by J F Cain
“You did the same,” Lucifer replied with a shrug, as if it made no difference to him. “I admit you surprised me. Angels had never come to my corner of the universe before.”
Abaddon set his pen down on the documents, leaned back in his chair, and looked at the greatest of Demons pensively.
It was obvious that his adversary underestimated him. The way that he spoke to him showed that he thought of him more as a human than a Celestial. Did he know that he hadn’t regained his memory, or was he acting this way because of the eternal rivalry? Whatever the case, it didn’t bode well for him. One of the most important rules in war was never to underestimate your enemy. Yet the supernatural Lord of Darkness seemed to be forgetting that. He wouldn’t make the same mistake. He could, however, pay him back in kind for his disparaging behavior.
“And I must admit that I didn’t expect to see you so soon after your humiliating defeat at Michael’s hands,” he retorted caustically.
All of a sudden the fires of Eregkal flared in Lucifer’s eyes and his features changed, revealing his ghastly demonic form. Abaddon’s reaction to the Demon’s intimidation was immediate. He shot up from his chair, causing it to fly backwards, as his face began to turn fierce and frightening. His eyes darkened and from within him there emanated an eerie gray light. He stood with his hands half-open next to his thighs, ready to conjure his swords and armor at the slightest offensive movement.
Lucifer saw the Celestial’s reaction as a sign of his effrontery and became aggravated. But he knew that he shouldn’t let his hatred undermine his plans. He therefore restrained himself and restored his face to its initial form.
“I’ve noticed that although you can easily come to Eregkal, you’re still not allowed to go to Elether, and I’m sure you haven’t regained your memory. I wonder why,” he struck back, implying that the Source didn’t consider the Dark Angel a part of the celestial kingdom and that he wasn’t welcome there.
Abaddon’s face resumed its human features and the eerie light faded from his eyes.
“And I wonder what makes you believe I care what you think,” he replied without a trace of agitation in his voice, wanting to show that he was capable of controlling his emotions.
His condescending stance didn’t faze Lucifer.
“I say this because you don’t seem to know that Ethereals are not entirely annihilated, which means that your friend Gabriel is fine, and when …” he dragged the word out to point out his own superiority, “he eventually regains his lost energy he will return to action. Although I assume it will take him a while. Based on your sense of time,” he clarified, as if he was just making an innocent observation and supposedly had no intention to emphasize Abaddon’s deficient human nature.
The memory of the Archangel fading in his arms on the tarmac upset Abaddon. And because he had caught all the Demon’s hints, he wanted to repay him with a few of his own “praises”.
“How dare you put your existence at the same level as theirs?” he asked contemptuously.
“I was one of them … once. In fact, I was the highest of them all,” Lucifer bragged.
Abaddon looked at him as if he was seeing a pitiful being that was yearning hopelessly for its glorious past.
“You’re not any longer,” he reminded him coldly.
“That’s why Michael hates me,” Lucifer agreed, willing to admit to anything in order to manipulate the discussion.
The Dark Angel’s face grew forbidding.
“I assure you he’s not the only one.”
That was precisely what Lucifer had been waiting to hear. He conjured his dark cloud around him, preparing a spectacular departure.
“Of course not. I wonder, though, since we feel the same things, what makes the Celestials superior?”
Abaddon realized he had fallen into his trap, but wasn’t going to let him leave having had the last word.
“If you’ve come to cause me moral dilemmas, you’ve wasted your time, because I don’t have any,” he clarified bluntly.
Lucifer found the declaration rather interesting. He thought that maybe Abaddon could unwittingly give him more information that would make it easier to manipulate him. He interrupted the motion of his impressive aura and let it hover around him in hazy waves.
“Then you must have realized that there is no difference between Angels and Demons. Everyone is fighting for dominion and will stop at nothing to gain the upper hand,” he said in the confident manner of one who possessed the Knowledge. But although he acted as if he didn’t care about the answer, his probing gaze was pinned on the Angel’s eyes.
Abaddon realized what his adversary was looking for and had no intention whatsoever to give it to him.
“I don’t know about the other Celestials, but I have no qualms about annihilating you or any of your kind.”
“Aranes wouldn’t like hearing that at all,” the Fallen warned him with a smirk.
“Nor would she like you to touch her, so she’ll probably tolerate it,” Abaddon retorted coldly.
Lucifer, the greatest thespian of the ethereal world, pursed his lips to suppress a supposedly spontaneous patronizing smile.
“I hope you don’t show the same arrogance toward her. It wouldn’t be smart at all”.
“I’m touched. It’s a well-known fact that you’re trying to improve my relationship with her,” Abaddon scoffed.
The Dark Lord didn’t succumb to the temptation to reply accordingly. The Celestial had given him the incentive to go further than he had planned and he wouldn’t miss the chance. He calmly erased the smile from his face and assumed a sober mien.
“Sometimes help arrives from where you least expect it,” he said, looking his adversary straight in the eye with an air of someone who knew what he was talking about. “From what we’ve both seen, the Celestials have disappeared and soon the Cursed and Demons will begin their attacks. Who knows, you might need my help.”
