Chapter 52
Like a Paper Cut
Part 1
"Right now, it feels like we're bleeding."
~Zedd~
"Mia... Captain?"
She grumbled.
"Captain Ellen-Mia..."
His voice kept calling out to her. Wasn't Elias going to tell her why she was on earth? Her eyes fluttered opened to that thought, but immediately she regretted it.
The sun was so intense that it hurt her eyes, but wait—was it the sun? It felt different somehow, like flashes every now and then.
Slowly, as they adapted to the brightness, she lifted herself up on her elbows and eyed the never ending sky through the glass canopy that was the ceiling.
It was odd, like a spiral or a tunnel heading straight into the depths of whatever was out there in the far beyond. Blue, silver and pure white—swirling and dancing together in a mixture of clouds that revolved in many different forms.
"Captain, you're awake." Elias's voice came rushing in, but he wasn't the same as she remembered. He wore an attire similar to a Greek god's. Silver plate over his muscular chest with a pure white toga underneath and sandals to cover his feet. Over his head was a bright ring of light that had droplets of energy cascading on his golden head of hair. The only thing that was familiar to Mia were his long sleek wings.
"I must have passed out. What's the situation?" Her voice did not sound like her own. It was more authoritarian.
'What's going on?' She thought to herself in confusion.
'Just hush up and watch as everything plays out. Your answers will be given to you soon enough.' And just like that, she heard the same demanding voice that was speaking out of her body address her.
Mia wanted to question it, but before she did, she pondered over what was happening.
The last thing she remembered was speaking to Elias, and then a black out. He must have triggered something to get her mind recalling what happened back then.
'I'm reliving it, aren't I?'
'More or less, think of it as your brain digging up all those hidden memories from your subconscious.'
"It doesn't seem too bad. The demon hordes have retreated for now. We managed to capture a few, but most of them self-combusted," Elias reported as Captain Ellen-Mia stood and accommodated her pure white gown. She faced a weird object that was located in the sky-blue room.
It was a crystal rock of some sort with the most spectacular reflection of herself. Because of this action, Mia was able to view how she was back then.
The toga gown was latched onto one of her shoulders by a golden insignia, one that Mia recognized as her necklace. Over her waist was a golden sash that kept her gown snug on her body as it rested over her knees. Her feet were almost bare as sandals with countless straps covered her ankles and toes, revealing most of her skin.
The rest of her body was much different from present Mia, she seemed older, with a wiser expression, porcelain skin, and sleek eyes. Her hair was longer and glossier and above her head was an amazing ring of light with two smaller ones latched onto each of its sides. Lastly, her back was graced by the wings that Mia had grown accustomed in seeing.
Breaking her gaze from the crystal reflection, Captain Ellen-Mia turned to face her lieutenant. "So they are all dead? The captives that is?"
Elias shook his head. "No, there is one that still lives—a female. She seems like a lesser demon, that or she hasn't been one for too long."
"Good, I want to meet this woman," she spoke with a monotone type voice, leaving no room for discussion.
Elias's face contorted slightly, but he made no indication to question his captain. He simply nodded and left the room.
When this occurred, Ellen-Mia sighed and returned to the 'bed' where she laid. Rather than that, it was more like a solid cloud of air—an odd mysterious sight that Mia could not help but marvel over.
'The Celestial Realm is so amazing.'
Before the resting cloud, Ellen-Mia opened the enormous glass doors to allow the wind to caress her face.
It was a beautiful feel, warm and soothing, and Mia was finally able to discover the source of the light that bothered her eyes. Infused with the swirls and funnels of clouds and blue sky, there were gleaming lights soaring through them like comets—like a never ending morning.
"Sup Cap! How goes it?" In once instant, Ellen-Mia's vision was obscured by a scruffy head of black hair.
It was a young boy, hanging from the glass ceiling of what Mia assumed to be her celestial home. He was upside down, allowing his small wings to sustain him. His body was slender and under his white toga, he had black garments to conceal his legs and arms.
"What did I say about calling me Cap, Nathanael?" Ellen-Mia said the word in distaste, making the young angel smirk and scratch his head.
"I don't recall," he laughed, causing Ellen-Mia to scoff and jump out of the window to walk the golden cobblestoned pathway.
