Silent as the fall of moonlight on a winter fog, he made his way down through the endlessly winding passageways of the Watch. Shadows clung to him briefly as he passed among them, as if to say a final farewell, then transport him on his way. He would miss this place, but it was a part of his present life and that was quickly coming to an end.
The architecture of this place was such that it amazed even him. Overall, the look and feel was quite gothic, but by no means was that the only motif to be found here. In fact, almost anything was possible. Anytime he saw something he liked, the Watch would add it to it's already extensive construction. A person could quickly find themselves overcome by the endless hallways, passages, and corridors. It was a veritable maze, every bit as imposing as the one surrounding the base of the main tower. Even so, he negotiated it as easily as an empty room. Which was fortunate, as it wouldn't do to get lost in his own castle.
Every room illuminated itself as he approached, dropping back into darkness with his passing. Massive, painfully detailed stoneworks watched his progress with impassive expressions. His own shadows performed slow pirouettes around him as he passed the lights, dancing up the walls and across the floors.
Entering a large Greek chamber, a pair of large, free standing torches roared to life. Each torch stood next to a statue of a sphinx, one of which had been shattered by a fallen pillar.
The other sat watching him. He stopped in the center of the floor as the sphinx bowed her head slightly. Raven returned the gesture, then continued on his way. She watched him carefully as he left the chamber, then leaped from her mount, easily clearing the 14 steps from the dias to the floor. Padding quietly over to the exit, she watched him as he turned the corner at the end, then started after. He quickly made his way through a series of twists and turns, ending up in a large chamber. Several hanging crystals warmed to life as he entered, chasing away his companion darkness with a golden glow. This particular room was still intact, with just a few cracks in the walls here and there. To his right, the wall opened to a balcony overlooking the west. Standing at the edge, against the darkness, he waited.
The sphinx followed his course without missing a turn. She paused only briefly upon entering the room, then crossed the floor and took a seat next to him.
"Might I ask if you are the master of this house?" she inquired.
"You just did,...and I am," he answered, without taking his eyes away from the dark sky.
"I see."
"Forgive the sarcasm," he sighed.
"Of course," she replied. "Understandable, considering the disarray." He nodded absently. "Has there been a war?"
"Of sorts," he said. "More of a conflict than a war."
"And,...has it ended?"
"Yes," he said, turning to look at her. "The conflict has definitely been resolved." She turned, canting her head as she studied him. "Normally I would consider this a good thing. But I sense this particular conflict was won at serious cost, though admittedly, this is usually the way of things."
"It was certainly the way of this thing," he agreed. She thought it wise to change the subject, and did so quickly. "And where are you off to now, if I may ask?"
He smiled. "I'm going to the only part of this place that hasn't been touched by this,...misunderstanding. You're welcome to join me if you'd care to."
"From what little I've seen of this place, I think seeing an undamaged part of it would be more than worth the journey. It would seem to be a place of wonders."
"It was," he said, without trying to disguise the regret in his voice. "And will be again someday."
"As it should be," she said, with just a hint of a smile.
For the better part of an hour they made their way down towards the base of the Watch, stopping occasionally to appreciate various attractions. She praised him many times for the craftsmanship. Especially a particular favorite of his, a large fountain. Composed of a variety of sea creatures, both real and mythical, it was sculpted from a wide variety of brightly colored corals, laced with silver and gold, and adorned with thousands of different sea shells. Overall, an amazing piece of work, and she'd said so several times. He'd spent many hours here watching the dolphins cavorting with the mermaids, seahorses, and serpents amid the spray and flow of the water. Fortunately, it still stood in one piece, and the water continued to flow as though it existed separate from the surrounding turmoil.
She also saw fit to comment on what a shame it was that the Watch was in such a terrible state. He summarized the situation for her, after which she remained silent for some time. Originally he had wanted to be alone for his trek down through the tower, but he found her company charming, and in fact she'd managed to lighten his mood considerably.
There were several of her kind in the Watch, but she was larger than any of the others, with the exception of her ruined counterpart. Her eye level was almost 2 meters, so she looked him straight in the eye. In spite of the fact that she was a conglomeration of several creatures, she was quite beautiful. In keeping with the original sculpture, her face was much more symmetrical than would be the case with a natural face. The word that kept coming to mind was "statuesque", and he found himself constantly rolling his eyes at the bad pun, no matter how accurate it was. Her large, brown eyes were easy to look into, and she was quick with an attractive smile. A waterfall of hair ranging in color from rusty blonde, to a sparkling platinum, fell in lazy waves for more than a meter over her deep golden skin.
