Reya’s Realm
We are introduced to Reya in the Second Season of Warrior Nun. Though she appears relatively briefly, her impact is substantial. From the first glimpse we have of Reya we know she is going to be instrumental in the fight against Adriel.
However, her presence leads to a large gap in knowledge for the viewer. Who is she? Where does she come from? Is she good or bad? How is she connected to the Halo? At first glance, we know almost nothing at all. But if you dig a little deeper you’ll find some of the answers to those questions.What then, do we know about Reya?
Contrary to what you might think, a lot of information can be gleaned from her few short appearances.
Firstly, we know she is a being of great power, far greater than Adriel, as described many times by the characters who have encountered her. She comes from a realm beyond the Ark and is hunting Adriel through a combination of tracking (Halo) and an army of Tarasks she can command.
Many times throughout the show it is suggested Reya is similar to God or a leader of her people. This can be corroborated by Michael’s story. When he passed through the Ark as a boy, he was found by two angels wandering in a barren landscape and taken to Reya in a shining city. We also know from Michael that Reya is, “An entity, unimaginably powerful, she is Adriel’s master.” That is, she was, before his rebellion.
Additionally, Adriel references her as a “devourer of worlds” when speaking to Ava under his cathedral as well as a God when he says, “If I am to become God, I first must imprison God”. So, at the very least it can be confirmed that she is a leader, not necessarily the leader, but someone who is at the top of the hierarchy. We also learn from Adriel’s villain monologue to Ava that he needs power, “much more than I currently possess.” So it's safe to say that she is immensely powerful.
Much like Adriel, Reya has existed for thousands of years or, at least, since the time of Areala. Now, it is believed that Reya gave the Crown of Thorns to Areala, but this is not a certainty. Since we see the gifting of the relic in a flashback in a retelling from the record kept by the Coptic Order, the sequence of events could be skewed - just like the OCS’s story of Adriel. Depending on the version of events being told, the story changes. So who’s to say what the truth is at this point?
Whatever we have come to know about the Halo, Adriel, and God, or Reya as we come to know her, has mostly come from written records and retellings from Adriel. The only instances we can truly rely on are the flashbacks Ava is able to witness through Halo’s abilities. When Adriel touches Ava’s face in his tomb she is able to experience the past from Areala’s point of view and sees what Adriel has truly done, without his own bias, in the Season 1 Finale. We see the story of Areala change from the beginning of Season 1 to the end of that same season. In the first adaptation, Adriel is a heroic angel who comes from Heaven to bestow upon her a gift. In the second version, Adriel is running from Tarasks and shoves the Halo into her back as a means of camouflaging his existence. Two versions of the same story means there is definitely more the viewer hasn’t seen. So the question becomes will we see more firsthand revelations of the past? Will we learn the truth?
We also know that Reya has the ability to radicalise people to her cause. We see possibilities of this in Lilith when she can’t recall her time on the other side. Similar to the tarasks, she is drawn to the Halo, who are controlled by Reya. We can also recall the distinct and trance-like state Lilith was in. A state of mind that had her fighting against her sisters in an attempt to keep them from entering Adriels tomb. It’s a possibility that Reya was commanding Lilith just like she does the Tarasks.
Secondly, Michael is enlisted to join her fight and at the expense of his own life. It takes a lot to persuade someone to turn themselves into a Divinium bomb and go on a suicide mission to kill your enemy. Michael describes his time in Reya’s realm to his mother saying, “She healed me. Raised me in the halls of her kingdom. Trained me for the day I would come back to Earth to stop him.” When Michael is shown the image of Reya from Jillian’s recordings he instantly goes pale and into a trance like state. When Jillian pulls him out of it he says, “I was wrong to doubt. I thought I could change things, but Reya’s way is the only way.” This visceral reaction to Reya’s image along with the cult-like phrasing leads the viewer to assume Michael has been compromised and is under Reya’s influence.
Finally, there is the conversation between Ava and Reya in Season 2, when Ava willingly puts on the Crown of Thorns, that the viewer is not privy to. While we all desperately want to know what was said, it’s possible we will never find out. However, what we do see is a dramatic change in Ava’s character afterwards and a shift in her countenance. We see her become more determined and at peace with her mission moving forward - even at the expense of her life.
It is an interesting theory to ponder. Does Reya radicalize or is her mission justified?
As Season 2 closes out, we learn Reya isn’t quite as invulnerable as she would like you to believe. If she’s anything like Adriel she can be hurt and injured - although she’ll likely heal immediately. However, we see her being captured and dragged by wraiths and pulled through the Ark, not strong enough to resist them or banish them away. We also don’t see Reya fight back once she’s brought through. She remains on the floor beside the ark and doesn’t engage. In this same scene, Adriel attempts to place the Crown of Thorns on her. We can gather from Adriel’s words that if he would have succeeded the crown would have effectively neutralized Reya. So, the question isn’t can she be hurt but rather how can she be hurt? And if she can be injured, can she be killed?
Finally, what we come to know is that Reya isn’t solely interested in the Halo itself. She knows in whom it resides and makes no attempt to retrieve it. This is immediately apparent at the end of the battle against Adriel when she simply leaves the Halo behind. If it was important, she would have retrieved it even at the cost of Ava’s life. We know she has no problem sacrificing people when she wants to. But the Halo was not her priority; returning to her realm was. It’s also worth noting that when the cross, the conduit responsible for powering the Ark was destroyed, the portal was closed. Reya was not able to travel through it while Adriel and Ava fought. However after Adriel is defeated, the portal is open again and Reya commands the tarasks once more. They go, and with a nod to Ava, Reya passes through the ark.
