CounterPoint

by Daniel Rafferty

  Chapter 32

  “How did this happen?” asked Michael coldly, grasping his long elevated staff, a symbol of his status as the leading archangel and the head of all angelic operations on Earth. He stood along with Raphael and a number of other high-ranking angels in his magnificent office. “We’ve just lost one of our top generals to a human man. This is unacceptable.” He stomped his staff off the floor and walked towards the huge windows behind his desk, keeping his back to those in attendance. “I want suggestions, now.”

  “We have aerial reconnaissance but at the moment nothing. This storm isn’t helping. If we could get some respite in the weather it would greatly increase our search effectiveness,” said Raphael who had taken over management of the operation since Uriel’s demise. He was a tall imposing figure, well built. His short dark hair and swarthy skin with the occasional wrinkle added to his aura of power and authority. Dressed in the customary sharp cut business suit, he had no need to raise his voice to anyone. His mere presence was enough for people to take notice.

  “At the moment we are finding it difficult to secure the audience of one of the Angels of the Order. The planet is in chaos. They have been called upon by the emergency departments of Heaven in an attempt to contain various splurges of activity occurring across the globe that are affecting angelic operations regarding the afterlife,” answered Michael. “Besides, if we press them on the matter they might feel the situation is not within our control any more. We cannot allow that to happen. I do not want another headache so therefore we much ensure we have the initiative within the next few hours.

  “Raphael, take whatever men and equipment you may need to finish this task. Capture the humans and destroy the traitors. Anything, and I mean anything, that gets in your way is expendable. Do whatever you have to.”

  Raphael nodded silently and began to walk down the short corridor towards the exit of the majestic office.

  “Raphael,” Michael’s voice echoed around the room, though Raphael did not turn round as he already knew what he was going to be told. “Subtlety and discretion is irrelevant in the situation. Do not let it hinder you. Everything and anything you have to do.”

  Raphael nodded firmly and strode out of the archangel’s office. Once the double oak hardened doors had shut, a small thin man appeared in the corner of Michael’s office and smiled.

  “Glad to see you’ve seen the light, Michael.”

  “I’d like to think it’s the other way around.”

  They both smiled at each other quietly, an eerie finality that was occurring.

  Chapter 34

  The Vatican walls encompassed a city-state unlike any other. Virtually no other place in the world was able to infatuate and divide entire peoples as much as this place. Its walls signified centuries of power, tradition and secrecy. Many had speculated about the untold treasures that lay in the caverns far beneath the present day Vatican. While its secret archives had been viewed by many a scholar over the years its true contents, those held in the buildings ancient foundations, were always private. It was unfair to direct all this criticism at the Christian hierarchy and even towards the Pope. The simple fact was the Vatican did not have the millions it would require in funds to excavate, restore and organise these artefacts and holy graves which it suffocated. Religion, not just Catholicism, was dying around the world. Science had disproved one long held religious belief after the other. That God would create anything before Humans was to many in the Church utter blasphemy. What many had failed to question however was that while there probably was countless treasures to be found in the Vatican State, it was whether the Vatican even knew about them.

  The deceased Pope had been informed on that fateful night of his coronation that there was more happening on the Earth that even his most sincere deepest beliefs would comprehend. He was visited in the papal chambers that evening at exactly 10.59pm. The meeting always lasts one hour, not one minute longer, and is generally the only time the Pope will speak directly with an angel. The first thing that Michael said to the then new Pope long ago was that he should hope he would never have to visit him again. Such absences signalled no pressing immediate problems in the angelic world. Michael went on to discuss how the Pope was Heaven’s human representative on Earth and was charged with maintaining and expanding the faith to the fullest extent of his abilities. Understandably the new Pope had many questions but Michael refused to give him all but the most basic of answers. The Pope had felt slightly underwhelmed by his meeting with Michael. He had considered himself a young, energetic Pope who was full of ideas and questions about the world they lived in. He wasn’t overly shocked that an angel had appeared, that came with the job of faith in any religion. What astounded him was how much it appeared like business as usual for the archangel. Luke had been curtly informed that Michael had seen every Pope since the crucifixion and that he would see many after his passing as well. That short hour mainly passed with Michael giving Luke a very basic overview of the role of Heaven and it’s placement on Earth from death to how people end up in Heaven, Hell or Purgatory. He went on to explain that Heaven did have a large presence here on Earth at various locations around the globe. There was a continuous fight against demon kind but the Pope had nothing to worry about as the Vatican was placed at the top of Earthly locations that must be protected. Apparently there were at least twenty angels guarding the Vatican at any one time and four personally guarded the Pope. Silent, discreet and deadly was the motto Michael used to describe his angels.

