Tail of the Dragon

by Timothy Reihm

  Chapter 46

  The limp white wing was smeared with a pattern of purple and silver, their two bloods merging into a visual epitaph on the now useless appendage. ‘How do you say goodbye to one who gave their life defending yours?’ He had tasted death and it was bitter in his mouth. He reverently laid the body on the bed of argon chips. Tears streamed down his face as he dropped to his knees, deep anguish making it impossible to stand. Gabriel stepped forward and rested a comforting hand on his shoulder.

  Ariel whispered a gentle goodbye to his pair bond, then pushed a spark into the chips and watched as the fire spread around the griffin’s corpse. The white feathers and golden fur darkened and then became the flame itself, glowing brighter and brighter, until it was indistinguishable from the maelstrom of heat and light. As the body disappeared in ash and smoke, Ariel fell to the ground, sobbing in great miserable gasps. Shadow was a small part of his agony. Gadreel, Helel, Pharzel and so many others were lost to him now. He grieved for all of his fallen friends with a pain, new and wretched.

  The memory of the previous day's battle filled him with a strange mix of wonder and pity. He marveled at the power so vividly illustrated by Michael as he had halted the vast hordes of rebels with a single note. The army, moments before seemingly unstoppable, shattered in an instant, their defeated ranks taken to the edge of the city by a band of Seraphim to be cast out.

  But he also pitied all those who had attempted the insane, even Helel, who surely deserved the majority of blame. He certainly was at fault for causing Gadreel to choose this path. Ariel wondered what was going on in Gadreel’s mind at this moment, lost on some desolate world to contemplate what he had done.

  'Gadreel you had it all. You were funny and smart and talented and you threw it all away! Why?' he whispered as the flow of tears renewed.

  Eventually, his crying subsided and Ariel was able to stand. The fire burned low and nothing remained of Shadow. He faced the small circle of friends, who stood, quiet, letting him grieve.

  'Thank you,' he said to Gabriel, Raphael, Harah, and Araton.

  As Ariel rejoined his friends, Fang came out of the bushes. The sight and smell of Shadow's corpse terrified him, but now returned cautiously. There was no rambunctious behavior, no playful wrestling, no joy. It was as if he understood, without words, that Gadreel wasn't coming back. He felt the loss of Shadow. He wondered if Fang suffered from the same.

  'You and I are now bonded by the loss of our best friends,' he said.

  Fang nuzzled his hand and looked up at him. He imagined he saw pain in the tiger's big brown eyes. But there was also strength in that look, which somehow comforted him. Animals possessed a way of living in the moment. They grieved for their loss, but then moved on. He would do the same thing. No good would come from him eternally mourning the loss of his friends.

  Ariel followed the others into the dining room of Araton's estate. They sat around one end of the large, rectangular, silkwood table in silence for some time. Finally, Ariel decided he should be the one to speak.

  'I loved Gadreel very much. He was my closest friend from our first day and now he is gone. I am so sad and so angry he is gone. Gabriel, I know you feel the same about Helel. And our two friends played a pivotal role in the tragedy that has happened. I am angry with them, but I love them. I still hope there is some way for them to fix this. Is there?' he asked, looking imploringly around the group.

  'It might be possible if they were able to overcome their pride and beg for forgiveness, but I doubt they will. Helel, at least, would never be able to,' Gabriel said.

  'Did you all notice how everyone who was involved in the attack lost all their color? Their auras looked like gray clouds,' Harah observed.

  'And they were stripped of all their armor,' Raphael added. 'But even in chastising them, the Kings healed their injuries. I saw Gadreel's arm heal right before my eyes as the trumpet sounded.'

  'You saw Gadreel?' Ariel asked quickly.

  'I did. I wasn't going to tell you, but that kind of slipped out. Sorry. He actually saved me, but I think it might have just been an instinctual thing. For a second it seemed like he was going to attack me. Then he got hit.'

  'Was he seriously hurt?' asked Ariel, his concern obvious.

