HAGEN: 1. Revelations

by Jadhe HAMILTON

  When he felt that Julie was under control, Stanislas resumed his prayer. Again, Julie’s body contracted, but Tara held her firmly in place. The demon didn’t stand a chance against Diane.

  “Destroy this damn demon!” she ordered.

  Julie let out a terrifying scream. Nina approached holding her bow in her hands. Stanislas continued reading. Julie’s movements became more and more violent, and her cries, less and less human.

  When he finished reciting the first verse, Julie suddenly calmed down and her muscles relaxed. The room fell into a deep silence. Emily held her breath, horrified. Suddenly, Julie began to imitate a crying infant. Everyone looked at her, not understanding what was going on.

  “What’s wrong with her?” Tara worried.

  “I’m not finished yet. The demon is trying to communicate with us,” answered Stanislas, his index finger already on the second verse.

  “Make it talk!” ordered Tara.

  “I’m trying too.”

  Concentrated on his reading, he began to recite the second verse. At that point, the infant cries became louder and louder. Tara was both horrified and enraged to see her niece in this state. Towards the end of the second verse, the demon began to implore.

  “Diane,” he said in a small, pleading voice.

  Tara looked at him without saying anything, indicating to Stanislas that he could continue his prayer.

  “Diane, would you kill your own child?” the demon continued, speaking through Julie’s mouth.

  “Julie isn’t my child,” she retorted, staring at him angrily.

  The demon replied, in a deep and painful voice:

  “He wants to see you.”

  “Who?” she snapped.

  “Tendor.”

  She froze as her memories started to come back to the surface. Helpless, she watched as the demon took over again with greater confidence:

  “He’s waiting for you in the Dominican convent...”

  Suddenly, Julie seemed to be suffocating as she fought to regain control of herself. A deadly silence reigned around her. Everyone looked at her in horror. She spent several agonizing seconds fighting against her invader, but it was the evil spirit that took over in the end:

  “Your friends aren’t welcome.”

  On these words, Julie’s belly began to move under her dress, as if something inside her was trying to get out. Stanislas prepared to read the third verse, but when Julie saw that he was preparing to resume, her stomach suddenly returned to normal. Calmly, Julie turned to Tara again and continued in a sweet child-like voice:

  “This child won’t rest until all of this is settled. If I’m no longer with her, another demon will come. She won’t be set free.”

  Stanislas began to read the third verse, but Tara interrupted him:

  “Stop torturing her. There’s nothing you can do to help her.”

  Stanislas turned his mortified face towards her. She stood up and continued:

  “I have to go to Tendor. I need to know what he wants from me. It’s the only way the demon will leave Julie’s body.”

  “How can you be so sure?” Hugo replied, cautiously. “Do you really want to risk your life on a whim?”

  “If my memory serves me right,” replied Tara, “Tendor is an original seraph, brother of the Decision-Makers. If he calls me to him, I have no choice but to comply.”

  “But he’s a fallen angel,” Emily reminded her. “He rules an entire kingdom in Hell. He’s our enemy Tara.”

  “He lives with the demons, but he’s not one of them,” she answered as she headed for the exit, despite Emily and Hugo’s warnings. “This demon must belong to him. If I want to save my niece, I have to meet with him.”

  “I’m coming with you,” Nina said, taking her jacket.

  “That’s out of the question,” Tara exclaimed, turning abruptly towards her.

  “I know Tendor as well as you do. Maybe even better.”

  “That’s impossible.”

  “Tara, you could find yourself in a situation that’s much worse than you expect once you go in there. You need my help.”

  “You almost got yourself killed in that convent!” Tara reminded her, shocked by her recklessness.

  “It’ll be different this time. The demons won’t harm us if Tendor himself has invited you.”

  Tara’s response was categoric, but Nina didn’t waver.

  “We’re all coming with you,” said John as he approached them.

  “No, you’re staying here with the others,” Nina ordered dryly, pushing him away with one hand.

