Warrior Nun: The Tragedy of Adriel

A theory about Warrior Nun's most mysterious antagonist

[Warning: The following essay will contain spoilers for Warrior Nun seasons 1 and 2.]

Who is Adriel, really?

At the end of Warrior Nun Episode 10, Ava discovers that what everyone believed to be bones underneath the Vatican was actually an imprisoned, and very much still alive, Adriel. The same Adriel who, in the legends passed down through the Order of the Cruciform Sword (OCS), gave his halo to the first Warrior Nun, Areala, during the time of the Crusades. While stories say he did so willingly in order to save her life, truth can be complicated. While Adriel did give the halo to Areala, the series implies that he did so because he wanted her to do his bidding, whatever that may be. The past is still unclear--what is a lie, and what is the truth? But what does come to light in Season 2 is that Pope Urban II discovered Areala's powers originated from Adriel's halo. The pair also realized that, with Adriel still in the picture, the halo could not be entirely controlled by Areala. The halo could not be controlled entirely by the Church.

If the power of the halo were to stay in the hands of mortals, then Adriel would have to be out of the picture. While he could not be killed in the mortal realm, he could be imprisoned. Which is exactly what happened. Using the Crown of Thorns, Areala and Urban II incapacitate Adriel, imprisoning him within the catacombs of the Vatican. And, for good measure, they seemed to have lined the walls of the Vatican with dead tarasks, whose skeletons were made of Divinium that made it impossible for Adriel to escape. I believe this is what the tarasks under the Vatican were implying, anyway. Nonetheless, beneath the Vatican, Adriel's powers were also fairly limited. He could not escape into the wider world in order to do...in order to cause...

...Wait. What was Adriel going to do?

Adriel's plan throughout Season 2 is to trick the world into thinking he is a genuine religious messiah figure. He does this so he can have wraith demons from his dimension possess the human race. But was that his plan prior to modern times? It's possible, given how much he wants those in the modern age to view him as a prophet. That level of hubris had to originate from somewhere, so why wouldn't Adriel have had the same mindset in ancient times? But...did he? Do we know for sure that Adriel's plan was similar to what he does in Season 2 from the very start? Or am I about to fasten a tinfoil hat to my head and

yes, yes I am, the tinfoil hat is snug upon my cranium, I've tricked you, this essay is not analysis. It's a theory I concocted at 1 AM four days ago. One that paints Adriel in a more tragic light than Warrior Nun tells its audience directly.

"The histories are intentionally incomplete."

This quote from Yasmine in Season 2, Episode 3--in reference to the history of the Crown of Thorns--stuck with me throughout the rest of the season. One of the key elements of Warrior Nun's plot is that Christian mythos is, truly, just that: mythos. A collection of stories that twist a dimension that exists in tandem with our world into the belief system of an organized religion. While the ideas presented within Christianity are correct, the way those ideas are highlighted in the religion doesn't match the reality of Adriel's parallel dimension. There is trickery at work here, making it difficult to know for sure how his dimension works. At the same time, it calls into question events of the past, and how they were twisted historically in order to benefit the Church, morphing stories of the parallel dimension to fit with Christian ideology.

It stands to reason, then, that not everything recorded about Adriel is true, either. Yes, he came to Earth through a portal from the other dimension, and he did indeed have the halo, an artifact from that other world with insurmountable power. But Adriel's personal history between him giving the halo to Areala and Areala and Urban II imprisoning Adriel is foggy at best. There's a gap in Adriel's time on Earth where the world keeps spinning, but we, the audience, don't know the exact details of what transpired. While the end of Season 1 implies that Adriel was up to dastardly deeds, we don't get many details about what he was doing that was so villainous. His only possibly antagonistic action appeared to be forcing Areala to keep the halo in her back a secret. Otherwise, he would rip it from her, allowing her to die.

But I'd like to play Adriel's advocate for a second here and ask: What about Adriel's request to keep the halo a secret sounds unreasonable? As someone who has just wandered onto Earth and needs to find a way to safely ensure the tarasks that followed him don't catch wind of the halo's location, he shoves it into a dying Areala's back. The action didn't seem thought out or carefully planned. Instead, it was something Adriel had to do so the power of the halo would be dampened. Or, if he didn't know the halo's presence within a human would dampen its powers, then at least hide it somewhere a tarask would never look. Whatever his thought process was, he managed to hide the halo successfully in Areala's back. But, in doing so, he had bound the halo to her. While Adriel held the threat of death over Areala's head should she not do as he asked, he too relied on her to keep the halo protected from forces beyond Earth's boundaries.

And so the OCS was born. Tarasks were fought, Adriel's armor was melted down to form divinium, and the forces of demon-like presences throughout Earth were quelled by the Warrior Nun and her faithful comrades. And yet, throughout all of the history presented so far in Warrior Nun, there is very little to suggest that Adriel disrupted the system Areala had created. In fact, it's near-explicitly stated that he helped her create the original OCS. Which, in turn, indicates that Adriel's major goal one thousand years ago was to protect Earth. Whether this was so the halo would remain a secret or if it was to genuinely help the world is unclear (although his decision to stay was likely for selfish ends). What is clear, however, is that Adriel didn't seem to be vying for world domination prior to Areala's betrayal.