The young angel followed in tow as she blended with the bustling streets of the Celestial Realm. In reality, it was the Angel Barracks or The Core, as they called it. The center of the holy realm where all of the angels lived and trained.
Within The Core, all of the buildings were the same; they were pure white and squared with a large opening that was covered with glass. The structures were all mainly the homes of the angels, which were considered soldiers.
The beauty of these simple structures was how they were stacked on each other. Each edifice was organized in a way that made patterns and fractals. It was like walking into a fantastical town.
Lastly, the bustling golden streets which reflected their splendor on some of the pure white walls, were flourished with stands and markets. Countless items and trinkets were constantly being sold—merchandise from all over the universe.
Each corner had a merchant, from holy fire to ancient runic swords to fairy dust. It was as if the wildest of things the imagination could create were found on those streets.
And as Ellen-Mia passed by some of the angels and souls that were bartering, she focused her attention on a big observatory with an enormous crystal sphere that covered the rooftop. She said nothing in regards to the building, and instead of walking in its direction, she entered another less grand building that stood next to the ostentatious structure.
Apparently, it was the main headquarters of the archangels, and as Ellen-Mia continued on, disregarding the guards, Nathanael was pulled aside.
"Its fine, he is accompanying me," Ellen-Mia spoke, making the winged guard with his face concealed, hesitate.
He looked at the little one who was bored, and scoffed—ultimately letting him go.
"When will they acknowledge my Archangel blood-line?" Nathanael whined.
The captain, saying nothing at first, heard his words but decided to sit him down on a Zephyrus cloud of air. Much like the resting cloud, it was a magical solid object of pure rushing air that floated and acted like a chair.
Sitting down herself, Ellen-Mia addressed Nathanael's words. "They still are not sure what blood-line you pertain to. So in the meantime, keep yourself out of trouble, respect your superiors and don't draw attention to yourself until you are officially assigned a department."
Putting his cheek in his hand, Nathanael scoffed once more. "Blah, that's no fun. I want to fight on the front lines already."
"You cannot do that until we fully understand your abilities." Ellen-Mia, with her posture straight, her hair cascading down like a goddess and her hand firmly resting on her lap, sat there quietly as she tried to reason with the young one.
"You are a Hashmal right?" he asked her.
Nodding her head in silence, Ellen-Mia did not look at Nathanael, hoping that he would leave it at that.
"How long did it take them to find out?" Unfortunately it was not the case, for Nathanael was not done inquiring—but his words actually struck a chord of hesitation within Ellen-Mia.
She thought about his question, and breaking her silence, she decided to answer it.
"I was born a Hashmal. In other words, I am part of the order of Genesis. The pure angels that were created from the hands of the Almighty himself." The words made Nathanael's eyes widened.
"So you remember what He's like?"
But before she could answer, another angel interrupted.
"Captain Ellen-Mia, General Zachariah is not in at the moment, he's still in the front lines. Would you like to wait 'til he gets back or shall I leave him a message?" The woman with blond hair tied in a bun spoke to her directly. She wore a pure white gown that was cut short before her knees, and on her face was a simple glass lens that adorned one of her eyes. Her appearance was like that of a nurse or a healer of some type.
"No that won't suffice. I'd rather much speak to the captive now." Standing up before the woman, Ellen-Mia moved in her direction to pass her and access the door that was behind.
"But captain, it's strictly prohibited to have any type of contact with the captive demons unless amongst the presence of an archangel. You should know this..." The now nervous angel tried to impede her advance, but Ellen-Mia did not listen.
"I won't be long, just turn a blind eye and you will not be in any sort of trouble." Knowing full-well that the angel nurse would not do anything to stop her, Ellen-Mia advised the woman and proceeded to enter the room.
Nathanael, however, hesitated—ultimately opting against following the captain.
The room was dark at first, and when Ellen-Mia tried to turn on the orbs of light with her presence, nothing happened. She then realized that there was a being in the far corners of the cell, and because of this, she understood how it worked. The demon was of darkness, so illuminating the room would take little bit more efforts.
In one instance, Ellen-Mia flickered the rings of light that floated above her head. The halos glimmered and this made the room flash brightly.
'Oh my god...she's...no...this can't be true.'
A tired battered up woman, wearing old rags, a scarf around her head and leather gauntlets, sat in a crouched position by the corners of the white walls. In her scorched hands was a small pocket knife, incapable of hurting the captain's kind.
