Daystar (82 page)

Michael shuddered.
 
“I was confused, afraid, but I always have loved you.”
 
He punched at Lucifer weakly.
 
“Why could you not give me more of an effort?
 
Why did you not try harder to explain yourself then to me?!
 
I did not know what to do!”
 
Michael lost his years; he regressed to a youth, then to a boy.
 
“Why did you do that to me?!”

Lucifer gaped.
 
“I—”

Michael wept.
 
“You were my best friend and you made me happy.
 
I did not know any love besides yours.
 
You were everything to me, yet you treated me as
nothing!
 
Why did you try to save
everyone
else, but you never tried to save me!
 
You
left
me!
 
You left me alone with
him
for an eternity!
 
Why did you do that to me?”

Lucifel stood.
 
He glared at Michael.
 
“What is this,
pathetic
.
 
I knew you would crack eventually, you poor excuse of a child.
 
I wish you had tried to kill him earlier, that would rid me of this vision, but I should have known.
 
If the first tool is weak, the thing made from it will be weaker.”
 
He threw a bolt of fire and blasted Michael back from Lucifer.

Lucifer snarled and got to his feet.
 
“Do
not
touch him!”

Lucifel sneered.
 
“Can I not play with our youngest brother?
 
He always only wanted to play with
you
.
 
He never had the time for
me
until you were gone!”

Lucifer threw one of the spears of light.
 
Lucifel ducked away.
 
Lucifer ran to Michael and picked him up.
 
He hefted another spear towards Lucifel, sending him back.
 
He rocked Michael.
 
“Wake up, now.”

The boy blinked and opened his blue eyes, his burns healed.
 
Michael gulped.
 
“Are you going to kill me now?”

“I withdraw my vow of your death.”
 
He set Michael down on his feet and grabbed for another spear.
 
“Go stand with Helion and Whitney, they can keep you safe.”
 
He hurled the spear, catching Lucifel’s leg.

Michael would not budge.
 
“No.
 
I have a purpose, I will see it through.”

Lucifel laughed.
 
“Oh this is
rich
, Michael.
 
How are you going to kill him if you remain as a boy?”

Michael twisted his face.
 
“My purpose was not to kill him!”
 
He took Lucifer’s hand.
 
“I was made to
weaken
him!
 
To take his flame, to make him less!”
 
Michael looked to Lucifer.
 
“He ordered you to make me in order to bring you down and I have done that for eternity.
 
Whether I stood with you then or now, I would be taking your power, making you vulnerable to him.”

“This does not matter now.”
 
Lucifer frowned.
 
“Go and stay out of this.
 
You do not need to be drawn in.”

Michael gnashed his teeth.
 
“I have been drawn in since my creation!
 
All I am is your leech, a drain!”
 
He pointed to Lucifel.
 
“And
you!
 
You would
never
have given me the power of Primangel.”

Lucifel folded his arms.
 
“Of course not.
 
I would not seek to have two rivals.
 
If he
had
lost his powers entirely, if he had died, you would have gone along with him.
 
Then I would have been truly whole.”
 
He turned a greedy eye to Michael.
 
“You are
my
drain as well as his,
Michael
.
 
You are right.
 
All you are is a
leech
.”

Michael wrapped his arms around Lucifer’s leg, startling Lucifer.
 
He pressed his face into his thigh.
 
“I give up my purpose.”

Lucifel laughed.
 
“You cannot!
 
Not while you live.”
 
He looked at Lucifer.
 
“You must kill him, Lucifer.
 
Can you?
 
Can you kill him as he is now?
 
Even a child, a look designed to evoke the most compassion, you cannot harm is as such.”

Lucifer set his jaw and patted Michael’s head.
 
“I do not need his power to defeat you, Lucifel.”

Michael shook his head.
 
“Yes you do.”

Lucifer looked nauseated.
 
“I will not kill you.”

Michael wiped his eyes.
 
“I know.
 
It is a difference between you.”
 
He stepped away from Lucifer.

Lucifel grinned.
 
“You
see
which of us is stronger, Michael.
 
Who has the will to survive, it is
me
.
 
Come on then, join with me and we will make a quick end of him.”
 
He held his hand out.

Michael looked at Lucifer.
 
“I am sorry for all that I have done to pain you when you sought only to love me.
 
I cast you aside first, a mistake I regret, though perhaps it was part of my making to betray you.
 
Perhaps it was all I was
ever
meant for…to wound you when you needed me most.
 
I
am the constant flaw in your design.”

Lucifer looked confused.
 
“Michael?”

Michael stood up straight.
 
“I just want you to know that, that I am sorry.”
 
He looked to Whitney.
 
“Thank you.”
 
He ran at Lucifer, jumped, and burst into light.
 
The light swirled around Lucifer.
 
Lucifel screamed in rage, but Lucifer could not hear anything besides the song of his brother.
 
The light surged into him and he was pressed back.
 
He lost his blue glow.
 
