaced with a deeply seeded desire to return to her former glory. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]"Come on... Come on! Work!"[/b][/color]

Auriel took a deep breath and used the last of her energy to cast a more powerful healing spell. Her body radiated with holy energy as the spell passed over her. Auriel could still feel the intense pain burning in her wings, nothing was working. She sniffled a bit, trying not to cry. She stepped up to the ledge of the shallow ridge and let the wind move through her wings. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]"Please let me fly..."[/b][/color] she said in a defeated tone as she looked up to the stars.

Auriel wiggled her bare toes over the edge. She was tempted to jump and force herself into a scenario where she would either fly or wipe out indignantly at the bottom. But she didn't want to crash and hurt her wings further. Auriel considered it for a moment before sighing and stepping away from the ledge. She turned her back to the field and took her spear from a tree she had leaned it against. She could see the sky beginning to brighten on the horizon, which she knew was the time to carry out her daily routine. Auriel looked over the golden spear and keen blade, running her fingers over the contours of the elaborate, ornate weapon. She wrapped her fingers around the defined hand grip on the shaft and spun it while adopting a ready stance. Auriel swung the blade of the spear around into the first move of her training pattern. Her eyebrows furrowed in frustration and anger while she did. As she moved through the routine, Auriel's anger passed. As always, the morning training did well to center her and sharpen her mind.
[center][color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]_____________
[u]Two Days Later[/u][/b][/color]
[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqUN5quiUeY&list=PLvsZ_uZZSNHbNcfwOwnVLxzWvr3xPpMBc&index=20](Mood Music)[/url][/center]
Auriel was at the common district of the city in search of people who needed help. She figured that helping the common folk of Melromarc out would break the monotony of fighting balloons in the field, and help to bolster the heroes' reputation some more. She wasn't all that successful. Most of the tasks the people needed help with seemed to revolve around gathering simple items or talking to people for them, all things that could be solved by person with the problem if they weren't so damn lazy. Auriel wanted a challenge for the heroes, something they could sink their teeth into and come out better for it. Eventually she came across something that was worth it. She had come across a distressed farmer who's crops fell away into a sinkhole, leading into a cave with aggressive Giant Moles. It'd be perfect! Auriel agreed to help the man with his problem, and promised the issue would be resolved once the heroes had an open schedule. The farmer was grateful, and went back to his business within the district.

Auriel made her way back to the tavern that had become their unofficial base of operations. When she pushed open the door, she saw both Cole and Fer had already congregated. She smiled and waved her scroll, [color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]"Good news! I got us a quest!"[/b][/color]

She stopped herself when she felt the general mood among the heroes. Something seemed rather serious. She tilted her head and stepped closer to them, pocketing the scroll and looking between the two. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow][b]"Is everything alright?"[/b][/color]
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