Phantom - Chapter 05

The Archangel Michael leant back in his chair and let out a long, relaxed exhale.

He smiled, close the book in his lap and carefully placed it on the desk behind him, before getting up and going over to his bookshelf. He picked up another book, nodded and sat back down, flicking it open.

The study in his mansion was vast and beautiful, filled with books that he had always intended to read but, due to the war with Hell, he hadn’t had the time to read them. The room was filled with luxurious furniture and was decorated in a clean white paint with golden vines and stone pillars around the edges of the room. It was located on the top floor of his mansion and, up here, in a corner by itself, it felt like it was cut off from the rest of the world, allowing Michael to read in peace and quiet.

Someone knocked gently at his door.

“Come in,” He called, turning to the next page.

Softly, Lailah, his wife, opened the door and brought in a silver tray with a set of tea and biscuits on it.

She was one of the most beautiful angels in all of Heaven with flowing blonde hair, bright blue eyes and a gently smile that could warm the heart of anyone who saw it.

Michael looked up, smiled, and said, “You didn’t have to go through the trouble to do that.”

“It’s fine, I know that you like to have a snack or two as you read,” She said, placing the beverages on his desk within arm’s reach.

Michael laughed as he saw the mountain of biscuits she had brought. “Not that much.”

“I beg to differ.” She lightly tapped him on the nose. “When Ariel’s home from school, you should go and play with her. She’s really missed you since you were deployed.” Lailah grabbed the hem of her dress. “I have too.”

Michael smiled, shut his book, got up and hugged her gently from behind. “I know, but I had to fulfil my duties as an Archangel and fight in the war.” He took her hands in his and put his chin on her shoulder, brushing their cheeks together. “I’m not going anywhere far away from you two ever again.”

“Really?”

“Really.” He kissed her cheek. “I know I’ve been a bit withdrawn since I’ve gotten back, but…it’s been tough for me, readjusting to our normal lives.”

She wrapped her fingers tightly around his. “Was it really that horrible out there?”

“Yeah,” Michael whispered. “So horrible that I can’t put it out of my mind, even when I hold you in my arms or read these books. It’ll take some time, but I’ll come back to you. I promise.”

The two of them kissed on the lips and, after a few, loving moments, broke away from one another.

“I’ll wait until you do,” Lailah said, smiling at him and rubbing his cheek with her hand. “It might help to spend some time with us.”

“I know, but…” Michael shut his eyes and his arms began to shake. “I don’t want to have a panic attack in front of you two.”

“Hey, listen to me.” She spun around and put her arms on his shoulders. “We won’t hate you if you do and I’ll explain to Ariel what’s going on with you. She’ll understand, okay?” Michael nodded. “Good.” They kissed again. “Now then.” She broke away and smiled. “I’ll leave you to do your-” Someone knocked at the door, again. “Yes?”

A butler entered into the room and respectfully bowed to them. “I apologise for interrupting you, Lord Michael, Lady Lailah, but Lord Michael has been summoned to his Majesty’s palace.”

“Thank you,” Michael said. “Return to your duties.”

“At once, my lord.”

The butler left and Michael let out a small sigh. “So much for having a relaxing day reading.”

Lailah giggled. “Go on, you don’t want to keep God waiting now, do you?”

“I know, but he could have at least given me a bit more warning.” Michael kissed her one final time. “I’ll be back in a while.”

“Don’t stay out too long.”

“Whatever you say, dear.”

Michael left his house and smiled brightly upon seeing the city of Eden.

Eden, the capital city of the Kingdom of Heaven, was truly a utopic city in every regard.

It was clean, pretty, filled with friendly and wonderful people, both angels and chosen humans of the Realm of the Gods, and it was the largest place in the Kingdom, overflowing with luxury and joy. Angels flew through the sky on their wings, humans walked the streets, a skip in their step and bright smiles on their faces, and the air felt pleasant just to breathe it in and out.

“Good morning, Lord Michael,” A passer-by greeted, bowing to him.

“Good morning, Johnathan,” Michael greeted.

“G-Good morning, L-L-Lord Michael. H-H-How are you today?” A flying angel asked him.

