To Reign In Hell

by Steven Brust

  "Not more. We'll be on the road in another hour."

  "Aye, milord."

  "I'm beginning to despise traveling."

  "Aye."

  "And there's still the trip back."

  "'Twill seem shorter, milord."

  "I suppose."

  "Art thou better... content today, milord?"

  Satan chuckled. "Yes and no. I'm still worried about how Yaweh will react to me. We only spoke about the Plan once, you know, and before that I hadn't seen him for a long time."

  "All will be well, milord."

  "I hope so. By the flux! Sleeping on the ground makes one stiff!"

  "Forsooth? To me, it seemeth not so."

  "Thou dog, Beelzebub."

  "Aye, milord."

  Yaweh came down the wide sweeping stairs at almost the same moment that Gabriel appeared from the back of the hall, having emerged from the small doorway that connected to his chamber.

  They saw Abdiel at the same instant. Abdiel ignored Yaweh and spoke to Gabriel. "Please tell the Lord Yaweh that I wish to speak with him, if it is convenient."

  Yaweh smiled, nodded at Gabriel, and entered his throne room. Gabriel motioned Abdiel in, then returned to his post outside the door.

  Presently, Lucifer arrived, and Gabriel was forced to turn him away, regretfully. It was then that Yaweh's voice came from the other side of the door.

  Gabriel rushed to open it, and Yaweh said, "Ask Michael to come and see me at once. And send in Lucifer as soon as he gets here."

  "Lord Yaweh, the Lord Lucifer has been here."

  "What? Why didn't you tell me?"

  "Lord, he said that he changed his mind, and no longer needed to speak with you."

  "I see," said Yaweh. "Well, bring Michael. Hurry."

  "Yes, Lord," said Gabriel, and he rushed off to do so.

  "What is it, Yaweh? Is it about Abdiel's story?"

  Yaweh nodded. "He said you sent him to me, is that right?"

  Michael nodded.

  "I'm glad you did. He waited all night in my hall, rather than waking me up with bad news." Yaweh smiled at Abdiel as he said this. Abdiel blushed and lowered his eyes.

  "But it is bad news, Michael," Yaweh continued.

  "I know, Yaweh. I don't know what to think."

  "It's worse than you suppose," said Yaweh. "I have some indications that Lucifer has turned against me as well."

  "Lucifer?"

  "It seems that way. I'm not certain yet."

  "It's hard to believe."

  "I know," said Yaweh. "What should we do?"

  Yaweh, who had been standing next to the throne, sat down on one of the chairs before it. Michael took another one and, after some urging, so did Abdiel.

  Michael shook his head. "I don't know what to do, Yaweh."

  "Have you turned against me also?"

  Michael's nostrils flared, then his brows furrowed and he seemed more doubtful than angry.

  "I—don't think so," he said.

  "Good. I'm running out of angels I can trust."

  "I understand," said Michael. "When Satan gets here, if you'll speak to him—"

  "Gets here!" cried Yaweh. "Where?"

  "Here. To the Palace. To see you. If you speak to him about—"

  "What makes you think he's coming here? He told me he wasn't."

  "He told you? But he told us—"

  "When?"

  "When we saw him, twenty-some days ago."

  "My page was there, to ask him to see me."

  "Gabriel?"

  "That's right."

  "We saw him on the way back, just after we left. But why would Satan have lied to us when he knows we'd find out in just a few days, when he failed to arrive?"

  "To gain time, perhaps," suggested Abdiel.

  Michael nodded. "Then he did fool us."

  "It seems he did," said Yaweh.

  "What can we do?"

  "I don't know. Leave me for a while. I want to think about this. But please, stay around the palace—both of you." "Yes, Lord." "All right."

  "That's the story, Raphael."

  "It's hard to believe."

  "So everyone has told me."

  Yaweh was still in the small chair next to the throne. Raphael was seated beside him, her arms folded. She was frowning.

  "I'd like to speak with Satan myself," she said.

  "So would I. So would Michael."

  "But perhaps he'll listen to me. We always got along well."

  "So did we." Yaweh sighed and shook his head.

  "Yes," she said softly, looking at him sympathetically, "you did."