  'He was. We ended up lying beside each other on the field. There was a moment, right before the trumpet, when I saw how sorry he was. That's why I'm not sure how to answer your question. He seemed at war with himself, and for an instant, I believed he was going to repent of his actions,' Raphael explained.

  ‘I would like to have one more opportunity to try to talk to him. Where are they?’ asked Ariel.

  ‘They have been placed onto a desolate world off of the pathways. The only way on or off is with a Seraphim escort and no one else is allowed to visit at this point,’ Araton answered.

  ‘I heard from one of my choir mates that Helel is going to be able to solicit other worlds for entry for he and his group,’ said Harah.

  ‘They are free to ask for admittance to any world they wish. If the inhabitants decide to live outside of the rule of the Kings and their laws, then Helel will be able to enter,’ Araton said.

  ‘It is unfortunate, but these events make clear something that I have lately heard mentioned in the throne room. The Kings have spoken often about a tragedy that would unfold, which would ultimately usher in a new era in the history of the Kingdom. They spoke about a dragon who would draw down a third of the stars of the heavens with his tail, and would seek for the destruction of the Eternal City. But they also mentioned a time in the future when the dragon’s true nature would be evident to all and that this was necessary to demonstrate the consequences of pride and lawlessness,’ Gabriel added.

  This surprised Ariel. In his grief for his friends he never imagined that any further rebellious actions would be taken.

  ‘But aren’t those that were cast out too overwhelmed with grief at their loss to continue fighting for a hopeless cause?’

  ‘On the contrary, my friend. Helel and his host may have suffered a momentary setback; but do not be mistaken, they are by no means defeated. Grief over their loss will be transformed to anger at what they will convince themselves was stolen from them. They are even now making plans to persuade the many worlds they are in the right. And perhaps some will fall for their lies. When they do, it will be up to us to intervene to protect the inhabitants of any world that falls, and to thwart their plans at every step.’

  ‘Which brings me to a bit of news I need to share, as I want you to join me in the effort. I have been asked by Michael himself to help train a new group of angels, known as the guardians, to serve as protectors any worlds exposed to the wrath of the fallen,’ Araton explained.

  ‘Guardians? Will that be necessary?’ asked Ariel.

  ‘I am told that a time of trouble is coming such as has never been seen. Woe to any world facing the anger of Helel and his demons alone. It will be our responsibility to protect any individual in their reign of influence who desires assistance. Those who join us will be exposed to unimaginable depravity, but if even one can be saved from the fate of eternal destruction, than it is a worthy undertaking. Gabriel has already committed to joining, but we need many others,’ he looked around the room suggestively.

  Ariel didn’t respond to Araton right away. He remembered back to when Gadreel first joined Azazel's secret group, a decision which seemed so benign at the time, but had determined his eternal destiny. How many individuals in the future would be faced with similar subtle deceits at the hand of Helel and his demons? He may not be able to change what had already been done, but he might change what was to come. Yes, he would join the guardians, and would make every effort to help others avoid Gadreel's fate.

  ‘Count me in,’ Ariel said.

  Epilogue

  Each time he walked off of the pathway and onto a new world, the trees startled him. Not all of the trees, but rather the two trees serving as the entrance to the grove of the Kings. It wasn't j
ust that they looked much like the prime trees. They were perfectly identical, down to the smallest detail. He wondered if maybe they were the same trees, standing a short distance from the throne. The idea made him shiver.

  He stepped onto a planet much different from the last they visited. The gravity was heavier, the light spectrum brighter and the indigenous species not nearly as exotic. In some ways, this beautiful, sparsely wooded plain reminded him of the area surrounding the academy, although a smallish star provided the illumination and it lacked a mountain dominating the horizon. He shuddered as he pictured that mountain.

  Only a few months had passed, but already the old life seemed foreign to him. He often thought of Ariel, but they seemed like someone else's memories. He remembered his friends, Shadow and Fang, their adventures, and his classes at the academy, but the feelings accompanying those thoughts were dull, as if the hues had faded from the pictures in his mind, along with his aura. Their cold, dark pit of a rock felt like the only home he had ever known. Its lack of color and light had, seemingly, been absorbed into him, into his view of the world, and even his recollections. He hated it, loathed it with all of his soul, but it was now his reality.

