Prologue
There was a time when heaven was filled with peace and
serenity. God, Jesus Christ, and all the Angels lived in harmony; no
evil and no sin existed. Until one fateful day...
With all
gathered to hear their Sire speak, God rose and addressed his Angels.
Before all, he proclaimed His Son, Jesus Christ, was equal to Him. That
Christ’s words should be obeyed as if they were His own. Christ would
command the heavens, with the same authority as Him. All the Angels
bowed down before Christ and accepted their Sire’s proclamation, all
except for one…
An Archangel was furious with this proclamation.
He was his Sire’s right hand, the deliverer of justice, the commander of
many legions. He had served his Sire for centuries, and never failed
him. It should be to him that God bestow power, not a Son whom had never
even seen battle.
With his heart filled with hatred and jealousy,
he gathered all the angels in secret. He told them that their days of
sweet liberty were at an end. That God has now placed Christ as their
ruler and that they should now obey his wishes. Many angels were angered
at such a false statement, but many also agreed with the Archangel. He
had led them for many years; why should they now question his
leadership?
The faithful Angels fled to God and told Him what was
happening, and together they prepared for war. With the sun rising on a
new day, God and his Angels stood ready for battle against the Archangel
and his followers. The battle only lasted a day, the Archangel and his
followers defeated before the sun set for the night.
Seeing the
angels on their knees before Him, He gave them one final chance… “Repent
and declare your loyalty, and I will forgive you, my children.” He told
his beautiful angels, tears falling with each word. This was His
family. This was His love. How could they betray Him? Some of the Angels
cried their penance, begging Him to forgive them for their deceit. They
claimed that the Archangel deceived them, and they followed him into
battle, as they have done for centuries.
God took pity on them,
but still believed that their deceit must not go unpunished. He had
spoken many times about the importance of punishment, that lessons
learned must be earned... “I herewith grant you mercy, but as punishment
you will be sentenced to an earthly realm. I will take your beauty as
payment for my children lost today. In the place of your beauty, I will
give you purpose. In mercy, and because I love you still, I give you
life in this realm. Let this be known, that I was merciful this day,”
God finished.
He placed them in an earthly realm, and called it
Exsilium. In this realm they would carry their deceit, and earn their
place with him. He took their beauty and replaced them with elements of
his earth. Half would be of animal and element, and would resemble
punishment. The other, in a humanoid form, and would resemble mercy. He
called them his Fallen.
The Archangel, and those whom did not
repent, were not that lucky. God looked into the eyes of His once
faithful angels and only saw destruction, hatred, jealousy, and
heartache. He knew that His beloved ones had died this day, and that
others needed to be protected. But how could you destroy one you loved?
He placed the Archangel, and his followers, in another earthly realm,
but where Exsilium was above the earth, this one was in the center. With
one wave of His hand, their beautiful forms were replaced with forms as
ugly as their hatred and deceit. Using His word and blood, He sealed
this realm from any other.
As He looked into the many eyes of
hatred, He spoke his final word... “This realm will be called Hell, and
you will be called demons. You, my once faithful Archangel, you will be
called the Devil. Your angel name will be erased from the past, present,
and future. You will be forgotten,” He proclaimed and left them to
their demise.
Many years have passed since that day. God created
mankind and cherished his new children. The male and female were his new
hope; in them he would find peace again. But the Devil had grown strong
through the years, and somehow managed to enter God’s garden. Here, he
found the female God created, using her to strike back. He whispered
words of deceit in her ears, and watched as God’s new children stepped
into sin. With her first bite, a crack appeared in the seal around Hell,
and demons escaped to earth.
From that day onward, the Devil and
his demons created chaos amongst God’s new children, leading one after
the other into sin. God looked upon this and decided to fight for his
loved ones. He went to Exsilium and spoke to the Fallen... “You, my
children, have proven your loyalty in the years that have passed, and so
I came to offer you another chance at Heaven. If you slay the Devil and
his demons to protect mankind, I will give you a place in my Heaven
once again. With your last breath on this earth, you will join me and
your brethren in Heaven,” He finished. The Fallen agreed and God gave
them the power to move in and out of Exsilium to battle the demons. The
war between Good and Evil began.
But as mankind spread over the
earth, sin became their followers. And with each sin, the demons grew
stronger and created more demons to torture mankind. The Fallen were now
fighting against millions; they needed assistance to ensure victory.
