I wouldn’t make a good Engineer. I don’t like order so much as I like chaos.
“Good day, Nephil Enael.” The young Attendant at the receiving desk set aside an orange, leather-bound book and then paged through her blue book. “Aha, here it is. Room 784.” Her voice held a note of awe. Though Nephilim had always been regarded with respect, our status had grown immensely since Asorat’s appearance.
Once outside the room, I took a deep breath. This was it. My new partner. Before I was even informed that my last three partners had been chosen, they’d each refused to work with me. Having made it this far seemed a good sign.
I pushed open the door to reveal Serinh, golden wings in repose, sitting behind a table. She stood as I stepped inside. “You’re here. Come in, quickly, and shut the door.”
“You’re not my partner?” I felt silly for the note of a question, but I was confused. I shut the door.
“No, I’ve sent her off and told her you would meet tomorrow at the same time. I need to speak to you. It’s quite urgent. Please, sit.” She perched on the edge of her seat.
I sat and folded my hands in front of me on the table. I never knew what to do with them in the presence of Seraphim, especially Serinh. A golden glow overlaid the cozy, gray walls of this room—so unlike the bright, white Foresight Rooms—which muted the sound to any beings attempting to listen in on our conversation.
What can she possibly want of me? Though it didn’t logically make sense that Serinh could be the Aleph, I still had a few remaining suspicions.
“Enael,” she touched my hand, and I forced myself not to draw away, “things are not going well for me on the Council. I know this is a burden, but I don’t have many confidantes to turn to. After I ascended to Seraph, all the Archangels I’d made friends with deserted me. No, that’s not the right word. They were intimidated. I was now in charge of their welfare. Why wouldn’t they be intimidated?”
“I understand.” But what does she want from me?
“I told you that the Praetor is the voice of the Council, not its leader, and that is very true, especially in my case. Still, being the Praetor is a certain level of responsibility, and the other Seraphim look to you to lead them. And now that we have three who were mere Archangels a year ago…” She pulled her hand away and fingered the jewel on her forehead again. “Oh, it’s all very muddled. I don’t know if I’m explaining it well.”
“No, I think I understand. You’re not supposed to be the leader, but the others look to you for guidance anyway when you’re Praetor.”
“Yes, that’s it exactly! Oh, I knew coming to you was the right decision.”
She’d given the aura of an ancient being when I first met her—which was how I so easily assumed she was the Aleph—but now all that seemed a façade. “What do you need from me?”
“They blame me for Asorat’s declaration of war. ‘Why did it happen on your watch?’ they ask. He’s been planning this for millenniums. His plans finally came to fruition during the Great War, which we’ve also been planning for centuries. It happened on my watch because it happened on my watch.” She muttered, “They’re just looking for reasons to petition the Source to have me demoted.”
I put a hand to my mouth. “Truly? They can do that?”
She looked up from where she was glaring at the table. “I’m not certain. The others don’t share their feelings readily on the matter, but what else could they want?”
“Who would replace you? They just ascended the other three. They have to be running out of prepared candidates.”
“I don’t know. There are contenders. I just— I’m sorry, I can’t say. I don’t know what they’re thinking. Let me tell you why I’ve asked you here.”
I nodded. Despite my earlier distrust of Serinh, I now felt sorry for her. It was possible she was an ancient creature bent on Heaven’s destruction, masquerading as my friend. It was also possible that she was who she said she was, a vulnerable, young Seraph scared of losing her position. What happened to Seraphim who were demoted? If I thought I was shunned…
“I’ve devised a plan,” Serinh said. “A spell of sorts.”
“A spell?” The word was familiar from the human world, used to describe when they invoke the power of the angels that watch over them, the same as prayers and sacrifices. But beings in Heaven didn’t cast spells. We meditated in the Nexus or spoke to the Source directly.
