“You’re fucking A right I have a few more questions,” Mike said, almost exploding.
“Please, don’t avoid expressing yourself on my part.”
“What is Nassir?”
“A former angel. A member of an order called the Grigori.”
“And these Grigori fucked up a long time ago.”
“Yes.”
“What’d they do?”
“It’s a long story and time is short. However, there are others who will help you understand soon enough.”
“And the demon, Malthus. Nassir summoned it.”
“Summoned is the wrong word. Malthus is part of a race called the Nephilim. Their relationship with the Grigori is . . . complex. Again, others will help you understand. What you need to know now is Malthus helped Nassir. Nassir has no power over the Nephilim and vice versa. But their current incarnations are very much related.”
“The more I learn the more I get confused.”
“So let’s keep it simple for now.”
“What the hell is the mark?”
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
“I just killed a fucking demon. How is that possible?”
“Semyaza imparted a piece of him on you. What was him is now you. Do you understand?”
“But he was a fallen angel.”
“Remember, there was some good in him still. The light of God had not been completely extinguished. More than anything, he desired to be judged by God. When he repented, that little bit of goodness still in him marked you.”
Mike’s eyes widened. “So I have angelic powers?”
Uriel laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“Man is composed of earth and spirit. An angel is a pure spirit. In reality, you just have more spirit. A closer connection to the Firmament than most. But yes, you have some angelic power.”
“My spirit’s on steroids, huh?”
“If you want to think of it that way, go ahead. But Tur—”
“Who?”
“Nassir. His real name is actually Turiel. He spoke the truth when he said a mark bearer can be killed.”
“Yeah, he mentioned Solomon. As in King Solomon?”
“Yes. Solomon also had the power to bind demons.”
“Bind? Not destroy?”
Uriel grimaced. “Yes. Which brings me back to you.”
Mike suddenly felt ill. “Tell me something good.”
“The good thing is you are alive and you have witnessed the scope of your power.”
“I sense a ‘but’ coming.”
“But you did not destroy Malthus.”
“I cut it off.”
“Cutting off is not destroying. Turiel still exists but is cut off. Only God can unmake what He has made. Nor did you cut it off. You don’t have that kind of power.”
“I still don’t get it.”
“You casted him out of this existence, changed his being, but he became another.”
“What did Solomon do?”
“He imprisoned them before he lost control of them.”
“Imprisoned them?”
“He bound them to an object, rendering them inert. It was called the Seal of Solomon. A ring filled with demons.”
“So I didn’t destroy him and I didn’t bind him and I didn’t send him to another dimension.”
“No.”
“So where is he?”
Uriel hesitated. “Those who are casted are bound because, if not, they will bind themselves.”
“What?”
“Think of a man who goes suddenly blind while walking down a staircase. He will grasp onto the rail near him and hold on because that thing is real and nothing else makes sense. He’s afraid because he can no longer see. But the rail provides a connection to what he used to know before darkness took over.”
Mike’s stomach rolled over.
“Solomon bound his demons to his ring. But you did not bind Malthus. And the closest thing to him when you changed his being was—”
“Me.”
“Yes.”
Mike wanted to throw up but had nothing in him left to vomit.
“There is a great darkness in you now, Michael. The only reason you have not and will not succumb to it is because the mark keeps it at bay.”
“The mark is not a curse.”
“Now do you see? The mark has given you power and will protect you from darkness. But the darkness will still rage within. It will show you things, tempt you, cause you to do things you will regret. As you must control the power of the mark, you must now also control the power of darkness within.”
Mike closed his eyes. “I have angelic and demonic powers now.”
“But you are also a man and free to use either. You must be careful.”
To say the least, Mike thought, and sighed. “Fine. Enough about me. What language was Nassir speaking?”
“The same as the language tattooed on the bodies of the guardians you have encountered.”
“Which is the same one carved into the walls of Semyaza’s prison.”
“Yes.”
“So, it’s some form of Angelic, for lack of a better word?”
“We refer to it as the Ancient Tongue or the First Language, but Angelic works.”
Fuck. Mike looked at the spot he had last seen Nassir before he walked into the darkness.
