The sun peaked its head above the horizon as Joshua snaked up the grassy hill, following a procession of his fellow villagers. Their shared destination, a small wooden temple atop the hill, forbade any parking near it, so every one had to climb the hill along a winding ramp. Normally, only around half the town regularly attended services, held every two days. But today was Yeshrel, one of the holiest days in their faith. The town barber hated going to temple, a bias he developed from age five, but it was imperative that every able-bodied person attend at least the dawn ceremony. Yeshrel was really a full-day event: service is held for 24 hours, beginning in three minutes for Joshua and ending at daybreak the following morning. Every temple in the world participates, and every town in the nation has a temple. The religious order which ruled the nation, the Keepers of the Flock, mandated it. The time is filled with sacrifices, songs, fasting, and endless prayer. The same fifteen prayers. Over and over and over and over… Joshua hated prayer the most: the primary one for Yeshrel is requesting blessings from each angel with a name that mortals can pronounce, one by one. That amounts to 500 names! And no prayer of mine was ever answered. Why do they deserve my respect?

Joshua summitted the hill and approached the doors to the temple. Outside stood a battalion of temple attendants, dressed in their traditional flowing tan robes, a white sash worn across their chests marking them as at the very bottom of the temple hierarchy. An attendant handed a piece of paper to Joshua. “Write the worst thing you did since last Yeshrel here, please. Then hand it off to Anna.” One of the attendants (Anna, presumably) was holding a box, motioning to each person to put their papers in. Joshua knew the procedure, wrote what he normally wrote (“Your Dad”), and placed the paper in Anna’s box. He entered the temple, noting the simple podium adorned with a red and purple cloth banner. On the banner was stitched the words: “Grace, Order, Obedience”, the so called “Three Virtues”, the main conceptual tenets of the faith. Behind the podium sat a carving of an angel, wings lay just behind her braided hair, sculpted out of pure black stone. Her eyes seemed to watch Joshua as he sat at the far back pew. The rest of the village filled up the temple, some needing to stand as they exceeded the seating capacity of the little building, when their town Shepard came out. The leader of their congregation, a short, thin woman with long brown hair, bowed to the statue before taking the podium and beginning the dawn ceremony,

“Blessed day to us all. I hope you all liked the workout getting up here!” The temple was silent, her poor attempts at levity had become infamous since she was assigned here, “Erm, this Yeshrel will be the 60th and I want to emphasize two things with this fact: one, that’s symbolically important, since there are 60 angels who make up the Council of Angels. Since most of you don’t attend services much,” She paused to let the snide comment sink in, “I’ll remind you that those 60 angels are the Seraphim, the executors of the will of our creator. They make the rules we must follow, so to speak. But beyond its connection to the heavenly order of things, Yeshrel is still for many a time of grief for the lives lost. From the ascension of the holy cities of Peshrim and Celioth, so many of us or our parents lost friends, family, and loved ones. Well, as I have said before, it is right to remember them, to grieve them. But we must celebrate, also! For they were the first to experience enlightenment! The angels, exacting the eternal love of the Great Mother, brought the souls lost in wake of the demonic invasion to the heavens themselves, to bask in the fruit of salvation. Indeed, so long that we keep the Three Virtues in ourselves and in each other, we too shall taste that fruit!”

She continued, “I want to emphasize the symbolism embodied in the events of the first Yeshrel. A demon, whose name you are not permitted to know, tried to corrupt the people of Peshrim. But the people there were brave, faithful servants of the Great Mother and her angels! And they refused to bow to the demon. So in its fury, the demon destroyed Peshrim, then Celioth for good measure! And seeing our suffering, the Great Mother sent down her angels to do battle with the foul monster, and they slew it! And the Great Mother did take the souls of the lost faithful and brought the worthy to her domain in heaven, a reward for their sacrifice! In her infinite foresight, she saw that the old way of worship was outdated, and that all humanity may achieve the blessings of the worthy through a new way, with a strong, guiding hand, and so she sent the great Seraphim Sophia to find 50 faithful, worthy mortals. The angel Sophia guided them, teaching them the Three Virtues, and sent them to the ruins of Celioth. There, they found The Great Temple, made for them by the mighty and industrious angels, and they heard Sophia command them to spread the Three Virtues to all the peoples of the world, a mission the Keepers of the Flock continue to this day! Yes, can you see it? You all live this day through your entire lives. For you were born as basal humans, prideful and sinful, corrupted by the influences of the demons of Earth. You are turned away from the sight of heaven. And you face great struggles and tribulations from it. But the angels are here to guide you to the proper path. Through the tenets, through your faith, you may achieve elevation from your primitive, debacherous selves. Grace, Order, Obedience!”

“Grace, Order, Obedience,” the entire congregation dispassionately replied as a group.

