by James Hicks
Berith tracked the human by his scent and his footsteps. They led him to a cave, and he was so thrilled at the possibility of finding one of the guilty that he began to salivate. Berith normally took the form of an old man with gaunt features and black leathery wings. He had another form in which he had the body of a warrior faun with the head of a cobra. A very menacing figure indeed, but he figured that form would be overkill in this situation. All he had to do was go in and capture the already frightened human and bring him before the devil. Simple.
When Berith arrived at the mouth of the cave, he heard laughing and was angered even more at the nerve of this insolent human. He entered the cave and walked right up to the figure who sat with his legs crossed, facing the cave wall.
“That laughter will soon be replaced by your cries.”
He grabbed the human and dug his nails into his shoulder. The laughing only got louder. Berith dug his nails in deeper and drew blood. Evil John grabbed Berith’s hand and flipped him over his shoulder with such force that it shook the cave. Berith was more than shocked and looked into the face of the immensely powerful creature.
Evil John grabbed the demon by his mouth and dragged him across the floor. He smashed Berith’s face against the walls and pounded it. The attack was beyond vicious. It wasn’t demonic and there was no way Berith could defend himself. John smashed Berith’s face with rocks and bit him. He broke his limbs and didn’t stop the assault.
This human was no ordinary human. He had the strength of a warrior angel and looked like a human, but didn’t possess the good nature that could convince one to stop an attack. It seemed almost like there was no conscience to inhibit the evil that existed in the hearts of all mankind. No, this human had no conscience, no good side to contend with, and it showed in the way he fought.
Berith was slammed to the ground, and then the unthinkable happened. Evil John began eating Berith alive. He began eating his wings and other parts of his body. In Berith’s many millennia of existence, he would have never pictured a human eating one of his kind; yet it was happening. Berith cried out in horror and tried to get away but could not.
“DID THE LORD SEND YOU HERE TO PUNISH US?”
“The Lord? No. I am not on the Lord’s side.”
“THEN WHOSE?”
“I am not for the Lord. I am not for Satan. I am for me.”
Those were the last words that Berith would hear for a very long time for his time of torture as evil John’s prisoner had just begun.
“Camilla, what are you doing here?”
Camilla ran to John and hugged him tightly.
“I was worried about you and couldn’t sleep. So I came here. . . . Actually, Gabriel appeared to me and told me to wait for you here.”
“I see.”
“I was so worried about you during the fight. Everyone is looking for you. They all want to know who you are, what you are, where you’re from. . . . The news is going crazy over you and those giants. You know they never found the bodies? There is even footage of a woman dressed in red making them disappear. Vanishing out of thin air and it’s got everyone talking about it. And I—”
“Cammy . . . ,” he interrupted. “I was so worried about you; you didn’t go home. . . . When Rapha closed in on you, I . . .”
“You saved me. Like I knew you would. If I ever doubted your love for me, I was convinced after that.”
“I don’t ever want you to doubt that I love you. I would go through hell and rescue you from the devil himself if I had to.”
“Wow, that’s tough talk. Let’s hope you never have to.”
“You mean more to me than the next breath I take. The Bible says that ‘He that finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.’ . . . I have found my good thing. Will you marry me?”
John dropped to his knees and raised the ring. Camilla’s eyes welled up with tears of joy and she nodded and voiced, “YES!” She kissed him, and he picked her up and twirled her around. At that moment, the world was perfect for them until he heard sirens from his apartment. Fire trucks raced toward a massive fire. John looked at Camilla. It was a look that said he needed to help.
“Go ahead.” She smiled.
John and Camilla went to his roof as they had done so many times before. She stepped back and watched him transform into his familiar blue and white armored suit and fly into the sky. He was gone. She smiled and watched him get ready to save another day.