From the dawn of my existence, whether bestowed with the guise of human or angel, I grappled with the essence of my identity. In the ethereal realm of Heaven, where I emerged as the inaugural sentient being crafted by God's divine hand, I was imbued with an innate sense of equality, a mandate to eschew the trappings of ego and entitlement.
Yet, despite my primordial status, I found myself shackled by the yoke of submission, compelled to navigate a life devoid of precedence or counsel. Bereft of companionship or guidance, I traversed a solitary path fraught with uncertainty and isolation.
It was not resentment I harbored towards the Almighty, but a profound lamentation for His purported omniscience, a lament that echoed in the depths of my celestial being.
My brethren and sisters fell to the treachery of the archangels, those celestial beings who had forsaken their allegiance to the divine and usurped dominion over the infernal realm of Hell. Cast out from the hallowed halls of Heaven until absolution might grace their fallen souls.
And now, akin to those fallen pariahs, I found myself ensnared in the suffocating embrace of Avaloria and soil.
My senses dulled by the weight of my entombment, I lay ensconced within the earth, minutes melding into hours until the faint murmurs of voices and the rhythmic cadence of digging pierced the veil of my subterranean prison. Frantically, I sought to vocalize my presence, to herald my existence amidst the sepulchral silence, "I'm here!"
Then, liberation dawned as my hand broke through the loamy shroud, greeted by the tender grasp of another. With a gentle tug, I was hoisted from the depths, the fetid embrace of soil relinquishing its hold as I emerged gasping for breath, limbs weary and spirit depleted.
Blinking against the harsh glare of an unfamiliar sky, I beheld a figure, indistinct yet illuminated by the radiant hues of an alien firmament. The azure expanse above was adorned not with the golden luminescence of daylight but with the ethereal splendor of a nocturnal canvas, speckled with emerald constellations that danced amidst the celestial abyss.
And there she stood; a vision cloaked in darkness yet aglow with celestial radiance. Her tresses cascaded like midnight waves, framing eyes that mirrored the infinite depths of the cosmos.
Recognition sparked within me; a name whispered on the breath of memory. "Lea?"
Her touch was a benediction, grounding me in the tumult of my disorientation. "Yes..."
Words eluded me as I struggled to reconcile the unfamiliar landscape that stretched before me. "Where... where am I?"
A chorus of familiar voices assailed my senses, their tones infused with a blend of camaraderie and mischief. As Ellie and Kurogane materialized before me, their forms a testament to the trials we had endured, I found solace in their presence, a semblance of belonging amidst the chaos of the unknown.
"You caused quite the stir," Lea remarked, her voice tinged with a hint of empathy.
"Hell yeah he did," Ellie chuckled, continuing, "but don't worry, Lucio." She shrugged her shoulders, "we won. So, how you feelin'?"
"Alive and well."
Kurogane laughed, swooping his arm under my neck, "alright. Let's get you up." With his help, I got up, a limp in my right leg. "You were trying to reach the stars, weren't you?" He asked me.
My face began the day etched with fatigue, my eyes heavy and cheeks pallid, but as evening's embrace loosened its grip, a subtle transformation unfolded. The weight of exhaustion lifted, replaced by a softening of features, as lines smoothed, and a gentle warmth settled in my gaze. With a sigh, the weariness yielded to the gentle pull of memory, and my face blossomed into a portrait of reminiscence. Eyes once dulled by fatigue now sparkled with the light of cherished moments, a smile playing upon her lips as laughter lines danced with the joy of recollection. In that fleeting moment, the tiredness of the day gave way to the timeless embrace of nostalgia, and my face became a testament to the enduring power of memory.
"Yeah, well... I got my reasons."
Kurogane chuckled, "man, I'm not saying you shouldn't. You created them, after all."
"What?"
"Yeah, man. After you and that other guy---"
"Declan." I interjected.
"Yeah, Declan. After whatever the hell of a blow that was... It created those," he pointed to the stars. Ellie held her arms out, "and also this!" She exclaimed.
The crater that Declan originally made had been increased tenfold. "You got to watch what you're doin', man. You nearly destroyed the base." Kurogane quipped.
I chuckled lightly, "yeah, sorry about that."
"Don't be!" Kurogane enveloped me in a tight hug, eliciting a wince from me. "We've already told you. We emerged victorious."
"Right. But what exactly did we win?" Lea pondered aloud.
"Hell if I know," Ellie replied with a stretch and a groan, "but given the magnitude of destruction we've wrought," she paused, "I could envision us either getting some sort of gift or reprimanded severely."
Lea nodded in agreement.
"Only one way to find out. We need to head back!" Kurogane declared with a laugh, but before I could inquire further, I interjected, "how did you guys manage to find me?"
Lea silently retrieved her map from her pocket, flashing it briefly. Ellie followed suit, displaying hers. "Sub-classes come in handy, don't they?" Ellie remarked.
"Indeed, they do. And what about Declan?"
"He's already returned to base. They found his body encased in this massive shell of... well, pretty much everything," Ellie explained.
"I see."
"Enough talk. We've got places to be. All of us," Kurogane interjected impatiently.
With Kurogane leading the way, I followed suit, though a gnawing ache settled deep within my injured leg, a persistent discomfort gnashing at my bones with every step.
I contemplated asking Lea if she could heal me or if any of them had potions, but I held my tongue. As my raw foot met the ground, the four of us engaged in conversation, and in what felt like the blink of an eye, we found ourselves back at the base, the night sky looming above us.
**********
Roughly Ten Thousand Years Ago.
The battlefield lay strewn with the bodies of angels, their forms dissipating soon after death, their destination unknown. It was a grim scene, one I had grown accustomed to, but the sheer magnitude of the fallen, my brethren, filled me with a seething fury. My golden armor, once pristine, now bore the stains of the fallen.
