Interlude: The Voice of God

Interlude: The Voice of God

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Commissioned by Ichypa, Althero, and Chaosbrain

Word Count: 3000

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Another world was purified of the aberrations through flame. Through divine steel, the monsters were heaped upon mountains of their fellows. Through cohorts marching in unity, the tide of darkness and malevolent intent faltered, and failed. So was the case for the fifth world of abominations this year, who decades ago transgressed upon Heaven, and now encroach upon His people.

My name is Metatron, and I oversee Heaven’s Legions as they turn worlds to cinder.

Through the portals from which they have invaded, we turned the sword upon the plague itself. Every righteous soul they captured for their vile purposes who earned paradise has been returned. But, in their harm, the most sacred of bonds between Him and Man was broken. Only the complete extinguishment of the vile monstrosities from reality  would suffice to see it renewed. The blood of the covenant between Him and Man will be renewed with the sacrifice of retaken planets, burnt for  fuel, and their molten bones shall be sacrificed at the altar of a gilded frame, to ensure it shall never be tarnished again.

“Uh-huh, yeah. I heard you the first time, pretty boy. But, you heard me too. I told you that this planet’s going straight into the sun.” Great Red, the Aspect of Illusion, lounges before me with dirtied boots upon a table crafted of pearl, ivory, and white elm. It is a masterpiece composed by an artisan soul that no longer need be concerned for materials. It is a grand gift. A worthy table for my place upon His flagship. I granted the Dragon of Dragons the hospitality of laying his legs upon it as he sat. “So, all of you can go back to your pretty buildings, sing your praises, and help out the humans left behind on Earth. The Church. Whatever they’re called.”

Should this planet be cast into the sun, the way into more territories of the abomination will be cut. Heaven’s Legions will be incapable of pursuing the Chimera. It is unacceptable. The divine compact has yet to be reaffirmed. His word was broken. Those of Heaven, who earned paradise, were brought harm after they proved themselves righteous beyond all others. The only restitution, the only method of reparation, was to completely annihilate the abominations through Heaven’s forces.

“Do I look like I care about what Creation wants? If I wanted Creation’s opinion, I’d have asked her. I’m telling you, big guy, that I’m knocking this planet into the sun and whether you’re still here or not ain’t that big a deal to me.” Great Red spoke calmly and clearly, going as far as to brush his nails against his red jacket. However, he exuded power. So much power that my bones shook. His eyes were not those of a man. No, behind his almost shut-gaze were golden pools of the power of dreams, of Reality’s own yearning To Be. “Or, hey, you want to fight over it? What do you think, big guy? You think you can take me on? Make me do what you want?”

Such circumstances were beyond my ability. No. Beyond my responsibility. To engage in conflict against the Aspect of Illusion would be to bring upon Heaven unforgivable destruction that we cannot defeat.

I ceded my ground, on the condition that he give all the Legions upon the world time to evacuate.

“Tch, you make me sound like some sorta asshole. Do you seriously think that I’ve gotten this far by picking every fight I can? Do I look like Destruction?” The sentience-rattling presence of the Dragon of Dragons lessened perceptibly, especially as he stood up and stretched his arms. With an idle wave of his hand, he had the doors to my office open. They were compositions of art, lavishly perfected by a masterful soul to be both graceful and elegant. He summoned a two-wheeled combustion engine, filled with perfectly-replicated gasoline, and activated it upon my marble. He intended to drive through that doorway on a motorcycle. “You have a week. Kill as many as you want from this end, and keep all the planets you’ve got, but I’m smashing this place into the sun and closing it off after seven days. Don’t be here, you got it?”

I gave him my word, upon Creation’s name, and he seemed satisfied.

Thus, he disappeared into the Dimensional Gap, riding upon a highway that formed before him according to his whims.

A week would suffice, especially with all the Legions crashing upon the world like a divine fist.

…

Gabriel ruminates upon the prow of her ship, peering onto another parallel Earth infested by abominations. The continents are the color of red flesh. The seas are a primordial soup upon which massive worms swam to gather nutrients for the flesh that drank from the planet’s molten heart. It is a world without redemption, as are all the other worlds beyond this point, and no Eden can be born of this one or the last five, unlike the first ten-and-eight. There is no deliverance or redemption for this planet. Only flame, steel, and wrath.

“Metatron, what did the Dragon demand of us?” Gabriel was an Archangel steeped in battle. A being sent to represent Heaven as an undeniable, irrevocable force. When her wings unfolded upon Earth, even Odin drew silent. Gods would flee before her, should she come to them garbed as she was now. Divine armor and armaments forged by Himself gilded her. She can take a tenth of the planet below in the time we’ve been given. “A week, then. That is enough time to blood the last of the new Legions.”

Enough is lacking. It is not what is expected of Heaven. However, the Dragon of Dragon made its demands. It cannot be denied. Not without grave retribution. So, there shall be no careful bloodletting. No bloody drills, lessons upon the field, or reinforcements awaiting orders. Here and now, the first of Heaven’s Crusades shall have to be. War. The first war Heaven shall wage without Him, shall be on this parallel earth, after decades of careful study, preparation, and consideration.

