Finding the Lost Boy

Project Yeagher

  Finding the Lost Boy

  Book One

  Copyright 2014 J. S. Bendle

  Edition License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your enjoyment only, then please return to your favorite retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgments

  Prologue Chapter One: The Battle of Heaven, The Beginning of the End

  Prologue Chapter Two: The Battle of Heaven, The Fall From Grace

  Prologue Chapter Three: The Battle of Heaven, The March on Paradise

  Prologue Chapter Four: The Battle of Heaven, Aftermath

  Chapter One: Katelin Lost and Wondering

  Chapter Two: The Lost Boy

  Chapter Three: Something Worth While

  Chapter Four: Death, Destruction, Restart

  Chapter Five: The Boy's Beginning

  Chapter Six: The Beginning of Training with Master Jason

  Chapter Seven: Things That Shouldn't Concern a Child

  Chapter Eight: The Rebound Technique

  Chapter Nine: Arguments with a Stubborn Old Master

  Chapter Ten: Goodnight and Good Morning

  Chapter Eleven: Master Miller and Reploid Armor

  Chapter Twelve: Spell Binding with Master Sam

  Chapter Thirteen: I Didn't Always Live Alone

  Chapter Fourteen: Summoning, An Art of Portals

  Chapter Fifteen: Beyond the Blade, the Art of the Sword

  Chapter Sixteen: A Storm of Bullets, Full Auto Reploid

  Chapter Seventeen: First Flight

  Chapter Eighteen: Beauty From Such Great Heights

  Chapter Nineteen: Nobody's Perfect

  Chapter Twenty: Crimson Died Feathers

  Chapter Twenty-One: A Mortal Master's Knowledge of Immortal's

  Chapter Twenty-Two: The Wings of an Angle on the Back of a Man

  Chapter Twenty-Three: Spell Binding Immortality

  Chapter Twenty-Four: Share This Bed with You My Love

  Chapter Twenty-Five: The Blurred Lines Between Man and Machine

  About the Author

  Other books by This Author

  Connect with J. S. Bendle

  Acknowledgments

  I would like to thank my family who have supported me through not only this book, but throughout my whole life as well. Without them this wouldn't have been possible. To the chubby short man who knows who he is, I hope that you read this and laugh. I love you all.

  Prologue Chapter One

  It is said that in the beginning of time there were beings of total and complete power. They were gods. Forever living in a world of their own creation. They lived peacefully in this heaven for countless years. The gods grew in number as time elapsed and come to the conclusion that some form of government needed to be established to preserve the rights of all of the gods. This was the beginning of the council of heaven. When it began it was an open council, open to anyone who wanted to participate. However, the council did not remain the open symbol of equality that it was intended to be. One of the first rules put in place was the restriction of creating life of any kind in paradise. This is what many believed lead to the eventual end of peace in heaven.

  The gods lived forever but many chose to transcend to a level of existence that was beyond conscientiousness. There were those that did not however and as time passed it was these elder gods who were content to control the council and by all means rule heaven. And these gods were content with not creating life or doing it in secret saying that it was beyond the comprehension of the younger gods. These younger gods, who were no longer welcome to participate in the council, were not. They were young and filled with power that could only be understood through practice. So they went to distant worlds and they created. Unfortunately some only created to test and better understand their power and in turn the universe. They made all forms of life from the purest expressions of beauty to the living embodiment of all the things that could bring fear, pain, and suffering to the soul of a god. The creations were made for many different reasons but many were not thought of as anything more than expressions of will and were not given an after thought. The result was that the once peaceful worlds were filled with unspeakable monsters and chaos.

  In an attempt to prevent the younger gods from doing anymore harm to the universe or, indirectly,themselves or each other the elders of the council erected a gate around their paradise. It was in the interest of protecting the people of heaven that brought the council into existence and it was this same interest that also brought the gate into being. Time distorts the nonphysical. Perspectives become distorted and change. Legends can change places with the past, and the present can become lost. As the generations pasted the reason for the gate became lost like the universe outside them. All that was left was the gates, and the words of the elders of the council. These words were belittling and seldomly believed.

  None of the younger gods believed the stories of the monsters that lived beyond the gates. They'd never been seen before and were thought to be nothing more than children's tales meant to scare the younger gods into obedience. To make matters worse many of the elders of the council had made the final transcendence, dissipating into the universe, making their presence in the world ever lasting, but their voices became lost. The remainder of the council were the elders who valued their power and position more than anything else.