  Yaweh shook the mood off, forcing himself to think clearly. "But you think it will do some good for you to speak with him?"

  "It might."

  "Lucifer went with the same idea, and now it seems that he's been 'converted' also. And without the decency to let me know about it. That's what hurts, Raphael. None of them seems willing to tell me what he doesn't like."

  "I know."

  "Well?"

  She shook her head. "I heal during the Waves. I see those who can only barely be saved, like Ariel, and those who can't be saved, like Seraphiel. Whenever an angel dies, part of me dies with him. This is our chance to stop that."

  Yaweh nodded and placed his hand on her shoulder. She leaned a cheek against it.

  Then, abruptly, he sat back, shaking his head. "But is there a plan left?" he asked. "Without Satan, without Lucifer—"

  "So what? Lucifer has done his part, has he not?"

  "Well, yes...."

  "And, as for Satan, it would be good to have him, but he can be replaced. Abdiel could do his job, could he not?"

  "Yes, I suppose he could."

  She was quiet for a moment, then she spoke softly, almost in a monotone. "Yaweh, do you remember the day you gathered us together, Satan, Abdiel, Michael, and me, and told us of this?"

  "I remember."

  "Do you know what I did after I left?"

  "What did you do, Raphael?"

  "I returned to my home, Yaweh, and I cried." As she said it, tears began to form in the corners of her eyes, as if the memory were the event. "I remembered how grateful poor Harut—do you remember Harut?"

  "The musician? Somewhat."

  "I remembered his face when we restored his hearing. And Leviathan. I'm told that she's as happy as she can be, under the circumstances, but do you remember how beautiful she was, before we even knew what beauty was?"

  "Of course."

  "I remembered that night, and I cried, because I thought that maybe we had the chance to end that. If you take that hope away from me now, Yaweh, now when we're almost ready to do it, well—who will heal me?"

  Yaweh bowed his head.

  Michael walked up to Raphael. She stood, and they held each other for a moment. Then he turned to Yaweh. "You wanted to see me?"

  "Yes. Thank you for coming."

  "You're welcome, Yaweh."

  "I'd like you to do something for me, if you would."

  Michael nodded, waiting for him to continue.

  "Find our friend, Satan. Bring him here if you can; speak to him for me, if you can't."

  "Happily!" said Michael. "I'll find him!"

  "Thank you. If he won't return with you, tell him—tell him I love him."

  Michael bowed his head.

  "Raphael, accompany him, if you would. You speak to him, too. Tell him what you told me."

  "All right."

  Michael cleared his throat. "There is one thing," he said.

  "Yes?"

  "Abdiel. He fears Satan."

  "I know."

  "May he stay here? I'd feel better."

  "Of course."

  "Then I'm ready to leave at once," said Michael.

  "And I," said Raphael.

  "Good luck to you both."

  When they left, Yaweh sent the page to bring Abdiel.

  He came and bowed low. "You wished to see me, Lord Yaweh?"

  "Yes, Abdiel. Yo
u fear Satan, don't you?"

  Abdiel suddenly turned pale and could only manage a nod.

  "Well, you may stay here until this matter is settled."

  Abdiel swallowed. "Th-thank you, Lord. But—forgive me, it isn't safe here."

  Yaweh furrowed his brow.

  "What?"

  "I fear for you, Lord, as well as myself. There are none to protect you here, and Satan—he will try to harm you."

  "What, Abdiel? Harm? Me? Nonsense!"

  Abdiel shook his head, but speech seemed beyond him.

  "Why do you say that?" Yaweh asked.

  "I feel it, Lord. And from the way he spoke. He hates you, Lord."

  Yaweh bowed his head. He had never understood hate, or even dislike. The idea of it was unthinkable, so having it directed at him from one he loved as much as he loved Satan was no more unthinkable.

  A deep anguish filled his heart, and he suddenly wished there were someone who could tell him what to do. He looked up after a moment, and Abdiel was still there, on his knees now, his eyes pleading.

  Yaweh spoke in a whisper. "What do you wish me to do?"