  “I’ll make this very clear,” replied Tara, threatening them with her eyes. “If one of you decides to follow us, I’ll kill him with my own two hands.”

  Then she turned to Nina:

  “Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

  “Believe me, Diane and Thece need to do this together. I know what Tendor wants from us. I know why he put that demon into your niece’s body.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Tara,” interrupted Emily. “Do you have any idea what you’re getting yourself into?”

  In response, Tara stared at Emily with an almost arrogant assurance. But, as the seconds passed, she realized she had no idea what Tendor wanted from her.

  “Why are you asking me that? Do you know what he wants?” she asked after a short silence.

  Then, it was as if a second Revelation was about to strike her: Hugo, John, and Mark all stood around her, looking at her with grim faces. They knew. There was something else they hadn’t told her, something she hadn’t yet recovered the memory of. She felt her heart racing in her chest.

  “What’s going on Emily?” she asked, trying to stay calm.

  “Tell me,” Emily began softly, “what exactly do you remember?”

  Tara wanted to scream. From the beginning, she felt like she was a burden to the group because of her amnesia. When she finally thought she had regained her memory and her dignity, she was suddenly reminded that she still didn’t know her whole past.

  “I don’t know Emily!” she finally replied, annoyed. “I have memories of Tendor, in front of me, smiling and welcoming me. But that’s all I remember. I don’t know why I was with him, or where we met. I don’t know what he wants from me, or why he sent that demon into my niece’s body. I really don’t know Emily!”

  Tara was desperate.

  Delicately, Emily approached her and held her hand. Fed up of all the secrets, Tara followed her to the sofa. They both sat down.

  Calmly, the archangel began:

  “Tara, I’m sure you’ve noticed how distant we are from the Sphere.”

  Tara stared at Emily without blinking an eye. The next part of the story didn’t bode well.

  “There are many theories about the creation of the world and the origin of Good and Evil,” Emily continued in the same soft voice. “Are the Angels universally good? If a choice is offered to us, it’s because Good and Evil already exist. Evil finds its essence in the very existence of free will, which is an admirable concept as you certainly know. However, Tara, if the Angels also have free will over their actions, they too can be tempted to make the wrong choices. They too have the right to refuse to walk in unison. They too can refuse the rigid order that was imposed on them at birth. Some of them may have had a different conception of what Good really is. That’s precisely what happened to Tendor.”

  Emily paused. Tara became more and more concerned about what she would find out next: were her closest allies enemies of the Congregation?

  “Unlike the angel Satan who left the Sphere out of jealousy towards human beings,” continued Emily, “Tendor left the Sages because he refused to submit to what he considered to be an angelic dictatorship. This illustrious original seraph, who participated in the creation of the Kingdom of the Angels and witnessed the establishment of the Congregation long before we were even created, never agreed to conform to a world in which he felt trapped. Although many angels don’t know th
is, the Congregation didn’t always exist. In the Beginning, there was only Love and Light in the Universe... Then, one day, the intelligent force of Love that extended to the four corners of the Universe, decided to create the Angels. It created them in the same way that Man was created: with free will. Because without free will, Tara, there is no Love.”

  Emily looked at Tara tenderly. She believed completely in what she was saying. Thus, there was no longer any doubt in Tara’s mind: Emily was on Tendor’s side.

  “You’re his ally?” interrupted Tara, who feared she was in the face of a traitor.

  “No,” reassured Emily in a firm voice. “I’m your ally. I’m in favor of you taking back your position at the head of the Fifth Legion and guiding us in our mission on Earth, a mission for which we were all created. I didn’t think Tendor would ever return to the surface. Until a few weeks ago, I never thought this story would ever come back to haunt us.”

  “What do you mean? Emily, what did you do in the past that’s making you sound like an enemy of the Sphere right now?”

