Post by Angeal Hewley on Feb 10, 2020 18:50:19 GMT -6
Angeal Hewley
"Angels dream of one thing … To be human."
I. BASICS
FULL NAME:: Angeal Hewley
NICKNAMES:: None
GENDER:: Male
AGE:: 25
ORIENTATION:: Unknown
ALIGNMENT:: Harmonious
EQUIPMENT::
Weapon: The Buster Sword
Materia: (Mastered) Thunder
(Mastered) Binding Materia
Wall
Haste
NICKNAMES:: None
GENDER:: Male
AGE:: 25
ORIENTATION:: Unknown
ALIGNMENT:: Harmonious
EQUIPMENT::
Weapon: The Buster Sword
Materia: (Mastered) Thunder
(Mastered) Binding Materia
Wall
Haste
HEIGHT:: 6’0” (ish)
HAIR/EYES/SKIN:: Black/ Glowing Blue / Lightly tanned
DISTINGUISHING MARKS:: Does being built like a tank, count? No?
Angeal sometimes has two white wings, one large and one smaller, coming from his left shoulder. However, he typically hides these if he can.
II. PERSONA
Stand anyone between Sephiroth and Genesis, and they’ll look like a saint in comparison.
Angeal Hewley is a stoic and disciplined man, bound to a strong identity of following his dreams and always upholding his honor. At first glance, he seems quiet and studious, typically waiting for others to speak before he does, silently studying every situation he’s in with a critical eye. He doesn’t always appear immediately friendly, which others tend to find intimidating, considering his size and strong expression.
However, it couldn’t be further from the truth. While he does take himself and his work seriously, Angeal is an incredibly friendly person. He enjoys speaking to others, especially those outside of his usual circle of associates, and making friends. An avid explorer and amature photographer, the Soldier loves hearing stories from anyone he bumps into while on missions or out and about -- and enjoys taking pictures of the interesting people and places he visits, to send back to his mother.
And dogs. Angeal loves dogs. He can’t help but make a fuss over every dog he encounters, always asking the owners if he can pet their dogs, commenting about the dogs with whoever is unlucky enough to be walking with him at that time. The more adorable the dog, the longer Angeal will fuss over it. His love and adoration for dogs extends even into his Soldier life, as he affectionately refers to Zack as a “puppy” in a letter written to his mother.
Angeal keeps his friendly demeanor even when working, though he is able to switch between his “friendly” and “this is work now” personalities at the drop of a hat. He encourages the younger Soldiers and gives them someone to look up to that will actually talk to them and train with them. Sephiroth and Genesis tended to keep more to themselves, but that didn’t phase Angeal. He was more than happy to inspire Soldiers and cadets alike, earning him the title “the spiritual leader of Soldier”. He wasn’t as strong, fast, or famous as Sephiroth, but that never bothered Angeal. He never dreamt of being the “best”.
Outside of the hectic life of a Soldier, Angeal kept to calming activities, inspired by his homelife. He was a known gardener, keeping many plants in his room, shrugging off the occasional insect that shared his room despite Genesis’ protests. He also loved to cook, specializing in cooking with leftovers, a habit from growing up poor in Banora. Those hobbies, along with photography, kept his time off from Soldier activities calm and almost normal.
Almost.
Angeal considered Genesis and Sephiroth to be his closest friends. They grew in the Soldier program together, and Angeal cared for them both deeply. He kept a healthy rivalry with both of his friends, but he never idealized being greater than the two of them. Angeal specialized in hand-to-hand combat, and considered that his edge over the magic-abusing Genesis and the sword-loving Sephiroth. However, he often had to play peacekeeper between his two friends as their egos constantly clashed. Snarky comments would turn sour, spars would turn deadly, and despite the damage he inevitably accrued from stepping between them, Angeal was always there to force his friends to settle down.
While Angeal cares about everyone, even strangers, he holds his close friends to his heart. He has a habit of mother-henning those he cares for, constantly making sure they’re taking care of themselves. He can pick up on even the most subtle weight or mood changes, and will go out of his way to help his friends no matter what they need -- whether it’s a helping hand, an ego boost, or even a blood transfusion.
Training with the Soldier 1st class is no walk in the park. Angeal takes his job very seriously, and is known for his killer training programs. If one were to ask Angeal for help, they would find themselves pressed into doing everything they needed to be at 110%, with Angeal by their side every step of the way. While he’s kind and helpful, he’s also pushy and stern, reminding people what they’re there for, and what he’s doing to help them. He wants to help others improve, but he doesn’t pull his punches. If someone needs to hear something, even if its hard, he’ll be the one to deliver the news without sugar coating it.
Angeal’s extreme views on his pride and dignity, while useful at helping him become the absolute best Soldier he could be, are also his downfall. Because he has such a clear defining line between “good and evil” or “black and white”, he’s quick to put anything into its appropriate category -- including himself. After discovering that he was a monster -- the very thing he worked all of his life to protect others from -- Angeal couldn’t stand himself. He considered himself a monster, an evil upon the world. He was depressed and wallowed in self-loathing, unable to live with himself to the point of attempting to force his friends to end his life for him. Angeal’s reactions to things that go against his beliefs are sometimes very strong, and at times, very confusing for himself. He has a hard time personally processing extremely shocking information, and depending on what’s happened, he’s unlikely to get over it quickly.
Under the right circumstances, Angeal is depressed, filled with rage, and near suicidal.
Overall, Angeal is a kind, caring, and strong man -- physically and emotionally. A pacifist at heart, he doesn’t enjoy unnecessary bloodshed, and dreams of saving not only as many people as he possibly can, but the world itself someday. He proudly sticks to his dreams, his honor, and his dignity as he fights every battle life throws his way, both figuratively and literally. He’s never known a true stranger, and would be willing to help near anyone that needed him. Typically prone to keeping his cool in most situations, Angeal can be upset by just the right combination of things that make him cast doubt of himself and his honor -- causing him to be temporarily enraged, irritable, confused and difficult to deal with. However, as long as he has the help of others to overcome the trials that come his way, Angeal Hewley believes he can attempt to give life a second chance.
Angeal Hewley is a stoic and disciplined man, bound to a strong identity of following his dreams and always upholding his honor. At first glance, he seems quiet and studious, typically waiting for others to speak before he does, silently studying every situation he’s in with a critical eye. He doesn’t always appear immediately friendly, which others tend to find intimidating, considering his size and strong expression.
However, it couldn’t be further from the truth. While he does take himself and his work seriously, Angeal is an incredibly friendly person. He enjoys speaking to others, especially those outside of his usual circle of associates, and making friends. An avid explorer and amature photographer, the Soldier loves hearing stories from anyone he bumps into while on missions or out and about -- and enjoys taking pictures of the interesting people and places he visits, to send back to his mother.
And dogs. Angeal loves dogs. He can’t help but make a fuss over every dog he encounters, always asking the owners if he can pet their dogs, commenting about the dogs with whoever is unlucky enough to be walking with him at that time. The more adorable the dog, the longer Angeal will fuss over it. His love and adoration for dogs extends even into his Soldier life, as he affectionately refers to Zack as a “puppy” in a letter written to his mother.
Angeal keeps his friendly demeanor even when working, though he is able to switch between his “friendly” and “this is work now” personalities at the drop of a hat. He encourages the younger Soldiers and gives them someone to look up to that will actually talk to them and train with them. Sephiroth and Genesis tended to keep more to themselves, but that didn’t phase Angeal. He was more than happy to inspire Soldiers and cadets alike, earning him the title “the spiritual leader of Soldier”. He wasn’t as strong, fast, or famous as Sephiroth, but that never bothered Angeal. He never dreamt of being the “best”.
Outside of the hectic life of a Soldier, Angeal kept to calming activities, inspired by his homelife. He was a known gardener, keeping many plants in his room, shrugging off the occasional insect that shared his room despite Genesis’ protests. He also loved to cook, specializing in cooking with leftovers, a habit from growing up poor in Banora. Those hobbies, along with photography, kept his time off from Soldier activities calm and almost normal.
Almost.
Angeal considered Genesis and Sephiroth to be his closest friends. They grew in the Soldier program together, and Angeal cared for them both deeply. He kept a healthy rivalry with both of his friends, but he never idealized being greater than the two of them. Angeal specialized in hand-to-hand combat, and considered that his edge over the magic-abusing Genesis and the sword-loving Sephiroth. However, he often had to play peacekeeper between his two friends as their egos constantly clashed. Snarky comments would turn sour, spars would turn deadly, and despite the damage he inevitably accrued from stepping between them, Angeal was always there to force his friends to settle down.
While Angeal cares about everyone, even strangers, he holds his close friends to his heart. He has a habit of mother-henning those he cares for, constantly making sure they’re taking care of themselves. He can pick up on even the most subtle weight or mood changes, and will go out of his way to help his friends no matter what they need -- whether it’s a helping hand, an ego boost, or even a blood transfusion.
