To Reign in Hell: A Novel (24 page)

Then there came a faint movement within the water, as if the middle of the lake were boiling. Steam began to escape from it, and waves began to lick at Lucifer’s and Asmodai’s feet. Then, amid a great cloud of smoke and a boiling of waters and splashing in all directions, a great head appeared, dark and scaled.

Leviathan stood before them in her power and surveyed them all. There were cries and screams from the host of angels, and they scrambled to escape.

But the angels had heard of her, and didn’t fear her. As the first shock wore off, and Leviathan remained motionless, silence settled over the assembly, and those who had fallen regained their feet.

Lucifer turned toward them, and in a clear, piercing voice, which carried to each of the thousands of angels there, he said, “We will begin soon. Be patient.”

Then he and Asmodai walked through them, and so came to the great doors of the Southern Hold and passed within.

TWELVE

“Tis written: ‘In the Beginning was the
Word.’

Here am I balked: who, now, can help afford?

The Word?—impossible so high to rate it;

And otherwise must I translate it,

If by the spirit I am truly taught.

Then thus: ‘In the Beginning was the
Thought.’

This first line let me weigh completely,

Lest my impatient pen proceed too fleetly.

Is it the
Thought
which works, creates, indeed?

‘In the Beginning was the
Power,’
I read.

Yet, as I write, a warning is suggested,

That I the sense may not have fairly tested.

The Spirit aids me: now I see the light!

In the Beginning was the
act,’
I write.”

—Goethe,
Faust

“They seem to be returning,
milord.”

“Yes. They probably want to wait, to let the tension build before they start.”

“There’s contempt in thy voice, milord.”

“Hm. Well, shouldn’t there be?”

“Perchance, milord. But wilt thou speak to them?”

“Maybe. We’ll see.”

“As thou wilt, milord, yet—hark!”

“What do you hear?”

“They come anon, methinks.”

There was a knock. “Yes?” said Satan.

Lucifer’s voice came from the other side. “I’d like to speak with you again. Lilith and Asmodai are here.”

Satan bit his lip, then shrugged. “All right. Come in.”

The door opened. “Thanks,” said Lucifer.

“Sit down.”

They sat.

“Well?”

“What do you think about the Plan?”

“You asked me that once before, Lucifer. At that time, as I recall, you were for it, and were upset that I wouldn’t help with it. Now it seems that you’re upset that I won’t help against it.”

“Things have changed,” said Asmodai.

“Such as?”

“Ariel.”

Satan nodded, slowly. “Yes, there is that. But is that enough to make you decide that a Plan that will benefit all of us is now somehow wrong?”

“Don’t you think it’s enough?” asked Lilith.

“It didn’t change my opinion of the Plan; it changed my opinion of a few people, that’s all.”

“It’s all a matter of people, isn’t it?” said Lilith. “ Yaweh is a friend, so you won’t oppose the Plan, even though you don’t like it. You dislike Mephistopheles, so it doesn’t matter to you whether he’s on our side or the other side. It’s all just a matter of personalities, isn’t it?”

Satan shifted uncomfortably. “I’m reminded,” he said, “of a conversation I had with Mephistopheles recently. But still—what else can we judge by?”

“How about right and wrong?” said Lilith, a touch of irony in her voice.

“Well, that makes it simple, then, doesn’t it? But, as I’ve said before, I’m not sure that the Plan is wrong. How can I be? You know what Yaweh is hoping to gain. Is that something that is wrong?”

“If it were right, would he have to do the things he is doing? I’m not even talking about Ariel, now. I’m talking about what we saw the
other day in the woods, where you were watching as we were. Is that an action that comes from a worthwhile plan?”

“How should I know what that proves? How can you claim to know? Because someone performs an evil action, does that mean it can’t be for a good cause?”

“Yes, that is exactly what it means,” said Lilith.

Satan shrugged. “What do you want from me?”

“Everything you have to offer.”

Satan snorted. Lilith continued, “You are known and trusted by many throughout Heaven. You may not know it, but word spread that you opposed the Plan at the same time as word spread of what the Plan was. You are now looked to by all those who mistrust it. Your support of us would mean a lot to them.”

Satan shifted in his chair and Studied Lilith. Then he turned toward the others. “Is this true? Am I really ‘looked to’ by angels I’ve never met?”

“Yes,” said Lucifer. Asmodai nodded.

Satan looked from one of them to the other, his brow furrowed. “That’s . . . interesting,” he said. “Beelzebub, what do you think?”

“ ’T amazes me not, milord.”

“I see.”

“So, will you speak, Lord Satan?” asked Lilith, watching him closely. “You’ve been standing in the middle—showing opposition, but refusing to take a stand. You probably thought to make a decision when you had to. Well, now you have to.”

“Because you forced it. That isn’t likely to make me feel well disposed toward your position.”

“I suppose,” said Lilith, “that you could say we forced it on you. I would say that events forced it on us.”

“Evasion,” said Satan.

“Truth,” responded Lilith.

“Satan,” said Lucifer suddenly.

“Yes?”

“It was my idea to use the Southern Hold.”

“Well?”

“It was the only place we could find that satisfied all the requirements—and that’s because it is your home. You have played a role in all this, merely by setting it off, that makes you central—and whether you wanted to be or not is beside the point.”

There was a brief silence, then Asmodai said, “They are waiting for us.”

Satan nodded. “I’ll let you know in two minutes. Leave now.”

They stood. “Let’s begin,” said Lucifer. “If he decides to speak, we’ll work him in. If not, we won’t.”

