Auriel and I were walking side by side. We had left the Realm of Time, back through the Weeping Willow Grove, and were now winding our way back through the main district of Heaven.

"What makes the Time Realm so important," Auriel was telling me in a very low, very hushed, conspiratorial voice, "is that one can actually manipulate time itself from there. It is so heavily guarded because, like we discussed regarding the multi-universe, if something is changed it can lead to dire consequences.

"Time is laid out according to a Plan, which God Himself created and laid out for us. His Plan leads to the best outcome for all of humanity. It may not seem like it because there is sin, and grief, and strife, but it truly is for the betterment of all.

"Us angels are the guardians of God's Plan. That is our purpose, from the upper echelon of Seraphim to the cherubs. We all work tirelessly toward one goal, the Word of God.

"Beings can enter any Time Frame they want, much like the scrying pools. To enter, you would simply dive into what you saw. The same applies with the Time Frames. You simply walk into them, as easily as walking through a doorway.

"As such, these passageways to different times and different realities are heavily guarded. There are few who even know these passages exist, and even fewer who have access to them."

"How many?" I asked.

"Those in present company."

I waited for Auriel to say more. When he didn't, I nearly laughed. "And?"

"A handful more. Not even half a dozen."

In disbelief I stared at each archangel. They all either didn't meet my gaze or looked back with gentle seriousness. It struck me that this had to be truthful; angels couldn't lie.

The angels led me back to the area of Heaven I was most familiar with. I was brought to the tavern where Mikha'el and I came every night to discuss whatever fancied our whims of the evening. Two things struck me immediately; one, the area was completely devoid of other angels, even lacking servers of any sort. Second was the fact my skin was humming; it felt similar to when tables were concealed within Metatron, but ten times more powerful. While my skin never vibrated inside Metatron, I could tell it was the same sort of concealment magic. How I knew this, I wasn't sure; I just knew it as sure as I knew night followed day.

We all approached the tavern. Sitting alone at a table was a person. I mistook them for a boy at first. As I got closer, however, I realized this was not a page boy, but a fully grown, albeit small, man. Their age was largely indiscernible, looking as though they could be anywhere from a young adult up until mid thirties, possibly pushing early forties.

They wore a large brown cloak. The hood was currently down, revealing their features. Eyes of deep emerald seemed to look into my very soul, and I was hit with the feeling this person was reading my mind, probably without even meaning to. Their hair was long-ish, straight, cut evenly around the chin in a bob. The color itself was a reddish chestnut, growing darker until near the tips became black. They were extremely pale, with a smattering of freckles along the bridge of their nose and splashed against their cheeks.

They sat alone, delicate hands clapsed loosely around the base of an untouched silver chalice. Upon our arrival they were utterly nonplussed. They did not show surprise at the five archangels, nor did they rise to their feet to pay any sort of respect. It was the first time I had seen anyone behave in this way, and my interest was immediately quipped. On the contrary, I was absolutely shocked when all five angels got down on their knees, bowed their heads, and gave a greeting in unison.

The person at the table gave a slight nod of their head. I didn't know what to do; should I kneel as well? I was about to, but then all the angels got back to their feet. They sat at the round table that had just enough chairs; Mikha'el pulled one out for me and I hastily sat.

The man with skin that was impossibly smooth reached out a hand to me. With some hesitation I shook. When our hands touched he smiled, and I found myself relaxing with a strange relief.

"Hello, Ulcinin," the being spoke in a soft, even voice that was neither male nor female, but rather both at once. "I am Fate."

I yanked my hand back. Nervously I looked at my company. They all either met my gaze, or in Auriel's case, looked off to the side. He looked nearly as uncomfortable as I felt. I looked back at the person in the thick brown robe.

"I'm sorry; did you say Fate?"

"I indeed said Fate, as that is my name," he replied.

"Fate—as in the Fate?"

Fate gave me a patient smile and nodded. It was strange; even though he smiled, there wasn't any real emotion behind it. Obviously I didn't know about robots back then, but it was very robotic in nature, like a humanoid face trying to replicate warmth. Throughout the conversation he emoted like that. Any emotion seemed like a mask, like he was pulling facial expressions because he knew it was what was expected of him.

I froze. I didn't know what to do. I was intimidated, afraid. I had zero idea why I was brought here, confused and confounded as to why I was being introduced to Fate. It was one of the rare times in all of my existence that I didn't know what to say.

Fate sat calmly, hands now clasped on the table. No one spoke, the deity merely blinking his surreal green eyes at me. They really were astonishing, the exact color of grass at the height of summer.

"Is there anything you wish to ask me?"

