Juvenile Orion Fan Fiction ❯ Fallen ❯ The Messenger ( Chapter 5 )

Once upon a time
Sometimes I wish that I could rhyme
Unfortunately, I’m not so gifted
Just strange and sad, and thoroughly twisted
A mediocre writer of fan fiction
I only have one consolation
These characters, which shimmer and shine
Most of which are neither yours nor mine

The god of the colony appoints a main commander to each missionary fleet to oversee the missions. Most fleets follow the basic social hierarchy of the colony with slight variations, but the system of challenging other angels for positions remains absolute. However, because the fleets do not carry meliads within the ships, challenges are more commonly initiated with a battle of wits or intimidation and rarely end in death. This is less so for newly recruited missionaries that have yet to adapt to the new system of the fleet. Missions usually last hundreds of years and the fleets only return to restock on supplies and recruit apprentices. The main commander is also required to report to the god with an update on the status of the mission as well as introduce the investigated area’s resources. These are often exotic foods or technological advancements. The missions are essential for the colony’s diet variability as well as its military and first wall of defense.

Fallen
Chapter 5
The Messenger
By Illusion

Gabriel descended to the dark cave where his target lay sleeping. The man would have to be drugged to believe that he was still dreaming and therefore preventing any aggressive behavior. Carefully, he drugged the woman beside the man to prevent her from waking, then proceeded to light hypnosis incense under his target’s nose. He woke the man with a gradual increase in heat and light so as to appear what humans believed was holy. The man shielded his eyes as he slowly adjusted to Gabriel’s glowing body. “My God,” he whispered in awe, sitting up quickly. “God has sent an angel to me.”

“My name is Gabriel,” he carefully used a sliver of power to make his voice echo. “Allah hath given me a message to bestow upon the one called Muhammad.”







“Did you deliver the message?”

The missionary bowed. “Yes sir. Muhammad believes himself a messenger of Allah.”

The commander stared at his underling in slight confusion. “‘Messenger of Allah’?”

“I made the mistake of mentioning your name instead of ‘God’,” Gabriel explained.

Allah’s eyes narrowed slightly at the slip. “Anything else?”

“No sir. I delivered the rest of the message as instructed. The following slaughter should–”

“Gabriel,” Allah’s voice sliced through the air. “You are fortunate that I am not the one in charge of dealing your punishment. However, I expect you to receive the proper discipline before you report back to me. Is that clear?”

Gabriel bowed his head. “Yes, sir.”

“Dismissed.”







Every high-ranking official was known for his brutality in some way. An advisor at the colony by the name of Joshua possessed the ability to create tiny hooks of pure energy, which he used to slowly pull the nails off those foolish enough to oppose him. The hooks could also be further split to form red-hot splinters that slid into the tender flesh underneath the nails. Another angel, a commander known as Shu, was infamous for breaking the minds of his soldiers so that they became the perfect minions. Each one lost his personality when sent on a mission and most never regained it. They became living dolls that Abraham considered easily replaceable. Azrael himself had been dubbed the Angel of Death in his younger days as a commander. Cold and calculating, he also possessed a tremendous amount of power, which he injected into the bodies of his opponents until their individual cells burst from the supplementary energy. It was by using this specialty that he was able to acquire his position as a god. The tiny needles of energy were small enough to penetrate the membranes of individual cells and impossible to defend against. With every rise in rank, each angel grew more terrifying.

Iblis, head commander of the fleet, was no exception. He was notorious for using slow, silent, but painful tactics to finish his adversaries. The most feared was when he used a similar tactic to Azrael’s signature technique. He leaked energy into his enemy’s liver where it killed the area that produced blood platelets while smaller globs attacked the platelets in the bloodstream. It was then that the offender only had to be bruised to bleed to death. It was with a similar fate in mind that Gabriel strode down the cold hallway that led to Iblis’s quarters.

His superior was meditating in the center of the room on his feathers. He cracked an eye open as Gabriel bowed before him, waiting. “Why doth thee come to me?”

“Allah hath sent me,” Gabriel answered.

“Thy tongue is not accustomed to formal speech,” Iblis observed, opening his eyes fully. “What business does a missionary seek with me?”

“Punishment, sir.”

“Did it end with failure or success?”

