by Debra Dunbar
“Revisiting the open items from the last meeting, first on the agenda is the opportunity for Fallen Angels to be reinstated into Aaru upon completion of a program of penance and the approval via a quorum vote of the Ruling Council,” Gabriel announced.
I wrestled with my papers and tried to read the six hundred point penance program. Looked pretty horrible to me, but I wasn’t one to deny an angel the chance to return to Aaru if that’s what they really wanted. Heck, the more Fallen that returned, the easier my job would be. Although at this point all I had was Nils and I wasn’t sure how enthusiastic he’d be about this program. He still seemed pretty bummed about Nyalla. Maybe what he really needed was a demon to hook up with. It was a shame that Infernal Mates had been sidelined for the time being, although I guess I could match him up on my own. Technically he was mine to do with what I wanted and no longer under angelic rule. Now, to find the right demon for my Nils. Dregvant hadn’t been any sort of prize in my book, but Nils had been two signatures away from a breeding contract with that repulsive scum. If that’s where he set the bar as far as demon lovers, then maybe he’d be interested in meeting some of my Low.
Although perhaps his criteria for a baby-momma wasn’t the same as what he’d want in a partner. Hmm. Wouldn’t hurt to introduce him to a few and see what he thought.
“All in favor?”
I stuck my hand up in the air, although I hadn’t really been paying attention to the discussion.
“She doesn’t get to vote on affairs internal to Aaru,” Goldilocks complained.
I shrugged and lowered my hand. Technically he was right. The Fallen might belong to me, but whether they were given the chance to go back to Aaru or not wasn’t really my business. Just like the angels wouldn’t get a vote on whether a demon was allowed to return to Hel or not.
“Excellent.” Gabriel shuffled his papers, snatching one back out of midair as the wind ripped it from his grasp. “The next open item was the position on the Ruling Council for the Iblis.”
“Do I get a vote on that since I’m the subject of this particular agenda item?” I asked.
“All in favor of the Iblis on the Ruling Council?” Three angels nodded. “Against?” Three others nodded.
“In a case of an even vote, the treaty item will remain unchanged,” Gabriel announced. “The Iblis stays on the Ruling Council.”
“And the next agenda item?” New New Guy asked. He had a rather smug smile on his face. I didn’t like it one bit.
And I didn’t like the next agenda item one bit either.
“All seats on the Ruling Council become popular vote seats. Each choir has a right to be represented by an angel they feel can best put forth their issues and concerns. A chairman will be voted in among those on the council, also by popular vote throughout Aaru.”
“I think we know how voting is going to go on this one,” Gregory drawled.
“You’ve been an advocate for change lately,” Goldilocks observed. “Well, it’s time for a change in our leadership. Yes, I know how voting is going to go on this item, but regardless, we will prevail. Either by vote, or by force.”
“That sounds suspiciously like a threat,” Raphael commented.
“That’s because it is,” Goldilocks replied.
I held my breath, waiting for a fight to break out. I could feel the energy building up between the angels.
“All in favor,” Gabriel said, breaking the tension. Three nodded. “Against.” Three nodded.
Again a tie that would result in no change. But Goldilocks was right, it was just a matter of time. Things were coming to a head with three new Ruling Council members who were openly defiant toward Gregory and his brothers. I wished we’d go back to the boring meetings where everyone was uber polite and I snoozed through six hours of mundane topics. Normally I loved a good fight, but I was increasingly concerned this wasn’t a fight that my angel and his siblings were going to win.
“The next agenda item…” Gabriel made a choking noise and looked up from the meeting agenda, exchanging a shocked glance with Gregory. “The next agenda item deals with the guidance of humans going forward and proposes that the angels leave their positive evolution to the elves and return to Aaru.”
