Zadkiel’s fox like grin never left his face as I tried to take in what he just told me.
“This is impossible, my lord. How could The Presence be missing?”
He gives an all too casual shrug for the subject at hand.
“He is an omnipotent being, he’s free to do as he wants.”
I shake my head.
“No. You know that’s not what I mean. We tap into his power to fight demons. He’s the one giving the higher orders of hosts their commands.” I notice a slight change in Lord Zadkiel’s face. “…Isn’t he?”
Zadkiel turns and starts walking out of the alley. I’m still a little stunned, but quickly recover and follow him as he turns onto the sidewalk. Despite being nearly intangible to the mortals on the path, I take effort to avoid colliding with them. Zadkiel on the other hand, walks right through, his own aura interfering in the thought processes of the humans. Not likely to be harmful, but it is a little rude.
“Aluma, there’s a reason I called on you. I don’t know who I can trust. For a long time now, the Seraphim and the Thrones have been conspiring with the Archangels to keep the hosts busy. Keep things running, one might say. But I’ve discovered that the Seraphs have been lying to everyone and The Presence hasn’t given any orders in some time.”
The goings on of the highest tiers of the angelic order are a mystery to most of creation. The Seraphim and Thrones are said to bask in the presence of the Creator, and bring news of his will. The Dominion and The Powers govern the Hosts of Heaven and the natural order of the world respectively. Lastly, the Principalities and the Hosts of Heaven are the arms and hands, carrying out the will of our great Creator. Other groups, such as the Cherub and the Archangels exist outside this order, with varying degrees of power and authority.
If all the Seraphim and Thrones banded together, it would be difficult for anyone to question their authority. But that’s the problem.
“Lord Zadkiel, please, how could the different Seraphs come to an agreement on such a course of action? From what I hear, it’s a very… competitive position?”
“Stranger things have happened,” he says, without breaking his stride. “Additionally, I’m sure they feel all of reality is at stake. You’re missing the point, Aluma. We don’t know where The Presence is, and the power of Pandora’s Box is something that could be dangerous, even to our great and terrible lord.”
Now that’s intriguing.
“This missing box threatens even the omnipotent?”
Zadkiel stops suddenly, and holds out a hand to do the same for me. We’re stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, as mortals continue the hustle and bustle of their day.
“You can see for yourself. Why don’t you show me what a Host of your caliber can do.”
Confused, I look around. Eventually my eyes settle on a mortal clearly staring right at us. Much like the first demon I killed when I got here, I don’t taste the whisp of dark power on him, but there’s just enough there and enough of my memory is still around for me to remember what happens.
He’s wearing dark glasses and seems to be whistling. To anyone else, you’d think he was just some guy, with a tune in his head as he walks down the street. But I could see what he wanted me to see. I could see the nonchalance as he walks directly toward his most hated enemy. He angles his glasses down to make sure I can see what lies behind his eyes.
“Lord Zadkiel. I must ask that you get behind me.”
“And I must ask that you think for a moment, Aluma.”
I draw my sword and light the flame on the blade.
“What do you mean? He’s coming right for us!” What could Lord Zadkiel be talking about?
“Yes. In the body of someone he’s possessing. Don’t you find that odd?”
I pause. Demons can possess humans similarly to how the hosts possess the living statues. The difference is consent, obviously. Humans cannot consent to a spiritual being taking them over, while a living statue has no consciousness to worry about overwriting. That said, the restrictions are somewhat similar. For both Angels and Demons, our spiritual abilities are limited, and to access our full power, we need to leave the body.
So for him to just walk toward us, completely vulnerable, there’s something more than odd. Something is wrong. I grip the hilt of my blade more tightly and expand my awareness. I can’t be taken by surprise again. Not in front of a member of the Dominion.
The crowd of people continue to walk around us as the man approaches. He stops right in the middle of the walk way.
As he speaks, both his human form and the demonic undertones come out as one.
“You know what’s more annoying than an Angel? Two. Especially when they don’t know how to mind their own business.”
