ARCHANGEL

by Bernard Lee DeLeo

  The man moved to slit the boy’s throat, only his knife was no longer in his hand. Raphael flung the knife he had gathered with a gesture off to the side. Catherine rushed forward. She grabbed hold of the child and his captor with Angelina close behind. Instantly, a shrieking scaled demon of immense proportions tore free of its human host, burning at Catherine’s touch. The demon’s serpent like face darted toward Catherine before Raphael could reach her side. As it neared her face the food, drink, and sudden danger hit Catherine all at once. She vomited forcefully into the demon’s face as Angelina hauled Catherine and the boy away. Raphael shielded their retreat.

  Abaddon’s sword arched through the air, missing the demon’s neck by virtue of the speed at which the demon had recoiled from Catherine’s spew, writhing nearly fifty feet away in disgust. Abaddon flew to the boy’s mother, grasping her quickly and returned to Raphael. Angelina laughed in spite of the danger as she steadied Catherine’s still heaving shoulders. Abaddon pressed the woman into Raphael’s care. She clutched her son with a cry of joy. The boy stared awestruck at the Archangel of the Abyss from his mother’s arms.

  “Is Sister Mary Catherine okay?” Abaddon asked.

  “She’s fine.” Angelina suppressed her humorous appreciation of Catherine’s plight and patted her friend’s head. “Good one, Cat, you got him right between the eyes.”

  A voice more suited to a snake hissed out boldly. Abaddon turned around to face the demon.

  “And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon,” the demon recited the biblical verse from Revelation, spitting each word out like a curse. “Well, King, your flock is here.”

  There were seven demons facing Abaddon, all shed of their human hosts. They stood upright, gigantic harbingers of hell, with common serpent like aspects. Each clutched a soul sword and shield of opaque blackness which seemed to swallow light.

  “Holy Mary, Mother of God.” Catherine wiped at her mouth absently.

  “Shields up, Raph.” Angelina calmly pulled Catherine further back until she felt Raphael’s steadying hand. “How we doin’?”

  “As my brother told me earlier we weren’t sent down here to lose.”

  “That’s the spirit.” Angelina watched the creatures face off in front of Abaddon.

  “You and Catherine stay near these people.” Raphael stepped out in front of Catherine and Angelina, transforming into the Lord’s Archangel, his blinding white wings spread out in front of his charges, sword and shield in hand.

  “Raphael!” Catherine cried out, reaching for the Archangel, her hands coming into contact with the bubble shield he had protected them with before.

  Raphael turned around for a moment. “Be at peace, Sister Mary Catherine, I must be ready.”

  “Wow,” the little boy whispered. “Will they fight the monsters, Mom?”

  “I…I don’t know, Tommy.” The boy’s mother stared fearfully at the incredible scene unfolding before them.

  Angelina put her hand on the boy’s head for a moment. “If you know any prayers Tommy, now might be the time to say them. You okay, Sir?”

  The man, who had been host to the first demon nodded his head. “I…I’m free of it. Oh… Lord in heaven… I am free. Thank you.”

  Catherine turned from the shield wall and took a deep breath. She knelt next to the man, her gown turning into the robes of her calling. Angelina joined Catherine in body and dress, urging the woman and her son to kneel near her.

  “Let us pray,” Catherine said softly.

  * * *

  “We have decided not to wait for your little band to attack us individually,” the first demon announced to Abaddon. “It is time to end this farce. So you are Abaddon, the Archangel of the Abyss, huh? Where’s your key, oh King?”

  “As I explained to my brother Raphael earlier,” Abaddon replied calmly, glancing at Raphael before returning his gaze to the demon horde in front of him, “I am the key.”

  Abaddon flew amongst them before they could move. The demon who had grabbed the boy was first to fall, cloven in two by a thunderous blow from Abaddon’s sword. The surviving six demons fell back away from the two still writhing pieces of their comrade, split from head to crotch, burning in black flame.

  “And then there were six.” Abaddon kicked one of the still smoldering demon halves with his foot derisively.

  It appeared throughout the city of San Francisco with some view of the sky over Pier 47 as if an electrical storm with lightning and thunder claps had hit in only the one spot. Pulses of light arced against the night sky accompanied by sound and fury of unbelievable magnitude. The skyline’s vista and clamor sent pedestrians all along the Embarcadero running for cover. Customers dining inside Scoma’s restaurant huddled under their tables as the building shook in what seemed like the throes of an earthquake.

  The ethereal storm/quake went on for an interminable time, finally ending as abruptly as it had begun. Unnerving as the storm itself, the silence which followed hung in the air as if given tangible form. Pedestrians stumbled from hiding all along the Embarcadero, peering up at the sky for answers not forthcoming.

  Out on the pier Abaddon leaned against the barricade lining the pier to prevent accidental falls into the ocean below, his discarded shield near him. All around Abaddon were the charred pieces of what had been seven demons, hacked to shreds by the Archangel of the Abyss, the key to the bottomless pit.