I nearly fell off the mountain in surprise. What the fuck? We’d carefully hidden the elves’ presence from the angels. Did one of the Grigori squeal? Gregory did warn me that as loyal as they were, some still felt greater ties to the heads of their choir than him. Or perhaps the Vampires spilled the beans, irritated that I wouldn’t let them descend on my field and eat the remaining forty-three elves.
Or maybe they’d known all along. There were the rumors that an angel had worked with the elves. An angel let Little Red over from his home. Had an angel been involved with the migration of higher elves in key places months, or perhaps years ago? If so, who the fuck was this angel? Because he really needed to die.
“The Iblis is lying about the elves, and now she’s not lying about the elves.” Rafi could have won an award for his sarcasm. “Which is it? Have you see any? If they’d come across one of the major gateways, the Grigori would have sent word about their change in heart. Or do you think they’re sneaking through in little groups here and there, hiding among the humans?”
That was a little close to home. New New Guy didn’t respond. He just grinned and did something with one of his hands, as if he were flagging down a taxi.
There was a flash of light and we all hit the deck. Well, I hit the deck. Gregory drew his sword. The other angels on the Ruling Council gaped. New New Guy continued to grin like a fucking Cheshire Cat. The light spread out and upward into a gateway, and I held my breath. I’d seen too many of these lately, and although it was weird that a gate would open right in the middle of a Ruling Council meeting, it wasn’t completely out of the realm of what was possible.
Just in case something horrible was about to appear, I stayed down on the ground. What came through wasn’t a manticore or a dragon, but something far worse—an elf. Actually a whole posse of elves, decked to the nines and glowing. I’d never seen elves glow before, and wondered what kind of magical spell they’d come up with to give them that holier-than-thou halo effect.
“We have returned,” the glowiest one boomed, smiling like a televangelist about ready to ask for donations. “After an eternity in Hel, we have seen the error our ancestors made and are here to beg forgiveness and lend our knowledge and skills to guide the humans. I am Elyan. And I have been chosen to be the liaison between the Alliance of Elven Kingdoms and the Ruling Council of Angels.”
Eternity my ass. That Elyan elf didn’t look any more than eight thousand years old. I’d hardly consider that an eternity. Their saccharine speech made me want to gag, but it had the opposite effect on the angels. The three newbies jumped to their feet, exclaiming how this was just the moment they’d prayed for. I swear I heard harps and halleluiahs. Gregory sheathed his sword, a wary expression on his face. Rafi seemed fascinated by the whole elven party. Gabe scowled, although with him that was a normal facial expression. Resting Scowl Face.
“Why are you glowing?” Rafi asked, his lips twitching. “Has Hel suddenly become incredibly radioactive? Were you sprinkled with fairy dust?”
The elves recoiled in unison at the mention of fairies.
“They don’t glow in Hel,” I added, stepping up beside Rafi. “And I’ve seen plenty of elves in the last few days to know they don’t glow here either.”
“It’s a spell,” Elyon admitted. “It will help in making ourselves known to the humans.”
I suddenly understood. Glowing elves wouldn’t be mistaken for escapees from the Renaissance Fair, or crazy college kids on holiday. Glowing elves would throw the humans off base, give the invaders a chance to present themselves as a superior species here to “help.”
It was like every alien B-grade horror movie ever made. And this story was going to have the same ending.
“You’re not a High Lord.” I’ll admit my tone w
as rather hostile. “I know you’ve all unified as some kind of United Elven Alliance, but you still have High Lords running the show, and you’re not one of them. Why would the elves insult the Ruling Council by sending some peon to be their liaison? Bring me a High Elf.”
“I’m sure they are busy seeing to the migration of their people,” Usurper snapped at me. “This is strictly their messenger.”
“Which is better than an e-mail or a burning bush,” I said. “But he’s still a peon.”
Elyon glared at me. “The High Lords are preparing.”
“Preparing what?” I urged. “I’ve dealt with four different groups of elves over the last few days and there wasn’t a High Lord among them. Do they plan to send you all ahead like spear fodder? To test the waters before they risk their necks coming over?”