The most daunting aspect of the demon woman, the part that made inner Mia catch her breath, was her red braided hair that slipped out of her scarf and rested on her chest.
It completed her face.
It made her recognizable.
The demon woman was her sister Lynn.
"You're new," the woman spat.
"Am I?" Ellen-Mia questioned, making the demon look up at her in curiosity.
It took a slight second before she realized why the captain had said those words.
Smirking in satisfaction, the demon woman laughed. "You're the one they managed to knock out."
No words were said when the demon laughed.
"How does it feel?"
"What is your name?" Ellen-Mia asked in a stoic manner.
But the demon scoffed at her demands. "I tell you that and it's like I am giving you permission to destroy me."
"Look around you, there's no escape. You are in The Core of the Celestial Realm—the holiest place in the universe." Crouching to be at her level, Ellen-Mia's eyes flashed dangerously. "What salvation can a low-level demon ever hope to have in a place like this?"
The words made the woman with the uncanny appearance of Lynn scowl in anger.
"My name is Ilima."
Sensing no lies within her words, Ellen-Mia sighed. "Just as I suspected. You are still too human."
But these words angered the demon. "Who are you to judge?"
"How did you get here? Why did you choose to follow the horde?" Ellen-Mia continued to question the woman, ignoring her annoyance.
"Why do you care? Your superiors have already found the Hellgate from which I came. There's nothing I can tell you that you don't already know," Ilima spoke with rendition but the anger never left her tone.
"I care, because I seek to understand," Ellen-Mia said, her eyes now fierce as if attempting to study Ilima and all that she was.
The gesture made the demon uncomfortable, but it didn't take long before she caught on to something.
"You...," slowly, and unsure of herself, Ilima began her accusation as her eyes clashed with Ellen-Mia's. "You want to know how I did it...don't you?" The laughter began to resurface again, coating her voice.
Ellen-Mia shut her eyes, realizing that the demon's confidence was returning.
"You want to know how a demon like myself overpowered an angel of your caliber." Her voice started to boom now, as her eyes drowned in blackness. The demon started to warp the reality of the room as her voice echoed throughout it, but Ellen-Mia remained poised even after learning that her attacker was the very same demon they managed to capture.
"Only beings weak-minded and fragile at heart are capable of falling into the grasp of our powers!" Ilima laughed with a deep demonic sound laced to her voice. "You wish to know?" Standing up from her position, the demon pointed a clawed finger at the angel captain. "It is because you, my dear captain, have begun to question the reality you live in. You have finally started the unspeakable, you doubt the creator!"
When that was said, Ellen-Mia stood and left the room to the crazed demon, not letting its influence affect her—or so she believed.
"Captain?" In the moment Ellen-Mia emerged from the room, Nathanael rushed to her side. "What happened?" he asked her in worry, hearing the shouts and wails.
Opening her eyes, Ellen-Mia smiled to the boy, which shocked him. "Nothing to worry about. Let us leave," she said, eyeing the nurse from the corners of her eyes, and realizing that the woman ratted her out to the archangels.
She was at her front desk, sending off a lone white feather into the air. The silvery object flew right out of the headquarters, and it was the action that let Ellen-Mia know that the woman betrayed her.
With a deadly stare, the captain scowled in her direction as the nurse nervously rushed out of sight and back into her office.
"What's going to happen to you, captain?" Nathanael stared at Ellen-Mia in worry.
She kept her eyes firm and continued to leave the headquarters without answering his question.
"Captain!" he called back, but Ellen-Mia ignored him.
'Could it be true?' she thought to herself.
'Did you really doubt yourself—and the creation and all of it? Why was that demon the spitting image of my sister?' Mia voiced her own questions from within the subconscious of the captain, but no answer was given.
'Just wait and see. At this point, I was just as confused as you.' Instead, she heard her voice speak even though the captain made no indication of talking as Mia watched the troubled version of herself.
It was then that Mia understood that she could not interact with her past self, so asking those questions would not help. Nevertheless, there seemed to be three versions of her at that moment. She realized that the same person that answered her questions was not the same who was living what she saw.
'So it's myself, the present version of Ellen-Mia and the past version of the both us. The one who we watch...?'
'Yes, three versions of you. Ultimately we are one in the same. You will realize this soon enough.'
