He stepped away from her, his aura bright, his eyes shimmering. His face was set in cold determination as he held out his hand and a long sword materialized within his grip.
"Summon him."
Chapter Six
Before the Flood
The sun had no effect on the frigid air that surrounded Asmodeus and his sons. An unforgiving wind blew in from the north, picking up speed and intensity. Soon the sun would set, forcing him and his sons to find shelter. He had already found an alcove that would block the wind, a perfect place for them to bed down for the night.
Jorian, his oldest son, only came to his chest. Bael, his youngest, reached his waist. Both had a head of blond, unruly hair and vivid green eyes.
Jorian kneeled next to him, holding the bow in his capable hands, pulling the arrow's feathers back to the top of his ear, just like he had been taught. Jorian waited for the rabbit to come closer. Precision killing.
The forest grew quiet, save for the chirps of the birds and the snap of an occasional twig from a small animal. The timing was perfect. The rabbit was close, the wind had died down…
"Father!" Bael cried out, bouncing toward him and Jorian. Jorian's arrow flew from his hands, striking a tree and becoming embedded in the bark. The rabbit stood on its hind legs, twitched its pink nose and turned and fled.
"Bael! Look what you have done!" Jorian stood, tossing the bow to the ground. He folded his arms over his chest and glared at his younger brother.
Bael looked devastated. He worshipped his older brother, and he had only been trying to help. In his small hands he clutched various twigs for the fire they would soon be building. The twigs fell from his grasp.
Asmodeus placed a hand on his thigh and pushed himself from the ground. He wanted this time with his sons, had looked forward to it for a long while. "Bael, you will have to become more aware of your surroundings." He found it difficult not to smile. Both boys were trying so hard to become men. They did their best to impress upon him their worth.
"What will we eat now? We will go hungry," Jorian complained.
"We have enough light left in the day to catch prey. Hunting takes patience, Jorian." That was the one skill his oldest son lacked. Patience. He believed things came easy for a man, that a man did not make mistakes. What he needed to learn was being a man meant you learned from your mistakes, grew from them. Which inevitably led to fewer blunders. However, as he had come to learn himself, there always seemed to be something else to learn. Mistakes had created the man he was.
His oldest picked up his bow with one last glare cast at his brother.
Asmodeus walked over to Bael and hoisted him onto his shoulders. "While your brother finds us our meal we shall build a grand fire."
Bael squealed. "I'm helping Father build a fire!"
Jorian huffed and moved farther into the woods. His oldest was learning the value of tolerance, thanks to his younger brother. The boys would come into their own in time. Soon they would be men, leaders among their peers.
They had taught him his greatest lesson—ultimate love, the sacrifice one made for others. Until Jorian and Bael had been born he had not known what love truly was. He had witnessed humans displaying this emotion from Heaven, and he had ached to feel love for himself. Having experienced what unconditional love felt like, he realized the responsibility that came with that emotion. He was responsible for their safety and well-being.
He had every confidence in their abilities and the honor he was instilling in them. They would grow to be so much more than their father had ever been…
"Asmodeus, I can't. I-I don't want to."
Asmodeus let the reality of his past fade away, though the sense of loss and failure never left him completely. He concentrated on what he was here to do. Avenge his brothers and take his revenge on the man who had forced him to do the unthinkable.
As he looked at Brianna he could see the fear etched on her face. He could feel her unease as if it were his own. He needed her. If he contained the power to command the energy of the earth he would summon Michael himself. Unfortunately his powers, though extensive, didn't extend that far. He had the power to heal, materialize what belongings were left to him, move with adequate speed, but he could not command the energy the earth provided. Only humans could summon angelic beings.
"Sometimes we are forced to do that which we do not want." If anyone knew the truth of that statement, it was he.
Jorian's face swept through his mind's eye again. After all these years he could recall what his children looked like. He remembered the innocence his young face had held before he turned into a Nephilim.