HAGEN: 1. Revelations

by Jadhe HAMILTON

  “But isn't the Universe capable of judging for itself whether or not it’s in a state of equilibrium?”

  “Not always. Sometimes the Sages make better decisions.”

  “Could it be that They’re wrong?”

  “Never.”

  Tara smiled contemptuously. How pretentious these angels were to think that their decisions were superior to those of the Universe.

  “You focus too much on one life,” Diane said in a softer voice. “You need to look at the whole picture, over several generations. A single human being can traumatize entire generations. One decision can create inequalities over hundreds of years. It only takes one life to scar humanity, but it takes centuries to recover. This child will become a monster whose actions will have consequences that will last for over a hundred and fifty years. Humanity doesn't need that.”

  Tara reflected for a moment as she watched the river slowly flowing by.

  “I don't agree with you,” she finally answered. “I just can’t explain why yet.”

  “You don't have to agree with me,” replied Diane in her empress's voice. “Your human brain is limited by your social norms and education. It’s unable to grasp the notion of Good as perceived by the Congregation. Perhaps one day you’ll understand and accept it. In the meantime, you mustn’t oppose the will of the Sages.”

  Her words resounded like a blow to Tara's stomach. She now understood that if things had been like this for millennia, it wasn’t she, Tara Châvigner, who was going to be able to change anything. Maybe Diane was right after all. Maybe her human brain couldn’t understand that sacrifices had to be made for the greater good. She now realized the magnitude of the consequences of her act and was overcome by a terrible anxiety:

  “Will the Congregation kill us?”

  “I don't know.”

  “If they come for us, what are we going to do? Will we fight?”

  “No, we won't fight. If They think it's our time to be annihilated, then we will be. We shouldn’t resist. We only exist because They created us. Let’s just wait and see.”

  Tara was having trouble breathing. Her head was spinning and her limbs were weak. She imagined Enkaz's shadow coming to destroy her. She didn't want to die.

  Dizzy, she sat on the river bank lost in her thoughts, losing all notion of time. All she desired now was to disappear under the water rather than face the guard's sword.

  It was only in the late afternoon that she finally came back to herself, her buttocks sore from being crushed against the cold hard stones for hours on end. Mechanically, she got up and staggered to the apartment, dragging herself all the way. She would wait for the next steps.

  When she arrived at Van der Worthen's, everyone was gathered in the living room waiting for her return. As they were accustomed to doing after every mission, they wanted to celebrate their victory. When she saw the six faces looking at her, their ten eyes wide with expectation, she felt her discomfort grow. How could the murder of an infant be celebrated? If they only knew... Soon they would lose their seraph forever.

  The first to express herself was Emily, who stood up to grab her and hug her, her face radiant. She whispered in her ear:

  “Welcome home Tara.”

  A shiver ran down her spine. Then, Mark, John and Hugo all stood up to kiss her:

  “Champagne!” cried the young surgeon, as he spread his arms.

  Stanislas sat on the sofa staring at her with his two empty eye sockets, smiling. The only person who wasn’t rejoicing was Nina, who sat at the piano staring at her with a sullen face. She seemed more devastated than ever. However, Tara didn’t know if it was because the mission had been accomplished or because she knew she had failed.

  “Any news from the Sphere?” asked Emily hopefully.

  Tara, unable to speak, simply nodded while looking away.

  “Don't worry,” continued Emily in a motherly voice. “The big news should arrive there soon.”

  Emily sat back on the couch and looked at Tara, full of hope. Completely at a loss for words, Tara remained standing in front of them for a short while, attempting to flee their enthusiastic glances.

  But, very quickly, seeing how joyful their faces were following the hypothetical massacre of an infant became unbearable to her. Without saying a word, she left the living room and took refuge in her bedroom. Once there, she threw herself down on the bed, hid her face in the thick duvet and cried uncontrollably. She was going to be annihilated because she hadn’t had the courage to kill a baby. What kind of angels were these Sages anyway?