I jumped at the unexpected sound. I shook my head.

"Nothing at all?"

Raking my eyes toward Mikha'el a moment, I shook my head again.

"Please understand that my presence is far and few in between. If I am being honest, you may never see me again." Fate's eyes dropped off to the side. "Or you may."

That spurred a question. "Wouldn't you know if we did? You're fate. Don't you know everything?"

Fate dropped his hands under the table, out of sight. His calming, flat voice was a bit disquieting. Fate spoke with hardly any inflection at all.

"I know things regarding mortals. Once a mortal dies, their link to me is severed. My job then is to merely bring them to my friend Death, who records their life and then delivers them to whichever afterlife they are given—and which afterlife they believe they deserve."

"People have a say as to what afterlife they get?" I scoffed. "I didn't get a say in the matter. I didn't even know Chris—even know Christ—"

"Christianity," Auriel helped quietly.

"That," I continued. "I didn't know Christianity existed."

"That is not surprising, if not a bit ignorant." Before I even had the chance to squawk out my offense, Fate continued. "This current  juncture in time is when the word of God is at its height of being spread.

"On the one hand," Fate said, raising his own  right hand, "it is of no surprise to me. You were a Roman gladiator. You follow the Roman deities. On the other hand," he raised his left hand, "Christianity is being spread far and wide. It is really coming into its own right. I am surprised you do not know what it is." Fate put his hands back under the table.

Mikha'el waved a dismissive hand. "His mortal coil was bound to chase women and try to survive in the arena. There wasn't much room in his head for much else."

That summary of my life made me blush horribly. I shifted uncomfortably, sure all in attendance would judge me based off that harsh criticism of my time as a mortal.

"Ah," Fate said, "I see."

"It was a life," Auriel said with a shrug. "Nothing to be ashamed of, Ulcinin."

I swung my head at him. I wasn't sure what had shifted, but his general contempt towards me seemed to have waned over the course of these past few hours. Regardless, I was thankful for the kind words he spoke then.

"I simply mean to say," Fate continued, "is that, once a person dies, or is otherwise tainted or corrupted, my ties to them are severed. You were brought into this afterlife by God's wishes, ergo you being here and not Elysium."

"How can a person be tainted?"

"If they become afflicted with vampirism, make a pact with a devil—etcetera etcetera etcetera," Fate said.

"A person even interacting with a spirit or demon muddles Fate's tie," Raguel said gruffly.

"Only during the times they are interacting with said being," Fate clarified.

"Which is why my position exists," Raguel said, staring me down as he spoke and sitting up straighter. "It is best for all parties involved that the Fallen, wayward ghosts, and demons do not interact with mortals."

"Yes," Auriel muttered under his breath, but not quite soft enough to conceal his words completely, "you are so important. Let's all take turns giving you fellatio as tribute."

Gabriel snorted and choked, coughing into his hand and trying to conceal laughter. Raphael turned a deep pink and looked away. Raguel glared death at Auriel, who smiled at him. I nearly laughed, but quickly contained it. My laughter was also cut off by Fate's unexpected response—he did nothing, merely blinked, utterly unphased.

"We shall be refraining from saying things like that from this moment further, won't we, Auriel?" Mikha'el said flatly, eyes narrowed at the angel. Though, as I looked at Mikha'el, I could have sworn I saw the glint of amusement in his eyes.

Auriel slumped slightly in his seat. "Sorry, Mikha'el."

I could tell he wasn't sorry at all. It made my wings twitch. I just hoped no one noticed the pleasure I was getting from knowing Raguel was disliked.

Fate turned his attention back to me and smiled pleasantly. "Is there anything else you wish to ask, Ulcinin? Anything at all?"

I thought. "Anything?"

"Yes. Anything."

I shifted in my seat, hoping to not offend the deity. "I have two questions, actually."

"Proceed?"

"Did God make you?"

Fate looked outright delighted. "I am glad to impart that knowledge to you. Truth told, I do not know."

I paused. Then I raised my eyebrow. "You don't know?"

"I do not know. Nor does God."

"Wait wait wait," I said, waving my hand before sitting back and pinching the bridge of my nose. "How can the two most powerful beings not know which came first?"

Fate rose his pointer finger and corrected gently. "God is one of the most powerful beings. Do not forget, there were many Gods and Goddess' before him, and I am sure there will be many more to follow."

"Sorry. But, how do you not know?"

Fate shrugged. "I existed, and He existed, in tandem. One did not come before the other—we just were."

"And the other Gods?"

"They were there as well, however, it should be of note that the first God I encountered was the God we speak of now, the Christian God. That is not to say He was first, simply that I knew Him before the rest, and we resided in the same plane together first."

