Preventing Another Ragnarok
Chapter 1: A New Story Unfolds
The magi said I would always remember this day; the day I became a Grim Angel. I can't tell if that is a blessing or a curse…
"Come on! Come on! Ein's back!" I heard these words from my childhood friend, Sapphire Draconis. There was a celebration commencing in the streets of Asgard, realm of the gods. Everyone was rejoicing for the fact that the Retribution had been prevented, keeping peace in both Asgard and Riviera, as the magi had disclosed to the all of the people. However, the look on Ein's face as he walked the streets of Asgard held both joy and sadness. When Ein stopped to give his speech, all gathered closer to hear. Ein began with the good news, "Hector's plans were successfully thwarted. The Sprite of Destruction, Seth, was summoned. This is the cause for the massive amount of souls flowing into Asgard." As Ein took a deep breath to continue, I heard gasps and questioning remarks whispered throughout the crowd. Every angel grew quiet as Ein continued, "Hector became one with Seth, in attempts to become Seth-Rah, the one, true god. However, Seth-Rah was defeated by me, and two sprites I befriended in my journey."
I looked around at all of the angels who were gathered to hear Ein speak. In their faces, I saw mixed feelings of shock, joy, and intrigue. After a short pause, Ein finished his speech with, "Among the countless demons defeated, two of our beloved fell in battle. Malice, who had become Hector's 'puppet,' became one of the last souls Hector claimed. Before her, however, was…Ledah." Ein was fighting to hold back his tears. "Ledah was, unfortunately, weakened by my hand, in a confrontation caused by Hector's trickery. However, his life was ended by Malice, who was trying to stop me from foiling Hector's plans." I heard crying and sobbing, as people mourned the death of the two departed angels. In me, however, it sparked rage and an even deeper need for revenge than I already had. Anytime an injustice was done, I got that way. The magi, hearing Ein's words, decided on a method to prevent something like this from happening again.
Ein, and his familiar, Rose, were sent to the Guild, to research Ragnarok, to find out what caused the massive war. They were also instructed to research the gods, to find out anything they could about them. The magi then called angels to be tested, to find two new Grim Angels in order to carry out their plans. I instantly felt compelled to take up the call and undergo the tests to become a Grim Angel. I looked for Sapphire to tell her my plans, but she grabbed my arm and said, "Liberare! Let's go and try to be Grim Angels!" That's just like her, knowing what I'm thinking before I say it.
Before I knew it, I, and a handful of other angels, was waiting to be tested, to qualify for Grim Angel status. "Liberare Vengier!" my name echoed through the room. My time had come to subject myself to the trials of becoming a Grim Angel. I looked back at Sapphire, and with a thumbs-up, she said, "You deserve this more than anyone else here, Liberare. You can do it!" She is the only one who knows my past almost as well as I do. I turned toward the direction of the one who called for me. It was a woman, one of the magi. I felt my knees begin to shake, and a sense of insecurity growing inside of me, but I regained my composure and stepped forward. The seemingly emotionless magus led me to an empty room. I looked around, and to my dismay it was cold and dreary, which brought back some painful memories. "Mr. Vengier!" That exclamation brought me back to reality, as the magus began my cross-examination.
Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Marie; I am the spokesperson for the magi. I started to reply, "Pleased to meet – "Marie interrupted and asked, "Why do you want to be a Grim Angel?" I simply stated, "To avenge my slain family." I must have seemed angry or sorrowful, because she hastily moved on to her next question. "What are you willing to sacrifice?" I knew exactly what I wanted to give, but I couldn't get myself to say it. A part of me couldn't let go. I finally forced myself to say reply, "I would like to give my memories." The look on Marie's face was one of understanding, for the magi knew precisely what had happened the day my family was killed. In fact, they were the ones who decided which family would care for me while I grew. That is why Sapphire and I are such close friends. Her parents had volunteered to watch over me. After giving me that long moment of reflection, Marie pointed to a door on her right and said, "Step through there and your test will continue." I watched as the door opened. The room was pitch black, which wasn't very comforting. I bowed to Marie and said, "Thank you, ma'am." I then stepped through the doorway.
Images from my past started flashing through my mind. Times or sorrow and times of joy started to flow together. I saw a rapier suspended in the air, right in front of me. In that instant, a large demon appeared before me. I reached for and took the rapier. I felt power surging into my body, pouring forth from the handle. I looked at the sword and saw the blade shine brightly. The demon saw this as his chance to attack. He flung his fist in my direction, striking me with enough force to knock me back a few feet. I regained my balance, and with one strong rush, I pierced the demon through the heart. When the demon faded, the rapier did as well, which caused a light to shine in the distance. As I walked towards the light, I heard a voice say, "You have completed the test of strength. It is now time to test your will."