Training with the Soldier 1st class is no walk in the park. Angeal takes his job very seriously, and is known for his killer training programs. If one were to ask Angeal for help, they would find themselves pressed into doing everything they needed to be at 110%, with Angeal by their side every step of the way. While he’s kind and helpful, he’s also pushy and stern, reminding people what they’re there for, and what he’s doing to help them. He wants to help others improve, but he doesn’t pull his punches. If someone needs to hear something, even if its hard, he’ll be the one to deliver the news without sugar coating it.
Angeal’s extreme views on his pride and dignity, while useful at helping him become the absolute best Soldier he could be, are also his downfall. Because he has such a clear defining line between “good and evil” or “black and white”, he’s quick to put anything into its appropriate category -- including himself. After discovering that he was a monster -- the very thing he worked all of his life to protect others from -- Angeal couldn’t stand himself. He considered himself a monster, an evil upon the world. He was depressed and wallowed in self-loathing, unable to live with himself to the point of attempting to force his friends to end his life for him. Angeal’s reactions to things that go against his beliefs are sometimes very strong, and at times, very confusing for himself. He has a hard time personally processing extremely shocking information, and depending on what’s happened, he’s unlikely to get over it quickly.
Under the right circumstances, Angeal is depressed, filled with rage, and near suicidal.
Overall, Angeal is a kind, caring, and strong man -- physically and emotionally. A pacifist at heart, he doesn’t enjoy unnecessary bloodshed, and dreams of saving not only as many people as he possibly can, but the world itself someday. He proudly sticks to his dreams, his honor, and his dignity as he fights every battle life throws his way, both figuratively and literally. He’s never known a true stranger, and would be willing to help near anyone that needed him. Typically prone to keeping his cool in most situations, Angeal can be upset by just the right combination of things that make him cast doubt of himself and his honor -- causing him to be temporarily enraged, irritable, confused and difficult to deal with. However, as long as he has the help of others to overcome the trials that come his way, Angeal Hewley believes he can attempt to give life a second chance.
III. HISTORY
Angeal’s birth is a product of Project Gillian, a branch of the Jenova Project that aimed to create a Cetra-Human hybrid. The project was under the direction of Dr. Hollander, who was fighting to create the perfect Cetra/human hybrid before Professor Hojo. The project’s focus was Gillian Hewley, who was injected with Jenova cells, and then had her cells injected into others. The Project, short-named “Project G”, produced two surviving children. One of those children was Angeal -- who was born naturally to Gillian, unknowingly inheriting his mother’s Jenova cells.
Gillian eventually became ashamed of the project she had participated in, and attempted to flee ShinRa with Angeal. However, she was caught attempting to defect, and thus was sent to Banora. At the time, Banora was a ShinRa crafted village, built there for mako mining. Most of the people living there worked for ShinRa, and had no idea the truth behind Angeal or Gillian’s presence there.
Angeal grew up in Banora as the only son of a rather poor family. Gillian refused any payouts from ShinRa, as well as refusing the wealthy ShinRa education, wishing to keep Angeal far away from the company that she previously worked for. Gillian married the man who would become Angeal’s step-father -- a poor man who worked hard to keep his family afloat.
During his childhood years, Angeal became best friends with another boy his age; Genesis Rhapsodos. Though Genesis was the son of the rich landowners of Banora, the two never let such differences come between them. Being poor as he was, Angeal would often steal ripe dumbapples from the trees of others in town, yet he never took any from the land that was Genesis’ family’s property. He could never steal from his best friend, even if the dumbapples on that land were the biggest, best tasting dumbapples in all the land. Even at a young age, Angeal had his honor and a strong, moral compass.
While they were teenagers, Genesis volunteered for the SOLDIER program. Angeal volunteered alongside his friend, determined to stay by his side. Angeal had his own ambitions for becoming a SOLDIER -- they were toted as heroes to the people, civil servants of sorts. It was Angeal’s dream to help others, or to even help the world. He held his dreams and his honor close to his heart, and used them as his stepping stones up the ShinRa SOLDIER ladder.
Following his joining of SOLDIER, Gillian and Angeal’s father surprised him with a gift. The gift was a sword -- The Buster Sword, as it was deemed; a reflection of his family’s honor.
During his time in the SOLDIER program, Angeal managed to befriend a fellow Soldier named Sephiroth. The latter already had fame and notoriety following him, and Sephiroth gave both Angeal and Genesis a goal to reach for. Throughout their years at SOLDIER together, and even after all three men had managed to become 1st Class SOLDIER’s, they still remained close friends.
The three men made an interesting trio, as they each had their own quirks about themselves that had to be learned, mastered, or ignored. When they sparred together, they always almost seemed to be a worthy match for each other. However, Sephiroth somehow always seemed to be a step ahead of the other two. Angeal shrugged such a thing off, typically giving his friend a sarcastic retort or a gentle roll of the eyes when Sephiroth’s ego inflated. However, Angeal found it much harder to keep Genesis calm when it came to Sephiroth’s natural talent and inability to avoid the spotlight. Angeal did his best to mediate between Genesis and Sephiroth when need be, and thankfully, the good times heavily outweighed the bad. The three were close, and Angeal cared for both of his friends deeply.
“The spiritual leader of SOLDIER” was what Angeal had become in the eyes of his fellow SOLDIERs. He was known to mentor and train 2nd and 3rd class SOLDIERs, helping them along in the pursuit of their dreams. It was around this time that Angeal began to mentor his star pupil, the young Zack Fair. Though Zack had relentless amounts of energy and trouble keeping focus (earning him the affectionate nickname, Zack the Puppy), Angeal was determined to help Zack obtain his dreams. His training was intense, but he was always there to catch the Puppy when he fell, and to help him improve. Angeal taught Zack the most important lessons of all, to follow his dreams, and to never lose his dignity or honor.
Though he spent a lot of time training others on the side, Angeal always had time to spend with his friends. They typically spent a lot of their time in the training rooms, where they could let loose on each other and show off any skills they’d picked up while out on missions. As their latest spar began as they usually did -- Genesis quoting Loveless, and Sephiroth eventually mocking him -- Angeal led the way in their attack. Though he possessed excellent swordsmanship and strength, he was easily dispatched by Sephiroth, as was Genesis. After trading blows, Genesis requested to fight Sephiroth one on one. Not eager to get in the way of the battling egos, Angeal stepped aside, watching until it was necessary to intervene. As the spar got too intense, Angeal tried to stop Genesis from tearing the room apart -- but his friend dispatched him with a blast of magic. After a quick recovery, Angeal was finally able to come between his friends, blocking Sephiroth’s blade with the hilt of one sword while blocking Genesis’ with another. However, the blade from his standard-SOLDIER sword was broken from the force, which flew forward, slicing through Genesis’ shoulder.
It was a rough injury, to be sure. Genesis shrugged it off and left the worn training room, leaving Angeal and Sephiroth to wonder how to make up such a thing to their friend.
However, something strange happened. Genesis’s injury didn’t heal as quickly as it should have. In fact, it didn’t seem to be healing at all. Both Angeal and Sephiroth offered to step up as blood donors for Genesis, as Dr. Hollander thought it may help, but Sephiroth was denied. Angeal was able to donate blood to Genesis, and though Genesis hid his injury well, Angeal couldn’t help but worry for his friend.
Meanwhile, outside of ShinRa, the war with Wutai was beginning to escalate.
Angeal continued his life as normal, running missions for ShinRa while also taking time to train his pupil, Zack. They used another of the training arenas, and while Zack had improved a lot from his younger days, Angeal found him still getting in way over his head. His pupil was headstrong and confident, but lacked tact and some reasoning skills on the battlefield. Nothing that couldn’t be fixed. After saving Zack from a computerized Sephiroth, Angeal gave him another reminder of what to focus on; his dreams, and his honor. Merits for a true SOLDIER.
It was during this exercise that Angeal received a disturbing call about the progress of the Wutai war. Genesis had been dispatched to Wutai, and had seemingly defected from ShinRa. He was reported as missing.
Angeal meets with the SOLDIER Director, Lazard, and suggests promoting Zack Fair to 1st Class; provided he did well with his upcoming mission in Wutai. Angeal calls Zack into the briefing room, and after fending off Zack’s overzealous hugs and attention from being told he might be promoted to 1st class, Lazard explains the current situation to the two Soldiers. Along with the missing Genesis, there was a mass desertion of Soldier operatives who had been dispatched along with him. Angeal and Zack were then sent to Wutai with a two-fold mission -- to help bring an end to the war, and to gather information on the desertion, if possible.
After a long journey, the two SOLDIERs land in Wutai outside of Fort Tamblin, and Angeal doesn’t skip the opportunity to teach Zack a lesson about dumbapple trees, aka Banora Whites. The story was that of how he grew up -- poor and having to steal to survive, yet never stealing from his best friend, despite the circumstances. He relates this story to his past and honor, and Zack asks what the relevance of the story is. Angeal simply replies that “no story isn’t worth hearing”, before chuckling at Zack’s confusion and continuing onwards toward their mission.
“Honor can be quite the burden, at times,” Angeal explained to Zack, when his pupil asked why he didn’t simply ask his friend for the apples from his tree.
