In Exile (Archangel Jarahmael and the War to Conquer Heaven, Book III)

by John J Higgins

  Luciferael's face went dark. “I should have never trusted her near the surface, pregnant or not. We shall have to go after her, search the planet until we find her.” He sat and thought for a few minutes and then Luciferael's face lightened and he secretly winked over at Beelzebael. “Perhaps it’s not as bad as I think. It may bring Jarahmael out of hiding if he hears she is back on the surface of the Earth.”

  Luciferael stood up from his seat and began to pace.

  “Let me continue where I left off before this 'Lillith' interruption. My fellow rebel Angels, I have gotten much better news, news that will alter our future plans!” Luciferael responded with a sly look that he knew more than what he had told any of the rebel Archangels, even the ones assembled while Sammuael had gone to the surface.

  The assembled rebel Archangels all had confused looks on their faces, although Beelzebael and Mephistophael both tried in vain to appear as though they too were privy to Luciferael’s news.

  “Earlier today, I was up on the surface of the Earth flying over to where Adam and Eve have been residing. As I approached, the Archangel Michael flew down to me and we had a discussion.”

  “Michael? Did you try to kill him, my lord? Did he try to kill you?” asked Beelzebael, not able to hold back the question as he was so surprised.

  “No, neither of us was armed as I did not expect any trouble for my short foray into the skies over the Earth. Nor did I see any weapon upon Michael.”

  “What did he want?” asked Sammuael as he rose again to his feet, adjusting the sword that he did carry with him whenever he ventured up to the surface of the Earth.

  “He asked me what I had done with the Books of Creation and the Books of Life,” Luciferael said with a smile of contentment rising across his face.

  “We have the Books of Creation and the Book of Life?” asked Mephistophael.

  “Wait! What is the Book of Life? Where was that kept?’ Sammuael interrupted.

  “That was a very interesting part. Seems that there was a second Book concealed in the Throne, supposedly in a hidden compartment underneath the Book of Creation.” Luciferael explained.

  “I thought we had secured the Book of Creation within the Almighty’s Throne back in the Seventh Heaven when we had conquered it,” said Beelzebael. “If what you say is true shouldn’t that Book of Life still be there as well?”

  “Exactly. We did not take the Books with us,” Luciferael said with some regret in his voice. “I did not let on that we did not know that the Book of Life was concealed there as well. I asked him indirectly about its powers. I said that if we did have it, did we have to be careful it could harm something if we used it incorrectly. Fortunately, Michael answered without thinking and said it wouldn’t hurt the physical Universe, but could wreak havoc with Human and Simian life.”

  “Why did we not know about this Book of Life before?” Sammuael asked. “It’s just another example of how ill-treated we were by the Almighty and how justified we were to rebel!”

  “I then told Michael we did not have the Books and why was he asking me that question to begin with! He became extremely agitated and replied that he knew my rebel forces had taken the Books and substituted counterfeit books, meant to look like the originals, well done, but fakes all the same. He further added that the Almighty was not happy that the Books were missing and that there would be a price to be paid for removing the Books or destroying them.”

  Sammuael wondered why this was pleasing Luciferael. “Isn't this a problem that the Books of Creation or the Books of Life are missing or destroyed?”

  “It is a major problem for the Almighty and the loyal Angels, is it not?” Luciferael responded, relishing the words. “Those Books would allow us to reengage the loyal Angels in battle and again conquer the Heavens whether or not the Almighty is present there!”

  “That's right,” added Beelzebael. “Who would have thought we could ever get our hands on the Book of Creation again, and now a second Book that controls the mud creatures. We now have the chance to find them and use them even after we have been cast out of the Heavens. For all we knew they were safe and secure up in the Seventh Heaven, a place we have almost no hope of ever getting near again if we start another rebellion. The loyal Angels would be ready to fight us in each and every one of the Heavens. Now that they are fortified and aware, we would be lucky to get through the First Heaven, much less successfully fight our way all the way back up to the Seventh Heaven.”

