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Other God by Anne Raven

Chapter 2: Sin, Fallen Angels and the Origin of All Things Unholy

A Lament over the King of Tyre

Moreover, the word of the LORD came to me: "Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD:
"You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings.
On the day that you were created they were prepared.
You were an anointed guardian cherub.
I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked.
You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you.
In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned; so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.
Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor.
I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you.
By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought fire out from your midst;
it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you.
All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever."

-Ezekiel 28:11-19

Most say that the past is the past and that we should learn to move on from it. But sometimes, the ghost of the past can haunt you no matter how you try to run away from it.

I can never understand why the monkey insists on annoying me to no end but I'm glad she accompanied me on this adventure. I would never have opted for another companion. It felt nice to have her, for both the hug and the hand. I never expected her to hold me like that. I never expected I'd feel comfortable holding her hand. But she did; I did.

The surface of the viewing side of Kuro Kagami rippled. I felt anxious and excited but, oddly, calm. Probably an effect of the warm hand I felt in mine.

"Look, it's working." I told her.

I could tell she was spacing out and her cheeks were slightly pink. But the ever so ebullient Fuuko Kirisawa always snapped back to reality quickly.

"Really? Let me see, let me see." She said jumping like a five-year-old during Christmas.

Her exuberance astounds me. She could just go on and on and on just like the Energizer bunny. But sometimes, I wish she wouldn't because as endearing as it could be, she can be terribly annoying.

"Will you stop that, monkey?" I growled at her.

"If you'll just let me see."She said this as she reached out for the device in my other hand.

Of course she couldn't reach, I had longer arm span after all and I was still holding her hand restraining her somewhat but that didn't stop her from trying. All this fidgeting was bound to lead to disastrous consequences.

... And disastrous consequences just had to come too soon.

Hidden somewhere beneath the catch on the blood receiving side of the Dark Mirror was a sharp protrusion. I knew I should've examined the device. Its creator must have provided means to extract the blood offering needed to fuel the device. I didn't need Ensui for this after all but at Kagerou-san's mention of a blood price, Ensui just jumped into my head.

Still, the protrusion fulfilled its purpose. But instead of cutting my finger for the second time, it cut Fuuko's and her blood immediately covered the receiving side of the Dark Mirror, mixing with the smear of my blood placed there a while ago.

The viewing side rippled once more and my eyes were pulled towards it, Fuuko's likewise. Whatever was happening was affecting us both. I watched, riveted, as the viewing side suddenly showed a vision of backwards suns, a quick succession of days turning into nights then days again in a process that lasted a very long while. And as these images progressed, the suns and moons simultaneously grew larger until all I could see was the changing vista.

Then... a bright white light.

When I opened my eyes after shutting them tight to protect them from the blinding luminescence, I found myself standing in a place filled with soft radiant light. And I felt calmness radiating from every direction of this vast beautiful place. All the other details were blurry but I could faintly smell flowers: lavender, freesia, and jasmine... everything that made me think of peace. I caught the glimmer of torches lending unnecessary light as the place was already brilliant and the silhouette of a throne with 24 others around it. I heard the distant rumblings of thunder and subdued voices forming a pacifying mantra. But Fuuko was nowhere to be found and I was sure I held her hand tight and couldn't remember when I let her go.

What's happening? This was not what I asked from the device. I expected to see red not white, to smell blood not flowers. Something definitely went wrong. I tried to recall what Kagerou said about ending the use of the Dark Mirror but a faint voice reverberated within the recesses of my mind.

Watch and you will know. Others are not given a chance to see this far back, this early in the Beginning. Only you and few others would see it this way and in this instance, only you will see its entirety for this memory belongs to you and you alone.

I do not know how or why but somehow, I knew the voice came from the spirit of Kuro Kagami.

"Samael." A deep melodic voice cut through my trance.

My body turned to look at the owner of the voice like an automatic response to someone calling my name. Only, it wasn't my name but it had the same effect.

I, Tokiya Mikagami, never thought that I could get surprised the way I did at that moment. If the Monkey Brigade saw this, I would never hear the end of it. All of that was momentarily forgotten because I still continued to display an extremely stupid look of surprise in my face.

