From Heaven To Earth (The Faith of the Fallen) (13 page)

Blue and white liquids flowed from His hands. White settled on his upper
body into a t-shirt, and the blue settled as jeans.

“I will do this for you, Father,” Drean said. “I feel like I am not going
to be in your presence for some time. I will miss you.”

God nodded and kissed Drean on the forehead.

God turned and looked directly at the hovering Drean and stared at him.

Drean blinked rapidly.
I know he didn’t take this long to send me to
Earth before. Is this a dream?

“Father?” he asked.

“Farewell, Drean,” God said.

“Father!”

His past self became a sphere of light and plummeted to Earth. God, Earth
and the star-blanketed universe around them disappeared.

Leoran stood before the gates of Heaven. They would not bar his entry
unless God Himself willed it. He walked straight through them. As soon as he
set foot on the other side he could feel God’s worries for Drean and his
mission.

Until recently, while they communicated Creator to angel, God’s attention
touched some part of him that was still His. It made Leoran feel
unconditionally loved. Leoran hated it. It reminded him he was not an
individual.

Since God’s mind had grown chaotic, it disturbed Leoran’s thoughts and
polluted his head with a loud, aching buzz. He felt like a tuning fork that had
just been struck, but at least he was able to maintain control over his
emotions.

Leoran. You just returned from checking on Drean?

Yes, I did, Lord.

How is he?

Well, Lord, he is progressing. He has made some allies that could
prove useful to Your cause.

Indeed! This is good news. When do you think Drean will be ready?

Soon, Lord.

I am glad that you can be my eyes, Leoran. I do not know how much
longer I can hold myself together.

Lord, what can I do to serve you?

Leoran, the core of my being is deteriorating. If it remains in this
body much longer even the Faithstream will not be able to restore me.

What do you wish of me, Lord?

Come to The Sanctuary.

Leoran unfurled his wings. He looked about him as he flew.

It’s so quiet. Most of the angels are gone.

God had converted His angels into energy to alleviate his core’s
breakdown. While it saddened Him to convert them to save Himself, they were His
creations. It was necessary to preserve the greater good: He would do what He
had to. Only the most necessary angels remained: Powers to escort souls,
cherubs and The Tower of Knowledge.

Leoran flew into The Sanctuary, knelt in front of the Throne of God and
lowered his forehead to the tile.

“How is your face, my son?”

“It pains me every day, my Lord.”

“Stand, Leoran. Take off your mask. I want to look at you while I say
this,” God said.

“I am at your disposal, Lord,” Leoran said and removed his celestinite
facemask.

The Throne’s winds scalded the black scales on his jaw and cheeks.

“I wish I could erase my decision to stand with Lucifer, so I could be
more suitable for you.”

“I do not. If your past were different you would not know what you know.
You would not be who you are. That is why you are suitable for me at this
moment, my son.”

“Thank you, Lord.”

“Know that I am sorry for what I have to do, Leoran, but sacrifices must
be made.”

“Yes, Lord, I understand,” Leoran said.

Leoran remembered when God’s body had shimmered with myriads of
unfathomable color: now God’s indicative color had turned dull and gray. His
skin drooped off of His bones. He became translucent, revealing His skeleton
and the core of His being: a bright ball of prismatic light the size of a fist.
It existed beneath the center of God’s forehead.

“It is unsafe for my core to remain inside this dying shell. I need to
use you as my vessel until Drean returns to Heaven.”

“Of course, my Lord.”

Leoran looked resolute on the surface, but beneath fright shook him. He
had thought he had known fear, but as he stood there with tears in his eyes, he
knew it would be the first and last time he would truly feel afraid. He was
going to die. There was nothing he could do about it.

“Good, this will only take a moment.”

God’s core burst from the center of His forehead. His husk crumbled, and
Heaven’s winds scattered them. The ball of light hovered in front of Leoran and
bore into his forehead.

Leoran cried out. Unfathomable pain washed down from his forehead and
flooded his whole body. Heat and cold coursed through every pore of his being,
and soon he could not respond to his misery with any kind of conscious
movement. He twitched, whimpered and begged it to end.

