dark angel

I read the part in the dark angel profile about them using arguments to corrupt humans and decided i wanted to experiment. I realized to late that this is actually a little boring but decided to finish it anyways.
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Lescatie was falling. Its heroes were falling.

Anthony was sitting on the balcony that extended into the outdoors from the Order’s grand library. Despite the chaos that was taking place in the city below he was doing the same thing he spent most of his time doing; thinking.

He could recognize some of those voices, boys who's voices he had only heard as cries when they struck at their sparring partner now let out stifled breaths and low moans. If he took a few moments and focused, he could pick apart the voices and separate them into categories. Some of them had a were nervous, and never uttered names. Those must be the ones who were assaulted by members of the demon army. Others had a more shocked tone in their moans, and some would longingly whisper the name of one girl or another. These were most likely being taken by a newly corrupted comrade of theirs. Anthony let out a dry chuckle, he had always been good at analyzing details, and here he was picking apart the details of his fallen comrades.

In several places, mostly to the north end of the city and a cluster of isolated cases near the south-east end, he could hear the sharp clash of metal against metal. That sort of sound had covered all of Lescaite at first but after only a few hours the din had died down completely. Anthony had little hope of strength of arms being his salvation. He wasn't strong or tall, he never really practiced with a bow or sword, he had practiced magic before but only a few simple things like how to summon light or detect demonic energy and one or two healing spells.

No combat wasn't Anthony’s calling in life. He was a sage. No one could deny that the Order was a militant organization. The majority of its efforts were spent training soldiers and heroes blessed by the Chief God to fight and kill monsters, that or spoiling the higher ups and filling their pockets. But even still, the Order required thinkers to help understand the world around it.

As inglorious as the job seemed, Anthony was thankful for it. The Order had an incredibly tight control around information. They educated their citizens on basic things like arithmetic and basic history, or at least those who could afford it, but the true breadth of knowledge that the Order had was available to a select few. Here in the library one could find books from Zipangu and the mist continent, even a handful of works from the Royal demon realm.

A sigh escaped his mouth. He wondered if he was still going to have time to do things like read after he got taken by whatever climbed its way up those stairs first. He wasn’t exactly hiding but he was out of the way enough that most of the monsters would find their husbands before they got to him.

His eyes turned from the city below up to the sky. A small smile found its way across its face. Even in the middle of a calamity that would likely be written about for ages the moon and stars still filled their place in the sky the same as every other night.

“A beautiful night isn’t it.” Anthony almost jumped, more startled then afraid, he hadn’t heard anyone enter the room. He turned to face the new voice.

There was a girl standing in the library, just inside the open doors that led to the balcony he was on. She looked a few inches taller than him thought that trait wasn’t particularly uncommon in women. Her skin was dyed a deep purple color but there were lines of white trailing across her skin in various designs. She had beauty to live up to the descriptions in all the books. Long legs ending in thick thighs and wide hips, a generous chest and a face that left his mouth hanging open. A pair of large elegant jet black wings extended from behind her. She was wearing a black dress that parted in the middle just above the pelvis and left her navel exposed, barely covering her breasts.

Her hand covered her mouth and she giggled, sending wonderful vibrations across her body, and Anthony realized he had been staring. “Do you mind if I join you” Her voice was pretty, it seemed to almost have a harmony to it. He didn’t respond and she came out to him anyways.

“Oh? You aren’t going to run away or call for help?”

Anthony looked back at the sky and let out a sigh. “No. It’d be useless to try and run. You’re a monster so I’m sure you beat me in terms of raw physical ability. And I picked this place because of how out of the way it is, I doubt anyone will be coming to save me.”

Her wings fluttered slightly “Even still, you don’t seem particularly shocked or afraid at my presence. Aren’t you a member of the Order? I would expect you to be hurling insults at least” He didn’t respond. It’s true he should be terrified of her but he wasn’t. “Could it be that Mr. Sage doesn’t actually believe the teachings of the Order” A tone of fake shock entered her voice

“It’s Anthony, not Mr. Sage. And that’s not right.”

“Ambriel” She interrupted

“Huh?”

“My name. It’s Ambriel. You gave yours so it’s only fair that I give mine in return. You can call me Amber, most of my friends do.” She looked at him with a warm smile. Although he probably wouldn’t admit it to her face her name was cute, hell she was cute. “With the formalities out of the way how about we go back indoors? It’s not every day I get to meet with a human who doesn’t try to run or fight, why don’t we talk for a bit?”

“You’re a monster aren’t you? Why would you care about things like that?”

