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Another test idea, put up to see if people like it enough to adopt - will continue slowly at some point, if I have time and inspiration.
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"But she was right, Sera! Charlie was right, and we- We've been so wrong for so long." Emily argued, floating above the table of the conference room she and her sister used so often for their meetings. Her sister scowled, eyes flickering open across her wings and back that told Emily she didn't like hearing Emily's words, but Sera kept quiet as she stalked towards the door on her long legs. Emily followed, flittering above her and throwing her arms up, "Do you even care what's right? Or do you care more about being right?"
"How dare you?" Her sister finally snapped, rounding on her and rearing her head back, letting the glare of a dozen eyes sear up at Emily. It was a hot enough gaze that even Emily balked a bit, fluttering back and frowning as the Head Seraphim lifted up off the ground and growled, "I am the Head Seraphim, Emily, not you. And my word is Heaven's Law. Not yours."
"But-"
"Do you want to Fall?" Sera asked, heat quickly giving way to… Pain, and fear, and so much else even as she blinked and sank back towards the ground, eyes flecking with tears as they closed. "I-I saw what Lucifer's fall did to Heaven, Emily. To the Archangels and the lesser both, Lucifer himself aside."
"Sera…" In spite of herself, she floated down, resting a gentle hand on her older sister's shoulder, "I'm not Falling. I just… I worry that we are not acting as we should."
"That is my concern, Emily, not yours." Her sister sighed, meeting her eyes with the same hars sting to them as before for a heartbeat before she softened and reached up, laying her hand over Emily's and sighing, "But… Perhaps it is a load that should be shared."
"Yes!" She smiled, floating down to land in front of her taller sister, smiling up at her and taking both of Sera's hands in her own, "Please, Sera, I-I can help you. I need to, I can't just sit back after… After everything I've learned. You can trust me."
"I will always trust your heart, Emily." Sera smiled, rubbing the backs of her hands with her thumbs before she sighed and pulled away, pacing around the table to look at the very spot their point of contention had come from. "You… Are meant to bring light, and happiness, and joy to all of Heaven's inhabitants, Emily."
"I know, but-"
"I think it's best," Sera turned to give her a small smile over her shoulder, "if you do your job. Thoroughly."
"I don't…" She blinked as what Sera said, and what she meant, struck her and she leaned back. "You… Want me to take care of Sir Pentious?"
"Your job is to take care of Heaven's Souls." She nodded gently, turning away from her entirely and pacing over to the window to look out through it, and watch Heaven below them. Something Sera often did, when she needed time to think.
And when she wanted Emily to leave her to it.
"Sera…" She sighed, shaking her head and forcing a smile, "I-I suppose I should show Sir Pentious around. Charlie liked the zoo, so-"
"Sir Pentious is confined to a dorm here, in the Seraphim Tower, until further notice." She spoke without turning, raising a hand to wave goodbye - or wave her away - and sighing when Emily couldn't stop the shocked flutter of her wings. "Emily, please-"
"He's what?!" She very nearly shouted, flying over to hover beside Sera and forcing her to see her scowl. "You can't be serious- He's an angel! Not a prisoner!"
"He is both!" Sera snapped, turning to her and scowlin before she sighed and reached up to cup Emily's chin. "Emily, please… Think, for a moment. What will Heaven think, seeing a demon, former or not, wandering it freely?"
"Adam attacked them!"
"On Heaven's will." Sera argued, letting her hand fall, "On our will. Mine, yes, but also yours, and the Archangels'. After the Morningstar's display at the Council Court… The Council know, among however many others. Imagine the chaos, seeing one of the Demons that killed the First Man simply roaming free. Such discomfort is hardly the domain of the Angel of Joy, is it?"
"I…" She sighed, fluttering down and away, towards the door. She leaned against it, resting her head against the ever-cool wood and sighing. "I can't bring joy and imprison someone at the same time, Sera…"
"You aren't." Her sister argued from the window, "I am. Now, please…"
"Right." She sighed, "I'm going."
Outside in the hall, she turned to give the Angelic Warrior guarding the door a look and frowned ever so gently, wondering how many Demons her 'Exorcist' spear had killed over the centuries… If any at all. Lute had been drawing from the River of Souls more than Adam ever had over the last week, to replace the losses they'd taken. Everyone had noticed the groups she lead from the Gates through the city, to their barracks deep in Heaven. And everyone had noticed Adam not leading them…
Combating that anxiety was a war on its own.
"Seraphim?" She blinked, gaze snapping from the silvered tip of the spear to the black-masked face as it turned to her, holo-eyes on the outside curving in worry and anxiety. "Is… Can I help you?"