Then he felt it: the power of God’s essence, His core.

Leoran felt God’s feeble attempts at invasion: pin pricks in his mind.
God lightly grazed the doors of his consciousness and tried to seep into it.
Leoran realized what this meant, and a wide grin spread across his face.

Leoran, what are you doing!?

Leoran felt God try to escape, suffocated Him with his will and pushed
into the core itself.

Leoran, stop this! I command it!
God’s will bludgeoned every facet
of his being. Leoran almost lost consciousness for a moment, and God pushed
back at him.

No, this is mine now, Lord.

Leoran fought to maintain his hold over God’s essence and connected with
the core.

Leoran, I beg of you... stop this.

Goodbye, Father.

Please, my son.

God’s voice faded and died off, and there was no resistance when Leoran
dove into the essence of his former Father. Leoran writhed on the ground once
more from the perfect ecstasy that God’s power brought him.

I feel whole. I was meant to do this. This power was meant to be mine!
While this portion of my Father’s majesty makes me the undisputed ruler of
Heaven and Earth, Drean needs to finish his part of the original plan. God’s
core will still not last long without the Faithstream, and there is much more
power to be gained.
Leoran chuckled at that thought.
I wonder if I can
contact Drean from here.

Leoran concentrated and could see though Drean’s eyes.

Where is he?

He opened himself up to his surroundings.

A hidden alcove inside the spiritual plane. Created by the skia? Yes
she is here, talking with Shrazz. He seems different.
Leoran laughed.
Lucifer
your ambition is folly but not mine. Shrazz will not be powerful enough to
endure what is to come. I will.

Leoran listened in on Riell and Shrazz’s conversation.

They’re talking about Drean. Riell is thinking about giving the fallen
angel Gerald away in Drean’s stead to throw Shrazz off track of his true prey.
She isn’t sure whether or not it’s the right course of action.

Leoran smiled. Immediately he provided an answer using God’s power of
inspiration. It removed all doubt from Riell’s mind.

She lied to Shrazz and told him about Gerald instead of Drean.

I cannot see the outcome of this battle, but I am sure Gerald has
enough power to kill Shrazz. I will force Gerald to kill Riell as well, and
make him believe Satan forced his hand. Riell’s death will fuel Drean’s hatred.
Gerald’s guilt will keep him by Drean’s side. Both of them will complete
Drean’s mission. My time has finally come.

He glided through the air to God’s throne and sat upon it.

He thought of what he wanted to do first, and it was easy. He wanted a
partner. He wanted to know what it felt like to love and be loved. He summoned
a Power to The Sanctuary. The angel arrived and knelt at the foot of his
throne.

Lucifer had spoken at great length about love, what it meant to him, and
how he had fallen in love with his consort, Annarae. Lucifer believed she had
awareness and intelligence that other angels did not have. He told her he loved
her often, and one day he saw her smile at him. Her lips did not move, but he
could see it in her eyes. She had recognized how he felt, and it affected her
on a deeper level than duty or obligation. Leoran wanted a partner like her.

“Remove your armor, angel.”

The angel’s armor became a cloth robe.

“No, remove your clothing completely.”

The angel slipped out of the robe and stood naked.

Leoran tried to remember what Lucifer’s consort looked like. He closed
his eyes and exerted his will upon the angel to change it into a her.

He heard the Power scream: it escalated from a baritone into a soprano.
Leoran opened his eyes.

She was a mass of flabby, hairy skin. Yet, he wanted to run his hands all
over her blond curly body hair to see if he had gotten her curvature correct.
It was too thick to see through.

She had several misshapen breasts, and he could not see if she was
actually a woman beneath her hair. He was not pleased with his work, but he
needed to be pleased. She would have to do. He let her cry into his shoulder
until she calmed. Then, he took her.

Riell awoke with Drean wrapped around her. His arms and legs enveloped
her body and pulled her closer. She silently broke free of his loving grasp and
sat up on the bed.

