The Creation: Chaos Rising

by Art Gulley Jr.

  Chapter 44

  For the Celemor Gabriel, being reunited with his long deceased wife and daughter was truly one of the happiest moments of his life. Knowing that their time together was limited, the three of them had taken advantage of every moment; exchanging tales with one another of all that had happened during their century long separation.

  Of greatest relief to him was his family's complete acceptance of his relationship with Nina.

  "As I told her during our introduction," Clarissa remarked as she and Gabriel strolled lazily along the white sands of Heaven's Eastern shores. "Our time has passed and though our end was tragic, I do not begrudge you the life you've led nor the decisions you've made in the wake of Gaby's and my passing. Though I must admit my heart has often been heavy knowing the sacrifice you made so that I might enter this glorious place."

  Gabriel stopped and turned Clarissa's body so that they now faced one another. "I don't ever want you to feel bad or guilty for the decision I made. Knowing that your soul would forever be at peace was worth it."

  Clarissa placed a gentle kiss against his lips, savoring their familiar taste and feel. "Your taking on the mantle of Celemor on my behalf was still the greatest declaration of love a woman could ever receive; and one that I hope you will not have to repeat."

  Gabriel gave his wife a puzzled look. "What makes you think that I will?"

  "Because of Nina; she is the Child of Order and thus destined to do great things, but I fear that such a burden might ultimately destroy her."

  Gabriel took hold of Clarissa's hands and gave them a reassuring squeeze. "That's why I'm here; to keep her safe."

  "But that Task ended when she arrived in Celestia," Clarissa pointed out. "It was only through the Archangels' graces that you've been allowed to remain here with her as well as spend time with us."

  Gabriel's left eyebrow arched upward. "You seem to know a lot about my comings and goings."

  Clarissa laughed, jerking her head at Gabriella who was frolicking happily in the water with a pair of dolphins. "You can thank her for that. Her aquatic friends are the most notorious gossips!"

  "So I've heard," Gabriel muttered a bemused smile on his face as he watched his daughter execute an intricate flip above the waves, her tall, sinewy frame a sharp contrast to the image of the cherubic toddler stored in his memories. "And have her...advisers revealed what Nina's true Task is?"

  Clarissa frowned. "No they haven't but judging by their recent chattiness and the overall sense of excitement that seems to be running through Heaven's populace, I get the feeling that that's about to change."

  "Meaning what, exactly?"

  "Meaning that Nina's time in Celestia is coming to an end," a silvery voice rang out as the Archangel Michael swooped down on their position coming to a gentle stop atop the white sands. "I do apologize for this intrusion, Gabriel, but there is much you and I need to discuss in regards to you and my daughter's return to Mortalia and the fulfillment of both of your respective Tasks."

  The Archangel's peculiar courtesy ignited a pyre of apprehension within Gabriel. "And said Tasks being?"

  A look of disgust consumed Michael's normally stoic features. "To prevent your kind from falling prey to the machinations of that insufferable cur, Lillian, and her band of Dissident filth!"

  Gabriel was stunned by Michael's outburst, and even more so by the hostility radiating from him. Normally such spiteful declarations were the providence of the Bringer of Death. "Has something happened on Earth?"

  Michael sighed. "I'm afraid much has transpired these paths several months."

  Gabriel, Clarissa, and Gabriella who had joined her parents after the Archangel's sudden arrival, listened in shock as he related to them the tale of Lie's organization of the Demonstratives and subsequent acquisition of the Staff of Moses.

  Gabriel shuddered at the thought of one of the Talismans in the hands of a miscreant like Lie. "Have they made any demands of or threats against the Hierarchy?"

  Michael's jaw tightened briefly. "None as of yet, but I'm sure it's just a matter of time before they do which is why I am here. Your service to The Watch, particularly your stewardship of my daughter, has been exemplary; in spite of the contempt with which you hold us."

