A light so bright that I am blinded floods my eyes. My wings stop flapping and my heart nearly ceases its beating in my chest. I collapse from the air onto the now metallic floor with a harsh thud.
“You designed me to rebel,” Lucifer says. “If you wanted perfect obedience, then you had no business creating me with free will.”
I press my hand to my face, amidst the sparkling rays of light. The former Prince stands on the floor looking up toward the platform where the throne lies. In front of the large golden throne appears to be a wingless angel sitting upon a throne.
Gabriel places his hand on my shoulder and lifts me up.
The One on the throne looks toward me and smiles. He nods a greeting.
Before I know what I am doing, my mouth answers Lucifer’s accusation. “There can be no obedience without free will.”
“How dare you interrupt us,” Lucifer turns toward me. “I don’t care what He says, you aren’t worthy to be in this place.”
“I was once told, my star would chart its course,” I say. “And here I am.”
“Indeed,” Gabriel says. “We all have our role to play.”
“Shut up,” Lucifer says. “I didn’t come to speak with either of you.”
“I don’t think the Origin really cares who you came to speak with,” Gabriel says. “You didn’t set the foundations of the universe did you?”
“Yes,” I say. “You pride yourself for taking life and converting it to death. That is not creation. That is perversion.”
Lucifer clinches his fists together so tight, his shoulders vibrate. “I will be like the Most High!”
A smile peers out on my lips. “No, no you really won’t.”
Lucifer turns toward the Origin. “Why do you not speak for yourself? Are you so weak that you would allow these two to speak for you?”
“You never got it,” I say.
Gabriel shakes his head.
I continue. “The Origin, all powerful, can do whatever he wills, but he finds pleasure when we act on his behalf. He created us with a purpose and he loves to see us fulfill that destiny. He enjoys when his creation stands up and honors him, the ultimate form of worship.”
The Origin’s eyes sparkle as they watch me speak. I feel a sense of joy flood my veins, a feeling that my body grows more whole with each passing moment. He is pleased with me and it spurs me on to be bolder.
I step forward toward Lucifer. “In your pride, you made this all about you, but it was never about your petty concerns. No, this is about creation fulfilling its role, being obedient to his call that He placed on each of us.”
Gabriel walks alongside me. “When we step out of that call, we find nothing but emptiness.”
“You both should talk,” Lucifer says. “You who were controlled by your own desires for vengeance and blood.”
Gabriel shakes his head. “It only showed us how much better His will is for us.”
Lucifer draw’s his sword and squares off against me. “I beat you both once before, but today I will finish the job.”
“Don’t do this,” I say. “He has granted you mercy, but if you don’t stop now, you will spend the rest of eternity snipping at his heels only to be ultimately crushed under his foot.”
I draw my sword. Flames rise from my skin.
Gabriel rips out his knife.
Lucifer leaps toward us, his light shining, but now that our eyes have grown so accustomed to the light of the Origin’s presence, his light is barely even perceptible.
The former prince swings his blade at Gabriel who blocks it. Lucifer jabs again and Gabriel dodges, falling backward onto the floor.
I grab Lucifer’s neck with my flaming hand and throw him onto the ground. I hold my hand there while he screams. I remove my hand and press my sandal onto his chest.
“I knew she’d die,” Lucifer says, his burned mouth causing a hiss sound as he speaks. “I sent Sal, that day you were found in the Oasis to declare war on the Rogues. I knew they would come during the Acceptance.”
My flames burst higher.
“I knew her death would draw you to my service.”
I grit my teeth.
“I knew because Sal told me. That’s right, your best friend told me your weakness.”
“Michael,” Gabriel says.
I ignore him. My eyes planted firmly on the one who has caused me so much pain.
“Don’t you just hate me?” Lucifer asks. “Don’t you deserve your vengeance?”
“I will not defile His presence with your impure blood.” I push him to the ground. I thrust my sword back into its scabbard and then stand at attention before the Origin.
Gabriel smiles.
The Origin stands and glares directly at Lucifer. “You were filled with violence.”
His deep voice booms throughout the halls. His tone so horrible and terrifying that I drop to the ground onto the now soft sand beneath me. My legs shake as the grains cling to my skin.
“I banish you in disgrace from my temple, and I expelled you from the fiery stones. You were proud and now you are nothing.”
The room around us shakes and trembles with each word he speaks.
“So I throw you to the earth, that place you desire so much. But instead of royalty, I will make a spectacle of you before kings. The nations will look at you and mock, surely this isn’t the once great accuser of the world?”
Silence returns.
I don’t know how long I lay prostrate on the ground, but I don’t dare rise until I feel a strong grip pull my on arm.
He lifts me up and I now stand before the Creator of the universe. I look into His fierce eyes. They soften.