  A few seconds later, she felt Max's light footsteps on the bed as he came to comfort her. The Persian jostled her with his little head hoping to dry her tears, but to no avail. The presence of the little cat only reminded her of the child, opening her wound even wider. She sent Emily and all those who tried to come and talk to her away, preferring to be alone to better contemplate the horror of her fate. Perhaps if she faced it, she would find her fate less unpleasant.

  Later in the evening, when she had no tears left to cry, she finally fell asleep, exhausted, and hungry.

  She was standing in a field by the sea on the cliffs of Normandy. The wind from the sea whipped her face and blew through her hair in a noisy howl. The shimmering wet grass covered the huge field that stretched over the cliff as far as the eye could see. The blue-grey sky partially masked the sun with its thick clouds.

  Tara looked up: in front of her, far in the distance stood a gigantic angel with red wings. Dressed in a long white toga, she turned her back to her as she contemplated the sea. Tara observed the angel for a few seconds before refocusing on herself: the wind of the English Channel was blowing with such force that it seemed to rid her of all her impurities. She relished the sensation for a few moments while taking in the wonderful scenery. Then, she looked back towards the angel who was still standing there in the distance, on the edge of the cliff. Captivated, she walked towards her without thinking, her bare feet sinking into the long soft grass with every step.

  When she arrived next to her, she looked up and discovered Diane’s majestic and determined profile. Her golden hair was tied into a thick bun. Although the seraph was almost twice her size, she looked just like her. The only difference was her force. She was much stronger than Tara, with a heavier bone structure and much more self-confidence.

  “I want to show you something,” said Diane, without taking her eyes off the sea.

  Their surroundings immediately changed. They were now in a Chinese restaurant. A young uniformed student was eating her soup while reading a medical book.

  “This is Tao Ni Shang. She will become a stem cell researcher,” Diane said, as she stood next to the girl. “She will find a cure that will change the future of humanity forever.”

  Tara watched the young woman eat as she stood beside Diane, not saying a word.

  “In the year 1527, my missionaries killed her former incarnation because he was preparing to murder a child who would also have brought great solutions to humanity. Two eras, two incarnations, two destinies. She doesn't blame us for having eliminated her in her previous incarnation.”

  Then, the scenery changed again. They were now in a small room, standing behind a man who was working on his computer:

  “Edouard Marc, married, four children, entrepreneur. He helps communities in their development. A millennium earlier, he was a child-trafficker in what is now modern-day Italy. We killed him and his partners before the network became too big. We dismantled what was on the brink of becoming the largest prostitution ring of all time.”

  Once again, their environment changed. They were back to square one, on the cliffs of Normandy.

  “I understand now,” Tara said as she looked out on to the sea, struggling to keep her eyes open as the powerful wind beat against her face.

  “There are thousands of examples like this. It's true that the human world isn’t perfect, far from it... But it could have been worse.”

  “The Earth isn’t in
very good shape,” replied Tara. “Each era has its tyrants, its martyrs, its injustices. And yet, you claim to be working for the good of Humanity. Do you sincerely believe that your work is bearing fruit?”

  “The only way to find out would be to stop interfering and to abandon Mankind to what the Universe foresees for them, and to the cruel tyranny of the demons. Without our intervention, Lucifer would rule the Earth.”

  “Why don't you just fight the demons then?”

  “Because it's a whole. The guards were designed specifically to fight the forces of Evil. Michael, our commander in chief, the Great Seraph, is an excellent warrior. I trust him completely. I know he fights demons in the best way possible. But it isn’t enough: there are many cases where demons take over the human mind, or influence the destiny of totally innocent men, like this Thomas Fernand that Nina and Hugo eliminated in front of you. Because we, the missionaries, watch over the incarnations, it’s up to us to deal with these kinds of situations. We leave the demons to the guards as much as possible.”

  Tara lifted her head. The sky had darkened and the angry grey waves were breaking against the cliffs with greater force.