  "Bring in angels, Lord, and have someone make weapons for them, weapons that will make Satan fear them. Station them around you, and in the halls, and outside your palace, so none may get past who you do not know you can trust. Then I'll be free of fear for you, Lord."

  Yaweh buried his face in his hands. "Has it come to that?" he asked.

  Abdiel didn't answer.

  "I'll think about it," said Yaweh at last.

  Abdiel nodded, bowed low, and left the room. When he was out, he left the Palace, running as fast he could toward the south.

  So far, everything was working as planned.

  Chapter Five

  Then Satan first knew pain.

  And writhed him to and fro convolved.

  —Milton, Paradise Lost, vi:327-328

  The owl circled the clearing a few times, looking down. It made wider and wider sweeps and angled out over the sea. Soon a monstrous head broke the water. Spotting it, and seeing himself spotted, the owl returned to the cleft and landed there.

  Leviathan swam as close as she could and stretched her neck out so she was nearly face to face with the owl. "Welcome, Ariel," she said. "I see Mephistopheles finally found you."

  "He found me in forest in light of the day, and asked if by chance I would still know the way, to where you await me near rocks by the sea."

  " 'Near rocks by the say?' Oh. Never mind. Not bad, Ariel. Well, what did you learn?"

  Ariel cleared his throat and began: "I found out that Yaweh has grow-on full sore, at Satan who turns down invites to his door, and Lucifer, Lilith, and p'raps many more. I saw then that Michael does hunt for this one, to ask him for reasons for what he has done, with Raphael, he's going forth at a run."

  "I can see," said Leviathan, "that it's going to to take a while to get the whole story. I may as well relax."

  Abdiel was well ahead of Raphael and Michael, but he hadn't yet found Satan and Beelzebub. With the added strain of having to find Satan before either of the others saw him or each other, he could barely keep going.

  "This is stupid," he told himself. "But unavoidable," he added.

  He moved along the road as quickly as he could, without the risk of being spotted too soon. It was still fully day, so both parties would be moving. One way or another, he decided, something would happen before nightfall.

  Yaweh paced back and forth within the chamber, feeling more alone than he had ever felt since he had discovered, back at the beginning, that there was such a thing as un-alone.

  Deciding that he needed company, he called his page.

  "Yes, Lord?"

  "Bring Abdiel. I want to speak with him."

  "Abdiel is gone, Lord."

  "Gone? Don't be ridiculous. Where would he go?"

  "I don't know, Lord. But he left soon after Michael and Raphael."

  "But—are you sure?"

  "Yes, Lord."

  Yaweh stood silent, then noticed the page. "You may go."

  "Yes, Lord," said the page, who bowed and left.

  Yaweh remained, feeling very much alone indeed.

  "This doesn't make sense, Ariel. No, don't answer. But it doesn't. Mephistopheles tells me that Gabriel has summoned Satan for Yaweh. Now I learn that Satan refused the summons. But I also hear that he's left the Southern Hold and is going toward the center. Why?"

  Ariel started to speak, stopped at a look from Leviathan. Her tail swirled the water behind her as she said, "Let me think for a minute."

  She did so, with Ariel looking around him absently.

  "No," she said, "I was right in the first place. There is something wrong, and I'll never find out what without speaking to Satan." She sighed. "Sometimes, Ariel, I hate being stuck like this."

  "I grieve for you, lady, with all of my heart, I do what I can to aid for my part; so tell me my mission—anon will I start."

  "Thank you, Ariel. Your help means a great deal to me. As to your 'mission,' if you will, I want to speak to Satan as soon as possible. Tell him so. Say please. I think he'll come."

  "I go to find Satan and bring him to you; I fear I'll be gone for an evening or two, but I promise to do all the best I can do."

  As he finished, he bobbed his head, spread his wings, and launched himself into the air. He circled once over her head and was gone.

  "Fare thee well, Ariel," she said softly. She sighed. "It's good to have friends."

  "Yes, it is, honey."

  "Harut! How long have you been there?"

  "Just got here. Thought I heard Ariel's voice, but I guess I missed him."

