11183/The Angel of Wisdom

The Angel of Wisdom
Date of Scene:	14 May 2022
Location:	The Archive, the Astral Plane
Synopsis:	Uriel visits Jon for their first training session. Jon asks Uriel how to heal properly with his magic, and Uriel reveals a secret.
Cast of Characters:	Jonathan Sims, Chas Chandler

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Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Despite spending several hours a day lucid dreaming, Jon /does/ have to let the Archivist dreams happen periodically throughout the night. So after an initial practice session with the khopesh, he lets the Archive fade and sink into a statement dream.

    The Archivist becomes Javier Hernandez, "El Toro," holding a gun pointed at Cael Becker's face. Anger and revenge, the surge of the thrill of taking a life as Cael falls back from the gunshot wound. Then abruptly, the dream changes--and the Archivist is standing where Cael stood, and she's shooting him, and he's feeling pain and fear and--

    <That's odd,> the Archivist thinks in the quiet part of him that's still lucid dreaming. <The statement dreams never worked like that before.>

    He "wakes" on a couch in the central portion of the Archive, the little seating area surrounding the statue of Neith, and curls into a ball on the low couch, frowning to himself. He didn't get Cael's side of the actual shooting--and if he had, he'd have been Cael being shot by Javier, not the other way around. So why had it happened that way? Was it something to do with what Ma'at had shown Javier at the end there?

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "Things are worse than I thought if that's happening randomly..." comes the voice of a young male. The figure that walks up isn't a stranger to Jon. But even so, it might come as a shock that the Archangel Uriel can simply waltz into the Archivist's demense. He's dressed rather casually in this place. Jeans, boots, white tee. No wings, no weapons, no mark of station aside from the perfection of physical youth that he embodies.

    "What -was- that?" he asks arching a sandy brow at the Archivist. "I mean... you should be able to just wrestle the statements into showing you what you need to take from them. What message the ordeal was meant to impart. Impressions, motivations, emotions..." he wildly waves his hands. "None of this Michael Bay jump cut extravaganza that you just pulled off."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon's hardly shocked. After all, Uriel had a hand in creating the Archive; why shouldn't he be able to just walk right in? The Archivist sits up an rubs a hand across their face. "I was going to ask you, actually. I don't really... control the statement dreams, as such, but at least it usually is sort of... mmm... like re-watching them to see what lessons might be gleaned. This was... well. That's never happened before."

    He frowns and says, "Maybe it's connected to the... change in how the Archivist judges people? I mean, you know that before it was just judge them and then if they were unworthy, call Ammit to take their soul. But this was... well. Different. Ma'at showed him how he'd affected people around him, gave him a chance to... change. When he rejected it, I called on Sekhmet to kill him, so his own deity could judge his soul."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel regards Jon directly. The intense gaze of the Archangel an almost physical thing even with the scrutiny is not malevolent in nature. "That is... different" he says. "What... can you explain to me what it is you do now?" he asks. "I mean, of course I saw it. I can recall the event with perfect detail. But even in doing so, the how and why of the change still eludes me."

    It would be clear to even on not trained to see such things, that the Archangel is troubled. He created the Archivist position and now that part of it has truly and fundamentally changed it seems somewhat out of his hands and out of his depth. A position he is entirely unsuited for, given what and who he is.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "I gave him a second chance," Jon says with a frown. They look around at the tables, then start waving their hand to summon up food and drink. Coffee and donuts, of course, but also tea and pastries and cheese and fruits. "I don't know for sure if that's Ma'at's influence, or just mine, but it was like... because of the statement, I was able to pull out the way Javier had made his victims feel. The pain and fear, but also the love his family had for him. The way he'd affected the people in his life."

    He sighs. "All too often, someone like that... they're not irredeemably evil. I'm not certain anyone or anything is /irredeemably/ evil. A lot of times, they're suffering themselves. They don't see their victims as wholly human, or they think they're not causing pain, or they think what they're doing is justified. Sometimes, understanding how much they've hurt other people can help someone change."

    A pause, then, "Sometimes it goes the other way. Quite often, all it takes for someone to step back from a ledge is the slightest bit of human connection. Just knowing they affect the world, that they can connect to others. That... was what I tried to do when Michael had Cael under control. When she thought she deserved what he'd done to her. I tried to show her the effect she had on the people around her, the connections she'd made. That she wasn't alone. And I think... I think with her, in the long run, it worked."

