The Sixth Chapter | The Angel Realm

The Sixth Chapter | The Angel Realm

"So, when can I learn to fly? Lord Colton mentioned something about me getting wings, right?"

"Part of being able to use magic involves being immersed in the environment where it exists and thrives. You've never been here before, so your magic is still dormant. However, with patience, you should be able to harness it. Besides, you're from a royal bloodline, it should come more naturally for you."

"Noted. Now, what are we doing up here?" Alvera questioned.

They were standing on a single cloud that was floating through the iris purple airspace. On the other end of the skyfog stood a tall, pure white door with gold lining and swirly designs painted on both sides of it. It didn't look like it was made of clouds though, it looked like it was made of normal wood. How was there a door sitting on a cloud?

And how many times was she going to have to be up so high in one day? It was gradually getting harder for her to control her fear of heights. Honestly, she was surprised that she was able to stay as calm as she did.

"This is another Realm gateway. It leads to the Angel Realm. Don't worry, you can't see the ground from there, so hopefully, your fear shouldn't act up as long as you don't think about how your hundreds of feet off the ground."

How was that supposed to help? In Alvera's head, being so high off the ground that the ground was no longer visible was about ten times worse than actually being able to see the ground.

"You were doing fine until that last part," Alvera replied.

"Before we go in, a quick warning. Most of the Angels are a tad bit arrogant, but they shouldn't bother you. They're technically not even fairies, they're actually pixies, but you'll understand more when we get there."

"Ironic."

"Very."

"So, does this gate just drift through the sky constantly?"

"For the most part, yes. It's usually the only cloud around, so finding it isn't actually difficult. It has a trackable path that it follows. Sometimes though, the Angels direct it off its normal course just to annoy the other beings," Cedrick replied, somewhat exasperated.

"Doesn't seem too surprising."

Cedrick opened the door and gestured for Alvera to go in before following behind her. Alvera didn't even have to step through all the way before she could sneak a peek of the Realm. The whole place was made of pillowy clouds, like Cedrick said, effectively blocking off any view of the ground. Standing in what she assumed was close to the middle of the city, Alvera could see several fairy-like creatures with transparent, crystalline wings and pointy ears.

Angels whizzed by Cedrick and Alvera not even sparing them a glance. Their bodies were draped and covered in only white fabric, some with gold detailing. The pieces of cloth were either tied around their body or secured with pins and broaches. Next to almost every Angel flew some other creature that Alvera couldn't identify. It was flying by way too fast and just looked like a blur.

The houses that surrounded them were nowhere near as high as the scrapers in the other Realm, but the Angel houses were also more properly aligned than the piled buildings in the Faux Shores. They were built with pure white bricks and blocks, the color basically glaring at Alvera. She knew they were angels, but there was absolutely no color anywhere. Ironically enough, she felt somewhat out of place in her sapphire blue gown. The color seemed foreign and unheard of compared to the white. Each house had a number of pillars in front, holding it up and giving them the appearance of small-scale temples.

"Cedrick? What are you doing here?" Someone asked from behind them.

Alvera turned as she came face-to-face with a male who was, thankfully, rather close to her height. He seemed to be close to her age as well. He had red hair that complimented his set of bored, and somewhat annoyed, blue eyes. His skin was pale and he was barefoot. Clad in the same thing as everyone else, white fabric draped over his left shoulder to create a toga of some sort, while also exposing the gold gem lodged in his right shoulder. He planted his feet back on the ground as his wings calmed down. He crossed his arms, patiently awaiting Cedrick's answer.

"I'm here to see Lady Parisa, Sai-Angelo."

"Why? If I may ask."

"This is Alvera," Cedrick started, gesturing to her, "She is slated to become the next queen. As such, it's only proper she meets with the other royals."

His blue eyes darted to Alvera as if just noticing and acknowledging her presence. He eyed her up and down judgmentally, eventually settling on giving her an unimpressed look. Alvera resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Did he think he was better than her or something?

