Chapter Three
Awoken by the knocking at the door to her chambers, Tenshi lifted her head and stretched her long slender arms, allowing the flared sleeve of her brilliant white robe to dangle elegantly from her pale soft skin. She had fallen asleep at her computer terminal again, evidently reviewing a scientific theory she was not especially familiar with and was finding particularly difficult. Slowly arising to her feet, she ruffled her feathers and swept her long grey hair back as she fumbled her way towards the door, knocking over more than one stack of papers that littered the thick, fibrous cream carpet of the room that had become as much a workstation as a bed chamber. She opened the large wooden door to reveal one of her subjects, a young male with freckles and short red hair who approached her rather bashfully and held out a glass of wine. Beaming at him, she gracefully took the glass from his hand and gently kissed his cheek before returning once more to her chambers. They were so thoughtful, her heart swelled with pride at the thoughts of all that she had accomplished since her arrival.
Carefully, she placed the glass on the table that stood beside her regal looking bed which – aside from her desk and computer terminal – concluded all the furnishings in her simplistic cream coloured room. She looked over towards the balcony and noticed the large multicoloured holo-projection in the sky; she must have lost track of time for the clock had already begun to count down for the start of the 25th Century. Sliding open the glass door out onto the balcony, she stepped out into the cool night breeze and looked down upon her city, proudly celebrating to music in the city square below; a beautiful meadow of flowers and fruit displaying nature in all its splendour and magnificence, a gentle stream meandering through its centre. Surrounded by tall coloured glass buildings that in daylight shone all the colours of the rainbow, each uniquely designed to result in streets that were refreshing to look at each time. From her perch atop her crystal tower she could even see beyond the stone walls of the city, out onto the neighbouring villages, content in their lives of simplistic pleasure, dotted on the horizon and set against the backdrop of the great mountains of the north. She could spend hours admiring the view from the top of her tower, which whilst being substantially shorter than what she grew up with, she had quickly become accustomed to.
She harboured no resentment towards those who wished to not be a part of her vision. Indeed, she didn’t ask for such deification, though she believed herself worthy of the position and was glad for the opportunity to direct her people to new heights of civilised society. When she arrived to the world over three centuries ago it was a world tormented by those with power seeking to abuse it, filled with corrupt dictatorships and slow, messy democracies, ruled by those without the knowledge to take the appropriate course of action. With primitive fusion power by their side they would instil fear on the populace, acting on behalf of a people they distanced themselves from; thinking back it only reaffirmed her faith that they were correct in entrusting her with such status, and she rewarded them by striving to be a benevolent leader. Despite this, she knew that a civilisation that had lived in fear for millennia was likely to be distrustful towards someone such as herself, constantly looking for some hidden motive, incapable of believing her altruistic intentions, and so as they had done for so long, they fled, driven by a fear of the unknown. Those who accepted her reign were simply looking for guidance; there are those that still refer to her as the angel, sent from the heavens to guide them in their hour of need. She could understand why; she had researched into their history and realised how closely she resembled them after all, harmoniously standing a little less than 7 feet tall, her gracious white wings stretching either side of her slender figure. She hated being forced to deceive those loyal to her, but she too feared what would happen should they learn the truth; would they lose their faith in her? Would the chaos she had worked so hard to end, would all that hard work become unravelled? These people needed a unification figurehead, they needed to place their faith in someone and if the illusion behind her origins was the means by which to do so, she would have little option but to hold her tongue.
As she gazed out onto the party below – reflected in the holo-projection in the sky, perpetually lighting up the darkness of the night – where the alcohol flowed freely and they sung in merriment, she was soon seen observed watching from atop her tower and was quickly met with rapturous cheering. Waving to the crowd she once again noticed how their strange drink affected them in curious ways, making them more extroverted in their nature, and whilst she didn’t understand their strange custom of taking the depressant drug during times intended for celebration, she was content for them to celebrate as they wished. It was seeing such situations emerge from the fruits of her labour that reminded her of the reasons she pushed herself so hard; she was no scientist, but had helped them advance in any way she could. In their time under her guidance she had helped them perfect fusion power, facilitated numerous advances in medical technology and all but eliminated their desire for destructive weapons – only her guardians wielding primitive firearms, the last remnants of the militaristic desires of the few directly under her control – but still there was much work to be done.