“You’re the last one I would ask for help or accept help from,” Abaddon set him straight.
“Do you put yourself above Aranes?” Lucifer asked, looking puzzled by his statement.
“Would it shock you if I did?” the Dark Angel queried with a sneer.
Lucifer seriously doubted this, but he kept it to himself.
“Quite the opposite, it’s normal for humans to put themselves above everyone else,” he replied, pretending to believe him.
“You know best,” Abaddon commented mockingly.
“You have no idea how much I know … and not only about humans!”
Abaddon shook his head, having tired of the conversation.
“No matter what you start with, you always end up talking about the Celestials. Say what you want to say and go! I’m busy. Time on the physical plane is precious.”
Lucifer ignored the insulting behavior.
“What I wanted to tell you is to take care of Aranes. As I said before, the Cursed and Demon attacks are about to begin,” he repeated purposefully to intimidate him, “and the Celestials aren’t going to be at your side.”
The Dark Angel focused on the first part of the threat.
“I see you’ve added your kind to the equation. Why have you left yourself out?”
“Aranes is in no danger from me,” the Demon said with a sincere look on his face, and because this was partly true it seemed believable.
“Right.” The mockery in Abaddon’s expression showed that he wasn’t impressed by the Demon’s acting skills. “So since you’re so interested in her safety, why don’t you control your stooges?”
The Lord of Eregkal was willing to put himself down to achieve his purpose.
“I can’t control them all. As you may know, no Ethereal can be in two places at once, and the higher Demons are very inventive. There’s a great deal at stake and some will risk their existence to reap the rewards.”
“Before they go to all that trouble, they should remember that there is a great deal at stake for the Celestials too,” Abaddon pointed
out.
“Yes, but it is the Source that makes the decisions,” Lucifer replied enigmatically while increasing the motion of his dark aura. The eerie cloud wrapped him in its shifting vortex and he vanished from the room, as ever wanting to have the last word.
Good riddance, Abaddon wished him inwardly.
His face not revealing anything he was feeling, he resumed his seat and carried on signing documents while going over the discussion that had just taken place.
With his stance, he had managed to learn more than Lucifer had intended to give him. Maybe it would be better to pretend to be an idiotic arrogant human who thought he was special because he had gained unusual powers. Since that was how the Lord of Darkness saw him anyway, it would be a good idea not to prove him wrong. The Demon must know that idiots are often unpredictable and wouldn’t know what to expect from him. A besotted idiot with unknown supernatural powers was more dangerous than an otherworldly entity with an enhanced intellect. And, undoubtedly, the greatest corruptor of the dimensions believed that he could easily manipulate such a being.
Lucifer watched the Dark Angel from Eregkal, trying to guess his thoughts. He couldn’t hear them any longer and had to make do with conjectures about what they could be.
He wondered if the supernatural powers Abaddon had gained had gone to his head. It would be odd if he pretended to be an obnoxious idiot. He should be trying to prove the opposite. He was never arrogant with Aranes. Was he afraid to show his true self or was there another reason? On the other hand, only a foolhardy swellhead would behave in that way toward an entity that hadn’t withdrawn after its defeat. His deliberate transformation earlier in the office had been intended to remind the Celestial that he was talking to the Lord of Darkness and not someone of his own level. He had defeated him when the two of them had clashed and if Michael hadn’t intervened to save him, he wouldn’t have been able to brag right now. Of course, there had been another reason for the show: to mislead Abaddon about his temperament, so that his enemy wouldn’t be able to predict his actions.
Yet Abaddon’s reaction had been completely unexpected. Where was his self-confidence coming from? Was it hard for him to grasp what an ultrapowerful entity was capable of because of his limited perception? Or was he also following the tactic of intimidation to discourage the Superior’s persecutors with the threat of the superior powers her name had, supposedly, given him? Ever since his transformation, Lucifer had been watching, but he hadn’t seen him develop any powers greater than those of the other Ethereals. But, once, he had heard Aranes tell him that his powers would be what he wanted them to be and that he would become who he chose to become. Was that true? Was it a capability that the Superior’s hidden name provided? And if so, what did the Dark Angel really dream of becoming?
Besides the Source and Aranes, he was the only one who knew the name. And although it had been uttered on Earth, no one had heard it. Was it because it could also be used in other emergencies? The secret name was supposed to give its possessor mythical powers, but the Source wouldn’t disrupt the balance by allowing an ultrapowerful entity to be created. It wasn’t at all impossible for the rumors about the name to be a lie intended to frighten the Demons. But he couldn’t know and had to be careful. Abaddon was an idiot, but he was also very much in love with Aranes and, as he himself was well aware of, love was the most invincible enemy.
Watching his eternal adversary’s expressionless face on his ethereal screen, Lucifer couldn’t tell if he had succeeded in sparking any moral dilemmas in him or in convincing him about his interest in Aranes’ welfare. But he was sure that his warning about the upcoming attacks had heightened the Dark Angel’s worry. The first step had been taken.