She lets out a huff at those words “Monster or not I’m still an angel. It’s my job to guide mortals on the path to truth. But I suppose since you’re SO against it we could just do something a little more fun.” A teasing note entered her voice as she started to lift up her skirt

“No that’s fine we can talk.” He surprised himself with how well he could keep his composure, but she found something cute in his reaction none the less. She turned and moved back indoors, seating herself on one of the overly ornate chairs in the library and motioning to another directly across from her.

Anthony ambled over to the chair and hoped that of his nervousness from sitting across from a servant of the Fallen God would help combat thoughts of how sexy she was. “I have to say I’m a bit surprised by all this. I thought all monsters just raped humans into doing what they wanted.”

“Let’s say I sense something of a kindred spirit in you. I’m similarly surprised you’re willing to talk with a monster. Given the current situation I expected every human I came across to be in hysterics.”

“Well, I suppose I would be lying if I said I hadn’t been expecting something like this to happen.” She merely raised her eyebrows at this, waiting for him to continue. He took moment to consider how to say what he was thinking and then did.

“The Order is a beast of tradition. By and large it does things the same now as it did ten, fifty, a hundred years ago or even beyond.” His mind wandered to records of Order ceremonies and battles of centauries past, heavily embellished no doubt yet still insightful. “But the world is changing around them, and it’s leaving the Order behind. Less than five centauries have passed since the great change, when monsters went from bloodthirsty beasts to…well what they are now.”

“But despite the complete shift in the nature of monsters the Order still treats them the same. It doesn’t take a genius to see that the monsters of today aren’t really interested in fighting a war. They don’t gather up and raid villages anymore, they don’t go around conquering kingdoms. Attacks happen but on the individual scale. So something like Lescatie sticks out. Here the government constantly trains heroes and soldiers to go out and kill monsters. The Order took the lower amount of organized attacks as weakness, they cite it as fear on the monsters part. But the truth is probably that monsters just aren’t looking to conquer humanity anymore. So the Order grows more bold with every day thinking themselves safe, but monsters aren’t going to sit by and let something that potentially dangerous just happen.”

“Which leads us to today” Amber interjected. He nodded at her conclusion

“I never really knew when or how it was going to happen. But something was and something big.”

“I have to say I’m impressed. You have an excellent understanding of the way the two cultures view each other and interact.” He can’t help but blush a little at receiving praise from an angel. “There’s a bit more to it than just that however. Yes of course the invasion happened because the demon lord feared for the safety of her servants but that isn’t the only reason or even really the main one.”

Anthony leaned forward in his seat. It was interesting to say the least to get a firsthand interview from one of monsters participating in the invasion. “Tell me have you ever actually met one of the heroes Lescatie is so famous for?”

The question took him aback somewhat. He didn’t exactly stand very high on the totem pole in the Order so it wasn’t like he would have any reason to have personal meetings with them. He also didn’t spend any time on the training grounds or in the sorcerous academy. Non the less the heroes were sort of celebrities in Lescatie. He had gone to a few events where they had appeared and had indeed on one or two occasions been able to speak with one, if only for a short while.

“Yes, but I don’t know any of them on a personal level. We just talked for a few minutes.” She nodded at his answer, it seemed to be about what she was expecting

“Now tell me. Did they seem happy to you?”

He immediately opened his mouth to respond but stopped just before the words left his mouth. She merely looked on expectantly.

“They seemed…” He couldn’t find the words. They were heroes, they received the blessings of the gods. Of course they were happy right? But something about it didn’t seem right. He thought back to the encounters he had with them. They appeared cheerful enough but there was something off. Something in their expressions, in their words. Any normal person would have glossed over it completely but Anthony was perceptive.

“They seemed unsatisfied.” Amber smiled at this.

“It’s only natural isn’t it? They live lives of hardship, they bear an incredible burden of responsibility on their shoulders. They are rewarded and praised of course but think of what sacrifices they have to make?”

His brow tensed in confusion “I don’t understand, are you saying this is bad? That’s noble isn’t it? To make sacrifices for the sake of other people, is that not virtue? Why would the demon lord invade over something like that?”

“No one is denying the virtue of the actions. I of any monster would know how it feels to prioritize others first” She motioned at her wings as she spoke. “What is being called into question is the necessity of the actions. What if there were a way for peace to be obtained that still let everyone get what they wanted?”

“That sounds like wishful thinking to me. Experience has taught me that life is never that easy.”