The man, for the owner of the voice was male, still walked towards me not minding the deranged look on my face. He didn't even stop as though he was planning to collide with me on purpose. Then, he passed through me. A memory, the past, yes I remember, this is the past. But pray, tell me what an angel is doing in my memory?

"Gabriel." Another voice, another name called in greeting for the tenshi who passed through me.

This time, I just had to look at the owner of the voice. Not because I felt a connection with the name 'Gabriel' but because I knew that voice.

There, standing not too far from me, at the precipice of a very, very, VERY high promontory was the exact image of myself. I could recognize every feature even with my eyes closed, the same long silver hair, the same piercing ice blue orbs, the same straight-angled nose, same lips, same face, same body musculature, same height. Yes, that was definitely me. The only difference is that my doppelganger also had a set of huge pure white wings on his back. Really, now? An angel?

"Samael." The first angel called again. "Take care you do not overdo your task."

The other me smiled. Then, I heard him say in my own voice, "I will do the responsibilities the Almighty bestowed on me as I see fit, Gabriel. How goes the situation regarding the 'Light Bringer'? Will war ensue?"

"It is so typical of you to multi-task, Samael. Do not worry. The Father has taken things in His own hands. But should a war ensue between us and Lucifer's fallen, I am commanded to lead the army. And yes, I will inform you." The angel replied touching the hilt of a long sword sheathed and hanging on his belt.

It suddenly occurred to me that this 'Gabriel' could be the Archangel Gabriel. What has not fully registered in my brain is, why do I have memories of... this... all of this? And where, again, is Fuuko?

"How is she?" Gabriel asked.

"She is a bit of a handful. And I dare say she might drive Adam insane." Samael, I decided to call him Samael from now on, said.

"I don't think so. She is kind and pure, that girl, only strong-willed." Gabriel uttered.

"Is it true, Gabriel? Was she made... with wings?" Samael asked turning to look at his fellow tenshi.

Gabriel leaned closer towards the edge of the cliff and looked down. They were watching something and I was tempted to look. But Gabriel turned and started to walk away. A few steps after, he stopped.

"God had reasons when He created her. She was created the same way we all were, in His likeness, from the same Dust we all had risen from. And she was presented to Adam to become his half. I do not pretend that I know everything. But from all accounts, the answer to your question would be ... yes. Her original design was that of an angel." With that said, Gabriel left.

She? They were talking about a female... and Adam. I am no religion fan. In fact, I threw away all notions of God, salvation and all that bullshit when Neesan died but Adam, I knew... Adam and Eve. But what did Gabriel say about Eve?

'She was created the same way we all were... from the same Dust we all had risen from' and 'Her original design was that of an angel.'

If the Bible was accurate, Eve was made from Adam's rib. Eve was not made to be an angel. And what else was said about her? I remember my twin, Samael, say that she was a handful, that she might drive Adam insane. To which, Gabriel replied that she was strong-willed.

These descriptions do not match the preconceived notions of a 7-year-old boy who first heard of the story of Creation. Eve was supposedly subservient to Adam, her being fashioned from him. Chauvinistic, that idea, or so I thought when I had the chance to reflect on it when the story crossed my path again during literature class.

Samael was still poised on the precipice, watching. His eyes, the very same as my own, moved as though surveying a scene. My curiosity flared again.

I approached the edge of the cliff, close enough to where my look-alike was standing and sought what he had been seeing.

There, beneath the many layers of cloud, was a garden so beautiful, it was paradise. Eden, I thought. Both flora and fauna grew wild, free, natural but I knew this was not what Samael was looking at so my eyes wandered until it caught a glimmer of something... violet, a very familiar glint of violet.

And there, smack in the middle of the Garden of Eden, was a maiden with familiar features, the same height, same body musculature, same face, same lips, same button nose, same deep blue eyes you could drown in as Fuuko Kirisawa. The only difference is that this carbon copy, whose hair is the color of plum, grew it long, longer even than mine.

I just had to widen my eyes. Fuuko, is that you?

It can't possibly be, can it? If this really is my memory, I'm willing to accept that once upon a time, I was an angel named Samael but Fuuko being Eve, that can't be!

I continued to watch not only the Fuuko look-alike but also my former self. Somehow, I've learned to accept that the winged being beside me could actually be me in some form of past life. Fuuko as Eve still doesn't sink itself into my head... Adam's Eve?