Shortly thereafter, he and Zack arrive at the Fort. Angeal entrusts Zack with storming the front gate, while he goes to place the bomb inside. As their mission nears the end, he shows up in the dojo, just in time to save Zack from getting killed by one of Wutai’s anti-SOLDIER monsters. Despite the monster’s size and incredible strength, Angeal is able to easily dispatch it with the Buster Sword.
Zack apologizes for having made his mentor use the Buster Sword, and Angeal assures him that he’s more important than the sword (but just a little!). He helps Zack to his feet, and the two escape Fort Tamblin before the bomb goes off.
On their way out, Angeal and Zack meet up with Director Lazard. However, they are ambushed by Genesis copies (disguised as Wutai troops). Angeal sends Zack to protect Lazard, and deals with the copies himself. After making the disturbing discovery that he just fought copies of his childhood friend, Angeal “defects” from ShinRa himself -- but it’s just a ploy. His only intention is to find Genesis, find out what was going on, and bring his friend back.
Angeal finds Genesis in Banora, where his friend had set up a sort of “operations” outpost. Along with Genesis, and a disturbing amount of clones, was Dr. Hollander. On top of that, Genesis had killed everyone in the village -- aside from Gillian Hewley. It’s during this time that Angeal finds out the truth behind his birth; that he and Genesis were failed experiments of ShinRa, and that they weren’t human, but monsters. Having always had faith and honor in himself, having always stayed true to his dreams, this knowledge shattered Angeal’s perception of himself, and more importantly, his spirit and his heart. He began to hate … Not anything in particular at first -- the experiments, the lies, the company … and quickly, he began to hate himself. He couldn’t return to ShinRa, knowing what they’d done to him as an infant, but he didn’t agree with Genesis’s plans for revenge. He didn’t believe hurting innocent people was right, no matter the circumstance.
For the moment, Angeal stuck to what he’d originally set out to do; save Genesis.
But it was no easy feat. Every waking moment of every day, Angeal began to wallow in despair, self-hatred, and confusion. No longer sure of who he was, or what his purpose was in this life.
Or if he even had a future.
During this time, Angeal confronted his mother about his birth, their past, and the experiments. What all Gillian revealed isn’t known, but Angeal was so disgusted with himself, that he left the Buster Sword behind in his family home, no longer believing he deserved it. He leaves his mother, still shaken, confused, and abhorrent.
Two months pass, and Angeal isn’t surprised when ShinRa finally dispatches someone to look into the strange dealings happening in Banora. However, he is surprised to see that they sent Zack Fair, his former pupil. As Zack begins to piece together what’s going on in the village and finds his way to the Banora Warehouse, Genesis attempts to pick a fight. However, Angeal comes between them, taking Zack’s sword, and pointing it at Genesis -- silently choosing a side. However, as Genesis speaks, Angeal finds his resolve wavering once more. He pushes Zack out of his way and leaves the Warehouse, heading back into the village.
Angeal arrives back at his house to find his mother dead, her lifeless body splayed across the floor. He stands close to the door and stares at the scene, trying to put together all of the confusing pieces in his head. Zack arrives shortly thereafter and tosses Angeal around, asking him how he could do such a thing -- accusing him. However, the ex-1st Class can only come up with a confusing answer, that his mother had nothing to live for anymore and that he bore the same fate, before Genesis arrives again. With the death of his mother now on his shoulders, Angeal could only leave the scene. He couldn’t face Zack until he figured things out for himself, and he wanted to drag Zack into this as little as possible.
His former life was shattered, and the people he cared about were leaving in one way or another.
Angeal remained out of sight for quite some time, struggling with himself. Despair continued to hang heavy on his shoulders, confusion about his future nagging at him every day. He was now fully convinced that he was, indeed, a monster. And though he didn’t approve of what Genesis wanted to do, Angeal stuck by him for the time being. He was directionless, his drive for life fading. Hollander was using Genesis to create the Genesis-Copies, and during this time, the Professor took blood from Angeal as well -- making the first Angeal copies.
Four months pass before Angeal reappears in Midgar. Zack is dispatched to the Sector 5 reactor, where he encounters an Angeal copy for the first time. As Zack chases Hollander, intent on capturing him, he’s stopped by Angeal. The meeting between master and former pupil is awkward, and Angeal attempts to share some of his confusion with Zack. Zack asks what Angeal’s objective was, and the man sarcastically replied, “World domination”. That and revenge were the only things he could believe that a monster would want. Angeal didn’t notice that Zack wasn’t disgusted at all by his monstrous wings, but instead thought of them as angel’s wings.
While it was a nice gesture, the words didn’t sink in for Angeal, who had spent months on months wallowing in despair about what he’d become. He angrily asked Zack what angels fight for, or what they dream of. In his desperate rage, he jammed the Buster Sword into the steel floor, forgoing his honor, and helplessly told Zack that angels only dream of being human. He then attempted to goad Zack into fighting him, but his pupil refused, and in his desperation, Angeal threw some magic Zack’s way, and knocked him far into the slums below.
After this incident, Angeal finally settles on some sort of path for his new life. Having a change of heart, he returned to Midgar, intercepting Zack on his way to ShinRa’s headquarters. The building had been overrun with Genesis copies, and the situation appeared grim. Angeal finally began to let Zack in a little, bit by bit into madness, admitting to Zack that he doesn’t really know what exactly he’s doing anymore. But, Angeal’s made up his mind that he needs to protect his honor. He asks Zack to join his side, to destroy all that creates suffering. Zack agrees to help his cause, and Angeal grabs Zack and flies him to ShinRa.
Together, they land at the Soldier floor, where they find Sephiroth. Angeal immediately takes to his old role of mother henning his dear friend, asking Sephiroth with worry if he’d lost weight. Sephiroth remains silent, and Angeal gives the trio instructions -- he’d handle clearing the outside, Sephiroth could clear the floor, and Zack was to find Professor Hojo, who Angeal knew Genesis was after.
By the time Angeal makes it to the lab, Genesis and Zack have their swords drawn at each other, while Hojo continues to taunt the situation as a whole. Angeal steps in and commands Genesis to stop, ignoring the grating voice of Hojo as the man commented on how surprised he was to see them both with wings. Genesis quotes LOVELESS, and to the surprise of all parties involved, Hojo continued to explain the story along. Genesis flees the lab, and Angeal grabs Zack and flies after him. As they approach Genesis, the other starts a summons, and Angeal leaves Zack to deal with what’s to come, assuring him he can take care of it. Meanwhile, Angeal flies after Genesis, and begins to battle with him in the air.
The battle is short-lived, and Genesis flees once more.
Angeal continues to keep an eye on Genesis and Hollander, while at the same time keeping in contact with Lazard about the two. He meets up with Zack shortly after the incident with Hojo, and apologizes to his pupil for leaving him to deal with the summon. He then tells Zack that Genesis and Hollander are hiding out in Modeoheim, and that Zack would be dispatched there soon. When Zack asks him if he’s actually working, Angeal stiffly replies that he’s still a Soldier at heart.
But, other than that, he doesn’t give Zack much else.
Angeal approaches Genesis and Hollander in Modeoheim, and the ensuing conversation leaves him feeling at his absolute worst. He can’t kill Hollander, both because it would be against his moral code, and Hollander was the only hope to actually curing Genesis of his degradation. However, Hollander praised Angeal for what he was, a perfect experiment, leaving Angeal to hate every fiber of his own being.
He was drowning in his own self-created suffering.
Zack is dispatched to Modeoheim, just as Angeal knew he would be. By the time Zack defeats Genesis and locates Angeal in the abandoned, run down bathhouse, Angeal has made a decision for his future. That there would be no future. He couldn’t conquer his own suffering, no matter how hard he tried, and he knew that continuing to live would only cause more suffering to those he cared for. He would end up destroying them with his own hate.
As Zack approaches Angeal, the mentor apologizes to his pupil again, for making him face Genesis. He admits that he should have been the one to do it, and Zack stubbornly acknowledges that it was true. Angeal then begins provoking Zack to fight him once more, forcing his pupil to draw his sword, and they begin a very quick battle. It’s ended, though, by the appearance of Hollander, who begins to praise Angeal and tells him to take revenge for their “family”. Angeal turns his fury to Hollander, shouting that his father is dead. Then, as Hollander begins to speak of Gillian, Angeal again shouts at the Professor to never say his mother’s name. However, Hollander continues -- well aware that Angeal won’t kill him -- and Angeal hangs his head as hearing once more about how he was a perfect monster.
Hollander explains the results of Project Gillian, how Genesis was a failure, but how Angeal was perfect as he was bred from Gillian. Angeal possessed a two-way conduit, able to absorb the genetic traits of others, and able to implant those traits into anyone as well. He did not suffer from degradation. He had “perfectly” adapted Jenova’s genes.
Angeal tells Zack that he is perfect. A perfect monster. He reminds Zack that they agreed to destroy all that creates suffering in the world, and reveals that he’s created his own suffering. Zack attempts to argue with him, as does Hollander, but Angeal ignores them both, his mind clearly made up. He summons the nearby Angeal Copies, and absorbs their genes into his own -- transforming into the monster, Angeal Penance.
Zack is forced to fight the monster Angeal has become, or die himself. He manages to defeat Angeal Penance, leaving a mortally wounded Angeal where the monster once stood.
