Prologue
A/N: For Disclaimer and more info, see Chapter 1 of the series.
The absence of light is darkness.
The lack of sound is silence.
The end of life is death.
But what is the absence of the joy of living?
Silence ruled, unchallenged and undisturbed in the blank void the netherworld is.
No physical disturbance marked the visual manifestation of a different kind of life in said place. A beautiful woman materialized in the middle of a white, empty desert. In reality, there was no up and there was no down. Rules of physics such as gravity had no say in such reality.
There were no three or four dimensions. There was no height, no weight, no depth.
Nothing.
The entity chose to materialize as a beautiful woman, approximately of twenty five years of age, brunette, medium height and normal weight. Her big almond eyes scanned the empty nothingness surrounding her.
Cordelia Chase had still not grown used to the ethereal silence permanent on the other world. She missed the normal sounds she'd never paid much attention while being alive. Her mind still human, she missed her long ago discarded body and the physical sensations inherent to every living being. She missed her senses; the colors, sounds, smells, but most of all, she missed the human touch. Cordelia closed her eyes, trying to recover the darkness and focused on remembering a caress, a soft touch, a kiss.
She even missed tears in her eyes.
She'd grown frustrated as time went by, not used to the lack of feeling; to the unnatural sense of disembodiment that came with turning into a higher being.
'It's rather annoying, isn't it?'
Cordelia sighed, frowning when she felt no air coming out of her lungs.
"We can still use our voices." She said. "Talk to me."
Out of the same nowhere she'd appeared from, another being slowly began materializing next to her. A woman appeared and smiled brightly at Cordelia, who kindly returned the gesture. She knew they didn't need to become visible in order to interact, but she appreciated it.
"Rather grumpy today." The woman said. The recently materialized female wore long white robes, mimicking Cordelia's choice of unnecessary wardrobe.
Cordelia chuckled. "It isn't technically a day." Cordelia replied. "We don't keep count of time."
Both women smiled.
Cordelia had been shocked when, fourteen years ago, she'd received another woman into the netherworld, shortly after the destruction of the California town named Sunnydale.
Anya had been more than a refreshing distraction, proving to be an excellent friend.
Following Anya's heroic sacrifice while defending Sunnydale from the First Evil, she'd been offered redemption. True to her self, Anya had been clearly disturbed when the Powers That Be turned her into their version of angels, and even more upset when they had deemed their job as 'ethically incorrect' and 'morally perturbed'. She'd felt the final insult was their offer of redemption from a thousand years of mayhem and murdered. The Powers had insulted her job and in her words, she had 'only been doing my job, and a damn good job it was!'.
Cordelia smiled every once in a while, remembering the time she had to explain Anya they couldn't eat or have sex anymore.
Anya had not been to disturbed at the absence of food, but she'd almost gone postal when Cordelia explained their celibate existence. Cordelia figured that specific physical pleasure was number one in Anya's list of yearnings.
Having been turned into a human for the final years of her life, Anya had hated the side effects accompanying humanity. As a higher being, she didn't miss her menstrual cycles, or the pain of being alive, or the headaches directly resulting in dealing with the slayer and her capitalism-challenged friends.
But she clearly missed Xander, even though she was careful enough to never mention it while in the presence of any other higher being.
"I know we don't keep track of time." Anya continued with their conversation. "But it's annoying."
Cordelia nodded, realizing Anya wouldn't stop talking once she began.
"For instance, today would be what, thirteen years since the day I died and ended up in here?" Anya said. "Imagine the profits I could have made in thirteen years?"
Cordelia smiled and listened to her companion's rant about how unfair the Powers were for robbing her the change of earning some good dollars.
Cordelia soon zoned out as she let her mind wander. She slowly noticed one member of her party had yet to materialize. She softly called out with her mind, knowing a powerful bond connected all higher beings.
As in cue, the third part of their unit began to materialize in front of them.
Fully visual now, the third woman greeted her friends. Anya stopped talking and smiled.
"Hello, Tara. How wonderful of you to join us."
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Everywhere in the universe, ranks mattered, and even after a decade of being angels, the three women were still in the lower levels of power.
The Powers That Be had assigned Tara and Anya to Cordelia, who in return answered to yet another higher being.
Said higher being gathered the three angels at her command, and delivered news and orders coming directly from the Powers themselves.
Cordelia, Anya and Tara stood motionless, not believing the words their leader had spoken to them.
'I know this comes as most unexpected.' Their leader said. 'Someone else was supposed to handle the situation, but I thought you'd want to know about it.'
The three girls nodded, still unsure of what their leader was asking of them, feeling nothing but dread.
Cordelia was the first to speak.
'I don't understand.' She said. 'Why now, after all these years?'
Their leader did not speak for a long time.
'Everything belongs to Balance.' Their superior said. 'Both the Powers and the Senior Partners tried to keep an equilibrium after the second war, to no avail.'
'There must be something we can do.' Tara stepped forward as she spoke. The leader smiled, but shook her head no.
'I'm afraid it's entirely out of our hands.' The leader replied. 'We still don't know how it'll all turn out. The players are being gathered, and events set in motion over two hundred years ago will finally pay off.'
The leader looked at each angel in the eye.
'Things will be difficult for the next months.' The leader said. 'You'll be tempted to take action, but all you're cleared to do is warn them.'
The three angels nodded, already knowing what they were ordered to do.
'It all comes to this.' The leader said. 'The battle for Balance has begun.'