  Gabriel flinched as Michael's barb hit home. He opened his mouth but the Archangel cut him off before he could speak. "You need offer neither explanation nor apology, Gabriel. Omen and I have often spoken of your dissatisfaction with your Celestial post due to the..." Michael's eyes flickered briefly to Clarissa and Gabriella, "conditions of your service; a contract that I am here to amend."

  Gabriel regarded the Keeper of Benevolence through narrowed eyes. "In what way?"

  Michael smiled at the suspicion in the other's tone. "By releasing you from your obligation to The Watch and assuring you that, regardless of your answer to what I am about to ask, you no longer need concern yourself with Clarissa's well-being. Her place in Heaven is secured."

  The joy that Gabriel should have felt at Michael's proclamation was overshadowed by the ominous double entendre. "And just what is it that you are about to ask me."

  Michael leveled serious eyes on him. "That you remain a Celemor."

  It took a stunned Gabriel several minutes to digest the fact that after a century of forced Celestial vigilance he was now being asked to remain at his post. "Not to be disrespectful," he began when his tongue thawed enough for him to speak. "But why in the Realms would I want to do that?"

  Having anticipated the Celemor's reluctance to stay Michael had already prepared a reason that he hoped would garner his support. "Because of all the Celemors that have ever served us you have been the most diligent in carrying out your Tasks, and your dedication and experience is something Nina desperately needs if she is to succeed in hers."

  Gabriel was annoyed at the Archangel's use of Nina as bait to entice him to remain under the heel of the watch, but he couldn't blame him. It was obvious that despite his customary Celestial aloofness the Archangel cared very much for her.

  Gabriel was torn. What Michael was saying about Nina's need of his abilities was true, yet how could he leave his family now that they were finally reunited? Of course the same argument held true for Nina and not just because of his position as her guardian. Oddly enough the time spent with his family had shown the dutiful Celemor how much he had truly come to love his unique charge. And now that the situation was changed, how could he possibly leave her?

  His troubled thoughts were interrupted by the feel of Clarissa's hand on his chin turning his face toward her. "I see the turmoil in your eyes, my love, but this is something that you must do. Nina needs you and I'm not just talking about your Task as her guardian, and you need her," she added, a tender smile curving her lips.

  A wave of guilt consumed Gabriel as the truth of his wife's words hit home. "But what about your needs?"

  Clarissa chuckled. "You have already provided for my needs in the most amazing way." She waved her hand in the direction of Heaven's gleaming skyline. "This is a different place and a different time. I've no doubt that the love you once had for me is still strong, as is mine for you, but I am your past. Nina is your present and future."

  Clarissa's words produced a flood of relief within Gabriel. "Thank you," he whispered then shifted his gaze to his daughter. "And what's your opinion about all of this?"

  Gabriella flashed her father a proud grin. "Mother and I have long since accepted the fact that even though you still love us, you are in love with Nina. I also feel that Michael is correct in his estimation of her need of you. If even half of what the dolphins have told me about Lie is true then the sanctity of the Realms is indeed at stake, and we must do our best to support Nina in her efforts to stop whatever insanity that psycho Halfling has planned."

  Gabriel focused sharply on his daughter's face. "Our best?"

  A mischievous grin tugged at Gabriella's lips. "You're not the only Leyr skilled in the art of Celestial deal-making."

  "A
nd just what does that mean?"

  Gabriella gave her father a saucy wink. "It means that when you return to Earth, I'll be coming with you."

  "That is one of the other matters that you and I must discuss," Michael interjected into the stunned silence that followed Gabriella's announcement. "It seems that shortly after Clarissa and Gabriella's arrival in Heaven that conflicted sack of Celestial confusion, Caleb, took it upon himself to befriend them; often relating to them the details of your various Tasks."

  Once again Gabriel found himself gaping in amazement at the Archangel's words. "But...why?"

  A look of annoyance flickered briefly across Michael's face. "I suspect it was to reassure them in regards to your well-being in much the same manner he would often reassure you as to theirs."