In his final moments, Angeal thanks Zack for what he’s done. He then passes the Buster Sword to his pupil, and reminds him to protect his honor, always. As Zack takes the sword from his weakening hand, Angeal closes his eyes, and passes onto the lifestream, leaving his crying pupil and dear friend behind.
For the most part, anyway.
Zack Fair still needed a helping hand at times, and Angeal would always be there for him. A surviving Angeal copy, a wolf-like creature with two white wings, watches over Aerith and her church. Angeal later appears in a vision of Zack’s, giving Zack an emotional boost that helps him break out of Hojo’s lab. Lazard is turned into an Angeal copy, and gives insight that Angeal didn’t only want to help others, he wanted to save the world. Lazard and the wolf-copy, who are both degrading, fight against ShinRa to protect Cloud, and they die and go to the Lifestream as well. Angeal is seen one last time, after Zack’s death, helping Zack to his feet to take his first step into the Lifestream.
Gillian eventually became ashamed of the project she had participated in, and attempted to flee ShinRa with Angeal. However, she was caught attempting to defect, and thus was sent to Banora. At the time, Banora was a ShinRa crafted village, built there for mako mining. Most of the people living there worked for ShinRa, and had no idea the truth behind Angeal or Gillian’s presence there.
Angeal grew up in Banora as the only son of a rather poor family. Gillian refused any payouts from ShinRa, as well as refusing the wealthy ShinRa education, wishing to keep Angeal far away from the company that she previously worked for. Gillian married the man who would become Angeal’s step-father -- a poor man who worked hard to keep his family afloat.
During his childhood years, Angeal became best friends with another boy his age; Genesis Rhapsodos. Though Genesis was the son of the rich landowners of Banora, the two never let such differences come between them. Being poor as he was, Angeal would often steal ripe dumbapples from the trees of others in town, yet he never took any from the land that was Genesis’ family’s property. He could never steal from his best friend, even if the dumbapples on that land were the biggest, best tasting dumbapples in all the land. Even at a young age, Angeal had his honor and a strong, moral compass.
While they were teenagers, Genesis volunteered for the SOLDIER program. Angeal volunteered alongside his friend, determined to stay by his side. Angeal had his own ambitions for becoming a SOLDIER -- they were toted as heroes to the people, civil servants of sorts. It was Angeal’s dream to help others, or to even help the world. He held his dreams and his honor close to his heart, and used them as his stepping stones up the ShinRa SOLDIER ladder.
Following his joining of SOLDIER, Gillian and Angeal’s father surprised him with a gift. The gift was a sword -- The Buster Sword, as it was deemed; a reflection of his family’s honor.
During his time in the SOLDIER program, Angeal managed to befriend a fellow Soldier named Sephiroth. The latter already had fame and notoriety following him, and Sephiroth gave both Angeal and Genesis a goal to reach for. Throughout their years at SOLDIER together, and even after all three men had managed to become 1st Class SOLDIER’s, they still remained close friends.
The three men made an interesting trio, as they each had their own quirks about themselves that had to be learned, mastered, or ignored. When they sparred together, they always almost seemed to be a worthy match for each other. However, Sephiroth somehow always seemed to be a step ahead of the other two. Angeal shrugged such a thing off, typically giving his friend a sarcastic retort or a gentle roll of the eyes when Sephiroth’s ego inflated. However, Angeal found it much harder to keep Genesis calm when it came to Sephiroth’s natural talent and inability to avoid the spotlight. Angeal did his best to mediate between Genesis and Sephiroth when need be, and thankfully, the good times heavily outweighed the bad. The three were close, and Angeal cared for both of his friends deeply.
“The spiritual leader of SOLDIER” was what Angeal had become in the eyes of his fellow SOLDIERs. He was known to mentor and train 2nd and 3rd class SOLDIERs, helping them along in the pursuit of their dreams. It was around this time that Angeal began to mentor his star pupil, the young Zack Fair. Though Zack had relentless amounts of energy and trouble keeping focus (earning him the affectionate nickname, Zack the Puppy), Angeal was determined to help Zack obtain his dreams. His training was intense, but he was always there to catch the Puppy when he fell, and to help him improve. Angeal taught Zack the most important lessons of all, to follow his dreams, and to never lose his dignity or honor.
Though he spent a lot of time training others on the side, Angeal always had time to spend with his friends. They typically spent a lot of their time in the training rooms, where they could let loose on each other and show off any skills they’d picked up while out on missions. As their latest spar began as they usually did -- Genesis quoting Loveless, and Sephiroth eventually mocking him -- Angeal led the way in their attack. Though he possessed excellent swordsmanship and strength, he was easily dispatched by Sephiroth, as was Genesis. After trading blows, Genesis requested to fight Sephiroth one on one. Not eager to get in the way of the battling egos, Angeal stepped aside, watching until it was necessary to intervene. As the spar got too intense, Angeal tried to stop Genesis from tearing the room apart -- but his friend dispatched him with a blast of magic. After a quick recovery, Angeal was finally able to come between his friends, blocking Sephiroth’s blade with the hilt of one sword while blocking Genesis’ with another. However, the blade from his standard-SOLDIER sword was broken from the force, which flew forward, slicing through Genesis’ shoulder.
It was a rough injury, to be sure. Genesis shrugged it off and left the worn training room, leaving Angeal and Sephiroth to wonder how to make up such a thing to their friend.
However, something strange happened. Genesis’s injury didn’t heal as quickly as it should have. In fact, it didn’t seem to be healing at all. Both Angeal and Sephiroth offered to step up as blood donors for Genesis, as Dr. Hollander thought it may help, but Sephiroth was denied. Angeal was able to donate blood to Genesis, and though Genesis hid his injury well, Angeal couldn’t help but worry for his friend.
Meanwhile, outside of ShinRa, the war with Wutai was beginning to escalate.
Angeal continued his life as normal, running missions for ShinRa while also taking time to train his pupil, Zack. They used another of the training arenas, and while Zack had improved a lot from his younger days, Angeal found him still getting in way over his head. His pupil was headstrong and confident, but lacked tact and some reasoning skills on the battlefield. Nothing that couldn’t be fixed. After saving Zack from a computerized Sephiroth, Angeal gave him another reminder of what to focus on; his dreams, and his honor. Merits for a true SOLDIER.
It was during this exercise that Angeal received a disturbing call about the progress of the Wutai war. Genesis had been dispatched to Wutai, and had seemingly defected from ShinRa. He was reported as missing.
Angeal meets with the SOLDIER Director, Lazard, and suggests promoting Zack Fair to 1st Class; provided he did well with his upcoming mission in Wutai. Angeal calls Zack into the briefing room, and after fending off Zack’s overzealous hugs and attention from being told he might be promoted to 1st class, Lazard explains the current situation to the two Soldiers. Along with the missing Genesis, there was a mass desertion of Soldier operatives who had been dispatched along with him. Angeal and Zack were then sent to Wutai with a two-fold mission -- to help bring an end to the war, and to gather information on the desertion, if possible.
After a long journey, the two SOLDIERs land in Wutai outside of Fort Tamblin, and Angeal doesn’t skip the opportunity to teach Zack a lesson about dumbapple trees, aka Banora Whites. The story was that of how he grew up -- poor and having to steal to survive, yet never stealing from his best friend, despite the circumstances. He relates this story to his past and honor, and Zack asks what the relevance of the story is. Angeal simply replies that “no story isn’t worth hearing”, before chuckling at Zack’s confusion and continuing onwards toward their mission.
“Honor can be quite the burden, at times,” Angeal explained to Zack, when his pupil asked why he didn’t simply ask his friend for the apples from his tree.
Shortly thereafter, he and Zack arrive at the Fort. Angeal entrusts Zack with storming the front gate, while he goes to place the bomb inside. As their mission nears the end, he shows up in the dojo, just in time to save Zack from getting killed by one of Wutai’s anti-SOLDIER monsters. Despite the monster’s size and incredible strength, Angeal is able to easily dispatch it with the Buster Sword.
Zack apologizes for having made his mentor use the Buster Sword, and Angeal assures him that he’s more important than the sword (but just a little!). He helps Zack to his feet, and the two escape Fort Tamblin before the bomb goes off.
On their way out, Angeal and Zack meet up with Director Lazard. However, they are ambushed by Genesis copies (disguised as Wutai troops). Angeal sends Zack to protect Lazard, and deals with the copies himself. After making the disturbing discovery that he just fought copies of his childhood friend, Angeal “defects” from ShinRa himself -- but it’s just a ploy. His only intention is to find Genesis, find out what was going on, and bring his friend back.
Angeal finds Genesis in Banora, where his friend had set up a sort of “operations” outpost. Along with Genesis, and a disturbing amount of clones, was Dr. Hollander. On top of that, Genesis had killed everyone in the village -- aside from Gillian Hewley. It’s during this time that Angeal finds out the truth behind his birth; that he and Genesis were failed experiments of ShinRa, and that they weren’t human, but monsters. Having always had faith and honor in himself, having always stayed true to his dreams, this knowledge shattered Angeal’s perception of himself, and more importantly, his spirit and his heart. He began to hate … Not anything in particular at first -- the experiments, the lies, the company … and quickly, he began to hate himself. He couldn’t return to ShinRa, knowing what they’d done to him as an infant, but he didn’t agree with Genesis’s plans for revenge. He didn’t believe hurting innocent people was right, no matter the circumstance.
