Lilith & Raguel Part 3

[Shadowess]

It had been a difficult couple of weeks since Raguel had left Eden following his mistake with Lilith. Not wanting to tempt himself further, he had buried himself in work in Heaven's Library while other Angels continued to watch the humans. Every so often, he'd catch himself thinking of Lilith, and a wave of guilt would pass through him, followed quickly by a cold dread. What if she says something? What if she tells Adam? But she wouldn't, would she? After all, she would be in as much danger as himself if she did. He hoped he had stressed that enough to her before he'd departed. Shaking his head to rid himself of these thoughts for the thousandth time, Raguel filed away more papers as Raziel wrote feverishly on parchment at a nearby table. After a short while, Raziel paused and glanced at Raguel. 
"Something on your mind, Brother Raziel?" Raguel asked without looking up from his paperwork. 'Brother', unlike the situation with Lucifer and Samael, 'Brother' or 'Sister' was more of a unifying title that the original Angels used when referring to each other in conversation. Until those brothers were created and until Angels were given the ability to procreate, Angels would refer to each other as siblings frequently. So much so that for some Angels this was still very much a habit by the time Adam and Lilith were created. 

Raziel hesitated and lowered his gaze shyly before stammering, "I-I was just wondering, Brother Raguel, what made you want to assist me in the library? All the other Angels are so interested in the humans, and it wasn't that long ago that you were one of them."
Raguel paused and glanced at Raziel for a moment before answering. "I got bored with the humans," he lied. Funny how doing so seemed to get easier the more he did it. "I may show interest again when they begin building their civilisations, but until then, there isn't really much to see." he shrugged and turned his eyes back to his paperwork. "What of you, Brother?" he asked without looking up again. "You seem to spend more and more time in the library lately, too."

"Our Father has given me a gift, but it comes with great responsibility." Raziel sighed as he looked down at his parchment. The ink, while visible to himself, could only be seen by himself, God and a select chosen few. Raguel not being one of them.
"Your sight..." Raguel nodded. "Does-...?" he started and then stopped, hesitant to finish his question. 
"Brother?" Raziel looked up at him interestedly. 
Faltering a little, Raguel tilted his head slightly before glancing at Raziel. A possibility he hadn't considered before had brought back that feeling of cold dread. What if Raziel had seen what he'd done? "Your gift. I know you are able to see events in Heaven before they happen. I was just wondering... does- does that extend to them? The humans on Eden?" As he finished his question, he held his breath while carefully watching his Angelic brethren. 
"Oh." Raziel blinked and slowly placed his quill back into the nib holder in the centre of the desk. "Um- sort of," he said a little quietly, to a point that Raguel had to strain his ears to hear him. Raziel's eyes darted from Raguel's face to the desk a couple of times before resting them on the parchment in front of him. 

Raguel's heart was hammering in his chest, but he forced himself to appear calm as he continued to watch Raziel carefully. "And? What have you seen?"
"You know I can't tell you that, Brother..." Raziel shook his head and gave him an apologetic look. "But what I can say is, I haven't seen much of anything yet. Only things that have yet to happen." He glanced at Raguel and seemed a little nervous. "Please, can we change the subject? I-I shouldn't even have told you what I have. I don't want to get into trouble..."
"Of course, of course." Raguel nodded, relieved as he turned back to his own work again. "I'm sorry, Brother. My curiosity got the better of me."

"It's happening!" Samael's head poked into the room and echoed through the library. "Rags, come on! The humans are finally- you know!"
"You shouldn't make such a racket in a library, Sam," Lucifer said as he pushed the door open and walked past his brother into the library.
"You're not seriously going to sit in the library while it's happening?!" Samael asked as Lucifer approached the centre where both Raziel and Raguel hadn't moved. 
"If I wanted to see something like that, I'd visit the Procreation Angels," Lucifer responded as he ran his fingers over the spines of nearby books in a bored manner before picking one out to read. 
"But this is history in the making! Rags? Razzer?" Samael said, dumbstruck that his friends found no interest in what was happening. 
"I-I've um... already-..." Raziel stammered and shrugged awkwardly.
"Rags??"
Raguel winced and shook his head quickly. "You go and enjoy the show, Sam. I have too much to do here."
"Bunch of prudes, the lot of you!" Samael huffed before turning and running back towards the main hall. As he ran off, he could be faintly heard asking the other Angels, "Hey, what've I missed?" 
Raguel was quiet after that. Unsure of how to feel. He supposed he was meant to feel relief that Lilith had finally let go of him and returned to Adam's side. So, why did he feel so sick? It was almost anger but not quite. Something much deeper that he'd never felt before. In time, he would come to recognise this emotion as jealousy. 

