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When God created humankind, the angels split into two factions — between those who rejoiced and embraced these beings made in the image of their Creator to experience life on Earth, and those who were more skeptical of these imperfect creatures, who were to be given free will and free rein to choose whether or not to follow a righteous path.
Those who loved humanity and believed in their promise worked to protect and guide them on Earth, while the stricter angels worked to inhibit man’s worst impulses, and fight the demons that sought to corrupt God’s signature creation.
(Except for one angel in particular… but this story isn’t about that one.)
Senku had spent most of his existence near Earth, helping humans and watching them progress and advance over millennia. For all their imperfections, he truly loved them, and tried his best to help them meet their full potential. Part of that time, he spent trying to make a fellow angel see things his way…
“Senku. Why did you bring me here?”
“I wanted to show you this, Tsukasa.”
They first met thousands of years before, near Mount Sinai, when a certain event brought many angels together to bear witness…
Angels numbered in the tens of millions, so it wasn’t a surprise to Tsukasa that he hadn’t met this one before. What was a surprise was that he hadn’t remembered seeing him ever — his green-tipped wavy blond hair seeming to defy gravity, making up for his shorter stature, his wings sleek and angular like those of a swallow’s, and his crimson eyes stunning and sharp; an unusual appearance that would be unexpected for an angel.
Leaning a bit into the ‘fear not’ side of things, hm? Tsukasa thought to himself.
But in that moment, the angel wasn’t intimidating in the slightest; instead, a grin of pure delight was spread across his face.
The occasion that had brought all these angels together was one that held some trepidation, at least as far as Tsukasa was concerned, so to see an angel so unrestrainedly happy about it… Tsukasa had to know why.
When he flew to the angel’s side, he was unsurprised at the startled look the other showed him at first, his wings spreading out wide; Tsukasa’s size, height, and aura all but screamed intimidation and strength, wrapped in beauty befitting an angel of God.
Tsukasa paid the other angel’s reaction no mind, folding his eagle-like wings behind him and choosing to turn to look in the direction he had been. “So, you seem happy about this.”
The other angel relaxed, folded his wings and looked in the same direction. “More than that. I’m excited.”
“Excited?”
“How can I not be?” the other angel said, and Tsukasa looked back at him. His smile had returned, lighting up his face. “This is the first time that Divine wisdom has been transcribed and written down for use by humans, to be passed down through the generations. It’s going to change everything.”
Indeed, at the moment, God and Moses were convening at the peak of Mount Sinai, and soon Moses would return to deliver the instructions from the Divine to his people. The gathered angels were keeping watch, to guard and bear witness to this unprecedented occasion.
“Mm. Indeed it will. But there’s no telling what humans will do with this information.”
“Sure, but that doesn’t mean it should be kept from them, either.”
“Ah,” Tsukasa sighed. “You’re an idealist,” he said, referring to one of the divisions of angels.
“I take it you’re a pessimist?” the other angel smirked, referring to the other division.
“We prefer ‘realist’,” Tsukasa replied with a little huff.
“Same difference,” the smaller angel shrugged, looking back down. “Humans will never grow to meet their full potential if we limit them and what they know. We can’t baby them forever.”
Tsukasa sighed, and looked back down at Earth. “They may not be ready for it yet. Too much information, in unprepared hands and minds… could spell disaster. For themselves, for others, and the world God made…”
The other angel sighed too, ruffling the hair at the nape of his neck. “There’s no need to jump to the worst conclusion yet. They’ve made it this far, after all. They just might be more capable than you think.”
Tsukasa’s next words were deadpan. “They’re literally building a golden calf to worship right now.”
The other angel gave him a look that was equally deadpan. “They just came out of Egypt, Tsukasa. They’re nervous and scared, and idolatry is a force of habit,” he shrugged. “They’ll grow out of it soon enough.”
“One can only hope,” Tsukasa said with a shake of his head. He turned to the angel. “I don’t believe we’ve met before. What is your name?”
The smaller angel grinned, and offered his hand. “It’s Senku. What’s yours?”
Tsukasa took the offered hand in a firm grip, shaking it as he answered. “Tsukasa.”
“Senku!” another angel exclaimed, flying toward them. His hair was similar to Senku’s, but shorter, obeyed gravity, and was gray. “They’ve finished! Moses is on his way back down!”
Senku grinned wider. “Fantastic.” He looked back to Tsukasa. “Watch this, Tsukasa! The world changes today!”
And as they watched… Moses saw the golden calf the formerly enslaved people had made, and chucked the stone tablets, breaking them asunder.