  “Those Books would allow us to defeat the loyal Angels easily,” interjected Mephistophael, “we really should have taken the Books when we had the chance.”

  A hush ran around the room as each of the Archangels thought that Mephistophael was correct. But all were afraid to say anything about it, as it would show that Luciferael had not taken advantage of their control over the Seventh Heaven when they had conquered it the first time. If they had only taken the Books when they had the opportunity, was the unspoken thought lingering among them.

  Sammuael then spoke up. “That means the Books could be somewhere other than in the Heavens?”

  “Exactly,” said Luciferael. “What Archangel or Angel of the lesser Orders would ever take or destroy those Books? They would not dare. It would have had to have been someone who was up in the Seventh Heaven and had the opportunity to go into the Throne Room and remove them when no one was around. This could have only occurred during the rebellion when there was confusion all through the Heavens. Once the rebellion was over, one of the loyal Angels would have seen someone steal the Books. Yes, whoever took the Books, they would have had to steal them during the rebellion. Someone who would want to keep the Books safe and the theft secret from us or the Almighty. There was only one of the loyal Angels who was moving freely throughout the Heaven after our rebellion began. . .”

  “Jarahmael?” Sammuael blurted out.

  “Yes!” said Luciferael. “The one and the same. Even better it seems that he is not in the Almighty or the loyal Angels’ favor anymore. Michael was looking for him as well, apparently he did something wrong and is no longer welcome in the Heavens. Michael even accused him of joining with us for his own gain.”

  “Oh, I will have him join us all right!” exclaimed Sammuael, thinking of how Jarahmael had kept him trapped within that crystal during the rebellion. “So Michael believes we have the Book of Life and Book of Creation?”

  “He seemed to be hinting that they knew that either Jarahmael or we ourselves now have them. He did not seem concerned about Jarahmael’s well-being, he may have been hinting that the loyals may not do anything to help Jarahmael if we did find him and force him to tell us where the Books are located. He only wanted the Books returned. And, even more surprisingly Michael offered me a proposition.”

  “A proposition?” asked Sammuael. “Why would he offer us anything?”

  Luciferael smiled before he continued. “The Almighty cannot allow the souls from Adam and Eve or their future offspring up into the Heavens after they die. Having violated His commandment, their souls are no longer pure. His offer is that we receive the souls from the dead Humans and Simians and house them in our realm. They will remain in the Hades section. Those souls in Hades are not to be harmed, but just kept there until the Almighty establishes a plan to redeem them in the future, and allow the purified souls back into the Garden of Eden or some other place in the First Heaven. The deeper section of my realm, Hell, will be reserved for those Humans who become followers of mine, and reject the Almighty. Once they are mine we can do with them as we want, punish them as we see fit, place them wherever we desire in our kingdom, the Seven Pits of Hell.”

  “Sounds too good to be true,” said Beelzebael. “The Almighty is giving us access to the Humans? We get to interact with the Humans to convince them to join us?”

  “Yes, but only if the Humans choose to follow us or ask us for something,” responded Luciferael.

  “How will they know we exist?” asked Sammuael. “The Almighty can keep us hi
dden and secret if He so desires, can’t He?”

  “According to Michael, the Almighty will allow the Humans to learn of our existence and tales of our war for the conquest of the Heavens. We can also offer a path that removes the Almighty from their lives, so they can choose to follow us or simply ignore Him altogether.”

  “There will be more Humans?” Sammuael asked.

  “Yes, according to Michael, the Humans will reproduce and populate the Earth. All will receive souls generated from the Almighty. Those will be the ones who will go to either Hades or Hell at the end of their lifetimes. Then, there will also be a class of Angelic or saintly souls who are generated from the Guardian Angels from the First Heaven. This class will be allowed to choose to be born on Earth, live as Humans and then die, all without remembering they are in fact Angels. Those who remain as Guardian Angels or return to Angel form after death will work with other Humans on the Earth.