"Did God single handedly create everything?"

"Ulcinin," Mikha'el said so sharply that I immediately looked at him, eyes wide. He viewed me seriously. "Let it be known this line of questions can lead to temptations of questioning, questions that would lead you to the path of exile."

Shockingly, Fate reached across the table and patted my wrist before leaning back and looking directly at Mikha'el. "I would allow no such thing, Mikha'el. If anything else a Destroyer has the right to know the ins and outs of that which they can bend to their will."

Mikha'el still looked unsettled, but nodded consensually. Even had the archangel not conceded, I wondered if Fate would have continued speaking anyway.

"I am sure, Ulcinin, that all the Gods and Goddesses played their role in creating reality as we know it. However, strictly speaking, I cannot tell you with confidence they helped this God, for I did not see it happen with my own two eyes."

The weight of the day was starting to affect me. I noticed outside had become full night. I was tired, and no longer had the energy for pretenses that I was anything but. I slumped in my chair, pinching the bridge of my nose. "This is all terribly confusing."

"Imagine how I feel, not knowing how I came into being."

"Does it bother you?" I blurted out without thinking.

For a long moment, Fate stared off to the side. I could feel the tension from the archangels all around me, and it made me anxious. It was difficult for me to discern what was acceptable and not; I judged by their reactions this was not. Even so, when Fate replied, he showed no signs of being offended or perturbed.

"'Bother' is the wrong word. Curious? Absolutely. But bothered? No."

"Why?"

Fate smiled. "Does a flower ponder why it exists as the bees land on them, while sunlight washes over them, making their petals happy, and the ground provides them water and nutrients for sustenance?"

"But you are not a flower," I argued. "You are a sentient being."

"Let me phrase it thus," Fate told me patiently. "I do not know where I come from. God does not know where I come from. None of the primordial beings and spirits I have spoken to know, for I have indeed inquired.

"I know thus; I know that I was one of the, if not the, first deity. I know all others came after me, save the God which we speak of right now. I know that, for all the realities I have ventured, and all the different times I have traveled in and out of, there is only one me."

That surprised me. "Only one?" I swiveled my head and spoke to Mikha'el. "But you said at the scrying pool—"

"He did not know," Fate cut in. When I looked at him, afraid, he offered a placating smile to let me know he wasn't angry, even though his voice sounded like it. "I do not just share such secrets openly."

Raguel flat out crossed his arms and slumped down, glaring off to the side. His reaction was preposterous, infantile. It made me hate him even more. Instead of sucking his thumb he should have taken Fate's words as a win, not sulking he hadn't ascertained that information sooner.

"The hour is drawing late," Fate said then, and I couldn't help but wonder if he was drawing things to a close to avoid further displeased discourse from Raguel. "You said you had two questions, Ulcinin?"

I kept the blue book on me at all times. As such, I pulled it out and tossed it on the table. For whatever reason, that made Auriel sigh and hold his head. The rest of the angels looked on in curiosity.

"Metatron gifted that book to me."

Fate reached forward and took it. Flipping through the pages, his eyebrows rose. "Did he now?"

"I can't figure out why. Perhaps you know?"

Fate flipped through the pages, over and over again, going slower each time. Finally he stopped, put it on the table, and slid it across to me. When he met my eyes, head slightly bowed, he looked at me intensely.

"I do not know. Truthfully I do not know Metatron, never needing his services. However, as the scribe and keeper of God's word, I would imagine God wished you to have this book."

I reached forward to take it. However, Fate slammed his hand back down on it. He viewed me darkly. When he spoke, it was barely a growl, a whisper.

"I am sure I need not tell you the book you posses is very powerful, in that it holds many, many, secrets."

I swallowed. The otherwise friendly deity was suddenly terrifying.

"I implore you to use it well, and keep it safe."

Fate moved his hand from the book and got to his feet. With a shaking hand I scooped the tome up, securing it safely in the satchel at my hip. Everyone scrambled to their own feet, bowing deeply to Fate. Fate nodded at everyone, pulling up the large hood that concealed his features entirely.

"It was lovely to finally meet you, Ulcinin."

"Likewise."

Fate came around the table. I was surprised by how small he was, most likely a few inches below six feet tall. He stood directly in front of me. The hood looked up into my face.

"I do not think we shall be seeing each other." He paused. "At least, not for a very, very long time, if that."

I was just as surprised as everyone else when Fate took me by both shoulders and pulled me down. Coming close, I felt his breath against my ear. Whispering so only I could hear, he said,

"Pride will be your undoing."

He planted a kiss on both my cheeks, and then disappeared entirely.