    He looks over to Uriel. "Should we really kill someone, if they can change? If they /want/ to change? And if we judge someone worthy of life, shouldn't we show them /why/ they're worthy? Because of the good they do in the world?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel listens intently to Jon's words and thinks for a moment longer. "No. I suppose we shouldn't at that..." he says. "But, you understand doing it that way... it might result in unexpected reactions when you conjure forth the dreams." He gestures. "Especially when you aren't as detatched as you should be."

    He rises and moves to gather a small plate of fruits. "The purpose of the dreams... you are supposed to learn something. Reflect on what was done and thus understand the concept of what it is to be human..." He frowns. "But you're pushing yourself so deeply into them and reliving the trauma of what has been. It's... dangerous and I don't think you are actually getting as much as you should out of it."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "I don't know how else... it's not as if I'm doing that on /purpose/. It just sort of... happens. It just... is." Jon frowns at Uriel.

    "Tell me something," he says after a moment. "I know the normal retention rate on Archivists is that about 50% die within the first six months. I also know that if an Archivist can survive the first six months, they're fairly well guaranteed to live a long, long life, having survived the initial adjustment to the position. They'll have a better sense of what they can throw themselves at without dying or being badly injured, and enough of a handle on the Archive to have started filling in the gaps in their own strengths, the way I have with combat training." A beat. "I /also/ know that the retention rate has little to do with prior training, though it does help. Some people, like me, blunder through on very little training while some who've had a lifetime to prepare get cocky and die on their first expedition."

    They sigh, as they pick up a carafe from the table and start to pour coffee into silver cups; it has the look of a coffee service from somewhere in the Middle East, Persia or Turkey. "How many Archivists not only have no prior training at all... but didn't even know the Archive /existed/ before they became Archivist, hmm? How often has there been so much interference in the line of succession?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel's expression sobers as he takes the coffee and moves to sit on the bench beneath the statue of Neith. "It's not often and the handful of times that it has happened the one who falls into the place... they didn't last long." He nods. "I don't know if it is a sign of your resilience or your stubborness that you have not only survived without training, but managed to somehow modify the terms of the position in order the thrive in it."

    He smiles and sips the coffee before tossing a grape into his mouth. "It's intriguing to say the least." He frowns. "Why do you ask? I know you enough to know you aren't one for boastfulness, so there is likely more to it than sheer bragging rights.""

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon shrugs. "I aim to point out the difference between myself and any other Archivist that you've taught. The others lived in the society that birthed the position; changed quite a bit from what it had been, toward the end, but still operating in the same general worldview, with the same gods. The Archivists were embedded into the temple structure, if only as scribes. There were people around to go to, if nothing else--and you were always there to help, presumably right from the start."

    He puts out his left hand and ticks things off on his fingers. "The Archivist is relatively unknown, now, and thus there are few people I could consult to get a handle on how things should work. The most recent Archivists were stubbornly independent, and thus there's no outside support structure. I didn't even know there /was/ a physical Archive at first, and now I'm stuck gathering up the far-flung pieces. Most of my immediate family, who might have had any clue about what the position entailed, were killed so the Archive wouldn't fall to them. And on top of all of that, the existence of the Archive was deliberately kept from me by both my grandmother--who didn't know I would succeed her--and the gods themselves."

    He twists about to peer at the statue of Neith. "That last, I do not understand. Why not inform Gran? Why not tell /me/? Why keep me in the dark? Was there a purpose to it...?"

    He shakes his head. "Regardless, my point is, I've been figuring all of this out as I go. I suppose maybe it speaks well of me that I've figured out what I have, but I also know it's entirely possible I misunderstand everything about the position and how it should work, how the magic should work, and all the rest. I didn't even know that the purpose of the dreams was to /learn/ anything and not just... resolve the emotional trauma of experiencing the statements."

    He eyes Uriel. "Next you're going to tell me that taking statements shouldn't be traumatic."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel pauses before he replies. "It... doesn't have to be?" he says, somewhat sheepishly. "The Archivist as such, grew out of a society who was dedicated to record keeping and preservation. As society grew, it was clear that a judge figure was necessary and so..."" He gestures to Jon and then to the statue above.

    "I think part of why it was kept from Gertrude and others was ultimately--and I want it known that this is simply speculation--that they, the gods, wanted an Archivist that would change and grow in the position. Move it past what it was before. Take the next step in the evolutionary path. And sometimes that requires a bit of fumbling in the dark. Pretty sure most steps towards the advancement of nuclear energy were made in such a way. With, I'd consider, much more disasterous results." Yes, he just compared the power of Jon to that of nuclear energy.