Samael, are you smiling? Why? At the sight of the first female, perhaps.

It's preposterous! Although, Fuuko with long hair really looked wonderful adding to the goddess-like allure she already possessed even when her hair swept gently against her collar. I never thought I would put the words goddess-like and Fuuko in the same sentence.

I trained my eyes back to Fuuko. I couldn't bring myself to call the woman Eve. There was something wrong about it. She was... weaving? Weren't Adam and Eve supposed to be innocent and all that? I also noticed that Fuuko was wearing a long robe the same material Samael was wearing.

"Vanity... when did you learn it? Or are you simply trying to better yourself? Curious being, you always were. And Adam will never understand that... Your original design must really be that of an angel." Samael soliloquised.

Truth be told, this was my same notion of Fuuko. Vanity, not really, but trying to better herself, yes. Curious, hell yes! If her pestering me would prove anything, it would be her insatiable curiosity. Adam does not understand her. Men would never understand the workings of the mind of Fuuko Kirisawa, not even Recca nor Domon who claim to be her lifelong friends. Must be an angel... doubtful but true... If her saving the life of Ganko and caring for that kid whose father battled Mikoto was proof, it would be enough. And selfless, that woman. Of all the Hokage, only she had noble motives in joining the UBS. Recca wanted to protect his Hime, I wanted revenge, Domon wanted to impress, and Fuuko... wanted nothing more than to help her friends.

And my former self knew what Fuuko, or her former self for that matter, would always be like.

"I promised I would be your Guardian. Do not make this hard for me. You were meant for another purpose as decreed by the Father. Do not make me weak so as to allow Lucifer to tempt me." Samael continued as I listened eagerly.

"God made love the greatest gift existing but please. Do not make me fall in love with you... Lilith."

TBC

A/N: *breathes in deeply* This is a very hard fic to write, very heavy the content. I suppose it's because I am definitely messing with Scripture. I'm debating whether I should give out facts but I suppose I'm required to so that my readers would understand my story better. But I do not want to spoon-feed facts to readers because it will definitely defeat the purpose of the fiction I created. If you want full facts, research. I did mine; do yours.

About heaven: I took the description of heaven in the book of Revelations with a few modifications. I wanted to portray a very realistic description of heaven but somehow, I got sidetracked when researching for the facts that would strengthen the image of heaven (the NLE excuse again). Hence, the very short, very sappy description of Tokiya's arrival in heaven.

Gabriel: same goes for Gabriel. I wanted to give a clearer description of him but, again, I was sidetracked. All I did manage to find about him that was not the artistic/ aesthetic interpretation was a statement in The Hadith that says he has an awesome wingspan embedded with pearls and jewels.. so much for description. Tsk..

Adam and Eve: I suppose everyone knows who they are. To make it short, Adam is the first man while Eve was the woman made from his hip. (See the book of Genesis in the Bible) You will understand why I refuse to call Eve the first female later on.

Lucifer: the Lucifer of course. The first fallen angel, the Devil, Satan... you decide what other descriptions to insert here. And you guys probably know him and his history so no need to expand. The biblical passage provided in the beginning of this chapter is enough to describe Lucifer (The king of Tyre).

Samael: I had a hard time researching for this character. There are ambiguous descriptions regarding him. Some even equate him to Lucifer himself but there is enough proof that he is a separate entity. In this fic I adopted the Archangel Samael. Samael in this chapter is beginning to face dilemmas, an angel on the verge of sin.

Lilith: according to many references, the Talmud and Hebrew mythos included, Lilith was the first female, not Eve. She was made from the same Dust as Adam. And many other references describe her as dark-haired and winged. For the purposes of this fic, I will take that as descriptions of the former angel Lilith was. How she evolves, watch out in this fic.

I am so sorry. This story may take more than the three chapters I mentioned in chapter 1. This fic really has my mind's gears working. From the original one-shot, I said it would be a three chaptered thing, now, I'm not so sure. Please bear with me. Thank you for reading this far. And please do leave a review. I'd like to know if this story is too much, too sappy, too farfetched, too scandalous, whatever is in your mind, just tell me. Thank you in advance.

Yours truly,

Anne Raven