“Nooo! The tablets!” the other angel exclaimed.
“It’s alright, Byakuya! They can make new ones!” Senku reassured him, then looked back down with a sigh, his shoulders slumping, but a weary smile showing on his face as Tsukasa looked on. “Well, humans are full of surprises. They’d be pretty boring otherwise.”
Tsukasa, taking in Senku’s reaction for a moment, then gave a noncommittal nod before looking back down. “Mm.”
Since that day, Tsukasa found himself fascinated by the idealist angel he had met. Before then, he would have admitted, reluctantly, that he hadn’t had the highest opinion of the idealist faction of angels — having been a realist since Cain had slain Abel, he considered them to be naive, air-headed, far too lofty, and overly-positive in their thinking. Or, noodle-brains, as his fellow realist angel Hyoga often called them, not long after humans had invented noodles.
Senku, though… he was different. He was sharp, insightful and intelligent; it didn’t seem that he was in denial of human nature, like the other idealists seemed to be — it was that he could look past their present nature and state, to see what humans could be, if given the right support. He knew well the challenges they faced, but those didn’t seem to discourage him, only motivating him to try harder.
At least, that’s what he showed him during all their meetings over the millennia.
There’s a system in place amongst the heavenly host, where a single angel can summon one or more angels to their side, usually in the case of an emergency. Senku… abused this system, a little bit. He would call Tsukasa to his side every now and then, just to have him witness something humans on Earth were doing right at that moment.
Tsukasa knew what Senku was likely trying to do, what his agenda was with it… but, he went along with it regardless.
The angelic factions did not have solid boundaries, nor were they tribalistic in nature; rather, they were a means of social courtesy. After all, being either an optimist or a pessimist isn’t inherently wrong or bad — but one being in the group of another may cause discomfort for both. And so many angels have changed factions over the millennia, depending on how events on Earth played out, the tides shifting by the era. When hopes for humanity would rise, the ranks of the idealists grew in support of their ambitions; when those hopes fell, the crestfallen came to the ranks of the realists, where they could serve in roles of damage control and repair.
Tsukasa, and his friend and comrade Hyoga, were among the few angels who had never once left the realist faction, considered by many to be the pillars of their group. Others came and went, with varying frequency over the ages; Ukyo was one of the most frequent oscillators, leaving with a cheery expression and outlook, and returning in time with a downtrodden look to his features, looking for sympathetic camaraderie. Shamil had left the realists a few times in the past, but he usually returned before long, having spent most of his existence with them. Gen’s turn had been the biggest surprise, him having spent nearly as much time in the realist faction as Tsukasa himself, and possessing an uncanny intuition for the nature of human beings; he joined the idealist faction as well, and Tsukasa’s curiosity was piqued.
It was against no rules for an angel to persuade another to join the opposite faction, in fact it was often how many chose to do so. But something unusual had been happening as of late — more and more angels had been moving to the idealist side, and staying.
Tsukasa learned that Senku himself had once been on the realist side, at first, up until he met Byakuya of the idealist faction — his kind nature, positive outlook and winsome charm seemed to have softened Senku, serving as his mentor of sorts, and once he had joined the idealists, with his own natural charisma he was able to pay that act forward, soon swaying the staunchest of pessimists to his side.
Tsukasa possessed a certain charisma of his own, his warm persona a reassuring presence to those who were entering or rejoining the realist angels, but he didn’t have the kind of influence that would make certain angels stay there or leave; that wasn’t his job, either. It was circumstance that caused angels to leave the idealist faction, and hope that caused them to join (or rejoin) the idealists; for all their bluntness, realist angels weren’t in the business of making other angels lose hope. Humans did that well enough on their own.
So Tsukasa was naturally curious. What kind of power did this angel possess? Could his way with words even sway him, or at least come very close to it? He had to know.
And so, even though it was often an inconvenience, Tsukasa came whenever Senku called.
Sometimes, Tsukasa even called Senku himself — as a form of payback, and to see if he could sway him in the slightest.
But, he wasn’t going to make his job easy.
Tsukasa had called Senku to his side when Christ was being crucified, to see if the sight of this innocent man suffering the worst punishment would be enough to shake him.
Senku merely sighed, with a shake of his head. “You think I didn’t know this was going on?”
“No, but I thought you should witness it yourself.”
Senku cringed at the sight. “It is gruesome… but he — we — were prepared for this possibility, Tsukasa. The whole point of this was for him to have a human experience.”
