by Michael Todd
Lucifer lifted an eyebrow, looking down at the next human. “And then?”
Mania sat silently for a moment. “And then the plan went to shit. I have never said this before in my life, and I still can’t believe the words are on my tongue.”
Lucifer ripped a nail off hard and the human swayed, groaning in agony. “ Spit it out already.”
Mania nodded. “The humans were too powerful. Too ready for us, no matter what. They thought fast, much faster than in days of old. They had the tools and the knowledge to help them through it.”
Lucifer roared, stabbing one of the humans in the finger with the pliers and then pulling them back out. “And you did nothing to prevent this!”
Mania walked forward a couple of steps, her lip beginning to quiver again. She did everything she could to hold back her tears. “Your Grace, you must understand. They attacked me too. Well, one of them did. He first killed my father crow, my baby, and because of that, all the others turned to ash with him. Then, before I could exact my revenge, he threw a dagger at me with deadly accuracy.”
She held out her arm, displaying the gash on her arm. “He stabbed me!”
Lucifer sniffled. “Obviously not accurate enough.” His jaw clenched and he swung his head toward her, his eyes glowing bright red. He was not happy with Mania; she could see that.
He held up the pliers and shook them at her. “You have been by my side, even through Lilith, and this is the honor you show me? You play with my creations and then lose my war? Lucifer does not lose wars!”
His voice roared, making the fires on the walls whip around. Mania cupped her hands in front of her and put her head down. She knew better than to fight back when he was that angry. He huffed and stomped over to the stone table, slamming the pliers down. He grabbed a pair of shears and moved quickly toward the humans. With loud, angry snips, he cut their fingers off at the knuckles.
They screamed and writhed, but the agony gave him no pleasure. He was taking out his anger on them, knowing he didn’t want to kill Mania. She stood there wincing as he cut off the last human’s digits and kicked them across the floor. He turned, throwing the shears across the room, and stomped toward her.
He grabbed her by the head and tilted it toward him. “Who did these things?”
Mania stuttered. “It… it was human.”
Lucifer narrowed his eyes. “Katie?”
Mania shook her head. “No. A man. Calvin.”
Katie, Pandora, and Juntto hurried around the bend of the river without pause. They could see the temple ahead of them. Katie raced to the front, bending over an old Atlantean lying dead on the ground. Juntto took a knee next to him, running his hands over an open bleeding wound.
Katie gritted her teeth, looking up at Pandora. “They stabbed him and left him here to die. They must be inside.”
Pandora stared at the writing on the walls but didn’t say a word. Katie glanced at Juntto, who was staring at the Atlantean in pity. He was woozy, swaying slightly but showing honor to the dead. “You never kill the elders unless they strike at you. This man had no weapon.”
Katie nodded. “I know, Juntto, but we aren’t dealing with people who have any sense of honor.”
Juntto grumbled, running his hands over the Atlantean’s large eyes, shutting them. He bowed his head, and though Katie had no idea who he was praying to, it showed honor, so she followed suit. When their heads once again lifted, she looked up at the doors in front of them.
She stood up and kicked at a piece of stone. “These doors are in ruins. There is no way this old man did this.”
Pandora shook her head. “No. Whoever is allowed to enter this place should have had to answer a riddle, something only the pure of heart would answer correctly. It looks as if they got tired of trying to come up with an answer.”
Katie shook her head. “Then they must have blasted it with a grenade. This place is small. They should be right inside.”
Pandora put her arm out. “Let me go first. I think you will be surprised by how much bigger the inside is than the meek outer layer. Help Juntto and follow me. We don’t know where they will be when we enter.”
Katie looked at her strangely for a moment and bent to help Juntto to his feet. He looked at Katie blearily. “Maybe you should leave me here.”
Katie shook her head. “Not a chance. Family, remember?”
Juntto chuckled as he found his footing. “That is a long way from when we first met.”
Katie smiled as they followed Pandora, who had rushed inside. “It’s amazing how time changes people.”
They walked through the doorway and Katie stopped, her eyes wide. The place was huge on the inside, as if magic had enchanted it. The ceilings stretched high, and there were halls on every side of them, leading to other areas of the temple. There were carved angels on every column, and angelic writing etched into almost every surface. In front of them were marble steps.
“You fools,” Wilson yelled from the top of the steps. “You should have never come here. You are too late.”
Red and Wilson stepped behind one of the angel statues on the right side at the top of the steps. They both grunted, pushing it inch by inch until it teetered on the edge. With one more hard heave, the angel fell forward, crashing into the stone steps and tumbling head over heels down the long staircase straight for them. Katie couldn’t move fast enough to get out of the way; she was still holding Juntto, and he could barely raise his arm at that point.
Pandora flipped her shield around and lunged sideways, throwing herself between the statue and Katie. She dug her feet in as the statue slammed into her. A bright light flashed as the stone met the angelic metal. Pandora groaned as it threw her back, sending her tumbling across the floor. The statue slid to a stop in front of Katie and Juntto, dust billowing into the air.
Juntto reached forward and got his balance on the statue, looking back at Pandora. Katie hurried over to her and helped her off the ground. “Are you all right?”
