he felt
echoing in him.
Feeling.
"What have you
done?"
His Father's voice rang
out right behind him, low and desolate. Luce smiled with satisfaction, turning
his head, expecting to see anger targeted at His new children for disobeying,
but His focus was on the Archangel instead. His eyes were full of pain, the
same sort of pain Luce had seen in Adam's face the day he'd been injured.
"Your
children," Luce said, "have been seduced by evil."
"If it was evil
that seduced them," He asked, "what does that make you?"
The question stalled
Luce. He just stared at his Father as He turned away.
The Wrath of God was
felt for the first time that afternoon. The sunny sky was awash with darkness,
the first storm descending upon the earth. Luce stood there, still leaning
against the tree, and watched as the humans were punished.
Pain and heartache were
cast upon them, condemning them to struggle for their disobedience. Stripped of
innocence, their hearts were now tainted, hearts that no longer would beat for an
eternity. They squandered His gift, He said, so He was taking it back. They'd
no longer live forever. Someday, and soon, their hearts would give out on them.
Lucifer felt the
smallest hint of satisfaction when they were cast out of the garden, these new
mortals banned from Paradise. They couldn't be trusted not to eat from the Tree
of Life, lest they get the idea to try to steal their immortality back. The
unrest went on all day, lighting flashing and thunder rumbling, rain pouring
down in waves. When it finally calmed down, the air in the garden settling,
Lucifer and his Father were left all alone.
The anger faded, and as
He turned to Lucifer, the Archangel once more saw His desolation.
"Why?" He
asked quietly. "Why would you do it?"
"I wanted you to
see your children weren't perfect," Lucifer said. "I wanted you to
see they could be corrupted, that they could be infected by evil."
"I saw," He said,
staring right at Lucifer. "I saw the corruption. I saw the evil. I saw it
all, my son, and it started with you."
"It's not much." Serah's voice was
a soft whisper as she hurriedly picked up a few stray things from her living
room: a blanket covering the couch, an empty glass on the end table, and a pair
of shoes discarded on the floor. "Sorry about the mess."
She cast a nervous smile
toward the front door. Was it a mess? She wasn't sure. She'd certainly seen
worse in rooms at the motel.
Luce stood in the open
doorway, blocking the sunlight behind him, like he was afraid to come in any
further. Was this a mistake? She was thinking it might be. She saw the man
around town, always watching her, and after two strange conversations with him
she invites him to her home.
He came along willingly,
but now that they were here, he looked uncomfortable.
"So, uh, you can come
in, if you want," she said, gesturing with her hands. "Make yourself
at home."
He cracked a smile as he
carefully shut the door behind him and strolled into the living room. His newly
acquired boots were heavy against the wooden floor, echoing off the vacant
walls. Serah could feel her heart pounding harder along to the sound. Luce
regarded her for a moment, just standing there in front of her.
"This is
dangerous," he said quietly, his eyes flickering around the room.
"You should be careful who you invite into your home."
"I am," she
whispered. "I never have before... nobody else has ever... you know."
Did he know?
She didn't even really
know.
She didn't have family;
she didn't have friends.
She had nobody to invite
inside except for him.
Who was he? What was he
to her? All she had was a name and a vague story, most of which she couldn't be
certain was true. But she had an unshakable feeling about him, her gut instinct
putting her at ease, drawing her to him. It was simultaneously feeling safe
while having her nerves frayed.
His eyes alone set her
insides ablaze.
The blue looked dark as
midnight at the moment, a twinkle in his eyes like they held all
echoing in him.
Feeling.
"What have you
done?"
His Father's voice rang
out right behind him, low and desolate. Luce smiled with satisfaction, turning
his head, expecting to see anger targeted at His new children for disobeying,
but His focus was on the Archangel instead. His eyes were full of pain, the
same sort of pain Luce had seen in Adam's face the day he'd been injured.
"Your
children," Luce said, "have been seduced by evil."
"If it was evil
that seduced them," He asked, "what does that make you?"
The question stalled
Luce. He just stared at his Father as He turned away.
The Wrath of God was
felt for the first time that afternoon. The sunny sky was awash with darkness,
the first storm descending upon the earth. Luce stood there, still leaning
against the tree, and watched as the humans were punished.
Pain and heartache were
cast upon them, condemning them to struggle for their disobedience. Stripped of
innocence, their hearts were now tainted, hearts that no longer would beat for an
eternity. They squandered His gift, He said, so He was taking it back. They'd
no longer live forever. Someday, and soon, their hearts would give out on them.
Lucifer felt the
smallest hint of satisfaction when they were cast out of the garden, these new
mortals banned from Paradise. They couldn't be trusted not to eat from the Tree
of Life, lest they get the idea to try to steal their immortality back. The
unrest went on all day, lighting flashing and thunder rumbling, rain pouring
down in waves. When it finally calmed down, the air in the garden settling,
Lucifer and his Father were left all alone.
The anger faded, and as
He turned to Lucifer, the Archangel once more saw His desolation.
"Why?" He
asked quietly. "Why would you do it?"
"I wanted you to
see your children weren't perfect," Lucifer said. "I wanted you to
see they could be corrupted, that they could be infected by evil."
"I saw," He said,
staring right at Lucifer. "I saw the corruption. I saw the evil. I saw it
all, my son, and it started with you."
"It's not much." Serah's voice was
a soft whisper as she hurriedly picked up a few stray things from her living
room: a blanket covering the couch, an empty glass on the end table, and a pair
of shoes discarded on the floor. "Sorry about the mess."
She cast a nervous smile
toward the front door. Was it a mess? She wasn't sure. She'd certainly seen
worse in rooms at the motel.
Luce stood in the open
doorway, blocking the sunlight behind him, like he was afraid to come in any
further. Was this a mistake? She was thinking it might be. She saw the man
around town, always watching her, and after two strange conversations with him
she invites him to her home.
He came along willingly,
but now that they were here, he looked uncomfortable.
"So, uh, you can come
in, if you want," she said, gesturing with her hands. "Make yourself
at home."
He cracked a smile as he
carefully shut the door behind him and strolled into the living room. His newly
acquired boots were heavy against the wooden floor, echoing off the vacant
walls. Serah could feel her heart pounding harder along to the sound. Luce
regarded her for a moment, just standing there in front of her.
"This is
dangerous," he said quietly, his eyes flickering around the room.
"You should be careful who you invite into your home."
"I am," she
whispered. "I never have before... nobody else has ever... you know."
Did he know?
She didn't even really
know.
She didn't have family;
she didn't have friends.
She had nobody to invite
inside except for him.
Who was he? What was he
to her? All she had was a name and a vague story, most of which she couldn't be
certain was true. But she had an unshakable feeling about him, her gut instinct
putting her at ease, drawing her to him. It was simultaneously feeling safe
while having her nerves frayed.
His eyes alone set her
insides ablaze.
The blue looked dark as
midnight at the moment, a twinkle in his eyes like they held all
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