The Elder Prophets (To Absolve the Fallen Book 2) Read online

  Even here, Alex could feel his strength being sapped. “But even Jeremiah can’t defeat Metatron.”

  “Jeremiah only has faith in himself. He has been removed from me for too long to use his faith well. Jeremiah is a demon—not an angel. He may be changing his ways, but he does not have the potential you do. He relies on what I have made him and how he has shaped that, not what I could make him. He does not rely on me. That is where he fails every time. Metatron is also a demon.” Alex’s father looked very serious. “You must stop him, Son. Have faith, always, for I am with you.”

  ***

  Alex’s eyes popped open. Metatron looked completely baffled and let go.

  Alex fell to his knees and, though choking for air, panted, “I have faith.” He felt stronger. He took a deep breath and stood up. “Behold, demon!” Alex exclaimed as a force greater than he took over. “‘All things are become new.’ You seek Jeremiah because you think only he has defeated Lucifer, but you were wrong. One other defeated him too.”

  “You compare yourself to Jesus?” Metatron snapped. His fury was building. Tremors began to shake his castle. “You are a fool.”

  Alex stood his ground, despite the ground quaking. “No,” he replied. “I am not as strong as Jesus, but I’m strong enough to stop you.”

  “Really?” Metatron returned. His hand flew faster than Alex had ever seen Matt’s move, but it stopped just short of Alex’s body. There was some force that Metatron could not assail.

  Alex, feeling a warmth pulsate through his body, was emboldened. “You will relent,” Alex told Metatron, “or I will destroy you.”

  Metatron roared with laughter. “You may be able to stave off an attack for a moment, but you will never be able to destroy me. When you have depleted your energy, I will kill you.”

  A lightning bolt outside lit up the room. A clap of thunder followed it, and the boom rattled the dishes on the table. Metatron’s temper was flaring. Alex was amazed. He never thought that even a demon’s power could alter the weather.

  “My power does not come from me,” Alex responded. “Can you outlast God?”

  Metatron smiled. “You will sleep, little one. Your own body will betray you to me. I can wait centuries for you to drop your guard.”

  “If you can, then I can, too.” Alex closed his eyes and concentrated his thought on Metatron, rather than on his own fear. “Everything you have came from God,” Alex reasoned. “I will take it back.”

  “Impossible.” Metatron laughed.

  “Nothing is impossible,” Alex replied. He was feeling something; he could feel himself moving around inside of Metatron’s being. “I am beginning to sense your powers--to sense your essence.”

  “That is not very impressive,” Metatron said. The ground began shaking very hard.

  “And, if it comes from God,” Alex shouted over the earthquake, “then I can take it away.” With the realization, Alex focused on calmness. The ground beneath him stopped shaking. Alex opened his eyes and peered at the demon with a new-found assuredness.

  “Now, that is impressive,” Metatron conceded. “But, how ever are you going to leave here? Can you stop hundreds of us?”

  Metatron motioned to the double doors on the other side of the room. They flew open, and dozens of figures ran through.

  Alex closed his eyes once more and found something within Metatron he could use. He opened his eyes and smiled at Metatron. “Not today,” he answered and disappeared.

  Metatron cocked his head. “You cannot escape me.”

  Then, distress overwhelmed him. The shell he had been so used to moving with a thought still stood within his dining hall, despite a force of will. “It’s gone!” he roared. No earthquakes accompanied his cry.

  ***

  Matt rushed toward Alex and embraced him. Alex, who was exhausted from his ordeal, gently patted Matt on the back to return the hug.

  “What happened?” Matt asked, finally releasing Alex.

  Alex, scarcely able to believe what had just happened, replied, “I don’t know.”

  A look of confusion crept across Matt’s face. “We thought you’d been kidnapped.”

  “I was,” Alex verified. He was tired, and he didn’t know if he could adequately explain what had happened.

  “Then, you escaped...” Matt prompted.

  “Yes.”

  “Jeremiah went to Vienna last night to rescue you.”