“Very well, thank you. Yourself?”

“I-I-I’m very well, thank you!” The angel bowed and quickly flew away, going over to his friends and whispering, “I spoke to Lord Michael!”

Michael smiled, took a deep breath, and his wings expanded from his back. He took off into the air and quickly soared through the air to God’s palace, the most spectacular and inspiring building in the city.

With his wing’s speed, he reached the palace in the centre of the city in minutes.

The walls were made out of beautifully carved white stone with stain glass windows running along the walls. Golden statues and gargoyles were perched atop it, looking down on the city, and there were dozens of Angel soldiers patrolling along the battlements, even though it was located in the safest and most peaceful place in Heaven. The main entrance into the palace was through two gigantic blue doors which had magnificent carvings of all of the Angels and Archangels on it, looking upwards to a large mural of God hanging above the doors.

Michael landed outside the doors and two royal guards in beautiful golden armour opened them for him, and he walked into the impressive entry hall.

It was filled with clean white walls which were decorated with golden and teal patterns that looked like they were pieces of art in their own right.

Even though Michael had walked through these halls countless times, he was always impressed by the decorations in the Palace. He walked up to the highest floor and along the long and heavily guarded corridor to God’s bedroom. The giant of an Angel guard at the door stepped to the side, pushed it open for him, and Michael, with a slight bow to the Angel, stepped inside.

Standing out on the balcony, his gaze fixated upon his city, was God.

He had flowing white hair and soft blue eyes which always gave of a gentle feeling, even when he was angry. He was wearing a regal white and gold cloak which had been lovingly crafted piece by piece and beside him was a stone table with a set of silver cups and a jug on it.

“Good morning, your Grace,” Michael said, kneeling before his king. “How does today find you?”

God looked over at him and let out a weary sigh. “How many times have I told you not to act like that when it’s just the two of us?”

Michael looked up at him, smiled and stood up. “Sorry about that.”

“Honestly, you know that I find it embarrassing when a close friend acts like that in private.”

“I know, which is why I do it.”

“Aren’t you in the mischievous mood?”

Michael laughed and bowed again. “Of course not, your Grace, for mischief is evil.” God sighed again, making Michael chuckle again. “Fine, I’ll stop.”

“Thank you,” God said. “How are things at home?”

Michael quickly lost his smile. “Very good, thank you.” He walked out to the balcony. “Ariel’s grown so much since I last saw her and waking up every day and seeing my wife’s beautiful smile in the morning always brings me joy.”

“I’m glad to hear that you’re readjusting to civilian life well.”

“Is…did you call me here to-?”

“Oh, goodness no!” God cried dismissively. “I wouldn’t do anything so cruel as to send you back to the frontlines, Michael.”

“Then, why did you call me here?”

“Why else? To catch up, of course!” God smiled cheerfully and patted him hard on the back. He walked over to the table, picked up the wine pitcher and poured two glasses, offering one to Michael. “You haven’t come to see me once since you’ve returned from the frontlines.”

Michael took the glass and bowed his head. “I…just didn’t have the time.”

“And yet you spoke to the other Archangels before you did me. I couldn’t help but worry that you might have forgotten about me.”

“How could I ever do that?” He sipped the wine; it was a very sweet and pleasant vintage.

“So?” God sat down and beckoned Michael to do the same. “How has home really treated you?”

Michael looked at his wine, exhaled gently and took the seat opposite God, keeping his eyes firmly fixed on the table.

“It’s…been difficult, to say the least,” He whispered, intertwining his fingers together. “I’d thought that after a month I’d be used to it, but…it’s almost…”

“Unreal?”

Michael nodded and frowned. “I keep thinking that when I wake up tomorrow, I’ll have to go back into a battle and watch my friends get killed. Some days, I wake up in a cold sweat and expect the Demons to launch a massive attack and I begin to panic, and scream. Lailah’s been extremely helpful about it, though. She’s always comforted me whenever I had a panic attack and she does her best to keep our daughter from seeing them.”

“I see,” God said, a sad look on his face. “I’m sorry to hear that it’s been so hard on you.”