God had watched the battle from Heaven and saw that they were failing
because of their numbers. He also saw that the demons grew stronger than
the Fallen. He intervened and created a new creature. This creature
would have features encompassing the best of both worlds. One half was
as strong and loyal as the Fallen, while the other was as hard and
enduring as a demon. This was His ultimate weapon. This would be His
greatest creation. To ensure that these creatures could not be swayed,
He placed Heaven’s soul into them. He called them His hellhounds.
The
hellhounds delivered justice swiftly, as strong and just as the Fallen.
Yet hard and durable like the demons, they conquered the earthly realm
and the demons retreated. Not one hellhound could be swayed. All stayed
true to their calling. God, knowing that the Devil and many more demons
had retreated, gave His hellhounds life, and offered them a place among
the Fallen.
Until this day they still watch over mankind, protecting them from evil. Will we be worth it?
“Kasadya, don't do this to me,” Chax spoke, using Corra.
I stopped completely and looked at him. Reaching for my necklace, I held it.
“I am so sorry, Chax. This is the only way; we can’t win any other way. I know; I have seen the end too many times,” I replied.
His face fell even more and he looked around, searching for a way out.
“I want to thank you... for being there for me. For searching for me when I went missing. For enduring all of my crap. I am sorry I messed up so many times. But not this time; this I promise. But most of all, thank you for loving me.” Even my mental voice broke down on the last part.
Chax started to scream and pound at the invisible wall, while others joined him. I looked at Nanini, shocked that she couldn’t get out.
“Take care of Max for me,” I sent to her.
Tears formed and ran down her cheeks, but she nodded.
“Kas, let us help you!” Lotan yelled. My friends, my family were still trying to save me. Tears ran down my own face now.
“I love all of you. Thank you for always being there for me.” Finally my mental voice began to a sob.
I turned away, afraid that the sight of them would stop me.
“Kasadya! Don’t do this to me. I beg you!” Chax yelled at me.
Demons were closing in around me, but my heart was so broken I just let the tears and heartache spill out of me.
“I am so sorry, Chax. Forgive me.” With that, I stormed forward.
I used my g-force punches to clear the masses out of my way. When that stopped working, I started shifting. Demons grabbed at me and some got in a slice or two. But I wasn't stopping.
I saw Ballen trying to flee from me. He thought I was heading for him. Good. I needed him on the other side when I blew it up. Using my wings for momentum, I sent a massive g-force punch into the horde that remained between me and my target. They flew backwards, clearing the way for me to advance. I swiped at a few too close and took their heads. Blood sprayed all over me. Searching for the hole to make sure I was heading in the right direction, I saw the shoulders and arms of something freaking big, already beginning to breach.
I need to move faster!
I lifted up with my wings. They were tired, but I had no other option. Now I had the flying demons to contend with. We fought and sliced and I sent a few down to earth without a head. At last, I was advancing on the hole. Pain shot through my left wing and I tumbled to the ground, hitting hard. At the last moment I made sure that the front of my body hit the ground and not the back. Demons jumped me all at once. Ballen was yelling at them to stop me. I used everything I had left and flung out with my wings and arms. They went flying and just in front of me was the hole with the devil stuck in it. Ballen was standing at the entrance watching me, his face a mask of shock.
With a deep breath, I reached for the pouch and took hold of the balls. Now armed and ready, I just had a few feet to go. I stormed through the demons, not caring if they sliced me open. I wasn't stopping for a fight anymore. I held the balls to my chest, sealing them from any other impact. Then, finally, I was at the entrance of the hole. With the last of my strength, I leaped into the air and went flying straight for it.
There were many things that go through your mind that moment before you die. I remembered my first step into Exsilium. Meeting Lada and Nanini. Meeting Chax and hating my first day. I remembered our fun at the beach, the Hellhouse and the grub spot. Seeing Lada and Lotan kissing for the first time. Meeting Max and Ryan, and then all of the rest. My heart no longer troubled by Kali or Seth or all the others who had betrayed me. I remembered finding Chax and the Fallen again. Seeing my parents again. So many memories bombarded me at that last moment. I remembered my day and night with Chax, and how it felt to be loved.
“I love you,” I sent a final message to him.
He was still screaming my name, begging for me to stop.
I remembered why I was doing this. For them I gave my heart, my life. Ballen's shocked face was in front of me, right in my path. Just when I reached him, I dropped the balls and slammed into him.
