Disclaimer: Don't own any of the series mentioned in this story.
Author's note: Yes. I know. Another story on top on everything else. Yet this particular idea couldn't leave me alone as it has been nagging at me me for the last few days. At the very least, I thought I'd get out this first chapter so it would stop bugging me. I want everyone to understand that this story will take a look at certain dynamics and is not meant to bash anyone. It is only meant to examine aspects of series and characters. Now without further ado, here is the first chapter to "Knight Rise".
"The world is older than you know."
- Rupert Giles
In the beginning, there was a void, that had never known existence, until one fateful when an explosion from the first, smallest particle splitting and the energy bursting forth. It coalesced into the machinations of the stars, planets, and celestial bodies that made the universe. Using his power, the Creator endowed his children, the angels and spirits to maintain the order of the universe. The planets once inhabitable were made barren until the Creator focused on one planet, now known as Earth. Once the Almighty made the first man and woman, His second oldest son, Lucifer, rebelled against his father and his siblings in an effort to convince everyone that mankind was unworthy. And so, the archangels, seraphs, cherubs and thrones waged war, using the dragons, the first divine beasts, to fight in the deadliest war known to mankind. Lucifer, and a third of his siblings were banished to the Underworld. As time passed, Lucifer waited until he found Eve vulnerable and communicated through the serpent to tempt her to eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, which succeeded followed by Adam partaking of it as well.
Once cast out of Eden, they and their children would continue to multiply and populate the Earth, as they shared the power of immortality. This power would be passed down through the generations to the people who would found the city of Agharta. However, their immortality would be taken from everyone but the Aghartians, as Cain, the oldest son of Adam and Eve, murdered his younger brother Abel. Cain made a deal with Lucifer to become his lieutenant in exchange for the life of his brother. Cain had believed that Abel was communicating with Lucifer and being turned into a servant. He had no idea that it was a ruse for Lucifer to take an immortal and mold him into his right-hand man. The fallen archangel would also turn the soul of one of the daughters of man, named Lilith until his own bride. Later, more angels would come to earth in an effort to help guide humanity. But they lusted for the daughters of man, and planted the seeds of life. These would become the nephilim.
This event would coincide with what was known as the primordium age. The fallen angels and spirits that maintained the order of the planet manipulated man, enslaving some and persuading others to become their servants. These spirits who maintained order would be shaped by man's perception of them and become what was known as the Old Gods. However, some of the Old Gods remained in faithful service to the Creator and helped to fight evil wherever it spread. The fallen angels would also become known to man as the Old Ones, pure demons who created half-breed abominations to keep their hold over the earth. This led three men who were blessed with enormous power to steal a fallen's power and confer it upon a young girl, creating the first slayer. Eventually, mankind was able to kill and drive away the Old Ones, as they were amongst the weakest of their siblings.
However, the half-breeds still lived, and so God decreed that one man, Noah, would create an ark to house his family and others, including the Aghartians, along with two of each animal while the earth became flooded. Once the waters receded, the survivors would repopulate the planet and thrive once more. However, many of the half-breeds would escape to dimensions connected to the planet and inhabit them.
In a few short generations, a man and a woman would come across a land that was plentiful with the supernatural energy of creation. This couple would stumble into the nexus, gaining power that no human had ever known. They would ascend to the heavenly realms, only to be told that their presence had endangered the earth, and so left paradise and released their power. Unfortunately, this would create a gap in the flow of energy making up the earth. The gap would grow and threaten to consume the universe if not for a celestial being and a fallen to come together to contain and seal away that emptiness. This would lead to generations of witches, wizards, and warlocks across the world.
Eventually, the Creator would send his son to redeem mankind, by his blood being shed by the very people he had come to save. Despite the hated he had endured, the Son would take on all of the sin that threatened to condemn mankind and redeemed them. In his death, he would descend to the Underworld and released the souls of those who sought redemption from him and they would enter paradise.