“I would have liked another season, or perhaps a decade, but I will not casually gainsay an Aspect.” Gabriel turned about, facing the gathered Legion behind her. My superiority to her in hierarchy and strength are without question, but this Legion, standing upon the ship’s outer hull with her in orbit, is her Legion. A combination of Angels born through His efforts over the millennia, the Brave Saint System He composed, and the first, new generation of Angels born to Angels.  Did Gabriel have a child amongst these winged, armored Legionnaires? I did not know, but I would not strain their relations, regardless. “You all have heard the words of Heaven’s Steward! This is no longer a battle that you shall all be bloodied upon! This is now the first war we shall wage upon our Crusade! This world, here, will be the first to be set ablaze by Heaven’s true might, and you shall be the ones to cast the first blow!”

No cheers, nor roars, are expected of Heaven’s Legions. The only answer to such words is the simple bearing of arms and the trumpets of the heralds. Nevertheless, the noise of a hundred thousand weapons of Light can grace the call of the horns which proclaim the coming of divine wrath.

The glory of Light, combined with Heaven’s declaration of war, has felled many hosts before. Many human armies have surrendered to a single Legion coming upon a single Ark, yet there shall be no terms of surrender for the abominations which have infested so many Earths. No. The planet and its inhabitants shall look upon the twenty Arks of Heaven, the two million shining stars held in the hands of God’s servants, and hear a sonorous roar that brooks no chance for dialogue.

This Crusade by Heaven shall take upon itself His mantle as the foremost of Aspects benevolent to humanity. For Him, for all that He has given and everything that He has done for all of Reality, Heaven shall match the efforts of the Aspect of Infinity and Illusion, in their ridding reality of the Chimera. Though only a single generation has come forth from Heaven, and though we are without Him, we shall fulfill our duty. As those humanity must aspire to reach… and must forever head forward so that we may never be reached, so that they will never truly be astray.

For without His Guidance, Heaven can only strive to become worthy of the grace and grandeur we have been granted.

While Heaven cannot reach Him, that is not an excuse to not aspire to be like Him.

With those words unsaid, held within my heart, I watched each prow of every Ark sent forth Light onto the planet below. The blackish ooze that replaced the oceans boiled, the clouds turned to steam, and the topmost flesh became firestorms. The abominations writhed and burned by the millions, but billions more lay in waiting beneath the crust, in innards that wound through the whole of this parallel Earth. The topmost flesh was merely armor, freely given, in exchange for time. However, we had a hammer to crack it open, despite its lack of divinity.

“Metatron, His ship is here with the vanquished moon.”

Mere weeks ago, the Chimera set upon Earth once more. Since then, the majority of Humanity have left their homeworld in favor of the stars. God would have wept. Long did I ponder the retribution that I would render for the abominations’ actions. Not until I witnessed their announced return, did I find a deed worth rendering such a worthy blow against the monstrosities.

They had utilized a moon to strike against mankind.

So, I shall render onto them the same in turn.

My very being was stretched thin. The grand power granted to me as the Steward of Heaven during His absence was lacking for the first time. Though my own power trifled in comparison to what He’d blessed me, I added it onto the conflagration that fueled His ship. The blazing, miniature sun he’d forged from the basest of molecules cast a pale, yellow glow, as it fueled the ever-rotating configuration of rings that composed the whole of the massive enterprise.

And, behind, and dwarfing it, was the moon of this parallel Earth.

The abomination that had called the satellite home had been slain, and provides fuel to the pale firestorm which envelopes the cratered orb.

By my will, over my control of His ship, I cast my stone upon the abomination.

It is merely a quarter of the size of the planet, an eightieth of the weight, and moves no faster than the first of man’s manned missions to the orbiting body, taking three days to reach this point. Yet, it is still a quarter of the size of the planet, an eightieth of the planet’s weight, and is moving as quickly as chemical rocket created to break through Earth’s gravity, and leave enough force to send a fueled vessel to the moon.

The armored flesh rushes toward the impact. Continents worth of armored chitin stack atop one another and bulge grotesquely through the atmosphere. The abomination attempts to cast magics upon my stone, and they manage to deface it,. However, their efforts are for naught. The surface of the moon collides with the plate. Oppressive force connects with mere flesh. It is a hammer against armored muscle. And muscle, even armored, is merely muscle. Vast oceans of brackish ichor spread across the surface of the planet, as the mountain cannot withstand the pressure exerted upon it.

The abomination resists the hammer, the stone which I have deigned to cast with all my strength and all the power He has given me, and I cannot help but acknowledge the abomination’s strength.

However,  I am not alone.