“I couldn’t be happier to be home and yet, every time I close my eyes, I get taken back there, to those moments of war and chaos which make my skin crawl. When I think about something like that reaching Eden, I…”

God nodded slowly and relaxed back into his chair, emitting a low hum. “The war’s reached a stalemate, Michael, and the other Archangels are more than capable enough to take your place and protect Heaven. I understand your fears, truly I do. I always dread the image in my mind of Lucifer and her forces rampaging through our cities, burning, raping and killing everything in their path, and it makes me terrified for our future.” Then, he smiled and said, “But I always think about that and how I can stop it which gives me the strength I need to keep defending our Kingdom. If you ever become unsure of our victory, just remember what you have to protect and that will keep you fighting harder than ever before until you achieve victory. At least, that’s why I believe.”

Michael smiled sadly and nodded, in awe of his King’s words and he closed his eyes, repeating them again in his mind so that he did not forget them.

Remember what I have to protect, He told himself, thinking of his family and the city of Eden. Remember and I will always strive for victory.

“Thank you, your Grace,” Michael said softly.

“You’re very welcome, Archangel,” God said, finishing his wine. “Now then.” He poured himself another glass. “The day is still young and I have much I wish to talk about.”

Michael smiled brightly and said, “As do I, your Grace.”

***

When Michael finally got back home, he had spent the rest of his day with his wife, maintaining their garden and watching the wildlife skirt around it. Before they had realised it, their daughter had come home and Michael had spent the afternoon playing with her, laughing and relaxing more than he had since he had come home.

After a few hours of playing together, Ariel had fallen asleep in his lap, a sight which his wife found incredibly endearing.

“To think that she’s already seven,” Michael whispered, stroking the top of her head gently. “Time really does fly, doesn’t it?”

Lailah nodded and sat down beside him, resting her head on his shoulder. “When you first left, she had just turned three. Every day though, she would always ask where you were, wanting to give you presents that she had made and to spend time with you.” She felt a few tears build in her eyes and she closed them. “Right now, this feels like a dream.”

“I know what you mean.”

“What…what did God want today? I mean, you never said anything and seemed to be in a better mood, so I was worried that you were forcing-”

“Ah, it was nothing important,” He said reassuringly. “The old man just wanted to catch up because I hadn’t stopped by in a while.”

“Eh? Seriously?”

“Yeah.”

Her head shot off his shoulder and she stared into his eyes. “Really?”

“Yeah.”

“He wasn’t going to send you back to the frontlines?” Lailah asked.

Michael shook his head. “Far from it.”

Lailah let out a sigh of relief and drooped her head. “I was worried for nothing then?”

Michael laughed gently and kissed the top of her head. “Even if he asked me to, I’d refuse.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah. After all, I don’t want to be away from you two for another moment. If the old man even thinks about sending me out, I’ll tell him no.”

“Um, as close as you two are, that might be pushing it…”

Michael smiled. “Yeah, probably.”

“Still.” His wife snickered. “It’d be pretty funny to see.”

They both laugh gently, not wanting to wake Ariel, and then shared another kiss together.

“This isn’t a dream that I’m going to wake up from tomorrow, right?” She asked anxiously.

“I’ll say it as many times as you need me to,” He said, taking her hand in his. “This is reality and we’re all together. I’m not going anywhere, I promise you.”

***

Eden was burning.

Without any advanced warning from the outlying cities or the frontlines, Lucifer and her armies had broken through the Kingdom’s defences, burning their way across the land to Eden. They had begun their attack in the dead of night, when the city was asleep, and stormed through the gates before a proper defence could be organised.

Michael had happened to have been out shopping that evening, leaving him unarmed and without his armour. He had hurried home with a squad of Angels, hoping to get his equipment and evacuate his family to somewhere safe.

Unfortunately, he was only able to retrieve his gear.

Lying in a pool of their own blood, with their bodies torn and twisted, were Ariel and Lailah, their eyes wide open and filled with terror and pain. Dead around them were the three Demons which had assaulted the house, killed by the Angels Michael had with him. Upon discovering his family dead, Michael had collapsed onto his knees, staring in shock and horror of what lay before him, tears pouring relentlessly from his eyes, and an unholy mixture of pain and grief swelling within him.