  “To be fair to us, they too will be limited in their ability to recruit souls by the restriction that the Humans must request the Angels' assistance just like the Humans have to request our assistance. The Almighty is setting up a Council to supervise and even a Library to keep track of all the Human souls. The Library will be housed in the Fifth Heaven with the Order of the Virtues. Since we are no longer welcome there to discuss various view points, there is not a lot of activity going on in their Heaven.” Luciferael smiled and looked directly at Sammuael.

  “See Sammuael, you are already missed! The Humans will be given true free will! They will have the opportunity to follow the loyal Angels or the rebel Angels, and we do not have to tell them that we are a trap for them. We can get revenge on the stupid creatures of mud. Michael also told me that some of our rebel Angels will be offered the opportunity to be born in Human form and redeem themselves in the Almighty's eyes. But for now I don't want any of the lesser rebel Angels to know of this possibility. At least, not until we have finished off our missions here. I am not sure I ever want any of our rebel Angels to have the possibility of being ‘redeemed’ at this point.”

  “Why would any of our rebel Angels want to become loyal again, no matter what the means?” Mephistophael asked without expecting an answer.

  “This whole arrangement sounds fair, but why would they want to be fair?” said Damiel, speaking for the first time, agreeing with Mephistophael’s remark with a nod.

  “Yes, Damiel, all we have to do is return the Books of Life and Creation if we find them before Michael and the loyal Angels can find them,” said Luciferael, laughing. Then looking at all the rebel Archangels in his circle, Luciferael said aloud what Sammuael knew he was thinking deep inside. “As if I have any intention of playing fair or on an equal playing field. We will have the Humans' souls after they are dead, and once we get Jarahmael and the Books we shall no longer need to abide by any 'deal' with the Almighty or any loyal Archangel.”

  Chapter 24

  NEW LIFE

  Jarahmael kept Lillith and himself hidden in the second Sphinx at Aegyptus while he searched for a better and more permanent location for them to live. It was fitting to hide Lillith in the female Sphinx, Jarahmael thought. As Jarahmael had predicted, the female Sphinx was not of much interest to any of the Cherubim Angels. Nor did any of the other “construction Angels,” the Principalities and Dominions, pay attention to it any longer. They had completed their tasks just prior to the rebellion, and neither of the Sphinxes were ever intended to be used as part of the pyramidal transportation system for the Humans.

  To make the female Sphinx even more inconspicuous, Jarahmael had begun moving sand to begin to gradually fill the area and cover it over. The other Sphinx was much closer to the grand pyramid, and garnered the most attention from the loyal Angels, whenever they came to visit the Earth. The Simians would look at the Sphinx, but its countenance was very frightening to them so they did not dare take any interest in accessing the inside of it. This made the second Sphinx a safe place for Jarahmael, and it grew in safety everyday as it slowly became buried and its existence would be lost to the memory of Simians, Humans, and one day, hopefully, the Angels themselves.

  These days with Lillith were happy times for Jarahmael. He promised to never leave her again, as he felt terrible for having done so during the rebellion. And the way things were, he could not see any reason to leave her. Besides, it was best for the two of them to remain hidden as much as possible, as he was sure that each of them would be a prize capture for either the loyal or rebel Angels.

  Jarahmael would take Lillith with him when he would occasionally fly over to watch Adam and Eve’s children grow. He knew that Lillith did not want to be too friendly with either of the other Humans; after all, she had been Adam’s mate in the very beginning. But she was interested in watching the two boys as Eve would take them outside into the fresh air. Lillith did become concerned as her pregnancy lasted longer than that of the Simian females or even Eve’s. But Lillith was also immortal, and both her and Jarahmael concluded that the greater length of time must have had something to do with carrying an Angelic child.

  When the time came for their baby to arrive, Jarahmael flew and brought Eve back to the Sphinx with him. Adam and Eve had developed a deep fondness for Jarahmael, especially when they found out through Lillith that he had sacrificed his place in the Heavens in order to assist them adapt to life on the Earth. And for that both Humans were forever grateful. Jarahmael was touched by their loyalty as well, and he knew they would never knowingly endanger him or his new family.