  “As far as I’m concerned Tara, I’ve never done anything incriminating. However, I would follow Diane anywhere. All of us here would sacrifice anything to protect you Tara. Everything I know about your past I learned from Thece when he returned to the Sphere under my command two hundred and thirty-six years ago.”

  Wide-eyed, Tara turned towards Nina and looked at her gravely.

  “Whatever you decide, whatever side you’re on, we’ll support you,” Emily said forcefully. “If you choose Tendor, I’ll leave the Decision-Makers and stand by you.”

  “What are you talking about?” exclaimed Tara, outraged. “Tendor is an enemy of the Congregation! I’m a seraph of the Fifth Legion! I would never be the ally of an enemy of our Fathers!”

  They all lowered their eyes. Julie was still sitting on the sofa with an absent smile on her face.

  “Let Nina explain, then you can choose,” Emily replied softly.

  Tara fell silent. She was bubbling with rage. Neither she nor Diane would ever betray the Decision-Makers. Were they out of their minds?

  Nina put away her bow and approached Tara, crouching down in front of her. With love, she put her hands on her thighs and began:

  “As Emily explained, Tendor was born among the Angels we now call the Sages. The Sages have the immense privilege of using the energy of the Cosmos to create other angels and other worlds, such as the Sphere. However, the original energies of Love and Light have never disappeared. They are present in every being, every particle, every molecule that makes up the Universe. These same energies flowed through Tendor’s veins when he was born, and when he created the Sphere with his Brothers. And these energies still flow through his veins today, even though he left the Sphere.”

  “Spoken like true fanatics!” interrupted Tara with contempt.

  “Listen,” Mark said. “You’re the one who’s behind all of this. We would’ve liked nothing more than to remain ignorant to all of this and stay in our places in the ranks of the Fifth Legion. Yet, when Thece told us what happened, we didn’t hesitate for a second. We moved Heaven and Earth to remain by your side.”

  Tara went silent. She was always captivated when the Viking spoke.

  Lovingly, Nina took her hands and continued:

  “Satan’s cleverness had been to offer Tendor what the Congregation had taken away from him: his freedom. Tendor is not a fundamentally evil being, Tara. He has no hatred nor resentment towards humans. His only enemy is the Congregation. For his comfort, Satan offered him the command of an army of demons and created an entire kingdom for him in the middle of Hell. He’s his own master and reigns as a true despot over the creatures of Evil who obey him blindly.”

  “You admire him,” Tara commented, icily.

  “How could we not admire him?” replied Hugo. “He’s the only angel to have ever confronted the Congregation.”

  “Confronting the Congregation is confronting us!” she remarked bluntly.

  “Tendor only attacks the guards,” reminded Nina. “The years he’s spent among the demons haven’t made him any less of an angel. He has never attacked angels who ensure that Good prevails on Earth, like the light angels do. And he has never ordered the elimination of any missionaries. Satan himself wouldn’t dare give him such an order, for fear of losing his precious ally. His only enemies are the angels that protect the Congregation: the guards. The guards submit to a system that he deems totalitarian. According to him, Diane and Thece are only additional victims of this system.”

  “Nina!” Tara cried as she stood up. “You’re insane to talk like that!”

  “Let me make one thing clear,” replied Nina as she got up, “I am and will remain a missionary of the Fifth Legion. I love the Decision-Makers like fathers. They’re the Ones who gave us life. For this, They’ll always have my eternal respect and gratitude. But there’s something even stronger Tara, even more powerful than the love I have for the Decision-Makers.”

  “Your love for me...” she answered coldly.

  “Yes, my love for you,” Nina acquiesced, taking her hands, “and for Lou, the daughter of Diane and Thece.”

  Tara’s jaw dropped as her whole body began to shake violently.

  Choking, her head began to spin as panic took hold of her. She saw Lawskey in her mind, telling her about the rumor that she had left the Sphere for a demon child called Lou. Her legs became weak and her head pounded so hard it felt like it was going explode.

  “A demon child?” she said in horror, her eyes almost popping out of her head...