  Except on days when he left to attempt the bargain. He had now gone on nearly a dozen such forays into inhabited worlds and saw the real possibility that they might be forever doomed to their rocky, lifeless prison. Helel had become distrustful of everyone, besides Gadreel, so the two of them were more frequently attempting to make the bargain themselves.

  Today they were making contact with a brand new world; the same world, in fact, Ariel served his preceptorship on. It was almost too beautiful to bear. He enjoyed these forays off of that rock, but every time their Seraphim escorts pushed them back onto the pathway, it was like being evicted from the Kingdom all over again. He dreaded contemplating what failure this day would bring.

  A beautiful green serpent dangled from one of the branches of the western tree.

  'I have an idea,' Helel said and pointed off down a path where the rustling of feet was coming their way.

   

  She crept closer to the tree. Was something moving? There, in front of her was the most beautiful serpent she had ever seen. Its scales glistened in the sun as it sat warming itself, eating a piece of the succulent-looking, purplish fruit. She had watched serpents fly through the garden before, but had never seen one eating, and stole forward a few more steps. And then an odd thing happened. The snake spoke.

  ‘Can I offer you a piece of fruit, my lady?’

  The woman was shocked that this creature could speak and she understood it. She did not answer right away, but she didn’t leave either. This strange animal piqued her curiosity.

  ‘I did not know serpents are able to talk,’ she said.

  ‘I couldn’t until I discovered this tree and its powerful fruit. Would you like to try?’ The serpent's tail coiled around one of the larger fruits, pulled it free, and lowered it to within reach of the woman.

  ‘Uh, I was told not to eat that fruit,’ she answered.

  ‘You mean you have been placed here and restricted from eating the best that it has to offer?’

  ‘I am allowed to eat of any tree, except this one. I was told that if I eat from this one that I would die.’

  ‘Well I am living proof there is no harm in this fruit. On the contrary, it is the most powerful fruit here. I suspect whoever gave you that warning did not want you to access this power. If it allowed me, a simple serpent, to speak, then imagine what it can do for you. I wouldn’t be surprised if you become as wise as the three Kings themselves!’

  The woman still appeared wary, but Gadreel saw the doubt on her face. He was shocked. Surely she could not be naive enough to be tricked so easily. All inhabited worlds contained the pair of trees, one to funnel positive energy, one negative. All created beings were told explicitly that eating from the return tree was forbidden. Its fruit was corrupted by the effects of chaos. But this simple creature seemed to be considering it.

  The serpent pressed harder. ‘Do you need permission to eat a piece of fruit?’ he inquired.

  ‘Of course not,’ she answered. There were so many things she did not understand. If the snake were correct, perhaps she would know things hidden from her. Slowly, she reached out her hand and touched the fruit. It was still wet with morning dew and smelled of crushed clover. The serpent loosened its grip, and it fell into her outstretched palm.

  ‘Trust me, whoever warned you against eating this fruit is just afraid of what you will become. Your eyes will be opened and you will be like the Kings.’

  She drew it closer to her mouth. Surely it would bring no harm. Why would this intelligent animal want to deceive her? She took a bite.

  Helel looked over at Gadreel and smiled broadly. They finally had their world.

  ABOUT THE AUTHORS

  Chad (left) and Tim (right) Reihm began collaborating in 1980, in an attempt to build a super sweet tree house. They have been working together on projects ever since. For nearly a decade, the two co-owned a health marketing company that produced educational websites and print materials related to health and wellness. They have collaborated on the creation of many disease-related booklets and even a medical journal. Chad has always acted as the science guy, while Tim guided narration and presentation. That strategy of collaboration continues in their newest project, the Fallen Trilogy.

  Chad is a medical doctor, currently in residency for radiology. Tim is a former college English professor and currently works as a marketing executive and an entrepreneur.