Just as he was turning his attention back to his flight path, Alan caught movement from the between the Temple pillars. A streak—someone flying towards him at a speed so fast he couldn’t gauge. Ardat’s ability to manipulate gravity lent her the ability to fly, regardless of her lack of wings. She appeared next to Alan within seconds.
“Haste will not lend you strength during this time,” Ardat said without even looking at Alan. “If you are to have any chance at all, you’ll need to learn to cool that temper of yours.”
Alan looked the former member of the Fallen race up and down. “I didn’t ask you to come.”
Ardat barked a laugh as she turned her dark eyes to Alan. “Trust me, I’m not doing this for you.”
“Then spare me,” Alan said trying to reign in his temper, “I don’t want or need your help.”
“You’re wrong when it comes to the ‘needing’ part. However, I believe you when you say you don’t ‘want’ my help because you are a fool.”
“Listen, if you came to insult me—”
“I came to assist you,” Ardat said with a softer tone, “It is what Michael would want. Artemis cannot leave her Temple, Esther and Gideon need to dole out new orders to the angelic core, and Danielle… That girl is too confused by her emotions for you to know what she wants. Who else is left?”
Ardat’s last words regarding Danielle shocked Alan. “What are you talking about? Danielle and I are just friends, nothing more.”
Ardat looked at Alan and rolled her eyes. “Oh, the naivety of youth. You have a lot to learn not only about being the Horseman of War but about women, Alan Price.”
Alan moved to open his mouth but Ardat cut him off, “Before you ramble on with meaningless reasons you don’t agree with me or need my help, do you know which way you are going?”
“Of course I do,” Alan said with a sigh of exasperation, “I’m going to the Statue. Michael said to look there for answers to how Gabriel has managed to become so strong.”
“And which direction would that be?” she asked.
Alan had never been savvy with directions, even before he was chosen as a Horseman. He pointed forward and waived his finger in the general direction of their flight path. “This way-ish.”
“You’ll need more than a wandering finger to find the Statue. Knowledge will be even more important if you are to discover the truth behind Gabriel’s power.”
The way Ardat spoke made Alan wonder if she already knew. He hated to admit, he needed her help. “You know how Gabriel became so strong, don’t you?”
“I have my suspicions.”
---
The rest of the flight with Ardat was spent in uncomfortable silence. Calling Ardat an ally would be a stretch. As Alan flew beside, her he thought of the reasons the demon couldn’t be trusted. She had already betrayed the Light, choosing to side with the Usurper when the war in heaven waged. Her supposed love for Michael was the only reason she was helping Alan now. Alan decided that he would have to keep a wary eye on his traveling companion’s every move.
Despite his lack of trust in Ardat, Alan was forced to allow her to take the lead as they neared their destination. From his studies on the Seven Wonders, Alan knew the Statue of Zeus had been erected in a temple in Olympia, Greece. He also remembered that a fire destroyed the site in the fifth century. For all he knew, they would be looking for another destroyed piece of land much like the Temple of Artemis when he first found it.
But for the reason yet to be seen, Gabriel chose to remake the Temple, perhaps the Statue would also be made whole again. Alan chose to voice his concerns to Ardat to see if she could shed any light on the events surrounding the Temple’s resurrection. “Why do you think Gabriel used the spell to rebuild the Temple?”
Ardat didn’t respond. Alan waited a few moments to determine whether she was thinking or if she hadn’t heard his question at all. Just as he was about to ask her again, she spoke. “Gabriel hates humans. He hates the way the Creator cares for them. The concept of selfless and complete love is lost on him. He blames humans for destroying much of our heritage. It would make sense that Gabriel remade what was once lost to us, erecting the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World when he separated the human and supernatural planes of existence.”
Alan swallowed hard as he thought of a reality where humans would be destroyed altogether. “You—you don’t think Gabriel could have, killed off the human race, do you?”