Following the death of the Son, and the creation of the new calendar, centuries later two men and a woman would form a trinity of great warriors. Masters and sword and magic, these three would continue to fight evil in the name of the Almighty. They would drive a powerful demon who had escaped to Earth and was wreaking havoc back to imprisonment into the Underworld. The three would later found Brotherhood of Light, and went their separate ways to three places where the Earth was linked to the heavenly realms. This power would allow their spirits to transcend their physical lives and ascend on high. However, their bodies would rise as the dark sides of their beings, becoming the dreaded Lords of Shadow. The 11th century would see their defeat when a brave knight of the brotherhood would rise to defeat them, only to find the Source of all evil to be behind these events. He would fight and defeat the Adversary and reseal him in the Underworld. But it was not over as he merely fought a shadow of the Source. He would later go on to defeat the demon, the former enemy of the brotherhood founders, but this led to his being one of the creatures he once fought, as well as a powerful adversary. However, in the centuries following his transformation, he was put into a deep slumber, leaving mankind to believe that he had been defeated for good. But it was only the beginning.
These series of events would lead to the destinies of many warriors and champions in the modern era. However, their destinies would lead them to lives of weariness and unfulfillment. These champions have lost the greatest asset: their faith in the fight they lead. Believing themselves to be the main and only players in their fight, their lives are going to intersect for the sake of mankind.
Harris Residence
San Francisco, California
Early June, 2012
It was early afternoon as Alexander Harris laid in bed after a long week of work. He had never thought that he would ever live to see thirty-three years of life, ever since he joined Buffy in the fight against evil. It was the last fight over six years ago that had caused him to finally quit the fight in the end. It was a particularly bitter pill to swallow, especially after Buffy had forgiven him for what had gone down when Severin and Simone nearly threatened to destroy the world. Buffy had no reason to ever stop him once he confessed what he was doing and why. It was Dawn's reaction that had made him miserable foe the last six years. After she had recovered from the ordeal, it was months later when he broke down and confessed to her that he couldn't deal with his part in everything that had happened. Dawn had been understanding and even tried assuring him that he was just as much a victim as Simone and Severin were playing him to begin with. But in the end, he couldn't bear knowing that he played a part in the suffering that would've befallen those he cared about. Dawn was not bitter about it in the end, but Buffy had been rather scornful to him when it was over. Dawn would still come by and see him when she could in spite of everything.
He was pulled out of his musings as he heard a soft fluttering sound very close to him. As he looked up, he spotted a lovely and curved brunette woman in blue jeans with a dark long-sleeved shirt rolled up to her elbows. She turned to him with a barely perceived smile. As he got a good look at her, he could feel that something was off about the woman. In a word, the woman was perfect, almost indescribable in the perfection she seemed to project. Xander wondered if this were a dream that his subconscious was finally pushing to the forefront of his mind.
"So you're awake. Good. That makes this conversation less invasive," the woman said with humor lacing her voice.
"You being able to get in here without me knowing is as invasive as anything. Who or what are you, and why shouldn't I drop you here and now?" Xander said as he tried approaching his closet where he kept a variety of weapons just in case.
"Please Alexander. If I wanted to kill you, really wanted to, it would take a simple gesture. And it wouldn't matter about whether I was a demonic vampire or not. Since your long-time friend had created another seed, she managed to not only allow more to be created, they're now more advanced," the woman explained.
"More advanced?" Xander replied, deciding to humor her.
"Yes. Similar durability as the turok-han, immunity to sunlight, and shapeshifting like fictional vampires. Interesting how her power created more of a problem," she mused.
"Why should I believe you?" the carpenter threw back.
"Because you are needed," she answered.
"I'm not sure I want the powers interfering in my life," Xander spat.
"I'm not one of the Powers. Siblings or not, they lost sight of the mission a long time ago. No. What I'm referring to is much bigger than the so-called balance of the world they shove down everyone's throats," the woman threw back with an angry glare. Xander thought the light of the sun was playing a trick on him, as her eyes began glowing an intense blue. Unfortunately for him, his remaining eye had also caught the blue halo of light that formed around her and the shadowy wings that formed behind her.
