Aether (Element)

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**Aether**, also known as **Heavenly Fire**, is a powerful substance that acts as blood for the angels while also being used to make their weaponry. They serve as the angels' own form of energy and can be used for their angelical magic.

## Description

Aether is a type of cosmic heavenly fire that flows through the veins of angels. When an angel's name is called, the Aether from within them becomes even more powerful, and when it's used in weaponry it yields a similar effect. Angelic metals and weaponry, such as Empyrean Steel or flaming swords are infused with generic aether which powers their holy power. The personal weapons of each angel, however, are imbued with their respective wielder's own aether, which make them significantly stronger than those imbued with generic aether.

The stronger the angel is, the more powerful the Aether from them is and therefore the more dangerous it is to use. It is especially potent when angels activate their Celestial Ascension.

## History

The element of Aether was created when the Angels were created along with every other physical element. It wasn't discovered by humans up until the Middle Ages, where the idea that the four main element (fire, water, earth, and air) didn't apply to every known physical object. They eventually found a fifth element and named it after the primordial Aether.

## Mortals

In some rare cases, aether may engulf or inhabit bodies of mortals, which is often the side-effect of having angelic blood running through one's veins. Though aether would normally kill human beings, few people are known to have briefly possessed aether and survived, including:

* **Nephilims**, whose lineage is half-angel and half-human, and are known to spontaneously combust into living, walking humanoid-shaped blocks of aether from time to time. This happen the most when the Nephilims are young kids and is usually compared to babies' teething. However, because of their angelic parent's protection, they are usually find using aether for their benefit, though overuse it will cause major internal injuries to them, such as their organs being slowly cooked alive, as their human parts aren't strong enough to protect them from the fire's heat.
* **Tessa Gray**, whose veins blazed with aether as a result of shapeshifting into the form of the angel Ithuriel, who was trapped inside her clockwork angel necklace. She survived the effects of the aether thanked to Ithuriel's protection, in addition to being the daughter of the Fallen-Angel-turned-Archdemon Belial, though this also affected her warlock abilities.
* **Jace Herondale**, whose body was filled with aether after being stabbed by Glorious (an angelic sword previously owned by Michael) to serve the twinning bond between him and Sebastian Morgenstern. As he's more good than evil, he survived the attack, though he was burdened by the aether burning into his veins until Clary Fray was able to utilize a rune that transferred the fire to the sword Heosphoros.
	+ The aether-imbued sword was then used by Clary to stab Sebastian, and the aether burned away both the evil within him and his life, before finally being burned up itself.