Adam paced back and forth, trying to devise a plan to safely enter the tunnel.
Regal and Daniel pulled up to a checkpoint in their special armored vehicle. They approached Sentries and other special vehicles dispatched from Mosqidou warcraft. They followed protocol and identified themselves. After being cleared, the Sentries directed them towards the tunnel.
“Regal, Daniel, may God be praised. You’ve made it through this night,” Natenal said as they embraced.
Daniel replied, “Yes. By the blood of God, we made it through this perilous night.”
Regal added, “Yes, Brother, it is good to see you are alive and well.” He paused and pointed to Adam, still pacing back and forth in front of the entrance. “If our friend there is to pass safely through that tunnel, he must put on my Special Suit.”
Regal went to the vehicle’s trunk and pulled out seven custom suits, designed and built to withstand severe temperatures. “It will be like oven gloves, but I should warn you: don’t be idle and press your luck. The longer you are in there, the more your lives will be in jeopardy. Just do what you have to do, and get out of there fast.”
Adam overheard the conversation, walked up towards the hood of Regal’s special armored vehicle and suited up.
“Are you sure about this, Pursuers?” Raphael asked as the rest of The Pursuers joined Adam.
“Yes, we must end this,” Natenal confirmed.
Adam asked, “Where’s Abdeen? Is he alright?”
Daniel answered, “Yes. He suffered a severe injury, so I sent him home for medical attention and rest. His duties are no longer needed here, and he sends his regards.”
Adam remarked, “I owe him my life. I’m sorry I didn’t get to say farewell.”
Daniel replied, “You will see him again in due time to relay the message yourself, as long as you don’t get yourself killed, Brother.”
Daniel joked, but it didn’t get more serious than this, as all of them entered the tunnel, one by one. Regal’s Special Suits were extraordinary and operated as anticipated. They successfully breached Aries force field.
However, just as the Special Suits secured them from the heat, The Pursuers couldn’t do anything to penetrate them. Therefore, gifts were surrendered in order for them not to meet Aries’ fire.
Goliath couldn’t grow into his signature enormous size, Irisan couldn’t use her healing abilities, or deliver poison and Natenal couldn’t uncover his face of God.
The group saw two enlarged shadows of Aries replicas reflecting menacingly off the walls. Natenal said, “Our breach through the force field must have triggered an alarm of some sort. Brace yourselves, Pursuers.”
Adam said, “Aries please! It’s me, Adam! Call off your replicas!”
With his face concealed, it did not help his situation. Aries ignored his cry. Without their gifts, Adam knew in time, death would break its silence. He warned the others, “Pursuers, get yourselves out of here! I will keep them occupied.”
“It is too late for that. Her replicas must be destroyed if we are to fully gain the Zodiac’s attention,” Natenal countered.
So they engaged. With no weapons, their only option was hand-to-hand combat. Since the replicas could not inflict any damage upon them due to their Special Suits, they joined them in hand-to-hand combat.
Natenal’s accomplished training enabled him to catch one of the replicas punches, while using her own arm to turn her around and break her neck.
The replicas willed death before they would allow The Pursuers to bring harm to their Creator. In desperation, they tried tearing and ripping the Special Suits from their bodies.
Goliath broke the back of one of the replicas and threw it against the tunnel wall, but the other two succeeded in removing Simeon’s helmet.
“Nooo!” Irisan cried as Simeon’s head instantly incinerated before their eyes.
As anticipated, death broke its silence amongst The Pursuers. Adam freed himself and ran to save his remaining friends. One of the replicas pursued him, but Goliath intercepted. He knocked the replica into the wall of the tunnel so hard that the impact produced a hole.
From the outside, Raphael and his team noticed fire seeping out the side of the tunnel. The pressure from the heat caused the hole to increase in size by the minute. They lay in wait for someone to exit. “Prepare to engage,” he ordered.
Angered by the gruesome death of their fellow Pursuer, they moved cautiously, knowing they were at a complete disadvantage due to the confines of their gifts.
The deadly temperatures declined courtesy of that growing hole.