She longed for the day she could return to the stars, and free those who followed her from the prison in which they dwell, for she recognised their potential to do great things – even if they did not – and whilst the day would come where she would lead them into a conquest of the stars, such a goal was still well beyond her reach. The day would come when she could reveal the purpose they had worked to advance so rapidly all these years, and she would be hailed as more than just the ender of wars, but as the deity who led their species to enlightenment. The demons which they co-inhabited this planet with are far better at adapting to change, with an innocent simplicity about them, and little ambition beyond personal fulfilment they perhaps lived more enjoyable lives than many she had kept under her wing. She was sure they would dislike the absence of the humans, but they too would then be free to populate the world, and she was confident that their adaptive nature would overcome any obstacles which they might face. She sighed at the thought of just how far they had left ahead of them, it barely felt as though they had touched on quantum physics, let alone begun to explore philotic theory; and she was little use there, understanding little more than the basics.
She knew that the philotes were essential to life, the building blocks of all matter; indivisible threads without mass or volume, raw energy acting along a single line. Each atom’s thread connected in a web within the molecule, twining to form a molecular philotic string, which in turn form a web together with the other molecules within the body, and twining to form great ropes of solid matter; through each cell in the body the philotes formed a web with one another, twining to form a thick rope tethering them to the planet and all other matter it held in great web of energy. They were the glue of the universe, binding together all matter that existed through these great philotic threads. Through each molecule in the ground and sky they existed, forming an intricate web through which everything in the universe is connected, like a spider weaves a web to catch a fly, all of life is caught within its grasp. With focus, training and practice one could traverse this web, sensing their path utilising a sense that had yet to be fully realised by the citizens of this world, identifying the stronger threads – those with a larger number of threads supporting it, and in close proximity to their own philote – following the threads to sense life from afar and influence the manner in which it behaved. Her own expertise, however, was limited to what she had learnt as a child, only adept at influencing cell regeneration within her own body. She was glad her people’s belief in her origins explained her youthful appearance, for whilst she was young by her own standards – having barely witnessed half a millennia – she couldn’t bear the thought of trying to explain the truth.
She looked back to the holo-projection brightening the night sky and illuminating the citizens below in a positive radiance as they clinked their glasses in celebration; only a few more minutes left. Briskly returning inside to acquire her own glass that was sitting solitary on the table beside her bed, she raised the glass and allowed the delicate fragrances, the aromatic smell of fermented fruit to gently waft up and evoke her senses. As she sipped the drink, she savoured the flavours in her mouth, allowing the fluid to gently warm her as she softly swallowed. In all her travels she had yet to discover another race so lavish with their food, capable of producing such a variety of flavours that they managed to present.
Closing her eyes, she began to focus on her hand in her mind, feeling her warm skin pressing against the cool glass, the slow formation of the perspiration from the glands underneath her skin. She concentrated on the calm energy of the liquid, the tension between the finger and the glass, the manner in which it gradually flowed downwards by its earthly philotic connection. Reaching out towards the thin thread of energy, ignoring the sweat trickling down her forehead as she remained in deep concentration; her mind leapt, catching hold of the thin strand of energy tethering the molecule to this world. She emerged balancing on the thin fibrous structure, fumbling around clumsily in the black of the great philotic web of the universe, struggling to determine her path. Eventually she sensed a point where the thin thread split apart, the small drop of liquid’s philotic connection splitting into the molecules that formed it. She gently pushed against one of the thin strands, hearing the gentle snap as the philotic connection broke, the small release of energy resonating as the molecule slowly rose up from the body of water it was no longer tethered to. Sensing her manipulation of the forces she smiled, pleased with her own basic ability.
Gently she felt the thin philote quiver – she was no longer alone. She sensed a dark presence here, somehow familiar and yet different and frightening. In a panic she leapt, hoping for the web of philotic connections between the molecules below to catch her fall, but still she sensed their ominous presence watching her as she scrambled away, getting closer. As she fled, the unseen foe with abilities far beyond her own was following their own path, following the philotic pathways into her own mind. She felt the slow throbbing pain in her mind clouding her thoughts as they manipulated the philotes of her mind. She tried to escape and block him out, but she found herself trapped, being held there against her will; the pain getting more intense as the figure enclosed in on her, cruelly observing the results as he toyed with the energy maintaining her bodies existence. She clutched her head, blinded by the agony she screamed at the hands of her unknown foe, her blood-curdling cries unheard over the rabble of the celebrations outside. The midnight hour upon them, the citizens of the new world remained captivated by the cacophony of the many fireworks lighting up the night sky, blissfully unaware of the fate befalling their beloved angel. Her glass slipped from her fingers, crashing down onto its side, the wine slowly seeping out and embedding itself within the fibrous carpet floor. With the last of her strength rapidly disappearing, she was soon unable to resist any longer and faded into unconsciousness.