She moved gracefully, and with remarkable stealth. Even her rather large set of wings made almost no sound as she walked along beside him.
The damage to the structure was worse at the lower levels. Tons of stone had fallen from the upper sections when the tower split apart, which slowed them to the point of annoyance. Or, at least Raven was annoyed, and it was starting to show.
"This must be terribly upsetting for you," the sphinx remarked carefully, noticing his silence. He sighed, this was no time to lose control. "Yes, this is a constant, and painful reminder of all that's happened lately." She looked at him with genuine sympathy. A thought struck him. "By the way,...what's your name?" For some reason it had never occurred to him to ask, and she hadn't offered it. Smiling, she said, "My name is Ahltha." He sat down on a hunk of fractured stone. "It's nice to meet you Ahltha, I'm Raven. My apologies for my moods, I'm just suffering from a terminal case of life." She smiled beautifully. "No apology is needed, and it's nice to meet you as well, in spite of your troubles."
"Actually," he said, turning to look at the huge pile of rubble behind him. "We aren't far from our destination. I think maybe the wreckage has just depressed me a bit."
"Completely understandable," she replied. "Is there a way around?" Now it was his turn to smile. "No need," he said, standing up. "But you may want to step back a bit." She raised an eyebrow at him, but took several steps back anyway.
He fully extended his wings to either side, holding them just above the ground. Taking a deep breath, and focusing himself sharply, he gathered his halo into a brilliant sphere of light. Streamers of energy crawled over him like tiny rivers. At a crucial point, his head snapped back as he released the light into the mass of stones blocking their way.
The entire corridor was washed away in the resulting flash. For a moment, she was totally blinded by the light. When her sight finally returned, the blockage was gone. Not only that, but the walls and much of the floor were missing as well. The only sound she had heard was something like a rush of wind, though much stronger.
"Are you ok?" he said, turning around to check.
"Yes," she said, trying to blink the spots from her eyes. "I'm fine. That was very,...umm,...effective. Do you feel better?"
He almost laughed. "Come to think of it, I do feel better."
She commented on the virtues of having wings as they jumped the 100 meter chasm left by the blast. He agreed with her, taking it one step further by pointing out that they could have simply jumped from the balcony of the chamber she'd originally come from, and made it to the tower's base in a few moments.
"Ah, but I would have missed all of this," she answered, with a smile. "Yes, that was the whole point of the walk anyway," he said.
"By the way," she said, turning back to look at the size of the gap they'd just crossed. "What was that flash of light anyway? It removed a considerable amount of stone, with scarcely a sound."
"That was angelfire. One of the many expressions of the halo, although it isn't a common practice to use it in destroy things."
"I'm glad to hear that," she remarked quickly. "Forgive my ignorance, but this would make you an angel,...yes?"
"Uh huh, of sorts," he muttered, pulling a twisted feather from one wing. He wasn't feeling very angelic of late, and lightyears from devine.
"I only ask because there are many beings who appear as human, have wings, yet are not angels. And how does one become an angel 'of sorts'?"
He had to finally laugh. Though it was clear her questions were legitimate, she asked them as a child would. "It's a long story, and I'm being sarcastic again. But it's always wise not to assume, and you're right about the possibility of my not being as I appear." Then he mumbled under his breath, "Which is where much of my current problem comes from."
"Excuse me?"
He shook his head. "Nothing. Just more sarcasm, or perhaps it's irony this time." She decided to simply smile so as not to appear as confused as she actually was.
"Hmm, well, about this halo? I know the normal references to it, but I doubt they're as accurate as they should be."
"You're right again," he agreed. "But the misunderstanding is mainly due to the ethereal nature of angels, and the way we generally interact with humanity. I won't go into detail about all that, it could take days. But it would be difficult to explain the halo without some information about where it originates, so I'll start there."
"Oh, thank you," she said, with no small relief in her voice. He smiled. Yes, she was most definitely charming.
"The halo is a part of the ethereal energy that permeates all of creation. It spans time, space, and all dimensions. All forms of matter and energy are variations of this universal energy. But it's far removed from being simple energy, it claims sentience in it's own right. Every event, from the microcosm to the macrocosm, leaves an indelible impression within the ether. Because of this impressionable nature, massive influx of experience, and the ability to process this information as fast as it occurs, it ultimately developed an extended level of consciousness,...follow?"
"Why yes, perfectly. Please continue, this is fascinating."
"It possesses an extreme sentience, and thinks on a vastly superior level to any being that has ever existed. To say it has a different view of the universe is a tremendous understatement."
"Would it be this energy that is commonly referred to as God?"