Riell brushed Drean’s white hair from his face and looked at him.

His skin is so smooth, his lips full. His thoughts are free and yet he
is completely innocent and caring. I never thought a man like him could exist.
I could learn a lot from him. What the hell am I going to tell Shrazz?

Pounding resounded throughout Riell’s apartment. Though she did not know
for sure, she assumed it was Shrazz.

“Shit! Drean, get up now!”

Drean jumped out of bed and assumed a fighting stance.

He glanced around and realized there was no one in the room except for
him and Riell.

Riell threw Drean’s clothes at him and pointed to the closet.

“In there, now!”

Riell held her ears against the loud pounding.

Drean dashed to the closet and closed the door. Riell took a deep breath
to calm herself long enough to concentrate, she needed an illusion to obscure
Drean for the time being. She waved her hand at the closet, and the door
blended in with the rest of the wall. Riell removed the barrier she had placed
on the portal to her house.

“Alright Shrazz the doors are open, come in.”

Riell remembered she was in her underwear. She quickly summoned clothing
from her armory: a black, form fitting, sleeveless top and loose, gray pajama
pants.

She had barely finished dressing herself when a light the size of a grain
of sand flashed by her bedroom door, and grew exponentially into a portal:
Shrazz stepped through.

“Did I catch you sleeping? Your shirt is on backwards.”

“Actually yes, you did, sir. Shit. Sorry. Turn around?”

“Of course.”

Shrazz glanced at Riell’s bed and noticed it was completely disheveled.

“Toss a lot in your sleep?”

“Yeah, I had a horrible nightmare last night,” Riell lied as she fixed
her shirt.

“About your parents?”

“Yeah. Ok. I’m done.”

“Sorry to hear about that.”

“Shrazz was there something you needed, or did you just come here to
check up on me?”

Shrazz paced around the room.

“It’s just been a while since I’ve heard anything from you. You usually
get your jobs done quickly, without error.” Shrazz sat on her bed. “Granted,
this job is the most challenging one you will ever have... I still expected you
to be just as diligent with your work as you’ve always been.” Shrazz looked a
little concerned. “Is there anything wrong? Are you having any doubts?”

Riell looked away from him.

“No, sir, it’s just that this angel has been elusive.”

“I see. Well, what information do you have?”

“I’ve seen him only once. At a bar.”

“At a bar? He wasn’t at the rendezvous?” Shrazz narrowed his eyes at
this.

“Oh right, and there as well. It caught sight of me though. I had to
retreat for the time being.”

Shrazz studied Riell when she said this.

“Which bar did he go to?”

“The Horse, I went there for a drink and to talk with Dejanto to see if
he knew anything about the angel.”

Shrazz chuckled. “Coincidentally the angel was there. Interesting. Well,
how is our old mentor doing?”

“He seems well. Even though the angel was sitting right by him, he didn’t
seem to recognize him as someone filled with evil intent.”

“Really.”

“Yeah he didn’t seem hostile at all. He just wanted company.”

“Are you sure this is the right angel, Riell?” He tapped a claw nervously
against one of the medals on his sleeve.

“Why wouldn’t it be? You said God sent only one.” She gave his claw an
irritated glance. “Don’t do that, it’s annoying.”

“Sorry.” He stopped and grunted in frustration. “Well the one we are
looking for is supposed to be a subtle destructive force. Even Keep could fall
prey to his illusions. I’m going to join you on the hunt. Together we’ll subdue
him easily. What did he look like?”

“The angel had the look of a fallen angel,” Riell said. “His wings were
black and tattered and his face was scarred.” She closed her eyes for a moment,
unsure as to whether or not she had made the right decision.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah just trying to remember him. I was wasted myself.” She opened her
eyes. “He wore a long black coat that covered his wings, and he is impervious
to all human weapons and enchantment.”

“I’m not worried about that.”

“Shouldn’t you be? Demonic imports are expensive and hard to come by. Do
you want to use my short sword?”

He laughed.