“You called Nassir a Watcher. What does that mean?”
“Another word for Grigori.” Uriel rose. “Your friends are coming.”
Mike pushed up to his feet. “What did he mean by ‘Agents of Prophecy’?”
“You will learn soon.”
“What is Nassir planning to do?”
“The same thing he has been planning for a very long time.” Uriel turned away. “I must go, Mike. Remember our earlier conversations. Remember what you saw here tonight. Remember I am only privy to certain things. The rest you will have to deduce on your own. Nassir doesn’t serve any nation’s interests. He is only looking out for himself and his kind.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Did he want to cripple Israel or provoke a response?”
“Provoke.”
“So start there. You have enough information for now.”
“But—”
Uriel disappeared.
“Fuck!”
Mike punched his thigh and walked around the clearing. As he neared the tree, the headache spiked and he quickly backed away.
Still marked. Great.
He heard footsteps behind him, turned and reflexively went to draw his Beretta. He grabbed air and remembered he didn’t have shit. Several heads crested the top of the rise, coming up the trail. He recognized Ehud. Isaac and Simon followed. Then Abu.
Abu?
Kitra brought up the rear.
Ehud and Isaac inspected the burnt bodies. Simon moved to the other side and checked out the partially dug hole. Abu and Kitra approached Mike and then stood next to him.
“What the hell happened up here?” Kitra asked.
Mike looked at the bodies and the hole and then the spot where Nassir had walked off into the night. Then he gazed up at the sky. It was clear. A bright sliver of moon shined down on them. No sign of the storm at all.
“Are you all right?” Kitra asked.
Mike nodded.
“So what happened?”
Mike lowered his eyes to Kitra. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
“Is it safe?”
“Yeah, it’s safe. For now.”
“We will have to put some sort of security measures up here.”
“You won’t have to worry about Nassir coming here again anytime soon.”
“What do you mean?”
“Nassir failed,” Mike said. “He won’t try this route again. Trust me.”
“And how do you know that?”
“He was here.”
Kitra’s eyes widened. “He was here? Personally?”
“Yes,” Mike said.
“Where is he now?” Kitra pointed at the burn victims. “One of them?”
“I wish.” Mike motioned to the side of the clearing. “He took off that way.”
“On foot?”
“Yes, Kitra, on foot. He walked off into the night.”
Kitra stared at him for a moment and then called out, “Ehud, Simon.”
The two hustled over to their boss. “Yes, Director.”
Kitra ordered them to start moving down the mountain where Nassir left and find the Syrian. They didn’t hesitate, taking off in pursuit. Kitra then called the helicopters in for added search capabilities.
“We will find him,” she said once she had all the pieces moving.
“I hope so,” Mike said, even though he knew Kitra wouldn’t. Nassir was gone, on his way back to Damascus. Back to his plans to set the region on fire.
“Is this where the prison is located?” Abu asked, looking down in the hole on the other side of the clearing.
Mike studied him for a moment, wondering if it was true that the guardians sought only to protect the vessels from being opened. Then he remembered Uriel’s words: the other prisons would remain unspoiled. It couldn’t hurt to tell him. Not with something like Uriel keeping an eye out.
“Yes,” Mike said. “It’s the prison of Belial.”
“Belial,” Abu said, almost whispering. “The rumors were true.”
“What rumors?”
Abu turned and walked back to them. “The order had knowledge, passed down for generations, the prison of Belial lay in the mountains of Galilee. Just not a specific location. We searched, of course, but never found anything more.”
“Well, now you know.”
“And we will guard it with our lives.”
Kitra cleared her throat. “Easy now, Abu. This is still Israeli soil.”
“Kitra, you have my word: my order will protect this place for as long as God allows. Whether you like it or not does not matter.”
Kitra chewed on that for a few seconds. “Arrangements would have to be made. Contacts established. A lie to sell my people.”
Abu smirked. “Of course.”
Kitra nodded and then turned to Mike. “Now will you tell me who set those people on fire?”
Mike thought about it for a moment, wondering how he could explain the mist and the fire and Uriel. How had he explained any of it so far? Then he laughed.
“My guardian angel did it.”