The remaining replicas paused and motioned The Pursuers to pass.
“What’s going on here?” a puzzled Goliath asked.
Natenal speculated, “Adam must have shared words with the Zodiac.”
Goliath replied, “No! They’ve killed Simeon. I demand vengeance!”
Natenal ordered, “No, Goliath. It is finished. Simeon is on his way home. We cannot jeopardize the rest of the group.”
An enraged Goliath clutched his fists and walked towards Simeon’s dead corpse.
She awoke from unconsciousness to more misfortune. A sheet covered Virgo’s head. Special chains that disabled her gifts fastened to her wrists.
“What the Hell is going on here! Where am I?” Virgo called out.
Bishop replied, “Sleep well, Zodiac? I assure you, you are safe. We covered your face for safety purposes. Even a god such as myself can only withstand your beauty for so long. Once one has fallen victim to the flesh, as my faithful servant Luther learned, their days are numbered.”
“Release me at once. I am not an animal!” Virgo ordered.
“You will be released in due time. For now, relax. I have some news that might strike of some importance to you,” Bishop replied.
Virgo responded, “It doesn’t matter to me. Take it up with Lucifer when he finds out where I am.”
Bishop said, “It’s quite ironic you should mention him. Taurus is dead, and so is your Dark Lord. All of the Master Archs are dead. It is over, Zodiac. It would be in your best interest to join me too.”
Virgo said, “Lies! I don’t believe it! Lies, all of it!”
Bishop motioned for one of his soldiers to uncover her head. She was surrounded by Giants during her confinement onboard the craft of a god. Bishop watched her from his throne. There were Demons and Archangels working side by side one another undertaking ship protocols. Downstairs, more Archangels operated a giant mainframe navigating the special craft to Bishop’s fortress. Up ahead, viewable through the craft’s interface, was Bishop’s Super Earth as they passed armed Satellites. Again, Bishop motioned to one of his soldiers who carried over a veil-covered glass vase and held it in front of Virgo. The soldier pulled the veil from the vase to reveal Lucifer’s head inside it.
Virgo’s eyes widened, and then squinted. She moved in for a more up-close inspection of the vessel. In the flesh, even in death, Lucifer’s calcified vile grin stood without question. In fear of her telekinetic abilities, an unmasked Zodiac unsettled Bishop’s men who began clutching their weapons.
“It’s alright, lower your weapons. Let her grasp the authenticity of my power.”
The servant held the vase closer to her. After a full examination, she wept.
Bishop said, “What’s the matter? Did you really think he was capable of defeating a being of my caliber? You are just as much a fool as he was. I’ve had as many spies in his kingdom as I did in God’s … maybe more. He had so many betrayers, he was hardly even a match due to all the techniques I had at my disposal.”
Virgo replied, “Your credit goes to traitors. You’re nothing more than a coward!”
Bishop said, “Everyone who decided to join me was influenced by knowing, or coming to terms with, the reality of who will eventually rule this Galaxy. Their aid simply brought it ahead of schedule. I have a special guest who has also taken the liberty of aiding me in victory, and who is responsible for the invention of those
very chains that deny you of your power.”
A mysterious masked man, clad fully in black leather, wearing a red cape with bizarre symbols entered the room. He sat down and rotated his chair away from her view. He pushed a button on his suit and disappeared right before her eyes.
Virgo responded, “Invisibility? No one is capable of that.”
Bishop quoted, “I assure you, we will be capable of a lot of things. He goes by the name the Astrologer. He has broken your little Zodiac Code, and soon all the Zodiacs will be under my rule.”
Virgo yelled, “You bastards! You will not get away with this!”
Bishop retaliated, “Bitch, I already have. You will obey me, or you will share the Sun with my enemies.” He motioned to some soldiers. “Take this Zodiac out of here.”
They covered her head and took her to a holding cell in a discreet location of the craft.
The Astrologer noticed a gathering of the stars and said, “Look ahead.”