“No. I won’t need it. I’m pretty sure it enjoys your company more
anyway.”

Riell noticed something odd about Shrazz’s aura. She scrutinized him. She
could see his muscles bulging from underneath his uniform.

“Shrazz there’s something different about you.”

Shrazz smiled at this. “Well, I had a good meal before I left. Riell,
where did you get your information?”

Riell tried to keep her eyes level with his while she thought of an
answer.

“Well the angel was drinking quite a bit, and accidentally spilled some
info out to a young man he was talking to.”

“Was this young man a friend of his?”

“I think so. I checked him out while I was talking to him. He doesn’t
seem like he’s any sort of threat. We might be able to use him to bring the
angel out of hiding. That way we can get at him without raising any problems
from the humans.”

“Yeah, that sounds like a good plan. Talk to this human about it. Maybe
offer him something nice in return.”

“Shrazz!”

“I’m just kidding you know.” He chuckled. “You don’t have to actually
come through with your offer. We can kill him after he plays his part.”

“He’s innocent though! Leave him out of this!”

Shrazz’s eyes flared, and she knew that he was questioning her integrity.

“Why is this human so important to you? Usually you care nothing for
them. You should have interrogated him and killed him.”

“Sorry. I don’t know where that came from, sir.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“I’m just trying to adopt your mindset, sir. That the humans and this
world are worth saving. That there is a chance for us all to coexist. I did not
want to involve them unless I absolutely had to.”

Shrazz frowned at her.

“Alright. I just want to make sure that it gets done right. This job is
very important to me.”

“Shrazz why
is
this job so important to you?” She tried to change
the subject to escape Shrazz’s cross-examination. “You feed on humans, so why
have sympathy for them?”

Shrazz slid over to allow more space for Riell to sit next to him. He
patted the empty space.

Riell sat next to him.

“This job is worth more to me than money. In fact, to be honest with you,
that down payment came from my pocket. I wasn’t given any money upfront.”

“So that down payment is all that I’m getting for this.”

“Don’t be ungrateful, Riell. That payment was ten times what you usually
get for your bounties!”

“I know, Shrazz. I just thought that this was going to end in our
retirement from this line of work.”

“I wasn’t lying to you, Riell!” Shrazz put his head in his hands as if he
were ashamed of himself.

“Shrazz I’m not disappointed in you. Just because I’m not getting more
money doesn’t mean that I’m going to abandon you.” Riell laid a hand on
Shrazz’s shoulder.

“Are you sure?” Shrazz lifted his head up. “Once we get into this there’s
not going to be any turning back. Not until we complete this job or die
trying.”

“I’m with you.”

“Alright.” Shrazz drew in a deep breath as if he were bracing himself.

“This job is about divinity.”

“Divinity?” Riell took her hand off of Shrazz’s shoulder.

“Yes, divinity.” Shrazz looked into Riell’s eyes. “I can have it for
myself!”

“How... what does this job have to do with it?”

“I didn’t know if I should tell you all of the details.” Shrazz looked
down at the floor. “I had decided up until now to not divulge any info that
might force you to quit on me.”

“If you don’t tell me everything I’ll quit. I don’t want to be in the
dark if this job could end up killing us both.” Riell folded her arms.

“Fine. Our employer informed me that he would prepare me for this job. So
far, he hasn’t lied. He sent me a meal: A darbas. It’s given me a strong
foundation of power.” Shrazz licked his lips, and remembered the sweet taste of
the demon’s flesh.

“Who is your employer, Shrazz, and what is ahead?” Riell gave him a
disgusted look as he caressed his lips with his forked tongue.

He turned to her and gripped one of her hands with both of his.

“Satan, he employed us.”

Riell was floored, and when she came to she tried to pull away from him.

“What’s ahead is our battle with the angel, Riell.” He tried hold onto
her, but she managed to get away. “After we apprehend it, I will devour its
spirit. If the angel is as powerful as Satan is letting on I should become a
lesser divine. Then, we will make our move on Heaven.”