“Success, sir.”

“Any blunders?”

“Just one, sir. I failed to remember my target believed gods were nameless. I gave my commander’s name, which he believes may be taken as an offense to Lord Azrael’s claim to Heaven.”

Iblis digested the information quietly. “Offending any god of any colony is a sin, and yet you remained ignorant. How is that?”

Gabriel remained silent.

“Gabriel, recently promoted to rank of messenger missionary by defeating Jacob,” the commander recited from memory, recalling an earlier report. “First mission: convince a human to begin a new religion in order to bring psychics out of hiding and reinforce Heaven’s food supply.” He paused for a moment. “Your first mission.”

“Yes, sir. It was.”

“Very well.” Iblis allowed his eyelids to droop lazily. “You may go.”

At this, Gabriel jerked his head up sharply. “But sir, it being my first mission does not qualify as an excuse for my slip of tongue,” he protested, shocked at the head commander’s leniency.

An eyebrow twitched and a smile tugged slightly at the older angel’s lips, the shock of witnessing a superior show signs of amusement enough to make Gabriel believe he would face a far more serious punishment than he expected. “Your survival instinct seems to be lacking,” Iblis almost chuckled. “You have been pardoned from a small error and yet you insist on retribution. How is this so?”

“It has always been this way with angels, sir,” Gabriel answered, wary of his words.

Iblis remained silent. Gabriel dared to flit his eyes to his superior’s stoic face. “Perhaps,” the commander finally said. Another tense silence descended upon the two, Iblis lost in his own thoughts and Gabriel stamping down the curiosity that welled within him. Finally, Iblis sighed and returned to meditating. Gabriel took this as a dismissal and bowed low before rising. “Gabriel.” The quiet voice murmured, drawing him towards the other angel. Hands rose to rest against his cheek and throat gently. He flinched ever so slightly. Warmth radiated from Iblis’s hands and spread through his skin. “You were dangled by your throat,” Iblis said. “If you are to make such an error again, I won’t let you escape with only bruises. You are dismissed.”

Gabriel furrowed his brow in slight confusion before bowing once again and exiting the room. As he made his way down the metal halls he noticed his left cheek seemed darker. He paused to inspect himself more closely and found the flesh to be swollen and five small bruises also forming around where Iblis’s fingers had made contact with the skin, though he felt no pain as he prodded at his injuries. Amazed, he wove his way back to the barracks. Gabriel and Israfel had moved through the ranks quickly during their time as missionaries. In the beginning, it was difficult with Israfel’s gentle nature attracting unwanted attention from other apprentices. He killed them all and cried. After proving their strength despite Israfel’s handicap, the others had left them alone. Gabriel settled into his own nest of feathers as Israfel beside him reached out to heal him. I’ve found someone great, he thought as his wounds were diminished. An angel with great power and a soft heart; you are not alone. Even with a kind heart, you can still achieve greatness.







“This is my pillar.”

Lafayel glanced up from his tray. “Plenty enough room for the two of us,” he replied.

“I was here first,” the angel said. “If you don’t want to die, pay tribute. Give me your meat.”

Lafayel glared at his aggressor. “If you truly desired meat,” he said slowly, “you would have possessed the foresight to obtain it before choosing a pillar to eat.”

The other angel’s aura turned cold and flared slightly. “I care not for meat unless it is brought to me, but this is my territory.”

Lafayel expanded his aura in response, his body turning hot in anger. “Thy territory is shrinking.”

The tension in the air thickened as the two angels stared each other down, evaluating each other’s strength by probing each other’s auras. When the other angel refused to back down, Lafayel condensed his energy slightly and jabbed his opponent with his aura. He jumped backwards off the pillar as soon as the angel lunged forward, murder gleaming in his eyes. They chased each other around the pillar, Lafayel dodging the energy bolts, and attracting the attention of a few cherubs.

“Thy combat style is akin to that of a cherub’s,” he mocked when a bolt grazed his hair, undoing his braid. He grinned as the other angel’s face began to show signs of anger. Goad your opponent. Anger is a weakness, Gabriel’s voice echoed in his memory. “Careless and random.”