  “No,” Nina replied with a smile. “An angel child, the most beautiful and pure being the world has ever known, our daughter, born from the fusion of Thece and Diane’s love. She’s the incarnation of Love itself… The love between us was so strong, the energy so powerful, that Lou was inevitably created. We couldn’t do anything to stop it,” Nina continued. “But, as you know, only the Congregation has the right to create new angels. Lou was considered illegitimate by the laws of the Sphere. Thus, when she was born, we knew that the Decision-Makers would destroy her without scruples.”

  “That’s impossible,” said Tara who was having trouble believing it.

  “That’s why,” Nina proceeded, “two hundred and thirty-six years ago, we asked the demons for Tendor’s help. Both amused and intrigued by our predicament, he agreed to receive us. Then, charmed by the essence of our daughter, he immediately decided to help us. The only thing he wanted in return, was the guarantee that you would never turn against him... Thus, in exchange for the protection of our little angel, he asked for Hagen. To save our daughter Tara, you offered your spheric weapon to Tendor on a silver platter.”

  Horrified, Tara covered her mouth with her hand, unable to say a word. She understood everything now. Everything that had happened to her in the last few weeks.

  With sad and somber eyes, Nina continued:

  “When we came back from Hell, without our daughter and without Hagen, you were suspected by a part of the Congregation to have done something evil, right under their noses. However, They had no proof that Lou really existed... All They had were rumors. In any case, you no longer received any orders or messages from the Decision-Makers from then on. Subsequently, we understood that They were waiting for Madeleine to die in order to hold Diane prisoner in the Sphere until the truth was uncovered.

  “That’s why I didn’t want you to return to the Sphere or carry out the missions Enkaz gave you. Diane herself knew that she couldn’t go back… That’s why she chose your body: your amnesia was so absolute that even the Decision-Makers couldn’t read your mind. They still don’t know what really happened. But, it was also your amnesia that prevented you from seeing clearly when I was wounded by the argomenons; and as They hoped, you presented yourself to Them to save me from the poison. It was an ambush, and Enkaz was delighted to send us there.”

  “That’s impossible…”

  “Now,” Nina continued, “we�
�ve aroused the Decision-Makers’ suspicions once again, and They’re using you to find our daughter. But by taking Hagen back, you’ve put us into conflict with Tendor, and the lives of your niece, and especially our daughter Lou, are in danger as a result. That’s why we need to go to him right away, even if it alerts the Decision-Makers.”

  “Nina, do you realize what you’re saying?” Tara whispered, her hands still covering her mouth. “I’m a traitor... We’re all traitors!”

  “No!” replied Nina. “We’re just two angels seeking to protect their offspring from a cruel and deadly law! I’ll never let the Decision-Makers kill our daughter! She hasn’t done anything wrong! She’s the fruit of Love, she’s pure! As long as Thece is alive, They’ll never touch a single hair on her head...”

  “Why didn’t you tell me about all this earlier?”

  “Because your amnesia made you an easy target,” Nina answered. “You were much better off having forgotten that part of your life. If Tendor hadn’t come back into our lives, I would never have told you. Lou is much safer with him in Hell than in your temple in the Sphere. The Decision-Makers would never place her among the Angels, They would only seek to destroy her.”

  Nina fell silent, her throat tightened. The missionaries stood with them, silently listening. Tara finally understood the enormity of the choice they had all made: they were willing to remain by her side and fight with her, even if she decided not to turn Lou over to the Congregation.

  “What about you? Why didn’t They keep you prisoner? Why didn’t They try to read your mind?”

  “I’m sure They’ve already read my mind,” confirmed Nina. “They probably know a lot about us... If They didn’t take me prisoner, it’s probably because I’m just a pawn to Them. I don’t command anyone. If I were to oppose Them, no one would follow me... But you, on the other hand... Thousands of angels look up to you! If the Decision-Makers had any tangible proof that we betrayed Them, They would certainly eliminate me, but not without catching you first.”