The War Within

He was losing.

Not on the battlefield. Not in Kur'thaal's endless war against Asphodel.

No—he was losing to something far more dangerous.

Azarel.

Vael sat on the edge of a broken tower, high above the smoldering ruins of Kur'thaal, his runes flickering with restless energy. The Abyss stretched below him, cracked and burning, but he barely noticed. His mind was elsewhere.

On him.

Vael had seen many things in his lifetime. He had seen fire swallow entire legions. He had seen mountains crumble with a single breath of magic. He had seen the first of the angels fall from grace and become something else entirely.

And yet…

Azarel was something else.

A contradiction. A balance.

He had the face of a warrior, carved from light itself, but the softness of something untouched, unbroken.

His silver eyes—

Stars, not just reflections of them. They held depth, curiosity, something untamed. When he was angry, they burned. When he was silent, they searched.

And his wings—

A creation of celestial arrogance, yet painted in defiance.

The gold at their base was unnatural, rare, an imprint of something greater than him. But Vael knew Azarel did not see it that way. He had seen the way Azarel touched his own feathers, the way his expression darkened when the others looked at him like he was something divine.

He didn't want their reverence.

He wanted to be understood.

And that—that was what made Vael's chest ache the most.

Because he understood.

More than he wanted to. More than he could ever admit.

This was a disease.

A sickness in his mind, poisoning his thoughts, twisting him into something weaker.

Azarel was his enemy.

An angel.

A warrior of Asphodel.

And yet, Vael had touched him.

Had let his fingers trace the sharp lines of his jaw, had memorized the warmth of his skin, had felt the shudder in his breath—had felt him break beneath that touch, just for a second.

And now he was here, sitting alone, thinking about him like some pathetic fool.

Vael clenched his fists, his runes glowing violently.

Enough.

This wasn't real. It couldn't be.

He refused to let it be.

The Fear He Couldn't Name

But then… why did he feel like he was suffocating?

Vael exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. This wasn't just about him.

Azarel was still in Asphodel.

Still locked in their perfect, pristine world.

Still standing before the Council of Angels, who would tear him apart if they suspected even a fraction of the truth.

Vael wasn't afraid for himself.

But Azarel?

Azarel could be condemned for this.

For him.

The thought made his entire body tense, an ugly, unfamiliar sensation twisting in his gut.

If they hurt him—

Vael inhaled sharply.

He shouldn't care.

Shouldn't.

But the image of Azarel standing alone, facing judgment, knowing that Vael had been the reason—

No.

The word slammed through his mind like a blade.

He wouldn't let it happen.

He didn't know how. Didn't know what he could do.

But if anyone dared to touch Azarel—

They would burn.

"What Have You Done to Me?"

Vael leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, his fingers pressing against his temples.

His aura flickered, unstable.

Something inside him was changing.

It had started with Azarel's name.

Then, the glances.

Then, the touch.

Now, it was in his breath, his bones, his very soul.

And he hated it.

He hated him.

For making him feel this.

For existing in a way that Vael could never ignore.

For making him afraid.

Because this? This was not war.

This was something else. Something worse.

Something that Vael did not know how to fight.

And he was losing.