At that moment, I saw faces emerge from the darkness. It was as if my memories had become tangible. I saw each member of my family that had been slain, all standing around me. Speaking all at the same time, they were telling me that I don't need to become a Grim Angel, that I'm not good enough, and I shouldn't bother trying to avenge them. I was starting to feel discouraged, when I heard a small voice inside me saying, "You can do it, Liberare. You can do it!" It was the beautiful, uplifting voice of Sapphire. I then realized that these were apparitions based on my memories, controlled by the magi. I spoke with a loud voice, "I am Liberare Vengier, and I will become a Grim Angel!" With that, the area lit up, and the visions disappeared. I was at the end of a long corridor. I heard Marie's voice again. "You have finished the second test. Now the final test will try your heart, to see if it is pure. Enter the room before you." Upon hearing this command, I walked forward.
The room I had entered was large, with a chair positioned in the center of the floor. I sat in this chair and heard Marie say, "Close your eyes, Liberare, and focus on your past. I know it is painful, but you must in order to pass this test." I closed my eyes, and watched all of my memories run through my mind. Seeing the dead bodies of my mother and father and of my two brothers brought tears to the corners of my eyes. Seeing demons running away from my house caused tears of rage to fall from my eyes, onto my cheeks. I saw myself picking up a silver pendant, in the shape of a lightning bolt, the one I have always worn since that day. Slowly, my mind wandered to Sapphire and her family. I recalled the friendship that Sapphire and I had developed, and the fun times I had with her family. These thoughts brought a smile to my face, and a few chuckles, but they didn't last long, as my mind quickly fell back to my family. I opened my eyes, tears flowing from them, not being able to handle the reminiscence any longer. "Liberare, rise and enter the doorway to your left. We will announce our decision shortly."
I entered the room that I and my fellow angels had been waiting in before the testing. Sapphire saw me come in and exclaimed, "Liberare! You made it through!" She ran and embraced me. I looked around and I noticed that a couple of angels hadn't made it through the testing process. I looked down at Sapphire, returned her embrace, and proceeded to tell her every detail about my tests. She then told me about her tests, which were equally trying, but different in many ways. Sapphire and I broke our embrace right before the magi entered the room. "Of the four of you who remain, it was very difficult to decide which of you would become the new Grim Angels." Marie was the one who had said this. She continued, "However, we have reached our decision. Sapphire Draconis, please step forward."
I glanced in Sapphire's direction, and noticed an expression of joy upon her face. She turned to meet my gaze and her appearance turned from joyful to hopeful and slightly sympathetic. "Oh Liberare," Sapphire said, "I hope they picked you, too." I gently rested my hand on her left shoulder and replied, "Don't worry about me. Go, become a Grim Angel." Sapphire stepped forward and one of the magi led her to another room. "Before I announce the name of the other Grim Angel," Marie stated, "I would just like to say how well all of you did. It was unfortunate to have to choose just two of you. That having been said, the other Grim Angel will be…" I looked at the others and felt doubtful that I had been chosen. I thought, Surely these other angels had to have done better than I did. "Liberare Vengier! You alone passed our tests with such excellence as to rival Ledah, himself. It is with great honor that I say, please, follow me and receive your Grim Angel status."
Upon hearing these words from Marie's mouth, a flood of emotions surged through my body. I could hardly contain my excitement as I followed the one who had tested me. We walked into a small room with an altar on one side, and a chest directly across from the altar. "Liberare, kneel before the altar to offer your sacrifice to the gods." Marie walked towards the chest and said, "After you have given your sacrifice, you may then open this chest." I kneeled at the altar and closed my eyes. I then felt an excruciating pain course through my body as my mind was being cleansed of my childhood memories. I saw each memory pass before my eyes as it left me, and felt the searing pain as each one was ripped from my mind. When the last one was pulled from my mind, I collapsed from the pain, not making a sound, but letting the tears flow.
When the pain subsided, I rose, opened my eyes, and walked towards Marie, who now stood behind the chest. "Liberare Vengier, open the chest and receive your diviner, the weapon of a Grim Angel." I reached down, took a deep breath to calm myself, and opened the chest. There, lying on a crimson cushion was the rapier from my test of strength. "This diviner is the rapier, Lihtan, the embodiment of your sacrifice. May its thunderous power aid you in carrying out the will of the gods." With that, I gently wrapped my hand around Lihtan's handle and raised it from the chest. Power began to flow once more from Lihtan, into my body. Marie pointed to a door and said, "Go through that door and enter the next room for your debriefing."