It isn't until Adriel is freed by Ava that he begins to claim himself a prophet, using the advantages of ArqTech and modern society to convince the world that he is the second coming our religious tomes foretold. His goal then becomes the use of humans as vessels for wraith demons, who will possess those that have been imbued with the belief that Adriel is a true messiah. While Adriel had once allowed Areala and the OCS to use the halo for the defense of Earth, his goals during Season 2 have shifted. Now, he seems to want to bring wraith demons from the world he's escaped to Earth, thus maintaining absolute control over the world. Something that seems antithetical to his original plan of escaping the realm he comes from.

At least, escaping his realm--escaping from Reya and the tarasks under her control--was the original plan. Recall that the Season 2 finale revealed that the tarasks are under Reya's control, and are drawn to the power of the halo because the halo signals that Adriel is nearby. At least, that's the way it would work had the Warrior Nun not been invented. If Adriel hadn't put his halo into Areala's back, then the halo would be a signal for Reya's tarasks that Adriel was nearby. But by putting the halo into the back of a mortal being on our plane of reality, Adriel dampened the signal while also making whoever the Warrior Nun is the new target of the tarask's hunt. By this logic, it also means that Adriel himself is to blame for the demonic presences that resulted in the creation of the OCS. Adriel's halo was drawing tarasks to Earth, and, it seems, wraith demons who also began to possess certain humans.

But it also appears that, in ancient times, this was just a symptom of Adriel being on Earth. It wasn't his plan for tarasks to be chasing the Warrior Nun for the halo, as it wouldn't benefit him. Especially since the tarasks are not under his control. Instead, Adriel truly seemed like he was in hiding. He didn't want Reya's tarasks to find him, as it would certainly mean punishment for his stealing the halo. But then, in the modern age, he uses ArqTech technology to manifest plagues and draw the attention of not only humanity, but also Reya's forces. Not just the tarasks, either, as we learn halfway through Season 2 that a grown-up Michael Salvius is also working for Reya to stop Adriel's plans. So, it seems that Adriel's bold shift in character happened while he was imprisoned. And while I have no evidence other than circumstantial ideas presented within Warrior Nun, I believe that Adriel wasn't doing what he was doing in Season 2 just to take over the world.

I think Adriel was trying to save his world.

Adriel was betrayed by humanity, locked away for a thousand years deep beneath the Vatican. The power he stole from Reya was, in turn, stolen from him. A power he knew could be used to defeat Reya and her forces, but also one he could not hold onto himself, lest it be revealed. For a thousand years, humanity allowed him to be imprisoned. So long did he sit beneath the Vatican that soon, there was no one left who remembered him. No one left to set him free. When Adriel does get free thanks to Ava, all he himself can do is read minds and communicate through a kind of prayer telepathy. ArqTech is the one that makes the plagues. The wraith demons have minds of their own and enact their own possession of humans. Adriel himself has very little in the way of supernatural powers outside of different forms of telepathy and general immortality.

He is weak. But, at the same time, he has the resources to turn the Earth into a more habitable space for whatever the wrath demons are. We don't know his allegiance to them just yet, but for whatever reason, Adriel wanted them to come to Earth and possess humans. Even though he could have used his miracles to convince humans of his status as a messiah, it wasn't humans that he was interested in ruling over. It was wraith demons. Much like the history of the Crown of Thorns, it appears too that the history of Adriel and Reya's realm is also up in the air. But, if it's to be believed that wraith demons are under Adriel's control while Reya maintains control over tarasks, then there must be some kind of split between the two within the other realm.

Wraith demons do not come to Earth hunting for the halo as tarasks do. Instead, they wish to stay on Earth by possessing the population. But for what purpose? Everything and everyone in Warrior Nun that is painted as an atagonist often has some purpose that is beyond just doing something bad. Which is why it seems farfetched that wraith demons would be possessing humans for no other reason than possession being fun. Or possession being evil, and since they're demons, that's whats expected of them. Instead, I think the wraith demons possess humans to escape. Just like Adriel did a thousand years ago.

The Season 2 finale shows Adriel trying to convince Ava that Reya cannot be trusted. For him, Reya is an enemy, someone that has been trying to take the halo from him and the Warrior Nun's grasp for around a thousand years. It appears, then, that Adriel views his pursuit for a world where wraith demons possess the entire population of Earth as justified. Humanity has betrayed him already, so he doesn't owe them anything. However, for some yet-to-be-explained reason, he does hold allegiance with the wraith demons. The wraith demons are willing to be lorded over by him, yes. And to deny Adriel's hubris is to deny reality. But I think that, despite his clear lust for power over the wraith demons he wants to bring to Earth, I think his intentions are more nuanced.

