I remember being human. The time I was human, that I do not remember. But I remember being human, and that was wonderful. My brother Michael and I were the best of friends. Life before Christ as early tribesmen of the Hebrew was excellent


Two young men that we were, our lives were marked with what every young adult does. Notice I do not say teen because at the time we were twenty to twenty one. Michael was twenty one; I was twenty. We were at the prime of our lives when we met God.

When people think of God, they think of a wise old man with a long white beard. He’s wise, yes, but he doesn’t look a day over thirty. I tell this to the lower ranks, but they never seem to believe me. I tell it to you now in the hopes that you will know.

I walk to a party on the east side of a mountain. I was going with my brother, but he had an early start and I was left to walk on my own. I remember talking to Him. He had come up to me as I was passing through our small village asking me if I were going to a party with my brother. I answered yes, but he took off before me. I remember his deep baritone voice (much like the human celebrities that you see something that I would expect one of the Chosen and the female Guardian to call “sexy”) and his strange green eyes and his shaggy black hair. “Would you like some company, Zachariah?” he said casually. If the extreme nature of this man’s knowledge had alarmed me, I didn’t show it. So what if he knew my name? This man was not an enemy and plus, he could’ve gotten my name from dozens of people in the village.

We talked for a good hour. I was nodding my head in agreement to everything he said. I remember saying to him that I couldn’t find a job that suited me and kept me interested. He laughed and said “If you want, I could give you a job that is bound to be interesting in the end” He said this casually. But the way he said “in the end” made me uneasy. It is as if he knows the fate of the world, I thought. “Yes” the man said quietly “I know more about the fate of the world than you or anyone else” I looked up, alarmed. A wave of childish panic crossed me. “Who are you?” I said “How do you know me?” The young man looked sad and wise, like a prophet burdened with the weight of the world. “I am God” he said and all the light in the vicinity came to him, and lit him like a beacon. I looked around. Why isn’t anyone coming to see the spectacle? He was shining, and I should’ve been blinded. I knew that I should’ve been blinded. But I wasn’t. I saw Him exactly how He was, a man with a plan. “Zachariah, you and your brother have been chosen to become archangels in the kingdom of Heaven. Your brother has accepted and is going through the process. He wishes you to accept. Do you accept?” His voice was commanding and powerful. It resonated within my mind. Do you accept? I thought to myself. Would I be vain enough to do this to stay young forever? But I thought of my mother and my father. I thought of my brother. Then I thought of the people here and in the future. My mind was made up. “Yes” I said calmly.

God took out two vials. “Take one and drink it” he said. I took one and drank it. When I finished, he took the second and threw it down. It released a shimmery ball of light that sped straight towards my body. I remember screaming when it came inside me, the light that is now called Grace. I remember being thrown into one intense feeling after the other.
Fire… I felt fire killing every cell in me, everything human… it dyed my blood gold… my eyes turned gold, my wood brown hair turned gold at the tips and streaks of gold threaded into my hair… the fire tinged my skin with gold and warmth.. I was being turned inside out and fire licked my innards…torn apart and being made new…
Ice…it cooled me as the fire died, but stabbed me with every breath. It ripped open my back and started build bones. What had confused me then had been the process of building my wings. At once I felt the downy softness of feathers…but I was drowning in ice, in cold… I gasped for breath, thinking I was drowning in a freezing lake…
All the while, I heard voices in tongues that were different than my own. “I accept!” I screamed and I saw flashes of the future…two girls standing and fighting the coming flow of demons, their guards coming back and forth to protect them…the Chosen, I thought… I saw the face of a woman not much older than I. She grinned and disappeared. I reached for her blindly, but I was clawing air… the colors and the light swirled about me, like some wonderful chaotic tornado…
Then ice and fire merged and I cried in pain. But I didn’t beg for my life, and I am proud of myself still showing for strength and bravery. The ice took the middle of my back and carved the shape of a moon. I felt etching inside the moon and what felt like a star on the tip if the moon… then fire tinged the shapes; it felt wonderful, like the warmth of a hot spring…then one last stab came at me furiously. I screamed myself hoarse… the darkness came out and grabbed me… I fell into its clutches gratefully… during the time of the blackout, I had a dream…
I saw myself standing next to Michael. We were both in armor, with our wings spread apart and the beauty struck me. Michael’s hair had turned from the same wood brown color of mine to a dirty blonde. His eyes had turned from the normal oak brown to green with gold flecks. My eyes were the purest gold and I had gold streaks in my hair. I choked back a gasp. I looked on as Michael turned to me. “How has the training of the Guardians been playing out?” He inquired. I saw myself look at my boot. “Both are coming along quite nicely” I said “Michaeli and Daniel will rise through the ranks fast” Michael smiled enthusiastically. Then he sobered. “Why is it that the young go to war, brother? Why?” I looked at him just as sober. “They choose to go, Michael. It is a matter of free will choice to fight in what they believe in.” My eyes stung. Is this the future? I wondered. I kept watching. “What of the Chosen?” Michael countered “What of the Guardians?” I saw the look that he gave me, the solid green fire flickering back and forth. “Are they included in free will also?”

I saw the same look in my own eyes too. “You know the story better than I, dear brother. Do not forget that we are the ones who came to them asking for their choice. Isabella, Lucinda, Michaeli, and Daniel all chose this path themselves. I know that it’s not far in your mind, brother. It doesn’t matter how they are now, your affection for Lucinda is clouding your judgment. They have the blood of Matthew and of Ani. Matthew knew what would happen. We knew what would happen. God knew what would happen. Do you not remember?” I pleaded. Michael looked frustrated “I don’t know what to believe in anymore, brother! I look at all the human lives headed for destruction and I weep! The only woman I have ever loved might go down there with them! I don’t have an ex-demon love like you! I see her, and then I see you, and then I see Michaeli and Daniel and I cry! We were bred to be soldiers in a war that was never meant to have a winner!” He started to cry in earnest “And there’s nothing I can do to stop this” I took my brother by the shoulders. “Look at me” I commanded. He wouldn’t so much give me a glance. “Michael, look at me!” He met my eyes gradually “We chose this” I said gently “I will support you in this battle. We are doing this together. Do not feel alone. We’re here. I’m here” Relief flooded in Michael’s eyes. “Thank you” he whispered and walked away. Watching him go, I felt an ominous chill on my shoulders and heard the drums of war…

I woke up, feeling as if I’ve gone through h*ll in a room that was reminiscent of the room of a devout priest, bare except for the essentials. I felt bandages wrap around my body and arms. I got up, shakily, wincing at every step as I searched the room for a mirror. I found one in the desk and I gasped.
I saw a man about six feet three. His face had a look of a lion, with gold eyes glowing in his tan face. His hair had gold threaded into wood brown in streaks that looked shaggy and in desperate need of a cut. I saw him grin in surprise and the beauty of this man intensified. He was streamlined and predatory. He was graceful and a warrior. He was me. I saw another man in the corner watching me with a look of mild satisfaction. His face had the look of a cheetah, with dirty blonde hair, green gold eyes, and a handsome stature. I jumped back three feet. “Michael?” I whispered. He grinned. “Brother, if it was this easy to get you out of bed and move, I’d have become one of heavens finest long ago. That wrung a chuckle out of me, despite the uneasy feeling that lingered from the dream. I cleared my throat. “Have the others called for us yet? Or are they giving the new warriors a break?” I said, a smile playing on my face. He returned my smile gratefully. “Yes. I was just coming to see if you were awake and ready. Shall we go then?”

“Yes we shall” I answered. And we were off to save the world