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"At times when I am angry and making speeches to all of Heaven,I accuse them ... if you'll pardon the expression again梠f being heldto God as if by a magnet and not having a free will or personality suchas we possess. But they have these things, they do, even the Ophanim,who are in general the least articulate or eloquent梚n fact, Ophanimare likely to say nothing for eons梐nd any of these First Triad can besent by God to do this and that, and have appeared on Earth, andsome of the Seraphim have made rather spectacular appearances tomen and women as well. To their credit, they adore God utterly, theyexperience without reserve the ecstasy of His presence, and He fillsthem completely so that they do not ask questions of Him and theyare more docile, or more truly aware of God, depending on one'spoint of view.
"The Second Triad has Three Choirs which have been given thenames by men of Dominations, Virtues, and Powers. But to tell thetruth, there is very little difference between these angels and the FirstTriad. The Second Triad is a little farther from the Light of God andperhaps as close as it can come, given its endowments, and perhaps itis not so clever when it comes to logic or questions. Who knows?
Certainly the Second is more docile altogether; but then there ismore coming and going from the Second Triad, from Earth toHeaven, than from the devoted and magnetized and sometimesarrogant Seraphim. You can see how this could lead to much discussion.""I think I understand it.""Both triads sing continuously when they are in Heaven, andmost of the time when they are on Earth; their songs rise to Heavenspontaneously and continuously; they don't erupt with the deliberatejubilation of my song or the songs of those like me. Nor do they fallsilent for long periods as my kind桝rchangels梐re apt to do.
"When you're dead you'll be able to hear the song of all thesetriads. It would destroy you now if you did. I've let you hear part ofthe Din of Heaven, but that's all it can be to you, a din梩he sound ofsong and mingled laughter, and seemingly erratic eruptions ofbeautiful sound."I nodded. It had been both painful and gorgeous to hear it.
"The Lowest Triad is supposed to include Principalities, Archangels,and Angels," he continued, "but this is misleading, as I said. Forwe, the Archangels, are in fact the most powerful and the mostimportant, have the most personality, and are the most questioning andconcerned.
"The other angels think we are flawed on that account. It does notoccur to the average Seraph to plead for mercy for mankind.
"But here you have the rough scheme of things. The angels areinnumerable. And there is mobility among angels, some driftingcloser to God than others, and then away when the majesty is toogreat for them, and they choose to slip back and sing a softer song.
It's continuous.
"Now, the important thing is that the Guardian Angels of Earth,the Watchers, those who became intent upon the Creation, camefrom all these ranks! Even from the very Seraphim there have comeGuardians who have spent millions of years on Earth and then goneHome. Going and coming is common. The disposition I describe isinnate but not fixed.
"Angels aren't perfect. You can see that already. They are CreatedBeings. They don't know everything God knows, that's obvious toyou and everyone else. But they know a great deal; they know all thatcan be known in Time if they wish to know it; and that is where angelsdiffer, you see. Some wish to know everything in Time, and somecare only for God and God's reflection in those of His most devotedsouls.""I see, then. What you're saying is everybody's right about it, andeverybody's sort of wrong.""More right than wrong. Angels are individuals, that is the key.
We Who Fell are no single species, unless being the brightest, themost clever, and the most comprehending makes us a species, which Idon't think it does.""Go on."He laughed. "You think I'm going to stop now?""I don't know," I said. "Where do I fit in? I don't mean me, Le-stat de Lioncourt, I mean what I am . .. the vampire I am.""You're an earthbound phenomenon, just like a ghost. We'll getto that in a moment. When God sent us down to Earth to Watch,specifically to observe all Mankind, we were as curious about thedead as the living梩his wreath of souls we could see and hear,gathered about the world, and which we called Sheol immediatelybecause it seemed to us that the realm of these weeping souls was therealm of pure gloom. 'Sheol' means gloom.""And the spirit that made the vampires?
"Wait. It's very simple. Let me present it, however, as it came tome. If I don't do that, how can you understand my position? What Iask of you梩o be my lieutenant梚s so personal and so total that youcan't fully grasp it unless you listen.""Please go on.""All right. A gathering of Angels decided to go with me, to drawas close as possible to Matter in order to pull together for ourselvesour entire knowledge, to better comprehend, as God had asked us todo. Michael came with me. And so did a host of other archangels.
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