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Prologue
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Hell was home to thousands of demons; tens of thousands. A cauldron of sin, the realms were stacked one upon the other, each darker and more sinister than the one above. It was everything humans feared and more. Oppressive and dirty, the halls twisted in an eternity of circles, trapping souls in an endless search for light. There was no time to mark, and no end to crave. And there was the screaming. So much screaming. The primal sound of a soul in agony was something humans would never comprehend. If they knew what awaited them in hell they would wish for eternal nothingness. The fear of losing themselves in death was insignificant to the horror of eternity spent down below.
Melloch, the fifth angel to fall, existed in the realm closest to the surface. Often referred to as the Gatekeeper, he was charged with keeping order and ensuring hell’s soldiers were always ready to fight. But eons had passed since the last great battle between heaven and hell and Melloch was bored. He longed to prove himself to the Dark Lord, to show Him in no uncertain terms that he was the true warrior of the underworld, the one who could finally bring about hell on earth, but instead he was made to wait, to play second fiddle. But not for long. Melloch had a plan.
Right now, his orders were only to take the armies up to feed. He would lead them up to the human realm where they would gorge themselves on the livers of humans, but while his army reveled in the terror and bloodshed of the feast, Melloch had been paying close attention. The atmosphere on the human realm was changing and soon his armies would be able to breathe the putrid air; permanently.
The delectable irony was it would be the human’s own greed that inevitably ensured their slavery. Oh, how they praised themselves, the humans. They were so sure, so certain, that they were the apex species. They were the smartest, the most progressive, those geniuses with their brilliant minds and frozen hearts. If only they knew what their so-called progress was creating. What door they were opening.
Melloch took a deep breath and reveled in the hot air that burned through his lungs. Up above the humans were going about their everyday lives, ignorantly working so hard to turn their once pristine realm into what would soon become a demon paradise. All he’d have to do was move in. It was an ideology that never failed to charm him. It was so devilishly clever.
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The trees were bare, their leaves long gone and snow on the ground would make hiding his tracks almost impossible. He should turn back. There was every chance a blizzard could set in. Not that the cold would have any effect on his body.For Gabriel every day was like a winter’s morning; cold and dark. For years he had felt nothing and, how could he? He was dead.Taking shelter behind the only thing he could find, a decaying wooden fence that had seen better days, Gabriel crouched down and took one la
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Back in his cabin, Gabriel swore out loud. He was supposed to be a hunter, a vigilante, but that woman, whatever she was, had completely thrown him off his game.“Damn, it,” he cursed. “Damn her. What the hell was I thinking?”He pace
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Aurora fell onto the bed. She would never dare to cry in front of the others, but in the privacy of her bedroom she let out her grief. The loss of Stefan had shattered her heart into a thousand pieces. Her only brother was dead. She had been warned. Her visions had shown Stefan’s death at the hands of a vampire, but it had seemed impossible. No new vampires had walked the earth for hundreds of years. Yet still, she prepared and planned, and hoped maybe there would be a way to save Stefan’s life. Wh
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Gabriel crouched down and scooped a pile of snow into his hand. In his palm, the shards shone like diamonds in the moonlight. Every year the snow came earlier. Just by a week or two, but he noticed. Change was all around. He could sense it in the earth and feel it on the wind. It was more than just Aurora and the farmhouse. There was a certain vibration in the air, a shift of some kind. Something was coming.In his former life, Gabriel led missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. He fought the enemy head-on. He was a
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Aurora was speechless. She wiped at her tears and turned away from the window. “I don’t believe you Jasmyne. Why are you making up such lies?”But instead of apologizing, her sister got to her feet and repeated the words that had sent her mind reeling.
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Back in his cabin, Gabriel’s head was spinning. He had so many questions and that Lucius creature had not provided any answers. Vampires were killers, that much he knew, and yet back in the field, he had not been in any danger. All Lucius seemed to care about was Aurora and some stupid quest. He stomped over to the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water. There had to be a way to find out what was going on.
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Aurora was stunned at the ultimatum. “Jasmyne how can you say such things?”“It’s enough Aurora. No one loved Stefan more than I did, but the way you’re reacting to his death is unimaginable. It’s like you’ve gone mad and now you’re out here with this murderer. What were you thinking?”