They stared at a mosquito constellation forming light-years away. The Earth dwelled in the core of the mosquito. Bishop decoded it instantly. “God sends his message. I’ll personally see to it that these so-called Pursuers are destroyed by my Sun. I will bring forth interstellar deaths to all those that oppose me. The Kingdom of Heaven will be crushed, stirred, and set out amongst star dust.”
Chapter 35
THE BURNING THRONE, ENGINEERS, AND THE KON INCIDENT
“There’s a solution for everything.”
— RACHEL
Bishop dispatched Nancia and David, two Master Archangels. Their mission was to lead a group of soldiers into the depths of Hell to recruit and terminate all those loyal to Lucifer.
A Demon Master Archangel named Elijah, mindful of the Underworld, led them. He led Bishop’s army to all corners of Lucifer’s Kingdom while the inhabitants soaked in the devastation over the loss of their leader. Confusion and infighting concerning the Burning Throne supervened. Traitors and cowards came in all different forms, opportunists took their opportunities, and the damned sided with the Mover of Suns. They knew Heaven’s Gate would forever be far from reach, so why wouldn’t they join Bishop and avoid eternal torment. Highly motivated, receivers sought revenge on their torturers and towards God for casting them there. Bishop’s army had increased by millions.
Spies lived up to their reputation from a safe distance. It was Rachel and a few other Master Archangels from God’s Kingdom. Rachel remarked, “I cannot believe this. It is true. The Dark Prince has fallen. We must report this at once.”
She and her small group set out to convey the news. As they approached their craft, it exploded in front of them. Detected, enemy lasers fell upon them, and they took to ground for cover.
“Damn! How is this possible?” Rachel shouted.
One of her men moved towards the enemy fire. The enemy did not fire upon him, allowing the cowardly traitor to approach unscathed.
Immediately, Rachel aimed a single laser shot to the back of his head. She shouted, “Is there anyone else who cares to join him?” No one did.
Their enemy numbers increased by the minute. Demons and Archangels united with cruel intentions. Her men initiated covering fire. She opened a Gateway not too far away with a special container that carried secret technology. They escaped through the Dimension, and Rachel closed the Gateway behind them.
“That was close,” one of her soldiers said.
They saw a strange hybrid man walking a dinosaur. He stopped to look at them. They stumbled across another Galaxy where uncommon things were quite common. However, these Archangels grew accustomed to many foreign things during countless campaigns. In this land, gravity was challenged as cities stayed vertical and horizontal to each other. Cruising Dimensions to get to other domiciles were the norm. The people spoke in a weird dialect, and had very strange practices. Some ruled it as highly Demonized behavior, while others believed them to be victims of genetic manipulation. But most importantly, they wondered what these beings thought of them. They appeared just as strange to them as they did to the group. No one was in any position to judge.
They had been influenced by Fallen Angel technology due to the structure of their buildings and the devices they possessed.
“Great. We’ve encountered another one of Lucifer’s counterfeit civilizations,” one of the soldiers murmured.
“That’s enough,” Rachel commanded as they walked among the hybrids.
Tourists in a strange land, they had no knowledge whether they engaged the future or past. Someone whose curiosity got the better of them communicated with the Archangels.
Rachel equipped another strange device that unlocked the hybrid’s language. “There’s a solution to everything,” she observed.
The curious hybrid spoke, “Welcome to our Planet, travelers. You have arrived on Kon. We are a proud, peaceful Super-Race of beings, and we encourage you to stay and make yourselves at home.”
One of Rachel’s men said, “Something isn’t right. Send out a rescue signal to our coordinates, and let’s depart from this place at once.”
Rachel responded, “I sent one the minute we entered this place. I have yet to receive a reply. If we are in another time, I’m afraid we’re on our own.”
Rachel replied to the welcoming hybrid, “I am sorry to deliver grave news. The Universe is at the brink of war. Are you and your people aware of this?”
The hybrid answered, “War? We’ve heard of this thing, but we are shut off from the outside Universe. Every traveler has mentioned this word War.”
If not intrigued enough, they discovered it had an odd atmosphere that rained a different class of physical matter: diamonds. On this Planet, no one required wealth, which explained why these people were strangers to war. No need of coveting a neighbor’s goods or land, for they had all the wealth and land they needed.
