“You know what to do. You know what to expect. In time, this realm and its unending wealth of knowledge will come easy to you. Return often and practice. Concentrate and imagine yourself battling aThorsis. When you feel comfortable doing that, return and taunt him for real. Hunt and chase him down. Use your mind to harm him. If you succeed without losing control, you are ready.”
“Why? Why destroy him?” Yes, I had already asked aAriel that. But why me? Why did she want aThorsis gone? Did all twelve come to an agreement to oust him for finagling with Ariane and me and then time?
“You are destined, written in time, included in every branch created by the time changer.” With that said, she left my side and the overload once again barraged my mind. aAriel should’ve thrown a clue how to escape the Lighted Realm.
Skilled enough to focus for a second, exhaustion setting in long ago, I visualized the Salisbury Crags and JLS sped out of this place. Amazingly, it worked, and the effort drained me of no less energy than a quick sprint through the garden maze. One thing I had learned, Colton tabs were useless in the portal or realms beyond. Celestial beings absorbed energy from other sources like the stars.
A jolting shock almost as mind-blowing as the information overload hit me all at once. My mind cleared instantly like a cleansing meditation atop of the Tibetan mountains. Every image, thought, emotion, the beginning and end of time vanished. Only crystal clarity endured like an ice-cold breath of fresh air blasting my brain. I focused on the array of molecules orbiting around me.
If that wasn’t enough, realization smacked me on the side of my head. A bucket of ice water would’ve had the same effect. This clarity is exactly what I should experience before dethroning aThorsis, or according to aAriel, destroying him. Impossible? Apparently not, as the stones of time had written my destiny from beginning to end, including each and every branch of altered time.
End indeed. If I replaced him, would I then foresee my own destiny, good or bad? Did Tim E. Traveler see enough to guide me away from aThorsis’s reset loops? Were the thirteen aware of this endgame from day one, or had aThorsis seen this destiny only after he toyed with Turian and Julia? Created his own demise—yours truly.
Enough with the insight analysis. To say the least, certain steps had already been set in place to secure my future: find and enter the Lighted Realm, meet a friendly archangel face, and then escape unscathed. Quite the list of accomplishments on the first visit. And practice I would.
Feeling chilled, my clothes burnt to ashes from journeying into the realm, a quick JLS delivered me to my bedroom inside the mansion. The reflection in the mirror caught my eye as I pulled on a robe and glanced at my maleness. What would become of my body if I destroyed aThorsis to become a Lighted One? A sly smile replaced the frown of alarm. Guess sacrifices would have to be made. No other archangel possessed a body unless they borrowed one from the Malakhim when they left the Lighted Realm. Would I? Perhaps not, because Tim E. Traveler always appeared as himself dressed in the Scottish warrior garb.
My gaze refocused on the mirror when a glimmer caught my eye. From the side part down the entire length of my hair, a streak glowed a deep saffron hue. My fingers stroked the strands that felt warm to the touch. Certainty struck me as if I had known this detail most of my life: my future angelic color foreshadowed opalescent hues of gold, amber, and maybe even a hint of orange topaz. I smiled at the mirror. No need to taint the warm color on a blinding destructive path. I now knew how to deal with aThorsis.
22
Launched a Thousand Malakhim
T he bombardment experienced in the Lighted Realm haunted me for days. Seven to be exact. Also, a personal nemesis had troubled my thoughts since the visit. Nerves sizzled, certain aThorsis would retaliate if he hadn’t already done so. No rest for the weary without something to help me concentrate, keep me preoccupied. I spent a few hours on a steampunk project, tinkering on the small table clock, the one I had given Sabree before traveling back in time. The hobby afforded me a moment of peace and quiet to contemplate on what took place within the realm. That was until a gear wobbled every time I tried to insert it into a tight spot. The tweezers shook between my fingers.
“Bollocks!” The tweezers flipped out of my hand and shot clock pieces off the desk. Chinking gears sprinkled across the floor. I leaned over until my nose squeezed against the wood, which puffed a whiff of mahogany polished a thousand times over with lemony wax up my nose.