  Alex sighed. “I was afraid of that.”

  Matt pulled out his cell phone and dialed Jeremiah’s number. “Shit, no answer. Jeremiah thought that Metatron had taken you to Vienna to hold you hostage. I guess he fooled us.”

  “No,” Alex replied. “He did take me somewhere. I guess it was Vienna. And Jeremiah must almost be there by now.”

  “How did you get back?”

  “When I defeated Metatron, I was able to move from place to place like he does.”

  Matt’s jaw dropped. “What do you mean you defeated Metatron?”

  “It’s a long story, Matt. I really need to rest. I’m going to lie down for a little while. We should talk about it after that.”

  “Abbie will want to speak with you,” Matt told him. “She isn’t here right now, but when she gets back, she’ll probably want to ask you some questions.”

  “I’m sure,” Alex agreed. “Where is she?”

  “Well, since we don’t know when Jeremiah will be coming back, she went to find prophets who were close to come protect the mansion.”

  “Will that be enough?” Alex asked skeptically. “Prophets against demons. That doesn’t sound promising.”

  “It’s all we have to work with,” Matt explained. “And,” he continued hesitantly, “if you defeated Metatron, there’s hope for us yet, right?”

  “I don’t know, Matt. I don’t have any answers.”

  “I’m sorry, Alex,” Matt added solemnly. “I shouldn’t have left you.”

  “It’s all right, Matt. None of this was your fault; it was all a part of God’s plan. We can talk about it later, but right now, I really need to rest.”

  They turned to walk toward the mansion when Elizabeth came out of the door. She looked stunned for a moment; then, she ran toward the two prophets.

  “Are you hurt?” she demanded of Alex.

  “No, I’m fine—just tired.”

  “How did you escape?”

  “Elizabeth, can I rest for a couple of hours before I talk about it? I need some time to sort out what happened.”

  “Yes,” she said, a little more than surprised. “Sure. Matt, have you called Jeremiah?”

  “I have,” Matt said, “but there was no answer.”

  “I hope he hasn’t made it to Vienna, yet,” Elizabeth responded as a worried look came over her face.

  Alex closed his eyes almost by reflex. He got a bird’s eye view of Jeremiah being escorted in an entrance way to a gothic stone palace. Two men with machine guns had a hand on each one of his arms.

  “He’s there,” Alex informed them sadly.

  “How--” Elizabeth started to inquire of Alex, but he was already walking toward the mansion.

  ***

  Metatron looked out a high window as Jeremiah walked into the castle. He decided that this situation could still work out in his favor. He had no idea what Alex had done to him, but he felt that a part of him had been stolen. He vowed that, one day, he would take back what Alex had taken, in addition to the prophet’s soul. One day, there would be a reckoning.

  He sat in his library, still trying to understand recent events. There was a knock on the door. He held out his hand, and the door opened.

  “Jeremiah,” he noted, “I knew you would come.”

  There was a demon on either side of Jeremiah. He could have easily killed these grunts, of course, but he still thought he was here to save a prophet.

  “Where is Alex?”

  “Sit,” Metatron commanded.

  Jeremiah was escorted to the desk that Metatron sat behind. The Voice
of God indicated a chair and sighed.

  “Old friend,” Metatron began. “I’m glad you got my invitation.”

  “Are you going to tell me where he is,” Jeremiah snarled, “or will I have to tear this place apart looking for him?”

  “No.” Metatron laughed. “That won’t be necessary. I had to put him down.”

  Jeremiah shook his head disbelievingly. “He can’t be dead.”

  “He can’t?” Metatron asked. “He didn’t seem immune to death. I’m very sorry, Jeremiah. I couldn’t allow his insolence to continue any further. Really, you should have taught him better manners.” Metatron leaned back in his chair. “From the way he spoke to me, he certainly thought he was immune to death.”

  Jeremiah stared at him coldly. “I want to see his body.”