“Well done,” He says. “You have been good and faithful.”
With that he turns from me and returns to his throne.
“Michael,” a feminine voice calls to me.
“Terra,” I say.
She stands before me more beautiful than my memories. Her bright red robes flow behind her as if carried by some imperceptible wind. The smile on her face mirrors the grin of my own heart. She reaches out and I pull her into my arms for a long embrace.
“I am so proud of you,” she whispers into my ear.
“I missed you,” I say. “Every single breath I took.”
“I know, and I have been watching you the whole journey.”
“But you died,” I say. “How are you here?”
“You asked where our dead go,” she says. “We come here, to worship in His presence.”
Terra and I laugh for a few moments recounting the journey. Moments pass by quickly as we enjoy each other’s presence.
I hear another familiar laugh join us. Deep and gruff, I turn to see him.
“Uriel,” I say.
He pulls me in for a hug. “Tell my girl I have been watching her.”
Lucifer’s pathetic body still sprawls out along the stone. “I will never submit!”
He spits out more curses at the Origin. I turn my attention from him and glance at the Creator. I know instantly what I must do.
Still, I don’t want to pull away. This is a point in my journey so wonderful that I never would have even imagined possible.
“You must,” Terra says. “Angels are meant for a life of service to the Origin.”
I nod but I just can’t let go of her soft hands. “If I leave, can I ever come back to you?”
“His mercy seat is always open,” she says. “And I’m always here. The Origin destined us to be together, didn’t he?”
“Two from one,” I say.
She echoes, “Two from one.”
I turn to Gabriel who releases from the embrace of another angel with long flowing jet black hair. Rebekah. His cheeks are covered with tears. He wipes his eyes and walks toward Lucifer.
I join him and the two of us lift the pathetic traitor up off the ground. I address the former prince for the last time.
“It’s time for Gabriel and I to show you out. For Lucifer, you are cast down.”
Chapter Forty-Three
The New Creation
EVERYTHING IN THIS GARDEN is beautiful, pleasant, and inviting. I sit back against the rock and play a tune with the new pipe that Celles crafted for me from the remnants of the knives I once used during my dark time in the dungeons. The notes cheerfully fill the ears of the other angels who swarm in and out of the garden.
Today we celebrate for more reasons than just one.
I won’t say that the war did not have adverse effects. There are nights that I still wake up remembering the horror that I felt during different points in this journey. But it isn’t my confinement in the dungeons or even the losses of loved ones that torments me now. It’s the memory of what it felt like to be so distant from the Origin.
Now that Lucifer’s tyranny has ended and our access to the Origin has been restored, I realize that the real reason for much of my pain was not the circumstance but rather His absence. We can endure any hurt and find meaning despite what happens around us as long as we are serving the Origin’s purpose. His throne room will be forever open for us to enter and commune with him.
The pup of my breed charges through the underbrush and greets me with his sandpaper tongue. I reach out and pet his eager cheek much like I did his father before him. Having now shed his youth, he stands, full grown, strong, and majestic.
“Your kind has a special place among the animals,” I say. “Your father, even as a mere created animal, stood against the evil of Satan himself and died a selfless death. I pray your proud history will be forever remembered.”
My words, of course, are lost on the pup, but I speak the blessing over the animal all the same.
I remember the battles and the bloodshed as I caress the animal’s mane. The moments are a distant memory now and much of what took place already starts to vanish from memory.
Auro tasked the Scribes with memorializing the entirety of the war so that the horrible mistakes that were made will never be mindlessly repeated.
I often see Satan wandering aimlessly throughout the planet, but he is only a meager shadow of his former self. One would never guess that he occupied such a lofty perch as the Prince of the Earth.
Satan hunches as he walks and is often found cowering behind or beneath random objects. His band of followers, one third of all the stars in the sky, still give him credibility despite his madness. They obey his commands and cling to the hope of the Origin’s power crumbling before them. A hope that we, who can see clearly, know to be utterly foolish.
Perhaps it is because they did not see their leader cower before the power of the Almighty like we did. Or even worse, maybe they, like him, are too bound up in their own pride to admit they were wrong. Whatever the reason, the spite and hatred of these demons for all of God’s creation is clear and obvious.
The Origin took note. He created a veil separating us from the creation. Invisible, unfelt, and unseen by his new creations, we can only pass through that veil under very specific circumstances. Circumstances, which for now, seem to include me giving joy to the animals.
“He is finished,” Terra says motioning me forward.
The Origin himself stands in the garden with us bringing the entirety of his presence onto Earth for a time.
I grab Terra’s hand and we step toward Auro and Christine.
“It’s His final work,” Auro says. “With this, His final plan sets into motion.”