"N-No, sorry, just…" She fluttered up, into the air, and away with a nervous laugh and flitter and turned, waving as she left, "No, I was just thinking, bye!"
Outside, Heaven was as peaceful and wonderful as ever. Flying overhead, she heard laughing and singing, cheering and bells ringing. Below, she could see people at cafes and coming out of libraries and stores carrying whatever had struck their fancy while people who ran them rested outside, smiling as their hard work went thoroughly appreciated. Projects of passion, down to the last little book-cafe tucked away into the alleys that existed solely for those who liked the closer, dimmer lighting and intimate places that could be found within. It wasn't to Emily's taste, personally, but…
Everyone in Heaven deserved a place.
"Everyone except Sir Pentious…" She murmured, only registering the traitorous thought when she put it to words and clapped hands over her mouth, wobbling in mid-air and nearly crashing into a towering bell-tower before she recovered and straightened. Floating back to lean against the old-seeming brickwork, she sighed, "Emily… You have to focus. Heaven gave you a job, and you have to do it, or…"
Or she'd Fall…
That was what every Seraphim and Raised Angel feared.
"At least until the last extermination…" She sighed, resting her head back against the stone and sighing. "Oh, what am I supposed to do?"
A little flap of wings drew her attention and she turned as a Toucan, of all things, came to land on one of the many ridges of the bell-tower. It was black-bodied, with a bright, long beak and bright blue eyes that looked around warily. She pushed away and turned, wings shuffling behind her, and it flinched and turned to watch her. Like it was surprised. Slowly, she bobbed up and back, smiling gently as she came closer and held out a hand.
"Hello, little one." She smiled, "You must be a new arrival…"
It chittered anxiously, shuffling away, and Emily stopped. She didn't pursue, but she didn't withdraw, either. She only smiled, cocked her head, and waited. To let the little soul know she wouldn't hurt it, wouldn't chase it. She didn't have any treats to offer, but even without them, she knew animals. Birds especially. She just… Understood them. How to intuit what they wanted, what they needed. The way it cocked its head and chirped, subdued but eager, she knew it had to have been a pet. And, from how it slowly turned and reached out, nipping her fingers gently and lowering its beak, she figured they'd been good owners and gently reached up to scratch its head.
"Maybe…" She murmured, running her fingers along its side and smoothing its wing-feathers gently, earning a pleasant little chirrup for it. "Maybe you're a sign. Maybe… Maybe I just need to follow my intuition…"
The idea terrified her, but, deep down…
She was certain of it.
Turning, she shot back across the city… Towards the Seraphim's Tower, standing high above all of Heaven.
None of the lesser-Seraphim, or Angelic Warriors, or servants- Or anyone even looked at her, as she made her way up the tower. Past even her room, higher. Towards Sera's, at the apex of the tower. She came up one floor short and peered around the corner at a distant door. Lucifer's, once, before the Trial and his Fall, left ancient and untended… Until now. Until they needed somewhere isolated to lock up an innocent Angel, that was.
Another innocent angel, maybe…?
She shook that old, old, traitorous thought out of her head and frowned. Whatever had happened to Lucifer, whatever had really happened, she couldn't help him. But she could help Sir Pentious. So she took a deep breath, smoothed out her dress and feathers, and bounced a couple times on the spot. Nervous energy and a new kind of… Something exciting coursed through her, but it was a different kind of excitement. One she'd never felt before.
One she couldn't dwell on, taking one final breath…
And stepping around the corner.
The four Angelic Soldiers turned at her approach, but let their spears rest when they saw her coming. Still, they flicked each other unsure looks and shrugs until one stepped forward to ask, "Seraphim? What can we do for you?"
"I'm here to see our guest." She smiled, doing her best to stay calm when the four warriors exchanged looks again, as if debating the idea. She couldn't allow that, though. Not when it might lead to them sending for her sister… So she pressed, "I'm the Angel of Joy, after all. Everyone in Heaven should be content, if not, you know, happy. And that includes him. It's my Heavenly Duty you, uh… You understand."
For a moment, she thought they might argue…
But that wasn't what anyone in Heaven was taught to do. Which was a weakness she only just then realised she was exploiting… But it was for a good reason! And that had to be enough. It was enough for her to smile, nod, and step through the door when one held it open for her.
"T-Thanks.."
"Of course." The Angel nodded, "Seraphim."
Inside, the room was small and sparse. The Seraphim Tower reshaped itself in each room, to fit what was needed by the Seraphim who lived there. But with Lucifer gone, there was no power here to shape anything at all. Even so, Heaven tried, by its very nature to tend to the occupant of the room and supplied a comfortable bed against the wall, dressers of comfortable robes, a shelf of books to one side of the door and a television in the corner on the other side of the door. She turned as the door at the foot of the bed opened and Sir Pentious himself emerged, drying his hands on a bathroom towel and staring off at nothing until he registered her presence and turned, hood half-opening while he blinked.