The miniature parts sprinkled across the floor. The scattered mess reminded me of what aAriel had said about my body fragmenting into pieces. Apparently, not just anyone could enter the Lighted Realm by crossing a border or entering a doorway. They had to become one with the realm. It happened many times when aThorsis left our world in haste. So instead of shattering, my body burst into an array of light and I had become part of the realm itself. But how? How did I change? How am I whole now?
In the portal, the revolutions I flew in spun tighter and tighter until my body whirled in place over a single point of light. That point of light must have been me. The Lighted One aAriel didn’t worry if I’d ever return. Somehow, she knew I would figure it out. While eager to test the theory, I refused to go back so soon. Rest and replenish must come first before I overcame the foreboding of a return visit.
The inevitable would come soon enough. In the meantime, certain aThorsis might avenge my boldness, another reason to worry twisted my insides. What if he harmed family or friends? Or what if he destroyed the planet to stop me from trespassing into the realm again. He knew I had the power to enter his domain, but hopefully, he had no idea how poorly I had adjusted to the realm and had to work on improving. Just thinking about the place made my mind implode with a massive migraine.
Since the visit numerous wildfires in areas not known for such devastation, erupted in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia and Northern Vermont. Coincidence? Or did aThorsis punish my intrusion by roasting Mother Earth? Officials reported extensive lightning strikes caused the inferno although no thunderstorms were registered. The fires destroyed thousands of acres even after weeks of steady rain. It had to be the slime ball’s work. My payback would cost him big time. “Fight me you coward.”
If not enough, Cayiel had connected with the Fallen through widespan telepathy used only for emergencies. He warned of a massive Malakhim attack that threatened to wipe out all life on Earth beginning with the Fallen.
“Why is this happening?” Sabree cried. “The Malakhim are supposed to preserve life at all costs.”
Funny, but I never heard him come inside the office. “Until they were called upon to do the bidding of a Lighted One gone sour. Dirty pool of aThorsis to use peaceful beings to destroy life at whim.” No other choice existed except to stop the Malakhim without dusting them. aThorsis knew how hard the task would be. I closed my eyes to focus.
Sabree shook my shoulder. “What are you going to do about it? You claimed the ability to dust more than half the Malakhim. Can’t you stop them? What’s different this time?”
“Me. I’m different.” I stood straight up, knocking the chair into the back shelf. My senses exploded. The winged army had already begun their charge. Blundered, murdered thousands of humans in less populated areas. I spun in place to face Sabree. “They’re already here. Take everyone down below. Now!” I yanked open the top drawer of the desk, ripped into the bag of Colton tabs, and shoved a handful into my mouth.
Chewing, my cheeks bulging like a squirrel’s, I pulled a double-take when my gaze fell on the door. Sabree was still standing there with arms folded across his chest. I dashed toward him, and together, we flew down the basement stairs. Then I sped around the mansion to collect everyone else and repeated the same hasty deposit. At the bottom of the stairs, flailing bodies yelled up at me, demanding an explanation. I offered only one.
“Because Sabree took his sweet-ass time, I had to zip around at nearly light speed to gather and toss you all into the safety zone. Thousands of humans have already died.
Stay here!” I slid the secret door shut to block their puzzled faces.
Alerts flashed one after the other. From every direction, Malakhim flew out of portal breaches into Earth’s atmosphere. Their attacks spread far and wide. Then my mind exploded with a thunderous warning—a red alert.
An amassing army of nearly half a million advanced on Europe. My hand pressed on the basement door as if they could touch those inside one last time. Would I ever see family and friends again? Engaged in JLS would shove me pointblank down the army’s throat. Or there about. Meet the army halfway, block their path. Before leaving, I slid the secret switch to lock the door.
I, along with four wings of nightfall, appeared in the sky above the Netherlands. The streak of hairs glowing an amber fire fell into my eyes. A quick shake flipped the strands aside. I almost flipped over myself as the incredibly dreamlike spectacle approached from the north.