Ardat shook her head sending her already wind-tossed black hair into even more of a waving frenzy. “No, no matter how strong he has become, even that is beyond him. No power outside of the Creator could destroy the human populace. More than likely Gabriel has removed human interference in preparation for the war he is going to wage.”
Ardat spoke as if everything she said was the truth. No sorrow or worry laced her words. It was simply how she saw things, as fact. For Alan, the news struck a deeper note. He still thought of himself as human, or at least partially human. “It can be reversed though, right?” Alan was afraid to ask the question but ignorance seemed like a poor reason to withhold his words.
“If it is a spell as we suspect,” Ardat said slowing her forward momentum, “it can be undone.”
Alan let out a sigh. Relief was a feeling he hadn’t experienced much of lately. “Why are you slowing down?”
Ardat looked at him then stared off into the distance. Her non-response made Alan follow her gaze. Below him the Greek landscape played out in a mix of ancient and modern buildings. One structure in particular caught his eye. It was an ancient temple. Much like the Temple of Artemis, the structure was made up of large pillars. Unlike the Temple, it was smaller in width and not as tall.
Alan followed Ardat as she touched down feet from the entrance. If she encountered any kind of amazement at the structure, she hid her thoughts well. Alan couldn’t help but let his jaw hang low as they walked into the building. Alan had to remind himself over and over again to breath as he entered the temple.
Inside, the light of the sun faded and gave way to torches lit among the many sconces on the pillars and walls. It was evident that the structure served only one purpose: to house the Statue of Zeus. The temple itself paled in comparison to the statue. Over forty feet tall, the monument was sculpted to depict the Greek god sitting on his throne. The Statue’s head nearly crested the temple’s ceiling.
Alan was so taken with the statue, he failed to see the man who stood before it. Alan jolted when Ardat’s voice broke the stillness. “I thought you would be here, Raphael. Or should I call you ‘Poseidon’?”
The man didn’t turn. Alan couldn’t see much of him but from his back, Alan could tell he was tall with thick, unkempt, greyish hair. A low, defeated voice responded to Ardat’s words. “Do not speak to me, demon.”
Ardat stopped yards from the man, giving him a wide berth. “The Statue stands again. Michael needs your help if he is to defeat Gabriel.”
Alan could hear himself swallow in the silence that grew after Ardat’s words. Raphael stood motionless. He would have been tall if his shoulders did not slump forward as if he was carrying an invisible cross. His disheveled grey hair fell just past his neck. Alan couldn’t help but feel the hope that had been growing in his chest diminish. The leader of the Archangels, by all appearances, was turning out to be a vagrant.
“I forgot how much the Statue looked like Michael,” Raphael said. The volume of his voice was low as if he were speaking to himself more so than Ardat or Alan.
Alan broke his gaze from the Archangel to reexamine the Statue. Raphael was right. Beyond the curly hair and beard covering the face of Zeus, Alan could see similarities. The high cheekbones, square face and piercing eyes belonged to his friend, Michael.
Alan tensed as Ardat exhaled so loudly, it nearly echoed through the temple. “If the Statue has been remade, odds are Gabriel has also resurrected the other Wonders of the Ancient World. We can lose no time, Raphael. Whatever your past, whatever our issues, you must lo
ok past them now if Michael—”
“Enough,” Raphael said with disgust as he finally turned to face them. Whatever Alan was expecting to see, Raphael looked far worse than he had imagined. Along with a wild mane of hair, a thick shock of grey beard grew from his chin and cheeks. Any part of Raphael not covered in hair was smeared with what looked like layers of dirt. His clothes matched his appearance, giving off a slight stench that made Alan’s nose wrinkle in revulsion. Raphael’s right hand quaked with a spasm as he continued, “I gave you my answer. Too much has been lost in the name of the Light. I cannot help you.”
The look in Raphael’s eyes was so final, Alan almost turned to leave. Ardat must have seen the resolve in his face as well. With a snarl and a shake of her head, she stalked out of the temple.