  Gabriel pinned his wife and daughter with a hard stare. "Why didn't you tell me that Dichotomy had been giving you a running account of my activities these past several decades?"

  "He or rather 'they' made us promise not to," Clarissa responded calmly in the face of her husband's sudden hostility.

  "I only recently learned of their interactions myself," Michael noted, surprise still swirling in his mind over the unexpected visit he had received from the former Celemor earlier that day, and the unusual request the blended duo had made on Gabriella's behalf. "It seems that the stories of your exploits have inspired your daughter." Michael favored Gabriella with an approving grin. "She has requested that she be allowed to Transition back into Mortal form so that she can assume the mantel of Celemor and stand beside you in the coming conflict; a request that has been approved."

  "The hell it has," Gabriel snapped, his eyes flashing with Celestial fire. "You've got some nerve, Michael! First I'm coerced into being The Watch's lapdog and forced to adhere to a bunch of cockamamie rules about who lives and who dies. Then after a century of service you release me from that bond only to press me into service again by dangling Nina's fate in front of me, and now you tell me that the daughter whom I'm only just now beginning to know, is about to be thrown back into the fire with me? And how is that even possible?"

  Gabriel stabbed a finger at Gabriella though his eyes never left Michael. "She died, Archangel; they both died! And I mourned their deaths for over a hundred years despite the fact that I knew they were in Heaven! How dare you ask for more of my family's blood? Enough has been spilled already!"

  "He didn't ask," Gabriella leapt to Michael's defense, placing herself between him and her furious father. "I did; this was my decision!"

  Gabriella's words caught Gabriel up short and he turned stunned eyes to her. "But why, Gabby; you've obviously heard about the life I've been forced to live and the hardships I've had to endure. Why would you choose to subject yourself to that?"

  "You said the words your self," Gabriella replied stepping closer to her father. "My entire afterlife I've only heard about you and the type of man you are, both from mother and Caleb. That's just not enough anymore. I want to know who my father is and fate has presented me with this opportunity to do so."

  As Gabriel took note of the burning entreaty in the eyes of this woman who had once been his little girl, his anger began to fade, though not his feelings of trepidation. "I still think that this is a bad idea, but I suppose watching your children follow their own path is a part of parenting that I must work on." A look of joy suffused Gabriella's face and she threw herself into her father's waiting arms hugging him tightly. "I just hope I'm able to live up to the sterling image you have of me."

  "You already have," Gabriella assured him.

  Gabriel's eyes sought those of his wife. "Are you okay with this?"

  "Gabby has been my constant source of joy for over a century," Clarissa beamed at them as she joined in their embrace. "I think the time has finally come for her to look after her father now."

  Gabriel gave both of them another squeeze then focused his attention on a waiting Michael. "Alright, Keeper of Benevolence; we're in. What happens now?"

  The Archangel's relief was obvious as he answered Gabriel's question. "We wait for The Almighty, who is currently holding council with Nina, to decide on the proper time for you to return to Mortalia and hopefully put a stop to that troublesome Halfling's meddling once and for all!

  Chapter 45

  The authority of The Almighty's tone settled heavily in Nina's mind as she listened to the story of The Creation's beginning.

  In the Beginning of all Beginnings there was the Event, a molecular cataclysm that spawned all that exists; including myself.

  For millennia untold I existed without corporeal form, in a state of contemplation and discovery as the universe around me continued to develop. Over the eons I watched as the multitudes of copious vessels of energy surrounding me evolved into the various forms of life that currently span the expanse that is our current Reality.

  It was through my meditations that I discovered that not only was I intrinsically connected to the universe but through force of will, and the channeling of the molecular or Celestial energy that permeates all in existence l could control the development of that which surrounded me. I also discovered that I was not alone in this respect.

  Nina's shoulder's straightened as she jumped on The Almighty's statement. "You weren't?"