“One of the Nephil teams assigned to bring back information on Asorat has uncovered that he cast a spell to remove the swastikas from the Nexus. Over many years, he gathered human followers and channeled their belief into power he could use to remove the symbols. I don’t know precisely how he did it, but I’ve been considering it for days now. We can use the same principle to cast a spell of protection over Heaven.” She looked at me eagerly. “It’s an untapped ability I’m certain we can make work.”
“That’s… intriguing.” I was equal parts flattered and apprehensive that she was asking for my approval.
“He’s going to attack. He said so himself when he arrived at the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. We have to do something to protect Heaven from his incursion. So I’ve created a protective spell, but I need more power. More faith. More human belief. I need a group of humans to pray over this.”
“And you want me to… ?”
“I want you to go to Vycanus.”
“The village?” Vycanus is a secret location on Earth, populated by humans who know the true workings of Heaven. Using the same principles of faith and power that Serinh was referring to, we can become visible to them and directly guide their prayer to feed us power to change things on Earth.
“Yes. I want you to talk to the Patron and Matron. Convince them to set aside a small number of people who will pray unceasingly for Heaven to withstand an attack against the forces of Hell. I have an idea to use a physical talisman to bind the spell, but I’ll need to enlist other aid once we have their cooperation secured.”
“Why don’t you do it yourself?” I was truly befuddled.
“Someone from the Council is always watching me. Because of our history, I have reasons to talk to you alone in this room; however, if I go to Vycanus, they’ll find out why and stop me. I need you to do something else for an hour perhaps—walk in the Garden, sit in the Nexus, whatever—and then go to Vycanus.”
She leaned forward. “This is radical. Xanor is furious only one other Seraph agreed with her arguments against sending a Cornerstone to Earth so quickly. The others want to preserve the harmony of the Council, so they’ll stop any new ideas for a while.”
I didn’t like sneaking around behind the Council’s back, even if it was for Serinh. “Won’t someone be following me?”
“Their resources aren’t endless and we’re fighting a war. They’re most interested in me, so they’re watching me.”
I was dubious, but she seemed so earnest, desperate, maybe even frightened. Asking the Vycanums to pray for our success didn’t seem a significant step outside of my assigned duties. “What if I get caught?”
“Say that you’re on a mission for the Council and send them away. Besides, if you’re stopped, it will be by an Attendant. They can’t spare any of the higher-ranked angels. It would raise too many questions. Despite how distrustful we are of one another, we’re all in accordance with keeping a united front toward Heaven.”
I tapped my index fingers together. I didn’t like this nebulous they Serinh kept referring to. Who on the Council opposed her? Perhaps she was inventing this. If she were the Aleph, I could possibly be assisting in its victory. But asking the people of Vycanus to pray for Heaven to withstand an attack against Hell was straight-forward. It couldn’t be twisted.
Could it?
My belief in her sincerity surged with the anxious way she looked at me. Her golden eyes were wide and vulnerable. She started to touch her forehead jewel and then squeezed closed her fist instead.
I had to help her. I could ask the humans to pray in such a w
ay that their power supported Heaven and not the Aleph. If I was wrong, the spell couldn’t do any damage to us.
“I’ll do it,” I said. “I’ll go to Vycanus and ask them to help.”
Serinh stood, hurried around the table, and pulled me into an embrace. “Thank you, Enael. This means so much. I have to prove to them I can do this. It’s the only way I can keep my seat on the Council. Thank you.”
I nodded into her shoulder. I hope I’m making the right choice.
CHAPTER 13
As soon as we parted, I started regretting agreeing to Serinh’s request. Life had been going so well for me that getting involved in someone else’s problem seemed an avoidable invitation for disaster. I flew to the Garden, replaying our conversation, but at no point could I see myself refusing. I wish she hadn’t made me part of this. I landed in the grass and found my familiar spot under the weeping willow. If someone was watching me, they would see me do nothing out of the ordinary.
What if she’s manipulating me? Half-truths seemed to be one of the Seraphim’s weapons.
Despite all that, we couldn’t allow Asorat to win, even if Serinh was the Aleph.
