FALLING UP The decent: The crisp air. The somewhat cloudy sky obscuring the true majesty of the sun. It was a good day to begin. At least… as good as any. Arissa walked slowly along the halls of the Fallen Tower. Her steps… never faltering. Her purpose… never wavering. She stood outside the first door and looked at it closely. Examining its every minute detail, its make, it aesthetic designs and so forth. Finally, she opened it… and entered. Guardian Angel: Arissa entered to a huge domicile. It was dark but provided sufficient illumination, though from where, it's not exactly known. There was a smell not unlike the smell of a hospital that pervaded the room. Clean, yet… tainted somehow. And at the far end of the enclosure, sitting on a throne was the fallen archangel himself. Zalrafel. Arissa took a moment more to appreciate the significance of the relationship between the room and the being sitting on his throne in front of her before moving towards said being. "Greetings child" He greeted "And what pray tell, are you doing here? In my 'private' chambers." Zalrafel did not move from his seating as he said those words. He remained as unmoving as his own will. He studied the frail and sickly looking child before him, and were this before he had his falling with the Creator and gained his disdain for humanity, he may have had pity for her. As it is, he was indifferent. Humans deserved his wrath, but not necessarily much of his time. "Good morning Zalrafel" Arissa nodded her head to him. "Well?" "Well what?" "Do not play games with me. Why are you here child?" "The company." Zalrafel responded by intensifying his gaze at the young one before him. She looked barely half a score in years, but her body seemed as if it was ten times that. He looked at her for a few moments more, under his scrutiny, no mortal should be able to even remain sane, let along standing. But here she was, standing nonchalantly, seemingly waiting for him to finish. 'This one may bare caution' he thought. It was strange really; something seemed missing from the picture. He could tell all he needed to know about her just from his short examination of her. In the few moments she stood before him, he was confident he had taken all there is of this child. Yet, there was something about her he felt he should grasp… Arissa let out a slight chuckle. "And what, may I ask, is so humorous child?" "The fact that you cannot see." "Pardon?" "You do not defy reality Zalrafel. You do not exist outside the will of the creator. On the contrary, you are very much in line with the Creator's motives." "And how would you know child?" "Let me ask you a question. When is a person's lifetime?" "That is a question more suited for the Chronomancer child." "Nonetheless, when is a person's lifetime? " Zalrafel rested his head on his hands as considered his words carefully. "It is the time from which they were born to the time from which they die." "Can a person live beyond their time?" "Obviously not, it contradicts itself. Now what is the point of this child?" "Then how is it that there are those among us" she made a small sweeping gesture toward the window overlooking Khazan, "who exist before and beyond their time? How is it that Bunny is here before she was born? How is it the Chronomancer himself is still in existence?" Zalrafel was silent. His posture remained rock solid. His expression was void of emotion. "You do know" Arissa continued, "that Bunny is not of this time don't you? Surely you would be able to see the distortion that surrounds her. It's akin to the Chronomancer's." "Get on with it child." Arissa made a slight nod. "Very well. They are not outside their lifetime. They are alive in this time; therefore it is their lifetime. You exist in this reality; therefore you are not defying it. In fact, you are very much a part of it." "…" "Do you remember your brethren Zalrafel? Do you remember apparently wiping one of them out of existence?" "I do, and I did not apparently did it. I did. For that matter, how do you know of it child?" "I told you, I see what others do not. Or rather, I see what you do not. Zalrafel, if you truly did do what it is you have apparently done, then how is it that you still have memory of it? If you exist outside of reality, then how is it that others in reality can perceive you? It is your very existence that ensures what you perceived to have occurred, did not actually occur. You wiped no one from existence because you still have knowledge of it. No one wiped you from existence because you still exist. You do not defy reality Zalrafel. You do not defy the Creator. You defy yourself. By existing, you do not contradict the universe but you contradict yourself. You are being played for a fool by the Creator. You are the bud of a joke." "ENOUGH!" he slammed his fist on the sides of his throne "A joke am I? Let me show you EXACTLY what I did to my lost brethren!" Zalrafel grabbed Arissa by her throat and lifted her up into the air even as she smiled faintly. She could feel his rage as his fingers tightened their grip around her neck and began to unravel her from existence itself. It seemed to last forever, but there was no pain, and even if they were, she would not have faltered under it. She was used to pain. When Zalrafel finally regained his senses, he dropped the child back down. He looked at her perplexed. She was