"Very well. Cedrick, you know the way. Or do you require my help?"

"No, that would be quite alright. I can handle a trip to the temple."

Sai-Angelo gave them both a nod and then flew off, joining the pixies that were already flying past them.

"Let's go, Alvera. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can go." Cedrick said as he started walking north.

He didn't seem too fond of the Angel Realm. On the contrary, he seemed rather eager to leave.

"Are you and Sai-Angelo acquaintances?" Alvera asked, trying to keep up with him. His strides were rather long.

"We're... friends. We've known each other since we were little, but, in the nature of his Realm, he has recently gotten a lot more arrogant."

"Their power better be outstanding at least."

"Not quite. They have the 'Power of Judgement and Control'. Basically, they have heightened discernment and know how to make smart choices. They can pick out liars, are generally wise, and can even tell someone's character from a single conversation. People come to them for guidance, and they take advantage of this by charging ludicrous amounts of money for it. They can also control the will and actions of non-magical beings, but because of laws and rules, Angels aren't allowed to blindly use that power, so they mostly just spend time judging others."

"So that's why they're so arrogant. Their power is literally judging people."

"Don't worry, not all of them are. Some of them are really friendly. A good example is Lady Parisa herself. She's nicer than more than half of her own subjects."

That was good to hear.

As they continued making their way through the sky city, they wound up in front of a large hill made of clouds, with stairs reaching further into the heavens. The stairs before them were long and sparkling clean. They would definitely take more than a few minutes to climb. Several Angels lined them all the way to the top. They were all decked out in variations of battle gear as they wielded spears or iron axes, menacing looks on each of their faces. Way up the staircase stood the temple in all its glory. Tall, Proud, and Colorless, just like all the other houses Alvera had seen.

"This, is Temple Parai, home of Lady Parisa."

"Fascinating."

"Very. Now, come along, she probably already knows you're here. Word travels fast in the Angel Realm. Everyone here is such a gossip."

They walked up and began ascending the stairs to the temple above. The closer they got, the more Alvera could see. The simple gable roof was tiled with imbrex and tegula while the rest of the temple stood, surrounding the weight. Held up by six pillars in the front, and a whole row of them on the sides, the temple resembled something you would find in Ancient Greece. The pillars at the front mimicked the bricks used for the other houses they passed when they had first arrived, copying the same pure white color and once again, effectively blinding her. Alvera marveled at the temple that towered over them, able to rival that of Mount Olympus. It had many connected buildings. Some topped with glass roofs instead of bricks, and others having no roof at all. Strange.

When they reached the final set of stairs, the grand white doors creaked as they were opened by two Angels. Behind the door stood a very pretty lady. She had pale skin and dirty blonde, almost brown, hair that already had a quite few gray strands. She was definitely older than Alvera, possibly by more than twenty years. A piece of white fabric was wrapped around her body, draping over both her slim shoulders and securing itself with a silver brooch, narrowly hiding the gold gem lodged into her shoulder as well. It was covered in gold detailing and reached the floor as it trailed along behind her for a few feet. She was shoeless but still stood a few inches above Alvera. A flower crown rested on her head gracefully. Lady Parisa smiled, her fiery orange eyes sparkling as she ran up to Alvera, pulling her into a tight embrace. Strangely enough, she hugged back. Lady Parisa had a motherly aura to her, and Alvera wasn't the least bit uncomfortable with her being hugged before even being spoken to.

"Lady Alvera, I have been waiting to meet you for so long!"

"Please, just call me Alvera. The pleasure is all mine," Alvera smiled.

"Don't be modest," she said, pulling away, "You're going to be queen soon. You should really get used to the title. Lord, you're absolutely stunning. Come along, I must show you around."

"Erm, Lady Pa-" Cedrick started, but was immediately cut off.

"I would absolutely love for you to meet my will o' wisp."

"Lad-"

"Oh, and my kids!"

"Will o' wisp?" Alvera asked. Cedrick had given up on trying to get the Lady's attention.