Carefully, she placed the glass on the table that stood beside her regal looking bed which – aside from her desk and computer terminal – concluded all the furnishings in her simplistic cream coloured room. She looked over towards the balcony and noticed the large multicoloured holo-projection in the sky; she must have lost track of time for the clock had already begun to count down for the start of the 25th Century. Sliding open the glass door out onto the balcony, she stepped out into the cool night breeze and looked down upon her city, proudly celebrating to music in the city square below; a beautiful meadow of flowers and fruit displaying nature in all its splendour and magnificence, a gentle stream meandering through its centre. Surrounded by tall coloured glass buildings that in daylight shone all the colours of the rainbow, each uniquely designed to result in streets that were refreshing to look at each time. From her perch atop her crystal tower she could even see beyond the stone walls of the city, out onto the neighbouring villages, content in their lives of simplistic pleasure, dotted on the horizon and set against the backdrop of the great mountains of the north. She could spend hours admiring the view from the top of her tower, which whilst being substantially shorter than what she grew up with, she had quickly become accustomed to.
She harboured no resentment towards those who wished to not be a part of her vision. Indeed, she didn’t ask for such deification, though she believed herself worthy of the position and was glad for the opportunity to direct her people to new heights of civilised society. When she arrived to the world over three centuries ago it was a world tormented by those with power seeking to abuse it, filled with corrupt dictatorships and slow, messy democracies, ruled by those without the knowledge to take the appropriate course of action. With primitive fusion power by their side they would instil fear on the populace, acting on behalf of a people they distanced themselves from; thinking back it only reaffirmed her faith that they were correct in entrusting her with such status, and she rewarded them by striving to be a benevolent leader. Despite this, she knew that a civilisation that had lived in fear for millennia was likely to be distrustful towards someone such as herself, constantly looking for some hidden motive, incapable of believing her altruistic intentions, and so as they had done for so long, they fled, driven by a fear of the unknown. Those who accepted her reign were simply looking for guidance; there are those that still refer to her as the angel, sent from the heavens to guide them in their hour of need. She could understand why; she had researched into their history and realised how closely she resembled them after all, harmoniously standing a little less than 7 feet tall, her gracious white wings stretching either side of her slender figure. She hated being forced to deceive those loyal to her, but she too feared what would happen should they learn the truth; would they lose their faith in her? Would the chaos she had worked so hard to end, would all that hard work become unravelled? These people needed a unification figurehead, they needed to place their faith in someone and if the illusion behind her origins was the means by which to do so, she would have little option but to hold her tongue.
As she gazed out onto the party below – reflected in the holo-projection in the sky, perpetually lighting up the darkness of the night – where the alcohol flowed freely and they sung in merriment, she was soon seen observed watching from atop her tower and was quickly met with rapturous cheering. Waving to the crowd she once again noticed how their strange drink affected them in curious ways, making them more extroverted in their nature, and whilst she didn’t understand their strange custom of taking the depressant drug during times intended for celebration, she was content for them to celebrate as they wished. It was seeing such situations emerge from the fruits of her labour that reminded her of the reasons she pushed herself so hard; she was no scientist, but had helped them advance in any way she could. In their time under her guidance she had helped them perfect fusion power, facilitated numerous advances in medical technology and all but eliminated their desire for destructive weapons – only her guardians wielding primitive firearms, the last remnants of the militaristic desires of the few directly under her control – but still there was much work to be done.
She longed for the day she could return to the stars, and free those who followed her from the prison in which they dwell, for she recognised their potential to do great things – even if they did not – and whilst the day would come where she would lead them into a conquest of the stars, such a goal was still well beyond her reach. The day would come when she could reveal the purpose they had worked to advance so rapidly all these years, and she would be hailed as more than just the ender of wars, but as the deity who led their species to enlightenment. The demons which they co-inhabited this planet with are far better at adapting to change, with an innocent simplicity about them, and little ambition beyond personal fulfilment they perhaps lived more enjoyable lives than many she had kept under her wing. She was sure they would dislike the absence of the humans, but they too would then be free to populate the world, and she was confident that their adaptive nature would overcome any obstacles which they might face. She sighed at the thought of just how far they had left ahead of them, it barely felt as though they had touched on quantum physics, let alone begun to explore philotic theory; and she was little use there, understanding little more than the basics.