“It was I suppose. The wishful thinking of a hero and a monster, both tired of the bloodshed and war. But their convictions were strong enough that together what started as wishful thinking was turned into reality. And that’s one of the main reasons for things such as this. The demon lord wants peace and happiness for everyone not just the monsters. She doesn’t want these heroes to have to lead the lives they do.”

“You know I’ve read a lot of philosophers in my life, and monsters were the one ones who claimed to be able to save the world through sex.” She laughs at this, he only manages a grin. Somehow she seems far less intimidating then before. Deranged as it all is it did appear that this was being done with honest intentions. “But It still doesn’t seem right to me. If it was a simple save the world plan why would the Chief God be set against it the way she is? There hasn’t exactly been a divine revelation since the change saying to cool it on the monster hating.”

Her wings deflate with her chest as she sighs. “It is that very question that led me to my fall.” He winces in spite of himself, that must be a sore subject with her. “But you should well know that not everyone holds the same opinion of monsters that the Order does.” She gestures over to the section of the library that holds books from authors outside of the Order.

He was unsure of those. It was indeed true that many people outside of the Order seemed to take a much friendlier view towards monsters, even living side by side with them. And even those who didn’t like them didn’t tend to organize crusades. But still the idea that the problem lay entirely with the Order didn’t sit right with him. His eyes moved towards the window.

“What’s it going to be like?” She tilts her head in confusion “The town I mean. What’s it going to be like when this is all over? Will the shops still run, will the people still have lives outside of…well. I’ve read about demon realms and monster cities, they’re described as places of unending debauchery. Isn’t that bad? Neglecting those sorts of things all to have sex all day?”

“Well one thing you need to understand is that sleeping with monsters is more than just sex that feels really good.  To monsters especially it feels like…happiness I suppose. To be joined with a husband is the purpose we were made for. It’s like every feeling of satisfaction and joy you can imagine all rolled into one. For the humans part, it’s a bit of an understatement to say it ‘feels good’ for them as well. All the aspects of sex that are enjoyable normally are taken to new heights, and all of the negative aspects are removed. It isn’t exhausting and it never loses luster through time either, a monster’s body is always just as bewitching as when it’s first seen. The Fallen God created pandemonium where humans and monsters could enjoy each other for eternity and this is a place that couples will willingly go to themselves.”

Anthony was getting a little flustered at this description and felt eager to change the subject. “Even granting that the sex is some kind of amazing never ending joy, isn’t it sad to think of all the other parts of life that will get lost? Hobbies and jobs and so on?”

“It’s a strange misconception humans seem to have. I can’t really blame you for it in this case, since you grew up on the Order’s teachings but monsters don’t just make love all day long. They still have just as much a life outside the bedroom as anyone else does.”

“Picture it like this” she explained “How much time out of the day do you get to do whatever it is you want? Humans have to spend a considerable portion of the day sleeping, and a smaller amount of time eating. But in the hours they do have to themselves they can pursue hobbies and jobs, spend time with friends and other such activities. Monsters and their husbands have to do neither of those things so they replace them with enjoying each other’s company. Roughly they have the same amount of time each day as humans to spend with what you call the other parts of life. In fact one could even say they have more freedom to do what they want then humans.”

“How could monsters have more freedom in how they live their lives than humans do?”

“Do you think the people living in the slums in this city live there because they want to or because they have no choice?” He didn’t answer. It was true there was a wide imbalance in the higher and lower classes in this city. “But if they turned themselves into monsters or married themselves to a monster they wouldn’t have to live in such conditions. The love of a spouse is all you need to survive when you’re a monster and so you can afford to do whatever they want with their lives, rather than being constrained to doing what they have to in order to survive.”

Anthony was silent for a little while after she finished speaking. “It might merely be pessimism on my part but I find the idea that demon realms are utopias where couples can live in joy and do whatever they wish with their lives a tad bit hard to swallow.”

“Of course. You’ve been taught the evils of monsters your entire life and your first interactions with them are from an invasion. Since it’s getting late now how about we make this deal. You can go to bed and I’ll watch over you, making sure no one does anything while you sleep. In return come morning you and I will explore the new city, and you must make an honest judgment for yourself whether the monsters of this city are evil as you have been taught.”

Anthony agreed. It was indeed getting darker out and he had been given a lot to think about. Whatever his expectations were Amber had certainly defied all of them, he would never have guessed sitting down to have a conversation with a monster. What’s more a small part of him was curious to see if what she said was true. He was almost eager to see the changed city and talk with his old friends about their new lives. All his life he had learned right and wrong from books. Here he had presented with a unique opportunity to study it first hand. Who knows, perhaps he would end up writing a book of his own.