Adriel sees Reya as a genuine threat to the realm they both come from. Somehow, this threat involves the wraith demons no longer being safe on the other side of the Ark. Given his betrayal by Areala, it appears that, in his thousand years of solitude, Adriel realized that humanity wasn't worth saving. If he had even been trying to keep humanity safe at all. His goals shifted. He began to plot against humanity, turning his attention toward the wraith demons and their residence above all else. While his plan would be able to satiate the egoistic part of himself that wants absolute power on Earth, something his silver tongue could easily garner, it would also mean refuge for the wraith demons beyond Reya's domain. Otherwise, why would they leave her domain, and why would Adriel perceive her as a threat?

While I don't believe Adriel is a hero, I do believe that, based on some contradictory information and mysterious motivations presented about him in Warrior Nun, he was trying to do what he believed was right. While such actions would have doomed the world to possession via wraith demon and made him just as powerful as he'd always wanted to be, there were layers to such a plan. Humanity, for Adriel, means nothing, as their mortal souls cannot be ruled over forever like wraith demons can be. Not to mention their betrayal of him means they aren't worth saving. But, at the same time, his belief that Reya was a dangerous enemy might mean his decision to have wraith demons possess humanity wasn't just built on malice.

He may have been doing it to save them.

I think that, despite his death in the Season 2 finale, there is more to Adriel's story than Warrior Nun has shown us so far. There are too many unanswered questions, too many contradictory narratives, and too much untold history for this to be it. Season 1 of the series had nuanced antagonists, none of which turned out to be "evil." But Season 2 had Adriel, who seemingly was painted as evil throughout the series. And yet, despite this overt display of antagonism, there were still small hints throughout Season 2's story that more is going on between Adriel and Reya than meets the eye. And I think these seeds are supposed to bloom in Season 3 of the show.

From what I've gathered both watching the series and writing the large ramble above this paragraph, I believe that Adriel was bringing wraith demons to Earth to save them from whatever threat he believes Reya poses. While doing so satisfies his narcissistic, power-hungry nature, his character appears more layered than Season 2 leads audiences to believe on the surface. While he's still the most evil character in Warrior Nun so far, the subtleties within the story of Season 2 and Adriel's own words in the season finale lead me to believe there's more going on that we don't know about yet. Specifically in regards to Reya's role throughout the series. While Reya is bound to be a key character going forward, Adriel's own existence within Warrior Nun past Season 2 is still up in the air.

However, I believe there is a way for him to return, and to give the audience his perspective on why he did what he did in Season 2. During a conversation between Michael and his mother, Dr. Jillian Salvius, near the end of Season 2, Michael reveals that death works differently in Reya's dimension. He says that, somehow, part of him will survive in her world even when he dies on Earth. The same may be true for Adriel, given his status as a native to Reya's dimension. It's possible, then, that Ava--who went through the Ark at the very end of the Season 2 finale--may find Adriel in some form on the other side of the portal. If so, he's likely in the hands of Reya, given his death at the claws of the tarasks. If Ava gets a chance to speak with him, he may be able to shed light on everything he meant when he said Reya couldn't be trusted. Perhaps Ava will realize that, despite his decision to doom humanity, Adriel was doing what he was doing for reasons he believed was right.

And that appears to be the tragedy of Adriel. Betrayed by those within the Church, he cast aside any kind feelings he could have had for humanity. Instead, to Adriel, they became puppets for wraith demons to possess. It's unclear if he could have found a more peaceful solution to save wraith demons from Reya (assuming that's what he was doing) without harming humanity. But perhaps that never would have mattered. In the end, his need for power conflicted with his belief that Reya was dangerous, giving him the mental fortitude he needed to enact a plan that would endanger the lives of billions. All so he could lord over wraith demons that he may or may not have been trying to save.

I do not think we've seen the last of Adriel. His presence in the story feels too vital for him to have been killed off at the end of Season 2 so suddenly. While I'm not sure what his future in the series could be, I do believe that his existence in some form beyond the Ark will be an important idea toyed with in Season 3. Perhaps one that can reveal more about his motivations beyond the theory I've half-baked with the little details I noticed throughout Season 2. I think there is plenty more to be explored with Adriel, and I think that the way death works on the other side will play into not only his return, but us learning more about why he believes Reya can't be trusted.

So...who is Adriel? I believe he is a tragic villain, marred by his own shortcomings and self-indulgence, despite trying to do what he thinks is right. He is not the hero of the OCS's story, and not the hero of ours. But perhaps to the wraith demons of his realm, and to himself, he is the hero. The leader they would have followed to Earth and worshipped until the end of time.

As they say: The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

***

If you like the blog and want to support me, consider buying one of my books here.

For more information about The Root, subscribe to The Crown Informer!

For more Frayed Branches, you can subscribe to get new essays every Tuesday and Thursday at 5 PM EST below:

Thank you for your support!