Alizel's Song (Angel Ward Saga Book 1)

by Pottle, Bill

  “That’s the most sensible thing you’ve said in a while,” Luciferel smiled naturally as he spoke. He hungrily fingered the serpentine hilt of his sword. The blade of Lucifer’s sword was the elongated tongue of a dragon, while the body coiled around his hand and wrist to protect it. He nodded goodbye to Gabriel and took flight. Alizel watched him go until he was out of sight and then slowly crept away.

  For some reason, that conversation stayed with Alizel. Any creature of matter had a brain that was finite— limited by the number of neurons and the connections between them. Angels didn’t exist in the physical world as such, and thus did not share those limitations. Everything that had ever happened— everything—was stored so that they could access it at any time simply by thinking about it. If humans had had that capability, they would have been able to remember every sunset ever seen or book ever read. There was no need to make records and fewer arguments occurred, as every angel always remembered exactly what had happened at every moment since Heaven had been formed, so long as he had witnessed it firsthand.

  So while he could instantly access any of the conversations that he had ever had, this one kept playing in Alizel’s mind. He went through it over and over, trying to find out anything that he had missed. Alizel tried to read between the lines, to see if the two Seraphim had meant more than what they had said. Luciferel was their leader, of course, but as chief messenger, Gabriel might know something no one else did. Alizel tried to ask a Cherub named

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  Hanael about God’s plan for the humans once, but the conversation was pretty much a failure.

  “Excuse me, sir...” Alizel tapped him on one shoulder. “May I ask you a question?”

  The Cherub stood there as if he hadn’t heard him, his body facing toward the Throne of God. His eyes were focused straight ahead.

  “Sir, this will only take a minute of your time. I was just wondering…”

  Still nothing. Alizel tried waving his hand in front of the Cherub’s face closest to him. He wasn’t trying to be disrespectful, but Hanael could at least acknowledge him. This was enough to cause him to notice Alizel. Two of his other faces frowned in annoyance, while the third still faced God.

  The eyes of the closest face focused on him. “I’m sorry, did you say something?”

  “Yes sir. It’s just that…I’m confused with all these new things happening on Earth and with God’s plan, and I…I just don’t know quite what to make of it. You see…”

  But at that very moment Hanael dashed off. “I’m sorry, I have to go now,” he mumbled absentmindedly. He might have said something like “important business” or “what nonsense is this?” It didn’t really matter.

  Cherubim weren’t the greatest communicators.

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  CHAPTER FOUR:

  GOD’S PLAN REVEALED

  The angels had waited billions of years until the humans gained souls, and even though things were accelerating, there was no reason to think that they wouldn’t wait billions more to find out why.

  So it was certainly shocking when the Father Himself simply announced His purpose mere days later.

  “It is I.”

  Alizel started when he felt the words and looked in the direction of the Throne of God, and saw everyone around him do the same. ”Felt” was even the wrong word for it. It was just something that he knew. They had never been communicated to in this way before, except for at the very Beginning. God was talking to His angels directly.

  “My plans on Earth are now being set in motion. The humans are very special creatures to Me. They will be My people.”

  Alizel’s brows furrowed. The humans were His people now? “You, My beloved angels, will act to serve and guide them.”

  The Father’s words felt like a stone dropped into a tranquil lake, the shock of what He said rippling through Heaven. Serve them? Was there some mistake? Yet, there could be no mistaking the Father’s words or meaning. There was no misunderstanding when talking with God.

  “You will always be close to my heart. But the Humans must serve a different purpose. Your service is freely given, but you have known Me

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  intimately. What reward is in that? Will the Humans, who cannot see Me and do not know Me the way that you do, choose Me as well?”

  And then Alizel began to understand. Because of the limits that God had placed on the Universe, no matter how hard humans looked or what advanced instruments they invented, they would never be able to see fully into the quantum world. God had created a veil, never allowing humans to precisely know both the position and velocity of any particle. Operating behind this veil, God could influence the Universe, but still be undetectable by science. He could leave His mark, His word, and yet still require faith on the part of Humans to believe in Him, something the angels didn’t need because they could see Him.

  The whole idea was remarkable. The whole idea was disturbing.

  Alizel could immediately see that he wasn’t the only one to think so. He could feel the great stirring throughout Heaven as the plan dawned on the others. Were angels really created only to serve Humans? How could that be when angels were so much more advanced than them, so much more intelligent than them? How could that be when they were billions of years old, and fueled by the Father himself? These humans were nothing! They were so new, so naïve, so oblivious to the reality of God’s greatness.

