by Vox Day
“See, the storm of the Lord will burst out in wrath, a whirlwind swirling down on the heads of the wicked. The anger of the Lord will not turn back!”
“Yeah, well, your stupid whirlwind wasn’t so much after all, was it,” Christopher sneered in hopeless defiance. Just words, but that was all he had left.
Or was it? He fumbled inside his robes for the little key. It wasn’t much of a weapon, but even a Great One might not like getting hit in the eye with it. As the mighty being roared and swooped down upon him, he cocked his arm and threw.
Much to his surprise, as it left his hand, the key was transformed into a shining golden spear. It flew straight and true, piercing the onrushing cherub directly in its right eye. For a split second, Gonael seemed to hang in the air with its wings outspread, motionless, and Christopher thought he saw a shocked expression on the smooth, androgynous face. Then there was a thunderclap, and the mighty being dissolved in a rosy-gold mist. A faint clink sounded a moment later, as the key struck the ground close to the foot of the steps, no longer a spear, just a simple key again.
Christopher looked up at the empty sky and whistled. One moment, the huge angel was there, and the next, it was gone. Just like that.
“Nice trick,” Kaym said from behind him. “Now what in the name of Dante’s Seven Hells was that?”
Christopher turned around and saw Kaym slowly getting up off the hard marble steps. He was very bruised and battered, and most of the spikes jutting out from his black armor were broken off, but he was alive.
“Ah, it was the key.” Christopher glanced around the ground. “That is, I thought it was a key… I mean, it is, but I guess it’s a spear too, of sorts. Who knew?”
“You didn’t know it was a spear? How did you know to throw it then?”
“I didn’t.”
Kaym looked puzzled. “So why did you throw it?”
“I didn’t have anything else to throw,” Christopher answered simply. “Good thing there wasn’t a rock handy.”
He left Kaym standing there, stunned, as he walked forward and stooped to pick up the thing that had saved them. Lying there on the palm of his hand, it looked just the same as before, a little golden key much like any other, except for the five runes scratched upon it. He offered it to Kaym, who still looked dismayed.
“I don’t see anything special about it, except for these runes. What do you make of it.”
Kaym took it in his fingers, carefully. There was a hissing sound, and Kaym dropped it, cursing. Christopher wouldn’t have thought it possible, but his white face had gone even paler than before.
“Hey, what’s the matter?”
“It burns!” Kaym was shaking his hand and glaring furiously at the key. “Dark Angel of the Abyss, I should have looked at it more closely first!”
The fallen angel knelt down and examined the little key, keeping his face a careful distance away. His caution made Christopher laugh at him.
“So, what does it say.”
“I… I can’t really tell,” Kaym said. “But I think you’d better take it now. I don’t think I want to touch it, and Baal Chanan’s forces will be hard pressed after all this time. These delays have cost us.”
Kaym rubbed a hand over his scratched and beaten face, and when he drew it away, the marks were gone. He looked up at Christopher and as he smiled, the broken spikes of his battered armor magically faded away while the armor was transformed into a spotless white robe. By the time he drew himself up, his black wings were also white, soft and innocent as the feathers of a dove.
“I find the call of battle as glorious as any other demon, but there are times when deception is the better part of valor.” Kaym grinned and a halo appeared above his head. “Hallelujah! Give me a harp and I’ll be ready!”
“Demon?” Christopher was an atheist, or at least he had been until yesterday, but he still didn’t like the sound of that. “I thought you were an angel?”
“Well, I am, but you heard what he called us, didn’t you? Angel, demon, devil, it’s all the same to me. They can call us what they like, it’s just a name after all. Now, let’s get that thrice-cursed gate open before it’s too late!”
Christopher mused thoughtfully as he followed Kaym into the air. Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me, he reminded himself. Still, he was troubled all the same by Kaym’s careless words.