---

Only a month or so had passed since then, and Angels were celebrating the news that Lilith's belly was beginning to grow with new life. As usual, Raguel was busying himself in the Library, but every so often, his brethren would pass by, and he would catch snippets of news from Eden. Adam was excited to become a father and was doting affection on Lilith with every waking moment. Lilith had been going through nausea and bodily aches but otherwise seemed to reciprocate Adam's affections. Raguel knew he should be happy for her. She was loved and would make a fine mother. But occasionally, his jealousy and his longing would overwhelm him to a point that he would seek solitude in his home for days at a time. 

Rough knocking brought him out of his stupor some weeks later, and he was surprised to see Michael towering over him as he opened the door. Michael smiled at him warmly. "I know what troubles you, Brother."
That cold dread again. Raguel suppressed a gulp as he stared back at the large Angel. "You do?"
"Indeed. You are depressed because you lack purpose." Michael said confidently, and Raguel relaxed a little.
"Ah... yes, well... I know our Father is still creating assignments for our Kin. I will remain patient until I am chosen to-"
"Wait no longer, Brother." Michael held up a hand, then held both of his arms up by his sides. "We have been given roles of the utmost importance! Come, you must see."
Intrigued, Raguel followed Michael to a new building in Heaven. It looked prestigious. Formal. There was an air of authority here. Michael led Raguel deep into the building until they reached a large office, at which point he gestured towards the desk while smiling brightly at Raguel. "This is yours," he told him. 
Raguel gaped at him in disbelief. "Th-this is-? I don't understand. What am I to do here?"
"Raziel had a vision. As usual, our Brother was forbidden from discussing exact details, but he said there will one day be a great war and Heaven will need soldiers to protect it. Those soldiers will need a hardened, formidable leader to guide them." He gestured to Raguel, who stared back at him dumbfounded. 
"Formidable? Michael, look at me," he said as he gestured to himself. Unlike Michael, Raguel hadn't yet built up any muscles. "I'm no soldier!"
"It's not me who chose you for this task, Raguel," Michael said in a serious tone. Raguel couldn't be certain, but Michael almost seemed agitated as he said it.
"You don't mean-?"
"In his all-knowing wisdom, our Father has chosen you to lead our Angels. Angelic soldiers will be Archangels. You will choose them. You will train them. You will lead them in keeping Heaven safe." 
"But who will we be at war against? Surely not the humans?"
"I don't know," Michael admitted. "We are not permitted to know. Only to ensure we are ready."

And so began Raguel's assignment. In the coming months, he dedicated all of his time and effort into carefully selecting Angels to become part of his army of Arch Angels. With Michael's guidance, he trained himself and his Arch Angels to gradually become strong, effective fighters. He would soon discover, though, that his new role would involve more than just building an army of strong soldiers. He would be responsible for political or diplomatic meetings between worlds and their selected leaders, such as Life and his realm of spirits. In time, when Cain would eventually murder Abel and trigger the first human death, Death and his realm would also come into being. But that's getting ahead of the story. 

---

"I still can't believe you're my superior now..." Samael chuckled. He and Lucifer were sitting in an armchair each, across from Raguel's desk as their oldest friend poured them each a glass of wine and handed them over to them. 
"I wonder what this war will be that everyone is so afraid of?" Lucifer pondered. "Do you think the humans would be responsible?"
"What is it with you and thinking it'll be the humans?" Sam asked. "They're practically toddlers compared to us, and have you seen how they act? They're far too innocent to do something so horrid."
"Given enough time, they might be capable of anything, and the prophecy didn't mention when it would happen." Lucifer pointed out. 
"You've been listening to Satan again, haven't you?" Samael pinched the bridge of his nose. 
"Saturn." Lucifer corrected him with an eye roll. "Ever since Adam called him Satan by mistake, it's all anyone ever calls him. He hates it."
"Yeah." Samael chuckled. "But you have to admit, even without that, he's had it in for Humanity since day one. 'They'll bring chaos', 'They'll destroy order', nonsense! He's just jealous that he no longer gets as much attention from our Father as he did before their creation."
"But this war-?"
"It might not even be them! There are more realms in this universe than just ours and Eden! Life has a realm. Gaia. Fate. All capable of raising an army like us."

