by Dahlia Lu
Lucifer was not happy to see Michael. “What do you want?” he asked with great annoyance. Michael had always opposed him in everything. In the Great War he was Lucifer’s archenemy. “You swore to me that after the war, you would never interfere.”
“I have,” Archangel Michael admitted. “If you would stay away from Heaven’s boundary, there would be no reason for me to interfere.”
“And when did I cross it, Michael?” Lucifer asked.
“You are mobilizing your demon army.”
“I have not,” Lucifer argued.
“You may be misleading, but it is very unlikely that you would lie.” The archangel concluded.
“Then get out of my way, Michael!” Lucifer demanded.
“Follow me back to Heaven, Lucifer,” Michael said. “You will have your trial there.”
Lucifer laughed. “Trial? You want me to face a trial in Heaven? You make it sound like Hell is part of Heaven’s territory. Michael, I am my own king.”
“Then I will have no choice but to force you.”
“If you could, that is,” Lucifer called upon his sword. The sky rumbled. From the South, a dark clump of thunderous clouds approached furiously, blocking out the sun of the clear blue day. The surroundings were overshadowed by complete darkness.
Archangel Michael had a still expression on his face. A sword appeared in his right hand. An angelic silver aura surrounded his body.
Lucifer launched himself sat Archangel Michael with his sword. Michael stood defensively and blocked Lucifer’s attack. Their powers met at the edge of the swords, causing the two to fall back. They were equally powerful. Lucifer flew into midair to get enough momentum and charged at Michael once again. Michael leaped, dodging Lucifer. Lucifer’s sword cut through the ground, leaving behind a giant scar on the pavement. Lucifer glared at Michael. He summoned a massive ball of energy and directed it at Michael.
Archangel Michael called upon his own power, a massive ball of white light to cancel out Lucifer’s attack.
“It is futile, Lucifer,” Michael said. “We are equal in power. If we continue, it would take at least another three months for it to end.”
“I have the time, don’t you?” Lucifer asked.
“It is only a trial, Lucifer,” Michael said. “If you speak the truth, you will be released.”
Lucifer laughed. “I understand, now. This was Arvin’s plan. He wanted to separate us because he knew what would happen to Kali.”
“It won’t be long, Lucifer,” Michael said to him. “If you return soon, she will be as you’ve left her.”
“Do you think I would take that kind of risk?” Lucifer scoffed. “I will not come with you. My words are true. I have no obligation to justify myself.”
“You've left me no choice.”
†††††
Kali shook her son gently when she saw the lifeless look in his eyes. “Trent! Trent, what’s wrong?”
His face was extremely pale, more so than usual.
“What’s wrong with him?” Kali looked up at Chevalier.
He shook his head. “I don’t know. We were just looking at the pandas. When I asked him a question, he didn’t reply. He just stood still like a statue.”
Kali looked back at her son. “Trent, talk to me. What’s wrong?” she held his hand. It was icy cold. She gasped, frightened. She pulled him into her arms.
“Trent, please don’t scare me! Say something to me!”
Chevalier looked up at the sky. It had been a while since Lucifer left.
“Adria!” Kali yelled out. “Adria!”
A summoning circle drew itself on the ground. Adria appeared from the circle.
“What is wrong with him?!” Kali asked nervously.
Adria came to Trent’s side. She placed a hand on his face and looked into his eyes.
“What’s wrong with him?” Kali repeated. “Adria, is this normal for a demon?”
“No,” Adria replied.
Trent blinked. He turned his head toward Kali. He spread his little arms and wrapped them around Kali’s neck.
“Trent, what’s wrong?” Kali asked him softly. She was on the edge of tears.
He just held onto her tightly. His beautiful blue eyes glowed.
“I think his instinct is awakening,” Adria said softly.
“He has an instinct? What’s an instinct?”
“Every demon is born with an instinct. Normally, it is dormant within the demon unless is it reawakened.”
Chevalier placed a hand on his chest. “I suppressed mine long ago.”