still alive. Standing exactly where she had been before, it was as if nothing had happened. "Surprised Zalrafel? Those of us who can perceive, and more importantly, can understand, would not be so easily destroyed." "How did you survive?" "I told you, I perceive. And I understand. Let me give you some advice Zalrafel, raise not your hand so easily in anger. While it is easy to unmake in anger, it is very difficult to remake in such a state." "I do not understand." "Exactly." "Again, how did you survive?" "I simply did the opposite of what you were trying to do." A silence pass over the two of them as Arissa's words sunk in. While Zalrafel tried to unravel reality, Arissa simply manipulated and rethread it back together, thereby negating what he had tried to do. At last, the silence was broken when the fallen archangel spoke. "Are you quite done yet child?" "I am" she said as she turned to leave. "What was the point of all that child?" "I wished your company. And now that I've gotten what I wanted, there is no need for me to remain further." Zalrafel remained seated as Arissa closed the door behind her. "She sees…" he whispered softly "she understands… what I cannot." And then, he smiled. He had found what he was looking for. Eyes that see what is blocked to even himself. ------------------------------ Shall we dance?: Devyn glanced up as he finished his supper. Arissa had entered. He studied her briefly as he wiped his mouth with a kerchief, and noted that she had something under her arms. A chessboard. "Good evening Arissa. A little late for you isn't it? Couldn't sleep?" Arissa shook her head. "Good evening Devyn. Would you like to have a little session of chess?" Devyn's smiled faintly. He was wondering when she's get to it. "Very well, why don't you go set things up in my study while I tidy up a bit? I'm sure you can find it by yourself." Arissa simply went straight to Devyn's study as he got up and cleaned up a bit. When he had finally arrived, she had already set everything up. Arissa gestured to the pieces. "You may have the first move." She said. Devyn smiled faintly again. He took a seat opposite Arissa and the battle of minds began. It's hard to describe what went on really. Further hindered by this simple chronicler's lack of knowledge on the game being played. Both the game on the table and the real game being played out, but suffice it to say, when two prodigies in the stratagems of war gather together, what could only result is… art. *White Knight takes Black Bishop* "So Arissa. How have you found life among the Fallen?" "It is educational." *White Bishop takes Black Pawn* *Black Bishop takes White Rook* *White Bishop takes Black Pawn* "The view from your room is quite good, though I think you could see more if you were a few more rooms down the hall." *White Rook takes Black Knight* *Black Pawn takes White Pawn* "An excellent and enlightening, read don't you agree?" "Yes." *Black Queen takes White Pawn* "Hmm, a nice strategy you are going for." *Black Rook takes White Knight* *White Queen takes Black Pawn* *White Queen takes Black Rook* *Check* *Black Queen takes White Queen* *Check* *White Pawn blocks Black Queen* "Getting interesting, wouldn't you agree?" "Yes." *Black Rook takes White Rook* *Mate* Devyn sighed. He looked at the time as Arissa cleared the contents on the table. Had it really been almost five hours? "And excellent match young lady." "Yes. It was very close. Rather invigorating." "We must play again sometime." "Yes. How is next weekend for you?" "That would be fine. Good night. I imagine you have pressing business to attend to." "As do you I'm sure. Good night Devyn." Devyn watched as Arissa left his quarters, and smiled faintly. 'Yes' he thought 'A good match.' ------------------------------ Dollar for your thoughts?: "Good morning Dollar." "Good morning young lady. Something to drink?" "Let's cut the preamble Dollar. You're not like the other two." "Yes, lets. Now what can I do for you?" "I wish to have a position on the council. I want your support." "Everybody wants a position there young lady, why should you get my support and not others?" "Because I'm the only one other than yourself right now who can appreciate the value of a dollar. And because you'll need me." "How do you figure that?" "You brought in the Chronomancer to offset Zalrafel. You need me to offset the fact that the ultimate goal of the other council members involves the destruction of the omniverse. Think about it. Zalrafel has his tiff with the Creator, and while I will not presume to say what his motives are, they obviously do not involve your rise to anything beyond where you are now. In fact, chances are, he would ultimately want to kill you for no other reason than you being human." "And you as well I would imagine. Being human and all yourself." "Who says I'm human?" "…" "As for Devyn, his motives do not seem much different than that of Quietus', and while I'm sure you can appreciate the sophistication he brings into the Fallen as a whole, I doubt you would want to see him achieve his ultimate goals." "Point taken. Which brings us now to the Chronomancer." "Need you even ask? Surely you know his motives by now. Or at least guess at them. Like the other two, his goals would only lead to mutual destruction. But more importantly, it would bring YOU destruction. And that's the main thing