Source manuscripts: pestaner.com/sm02 pestaner.com/smp1 – SM02 P1.docx
Content advisory: Adult language, content, and situations, controversial religious and cultural references, speculative histories, substance use, acts of violence, and self-harm. Find more information about the novel at SHATTERED MIRRORS NOTES.
What happened before [H2.4]
Ikart receives a message from Camille, reporting the loss of an angel. His vacation abruptly ends as he heads to his office in the Celestials. Camille’s direct communication is unusual, and Ikart senses something amiss.
The angel investigator visits the Celestial business district and interacts with Archangel Alice, one of Michael’s administrators. Henry prepares to investigate the missing angel, Panea, and her host, Gwen.
Ikart decides to start by interviewing Salina of the Angel Union.
Chapter 2.5 Daddy Issues
Narrator: Ikart
Location: the spirit realm
When: Celestial Park Day 1 until TTD (Time To Destruction)
As I flew towards the Angel’s Union Office, I noticed my friends engaged in a game of Yitzhak in Celestial Park. I descended gracefully, landing near the front gate. They paused their game upon seeing me but didn’t approach.
Elvis was the first to catch my eye. I waved to him, and he waved back just as he launched a rabbit into the air. The game was in full swing: Elvis tossed animals for Jeffrey to shoot at while Luci counted the hits. The familiar sight brought a brief smile to my face before I turned my attention back to my mission.
Elvis, a Port Guard with the ability to morph into various forms, currently sported his natural panda form. He adeptly caught anything running through the park, whether it was a rabbit or a squirrel. With a practiced motion, he waited for Jeffrey to call out, “Pull!” and then launched the frenzied animal into the air.
My friends always make me tread carefully around them. Jeffrey, the most feared among us, is a silent killer who fervently defends Jehovah’s throne without hesitation. If you approach the throne without permission, Jeffrey will silently destroy you—you never hear him coming.
Luci, on the other hand, is someone I can never fully trust. He’s the type who makes you sleep with one eye open, always smiling until he finds a way to destroy you. I can only hope that the bond of friendship is the one thing keeping us safe from each other.
Sure, here’s an improved version of that passage:
I observed Jeffrey hovering above a stone table, acting silly. He had morphed to the size of a watermelon to match his opponent. We communicated through invented gestures and contortions, a language entirely our own. I tried to wave like a lizard with tiny arms to acknowledge him, but he remained focused on his shooting. With all those eyes, he never missed anything; I think he just wanted to see me make a fool of myself. Contorted into our special signals to say hello, I acted exceptionally weird just to give him a laugh.
Jeffrey is a powerful Ophanim, a protector of Jehovah’s throne. We’ve been friends for ages, and I’ve come to accept his quirks. Typically, his kind stick together and socialize only among themselves, but Jeffrey is unique. Traditionally, they don’t have individual names, but a Jinn once saw him playing Yitzhak in the park and thought he looked like a giraffe, so he nicknamed him Jeffrey. The genie must have been smoking something, but the name stuck.
As usual, Jeffrey was zapping small critters for fun. I disapprove of hurting animals, but I often look the other way when my friends are just having fun and not breaking any laws.
The animals never had a chance. Jeffrey used them for target practice, never missing with short punctuated lightning bolts. Luci set up a barbecue pit, poking the stunned creatures to ensure they were still alive. He was provoking me by pretending to cook them.
They finally took a break and came over to my bench.
Elvis yelled, “100 percent! He didn’t miss a thing,” and Luci confirmed. Jeffrey just blinked.
“Hi, guys.”
“What brings you here, Ike?” Elvis asked, his tongue hanging out.
“I’m on my way to chat with Salina. I’m on the clock.”
“You were supposed to be in Maui. I made your reservations,” Luci seemed upset.
“I’m sorry, Luci. I got some bad news and needed to return for a case.
Jeffrey winked at me with his big eye. “You want to take a shot?”
Elvis reached for a zapper gun on a nearby rock. “I’ve got a peashooter I picked up around town.”
“No, boys. As fun as that sounds, I need to find out if Salina has heard about a missing angel. Have any of you heard about a Guardian named Panea?”
“I haven’t heard anything,” Luci said.
“You’re not in the loop,” Jeffrey commented. “Michael doesn’t want you included in their messaging. Luce, nobody trusts you!”
“No, my friend. I haven’t heard anything, and I’m not in your network,” Jeffrey said.
“Me neither, Ike. I haven’t heard anything about a missing angel,” Elvis replied.
“What’s the deal?”
“I got notified by Camille.”
Elvis looked surprised. “Camille? Why didn’t I hear about it? I get every alert.”
Luci cleared his throat and motioned for me to come over. “Guys, I need to talk to Ike privately.”
“No, sir,” Jeffrey said. “That’s a no-go!”
Elvis’ head bobbed. “What’s gives, dude? Anything you want to say to Ike, you can say to us too.”
Luci looked at me. “OK. But you guys don’t need to know everything.”
“Ike, first, forget Salina. She’ll tell you anything because she has the hots for Kisit.”
“Yeah, that’s true,” Elvis chimed in. “Kisit and Salina are tight!”
Kisit is my editor. “Fine. Anything else?”
Luci spoke quietly. “You need to talk to Melvin. I think Panea was working with Melvin’s master, and they were doing something that caught my attention. He’s a powerful shaman.”
“The fact that something catches your attention is a red flag.” I walked over and put my arm around Luci. “You know we don’t trust you. I don’t trust you. You have daddy issues. You need to grow up. Talk to Jehovah about wanting another chance. Regardless, I appreciate the information about the missing angel. You were helpful. I’ll check it out. I hope you don’t have an angle in all of this.”
Luci looked hurt and turned his back on us. “Whatever, Ike. I want to be like him.”
“What did you say? You’re mumbling.” I stared at Luci, hoping to burn some sense into him. I knew I was too late.
“It was nothing.” Luci walked over to a water fountain that didn’t work.
“I need to keep going, but I’m glad I ran into you guys.” I started taking out my wings.
“Thank you, Ike. Thank you very much,” Elvis said, wiggling his hips in his best Elvis impression.
“See ya, guys. And Luci, stay out of trouble. You need to talk to Daddy.”
Jeffrey gave me another wink as my wings opened. I should have reminded Luci that we all have daddy issues to some extent.
Summary S2.2 > a2.5 07-11-24 (1,107) Ikart
On his way to talk to Salina about a missing angel, Ikart meets his quirky yet loyal friends—Jeffrey, the unpredictable Ophanim; Elvis, a carefree and delightful panda; and Lucifer, nicknamed Luci, the bad boy of the bunch.
Ikart brings up the disappearance of the Guardian Angel, Panea. Ike learns about a mysterious shaman from Luci. He is directed to talk to the Guardian, Melvin.