As I walked into the debriefing chamber, I saw a door open on the other side of the room. A person was walking out of the room, and I caught a glimpse of their black wings. "Sapphire!" I yelled, unsure of why I knew her name. The girl turned towards me, and her eyes lit up. Upon seeing her face, I recognized her as the one I had been closest to while I was growing up. She reached out her hand, opened her mouth as if to say something, but the door closed before she got the chance. I ran to the door and yelled the name I remembered: "Sapphire! Sapphire, can you hear me?" "Mr. Vengier, please take a seat." I turned to the one who had just addressed me and asked, "Where are you taking her?" The magus replied, "She is waiting to embark on the mission you two are to accomplish together. Don't worry; she is safe, especially with her diviner, Melodia." I sat down in the chair opposite from the magus, and focused on remembering Sapphire. Somehow, I was able to remember that Sapphire was my closest friend, and that we had become Grim Angels together.
Grim Angels; my mind focused on this a bit longer. After concentrating on that thought for a while, I asked the magus what our mission was. He wasted no time in getting straight to the point. "You are to go to Riviera in order to stop demon uprisings. Your first destination is Lacrima, an island in Riviera. The race of sprites that once occupied the castle on that island was almost completely eradicated. Of that race, the Arcs, one remains. However, in her absence, demons have taken over the castle and are setting it up as a stronghold." He took a moment to let it all sink in. "Your current objective is to eliminate those demons and secure the castle. Afterwards, you will remain in Riviera, keeping the demons at bay." After he had finished, I closed my eyes, contemplating the fact that I probably wouldn't return to Asgard. "That door," the magus said as he pointed to the door I saw Sapphire walk out of, "will take you out of this building and onto the path to Heaven's Gate, the entrance to Riviera. Your friend waits outside for you."
I turned my attention to the large, black door that stood before me. As I started to walk toward the door, the magus said, "Liberare, you will always remember this day; the day you became a Grim Angel." His words were bittersweet, lingering in my mind as I opened the door before me. The brightness of the sky blinded me temporarily, as it had been dark within the building. When I regained my vision, I stepped outside, and took a moment of reflection. I had stepped into that building as an average angel. When I left, however, I had untold power and freedom; a freedom that kept me bound to the duty of carrying out the will of the gods.
As my gaze shifted from the sky to the road before me, I saw a girl sitting on the side of the road. She noticed me standing by her, and rose without saying a word. I couldn't take my eyes off of her, for her beauty was entrancing. This girl that stood before me had straight, dark blue hair that extended to her shoulders. She wore a black long-sleeved shirt, lavender pants, and a dark blue cloak secured in the front by a silver treble clef pin. She had black wings, just as I did. She held in her hands, a pink scythe that resembled an eight note from a musical score. She had a caring, familiar face, with a slight smile and dark blue eyes which almost appeared to be black. I found myself just staring into her eyes, seeing something that reminded me of a relationship that I treasured dearly. "Sapphire, I'm glad to see that you're safe."
Her eyes, which had been looking into mine, started to well with tears. I wrapped my arms around Sapphire, and without saying a word, she buried her face in my chest and cried. When Sapphire had calmed down, she looked up at me and mouthed the words, "I gave my voice." Sapphire, I – "she put her hand over my mouth before I could finish. The look she gave me was one of peace. I stared into her eyes once more and felt a deeper connection with her than I'd had before. I thought I heard a something within me say, "Liberare, can you hear this?" It was no louder than a whisper. I replied, "Yes, Sapphire, I heard that." The gods may have taken her sacrifice, but they gave her the ability to covey her thoughts to me without words.
At least, I thought this was the case until I heard, "The gods allowed me this, but only momentarily. They are giving you time to be able to relate to me deeply enough that we won't need words. At that time, you will be able to know my thoughts and feelings by simply looking at me. This is the blessing the gods gave me from my sacrifice." I looked away from Sapphire, at the path before us. After considering what Sapphire had disclosed to me by thought, I said, "We'd better get going; we have a long journey ahead of us." I felt Sapphire take a step backward, and looked back down at her. She seemed to agree with what I had said. I added, "Sapphire, I might not completely understand you now, but I will. I promise." I looked into her eyes and saw tears fall onto her cheeks, as she knew I would try for her. I wiped the tears from Sapphire's face and said, "Come on, it's time to go."
Thus began our journey to Riviera. We spread our wings, rose up, and took flight. As we made our way to Heaven's Gate, I reflected on the events of that day. The only thing that came to my mind was the thought, I am Liberare Vengier. With my diviner, Lihtan, I will pass judgment on all demons, in the name of the gods. I sacrificed my childhood memories: the bad and the good. I know my family was killed, and I know demons were the cause. That alone, is all I take with me. That and my friendship I have with Sapphire Draconis.