    He smiles then. "While I may not agree with the process, I will say that it has produced rather drastic results effectively." He tosses another grape in his mouth and follows it with a sip of the coffee.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "I have no clue how listening to the worst parts of people's lives can be anything but upsetting for a decent person," Jon almost snaps, then shakes his head.

    "That's... not the point, really. The point is that I don't know what I don't know. I don't even know where to start, because I don't know how many basic assumptions I'm making are untrue. I have questions about immediately pertinent issues, but what I'm saying is that... regardless of how much power I have or don't have, I'm a complete novice at most of this." He gestures toward Uriel. "Hence asking for your help."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel bites into a slice of an apple and chews it for a moment. "You're right in one thing. Until -relatively- recently, I was there to help guide and direct the Archivists." He sighs. "But you are a different generation and a different breed of human. I suppose that those in today's society are not as... tyranical in dispensing justice and judgement on those who wrong others."

    He pauses and considers his last statement taking a sip of his coffee. "That -is- a rather... Old Testament view of things, isn't it?" he asks, a small smirk playing on his lips. A wave of his hand and he nods. "Then let's start. We can go over practical applications and intersperse it with philosphical debate on the downtime. Ask your questions and I will impart knowledge."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "I think Gran was more detached than I am," Jon admits. "But I'm a psychiatrist. I spent the entirety of my adult life training to heal and help people. Remaining professionaly detached is one thing, but the things I've seen..." He shudders and shakes his head.

    For a moment, as he lifts the silver cup of coffee, he eyes Uriel. "Do you really think I'm far enough along to just... ask questions? No need of a basic cirruculum, or at least to lay out the basics? Do I really have the basics down?"

    A sigh. "Alright then... the thing that's been bothering me the most of late, though it wouldn't have been the first thing I'd have asked two weeks ago... should I have been able to heal Cael, when she was shot? Should I have at least been able to stabilize her long enough for Sara to come? Or am I meant to be simply speeding up the natural healing process the way that I do now?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "You're a -homo magi-, Jonathan" Uriel replies, as if that is clarity enough. "You may not be sorceror supreme, but that is only because your purpose lies elsewhere. Regardless, your sphere of influence over reality shouldn't be governed by the question 'should I be able to' instead you should be asking 'how shall I do this?'"

    He purses his lips at the Archivist. "Can I ask a question? Why, as an Egyptian avatar, do you use water as the element of healing? I understand the concept of the Nile being the source of life for the valley; but in all the great tales it's the power of the Sun that purifies and rejuvenates the people and the land."

    He shakes his head in disbelief. "For the love of all things, you -died- went through the Path of -Ra-, god of the Sun, and were reborn. Water had -barely- anything to do with that whole process, and yet you turned back to water for recovery and healing instead of realizing that the Sun and its light is the true element of purification and rebirth in all things." A small smile plays on his lips as if the whole concept amuses him.

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "Because..." Jon hesitates, thoughtfully. "Because it's... /my/ element. In whatever sort of elemental division you want to use, I am most closely associated with water. In personality, in temperament... hell, I'm even a Scorpio. It was easy to conjecture, easy to think up."

    A pause, to sip his coffee, and then he goes on, "My healing, in specific, is a modification of a technique I used to mend one of Agnes' skirts. She'd stained the skirt and ruined it trying to fix the damage with purifying fire. I thought... well, to /wash/ the skirt you'd use water, right? So I ran water over the stain, and used the water to re-form the threads of the skirt, mending it and removing the stain and the charring."

    He shrugs. "Stitching up a skirt and stitching up a human aren't really all that different; med students practice their suturing on fabric all the time. It seemed like a natural jump to try using water to heal. And water /does/... refresh and recharge. I used my water to cure Cael of a hangover, and that seemed entirely natural."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel puts a hand to his head in a show of exasperation. "I... Jonathan, you're a smart person... explain to me how saving a person from drowning on their in their own blood is in any way associated to mending a skirt or curing a hangover?" He blinks at the Archivist his expression plain. "You have to be willing to branch out. It's not about elements. You can use that framework, if you truly must, but your power is so much more versatile that limiting yourself in such a way is... exponentially diminishing."

