2

I, a mere Angel, had been summoned to appear before the Elohim. The message was given to me by my captain and friend, the Archangel Michael.

“What could they want, Michael?”

“I don’t know, Anael. I don’t know. But when the Thrones summon, you must go.”

Michael guided me a short while until we were approached by a Cherub who took me under his wing and guided me the rest of the way.

And so I went, silent before the Elohim, the Host of Heaven who represent The Presence of The One. They were quiet and I wondered if there had been some mistake. I felt so small and weak before these beings of the highest order. First, I saw the ranks of the Cherubim, their four wings aglow with many eyes. Hundreds, thousands of eyes. And they all seemed to be watching me. I have known holy fear before but not like this.

Next, I saw the Seraphim. Their internal light was blinding and at first I could not see. As my eyes began to adjust, I could see their four faces looking in all directions and six wings that concealed most of their brightness. They surrounded The Presence and were quietly singing, “Gloria. Glory in the Highest. Praise be to The One Who Was And Is And Is To Come.” I have seen a Seraph before but never have I heard one sing. I listened to the beautiful voices and the pain of the holy light subsided.

It was then that a Throne, a being I had never seen before, emerged from between the Seraphim. It was one of the Ophanim, having the appearance of a wheel within another wheel. Then, there was a sound like something I had never heard before. It was a sound that did more than enter me. It penetrated every fiber of my being. It obliterated my perceptions. It destroyed me.

I understood the message though I could not comprehend the voice. When the sound had subsided, it seemed like the whole world was screaming. The Throne disappeared between the Seraphim again.

I was led away by the same Cherub who had guided me, feeling much weaker than I had before. I rested some of my weight on his arm, my ears still echoing, my eyes still blinded. An Ophan had spoken to me. I had been charged with a great task. I struggled to understand the message...

A dragon? Alive? I thought they had all been destroyed... The Seraph had seen to that themselves. Why was I, an agent of the lowest order being charged with this mission?

The questions that arose were dismissed by the echoing inside my head.You must find the dragon and destroy it. Find the dragon. Destroy the dragon. Find. Destroy.

The Cherub led me back to Michael and went back the way he had come. I put my hand on Michael’s arm and we went to a place I could rest and gather my strength.

“Relax,” he told me. “We all feel that way after hearing a Throne speak. Our bodies were not meant to endure it. We are not as strong as the Cherubim or Seraphim.”

Which was exactly what I was thinking at the time. I am weak; why me?

Michael seemed to hear my thought as he answered, “you have been chosen for a special task, Anael. Whatever it is, you cannot refuse it. You have been chosen for this mission for a reason. Moreover, you were probably created for this mission. It is your purpose. You have no duty beyond this. Take some rest and then go. Return when your mission has been fulfilled.”

And with that, Michael left to return to his duties. I rested a short time, trying to clear my head, trying to relax. Questions lingered. Why me? Why had I had been chosen for this task? Then the voice of the Wheel echoed in my head again.You must find the dragon and destroy it. And the pain grew so I could not help but rest more. And the voice echoed again.Find the dragon. Where should I look?Destroy the dragon. And I found the more I tried to think, the more insistent the voice became.Find. Destroy.

So I took flight and began my quest; immediately the voice subsided.