Read In Exile (Archangel Jarahmael and the War to Conquer Heaven, Book III) Online
Authors: John J Higgins
HELL
The Archangel’s body remained still despite the daemon ripping through his open chest, lifting up and swallowing shreds of his organs with its deformed yet sharp beak. It was a carnabus, one of the daemons created for the purpose of torturing other creatures by Luciferael when he had established the kingdom of Hell. The daemon’s eyes glared, annoyed that there was no further reaction from the Archangel, as the creature brushed aside the sulfur dusted flesh, and dug deeper into the body's liver, still expecting the reward of a tortured scream.
Swirling embers spun about the folded wings of the daemon perched on top of the chained and outstretched body of its victim. The iron stake impaled the victim, ensuring that the Archangel could not rise up and escape. The pair had been engaged in this dance of torture for as long as the daemon could remember. The binding curse tore out the victim’s memories, in the same way that the carnabus fed on the victim's liver each day. The liver and victim’s memories regenerated every night, making them fresh to be attacked and slowly plucked out the next day. Try as he might the Archangel could not hold onto the pleasant memories as he was tortured, they would be replaced with painful ones, leaving a sense of abandonment and dread. The cycle repeated overnight, and select good memories were restored, enough so a sense of well-being was reestablished, only to be ripped out in shreds, one by one during the next day, keeping the sense of hopelessness, and leaving the Archangel to wallow in its bleakness. Never enough of the good memories were restored though, so he could remember who he was, deficient so he could not maintain a feeling of purpose or hope. His only possible salvation was to tell Luciferael what he wanted to know, but the Archangel remained steadfast in his silence. Day in and day out this torture went on for centuries, neither player having known one another before they were matched up in this arrangement, seldom interrupted by questions from members of Luciferael’s Auxilium, broken only by the end of each day and the occasional sulfur-laden gust escaping the heat of Hell itself.
But today was different, for the Archangel no longer writhed in pain as he had done for so long, but lay strangely still, unresponsive to any pain that the daemon's beak and talons were inflicting. The daemon would continue as he always did, because there was no choice for him. This was what he was made for, and he did as he was told. The victim had always writhed on cue to the pain inflicted by the daemon, but now had somehow found a means to prevent his body from reacting to the torture. The carnabus hoped this change was a sign his victim may be finally ready to speak and tell Luciferael and his lieutenants what they wanted to know about the Books. They needed to find the Books.
The night before, as the Archangel's body was painfully healing itself, a strange thing had happened. A glimpse of the memories he had lost in the early days when he had been first captured and punished reappeared. A passageway reopened in his mind, a place where he finally recalled some of his memories and his purpose. It began to matter to him again whether he continued to live or was destroyed. Memories he had before his capture returned and for a few moments, thoughts returned of the Human woman he had loved. Although those thoughts had tortured him much more deeply than any of the physical pain he endured, this night they brought along with them the other memories of his identity. She had been taken from him by the grander scheme of things, and for that he had raged against his Creator.
He had been betrayed by all, both loyal and rebel Angels. He was also furious with the Almighty for not stopping the revolution that had caused all of this suffering. Angels fighting among themselves! For all these centuries he had never once called out for help. Neither to his captors nor to his Creator. He would give neither the satisfaction. But for a brief moment last night none of that mattered, and he wanted to be filled with the Almighty's love once again. He remembered who he was, that he did not deserve this outcome, and that he would find the strength once again to fight back. He just had to survive this torture until the opportunity to escape arrived.
He remembered finally that he had been known as the Archangel Jarahmael, fourth born of all the creatures in the Heavens, and he was suffering a punishment crafted by Luciferael himself. A punishment designed for this Archangel's disobedience to both rebel and loyal Angels in the aftermath of the chaos of the war for Heaven. He remembered again that he played a critical role in the war and had been brave. The details remained just out of his mind’s reach. Try as he might, he could not recall all of his memories, stolen and not fully restored. The ghosts of his memories made him certain that he had done the right thing. He had come to the Underworld in order to find something, but he did not remember what it was. The memories remained shrouded in fog, but this time Jarahmael was able to hold onto the sense of purpose he once had. The sense of purpose stowed away, way in the back of his mind, locked again.
He awoke earlier this morning before the feeding by the carnabus began again, his body scarred and still exhausted from the cycle which never let him fully rest. Today he blocked his mind and body. He focused on numbing his body and spirit. His memories provided comfort with the knowledge he would have quickly dispatched the leathery scaled winged daemon if he was not chained down and impaled by the binding curse. As an Archangel, one of the first creatures in this Universe, he was one of the strongest creatures ever born. In a direct duel, the Archangel could easily dispatch the daemon. Jarahmael sensed that the carnabus was well aware that the chains alone would never restrain him that was why the carnabus picked gingerly around the inscribed spike that was in the middle of the Archangel’s chest, careful to never disturb or loosen it. The spike controlled the curse, one of the most powerful ever devised, and the only thing that ensured the Archangel was secure, and impaled to the rock beneath.