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It was almost time. Melloch could feel the energy crackling through his body. It was electric, igniting his insides, twisting and coiling inside him like a live wire. Soon he would be on the surface, terrorizing, slaughtering, devouring. He and his army would descend upon the earth like a plague. Spread out before him, his army had already begun to prepare. He could feel their hot anticipation rising through the ranks, and he reveled in their thirst.
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Gabriel coughed and it was the sweetest sound Aurora had ever heard. She leaned in close and tucked another pillow in behind his head. On the floor, Aurel rested quietly beside them.“Aurora,” he sighed. “I'm not an invalid.”“I know, but you're not as strong as you used to be. You're a mere mortal now and lucky to be alive.”He returned her smile and took hold of her wrist, gently pulling her down onto the bed.“Careful,” she told him. “My scar is still healing.”Gabriel traced his finger over the tiny ridges of the symbol that had saved his life, probably more than once. “It's incredible,” he whispered. “What we've been through.”“Gabriel when I thought I lost you, I mean really lost you, I…"“Ssh,” he soothed. “I'm not going anywhere, okay? Not ever.”She nodded and gently kissed his forehead. “You have your human life back just like you always wanted. Tell me, what will you do with it?”He smiled and shook his head. “You know what? I have no absolutely no idea.”Aurora nodded and
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Aurora’s hands fell helplessly to her sides and she let out a long breath. After everything they had been through she was sure that God would return Gabriel to her. How could she have been so wrong?“I'm sorry child,” Lucius whispered as he got to his feet. “We tried.”Tears rolled over Aurora’s cheeks and spilled onto Gabriel's chest. “Thank you Lucius,” she whispered. “Now if you could please leave me.”“Of course.” Lucius got to his feet. “Aurora, your parents would be very proud of the woman you have become. You really are your mother’s daughter.”She smiled through her tears and thanked him for his kindness. Lucius had saved her life. If only she had been able to save Gabriel’s.As the Council turned to leave, a gust of wind blew in through the window scattering the earth across Gabriel's chest. Aurora dipped her head as another tear slipped over her cheek. One quickly gave way to many as she could no longer contain her sadness. Tears pooled on Gabriel’s chest and Lucius had to
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When night fell and they were finally alone, Aurora folded herself tightly into Gabriel’s arms.“I still can't believe you're really here,” she whispered. “I’m so grateful.”But instead of pulling her close, Gabriel pushed himself up onto one elbow and looked at her. “Aurora there’s something I have to tell you. I am here, but there were conditions attached to my return.”“Conditions, what do you mean?”His brow dipped and a shadow fell over his eyes. “Aurora we have much work to do. There is so much that needs to be done and I will be counting on you to help us.”“Us?” She repeated. “Gabriel you're acting very strange. What's going on? What are you talking about?”As she waited for him to respond, his gaze was so intense that the hair on the back of her neck stood on end.“The earth needs to be cleansed,” he began. “It must be returned to the way God created it. It’s what He wants Aurora. It’s the reason He sent me back.”“Gabriel you're not making any sense. What do you mean it must
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The female Elk and her first fawn of the spring grazed at the edge of the forest. Winter had receded and new life was emerging. When the Reapers returned to Hell spring had bloomed throughout the entire forest. Wildflowers burst from their pods and newborn animals balanced on slender legs. It seemed all the world was rejoicing, except for Aurora.She gazed out of the window at Jasmyne and Harrison as they sat together on a brightly coloured picnic rug, her head resting easily on his shoulder. They were friends for now, but Aurora knew their relationship would grow to be much more. She was pleased for her sister. She deserved to be loved and Harrison was a good man. Had it not been for him they would have died on that field and Melloch and his Reapers would have taken over the world. If anyone was to take the place of her brother in Jasmyne's life she was glad it was going to be Harrison. There would be problems of course. He was human and she was a descendant. Children were not allowe