"What are you?!" Xander asked in fear.
"Introductions then. My name is Gadreel. I'm an angel of God," she replied as she calmed down, and the light and her wings disappeared. Xander's eye widened at the revelation. He backed away from her until he hit the nightstand and stumbled away from it.
"There's no reason to fear me," she replied. She noticed his right hand clenched tightly. She saw him throw the small crucifix at her face and immediately caught it, before giving him an impatient look.
"Is that all?" she asked.
"Guess that trick wouldn't always work. So you're really the real deal. Which now that I think about, why didn't any of you ever show up back in Sunnydale? Especially with all the apocalypses we had to deal with?" he asked her.
"A few things to understand. I was initially not over the sanction of protecting you and your friends. That was left to my siblings in the Powers. Second, the Old Ones, as you call my fallen siblings, are much weaker in comparison to most of us. Their horrid appearance stems from being disconnected from Heaven itself. So they rely on the foulest magics for power. Without that, they are subject to all of man's weapons, as you demonstrated with your plan to save your graduating class," Gadreel explained. Xander took in her words and realized that he was in an odd predicament.
"That still doesn't account for the apocalypses we had to stop," he replied.
"You call those apocalypses? There is only one real apocalypse. It was twisted and unleashed three years ago but was derailed without the world really noticing. Much in the same way that Jasmine's influence had not spread from the California area. Made it easier for everyone outside of Los Angeles to have their minds wiped by the Powers. You really think it was coincidences that new strains of diseases and the increase in manslaughter had begun that particular year?" Gadreel threw back at him.
"So what, we were just doing practice runs?" Xander asked.
"I'm saying they weren't apocalypses. What you've experienced were just desperate demons looking for any way out. But there will come a time where nothing will stop them from being unleashed because they must so that they can be dealt with once and for all. But that's not the primary reason I've come to you," she said.
"Then what is?" he asked feeling his head come close to spinning.
"With everything that's gone on since the new Seed of Wonder was created, it's caused some old problems to come back, even twice as bad. You and your friends sealed the hellmouth with the amulet, sure. There were only three hellmouths, all of which were artificial to begin with. The Seed of Wonder was the primary reason there were hellmouths to begin with. The destruction of the seed ensured that those artificial portals were sealed shut. With the creation of a new seed even more powerful than the last, it's created new gateways where the demonic energies are seeping through much more heavily. It's the reason for the new breed of demonic vampires. And it's also led to other...incidents," Gadreel trailed off.
"Define incidents," Xander asked. Gadreel looked him in the eye and figured that he needed to know what he was getting himself into.
"About three years ago, the First Witch, Neena, attempted to merge Heaven and Hell together to take down my siblings, known as the Elders," Gadreel began explaining.
"So another group of angels?" Xander asked.
"Yes. They watch over witches and wizards and help guide them to the path of the light. They send the renewed souls of the deceased known as whitelighters to watch and guard them. Neena and her husband stumbled onto the nexus of the energy of creation and tapped into but had to give it up. But they retained the ability to manipulate that energy at any given time and it passed down throughout the geenrations. But she grew to resent the Elders. She found two artifacts of power and merged them to forged a linking Heaven and Hell. But the Halliwell sisters stopped her and returned everything to normal. Incidents like these will become more frequent and that's why we need people like you," Gadreel explained.
"Wait a minute. If you know all of this, we would you need me? You're an angel," Xander threw at her.
"Because I can't interfere unless Father tells me. Some of my siblings in the Elders were too gullible that they let themselves be fooled into letting Neena gain access to the artifact. NO earthly ornetherworld forced had ever breached the gates of Heaven. I had to jump in and save some of my siblings from getting off from my fallen siblings who joined that fight. Even worse was that the Charmed Ones had been forced to believe that it was their problem alone. Even more disturbing was that apart from my father, no one knows who gave Neena the idea in the first place. That's why Father came to me and few others so that we could collect humans such as yourself. With the right push, you can protect and help those like the Halliwells and other chosen," Gadreel finished saying.