Alan cleared his throat as he locked eyes with Raphael. His lips and the walls of his mouth were drier than he could ever remember. He searched for words in vain. Nothing he came up with seemed appropriate. Alan opened his mouth and said the first thing that came to his mind. “What was lost?”
Raphael grasped his right hand that still shook with his left in an effort to sooth his tremor. Alan wasn’t sure he was going to get a response. Doubt overtook him as he watched his opportunity to do something as a leader slip away. Then Raphael answered, “Life…was lost.” Hands still clasped together, he ran tired eyes up and down Alan’s frame. “I do not recognize you as either angel or demon.”
Alan shook his head, “That’s because I’m not. My name is Alan Price. I was chosen as the Horseman of War during this one thousand year cycle.”
Raphael nodded as if he expected this to be the answer.
“Gabriel is back and more powerful than ever. If we are going to stand a chance, we need your help, Raphael.”
“You do not know what you ask, Alan Price.”
“I know: a war is not coming, it’s already started. If we are to have any hope of winning this war, we need your help.”
Raphael’s right hand ceased its tremble. He lowered it to his side once again as he stared past Alan. His eyes glossed over as memories of the past bombarded his thoughts. “No one ‘wins’ a war, Alan Price.”
“Then help us be the side that loses less,” Alan said. His voice bordered on a plea. The idea of Alan finding Raphael and him joining the fight against Gabriel was quickly vanishing.
“There were once seven Archangels,” Raphael said still staring into the past. “Six others besides myself whom I loved without pause. They were more than friends or brothers and sisters; they were a part of me. When the war in heaven began, three chose the side of the Usurper. My heart broke when I heard the news. It shattered over the coming years as I killed my own kind all in the name of the Light.”
Tears gathered in Raphael’s eyes as he continued to tell his story. His voice grew so thick with sorrow Alan strained to understand him. “I killed them. I killed so many of them. Most I took with my trident, others I strangled with my bare hands. I took everything from them as they struggled to breath and choked out their pleas to live. I denied them their chance at forgiveness and instead condemned them to an eternity of hell.”
Anything Alan could say seemed to pale in comparison to the words that fell from Raphael’s mouth with such intense grief. “I cannot imagine what you sacrificed so I won’t try. But you must have found some reason to continue fighting for the Light. You were present when the angels and demons fought on the earth again under the disguise of Greek deities. That must have been centuries after the war in heaven came to an end.”
Raphael blinked a few times reeling his mind back from the events of the long ago. Tears fell from his eyes and making stains down his dirty face until they were lost in the forest of his beard. “I did. That was the last time I took up arms against my own kind. It was then that I did what I should have done from the beginning. I relinquished my power as an Archangel. That was when I realized history is doomed to repeat itself. Time is nothing more than a wheel bent on moving forward. Whether the Usurper or Gabriel, there will always be someone bent on destruction.”
Alan couldn’t believe the words he was hearing. The once greatest angel in heaven now stood before him as a shadow of the being he was. Not only was Raphael defeated; he was so twisted and bent from his grief, no sign of the Archangel was left in him. Alan licked his lips in preparation to speak, yet before he could form the words, Raphael cleared his throat and shook his head. “Nothing you say will change what I know to be true. Not when the faces of those I killed haunt me day and night.”
With those words, Raphael turned towards the entrance to the temple and began to walk away. Frustration—not at the angel, but at his own inability to communicate—built inside Alan. What could he say that would bring relief to a soul in the midst of such despair? The thought came to Alan like a lightening bolt. With renewed resolve, he ran to catch up with Raphael.
It was impossible for the angel not to hear him coming. Though he did not quicken or shorten his pace, neither did he acknowledge Alan when he came skidding to a halt next to him. The words came out of Alan’s mouth in one breath. “Raphael, I know there is hope for you. You know this as well or you would not have come to the Statue. I’m not giving up on you. Maybe you already have but you can’t decide that for me.”
The slightest pause interrupted Raphael’s step. So slight was the act that Alan wondered if he imagined it altogether. But it had happened. For the first time since their meeting, Raphael was struck by something Alan said.