    "You are stronger and more powerful than you even understand. The power you -command- is capable of rending a person's soul--a fundamental part of what makes one different from dirt and ash--from their body. It's what you are -made- to do. Think about that for a moment and then try to tell me that you are in any way less capable than Steven Strange."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    "I don't know why you keep comparing me to..." Jon runs a hand through his hair. "Look, it's the same as everything else, okay?" His tone sounds defensive. "I've been figuring it out as I went. In the siege, summoning a globe of water and having it fall as snow or rain made it able to touch a large group. It /worked/, and I didn't have /time/ to figure out anything else."

    He puts down the coffee cup and stands, pacing back and forth across the open area between bookshelves. "When I first started I didn't even know how my magic worked. I had no idea how to do anything that wasn't copying someone else's magic until I managed to talk to Gran's ghost. I don't... I've been fighting for my life, trying to keep other people alive, and until last week using water to heal /worked/. I had to be summoning /something/ from the Astral Plane, and the water was easy. Back when I figured that out... I was terrified, I'd just been kidnapped, I had Elias Bouchard's daughter on my hands, I just..."

    They reach up to grab at fistfuls of their hair. "I understand what you're getting at, I just... it's just... what do you even /mean/, 'rend a soul from the body.' I don't... /do/ that. Do I?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel blinks at Jon. "What do you think happens to the people you judge, Jonathan?" he asks softly. "Before the chage you've made you would send their soul directly into the gullet of Ammit. That's not a simple process and it's not something that any old wizard can do?" he says. "Sure a basic ritualist could set up something to kill a person. Thaumaturgic ritual to make their heart explode or curse them with the Evil Eye to have entropic levels of luck befall them. But... that's killing them. What happens to their soul after is up to whatever beliefs they held, or in some cases the lack therof."

    He shakes his head. "You -direct- that activity with what you do. You -control- what happens to their soul and even now... you arbitrate that process." He rises and focuses on his pupil. "Take Javier for instance... what do you think you did to him when you made him relive the pain and suffering he put upon others... what caused him to combust into residual human fluid that boiled away?"

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon frowns as he lowers his hands from his head, turns to regard Uriel. "I called on Sekhmet," he says. "I understand what you mean, but that's the gods. I am merely their instrument. I understand that I'm potentially more powerful than a lot of people out there, but that doesn't..."

    He paces back over and drops back onto the bench. "I don't know what you're looking for. I understand what you mean, about the power of the sun to heal. I'm willing to practice that. I'm willing to branch out, and learn--that's why I /asked/. I knew my own healing wasn't cutting it. I just..."

    They look down at their hands. "I /said/ I'm probably not understanding basic things. What are you... trying to get me to see? I'm not seeing it."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "Jonathan," Uriel says as one speaking to a much younger individual, which despite all appearances is definitely the case here. "The New Gods, despite their title, are still eons old. And they are still gods," he says. "They are not going to exert their will for any old hat that calls on them. Priests that dedicate their entire lives to serving them don't get the notice -you- do from one you don't even directly serve. Sekhmet didn't give you her fire because you're the father of her avatar to be. She gave it to you because you're the Archivist and that position garners you a great deal of respect."

    He moves forward and kneels down before Jon, putting a hand on his living shoulder. "And I need you to understand -that-, first and foremost, the gods will answer -your call-. It's not because -she-" he throws casual gesture over the pair of them, a gesture that from any other creature would garner swift and direct retribution. But Uriel -is- and Archangel, tells them to. Not because Ma'at is your patron. Not because you rode the Sun Barque and stood in for Ra. They do it because you're -the Archivist-."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon frowns at Uriel for a moment, like he's trying to process what the archangel is saying. "But my being the Archivist... that comes from Her." He nods to Neith. "It comes from Ma'at, and Thoth. It comes from /you/. I didn't figure that Sekhmet answered me at all. I figured that Sekhmet answered /Ma'at/." A laugh. "I mean, hell, I figure they only even let me ride the Sun Barge because of Ma'at, if not just because it amused them to watch a /temple scribe/ declare he was a king."

    He hesitates a moment, then says slowly, "And besides all of that... the Archivist isn't /me/, it's... the Archivist. The power of the Archivist flows from the gods, and from the ancestors. It's not... /me/. It's /them/."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel takes a slow, deep breath. "Jonathan, I am going to reveal something to you that is very difficult for me to do" he says. "In fact, I believe your intervention is the only reason I am able to do it. And even this it causes me great distress to say it." He swallows. "I made a mistake. The Archivist was tied to Her, yes. And to Thoth. It -was- tied to them. It is not anymore. It is tied solely to Ma'at. Yes, The Terrifying One is still a governing body over the power as she is on all things in Her perview but, you have rewritten the fundamental code of what it means to be The Archivist. And you've done it better than I could have ever imagined."