  “Just remember, you are only a figurehead. Stay on the path we lay out for you, if you do that, you’ll never see me again,” finished Michael supremely before vanishing, leaving the Pope feeling very deflated and empty. The Camerlengo woke from this startling dream. The late Pope had told him in detail about his meeting with Michael the very next day. Why was he dreaming of it now? He rose slowly out of bed and stumbled over to his bedroom window, peeling back the curtains. The night sky looked like it was ready to end the world. Looking above, a flash of lightning struck the dome of St. Peters and it immediately caught fire. The Camerlengo was horrified. Where was God?

  Chapter 35

  “This is the Captain speaking; please proceed to designated emergency areas immediately. There is extreme turbulence ahead,” the Captain announced to the passengers. He had been perplexed as to why they had even been authorised to sail in such extreme weather. According to the internal net, they were the only ship at sea on the British Isles. The turbulence was battering the ship from stem to stern, and it creaked and groaned under the pressure. The warning sirens began echoing throughout the ship and he could see from the live video feeds passengers running through the corridors. It was times like this he wished his chair had a seatbelt.

  “Status, Rodgers?”

  “Sir, it’s a ….I don’t know….sir look!” he shouted in reply.

  The captain looked on terrified as a freak wave, at least six times the size of the ship, was speeding towards them from the distance.

  “My God,” said another bridge officer loudly.

  “Keep calm.” shouted the Captain. “All stop, all hands, this is the Captain – brace for impact – I repeat, brace for impact!”

  “What the Hell?” said Lilith, her eyes darting around the boat, “Damn!”

  “Not again,” groaned David, what was it with him and boats?

  “What is it?” asked Ariel, taking charge. A low, grumbling growl could be heard from the depths below them. Frightened passengers began to run up and down the corridors around them screaming, red flashing lights added to the sense of panic.

  “Angels up to their old tricks again.”

  Ariel and Amber stood still before throwing a quick, knowing glance at each other.

  “What the Hell is it?” asked David.

  “Ruchiel, a powerful angel of the Earth has been let loose on us,” said Lilith in a hostile tone looking at Ariel and Amber. She really felt demons got a bad rap when compared to what angels got
up to.

  “Stay here and try to keep hold of something,” ordered Ariel to the Bassetts, as Amber, Lilith and him stormed up the corridor that was quickly becoming a hill.

  Bursting a door off its hinges, Ariel charged out into the forward deck between the parked cars to see the momentous wave hurtling towards them. The wind and rain was blinding. Cars shook and rattled, with a few flying off into the sea. Clasping the railing at the edge of the decking with both hands, Ariel closed his eyes tightly and began murmuring an incantation. White light emanated out of his hands and used the railings like a conduit to pump energy into the ship, strengthening it. Then came the sound of metal bolting together and steeling itself against the oncoming wave. Windows glowed white before going back to normal, though the glass was now almost impenetrable.

  “I’ve done all I can” shouted Ariel trying to be heard as the wave got closer and closer.

  “Ariel!” shouted Amber pointing at the cloaked figure high above flying through the wind towards the wave.

  “Ruchiel,” whispered Ariel. Damn him, he thought. Acting on pure instinct, he catapulted a car parked on the deck into the air and set it alight hurtling towards the Angel of Wind.

  Swinging round, Ruchiel blasted the car into the Heavens at a frightening speed. Ariel shot up towards him, leaving the boat behind. He’d have no angel of God acting on false orders.

  “Ruchiel,” bellowed Ariel, “this is wrong and it is unjust. Cease now!”

