"You haven't asked us where we got the magic," Isabella adds.
"All right," says Caleb, "where'd you get the magic?"
"From another world," says Isabella. "Not another planet, but a world connected only by magic - you couldn't fly there, not even in a starship. It's a middle world that links up to a million others, and in some of them, there are - alternate versions of people. There are alternate versions of me, who are who I'd be if I were something other than an angel, from someplace other than this. And some of them have magic, which they were willing to share because they trusted me to be like them, and some of them have been ruling their worlds for some time now, and they have not turned power-mad or careless or cruel. I already know what happens when I wield wishes and when there's no god breathing down my neck. I've seen the results." She spreads her hands. "And it's beautiful."
"Beautiful for you," says Alleluia.
"I'm not a tyrant. I'm not going to be a tyrant. When I thought there was a god I railed against him for neglect, for making the world in a heartless image. I will do better. I'm not a petty lord who needs to beat his servants to feel better - I'm not the Archangel Raphael who only liked prestige and playing politics - I want things to be better."
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2013-02-27 07:18 pm (UTC)"All right," says Caleb, "where'd you get the magic?"
"From another world," says Isabella. "Not another planet, but a world connected only by magic - you couldn't fly there, not even in a starship. It's a middle world that links up to a million others, and in some of them, there are - alternate versions of people. There are alternate versions of me, who are who I'd be if I were something other than an angel, from someplace other than this. And some of them have magic, which they were willing to share because they trusted me to be like them, and some of them have been ruling their worlds for some time now, and they have not turned power-mad or careless or cruel. I already know what happens when I wield wishes and when there's no god breathing down my neck. I've seen the results." She spreads her hands. "And it's beautiful."
"Beautiful for you," says Alleluia.
"I'm not a tyrant. I'm not going to be a tyrant. When I thought there was a god I railed against him for neglect, for making the world in a heartless image. I will do better. I'm not a petty lord who needs to beat his servants to feel better - I'm not the Archangel Raphael who only liked prestige and playing politics - I want things to be better."