Judging by the constellations, the formation of their neighboring stars and Planets, their engineer created this World under a million years ago. Certainly, the Planet had its fair share of intruding comets that might have wiped out other civilizations before them. But, to their knowledge, those were the only encumbrances this Planet had ever perceived.
Rachel spoke to her soldiers. “Something is telling me we need to investigate this Planet further.”
“But, what about the report?” one of her soldiers reminded her.
Rachel said, “You stay here and wait for the ship.”
The soldier warned them to be cautious while the natives escorted them throughout the metropolis. Eventually they arrived at a special section of the city, a Museum. They saw a large sign in weird writing above the entrance. Rachel translated. It read:
“The Thirteen Zodiacs”
“What does it say?” one of the soldiers inquired.
Rachel replied, “It says there are thirteen Zodiacs.”
The soldier said, “Thirteen Zodiacs?”
They walked further down the lengthy Museum hall and saw thirteen statues lined up against the walls opposite one another. Soaring high like Nephilim Giants, their faces carried masks representing the Signs and beasts assigned to them. In disbelief, they saw a statue of Natenal, the leader of the Pursuit of the Zodiacs, standing as the thirteenth Zodiac.
“My God by the Heavens. What does this mean?” Rachel said to herself.
The group’s eyes widened as they approached closer to the statuary. To some, it did not register. They continued analyzing the Master Archangel. Natenal, the thirteenth Zodiac, bore the mark of a different kind of beast, impressed by God himself, well-known in their Immortal tongue as “Mosqidou” or “The Pursuers”. It was a Mosquito with its Ruling Planet Earth in its Abdomen. There were broken timepieces in his hands, indicating that the last Zodiac was the destroyer of time, and the bearer of Eternity.
Motivated by the thirst for more knowledge, the Archangels strode down the hall.
They found the Astrologer’s statue, not too far from the Zodiacs. He was known as the former strategist in
God’s Kingdom, and mentor of the Zodiacs before Lucifer’s expulsion. They saw the statues of other “Cast Aways” who shared differences with both God and Lucifer. They had their own subdivision against the great walls of the Museum.
The people of Kon revealed to them their Creator. They were not surprised to see Lucifer, the Prince of Darkness, himself. The group gazed upon a statue and monument built in Lucifer’s honor. Part of the statue displayed Lucifer’s Burning Throne.
Her soldier whispered to her in secret. “Rachel, fate has brought us here. Thank God. These people must be destroyed.”
Rachel replied, “They know nothing of the history behind the Devil. He has deceived them as much as he has deceived others. No one deserves death because they’ve been tricked by Lucifer.”
One of the soldiers asked, “So, Rachel … what now?”
Rachel thought about this while walking the hall of the Museum. “We must go back and report more unfortunate news to God,” Rachel replied.
One of the hybrids overheard them talking and interrupted Rachel. “That name is illegal in all languages here.”
Confused, Rachel replied, “You mean, God?”
Some of the People of Kon covered their ears. Some even revealed their identity. Serpent-like, their tongues slithered from their mouths.
Rachel and her soldiers drew their weapons and slowly backed away as the hybrids followed. One soldier remarked, “It seems all that’s missing here are the flames.”
The People of Kon chanted in obscenities in foul Demonic languages. It didn’t require a translator to decode its meaning.
“Yes, I agree, Brother. All those diamonds falling from the skies were only gifts. Payments, as it were … reward for following their Prince of Darkness,” another soldier concluded.
Rachel spoke, “My apologies, but you were all right. Let’s make our way back to the pick-up zone. If they bring contest, we’ll show them the consequences.”
“WE DID NOT HAVE TO INTERVENE AFTER ALL. LUCIFER IS DEAD.”
After observing the trials of the Earth and its Universe, The Watchers talked amongst themselves. They gathered once again in secrecy at a location known to neither man nor supernatural beings. They discussed what they had witnessed and what must be appended to their records.
Pursuit of the Zodiacs Page 51