Chapter 9
That Which Is Done
The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
—Ecclesiastes 1:9
The band was still playing and the people were still singing when a movement to her side caught Jami’s attention. She looked over and saw that Paulus had stopped clapping his hands and was craning his handsome head around as if he was looking for something. He apparently found it, because he abruptly stopped searching and indicated that she and Holli should follow him as he made his way towards the exit.
As Mariel closed the door to the gymnasium softly behind them, Jami turned right and followed Holli up the stairs that led to the parking lot behind the school. The sight of the dark sky made her nervous, and she was reluctant to go outside again, but when her sister walked calmly out the big glass door, Jami took a deep breath and followed her. Surely there was nothing waiting for them outside, she told herself. It was nothing worse than a little cold weather.
But what she saw when she stepped outside made her freeze with alarm. There were three strange beings greeting Paulus in the parking lot, and while two of the new angels looked pretty much like him, dressed in white robes with big, white wings and all, the third angel was really different. He must be a good guy, if Paulus knew him, Jami thought, but he was almost as scary as the shadow monsters.
His body was shaped like a man’s, but his head was that of a male lion with a long, yellow mane. Instead of two wings, he had four, and a second pair of arms as well. In his lower hands, he held a pair of identical swords with deadly-looking curved blades. He was massive, more than a foot taller than Paulus, and the guardian seemed to defer to him. Like the others, he wore white robes, but they cast a bright glow that was reflected against the snow.
“What… who’s that?” she whispered to Aliel. Her voice must have quavered, because Holli’s guardian reached over and stroked her hair reassuringly.
“I don’t know, but don’t worry. He’s a Domination, a very high-ranking spirit, so whatever’s going on here must be very important. Let’s listen to what they’re saying.”
“Yes, Dominus.” Paulus was nodding in agreement with whatever the Domination was saying. “That is in accord with what we witnessed here tonight. Mariel, here, is the boy’s guardian, and she cannot sense him anywhere. Do you know where they might have taken him?”
“Or why?” Mariel’s worried voice cut in.
Jami found it hard to understand the Domination’s reply. His words were clear, but his voice was deep, and it rumbled as if it were coming from a deep cavern far beneath the earth.
“The question is not where, but when. And the answer to that is apparent. There can only be one reason for the Fallen to require the services of such a one, and that is to unmake the events of the beginning.”
“The beginning, Dominus?” Aliel asked. “What beginning?”
“The beginning of this age.” The Domination made a growling sound deep in his throat. “The time in which Lucifer fell and sought to overthrow our Lord. The time of the first war in Heaven.”
“Is that possible!” Paulus asked skeptically, while Mariel only looked confused.
“The first war?” she asked incredulously.
“How can this be?” Aliel looked a little frightened. “Is it really so?”
Jami could see that the guardians were shocked and maybe even scared by what the Domination was telling them. She had no idea what he was talking about, but seeing that the angels were frightened struck terror in her heart.
/> “It’s not possible,” Paulus repeated, as if trying to convince himself.
“All things are possible for those who serve the Lord,” rumbled the Domination. “And much is possible even for those who don’t.”
“Excuse me, sir.” Holli stepped forward to address the awesome being. “But are you saying that the Devil, like, kidnapped my brother and took him to another time?”
The Domination stared at her sister, his big, yellow eyes just like a cat. With a start, Jami realized he was looking at her twin with pity.
“Not the one you name the Devil, but one of his servants, yes. That is so.”
“Why?”
“Because your brother has been invested with a mighty power that dwarfs that of all the angels assembled here before you.” Jami winced as the big angel gestured with a sword that came perilously close to poking Holli. “One that is capable of conquering not only Time, but Death itself. The one you name the Devil seeks to use this power through your brother, since he cannot call on it himself.”
“You think Chris has some kind of power?” Jami broke in. Of all the strange things she’d heard and seen tonight, this was the hardest to swallow.
“He does indeed.”
“Why Christopher?” Holli asked.