She knew that the philotes were essential to life, the building blocks of all matter; indivisible threads without mass or volume, raw energy acting along a single line. Each atom’s thread connected in a web within the molecule, twining to form a molecular philotic string, which in turn form a web together with the other molecules within the body, and twining to form great ropes of solid matter; through each cell in the body the philotes formed a web with one another, twining to form a thick rope tethering them to the planet and all other matter it held in great web of energy. They were the glue of the universe, binding together all matter that existed through these great philotic threads. Through each molecule in the ground and sky they existed, forming an intricate web through which everything in the universe is connected, like a spider weaves a web to catch a fly, all of life is caught within its grasp. With focus, training and practice one could traverse this web, sensing their path utilising a sense that had yet to be fully realised by the citizens of this world, identifying the stronger threads – those with a larger number of threads supporting it, and in close proximity to their own philote – following the threads to sense life from afar and influence the manner in which it behaved. Her own expertise, however, was limited to what she had learnt as a child, only adept at influencing cell regeneration within her own body. She was glad her people’s belief in her origins explained her youthful appearance, for whilst she was young by her own standards – having barely witnessed half a millennia – she couldn’t bear the thought of trying to explain the truth.
She looked back to the holo-projection brightening the night sky and illuminating the citizens below in a positive radiance as they clinked their glasses in celebration; only a few more minutes left. Briskly returning inside to acquire her own glass that was sitting solitary on the table beside her bed, she raised the glass and allowed the delicate fragrances, the aromatic smell of fermented fruit to gently waft up and evoke her senses. As she sipped the drink, she savoured the flavours in her mouth, allowing the fluid to gently warm her as she softly swallowed. In all her travels she had yet to discover another race so lavish with their food, capable of producing such a variety of flavours that they managed to present.
Closing her eyes, she began to focus on her hand in her mind, feeling her warm skin pressing against the cool glass, the slow formation of the perspiration from the glands underneath her skin. She concentrated on the calm energy of the liquid, the tension between the finger and the glass, the manner in which it gradually flowed downwards by its earthly philotic connection. Reaching out towards the thin thread of energy, ignoring the sweat trickling down her forehead as she remained in deep concentration; her mind leapt, catching hold of the thin strand of energy tethering the molecule to this world. She emerged balancing on the thin fibrous structure, fumbling around clumsily in the black of the great philotic web of the universe, struggling to determine her path. Eventually she sensed a point where the thin thread split apart, the small drop of liquid’s philotic connection splitting into the molecules that formed it. She gently pushed against one of the thin strands, hearing the gentle snap as the philotic connection broke, the small release of energy resonating as the molecule slowly rose up from the body of water it was no longer tethered to. Sensing her manipulation of the forces she smiled, pleased with her own basic ability.
Gently she felt the thin philote quiver – she was no longer alone. She sensed a dark presence here, somehow familiar and yet different and frightening. In a panic she leapt, hoping for the web of philotic connections between the molecules below to catch her fall, but still she sensed their ominous presence watching her as she scrambled away, getting closer. As she fled, the unseen foe with abilities far beyond her own was following their own path, following the philotic pathways into her own mind. She felt the slow throbbing pain in her mind clouding her thoughts as they manipulated the philotes of her mind. She tried to escape and block him out, but she found herself trapped, being held there against her will; the pain getting more intense as the figure enclosed in on her, cruelly observing the results as he toyed with the energy maintaining her bodies existence. She clutched her head, blinded by the agony she screamed at the hands of her unknown foe, her blood-curdling cries unheard over the rabble of the celebrations outside. The midnight hour upon them, the citizens of the new world remained captivated by the cacophony of the many fireworks lighting up the night sky, blissfully unaware of the fate befalling their beloved angel. Her glass slipped from her fingers, crashing down onto its side, the wine slowly seeping out and embedding itself within the fibrous carpet floor. With the last of her strength rapidly disappearing, she was soon unable to resist any longer and faded into unconsciousness.
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