"Can we change the subject, please?" Raguel interjected with an exasperated sigh. "I'm sick of speculating about a war that has yet to happen. It's all I hear about in my work; I don't need it when I'm trying to relax."
"Sorry, Rags," Samael said sheepishly. 
"Yes, apologies." Lucifer nodded. "How are things with you, anyway?"
"Oh, same as ever. Mountains of paperwork, drills, and almost constant requests from the other realms. A Cherub from Life's realm visited me no less than eight times this week to request a transfer to my army of Arch Angels..."
"A Cherub?!" Samael laughed incredulously. "What, those little child Angels?"
"I imagine for some of those Cherubs, life might be quite difficult," Lucifer said thoughtfully. "They mature mentally but never grow up."
"But it's not like they have a hard life!" Samael shook his head, still chuckling. "I mean, they literally have it made! Wake up, look adorable, bless newborns with a soul, convince potential parents to have babies all while still looking adorable, then go to sleep!"
"Well, apparently that's not enough for this Cherub..." Raguel sighed while rolling his eyes. "I've rejected their request every time and told them their 'build' isn't suitable for an army life, but she is persistent!"
"My goodness!" Samael laughed. "Can you imagine coming across an armoured Cherub on a battlefield?"
"What if you're being too quick to dismiss her?" Lucifer asked.
"You're joking, right?" Raguel half-laughed. 
"Her form might offer advantages that an opponent might not expect. Besides, she may appear to be a child, but she is our Kin, too. Does she not have just as much right as any of us to be treated with respect?"
"I think you've had enough wine, dear brother." Samael chuckled. "A Cherub soldier! That'll be the day!"

---

"How many times must we go through this?" Raguel asked irritably from the chair behind his desk as he gave the cherub sitting across from him a cold stare. "You are not suitable to be an Arch Angel, Clementine! And regardless, I have raised your frequent requests to Life, who is not too pleased that one of his Cherubs has been neglecting their duties!"
"I will not be spoken down to!" Clementine snapped. She stood up on the chair and stamped her little foot in a rage. "I didn't choose this life, and I have no interest in it! This is unfair!"
"Do you think I chose this?" Raguel barked back, getting to his feet and leaning on the desk to tower over the little Angel. "We don't all get to choose our role! You and your Cherub brothers and sisters were given to Life as a gift in good faith! Do you mean to question our Father? Do you mean to turn your back on your duties with your ungratefulness?"
Clementine's little cheeks turned red and her eyes filled with tears. She flustered, looking as if she wanted to say something but knowing better, she bit her lip and reluctantly shook her head. "But why must I be forever this?" She asked while gesturing to herself. "I don't understand why I cannot grow like the other Angels and Spirits. Why are we Cherubs eternally stuck so?"
Raguel sighed. He opened his mouth to answer her more calmly but was interrupted as Samael burst through the door. "Raguel-!"
"Sam, you can't just come barging in here! I'm currently in a meeti-"
"It's happening!" Samael interrupted him with an urgent look. 
At first, Raguel was confused, but then it dawned on him. "You're sure?"
"Certain! Her waters broke an hour ago. She's been in pain since and can barely stand. It's progressing faster than expected."

Raguel faltered and looked at Clementine, who stared back at him wide-eyed. "I think I should return to Life's realm," she said almost numbly before sprouting her little white wings and flying off hurriedly. Samael moved to one side to let her past but kept his eyes on Raguel. "Come on! We're going to miss it!"

Unable to process his emotions, Raguel moved before his mind could catch up to him, and before he knew it, he was standing among a crowd of Angels looking through the glass sphere just like they had done when God had been creating Eden. Only this time, its view was directly on the humans. Adam was watching and panicking helplessly. Clearly unsure of what to do or how to help. Lilith was pacing between two trees while holding the lower part of her large belly. Her face twisted in an almost constant grimace of pain as she occasionally let out a low groan. Her legs were half covered in her own blood. 
Raguel couldn't stop staring at her face. It had been months since he'd seen her, and now that she was in front of him, he couldn't look away. Emotions flooded him, and he longed to hold her to him. To comfort her and tell her everything would be alright. Then he saw the blood on her, and his emotions shifted into concern. "That's a lot of blood, isn't it? Is there something wrong?" he asked Samael, who shrugged at him. 
"I don't know. This might be normal for humans. I don't know."
"Wh-what if it's not? She might be in danger. We should send some Angels to-"
"No," Michael interjected from behind him. "No Angels. We were given strict instructions not to interfere unless absolutely necessary. Let's see how this plays out. She might pull through."
Feeling as helpless as Adam was likely feeling, Raguel watched Lilith tensely. 

