Armageddon has come. Angels and demons have erupted onto Earth's surface, battling for domination. Alisha Grace witnesses this battle, and she, like so many others, expects the angels to win. It soon becomes apparent, however, that the demon forces have powers beyond belief as Gabriel's angelic forces lose Armageddon. Rai is a fallen angel, leading the fight with his demon allies. Commander Krillion and Captain Zara are leaders in the Seraphim force, and although their armies have lost to Lucifer's demonic legions, they will not give up. But there is much more to this endgame battle than meets the eye. Even demons have history, and Rai will soon discover on which side he truly belongs. In the meantime, Israfil, the angel of judgement day, receives a new vision. As hell covers the Earth in its dark genesis, Israfil senses the building of a new team that will fight the evil ones. A demon, a girl from Earth, warriors of the Seraphim and a being brought forth from Purgatory will fight on the same side-and only time will tell if they will be victorious, or if hope will be lost and darkness will rule the world for all eternity.
The Fallen
Book 1 - Dark GenesisBy Sean M. BazaariUniverse, Inc.
Copyright © 2012 Sean M. Bazaar
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4759-5899-7Chapter One
Earth
Thame was making his way through the throng of Seraphim warriors, looking for his commander, Krillion.
Krillion was a captain in the Fury Legion, a force dispatched from the Crystal Palace by Gabriel himself to ensure that Armageddon was halted and mankind would prosper through peace and free will. Thame finally saw Krillion standing on a small rock outcropping, studying the landscape upon which the upcoming battle would be fought. At six feet four and 275 pounds, he had a massive physical presence, standing head and shoulders above the rest of the warriors gathered around him.
Standing a few meters behind Krillion, Thames felt admiration and love swell in his chest as he looked upon one of the most respected commanders in the All-Father's army. He thought back to his first battle millennia ago, when Krillion had saved his life as two goat demons under Azazel's banner were about to impale him upon their horns.
Krillion had appeared out of nowhere.
With his massive frame of raw brute force, he wielded his mighty war hammer like a man possessed. In a single swing, Krillion collapsed the rib cage of one demon, sending it spiraling through the air, while he grabbed the other demon bare-handed and snapped its neck.
As Krillion stood over Thame, his broad chest heaving, a smile spread across his face and he extended his hand to the young archer, saying, "On your feet archer, no Seraphim will die this day!"
Such a long time ago, thought Thame. Ever since that day, Krillion had taken a liking to the young archer warrior and had been a surrogate father to him. The two of them had grown to respect and love one another and had shared many battles together.
Now Krillion stood on a hillside, looking across the valley that would be the place of the upcoming battle, and he saw the enemy army. The denizens of the underworld were flooding the surrounding landscape like ants.
"Too many," Krillion said to no one in particular.
"What are you thinking about, old man?"
Krillion turned his head to slightly to see his oldest friend, Thame, standing behind him. With a crooked smile and just a trace of arrogance, he replied, "I think we're in for a long day."
Thame laughed and put a hand on Krillion's shoulder. "Good times ... good times," he said.
"Let's do what we came here to do, then," Krillion said, reaching for the mighty hammer strapped to his back. Then the two friends turned and headed back to where the legion was awaiting orders to begin the attack.
They had been named Fury Legion, and rightly so: they were one of the fiercest units ever assembled in Heaven. Standing five thousand strong, these were veteran angels hand-picked by Gabriel himself to combat the most savage of demons.
"Archers, ready!" thundered Thame.
The command echoed down the lines. In one fluid movement, hundreds of angelic warriors took flight to hover fifty feet over their own lines. Arrows forged in heaven, each imbued with a small amount of light, were nocked to bows, awaiting the command that would start the battle.
From across the green valley came the response: the snarls and grunts, the clacking of teeth and scraping of claws from more than eight thousand demons ready to crush the force standing before them and feast upon their flesh.
The demon commander, Rai, stood there, a dark shadow. Rai had been an angel a long time ago. When Lucifer revolted from heaven, Rai was one of the first to join his cause. Afterward, when he was cast down to Hell, his mind was wiped clean of any memory of his former life. The only evidence that he'd once lived in the heavens was the pair of black wings protruding from his back. Even with no recollection of his former existence, Rai had regretted his fateful choice ever since.
"Rai, the dark mage's are in position." It was the gritty voice of Valafor, Rai's right-hand man.
"Excellent, Valafor," Rai replied. "Soon this ... army will be nothing more than a memory for us. Tell me, are your legions ready?"
"Yes, ten legions strong—and all eager to spill blood."
Thinking for a moment, Rai said, "Valafor, you have served me well through all these years. Remember that Hell doesn't tolerate failure, and I would hate to lose you at my side."
"Ha! You're worried about me?" Valafor laughed and held up his massive right forearm, which looked as if it had been horribly charred by fire. Then he flexed his muscles and the charred flesh crazed as radiant blue light exploded through the cracks.
"Every time I see that, I'm still impressed," said Rai. "The power of a thousand demons harnessed in one weapon."
"Yeah, well, when you lose half an arm, you tend to get very creative," Valafor grinned, showing a mouthful of razor-sharp, yellow teeth.
"Look up, Val," Rai said. "Their archers have risen. Give the command and let's end this."
"Yes, sir," Val said, his voice suddenly serious.
"Fire!"
At that command, hundreds of arrows were loosed upon the demon horde, now starting their deadly advance across the valley. But just before the arrows could find their marks, a dark cloud of smoke rose up out of the ground to engulf them, reducing them to ash.
"Thame!" Krillion shouted to the captain of his archers. "They've got dark mages out there somewhere. Search and destroy!"
"Got it!" Thame shouted back. He gave the command, and then he and his archers sped through the air across the battlefield to find the masters of magic. Meanwhile Krillion and his ground forces rushed headlong into the fertile valley to meet their accursed enemies.
Throughout the valley, angels screamed and demons howled, the lust of battle coursing through their veins. All across the battlefield was violence and death, with Krillion leading the charge in the center, crushing heads and shattering bones with every swing of his mighty hammer. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something rushing at him. It looked like a massive gray rock golem with a red visor for an eye.
"I see you, ugly!" Krillion yelled, turning to face this new opponent.
Krillion raised his hammer high, ready to strike the killing blow, when the rock demon smashed straight into him with its shoulder, sending him sailing into the air. Krillion grunted as the wind was knocked from his body, but fortunately he was just as deft in the air as he was on the ground. His wings expanded to their full width, catching the wind, and he shot back to where the demon was standing triumphantly.
"Fury!" came the battle cry, followed by a deafening crack as Krillion's hammer found its mark this time, shattering the grey rock demon into thousands of pieces.
Breathing heavily, Krillion took in the whole battle raging around him. His legion was holding the lines, maybe even pushing the demons back. They were going to win this fight. Pride and satisfaction spread across his face at the notion.
Just then something scraped the back of his arm. He looked back and saw a little demon latched onto him by its teeth. Reaching around with his opposite arm, Krillion grabbed the demon by the neck and crushed it, feeling its body go limp in his huge hand. Then he tossed the lifeless corpse to the ground. "Little bastard," he said, wiping away the blood.
Off to Krillion's left, dozens of his warriors were being thrown back through the air by an unseen force. He knew at once that the dark mages were still out there and, if left un-checked, could...