Now the silence made the carnabus think that Jarahmael was dying or perhaps finally ready to talk. This was a new development, and the carnabus was incapable of making any real choices on his own. He certainly did not want to invite the wrath of Luciferael and become a victim himself for making the wrong choice either. After thinking about it as he continued to feed upon the Archangel, the carnabus decided it was better not to wait until evening when the feeding would naturally end, but to fly off and find Luciferael or one of his lieutenants in Hell. The carnabus could then tell them about this turn of events, and find out how they wanted to proceed. Maybe he would even get rewarded for being observant and loyal. Emboldened, the carnabus looked over at his shadow lined in red against the wall, where his size was magnified in his shadow, making him appear ten times his size, a gigantic vulture, dark, dirty, and unmerciful. He would ask to be enlarged by Luciferael as a reward, for then he would be ferocious and unstoppable. Smiling as a result of these thoughts, he plucked out one last piece of the Archangel's liver for good measure.
Stretching out his wings over his prey, he attempted once more to rouse the Archangel from his unnatural stillness, and then seeing no movement began to flap his wings and fly upwards. The carnabus rose about ten meters above the rock and was beginning to fly forward, when there was a sharp blur that cut through the thermals. It was followed by a high pitched note as the arrow found its mark and the carnabus fell dead, the missile through the neck having silenced any call for help or last words.
ENOCH’S ASSIGNMENT
Jarahmael's son, Enoch, finished growing up in the Garden of Eden, mentored by Cerebriel and Gaardrael. Although he was Half-Archangel, Enoch was kept secluded within the First Heaven. He was an Immortal among the Humans, and a Half-Human among the Archangels, a pedigree that did not fit totally in either world. Since he would not die like the other Humans, he would have grown to be someone to be frightened of or conquered among the Humans. On the other hand, with his Half-Human blood, even the loyal Archangels were initially reluctant to allow him into their ranks. The Archangel Michael still had a distrust for Enoch’s Human part, and did not like the possibility that he might be very similar to his father Jarahmael, with such a strong courageousness and sense of duty, that it got him banished from the Heavens. Michael like Luciferael before him grew a fear that the Almighty could one day prefer this hybrid of Human and Archangels over the pure Archangels. He was reluctant then to confide in Enoch or give him much of a role in battling Luciferael and his kind.
Enoch’s memory had been tampered with while he was under siege on Earth by the rebel Archangels and altered to believe that Adam and Eve were his parents. No one corrected that version, nor told Enoch that Jarahmael was his father or even mentioned much about Jarahmael's role in the war for the Heavens. Cerebriel, the closest friend of Jarahmael’s, had assisted in altering Enoch’s memories and did not want to correct this misinformation even after Enoch was brought to the Garden of Eden. He was afraid that if Enoch knew the truth that he would go and try to assist Jarahmael, who was believed to be the most punished captive of Luciferael’s in Hell.
The loyal Archangels bolstered the myths that it was Michael who had led all of them to victory, and that was how he earned his place as the Prince of the Heavens. Rumors persisted, though, that Jarahmael had played a critical role, but they were whispered more among the lower Orders of the Angels. Michael and his followers still had faint hopes that the Almighty’s Book of Creation and the Book of Life would be found again, most likely having been hidden by Jarahmael. As time passed, the need for the Books grew less, as the Almighty did not have the Angels participate in His continuing creation, for He was finished with the major creations on the Earth and this Universe. And it was believed that Jarahmael had revealed enough of the secrets from the Book of Life that mankind was able to grow and flourish, even if they did not know enough to reach their full potential. Now, most of the Almighty’s time was spent creating other Universes, keeping Him from being present much in this one.
But then there came the day when the Almighty sent Norophim of his Seraphim guard to bring Enoch up to the Seventh Heaven Throne Room, late in the morning when Michael and the rest of the loyal Archangels were busy with other tasks outside of the Seventh Heaven.
It was an honor for Enoch to have been summoned like that, and was the first time that it had ever occurred. Escorted by Norophim into the Throne Room, Enoch approached and bowed down before the Almighty.
“Greetings Enoch,” the Almighty announced. “I have a special assignment for you. One that I trust only you to fulfill.”
“Thank you, my Lord, for summoning me and for the opportunity to serve,” Enoch responded humbly. “How can I be of service?”
“I have been waiting for this day. There is someone I want you to assist, who has been lost to Me for a long time,” the Almighty said with a mixture of happiness and concern.
“Yes, my Lord, I will gladly do as You wish,” Enoch responded, looking up at Him while he still knelt before Him.
“You can arise and come closer,” the Almighty said, beckoning the Half-Human Half -Archangel to come closer to Him.
As Enoch did so, the Almighty caused the base of the Throne to light up as a projector, where Enoch could watch occurrences from the distance and the past.
“Here is the Archangel I want you to retrieve for Me,” He said as a projection of the Archangel Jarahmael was shown lying and bound upon the rock in Hell with the carnabus landing by his side.
“Who is that, my Lord?” Enoch asked
“That is the Archangel Jarahmael, Enoch My son. He has suffered for a long time, trapped in Hell by Luciferael and tortured even worse within his own pride and mind,” the Almighty said sadly.