“Well he certainly got that…” Tsukasa said, cringing as well. “What does it say about humans, that they’ll do this to a perfectly innocent man?”
“He ruffled a lot of feathers. There was no telling how they’d react to that. Some are more insecure than others. It only highlights what needs to be changed. If that can’t be done, then how will they progress?”
Tsukasa gave a disapproving hum.
“You and I both know that this is for a purpose. Shouldn’t we wait to see the results of it before judging?” Senku said, with a slanted smile.
“...Fine.”
Before long, Tsukasa felt Senku calling him back.
And Senku was beaming.
“Thought you should see this for yourself!” He gestured down to the Earth, at the stone that had been rolled away, and Christ emerging from the cave.
“...Well played,” Tsukasa said, allowing himself a smile. “You seem to have grown fond of him, Senku.”
“Are you kidding? He’s my kind of guy!” Senku grinned. “He was kind of a show-off, but I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same, if I were him,” he shrugs.
“Performing miracles, getting killed for it, and coming back from the dead?” Tsukasa smirked at him.
“Yep, all of it,” Senku smirked back. “Ten billion percent.”
“Hm,” Tsukasa said, a sound like a laugh. He looked down at the events unfolding on the ground. “I understand this was part of a plan, but… will this sacrifice be worth it?”
“There’s no telling, right now. But humans will be talking about this for ages, I know it. And maybe, just maybe… some of what’s good will trickle down through the centuries. We’ll just have to watch and see. And guide them along when we can, of course.”
“From your lips to God’s ear,” Tsukasa said, stretching his arms and wings.
Senku gave him a look. “You, not coming up with a negative retort? Don’t tell me this hasn’t softened you up, too,” he said with a quirk of his lips.
“I’m merely… reserving judgment.”
Senku laughed, patting Tsukasa on the back. “Sure pal, sure.”
And so it went, from the ancient to modern age, a continual back-and-forth between the two angels, that was at times amiable, others hotly debated. Senku would bring Tsukasa close to show him the advances humanity made, especially in science, and Tsukasa would be quick to reply with the potential negative outcomes. On the flip side, Tsukasa would sometimes call Senku over to see the less-than-good things that a certain subset of humans were doing… and every time, somehow, he would find some bright side, or at least a reason for their actions, even if it didn’t justify them — just to prove that it was an exception, not the norm, not inherent in every human.
It was frustrating at first to Tsukasa, him often thinking, ‘I’m going to stump him this time’, but in time, it became… almost fun, watching the other angel analyze a situation, come to a conclusion, and figure out a potential solution, even in a situation Tsukasa himself thought impossible to resolve.
He liked watching Senku’s mind at work, the way his brows would furrow as he touched two fingers there in thought, the way his wings would fold, then spread out once he had reached his conclusion, eager to share it with his companion, looking up at him with bright, shining eyes and an exuberant grin.
Yes… he was growing to like Senku.
The second World War had been hard on everyone, on Earth and in Heaven as well, but it was deeply felt by Tsukasa and Senku both; even Tsukasa’s most cynical expectations had been surpassed, and he couldn’t help but feel sickened whenever he went down to Earth to help in the limited ways he could. Senku had been despondent at times, his mood only lifting when the camps in Germany had been liberated at last.
“See? In the end, good prevailed,” Senku said to Tsukasa, as they watched the soldiers’ rescue efforts, though his voice sounded forced.
There had been so, so much needless suffering and death. So many reasons to lose faith in humanity.
But after so long, it seemed that things were starting to look up.
Until… Japan.
All of Heaven watched in abject horror as those forbidden bombs were dropped, nothing like it having happened in human history.
Tsukasa feels himself summoned by Senku afterward, and goes willingly for once. It’s not very angelic, but he feels a bit like gloating as he arrives.
“What have I told you about humans, Senku? Away from God’s presence, they become corrupt, and commit atrocities. Beings with this level of knowledge are too much for this world. Don’t you see that I’ve been ri-”
He stops, when he sees Senku’s wings shake. He watches his form for a moment, as it begins to tremble all over. He hears a sound he hasn’t heard from an angel in millennia, and never from Senku — a hitching sob.
He approaches him. “Senku…?” he says carefully, touching his shoulder.
Senku dissolves into sobs, covering his face with his hands, not wanting to see any more.
The sight stabs Tsukasa, who immediately regrets his words. As staunchly hard-line as he was, like all angels he had a soft, kind heart within, and letting that heart lead the way, he wraps his arms around the smaller angel, then his wings, letting him rest against his chest and concealing him from the world.
