Warrior Nun Areala: The Animation

Warrior Nun Areala: The Animation is a 1998 Japanese/American action dark fantasy horror Original Video Animation based on the comic series created by Ben Dunn (who co-wrote the script with Michael Edens, Mark Edward Edens, and Izo Hashimoto). The film was produced by the anime studio Sunrise and directed by Masashi Ikeda, who had previously been a director of the anime series Shin Kidou Senki Gundam Wing.

Plot
The film opens in Norway, 1066 A.D. A Catholic monastery is under attack by a horde of Viking invaders who engage in pursuit of the only survivor, a nun. The Vikings have her cornered and are about to kill her (or worse) when she is saved by a Valkyrie named Auria, who, seeing the atrocities committed in the name of Odin, has converted to the God of Abraham. Auria, with the blessing of the Archangel Michael, gives the nun her powers along with a Sacred Sword (which does not kill humans, but causes them pain from the realization of their sins), transforming her into Sister Areala, the original Warrior Nun. Areala then fights and drives away her would-be attackers.

In the present day, the Warrior Nuns are an order of fighting Catholic nuns inspired by the legend of Areala and trained to fight the forces of Hell whenever they may appear; they have a certain rivalry/animosity with their masculine counterpart, the Magic Priests, who possess divine powers bestowed upon by God Himself. The Church is able to detect Hellish incursions thanks to their advance warning satellite network, The Crown of Thorns, which is controlled by a supercomputer called G.A.B.R.I.E.L. Sister Shannon Masters, who has recently finished her Warrior Nun training under Mother Superion in the Vatican, confides in her friend, Sister Claudia Morris, that she has romantic feelings for a Magic Priest, Father David Crowe. Shannon and Claudia are assigned to the St. Thomas Church in New York City. Before their arrival, a priest at the Holy Trinity Lutheran Church is brutally murdered at night by an unseen creature, an event which makes the morning TV news.

Shannon and Claudia meet Father Terrence Gómez, who explains that the HTLC murder is only the latest in a series of murders of Christian priests in the last month; he fears it might be the prelude to a full-scale demonic invasion, but the Vatican does not believe so because there hasn't been a full-scale demonic invasion for nine years. That night, as Shannon is praying to God and asking Him for forgiveness (for being in love with Father Crowe), she is ambushed by gargoyles. She fights them to the best of her ability using her Sacred Sword, but is badly injured; in a near-death experience, she sees Areala herself, who tells her she is not yet ready to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, and that "only [Shannon] can assure victory in this and the many decisive and terrible battles to come".

Shannon wakes up in the local hospital the next day and is greeted by Crowe and Gómez, who explain that her left arm had to be amputated and replaced with a bionic prothesis. Shannon begins to recuperate at an accelerated rate, and is discharged from the hospital less than eighteen hours after having been admitted. On the way back home, she is ambushed by devils in broad daylight, but she destroys them using her newfound supernatural abilities including super-strength, super-reflexes, and super-agility. Astonished at her new powers, Shannon speculates they must have be the Power of Auria given to her by Areala when she was about to die, and concludes that an invasion from Hell must be imminent.

The person behind the murders is New York industrialist Julian Vitale, who is secretly a Satanic worshipper; he plans to gain remote control of G.A.B.R.I.E.L. and use the Crown of Thorns to enact a laser bombardment of New York City, sacrificing the entire city to Lucifer and unleashing him upon the mortal realm. He is informed by demonic underlings that the "Connector" is ready. Meanwhile, in a lower-ranking circle of Hell, Asmodeus warns his wife Lillith, Demon Princess, of Vitale's plan, saying that a full-scale war between Heaven and Hell at this time would result in the destruction of both and the subsequent annihilation of the entire universe. Lillith assembles a group of bodyguards and goes to the mortal realm to investigate.

Elsewhere in the city, a former Warrior Nun called "Shotgun Mary" raids a demon-controlled waterfront warehouse. Inside, she finds a suspended animation chamber that contains a 12-year old boy named Jason. Following her instincts, she decides to take Jason to the nearest church, but is ambushed along the way by Lillith. Mary leaves Lillith behind and takes Jason to St. Thomas, where Father Crowe uses magic to surgically remove a demon-made microchip from his body. Lillith arrives and attempts to warn Shannon of Vitale's plan, but Shannon, who does not trust a resident of Hell, has a brief fight with her, and Lillith is forced to retreat. Jason, an orphan, stays at St. Thomas. Meanwhile, Vitale is enraged at the loss of Jason, who was the "Controller" who would have allowed him to control G.A.B.R.I.E.L. remotely. His minions capture Lillith, who functions as an replacement Controller. She is restrained and held captive in Vitale's lair on the top floor of the Empire State Building.

In a conversation with Claudia, Shannon claims that she is certain of the inherent goodness in everything they are doing for the cause of God, but Claudia expresses concern that they might rather be acting for the cause of the Church without realizing it. Shannon dismisses her friend's concern, saying the Church itself is God and therefore everything they do for one is done for the other. Later, Shannon confesses her feelings to Father Crowe, who reciprocates; but both acknowledge that their love must never be acted upon or it would destroy them both. Crowe reveals to her that the Cardinals have been trying to disband the Warrior Nun order for years, for being founded upon an ancient myth. Gómez receives a video call from Cardinal Stark in the Vatican, who dismisses his testimony of Shannon's new powers as "unfounded, hysterical superstition" and orders him to leave her out of the murder investigation. He does not obey.

Mary manages to crack stolen hard drives from the warehouse, and discovers one of the financial backers of Vitale's is the local Archbishop Morton, who was one of the more outspoken critics of the Warrior Nuns. She and Shannon (who now realizes Lillith was telling the truth) confront Archbishop Morton with this evidence, and he reveals he is aware of Vitale's plan and that he was paid to give the names and locations of all the murdered priests, claiming he did it for the Church. Shannon strikes him with her Sacred Sword, but Mary kills him (to Shannon's great disapproval) with a shotgun blast to the head, telling Shannon she left the order "because the Church itself isn't God".

On Lucifer's orders, Vitale's minions attack St. Thomas and kidnap Jason to lure Shannon in. She and Father Crowe head to the Empire State to rescue him, but Crowe and Asmodeus' Hellish army (which had arrived earlier to rescue Lillith) are occupied with Vitale's minions. Shannon faces off against Vitale and he reveals he is really the former Roman Emperor Salvius Julianus, who used sorcery to extend his life and wants to destroy Christianity forever. Possessed by the spirit of Areala, Shannon activates the green gem on her bionic arm, teleporting the Armor of God onto her body (which Gómez warned her not to do, as it would take over her), which allows her to destroy Salvius Julianus and his machines. Shannon frees Lillith, who thanks her reluctantly and retreats to Hell along with Asmodeus' army. Shannon and Crowe return to St. Thomas with Jason, where Mary advises Shannon never to do anything she doesn't want to do. Shannon tells Claudia that she has learned that when the cause of the Church conflicts with that of God, "[she] must always choose to do what's right".