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The world fell silent as Lucifer stared into the water. Time stopped and nothing moved.“This cannot be...” He reached up and gently touched his face. “I don't understand?”Aurora glanced across the pool at Lucifer’s reflection and her blood ran cold. His golden hair was nothing more than a tangled grey web and his once radiant skin hung like melting wax. No longer a sight to behold, his wings were torn, soiled with mud and ash. He stared in horror at his reflection while around him the Reapers fell on bended knee, their heads bowed.“But I was perfect,” he whispered. “The most beautiful being in all of creation. How?”Slowly and carefully Gabriel inched his fingers, one by one, toward the dagger. He had to strike Lucifer down before the pool receded. It was their only chance.Lucifer peered into the water as a loose strand of silver hair slipped through his twisted fingers.“My hair..." he whispered. “My face…”Suddenly he tore his eyes away from the pool and roared up at the sky. “W
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The sky broke open and driving rain lashed the field. The army of Reapers thrashed their heads and shook their arms desperately trying to rid the freezing water from their bodies. Many had never experienced rain or bitter cold and Aurora had counted on the extreme weather hindering their attack. It was working. Soaked to the core, she ran through the forest and found Gabriel crouched down where she left him.“We're holding our own for the moment but we can't push them back much longer. Lucifer and the others will be coming. Gabriel, are you ready?”He tightened his grip on the dagger. “Ready as I'll ever be.”She forced a smile and kissed his cheek. “I'm so proud of you Gabriel.”He was about to respond when a brilliant white light exploded from the cave dwarfing the entire field in its glow. The rain stopped. The birds retreated to the safety of the trees and the world fell silent.“It's Lucifer. He's here,” Aurora whispered. “Let's move.”They hurried through the forest until they r
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Aurora shot a second arrow into the air, a signal the Reapers were coming. Using the arrows to communicate was effective but more important, it was silent. The arrow sailed high into the darkened sky and hung against the storm clouds like a black-winged bird.To Aurora, it felt as though her entire life had been leading to this moment. Only seconds remained until the Reapers would breach the cave. She pictured her mother and father as they had been when she was a child. They were the reason she was here, not because they were her parents but because they represented all that could be. Her mother had lived her life every day not as someone put on the earth, but as a part of it. Her father had watched over them as every season they grew taller and stronger. Together they had sewn their love and tendered to it with warm smiles and splashes of laughter. People deserved a chance to learn how to love like that - and it was up to her to give it to them.The first calls of the Reapers caugh
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The tunnels were dark. It had been a long time since Melloch travelled along these earthen halls and the twists and turns were taking too long. He knew what he had to do and he was becoming impatient. The sooner Lucifer's blood was spilt the better.As he led the first legion toward the surface, Melloch let the heat of his hatred burn stronger and hotter. Behind him the footfall of his legions echoed through the tunnel, the rhythm growing louder as they moved toward the chamber of the cave. His best soldiers were up front, the rest would breach the surface once the site had been secured. The human saviour was dead. Melloch had seen to that himself but just to be certain, he wanted his strongest soldiers up front and ready to fight.His plan was to blame Lucifer's untimely death on the soldiers of the second legion. When a battle with the humans inevitably began, the second legion would falter. The humans couldn't kill his soldiers, but their weapons would cause confusion. Maybe some o
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Aurora was striding across the field and from the look on her face, Gabriel knew she meant business.“We have His blessing,” she said firmly. “Now let's kill these bastards.”“Wait, we what?”She held up her wrist and Gabriel saw the symbol burned into her skin.“Aurora, how?”“He sanctioned the battle Gabriel. We have God on our side. There's no way we can lose now.”“What's all the fuss about?” Harrison asked as he walked up, an M24 sniper rifle slung over his shoulder. “What did I miss?”“God sanctioned the fight,” Gabriel told him. “Look at her arm.”Aurora held out her wrist and proudly showed Harrison the symbol.“Aurora, this is incredible news.”“I know, I was just telling Gabriel the same thing. I really feel like we can win now.”Their enthusiasm was building but Gabriel failed to share the jubilation. Not only was God allowing them to fight His battle - now He had carved His approval into Aurora's arm. He couldn’t help wondering where God was in all of this. Why He wasn’t d