“Thou dost not possess an impressive style as well,” his opponent retorted, letting a ribbon of energy loose. Lafayel ducked underneath and weaved through the loops of energy until the two angels were face to face. Grinning wickedly, he let his tray drop as he pushed both hands against his opponent’s chest and shoved him against a pillar while injecting huge amounts of concentrated energy into his vital organs. The smell of burning flesh permeated the air as the angel’s innards burned.

Lafayel let the body drop. His victory established, he returned to his perch and began to eat the abandoned meal. Let the scavengers pick up the meat he dropped; nobody would challenge him for the remainder of the sun. Halfway through a fruit, he sensed the presence of another powerful angel and bowed his head in acknowledgement.

“State thy name and position.”

“I am merely a cherub seeking apprenticeship,” he said, keeping his head bowed and lowering his aura slightly.

The other angel remained silent for a moment as if contemplating something. “Apprenticeship under what position?” he finally asked.

“Missionary.”

“Will a guardian do?”

Returning missions were few and far between. No fleet had docked since Iblis took his leave several decades ago and Lafayel was growing impatient. Almost 200 years old, he still maintained the position of a cherub despite his independence from Rayyu. The rank of a guardian and missionary do not differ drastically and can still challenge a member of the other branch. He raised his face and aimed his gaze directly below his superior’s. “Yes, master.”







Rayyu remained silent as Lafayel explained the details in his small room. “You have lived a carefree life, Lafayel,” he said when the cherub finished. “Do you truly believe you are ready for apprenticeship? Who is your master?”

“Uranus. He holds a middle rank position as a guardian and his most recent apprentice died three moons ago.”

Died? “What do you mean, ‘died’? Were those his exact words?”

Lafayel nodded, confused.

Rayyu narrowed his eyes at the confirmation. “No,” he said firmly. “Withdraw from the apprenticeship.”

“What!” Lafayel half shouted. “This is the first time a guardian has approached me! If I don’t accept, I may remain a cherub for the rest of my life! I’m almost 2 centuries old and still a cherub!”

“Approach the guardians on your own, then,” Rayyu snapped back. “Sometimes, you have to take the initiative. Gabriel did not wait for a missionary to notice him.”

“I am not Gabriel!”

Rayyu’s expression didn’t change at the outburst. “No, you’re not,” he said. His voice wavered on the border between quiet and normal volume but the words screamed. “You are rash and impulsive, don’t consider the consequences of your actions, and have not made any steps to achieving success in your life. You are a cherub because you have not tried to find your own master, always waiting for someone else to do the work. You do not have the qualities that make Gabriel a strong angel.”

“Israfel….” He wanted to beat himself for trying to divert the blame.

“Israfel held himself back for you.” Rayyu’s voice was cold even as he praised the other angel. “He has more power and potential than even Gabriel. He held himself back.”

Anger and hatred burned within him and without thinking, he said, “You hate us because we killed Calandra. We’re the products of his death and Gabriel is the product of the bond you shared.”

Silence hung thick in the air.

“I will not have you apprentice under Uranus.”

Lafayel slid the door open and dropped out of sight.

Rayyu stood staring at the open door where the last of his cherubs disappeared. It is an angel’s duty to tell his potential apprentice how his past apprentice lost his life. Uranus is hiding something. I just wanted to ensure your safety. If you are to leave me, I want to know it would be beneficial to you. He sighed and his entire body sagged. I want all my cherubs–my Eros–to be happy.







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Allusions and Explanations:
Gabriel: Known as Jibril in Islamic culture. He is the messenger.

Allah: Known as God in Islamic culture.

Joshua: Another biblical figure that I know almost nothing about. I needed a name and remembered the song “Joshua At the Battle of Jericho” and figured, what the heck.

Shu: The Egyptian God of air. He separates the earth and sky because he doesn’t like the fact that his son and daughter are sleeping with each other. Sorry to impose my opinion here, but incest isn’t my thing. I love the ancient Egyptians. I really do.

Uranus: Pronounced YER-ah-nus. He is the Ancient Greeks’ sky, first husband of Gaia (earth), and father of the Titans, Cyclopes, and Hundred-Arms.

Posted: 11 September 2006
Reposted: 15 January 2007
Next Post: 5 February 2007
Added Scenes: 5 February 2007
Next Post: 26 February 2007 or 18 March 2007 depending on how the other story goes