Rising Darkness (35 page)

Bethlehem, 4 B.C.

“I see the boys are awake again,” said Elron, who had returned from his watch. His son, Joshua, stood and greeted him.

“Father, we have been talking about Daniel!” he said excitedly.

Elron looked at Daniel, who had been sitting by himself that last time he had seen him. He wondered what this was all about.

“Daniel, have they been disturbing you?” he asked.

Eli laughed loudly, as did the others around the fire. Joshua suddenly understood what his father meant.

“No, no,” he pleaded. “I mean we were talking about the real Daniel!”

“Oh!” said Elron. “Sorry, Daniel!”

“That’s alright, Elron,” said Daniel. “I only wish that I were real too.”

The camp exploded with laughter—not so much at the play on words but the fact that they were spoken by Daniel. What was happening with this man?

The men settled down around the fire once more for the final hours of the evening. Elron sat next to his son, who was glad to have his father back with him.

“What have you learned about the real Daniel?” Elron asked his son.

Everyone smiled at the question.

“He was a prophet! At a time when there were no prophets!”

“Well, I didn’t exactly say that, Joshua,” said Eli, careful to protect his words. “Remember that Daniel lived around the same time as Ezekiel. The Lord was at work even while His people were in exile.”

“But there were enemies who wanted to destroy Daniel,” Joshua continued. “Men who were jealous of him and wanted him dead!”

“But why?” asked Jarod. “The king liked him, didn’t he?”

Eli leaned back, and thought about his words. Now that the adults were back he weighed his words more carefully.

“Because, young Jarod, it seems that men are always jealous of that which is real and pure and true,” he said. “And evil especially cannot tolerate something that is righteous. Some men were jealous of Daniel’s integrity, and they wanted him destroyed.”

“So what did they do?” asked Joshua excitedly.

“Like most evildoers they set a trap for him,” said Eli. “They figured if they could catch him at something that would make the king mad, they could get rid of him. But the Lord was with Daniel.

“And do you know what happened to Daniel after those ten days of eating vegetables?”

The boys looked at Eli, hanging onto his words. He pointed at Beniah, a shepherd who was fairly sizeable and known for his ability to eat a great deal at a sitting.

“After those ten days they were in better shape than the others,” he continued. “Like our friend Beniah here!”

Beniah grinned as he tossed another date into his mouth. Everyone laughed.

“Try as they might, the king’s men could not get the better of Daniel,” Eli said. “Then one time Nebuchadnezzar had a dream. The problem was when he woke up he could not remember what the dream was about! So he ordered all of his wisest men to not only interpret the dream but to tell him what the dream was in the first place!”

“So Daniel did it!” cried out Joshua.

“Let him tell it,” said Jarod scornfully.

Eli laughed. “Yes, Daniel not only told the king what the dream was, but he also interpreted it for him. And such a dream…”

“Such a dream is right,” said Serus to Bakka as they stood by the little gathering of shepherds. He looked about at the amazing number of angels who were now assembled around Bethlehem in the sky, on the hills—everywhere. “It looks as if another dream is to be realized here tonight. Little wonder that Lucifer is begging to meet with Michael and Gabriel.”

Serus, who had been with Michael in Bethlehem escorting Joseph and Mary, had been ordered to return to the shepherds.

“I was wondering when he would initiate dialog,” said Bakka. “He can read signs and prophets as well as we.”

Serus looked at the star that hung high overhead.

“Signs and prophets,” he repeated. “Since Eden we have awaited the time of the Seed. Lucifer knows that his time is becoming increasingly precious.”

“What do you suppose he will wish from Michael?” asked Bakka. “He knows that the Child is not a point of negotiation.”

“Lucifer as always will seek some sort of advantage,” said Serus. “I know him, Bakka. Remember that I served him in Heaven. We view that star as the beginning of the end. He will see it as the end of the beginning.”

Lucifer and Michael locked eyes. Two powerful angels on opposite sides of the greatest conflict ever met on the fields of Bethlehem. With Michael were Gabriel and several other warriors. Lucifer was accompanied by Kara, Pellecus, and Rugio. Lucifer smiled at the archangel.

