Come on in. Don’t be shy.
You’ll most assuredly want to stay close to me, for an angel’s aura is the only protection a mortal has in this place.
Allow me to introduce myself properly. My name is Magdalena of the third order of Dominions. I was once known as the “True Sword” within the Authority’s highest warrior ranks. But that is all fluff and nonsense. You can just call me Maggie, and around these practically endless hallways, you can consider me a warden of sorts.
I must say this is very exciting. For the first time, the veil has been lifted and a mortal, in the flesh, is given complete access to the middle-world known as the Asylum. I'm equally excited to be communicating with you in the mortal tongue. I’ve always had an affinity for the primordial way your kind communicates, so romantically simple. If I were to attempt to commune with you in the language of the Seraphim order you would bleed out from your ears and our script would disintegrate your retina. Pleasant thoughts, to be sure.
Moving along...
I’m sure you are all wondering why we have allowed such access to our facility. Quite frankly, I think the concept of Limbo (or Purgatory, or whatever term you are comfortable with) hasn’t truly been given as much attention as the two everlasting planes that exist to the north and south of our walls. ASYLUM (loosely translated from the Seraphim dialect for “a prison of lost souls”) serves the most important function in the transition and re-transition of a human soul as it completes its many lifetimes. Our responsibility is to clean the stain from a soul before it can achieve the light, or scuff that last bit of brilliance from a blackened essence so it can descend to its proper, miserable, place into the Pit.
The door you passed through to achieve entrance to the Asylum is made up of a white dwarf star as it made its final transformation to black. It is the embodiment of light and dark converging, in one glorious burst, at the time of death.
I built it myself. No need for applause.
The door that separates the Asylum from your mortal world also represents the two orders that tend to those who are sentenced here, the Authority and the Malifecium. The process is not always harmonious, but it wouldn’t be exciting if that were the case.
I mentioned that you are protected as long as you stay within the aura that surrounds me. The blue flame I wield was my birthright. The Source Of All Things – she has many names (and yes, I said “she”) – gifted me this power to interact with the mortal world because I was destined to protect humanity, lead the armies of light into battle against those from the Pit, who look to corrupt every one of you. My part in that war never came to fruition (a story for another time), yet I still wield my mother’s flame freely.
I will now grant each of you a small part of my power, so you may walk freely as observers to our post-life process.
Be forewarned, this place is no playground for the senses. Intense suffering and brutal rehabilitation are constant occurrences in the Asylum. A majority of the inmates that reside here walk the wire between light and dark and the temptation to snatch mortal flesh and attempt an escape, under a new guise, will be all too tempting.
In other words, don’t stray too close to the lion’s den.
Then there are the demons... I'll leave it at that.
Well, I feel I have sufficiently dazzled you and frightened you all in one grand swoop. Such is the temperature of the world you have entered.
Be at ease, you are my guests and I won’t allow harm to come to you.
Over the next month, you will gain access to the inner-workings of this well-run machine (if I am to be biased). You will meet angels, said demons (pinch your nose in their presence), and floaters (souls on work-release) who inhabit the Asylum’s many interchanging rooms and corridors. You will also view the souls that work through their personal rehabilitation programs (some meant to find nirvana, others destined for darker days), and we will take a personal journey with one soul in particular whose destiny is extraordinary, to say the least.
Check back daily for my musings, as well as those from other voices within these walls.
Feel free to comment as you see fit. I am a celestial after all, I can take criticism as well as praise.
Remember, what you learn here may help you choose which path you take in life. Light or dark, love or hate. Choose wisely, for if you tow the line, you may just find yourself more than just a visitor within the Asylum.
- MAGGIE