“Lailah…Ariel…” He whispered, his voice shaking with every syllable. “I…I…”

“Lord Michael, I’m sorry for your loss but we have to go!” An Angel cried, grabbing his shoulder. “More Demons are on the way and the Palace is under attack! The King needs us. Lord Michael!”

Even as the Angel shook him, Michael didn’t react.

He was being consumed by the unpleasant, disgusting feeling rising within him, taking over every part of his body and enraging him. All of the dark and disgusting emotions that he had been trying to fight, that he had been pushing down in his chest since he had returned from the war, were overflowing and spreading to his entire being. The horrors and bloodshed that he had seen in the war resurfaced in his mind and consumed the pleasant memories he once had of his home.

Michael ground his teeth together and made a terrifying face the like of which scared the Angel beside him.

It was one consumed by despair and rage.

“Lucifer…I’ll kill you for this!” Michael cursed.

He stood up, ran to his room, opened up his war chest and began placing his white and gold armour. He fetched his sword, The Flaming Sword of Eden, and, with the other Angels ran into the fiery streets of Eden.

They were littered with corpses, human, Angel and Demon alike, and blood flowed freshly and freely along them, seeping into the beautiful grass and flowers, dying them crimson.

“Men, to the Palace!” Michael called, taking off into the air, his soldiers following close behind him.

They flew through the battle raging in the skies, past their own defensive lines and to the Palace gates.

The doors had been blown open and there were hundreds of Demon corpses outside of it but, mixed in among them, were the Holy Guards, the elite fighting force of the Angels.

“No way,” One soldier muttered upon seeing their strongest warriors dead.

“How many Demons did they unleash here?” Another asked.

A terrible thought ran through Michael’s mind.

If they had broken through here, could they have made it deeper into the Palace, even to God’s room?

“Quickly! To the King’s chambers!” Michael ordered.

They flew over the thousand corpses all the way to God’s room, the door guards slaughtered and the doors broken off their hinges. Dead outside the door were two old friends of Michael’s, Gabriel and Kepharel, two of the strongest Archangels in Heaven. Michael and his squad stormed into the room, only to discover a headless body draped in a magnificent and regal cloak.

They had been too late.

Standing in the centre of the room, surrounded by his most powerful and trusted Demons, was Lucifer, carrying a long crimson sword upon the tip of which God’s head was mounted, blood still oozing from it.

“No!” Michael screamed, running at them.

He swung his sword at Lucifer but Aamon, one of Lucifer’s Demons, leapt before him, swiping the sword free from Michael’s hand with his tail. He then leapt up and bashed Michael with his tail, knocking him across the room and into the wall. Michael collapsed onto the floor, blood pouring from his back, and his consciousness quickly fading.

Lucifer cackled as her Demons slaughtered Michael’s Angels, grinning at Michael as he lay bleeding and broken on the floor.

“Too late, Archangel,” Lucifer taunted.

Proudly, Lucifer slowly marched towards the balcony and he raised his sword high into the air, displaying God’s head to the city.

“Look on and despair, Angels!” Lucifer’s voice boomed, silencing the battle in the sky. “Look on and rejoice, Demons! Their God is dead! The Kingdom of Heaven is no more!”

The Demons cheered loud and powerfully as the Angels wept and fled.

Even as they dropped their weapons and turned to run, the Demons mercilessly cut them down and played with their bodies, tearing off limbs and torturing them until they begged for death.

Michael tried to stand back up, to fight, using all the rage and despair he had built up to force himself to keep fighting, but his body was too broken.

With a loud thud, he fell back onto the floor and was just conscious enough to see Lucifer order her men not to kill him.

Why? Michael thought, digging his nails into the ground with whatever little strength remained.

Why won’t you kill me and put an end to my misery?

***

By the time the morning sun rose, Lucifer and her forces had left, leaving Eden a wreck of its former self.

