In Rebellion (Archangel Jarahmael and the War to Conquer Heaven, Book II) (22 page)

Chapter 32

The Cherubim guard landed heavily in Jarahmael's palace and walked into the hallway as Luciferael and four of the members of his Auxilium landed behind him.

“Nice palace,” Luciferael said as he stepped inside the entranceway and looked around.

“Yes, it is,” said Beelzebael, thinking that maybe he should take this palace over as his own, as it was nicer than his.

Looking up at the head Cherubim guard, Luciferael asked, “Where are these mirrors you told me about?”

“This way,” he replied and led the way up through a hallway until he came to the room on the right where the mirrors were set up. He walked in and motioned for Luciferael and the others to follow.

Luciferael walked in and saw with delight the fourteen mirrors set up in a circle, each one reflecting back the image of the one opposite it.

Luciferael walked up and looked at the frame work closely. “Jarahmael outdid himself on these mirrors!” he said aloud. “Look, there are scenes from the story of the Creation here, the birth of each of the Archangels with the scene of my breathing life into each of them.”

“Is there one of me?” asked Mephistophael.

“Yes,” responded Damiel. “This one has you right here. Your face is carved into the oval above the mirror itself.”

“And here is yours, Damiel!” said Mammonael, pointing to a similar mirror with Damiel's likeness carved within it. They went around the room and found the mirrors for each of the Archangels
and a slightly larger one featuring Luciferael himself.

“Look at the mirror image too!” Luciferael said, admiring his own reflection. “It is so clear, it’s like a second image of each one of us.”

Each of the Angels walked up to their own mirror and looked deeply at themselves. There was something recharging about the experience; it was as though the mirror image condensed and concentrated the light that came from each of them, amplified it and the sent it back into their own bodies, making them stronger.

Luciferael turned to the Cherubim guard and spoke. “You were correct, Cherubim, these mirrors are more exquisite than the one I have in my own palace. It’s a shame that
lord
Jarahmael did not survive the battle so we could reward him for his hard work and craftsmanship.”

Lillith had been watching the activities in Jarahmael's palace from the moment the Cherubim guards arrived. She had not dreamt of the possibility that anyone would be visiting the palace today. She had started to give up on Jarahmael. The heavy landing of the Cherubim guards woke her out of her thoughts and she was excited to watch the cadre of Angels who were now in Jarahmael's palace.

She had seen the Cherubim guard the night before, but this time he had not come alone. There were a few more Cherubim present, but also four or five of the Archangels. She had never seen that many in one place before. She had only seen Jarahmael and Michael before, and her limbs now felt weak with a surge of electricity that went through her when she looked at them.

She missed Jarahmael terribly. These Archangels did not have his kindness, and there was a coldness to them similar to how she viewed Cerebriel. Yet she thought that coldness wasn't it. There was something wrong with these, a darkness, a conceitedness. Where she had felt safe with Jarahmael, she felt in danger with these Archangels.
When she caught a glimpse of the leader, an Archangel with golden wingtips, she knew that
she had never seen any creature so beautiful. So beautiful that it hurt her to look upon him. Her heart leapt up to her throat and a whirlpool of emotions passed through her stomach. She was not sure what she felt about this creature, but she knew it was powerful. She wished that Jarahmael was there with her;
she felt vulnerable and lonely in a way only Jarahmael’s presence had been able to sooth.
But without him there, she was unable to stop the feelings that were pulsating deep within her.

She watched as the Angels entered the room with the mirrors.
She needed to know what they were doing in there and despite the danger she moved as close as she could and yet still remain hidden behind the wall of invisibility. Observing these Angels posing before the mirrors, she
thought it was strange how each of them
kept
admir
ing
themselves in the mirrors. Jarahmael was never like that, he was not one to look at himself in the mirrors at all, even though he had made them. The reflections from the mirrors, though, gave her better views of all of them. All the Archangels were at least nine feet tall, and beautiful in their own way. They could be told apart by their hair and eye colors as well as the top tips of their wings. She didn't hear their names, except for the golden tipped one who almost glowed golden himself: they all referred to him as
lord
Luciferael. Jarahmael was better looking than all of them except for that golden wing-tipped one. Wasn't Luciferael the one that Jarahmael was fighting? He was the one that looked at himself the most in the mirror. It was as if he was having a love affair with his own image. It made her feel queasy yet attracted at the same time.

She heard the reference to Jarahmael's name. She felt as though something had kicked her in the stomach when she realized that Luciferael had said that he “did not survive the battle.” Was that why he had not returned to her? Had he been destroyed in the wars that had been going on in the Heavens below? How would she survive without him? They had only been together a short time, but her heart yearned to be with him. Her feelings of attraction for the Archangels before her in the palace, even for the one called Luciferael, were quickly frozen. She missed Jarahmael terribly, she realized. He was the only being that really understood her, was kind to her, and protected her. What was she going to do now? She was trapped here in this palace without her lover, maybe even without anyone even knowing she was up here. Michael and Cerebriel could have also fallen. She could be trapped in this palace forever.

