Here's a question to incite analysis if you're willing: what do you think the archangels (Zacharie and Zaphkiel) feel/think about each other? Especially since depending on your interpretation of Zacharie, he may have been the only other entity who survived the world being turned OFF aside from Zaphkiel (as Mortis gave an ambiguous answer as to whether Zacharie could survive the Switch being pulled rather than definitively say no). Zacharie is also one of the og characters who is very unique and carries an unknown amount of power for him to be as aware as he is and even potentially survive oblivion.
What becomes of him in A Sincere Attempt is also ambiguous. It makes one wonder what exactly Zaphkiel would think of the man. Vice versa with Zacharie. Such as him having been involved with Gaius just as Zaphkiel once was.
If anything, this is more me wanting to know about your interpretation of Zacharie and how connected he feels towards a world he knows is a fanmade sequel to the original. A world that even became a game once again through one man's selfish grief.
@atrophiedentropy
very stream of conciousness answer in coming!!
zacharie is a very interesting character to me (which says nothing because i find all the characters interesting). Anyway, the concept art we all know of Zacharie with little wings is interesting, and your wording here that zacharie is an archangel (i know he shares a name and thus is probably why you chose to use that, amongst other things I'll probably mention) inherently does give him a loose relation to zaphkiel.
The trouble is, I doubt they know eachother. I feel something would be mentioned if they did...However, if he wanted to infer something based on a lack of mention...
I have a theory/headcannon about zacharies relationship with the player, in which he can not exist without them as well. Sure, there is the statue in the theme park, but given the meta nature of zacharies commentary, i dont particularly count that as evidence that he. "exsists"
the same way the batter is created the moment you start the game, I think zacharie is the same way. There is no one to sell to before the player comes. Just by nature of how the game works, if we treat the world as truely a game and not a reality that exsists outside of those rules. He, however, is given more knowledge of the world immediately, but he is still a man without a past. The fact he can potentially exist is where I think any intersection with zaphkiel is possible... But. I dont think he does. personally.
I don't know if zaphkiel would even know about zacharie because of the fact he does not exist unless the player is connected to the world. But, when the batter and subsequently the player is called upon by Z, zacharie will exist again. and because the lore of a previous iteration, as well as the vague history of the current game, exists in the game. Zacharie knows it. and always has. effectively, he has seen it all and none of it at all.
this leads to a situation where zacharie knows everything zaphkiel has done, but because he is unable to break from the role he is given (and who says he even wants to!), he doesn't say anything, because thats not his job.
I think zacharie would see the feeble attempts to restart the world as futile, and perhaps even kind of funny. he knows how it ends from the moment he returns. "returns".
If zaphkiel were aware of this, I think zacharie would make him uneasy, the same way the batter used to when he was first created. The fact that zacharie only exists to aid the player/the batter and thusly, probably can not be influenced through dreams means he is an untouchable X-factor. I can see zaphkiel projecting his own rebellion against fate onto zacharie and fearing the prospect of this unmeasured person trying to free himself of his role.