For the moment, Angeal stuck to what he’d originally set out to do; save Genesis.
But it was no easy feat. Every waking moment of every day, Angeal began to wallow in despair, self-hatred, and confusion. No longer sure of who he was, or what his purpose was in this life.
Or if he even had a future.
During this time, Angeal confronted his mother about his birth, their past, and the experiments. What all Gillian revealed isn’t known, but Angeal was so disgusted with himself, that he left the Buster Sword behind in his family home, no longer believing he deserved it. He leaves his mother, still shaken, confused, and abhorrent.
Two months pass, and Angeal isn’t surprised when ShinRa finally dispatches someone to look into the strange dealings happening in Banora. However, he is surprised to see that they sent Zack Fair, his former pupil. As Zack begins to piece together what’s going on in the village and finds his way to the Banora Warehouse, Genesis attempts to pick a fight. However, Angeal comes between them, taking Zack’s sword, and pointing it at Genesis -- silently choosing a side. However, as Genesis speaks, Angeal finds his resolve wavering once more. He pushes Zack out of his way and leaves the Warehouse, heading back into the village.
Angeal arrives back at his house to find his mother dead, her lifeless body splayed across the floor. He stands close to the door and stares at the scene, trying to put together all of the confusing pieces in his head. Zack arrives shortly thereafter and tosses Angeal around, asking him how he could do such a thing -- accusing him. However, the ex-1st Class can only come up with a confusing answer, that his mother had nothing to live for anymore and that he bore the same fate, before Genesis arrives again. With the death of his mother now on his shoulders, Angeal could only leave the scene. He couldn’t face Zack until he figured things out for himself, and he wanted to drag Zack into this as little as possible.
His former life was shattered, and the people he cared about were leaving in one way or another.
Angeal remained out of sight for quite some time, struggling with himself. Despair continued to hang heavy on his shoulders, confusion about his future nagging at him every day. He was now fully convinced that he was, indeed, a monster. And though he didn’t approve of what Genesis wanted to do, Angeal stuck by him for the time being. He was directionless, his drive for life fading. Hollander was using Genesis to create the Genesis-Copies, and during this time, the Professor took blood from Angeal as well -- making the first Angeal copies.
Four months pass before Angeal reappears in Midgar. Zack is dispatched to the Sector 5 reactor, where he encounters an Angeal copy for the first time. As Zack chases Hollander, intent on capturing him, he’s stopped by Angeal. The meeting between master and former pupil is awkward, and Angeal attempts to share some of his confusion with Zack. Zack asks what Angeal’s objective was, and the man sarcastically replied, “World domination”. That and revenge were the only things he could believe that a monster would want. Angeal didn’t notice that Zack wasn’t disgusted at all by his monstrous wings, but instead thought of them as angel’s wings.
While it was a nice gesture, the words didn’t sink in for Angeal, who had spent months on months wallowing in despair about what he’d become. He angrily asked Zack what angels fight for, or what they dream of. In his desperate rage, he jammed the Buster Sword into the steel floor, forgoing his honor, and helplessly told Zack that angels only dream of being human. He then attempted to goad Zack into fighting him, but his pupil refused, and in his desperation, Angeal threw some magic Zack’s way, and knocked him far into the slums below.
After this incident, Angeal finally settles on some sort of path for his new life. Having a change of heart, he returned to Midgar, intercepting Zack on his way to ShinRa’s headquarters. The building had been overrun with Genesis copies, and the situation appeared grim. Angeal finally began to let Zack in a little, bit by bit into madness, admitting to Zack that he doesn’t really know what exactly he’s doing anymore. But, Angeal’s made up his mind that he needs to protect his honor. He asks Zack to join his side, to destroy all that creates suffering. Zack agrees to help his cause, and Angeal grabs Zack and flies him to ShinRa.
Together, they land at the Soldier floor, where they find Sephiroth. Angeal immediately takes to his old role of mother henning his dear friend, asking Sephiroth with worry if he’d lost weight. Sephiroth remains silent, and Angeal gives the trio instructions -- he’d handle clearing the outside, Sephiroth could clear the floor, and Zack was to find Professor Hojo, who Angeal knew Genesis was after.
By the time Angeal makes it to the lab, Genesis and Zack have their swords drawn at each other, while Hojo continues to taunt the situation as a whole. Angeal steps in and commands Genesis to stop, ignoring the grating voice of Hojo as the man commented on how surprised he was to see them both with wings. Genesis quotes LOVELESS, and to the surprise of all parties involved, Hojo continued to explain the story along. Genesis flees the lab, and Angeal grabs Zack and flies after him. As they approach Genesis, the other starts a summons, and Angeal leaves Zack to deal with what’s to come, assuring him he can take care of it. Meanwhile, Angeal flies after Genesis, and begins to battle with him in the air.
The battle is short-lived, and Genesis flees once more.
Angeal continues to keep an eye on Genesis and Hollander, while at the same time keeping in contact with Lazard about the two. He meets up with Zack shortly after the incident with Hojo, and apologizes to his pupil for leaving him to deal with the summon. He then tells Zack that Genesis and Hollander are hiding out in Modeoheim, and that Zack would be dispatched there soon. When Zack asks him if he’s actually working, Angeal stiffly replies that he’s still a Soldier at heart.
But, other than that, he doesn’t give Zack much else.
Angeal approaches Genesis and Hollander in Modeoheim, and the ensuing conversation leaves him feeling at his absolute worst. He can’t kill Hollander, both because it would be against his moral code, and Hollander was the only hope to actually curing Genesis of his degradation. However, Hollander praised Angeal for what he was, a perfect experiment, leaving Angeal to hate every fiber of his own being.
He was drowning in his own self-created suffering.
Zack is dispatched to Modeoheim, just as Angeal knew he would be. By the time Zack defeats Genesis and locates Angeal in the abandoned, run down bathhouse, Angeal has made a decision for his future. That there would be no future. He couldn’t conquer his own suffering, no matter how hard he tried, and he knew that continuing to live would only cause more suffering to those he cared for. He would end up destroying them with his own hate.
As Zack approaches Angeal, the mentor apologizes to his pupil again, for making him face Genesis. He admits that he should have been the one to do it, and Zack stubbornly acknowledges that it was true. Angeal then begins provoking Zack to fight him once more, forcing his pupil to draw his sword, and they begin a very quick battle. It’s ended, though, by the appearance of Hollander, who begins to praise Angeal and tells him to take revenge for their “family”. Angeal turns his fury to Hollander, shouting that his father is dead. Then, as Hollander begins to speak of Gillian, Angeal again shouts at the Professor to never say his mother’s name. However, Hollander continues -- well aware that Angeal won’t kill him -- and Angeal hangs his head as hearing once more about how he was a perfect monster.
Hollander explains the results of Project Gillian, how Genesis was a failure, but how Angeal was perfect as he was bred from Gillian. Angeal possessed a two-way conduit, able to absorb the genetic traits of others, and able to implant those traits into anyone as well. He did not suffer from degradation. He had “perfectly” adapted Jenova’s genes.
Angeal tells Zack that he is perfect. A perfect monster. He reminds Zack that they agreed to destroy all that creates suffering in the world, and reveals that he’s created his own suffering. Zack attempts to argue with him, as does Hollander, but Angeal ignores them both, his mind clearly made up. He summons the nearby Angeal Copies, and absorbs their genes into his own -- transforming into the monster, Angeal Penance.
Zack is forced to fight the monster Angeal has become, or die himself. He manages to defeat Angeal Penance, leaving a mortally wounded Angeal where the monster once stood.
In his final moments, Angeal thanks Zack for what he’s done. He then passes the Buster Sword to his pupil, and reminds him to protect his honor, always. As Zack takes the sword from his weakening hand, Angeal closes his eyes, and passes onto the lifestream, leaving his crying pupil and dear friend behind.
For the most part, anyway.
Zack Fair still needed a helping hand at times, and Angeal would always be there for him. A surviving Angeal copy, a wolf-like creature with two white wings, watches over Aerith and her church. Angeal later appears in a vision of Zack’s, giving Zack an emotional boost that helps him break out of Hojo’s lab. Lazard is turned into an Angeal copy, and gives insight that Angeal didn’t only want to help others, he wanted to save the world. Lazard and the wolf-copy, who are both degrading, fight against ShinRa to protect Cloud, and they die and go to the Lifestream as well. Angeal is seen one last time, after Zack’s death, helping Zack to his feet to take his first step into the Lifestream.
IV. AUTHOR
PLAYER ALIAS:: Lala
OTHER CHARACTERS:: Warrior of Light
ROLE-PLAYING EXPERIENCE:: TOO LONG
HOW YOU FOUND US:: beep
NOTES FOR CONSIDERATION:: The RP Sample is JUST FOR FUN, it doesn't apply to the site. I'm giving Angeal a lil amnesia cause we LIKE IT THAT WAY. So, he's technically experienced his entire life up to death, he just doesn't quite remember all of it. For y'know. Dramatic reasons.