"Ah, well if it isn't my favorite Hashmal." Before another word could come out of Nathanael, Ellen-Mia was overwhelmed by a powerful sensation.
Her skin crawled, and when she turned to realize that an archangel had found her, she was faced with a crazy looking individual.
The archangel was tall and slender, her body completely covered by all the garments of the pure white gown they were supposed to wear as it concealed everything up to her feet. However, some of the cloths were not white, instead having a grey hue.
On her head was a round object—large and gaudy, the shape of an egg, and it was covered in a white mantle that wrapped itself around her cheeks. Her appearance was almost alien-like for her eyes were enormous and dark, and the little that could be seen of her thin skin was coated in a hazy sickly color.
Lastly, her skinniness was so blatant, you could almost see her bones through the countless cloths.
"How dare you leave the confines of your imprisonment?" Ellen-Mia spoke in a rash manner, making Nathanael all the more nervous.
"If it were a prison, don't you think I wouldn't be able to leave it?" the woman said, pointing a boney finger at her.
Ellen-Mia remained on the defense, unsure of how everything would pan out after this. "Why have you come, Angel of Death?"
The woman bellowed a laugh at the name. "Had I not come first, who knows what would have become of you," she said.
"I can take care of myself."
But the archangel shook her giant head. "No, not anymore. Not in this realm, and you know why. Even the demon knows."
Before anything further could be said, a powerful flash overtook the swirling skies, as a strike of lightning crashed before the archangel.
"Oh dear," she said simply, unfazed by the action.
A rushing sound of wind infiltrated their ears and when the light dimmed, two archangels came swooping down to pin the Archangel of Death.
The odd angel seemed to be caught, but when her face touched the floor, her body melted.
"Damn this monstrosity!" said one of the archangels, as he looked up in anger to see Ellen-Mia. His face appeared to be old with silver facial hair covering it well and lightning colored eyes adorning his smoldering demeanor.
His long sleek white hair that was tied in a bun almost became undone the moment he saw the Archangel of Death materialize before him and his comrade with a poised expression.
"Zachariah, if you wanted me back in the observatory, than all you needed to do was ask," she smiled, revealing a myriad of fangs.
The other angel, with a high ponytail made out of the mess of curly brown hair, scoffed at her. He was much shorter than Zachariah, and less bulky with a nimble figure.
His attire resembled more of an assassin, as his gown was tied at the waist and calves with a golden sash. The sleeves that were connected to the gown were so long and wide at the openings that they resembled a kimono.
"You speak as if you can do your own reasoning," he said to her in distaste.
Turning her expression away from Zachariah, the Archangel of Death scowled. "You dare speak to me, you low-life. Excelsior, you are nothing but a spoiled baby left to fill the most grandest of shoes."
"How dare you!" Excelsior exclaimed, wasting no time in materializing a sleek katana sword out of sheer light, as he thought about rushing in to slice her. But Zachariah's hand stopped him the instant he saw the notion.
"Do not let temptation cloud your judgment, Excelsior." Turning back to the Archangel of Death, Zachariah reasoned with the words she had used before. "Alright, please, Angel, go back to the observatory and continue your research in solitude. How about that?"
She hesitated a minute when she heard the words, and flashed her large eyes back to Ellen-Mia, who stood with a nervous look. Arbitrarily, the Archangel of Death made her decision and vanished out of sight—most likely returning to the building that had caught Ellen-Mia's attention before.
"Tsk, I can't believe I was bothered to come here," Excelsior spat, unleashing his wings and flying off in the direction from where he came.
Zachariah sighed at the sight of the fleeting angel, and looked back to Ellen-Mia and Nathanael.
He walked up to the captain who had a hard stare, possibly prepared for any reprimanding.
Folding his large arms over his giant plated chest, Zachariah stood before Ellen-Mia in his pure white gown that ended at his ankles. "You do realize that what you did was thoughtless and reckless, right?" he said to his captain.
Ellen-Mia cast her eyes to the ground and nodded. In one instant, she felt a pain on the back of her skull as she rubbed it furiously with her hand.
"General!" she voiced, when Zachariah struck her head with his large hand.
"See that insignia?" he shouted at her, pointing at the emblem on her right shoulder.
Ellen-Mia nodded hesitantly, unsure of where he was going with the question.
"What does it mean?" he more commanded than asked.