She began to cry softly, but she did not want to be heard. These Angels, as beautiful as they were, likely were the cause of the harm that had happened to Jarahmael. She sat down and let the emotions pass through her.

Her thoughts were broken when another Cherubim arrived in a hurry and quickly got his bearings and headed to where the voices were coming from. Entering the room, he quickly bowed and interrupted the conversation among the Angels.

“Lord Luciferael, I come with tragic news,” the guard said.

Luciferael had seen the Cherubim enter the room behind his reflection. Without taking his eyes off himself, he said, “Speak, Cherubim. What news do you bring?”

“Lord Suriel has dispatched me with this news, my
l
ord.
Lord
Sammuael, two groups of Cherubim guards and both the Archangels Michael and Ariel have disappeared from the Hall of the Virtues without a trace. The only item we could find in a massive search of the Fifth Heaven and the Hall itself was the bindings that had held the Archangel Ariel prisoner.”

Luciferael spun around on that news. His face
showed that he
was confused about what he had just heard.

“Disappeared? Without a trace? How can that be? Archangels and Cherubim do not just vanish!”

Beelzebael interjected, “That's exactly what happened to Jarahmael, my
l
ord. He disappeared in the attack on the Dominion stronghold. The only thing remaining was the spear he carried into battle.”

“Where is
lord
Suriel now?” asked Luciferael.

“He has taken a group of Cherubim and has headed to the lower Heavens to see if he can find any trace of them. He wanted to be sure that Michael and Ariel could not escape to the Earth,” said the Cherubim.

“I cannot imagine
lord
Sammuael having been overcome by two captive Angels, my
l
ord Luciferael. He had at least twelve Cherubim guards there,” said Mephistophael.

“If we don't have them or know where they are, then who could possibly be able to do such a thing?” Luciferael said aloud. He turned back and looked at himself again in the mirror. “Look at my magnificence! No one can withstand me! Michael and the other Archangels would have never been able to defeat me anyway! In a few days I will have the Earth conquered as well as the Heavens and this will all be behind us.”

The other Archangels nodded in agreement.

“I will miss
lord
Sammuael if he is, in fact, gone,” said Luciferael.

“We shall too, my
l
ord,” added Beelzebael.

“But we will keep searching for him.
Lord
Suriel is doing that already, Cherubim?” Luciferael asked, looking at the Cherubim through his reflection in the mirror.

“Yes
,
my
l
ord, he was leaving right after I was dispatched to see you and tell you the news.”

“What should we do?” asked Damiel

Luciferael stood looking at his reflection
,
deep in thought. He spoke after a few minutes of contemplation.

“Nothing at the moment. We all need some rest. It’s been a successful campaign and we all fought hard. The Angels in the lower Heavens are finishing their sweeps of the remaining loyal Angels. The loyal Angels that are left on Earth have no real weapons, and they would have to attack us from below, coming up from the Earth, and hope to get a foothold back in the Heavens to begin their attacks. It’s easier to fight when one has the higher Heavens, which we fortunately now do. We begin regrouping tomorrow to begin the attack on the Earth. The loyal Angels will be in disarray without having Michael, Ariel or
lord
Jarahmael. And no weapons. It should not take long to force them to surrender. Even if Michael and Ariel survived and could lead the loyal Angels, we are much more experienced and have momentum on our side. They have been defeated at every turn, and it will soon be over for them.”

The Angels were all appreciative for the prospect of time off to relax and smiled when they heard Luciferael's commands.

The one Cherubim Guard stepped forward. “What about the mirrors, my
l
ord? Do you want them moved?”

“Yes, but not today. We can unveil them at the Throne Room ceremony after we have finished conquering the Earth. For now, they are fine where they are. I enjoy seeing them situated where
lord
Jarahmael originally placed them. It’s as if they belong in this room. Now the rest of you can go, enjoy your time for today and tomorrow. We will be quite busy again after that.”

“Thank you,
l
ord Luciferael,” said the leader of the Cherubim guards. “We have not been back to our Sixth Heaven in days.” The rest of the guards bowed before Luciferael and took their leave, flying off towards the Sixth Heaven.

“What will you be doing,
l
ord Luciferael?” asked Beelzebael.

“I am going to stay here for a while longer,” he said as he walked around in the mirrored room admiring his own form. “The rest of you go back to your palaces and rest. There will be more than enough to do once we finish off the war. Enjoy yourselves.”

Each of them bowed down to Luciferael and he acknowledged each one in return with a nod of his head.

They turned and walked down the hallway to Jarahmael's entrance and then flew off, each in the direction of their own palaces.

Luciferael had accompanied them and watched each of them fly off.