She stepped back from the podium, motioning to an attendant to help her move it to the side. Behind the podium was a cauldron, filled with a grey powder. Underneath the supports of the cauldron sat a trough of water, to stop the powder from burning down the temple. The Shepard spoke, “Now, for the ceremony to invoke the blessing of our great patroness Sophia. This shall fulfill your obligations for keeping Obedience, today. Be sure to meet Order and Grace by sunrise tomorrow, whether by yourself or with us. Remember, the consequences of sinning today will be dire, for you and the rest of us,” her voice went low, “We will know if you keep the faith.” She glanced toward the back, staring right at Joshua. Yeah, if inquisitors come around, they’re starting interrogations with me. The Shepard knew Joshua was not the most faithful man, but even he understood that at least looking like you’re obeying was important, to the Keepers of the Flock as well as to the angels, if the Keepers’s teachings are to be believed. Joshua was certain angels did exist, he just didn’t really care about worshiping them. His life has so far been alright with them and with the Keepers at a far distance.

FWOOSH. The Shepard ignited the cauldron, and a brilliant blue flame emerged, sparks danced around and landed in the water below. She took the box of sins, now full, and spoke to the congregants, “With this flame, I beseech Sophia to burn our sins away. And from the ashes, may she raise us anew, pure and holy!”

She dumped the papers into the fire, causing the flames to leap up at her. Some of the papers fell into the trough, so the entire village got to see the attendant and their faith-enforcing Shepard on their knees fishing soggy confessions out to toss into the “cleansing flame.” The Shepard, her face red with embarrassment, straightened her ceremonial robes and spoke again, “You are purified. Now let’s all begin the Call of the Angels. Please open your prayer books to page 567…”

Hours of relentless prayer followed, the only breaks from the incantations being prayers made in song form rather than simple speech. Finally, at midday, the Shepard dismissed the congregation from the mandatory service. Joshua had recited to the congregation an obscure story about a demon who inhabited a nearby mountain and how an angel named Breonna slew it, which fulfilled his obligation for Order. Now, just Grace, though usually this required some more effort. He could just participate in one of the optional ceremonies, but they were all quite strange, and typically painful. One of them, for instance, involved having a person take a sedative and then having temple attendants throw rocks at them while they tried to dodge being struck. The idea is that being able to successfully dodge rocks while drugged meant the angels worked through you, which was the idea behind Grace. Joshua instead took the more personal route for Grace: meditation. This one was easy, just go to the library and sit along with an inquisitor or attendant and a smattering of other villagers to serve as witnesses. Then just… exist! After eight hours of meditation, he would fulfill his obligations and would be spared from the fate of all heretics: to be strung up by the feet and have your throat cut open.

Joshua took a position cross-legged on the floor, neither uncomfortable nor comfortable. The blinds drawn, the only light source was from the partially cracked open door behind him. He closed his eyes and focused on his breathing, drowning out the other people in the room. Inhale. One, two, three, four. Exhale. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. Inhale. One, two, three, four. Exhale. One, two--

Joshua felt his stomach drop, and heard wind moving around his body. Wind moving upward. I’m falling! His eyes shot open and he realized he was no longer in a dark room in the library. Now, he was tumbling down in a void of red haze. The mist surrounded him, but he could see shadows in the distance. Terrifying shapes morphed into different configurations, some recognizable such as a bird, others alien and unknown. He tried to scream, but found his lungs didn’t move as he abruptly stopped falling. He just stayed there frozen for a few seconds, then suddenly fell a foot more to hit an invisible floor. His lungs now working, he took a second to catch his breath. He looked up and screamed at the figure towering over him.

A woman. Nearly 3 times his height. She had dark, smooth skin. Intricate, long braids, adorned with gold caps at the ends, ran down her head to her back. He realized she was completely nude, causing Joshua to reflexively look away from her svelte body toward her face. That turned out to be a mistake as he was paralyzed with yet more terror from meeting her gaze. Her eyes were a dark brown, the pupils shaped vertical like that of a serpent. But it was the way they glimmered that transfixed him. Little specks of golden light shone out from the brown background in a mesmerizing pattern. While he processed her presence, she spoke, her silky voice echoing with authority and power,

“Hello Joshua. Is Yeshrel going well for you?”

Joshua’s throat refused to work, “I-I-who-”

“Let me answer all those silly questions mortals start with. You are safe, your body is still on Earth. Your mind, however is not. Where specifically we are is not your concern. I am Ylagog. I am a Luminary. I won’t ask if you know what that is since I already know you don’t. I am an angel tasked with revealing divine knowledge to you little mortals.”

Joshua just blinked a few times, his brain refusing to process anything. After a second, he finally found the ability to talk, “It’s… good to meet you?”

Ylagog chuckled, “I do love meeting new mortals. They never know what to say!”

