Sinking, continued (second part)
Dec. 21st, 2004 03:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jeriendhalNote: PG-13 for unpleasant political revelations.
“The first Archangel of Children was a Grigori?” Zadkiel exclaimed, even as the dreadful knell of TRUTH, TRUTH, TRUTH, rang in her head.
“Yes,” Dominic confirmed. “It’s obvious in retrospect, should anyone choose to think about it. Were the Grigori not made by God to be able to mate with Humanity, to produce children of angelic and human blood? For a Grigori to hold the Word was only logical. As it was equally logical for her to protect the Grigori’s children, those both beautiful and those twisted.”
“The Nephalim,” Zadkiel guessed, “she tried to hide the Nephalim, when they first began to appear.”
Judgement nodded. “Not merely tried, but succeeded, for so long that the Host only became aware of the problem just prior to Humanity almost being overwhelmed by them. It was a closer run thing that anyone cares to admit, even among Seraphim.”
“But… but, what happened to her?” Elsa asked. “If Christopher holds her Word, then she had to have been…” The Malakite blanched at the implications.
“We murdered her,” Micheal said bluntly. “The Hunts began much, much earlier than most of the Host believes. After the Grigori were Outcast, after they were already punished, Wordbound servitors of Creation and Stone hunted her down, believing that she was at the center of the Grigori’s primary sin. Hunted her down and killed her.”
TRUTH, TRUTH, TRUTH.
Zadkiel looked to Micheal, to Dominic, then back to Micheal, fighting the overwhelming desire to deny that what they said. “And you allowed this to go unpunished?” she asked. “Micheal, you were Commander of the Host, and you let angel hunt angel?”
“I didn’t let…” he began, then stopped himself and began again. “But niether did I encourage the Host to do anything to stop it.”
“You did what you believed nessasary for the unity of the Host,” Dominic intervened.
“Unity of the Host?” Zadkiel asked bitterly. “As Lucifer encouraged unity by murdering the Metatron?”
“We were at war,” Micheal protested, “open war with the forces of Lucifer, not this… dentente… that we follow now. And there was a fear, a very real fear, that somehow the Lightbringer would spark a second Rebellion, one that might mean all of Heaven falling to the Horde. And then the Grigori chose to be Outcast as one, and we feared that they might reach some accomidation with Lucifer, and become his agents on the Earth, or worse, chose to Fall as one, and provide him with the forces he needed to overwhelm us.”
“And so, when the Archangel of Children was murdered, we let it serve as an example to the remainder of the Grigori, to let them know that we would not tolerate any futher violations of Heavenly law from their ranks, and that we were ready to carry out the most terrible of punishments if we saw the need,” Dominic finished. “I judged that it was for the greater good, and did not pursue those who commited the deed.”
“How is it that no one knows of this?” Elsa asked. “Surely someone remembers.”
“We were very… liberal… with the use of memory pearls, during the time of the Outcasting,” Dominic explained, “and those below the rank of Superior who do retain their memories of that time have been… discouraged from speaking.”
“And so when Christopher was granted the Word of Children, and was recognized as an Archangel, you saw no need to inform him of the Host’s past actions?” Zadkiel asked.
Dominic nodded slowly. “What good would it have done? He was new to his Word, and unaware of the political taint attached to it. At the time, certain members of the Seraphim Council thought that this was a chance to build anew, to repair the grave damage to the Host’s integrity that the murder of the first Archangel of Children had caused. Telling Christopher of it would not bring his predecessor back to us, and would have caused him much internal doubt.”
“And besides, he was only a little Cherub, with a minor Word, anyway,” Elsa muttered. To Zadkiel’s surprise, this caused Micheal to wince, and lower his head.
“Was Lord Laurence in the faction that thought it right to grant the Word again?” she asked.
“No,” Micheal answered, “he thought the Word had too much taint attached, and should only be granted again through a direct intervention by God. He feared that assigning it to a Cherub might mean that Cherub would regard protection of his charges to be more important than preparing for the final conflict with the forces of Hell.”
“Forgive me for saying this, Elsa, but I shudder to think what a Malakite would consider proper maintence of Christopher’s Word,” Zadkiel said acidly.
“If we are to achieve a proper resolution to this situation, we should make certain that we retrieve Christopher intact then,” Dominic concluded.
“How, how, how?!” Zadkiel demanded. “I will not compound the sins that have been committed against Christopher and against his Word by handing over Retzel in chains to Andrealphus. It is wrong, it is wrong, it is wrong, and if I did so it is a violation of both my Word and his!”