isn't it? How would their goals collide with your own? But more importantly, will you live through their ambitions. I won't make promises Dollar, but I AM the lesser of evils. Having me can only benefit you, if not greatly, then enough to ensure your survival. The Fallen has had several changes in vision over the course of its existence, but while you hold a hand in steering its current vision, there are three others who also do, and they intend to steer it in a direction much different than your own. Having me would tip the balance so that it is more in your favor." "Nice. Now, what exactly is YOUR vision? We may have visions and goals more aligned than the ones I have with my other fellow council members, but that does not necessarily put us together in the same boat." "True. Still, I have made my case. It is in your hands now Dollar, on whether or not I should become a member of the Fallen Council. Good Day." "You still haven't answered my question young lady. What are YOUR plans? What is your ultimate goal?" "I know, and I have no intention of giving you any answers as of this moment." ------------------------------ Epoch: Chronomancer turned his head toward the door as it opened. 'Right on time' he thought. " I assume you know why I'm here?" Arissa stated. "Yes" The Chronomancer replied. "I won't go against your intentions." "Excellent" she smiled. The Chronomancer paled slightly. "Aren't you going to ask what was the probability of you succeeding even without my support?" "No." "Why?" "Because you expected me to." The Chronomancer paled even more. "How?" Arissa prompted. The Chronomancer nodded. "The future is NOT preordained Chronomancer. Nor is the past. But if you must know, I read it on your face. You expected too much of me to ask the question." The Chronomancer nodded again, only this time, with a sly grin. "I'll have to remember that. I can't believe I've left myself so open to such an amateurish mistake. Oh, and you had a 99.7 percent chance of succeeding. Just thought you might be curious." Arissa nodded and left the Chronomancer to himself. 'It's true' he thought 'she's had links to the outside…' ------------------------------ Epilogue: The Fallen Council gathered for the appointed time of their meeting. All the other Fallen stood, sat and whatnot at their places and waited for the gathering to proceed. Finally, the council members arrived and took their places. The day's proceedings went on as per usual until the near end of the event. "Well" Marc Dollar said, "any other news to speak of?" Arissa stood up and walked towards the council members till she stood before them. "Yes" she said her voice small and somewhat raspy. Yet, in the gathering room, it rang clear and quite audible even to those who seek to separate themselves from the proceedings. "I wish to announce my desire to join the council." A collective snort went through the assembled Fallen members. Only the council members retained their composure. Marc Dollar was the first to speak among them. "Yes, a notable ambition. One that I'm sure all the other members also aspire to." "The child has my… blessings" Zalrafel cut in. Shock began to spread among the Fallen at his statement. After all, of all the council members, one would think he would be the last to support having another member join. "We need young people who have a fresh and new perspective to help us see more clearly. A person whose past would help shed perspectives different from our own, thus allowing us to fulfill our goals more readily." In a word… bull. The regular Fallen members knew that. Something had gone down between the girl and the former archangel. He was telling the truth on some level, but whatever truth he spoke certainly did not involve the goals of any Fallen member other than himself. Still, one did not trifle with an archangel, fallen or otherwise. "I agree" The Chronomancer interjected. A fresh young perspective from outside our normal perspective would be beneficial to the Fallen as a whole." Murmurs began to spread. Something smelled rotten and it wasn't the corpse of the guard in the left corner where the house-pet had been playing with said guard. Dollar rested his chin in his hand and contemplated. "Hmm, you two may be right. A new perspective might be what's needed. Very well, I vote in favor of her joining our ranks." All eyes turned toward Devyn. There was no need to bother with Dollar; he was obviously in on it. Would the damned dancer also be a part of the plot? "I do not support this." He said quietly. A myriad of moods passed through the gathering as Devyn said that. "But…" he raised his hand, "she WOULD be a worthy addition." Questioning glances passed through all around. The situation was tensed. What could have happened in the past two or three days? What was the meaning of this? "I…" Devyn continued, "do not object." Arissa, who had remained still up till then nodded slightly to the council members and made her way back to her seat. There were no arguments. No voicing of opinions or anything of the sort. The effects and repercussions would not show themselves till later. It was simply too much of a drop for anyone to react. So for that moment at least, Arissa was able to remain seated and uncontested. The meeting continued on and soon dispersed. There was now a new Fallen Council member, and her name was Arissa Mishima.