Now that was a good question, Jami thought. Of all the people in the world, her brother struck her as one of the worst possible people to be given any sort of power. It was just asking for trouble, even if you were God or whoever. This had to be some kind of cosmic joke, assuming it wasn’t just a bad, bad dream. Chris was hard enough to take already, she couldn’t imagine what he’d be like with god-like powers at his disposal. This wasn’t a joke, it was a nightmare!
“I cannot say,” the Domination answered. “But tell me this. Would your brother willingly serve the Shadow?”
“No, never,” Holli protested vehemently.
But Jami wasn’t so sure. She shook her head and moved a little closer to the Domination, wanting to see into those unearthly, yellow eyes, wondering what it wanted to hear. Then she decided to tell the truth.
“I’m don’t know what you mean by that,” she said, while keeping a wary eye on the angel’s swords. “I don’t believe in evil, and Chris doesn’t either. I know he wouldn’t do anything just to hurt people though, he’s not like that.”
“One who does not believe in evil is likely to end by serving it,” Mariel said with helpless bitterness.”
The Domination nodded his beastly head. “Oh, yes,” he said. “There is little that serves our adversary as well as the belief that he does not exist. And whether he believes or not, the dark ones will make him promises he cannot resist. Whether they keep their promises, now, that is a different question.”
“Dominus, what do we do?” asked Aliel.
“We have to go back and find him!” cried Mariel, as Holli nodded in agreement.
“Wait!” the Domination commanded. “One comes.”
He pointed, and they turned around to see the curly-haired preacher mounting the stairs, followed by a giant angel whose shirtless chest was covered with scars. The preacher was still carrying his drumsticks, and the sweat dripping down from his forehead started to freeze the moment he stepped outside, but even though he didn’t have a coat, he didn’t seem to care. A strange aura of flames appeared to dance about his head, and Jami saw his intense eyes blazed with excitement as soon as he saw her standing there. Jami had the odd feeling that he was looking for her.
To her surprise, the angels treated the preacher with great deference, although he didn’t seem to see them, and the great Domination actually bowed as the man drew near. The huge angel behind the preacher returned the bow, but did not speak and the man seemed unaware of his presence as well.
“Wait,” said the preacher. “I saw you leave. I don’t know who you are, or why you were here, but I just had this feeling that I should pray for you. Would you mind?”
Jami looked at Holli, feeling uncomfortable and hoping her twin would sense that. But Holli glanced over at Aliel, who nodded enthusiastically.
“No, um, it’s okay with me.” Holli told the preacher.
“It can’t hurt, I guess,” Jami sighed reluctantly. “Go ahead.”
Jami closed her eyes, and felt a hand on her head. It was warm and sweaty, and she forced herself not to shrink away from the man’s clammy touch.
“Lord, empower these young women to hear Your voice, and keep them in Your Will to do Your mighty work.” He spoke quickly, but his voice was firm. “We thank You for the victory You gave us with tonight, and for the eternal victory You won for us on the Cross.”
As he prayed, his voice grew stronger, and Jami felt as if she was falling under a strange kind of spell. “Lord, I ask that You protect them from all evil as they go forth to serve You, in Jesus’ name. Let Your will be done, Lord, in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen.”
“Amen,” the angels echoed him.
Jami opened her eyes as the preacher withdrew his sweaty hands. She still felt uneasy, but she felt strangely comforted by this man’s crazy words, and all these crazy people in their crazy church-that-was-a-school. They were somehow in tune with this bizarre world of good and evil that had suddenly forced its way into her life, while she felt completely lost. They were like a lifeline, connecting the real world to this strange new one, and even though she didn’t like them, she was glad that they were there all the same.
“Thank you,” she told him. And to her surprise, she realized that she meant it.
“You just hang in there,” the preacher told her. “And trust God to do the rest.”