  Eventually the protests began. Groups of gods began to assemble outside the chamber of the council voicing various grievances, with the most common among them being the gate. Instead of facing the groups and trying to make them see reason, the elders simply banned assemblies from the councils chambers and the surrounding grounds. The protesters left fearing what the council might do if they stayed, however the groups did not dis-banned. Instead they came together as one, meeting in secret.

  One of the young gods who was charismatic and well spoken took the lead at one such meeting. "I dream of a life without the shackles of the council. I dream of being able to create where and what I please without fear. I dream of being able to see the galaxy and the rest of the universe instead of being kept here like a animal in a cage." he said. Each statement was met with growing cheers. The young god had a certain air about him that made others want to follow him, and he knew just what to say to gather more steam and support. As the cheers died down he spoke again.

  "Above all else I dream of freedom." The crowd exploded in cheers and applause and he motioned for silence. The crowd quickly cut off their cheers but remained either standing or on the edge of their seats. "But these dreams," he began, "Our dreams, are doomed to remain just dreams, unless," he paused more for effect than anything else "Unless we take action. Unless we take heed to the signs of our own captivity, we will never become our own masters. You can stand beside me in opposition to the oppression or you can stand with the council and abandon the hope of living free. There are no guaranties that anything will change and I can't promise you that we will succeed. However, I can promise you my own commitment to our cause and that I will not give up until we are free! Are you with me?"

  The cheers were so loud that they were herd in the streets. Gods gathered in the streets and began the march. The crowd grew and in mass, led by the voice of the young charismatic god, they made their way to the chamber of the council of heaven. As they stood on the steps of the councils chamber they demanded action. They demanded change.
And they demanded a voice to control their own lives.

  Weather the members of the council herd or not was unseen and it wasn't until they threatened to tare down the chambers around them that the elders of the council emerged from their chambers. "How dare you disturb the peace of this city! How dare you threaten these chambers, the chambers of the council of heaven!" the eldest member of the council said speaking with venom in his voice.

  The young god spoke above the shouting that this new arrival brought. "How dare you call this assembly of your brothers and children a disturbance of the peace. We," he said gesturing to the rest of the crowed. "We have tried to voice our desires peacefully. We have tried to do things your way even though it is apparent that you have no interests in what we have to say. Now we here are demanding that you tare down the gates and return the freedom to the people."

  The elder god stood silent for a moment as he regarded the young leader of the rebellious uprising. He had to end this quickly and at whatever costs to avoid opening the gate, "You will not tell me that you want peace and freedom and then order me to doom us all to death. You will all disperse now. Any and all that remain here will be considered aggressors against the good order of Heaven and be regarded as enemies of the state."

  The crowed grew restless. Many shouted that they should leave while they still could and more than a handful actually did. Deciding that where as they did want change they didn't think it was worth risking the wrath of the council if they didn't get the change that they were asking for. Those who remained were visibly shaken by the elders threat and did not have the same confidence as they did when the march began. Seeing his support beginning to waver right before him the young god was quick to challenge the elders threat. "You are in no position to threaten us. We are many and you are few." he said again gesturing to the crowd. "It would do you well to hear our demands." he added when he saw some of the members of his mob regaining their courage. There were a few like him, who had never lost their nerve, and remained defiant of the elder the whole time.

  However, that courage was short lived. The elder raised his arms and as he did great stone walls rose from the ground high into the sky, trapping the supporters inside of a large stone cage. "Many of you there may be, but you are unlearned." he said. His voice was no longer that of a decrepit old man but the booming voice of an overlord speaking at ants from on top of the massive stone wall that he just created. "But that will change and you will be cured of your ignorance." he said to a crowd that was silent.

  The young god had never fought against anyone with the skills that the elder had, and he did not want to fight him here. He chose to wait and see what the elder would do before he rushed to violence.

  "You will see the world outside of the gate and get to know it quite well. You are all here by banished from paradise. Gather your things and go, if you are seen here again your life will be forfeit."

  The crowd began to argue their banishment and the walls began to quake. The former protesters fell silent and the elder lowered the walls. Silently the crowd dispersed with more fear in that moment than they'd ever known. No one in the crowd had ever been outside the gates of heaven. Now they would go and whatever awaited them would be their new home weather they liked it or not.

  Prologue Chapter Two

  "The elders were right." one of the young supporters began, "This place is no friend to an immortal."

  "Do not be a fool my friend Immortals created this we can most certainly survive and become prosperous on our own. This is our new heaven!!!" The young god proclaimed with his arms open wide to the gathering group but it happened to be a bit smaller than he recalled.

  "Good Sir we have lost many already we must be careful."the supporter begged.

  But the young god would not be deterred, so he led those that remained down the mountain "How could so many gods not make the fall?" the young god asked. Flight was one of the few things that nearly every God still knew.