Pandora nodded. “I’m fine, but they won’t be.”
Pandora and Katie looked up the stairs as Red and Wilson took off to their right. Katie tapped Juntto on the shoulder. “Follow at your own pace. We have to go after them.”
Juntto nodded, and Katie and Pandora took off up the steps. When they reached the top, they ran to the left, finding Wilson and Red at the end of the hallway in front of a pair of large ornate doors. Gold etchings covered the panels from top to bottom, and the gold frames glimmered in the light from the candles on the wall.
Pandora slowed and put her hands in the air. “Don’t open that door, Wilson. I’m warning you.”
Wilson threw his head back and laughed loudly. “Silly bitch. You’ve given it away. The sword is behind here, isn’t it? The Morning Star is just out of your reach. Give it up; you lost.”
Juntto finally made it up the stairs and down the hall, stopping behind them. Katie pulled her gun, one bullet remaining in the chamber. Pandora grabbed her wrist. “No! This is a sacred place. Even I know that. No guns.”
Wilson looked at the door and at Red. “Look, there are two sets of handholds. We can finish this now.”
Red blinked at him. “How did you know about the sword?”
Wilson slowly turned to her. “I don’t know. I guess it’s been calling to me. I could feel it. I didn’t know until we got here what it was, but what is behind these doors will stop this war in its tracks. I just need your help. There are four hand-holds, which means the door was meant to be opened by two people.”
Red shuffled nervously, looking back at Pandora. Wilson put his hand on her cheek. “Come on, let’s be heroes together.”
She smiled and nodded. Reaching up slowly, they put their hands in the grips.
Pandora put her arms out, screaming, “NO!”
22
The shrieks bounced off of every wall in the entire temple. Red’s and Wilson’s voices carried through what seemed like multiple dimensions. Their hands were barely in contact wi
th the door before the pain and agony began.
Pandora pushed Katie back as a bright white light filled the space. They put their arms up, shielding their eyes, still hearing the screams. As the light dimmed, white flames burst from Wilson’s and Red’s hands. They tried to let go of the door, but it was as if they were being held there by unknown forces. The fire flickered wildly, first taking their hands, then moving slowly up their arms.
Katie could see the terror on Red’s face, and for a moment she felt sorry for her. To die in that manner could not have been fun. She shook her head. “The fire…it’s so beautiful. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Pandora nodded, staring at them in disgust. “And so deadly. Nothing can put it out. It was created in the stars when the heavens flowed from the fingertips of God. It is used in only the direst of situations, this one being the first I have ever seen.”
Katie shook off the trance. “We should help them.”
Pandora lifted her eyebrows. “Sorry, kid. They are as good as barbecued. Trust me, you can’t help them now. There is only one being who could, and I promise you God will not drop down here for Wilson.”
They watched from a distance as the fire moved up their bodies and down their chests. The screaming didn’t stop. It still resonated through the air, hurting Katie’s ears. Before long, their entire bodies were engulfed in the white flames, burning until only charred black skeletons remained.
It was only then that the screaming stopped. The fire slowly went out, and the skeletons fell into piles of ash at the foot of the door. Their bone hands still clung to the handholds, but only for a moment. Katie wrinkled her nose at the smell of burned flesh and hunched her shoulders slightly as the hands fell from the door to the ground.
Pandora sighed and rolled her eyes, waving her hand in front of her face to clear the ash from the air. “Well, I told you assholes not to open the door. But nooo, you had to let greed and anger get the best of you. Well, Wilson, now you and your weird-ass love affair with Red are over unless she’s into dust-on-dust action.”
Pandora walked slowly forward, but Katie stayed right where she was. Her eyes glistened as she approached the grand door adorned with golden chalices and writing she hadn’t seen in a very long time. She looked back at Katie, as excited as a child on Christmas. “It’s angelic writing, the first type of writing ever to be created. Touched by God and passed down through the ranks of some of the greatest winged warriors in history. It is literally the language of heaven. It is the language of the blessed.”
Katie tilted her head to the side. “How come I can’t read it?”
Pandora smiled, turning back to it. “It’s not something that just comes. You must be taught. Most angels spend decades learning about this stuff in heaven before donning armor. You are different. You are part of both worlds; you just haven’t been taught yet.”
Katie nodded. “What does it say?”
Pandora gazed at large circles on either side of the doors. “These are angelic seals, to only those whose wings have grown at the touch of the Almighty.”
Katie furrowed her brow. “What does that mean?”
Pandora looked back at Katie. “It means that only angels may enter. Only angels can open these doors without setting off the protections on them. These seals protect some of the most important parts of humanity through all dimensions. A human would not understand them or even notice them. Wilson had no clue.”
Katie cleared her throat, watching Pandora reaching for the handholds. “Be careful.”
Pandora smiled and gripped the handles, nodding to the other side. “Come on, help me open these doors.”
Katie took a step forward and raised an eyebrow. “Did you not just see Wilson and Red turn into overcooked French fries? I am half-human. What makes you think I won’t catch on fire?”
Pandora sighed. “Because you are also half-angel, which means you are awarded all angelic protections. We are both angels. We are meant to open these doors. I promise you nothing is going to happen.”