Portals, more than countable, opened in unison. Launched a thousand Malakhim in my direction. At first, the whiteness of their combined wings momentarily blinded my sightline. The rows they formed, one after the other, brilliant yet foreboding, created a storm-like atmosphere. The sky radiated stark white with Malakhim. Lightning bolts shot from their fingertips, torching everything in their path. The Norwegian Sea below sizzled.
Incredible and frightful at once, never had I witnessed or imagined such an unearthly invasion. My telepathic voice roared, “Stop!”
The leader came forward, her army positioned behind her.
“Loree?” She ignored my recognition. She had always led a few, but never had I imagined the numbers to be in the millions. So, the gang’s all here.
“aThorsis warned me that you would try to stop us. He said you could destroy every one of us with a single thought. He also promised you would not do so.”
Unfortunately, in this case, aThorsis had spoken the truth. But then the Lighted One, his nose deep into his own shit, lacked imagination. “True. But I can still stop you nonetheless.” In fact, I had already done so. The entire army gathered around as we spoke. What was expected next, made me cringe.
“You shall fail.” Like her own, every soldier’s eyes smoldered red. Loree ordered the army to attack. “Kill the dark one!”
Thousands, perhaps millions of minds bombarded mine in chorus. From inside out, the urgency to disintegrate my cells, blow me apart in every direction prickled at first. I refused to permit them a secondary outcome and readied myself to blast the Malakhim with a counterattack of my own before one molecule of my body scattered to all ends of the Earth. Literally but not likely.
The lessons learned in the Lighted Realm should save me, this combined force nowhere near as volatile. I squeezed my eyes shut to mentally prepare and then opened them with renewed energy. Apart from the leader, my mind blasted the army with one tenth of the power amassed inside my being.
Waves of destructive energy rolled over each row of Malakhim, scattering them the way a leaf blower blew dead leaves into the neighbor’s yard. Aye, we all do it. Nowhere near enough power to dust them; yet, more than enough to drain the electrical wisps that bulked up their appendages.
Screams pierced my ears. The whiteness sparked a brilliant crimson before the sky went black. The ozone layer burned with the caustic bite of one massive electrical fire. My sinuses stung. The rows of Malakhim fell from the sky, dropping to the sea below or retreating into portals. The sea bubbled from the heat diffused by each pair of wings. Thousands.
Loree stared at me with unblinking eyes.
“Apparently, aThorsis forgot to warn you about the wee power I could shove up your asses.” My eyes radiated heat, the amber glow in them white hot. Another gift gained from my first visit to the realm. Those same orbs ignited and shot a beam aimed just for her. Loree fled into the portal that opened from behind. “Aye, my apologies, lass.” Nothing good could come from sparring with Sabree’s mum. Let another relish in that glory.
Remnant soldiers awarded me with a slight nod as they flew by before leaping into their own portals. The lot curious or full of admiration, who knew? Not only did I scorch this army’s wings, but every legion attacking elsewhere. Earth was safe for the moment.
Later that night, the newscasters chalked it up to an unusual, deadly storm. Thousands lost because of it. Local governments blamed it on a new weapon. None of that my concern, thankful no one launched a drone that far out to sea, my concern turned to what aThorsis might do next? I got lucky. Maybe not so lucky next time.
Worse than the news, the entire household refused to speak to me. So maybe they weren’t in any real danger, but I refused to take a chance on their lives. Nor did I bother to explain why I acted so harshly. No regrets here.
23
War and Peace
P atricide. Latin for killing one’s father. How Sabree wished he had found the nerve to commit the crime so many times. If he succeeded, however, the Malakhim would find reason to keep him imprisoned on Earth. Forever. Bury that thought away.
And buried it deep he did, as deep as this underground salt cathedral he now stood in. The image of the Chapel of St. Kinga had appeared in Sabree’s mind moments ago. Curiosity often got him in trouble, but he sensed good will from the receiver. He misted to the destination, a familiar voice calling him like a siren to the sea, to the Wieliczka Salt Mines. Polish miners created these spectacular chambers to attract hordes of tourists. Late night should find him alone. Earthly alarms would not detect his presence.