"Yes, my wisp. They're the totems for the Angel Realm."

"Totems?"

"They're like spirit animals, but don't worry too much about it. You should get yours soon enough."

"Alright, but what about The Faux Shores? They didn't seem to have any."

"Really? There should have been fish and whales swimming all around the place. You didn't see any? Strange, but not totally impossible. But like I said, don't worry about it." Lady Parisa replied dismissively as she basically dragged Alvera across the halls with her, Cedrick following quickly behind them.

Huh. So that was a whale.

She was pulled into what she assumed was the main room and was absolutely doused with skylight. The entire roof was glass instead of white bricks, and the ground was littered with all sorts of fancy, white furniture. Grand pillars were holding up the glass ceiling, and the floor was layered with marble tiles that were so clean, Alvera could almost see her own reflection. Lady Parisa was probably a clean freak, this couldn't just be an 'Angel Thing' after all. The room was beautiful regardless, very elegant.

"Lady Parisa," Cedrick called, finally catching her attention, "We do not have much time. In case you do not remember, Alvera must get back to Earth before dawn, so nobody asks questions. And as of right now, we are falling behind schedule. Alvera is only supposed to be here for a brief meeting and a short introduction. My sincerest apologies, but Alvera can come back later. We really do not have much time. We still have five Realms to get through."

"Ah Cedrick, forever the planner. What would Graham do without you? He'd probably be a complete mess." She said, giving Cedrick a quick pat on the head, even though he was taller, before turning back to Alvera and beaming at her. "Well, my dear Alvera, seems we do not have much time, but, you must meet my wisp before you go. Pega!"

Suddenly, a creature appeared near Lady Parisa's head.

"Your Majesty?" It replied.

It was small, no bigger than a woman's fist, and resembled a deep blue flame. She couldn't make out a face, but it was very much alive, it spoke after all. She identified it as the same type of creature she had seen flying around the other Angels when they were outside.

"Alvera, this is Pega, my will o' wisp."

"Pleasure to meet you, Pega."

"Pega, this is Alvera. She is going to be the next queen," Lady Parisa introduced.

"Greetings, Lady Alvera," the wisp acknowledged.

The wisp whizzed around Alvera's head as some form of greeting before gently returning to its original position next to Lady Parisa's side.

"Totems are like spirit animals. They guide, advise, follow us around, etcetera, etcetera. Every Realm has one. You should get yours soon enough. I'm sure Cedrick will make sure of that. Now, you really should be leaving. Cedrick gets a certain way when his schedules are disrupted," she said, whispering the last part so Cedrick wouldn't hear. Alvera had to try and force down a small laugh.

Lady Parisa escorted them back to the door and gave Alvera what she called 'A Reading'.

"You have a good heart Alvera, that much is evident, but please be careful. There may be people who are going to take advantage of that. Do not trust everyone and lead with your head, not always your heart, it might save you once or twice. Good luck, you'll be a great queen," she smiled as she held both of Alvera's hands in hers. She gently placed something in her palm and closed it. "Use this when you need my help. I'll be there for you."

The fact that she said 'when', and not 'if', seemed weird to Alvera. She could be reading into it too much, but then again, Lady Parisa could know something Alvera didn't.

It was ominous, sure, but at the same time, it was advice. Advice from a lady who had been a Realm ruler for at least a couple of years. Advice from a being whose power literally made them wise by default. Any advice would be good, right? Besides, she was able to tell her character from just one conversation, and it had to be somewhat accurate. Alvera thanked Lady Parisa and gave her a quick hug.

Cedrick and Alvera made their way back to the door they had come through. They stepped out and noticed that they were in a completely different part of Ravensfield. The cloud with the door had clearly been traveling around while they were in the Angel Realm.

"She was nice. I think I might come back here later, but for now, what's next on your schedule, Cedrick?"

"We're going to the Mirror of Alternates, and thankfully, we're not too far from a gateway."

"Lead the way then."