“You speak of the humans as though they are savages,” Usurper argued. “Admittedly I have no direct experience with them, but from the reports they seem to be tractable and easily led. And the elves are no cowards. I’m sure the High Lords are preparing their people for the task ahead.”
Task ahead. I narrowed my eyes. “So the High Lords are all still in Hel? Please answer truthfully as you are before the Ruling Council.” Where I was the only one allowed to lie. Just me.
“What exactly are you accusing them of?” New New Guy demanded. “First you demean their messenger, then you insinuate that he is a liar.”
“Yep. He’s a peon and elves lie. Now, are the High Lords all in Hel or not?” I asked again, this time more forcefully.
Elyon shuffled his feet, the glow dimming slightly. “Not all of them are in Hel. Some High Lords have been here walking among the humans for months, learning their ways and gaining their trust.”
My breath stopped. They’d been here for months. I’d been chasing red herrings the last two days, while the power players among the elves had been setting up camp, no doubt masquerading as humans. How long had this been going on? How long had elves been coming through the gates, stealthily gathering information and inserting themselves quietly into human society?
“Splendid!” Goldilocks clapped his hands. “See? And it won’t take thousands of years for the elves to learn their way around. It won’t even take a year. They are already prepared and will probably only need a few months of supervision before we can leave them in charge.”
Oh no. No, no, no. “Where?” I choked out. “Where are they? Who are they?”
Elyon smirked. “Rest assured that our High Lords here have taken every precaution. They have approached the leaders of several of the human countries, and spent time promising them that we are simply here to help—that we can solve so many of their problems and guide them to a peaceful existence. The High Lords have been careful not to cause panic among the masses, and as a result of their efforts, fifteen human countries are now prepared to reveal our existence and accept us as advisors and leaders.”
“Amazing coincidence given the agenda item we are just about to discuss.” New New Guy still had that smug smile on his face. He waved an imperious hand toward Gabriel. “Go on. I believe we were just about to address something important. And how timely that Elyon is here to add input to our discussion.”
Yes. How timely. I ground my teeth and watched while Gabriel turned his scowl to the agenda.
“This next topic involves the land of the humans and their guidance towards positive evolution and enlightenment.”
“Now that the elves are returning, we can phase out our involvement,” Usurper said.
“Exactly,” Gregory jumped in. “Of course, the elves are completely unfamiliar with the human world, their culture and way of life. A few months is not enough time to learn all they need to know. I, as head of the Grigori am proposing a special program to get them up to speed. I estimate we can begin introducing elves into human civilization within ten thousand years and complete the handover within fifty thousand years.”
“One month.” Usurper asserted. “One. Elves are bright and have shown a remarkable ability to be adaptive. They have to have been adaptive to have lived so long side by side with the demons. I see no reason for it to take ten thousand years for them to learn the human world, especially if, as the Iblis says, they have been exposed to humans in Hel. One month to complete handover. I’m sure some can begin their work with only a few days of training.”
Elyon nodded in agreement. I caught my breath. A month. No, no, no. This was so wrong. Everything I’d worked for—we’d worked for—over the last few years was going to shit. In days the cleverest and most powerful elves would begin their world-domination plans right under the angels’ approving noses. In one month, there’d be no oversight at all as Aaru turned themselves away from the humans and left it all to the elves.
In one month I’d be left with a mess, with powerful elves who’d enslaved a planet full of people. And as bad-ass as I liked to think I’d become, I couldn’t stop them alone.
I glanced over at Gregory. We need to find a way to keep the angels involved. If we can’t hold to the original timeline, we need a reason that the Grigori at least need to stay and monitor things.
I agree. “We need to think seriously about our responsibility toward the humans,” Gregory said thoughtfully. “After the tenth choir…a lot of the problems in the human world are due to our mistakes early on. It’s not fair to leave the elves to rectify all that—it may negatively impact their own positive evolution. Until we are certain the humans have overcome the problems that arose due to our errors, we cannot in good conscious abandon them to others.”