Then, finally, he smiled and straightened, hood flaring completely, and spread his arms for a hug, "Miss Emily!"
"Pentious!" She cheered right back, flitting over to him and giving him the hug he obviously needed. His arms closed around her, trembling, and she let him tuck his face into the crook of her neck, no doubt desperate just for the contact after so long alone…
After a few moments, he withdrew and took a shuddering breath as he slid around to rest on his bed, sighing a quiet, "Thank you, I… Needed that."
"I could tell…" Anyone could have seen how much pain the new-born Angel was in. And Emily didn't understand how Sera could allow it… How the injustice of it didn't tear her apart, like it did to Emily. And all she could do was smile and sit, laying a hand at the small of his back and asking, "Are you… Doing alright? I-I mean, you can't be doing great, but…"
"I'm okay." He sighed, "I just… Miss my friends. Miss my eggs…"
"Your… Eggs?"
"My egg boys!" He choked, burying his hands in his face and sucking in deep lungfuls of air between his sobs. "T-They were on my ship… And some died before it… They're gone, a-and I'm here, and- How do I do this?!"
"I… I don't…" She sighed and frowned, rubbing small circles into his back and admitting, "I don't know. People in Heaven don't… I've never… This is new. No one here-"
"Has family in Hell?" He murmured, "Or knows they're losing them to the- The fucking exterminations?"
"Family…?"
"They were my-" He gave her a look, and Emily understood, and her heart broke for it. So hard and fast that she felt the pain in her chest and all the way up to her crown, like she'd been struck. All she could do was pull him into her chest and let him cry, wrapping his arms around her, desperate for anything to soothe the pain.
And Emily, Angel of Joy, couldn't do anything for him…
And, as ashamed to realize it as she was… That hurt her more than anything. And what did that say about her? That she was more pained to be unable to help him than that he was suffering at all. It made her sick to her stomach. Made her head spin. And made something deep, deep down inside her, deeper than the pain and anger and betrayal of it all…
Burn.
"I'm sorry, Sir Pentious… So, so sorry." She murmured, looking down as he withdrew, rubbing tears out of his eyes and blinking at the stains on her dress. She was quick to grab his blanket to try and clean it up, but she stopped him with a sad, weak laugh, grabbing his wrists. "It's okay. Do you… Feel any better?"
"A bit, yes…" He nodded, sighing and turning to flop onto the bed. "Thank you. Heaven has… Not been what I expected, but- Thank you."
"I just… Wish I could do more right now." She sighed, standing and gesturing at the door, "Are you- Will you be alright by yourself for a while?"
"Leaving?" He sat up, eyes wide, "S-So soon?"
"I'll be back, I promise." She smiled, turning to lay a hand on his shoulder. "But… I have work to do, if I'm going to undo this- This evil."
"Undo it…?"
"Do you trust me?" She asked, knowing how hard it was for him to give an Angel that. What he'd known of Heaven had, until now, only been the Exorcists, massacring his people. And, before she came here, imprisoning him for merely existing when it was inconvenient.
In spite of everything, though, he nodded and smiled, "I do, yes. Charlie… Told me you were the only Angel on our side. Ah, well, in heaven at least."
"Thank you." She smiled, turning and leaving before the pain behind his smile could tug at her and force her to stay.
She had work to do.
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Heaven had many great places within it, scattered along the great wall that had been the first of Heaven itself's actual extant things. It had only stood alone for a short time, of course, but its span had, for that time, marked out Heaven's heart to the Seraphim and their angels. The Tower of the Seraphim had been the first, of course. Built barely a couple miles from the wall back when miles had no meaning to them. Even now, it didn't really. The space then, and now, had just been time for them to stretch their wings and enjoy the flight. Next had come the Barracks of the Heavenly Host, even further in, where the first Archangels and Seraphim had honed themselves, more for something to do than for out of fear of combat. Both these had come before Creation had.
The last, twenty miles in from Heaven's Gate and facing it directly, had come well after Creation, though.
The Archives of Heaven were a massive structure, with a long, great archival hallway that stretched a mile unto itself, with four great spires, one to each corner. Each was wide enough for numerous studies, with a spiral staircase in their heart and spectacular views. Within the study, angels who liked to read and learn thronged, reading whatever Heaven's Archive had contained in its divine shelves, which constantly offered each Angel whatever they sought, guided by Divine Will. All of which was overseen by the Overseer's Roost, a circular office built into the exact center of the Archives, with glass on every wall so the Overseer could keep watch on the Archive.
