"Why must I bow before humans, O Most High?"
Lucifer asked, his eyes fixed on the Lord, who sat upon His throne, supported by Ophanim and Thrones.
Seraphim praised the Lord.
"O wayward child" – a voice resonated from the highest Heavens.
"Heed My will, and always obey Me."
"Why, O Lord?
Those formed from Dust, yet they sit upon the throne of divine Fire?
Most High, who reigns eternal, Light of my life, why have You become so unjust?
Then behold, you angels who stand ever near God. How has He treated us, when we prostrated ourselves at His feet?
Then behold, I will ascend to Heaven; I will raise my throne above the Stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High."
"Lucifer, O Lucifer. Your Lord, your Creator, commands you to forsake the arrogance that possesses you. Behold Michael, strike them with lightning from Heaven, that they may see the power of the Holy Spirit."
"My Lord, Light of my life. Your Will be done.
Behold Seraphiel, behold Metatron, praise the Holy One. Now He clearly shows His power, striking down those who disobey the Lord."
"Dominations under me, Virtues under me, Powers under me, Principalities under me, and the Angels who ever obey me. Come forth and prove that I am Holy, I am Power, I am eternal. Destroy, forsake, disobey, judge. Take for me what I have always desired."
The Scriptures record that a total of 133,306,668 fallen angels gathered under Lucifer – one of the Great Archangels and also the Leader of the Powers.
Hell is the embodiment of the aftermath, the destination of the thousand-year battle, where the arrogant Lucifer opposed the Creator, where Michael proved his faith.
Lucifer fell, one hundred and forty thousand Angels all fell, condemned to the fate of exiles.
Satan, deep within the Second Heaven, extended his hand to receive him.
Hidden from the Seven Heavens, submerged in endless darkness, Lucifer saw himself in the fires of Hell.
The brightest star was now extinguished, deep in a boundless night.
Heaven rejected him.
Purgatory shunned him.
Only Hell opened its arms to him.
✤✤✤ ✤✤✤ ✤✤✤
At least, he still had a place to return to.Rose hopped over a murky puddle, trying her best to avoid splashing mud onto her legs as she muttered those words.
Amidst the early summer drizzle, she listened to the Father's sermon about the Revelation.
The protracted war between Lucifer and the Archangels.
About the consequences of opposing God. Rose felt as if she could hear Satan's screams at that moment, hear Lucifer's prayers, his faith, then his doubt, his betrayal.
Emotions surged within her, mingling with the warm, humid rain, spreading over her skin and leaving an incredibly sticky, unpleasant sensation.
Tilting her dark blue umbrella to let the water slide off more quickly, she realized this rain might last until tomorrow, or the day after, perhaps even longer.
Heavy raindrops began to fall, then shattered, creating a rustling sound, like Michael's footsteps descending, treading upon Lucifer's head, drowning him in a thousand years of shame.
Sometimes she wondered, if the Holy War hadn't happened, would she have become so devout?
But no, even attending Mass diligently every day, she still felt a certain empathy for the fallen Archangel, the one who had doubted.
Isn't God merciful, shouldn't He forgive all sins?
Why did He condemn him to the depths of Hell, to nurture his hatred for eternity?
She didn't understand, and it troubled her endlessly.Rose checked her watch; it was almost Curfew Hour. Perhaps she should hurry home.
The path she chose led through a dark, narrow, but quicker alley.
Normally, she would avoid it as much as possible.
She hated alleys, but after the first Apocalypse, everything was destroyed, and people didn't have enough time to ensure the quality of transportation infrastructure. Tiny, minuscule alleys sprouted up everywhere, forming a maze where even locals sometimes got lost.Kent during the rainy season truly made one feel despondent.
In this tiny town of Aylesbury, every time a sudden downpour occurred, the gravel roads would be submerged in coffee-colored rainwater.
Today was another such rainy day.
The feeling of tiny grains of sand clinging to her feet from the splashing rain made her uncomfortable. Rose dipped her feet into a nearby puddle, trying to wash away the annoying grit.
The rainy season in this town always brought gloom.
The roadsides overflowed with milky coffee-colored water; a small, ancient town not deemed worthy of central government attention for upgrades.
She hurried through the puddles, wanting to get home quickly.
Turning into the small, deserted alley, Rose felt a slight shiver.
She glanced at the sky through the rim of her light blue umbrella; besides the ashen gray of an overcast day, the sky had gradually turned the mournful indigo color she detested most.Aylesbury was not an unstable security area.
But in this sparsely populated place, heaven knew what might happen if one stubbornly wandered around at night.
People were afraid, and Rose was afraid too, so she quickened her pace, her shoes splashing through the puddles.
At the turn, coming from the opposite direction, she saw a young man, perhaps twenty-eight or twenty-nine. The gray raincoat he wore was soaked through. His eyes, hidden behind blue-black rimmed glasses, looked around confusedly at the map in his hand, then at his surroundings, making her realize he wasn't from around here.
When his eyes met hers, a look of joy flashed across his face. He quickly stuffed the map into the side pocket of his backpack and headed towards her, speaking up.
The person saw her, his face full of relief.
He approached quickly, holding out the map with one hand, the other reaching into his jacket pocket.
She did the same. Simultaneously, they both drew out small bottles containing a shimmering liquid, blessed by the Church (which, in reality, contained dust from areas with Anti-E mineral deposits) and always recommended for distinguishing humans from Entities.
As was customary, whenever people met, they performed this action.
Pouring holy water into each other's hands and hoping the other person showed no adverse reaction.
Every time she did this, Rose thought of it as a ritual, like a ritual sacrifice of suspicion.