  “I’m afraid I fed it to my dogs,” Metatron returned with mock regret. “But there will be another, right? I would hate to think that I disposed of the only hope for mankind.”

  “You will pay for what you have done,” Jeremiah promised.

  “Jeremiah,” Metatron said with a grin, “you are in no position to threaten me. I could banish you to Hell right now, and I could have hosts of demons in Las Vegas in a matter of hours. And that brings me to my point. How would you like to save your other prophets’ lives?”

  “I will never work for you again,” Jeremiah stated.

  “I thought that you might feel that way. So I devised alternative arrangements. You can submit to death. I will absorb your powers into my own, and, after collecting the shards from the sword of Lucifer, I shall defeat the Morning Star once and for all.”

  Jeremiah grunted a laugh. “Let me get this straight. Your option is that I could allow you to send me to eternal torment so you could defeat your phantoms?”

  Metatron became very serious. “Lucifer is no phantom. My sources have some very disturbing information regarding his return. And, you must admit, I pose much less of a threat than he does. It may not seem like it, but your side would benefit from this deal. First of all, I would not kill your precious prophets. Secondly, they would have only me to contend with, as opposed to me and Lucifer.”

  “If I submitted to you, you could take my power without any loss in the process,” Jeremiah added. “That would only make you more powerful.”

  “Don’t look at it as lose-lose, Jeremiah. Look at it as lose or lose everything. And who knows? Maybe God would still take you back for your valiance.”

  “That wasn’t the deal,” Jeremiah said.

  “I’m sorry, old friend, but you didn’t make the deal with me.”

  Jeremiah sighed. “No, I didn’t. And I don’t intend to make one with you now.”

  “Okay. You will be my prisoner here for one day. That is all that I can afford you—for old-time’s sake. Then, if your answer is still ‘no,’ I will bring you the head of one of your beloved children—perhaps Matt. That might be enough to sway you. If not, I will gather the rest of them to die before your eyes. Then, you will die.”

  “Why?” Jeremiah asked. “Why not kill me now?”

  Metatron stood up and motioned for the two demons to take Jeremiah away. “I haven’t lost faith that you will join my side, given a little gentle coaxing. I would much rather have you with me. If you could just see things the way I do, if you’d just give me a chance to prove myself, you’d realize that Lucifer is still a threat, and his defeat would benefit all sides.”

  After Jeremiah had left, Metatron went back to his window. He looked out and saw the bright lights of Vienna. In truth, he did want to kill Jeremiah now. He wanted to remove that problem, consequences be damned. More importantly, he didn’t know if he could kill Jeremiah at the moment. He felt very drained from the encounter with Alex. And something inside him hoped that Jeremiah’s presence might bring Alex back—might grant him the revenge he thirsted for. Jeremiah was in a cold state of grief, though it may not have seemed like it. However, that grief would soon give way to anger, and that anger would be detrimental. Eventually, Jeremiah would die, but Metatron would milk the short remainder of his life for all it was worth.

  ***

  Elizabeth watched in curiosity as Alex walked into the mansion. Something about him had changed drastically. She turned to Matt with a questioning look.

  Matt shrugged his shoulders. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

  “Where did he come from?” Liz wondered. “He definitely didn’t come through the gate, and I doubt he climbed over the razor wire. Was he dropped from a plane or something?”

  Matt chuckled at the mental image of Alex parachuting out of an aircraft. “I don’t think so,” he answered. “He just...appeared.”

  “What do you mean ‘appeared?’ How can someone just pop up out of thin air?”

  “Metatron could do it,” Matt mused. “Alex claimed that he defeated him. Maybe Alex picked something up in his time away from home.”

  “Defeated Metatron?” Liz gasped.

  “Don’t ask me,” he replied. “I didn’t get much out of him.”

  “Is that even possible?”

  “I guess there’s more about Alex than we thought,” observed Matt, looking toward the door Alex had just entered.

  “Or maybe that isn’t Alex.”

  Matt looked skeptical. “What?”