  “The child from today’s mission wasn’t a demon,” she remarked with disapproval. “His fate was foretold by the Universe itself. It wasn’t altered by the intervention of a spirit.”

  “Yes, that’s true. Nonetheless, a destiny that has a devastating effect on Mankind is dealt with in the same way as a demonic destiny. You need to have faith in the Congregation,” Diane continued faithfully. “By doing so, we sometimes intervene against the will of the Universe... But for the greater Good.”

  “Good as perceived by the angels.”

  “The Universe doesn’t care whether humans are happy or unhappy. What matters to the Universe is that all things are let be... It gives souls the possibility to evolve from incarnation to incarnation, despite the errors they could make or the wounds they could cause to the world at large... In contrast, we, the angels, don’t wish to see terrible crimes taking place on Earth. No one loves humans more than the angels.”

  “That’s hard to believe when I see how you slaughter them.”

  “First of all, we don’t slaughter them: we eliminate the bodies of harmful incarnations but we protect their souls, thereby giving them a second chance. The work of the Missionaries and the Guards is the most unforgiving and the most difficult. On the contrary, the Light Angels, the angels in charge of answering human prayers, and of protecting them and accompanying them in their day-to-day lives, are angels that fit the caring and compassionate image that human beings have of us. They’re the ones that people see when they pray. Just as the missionaries eliminate harmful destinies, the light angels protect the destinies that are good for Humanity by opening doors for them and by protecting them from certain dangers... When an evil threat hangs over a positive human destiny, the light angels call upon the guards or the missionaries to remove the danger from the path of their protégé... The guards take action directly from the parallel dimension, while the missionaries act in secret, from here on Earth. However, everything we do, whether we’re guards, missionaries or light angels, we do it for the good of Humanity as a whole.”

  Tara frowned. At her feet, the dark water crashed violently against the chalky cliffs. Although she had listened attentively to the seraph’s words, she remained perplexed:

  “I’m finding it hard to believe that the Universe would create destinies that are harmful to Mankind. I believe in something greater, something more beautiful...”

  “And you’re right, for the Universe doesn’t decide on the fate of souls,” replied the seraph gravely. “It simply allows souls to act on their own free will. Their incarnations are authorized, even though the Universe is aware of the very high probability that certain souls may take decisions that will sweep away everything in their path once on Earth.”

  “Why would the Universe authorize such incarnations?”

  “Because the Universe accepts and loves all beings equally, whether they are doing Good or Evil, for it’s the Universe that created them. The aim of all souls who incarnate is to discover themselves and to increase their level of consciousness from lifetime to lifetime. They’re all given the chance to find the path to Good on their own. Thus, in the eyes of the Universe, there is no fatalism. It believes in the possibility, however small, that a soul can transcends its murderous destiny... and even if it doesn’t, it considers that the soul’s passage on Earth, no matter how destructive, will have been a precious learning experience...”

  “An apprenticeship that would have cost the lives of several thousand living beings,” said Tara, surprised.

  “Yes. That’s why the Congregation opposes certain decisions made by the Universe. In the eyes of the Sages, the number prevails over the individual. Thus, if an incarnation is judged harmful, it is eliminated before it can destroy everything in its path.”

  They were silenced by a strong gust of wind. Closing her eyes, Diane savored the sensation of the fresh and powerful wind against her face. Tara, who was standing beside her, looked at her with a respect, but also with perplexity.

  Suddenly, she saw the seraph open her eyes and stare at the horizon with a disquieting look:

  “Can you feel it?”

  Tara felt her blood freeze over. Her senses on alert, she didn't dare move.

  Then, with the grandeur of a queen, she saw Diane turn around. With her heart beating wildly, Tara did the same, only to discover, several yards away from them, a gigantic and cadaverous grey angel with emaciated skin and big, black and gold bulging eyes, staring at them with a smile.