I stewed for an hour, frequently sending out awareness to check if other beings were in the vicinity, something I started doing more frequently after catching Chana spying. At one point, a group of Keepers walked by on a path in the next section of the Garden, but otherwise, I was alone.
“Time to go,” I muttered to myself as I pushed up from the cushion.
I closed my eyes and envisioned the verdant green mountainside that rose above Vycanus. I opened my eyes to watch the weeping willow turn watery and fade to brilliant trees and sapphire sky. Kicking off the ground, I flew above the trees to gaze down at the village. Puffy clouds skidded across the sun.
A voice came from my left. “What are you doing, Enael?”
I banked around to see my former acquaintance Zaponsla, cobalt wings flapping behind her. The scar over her eye gave her glare menace. The last time I saw her was in the streets of the Whitechapel District in London. She and her partner were helping with my unbalanced Victimizer Ward. Because I was muddled from the connection with my human, I’d shouted at them both and run away, half out of my mind.
“I said, ‘What are you doing, Enael?’” She gripped her trident tightly.
“The, er, Council has sent me on a mission.”
“Oh, yes? Have they really?”
“Yes.” My confidence was growing the angrier she seemed. What does she want? I have a right to be here. “What are you doing?”
“Following you.”
“Why?” So much for the other Seraphim sending an Attendant. If they wanted to pick someone with a grudge, Zaponsla was the perfect candidate. She probably hated me.
Her grimace worsened but then she dropped her trident. Before hitting the top of a tree, it disappeared with a flash. A grin broke out across her face. “Oh, I’m just teasing you. Come over here!”
Without waiting for me to obey, she flapped forward and folded me in a huge embrace, squeezing so hard I would have been breathless if I’d been embodied.
She pulled back. “Oh, you. I really convinced you, didn’t I?”
“What… ?” I had no idea what was happening.
“I’m your partner! Didn’t Serinh tell you? When she sent me away, I didn’t want to wait until tomorrow. I had to talk to you today. I’ve been waiting for three months and for no reason! They’ve finally taken me off Vycanus duty.”
I blinked. “So you’re not following me?”
“I suppose I was following you, but not for any nefarious purpose. Why, are you not here for the Council?”
“In a manner of speaking, yes.” I was still lost for words. How much should I tell Zaponsla? She couldn’t be the Aleph, could she? You’re being extremely paranoid, Enael. No. It had to be Asorat, and if not Asorat, one of the other Seraphim.
She’s a Nephil. There’s no way a Nephil is the Aleph.
We floated to the ground, and before I could overthink, the stories spilled out: I told her about killing Nicolas, about killing Voctic, about what Harbinger had told me regarding the Aleph. Once I started talking, I couldn’t stop.
I told her about Kaspen’s second Fall. I told her about choosing to be a Nephil, about how all the other Nephilim hated me, about how I’d been assigned to raise the Dominions, and about how I could feel Chana’s emotions. And finally, I told her what Serinh had asked and then, completely out of order, about how Kaspen had shown up to the signing of the Treaty of Versailles wearing a swastika on his forehead and refusing to acknowledge my existence.
“That’s a lot to take in,” she said after I stopped.
We were sitting cross-legged, a blue flower sprouting from the dirt-covered ground between us. A bird chirped in a nearby tree. Panicking, I sent out a tendril of awareness. We were alone on the mountainside.
“You’re not angry with me?” I asked.
“I have been asking for years to be assigned as your partner. When Talin ascended to Archangel responsible for Vycanus, I was given partner after partner, but they were all boring. You’re the only angel so far that’s made my life interesting.”
Pride bloomed in my chest. Someone missed me, despite the stupid decisions I’d made. And I was “interesting.” “I didn’t mean to chase you away back then. No, that’s not true. I did, but I didn’t know what I was doing.”