  And angels were supposed to serve them?

  Alizel wanted God to say something else—anything else. But that was the end of the revelation. That was all He offered. For many, it wasn’t enough.

  The next few days were a blur. Angels went about their business in a mindless fog, no one really knowing what to think.

  New rumors began during those days— rumors that were more disturbing than anything Alizel had ever heard before. Most of the angels refused to speak out about the disturbances directly, staying silent and more aloof from each other with each passing day, afraid to spread rumors that weren’t true…or afraid to speak aloud those which they feared were.

  “Can it be true, Uriel?” Alizel was as afraid to ask as everyone else, but he had to know. He and Mupiel had been probing for answers for days, blocked at every turn by everyone they queried.

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  His Principality looked into his eyes for a moment before responding, weighing his words carefully.

  His cheeks relaxed as his features softened. “I have heard things,” Uriel finally confided. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t doubt you, Alizel. It’s just that it’s so hard to know who to trust anymore.”

  “Is it as bad as I have heard?” Alizel dreaded the answer.

  “I don’t know what you’ve heard, but I can assure you that it’s almost certainly worse.”

  He spoke in hushed tones, glancing about frequently to see if anyone was watching. “Many angels were enraged when they heard the announcement. But none were worse than Luciferel. He couldn’t accept it. Before this I would never think that anything could shake his loyalty to God. I can’t begin to imagine what inner torment is still going on inside of him.”

  “It’s probably temporary,” Alizel theorized. “As the chief Seraph, Luciferel can’t lose his trust in God. He’ll come around eventually… won’t he?”

  “We can hope so.” Uriel didn’t sound convinced. He sighed, and his green wings drooped a bit. “I can’t imagine fighting against Luciferel. Maybe someone like Michael or Azazel can, but not someone like me. Whatever the case, this thing is escalating—fast. Now Zebub has weapons and if someone like Luciferel defects, then others may follow. Luciferel is our leader. If he’s unwilling or unable to organize us, Michael will have to step up and lead us. Otherwise we’ll be no match for a disciplined foe.”

  Alizel nodded slowly, but his feathers trembled. Wha
t was going on? They had lived in peace for so long, and everything was happening so suddenly! It almost made him think that everything was but some sort of illusion, like the dreams humans had when they slept. Angels never slept and didn’t dream in the same way as humans. They fantasized about the future—daydreamed, but it was always fully within the boundaries of reality adhered to by the conscious mind.

  There was no way for the idea that this was all an illusion to take hold, though. The angels all saw Luciferel. But he had changed. No longer the calm, faithful leader they knew, this new creature flew

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  from point to point in Heaven, raving madly. His howls echoed from one side of the sky to the other, stealing even the littlest peace that anyone might hope to enjoy. The only comfort was that at least in this condition he would be no help to the revolution. He would be just as likely to slay Zebub or anyone else that came near him.

  Alizel saw him closely during this period of torment just once. Luciferel had paused from his mad flight across Heaven to stare through the Portal down into the Realm of Matter, and Alizel had crept just close enough to get a good look at the thing the Seraph had become. Luciferel reached up and caught the rail that encircled the Portal, heaving his weight on top of it and dragging himself up to look down into the shimmering pool.

  As he looked over their leader, Alizel felt a twinge of sorrow for the once Bright One of God. This was the angel who once stood so tall, so regally over all. His wings were ruffled and torn, and had begun to decay from their brilliant crimson. There were black splotches in parts and the feathers looked as if they could barely support him in flight. His eyes were sunken, the skin drooping down and hanging onto his cheeks. His once silvery, elegant hair was now ragged and disheveled, and his whole body looked emaciated, as if somehow he were blocking God’s radiance. He looked as if he were half the angel he was before but still had to fit into the same body.

  He was staring down through the Portal, and it was easy enough for Alizel to guess that he was looking at the humans. “Why?” the Seraph cried out suddenly. “Look at you! You don’t even know what you’re the cause of! Do you even know that we exist? Can your minds perceive even that?”

  How remarkable, Alizel reflected, that as far as he knew the humans couldn’t even see into Heaven or understand the life of an angel in the least. And yet, here they were causing such trouble, requiring angels to bow down and serve them. They went about their lives, eating and sleeping, never having the faintest idea of the war their existence was about to cause.

  Uriel had been right. Even in Luciferel’s current weakened state, no angel would dare challenge him. He was, after all, the leader, the Bright One of God, the one everyone looked up to. While he might

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  have lost his senses, he had done nothing treasonous as yet. And few would approach him at all, out of either fear or respect. Most felt that this was something that Luciferel would have to deal with on his own.