Tsukasa just holds him, watching him and listening to his choking sobs, and he starts to rub his back gently, just under his wings.
Senku manages to speak, the words sounding strangled by his unceasing sobs. “It’s all gone-! E-everything… Everything’s gone! How could they do this?! All this suffering… nothing is worth this-!”
“I know,” Tsukasa says in the most soothing voice he can manage, continuing to rub his back.
He was deeply saddened by this turn of events as well… but he hadn’t expected Senku’s reaction, or what witnessing it made him feel. Senku had never been one for outward displays of vulnerable emotion, often cloaking his feelings with a cocky grin or false bravado, though his eyes often expressed more than he let on — over time, Tsukasa had learned to read him, find the small cues that gave away what he was really feeling. So seeing Senku this outwardly emotional was a shock in more ways than one… but Tsukasa understood, deeply, painfully so. Needless death was one of the few things that could shake that stubborn angel to his core.
Part of him had wanted Senku to decide to return to the side of realists… but now that it seemed to be nigh, Tsukasa couldn’t shake the ache in his chest. Not like this, he thought.
The longer he held him, though… the more he realized that he didn’t want Senku to change after all. That stubbornly, cockily optimistic angel… that was the Senku he had grown so fond of. The Senku… he had grown to love. Seeing that angel before him now, on the verge of breaking completely… hurt him unlike anything ever had before.
He couldn’t let him change. He had to preserve Senku’s heart, or at least try to.
And so he came up with an idea.
He presses Senku closer to his chest. “We’ll make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
Senku’s sobs still with a small gasp. He pauses, sniffling a little, and looks up at Tsukasa, his scarlet eyes still wet. “...We’re teaming up?”
Tsukasa smiled down at him. He hadn’t thought this idea quite through yet, but there would be time for that. He reached up to wipe a tear away. “Yeah. Something like that. It’s not over, Senku. We can keep humanity from destroying itself, and the world. I don’t want to see that happen any more than you do… so why not join forces?”
“Tsukasa… you really mean it…”
“Don’t give up hope, Senku,” Tsukasa said, squeezing him close. “I need you.”
Senku sniffed again, wiping away the rest of his tears. “Yeah… alright.”
“It’ll be fine,” Tsukasa said, as he rubbed the other angel’s back, saying it partly to himself, “it’ll be fine… I promise.”
Their task after that wasn’t an easy one, and were only able to breathe a sigh of relief once treaties and the principle of mutually-assured destruction were uneasily accepted — it turned out that the majority of humanity was wary about the outsized destructive power of nuclear weaponry as well.
And soon enough, as far as time went for angels, the two had settled into a familiar routine again.
“They’re going to the moon, Tsukasa!”
“Yes yes, it is something, but isn’t this just the Americans’ way of one-upping the Russians?”
“Sure, but not only that! This is humans going where no creature has ever been before! It’s exciting!”
“And a waste of funds that could be used to improve the quality of life for the country’s citizens.”
“Tsukasaaa,” Senku groaned. “You’re not getting it. This level of scientific innovation can only serve to benefit mankind! You’ll see, the ripple effects from this will last for years, and it won’t be the last time they’ll go into space, either!”
He looked back at the launching space shuttle with a smile. “Humans have been pushing past their boundaries for millennia… this is the natural next step. These creatures with the Divine spark in them… they’re making all this possible. They’ll go to space, and beyond.” His smile widened. “I’m excited.”
Tsukasa stared at his face for a beat too long, clearing his throat before speaking at last. “Let us hope it leads to peaceable affairs.”
“For sure. Nations may compete over it, but space has no nationality… it’s the ultimate neutral place.”
Looking at Senku, Tsukasa quietly admitted to himself that the sight of the angel, before the shuttle launching into the sky… was beautiful.
Some years later, Senku calls Tsukasa back to the United States, and Tsukasa finds a curious scene playing out below them.
It was a nondescript place, where humans appeared to be… making records. Not just any records, it seems — they were being plated in gold as the pair of angels watched.
Tsukasa turns to the other angel, with a slight frown of confusion. “Senku. Why did you bring me here?”
Senku smiles simply. “I wanted to show you this, Tsukasa.”
“What is it? Mankind has gold-plated records before, surely.”
“This isn’t just any record. Watch.”
They watch, as eight of the gold records they had witnessed being made were packed up, and shipped off to…
“NASA?” Tsukasa says.
“Yep. Let’s go.”