“Aliel, why did that man have flames around his head?” Holli asked suddenly, as she watched the door close behind the man as he returned to his people.
Her guardian raised her eyebrows and looked at the Domination before answering.
“The child felt the approaching Mordrim as well,” Paulus added.
The Domination nodded and studied Holli for a moment before answering her.
“He carries a gift that is also a burden, child. The Spirit has descended upon him, and the flames you saw are the flames of Pentecost, ever burning and ever bright.”
“Pentecost?” Holli asked. “That sounds familiar.”
It did? Not to Jami. Must be a church thing, she concluded, and made a mental note to ask Holli about it later.
“Pentecost.” The Domination nodded, but he refused to explain any further. “Now you must not tarry, you must leave here at once.”
“Aren’t you coming with us?” Jami asked. “I mean, how are we supposed to do anything.”
“I cannot.” The massive head shook sadly from side to side. “Nor may the others. It is forbidden”
“No, we can’t let them go alone!” Paulus angrily protested.
“But they’re just children!” Aliel argued.
But the Domination would not be swayed, despite their pleas. “The Lord will provide,” he said, and his words were final. He reached into his glowing robes and drew out a scroll. Two scrolls. He handed one to Holli, and gave the other to Jami.
“Eat this,” he commanded.
Jami flexed the scroll in her hands. It felt like paper, only it didn’t crease when she folded it over. She glanced at Holli, who shrugged helplessly.
“You want me to eat this?” she asked the Domination, incredulous. “It’s not even edible!”
“Here, I’ll try it,” Holli said quickly.
The scroll crackled as Holli crammed it into her mouth. Then she crinkled her eyes and made a face, as if it tasted bitter. She swallowed once, then looked surprised. More chewing was followed by two more swallows, and she was done.
“So, how was it?” Jami asked. It didn’t look all that bad, but it didn’t look too good either.
“Actually, it wasn’t that bad.” Holli grinned. “It was kind of nasty at first, then it was really, like, sweet. It’s chewy, though. Kind of like taffy or something.”
“Like taffy, right.”<
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Jami eyed the scroll with distaste, then folded it twice and popped it in her mouth. The initial taste was unpleasant, but not as awful as she’d expected. She swallowed, and then blinked with surprise as a rich honey flavor filled her mouth. It warmed her throat and stomach as she swallowed again, and to her surprise, she found herself wanting more.
“That was pretty good,” she started to say, but her tongue felt thick. Her vision began to swim, and she felt as if the night sky was dropping towards her. She took a faltering step towards the angels and reached out to try and keep her balance, but her hand grasped at nothing as she was swept away in an overpowering tide of vertigo.
Her face still screwed up from the unpleasant aftertaste of the bittersweet scroll, Holli looked uncertainly at the rocky landscape surrounding her. She was standing on top of a windswept hill, where the grass grew in sparse patches of brown separating large areas of broken rocks and gravel. The sky was a weird shade of yellow interspersed with wide orange stripes, not the golden yellow that you see shooting through the clouds when the sun is setting, but the bright yellow that you see on bananas or tie-dyed t-shirts.
There was a mountain range in the distance, a big one from the looks of it, with a rocky majesty that was less purple than blue. Also blue, although a blue both brighter and deeper than the far-off mountains, were the feathery wings and luxurious mane of the large golden lion sitting calmly in front of her.
Compared with the wild panic of their recent, nightmarish run to the church, Holli discovered that standing right next to a winged lion was far less alarming than she would have ever imagined. When the lion greeted her politely, she was pleased to discover that not only did she not have a heart attack, but actually managed to remember her manners as well.
“I am fine, thank you very much,” she replied politely. “And how are you?”
“Oh, about as well as you’d be if someone told you that you had to cart a pair of chubby kittens around on your back for the day. In other words, I’ve been better. How would you like it if people rode on your back and pulled at your mane?” The lion’s big black eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Say, weren’t there supposed to be two of you?”