That sequence of events leads us to the question: does Reya have powers here on Earth? We see her appear, albeit in a retelling by Yasmine and Adriel, but she never exhibits the use of any abilities other than appearing in and disappearing from our realm. The case could be made for her being weakened in our realm, due to her lack of power and resistance to join in the fight against Adriel. Does she need to harness power similarly to Adriel while on Earth? Or is she completely powerless?
In totality, we can surmise a great many things about Reya, but not enough to give us the full picture. We’ll need Season 3 for that. And so, it leaves us with more questions than answers. Questions like: Could Reya be God as we understand it or is she just another villain? Will she be the one to bring the Holy War to earth? Will she heal Ava and return her to Earth? Was she truly responsible for Lilith’s healing and changes?
But, most importantly: will she fear the Halo?
Many questions arise when talking about Reya and questions without answers lead to theories. Fan theories.
So, here’s one that will turn your perception of Reya upside down!
In the coming adaptations, I think we will find out more about Reya. It’s my opinion that she isn't actually God, but more like a goddess, or a daughter of one.
Let me explain; my theory is that Reya is essentially an older Ava who time travels backwards to the present day in order to secure the future.
It all starts with Ava’s family whom we never meet. What if Ava's mother is a goddess who came to the real world to protect Ava? And as soon as she found out she was pregnant with her, she knew young Ava wouldn’t be safe. Maybe, in the other realm they were hunting for the young girl or her immediate relatives? It would explain why Ava has "no father" and "no other family" - because they're all god-like entities in another realm.
When Ava was 7, somehow “they” found her mother and either killed her or took her back to their realm. She may have even sacrificed herself for her daughter. Who knows…
In the process, Ava accidentally (Or maybe not…) ended up a paralysed orphan. With no family, Ava was effectively neutralized and she couldn’t become her future incarnation - Reya.
What “they” didn’t foresee was the OCS’s involvement. Perhaps the halo was biding its time and finding temporary hosts until it could reach the true bearer. Remember it is said that the halo has a mind of its own.
Vincent's words "[she's] maybe not [an] entirely random [warrior nun]" suggest that there is more to the story than meets the eye. Perhaps he knows more about this from his connection to Adriel.
In this head-canon, Reya-Ava's time travel abilities are established, just not their measure. We know she can travel backwards in time because she was present during the battle between Ava (her younger self) and Adriel and because she was able to supply a Halo Bearer with the Crown of Thorns.
Additionally, I think Reya-Ava can’t travel forward in time, so she doesn't actually know what happens in the future - her future. As a result, she helps to imprison (or kill) Adriel because she believes he is a criminal serving the ultimate villain. In Hebrew, Adriel means "God's flock" which lends credence to this theory; he was just following orders.
Since she can’t see the future, this would make Reya's final scene on screen really heartbreaking. If you look closely, you can see she is crying. Reya-Ava is shedding tears while watching her younger self die in the arms of the first and only person she truly loved. She's also seeing Beatrice for the first time after centuries. Reya-Ava is watching Bea getting her heart broken - by herself no less. Her tears are acknowledgement of how much she hurt Bea, however unwillingly, by crossing over. At this moment, Reya-Ava is thinking that she'll never be with or see Bea again.
(Of course, we know this is WRONG)
Once Ava goes into the other realm, we'll learn how she became "Reya". The name “Reya” has its roots in the European word for "Queen" or "Flowing". Why was she given this name? It could be said she would be a consistent driving force in life, navigating through whatever may cross her path.
Perhaps it is more of a title than a name given to the "Queen" after saving the people of the other realm. Maybe, it was given to honor her life before the halo. Whatever the reason, it would complement the name "Ava" which, amongst other things, means water. Water, which flows in a consistent path, navigating through whatever landscape it encounters. A name upgrade, if you will.
Now, why would Reya ask Ava to "uselessly” sacrifice herself if she knew how it would've played out?
Maybe Reya, an older Ava, knows that for some reason she NEEDS to cross over. When Ava took off the Crown of Thorns, my theory is she knew she had to die/cross over to the other realm. When Ava was dying she asked Beatrice to take the Halo and let her go. When Lilith proposed to put her through the portal, Ava agreed without batting an eye. If she was actually tired of the halo, she would've at least tried to refuse the idea. Instead, she didn't care how, she just knew she had to get to the other realm.
So, what is the other realm?
Maybe it is some form of afterlife (hopefully, this means we get Mary back!) or maybe it is simply a home for more “divine” beings. Maybe there, Ava will find her family. Maybe she will have to fight for something or someone she really cares about. This could be the reason older-Ava would've wanted her to cross over and fulfill her role.
Another question that comes to mind is: why would older-Ava send Michael to the other side just to die? The answer is - I'm not sure. Perhaps it was to give Jillian some kind of closure.
We already know Michael can't survive on Earth. This Goddess version of Ava couldn’t heal him so, as a result, she sent him back to Earth for a small amount of time. This way he was able to say goodbye to Jillian and give her the closure she needs. He made sure to tell her there will always be a version of his soul on the other side. Michael’s story ended on Earth, but in the other realm, things could be different. Perhaps we see him again too.