Katie bit the inside of her cheek and looked at Juntto, who wasn’t paying attention. He was sweating wildly, and his blue and silver hair was matted to his forehead. “And afterward we get him to safety, right?”
Pandora nodded. “Scout’s honor.”
Katie groaned and walked over to the door. She slowly reached out until her hands were hovering in front of the holds. She took a deep breath and shut her eyes, grabbing them. A second later she opened one eye, then the other, looking at her hands. They hadn’t burst into flames like she had been afraid of. She looked at Pandora and the two pulled the doors apart, accompanied by the sound of stone scraping the floor and dust billowing into the air.
Light filtered through the doorway. Pandora spoke to Juntto. “You better stay behind. I’m sorry. This is a place for angels. I can’t protect you from the charms.”
Juntto let out a deep breath and sagged to the ground. He was not looking good.
Lucifer stood on the steps of the throne room, wiping human blood from his hands. A demon servant stood in front of him, holding a stone bowl of water above his head as Lucifer rinsed his hands and arms in the water. When he was done, with the water drying instantly on his hot skin, the servant let out a breath and carried the bowl out of view.
Lucifer began to pace back and forth, rubbing his chin. Mania watched him and waited for his next response. He turned and pointed at one of the servants.
It hurried over and bowed. “Yes, Your Grace?”
He cleared his throat and glanced at Mania. “I want you to gather all the information you can on this human named Calvin. I want to know who he is, what he does, if he is Damned, and especially who his friends are. Ask some of the larger demons if need be. I want all that information as soon as possible.”
The servant nodded and slowly backed away before turning and running out of sight. Mania stepped closer. “What will you do?”
Lucifer didn’t look at her and kept pacing. “I’m not sure, but whatever it is, it will be terrible.”
Mania smiled nervously. “Of course. I would expect nothing else from you. You are the Ruler of Hell, the Almighty, and the Bringer of Doom, Death, and Despair.”
Lucifer glanced at Mania. “I like that. We should put that on a plaque or something.”
Mania nodded in agreement. “I can handle that.”
Lucifer stepped forward and opened his mouth to speak but stopped, looking into the distance. His eyes glazed and switched between bright red and misty. Mania frowned and reached for his arm. “My Lord? Are you all right?”
Lucifer was still looking into the distance. “I can feel her. She is there.”
Mania shook her head. “I don’t understand. Who is there? Where is there?”
Lucifer shook his head, his eyes going back to bright red. He slowly looked at Mania. “Pandora has arrived in the Chamber of the Sword of the Morning Star.”
Mania looked at him in confusion. “What is that?”
Lucifer smirked, rubbing his claws together. “It is the ancient temple buried deep in the belly of an enormous Leviathan beneath the ocean waves. My sword lies there. It is protected by the angels’ seal, put there by God to keep me from retrieving it after casting me down here.”
Mania shook her head. “But if he is hiding it from you, how do you know where it is?”
Lucifer smiled. “Because it talks to me. I am still connected to it after all these years. I have known where it was for centuries but had no one to get it. There are no fancy tricks to get past the seal.”
Mania swallowed hard, watching Lucifer gaze at nothing. Whatever was happening, it worried Mania more than she could express. She reached for him but let her hand brush through the air. “Isn’t this a bad thing? I thought Pandora was an enemy. Won’t she take your sword? I would think the sword of Lucifer would be more than powerful. And in her hands? Who knows what she could do with it.”
Lucifer chuckled. “I’m counting on her taking it. I am coun
ting on her to be as weak as she always has been when it comes to power and glory. The sword may have been forged in the armories of heaven, but it is attached to me. It is part of me, as I am part of it. It will seduce her in ways she has never known before. She will be powerless to stop it. Her demon side is far too strong to be overridden by anything else.”
Mania’s mouth fell open. “I forgot she is an angel. That means she could open the doors.”
Lucifer nodded. “Precisely. As soon as she took the oath and agreed to become an angel of God once again, I started to put this plan in motion. I knew it would only work when she got to that point. Angel or not, she craves revenge and power. It’s the little bits of demon still inside her.”
Mania shook her head. “That sounds like she will want to use it for her own purposes. So, you have been manipulating events this entire time in order to bring Pandora to this exact moment?”
Lucifer smirked as he continued to walk back and forth. “That is exactly right, and all of those moments were rooted in her deep hate and loathing of me. Her desire to destroy me. She would love nothing more than to put her angelic sword or my sword right through my heart. She would love to watch me writhe in pain and agony until I was reduced to ash. She knows there needs to be a balance of heaven and hell. She doesn’t give a fuck that I am the one running it.”
Mania wrapped her arms around her shoulders. “But I thought Lilith was powerful. Do you really want to fight her?”
Lucifer laughed loudly. “Are you kidding? She may be powerful against Moloch or T’Chezz, but she is leagues below me. That was why she left without a word; she knew she could not fight me. She could not get away from me. And when she comes through the doors to my throne room carrying my sword, I will beat the ever-loving shit out of her. I will torture her in ways she didn’t know torture could happen. I will get my angelic sword back.”