  "It was not the fall that killed them sir." the supporter continued. "There are creatures inside the mountain." he said.

  "They can't possibly be killed by creatures they're gods" the young god said.

  "My good sir have you actually created life?" another supporter asked.

  "Yes and you can stop calling me sir. I am Lucifer"the young god said.

  It was at that moment that the group heard a scream then felt a thud through the ground then nothing but whimpers that eventually died out too. Then the thuds began again, but now they were growing louder as whatever it was grew closer.

  "We must flee Lucifer before we suffer the same fate as the others." the supporter began.

  "Don't be a coward." Lucifer began. "The creations of our ancestors are nothing to fear."

  "Not all of us are practiced in the ways of our powers. I for one had hoped to learn how to wield my abilities once we made it outside the gates."

  "What is your name young man?" Lucifer asked, placing a hand on the young man's shoulder.

  "My name is Desimiss." he said, with his head hung low in shame. Although he had wanted to he had never broken the laws of the council of heaven. Not only did he fear their wrath, but also he feared the possibility that they were right and that creating life within the gates of heaven would put the lives of everyone in heaven at risk. So he had never developed his potential power into anything and now it was that fear that made it hard to look a proud fearless man like Lucifer in the eye.

  "Well Desimiss I will gladly teach you and anyone else anything that I can but first we must make it down these mountains. I will protect you in the mean time until you can protect yourself." Lucifer said. He would not demand that everyone stay with him like some tyrant. He would simply prove to them that it was safer to stay together until they knew more of this world.

  It was then that the creature showed its self. It was at least fifty feet tall and maybe seventy feet long. Covered in scales the size of a man's midsection that overlapped all over the creatures body except for its massive wings that had to span easily a hundred feet. They had fallen out of heaven right into dragon territory and weather that was the intention of the elders or not, the effect was the same. They were the foolish children who had begged and begged to play with fire until the elders had grown angry and throw them into the flame. All of the supporters screamed and began to run in every direction in a scared panic. Then the dragon let forth a piercing cry that dropped many to their knees, but Lucifer didn't falter. Instead he walked towards the dragon separating himself from the crowd. As he got within the dragon's reaching distance the creature tried to simply bat him out of the way. Lucifer's reached out his hand with his arm out stretched and stopped the massive clawed hand of the beast. For all of the mighty creature's strength, he was no match for that of a god and when Lucifer pushed back the beast nearly fell over as his arm was unexpectedly thrown back. As the dragon reared back to let for another of its battle cries Lucifer waved his hand and an unseen force sent the creature tumbling end over end until it fell from the side of the mountain. It reappeared flying away with several cries of frustration over having lost such a promising meal.

  With the immediate danger gone Lucifer went around helping those who were still on the ground, he couldn't help but wonder what kind of creatures where farther the down the mountain. There was a lot that he had to wonder about now. He had created life before but it had always been small and easily controllable and he usually ended it after he had learned all that he could or wanted to, but this was all because of the laws of the council. Now that he had seen one of the creations of his ancestors it humbled him. He didn't believe that he had it in him to make something so massive and powerful which made him wonder if the creature he had just seen had been created that way or if it had grown into the beast that it was. As the creature flew out of sight its cries were joined by more from what everyone could only assume were more of the creatures. However, unlike before there was no panic only silence as all eyes looked to Lucifer.

&nb
sp; "We should continue down the mountain and try to avoid the creatures when we can. We don't know how many more there are, or what else is out there, but we can all agree that this seems to be their hunting ground and we don't want to be here." he said, in the same commanding voice he had used before the fall. The trek down the mountain was rough given the terrain and the heat, but the group made it to the foot hills at the base of the mountain with little incident. However that did not last long. The foot hills were littered with much smaller creatures that were far faster then the giant dragon, but just as blood thirsty. Lucifer did his best to defend the group but the creatures managed to pick off several of the weaker stragglers. He had no idea that so much of the populous of heaven was so powerless. All because of the laws of the council no one ever spoke of the extent of their own power. At least that was what he thought, until he saw the reality that was very few of the people had any power to speak of.

  Finally they made it to the tree line that they hoped to find cover from the monsters and the harshness of the night. Lucifer looked around at everyone that had made it this far. His group was a tenth of the size that it had started as and he had to wonder what happened to all of them. Flight was one of the few powers that every inhabitant of heaven showed almost constantly and even though they were neither very fast or nimble slowing their decent to avoid falling to their death shouldn't have been difficult. He had been one of the last to leave paradise and everyone who left with him had no problem making it to the mountain top. He hadn't seen any bodies of those that he had thought had fallen on the way down the mountain, but he had assumed that was because they had all been eaten by the winged creatures of the mountain. However, the more he thought about it he didn't think that was the case. Not only were there no bodies, but there were no body parts or even traces of blood anywhere to be seen. The one dragon that he had seen up close had been covered in the gore of it's last victim. Further more he hadn't heard anymore screams which made him even less convinced that all of the others had died coming down the mountain.