"In general, yes. In one of our languages, one so old that very few of us even remember it, the word 'God' means 'infinite light'. It's interesting to note that in spite of it's unfathomable nature, it isn't a cold, uncaring intellect. It's a life force that truly cares for the life within it. Physical life is much different than spiritual life, and the experiences that come with that life are highly valued. In fact, it protects and nurtures this life. Which is more or less where my kind comes in I guess." He fell silent for a moment as he considered his comment.
"As guardians of life?"
"Life, and the younger souls. Each tier of the celestial hierarchy has it's own priorities based on the general abilities of it's members."
"If this energy is intelligent, wouldn't that make your halo intelligent in it's own right?"
"Well, yes and no. Ethereal energy exists in a wide variety of forms. The halo has a consciousness after a fashion, but isn't what you'd consider a separate entity. The soul is a type of energy matrix. Everything we are, or have the potential to become, is contained within that matrix. Much the same as DNA in physical life. The halo is the source of energy that animates the soul. Basically, the source of life itself. The soul matrix is formed spontaneously within the ether, new souls are created constantly. When a matrix completes it's development, ethereal energy merges with it, and becomes a permanent part of it."
"The living fire?," she wondered aloud. "Yep," he confirmed. "That would be it. It's something of a symbiosis. The matrix requires the halo to become a living entity, and the halo imparts life experiences to the ether by it's continuous connection, thereby enriching it. This is one reason new souls are created. As a young soul, conscious control of the halo is extremely difficult. But with time, and experience, the matrix increases in strength, functionality and complexity. This allows the halo to draw ever increasing amounts of energy. This is known as ascension, the spiritual equivalent of physical evolution."
"And where are angels within this hierarchy?"
He smiled almost sheepishly. "We uh,...we're at the bottom."
She frowned. Something didn't seem right. "From what I could tell, you hardly exerted yourself in the corridor against the stones. And you're telling me that angels are in the lower echelons based on ability?"
"That's what I'm telling you," he said. "Of course there's more to it, and that isn't to say that we aren't very capable, we just aren't up to the level of the higher tiers."
"They must be frightfully strong then," she speculated.
"Indeed. The seraphim are at the top, and possess such power that they can't be looked upon by any of the lower tiers without certain death. They stand as the hands of the light, and tend to universal concerns in it's name. Such tasks require that level of power and awareness."
She took a deep breath and remained silent while gathering her thoughts. To know such beings existed was at once frightening and reassuring.
"When will you,...ascend?"
"I really can't answer that. I know I'm growing in strength, but how long it will take, I couldn't say." He was being honest, but something had been telling him that he was much closer than he was giving himself credit for.
"And where do you ascend to?"
"Archangel. The most diverse tier of the hierarchy. Some of it's members rank higher than the seraphim, while others watch over specific individuals. It spans the entire range of the hierarchy."
"Interesting," she replied.
"Yeah,...anyway," he continued, trying not to think about it. "The halo responds to conscious directives for the most part. Like the subconscious in a physical body, it also performs certain tasks without conscious intervention. Since it's something of a complex tool, it's use varies widely from one being to the next, just as it's visual expression does."
She frowned again. "You mean you didn't have to blind me?"
"I uh,..." he stumbled. She giggled, and nudged him with her wing. "I'm teasing, silly."
"I could have done it without the light I guess."
"Wait a second," she said quickly. "Don't you dare change anything on my account. You just took me by surprise, next time I'll be ready."
"Oh?" he said, raising an eyebrow. She smiled again, and winked. "Trust me."
"I just have a fondness for the visual fireworks, but it really isn't necessary. Some give no sign whatever that they've set their halo in motion. Others express themselves with various visual displays, or physical gestures. It really makes no difference, the halo works just the same. It's all a matter of personal preference," he said, jumping up over some large stone blocks.
"What are it's limits?"
"That's a question that hasn't ever been answered to any satisfactory degree. There may be a few who have some idea, but I really don't believe the truth is known by any but the light itself. Who could possibly know the limits of something that's 'universal'?"
"Good point, I hadn't thought of that."
"Since everything is created from, and by it, nothing is immune to it's effects. Only experience and the strength of our matrix governs our use of it. Of course, our personal ethics also have a great deal to do with it."
"I would think that much power would be a terrible temptation," she mused.
"You have no idea. It goes far beyond temptation, which is why the younger of us have so little use of it. It would be like giving a child a deadly weapon in the guise of a toy,...eventually, it's going to get played with."
She shook her head. "With tragic results." He nodded and turned down a corridor that would lead them to their destination.