“All Arks focus on the flesh holding back the moon! Let the Light scourge away the darkness which protects these beasts!” Gabriel and all my remaining fellows were with me. Heaven stood united and stronger. Our victory during the Great War saw us as the mightiest of the Three, yet  nowhere near our previous strength. He, however, knew the correct course of action. Though He was dying, instead of saving His life, He sought to save Heaven… and us. Now, Heaven is unquestionably the mightiest of the Three, and capable of repaying the debt it owes to Him for His sacrifice. “Legionnaires! Prepare for Entry! Do not blink, lest your eyes be closed when you return to Reality! Kill the hearts which feed these affronts to nature!”

The trumpets sang and the Light surged once more.

Then, without a word, I was alone.

The Arks entered the atmosphere without any measures to protect their surroundings. Reality responded furiously and angrily at the slight. However, the Arks were able to withstand those blows. The planet was not. Vast, grand scars carve themselves into existence across continents, severing arteries that could have held cities, and send out lances of Light which scoured the swarms of abominations which tried to defile them. The Legions, meanwhile, were beyond my sight. Their missives took them deep into the mantle, into the innards of the abomination which has so thoroughly embedded itself into the planet, and they will bring the Light into the dark hearts which beat and empower the abomination that became of the planet. 

I willed myself back onto His ship.

Either to await a call for aid, while I rested.

Or, to respond to any attempts to reinforce the whole planet by the affront.

The latter was unlikely.

They did not wish to give me another stone.

…

On the seventh day, Heaven rested.

And, so, the Dragon of Dragons reappeared before me.

“You cocky motherfucker! I didn’t think you had balls! Let alone the planet-crackers you’ve been hiding! Haha!” Great Red was expectedly pleased with the situation he’d returned to. The whole of the parallel Earth was now a burning, shattered husk. The flames created by Light, feeding upon the whole creature that wound itself into the whole planet, will burn for millennia with its gargantuan amount of fuel. The flame even burnes the immense tendrils which connect the shattered planet. The Light needed no oxygen to burn, only those who trespass against Him. “Fuck, you pretty bitches actually got me! Haha!”

His compliments were acceptable, but I reminded him that we completed his demands nonetheless. He is free to shatter the link between this parallel and the next. Thus, Heaven will be truly and completely secure from the Chimera threat.

“Oho! What!? Are you serious!? You’re serious!” The Aspect of Illusions guffawed even more at those words. However, it was not with malevolent intent. Genuine surprise and cordiality spread forth from the fragment of reality given form and purpose. With crossed arms, he laughed boisterously, before making a declaration. “At this rate, Creation’ll never come back, because you won’t need’em!”

As preposterous as that particular notion is, the thought of Him finding us worthy is appealing. Nevertheless, the Dragon of Dragons had seen through Heaven’s plan with ease. Now, after years of silence, the Kingdom shall return. Once again, after just a handful of centuries, humanity has entered an age of Legends, where both greater heroes and adversaries arise. The Concepts must be seen to. The Preserver’s worthiness evaluated. The Faithful delivered. Heaven, at its newest height of glory, shall relieve reality of the bane that plagues it, but it shall not forget the mission rendered onto it by Him.  Humanity cannot chase after Heaven, if it did not survive. Therefore, while we reached out to burn away the abominable, we shall also protect what remains of Humanity.

“You’re reaching for the stars, even while your asses are stuck in the mud, you mean.” Great Red shakes his head. Despite his harsh words, he lacks any ill intent. On the contrary, he seemes more pleased than ever. Heaven, of course, would be stretched thin pursuing both missions. It was a monumental task that an Aspect would struggle and falter to shoulder. However, what is a child, but a parent’s legacy? Their greatest creation? How could we not do more than what we were intended? We may never be able to reach Him, but that is no excuse to not try. “Pfft! Hahaha! This is great! Absolutely great! You guys get a pass! Just one! I haven’t laughed this hard in ages!”

Those words shook me from my innermost thoughts.

A pass?

“A favor. A free ticket. A gimme. Whatever you want to call it.” Great Red gestures. Suddenly, within the pocket lapel of my suit, there was a simple coin. It had the texture and weight of gold, yet was the deepest coloration of crimson I’d ever laid my gaze upon. However, beyond the composition of the material itself, its true merit lay in what it symbolized. A favor from an Aspect was not to be considered lightly. Still, there were matters to consider. “Yeah, you got it. I’m not doing anything I don’t want to. I like you, but there’s no way  I’ll do something I don’t like for ya.”

I considered it for a moment, before nodding.

I would like to call upon that favor, now.

“Oh?”

The Reincarnation of Lucifer is now the Aspect of Conflict. His name is Li Song. However, according to all reports, he has neither the mind nor the temperament of my brother. Therefore, he isn’t a foe that Heaven must fall upon. Yet, there is his opposite. The Aspect of the End. An individual weak to Light, a being that is the very antithesis of Creation, and the embodiment of everything that He fought against.

Were I not the Steward of Heaven, I would have called for the Aspect of Illusion to do his utmost to destroy her.

Instead, I asked the Dragon of Dragons to test her.

I took his sudden disappearance, along with the token’s, as his agreement.