High atop the Pinacle of Sanctity, two figures could be seen. Looking outward, to the Sanctuary of Angels and beyond, stood the dwarf, leaning against the handrail, propping himself up to get a better view, grunting. Beings of all races and sizes were walking the streets below as they hurried to their own businesses. An innocent sight.

The sun gleamed off the adjoining buildings with a fiery warmth, saturating all sight. The dwarf's pupils shrank to meet the occasion, and he strained his eyes to continue gazing at the scene before him. Though his eyes were stressed, it wasn't hard to ascertain the harmony that lie below. The dwarf let himself down from the handrail and stood at his full height, just under four feet tall. Though the streets were crowded with people attending personal businesses in the holiest of cities, Sraxen knew all was not as it seemed. It was a truth that not many were willing to accept. If you were a true seeker of good, of holiness, you would be able to see this. And Sraxen was a true seeker of good.

"Evil hides itself in many forms," the dwarf admitted. "We cannot always identify its sources. But even now I can be certain that this city is not as it should be." He sighed, turning his attention to the man that had joined him at the top of the building. "I'm not sure there is anywhere on Arda that is as it should be."

Sraxen sighed once more. It was one thing, to pledge your allegiance to do good deeds in the realm. It was quite another to devote your entire life's work towards acheiving that goal. Until evil was gone, the true guardians could not rest.

So the world makes it.

Avénnian looked down upon the residents of the holy city with his intense glare. He loved this place, for truly it was one of the few places that openly declared its dedication to goodness. He remembered how surprised he had once been to find the many hidden advocates of holiness, solely because of the dominating ways of evil within the world. Recently Avénnian had taken on a great task, a task with an aim to restore the holy ways to the world of Arda. As he looked on into such a seemingly peaceful crowd, he could see beyond this. There was evil creeping out of the darkness, out of every shadow, and it was Avénnian's goal to drive evil back where to where it belonged.

As the rays of the sun graced them with its bright warmth, Avénnian listened to what the dwarf had to say. They had agreed to meet each other here, for Sraxen was one who Avénnian could easily recognize as a firm believer in holiness.

"There are many places that are not as they should be." He paused for a moment as his head turned to the right, looking at a beautiful angel soaring through the sky. "What's important is that our hearts are as they should be." Avénnian turned his head back down to the street, and he spoke once again. "And, that we do not allow evil to enter."

Avénnian breathed in deeply as he thought about what he had just said. Of course it was true, but if only it were as simple as those few words. He began to reflect back on his adventures for a moment, and his mind could not help but worry.

"Of course, evil will always tempt those who try to follow the holy ways. With the abundance of evil lurking within the world today, the number the holy followers has tragically dwindled." It was a sad thought, and probably the one thing that Avénnian feared. Still, he had a job to do, and so once again the Guardian would have to take action. He could only hope that there would be more like Sraxen in this world to help him, for no matter his power, he could never accomplish this task alone.

The dwarf closed his eyes, listening intently. Avénnian was right, of course. The most important thing they could do was to keep evil out of their hearts. He tried to think about the meaning of that, if he had allowed it to happen to him. So much of his time was spent cleansing the world of its evil ways, he had never stopped to think if evil had ever overcome him.

He opened his eyes suddenly. "Is it all right?" He had asked a question he hadn't well thought out, so he coughed and tried to rephrase it. "Is it all right to kill in the name of holiness? To embark on a crusade like this? It is what I have felt is my calling, my purpose, but... is it?"

It was something Sraxen had grappled with for some time, the thought that all killing was evil by its very nature. The end goal was to be rid of the darkness, but was there perhaps a better way to do that? A way to do it without bloodshed?

Down in the streets, townspeople scurried by, most of them had never commited a crime in their life. It was for these people that Sraxen fought. It was for their future. Nothing in the world was worth undertaking if there was no one to benefit from it. If everyone was overtaken by evil, and if Sraxen and Avénnian were the only ones left to fight against it, would that quest be worth it?

So many questions were forming in Sraxen's mind, but he pushed them aside. He could not lose hope in his venture, not yet. Too much was at stake for him to begin to doubt himself.

"It's hard." Avennian said, remembering that at some time he had asked this exact same question. "To decide what the right thing to do is. Sometimes we really must take a life, but there is a difference between someone who lives to take lives and claims it to be in the name of holiness, and someone who takes a life in order to preserve holiness." He paused for a moment, knowing that he always had a lot to say about these things. He shifted his eyes upward, tearing his gaze from the crowd below and setting it upon the horizon. His eyes seemed to glimmer in the sunlight, but it was no bother to him.

"It can be a confusing mix of complexity and simplicity, but all who wish for holiness should beware of this confusion. Confusion is a powerful tool used by evil to bewilder the minds of those who stand for righteousness. Never will it be the call of holiness to kill or take lives. Holiness is meant to save, protect, and preserve. There will, however, come times when you must make the decision to kill. In your own time you will come to easily make the right decisions, but it will take dedication. Only then can you truly be a keeper of holiness."