They head for NASA, and witness the record shipment being received with great fanfare.
“So… what’s NASA going to do with these records?” Tsukasa asks at last, unable to piece together the truth from the evidence he saw in front of him.
“See that spacecraft over there?” Senku says, pointing to one side of the large room, where a large piece of equipment was perched, suspended above the floor.
“Mm.”
“It’s called Voyager. There’s two of these, actually,” Senku says, pointing to its identical twin. “They’re interstellar probes. They’re going to be launched into space soon, and will travel far beyond where humans can currently go, and send signals with data back to Earth for as long as they’re able to.”
“Interesting,” Tsukasa says. “Then, what are the records for?”
“That,” Senku says as he turns back around to look at Tsukasa with a grin, “is the most exciting part.” He drifts over to where the records lie, Tsukasa following, the two angels completely unnoticed by the humans present. “Quiz time. What do records contain?”
“...Music?”
“Well, yes, but I’m thinking something a little broader.”
“Don’t they only contain audio recordings?” Tsukasa asks, watching Senku.
“You’d be forgiven for assuming that,” Senku allows. “But you see, records can hold more than that. Records contain data.”
“Alright… so, these records contain data of some kind?”
“Several kinds. Music, sounds, audio of spoken words, even photographs.”
Tsukasa’s unable to hide his puzzlement. “What for?”
Senku smiles again. “Humanity’s throwing a message in a bottle into the cosmic ocean.”
“...Come again?”
Senku looks back down at the records. “These records… they contain a little bit of everything. Sounds from animals and nature… and humans. Their voices, fifty-five of their languages, a variety of their songs, their science… even someone’s brain waves. All that information, everything that makes Earth Earth, has been engraved onto these records, that will be affixed to these spacecrafts, and sent out to the stars. They’re made to last for billions of years, so whoever discovers them… will discover what Earth is made of, and who lived on it, at this moment in time.”
Tsukasa stares at the Voyager record, in disbelief.
“I don’t get it. What’s the angle here? Who benefits?”
“It’s not like that,” Senku says, shaking his head. “There’s no secret agenda here, no threats, no grandstanding. It’s just a ‘hello’ to another intelligent being who might be out there, with a little introduction. That’s all.”
“To what end?”
“That perhaps they might receive a ‘hello’ back, someday. Or, at least, that someone else will know that Earth is, or was, here.”
“That’s…”
“It’s a pure mission of peace, Tsukasa. Of sharing, of communication, of science. That record there… it’s a distillation of humanity’s pure essence. And it isn’t pettiness or vileness, it’s everything that makes humans human; their DNA, their music, their languages, their talents…” Senku looks into Tsukasa’s eyes. “Their Divine essence.”
Tsukasa pauses, and lets out an awkward laugh. “Well, you don’t make your first introduction by showing off your worst traits…”
“True, but it’s entirely possible to, right?” Senku smirks. “Tsukasa. Mankind’s Divine spark… it’s still there. This proves that. Earth didn’t take it away. It’s just harder to see sometimes. And if the conditions are ideal… humanity can truly shine, and live up to its fullest potential. Don’t you want to see that?”
Tsukasa watched how the angel’s eyes shined as he spoke, it stealing his breath. He has to look down and away. “You’re so optimistic, Senku,” he scoffs.
“You know it,” Senku smiles, looking back down at the record.
“...And I love that about you.”
Senku freezes, then looks back up at Tsukasa… who’s leaning down, and gently takes Senku’s jawline in his hand, lifting it up to meet his lips in a soft, tender kiss.
Senku returns it, their mouths moving gently together for a moment, before they part.
The smaller angel grins wide. “Guess that means I win.”
“Win?”
Senku’s smile softens, before he looks back down at the record. “I’ve liked you ever since we met, Tsukasa. But that thick head of yours, with those stubborn views, always got in the way. So I told myself, if I could change your mind, then we could be together.” He looks back up at Tsukasa. “That’s what I’ve been doing all this time.”
Tsukasa pauses, and gives a little laugh. “I felt the same… and thought that if maybe I could make you see the way I see things, that we could get along… Mm. I guess you really did win, Senku.”
Senku’s smile grows again. “So, you on team optimism now for sure?”
Tsukasa gives another small scoff. “Sure, but I’m still going to be more realistic… though, I’ll allow for the benefit of the doubt more often. Try not to jump to the worst conclusion.”
“That’s all I ask,” Senku replies, and gets on his tiptoes, before giving up and using his wings to give Tsukasa a kiss of his own.