  “Ariel, I have to help,” replied Ruchiel coldly, before turning to face the wave once more which was mere metres away now. Stretching both his arms out keeping them level with his shoulders his eyes turned white. With his head tilted towards the sky he began to levitate upwards as his lips moved ever so slightly. The wave began dissipating from the top downwards, and water came crashing down in all directions.

  “The ship!” shouted Ariel. Ruchiel had already noticed and flew past Ariel downwards. Just before the water crashed on top of the ship Ruchiel got into position between them and blasted the water backwards.

  “Thank you Ruchiel” said a surprised Ariel, accepting the angel had done well by them. The look he received though gave him cause for concern as they appeared back on the deck of the ship.

  “That wave wasn’t created by me or Heaven. My staff noticed the abnormality and considering its size, I decided to deal with it personally. Ariel,” he turned to look at him, “something has been released and it’s beneath us.”

  “It’s the Leviathan,” said Lilith, looking nervous and checking as if to make sure the floor was still beneath her.

  “What beast is this?” asked Amber hurriedly as they listened to a low deadly grumble from the deep.

  “An ancient sea serpent, twice as big as this ship we’re on if I remember correctly?” said Ariel, directing his statement to Lilith.

  “At the very least, my dear Ariel,” she replied, trying to judge where it would break water. The rough seas and high winds weren’t helping matters.

  “Ariel I must go, other events need my attention. However,” interjected Ruchiel, his long black robes remained perfectly still despite the harsh winds, “I will provide you with some clear skies for the battle ahead.” He looked upwards, and a hole had appeared in the storm above showing clear stars. The gap got wider as the wind pushed the storm clouds outwards from the ship. Ruchiel nodded at Ariel and vanished.

  “What? He couldn’t have provided a couple of tornadoes to help us?” asked Lilith sarcastically once more. She was now hanging over the side of the ship trying to spot a shadow of the huge beast.

  “Why has this been released and by who?” asked Amber, clearly agitated. The last beast they encountered was handled by Mary and she wasn’t going to be able to help anymore.

  “The Leviathan is the gatekeeper of Hell. It ensures no one gets out. Whether a demon or angel have enticed it up here we do not yet know. It’s irrelevant anyway. It’s loose and we need to deal with it.”

  “How the Hell do we kill something created to be eternal?” asked Ariel angrily.

  There was an eerie silence around them as the waters calmed, adding to a picturesque scene with the bright twinkling stars set against the black sky above.

  “We don’t kill it. Besides, it’s only doing what it was created to do. What angels created it to do, Ariel. We can wound it enough that it should retreat. Long enough for us to get to port.”

  “We created this monster, Lilith?” asked Amber, shocked.

  “Oh yes dear. No human was allowed out of Hell.”

  “We can discuss that later, but now we’re in trouble,” shouted Ariel as a screeching noise obliterated the sound spectrum around them. In the near distance, a huge long neck had burst into the sky, towering high above them. Its thick scaly black skin sheened the water racing down it, its forward staring balls of white eyes pierced the distance between itself and those on the boat. Ariel had the distinct feeling it was staring directly at them. It was no doubt able to recognise angelic beings. It let out another screech, and moved forward beginning to circle the ship.

  “Does it fear fire?” asked Ariel.

  “I’ve no idea,” replied Lilith, mesmerised by the creature. She had only ever heard about it and now she realised why such a creation should never be released, another stain angels had marked on this world.

  “Let’s find out,” roared Ariel marching forward, using his abilities to fire three parked cars into the air. Setting them ablaze once more in mid-flight, he landed them into the path of the creature. The creature swerved to avoid the flames immediately, clearly afraid of fire as he thought; a basic fear pre-programmed into all of God’s creations.

  “Amber, let’s hit this thing from above. Full assault, keep high though. We need to take its attention away from the ship. Now!”

  They both shot into the air, Ariel setting the final two parked jeeps alight before hurtling them towards the beast, keeping it as far away from the ship as possible. They now circled above the creature, zipping around it firing bolts of lightning in every direction, trying to aim for its eyes.