ROLE-PLAY SAMPLE:: Spring.
Spring was, truly, the most beautiful time of year. The harsh cold of winter would sail away, replaced by warmer temperatures and sunny skies. The life underfoot would transform, bloom from a dead, dreary state to green, filled with life and color and vigor. Animals would reappear from their hiding places, flowers sprouted and opened their beautiful, colored petals; spreading out to be seen. Insects buzzed about, and birds sang the very songs of the earth. It was the season of life, and the season of rebirth.
It gave way to flowers. To trees and plants. To newborn animals.
It wasn’t meant to rebirth monsters.
Yet there he was, sitting underneath a great tree, fully in bloom in the light of the moon. His form was limp against the trunk of the ancient wood, sitting, propped up against it, as if Minerva’s cruel hand had set him that way herself. The pale light of the moon and stars above bathed him, revealing a dark uniform, straight dark hair, a stubbled chin and tired, glowing blue eyes. His body was splayed in the grass, his dirty boots upright, gloved hands clinging to the fresh grass beneath them. A cool breeze blew by, rustling the leaves of the tree, peppering his body with spent, colorful flower petals.
Finally, some life seemed to come to the Soldier’s body. A sharp intake of breath, a fluttering of the eyes. A groan, more like a rumble, deep in his broad chest. Haunted eyes glanced about, taking note of seemingly everything in the near vicinity. The landscape was beautiful, the nighttime sky stunning, and the very planet beneath him seemed to brim with life.
Yet, as Angeal heaved in another harsh breath, trembling with effort, only one word could come to mind.
Why?
He’d been aware for a time, before his body had decided to awaken. Before, his mind had been nothing but scattered thoughts, at peace, because his work in the world was finished. Life had ended for Angeal Hewley many years ago, and after Zack’s death, so had any reason for him to hang on any longer. He’d let the Planet take him away, to the peace he didn’t deserve, but peace nonetheless.
Those scattered thoughts were now dancing behind his eyes, trying to piece themselves together in a way they knew they should fit. It was bewildering, to see one’s life play out in front of them in mere moments, but Angeal had no energy to marvel at the effort. Instead, he instinctively felt for the peace of nothingness, and groaned as he realized it was gone. It was replaced by the familiar pains of living.
Sore, tense muscles. Cloudy, broken thoughts and memories. An aching body, and an aching heart.
Angeal remained still, listening to the whispers of the wind as he tried to collect his thoughts. Any of them. Anything, for that matter. What was this? Where was he? Why was he here?
Is this life, or death? Am I dreaming?
Pain blossomed in Angeal’s back, the feeling like an old friend, and he groaned as he shifted against the tree, finally finding the will to stand. Slowly, his gloved fingers worked against the bark as he pulled himself to his feet, boots struggling in the soft grass. His knees felt weak, and his vision momentarily swam, the few colors he could make out in the darkness mixing and matching horribly together. He resisted the feeling to wretch best he could, closing his glowing eyes and pressing his head against the tree.
Finally, the world stopped spinning, and he was able to take a look around. He appeared to be in an open patch of land, an open forest of sorts. Long grass shifted softly nearby, and leaves rustled in the nearby forest land, where the trees began to thicken. There were no paths nearby, no houses, no people that he could see. There was nothing but … Himself. Groaning, Angeal moved his feet a bit, biting through the ache in his knees. He felt like he’d been by a truck. Or tackled by Zack when he wasn’t expecting it.
Dazed and confused, the Soldier began to wander toward the trees, attempting to come up with a plan of sorts as he went along.
Remembering, how to live.
Angeal wasn’t sure how far he’d gotten into the forest, but he knew that, by this point, days had passed. His internal clock didn’t quite work like it used to -- even human brains needed to be recalibrated he supposed -- but the days wherever he was seemed to be just as long as the ones back home had been. However, that was about where the similarities between the two ended, as far as he could tell.
The vegetation was similar, yet very different. The trees felt different, and the leaves they dropped felt strange. The birds that chirped sounded like none he’d ever heard before. He had yet to run into any people, but he feared the same result -- the Soldier wouldn’t be running into people that looked familiar to him. If there were even any people around, Angeal blearily reminded himself as he trudged onward through the trees, his body stiff with exhaustion, his throat dry.
The fourth night was beginning to set in, and the temperature began to drop. Typically such a thing didn’t bother him, Soldiers were crafted to deal with extreme temperatures, hunger, and everything else under the sun, but having spent several days with inefficient rest, little food and water, Angeal wasn’t feeling at his best. The sword on his back felt heavier than usual, as did his boots. The wind bit at his exposed skin, and as he rubbed his gloved hands over his arms, it only granted an extremely temporary reprieve. He needed to find shelter, food, and water.
And eventually, hopefully, civilization.
The only thing that was dragging Angeal along was some sort of morbid curiosity. He needed to know where he was, and why he was there. He knew he was supposed to be dead, and though he couldn’t clearly recall the circumstances of his death, he was well aware that it had happened. No one could ever forget the peace of the Lifestream if they’d ever been a part of it. The Soldier coughed into his gloved fist, pausing against a tree as he looked up to the unfamiliar stars overhead, twinkling at him in their infinite mystery.
Angeal suddenly found himself humored, thinking of some prose that Genesis would throw about if he were in this situation as well. Certainly, some verse from Loveless was bound to reflect wandering around and slowly dying. The thought of Genesis comparing his predicament to Loveless, in between the impressive amount of complaining the red-head would be doing as well, at least brought a smile to the somewhat-delirious Soldier’s face.
The thought was broken, however, as strange sounds began to stir the night air. Angeal became as alert as he possibly could, listening for the source of the noise. Something was making noise beyond the trees, out of his line of sight. It sounded loud and low, shaking his teeth in his skull. The Soldier slowly drew the sword from his back and waited, eyes darting around the horizon, waiting to see what was coming. However, at the same time, the ground beneath his boots began to slowly quake as well. At first, just a small tremble, that began to evolve into a violent pounding.
“What in the god’s name,” Angeal quietly breathed to himself, eyes widening as the forms coming closer began to take shape.
Monsters. Lots of them. Creatures that resembled forest animals of all shapes and sizes were stampeding towards him, squawking and crying as they went. They trampled bushes, stumbled over each other, desperate and panicked. Their cries were loud, nearly deafening, yet everything seemed to be silenced as a roar lit the night sky.
Appearing above the trees, just in sight, was a dragon. It’s claws ripped at the tops of the thickest forest limbs, tearing them with ease, reaching desperately for its desired prey. It’s leathery wings beat, sending blast after blast of hard, cold air forward, its bright scales twinkling along with the innocent stars above.
Angeal felt his stomach drop. He didn’t have the energy to fight a panicked hoard of monsters, and he definitely couldn’t fend off a dragon. A dragon for god’s sake. With the stampede quickly approaching, the Soldier let his own animal instinct take over. He threw the sword back onto his back and pushed himself off of the tree, running for his own life. Angeal took in gulp after desperate gulp of air as he ran, boots pressing off of the uneven ground, eyes searching for anything he could use to hide, or a different path he could run to. Behind him, the screams of monsters became louder, and the roar of the dragon began to deafen him.
“Come -- on --,” the Soldier grit his teeth, desperation seizing his spirit. Finally, he spotted it -- a small, but manageable pit buried in the side of a hill ahead. Angeal pressed forward as some of the monsters began to pass him, ignoring the way their spines and claws tore at his uniform and his arms. Almost, almost!
Angeal heaved himself into the small open mouth of the hole in the hill, having to crawl his way through the rocks and dirt. His skin flared in protest as he smudged small, oozing wounds into the exposed earth of the den as he worked his way through the opening. Clawing at the ground ahead of him, the Soldier lost his breath as he tumbled forward into the open den, landing hard on his side.
Face to face with another creature in the dark.
For a few moments, neither of them dared to breathe. The Soldier could see the monster, a wolfish creature with terrifying claws and large teeth, thanks only to the ability of his increased senses. The wolf-like monster was on its feet, perfectly still as it stared him down. Angeal stared back, remaining on his side, refusing to break eye contact.
Outside of the den, the dragon screeched, and both Angeal and the monster found themselves scooting further back into the safety of the earth. The sounds of other creatures running by, and others pitifully dying a quick, painful death, echoed on the small walls of the den. The wolf-creatures and the Soldier sat still in silence, pressed together as far back as they could go in the den, eyes on the opening.
They stayed frozen in that position for quite some time as the chaos continued outside. The occasional smaller creature joined them -- a few things that resembled mice, and other animals that Angeal couldn’t identify. Together, they all remained huddled in the dirt and darkness, a temporary truce called between all life forms present.
Monsters of all kinds, sharing a small amount of peace.
In the few moments Angeal had to think to himself as chaos rained down on the forest outside of the safety of the den, he couldn’t help but feel the subtle irony. There he was, a former Soldier operative and perfect monster hiding with his own kind. Yet, they weren’t tearing at each other, even though they could all sense the varying strengths and weakness of one another. Even monsters seemed to have some sort of moral code.