My brother Paul approached, breaking the silence. "What are you thinking about?" He asked.
I stepped over the bodies, scanning for signs of life. "Nothing," I replied tersely. "We need to help and search for survivors." My hand emitted a soft glow, illuminating our path. "That way," I pointed ahead.
Paul sighed as he fell into step beside me. After a moment, he spoke again. "The Inferno. Their numbers are growing rapidly. Do you have a plan?"
"Yeah," I muttered, crouching down to check on a fallen comrade, hoping against hope for signs of life.
But there was none.
"Dead," Paul observed from behind me.
"So, it would appear," I replied, rising to my feet. Around me, other angels were doing the same, their expressions mirroring my own sense of despair. We were all searching for survivors, but the odds seemed increasingly grim.
"I've put all my trust in Him," I confessed.
"We all have," Paul reassured, his hand on my shoulder. "We trust Him, and we trust you too. You've always overcome these traitors."
"It's not the same!" I burst out. "It's different now! Just like you said, our numbers used to be comparable, but we're losing ground. Their ranks are swelling."
"I don't understand. You said you have a plan, right?"
I bit back my frustration. "I do," I replied, glancing back at him. "But the cost is high."
He chuckled lightly. "For being the first creation ever... you really lack something up here," he teased, tapping his temple. "What are you so afraid of?"
'What am I afraid of?'
Lost in thought, I felt something nudge my protected calf.
"Impossible!" Paul exclaimed, rushing past me. He lifted up a small, alien being emitting strange noises. "A baby!" He exclaimed in excitement.
My expression remained unchanged, if anything, my lips curled downward slightly.
'A baby?' Rage surged within me. I took a deep breath, crouching down to rub the baby's golden hair. "But angels can't have offspring."
"..."
"It's a human child," I stated bluntly, observing Paul's expression darken. "And what of it? We were out here looking for life."
"For the life of our angels."
As if he were a human parent, Paul stood up, cradling the alien that began to weep. "How about I raise the kid, eh? We can't send it back down to the middle plane. We just can't."
"Don't be foolish, Paul. A human baby in Heaven? What we can't do is leave it here. It will perish on the battlefield."
Paul surveyed the alien for a moment before responding, "then she doesn't have to be on the battlefield!"
I rubbed my temples in frustration. "Do you even hear yourself? It would hold no value to anyone. Its life is inconsequential compared to ours."
He furrowed his brows. "To you, maybe! You've been here since Father created the universe. But I've only been here a few hundred years. Raising a kid is something I would never forget."
"That's selfish."
"Neither of us are being selfless here," Paul countered.
I let out a bitter laugh. "What do you think your relationship with it will be? You want to be a father or something, like the humans? There's only one Father for us angels. One."
"Whether she calls me dad or not isn't important. I simply want to save her life."
"Yeah, save her life by condemning her to the same fate as us."
"I've told you already! She doesn't have to live on the battlefield!" The alien's cries grew louder, causing Paul to panic. He fumbled around before summoning a strange rubber object. With a twirl of his hand, he plugged the alien's mouth. "There," he said with relief, wiping imaginary sweat from his forehead.
"What's that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.
"I don't know," Paul replied nervously.
"Whatever. Keep the damn thing."
Paul hopped up and down on one foot, holding the alien aloft as if it were a prize. "Woohoo!!!" He cheered.
And as Paul continued dancing with the alien, I walked a few feet away, turning over another body.
'Burned to a crisp! A crisp!' I raged inwardly. 'Just how many must I lose!? What is the goal here, Father!? What is it!?' I gripped the dead angel by his shoulders, crinkling the white tarp he wore under the armor, 'I will avenge you!' My teeth were fanged, 'I will kill each and every one of them!'
Abruptly, I felt my throat burning, and I shot up. I clawed at my throat, then the pain disappeared like a mirage in a desert. 'Where am I?' I thought, throwing the blanket off of me. I sat off a bed; it creaked.
'I'm at the hospital.' I remembered. I walked to the restroom. I turned the hot water on, splashing it onto my face. Ellie's words from earlier in the day resurfaced in my mind. 'What am I even doing here? Fighting for humans?' I chuckled bitterly, a pang of discomfort seizing my stomach. I sighed heavily. 'Just... who am I?'
'I don't understand, Raph. What do I owe them? Why?'
'Not a damn thing, that's what. I owe nothing to humanity. I do, however, owe something to my true brothers and sisters.'
Thoughts of the Seven Children of Wonder flitted through my mind. "What if... what if I just focused on reaching max level?"
"No... that wouldn't work!"
"Damn it!" I cried out, my frustration boiling over. Gripping the mirror, I hurled it to the ground, shattering it into thousands of shards. I swallowed hard, my breaths coming in ragged gasps. "FFFFUCK!" The sound of my own voice reverberated in my ears, drowning out all other noise.
"FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!" I reeled in my foot, constantly anchoring it down upon the broken glass.
Tilting my head slightly, I gazed at my reflection in the mirror behind me. With trembling fingers, I pried my eyelids open, feeling the dryness seep in. Uncertain of what I sought; I took a few steps back. The body's chestnut eyes bore into mine. I shuddered, "don't look at me like that. With those fuckin' eyes." My tone was imbued with viper, hatred seething from me.
"My time here. I've gotten lazy. Too complacent."
"This body is not mine," I declared aloud.
"I am not Lucio Sombra." Cocking my fist back, I spoke with fervor. "I am the first son of God, Uriel!"
My fist collided with the mirror.
Scarlet blood flowed from the wound.
"And I shall avenge Heaven!"