In the highest level of Elether, the Archivist was sitting at his desk, wondering if he should trouble the Source with what was on his mind. After some thought, he decided to share his concerns with It. He stood up and walked to the lofty golden gate of the Supreme Authority’s sanctuary. The gate slowly opened, dispersing brilliant light. Prince Radueriel lowered his gaze and entered, walking on a surface that seemed more a luminous part of the universe than a floor. As soon as he had reached the middle of the vast plane, he went down on one knee and bowed his head respectfully before It.
“It has begun,” he said, worry evident in his voice.
The golden energy filling the plane wove slowly in circles around the transverse beam of bluish light pulsating at its center, like a heartbeat sustaining Its creation. Soft waves of light escaped the circles, diffusing the luminance of the Primordial Energy from which everything arose. The Timeless Being radiated an inconceivable riveting power, and no one who had the honor of entering Its sanctuary could stand looking into the primeval light of Its manifestation.
“It was inevitable,” Its voice sounded, the unique tone neither male nor female.
“What do You want me to do?”
“Allow the events to take their course,” the Guiding Mind replied.
“And Aranes?” the Archivist asked. “This trial will be very tough, even for her.”
“She will prevail,” It reassured him.
Prince Radueriel nodded, his concern clear on his face, but didn’t speak.
“There is nothing the Superior of the Celestials cannot do,” the Source said calmly.
“That precisely is what troubles me,” the Archivist admitted.
“It shouldn’t,” It gently advised him. “No matter what happens, there will be evolution.”
“The balance has tilted dangerously toward the side of darkness. If Lucifer triumphs, he will arrest evolution,” the Archivist countered.
“No one can stop evolution,” the Eternal Spirit reminded Its representative.
No, but they can distort it, the Archivist thought to himself, but received no reply from the One that heard the thoughts of all beings. “I have faith in Your Knowledge and Wisdom,” he replied humbly and stood up.
He bowed to the Supreme Authority and left Its sanctuary. As the golden gate closed silently behind him, he returned to his desk and sat in his armchair, deep in thought.
As things now stood, for there to be evolution, one of the superior Celestials had to be sacrificed and, in his opinion, that would be Abaddon. But the Commander of the Defenders was inextricably linked with the Superior of the Angels and, theoretically, they would have to follow a common course. Where the one was, the other would have to be. What would Aranes do if she was forced to break ties with him? It looked as if her trial would be the most difficult in ethereal history and the sacrifice she would have to make greater than her partner’s. Sacrifice was always interwoven with love, which the leader of Elether embodied; and she knew that if she did not rise to the occasion, darkness would consume the Earth.
Nothing is stronger than necessity, the Archivist thought, feeling bad about the trial Aranes would go through, even though it hadn’t been his choice.
It remained to be seen if she would be smart and strong enough to save humanity and the partner of her soul from the clutches of Lucifer, who was determined to have both. Of course, the Fallen’s ultimate goal was to rule Elether. To get it, he had to conquer its ruler, and the Dark Angel was the best way to achieve his aim. Abaddon was at once the weakest and the most powerful element in the Source’s plan, which only It knew precisely. The Fundamental Intellect believed that humans were the strongest beings in the worlds. Those who were able to perceive the Truth could shape their own future. Perhaps that was why It withheld the incarnated Angel’s memory, keeping him essentially human. It had been proven that when they wanted to, humans could achieve even the impossible.
Dressed in casual clothes, Abaddon stood on his bedroom balcony. Arms folded at his chest, he watched the crescent moon’s reflection on the waters of the Atlantic Ocean stretching before the mansion. The soothing sound of little waves breaking gently against the rocks at the base of the cliff failed to calm him. He kept on going over his discussion with Lucifer.
The Dark Lo
rd’s intentions were obvious, he thought: he was trying to make him feel inferior and separate from the Celestials. A logical tactic for a dark entity. But what troubled him was the Demon’s claim that the Celestials wouldn’t support him if he needed help to protect Aranes. Abaddon didn’t think he had said that to frighten him. Lucifer wasn’t so stupid as to lie about something that would soon be proved wrong. And even if that was just his opinion, he wouldn’t risk expressing it only to lose face when the events unfolded. Possessing the Superior of the Angels was of utmost importance to the Fallen. After his humiliating defeat, he would be cautious about every word he uttered and every step he took. So there was a strong likelihood that he was right.
Aranes walked out onto the balcony in a long nightgown and silk robe and paused to look at her partner. He had been pensive from the moment he came back home and at dinner he had spoken about everything except for what was troubling him.
“Will you tell me what’s on your mind?” she asked, approaching him.
Abaddon turned and uncrossed his arms.
“I don’t want to trouble you with work issues,” he replied with a forced smile.
Aranes didn’t seem convinced.
“I might not be able to hear your thoughts anymore, but I can sense when you’re not telling me the truth,” she told him soberly.
He wrapped his arms around her to warm her with the heat emanating from his dual-natured body and rested his lips on her hair.
“There’s nothing to say,” he replied.
To Aranes, even without any other evidence, his action confirmed her suspicions. She drew back and looked into his eyes.
“Abaddon, from the moment that you changed, you gained power over the dimensions. Your angelic nature combined with your human nature give you great power. There has never been someone like you before,” she said, trying to reassure him.