Minutes passed. Then hours. Lilith had been labouring all through the night, and it was early morning by the time she began showing signs of intense fatigue. By now she was lying against the trunk of a large tree. Her legs and all the grass around her were soaked in blood. Adam was weeping beside her, and she had lost almost all colour to her skin. Her breathing was beginning to become shallower, and her eyes were starting to roll.
"We need to do something!" Raguel said in a panic. "She's going to die if we don't! The baby will die if we don't!" He looked pleadingly at Michael, who was staring at the glass sphere in thought for a moment before he relented and nodded to him. 
Immediately, Raguel shouted for a group of Arch Angels to head to Eden and intervene before all was lost. Two Angels would need to keep Adam back while also keeping him calm. Two more would see to Lilith. One to heal her and the other to help her deliver the baby. 

The rest of the Angels, including Raguel, turned back to the glass sphere to watch them work. Seeing the Angel healing Lilith and the colour returning to her face brought immense relief to him. He watched as her eyes flickered open again and she was given enough strength to continue the labour. The other Angel attended to her, and after a moment of probing, could be heard on the sphere saying, "The child is stuck!" 
A wave of gasps went through the hall, and the tension became unbearable for Raguel. Hushed prayers were whispered throughout the hall, begging God to help her deliver the child safely. Raguel's prayers were among them. 

The Angels on Eden worked tirelessly. Minutes felt like hours. There had been some quiet debate on whether it might be best to cut Lilith open to get the child out, but then the Angel assisting her said they'd be able to guide the child out with their hands, and they began to coach Lilith through. With each push, the Angels collectively held their breath. The Angel urged Lilith into one final, big push and with a great cry of pain, she bore down with all her might. But following her scream came a shocked silence until that silence was broken by the baby's cry. 

"Wings!" 
"It has wings!"
"An Angel!?"
"How can this happen?!"
Confused murmurs filled the hall rapidly as Raguel stood with a stunned look, as he stared up at the image of the baby with bloodied white wings. Tears filled his eyes, and for a moment he couldn't hear anything at all. He numbly took in all the details of the child. His tight little fists as he took in his first gulps of air and cried. The little tuft of dark hair on the top of his head. The soft feathers that cradled the full length of his tiny frame. 'What have I done!?' he thought as the realisation dawned on him that this child couldn't possibly be Adam's. Unfortunately, the Angels around him as well as Adam himself had also quickly come to this realisation. They watched as Adam's face twisted from relief to confusion, then finally to a betrayed rage. Lilith quickly scooped up the boy and held him protectively to her chest while looking guiltily up at Adam, who had to be held back by the other two Angels as he screamed at her. Demanding to know which Angel had done this to her. Demanding that she tell him why she did this or whether she'd ever loved him at all. 

Raguel will never forget how terrified and apologetic she looked as she simply stared at him while crying. He'd been frightened that she would cave in to the pressure of his demands and reveal his role in all of this, but to his surprise, she didn't say a word. Merely sat there, babe in her arms and cried silently as she let Adam yell at her. When it seemed that Adam might get physical with her for not answering, Raguel found the strength at last to speak. He ordered more Angels to separate them and to ensure Lilith and the child were kept safe until they received further instruction. He knew there would be investigations into this. He knew he, among other Angels who had been observing the Humans, would be prime suspects. But in that moment he couldn't think about that. He could only focus on doing what he could to keep Lilith and her child safe... he owed them that much.

Unfortunately, most of what happened with Lilith fell out of Raguel's hands. Not long after they were separated, Adam, in his rage, had pleaded to God to give him a fresh start. He never wanted to see Lilith again and wanted a wife that would genuinely love him. Someone who would never betray him. Of course, the moment of the child's birth, all the Angels had felt it. God's anger. So, when Adam had prayed the way he had, God had answered immediately. A rib was pulled from Adam, and a genetically altered clone of him was created. Only a few short hours later, Eve would open her eyes for the first time. In addition to the new wife, God had also granted Adam the 'fresh start' that he'd asked for. A copy of Eden was created. Adam and Eve were then moved to their new world, Earth, leaving Lilith and her child behind. 