  “You two are very endearing,” he began, opening his slender anthracite wings. “I don't know whether I feel pity or compassion. I must admit that your annihilation will upset me… ever so slightly.”

  Tara froze, not knowing what to say. Diane, who acknowledged her failure, didn't respond either.

  “Your human is truly exemplary in her kindness,” laughed Enkaz with delight. “Too bad it wasn't enough. Fortunately, the child was killed by a more reliable group of missionaries. He’s dead and soon to be buried.”

  Tara choked. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes and couldn't hold them back. The little baby she had held in her arms, the fragile being to whom she had given so much love for the years to come was dead. The angels hadn't given him a chance.

  “But thanks to your failure,” Enkaz said in a smooth voice, “we now know that we can no longer count on you...”

  “I demand a new mission,” Diane replied, as if a second chance was due to her.

  Enkaz, with his excessively cruel demeanor, was content to give her an amused grin:

  “I don't think you're in a position to make demands.”

  “I'm asking for a new mission,” the seraph insisted, “a more difficult one. Allow the Decision-Makers to put us to the test...”

  She was interrupted by the irritating laughter of the guard:

  “Why would They give you a second chance when you couldn’t even prove yourself worthy of the easiest mission in the world?”

  “Just ask Them.”

  Enkaz frowned, wrinkling his already contorted eyebrows, while looking at Diane inquisitively.

  The seraph didn’t back down. With her chin raised, she stared proudly into Enkaz's eyes without batting an eyelid. Their duel lasted several seconds, during which time Tara alternately looked at the missionary and at the guard, her heart growing with admiration for the audacious warrior who dwelled within her. Provoking him in this way, she looked like an empress ordering her rival to bow down. She was noble and she was strong. Standing by her side, Tara felt safe. Soon, she too faced Enkaz's gaze with much more assurance. Nonetheless, she couldn’t help but be fascinated by this great black angel. He was so tall, so thin and so threatening.

  Suddenly, Enkaz's face softened slightly, as his withered skin hung around his bulging eyes. He seemed ready to cooperate:

  “You
r timing is good,” he began, not without a certain irony. “We happen to have another mission... Originally it wasn't for you and your missionaries, but I think...”

  “Is this an official mission?” interrupted Diane coldly, sensing that something suspicious was going on.

  “Am I not one of the official messengers of the Decision-Makers?”

  “Then why did you wait so long to tell me?”

  “Do you want this mission or not Diane?”

  Tara saw Diane pinch her lips. She could feel the seraph’s skepticism. She didn’t want to be manipulated, but she knew she was no longer entitled to make demands.

  Finally, she decided to trust Enkaz, leaving her destiny in his hands. He was her only hope to return to the Decision-Makers:

  “I'm listening,” she said defiantly.

  “In the Dominican convent, three nuns have become pregnant following their forbidden relations with the priest of the chapel. All three of them carry demons that will incarnate for a purpose that we don’t yet know. One of them has already given birth, and the other two will not be long in coming. You must eliminate these three infants as soon as possible.”

  The dark angel stared intensely at Diane, but she remained impassive. He grinned, revealing his blood-red gums and his long, razor-sharp teeth. After a few seconds of silence, he opened his dark, sinister wings and flew towards the seraph, landing gently on the grass next to her. Tara trembled as she saw him approach.

  Diane, who stood straight and proud, raised her chin in his direction. With extreme care, Enkaz put his long skeletal hand on her forehead while slowly turning his monstrous face towards Tara, staring at her with his cruel eyes. She felt like she would melt on the spot.

  With the same slowness, he approached her forehead with his other hand. Her heart was beating so fast she thought it would jump out of her chest. She didn’t dare move.

  Then, the second his cold, bony hand touched her, she was given immediate access to all the information provided by the Congregation: she could clearly see the faces of the three nuns whose offspring she was to eliminate. She knew everything about them: their names, their history, and how and why they had become pregnant. She had seen the demons inside their bellies and knew how to access the convent to eliminate them.