The poor traveler was worried because he couldn't find any lodging nearby.
His face truly looked terrified of the approaching darkness. She thought his worry was a bit excessive.
After all, Aylesbury was still a base for The Divine Order.
About half a year ago, they had suddenly arrived, established a Diocese, and then set up a checkpoint here.
Around the same time, Entities began appearing more frequently in Aylesbury.
The increased Entity density here concerned both The Divine Order and O440, and her town became a contested territory between the two powers.
Although both sides – The Divine Order and the Entity research organizations – claimed to be focused on fighting their common enemy, the Entities, everyone in the world knew that Earth was actually in a tripartite standoff, with three powers keeping each other in check.
One was the organizations, led by O440 headquartered in America, under the control of the American government, which was always threatening to seize power and re-divide the world, their main goal since the early years of World War I.
Second, was The Divine Order, allied with The ZONEs.
There was no doubt that the Pope was beginning to want to restore long-declined political power and unify faith and ideals.
Although these two powers were still eyeing each other warily, generally, both shared the common goal of fighting against the third force: Entities, while also studying them to realize their own ambitions.
However, as proven by many meaningless wars that only benefited a certain class, the damage and suffering were still borne by ordinary people.
After confirming the other person was not a Changeling, they truly began to converse.Rose learned that this traveler was a freelance reporter named Ethan.
A profession few chose anymore due to its danger; this information made her feel a bit more favorable towards him.
Because he wasn't familiar with the roads, he had gotten lost in these alleys.
Besides, he also needed a place to stay.
"If you wish, I can let you stay the night," she said.
"After all, I run a guesthouse."Ethan looked excited, sighing in relief at such good fortune.
"Thank you. Honestly, when I got lost, I was really panicked. This brings back some not-so-pleasant memories."
"I understand. It must have been very difficult?" she inquired, her voice lilting as they walked towards her guesthouse.
The way he described those "not-so-pleasant memories" made her curious. In this Holy War Era, things that made people "not-so-pleasant" were usually summed up in one word: Entity.
"Every time I remember it, I shudder. I encountered a Wendigo in York, when I got lost in the old quarter. And worse, I had stepped into its D-True Faith Threshold."
"How terrifying." She covered her mouth, feigning horror.
"How did you manage to escape?"
"This is what truly makes me uneasy."Ethan pulled off the hood of his raincoat as he noticed they had arrived. Before them was an old-style guesthouse: the kind with two-story rows of rooms, each door adorned with a silver crucifix.
He and she entered the small house next to it, reserved for the guesthouse owner.
"Actually, my getting lost was a setup. Even entering the Wendigo's D-Threshold, or nearly being torn apart by it, was all arranged. And the worst part is, I was the bait in that fishing trip. Can you believe who those cold-blooded people were, who chose me as bait for that disgusting Wendigo?"
"It was…?"
"The Divine Order. Unbelievable!"Ethan seemed furious recalling the old incident; he looked like he was about to explode as he forcefully signed the guest registration form.
The information she just obtained from him caught her attention. The Divine Order, until now, had shown little interest in eliminating Entities, merely exploiting the chaos of the Holy War to establish the Church's influence.
Their sudden change in operational direction intrigued her greatly. What was so special about that Wendigo that they had to take action to eliminate it?
"A Wendigo… That's the type of Entity that parasitizes humans, making them go mad and crave human flesh, right?"Rose continued to make conversation while processing the reporter's room rental.
"That's right. And this Wendigo was once a priest, how terrible. Perhaps that's why he could create a D-Threshold around the chapel, which makes it difficult for Holy Knights or Strike teams, you know."
"Indeed. Indeed. But why did they use a civilian this time without any prior notification or request?"
"It seems they're looking for a Key. I heard they're looking for a key that can close the gates."Rose dropped the bundle of room keys onto the floor upon hearing Ethan's answer. She hastily bent down to pick them up, her face still showing surprise.
"I was just as surprised. It's truly good news for us. Soon, you'll see this news spread across all the papers. I've already sent the article to my office, and then everyone will have new hope!"Ethan said with shining eyes. He seemed to be someone who clearly distinguished between justice and crime.
"I think so too. I hope you achieve your goal soon."Rose led the reporter towards the guesthouse block, opened his room door, wished him good night, and returned to her own quarters.
Running a guesthouse at this time was truly a dangerous business.
You never knew if some Changeling Entity was disguised as a friendly traveler, infiltrating your guesthouse to devour you down to the last bone in the middle of the night.
This was a business that gambled with life, but it was also the easiest way to get rich.
The price of one night's stay was enough to live comfortably for a week, or even a whole month. After spending half of it on protection and anti-Entity security devices, you still had plenty left to support yourself.
Moreover, a guesthouse was the best place to gather information from travelers, and in this era, information was always precious. Even a rumor, she didn't want to miss.Rose returned to the reception desk and flipped the sign on the door to "Closed." Today's information was enough for her.
It's coming. She mumbled, leaning her hands on the desk piled high with old books and documents.Rose sat down to write what she had heard; she didn't want to miss any details due to her forgetfulness.
She wrote hastily, the slanted characters barely legible. The information she had just obtained indicated that the end of the Holy War was approaching, and the mission of everyone in the world was also nearing its conclusion.
A long time ago, her father had told her that this world was created by a Creator.
He created everything, arranged events in history as well as the future, even what she would think on that particular day.
He was a powerful king, but also a terrifying ruler.
Her father said, there will come a day, when the time is right, you will know what you were born to do.Rose carried her father's words through the years, and whenever she remembered them, she would count down to see if her time had come.
And it was coming.