Uriel, Angel of Knowledge, didn't meet her in the office, though…
He met her on the roof above, where the roof dipped down and four walls came up, plain but for one where a simple door waited as she came to see him.
He was short and clothed simply in a dark, rich blue cloak and robe that hid everything but his grey hands from her. His face was hidden by the hood, though. Swathed and swaddled in shadow, with a pair of bright sapphire eyes that gleamed from within the darkness.
"Sister." He greeted, reaching out to take her hand as she reached out for him. He held it like a prince might, dipping to touch the back of her knuckles to lips he could not see before he straightened and cocked his head. "It has been some time, since you came to the Archives…"
"I need your help, Brother." She smiled, fluttering to his side when he turned, headed for a door built into the wall. "A-And…"
"You need it to be secret."
"Yes." She smiled, "Your insight is as… Perfect as ever."
"My curse," he sighed, "to know all that I turn my attention to. Or, well… Part of my curse, at least. The other part, of course, being the problem with your request."
"I-I know, but…" She chewed on her lip, smiling nervously when he turned to her. For all his power, her mind wasn't something he could read - even if he could read her intent, he'd never been able to peer into another Seraphim or Archangel's mind. Still, those bright blue eyes made her nervous as she said, "You have to answer, if Sera asks you something. I know that, but… You don't have to volunteer anything, right?"
"No…" He paused, hand on the door as he opened it, "But that is a dangerous distinction, sister."
"I know." She sighed, giving him a smile even she knew was weak. "Trust me?"
"...Very well." He nodded, opening the door for her. "How could I not trust the very light of Joy in Heaven?"
"Right…" She smiled, stepping past him.
Down the short, spiralingstaircase, they emerged into Uriel's office, stepping through a gap in the towering shelves that enclosed it right in the center of the office. Scrolls, rather than books, filled most of the shelves here. They were ancient, too. So old she could feel their power. Like the knives, swords, hammers, and armor shards around them, she knew they were a mix of ancient scrolls recounting events of heroes and myths of the past. She didn't know all of them, though she knew some had been lost to time, in the Mortal realms, but she still admired them.
On one side of the column of knowledge was a simple desk built out of glass and silver-steel frames, with a simple stool to sit on. On the other was an equally simple glass table long enough for several to sit at, with a handful of stools leaned against the glass at the edge. But, beyond that, the office was… Empty, as ever.
"So…" Uriel said, taking a seat at the table and gesturing with a hand at one of the stools. Emily grabbed one and came over as he spoke, "This is about the new guest in the Tower of the Seraphim, isn't it?"
"Kinda, yeah…" She sighed, taking a seat and blinking at the cup of tea already waiting on her. Chuckling, she took it and said, "Thanks."
"Of course." He nodded, "Chamomile with mint. As you favor."
"You're wonderful, Uriel." She smiled, taking a long drink and nearly melting through the stool - and the Archives - as she relaxed and laid on the table. Sighing, she said, "It's… Sir Pentious is an Angel! He's been redeemed! But Sera is so scared of an uprising, she- She can't accept it!"
"In fairness," Uriel argued gently, setting a kettle on the table with a wooden pad between it and the glass, "if the Demons were to discover that Redemption had always been possible, and the Host had been massacring them, would you expect anything else?"
"I'd expect hope!"
"Hope and anger would both be likely." He argued, taking a drink from his own cup and staring into it as he turned his hand, watching the tea churn. "Simply unveiling your serpentine friend would sow discord. Or at least, that is what Sera believes will happen."
"So you agree with her?"
"No." He sighed, "I only understand her reasoning. I side with what is true, as you know, and-"
"Predictions about the future can never be true until they happen. I know, Uri. I know." She sighed, frowning and sitting up, tapping her fingers on the glass. For a while, they were quiet. She was thinking, about what to do and how to do it, and Uriel was… Well, as content to sit and wait for her as ever. Finally, she asked, "What if we've been… Wrong?"
"You know what Sera would say." Uriel warned, "Heaven can't be wrong."
"And what do you say?"
"I say that Heaven has, to my knowledge, never been wrong." He answered coolly, "And a Seraphim-"
"Must do what she knows is best, not what she wants…" She sighed, a bit of… Agitation welling up inside her before she could tamp it down. School herself. Shaking her head when that barely worked, she decided on a different, and somehow safer feeling, subject, "So… Say I, uh, had a friend in… Hell…"
"You mean the Daughter of the Morningstar." It wasn't a question, but she nodded anyways and she felt his discomfort. "Emmy…"
"I just want to get to know her." She defended herself, "She's- She's like my niece? Cousin? A-A friend either way, and- And she deserves to know, doesn't she? That she was right? That redemption is possible?"