  Just as he began to ask himself where had they all gone he heard a scream. It was the scream of a god, although he was beginning to doubt that all of those who left heaven were worthy to be given that tittle, and it was too far off to be anyone in his group. "Stay close and hurry and maybe we can save them." he said and took off at a slow jog towards the scream.

  Desimiss quickly caught up with Lucifer and asked in a tone that only he could hear, "Do you think one of the ones the got snatched up made it away from the monsters?"

  In the unfamiliar glow of the moon light Desimiss looked much younger than Lucifer and he couldn't bring himself to tell him the truth of what he really thought. If Desimiss was right then whoever just screamed was probably alone, scared and injured and whatever it was that made them scream was upon them. Additionally just as their scream had drawn Lucifer to them it had also been a call to any creature that was close by and looking for a meal. "It doesn't matter who it is they're one of us and we have to help them." he said. He didn't want to tell the boy, as he now saw him, that he thought there might be additional survivors in case he was wrong. He wanted to run faster but didn't want to stretch the group too thin since it didn't make much sense to loose to or three more people to save one. "Desimiss, get to the back of the group and make sure they keep up. If they start to fall behind call out and I'll slow down." he said, trying to think of anyway that he could speed up and keep the group together. Desimiss nodded and fell back and Lucifer picked up the pace.

  It wasn't long before Lucifer began to hear voices and he felt hopeful. The voices were in conversation and although he couldn't make out what they were saying it meant that he was right and somehow others had survived the fall from paradise and made it down the mountain own their own. He doubled his pace and as he grew closer he could see light breaking through the trees from a clearing and he now knew why he couldn't make out the conversation. Half of it was in a language he'd never heard and was coming from a voice deeper than any he'd known before. He slowed his pace and that of the group's, not knowing what he would find in the clearing he proceeded with caution, but he didn't stop. He was sure that the scream he'd heard had come from a god and he was almost positive that it had come from a woman. When he was sure that the rest of his group had made it and they were all caught up with each other he motioned for them to stay put while he went to investigate what was going on. Nothing could have prepared him for what he was about to walk into and when he entered the clearing that was when chaos ensued.

  The scream had indeed come from a woman who was squirming while being held upside down by a creature that looked like an oversized man from the waist up but had the body of a mighty horse from the waist down. Whoever the woman was she had stumbled into a pack of centaurs. There were easily twenty or so of the creatures in the clearing and just as many surviving gods. Other than the one holding the woman the centaurs were all armed with spears that were drawn and pointed at the group of survivors that the woman had been with. The conversation that Lucifer had heard was an argument between one of the centaurs and a god that he did not recognize.

  "Put her down!" the god ordered from outside of arms distance. His words were punctuated by him pointing at the woman and then to the ground.

  Although the creatures top half had the same look as that of a man they were nearly twice the size. So while holding the woman out of the way of the conversation with one hand the centaur spoke. "Uuurag thak acata verdon." While it was clear that none of the gods actually knew what the creature was saying, his hand gesturing made his intent clear. He pointed to the one god then to the group standing surrounded and then pointed to the wall of trees behind them probably where they had entered the clearing in the first place. Then the creature pulled the woman close to himself and stepped back from the god.

  The young god took a step forward being careful to remain outside of the reach of the creature and began to demand the woman's release again. It was like re-watching the same seen as the centaur repeated himself over and over again.

  Not to say that anything was going well before but the moment that one of the centaurs saw Lucifer he spoke something in his native tongue and half a dozen of their warriors were rushing towards him, ready to impale him on six different spears. Lucifer did not scream or panic and was glad that the attack was focused on him and not the others. They had made the mistake of letting these creatures think they were weak prey and Lucifer knew that to take charge of the situation he would have to prove the opposite. He spun and knocked all of the spears harmlessly away. Then he let loose a pulse of power and knocked the six creatures back. He didn't want to harm the creatures, just show them that he was beyond their ability. The message was well received and the group that had encircled him parted just enough to show him the spear that was at the throat of the woman being held hostage. Lucifer held up his hands and slowly started walking towards the centaur and the woman. As he continued towards them the creature began to shout orders at him to stop, but he didn't slow down or speed up.