"So I'm another lapdog?" Xander asked.
"No. You yourself have been chosen. And for you, it involves a major change. But first thing's first. You need to move past your guilt and understand that what happened with Severin and Simone was never your fault," Gadreel reasoned with the carpenter.
"It was my fault. No one in their right mind would've ever betrayed their friends the way I did," Xander shouted back.
"You mean the way you betrayed Buffy when you lied about what Willow said fourteen years ago?" Gadreel threw back. Xander went pale as he thought back on the memory.
"You made a judgment call to save people back then. You did the same six years ago. The difference is you were in a clearer state of mind when Angelus unleashed Acathla. When Dawn was being affected by the loss of the seed's power, you were desperate. But now, you know better. And you have a chance to be a part of true change for the world," Gadreel said. Xander had heard that line before when Will and Buffy had the potential slayers activated all over the world. But this wasn't Willow and Buffy.
"Why not ask Buffy or Willow since they seemed to have a hand in all of this?" Xander asked the higher being.
"Because neither of them can be trusted," Gadreel said.
"What?!' Xander shouted.
"Your same friends whom you rely on, they're responsible for part of the turmoil we're facing now. The newly activated slayers sounded great on paper. But what about grils who were bullied and suddenly gained power to fight back? What about slayers like Simone, who were drunk off power? "
"Slayers like Faith?" Xander asked. The angel actually glared at him and he found himself shrinking, as though he'd said something wrong.
"Do you really think that's what drove her to her brief stint on the path of darkness? That she was just pure evil? Because I recall seeing a young man instantly lusting after her after she told her thrilling stories when they met. And let's not forget how you succumbed to your base desires and gave your virginity to her. But then you were just as quick to agree with the others that she was just a pure psychotic villain, when the first human she killed was completely an accident. No one in your little group was innocent at that time. Yes, she didn't have to do what she did to you. But none of you lent a helping hand to bring her into your family, which was all she wanted. And thanks to Angel reinforcing that she was killer while she had not come to terms with it, she still lives the guilt. It's guilt from her knowing her sins. And it's guilt that you and your friends continually heaped on her. And let's not forget how Willow was ready to end you all, knowing exactly what she was doing, yet you all instantly forgive her?" Gadreel said.
"Willow was suffering from grief!" Xander exclaimed.
"And that automatically grants her immunity for attempting to kill you, your friends, and everyone on the planet? Faith has learned to take responsibility for her mistakes, while having no one but a reformed monster to support her. You're so quick to stand up to your friends when you see when they're wrong. Yet when someone else does, you're quick to defend them?" Gadreel said.
"Because they'll see it as me not taking their side," Xander said pitifully.
"And that makes them justified in everything? Isn't that why you tried to stop them from their suicidal plan? That's why you're seen as a lapdog. And it's time you stopped. Are you in, or are you out?" Gadreel asked as she held out a hand. Xander looked at her. He hated to admit it but the angel had very good points. He had always seen where their kamikaze plans would go wrong. But when the rushed in, headlong into the fray, he was there to support them, even if he didn't last long. But now he was being offered a chance to do something different. What did he have to lose?
Xander shook her hand and she smiled before the light of her halo surrounded them and they vanished.
Author's note: The origin story in the beginning was to setup the origins for the entire Hand of Fate Multiverse that I have set up. For the most part, with the exception of Lords of Shadow 2, Supernatural season 8, Charmed season 10, and Buffy season 10, most of everything in canon has happened but there are changes. For example, the leviathans in Supernatural were not multiple creations of God. Something that will be explained later. Also, expect characters from iCarly and Victorious, and for a lot of things in canon from at least one of the series to be largely ignored. Thanks for reading.