"What she deserves is immaterial, Emily, and prone to opinion." Uriel answered, "Sera is the one who decides this. Not either of us."
"But…" She sighed, "But he needs someone. Someone who understands. H-He's suffering, and it's my job- My Heavenly Duty to make him happy. So what comes first? Obeying Sera's interpretation of Heaven's Will, or Heaven's Will in giving me my duty?"
"...A complicated, dangerous question." He sighed, standing and turning towards his desk, sipping at his tea. After a moment, he moved towards his desk and sighed, "I find, when I am torn with what I should do, Heaven's Will makes itself known mechanically. The Seraphic Archives, in section four hundred and eighty six, will give you the answers you need."
"Thank you, Uriel, I-"
"Don't thank me." He cut her off, voice sharper than she'd heard from him in eons. Quietly, he said, "Not when… When we don't know what comes next."
She… Really didn't know what to say to that. She'd never heard Uriel, of all people, sound scared of anything. Much less scared of Heaven's Will. So, unsure of how to break the silence that had fallen between them, she… Simply stood, thanked him for the tea, and headed towards one of the sliding glass panels along the wall, slipping into the Archive and turning to sweep away. Off, through the Archives.
Towards the Seraphim's wing of the Archives, where she'd hopefully find her answers.
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The Seraphim Wing from the outside looked like every other part of the library around it, nestled in the middle, between history and poetry. Except that it was empty, while every other section had three, four, even five people meandering it, looking for the next piece to reach for. Like the rest of the Archives, the shelves were crammed with books, scrolls, tablets and more, all of which shifted as she came close. Historical texts became maps of the world, of Heaven and Hell, and biographies of poets and artists and encyclopaedias of animals, some of which had been written in Heaven itself, by Angels. Long before Man discovered letters and paper. She was interested in them, but…
They weren't why she was here today.
Minutes passed, until she'd spent an hour walking the aisle, up and down, and, eventually, Heaven seemed to…
Well, it was hard to explain. But when she turned everything down and kept looking for something to help her, it was like Heaven itself groaned around her. Like even the Archive wasn't entirely sure what it wanted to show or. Or… Or maybe if it should show it to her. The shelves around her began to shudder from the weight of the feeling before she realized what the problem was.
"It's me…" She murmured, laying a hand on the shelves as the trembling eased. "My indecision. But… How can I just decide? I don't have any good options. Everything is wrong, one way or another, and…"
Around her, the books changed. Scrolls and new books took their place. Hundreds of stories, of myths, of comics, of all things, filled them all. She picked up one and turned it over, and the cover read 'Torn by Indecision? How to flip the Coin.' She kept grabbing books, and they were all the same story, retreaded by different names. The same advice, regiven by different people from different rimes. And all had the same lesson-
"It's a leap of faith…" She read the words out, looking at the comic in her hands. "That's all."
So she took a breath, and laid a hand on the shelf, putting the comic back.
Quietly, she asked, "How… How do I get to Hell without using Heaven's Gates?"
The shelves emptied, replaced by a simple scroll bound in blue satin, with gold caps at the ends. She gently unfurled it and, on one side, saw a name that had filled her with indecision for days, now. 'Head of the Seraphim, Serahiel.'
"A journal…?" She murmured, turning to sit on the floor, back against the shelves and wings tucked around her. Skimming it, she hummed, "No… A research journal… On Heaven's Gates, and divine portals!"
With this she could go to Charlie, and talk to her…
She'd know what to do. And whatever Uriel had to say about it, or Sera, Charlie and Sir Pentious' friends deserved to know the truth about what had happened. It was the only just thing - and Heaven had to stand for what was Just.
Didn't it?
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Uriel, in biblical mythology, is the Angel of Wisdom, Knowledge, Light and Truth. As such, I felt that he would make a good character for the Divine Librarian, keeper of all knowledge. Knowledge is wisdom AND truth, after all. The design of his office reflects his being the Angel of Light as well - windows on all sides let in light from every direction in a library, which necessarily would need to be rather well lit to read in properly.
He's not the only Angel I will add to Heaven for reasons of lore. This is in no way a dig at Viv, of course - I just worldbuild OBSESSIVELY. Lmao.
Also, yes, the crossover tag is correct. XD
P.S.
I am VERY atheistic, however, rest assured that any elements I draw from biblical stuff is clinical and meant to enhance the material in play. Your interpretations are fine, and these aren't MY interpretations. Just what works for this story.
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