“What it is then?” Kali asked.
“An instinct is a demon’s primitive biological voice. It is a living soul that prioritized survival and feeds on the negative emotion of the host. If the negative emotions are too great, the instinct will grow powerful enough to take over the demon’s body.”
Kali looked at her son. “What does this all mean?” Kali asked, confused. “Trent doesn’t have negative emotions. Why is this happening?”
“Instincts sometimes know more than the demons host,” Chevalier said. “Maybe it told Trent something he didn’t want to hear.”
†††††
Acelin slammed the door opened. Arvin sat on a chair in the middle of the room. The room was dead silent. Acelin’s footsteps made Arvin open his eyes. Acelin came to Arvin and grabbed him by the collar.
“Traitor!” Acelin shouted at Arvin. “You went to Heaven and accused Lucifer!”
“I did.” Arvin admitted.
“Why?”
“Why?” Arvin lifted his head and kissed Acelin. Acelin remain emotionless until Arvin broke the kiss. “You ask me why? Do you know what we are, Acelin?”
“Arvin!”
“We are brothers, Acelin,” Arvin said softly. “We are brothers! All we have in the world are each other. When Lucifer embraced me, he asked me not to take away his purpose. I wanted him to be happy, so I decided to back off. But you, Acelin, you had to fall in love with his woman! Don’t you see what she is doing to us?”
“She is not doing anything!”
“There used to be four of us,” Arvin pulled away, “Soren, you and I. We ruled Hell together under Lucifer. Do you know how much time had passed? We were together for so long that if we didn’t have different bodies, I would have believed that we four were one. The appearance of that woman changed everything. She made Lucifer turn against Soren, and you against Lucifer.”
Acelin shook his head. “I would never turn against Lucifer.”
“I know you better than you know yourself,” Arvin sighed. “Do not worry. No one can harm Lucifer. Once that woman dies, everything will return to the way they were supposed to be.”
“Is that what you think?”
“I know it is so.”
“I won’t allow you to hurt her,” Acelin said.
“It’s too late, Acelin. Even if I stop it now, it would still be too late.”
†††††
Their swords collided. The tremendous pressures yielded by the two opponents caused the two swords to break. Michael used magic to direct the fragmented pieces of the broken sword at Lucifer. Lucifer shielded himself in a force field, causing the fragmented pieces of the two swords to explode upon contact.
The angels of the highest order were chanting a holy song while the Archangel and the Devil fought in the sky. The people in the surrounding area were terrified, seeking shelter from the strange human-like creatures with wings. Others were taking pictures and recording what was happening on their cell phone cameras. They were witnessing a battle that was as old as time itself.
Lucifer’s nails grew razor sharp and he used them as a weapon against Michael. Michael leaped into the air. His left wings were slashed by Lucifer. Michael’s angelic white feathers fell and rained down from the sky. They disintegrated before they touched the ground.
Lucifer smirked.
Michael used his energy to regenerate his wings. “It is pointless to continue fight
ing,” Michael said. “Neither of us can ever die, even if we used our true weapons. I thought we cleared that up long ago.”
“I just feel like given you one hell of a beating,” Lucifer said.
“Is that so?”
“It is a battle that neither of us can win. Give up and go back to Heaven, Michael,”
“You see those angels chanting down there?” Michael pointed at his companions. “They have been casting a very energy consuming spell for the last half an hour or so.”
“A spell that takes so long to cast is useless when it comes to life and death.”
Michael shook his head. “It is time consuming, but not entirely useless.”
A giant circle drew itself on the ground at the end of the angels’ chanting.
“A binding spell?” Lucifer gently laughed. “You think something like that could keep me immobile for long?”
“No,” Michael admitted. “Not long at all. You are a powerful demon, Lucifer. I’m sorry I have to use this method.”
The binding circle captured Lucifer in a flash and pulled him to the ground. Lucifer struggled to fly away, but the pull was too strong. He directed his energy into breaking the spell. The spell was much stronger than he thought. Damn, he knew those angels were up to something when they just stood aside. Thirty something odd of them using all their energy into casting one spell, how degrading!