  “They won’t penetrate its armour,” muttered Lilith through gritted teeth watching the battle ensue above. Unlike the Behemoth in London, the Leviathan was quick and sharp and not only possessed rows of razor sharp teeth and claws but also flaming fire.

  “What is it?” asked David, who had come up behind her.

  “A monster of the deep,” she replied, looking him up and down. She certainly wasn’t going to usher him back inside as Ariel would do. In her opinion, the kid needed to see this; it wasn’t a perfect world out there and before the end he would be in the thick of it. Whether they knew, or just weren’t telling him yet about his role was not her immediate concern. The beast had suddenly begun charging towards the ship.

  “Let’s go,” she said quickly, grabbing his arm to head inside. He couldn’t be allowed to die either.

  “No, wait,” he pulled himself free and watched the creature storm towards their stranded vessel. Throwing his arm in the air he kept direct eye contact with it.

  “Amber, quickly!” shouted Ariel, spotting David at the bow of the ship. They raced downwards feebly attempting to beat the beast to the ship but were ultimately too late. An explosion of projected fire from its mouth engulfed the entire ship; sparks and shockwaves filled the ocean and sky in all directions. Ariel and Amber floated in mid-air motionless after being thrown back by the shockwave.

  “SIR!” said Amber in disbelief. Ariel himself almost did not believe his eyes. A white, almost transparent bubble had appeared around the ship, acting as a shield, like a huge, protective contact lens had been placed over the top of the ship. Ariel, however, knew this type of power could only be generated by a mighty individual. Lilith was incapable of such a feat. The creature was now enraged even more and began thrashing the ship with its neck and swinging its tail out of the sea. It poured out more fire as well but the shield held steady.

  “I can’t keep this going
much longer,” shouted David, clenching his teeth as the weight and power of the Leviathan pounded down. He felt every last ounce of strength drained through his arm to keep the shield alive, to keep them from being set alight. The beast, mere metres away, was growling and screeching at him constantly, furious it could not destroy its target.

  “When I tell you, drop the shield,” ordered Lana, who had just appeared in front of him.

  “Who are you?” asked David directly. He had never seen her before and she could be an enemy.

  “I am Lana and I am allied with Ariel. Now do as I say before you are killed,” she replied coldly, already with her back to him. The shield was about to fail momentarily anyway so David reasoned with himself it made little difference, and Lilith’s silence tended to mean agreement. The creature swung its head back, ready to sweep the ship in another fireball.

  “Now!” said Lana, just as the creature released a torrent of hot, roaring red fire from its mouth.

  David tore his arm away, breaking the link of energy. The shield flickered off. Lana swung her arms violently in the air towards the oncoming fireball, controlling and moulding it. She flung it back at the creature with only milliseconds to spare before it impacted them. Exploding around the top of its neck, chunks of thick armour fell off into the sea bubbling down to the water depths they were still so hot. Exposed boiling pink flesh was now visible, and the creature was clearly in pain and very disorientated. Pus started to leak down its neck. Taking the chance, Ariel and Amber darted forward again and fired bolts of energy into the gaping wound. Black splatters of blood gushed out from a throbbing vein as thick as a road.

  “Amber, keep up the assault. I’ve got an idea,” ordered Ariel before warping off into the distance. He had spotted a thunderstorm. Flying into its centre Ariel grasped a bolt of lightning from the clouds and wrestled with it. He was a pea compared to it in size. Nevertheless, slicing a bit off he flew forward again back to Amber. He started to increase speed exponentially. If this was going to work, he had to hit this beast quick and hard. Having a slice of raw lightning under his arm as long as him wasn’t easy to manage. Pushing himself to the limit until everything was almost a blur Ariel flew past the beast firing the bolt of lightning into the now grisly, fried wound in its neck. Electrical currents raced down the creature’s neck and electrified the water surrounding it. The creature squealed as chucks of skin exploded in every direction from its long slithery armoured body. With a glint of pure anger in its eyes, the beast pummelled back down into the icy depths of the Irish Sea leaving a trail of dark black reddish blood in its wake.