As if to add insult to injury, not only was Eden essentially abandoned by God, meaning that Lilith was left completely alone and no longer protected, but He had also ordered that the 'abomination' be brought to Heaven to serve as a reminder to Angels of what happens when they try to meddle with His plans. Initially, the child was meant to be raised as an underling. A servant. To be viewed as less of an Angel than anyone else. But after much pleading for mercy and forgiveness for a child who had no control over how he came into existence by a surprising number of Angels, God eventually relented and allowed the child to grow, away from the rest of the populace in a secret location, as an Angel. To have their memory altered when they came of age so as to believe that they were created like the first Angels, rather than having been born. But, of course, that didn't mean that God would be kind to the boy as he grew.

It was an odd time. After the baby had been snatched from Lilith's grip, he had been brought to Raguel's office. During this time, Raguel had been interviewed extensively by Michael regarding his time when he'd observed the Humans. But by then, Raguel had become surprisingly adept at lying. His lies were laced with enough truth that after just a couple of interviews he was essentially removed from the list of suspects. Of course, it had helped that Lucifer and Samael had provided character statements to further convince Michael that he'd had nothing to do with what had happened. Raguel had felt bad that his friends had stood up for him without having any idea of what he'd actually done, but at the end of the day, he was just relieved to no longer be under a microscope. 

He'd walked into his office to find Michael standing there, waiting for him. In a nearby bassinette, the baby was sleeping peacefully. "What's the meaning of this?" Raguel growled at Michael. 
"We have a problem." Michael sighed. "Angels have prayed for mercy for this child, and mercy has been granted. But no one is willing to step up to actually raise the boy. We may have to order an Angel to do so."
"Order an Angel to raise a child that God is angry with for existing? And what kind of life would that be?" Raguel questioned and moved over to the fireplace to stare into the fire. He rubbed his chin, feeling awful that he'd put the child in this situation but unable to say so or to save him. Just being in the room with the child was torment, knowing what he'd done. 
"If you want to be angry at someone, be angry at the child's father." Michael sighed.
"How are the investigations going, by the way?" Raguel asked, unable to help himself. 

"Annoyingly the same," Michael replied as he sat in one of the armchairs. "Whoever this Angel was, they have covered their tracks well. There isn't an ounce of evidence that we can use."
"And Lilith? Has she said anything?"
"We tried before Earth's creation, but no, she still wouldn't speak. Of course, now we've been ordered to leave her to her fate, so we can't be chasing her for answers anymore."
"Has anyone been keeping tabs on her?"
"It's forbidden." Michael shook his head. "Her whole world is cut off from the other realms. She's completely alone. She'll likely go completely mad before she ever starts speaking again." Michael then tilted his head towards Raguel. "There's been chatter among the Angels. I think it'd be best for you to address the Archangels and urge them not to venture to Eden to seek her out."
"What?" Raguel turned to look at him. "Why would Angels be seeking her out if it's forbidden to even go to Eden?"
"Eden is a complete dead zone. There's no one monitoring it anymore. At all. So, whatever happens there... stays there. And this chatter... the Angels aren't talking about seeking her out for answers." Michael's eyes moved slowly over to the bassinet. "They know it's possible now. They want to put their mark on an unmonitored world."

"That's monstrous!" Raguel gasped in horror. "We cannot allow this!"
"We can talk to our Arch Angels. We can punish those that we catch. But we won't be able to catch everyone all the time. And they know it."
Raguel stared at Michael for a long time before he moved over to his desk and sat down. "Is there nothing else we can do?" 
"I'm afraid not." Michael sounded apologetic, and his eyes landed on the sleeping child once more. "So, about this one?"
"I can't force him into a family that does not want him..." Raguel sighed. "I'll take him in. I'll raise him and alter his memories."
"Noble of you," Michael said with a nod. "Will you rename him?"
For the first time since walking into the office, Raguel brought himself to look into the bassinette. His eyes softened immediately, and his expression became sad as he gazed at his son. "We've already taken so much from him. Let him keep the one thing that Lilith gave him." Thankfully, Lilith had named the child during the short time that she was no longer being watched, before the Angels had taken him from her. The only person to have heard her call the child by his name had been Michael when he had approached her to inform her of the boy's fate. This meant he could keep his name without fear of being recognised later in life.
"Very well." Michael nodded as he stood. He placed his hand on the side of the bassinette and rocked it a little. "Best of luck, little Naoutha."