“I make mankind in my image,” the Origin says. “They are destined to rule over all other designs on the land or in the sea.”
Man, naked like an animal, rises up from sleep into a sitting position. He draws his hands to his eyes, and rubs them. He looks up toward the Origin and smiles.
“It is good,” the Origin says.
The angels crowd around him, examining his features. He looks much like us, though he is bound by the gravity of the Earth. Also, he doesn’t appear to see us.
The Origin calls to me. “Bring him your breed. Let him be the first of the animals.”
For a moment I pause.
What will the man do with my breed? Is this man a predator? The pups father died such a tragic death, and I don’t want to see more harm done to his child.
But I trust the Origin and I oblige.
I stoop down and whisper into the ear of the young creature. “Go on. Go to the man.”
The breed sniffs at my face and then meanders its way toward the man.
The Origin’s new creation kneels down beside the animal and the breed mirrors him, falling back on its tail. The man extends his hand and rubs it along the fur of the animal and then he scratches his cheek just like I used to do.
“He has the capacity to care for the animals,” Auro says. “What is this creation? He is not just an ordinary breed.”
The other angels begin to cheer and clap. The Origin raises his hands to silence them all. He bestows upon the man the name Adam for this is not an animal. Yet it is clear he is also not an angel.
The man stands. “What shall I call you?”
Suddenly, a hush comes over us all.
“Lion,” the man says.
Gabriel’s eyes dart towards mine.
“He pronounced a name out of nothing.” Auro says. “This man, he has the ability to create.”
“Made in the image of the Origin,” I say.
A crashing sound rings out from behind the man.
My eyes dart, scanning the trees.
“Get up off the ground,” a voice says.
Raphael is laying on his back on a bush. Sal pulls at his arms trying to lift him back up. The scene plays out until Sal finally restores the fallen angel back upright.
I still feel a tinge of pain when I see my old friend in this state. Pathetic, wandering the world with no purpose other than the anger-filled bidding of the fallen star.
“He chooses that journey daily,” Terra says bringing me close. “His pride never allows him to repent.”
“So it’s true more than ever,” Gabriel says. “We all have our role to play.”
“Our stars will chart their courses,” Terra says.
“But that still leaves one question,” I say.
“What is that?” Gabriel asks.
“If the Origin has finally created man to restore order to the Earth, then what role will we have? Surely we have reached the point when all is perfect. The fall is over.”
A voice curses behind me. I turn.
“It’s not over,” Lucifer says. His back hunched and his hands shriveled from the hours spent seething in his own hatred. “Man is as disgusting as the Origin from whom he was designed. And he is destined to fall.”
“No,” I say. “An image of the Almighty, that man is destined to rise.”
Gabriel shakes his hand dismissively. “Satan, you are defeated. Take your delusions elsewhere. You will never conquer the Origin.”
“Perhaps.” Lucifer licks his lips. “But I see one who is weak.”
Lucifer’s eyes fixate on the newly created being.
“We will protect him,” I say. “Just as we serve the Origin. You will not touch him.”
“How will you protect him when he can’t even see you?”
I shake my head. “That goes both ways.”
“It doesn’t take much to sway free will,” the fallen prince says. “So then the battle lines are drawn.”
“Would somebody please shut him up,” Uriel says, whirling his bony fist into Lucifer’s face.
Lucifer grabs at the ground pathetically as he practically slithers his way back into the trees.
“Another war?” Gabriel comes up beside me. “I suppose only the Origin knows what the future holds.”
“But whatever that future is,” Terra says. “We know who holds the victory.”
I grab her and pull her close once again, thanking the Origin that she is here.
We all turn toward the man and watch as he kneels down onto the soil. His eyes looking upward toward the Origin who speaks to him. He pray
s a silent prayer.
And my breed, the lion, nuzzles up to the man.
The End.
Acknowledgements
There are so many people that I would like to thank.
First, I am grateful for my wife Jen who has endured countless hours of me typing at a computer and obsessing over fictional characters. I could not have finished this task without her love and support.
I also owe so much to my mother who helped me in more ways than I can list on this one page.
Thank you to Andy for helping me organize my thoughts in preparing the story. My older brother Doug who provided me with an accomplished writer’s wisdom.
My editors, Stephen Parolini and Meghan were true professionals and Cleaned UP what I spent so :muCh time miss-pelling, and, AND, overly; punctUating.
Thank you to my Cover Designer Karolina Jacobsson. She is a true artist. She worked tirelessly on this cover and is a rising star. Also to Dorsey Media Group for their hard work.
Thank you to all my Beta Readers for their invaluable contributions: Doug, Greg, Melanie,Brooke(Font Choice by Request), Peyton, Pastor Eric Terwilliger, Priscilla, and Alex.
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