The smaller creatures curled up at Angeal’s knees, shaking as they dared to find sleep. Even the wolf-monster settled next to him in the cold dirt, its warm, matted fur pressed against his arms, its eyes heavy as it attempted to keep watch on the opening of the den. The roars and cries seemed to remain nearby, but at least less frequent. With no sense of time, and exhaustion taking over as adrenaline stores ran dry, even Angeal felt his eyes struggling to stay open. He didn’t rest peacefully -- none of them did -- but together, the family of monsters managed to stay safe until daybreak.
As Angeal crawled out of the den the next day, before any of the other monsters bothered, the light of the sun lit up a cruel sight. Trees, snapped like twigs. Blood smeared across the grass, across the treetops. Deep gouges in the grass and dirt. It truly appeared like a massacre, like some sort of storm with claws had crippled the land. The Soldier stared at it in awe for a few moments, taking in how truly lucky he’d been to spot the opening to the den in the dark. It could have easily been his blood splayed across the earth.
However, now that he’d survived near death for a night, his body began to remind him that there were still dangers about. His stomach growled hard, nausea crippling his abdomen. His mouth tasted of dirt, and the scratches on his arms, though slightly healed, were covered in grime and continued to throb. His uniform had been ripped at during the ensuing chaos, and his body still felt ragged and heavy.
Angeal grunted as he stepped over a large, splintered tree limb, “May have won the battle, but I’m going to lose the war at this rate.”
The war to stay alive, anyway.
The sound of familiar squeaks reached his ears, and Angeal glanced back at the den, seeing the small, mouse-like monsters begin to flee back into their true homes in the woods -- safe. Even the wolf-creature was staring at him through the maw of the den, blinking a few times before retreating inside. A code of honor between a group of monsters, to leave each other be in a time of crisis. That’s something I never thought I’d experience.
Angeal lucked out during the final leg of his trek that day. The sounds of civilization reached his ears, and slowly, he was able to make his way to the outskirts of the city. He saw people, and while they weren’t dressed in a fashion he was familiar with, the Soldier was relieved to, at least, hear them speaking the same language that he spoke. The few people that he passed at dusk gave him odd looks -- definitely judging the layers of dirt and grime caked to his body and the way he stumbled through his exhaustion down a narrow alley.
He hadn’t made it far into the town, but he hardly had the energy to keep putting one foot in front of the other.
The Soldier picked a deserted side of a building and pressed himself against the cool stone, slowly dropping down to a sitting position. His head swam with a mixture of confusing thoughts and those necessary for survival. As soon as he was able, he’d have to seek out water, at least. Food as well, preferably. But, that would cost money. He had no money. He barely had anything. No PHS, no friends to call on, no clear memories or motive, no idea where he was.
Angeal was pulled from his thoughts by a woman’s voice, and the feeling of someone tugging at his shoulder. Blearily he opened his eyes, unaware that he’d even closed them to begin with.
“Come on big guy,” the older woman’s voice made its way through the fog, “Wake up, will ya? It’s not good for business if people are sleeping outside of the Inn.”
He didn’t quite grasp what she was talking about. The Soldier squinted at the woman, blinking a few times, before hoarsely replying, “Excuse me?”
The woman tutted, nudging his splayed out legs with her boot, “You had a rough time out there, didntchya?”
Angeal swallowed dryly, trying to keep a firm grasp on what little energy and sense he had left, his voice tainted with a thick layer of sarcastic humor, “You could say that.”
Slowly, he forced himself up, not shooing away the woman as she helped him steady himself. She chattered on, telling him how lucky he was he’d managed to stumble upon her Inn, and how she’d been helping as many people as she could when they’d come in from the nearby forests looking exhausted and confused, or hurt.
“You look a lot like another man I took in,” the woman muttered as she set Angeal up with a room, despite the fact he had no way to repay her, “He used to help out around here. Maybe you can do the same, to make up for the room.”
Angeal muttered an agreement as the woman ushered him off to room to clean up. He managed to clean himself up to an extent between drinking glass after glass of water, before he couldn’t manage to stand any longer. The Soldier fell onto the bed he’d been graciously given, and began to think of the ways he could repay the woman for her kindness the next day.
Right. The next day.
There were still so many unanswered questions swimming around in his mind as sleep quickly moved in on him. Where he was, why he was there. What he was doing.
One day a time, Angeal reminded himself as his mind finally began to quiet down, Let’s just take things one day at a time.
OTHER CHARACTERS:: Warrior of Light
ROLE-PLAYING EXPERIENCE:: TOO LONG
HOW YOU FOUND US:: beep
NOTES FOR CONSIDERATION:: The RP Sample is JUST FOR FUN, it doesn't apply to the site. I'm giving Angeal a lil amnesia cause we LIKE IT THAT WAY. So, he's technically experienced his entire life up to death, he just doesn't quite remember all of it. For y'know. Dramatic reasons.
ROLE-PLAY SAMPLE:: Spring.
Spring was, truly, the most beautiful time of year. The harsh cold of winter would sail away, replaced by warmer temperatures and sunny skies. The life underfoot would transform, bloom from a dead, dreary state to green, filled with life and color and vigor. Animals would reappear from their hiding places, flowers sprouted and opened their beautiful, colored petals; spreading out to be seen. Insects buzzed about, and birds sang the very songs of the earth. It was the season of life, and the season of rebirth.
It gave way to flowers. To trees and plants. To newborn animals.
It wasn’t meant to rebirth monsters.
Yet there he was, sitting underneath a great tree, fully in bloom in the light of the moon. His form was limp against the trunk of the ancient wood, sitting, propped up against it, as if Minerva’s cruel hand had set him that way herself. The pale light of the moon and stars above bathed him, revealing a dark uniform, straight dark hair, a stubbled chin and tired, glowing blue eyes. His body was splayed in the grass, his dirty boots upright, gloved hands clinging to the fresh grass beneath them. A cool breeze blew by, rustling the leaves of the tree, peppering his body with spent, colorful flower petals.
Finally, some life seemed to come to the Soldier’s body. A sharp intake of breath, a fluttering of the eyes. A groan, more like a rumble, deep in his broad chest. Haunted eyes glanced about, taking note of seemingly everything in the near vicinity. The landscape was beautiful, the nighttime sky stunning, and the very planet beneath him seemed to brim with life.
Yet, as Angeal heaved in another harsh breath, trembling with effort, only one word could come to mind.
Why?
He’d been aware for a time, before his body had decided to awaken. Before, his mind had been nothing but scattered thoughts, at peace, because his work in the world was finished. Life had ended for Angeal Hewley many years ago, and after Zack’s death, so had any reason for him to hang on any longer. He’d let the Planet take him away, to the peace he didn’t deserve, but peace nonetheless.
Those scattered thoughts were now dancing behind his eyes, trying to piece themselves together in a way they knew they should fit. It was bewildering, to see one’s life play out in front of them in mere moments, but Angeal had no energy to marvel at the effort. Instead, he instinctively felt for the peace of nothingness, and groaned as he realized it was gone. It was replaced by the familiar pains of living.
Sore, tense muscles. Cloudy, broken thoughts and memories. An aching body, and an aching heart.
Angeal remained still, listening to the whispers of the wind as he tried to collect his thoughts. Any of them. Anything, for that matter. What was this? Where was he? Why was he here?
Is this life, or death? Am I dreaming?
Pain blossomed in Angeal’s back, the feeling like an old friend, and he groaned as he shifted against the tree, finally finding the will to stand. Slowly, his gloved fingers worked against the bark as he pulled himself to his feet, boots struggling in the soft grass. His knees felt weak, and his vision momentarily swam, the few colors he could make out in the darkness mixing and matching horribly together. He resisted the feeling to wretch best he could, closing his glowing eyes and pressing his head against the tree.
Finally, the world stopped spinning, and he was able to take a look around. He appeared to be in an open patch of land, an open forest of sorts. Long grass shifted softly nearby, and leaves rustled in the nearby forest land, where the trees began to thicken. There were no paths nearby, no houses, no people that he could see. There was nothing but … Himself. Groaning, Angeal moved his feet a bit, biting through the ache in his knees. He felt like he’d been by a truck. Or tackled by Zack when he wasn’t expecting it.
Dazed and confused, the Soldier began to wander toward the trees, attempting to come up with a plan of sorts as he went along.
Remembering, how to live.
Angeal wasn’t sure how far he’d gotten into the forest, but he knew that, by this point, days had passed. His internal clock didn’t quite work like it used to -- even human brains needed to be recalibrated he supposed -- but the days wherever he was seemed to be just as long as the ones back home had been. However, that was about where the similarities between the two ended, as far as he could tell.
The vegetation was similar, yet very different. The trees felt different, and the leaves they dropped felt strange. The birds that chirped sounded like none he’d ever heard before. He had yet to run into any people, but he feared the same result -- the Soldier wouldn’t be running into people that looked familiar to him. If there were even any people around, Angeal blearily reminded himself as he trudged onward through the trees, his body stiff with exhaustion, his throat dry.
