A Paladin’s Mercy

He sat in the golden chamber of the Temple of Somber Flame, his breaths matching the rise and fall of the candle before him. It's deep purple flame folded in on itself, creating a long tunnel which drew his eyes in on a journey to the end. Through the tunnel were phantoms wreathed in the sorrowful purple flame. Friends, family, loved ones. One phantom shone brighter than the rest. One of his 7 soulmates, 3 of which he had already uncovered by the fire of of his life burning its path forward. The outline of the woman cloaked in purple fire was beautiful, and he could vividly remember her even through the deep somber hues of violet. "Serephina" He whispered to himself. His first love, that flame which burnt so brightly it threatened to sputter out quickly, but had kept its strength until her passing. Her long golden hair and laughing blue eyes were forever burned into his memory.

He took one last deep breath before he felt the hand on his shoulder. Ignatius stood up slowly, disoriented by the afterimage of staring deeply into the purple flame with his minds eye. 

"May you receive the warmth and remembrance from this Somber Candle. May its gentle flame reduce your grief to ash." Violet blessed him, making the sign of the Purple Flame over him. She looked at Ignatius, he looked sad. He had come to visit the temple of the Purple Flame almost weekly after his first wife had passed.

Violet gave him a smile, which he weakly returned. "This Tongue of the Blue Flame thanks you, Priest of the Purple Flame." He bowed to show his respect before turning and walking out of the temple. She stood and watched him go. The blue and white fabric of his order rippled over the steel armor he wore, with the symbol of the Blue Flame on its back; a tongue immersed in fire colored in blue. She turned to go deeper in the temple, seeing two of the three Tongues of the Purple Flame about to leave. They bowed to her before turning to go, a purple hourglass shrouded in purple flame on their backs.

Ignatius emerged from the Temple of Somber Flame, on his way back home to his house within the parish of the Blue Flame. He passed the heads of several Witches mounted on pikes and stakes as he exited the temple, the dead faces adorned with jewelry, some with tattoos that were sacred to them. He felt no pity. Fire must consume all things. Its the very nature of fire after all. He knew the Witches felt no pity as they attacked and looted the people he was close to. Fire will consume and purify all things. 

"May His Flame burn all unrighteousness to ashes and purify this world" He muttered. He was getting sick of this war.

He finally arrived at the entrance to the parish of Blue Flame, the guards letting him through. He walked back to his house which was close to the Temple of the Tongue of True Fire, along with his fellow Paladins. It appeared as if none of them were back home yet, either out observing their duties or engaging in activities permitted by divine law. He saw their families through the windows, happy and laughing. He saw his own family, his two wives caring for their two children. He opened the door.

"Good Afternoon I'm back!" He greeted.

"Yay dad is home!" His daughter Amelia ran to hug him, and his son Leon was not far behind.

"Hi dad!" Leon said.

"Hey honey, how was your day?" Isabella kissed him on the cheek, her blue eyes looking at him lovingly. Ignatius smiled and kissed her back on the forehead

"I know you missed me all day handsome" Elara flirted, gently squeezing his arm and giving him a wink, her green eyes twinkling. Ignatius's eyes twinkled back, Isabella glancing at them both with an unreadable expression

"Ew mom and dad are flirting again!" Amelia buried her face in his leg. He patted her brown hair, which she got from Isabella, and gave her a laugh.

"I've got dinner ready, I made roast lamb with some potatoes and vegetables." Isabella led the children to the dining room table, with Elara clinging to Ignatius's arm on the way in.

The meal was delicious. They all finished eating and the children scurried off to play, brown hair bouncing up and down as they ran. 

Elara came up behind Ignatius and Isabella, putting her arms around them and kissing them both on the cheek. "I'll take care of dishes tonight, you two have a good time ok" Elara flirted "And if for some reason you want me for anything, don't hesitate to call for me" She smiled and went off to the kitchen, leaving both of them blushing. 

Ignatius and Isabella walked outside, the warm night air surrounding them. "Be honest with me, would you rather be with her right now? I mean, she's younger than me, prettier than me, a lot more exciting than me. Well, maybe a little too exciting" Isabella asked with a heavy heart. Thoughts like this were on her mind a lot, especially now that she was getting older. Seraphina was definitely Ignatius's favorite back when she was still around, and it felt like she still was with how often he visited the Temple of Somber Flame. Would he visit her in that way after she passed? Or that often? Or would she be forgotten, the only memory left behind with their two children?

Ignatius chuckled. Elara could be a handful, but there was no denying how bubbly and energetic she was. She wasn't the brightest and many clothes or meals had been ruined by her in the past, with Isabella usually having to help out, but Elara was a great mother regardless. The children loved her as if she were their own, and she had a way of caring for them that was a great boon to their family. Ignatius loved them each in their own way, and while some areas may not be equal, everyone had their own weaknesses and he knew that he couldn't expect to meet all of his partners needs and desires either. Under divine law, a person could take up to seven others in their lifetime as romantic partners. Once a partner had passed however, they could never be replaced, and very rarely did anyone even think of such a thing. 

"You know Isabella, you've only chosen me as your soulmate so far. I know that we have our family, but if you wanted to you could always talk with me and Elara about adding another man or woman to our family as your second soulmate. Or, you could take your second soulmate as a lover and see them whenever you'd like and you wouldn't have to worry about disrupting the family dynamic. I love you and I want you to be happy" Ignatius embraced her and kissed her on the forehead. 