  Raphael embraced Abaddon’s wounded body. Abaddon knelt on one knee. Teeth gritted, Raphael bonded his healing power to Abaddon’s, trying to absorb a portion of the power surge coursing through his brother. The two Archangels of the Lord remained stolidly in place for over half an hour. Catherine and Angelina calmed their three charges while watching the two brothers nervously. Finally, Abaddon put his hand on Raphael’s arm where it held on to him tightly.

  “I am well, my brother, thank you.”

  Raphael pulled Abaddon to his feet, gripping his brother’s shoulders comfortingly. “You were… glorious.”

  Abaddon’s cold blue eyes glowed in remembrance of the battle. “I felt it all… everything… all of creation. Even at the gates of heaven I never felt what I did tonight.”

  “I…I doubted, brother,” Raphael admitted.

  “It is a small matter, Raph.” Abaddon hugged Raphael to him. “I see you have no problem maintaining your shield while outside.”

  “I am stronger because of you,” Raphael explained with certainty, molding his form into the outfit he had worn earlier. “We must leave this place before the authorities arrive. Can you regain your former look?”

  In answer, Abaddon mimicked his brother’s apparel. With a wave of his arm, Raphael dissolved the shield around the nuns and their charges. Angelina looked up as she felt the wind on her face. She waved at the approaching Archangels. Catherine helped the man who had housed the demon to his feet. Tommy’s mother had already stood up, gripping her son tightly while staring at the Archangels in open-mouthed disbelief.

  “So much for our night off, huh Raph?” Angelina asked.

  “The night is still young, Sister Angelina.”

  “Yes, I think a coffee would taste good right now,” Abaddon added. “Are you well, Sister Mary Catherine?”

  “A little,” Catherine answered with a lopsided grin.

  “I…I don’t believe in God,” the woman announced suddenly.

  The Archangels looked at each other and immediately began laughing with vigor, Raphael leaning forward with his hands on his knees and Abaddon clapping him on the back. Angelina put her arm around the woman as the two brothers sought to regain their composure. The man near Catherine dropped to his knees in front of Catherine. He grasped her right hand in both of his, holding them to his bearded cheek.

  “I believe, Sister,” the man whispered fervently. “Thank God I am free of that thing.”

  “Do you have somewhere to go, Sir?” Catherine knelt again next to him.

 
“Yes…yes I do,” the man brightened. “It will take all your prayers for them to ever accept me again but I will spend the rest of my life trying to gain their forgiveness.”

  Raphael reached down, grasping the man’s hand. The man looked up at the Archangel with hope shining suddenly on his face.

  “You see, they will forgive you.”

  “Yes…yes, my Lord Raphael,” the man replied happily as Raphael pulled him to his feet.

  “Take this.” Raphael pressed a card and some money into the man’s hand. “My phone number is on the card. If you need our help, do not hesitate to call us.”

  “I won’t.” The man hugged Catherine, Angelina, and finally Abaddon tearfully, before jogging away toward the Embarcadero.

  “Don’t…don’t touch me,” the woman warned as Raphael reached out to her. She pulled free of Angelina. “It’s because of you this whole thing happened. Whatever those things were, they wanted you four. You put our lives in danger. I should sue you.”

  Abaddon grabbed Angelina as she went for the woman, her fist drawn back in fury. “Easy, my love, that is not our way.”

  “You are correct, Ma’am,” Raphael said. “On the other hand, I believe the possessed man had been stalking you. With the demon inside him it is what he did regularly.”

  “I’ve had enough of this fantasy.” The woman pushed away from Catherine who had walked over near the woman holding out her hands in a placating gesture. “C’mon, Tommy, we’re leaving these freaks.”

  Before the woman could pull the boy more than a few feet toward the lighted Embarcadero, Tommy pulled free of her and ran back to hug a surprised Abaddon. The boy looked up into Abaddon’s face with complete understanding. Abaddon smiled at him, placing a huge hand around his shoulder for a moment.

  “Tommy!” His mother shouted, yanking him away from Abaddon.

  “Wow, I…” Tommy began, but stayed silent as Abaddon shook his head, indicating to Tommy he should be quiet. He waved as his mother tugged on his arm forcefully.

  Sirens sounded their wailing cry of approach. The woman redoubled her efforts to move Tommy toward the Embarcadero. Raphael sighed, looking over at Catherine and Angelina.

  “I think we had better disappear now.” Raphael embraced Catherine and Angelina.

  In a moment, the four were standing in the sand at the beach near Ghiradelli Square. Because of the cold wind blowing in from the sea and the darkness near the water, no one was around to witness the group’s sudden appearance. Catherine immediately threw up again on Raphael’s feet. Angelina held her comfortingly as Catherine finished being sick. After a few moments, Catherine looked up apologetically at Raphael.

  “Sor…sorry, Raph.” Catherine leaned heavily on Angelina.

  “She thought you were a demon for a moment, Raph, and let you have it,” Angelina joked. “Can’t you make her well?”

  Raphael took Catherine’s hand, closing his eyes for a moment in concentration. He opened them a moment later and shook his head in the negative.

