Diego Miles (DMC)

» An unassuming couple moves into Fortuna with their children, two young boys named Aleksis and Diego. Leaving the distant shores they knew to start a brand new life on stranger lands. Diego was the younger son, a mute little boy who liked his books and adventures. Aleksis was the older, always keeping an eye out on his little brother.
It seemed perfect.

» After years of watching the Holy Knights from the Order of the Sword patrolling the streets and keeping the population safe, Aleksis declared one night that he wanted to be like them. He could protect people from monsters and keep his family safe, there was nothing better. There was not much his parents could do to stop the oldest from pursuing his grand dream, both only encouraged him to work hard on that dream.
» Aleksis Miles was officially made a Holy Knight when he turned 19.
» Little Diego beamed up at him in his shiny new uniform and sword at his side.

» It took one unfortunate day that left the boys in a tragedy.
» Monsters had besieged the house, their screeches and roars trapping mother in the house with only father trying to fend them off. Diego had dropped everything to run into town for help, scrambling and frantically signing at anyone who understood.
» No one did. No one could understand him. Why can’t he do anything right?
» It took him stealing a patrolling Knight’s sword and running back to his parents to make his message clear, the knights rushing in with their blades drawn as Diego was held back from the action.
» But it was too late. Far too late.
» Aleksis only found out after it was over, a Knight bursting into his office with the terrible news. He abandoned his work that day to find his brother, his heart in his throat as he rushed to his brother’s side.
» They could only hold each other and grieve the loss of their parents.

» Aleksis had known about the Ascension Ceremony, even granted a chance “to be blessed by angels“... Or so they liked to say. He had known it was demonic essence twisted and refined for the Order’s uses. After witnessing enough colleagues reduced into nothing more than mindless rampaging monsters, he had held off. Whispers of them being weak in body and mind, allowing the demonic power to take over instead.
» After the tragedy, Aleksis had come to weigh the pros and cons in his mind.
“He’d have the strength to keep Diego safe. Otherworldly power at his fingertips.”
“He'd be allowing demons inside... But sometimes you have to fight fire with fire.”
» It didn’t take him long to make his final choice.
» He will not lose the only family he has left.
» Aleksis only hoped he would not regret his decision.

» Amidst the noise, Diego had decided to join the Order of the Sword. He had told his brother he didn’t want him to worry anymore. That he could defend himself and help people too. That he would fight along with his brother against the monsters that lurked in the dark.
» In truth, he had quietly decided to run his own investigation on the strange Order. Sure, their history dates back at least two millenia, tracing all the way back to the great demon knight Sparda who fought for humanity. It couldn’t be that hard to find some truth like those great detective novels he liked to read. It couldn’t be hard to prove that the Order had their parents murdered for some grand scheme.

» Aleksis, the General of the Order of the Sword, had been proud that day.

» It took weeks before some side effects made themselves known. Aleksis waking from uncomfortable nights to find small scales and feathers littering his bed and clothes, shed he recognized from his own Angelo form. There was also a growing pressure above his eye, like a physical manifestation of a headache was sprouting.
» Was... Was this how it started? Before his colleagues were turned into monsters?
» He voiced his concerns, reporting his ails and woes. But nothing could be proven unless he submitted himself to lengthy tests and observation, all for the ongoing research on the Ascension Ceremony.
(Aleksis decided that he did not like the look on Agnus when he spoke of his concerns.)
» But he had to know. If only for his brother’s safety, for his brother’s safety for his brother’s safety his brother’s safety his brother’s safety his brother’s s̖̣͕̹̫ͅa̳̦͍̕ͅf̱et̥̬͠y̛̼͇̩͎̘͇̻ ͟h̷̳͈i͇͉s͓ ̱́h̯̭͘i̻̥̬̯͠s͈̹̤̮̳ ̱̕b̵̼̥͔̠̗ͅr҉ọ̴̬̦̫t͇͖͔̀h̺̟̺e̟͍͚͉͖̼̙r͓̘̝ ͍̲̖͢h̺͙̩̠͚i̧̥̞s ͏̻͉̠͈͉ͅb̦͔͙̞̺̲r̞͈͍̙̮̕o̴th͕̝ͅe̦͜r͙̬̞͔͔̼̤ ̲̺͕͔̥͔s̨͈̗̣a͖͠f͘e̖̠̲͉͉̪ ̟̹͈͜s͟a̙f͉̬e̴̻̝͓̫̫ ͢s̝̦̯̝̘̘͘a͕̠͉f̜͔͓̠͔̕e̤ ̩̟̠͈͟w͏͉̮͖̗a̫͜ì̩̺͈̪͉t̛ ͘n̺̭͔o͉͇̻
͓͖͉t͇͍͇̫͔̫͞h̖̻̼̻i̧s̀ ̷̬̰̗̺̮̞i͓̺͍̼s̻̪͕̙͇̺͓n̖̣ͅ'͕̲̤͔͇̞̀t̵̰͈̙̙̹̞̬ ŗ̲̮̤̝̗ͅi̩̫̜̲g͉̰͍̬̗̘̗ht̮͙̺

...
... “Fine.” Aleksis bit out.

