Pursuit of the Zodiacs (64 page)

A disgruntled Grenad shot the courier a sinister sneer as Bishop ascended into the clouds. The courier shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot to avoid eye contact.

Zacharia said, “Gather a small team of our best men and monitor Bishop. He is not to undertake this mission alone.”

THEY GRABBED AN ANGEL OFF-GUARD, COVERED HIS MOUTH, AND PUNTURED HIS THROAT. HE HAD NO TIME TO REACT OR MAKE A SOUND
.

Exodus, Leviticus and Ezra sought a way out of their predicament. Michael and Raphael’s army surrounded the hotel. They heard more soldiers coming up the stairs and out of elevators. They came to investigate why some of their comrades had not responded to their latest communications.

“Damn! Now what?” asked Ezra.

“How much charge do your guns have?” inquired Leviticus. Each one of them checked the energy levels of their Sun-powered weapons.

Exodus answered, “Mine is around sixty-five percent.”

“Mine reads thirty-three percent,” replied Ezra.

Leviticus answered, “Seventy percent, and the Sun doesn’t seem to want to show its face today. These weapons are more than extraordinary, if I say so myself. Technology has come a very long way; and in the end, it is destined to destroy us all … gods and Mortals.”

Ezra said, “You could be right, Leviticus. Well, it seems we may have to blast our way out of here.”

Exodus pointed out, “Yes, we cannot depend on a rescue team. We’ll have to rely on our guns to save us … and bring forth retribution, as well.”

Leviticus added, “If this is our final day, let it be for our Kingdom and our Father Bishop. Let us meet our brenthren, Genesis and Amos.”

AQUARIUS’ DREAM

“Moses was an Aquarius, as well as a Great Elder Zodiac. When he parted the Red Sea, your Mother, the heir to his power and a child herself at the time, bore witness to all of those mysterious events. Pharaoh was a Taurus, stubborn in his own way to the point he lost the heir to his power, his first-born Son. These articles, just like the Book of Enoch, were left out of the good book. A different kind of war took place, and its existence had to remain furtive. Revelations was just the tip of the iceberg.”

Aquarius asked, “So, does this mean there’s another book in progress? A final book?”

“I believe so. The Bible will serve its purpose for Mortal time. This one, however, will be when time no longer has influence. Eternity will be the final road, my dear. But, who am I to know? Let’s leave that up to God.”

She had been only eleven years of age when her Grandmother took her in after her Mother’s death. Her Grandmother disclosed what she was and why she possessed her strange gifts.

Her Grandmother tucked her into bed and kissed her forehead. “Get some rest. I will tell you more in the morning.”

Aquarius said, “No Grandma, please tell me more. I want to know more.”

She was so eager and anxious. Her Grandmother couldn’t blame her for her curiosity. It was a lot to register, and the Zodiac found it hard to fall asleep.

“I’m sorry. I understand that you want to know more about your history, but I’m old. I need my rest, little one. I will see you in the morning.” She switched off the light and retired for the night.

But tomorrow never came for her Grandmother. She passed away in her sleep. The next morning, young Aquarius visited her Grandmother’s room for more stories, but couldn’t wake her. She contacted family members so her Grandmother could have a decent burial and funeral service. Her remaining family offered to take
her in, but she declined. She left Uranus vowing to discover the history of her kind: the Zodiacs.

End of Aquarius’s Dream

“ARE YOU OK?”

Goro, Aquarius’s longtime partner, arose with her in bed. He comforted her. The Guardian of the People Under the Sea got up and opened the shade to let in some light. “Was it another nightmare, Aquarius?”

“No, it was a reminder of what must be accomplished.” Aquarius gathered her belongings and proceeded down the hall to knock on Libra’s door.

Goro followed after her. “But wait, stay for another day. What’s the hurry?”

Before Aquarius could answer, soldiers came running through the halls. He motioned to them and met them halfway. “Sir, there’s an emergency! We have visitors.”

Goro inquired, “What is it? More humans?”

One of the soldiers answered, “No I’m afraid not, it’s nothing like I’ve ever seen before.”

Goro asked, “What are you talking about? Be more specific. Are we in danger?”

The soldier didn’t answer, but just motioned them to follow.

They headed towards the hospital exit where the potential threat waited. A thousand of his soldiers in armored vehicles stationed themselves around the perimeter.

Goro asked, “How are they able to withstand the pressure? What do they want?”

Five enormous hybrid whales distanced themselves. They stayed there afloat waiting on orders from an unknown source. The biggest one stationed itself in front of all the others.

There was nothing but complete silence between both sides. Horns rose from the bodies of the hybrid whales.

Aquarius spoke, “Tell your soldiers to prepare themselves.”

As she issued the warning, the whales opened their massive jaws releasing over a thousand Demon sea soldiers upon the city.

An alarm sounded, alerting all the People Under the Sea of danger, something that they were accustomed to. The soldiers exchanged laser fire, and both sides fell.

“Damn!” Goro yelled as he watched some of his good men perish.

Using itself as a battering ram, one of the whales came in at full speed, almost tearing down one of their precious Pyramids.

One of the Commanders yelled out, “Son of a bitch! Shoot that damn thing down! Aim for its eyes.”

They riddled the whale with laser cannons. The whale crashed to its death, but not without destroying other real estate in the process. It rolled on its side and floated out of the abyss towards the surface of the sea. More Devils exited through all orifices of the whale’s body.

The fighting switched to hand-to-hand combat once the Devils pierced the People Under the Sea’s frontlines.

Aquarius participated in the mêlée with her special Water-Bearing Sword. She sliced through one of her adversary’s abdomen on her left and pierced the neck of another on her right. After clearing a path, she ducked behind an armored vehicle. Aquarius began to summon. Her eyes became all white like a pearl, and she latched onto the armored vehicle for leverage to stop herself from shaking.

A giant octopus emerged out of the mists of the abyss, the first out of many that would answer her call. It snatched two of the whales before they inflicted any more destruction on the city. The Devils broke formation and fled at the sight of another enormous octopus slithering towards them. With no means of escape, now that their whales had perished, the Devils scattered among the surface of the abyss and in the graveyards of metal of those who also challenged the People Under the Sea.

Goro yelled, “Blessings to the Zodiac! Our enemies flee before our eyes!”

Aquarius answered, “Gratitude, Goro. You and your soldiers have fought bravely.”

The People Under the Sea cheered Aquarius and reveled in their victory. Goro spoke to Aquarius. “I need to have a word with you.”

Goro and Aquarius stepped aside out of the view of the crowd. “While you recovered from your injuries, a messenger arrived with a warning that Zodiacs warred in Rome. I didn’t want to tell you this until you had fully recovered. This morning before I could inform you, my soldiers led us here, and we had to deal with the attack on our city,” Goro explained.

Aquarius responded, “I must leave for Rome.”

Goro said, “It saddens me to watch you leave again, Aquarius, but you have a destiny to fulfill. I will pray that the Water Gods send you back to me in time. I will guide you and your companion to a Dimension not too far from here. It will lead you halfway to Rome. I must uncover the one responsible behind this attack. I have a feeling this is just the beginning of more unfortunate events. I wish you much luck on your journey, Zodiac.”

“PRAISE GOD WE ARE HERE.”

Vincent, Emanuel and Sabrina, along with three additional Master Archangels, Uziel, Ariel and Camiel, arrived at a secret location. Once again, they’d been sent upon Mortal Realms of the Universe. From there, they initiated their campaign. Over five thousand well-equipped soldiers clad in golden armor prepared for battle. Their mission was to investigate and clear the most challenging Dimensions none dared enter. God’s final multitude had to be able to tread through these Gateways without pause for any threat that might linger or dwell therein.

“May we triumph over whatever awaits us through these wormholes. Let’s move forward,” ordered Uziel, leader of the campaign.

In their first Dimension, they encountered strange hybrid creatures never thought possible to exist. Some were friendly, and some were hostile. Balance between the food chains settled in the plains of this habitat. In the past, the lack of knowledge of these creatures became the reason why so many of their Brethren before them had fallen. The Archangels eradicated the monsters and rid the Dimension of its Demons with their own combative elements and blood-manipulation technology.

“These beasts are not of our own, but abominations of Lucifer. Those scientists with their laboratories are partially to blame for the stench of death here. It represents their failure in trying to create life as if they were God themselves. The source must be eliminated in order to stop this atrocity from continuing,” Emmanuel professed.

“Yes, I agree. Half of these creatures are poor lab experiments gone wrong. The scientists must have fled for their lives and left them here. This is no different than
the abandoned Earths we restored decades ago. On a positive note, less ground to cover on our end,” Sabrina concluded.

In their third Dimension, after ridding it of its hybrid monsters, ground soldiers uncovered Ozias’s belongings. “Look!” One of the soldiers ran up to Uziel. He handed him familiar weapons. It’s Ozias’s Stealth Sword.

Camiel, a Vampeer, investigated the location where they recovered Ozias’s weapons. He touched the bloodstained dirt, and the events that had taken place there were exposed, courtesy of his gift.

Camiel had a pained look on his face, which Ariel found troubling. “Camiel, what do you see?”

He envisioned the whole murder and betrayal between Ozias and Grenad and exhibited it on the same bloodstained ground for the whole group to witness.

“That bastard Traitor!” an enraged Vincent denounced. Clutching his fist, he walked away, unable to stare any longer at the death scene.

At that very moment, Grenad was marked for death. The whole league wanted nothing more than to see his blood spilled on their swords. They prayed for Ozias’s safe passage to the Judgment Realm. They sent a courier to The Pursuers to warn them of Grenad’s betrayal, and continued onward towards another Dimension.