“I am not trying to win this fight,” Michael landed on the ground. “I only need you to stay still long enough for us to transport you to Heaven.”
“Michael! I cannot leave this Earth!” Lucifer shouted. He was still trying to break free from the spell when he realized Michael's true intentions. “Kali will die without me!”
“Again, I apologize,” Michael said as he opened a gate from Earth to Heaven.
†††††
“Mother!” Trent screamed out as he held onto Kali tightly. His blue eyes frowned with a screen of tears. “Mother, please be strong!”
Kali didn’t understand why Trent was screaming. She just stared at him.
“Please stay with me!”
“I’m right here, Trent,” she said to him. She placed his little hands on her coral cheeks so that he could feel her. “I’m here.”
“No! Don’t go!” the boy was still screaming. “Mother, please stay strong!”
Kali suddenly collapsed onto the ground. Chevalier caught his breath, dropping to kneel by her side. He gathered her in his arms. “Kali! What’s wrong? Kali, wake up!” he looked up at Adria, “What’s wrong now?”
“Lord Lucifer is no longer on Earth,” she said. “I can’t feel his presence anywhere.”
†††††
Acelin winced when he saw Kali faint. He placed a hand over his chest. He couldn’t understand it. What was this feeling? Why did he have this feeling whenever he saw her? Who is Kali? Who is she really?
“I told you it is too late,” Arvin said. “It’s already begun.”
“It is not too late,” Acelin said. “I will go to Heaven to rescue Lucifer.”
“Don’t go,” Arvin said. “You’ll just be wasting your time. Lucifer will find his way out, but not until I see my plan through.”
“I must.”
Arvin glared. “I despise her. I despise her so much I want to crush her with my own hands. However…it is more enjoyable to watch the life drain out of her each passing second.”
Arvin laughed and disappeared into the shadows.
“Do not blame me for your fate, Arvin,” Acelin said underneath his breath. “You’ve underestimated what that woman means to Lucifer. He will never forgive you no matter how much time comes to pass. Arvin, if she dies, you can neither have my forgiveness nor my pity when Lucifer strikes you down.”
Chapter 27: For Mother
Chevalier kissed Kali's hand while she lay still on the hospital bed. The doctors did all sorts of exams on her, but they couldn't find what caused her to go into the coma. Trent sat on the same chair as Bi. He stared at his mother with intense focus. He was waiting and anticipating for his mother to wake up.
Bi held onto Trent's hand to comfort him.
"Why is this happening, Adria?" Chevalier asked. "Why is Kali like this?"
"Lucifer is no longer on earth.”
"You said that already, but what does it mean?"
"Kali drank Lucifer's blood,” Adria began to explain. "It is both a blessing and a curse. A mortal who drinks the blood of a demon may never enter Heaven or Hell, and is forever bound to the demon she drank from.”
"What is wrong, then?"
"I'm getting there,” Adria responded to Chevalier’s impatience. "In order for the mortal to stay alive, the demon must stay within the same realm as the mortal he fed. Lucifer is no longer on Earth. That is why she is like this.”
"Why?" Chevalier asked.
"Because a demon's blood is like a one-shot drug… I don't know how to explain it in terms that you would understand, Chevalier. It’s a very powerful drug that takes over the body. Kali can't live without feeding off Lucifer’s energy. It's a physical addiction that can never wear off. Once she dies-"
"That is enough,” Chevalier said.
"You may not want to accept it but she is dying, Chevalier.”
"I said that is enough!" Chevalier shouted at her ferociously. His anger made golden eyes glow like fierce fire.
"Don’t you want to know what will happen if Lucifer doesn't return in time?" Adria asked. “So...you could be mentally prepared.”
Chevalier rubbed his face with the palms of his hands. "Where is that devil?” he asked in an extremely agitated voice.
"In heaven,” a voice answered him.
From the shadow of the wall, Acelin stepped out into the light.