Saying this, he stopped speaking. He was fairly sure that Sraxen could understand what he was saying. He also hoped that the dwarf would be careful to remember these things, for Avennian could see within him a good heart, and a very devout advocate of holiness he desired to be. It was truly something that even lifted Avennian's spirits, although at the moment he held a solemn look upon his face. It was not a face of sadness, but it was not a face of happiness. More than anything, it was rather melancholy, which was likely due to their current conversation. Avennian did not like to think of evil, although it often seemed as if he was surrounded by it. This is why he was here today, for Sraxen was one of the chosen to become a member of a legendary group. As of yet, Avennian had not spoken to the dwarf of this, but the time would come. The elf's eyes seemed to be captivated by the sun's golden rays upon the white horizon which was known as the Sanctuary of Angels.

"Inside these walls, it is beautiful, but outside...." Avennian's voice was barely as whisper as he thought about the terrible things that he had seen outside of the city during his travels. He was speaking more to himself than anything, and his words seemed to drift away as his mind took a deep plunge into thought...

As far as the dwarf could gather from the guardian's words, the path to the keeping of holiness was a thin one indeed. Invisible boundaries rose up everywhere, and if one wasn't careful, the line would be crossed. Surely, it was much easier to bask in the darkness of evil than it was the stay the course of a keeper.

The thought of the long and rigorous journey that was ahead of Sraxen gave him some sorrow. Sorrow was something that felt so near to the dwarf these days, that it seemed it was closer to him than joy ever was. He wondered if he had lost the happiness that his line of work brought to him, to see justice restored and the cleansing of evil. No longer was it any more than just his job, his duty. Perhaps that's the way it should be.

Sraxen thought about his own fate as he gazed into the heavens. He knew that one day, his time in this realm would come to its end. His existence would be erased, and all that would be left would be his deeds. And so, his deeds were the most important thing to him. He wanted to be remembered as one who fought with all his strength to preserve the ideals of goodness and holiness, not of evil and corruption. This, and this alone, made him happy once again.

Suddenly he remembered the words Avennian had spoken about the sanctuary. He wasn't sure how long ago the man had spoken, but Sraxen weighed in with his own thoughts anyway. "The Sanctuary of the Angels is secluded. It does not see what lurks outside its gates. It is naîve, like a child. If only there were more places in Arda that were like the children."

It was an interesting thought, but the likelihood of it was incedibly miniscule. Still, Sraxen tried his best to remain optimistic. It could be done, but more help was needed. Evil never rested; holiness had fallen into a deep sleep. There was more work to be done than Sraxen could ever hope to accomplish on his own. More would be needed to guard the just cause, more would be needed to fight for its ideals. Where had these warriors gone? Where could they be found?

"Yes," Avennian spoke in response, no longer desiring to allow the conversation to continue in this direction. For this short time, they had only spoken of the tragedies that had fallen upon the world, but now Avennian was ready to speak of something different. He was ready to talk about a new hope to bring to Arda, a new order that would drown the evils of this world.

"And I am going to change that." These few words Avennian spoke firmly with a high tone of authority. He sounded so very sure of himself, which many would think to be quite an insanity. Still, the elf continued. "Sraxen, I am going to fight against the evils of this world, as both of us have done. However, I have great plans in the making, but I will require assistance." He stopped speaking, and allowed his gaze to settle on the dwarf.

Turning, Avennian allowed his cape to billow behind him as he took a few steps forward, "It is not enough for us to recognize the evil around us. There are few who see things as we do, and it is up to us who have been given this gift of sight to change what we know and recognize as wrong." He paused for a moment, knowing that these words were powerful, and what he was saying beared a lot of pressure. He turned once again, and looked out into the horizon. "I want you to join me. I want you to aid me in my endeavor to muzzle the rising evils of this world."

Avennian said no more for the moment, and kept his eyes out onto the sunny skies. He knew that Sraxen would have questions, but what he really wanted right now was to hear the dwarf's willingness to help, for the order in which Avennian would begin would only contain the most courageous of hearts, no matter what was asked of them.

Sraxen listened intently as Avénnian told him of the plans he was making. The dwarf had figured the elf had been up to something, but until now he had not know what. Now he knew. Avénnian was asking Sraxen to join him on a quest to bring holiness to the realm. The dwarf had always sought to do this on his own, of course, but what the guardian was proposing was that they do it with combined strengths. He pondered it for a moment as he considered what it meant for him. He'd have to make a lot of sacrfices in order to join Avénnian. But he felt it was a sacrifice he was willing to make.

"I will join you, Avénnian. Two fighting together is always better than one, without exception." He stopped there, knowing that the elf would have more to say after hearing his response. Avénnian had not divulged all the information, simply waiting to see if Sraxen was interested. And he was.

He held a steady gaze at the horizon, watching a flock of birds make their way towards the sanctuary. It reminded him that holy people would always flock to this place to find others who believed in the same ideals, and to find warriors to fight the good fight. It reminded him that there was still much hope for Arda and its people. As long as the divine protectors were able to gather, the fight was not over. As long as the Sanctuary of the Angels stood, hope remained.