“Just as we agreed to with the reinstatement of the Fallen, we need some sort of program with milestones to assess elven readiness to take over with the humans. And even after they assume leadership, we need oversight until certain criteria are met,” Raphael said.
There was a flurry of arguments.
“All in favor of the one month timetable with a review each week to ensure the handover is on track?” Usurper asked.
Three raised their hands.
“There needs to be the potential to extend the deadline if needed,” Gabe argued. “I can’t vote for a one month handover without ensuring that milestones are met in keeping with that timetable.”
I’d never loved all the angels’ bureaucratic nonsense more than I did right now. Or loved Gabe more than I did right now. He was saving our bacon, and he was doing it in a sneaky, non-confrontational, Kafkaesque manner that was all Gabe.
“One month to handover with weekly monitoring of milestones and the ability to extend or shorten the timeline depending on success,” New New Guy said with a nod toward Gabriel.
Four raised their hands. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I hated that Gabe had sided with those assholes, but understood that this small compromise was delaying what the rebel angels would end up demanding by force soon enough. And delay was what we needed. I had to figure out what was going on with the High Elves, and get my small demon army in place for the battle. We weren’t ready today. We would be ready tomorrow.
“Given our vote on that agenda item, I’d like to hear what the elves have to say about their intentions and plans.” Usurper shot me a scathing glance. “The Iblis has cast doubt about their motives. Let’s hear what this elf has to say.”
Elyon smiled. He was pretty when he smiled, for an elf, that is. “Ancient Revered Ones, Members of the Ruling Council, I am honored to be in your presence. Please allow me to present our proposal. I think you’ll find that we can assist you in helping the humans toward positive evolution, and at the same time improve our own vibration patterns. The last few million years in Hel have done great damage to the elven race. We have tried to hold on to our grace, but we struggle being constantly in the presence of such temptation and sin. We long to rejoin the angels and once again walk toward the light. And what better way to do that than to assist the humans?”
Really? Did this asshole just throw me and the demons under the bus? Hel had done great damage to thei
r vibration patterns, had it? Well, that was nothing compared to what I was going to do to this guy’s vibration pattern—once he helped me get rid of the rest of the elves, that is. If this was the game of dirty politics we were going to play, then elf-boy was going to lose. No one played dirty politics like I did. And two years on the Ruling Council had only improved my mad skillz.
Thankfully, Gregory wasn’t fooled either. I’ll chalk that one up to my bad influence and sinful ways. He would have lapped that shit up a few years ago, but now he scowled at the elf, his arms still across his chest.
“So tell me exactly how you plan to assist the humans?” the archangel asked.
Elyon nodded. “Of course. First we intend to stop the deplorable cycle of violence that the humans are currently trapped in. No wars. No muggings, rapes, shootings, or stabbings. We’ll instill in them the value of hard work, of respect and consideration for one another. We’ll reduce the sins of jealousy and greed by ensuring that every human has equitable amounts of food, clothing, shelter and material goods.”
Right. I could read between the lines. Slaves knew the value of hard work, and had equitable, miniscule amounts of food, clothing, shelter and material goods. And half-starved, beaten-down, frightened humans found it difficult to fight back, especially when the price for fighting was death.
“What if the humans don’t want this?” I asked. “Do they get a vote? I’m not thrilled about the angelic oversight of their ‘evolution’ and I’m even less thrilled about elven oversight. When do the humans get to manage their own affairs?”
“When they stop killing each other,” Goldilocks replied, his voice stern.
“You kill each other,” I pointed out. “Isn’t there a war in Aaru? And some assholes attacked us a couple of Ruling Council meetings ago. They weren’t exactly shooting Nerf weapons either. And the elves aren’t models of pious virtue. They just had a big fucking war in Hel, and they’re second only to dragons when it comes to greed.”