Isabella sighed. "I know. I have thought about it a bit, and I know 'All flames are one', but sometimes I wonder if I wasn't made for this. I wonder if monogamy is right for me. I know you've felt my jealousy towards Elara, and Serephina, and I know that isn't fair to you or to them. They are great women and wonderful mothers, I sometimes wish I just had you all to myself, and quite frankly I don't really want to be with anyone else."

Ignatius stayed quiet, listening to her. They had similar conversations before, and he knew how tough things were for her, especially because it was nearly impossible to find monogamous couples that were Pyrotheistic. The only remaining society with monogamy as the norm was the Witches. And the Witches and their laws and ways would eventually be overtaken by the all consuming fire. "I am sorry I can't do that for you, but I can be all yours for tonight, and every night that you and I have together. And Isabella, if you ever fall in love with another man or woman, and they feel the same way you do and can give you that, I want you to say yes. I love you and I want you to be happy and loved, and if you have to leave our family to start your own, well, I am certain that I, Elara, and the children will still love you and visit you."

Isabella smiled. "Thank you Ignatius, it means a lot to me that you would say that." She rested her head on his shoulder.

That night, they made love and were alone together. And both of them felt like they were the only man and woman in the entire world. 

The next day it was time to prepare the children for school at the Temple of the Tongue of True Fire. Elara was already awake preparing breakfast for everyone, the children rubbing their eyes at the table.

"Goodmorning lovebirds!" Elara sang, giving Isabella and Ignatius both a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

She leaned in to Isabella's ear. "You're glowing! And you look so beautiful as always!"

Isabella returned her smile. Elara was so sweet. She was very greatful, their family dynamic was pretty healthy. Most families were, but sometimes jealousy and competition within the web of romantic relationships proved to be a treacherous environment to live in. She was very greatful that her children wouldn't have to grow up in a home like that. She looked at Ignatius and gave him a smile. She was very thankful for his good judgement and maturity. Paladins must have these and other qualities to be appointed to their sacred position in the church.

Ignatius looked back at Isabella. She was the glue that really held their family together. Always making sure the children were taken care of, and not to mention taking care of him and Elara. Their house would not be in such a state of cleanliness and order without her. And the kids would not be developing to their fullest without her. She was a calming presence, someone he could always rely on and talk deeply to. A woman of character and steadfast love, truly a marvel, that Isabella.

Before they knew it, the children were out the door and on their way with lunches packed.

"Goodbye! Have a good day at school!" They all said in unison. The children waved goodbye and were on their way.

A collective sigh went through the room. "Well, time for work" Ignatius muttered.

"You should've picked a fun job, like me" Elara teased.

"Well, we all can't dance for a living, I certainly don't have the rhythm for it" He chuckled.

"Oh you've got rhythmn alright" Isabella chimed in, giving him a playful smack on the arm.

"Be quiet you" He blushed.

"Oh my!" Elara said.

"Well I'm off to the Temple. I love you Isabella, I love you Elara". And with that he was off.

"Love you too!" They said.

"What time do you go in today?" Isabella asked.

"Not until the evening, so I'll do some chores, work out, and then get dressed for work later" Elara said, tying up her long red hair into a ponytail.

Isabella nodded, eyeing her up. Elara was stunning, and in great shape. She could have any man she wanted, especially as a dancer of her caliber and in the high end establishments she performed in. Many came just for her. Elara brought in almost double what Ignatius did, despite him being one of only twenty one Paladins, an already presidious position. Isabella found herself blushing a bit and quickly turned away.

"It's ok to stare, we're one big family after all" Elara gave her a hug, and Isabella found herself feeling quite warm.

"Ahh, thank you Elara" She managed to squeak out. Elara giggled.

At school the children all began to sit down. Their teacher for today was one of the acolytes at the Temple.

"Ok everyone let's open up with the daily prayer!" He chimed.

They all bowed their heads. "God of Fire, light our way, you who gave us the spark of life, may our lives shine brightly for you"

"Amen. Ok everyone, for todays lesson we will be starting off learning more about the God of Fire, followed by a lesson in agriculture, then followed by lunch and recess. We can go over the rest of the plan after that!"

Many words of excitement were heard at the mention of recess. The children sat quietly, waiting for the first lesson.

"Who can tell me what a Phoenix Soul is?" The acolyte looked around the room. There were some raised hands, two in particular were waving around. He smirked. "Not you two! Put your hands down Leon and Amelia! I know you already know that one!"

After a humph, their hands went down. He called on a quiet black haired boy in the back. He started quietly but got louder as he went on. "Um, a Phoenix Soul is um, someone that already lived before, but now they are alive again."

The alcolyte smiled. "Good! Can someone else tell me how many there are? Leon and Amelia you can go now too if you want" He chuckled.

"There are seven!" Amelia shouted.

"One for each color of Flame!" Leon yelled.

"That's right, and I'm sure you all know that Amelia and Leon's dad has a Phoenix Soul! The one belonging to the Blue Flame." Some of the children sighed, and many nodded their heads. It was clear Leon and Amelia talked about their father. A lot.

"Ok, now everyone open you books to the Book of Immolation, today we will learn about burnt sacrifices, and Trial by Fire"

The children nodded and opened their books.