  Raphael, however, was braver than most. Alizel crouched behind the tree as he saw him approaching Luciferel slowly from behind, his soft footfalls beating a calm rhythm. Raphael had broad, even shoulders and was never in a hurry. Raphael, Alizel imagined, was a healer, although he may not have been aware of it at the time, since angels were never “injured” or in need of being healed. They were either perfectly healthy or in the Containment. Neither situation could be made better by anyone else’s help. The concepts of destruction and healing were only just beginning to dawn on them. Still, Raphael’s gentleness always made Alizel and the other Unranked feel safe in his presence, and he seemed to have a gift for fixing whatever troubled angels’ hearts. Alizel watched anxiously.

  Luciferel was still hunched over the rail that guarded the Portal, and didn’t notice the other angel’s approach. Raphael stood there for a moment as if contemplating what to say, and then placed a firm hand on Luciferel’s shoulder.

  Luciferel whipped his head around, fear shining in his eyes. His body relaxed slightly in Raphael’s presence but his expression was still guarded. Raphael’s countenance was serene but troubled. He was one of the few who could take in the full pain of another and still exude a soothing aura to those around him. Alizel wondered how much pain he had already absorbed from the rest of the angels…and how much more he would have to before this was all over.

  Raphael just looked at his fellow Seraph, as if trying to probe the depths of Luciferel’s soul. He didn’t speak for several minutes, until Luciferel finally met his gaze. Raphael didn’t flinch, but the lines around his eyes drew downwards.

  “What has happened to you?” Raphael seemed to already know, but asked his question more to see if Luciferel himself understood.

  “I am becoming stronger,” he said, gasping for breath. If it weren’t for the seriousness of the situation, Alizel would have almost thought it to be a joke.

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  Raphael swept his soft brown eyes over Luciferel’s body and then raised his eyebrows. “You have rejected God’s power that sustains us. Your body is falling apart. If you do not let Him flow through you again, you will surely perish.”

  “I will not die. I have found another power to sustain me.” The shock of his words made Raphael look on in confusion.

  Alizel’s eyes narrowed as he listened. Was Luciferel bluffing? He certainly didn’t seem to be sustained.

  “All this time,” Luciferel continued, each word labored, “we thought that was the only way that we could live. Yet only after blocking that vile substance did I find my own true power.”

  “This power you speak of has left your body broken and damaged. This internal power cannot compete with God,” Raphael countered.

  “It is still dormant, unused.” Luciferel waited to catch his breath before speaking more. “I am the first one to find this fiery power within me. I surely meant to perish. Why would I want to continue in a world where I must bow down to a Son of Mud? But my anger, my displeasure, my feelings against the current situation sustained my body. As these feelings grow stronger, so does my body. I just do not know how to channel this power yet.”

  “You never doubted the Lord before. You must come back and let your body receive the Father again. You can still be bright!”

  Alizel could tell Raphael’s mind was working furiously, probing to find a crack in the wall of resentment Luciferel had erected around himself.

  “I was a fool then, surely. I did not understand that God only meant to betray us.” The more Luciferel talked, the stronger he seemed to become.

  “There are uncertain times ahead, to be sure. But that is all the more reason we need you with us, as our leader.” Raphael was appealing to Luciferel’s sense of vanity now. “No one was able to lead as well as you or to command as much respect as you. What will we do without you?”

  “Honestly?” Luciferel looked at him, but from Raphael’s expression it was obvious he didn’t see the same Luciferel looking back at him. “Honestly, I don’t care.”

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  Luciferel got up to leave. His gait was still hobbling, but he could walk away on his own. His words trailed after him. “Come find me if you come to your senses. Come find me if you want to be stronger.”

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  PART TWO

  CHAPTER FIVE:

  THE DARKNESS WITHIN

  Azazel felt the figure behind him. The creature was…different. Yet when he turned around to look, Azazel knew who he was. He couldn’t have been anyone else.

  The head of the Powers offered a warm greeting but his hand stayed on his sword. “Hello, sir. You look… different.”

  Luciferel chuckled. His body had completely changed. The black decay had taken over the whole thing, but rather than being weak and powerless, he exuded confidence
and strength once again, though of a different kind than before.

  “I am different. I am independent. No longer will I be known by my old name. When He sustained me, I was the Bright One of God. I sustain myself. Now I am simply Lucifer.”

  Azazel raised his eyebrows. All angels had been given their true names in the beginning. Their name was who they were. How could an angel change his true name?