  "Yes. Harut, are you sure you saw Satan and Beelzebub leaving the Southern Hold? I don't mean to offend you, but—"

  "I know. It's all right. Well, they weren't saying anything, and they didn't seem to notice me, but one was an angel, and I'd say he was an archangel at least by the way he walked, and—''

  "The way he walked?"

  "Yeah. You know, some people kind of step lightly, as if they aren't sure what they're about. An' some kinda march, like they aren't carin' who's in the way. Well, this guy knew where he was going, and he was sure of himself. And he was the right size for Satan, too—I could hear how far apart his feet planted themselves."

  "I see."

  "And whoever was next to him had four legs and wasn't very big."

  "Yes, I guess that does sound like Satan and Beelzebub."

  "That's what I thought."

  "But it's strange."

  "What's strange, honey?"

  "There's a lot going on, Harut. I wish I understood it. But I don't think anyone does, two legs, four legs, or no legs. Eyes or no eyes."

  "There somethin' I can do?"

  "No... yes. Follow Ariel. See if you can find Satan and learn whatever you can. Ariel doesn't always see everything he might."

  "Sure."

  "But play me a song first."

  Harut smiled. Leviathan wished for a moment that he could see his own smile. It would brighten his day, too.

  Abdiel heard them before he saw them, which was lucky for him.

  "This road is in good shape, isn't it?"

  "Aye, milord. 'Tis said there are those who work at keeping it."

  "Really?"

  "So 'tis said. And that they extend it, so that someday it may link the Palace and the Southern Hold."

  "That would be good, I think."

  "And I, milord."

  "But if we're going to be leaving Heaven, I guess we'll never see it."

  "Think'st thou that we shall leave, milord? What of thy doubts?"

  "Hmmm. Beelzebub, are you under the illusion that anything we're going to do or not do will stop the Plan?"

  "Well, milord, my thought hath been—"

  "Well, it shouldn't have. I'm not interested in stopping the Plan, nor am I capable of it. The only question is whether or not I'm going to participate. Do you think I'm irreplaceabl
e? I'm not."

  "As thou sayest, milord."

  By this time Abdiel was well up the path. He found a spot amid the trees to one side where he could see the road, but was still partially sheltered.

  He sat down to rest and wait, and think about a ball of white fire, burning in his middle.

  "He wouldn't see me, Asmodai."

  "Oh, hello, Lucifer. Who wouldn't? Yaweh?"

  "That's right. I went to see him as I said I would, and he wouldn't talk to me."

  "Why?"

  "He said he was busy."

  "That's absurd."

  "Yes."

  "How did he seem?"

  "I don't know. I didn't actually see him. His page relayed the message. He seemed very apologetic."

  "The page? Gabriel?"

  "That's right."

  "Hmmmm."

  "What are you thinking?"

  "I'm thinking that it was this same page who was to bring the Lord Satan. And he's the one who relayed the Lord Satan's answer, which wasn't anything like the answer we, who'd just spoken to him, would have expected."

  "I think I see what you mean."

  "Yes. I'd like to speak to Yaweh."

  "You're right. I don't think he can keep us out no matter what he does, if we really want to get in. Are you with me?"

  "Yes! When?"

  "Now."

  "Let's go."

  Alone in the dark, Yaweh nursed his sorrow and his doubts.

  If he could have solved the problem by abandoning the Plan, he would have done so, but it was beyond that now—Raphael had made that clear to him.

  If he could have convinced himself that Abdiel was wrong, he would have done that, but he couldn't—it fit the pattern too well. First Satan, then maybe Michael, perhaps Lucifer—no, this was organized, not random. He could feel it. And that meant that Abdiel was right.

  If he could have been sure the Plan could go on without him, he would let them destroy him when they wanted to, because he could see no more pleasure in life, with his friends deserting and hating him. But he couldn't. Of them all, he was the only one who could see the Plan through.

  The conclusion was inescapable—he would have to do what Abdiel suggested.

  Since Yaweh had no understanding of hate, he couldn't know that, as he summoned his page to bring Uriel, he hated himself.

  Uriel bowed very low. "How may I serve you, Lord?"

  "Uriel," said Yaweh, "you know much of the Plan, do you not?"

  "I know somewhat of it, Lord."

  "And do you like it?"