Ariel Oderum

**Ariel Oderum** is a rebellious Holy One responsible for the foundation of the Unbent in Cruciar.

## Story

### Keeper of Free Will

Ariel was among the first of the Holy Ones, and one of the purest ; when Dhanos cast his judgment on his people, He spared Ariel and allowed him to remain in the new realm of Cruciar. Dhanos entrusted Ariel with defending mankind's free will.

A task that proved hard when Ariel Oderum himself didn't want to listen to Dhanos ; he would try to regain Aedenia for him and his brothers. However, for that, he would need his brother Amitiel Heto's Key to the Garden. Unfortunately, Amitiel used the key in order to oppress his rivals and slowly take over Cruciar. To combat that and retrieve the key, Ariel founded a rebellion, the Unbent.

### Ruined Plans

Eventually, one of Ariel's closest lieutenants, Vania Audecta, brought him back Nathan Anagma, a young rebellious knight. Ariel's influence directed Nathan towards missions that would eventually bring him closer to the Key. However, by doing so, he attracted Amitiel's attention ; the latter sent his Dhanae Gladius assault force on the Unbent headquarters, seemingly ending Ariel's ambitions.

Ariel in fact feigned is own death in order to approach Amitiel's cathedral, where a portal to Aedenia opened ; there, along with a small troop of Unbent, he sought to take back his heaven from Alruna. Nathan, alongside Ariel's old brother Uriah, attempted to stop Ariel, not as enemies but as friends, as Ariel's plan would risk killing him. They defeated Ariel, however, the pull of the portal dragged Ariel within Aedenia.

There, Ariel was twisted into a shadowy Crucius-like entity, suffering the price of his failures ; but his pain was short lived as Vania came and defeated him, breaking him free of the hold Alruna had over him. Vania then helped Ariel survive his injuries, and the Holy One recovered, promising to slowly take back the Garden once Alruna is defeated.

## Appearance

Ariel is a silver-haired man whose green eyes have a yellow tint. He is dressed in green and yellow, a regal uniform fitting to the colors of the Unbent. He wears a long cape, much likely in order to conceal his unconventional weaponry. His expression, despite his cunning, is that of sincerity and determination.

## Personality

Ariel is rebellious, constantly attempting to do as he wants and never yielding to anyone. Highly nostalgic of Aedenia, his true aim is to reclaim his native realm from Alruna and he is ready to dirty his hands in order to do so. Reckless and brave, Ariel can sometimes be tricky to understand despite his someone linear attitude.

Ariel's relationship with the Unbent is ambiguous, as he sincerely wishes for them to succeed in the endeavors, but will not hesitate to use them in order to achieve his dream. However, since he is himself reckless to the point of self-sacrifice, this does not show a lack of affection.

## Powers

* **Supernatural Endurance.** As a Holy One, Ariel survived a full-blown showdown with five elite warriors before being directly sent to Alruna and tortured, then defeated once again one-on-one by Vania.
* **Immortality.** As a Holy One, Ariel is virtually immune to aging, and is such immortal.
* **Elemental Manipulation.** Ariel masters Wind, Earth and Thunder which he uses both for straightforward attacks and for a more tricky, spatial manipulation. Through magnetism, levitation and earth-shaping, he is quickly able to shape the battlefield to his advantage and control the distance between him and his opponents.
* **Weapon Mastery:** Ariel's weapons are five long, concealed blade-like pieces of steel, the Liberators. He controls those blades telekinetically through slight elemental manipulation and can both use them for short-ranged and long-ranged attacks.

* **Crucius Powers.** As a Crucius, he could fight like a feral beast with enhanced physical abilities as well as call upon the power of Darkness.

## Storylines

* Paradise Lost shows Ariel's quest for his ambition.

## Trivia

* Ariel is the name of an angel, and also hints at the freedom-seeking mermaid from Disney's Little Mermaid. Oderum is an anagram of Deorum, latin for 'of the Gods'.