» Aleksis gave the news to his brother, lying through his teeth about leaving for an extended excursion and investigation. His rank of General would be passed to Credo during his possibly lengthy trip. It hurt his heart to lie to him, even more so that he would be leaving Diego alone. But it was his ultimate duty to keep his brother safe from him.

» Diego did not buy into the excuse.
» The mysteries were unravelling before his eyes, his suspicions slowly coming to the light. But he could only bite his lip and still his protesting hands, offering a teary goodbye and that his brother take care on his trip.

» As his own investigation continued, Diego only found horror deep in the cracks and hoped his brother was safe.

» Sanctus is dead.
» Shot in the head by a flashy man in a long red coat.
» But Diego had other concerns right now. Demons poured into the streets and were killing the people of Fortuna. He and other braver knights busied themselves and put their swordsmanship to the test, working on dispatching the demons from killing more and causing more destruction. He worked with the others to move citizens into safer zones.

» In the chaos, he saw glimpses of his friend Nero, putting his spectacular sword work and revolver to work as he headed off on his own mission. Barely any time to wave a greeting at him.
» He saw flashes of the murderer who shot Sanctus in the face, that white-haired brute with a blood red coat. If Diego had time to put some thoughts together, he could have asked some questions. But like he said, he doesn’t have time.

» During the chaos in the laboratories, an Angelo Aleksis slides out of his containment and flees into the mountains, perching high and away from the town.
» He couldn’t have known the tests would be cruel and harmful, carving into his flesh for samples and forcing him to do all sorts of things. It was only just more data for their papers, more words and numbers on a growing list of questions.
» Eventually, he was tossed into a cell and left alone. He had grown too paranoid, somewhat losing himself and fully turning into the monster he feared he would become.
» He was no longer the human he used to be, fully accepting the demonic entity he exists now: with his feathers and scales, the wings and tail he now possesses, the claws and fangs he could use against the people who kept him here. But no. They were still people who lived in Fortuna, and that thought cause him to stay his claws and fangs.

» For now, Angelo Aleksis would hide away in the mountains, far from it all as he licked his wounds and recovered.
» Far away from the one person he did all this for.

» After the whole incident was over, Diego had taken to helping the people rebuild the town they lived in. Along that endeavour, he poured through the Order’s documents, missives and papers. He scoured the headquarters and outposts, only to find some answers about his brother in the ruined laboratories. Diego’s hands shook as he picked up the manila folder that had his brother’s name on it.

» [ ANGELO ALEKSIS ] and underneath it was Subj: Aleksis Miles.

» Inside, there were research papers into his brother’s supposed decline into madness, lengthy observations over various actions and features, clear photographs and diagrams about his brother’s new “angelic” form.
» There were numerous notes praising the strengths, always about the power of the angelo.

» Diego only saw his brother in pain.

» Diego had received some reports over some sighted demons in Mitis Forest. It was supposedly a small number, but he’s only running into this with reckless abandon because the report included a report of a large angelo-like demon.
» A SINGLE large angelo-like demon.
» He’s out here now, culling the demons that slowly filter out of the trees and towards him in the clearing. From the numbers he’s killed so far, it would have been wise to bring another person for some additional help, even wiser now to make a run for it. But the possibility of spooking that angelo away was fairly high and Diego had to know-

» His train of thought has cost him, he didn't see the demon coming until it was too late. Some quick thinking had benefited Diego, managing to shift himself to lessen the damage done, but it still landed him into the dirt with his caliburn out of reach, disarmed and dazed.
» He had wondered if this would be his end, a reckless foray into the dangerous woods for a chance to see his brother again. But a thunderous roar and large mass overshadowing his prone form made itself known.
» This was the angelo he was looking for. They had their bulk protectively covering him, sheltering him from the advances of the other demons. In a flash of white, the angelo rushes into the demons and fights them off, clawing and smashing them with a fury Diego could feel. As the last demon was silenced, the angelo only stilled for a moment to breathe, deep and cavernous.