  No. Two others had also risen during Reality's birth; their essences far more ephemeral than mine but both nearly as influential in terms of shaping our world. One was structured in its thinking, promoting a sense of Order in all that it touched while the other was the complete antithesis, giving rise to disruption and random destruction on a cosmic scale. Where one was light the other became darkness, and while one's primary purpose was to instill order and continuity in the ever-changing expanse surrounding us, the other's was to foment that which it had taken as its namesake: Chaos.

  "Amazing," Nina whispered. "Are they more powerful than you?"

  In terms of raw ability and cognitive facilities, no. Nor are they able to manipulate the physical properties of that which is Reality. Their power lies in the manipulation of the ephemeral, or spirit as you Mortals would term it.

  Nina's brow furrowed with consternation. "But I don't understand. If your abilities are greater, why don't you just destroy Chaos?"

  As I said before, in all things there is duality, a balance. Within that which you know as The Creation, Order and Chaos provide that balance, or rather they used to.

  Nina's eyes narrowed. "What does that mean, exactly?"

  As the Races matured so did their need for understanding of that which is around them.

  "And this is a bad thing?"

  A twinge of apprehension flowed through The Almighty's aura. It can be. The need for understanding, or ‘search for truth' as I have heard it termed can often lead beings to the discovery of potentially dangerous matters which they are not yet ready to handle. This is particularly true of your kindred on Earth.

  Nina's eyes widened with surprise. "But what's wrong with that? On Earth there's a saying: ‘The more you know, the further you go'. I would think that you'd want that for us, especially since Humans are supposed to be the Vanguard Race."

  It is true that knowledge is power but it can also be dangerous if the receiver is unprepared for it as evidenced by another of your quaint Mortal euphemisms: ‘Absolute power corrupts absolutely.' It is in situations like these that Chaos asserts her control, often to disastrous effects.

  "Such as?"

  All you need do is look to Earth's recent history, The Almighty intoned. There are countless examples, one of those I believe you once questioned your Celemor guardian about.

  Nina searched her memory for said reference and her eyes went wide. "You mean...the Holocaust?"

  A pang of regret flitted through The Almighty's aura. I do. You once asked Gabriel why I would allow such an atrocity to happen when in truth it was not I who allowed it but rather those involved who fell victim to Chaos's corruption of the one force I dare not control; one inherent to all Mortals but Mankind i
n particular: the power of Choice.

  Nina stared hard at the swirling mass, a look of disbelief on her face. "Choice?"

  Yes, Choice; something that should've been a great boon for all Mortals but instead became, what your kind term, a double edged sword.

  Nina's eyes lit with understanding as she recalled an entry she had read in Michael's Journal dealing with Humanity's beginning; a tale that differed greatly from its counterpart in the biblical book of Genesis. "You're talking about Adam, Lillith, and the other First Ones aren't you; where we first gained awareness of right and wrong?"

  I am. That was a lesson that was prematurely given.

  "Why is that? When you created us, didn't you want us to eventually become self-sufficient?"

  I'm afraid that is another misconception that has been perpetuated through the ages.

  Nina was surprised at the sudden apprehension she sensed in The Almighty's voice. "What, that you wanted us to grow up?"

  No, that I am your creator.

  Nina stiffened. "Are you saying that you aren't?"

  Not in the manner that you perceive. As I said before I am merely one of the oldest beings spawned during the Event, and as such have taken it upon my self to guide the other Races in their evolution; occasionally modifying certain Castes to better serve The Creation as a whole. It was for this reason that I separated it into three distinct Realms. It was my intention to bring into a being a rank and file system that would be beneficial to us all; one that would lessen the potential for the Catastrophic end I mentioned earlier.

  "In what way?"

  Both forces are essential to Creations overall development. Without Chaos, Order leads to stagnation; without Order, Chaos leads to annihilation. It was for this reason that I...seeded the Human Race with a portion of my Divine intellect, so that when the time came, you would be able to differentiate between the two and lead the less enlightened Races. But such maturity does not come without careful nurturing which is why I have allowed Mankind to develop as it has; so that you would slowly develop the traits required to lead.