“Will I have to keep saying it over and over? I knew Jacqueline was affecting you, and the Council—the Source only knows for what reasons—was pushing you to snap.” She snorted. “Reapers. I suppose someone has to do that work, but they should find volunteers. There have to be some eccentric angels out there who would like that assignment. I mean, after all, we do have Keepers. Those oddities sit in a library all day.”
I laughed. “I wanted to be a Keeper years ago.”
“Enael, I love you, but you’re an oddity, too.”
Only my two former lovers had ever told me they’d loved me. And since then, I’d had plenty of reason to doubt their sincerity. I laughed nervously at Zaponsla’s words—so that I wouldn’t cry.
Then Zaponsla joined in. We both laughed and laughed and laughed some more, until the nearby bird squawked and flew away.
A real friend. And to think I’d felt so alone only an hour ago. My life could change in an instant. “Why didn’t the Council let you be my partner years ago?”
She shrugged. “From what you told me, they really did want you to help with the Dominions.”
“You’re being overly charitable toward them.”
“Yes, well, get used to it. That’s how I am. I like to look for the good in everyone. You have to admit, you did an excellent job raising Chana. They even commended you for bringing her to battles. I don’t know if I would have had the courage to do that. What if something happened to her and she ended up in the Sanctuary? The Comfort Ward?”
“Yes, well, I protected her.” Zaponsla was right, but I didn’t want to think too much about that. I’d done what I needed to do. I stood up and shook out my wings. “It’s getting late. I should talk to the elders soon. Serinh might send someone to check on me if she’s so paranoid about the other Seraphim checking on her.”
“You’re doing the right thing,” said Zaponsla. “This Aleph, whoever it is, has only so much power, and you have to use the information you have. No matter who Serinh is, as a Seraph, she has to protect Heaven, so aiding her is the best course.”
I was relieved to hear that she’d come to the same conclusion I had. It made me feel less alone. “Let’s get down there.”
“Yes, let’s get down there. Partner.”
I grinned.
The Nephilim guarding the village inclined their heads as we descended into the candle-ringed clearing.
“Talin’s probably in the Praetorium preparing defense scenarios,” Zaponsla said. “Otherwise, I’d go get him, too.”
We waited as the power of the Vycanums belief a
llowed us to become visible to them. When the Matron and Patron appeared, I didn’t recognize them. The last time I’d been here was more than a century prior.
Still tingling with the power of the village, I explained what I needed.
“We will do as you ask, Nephil Enael,” said the Patron.
“Would you like to speak with the acolytes?” asked the Matron.
I considered. Do I have anything to say? “Yes, let me speak with them.”
They led us to the village’s center, where the temple rose above us. Inside, the murals that had been under construction the last time I’d visited had been long finished and were cracked and worn. This time, the rendering of a Nephil driving a flaming trident into a ghost-white demon drew my eye. When I’d last been here, I was the Guardian who, on the wall, was saving a villager from a tiger.
We shuffled to the front past the picture of the silver-winged Archangel who looked like my former mentor, Rehniah. She was standing over bowing villagers, hands on their heads, face expressionless.
A dozen acolytes shuffled in, each one stopping in front of a pillow. When the rustling of clothing went silent, the Matron nodded at me.
“Good day, faithful servants,” I said. Despite our disagreements, Rehniah guided me the last two times I’d addressed these humans. “I will be brief before I leave you to your duties.” Am I doing this right? “Your prayers will have an enormous impact on the future of both Heaven and Earth. As you may have heard, we face a threat from a powerful demon named Asorat.”
I decided not to mention the Aleph. My instructions needed to be simple.
“Pray for him to fail. Pray for the Source to prevail. Pray for all other threats, internal and external, to be vanquished as the Source’s power burns away all enemies and cleanses Heaven of evildoers.”
Having reached the end of my eloquence, I stopped myself from tucking my hair behind my ear. It wouldn’t do to look unsure in front of the Vycanums.
“Thank you, sons and daughters,” I said, recalling the address Rehniah had used. “Pray for our victory without ceasing, a dozen of you at all times, from now until the end of this war. You’ll receive further instruction at a later time.”
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