Adria bowed politely to him.
"Who are you?" Chevalier asked. He spread his arms in front of Kali protectively.
"I am Acelin,” he replied.
“He is one of the three demon lords under Lord Lucifer,” Adria made the introductions.
"Your name is Chevalier, isn't it? I need your help.”
Chevalier blinked, a bit confused.
"Lucifer is imprisoned in Heaven,” Acelin explained. "I need your help to rescue him. Adria, you come too,”
Adria nodded obediently. "Yes, Lord Acelin.”
"Why would you want to help us? Aren't you a demon? Don’t you want to see Kali dead?" Chevalier asked.
"I am a demon, yes,” that part of the question he admitted.
Acelin brushed by Chevalier and came to Kali's side. He picked up a lock of her hair and kissed it. "Wait for me, beloved. I will bring him back to you.”
Adria gasped at the realization that Lord Acelin was in love with Kali! What were the odds? The two most powerful demons in the realm of Hell were in love with this human girl!
Trent suddenly fell from the chair he was sitting on and collapsed onto the ground. Adria, Chevalier and Acelin ran to him. Adria picked him up and cradled him in her arms.
Trent walked on a narrow path. He had no idea where he was.
Trent watched as the darkness that surrounded him melted. He was standing on a narrow path of stones. Below the narrow path was a sea of boiling lava. Trent looked up and saw a very young and handsome man about eighteen years old. He looked very similar to his father, but Trent knew he wasn't Lucifer. The man standing in front of him was himself.
"It was you who summoned me?" Trent asked.
The young man nodded.
"Are you my instinct?"
"I am,” the young man spoke.
"Why did you call for me?” Trent inquired. “Our father specifically ordered you to sleep.”
"I cannot sleep now,” he said. "Mother is dying. Father is nowhere to be found. I cannot sleep. I need to protect Mother.”
"I want to protect our Mother, too,” he said.
"Do you want to save our Mother, Trent?"
The boy nodded.
"Let me take over,” his instinct said
to him. "Just for now. I will go back to sleep when I am no longer needed.”
"Our Father has repeatedly told me not to trust you. You are my demon. The only thing you want is control.”
"Our Father hates me and he loves you, but our Mother loves us both. If our Mother dies, there will be no one left to love me,” a lone tear fell from his emotionless eyes. “I cannot watch her die! Do you want her to die, Trent?"
"No! I will not let that happen!" Trent retorted.
The young man came to Trent and embraced him. "Let us save her together, Trent. Let me out. I can save her, brother. Let me.”
“You better not be lying to me,” the boy warned. “If you cannot save her like you promised, I will make you pay.”
He shook his head. “Only Mother loves me. If I lose her, I would hate the world very much.”
A strange, blinding silver aura surrounded Trent's small body. The light expanded until it reached the shape of a full-grown adult. The light started to dim. Trent gasped for a deep breath of air as he regained consciousness. He opened his eyes and revealed a pair of glowing blue eyes. He slowly sat up by himself. His platinum hair was longer than the length of his body. Trent brought his hands up in front of his eyes and stared at them. It was a pair of hands that belonged to an adult. Trent smiled. His smile got brighter and he started to laugh. He looked down at his body, completely undressed, and stood up.
The nurses gasped when they saw a strange but beautiful naked man walked the hallway. Some were staring at him, while others called the doctors. They wondered if he was a mental patient on the loose.
Trent stopped at Kali's room. He had a pained expression when he saw her unconscious on the bed. He came to her side and looked down at her.
"I've finally met you, Mother,” he said. "I have always heard your voice. I have always loved to see your face. You have such a beautiful smile. I was never able to touch you,” he reached out to her face. "I wanted what he had for a long time. I wanted to touch you. I wanted to feel your warmth. You always embraced him. I wanted to feel your touch so much that it hurt. I can feel your love, Mother. You were the only person who loves me in this whole world,” he bent down and placed an imitated kiss on her lips. "That is why I never want to go back being Trent's shadow.”