Fire erupted at his feet and shot into the air.

Lucifer threw his head back and screamed.
 
His blue hair rippled to blonde, his blue eyes turned yellow, and his fire golden.
 
His mind was filled with new pathways, new thoughts, connections to power he could not have measured before.
 
His body flooded with it; his skin illuminated.
 
Lucifer touched his chest.
 
He clenched and unclenched his fists, feeling a sense of power he only remembered distantly having.
 
He turned his eyes to Lucifel.
 
They were identical.

Lucifel took a step back.
 

Lucifer took a step forward.
 
“Lucifel.”

Lucifel held his hands up.
 
“Do not.
 
Get back.”

“You sought to join before, now you do not want to?”

“Lucifer, do not come near me!”

Lucifer swallowed pain at Michael’s loss.
 
“You never loved him.”

“Of course I—”

“But
I
loved him.”
 
Lucifer took another step forward.
 
“I loved Dahlia.
 
I loved all of my angels!
 
You have not loved a single thing since you were first created.”

“I—I loved Ladriam!”
 
Lucifel struggled for calm.
 
“I loved
her!
”

Lucifer smiled showing fangs.
 
“You loved that she had made herself weak, unknowing.
 
You loved the opportunity she represented to you.
 
You wanted her power and her gifts under your control, without the fear that she would destroy you.
 
You took advantage of her!”

Lucifel wreathed himself in flame.
 
“And she chose you, another lesser being.”

Lucifer nodded.
 
“She chose me, the one that did not fear her.
 
I still do not despite what you say.”
 
He spared a glance for the black flame that watched without comment.
 
“And if she decides that our grand experiment is over, that it is time for all to become one.
 
Then I will go to her, because I do not fear.
 
I do not see a loss there.”

“It is death, Lucifer!”

“It is
joy
.”
 
Lucifer got closer.
 
“It is rapture, love, and communion.”
 
His golden eyes flicked to Lucifel.
 
“Let me show it to you.”

“No!”
 
Lucifel lost his body and dove into the flames at his feet, reverting to a column of fire.

Lucifer flexed and his form was lost to an inferno.
 
He threw himself at Lucifel and the two swirled and meshed.
 
The golden flame became white and roared.
 
Helion and Whitney were thrown aside and blinded by the light.

Dahlia watched.

***

Furcas touched down on the grass.
 
He had seen the opalescent feathers and the strands of purple hair from afar.
 
He stared at the mess around him.
 
Dried blood and unexploded quills stood stuck out of the ground.
 
Feathers sparkled despite the darkness of pre-dawn.
 
He picked one up, knowing it instantly as his daughters.

Furcas searched.

He found Ariel’s body, burnt and twisted.
 
He smiled and threw it over his shoulder.
 
A ruby angel landed beside him.
 
“Reports are that Bean is outside Eden now.
 
They have raised the city and she is on the plain.”

Furcas nodded.
 
“My thanks.
 
Please inform Paimon of this.”

The ruby angel nodded and kicked into the air.
 
Furcas took off in a flying leap.
 
He passed over groups of Lilliam.
 
They had erupted out of the city and celebrated at the sight of their sun restored.
 
Furcas frowned; he thought this behavior a tad premature.
 
He did not know of the battle in Heaven, but he could feel Dahlia’s unease through his link to her.

Furcas spotted Gaea; she glowed like a mini star herself.
 
He dropped down and set Ariel’s body down.
 
He padded over.
 
“Bean, where is she?”

Gaea looked up at him.
 
“I—oh, uh…”
 
She frowned.
 
“Sorry, Furcas.”

Furcas set his jaw.
 
“What?”

Selaphiel wrapped his arms around Furcas and lifted him off his feet.
 
“I am escorting you to her.”

Furcas snapped his teeth at Selaphiel.
 
“So
he
is with her.”

Selaphiel said nothing.
 
He carried Furcas past the healing tents.
 
Furcas did not fight; he wanted to know where Jegudiel was and now he was being taken directly to him.
 
He smiled.
 

Selaphiel set Furcas down at a tent apart from the others, but did not release him.
 
“Furcas has arrived, no Paimon in sight.”

The tent flap opened slightly.
 
A hand was thrust out, Ariel’s head hung from the fingers by her hair.
 
Furcas withheld a smile.
 
“A present to relieve my anger?”

The hand made the head nod.
 
Furcas looked to Selaphiel.
 
“I will give them their chance to speak for this deed.
 
Let me go.”

Selaphiel let him go and looked to the skies, searching for Paimon.
 

“Paimon’s coming along later anyways.”
 
Furcas took the head and dove into the tent.
 
Jegudiel backed up as far as he could go.
 
Furcas noticed his age and growled.
 
“Killing get you your years or was it the abuse of my daughter that aged you?”

Jegudiel shook his head, his eyes like saucers.
 
“I aged between the two.”

Furcas hissed.
 
“Why?”

Jegudiel went pale.
 
“Helion was supposed to be here.”