“Have you thought to ask her opinion on the matter?” Dominic asked softly.
TBC
“The first Archangel of Children was a Grigori?” Zadkiel exclaimed, even as the dreadful knell of TRUTH, TRUTH, TRUTH, rang in her head.
“Yes,” Dominic confirmed. “It’s obvious in retrospect, should anyone choose to think about it. Were the Grigori not made by God to be able to mate with Humanity, to produce children of angelic and human blood? For a Grigori to hold the Word was only logical. As it was equally logical for her to protect the Grigori’s children, those both beautiful and those twisted.”
“The Nephalim,” Zadkiel guessed, “she tried to hide the Nephalim, when they first began to appear.”
Judgement nodded. “Not merely tried, but succeeded, for so long that the Host only became aware of the problem just prior to Humanity almost being overwhelmed by them. It was a closer run thing that anyone cares to admit, even among Seraphim.”
“But… but, what happened to her?” Elsa asked. “If Christopher holds her Word, then she had to have been…” The Malakite blanched at the implications.
“We murdered her,” Micheal said bluntly. “The Hunts began much, much earlier than most of the Host believes. After the Grigori were Outcast, after they were already punished, Wordbound servitors of Creation and Stone hunted her down, believing that she was at the center of the Grigori’s primary sin. Hunted her down and killed her.”
TRUTH, TRUTH, TRUTH.
Zadkiel looked to Micheal, to Dominic, then back to Micheal, fighting the overwhelming desire to deny that what they said. “And you allowed this to go unpunished?” she asked. “Micheal, you were Commander of the Host, and you let angel hunt angel?”
“I didn’t let…” he began, then stopped himself and began again. “But niether did I encourage the Host to do anything to stop it.”
“You did what you believed nessasary for the unity of the Host,” Dominic intervened.
“Unity of the Host?” Zadkiel asked bitterly. “As Lucifer encouraged unity by murdering the Metatron?”
“We were at war,” Micheal protested, “open war with the forces of Lucifer, not this… dentente… that we follow now. And there was a fear, a very real fear, that somehow the Lightbringer would spark a second Rebellion, one that might mean all of Heaven falling to the Horde. And then the Grigori chose to be Outcast as one, and we feared that they might reach some accomidation with Lucifer, and become his agents on the Earth, or worse, chose to Fall as one, and provide him with the forces he needed to overwhelm us.”
“And so, when the Archangel of Children was murdered, we let it serve as an example to the remainder of the Grigori, to let them know that we would not tolerate any futher violations of Heavenly law from their ranks, and that we were ready to carry out the most terrible of punishments if we saw the need,” Dominic finished. “I judged that it was for the greater good, and did not pursue those who commited the deed.”
“How is it that no one knows of this?” Elsa asked. “Surely someone remembers.”
“We were very… liberal… with the use of memory pearls, during the time of the Outcasting,” Dominic explained, “and those below the rank of Superior who do retain their memories of that time have been… discouraged from speaking.”
“And so when Christopher was granted the Word of Children, and was recognized as an Archangel, you saw no need to inform him of the Host’s past actions?” Zadkiel asked.
Dominic nodded slowly. “What good would it have done? He was new to his Word, and unaware of the political taint attached to it. At the time, certain members of the Seraphim Council thought that this was a chance to build anew, to repair the grave damage to the Host’s integrity that the murder of the first Archangel of Children had caused. Telling Christopher of it would not bring his predecessor back to us, and would have caused him much internal doubt.”
“And besides, he was only a little Cherub, with a minor Word, anyway,” Elsa muttered. To Zadkiel’s surprise, this caused Micheal to wince, and lower his head.
“Was Lord Laurence in the faction that thought it right to grant the Word again?” she asked.
“No,” Micheal answered, “he thought the Word had too much taint attached, and should only be granted again through a direct intervention by God. He feared that assigning it to a Cherub might mean that Cherub would regard protection of his charges to be more important than preparing for the final conflict with the forces of Hell.”
“Forgive me for saying this, Elsa, but I shudder to think what a Malakite would consider proper maintence of Christopher’s Word,” Zadkiel said acidly.
“If we are to achieve a proper resolution to this situation, we should make certain that we retrieve Christopher intact then,” Dominic concluded.
“How, how, how?!” Zadkiel demanded. “I will not compound the sins that have been committed against Christopher and against his Word by handing over Retzel in chains to Andrealphus. It is wrong, it is wrong, it is wrong, and if I did so it is a violation of both my Word and his!”
“Have you thought to ask her opinion on the matter?” Dominic asked softly.
TBC