As Raphael continued past Alan without a reply, Alan’s lips grew into a wide smile. “A strange time to be smiling, Horseman,” Ardat said siding up to Alan.
Alan turned, his smile still intact. “Maybe.” Realization hit Alan again and his smile grew in size.
Ardat took a step backwards as though she were wounded by a physical blow. Her eyes looked him up and down, “What is wrong with you?”
“Nothing,” Alan said as began to follow Raphael to wherever the angel was going. “I just realized not only is there still hope for Raphael, but you’re still here, too.”
Chapter Ninety-Three
Michael and Seraphim followed Kyle and Triana as they moved through the new world void of any human life. It was unnerving to say the least. When Gabriel evoked the power of the spell, Michael considered returning to the Temple of Artemis to strategize a new plan. However, he knew if he did so then Kyle would be left to fend for himself once he and Triana reached Gabriel.
Michael knew he couldn’t allow that to happen. Kyle placed his trust in both Michael and Seraphim. There was no going back now. The Archangel and the leader of the Death Angels stayed far enough back so as not to cause alarm nevertheless were wary not to let their prey escape their sight.
Traveling with Seraphim was like traveling alone. The woman spoke only when spoken to or when events required a council. Other than that, Michael was left to his own thoughts, thoughts that led back to Ardat. It was while he was considering their future together—if they had a future together—Seraphim called a halt. “They are stopping for the night.”
Michael blinked a few times having been torn from his thoughts and followed Seraphim’s line of sight. As always, she was right. For two days they tracked Kyle and Triana as the two made their way back to Gabriel. Neither the Nephilim nor the Fallen was blessed with the ability of flight or speed. Kyle could only mimic a nearby supernatural being’s power and Triana was a shape-shifter. This worked for and against Michael. They would be easy to track however it would take them days, perhaps even longer, to reach their destination.
For the last two days Michael and Seraphim maintained their distance. It was aggravating to travel so slow when both Michael and his traveling companion were able to fly. She would never complain but Michael knew the pace and waiting was also taking its toll on Seraphim. Anger boiled so close to her surface, he often discovered her with a scowl on her face as they traveled.
Michael found the need to break the silence and plac
ate Seraphim that night as they sat down near a rock outcropping and kept vigil over Kyle and Triana’s campsite. “Peace, Seraphim. We will find Gabriel soon enough.”
“I didn’t say anything, Michael,” Seraphim said without taking her eyes from the fire that flickered in Kyle and Triana’s encampment.
“Words are not the only source of communication,” Michael said. He was certain that would be the end of their conversation. He was shocked when Seraphim took it upon herself to continue the dialogue.
“So much has changed. You know this just as well as I do. When Gabriel evoked the spell he shifted the human plain and separated it from our own. Who knows what else he has done or to whom of ours he has done it to.”
Michael mulled over her words before he responded. “Even Gabriel’s power has limits. Whatever he has done can be undone. We’ll find a way to overcome him.”
“Yes, I believe we will,” Seraphim licked her lips and struggled to find her next words. It was an act Michael had never witnessed in the Death Angel. “The events unfolding, we can overcome or reverse. However, those injured or those that will fall in the process … that is something we must live with.”
Realization shook Michael as he looked beyond Seraphim’s words and discovered her true meaning. She was worried about someone. Michael knew he needed to traverse carefully or run the risk of her shutting down completely. As it was, this was the most Seraphim had spoken during the course of their entire journey. “I know what you mean. I shoulder the responsibility of my actions and weigh their consequences every day. All we can do is live each day like it is our last and treat those around us as such.”
Seraphim brushed a lock of her rogue red hair from her vision. A scar ran down the right side of her face—paired with her burned wing, they were a token of Gabriel’s hatred for the Light. “I want you to know that I will kill Gabriel when we meet him. There will be no trial. I won’t give him the opportunity to disfigure or kill anyone ever again.”
The Complete Archangel Wars Series: A Shared Universe Series (The Archangel Wars) Page 40