The beautiful buildings had been reduced to ruins, covered in the black ash from the burning woods and grasslands, the streets were littered with too many bodies for the survivors to move, and the vast majority of the Angels in the army had been killed or severely wounded without anyone to lead or properly care for them.

When Michael had awoken, his hands were still drenched in his wife and daughter’s blood and he hadn’t said a thing or looked away from the ground since waking up.

“What are we supposed to do now?” An Angel soldier asked. “Aren’t there any remaining areas that we could go to for help?”

“No, the Demons sacked the largest cities and have scattered what’s left of our forces,” A captain replied, frowning. “We’ve also had refugees from the outlying villages and towns come here.”

“What about the other Archangels? Surely-”

“Half of them were killed during the invasion and the only one currently in Eden is Lord Michael and, well.” The other six angels all looked at Michael. “He’s not in the right state of mind at the moment.”

“So, what are our options?”

“Do we ask another God for help?” One suggested.

“Never! They’d enslave us the moment they realised we’re weak!” The captain yelled.

“What about the Demons? If we surrendered to them, they might-” One began to say.

“Surrender to the people who slaughtered our kind and our King? You should be damned even saying such a treasonous thing,” Another cried.

“But we’ve lost the war. We can’t rally a counterattack and the other Gods or Lucifer and her Demons could strike at any minute!”

The captain folded his arms and grimaced. “What are we meant to do?”

As the other Angels had spoken, Michael had only heard the hatred in his chest, swirling through his veins and screaming at him, telling him what he had to do. His thoughts kept going back to the night before, the horrors of the attack, the sight of his family’s bodies, and the King’s head on a spike.

“I’ll tell you what we’ll do,” Michael said, hatred pouring with every word. He slowly stood up, clenching his hands into fists and he looked at them with a stern and driven expression. “We’ll survive, rebuild and recover from this; but, before then, we’ll gather our remaining forces, rally our people around our banner and take our revenge on Lucifer and her dogs!”

“Lord Michael,” One of the Angels whispered.

“But, my Lord, Wrath is a sin,” The captain said.

Michael snorted. “Our God told us that it was and yes, if Eden was still standing and our King was still alive, then I would agree. Brothers, this is not a sin; this is a righteous cause. This is in the name of justice and we will avenge our King and all the loved ones we lost at those monster’s hands.”

“Yeah, I’m with you, Lord Michael!” One yelled, standing up and a smile on his face.

“Likewise,” Another added, standing up. “They killed my mother and father, and I will never forgive them for that.”

“Brothers, we can’t!” The captain protested, leaping to his feet. “Lord Michael, you might be an Archangel but even you can’t truly think that this is righteous, can you?”

“Captain, are you saying that avenging your King is wrong?” Michael questioned, glaring at him. “Are you saying that we should let those who commit genocide go unpunished?”

“No, I-”

“Then, what would you have us do, Captain? Would you have us run and hide? Or submit and become slaves? Or try to rebuild without our God, without his blessing and grace? Well?”

“I…I…”

“Captain, with all due respect, an Angel like you has no place within my ranks.”

“But I was only-!”

“Trying to prevent justice from being enacted?”

“I…I was only…”

Michael smiled gently and put his arm on the Captain’s shoulder. “I know, I know,” He whispered. “However, what you need to remember is that our values helped bring our Kingdom into ruin. It’s time for us to change if we are to survive. Or would you have us keep to our old, peaceful ways and allow evil to go unpunished?”

The captain gathered his resolve and nodded. “I will fight for you, Lord Michael.”

Michael’s smile turned from kind and warm into cold and sadistic in an instant. “Thank you, Captain. Now then, brothers, gather our warriors and tell them to rally for we have a war to win.”

Lucifer, I will never, ever forgive you! 

***

Michael groaned as he awoke in the morning in a bitter mood because of his dreams.

He sat up and let out a heavy sigh and grabbed his forehead.

He rubbed his eyes, stood up and threw open the curtains of his hotel window.

“It’s been a long time coming, hasn’t it?” He mumbled, looking over the city below. “Still, it all ends today.”

By the day’s end, he would have the Death Stone.