  The god that had been doing the negotiations beforehand looked at Lucifer and asked. "What are you doing? Are you trying to get us all killed?" His tone said that he didn't know what else to do, but that he didn't think that whatever Lucifer had planned was wise. Then again it could've been that after causing them all to be banished from paradise that he, nor the rest of them in the clearing, trusted Lucifer to make any decisions that could effect them.

  "Gods do not get killed by their own creations." Lucifer said, as he continued to walk forward ignoring both the god and the creature shouting orders and threatening the young woman he was holding hostage. He reached out with his power and took hold of the spear that was at the woman's throat. He could actually see the bewilderment in the creatures face as he tried to make good on his threat and impale the woman, but failed. Lucifer didn't break stride and reached the creature before it could figure what was wrong. He took control of the creatures hands with his po
wer and made him drop both the woman and the spear. Lucifer caught the woman and returned her to the group of cowards that he was almost ashamed to call his kin. Then he expanded the range of his control and power to all of the creatures in the clearing and forced them all to their knees.

  The creatures cried out in a combination of pain, anger and fear before they were all forcibly silenced by Lucifer's power. "Kneel before your gods!" he commanded. He pulled bolts of lightning from the sky and made fire before the creatures' eyes and in the smoke he made illustrations of his words. "We are your creatures from long ago. We have come down from our homes in the sky to live among our creations. It is time for celebrations and joy as we, your gods, join you to usher in a new era of prosperity and peace for you and your world." With a wave of his hand Lucifer extinguished the flam and dissipated the smoke. He released the control he held over them forcing them to their knees and keeping them silent but they didn't dare move. "Arise children and pay tribute to your gods so that they may forgive your transgressions against us as the actions of the ignorant and not those who wish to be punished." he said, motioning them to rise.

  They led the gods deeper into the woods beckoning them to follow. Desimiss caught up with Lucifer the young woman who he'd just saved and the god who was leading the group and joined the conversation.

  As he approached the god who was leading the group they had just saved was arguing with Lucifer. "So what now? Are we suppose to live off of these creatures as we convince them that we're some type of-"

  "God." Lucifer said cutting him off. "Until daybreak and we can build our own homes then yes they shale serve their gods and be justly rewarded when we are able. This was how it should have been from the beginning, instead of us running through the forest like terrified prey." Lucifer continued. "What is your name?"

  “Theriot, and don't you think that by not telling them that we've been banished from paradise we're being purposefully deceitful for our own gain." he said.

  It was Desimiss who spoke up first. "Should we have left you to die?" he began. "Should Lucifer have slain all of those creatures to save you? Is it wrong that we've aligned ourselves with the most civilized creatures that we've come across thus far to save lives and better our arrival on this unknown world?"

  Lucifer was pleased with Desimiss's words and let the weight of them hang between the four of them before he spoke. "Desimiss is right. Regardless of if you agree with my methods or not we all know that If I hadn't intervened you would've all been killed."

  "It is not that I am not grateful for your intervention lord, it is just that I do not know if I feel right convincing such a simple species to worship us." the woman said. "And I thank you lord Lucifer for saving me from an unknown but surely sinister fate."

  "Do not call him 'lord'. Are you all so quick to forget that it was him who got us all banished from paradise in the first place?" Theriot said. "And where was all of your power when the elders rose against us?"

  "I did not drag any of you before the elders of the council, nor did I know that so many of you were powerless and that banishment would be a death sentence for so many. For you this is a banishment because you are weak, but for me and those with the true powers of gods this is freedom. I will not argue with you nor will I change my course. If you would rather take your chances alone in the woods then no one will stop you, but remember that you are responsible for every life you take with you. However," Lucifer began as his tone changed from kind to fear inspiring and his eyes narrowed to a deadly stare. "If you ever speak to me like that again, trying to turn others against me, I will destroy you without hesitation. There will be no conversation and this is your only warning. Do so again and as the words leave your mouth you will cease to exist. Do you understand Theriot?"

  Theriot couldn't believe that he had just put in his place so quickly and that no one had spoken up for him and now all eyes were on him, waiting for his response. He had been given a choice. Either he could live while being worshiped like a god or take his chances alone in the forest. After seeing the way that Lucifer used his power Theriot had no doubt that he would die trying to fight him and after hearing him speak with such hate, he didn't dare stand up to Lucifer again. "I understand and it will not happen again my lord." he said with a bow.

  “Good and now that that's out of the way I believe our escorts have led us to their home." Lucifer said, as the trees gave way to a village of huts. He was pleased seeing that their luck had changed and no longer were they fighting to survive but were being embraced as the gods they were. Soon they would turn this world into their new paradise.

  Prologue Chapter Three

  Time passed for the group of gods on the planet that they had fallen on. The creatures that had given them shelter when they first feel had long since turned against them, killing several of them in one night while they slept. When the few in the group that actually had power realized what was happening they slaughtered all of the creatures and took their homes as their own. In just under five years the group of over ten thousand that had been sentenced to banishment was now down to a few hundred survivors. To make matters worse, many of the weaker gods in the group were slowly wasting away simply from being outside of paradise for so long.

  Lucifer could tell that his power was failing as well. He had not been able to create life since he had gotten to this planet. He was still the most powerful being on the planet, but if things continued the way they were it wouldn’t matter. Even if he was able to survive, he would be own his own once he lost the power to protect everyone else. What worried him the most was that it was not only his power that was falling.

  In the five years that followed the fall from heaven he saw many good and innocent people die. The night that the centaurs turned against his people something changed inside of him. His dreams for peace and building a new paradise vanished and were replaced with an all consuming hate. He hated the council for banishing him there and he hated the few strong gods who had once stood with him, but then chose to abandon their brothers once they were free of the gates. He hated the creatures that his ancestors created and he hated his ancestors for creating the gates in the first place. He hated his brothers and sisters in heaven who had just stood by as they were banished, and he hated his brothers beside him, most of who were too weak to even defend themselves. He hated everything from the gates of heaven to the deepest pit of the rock he was forced on. Without the dreams of creating greatness he was driven to madness by his hate. He hid it from the others as best he could as the madness took the hold and he began to have new dreams, dreams of destroying all that he hated so much.

  Still he knew that he could not do this alone, and he knew that he could not tell the others about his true intent. He sent Desimiss gather all of those that he considered to be strong enough to be of some help.

  “My brothers.” he began to the small crowd of sixty or so. “I know that asking you to follow me again is a heavy burden after all that has happened.” he said, doing his best to hide the bitterness he felt. Before when Lucifer had spoken, it had come from his heart and had come so naturally that he had never needed to plan out a speech. Before he had been consumed by his hate, it use to pain him to tell a lie. However, he was not the same God that he was back then, In fact he wasn’t even sure if he was still a god at all. He still held the power to destroy life, but no longer could he create it. Such titles didn’t matter to him now. The only thing that did matter to him was destruction. “However, I have little choice, but to ask you to follow me unless you want to watch everyone of us who is left down here die. We need to get back to paradise and become the gods we once were. We need to tell the others what is really down here. Above all else we need to show everyone in heaven what the laws of the council have made us as a people.” he paused, letting the meaning of that last part sink in before he continued. “Look around you. Once all of the gods in heaven were great and powerful. Our ancestors sent their children down here to play and learn because once upon a t
ime one child was powerful enough to do what nearly all of us could not. We must tell our brother and sisters in heaven that if they continue to live by the laws of the council that they will eventually lose what little power they have left. I am not asking you to do this to save my life or your own. Without us our entire race will fall until they can never rise again. So we must march on the gates and demand that we are heard.” he said.

  There were nods of approval, but no loud cheers of joy and pride. Those days were long gone for most of the gods before him. Satisfied with the response Lucifer left the crowd and went to seek solitude so that he could come up with a plan for what to do when the gate keeper refused to let them in. That was when Desimiss approached him.

  “My lord what do you think the council will do once we reach the gates?” he asked.

  Lucifer had trained Desimiss to be his second in command over the last five years and he had done a good job. The man that stood before him now was not the cowering helpless boy he had met when they first landed. Instead he was looking at a skilled and battle hardened man who was completely devoted to him. “They will turn us away.” Lucifer said. “What we need is a way to break through the gate.” he added.

  “My lord if it is power that you need then you may take my soul as your weapon for the good of our people.” Desimiss said. Unlike the rest of the gods who were losing their power Desimiss had only grown stronger, but he could still see that those around him were suffering and in his heart he knew that Lucifer could save them.

  “I thank you my friend, but without anything to focus your soul’s power, it would just crash upon the gate like waves on rocks.” Lucifer said. Seeing how strongly Desimiss believed his speech made him think that he was doing a great job of pretending that he actually cared about them form more than their usefulness.

  “Why not combine my soul with your sword and then cut the gate down, my lord?” Desimiss asked.

  “This sword is useless against the gate.” Lucifer began. “The spell that protects the gates is old and powerful magic that even I cannot break. It is meant to repel anything created outside of paradise, even if it’s created by a god.” he explained.

  “What if you had a sword that was created in paradise my lord?” Desimiss asked.

  “If I bound your soul to a sword made in heaven then yes I could cut through the gates, but that is not really an option is it?” Lucifer said slightly annoyed.

  “My lord I will give you my fathers sword that was created in paradise along with my soul.” Desimiss said, handing Lucifer the sword.

  Lucifer took the sword and looked it over. He had no doubt that it had been created in paradise. With this sword and the power of Desimiss’ soul he could cut through the gates and cut down the council as well. “You have done a great service to your people and it will never be forgotten.” he said “Tell all of them to be ready and we will march on the gates once the fusion is complete.”

  “Yes my lord.” Desimiss said with a bow. He knew that his own power would never match that of Lucifer's. He knew in his heart that he could make no greater contribution to his own kind than this. His sacrifice would be what let his brothers save paradise.

  ---

  Lucifer stood before the gates with his new sword in hand and his followers behind him. “We are here to speak to the council.” Lucifer said to the gate keeper. He had no doubt that the gate keeper would turn him way, but if he was suppose to be the man that would be here to save his race, not to destroy everything, then he would play the part for as long as he could.

  “You have all been banished.” the gate keeper said. He was younger than Lucifer and his followers, but he did not show fear. “The council has no wish to speak any of you. Leave now.”

  “You are mistaken.” Lucifer began, raising his sword. “I was not asking.” he said thrusting the blade into the gate. The gate did not repel the sword, but it did not yield easily.

  “Stop what you’re doing at once!” the young gate keeper yelled.

  Lucifer paid him no mind as he began to channel the power of Desimiss’ soul into the edge of the blade. He had known that the power of another being’s soul would be great, but he had no idea that he was going to be wielding so much raw power.

  The young gate keeper’s face changed as he saw the man’s sword begin to cut through the gate’s lock. He was young, but he had seen a great deal of horrible things try to force their way through the gate with no luck, so it was easy for him to be brave on the opposite side of the gate. Now that he was looking at the one thing keeping him from a group of over sixty gods, all of witch had been banished and survived the monsters below, slowly being destroyed. He turned and ran to alert the council.

  Lucifer was using more power than he had ever seen used, but the gates were made with old magic from long before he had been born. He could tell that he was making progress, but it was still slow going.

  As he finished the cut, four members of the council came into view. “How dare any of you show your faces here!” one of the council members said. They were all over a hundred feet away so there was no way to tell which one had spoken, but it didn’t really matter.

  With the cut finished Lucifer blasted open the gate. “You see how they greet us my brothers and sisters.” he began, talking to the warriors that had followed him. “Do you honestly think that they will listen to anything that we have to say? You all remember how they treated us before they sent us down to that miserable place? They didn’t want you to learn how to use your power so that they could keep their positions as the unquestioned rulers of heaven. You saw what happened when we simply wanted a little freedom. They could’ve just opened the gate and let us see for our selves what was out there and then let us come back and apologize for not believing them. But they didn’t. They wanted to show everyone that those who questioned them that nothing awaited them but death.” He paused as he took the first step back into paradise. “But we aren’t dead are we?” he said, eying the four elder council members that were growing closer. “No. We’ve come back and we will put an end to this councils rule.” He paused and pointed his sword at the four council members. “Show them your power and your vengeance!” he said, and his followers charged the council elders. One on one there was no way that Lucifer's supporters could've taken on any of the council elders, but they out numbered the elders an easy fifteen to one. The elders fell quickly, before they could do anything to even thin the angry mob that was making its way towards the chambers of the council.

  Lucifer watched as the rage that each of his followers held deep in their hearts came forth. He saw them give into their own hate and let it consume them. It didn't take the followers long long to find and kill all of the elders except one. The oldest of all of the elders. The one who proclaimed their banishment was hiding. The enraged exiles tore through the streets and into the homes of anyone who lived near the council's chambers, killing anyone in their path. Lucifer watched as his dreams of destruction became a reality.

  The gate keeper could feel the destruction above him, yet he had been told not to leave. He had been given that order from the eldest god of the council, while the rest of the elders went to fight off the exiles. “You said that he was actually cutting through the gate with a sword?” the elder asked.

  “Yes.” the gate keeper answered.

  “There is no way that he has the power himself to cut the gate which leaves the sword.” he said.

  “I don't understand Sir.” the gate keeper said, having no idea what a simple sword could do to the gate.

  “It is an old form of magic, dark in it's very nature, but we have no choice.” he said.

  “What do you mean that we have no choice?” the gate keeper asked. He was completely confused about everything at this point.

  “Their leader is wielding another soul as a weapon inside his sword. No matter what we do about his supporters we don't stand a chance against him as we are. The only chance we have to overpower a weaponized soul is with one. We don
't have a choice, give me your key and we can begin.” he said.

  The gate keeper handed over the four foot long key that he wore like a sword. “What do you need me to do sir?” the gate keeper asked.

  “Use all of my knowledge and power to protect heaven for all time.” he said. The gate keeper realized that he was not going to become the weapon as he had thought, but that he was going to be expected to wield it against an army alone. The elder read his thoughts and smiled. “Your body is younger than mine and I will give you my all of my knowledge. You stand a better chance wielding my soul, than I do wielding yours.” he said.

  “I will do my best sir.” the gate keeper said. “I will save our home.”

  Those were the last words that the last elder of the council of heaven ever heard with his own ears. Satisfied with the resolve of the young gate keeper he bound his own soul to the key, while binding his life's knowledge to the gate keepers mind. The gate keeper collapsed to the ground grabbing his head with both hands and screaming out in pain as the countless years of the elders life were imprinted on his brain. As he writhed in pain it seemed like it lasted forever, but when the pain stopped his perception of time was much different and the pain seemed like it had only been there for a passing moment.

  He was neither the elder who had collected power all his long life, or the young man who happily guarded the gate. He was probably the last true god left in heaven and he had the responsibility to defend it. He picked up the key that had become far more sword like since the fusion and thought about the area above the council's chamber in the air. In the next moment he was occupying that very same space. He spoke with a commanding voice that had never left his mouth before. “I will not let you destroy this paradise!” he said.

  The chaos stopped as all eyes turned on the the last true god for just a brief moment. Then the closest dozen attached. The last god appeared in front of each of them at the same time, literally being in twelve places at once, and cut them all down.

  Lucifer saw that his supporters waver in both their anger and their courage. He knew that if he wanted to see true destruction, that he would have to do it himself. He raised his sword and attacked. There were no words spoken. Lucifer said nothing about how he wanted to save his brothers and sisters, or any of the noble ideals that he used to trick his supporters into following him back to the gates. His mind was consumed with the desire to destroy so much that it burned in his soul, and even though Desimiss had lost his conscientiousness when his soul was bound to the sword, he felt Lucifer's hate and it pained his soul.

  Lucifer used all of his skill and all of the power he could muster as he hacked away at the gate keeper, but he could not push him back. The harder he attacked the more that he felt his own power draining, but he didn't care. His hate had blinded him to everything, except he desire to kill.

  The last god began to speak as he bat away the attacks that were growing weaker with each strike. “You will all face a fate worse than death.” he began, using both his soul and the soul of the last elder to open a portal. “The darkness in your hearts has no place in this dimension and neither do you.” he continued, as the portal grew bigger and the exiles could feel it pulling them. “You will find a true hell that your souls will never be able to leave.”

  The pull grew stronger and the exiles began getting pulled through. Lucifer was oblivious to all of it as he shouted in rage and continued attacking the last god. The more that he was consumed by his wicked hatred and desire to destroy the weaker he became until he didn't even have the strength to fight the pull of the portal. He thrashed and screamed as he was pulled through the portal and it closed behind him.

  Prologue Chapter Four

  Years pasted as the new rule took heaven into a new age of peace. However, the fear that Lucifer had used to motivate his people came to pass and the last true god became known simply as god because there were no others able to live up to the title.

  God kept watch over the all of the exiled ones as part of his charge to protect heaven. As time went on he began to feel sorry for the exiles who still lived in this dimension, the ones who had not tried to attack heaven. Without being in paradise they turned mortal. He watched for many generations and decided that they should be given a second chance. He created a mortal version of himself and sent him to live amongst the descendants of the exiles to see if they were worthy of a second chance. At the end of his life, the mortal son indeed found them worthy of a second chance. It was on that day that god chose to let those try and ascend in spiritual purity back to their rightful places as gods.

  When man first found the writings of the mortal son of god it told them two things. One, that man had come from the heavens and one day might return. Two that the human soul existed and was one of the greatest power sources in the universe. With modern science man also discovered something that was not in the writings of the mortal son. They found that all things with a soul also have a static electric energy that surrounds their body, keeping their soul withing their body. This energy was named shockhaven energy.

  As modern man learned more about the soul and shockhaven they found that in the right hands it was more powerful than any weapon or power source. They used this power to fuel the race into space and the wars that inevitably followed.

  As the population of the galaxy grew, so did the number of people that had ascended in spiritual purity. They called themselves immortals, which was fitting since they simply didn't die from mortal means. It did not take the immortals long to tire of the wars of man, so many of them founded their own planet that they called New Heaven. They lived on this planet wanting only to be left alone by the rest of the mortal galaxy, doing their best to ignore the violence of mortal men. However mortals did not trust this planet of gods and new that they had to do something before they found themselves on the receiving end of the gods wrath.