“I have heard of this Archangel, my Lord, there are rumors about him and his efforts to save the Heavens but I have only heard bits and pieces. My parents Adam and Eve spoke highly of him, and told me how he made it possible for them to survive on the Earth after they were cast out of the Garden of Eden. For that I will always be in this Archangel’s debt.”
“I know, Enoch, there have been many sad days since Luciferael exploited My concept of ‘free will.’ One day all will be set right, but that day has not yet arrived.”
The projection kept playing and Enoch watched closely as the carnabus attacked the Archangel in flesh form unmercifully. It was difficult for him to watch and he averted his eyes at the goriest scenes. Eventually, the carnabus left and all that remained was the Archangel lying on the rock and images of his body healing. Then he could see the Archange1's lips move and him murmur something.
“What was that he said, my Lord?” Enoch asked, trying to decipher the sounds he had heard.
“The Words I have been waiting to hear from him for many years,” the Almighty said as He smiled. “He asked Me for help!”
“May I ask why he was chained on the rock and punished like that?” Enoch asked.
“That would be a long story, Enoch, but suffice it to say that Jarahmael disrupted and thwarted Luciferael's plans to conquer the Heavens and become the next Almighty.”
“But wouldn’t it be impossible for Luciferael to become the next Almighty?” Enoch asked.
“I would love to agree with you, Enoch, but I created the lord Luciferael directly from My own essence, before I created anything else. He is, in fact, directly a part of Me. Under the right circumstances, he could conquer Me.”
“Destroy You, my Lord?” Enoch asked, very concerned.
“Those are not thoughts you need to concern yourself with, Enoch.”
“As you wish, my Lord,” Enoch said obediently. “What would You like me to do?”
“I want you to break into Hell and free Jarahmael.”
“Why me, my Lord? Wouldn't that task be better suited for Michael or the other Archangels, or Cerebriel and his Cherubim? Come to think of it, if You don't mind, why was Jarahmael not rescued long ago?”
“Two reasons actually, Enoch. The first because Jarahmael believed he had committed an unforgivable sin like Adam and Eve did when they ate the fruit of knowledge and I had to cast them out of the Garden of Eden, and the second because none of My loyal Archangels ever were willing to sacrifice themselves to save him.”
“What was the sin he believed he committed?” Enoch asked, very curious as to why the heroic and loyal Archangel would be in such a position.
“He assisted Adam and Eve, trying to protect them from Luciferael's and his rebel Angels’ interference, and provided them with knowledge and some powers so they could survive on the Earth. I had told the loyal Archangels that they were not to interfere with the Humans after Adam and Eve were cast out. And Jarahmael never came back to the Heavens to explain himself.”
“Was that not disobeying one of Your commands, though, my Lord?” Enoch asked, confused.
“Yes, it was technically. But Jarahmael breaking My commandment was not because of his own self-interest. He did it to protect creatures less powerful than himself, and did so without regard to himself and with the knowledge that he could lose everything, and yet he still did the merciful thing. And of all My Archangels, Jarahmael was the most deserving of being the next one in charge of the Heavens. We would not have defeated Luciferael if it had not been for Jarahmael. Yet he did not ask for that position, which I would have given him happily even though it would have placed him above Michael.”
“I am really confused now,” Enoch said. “Adam and Eve disobeyed You, as did Luciferael and his Auxilium, didn't they? Wasn't that the reason they were banished? Why is it different for Jarahmael?”
“Think about it, Enoch. Yes, Jarahmael violated My commandment, but not for his own benefit at all. In fact, disobeying My commandment placed him in peril. Now about Adam and Eve. Eve ate the fruit because she wanted to have the knowledge of good and evil so she could be more powerful and Adam followed her disobedience, afraid that he would be alone. None of that was for the benefit of another. And Luciferael and his rebel Angels all wanted more power for themselves, and again for their own pride and glory, not to help anyone else, in fact they wanted to destroy My personal creation, the Humans.”
There was a stretch of silence as the Almighty appeared to be thinking seriously about something. Then He continued, “And the reason that Jarahmael is even in Hell, captured and bound was because he was trying to free the First Born of the Humans, Lillith. Jarahmael had tried to get her free, but was set up by Luciferael and his Auxilium to be captured. They are trying to get their hands on two Books I created, the Book of Creation and the Book of Life. It appears that Jarahmael removed the Books from this Throne Room during the rebellion and has hidden them. He refuses to give up the location of the Books, as he is afraid that it will give Luciferael the extra power and edge that he would need to become the next Almighty. It also appears now that there are hybrid creatures emerging from Hell that appear to be offspring of Lillith and are wreaking havoc on the Earth. And I need Jarahmael to help solve that problem.”
“Very noble, but why send me then, my Lord? I have no experience fighting the rebel Angels or any of Luciferael's monsters and daemons.”
“I have watched you grow up from a child, Enoch, and you have never been selfish. And as far as fighting, you are much more like Jarahmael than you realize!” The Almighty beamed his approval. “Norophim will explain what you have to do. Now go save My Archangel Jarahmael from the clutches of Hell!”