“Our move on Heaven?!” Riell turned to him and threw her hands up in
disbelief. “Shrazz, no one has that kind of power. Satan was a greater divine!
An archangel! God threw him aside and cast him into the pits of Hell.” She
plopped back onto her bed. “All that awaits us is eternal punishment in our own
hells. If the Duo let us die that is. Have you thought about those
consequences?! The Curtain will try us for treason!”

“Satan contacted me through them initially. They made an exception for
this. They didn’t want the affiliation with Satan to cause any dissension, so
they didn’t make the job public.”

She stood up and paced in front of her hidden closet.

“So, you’re going to withdraw?” Shrazz asked.

“I just want to make it known that you are completely out of your mind,
Shrazz,” she began. “I’m not going to back out on you,” she scooted closer to
him, “but I need some reassurance! How in the hell are we going to take
Heaven?!”

“How in the hell indeed.” Shrazz smiled.

“How, Shrazz?”

“The energy of God Himself, the Faithstream. When I ascend I will access
that energy.”

“Isn’t that only a myth?”

“No. It is real. And it will be mine.
”

“Okay. Let’s say it actually exists. You will still be a corrupted
divine. How do you know God’s energy won’t destroy you? And let’s say that
works out. How will we take Heaven?”

“Yes, I won’t be strong enough alone. But with Satan and his armies, we
will be.”

Riell closed her eyes and tried to wake up.

This is only a dream. I’m still sleeping.

“Riell,” Shrazz held both of her shoulders, “we can do it.”

“And what will happen when we do it, Shrazz?!” Riell snapped out of her
state of disbelief. “Who will ultimately benefit from this war? Not us. Not the
humans. Satan, who has always wanted to be God! The humans have already damaged
this world enough. Satan will distort everything that God ever created!”

“Have you ever met Satan before?”

“No, Shrazz I can’t say that I have.” Riell stared at him. “Wait, have
you?”

“Yes. I have. Although illusions have been involved each time. I believe
it was him.”

Riell laughed. “As I thought,” she said. “He is the Father of Lies. He
would communicate through some sort of illusion.”

“Most of the illusions were used to test my integrity and loyalty. How do
you know what he is really like?” Shrazz challenged. “How do you know anything
about what he stands for?”

Riell tried to answer, but Shrazz cut her off.

“Who created everything that is good? What is good? Who defines what is
good in this world?”

“God.”

“Right. He is the answer to all of those questions. Just because
someone’s opinion of what is good differs from God’s they are marked as evil.
They are looked down upon because they are evil, shunned, punished in life and
in death.”

“It sounds like Satan has already twisted you, Shrazz,” Riell said.

“Riell, we know, without guidance, what we are supposed to do with our
lives. We should be able to make our own decisions without consequences except
those of our own conscience, just as the humans do. Most of them go to Heaven
despite how they live.”

“But, Shrazz, regardless, we will live on. The humans will fall from
God’s grace eventually.”

“The humans have the ability to evolve as our race has, granted not many
of them have been able to tap into their creative energies as of yet, but Keep
is a prime example of what they’re capable of,” Shrazz said.

“I suppose you’re right. Other people like Keep exist,” Riell said.

“What about your children, Riell? What about mine? The offspring of our
own races?”

Riell looked away
. What about my offspring? I never considered having
any children. I didn’t want them to be born into a dying world of hatred and
prejudice.

“If the humans accept our people we will all live in peace. We will all
go forward together,” Shrazz said.

What if he’s right about all of this?

“Heaven will be on Earth and Hell will be removed from existence.”

“But how will murdering God help that cause? How do you know Satan won’t
just create another Hell to punish those that oppose him?”

“There will be no good, only life living by its own accord. Making its
own decisions without any force to stand in its path, even in death. As for
Satan, he won’t want to allow anyone else to suffer as he has.”

“I don’t know how you can be so certain about this.” Riell folded her
right leg over her left, and it shook nervously.

“I want to preserve this world! For all of us! I may have been swayed by
Satan’s arguments. Father of Lies or not, I can trust him when it comes to
this.”