  “Think about it, Matt,” Liz explained. “We know demons can alter their appearance. Jeremiah does it all the time. And that doesn’t feel like Alex. Something’s wrong.”

  Matt shook his head. “I don’t know, Liz. Why would a demon do that, when it could just take whatever appearance it likes? If it can make it into the mansion, it wouldn’t need to fear us.” Matt stopped. “But, that didn’t sound like Alex, either. Something is different.”

  “Okay,” Elizabeth said. “I’ll call Abbie and get her down here as quick as she can make it. You lock down his room as soon as he gets in there.”

  Matt motioned toward the mansion. “If that’s a demon, I don’t think our locks will stop him, but I’ll have security watch him.”

  “Oh, Matt,” she murmured. “What if it is? What can we do? What if it is Metatron?”

  “I don’t know,” Matt confessed. “If it was Metatron, I think I would have been able to sense it. But, if Metatron is in the mansion, I don’t think we will be able to do anything about it. The more important question is: what if it’s Alex?”

  “I’ll call Abbie,” Liz decided.

  “Good.” He took out his cell phone and dialed a number. “Higgins?” he said. “We may have a possible breach. Come out to the lawn, and I’ll explain everything to you there.” He hung up and looked at Liz. “Well,” he concluded, moving toward the mansion, “all we can do now is wait and watch.”

  ***

  Alex lay on his bed, sleep would not overtake him. He kept envisioning Jeremiah doing horrible things to people. He was even imagining detestable things that Metatron never even mentioned. Alex kept trying to remind himself that Jeremiah had changed. But had he? Could he really change that much? Could a demon who ate children be rehabilitated even after so many years?

  “Let Metatron have him,” he heard himself saying. “It might be better for us in the long run anyway.”

  He couldn’t believe he had said it. Jeremiah had saved his life. Jeremiah defended Alex, when no one else would. Then again, Jeremiah had put Alex in the position of being saved and defended. It didn’t seem quite as heroic when Alex considered that, if it hadn’t been for the demon, Alex would be safe at home, enjoying the company of his friends, family, and maybe a girlfriend.

  “You are awfully hard on an imperfect being,” his father said.

  Alex looked around, stunned. Was he asleep? Had he drifted into a dream and not even known it? He could not see the familiar figure, but the voice was undeniable.

  “Where are you?” Alex asked.

  “Son,” the voice replied, “I am everywhere. Don’t you know that?”

  “Am I dreaming?”

  “No,”
the voice responded, “not exactly. Would you feel more comfortable if you were?”

  “I guess not,” Alex conceded. “I’m just...I’m just more accustomed to speaking to you in a dream. When I’m awake, it feels different.”

  “This is how most people talk to me, Alex. I took you to a setting where you would feel comfortable. You were used to speaking to me there; that was the place’s purpose. You are not so used to speaking to me in this world. You expect me to exist only in a place beyond reality, but I am everywhere.”

  “I can’t trust him,” Alex stated, thinking of Jeremiah.

  “You can’t trust what he was.”

  Alex shook his head, trying to grasp forgiveness. “He was so evil.”

  “Is he still?”

  “I don’t know,” said Alex. “I guess that’s the problem. If I could know for sure, my decision would be much easier.”

  “You are trying to decide whether or not to try to rescue him. Perhaps, he is not important enough to rescue.”

  “No,” Alex disagreed. “We need him. I’m sure of that.”

  “Perhaps,” the voice continued, “he is not worthy of a rescue.”

  “I don’t know. He was captured when he attempted to rescue me. That should count for something.”

  “Then, maybe he needs to pay for his mistakes with his life.”

  “But everything I’ve ever heard leads me to believe that it isn’t humanity’s place to avenge—it’s yours. What would you do?”

  “Interesting,” the voice observed. “I never choose revenge. If humanity gives that responsibility to me, and I don’t use it, what place does revenge have?”

  “So, if Jeremiah does return to Heaven, you won’t hold him accountable for his actions?”

  “What is the purpose of punishing a child for stealing his parents’ money?”