“So… angels are real? And I’m guessing you have something for me?” Suddenly, worry hit Joshua like a truck, “Oh no, am I in trouble!? I promise, I’ll attend temple more often! And I’ll start paying taxes! Please, I just-”

“SHH,” the angel held a finger to her lips. The golden spots in her eyes flared, “Quiet. I’m not going to smite you. I just want to talk. You’re an interesting person to me, and quite frankly I’m bored. I think you would appreciate some of the things I know,” She grinned, the smile causing Joshua to relax just a little. She smiles like my ex, he thought. That smile always made me feel better. “Yes, that’s why I made that face,” Ylagog said, prompting a look of shock on Joshua’s face. Her grin became a smirk, “I can read your mind, little one. I see and know just about everything, in fact.” Suddenly she vanished, reappearing behind him, now nearly ten times his size. She held out her hand, her soft palm extended flat. “Climb on. Let me show you something.”

Figuring she wasn’t really offering, Joshua gently got on her hand, feeling her skin squish in a little as he stood. Slowly, she floated away into the mist, Joshua barely able to see her face as they traversed this realm. He spoke, shouting a little from the distance, “You said I’m interesting. Why?”

“You’re a doubter who knows he shouldn’t doubt. Now many of you mortals are doubters, too, but few are descendants of the ‘Great Saints’ as your little cult calls them. The grandson of Saint Amelia, a skeptic? With your bloodline you could have been immensely powerful in the hierarchy of the Keepers. But you decide to hide your lineage, abandon your family, and be a barber? And only 60 years after the religion is founded? Now that’s interesting!”

He was surprised at her badmouthing the Keepers, “Cult? I figured you all liked our fervent overlords. Don’t you gals get more respect now?”

Her face dropped to a scowl, causing Joshua’s avatar’s heart to skip a beat, “Some of us do. Sophia and the rest of the council do. Us foot soldiers and ‘lesser angels’ don’t. As usual.”

“Well, yeah I guess I’ve never heard of you, or Luminaries, before, so that checks out. They’re nutjobs, anyway; their attention isn’t worth it, I promise!”

She chuckled at that a bit, “I suppose so. You know, your animosity towards the Keepers is part of why I wanted to take you along for a bit. What do you know about the first Yeshrel?”

“Well, my Shepard says demons destroyed Peshrim and Celioth and the angels slew all the demons and let us be saved, so long as we are obedient.”

“All of that is wrong,” She stopped suddenly, turning her body to her left. “Look ahead. Tell me what you see.”

Joshua looked, his eyes adjusting from the wind suddenly stopping. Some figure lay in front of his vision. He jumped back when he realized it was a naked mutilated body, nearly a mile wide!

It was a woman. Slender like Ylagog, with dim freckles beside her nose likely only noticeable due to her massive size. They were the only markings on her otherwise uniformly pale skin. Her eyes, big enough to encompass his entire village in its diameter, were open. Red irises peered into Joshua, glowing as though some kind of energy still rushed through them, despite the gashes in her throat clearly demonstrating her being dead. Her hair lay flat on some invisible floor, what looked like straight jet-black hair that went down to her ears. Were she not a mile tall, and dead, and almost certainly a being of incalculable power when she lived, Joshua would have been quite taken with her. He wondered if Ylagog would take offense to that, given she absolutely knew that was his reaction to seeing the body.

“Who is that!?” Was all he asked the giant who carried him.

“The ‘demon’ who destroyed Peshrim. Her name was Jessamine. She was my friend.”

Joshua was filled with a mixture of dread and confusion. “Hang on, demons aren’t humanoids, I thought. The only celestials that are human-like are--”

“Angels,” The giant woman said bluntly.

The man’s eyes widened. “An angel destroyed the cities?” That changed everything. The doctrine held that angels were fundamentally perfect, physically incapable of sin or disobeying the Great Mother. This discovery meant his entire faith is a lie!

Ylagog stared out at the body, sorrow creeping along her face, “Yes, angels destroyed your puny little cities. But it wasn’t for power, or because Jessamine hated mortals. She loved you all so dearly, in her own way.”

Joshua turned to face the Luminary, “The events of Yeshrel built the foundation of our beliefs. How much of the story is untrue?”

She looked right at the man, the gold in her eyes gone in a sea of brown, “Why tell, when I can show?”

Another whoosh of air surrounded Joshua as they flew away from Jessamine. They stopped at a clearing of sorts, a little patch of dark rock, the same stone as the angel statue back home. At the center of this island sat a vertical slab, a thick, silvery liquid swished about up and down the slab, as though it wasn’t affected by gravity. “Go to the mirror and await my instruction. You will see the truth of your faith, from trustworthy sources,” Ylagog gently placed Joshua on the stone and floated around it, now facing the small man as he walked up to the bowl. Ylagog whispered something in the ancient language of angels, and the liquid began to shimmer and become less viscous. “Put your head in,” she commanded. Taking a deep breath, Joshua obeyed, his field of view a sheet of bright white light as his vision began...