    "What you have done in nine months... is more decisive and more empowering to the title than anything that came before it since its inception thousands of years ago." He smiles and lets out a soft chuckle. "-You- are what The Archivist should have been from the start and you -will- be what the Archivist will be going forward. You are the pillar of supremacy in the position you now command."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon just sort of... blinks at Uriel for a long moment. "I..." he starts, a bit weakly, and then stops. "But that's not..."

    His shoulders slump and he peers down at the floor. "I suppose that answers the question of whether or not I'm still really /me/, hmm? I keep fretting about that."

    They're quiet for another long moment, and then they say, "It's a lot to take in. All of it is. That, what, Gran served Thoth... and Agnes will serve Ma'at? Because of me? That I've changed the way it all works in a way no other Archivist ever had? I don't know why, any more than I really understand why Gaea chose me to be Her Champion. It all feels so much... bigger than I am." They heave a sigh. "Maybe someday it'll make sense, but somewhere in the back of my mind I'm still that deeply annoying kid from Bournemouth who doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut."

    They turn over their hands, staring at them. "You're saying when I call the gods, they're answering /me/. Jonathan Sims. Not Ma'at's Avatar, not 'the Archivist,' even if it's because of those titles. They're answering... /me/. Because I have that much power." Their hands start to shake a little. "Th-they... they let me ride the barque... because I /deserved/ to? Michael listened to me... because I was... was important enough, powerful enough...?"

    They clench their hands suddenly, eyes closing and tears falling. "What does it matter? What's the point of /any/ of that when I can't save my girlfriend's life?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel gives Jon a sympathetic look. "You are still you, Jonathan. It's not that you are the Archivist... it's that the Archivist is -you-." He pauses only long enough for that to settle over his student. "As for your abilities and why it matters? It matters in the same way that 'can' and 'will' are different words. The only reason you couldn't save Cael when she was shot was because you didn't know how."

    He squeezes the shoulder. "And because of that hole... you've come to one of the few individuals around who can help you so that should such a need arise again, and God forbid it does not, you will be able to because you will have the knowledge of how. And the ability to utilize the knowledge to save her."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon takes in a deep, shuddering breath and then lets it out, slowly unclenching his fists. "Right," he says. "Right." He looks up finally, and smiles. "Excuse me if I don't take this to mean I can do literally anything and charge forward heedless of testing hypothesis or anything else first. There's still little things like stamina and focus to consider, if nothing else."

    They rub their palms on their legs. "So. Light, you said. The light of the sun, to... heal? Revive? Khonshu's light, the light of the moon, can traditionally heal as well, though not as strongly as Sekhmet or Isis." He shakes his head. "I suppose I should have considered Phoebe's healing light but... if I'm being honest, I sort of figured that was... her thing? I think she carries a bit of Heka inside her."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "Perhaps so... it is her decision and her choice to divulge where her power comes from if she so wishes" Uriel replies. "But yes... healing through sunlight. After all, what does my name mean?" he asks with a smile. He rises and offers his hand to Jon to aid the Archivist in rising as well.

    "Now the process may seem a bit more... esoteric than the clinical or technical use of water you used... but the effects will be no less potent." the archangel replies. "It's no different from any other magic you perform. You know the reason it will work, now just place that reasoning into the power and -will- it to happen. The light of the sun will heal because you believe it will."

Jonathan Sims has posed:
    Jon sighs and shakes his head. "I have to actually believe it will, though. I keep thinking that to some degree my medical knowledge is holding me back. I believe that wounds should scar when they heal, so they do. I can imagine the power of Ra healing, but sunlight healing, just because I will it to...?"

    He frowns thoughtfully. "Did I keep some portion of the power of the sun when I came back? Or some... mmm... I don't know. If I really /was/ deserving to be on the barque then... I should hold that power, right? The light I summon should heal, the way my water refreshes and revives."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Uriel smiles and nods. "It's entirely possible that is the way of it, yes" he lifts a hand and a ball of blazing gold-white energy is there. It pulses and illuminates like a small sun, because that is precisely what it is.

    In time," the Archangel of Light says, "you will be able to conjure the same as this... but for now, for you, start a bit smaller." He watches intently focusng on how Jon focuses and conjures the power. "And from there... we will progress to active use."