CryptoAngels: Remiel

The tenth in a series of posts about the Archangels of the CryptoAngels project and their inspirations.

Owned by Jordan, Remiel is the angel of judgement who guards the boundary between mortality and divinity. He is one of the more frightening and least human of the Archangels. He wields the Warhammer Judgement, and only the most committed seekers dare approach him. Remiel’s description gives more information about the relationship between the mortals of the Multiverse and the angels. We learn that there is a general folk awareness of the Archangels and that there are a few scholars and spiritual seekers who dare to attempt contact. Here we get a hint of a possible origin for angels. The souls of courageous and committed mortals who succeed in the Trial of Remiel burst free from his fire and ascend to Heaven with angelic wings.

Remiel lives in the heart of the Elemental Flame, the fire associated with alchemical purification and refinement. In alchemy, the Magnum Opus concerned the transmutation of base metals into gold and the enlightenment of the human soul. The concept of divine judgment is common to many belief systems, such as can be seen in the Christian Judgement Day or the Egyptian Book of the Dead. Another common concept is the transformative spiritual journey like the one in The Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo.