Velvet Redemption

I flew through the sky in a hurry. Where was I supposed to go? I had precious time until Michael arrived to claim his old blade, and I looked like I needed to be playing a harp on a cloud.

The warm sun hit my feathers as the clouds parted, and I realized the trouble with the situation. I’d only parted ways with Lilandra a few days ago, and if she were here, I probably wouldn’t be trapped in this form.

“Dammit all,” I muttered, scanning the ground for some hint to the solution of my predicament.

I had no ally. . . no person to guide me, and this is what I had just discussed fearing with Death before she vanished.

Wait, Death! The solution came to me, and I hoped it wasn’t too soon to call for her help. She had just vanished less than ten minutes ago.

Flying down into a park, I landed on a walkway. An old lady in a blue sundress with curly white hair walked right beside me, not paying me any mind. She didn’t even notice that I had just come down right out of the sky.

“Angels aren’t visible unless they have the right spell either,” I muttered.

It was at that point I realized I didn’t know how to contact Death. It wasn’t like she left me a phone number. Was there some sort of preferred communication for supernatural entities? Perhaps there was an email address Death had?

I felt awkward just standing on this cement walkway in the middle of the park. I walked over to an empty cement bench and stood in front of it. Behind me was a patch of bushes that thickened into a small forest. I looked around the area. The park was small, with a tiny playground in the middle and a large rounded walkway that extended for probably half a mile.

The parking spaces were on the other side of the park in a gravel lot. There were plenty of people out and about. If I weren’t in the middle of a crisis, this would be a fairly nice day outside. The temperature was probably somewhere in the upper 70s, and I was growing more awkward in the park by the minute.

Without thinking any further, I yelled as loud as I could, “Can anyone hear me?”

No one turned to react. I truly was invisible and silent to them. Nodding, I felt a little less awkward, and then I screamed as loud as possible, “Death! Where are you?”

As I looked around, I saw no one for a few moments, and then a voice came from behind the bench over near the trees.

“Were you this clingy with Lisa? I’ve been gone fifteen minutes, and you’ve already called me back.”

I turned to see a tall petite girl with long dark hair in a black kimono-like robe with only one arm, and when she got a better look at me, her mouth dropped.

“What happened to you?”

“Daniel ambushed me after you left with a squad of angels. Instead of fighting me, he cast a spell from some kind of amulet, and I wound up trapped in this form. To make a long story short, Velvet won’t even let me touch it now because angels can’t wield holy weapons like it, and Michael is on his way to collect,” I explained.

Sighing, Death asked, “What kind of spell did he cast?”

“I don’t know. It was some kind of amulet an ancient Babylonian King made. He had it made for him, I mean, and the angels confiscated it,” I said.

“Hmmm, I don’t know. I’m not really that skilled with magical artifacts, but I know who is,” Death said.

She held up one finger and vanished. A few moments later, she reappeared with a short girl that had long lava red hair, holding a clipboard. She had on a black suit top and a short pink skirt for the bottom. The bright green orbs that were her eyes sat behind a thin set of glasses.

I looked her over and was as mystified by her appearance as I was curious about what purpose she was summoned for.

“Death informs me that you’ve had a curse placed on you by a magical artifact. Please describe said artifact, and I will try to identify it for you,” the girl said, in a monotone voice.

“Who is this?”

“This is Kareen, my assistant,” Death said.

“You have an assistant?”

“I have many that assist me in escorting souls to their destination, but she is second only to me in rank. She has been running everything in my absence the past couple days,” Death said.

“So, how does one become a regular reaper if you were chosen by the previous Death? Do you-”

Death interrupted me saying, “Justin. Do you want the technicalities of being a reaper or a solution to your curse?”

“Sorry. I really do need your help,” I said, looking at Kareen.

“Then quit talking about me like I’m not here, and describe this item,” Kareen said, showing frustration, the first emotion since she’d arrived.

“Sorry Kareen. The amulet. . . it was gold. . . very large and gaudy. Daniel, the angel who placed the curse on me, said it was made for an ancient Babylonian king to curse his lying advisers and punish them for scamming him. The king one day gathered his advisors and told them each to tell a lie in his presence. Whatever they lied about became reality, cursing them,” I said.

“So you said that you were an angel?”

I sighed, realizing how foolish I sounded for falling for the curse.

“I had to tell the owner of the church Death and I were staying in that I was an angel so he would hide us. Real angels later showed up and told him the truth about me. Then, Daniel tricked me into repeating my lie about being an angel in the presence of the medallion,” Justin said.

Kareen put the rest of the mental puzzle together.

“And the result is the angel that stands before me,” Kareen said.

“Correct,” I said.

Death smirked and said, “I’m sorry, Justin, but that really was a pretty stupid trick that he pulled.”

“I know how it sounds,” I muttered.

Kareen thought for a moment, and then she said, “The item you have described is known as the Amulet of Nazara, made by someone deeply skilled in magic. His name is Pizaris, and he was an ancient Babylonian mage. He served several leaders of that kingdom and lived in Babylon for many years.”

“The angels took it though, didn’t they?”

“Yes. Eventually, he grew so powerful, the angels removed him and confiscated all his artifacts,” Kareen said.

“Removed him?”

“Angels have a long history of going after humans that practice magic. Well, I shouldn’t really say humans, as they aren’t entirely human,” Kareen said.

“What do you mean?”

“When a human breeds with an angel, the resulting offspring is known as a nephilim. They live longer, are stronger, faster, don’t get sick, and they have access to magic. Their descendants also have a chance of containing active nephilim blood and access to all those same benefits. Most angels view them as blasphemy against creation and slaughter them,” Kareen said.

“So this Pizaris guy was a nephilim?”

“Yes.”

“And only he would know how to break the curse?”

“More than likely, yes,” Kareen said.

Nodding and inhaling slowly, I said, “Okay, so how do I find him? Did the angels drop his ass into Hell?”

“No. They dropped him straight into Purgatory, and he’s been there since,” Kareen said.

“Purgatory?”

Now Death spoke up, saying, “It’s sort of a prison between Heaven and Hell. It’s where angels and demons put prisoners that they don’t want anywhere else. If the angels put him there, it’s probably because they didn’t want him in Hell or Heaven.”

“Can you take me there?”

“Sadly that’s about all I can do,” Death said.

“I don’t understand,” I said.

“That place is. . . out of my jurisdiction. I take souls to Heaven or Hell. I don’t ever deal with Purgatory. I have no power there, and it’s overseen by a being called The Warden. I can take you there, but it’ll be up to him to get us to Pizaris,” Death said.

“I understand. Let’s go then. We only have a couple hours. Kareen, thanks for your help,” Justin said.

She nodded, then turned to Death and asked, “Is that all you need of me at this moment, mistress?”

“Yes, that’s all. You’re dismissed,” Death said.

Kareen bowed and then faded from view.

“Mistress?”

“She’s very obedient. Kareen was a servant girl for all her human life. It’s really all she knows,” Death said.

“I see. Well, are you ready?”

“Yes, let’s go,” Death said.

She put her hand on me, and I felt a little light headed as we were both transported out of the world of the living. Everything was black as we were transported, but things gradually came into view as we arrived in Purgatory.

Looking around, the first thing I noticed was that this world was lacking color. Death and I still had color on us, but everything else was a shade of gray. The sky was cloudy, and the path before us was made of gravel. Looking around my surroundings, I noticed there was nothing but flat and rocky ground. It looked like a desert, minus the cacti.

After a few minutes, the ground started to shake and crack.

Death asked, “What the Hell is that?”

A large red snake pierced the top layer of soil and flew at Death. I pulled her closer to me, and the snake missed her by centimeters.

Three more red snakes shot up out of the ground. I grabbed Death and flew up into the air, carrying her in my arms. That was when the three snakes dove back under the ground, and a large fat snake shot up and devoured the ground where we were standing previously. It had no eyes and roared loudly, clearly pissed it had missed its prey.

I yelled, “Goddamn that’s a big worm!”

I flew higher with Death to avoid any of the smaller snakes from being launched at us. It appeared they acted as tongues for the fat snake, coming out of its mouth.

“That would not have been a pleasant eternity digesting in that thing,” I said.

“Please don’t drop me,” Death said, dryly.

“A few days ago, I would have let him have you,” I said, chucking.

“Don’t make me stab you again,” Death said, frowning at me.

I pretended I was going to drop her for a second, and she didn’t make one sound. She just looked at me with the biggest “go burn in a fire” expression she could muster.

“I was just. . . um. . . let’s find this prison,” I said, my chuckle dying fast.

As I flapped my wings, I realized that I hadn’t carried a girl like this since I’d been with Lisa. It felt strange, and I paused for a second just hovering in the air.

Death had both of her arms around my neck fairly tight. She did seem to have a slight fear of heights. . . something I never expected Death to have.

Those nights that Lisa and I had popcorn while we watched her favorite TV show. . . I would always carry her up to bed, just like this. And because she knew I hated her show but still watched it with her anyway, the sex afterward was usually pretty good. On those nights she would have usually just finished a shift at work and showered while I made the popcorn.

Then, she’d come in smelling great and ready to cuddle while we watched her show. After that, most of the time anyway, I’d carry her up to the bed and do a Tarzan routine.

“Me Tarzan, Jane and I about to get it on,” I’d say.

She laughed every time, no matter how tired of the bit she got.

“I don’t think Tarzan knew the phrase, ’get it on.” she said once.

Carrying Death like this now, I just felt weird; however, what I didn’t feel for the first time in a while during my thoughts of Lisa was grief. I wasn’t bursting with joy, but I wasn’t as miserable as I once had been. I was just somber.

I wonder what changed to make me feel this way, I thought.

“Justin?”

Death’s voice pulled me softly out of my thoughts and back into the black and white world that was Purgatory.

“It’s over there, the prison,” Death said, pointing to my left.

I turned and flew us over in that direction.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, I was just thinking about something real quick,” I said.

“Lisa isn’t here, Justin. I took her to Heaven. You don’t have to worry about her ending up in a place where people suffer,” Death said.

“Right. Thanks,” I said, not wanting to tell her what I had really been thinking about.

As we approached the prison, it looked like something out of Dr Suess’ worst nightmare. The entire building was made of spiked black crystal. There was a large fence made of spiked black chains surrounding it.

“It looks small for a prison,” I said.

“Most of it is underground. This is merely the tip of the iceberg,” Death said.

“This thing would have sunk the Titanic much quicker,” I said, landing just within the wall, assuming the snake wouldn’t follow us beyond the chained wall.

I put Death down, and we walked toward two giant wooden doors. The doors opened slowly, and we walked in. The doors closed behind us, and we walked down a very musty smelling hallway lit by torches. The walls were black crystal, as was the floor.

We came to two more large doors after about a hundred feet of walking. Now in some sort of lobby, I noticed there was a large desk with a large black suit of armor sitting behind it. The armor didn’t look like anything from the days of yore. In fact, it didn’t look like any armor I had ever seen before.

“Hello?”

As if on cue from my words, the two eyeholes in the armor suddenly lit up as if a fire was inside the helmet.

Then, the suit of armor slowly stood up. It was probably ten feet tall, and it easily looked down on Death and I.

A deep penetrating voice that rattled my bones to the core spoke from the helmet.

“An angel and Death. . . what have you come to his place for?”

Death spoke first saying, “We come to speak to a prisoner, please. We need a few questions answered.”

I asked, “Are you the Warden?”

“I am. What prisoner do you seek?”

“Pizaris, the mage,” Death said.

“I will grant you a short visit. He has been here for hundreds of years, never receiving a single visit. Be fast, and if you try anything suspicious, you will become my prisoners,” the Warden said.

“Thank you very much,” Death said.

The Warden sat back down and resumed his previous position with his hands folded, looking at the entrance.

A new path formed from the wall, with torches lighting the way. I looked at Death, and we began to walk down the hall. Then we came to. . . an elevator?

Sure enough, two metal doors were closed shut. There was no button to call for it, but this looked like any ordinary elevator that one would see in a bank or a hotel.

“I guess Purgatory gets renovated every now and again?”

“It would appear so,” Death said.

A slight “ding” was heard, and the doors opened to reveal a completely different interior than I expected. The floor and walls were made of the same black crystal that was everywhere in this prison.

I slowly got on, and Death followed.

“I don’t like this place,” I said.

“Many would choose this dark dungeon over Hell, believe me,” Death said.

We waited as the elevator descended for several minutes. Then, with another “ding,” the door opened to a dim hallway.

On either side of us, there were cells, each with one prisoner.

The eerie thing was that they were all quiet. None would look at us. Some just sat quietly, leaning against the wall of their cell.

I asked, “Shouldn’t they be more. . . alive?”

“I don’t know,” Death said, quietly.

Torches lit up down the hall as we walked further. After a few minutes of walking, we came to a cell where there were no more torches lit. The rest of the hall ahead was dark and seemingly endless.

I looked inside the cell, and inside there was. . . nothing. Most prison cells had a bed. . . a toilet. . . something. This cell literally had nothing, except for a man sitting against the back wall with his head facing the floor, resting on his knees.

I lightly asked, “Pizaris?”

Slowly, his head raised to look at us. He was wearing nothing but a brown one-piece sackcloth-looking outfit. He had short messy brown hair, and when he finally stood up, I realized how tall he was.

He was almost seven feet tall, and he had a very muscular build. Walking closer to the bars, I noticed his eyes were two different colors, even though he was black and white.

His deep booming voice made my eyes open wide.

“An angel and a woman. . . what brings you here?”

“My name is Justin Pierce, and this is Death. I’m not really an angel, and that is why I’ve come to you today. I was cursed with an amulet you made to punish liars. I need that curse broken,” I said, being honest.

I figured if he’d been here for centuries, he didn’t want anyone beating around the bush with him.

He dwelled on what I told him for a few minutes as we stood in silence. I don’t know why, but I expected him to laugh at my predicament. The fact that he didn’t, surprised me a little.

“The lady here is Death?”

“Yes, I am,” she said.

“Then the solution to your problem and mine are both solvable with this woman,” Pizaris said.

“I don’t understand,” I said.

“Justin, was it? I’ve been here in this cell for more than 1,000 years. Every prisoner on this floor has. I’m tired of quietly wasting away. I don’t leave this cell. I don’t die, age, hunger, or thirst. I’ve been in and out of sanity more times than I can count, and nothing ever changes. I’m ready for my end to come, and your lady can make that happen,” Pizaris said.

At once, I was sympathetic for this soul.

I asked, “Why were you put here?”

“I was put here because I am a nephilim, and the angels. . . the proud bastards. . . they view me as an abomination. So, they tossed me in here to suffer,” Pizaris said.

His speech was slow. . . sad. . . and deliberate.

“Then let me get you out of here. You deserve to come back to Earth with us,” I said, going to grab his prison bars and break him out.

“Don’t touch them!”

My fingers stopped abruptly a few inches from the prison bars.

“If you touch the prison bars here, your color fades like mine, and your strength and magic leave you. You become a prisoner and are unable to leave,” Pizaris hissed.

“I need to get you out. I need this curse broken,” I said, frustrated.

“As I said, the solution to your problem is with the lady next to you. She ends my existence, and all my artifacts I created that the angels now possess become powerless,” Pizaris said.

Frowning, I said, “That’s not right. You spend thousands of years in here, and now that someone has arrived to free you, you don’t want to go? You don’t deserve to be in here! You deserve to live a full life in peace back on earth.”

Death put a hand on my shoulder. I knew that touch. It was her sad but correct, “let it go,” touch. It was what she wanted to do after she took Benjamin when I was too possessed with wrath to see straight.

“Justin, I’ve been rotting here for too long. I’m beyond tired. You know how you feel after a hard day’s work? Multiply that exhaustion by at least one million, then combine it with hopelessness, depression, and nothing to look forward to, and you might be halfway to where I am emotionally. The best thing for you to do is just end me so your curse will be broken, and I can finally rest in peace,” Pizaris said.

I immediately spun and dashed across the hallway and slammed my fist into the black crystal wall, shattering a large chunk. The pieces sparkled in the torchlight as they fell to the floor.

Now a few of the prisoners were looking at me.

Pulling my bloody fist out of the wall, I walked back over to cell.

Goddamit. . . angels are assholes that need to be dealt a serious blow. How could they do this to someone that can’t control what he is?

Hissing as I inhaled, I scowled so deep, I thought my forehead was about to tear itself off of my face. Then, after shaking with anger for a few moments, I opened my eyes.

“Death. . . will you please get your scythe?”

She nodded and put her hands together. Light flashed from the palms of her hands as she pulled them apart. As her hands separated, the reaper’s scythe appeared, as if from nowhere.

Death held her weapon with both hands and slid it between the prison bars.

Pizaris fell to his knees.

“I’m going to make them pay,” I said.

“The angels are a mighty foe. Not all of them are bad, but enough are that Heaven is a corrupt place. Michael rules with a mighty iron fist. I wish you the best in your quest, and I’m sorry that one of my artifacts was used to curse you,” Pizaris said.

“It wasn’t your fault,” I said, quietly.

“I meant what I said about not all of them being bad, you know. It was Michael’s order that put me in here. The other angels fear him and rightly so. You’d do well, once your curse is broken, to find some angelic allies. It would better serve you on your mission,” Pizaris said.

I thought about the only angel I knew for a moment. It was Daniel. I sneered at the thought of him offering me any help.

“I’ll see what I can do,” I said.

It was then that I looked at Death and nodded lightly. She brought her scythe down between the bars and got Pizaris in the shoulder, just to the left of his neck.

He hissed for a moment, and then he looked up with gratitude.

“Thank you,” he muttered, a few tears falling down his face.

Then, in a few more seconds, I watched his body literally dissolve into a small pile of ash.

“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,” Death said, quietly.

“What happened to him?”

“The same thing that would have happened to you in Oklahoma if you didn’t have Velvet. He faded into nothing. His soul is no more,” Death said.

I expected guards to rush us or an alarm to sound, but neither happened. Instead, the same silence that had surrounded us since we got here continued.

Death pulled her scythe back and looked around. The torches leading back to the elevator were still lit.

After a few moments of silence, I heard a cracking sound. My skin. . . my hair. . . my wings. . . everything was cracking, like it was made of glass.

Nervous, I asked, “Death what’s-” I didn’t get to finish my question, as a blinding white light filled the hallway, and I closed my eyes.

I wasn’t in pain, and I opened my eyes when the light disappeared. My angelic form shattered and began to fall off me like pieces of broken glass. It was like it was a second layer that had been woven on top of me.

I gave myself a look over as all the broken pieces of my previous form hit the floor. My wings were red again. My hair was jet black. I felt my goatee. My clothes were back to normal.

Death looked at me and smiled.

“There’s Justin Pierce,” she said.

“Feels good to be back,” I said.

“We need to go,” Death said.

We ran back toward the elevator, and strangely enough, the doors were waiting open for us.

Getting inside, the elevator carried us back up to where we came from. I looked at Death and asked, “He’s just going to let us go?”

“I guess we’ll find out,” she said.

The doors opened to the same hallway we used to get to the elevator. We ran through it until we came back to the lobby. The Warden was standing with his arms crossed, blocking our exit.

We came to a stop a few feet from him, Death held her scythe defensively. I put my hand up to her, and she stepped back.

“You killed my prisoner,” the Warden’s voice growled.

“He was unjustly imprisoned here,” I said, walking forward.

I stood before the hulking metal armor, a scant four feet shorter than him. I did not care though. We locked eyes. . . well. . . I couldn’t technically see his eyes as they were two fiery orbs, but we locked eyes nonetheless.

“Guilt or innocence is irrelevant. My job is to hold prisoners and enforce the rules here. You two broke my rules. As a result, you two will become my prisoners to replace the one you killed,” he said.

“I’ve heard enough. Get out of our way, Warden, before I move you,” I growled.

“Few have had to the courage to stand before me in combat throughout time. You’re a fool to think you can win,” the Warden said, as his eyes glowed brighter.

“Death, take a few steps back,” I said.

She did as she was told, still holding her scythe tightly, watching the two of us.

The Warden’s eyes lit up, and two rays of bright light shot down to the ground in front of me. At once, I was swallowed in a massive blaze.

A fireball engulfed myself, and I heard Death scream for me. Patiently, I waited for the Warden to finish his attack.

When his eyes faded and returned to normal, the fireball took a few more seconds to vanish.

When it faded, I stood with my arms in the shape of an “X.” A field of lightning stood over me, like a full-on shield. It hissed and popped as the last bits of fire it protected me from became vanquished.

I brought down my arms and dropped the protective field of lightning as the Warden muttered, “Impossible.”

Bringing my right fist back, I summoned lightning and yelled, “I said. . . get out of our way!”

I rushed my first forward and struck his metal armor right in the stomach. It began to dent from the pressure of my fist and aura, and then with one last push, I blew the Warden back.

He flew across the floor and slammed into a nearby black crystal wall, shattering a large chunk of it.

Inhaling, I looked at Death and said, “Let’s go.”

We walked right past the Warden on the way out. He was slouched over inside the wall; his eyes weren’t even lit anymore.

Getting back outside, Death and I took to the skies again.

I began to feel light headed again as we both faded from view, and she transported us back to the realm of the living.

We appeared back in the upper room of the church, and I could hear yelling below in the chapel.

Looking at Death, I said, “I have this now. Thanks for your help.”

“I told you that you weren’t alone. Are you sure you’ll be fine?”

I smiled and said, “What’s Daniel going to do, hit me with a nonfunctional amulet?”

Death smiled and wrapped her arms around me again.

“I think you’re finally on the right track, Justin. Now go get your sword, and I’ll see you in a little bit,” Death said.

This was twice in one day she’d had her arms around me now, and it was confusing me just a little, but I slowly returned the gesture and said, “Thanks again for all your help.”

She faded from view, and I snuck down the stairs quietly, peering around the corner. The door was reopened, and there stood before me Daniel with all the angels he entered with earlier.

Velvet sat where I’d left it, and a new person was in the room. He had six wings instead of two, and his robes had much more gold on them. His white hair was short and very neat. Sheathed at his side was a blade that looked strangely different than Velvet Redemption.

It looked as though this individual was a higher-ranking angel. . . and if he had a blade-

My thoughts were interrupted by Daniel speaking up, “Michael, I’m sorry. I didn’t-”

“You didn’t what? You didn’t succeed? You didn’t follow orders? You didn’t capture the human fugitive? There are so many ways to finish that sentence, and they all end up with an infuriated archangel before you,” Michael snapped, interrupting Daniel.

“I got the blade back for you,” Daniel said, quietly.

“But you disobeyed orders to do so! That fool is still out there running around somewhere, and you tell me that he’s an angel now? Why the Hell did you think that was a good idea?”

“I’m sorry, Michael. I just figured the less trouble he caused, the better, and I knew he couldn’t fight us as an angel. I thought it was the easiest solution to our problems,” Daniel said, still not taking his eyes from the ground.

“You thought it was the easiest solution, did you? Well guess what! Your failures

and problems have now reached a point where they have become my problems! Lucifer is out there, looking for this blade. I don’t have that fool of a human here to dissect so I can figure out why my old blade chose him, and I have a worthless fool kissing my feet begging for one chance,” Michael roared.

His voice grew louder the angrier he got.

They were on the other side of the chapel, and Velvet was closer to me than it was to them. I could easily grab it and shoot away before they stopped me, but there was something keeping me here.

This Michael. . . he angered me. I wanted to end him. And there was a new feeling that I couldn’t place. . . I felt it in relation to Daniel, but I couldn’t figure out what it was.

“Please, just give me one more chance. I will not fail you again,” Daniel said.

Michael immediately bent over and grabbed Daniel, picking him up by the neck and holding him off the ground.

Michael was taller than both Daniel and I, but he wasn’t as tall as the Warden. He probably stood eight feet high. He looked about as powerful as a locomotive, and he was strangling one of his own soldiers.

What a bastard, I thought.

Daniel may have been someone I’d fought, but he busted his ass to make Michael happy. . . and Michael did not look happy.

“You’ve spent thousands of years chasing and letting Lilandra get away, you constantly failed to find this sword, and now you’ve failed to bring me the human. No Daniel, I will not give you another chance,” Michael said.

Daniel was gasping for air, and none of his allies lifted their eyes to watch. Michael brought him up, and then he slammed him into the ground so hard, the church’s foundation cracked. After that, he pulled Daniel up, and he did it again.

Tossing Daniel up a little higher, Michael grabbed his leg and then flung him into pews on the left. Not letting go of Daniel’s leg, Michael flung him to the right, smashing pews on that side. He did this a few more times, never letting go of Daniel’s leg.

When he finally stopped, Daniel was a bloody mess.

I felt like I was watching the most violent episode of Looney Tunes ever.

“Please. . .,” Daniel muttered, weakly.

“No Daniel. I’m done with you. You are literally at your end. You’ve failed me too many times for me to keep you in Heaven’s ranks,” Michael said.

It was at that moment that I realized what I felt toward Daniel. . . pity. Pizaris was right. Michael ruled Heaven with fear. Daniel and I were enemies, but Daniel was, at the very least, just following orders. He was the perfect soldier, never questioning, never wavering, and just wanting to get the job done. This was how his boss repaid him?

Michael whipped Daniel foward and hurled him into the baptistry, which was about twenty feet to my left. He was out of my vision due to the angle of the corner I was looking around, but I could hear gallons of water rushing out.

The water flew over Velvet, but the sword did not budge. That was when I saw Michael draw his sword.

I’m not watching this any more, I thought, furious.

Michael’s new blade was made of solid gold. It was long, straight, and required two hands to wield due to its size. It’s hilt was encrusted with jewels, and the handguard was adorned with sparkling rocks as well. He raised his sword and moved toward Daniel.

That was when I sprung into action. Velvet was right between Michael and Daniel. I grabbed the scabbard, and Velvet pulsed as if to say, “It’s about time you got your ass back here.”

In one fluid motion, I slung the scabbard over my back, and it reattached itself to my body. I drew the blade and met Michael’s sword head on. Our blades hissed when they met, and I backed up a few inches as I struggled to contain Michael’s velocity. He was truly a powerhouse.

Sparks of lightning flew out of Velvet, and Michael’s blade just continued to hiss loudly, like water mixed with grease.

“So, you came back,” Michael said, making eye contact with me.

We were inches apart, locked in a stalemate.

I looked back at Daniel, who was lying face down in the baptistry. His impact really had destroyed the stage, too.

Looking back at Michael, I said, “That’s not how you’re supposed to treat your soldiers. Daniel may have been a pain in the ass for me, but he was nothing but obedient to you.”

“You feel pity for him? Oh, this is humorous. Stupid human, I have four angels over there ready to replace Daniel in a heartbeat. You fail, you get replaced. It’s that simple,” Michael said, trying to drive me back further.

I grunted as I stopped his advance and muttered, “You failed Heaven, Earth, the angels, and even Lilandra. Why then have you not been replaced?”

At the mention of Lilandra’s name, Michael’s eyes grew wild with rage.

“Justin Pierce, you are an expert on failure. Why do you have the authority to criticize me? You killed your girlfriend! She died by your hand, and then you sold your soul to a demon based on the ruse that she could resurrect her. In what sense have you not failed?”

“I’ll admit I failed. I’ll admit that a thousand times over, but what appears to separate humans from angels is the ability to right our mistakes. When we make a mess, we clean it up! We don’t slam each other around and blame one another for our problems; we fix them! And that’s where I come in. I’m going to fix my mistakes. . . and more importantly, I’m going to fix yours.”

Velvet glowed a bright blue as more lightning shot out of it. The angels on the other side of the room were watching eagerly. They’d not witnessed anyone stand up to Michael. . .not since Lucifer did.

“Arrogance at its finest, the same pride that I saw when I knocked Lucifer out of

Heaven,” Michael hissed.

I roared, “No more words!”

My blade glowed brighter and brighter as bolts of lightning shot into the four corners of the room, blowing them out. Walls collapsed, and the building began to fall on top of us.

The brighter my blade glowed, the more power I felt. Velvet surprised me by fighting Michael, but I realized at once what was driving it. It did not like being replaced, so it was fighting to destroy Michael’s new sword.

Whatever works, I thought.

My blade eventually reached a point where it was too bright, and Michael closed his eyes, growling.

I shot backwards, sheathing Velvet with one hand, and grabbing Daniel with the other. He moaned as I put his arm around my shoulder, and I darted the two of us up the stairs. The building collapsed around us, and I saw the attic window.

I shouted, “Hang on!”

Then, I lunged forward with as much strength as I could muster, and we shot through the window, shattering the glass and flying up into the sky as the rest of the church crashed beneath us.

From there, I flew east and put as much distance between us and the church as I could.

I was sure that collapse wouldn’t have killed Michael, but it did slow him down enough for us to get away.

I flew on, tired from fighting the Warden, tired from fighting Michael, and tired of carrying Daniel. He was unconscious, and he occasionally moaned, but other than that, he was quiet.

Coming upon the city of Springfield, I found a tall building and brought us down on it. It belonged to some large bank or financial firm, and the sun was setting. I put Daniel down, sitting against the railing on the edge of the building.

“Oh man. . . I’m exhausted,” I muttered.

After a few minutes, Daniel awoke. He didn’t display the typical mental displacement an unconscious person did upon waking, either. He looked around and then saw me. Groaning, he tried to sit up, but he collapsed back to his stomach.

“I’d take it easy. Michael gave you a good beating,” I said.

To my surprise, he did take it easy. He didn’t move. Daniel just lay there.

After a few minutes of silence, a good breeze whipped by, and I sighed.

Finally, Daniel broke the silence. Still lying down, he asked, “Why did you save me?”

“Honestly? I felt sorry for you. I don’t think Michael had any right to treat you that way when you busted your ass for him with centuries of loyal service,” I said.

“You should have let him kill me,” Daniel muttered.

Scowling, I asked, “Are you that spineless? How do you let someone treat you like that? Who put him in charge?”

“God did. And no one has the right to question God. Angels that disobey, die,” Daniel said, calmly.

Flabbergasted by his response, I thought, Unbelievable. . . how is it possible for someone to be this blind?

“Look, from what Lilandra told me, God is kind of absent now, right? Don’t you think that he’s kind of left things in Michael’s hands, and it’s possible Michael made a mistake? Would God have beaten you that severely?”

Now Daniel somehow found the strength to sit up, and he said, “Of course not! My Father would never strike another angel unless they rebelled like Lucifer did!”

“But your Father isn’t here now. He’s off doing God stuff somewhere. You know who is here? You, Michael, and I. Now between myself, the guy who just saved your life, and Michael, the asshole that was about to wipe you from the face of existence, who do you trust more to be right?”

Daniel looked away and thought long and hard. The silence made me uncomfortable. Was it really taking this long for him to reach the conclusion that I was correct?

Closing his eyes and popping his neck back into place, he inhaled and then sighed.

“I guess you’ve proven to be more trustworthy than Michael at this point,” he muttered. It clearly wasn’t something that was easy for him to say.

Trying to figure out where he stood, I said, “Okay. . . so what now? Are we allies?”

“I don’t know what you want from me,” Daniel said.

Pizaris’ words echoed back to me. He reminded me that not all angels were bad, in fact, they all feared Michael and obeyed him without question because of his supreme power. Daniel was no different. He was doing what he thought God wanted him to do by obeying Michael. He’d just gotten lost and mindless along the way through the years in God’s absence.

“I didn’t exactly figure we’d be best buds or anything, but I was hoping that maybe you might occasionally help me out in my crusade if I needed it,” I said.

“Because I owe you for saving my life?”

“Not necessarily. I mean, you’re obviously free to do whatever you want now. I figure Michael will order his angels to kill you on sight, and Hell certainly isn’t going to be an ally to you. So, I figured maybe you would join my team,” I said, perhaps more optimistic than I should have been.

Daniel finally made eye contact with me and said, “Your crusade is suicide.”

“You’ll likely die whether you help me or not,” I said.

Rubbing his forehead, he finally said, “Fine. I’ll help you out occasionally, but don’t expect me to die for you or anything.”

“Unlike Michael, I’d never ask you to die for me. I just need help to save this world and the people in it,” I said.

“What’s your next move?”

“I’m going to go after the next horseman on my list,” I said.

“Which is?”

Looking away, I said quietly, “Whichever one I run into.”

Daniel groaned, “You really are hopeless. I’ll start paying you back by telling you Pestilence is in Egypt. He’s gone back to try and set up a throne there. The country is suffering from mass illness and infection. Thousands die every day, and angels are not powerful enough to challenge him in combat. If you intend to save the world, I’d start there, in Cairo. The entire country is in the process of being quarantined.”

“An entire country has been quarantined?”

“Yes, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Sudan, and Libya have all closed their borders in an attempt to keep the unknown disease from spreading. Of course, you and I know the real reason the disease is spreading is because of Pestilence,” Daniel said.

“Kill him and the disease will stop?”

“Theoretically,” Daniel said.

“Why haven’t the angels been healing people and organizing to stop Pestilence?”

“Michael never gave any orders. He doesn’t care about the humans. He only wanted Velvet destroyed and you handed to him on a silver platter,” Daniel said.

Standing up slowly, I popped my back. Daniel did not rise. He was still too tired and injured.

“I’m going to Cairo, then. Are you going to be okay by yourself?”

“I’m sure I’ll manage. I’ve been watching Lilandra evade angels and demons for a long time. I’d be an idiot not to have learned from her,” Daniel said.

“Okay then. Thanks for your help. I’ll be in touch soon, assuming you still want to help me in the future,” I said.

Daniel said nothing, and I took his silence as the best answer I was going to get. He didn’t say no, after all.

Flying up, I decided to head north east as fast as I could. I’d have to find someplace to rest before I took on Pestilence, but I wanted to get as far as I could before that. I had Velvet back, and my next target was in sight. It wasn’t going to be easy to do, but I was going to have to kill Pestilence and stop that disease from spreading further.