"The Beacon of Hope, I am the Hashmal of light and hope. The insignia proves it," Ellen-Mia said, but the words sounded more recited than anything, causing further displeasure in Zachariah.
"I know what it means and what you are! The question is, do you believe in it?" he questioned angrily.
Ellen-Mia nodded her response. "Of course my general!" she said hastily.
"Then why did you do this, you idiot? I thought I taught you better than that!" and that's when his heated reprimanding began.
The archangel seemed harmless enough, but his scolding was endless. He ranted, yelled and berated Ellen-Mia, recalling all of her mishaps and mistakes not just the most recent. Captain Ellen-Mia's general was an obvious hothead, and his actions at least made Nathanael ease up once more. The little angel enjoyed how Ellen-Mia was rebuked and chastised thoroughly, making her apologize over and over again for her 'dumb behavior.'
"You never listen to me!"
"I'm sorry."
"You always do what you please!"
"I'm sorry."
"You're always off in your own little world."
"I'm sorry."
"Never paying attention to anything I have to say!"
"I'm sorry."
"Are you even paying attention now?"
"I'm sorry."
"Idiot!" he yelled once more as he hit her over the head.
Ellen-Mia scowled and rubbed her head yet again, speaking up this time.
"General, I need to find things on my own. I shouldn't be reproached for trying to resolve this issue with the demon horde. We all are trying," she reasoned.
Zachariah, hearing her words, calmed slightly as he eyed her.
"Yes, we all are trying. Countless souls are being spirited away, but we cannot, we cannot afford to have an angel, much less one of your caliber, be tempted to the other side," he said, hesitating a bit as he continued to study her expression. "Do you know what that would mean? Do you know what position that would put me in?"
"General..." Ellen-Mia began, her eyes now etched with shame and worry.
She knew he loved her—like a father did his daughter. Zachariah cared for Ellen-Mia and would always help and protect her the best way he could.
"Shut it, just go back to resting. We'll deal with whatever happened out there when it comes down to it. As of right now, we have to quell the uprising and rebuild what was destroyed in Utopia," he said, more stern this time.
"How bad is it? Elias said it wasn't anything we couldn't handle."
"And he's right, so don't worry." With that said, General Zachariah spread his wings and left her, shouting his urgent request for her to go back to her home.
"Captain? You ok?" Before Ellen-Mia could think over what occurred, Nathanael chimed in.
"Yes, its best I head back. You as well."
There was no argument on Nathanael's part as both angel's left the area where the scene had occurred. The little one must have been anxious to get as far away as possible from the Archangel of Death.
Who wouldn't? The woman had done horrible things, but even so, Ellen-Mia could not help but look back at the Observatory in wonder as she flew off.
Within the sanctity of her room, Ellen-Mia rested, or so she tried. The darkness had fallen over the swirling clouds and blue sky, making them pitch black as the bright showering comets of light never dimmed in the slightest.
'What is happening to me, my lord?' Her back was firmly on the resting cloud as it turned into a tuft of fluffy warmth, but even with such comfort, Ellen-Mia could not find peace.
Her eyes stared straight into the circular skylight—wondering about the events of this morning.
'What did the demon mean?' Instantly, she shook her head and decided to stop fooling herself. On some levels, she knew what the demon meant.
'Where are you Father? Why am I here? Is my future destined to be a soldier of the Celestial Realm for all eternity? Never knowing if there's anything more to this existence?'
Those were the thoughts that began to plague her ever since she read a few pages of the Torah. Primarily, she learned of the Fall and the events that took place after.
Ellen-Mia knew what happened back then, but to read of it—to have it be so evidential just made it seem so real. It was much more than just a story that the higher angels spoke about to scare the younger ones.
It was the beginning act that shaped this existence.
It is the reason why everything is the way it is.
Now, that only left Ellen-Mia with one question.
Why or how did her brothers and sisters fall?
What caused them to rebel?
Is there something out there that is worth fighting and rebelling against the creator for?
But before she could continue to torture herself with endless doubts, a soft whisper filled her ears. There was slight pang that she felt on her body. It was sharp like how humans felt when they cut themselves.
Similarly to a paper cut, though she never knew for sure how that felt.
In one instant, Ellen-Mia realized what it was.
The prayer chimed in softly in her head, and within seconds her body transformed into light.
She was whisked away from her resting place.