  On the night of his child’s birth, Jarahmael transported Eve in secret while the rest of the loyal and rebel Angels were back in their respective palaces, and he fulfilled his promise to return her home before sunrise. He did not want Eve punished for assisting him and Lillith. Jarahmael and Lillith named their son Enoch, a child born immortal, a descendant from the pure bloodlines of an Archangel and the First Born Human woman.

  Lillith had never been cursed with death, because she never violated the Almighty's commandment of eating from the fruit of the forbidden tree. Therefore Enoch, too, was not subject to that fate, not being of Adam or Eve's loins. Nor was Lillith cursed with painful child-bearing, as that too was a consequence of Eve's disobedience, so having a child was a pleasurable experience for her and Jarahmael was greatly relieved.

  Enoch was a beautiful child, a combination of the best features of Jarahmael and Lillith. A blue-eyed brown-haired child, he was born long and lean. He had the beginnings of Angel wings on his back, not fully developed, in fact hardly noticeable at that age. Lillith was enamored with the child’s beauty, and despite having little contact with Eve or the Simian females, Lillith did prove to be a good mother. Jarahmael was concerned at times that she paid too much attention to the child, and wanted to protect it from the outside world. Jarahmael knew that Lillith had been through a lot. Her relationship with Adam had not been good, she had been hunted by Luciferael and eventually captured by him, and even Jarahmael himself had abandoned her in his palace in the Seventh Heaven. And most recently she had been held in Hell itself.

  Although the female Sphinx was a safe place for the three of them to live, Jarahmael knew that it was too close to an area very familiar to the Heavenly Host, the pyramids and other Sphinx had at one time been a main hub for Angels working on the Earth, and could be again someday soon for all he knew. He needed to find a more inconspicuous place for them all to live. He also wanted Enoch to be able to interact with the Human offspring of Adam and Eve. Not taking any chances in using a preexisting cave, as it could have some potential connection from Hell or Hades below, Jarahmael constructed a home by burrowing within the hard rock of one of the mountains within view of Adam and Eve’s cave. It was close enough that he could make sure that Enoch could play with the Human children, yet far enough away that it would not be easily seen by Angels or others observing Adam and Eve.

  They definitely needed some distance from Eve, as Lillith and Eve did not get along well. Eve had replaced
Lillith when Lillith had left Adam, so there was a competitive dynamic between them. And Lillith also knew that Jarahmael was cast out of Heaven because he had assisted Adam and Eve directly in violation of the Almighty’s commandment of non-interference. Lillith also believed that Enoch was a much greater Being than any child of Adam and Eve’s, and Lillith took no effort to hide her feelings from Eve about Cain and Abel.

  Adam and Eve did not help remove that feeling of superiority either, as they allowed Cain and Abel to play with the Simian children. Lillith felt that the Simians were an even lesser lot than the Humans, and she tried to keep Enoch away from those children altogether.

  And this dislike between Lillith and the Humans was made worse with Jarahmael's insistence that Enoch spend time with the Humans. The boy needed to understand his Human side and interact with other Human children. Jarahmael, too, tried to spend a great deal of his time with the Half-Angel, Half-Human child. Jarahmael had great concerns about what the Almighty or Luciferael would do about this hybrid creature. Would they let the child live or would they try to destroy him?

  Jarahmael would often take the child with him, feeling that he would be best able to make sure the child remained safe if he was with him. He would take the child flying with him in areas he knew that neither the rebel Angels nor the loyal Angels would patrol. As a result, Enoch saw many strange and wonderful things at tree top level all over the world, flying along on Jarahmael's back. Enoch followed the developmental path of a Human, as Angels weren't born and didn’t grow; they were created, full size and with all of their faculties. Young Enoch did not immediately talk and walk as an Archangel would, but learned as his body matured. His wings were still too undeveloped for him to fly himself, but Jarahmael was patient with him and enjoyed carrying him about when he flew. Jarahmael was sure that as the boy’s wings developed, he would grow stronger and that he would be able to fly on his own someday.