Sabree hesitated when the chapel’s overhead chandeliers sputtered on and brightened the massive chamber, a winter wonderland of salt crystals instead of ice. His gaze skated across the intricately carved floor to the enormous pulpit on the opposite side. Impressive altars, beautifully chiseled sculptures, and bas-reliefs hugged the walls. His appreciation of religious art focused on the salt rendition of Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper relief until his Fallen senses caught whiff of a another.
The lone figure stood with arms crossed, a scowl marring his angelic features. Farian spoke to him telepathically. “Word has it that you’re looking for me.”
Farian’s likeness to Turian churned Sabree’s gut. His father never liked the humans, nor their voices. To mock the man he despised, Sabree answered aloud. “I was tasked to seek your whereabouts. I have no desire to meet or speak with you.”
“Before you leave…”
Sabree stopped in mid-mist, surprised to hear the sound of his father’s voice reaching his ears instead of sounding off inside his head. Dumbstruck, he just stared.
“Forgive me, my son.” The voice filled the chamber. Farian uncrossed his arms and steepled his fingers so the tips pressed against his lips as in prayer. He then lowered and outstretched them as if wishing for a hug.
A hug that would never come. “Son?” Sabree asked. “Don’t think me a fool. I’m an Original like you. What do you want?”
“It’s about Brian. My nephew is an overachiever. He attacked the Malakhim. Bold foolery.”
“I’m aware. How much damage did he cause?”
“If your concerns lie with your mother, she survived. As well as did most of her legion. Loree asked that I meet with you. She wants to see you.”
“She need not go through you to find me.” Whenever he looked in a mirror, Sabree saw his mother. And, only when in a playful mood, did he possess her green eyes.
“Loree is afraid of Brian. We all are.”
Sabree sensed true fear in his father. Smelled it. “Well, I’m not.” Or was he fooling himself? Brian could crush an army of Malakhim with a mere thought. He sent Abyss to a Dark One. He captured White Ghost. All things only a Lighted One could do and survive.
“You should be afraid. The Fallen are no match for Brian. Neither are the Malakhim. Your mother has a plan. Will you hear her out?”
“Is she here?”
The room brightened. Sabree whirled around to stare at Loree with her wings spread out. The ethereal presence of his mother uplifted his spirit. But recent
events knocked him back to reality. “Why are the Malakhim attacking Earth?”
Her voice filled his head. “I cannot stay long. Hear me out. Only you can save us. If you agree, our Lighted One will grant your utmost wish to rejoin our flock. You will be forgiven and hold purpose again. Please obey and rejoin me, my son.”
The calling chilled him to the core, almost like the summoning of a Lighted One. The overwhelming sensation implored him to join her, the request real. No way could this be a ploy of Farian’s. No mistake about it. Yet, something was amiss. Sabree, a mere Fallen, could not help the Malakhim. Only another Lighted One could truly save them from Brian.
Amidst all her splendor, Sabree answered, “But how?” His telepathic voice weak, he spoke aloud. “From what I’ve seen, Brian is invincible. He withstands the portal worlds. Destroys at will.”
Loree held out a hand. Similar to a glow worm, a celestial spiral wiggled in her palm. “An archangel’s curse. A Lighted One entrusted it to us. Make sure it stays with Brian at all times. It will weaken him.”
The otherworldly curse promised to suck away Brian’s powers. But what of Ariane? His mother made no mention of her. Was she not a threat as well?
“Give me your hand. Hurry. I must return.”
“Tell me why I should listen to you. What about the other twin?”
Her wings blinded him momentarily as if angered, her eyes aflame. “She was conceived before a Lighted One possessed Turian. It bequeathed all to Brian.” Loree reached for his arm and squeezed until his fist opened. She pressed the curse into his hand. “Take it. Redeem yourself. Join me, Sabree.”
The bright light gone, Sabree’s eyes took a moment to adjust. He stared at the Last Supper. Twelve apostles and the son of God. Thirteen. The number of Lighted Ones. His upper lip twisted as he glanced down at the celestial worm, the archangel curse. More than likely Athorsis gave it to Loree. Sabree’s gaze lifted back to the three-dimensional bas-relief where Judas held the bag of silver.
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