  “I’m sorry, Sister Angelina, some ailments related to the seven deadly sins must be borne by the sinner,” Raphael explained regretfully, winking at Abaddon.

  “Uh oh, Cat,” Angelina said, suddenly sorry for her cavalier handling of Catherine’s plight. “I know… maybe some tea would calm your stomach. What do you think?”

  “As long as Raph doesn’t transport us there, I’ll be okay. The tea… sounds wonderful.”

  “There’s a Chinese restaurant in the Square.” Angelina walked gingerly toward the lights of Ghiradelli Square with Catherine staggering along in Angelina’s guiding embrace. “Follow me, boys.”

  “Is this some sort of lesson, brother?” Abaddon asked Raphael quietly as they followed the two nuns.

  “Sister Mary Catherine is very young. Some lessons must be learned. She would not learn much if I were to make her well each time she decides to overindulge.”

  “I…I respect your experience in these matters.” Abaddon saw Catherine trip and nearly catapult the two nuns onto their faces.

  “She’ll be fine,” Raphael promised knowingly.

  Chapter 15

  Human Nature

  Raphael and Abaddon sat at a table while Angelina helped Catherine to the restroom where she could rinse her mouth out and wash her face. Raphael ordered tea for all of them. He also asked the waiter to bring them a plate of egg-rolls with an order of Won Ton Soup. Abaddon looked questioningly at his brother.

  “What are these egg-roll things and Won Ton?”

  “They are very bland and will help Sister Mary Catherine feel a bit better if the tea resuscitates her to the point where she can keep down food. I am a connoisseur of human food.”

  “I hope this tea stuff works because here come our friends and Sister Mary Catherine looks a bit pale.”

  The two nuns walked carefully through the people moving around in the restaurant. At the table Catherine sat down slowly, smiling grimly at Raphael. Angelina made sure Catherine was seated and then placed her chair near Abaddon’s, patting his hand where it rested on the table.

  “I…I’m really sorry about…” Catherine began, but Raphael waved her off.

  “I am all clean, Cat. Don’t worry about offending me. Only remember the lesson of this night’s revelry.”

  “Oh, I will.” Catherine clasped her hands together on the table. “I could have cost the woman and her son their lives.”

  “But you didn’t - you saved them,” Raphael reasoned. “Ah, here is our order.”

  The waiter served the tea to each of them before transferring the egg-rolls and soup to the table with accompanying plates and cups. After he left, Catherine sipped from her small tea cup with shaking hands. Angelina shifted egg-rolls onto Catherine’s plate and ladled a portion of Won Ton Soup into a bowl for her.

  “Only try those after you’ve sipped your tea for a while, honey,” Angelina instructed. “Is the smell of the food okay?”

  Catherine nodded, allowing Raphael to fill her tea cup again. “I won’t ever… ever do that again. I promise.”

  “Things will be different from now on. Those were the new improved demons. Abaddon sliced and diced seven of them. I would wager they were sent. They certainly didn’t just happen by together. We’re being tracked.”

  “They could send a hundred next time.” Angelina ladled a serving of soup into her bowl. “I thought there were rules of some kind.”

  “The problem is when they exit their human hosts they can never go back, or at least that’s how I understand it,” Raphael explained. “Those seven were sacrificed. You can bet their brethren will be none too hasty to repeat the maneuver. I have no doubt by the first one’s mocking words they had every intention of wiping us out with ease.”

  “Why didn’t they transport us to some hell place like Gorby’s did?” Angelina asked, wiping her mouth with the napkin near her.

  “As Raphael said, they were very confident,” Abaddon stated solemnly with a slight smile.

  “They know now Abaddon is absorbing their powers,” Raphael added.

  “He is? I mean… you are?” Catherine asked.

  “Yes, and Raphael in turn is also growing stronger. They will not ever face us on this Earthly plain again - at least not by choice. We will have to be less obvious. I see you are eating, Sister Mary Catherine. Are you feeling better?”

  “The tea helped a lot,” Catherine acknowledged. “The soup is really good.”

  “Does this mean they can track us to our new place too?” Angelina showed obvious distaste in hearing the Archangels’ new revelations. “You guys did know it was a trap.”

  “We didn’t know there were seven of them though,” Raphael pointed out. “As you said earlier, Ange, they could have sent a hundred. In answer to your question it’s possible they can tell where we are.”

  “While we have to wait for a sign as to where they are.” Angelina frowned. “I don’t like it.”

  “And now we must resign ourselves to f
ighting them in whatever hell dimension they conjure up for us whenever we find them.” Catherine bit into an egg-roll.

  “We don’t know how many of the new generation demons are inhabiting human hosts,” Raphael replied. “I would hope not all of them can create their own hell.”

  “If it were a demon tracking us, you guys could tell, couldn’t you?” Angelina asked.

  “You’re right, Ange,” Raphael said thoughtfully. “We could detect any kind of signal also but if we’re being watched by a human we would not be able to tell, other than by seeing someone paying more than normal attention to us.”

  “We could set our own trap,” Catherine suggested.