The fourth night was beginning to set in, and the temperature began to drop. Typically such a thing didn’t bother him, Soldiers were crafted to deal with extreme temperatures, hunger, and everything else under the sun, but having spent several days with inefficient rest, little food and water, Angeal wasn’t feeling at his best. The sword on his back felt heavier than usual, as did his boots. The wind bit at his exposed skin, and as he rubbed his gloved hands over his arms, it only granted an extremely temporary reprieve. He needed to find shelter, food, and water.
And eventually, hopefully, civilization.
The only thing that was dragging Angeal along was some sort of morbid curiosity. He needed to know where he was, and why he was there. He knew he was supposed to be dead, and though he couldn’t clearly recall the circumstances of his death, he was well aware that it had happened. No one could ever forget the peace of the Lifestream if they’d ever been a part of it. The Soldier coughed into his gloved fist, pausing against a tree as he looked up to the unfamiliar stars overhead, twinkling at him in their infinite mystery.
Angeal suddenly found himself humored, thinking of some prose that Genesis would throw about if he were in this situation as well. Certainly, some verse from Loveless was bound to reflect wandering around and slowly dying. The thought of Genesis comparing his predicament to Loveless, in between the impressive amount of complaining the red-head would be doing as well, at least brought a smile to the somewhat-delirious Soldier’s face.
The thought was broken, however, as strange sounds began to stir the night air. Angeal became as alert as he possibly could, listening for the source of the noise. Something was making noise beyond the trees, out of his line of sight. It sounded loud and low, shaking his teeth in his skull. The Soldier slowly drew the sword from his back and waited, eyes darting around the horizon, waiting to see what was coming. However, at the same time, the ground beneath his boots began to slowly quake as well. At first, just a small tremble, that began to evolve into a violent pounding.
“What in the god’s name,” Angeal quietly breathed to himself, eyes widening as the forms coming closer began to take shape.
Monsters. Lots of them. Creatures that resembled forest animals of all shapes and sizes were stampeding towards him, squawking and crying as they went. They trampled bushes, stumbled over each other, desperate and panicked. Their cries were loud, nearly deafening, yet everything seemed to be silenced as a roar lit the night sky.
Appearing above the trees, just in sight, was a dragon. It’s claws ripped at the tops of the thickest forest limbs, tearing them with ease, reaching desperately for its desired prey. It’s leathery wings beat, sending blast after blast of hard, cold air forward, its bright scales twinkling along with the innocent stars above.
Angeal felt his stomach drop. He didn’t have the energy to fight a panicked hoard of monsters, and he definitely couldn’t fend off a dragon. A dragon for god’s sake. With the stampede quickly approaching, the Soldier let his own animal instinct take over. He threw the sword back onto his back and pushed himself off of the tree, running for his own life. Angeal took in gulp after desperate gulp of air as he ran, boots pressing off of the uneven ground, eyes searching for anything he could use to hide, or a different path he could run to. Behind him, the screams of monsters became louder, and the roar of the dragon began to deafen him.
“Come -- on --,” the Soldier grit his teeth, desperation seizing his spirit. Finally, he spotted it -- a small, but manageable pit buried in the side of a hill ahead. Angeal pressed forward as some of the monsters began to pass him, ignoring the way their spines and claws tore at his uniform and his arms. Almost, almost!
Angeal heaved himself into the small open mouth of the hole in the hill, having to crawl his way through the rocks and dirt. His skin flared in protest as he smudged small, oozing wounds into the exposed earth of the den as he worked his way through the opening. Clawing at the ground ahead of him, the Soldier lost his breath as he tumbled forward into the open den, landing hard on his side.
Face to face with another creature in the dark.
For a few moments, neither of them dared to breathe. The Soldier could see the monster, a wolfish creature with terrifying claws and large teeth, thanks only to the ability of his increased senses. The wolf-like monster was on its feet, perfectly still as it stared him down. Angeal stared back, remaining on his side, refusing to break eye contact.
Outside of the den, the dragon screeched, and both Angeal and the monster found themselves scooting further back into the safety of the earth. The sounds of other creatures running by, and others pitifully dying a quick, painful death, echoed on the small walls of the den. The wolf-creatures and the Soldier sat still in silence, pressed together as far back as they could go in the den, eyes on the opening.
They stayed frozen in that position for quite some time as the chaos continued outside. The occasional smaller creature joined them -- a few things that resembled mice, and other animals that Angeal couldn’t identify. Together, they all remained huddled in the dirt and darkness, a temporary truce called between all life forms present.
Monsters of all kinds, sharing a small amount of peace.
In the few moments Angeal had to think to himself as chaos rained down on the forest outside of the safety of the den, he couldn’t help but feel the subtle irony. There he was, a former Soldier operative and perfect monster hiding with his own kind. Yet, they weren’t tearing at each other, even though they could all sense the varying strengths and weakness of one another. Even monsters seemed to have some sort of moral code.
The smaller creatures curled up at Angeal’s knees, shaking as they dared to find sleep. Even the wolf-monster settled next to him in the cold dirt, its warm, matted fur pressed against his arms, its eyes heavy as it attempted to keep watch on the opening of the den. The roars and cries seemed to remain nearby, but at least less frequent. With no sense of time, and exhaustion taking over as adrenaline stores ran dry, even Angeal felt his eyes struggling to stay open. He didn’t rest peacefully -- none of them did -- but together, the family of monsters managed to stay safe until daybreak.
As Angeal crawled out of the den the next day, before any of the other monsters bothered, the light of the sun lit up a cruel sight. Trees, snapped like twigs. Blood smeared across the grass, across the treetops. Deep gouges in the grass and dirt. It truly appeared like a massacre, like some sort of storm with claws had crippled the land. The Soldier stared at it in awe for a few moments, taking in how truly lucky he’d been to spot the opening to the den in the dark. It could have easily been his blood splayed across the earth.
However, now that he’d survived near death for a night, his body began to remind him that there were still dangers about. His stomach growled hard, nausea crippling his abdomen. His mouth tasted of dirt, and the scratches on his arms, though slightly healed, were covered in grime and continued to throb. His uniform had been ripped at during the ensuing chaos, and his body still felt ragged and heavy.
Angeal grunted as he stepped over a large, splintered tree limb, “May have won the battle, but I’m going to lose the war at this rate.”
The war to stay alive, anyway.
The sound of familiar squeaks reached his ears, and Angeal glanced back at the den, seeing the small, mouse-like monsters begin to flee back into their true homes in the woods -- safe. Even the wolf-creature was staring at him through the maw of the den, blinking a few times before retreating inside. A code of honor between a group of monsters, to leave each other be in a time of crisis. That’s something I never thought I’d experience.
Angeal lucked out during the final leg of his trek that day. The sounds of civilization reached his ears, and slowly, he was able to make his way to the outskirts of the city. He saw people, and while they weren’t dressed in a fashion he was familiar with, the Soldier was relieved to, at least, hear them speaking the same language that he spoke. The few people that he passed at dusk gave him odd looks -- definitely judging the layers of dirt and grime caked to his body and the way he stumbled through his exhaustion down a narrow alley.
He hadn’t made it far into the town, but he hardly had the energy to keep putting one foot in front of the other.
The Soldier picked a deserted side of a building and pressed himself against the cool stone, slowly dropping down to a sitting position. His head swam with a mixture of confusing thoughts and those necessary for survival. As soon as he was able, he’d have to seek out water, at least. Food as well, preferably. But, that would cost money. He had no money. He barely had anything. No PHS, no friends to call on, no clear memories or motive, no idea where he was.
Angeal was pulled from his thoughts by a woman’s voice, and the feeling of someone tugging at his shoulder. Blearily he opened his eyes, unaware that he’d even closed them to begin with.
“Come on big guy,” the older woman’s voice made its way through the fog, “Wake up, will ya? It’s not good for business if people are sleeping outside of the Inn.”
He didn’t quite grasp what she was talking about. The Soldier squinted at the woman, blinking a few times, before hoarsely replying, “Excuse me?”
The woman tutted, nudging his splayed out legs with her boot, “You had a rough time out there, didntchya?”
Angeal swallowed dryly, trying to keep a firm grasp on what little energy and sense he had left, his voice tainted with a thick layer of sarcastic humor, “You could say that.”
Slowly, he forced himself up, not shooing away the woman as she helped him steady himself. She chattered on, telling him how lucky he was he’d managed to stumble upon her Inn, and how she’d been helping as many people as she could when they’d come in from the nearby forests looking exhausted and confused, or hurt.
“You look a lot like another man I took in,” the woman muttered as she set Angeal up with a room, despite the fact he had no way to repay her, “He used to help out around here. Maybe you can do the same, to make up for the room.”
Angeal muttered an agreement as the woman ushered him off to room to clean up. He managed to clean himself up to an extent between drinking glass after glass of water, before he couldn’t manage to stand any longer. The Soldier fell onto the bed he’d been graciously given, and began to think of the ways he could repay the woman for her kindness the next day.
Right. The next day.
There were still so many unanswered questions swimming around in his mind as sleep quickly moved in on him. Where he was, why he was there. What he was doing.
One day a time, Angeal reminded himself as his mind finally began to quiet down, Let’s just take things one day at a time.