» As the angelo turned, Diego did not hesitate.
» [ Aleksis? ] he signed, not slow and hesitant like he's questioning... Firm and true, like he knows.
» The angelo... No, Aleksis stilled, feathers puffing as he backed up slightly. He hadn't expected his own brother to recognize him like this. The older brother curled in on himself, wings coming to cover himself as he watched Diego with one wide eye, the eye had been damaged by his own overgrowing horns. Diego approached slowly, carefully pushing the wings aside to have a closer look at his brother's new form.
» The photos did no justice to how strangely beautiful his brother's angelo form looked. With infinite tenderness, Diego reached out to smooth the errant feathers on his brother's face, noticing the way his only eye fluttered and leaned into his touch, a soft whimper making itself known. The sound had him put his arms around those massive shoulders, burying his face into the soft feathers despite the pain in his side.

» For the first time in a long time, the brothers were finally reunited.

» Aleksis eventually carried his brother back to Fortuna, slowly floating in and landing at the edge of the town. He was still afraid that the residents may see him as a threat after all.
» Diego told him that he would be looking for him once he recovered.
» Aleksis, not trusting his disused voice, only signed back that he'll be waiting.

» It’s been over a year.
» Diego got a small house built close to Mitis Forest for both himself and his brother. A lovely house with a sizable garden, something for Aleksis to do while they lived out here. In the meantime, they took opportunities to bond.
» It took some weeks before Aleksis's angelo form faded, leaving his brother with lingering side effects. Remnants of feathers and scales continued to exist on his skin, the horn that damaged his eye was now a permanent feature, one that Aleksis often took time to file down into something less outrageous.

» As the months went by and Aleksis’s condition improved from the peaceful quiet offered, he grew concerned that he was holding Diego back. It was one night where they spoke of what they’d do from now on. Diego mentioned wanting to leave Fortuna to explore the world, travel around and do odd jobs to get by. While Aleksis was more than content to stay put in Fortuna, despite everything it was still a safer place for the now artificial demon than anywhere else in the world. With much encouragement, Aleksis convinced his brother to head out from this island.

» As Diego boarded the ferry towards the mainland, saying fond farewells to the little friends he had made along the way, he looked back at the island to see his brother’s majestic angelo form, proudly perched high on a building and waving back.

» Diego took to the road, hitching on all kinds of rides to go as far as he could.
» When the money ran low, he would pick up various jobs. Often it demon slaying jobs from the local informants, whatever stuff leftover from others that couldn't or refused to take.
» It didn't take long for him to end up with a humble little van to drive around.
» He had fun seeing the sights. At almost every town he stopped in, he would mail letters and postcards to his brother, always hoping that he is well back in Fortuna.

» During the years, he eventually made his way back to the town he grew up in. But Diego only found himself feeling nostalgic and homesick, thinking of past memories of happier times when they were all younger. His parents... His brother...
» Eventually he decided his long road trip was over. So he turned and followed another route back home.

» Diego arrived in Redgrave shortly after the massive hell tree had fallen. With his trusty caliburn, he too joined the cause, effectively slicing through the many empusas, hell cainas and riots that still lingered the streets.
» The surprise was bumping into an old friend one late afternoon, as he was parked on a high hill and cleaning his sword. Nero had found him and they ended up catching up on the years they've been apart.

» Diego does make his way back to Fortuna, especially after his short stint with Nero in Redgrave.
» From what he hears from Nero, he's glad that Aleksis's new looks have been strangely well-received in the town, some going out of their way to help his brother with various things. He's been going into town more often as well, which has Diego sighing in relief. The year before he left, Diego had been the one going into town on his behalf, understanding his brother's fear.

» Rolling off the ferry in his van, Diego only hoped no one minded too much when he scrambled out of the vehicle to crush Aleksis with the tightest hug he's ever given.
» But with how tight his brother is holding onto him, the younger would say that his brother missed him very much...

» Diego owns a homely van. Complete with a small mattress, an ice-box, and various camping gear.
» Diego's caliburn, weathered but well-maintained. Over time, Diego has scraped decorations into the metal.
» Diego's other weapons include daggers and a revolver. He's been meaning to ask Nero about Blue Rose.
» He collects various whistles of all shapes, he really likes the long whistles and will always be seen wearing one around his neck.
» One dog whistle, gifted to him by Nero back when they were friends in the Order of the Sword.
» Diego has been meddling with some occult magics, causing him to have an innate affinity to water/ice magics but leaving his fingers blackened like they're suffering from frostbite.

» Aleksis's durandal, maintained despite rarely using it.
» Aleksis has persisting remnants of his angelo form on his person. Random scales and feathers dot his body. The horn that grows above his left eye, leaving it damaged and blinded. Shorter and smaller versions of his tail and wings may sometimes stay as a new feature.
» He has ventured into town after Diego left, often emerging at dawn or dusk and hiding under a heavy hood, hoping the low light and hood's shadow would hide his face's more demonic features.
» He's been silently protecting the town of Fortuna, killing demons on occasion and leading lost children and wilder teens back to the town's outskirts.
» He's found out that demons are physically affecionate.
» Aleksis has kept every single postcard his brother has sent him.

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