“Well Michael, it is finally coming to an end,” he said. “We have been watching Mary of course, ever since the news. Wonderful annunciation, Gabriel!”

Gabriel ignored Lucifer’s reference of his announcement to Mary about the Child that she was carrying.

“Of course it was a rather delicate situation,” he continued. “I mean a Child born without a father in a society that stones a person for such indiscreet behavior.”

“The Child has a Father,” said Gabriel.

“Oh yes,” said Lucifer. “Well, I must admit that we were taken by surprise on that one. We knew that the prophet proclaimed a king who would rule an eternal throne. But I had no idea that the Lord Himself would be so…so involved with this woman.”

“Don’t turn something sacred into some sordid act, Lucifer,” said Michael. “You speak against the Holy Spirit!”

As he finished saying these words the wind picked up around them, kicking up dust and debris and forcing the unfortunate people who were not yet registered to cover their eyes and mouths for protection from the freakish weather. Then it settled down suddenly.

“I speak no ill of the Spirit of God,” continued Lucifer. “His indiscretions are of no importance to me…”

“What do you want, Lucifer?” said Michael firmly.

“We wish to discuss the Child,” said Kara. “Naturally.”

“Ah yes,” said Gabriel. “Well the Child is quite safe, and not one of your angels has been able to penetrate the shield we have placed about Him.”

“So I heard,” sneered Kara. “No matter.”

“We are here to discuss the future,” said Lucifer. “Once the Child is born there shall be much destruction such as this people have never witnessed.”

“You are forcing this war into a bloody conclusion,” stammered Kara.

“These people will never listen to this or any other prophet,” said Pellecus.

Michael smirked at the demons who stood before him. Crispin, who had been standing with the archangels, moved to the front to speak.

“Since Eden and even before, you have opposed this,” he said. “You have done all that you could to stop the Seed from arriving. You have introduced idolatry that profaned God’s temple and saw its destruction; you have inflamed pagan nations to occupy the holy city; you have dispossessed these people of their nation while possessing their minds; you have brought sickness and war and plague and murder to the people of God. You have contested us in every way—and still you cannot stop the plan of God. You foolish demons! From whence comes such pride that you should oppose the living God?”

“We shall continue to oppose,” said Lucifer. “This Child shall fail like the prophets before Him. The one advantage that we have always been able to exploit is the one factor over which even the Lord Himself has no control—the free will of humans.”

The angels with Lucifer nodded in agreement at the remark.

“True,” said Crispin. “Free will is an unpredictable and dangerous thing—as all of you have discovered to your own disgrace. We shall see if the Child born here shall be able to capture the hearts of His people in a way different from the prophets.”

“Whatever His message, it shall not be received,” said Kara. “And all this will have been for nothing!”

“How frightened you all must truly be,” said Gabriel. “The Seed is closing in on you. The One who shall crush the serpent’s head shall soon be upon the earth. You’re finished, Lucifer.”

“I will never bow to this Child,” said Lucifer. “Any more than a human shall truly listen to the Most High. In the end He shall be another prophet with another message who came and was forgotten. That shall be the legacy of the Messiah!”

Lucifer vanished. The others gave an arrogant glance at Michael and Gabriel.

“Farewell, Archangel,” said Kara. “We shall see you on the other side of this event. And then you will see how we deal with this Child-King!”

Kara vanished as well. Only Pellecus remained. He looked at Crispin.

“Well, teacher,” he said. “The game has come to this, hasn’t it? Not many moves left, hmm? The Child shall be born after all. But the game must be played out in the hearts of men. Eve played in Eden—and I’m afraid she didn’t fare well. I am comforted by this. Men shall never be able to live at peace with God.”

“Of course you’re correct, dear Pellecus,” said Crispin. “Men shall never be able to live with God. Perhaps that is why God must live with men.”

Chronicles of the Host

Babylon, 580 B.C.

The two men sat quietly at the table, waiting for a third to join them. Up until now they had not met together on this issue. In fact, they didn’t realize that anyone else was a part of this discussion until Arbo-kan had called them together. And so they sat, cordial and silent, until Arbo-kan arrived to further explain why they had been summoned.