“I agree,” said Lilith. Asmodai nodded.

They bowed their heads to Satan and Beelzebub, then left the room.

Satan turned to Beelzebub.

“Well?”

“ ’Tis thy decision, milord.”

“That isn’t much help, old friend.”

Beelzebub scratched himself with his right hind leg.

“What will happen, Father?”

Yawch looked over at Yeshuah and shrugged. “I can’t say for sure. But we are sending thousands of armed angels with swords to stop them from organizing a rebellion. I can’t imagine our angels failing.”

“But what if they do?”

“Then we’ll do whatever we have to. We won’t hear anything for at least another fifteen days, unless someone thinks to speed up a messenger. There isn’t any point in worrying about it.

“Your attitude,” he continued, “seems to have changed in the last few days. It was you who urged me to do this, wasn’t it?”

Yeshuah nodded. “I know. I gave you reassurance when you needed it. Now I need it myself.”

“I understand. But don’t fret about it. Things will fall out as they do.”

“I wish you had sent me.”

“Now isn’t your time, Yeshuah. That will come later. Whatever happens at the Southern Hold, it won’t decide anything.”

“What do you mean?”

“That nothing final will come of it. At worst, it will be a setback. At best, we’ll have gained on them. But the leaders are too slippery to catch this way.”

“But the whole reason we did it was—”

“I know. But since then, I’ve come to realize that it is too much to expect of a thing like this. We’ll set them back, but we won’t stop them.”

Yeshuah stared at him. “But if it doesn’t stop them, it’ll make it worse! If we show what we’re willing to do, but don’t fully end the resistance, they will see us as tyrants, and that will feed the rebellion.”

Yaweh didn’t answer at once. When he did, his voice was low and gentle. “See us as tyrants, Yeshuah? We
are
tyrants. That was what was so hard for me to come to terms with. We don’t wish to be, but to do what we have to, we must tell, not ask. And to tell the angels to do something, we must be ready to back up our words with force.”

Yeshuah’s eyes were wide, his lips parted. Yaweh continued, calmly, almost in a monotone. “That is what I had to confront, Yeshuah. I had to either abandon the Plan entirely or become a tyrant. What else could it be? You urged me to attack the rebellious ones, thinking it would end the rebellion. Now I tell you that it won’t. But if it did, would that make me any less a tyrant? I am choosing not to allow them to do what they want.”

He looked at the floor. “No, this will be only the start, unless we are very lucky. And I don’t want you to have any part in it.” He looked up, staring directly into Yeshuah’s eyes.

“But when it comes time for the final match, I promise you’ll be there.”

“Thank you, Father,” said Yeshuah, his voice barely audible.

“You don’t have to thank me; it isn’t your happiness I’m thinking of. You are the symbol of the unity of Heaven. As such, it has to be you who delivers the final blow to show that the unity of Heaven is superior to the disunity.”

“I see. Father?”

“Yes?”

“I’ve become worried about Raphael. She seems unhappy about what we’re doing.”

“I know. But don’t worry about Raphael. When it comes time, she’ll be with us.”

“Will she?”

“Yes. She doesn’t like what we’re doing, but she is more firmly behind the Plan than anyone else, excepting, perhaps, Abdiel. When a choice must be made, she’ll never support Satan.”

“I hope you’re right, Father.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve known her from the beginning.”

Yeshuah nodded. Then he said, “I wish we could see what was going on there.”

Yaweh shrugged, then he cocked his head to the side. “Perhaps we can, at that,” he said.

“What do you mean, Father?”

“I’ve never tried it this far between Waves, but it’s worth the attempt. Watch.”

Yaweh closed his eyes, then opened them suddenly. In the air before them, a soft blue glow began. Then it grew until it became a cloudy image. This solidified, and slowly the Southern Hold appeared.

“This is easier than I’d have thought,” said Yaweh. “But I don’t know if I’ll be able to hold it long.”

“How are you doing it?”

“My own illiaster. I can’t really explain.”

“But you can find anyone you want that way!”

“I can’t find angels, only places. I suppose it comes from being part of Heaven. But let us watch.”

Yeshuah nodded, his eyes fastened eagerly on the angels before him. The scene slowly closed in. They saw someone in a gold cloak standing in a high window of the Southern Hold.

Before the throne, the Seraphim gasped, and all eyes turned to the scene. Then, faintly at first but with increasing strength, Lucifer’s voice came into the room, as if he were speaking from the vision itself.

“. . . which is, in fact, the Plan. It is not my intention to claim that the Plan is somehow wrong in conception—I approve of its goals as much
as anyone. But you should be aware of the cost and decide for yourselves—is it worth it?

“That is why you have been gathered here. When I saw the Lord Yaweh and heard him speak before you and your brethren, I saw that he wished to subjugate you to his will, and this I oppose. It is you who will take the risks of the Plan; it is you who should decide whether or not it will be executed.

“As to what we will do, should you decide that it isn’t something you wish for, I don’t know. The Lord Satan has thoughts on this that he would share with us. Please listen to him.”

Lucifer bowed and left the window. Satan walked forward.

Abdiel stood in the crowd and watched. He decided that Lucifer hadn’t impressed him. On the other hand, he noticed, he now read doubt on faces that before hadn’t had any. He thought of what would happen to him if the Plan were discredited, and he shuddered.

So, for greater reason than he had had before, he had to do something. When? Not yet, he decided. He’d wait. His chance would come. It always did.

He concentrated on the glowing ball of light in his middle. Yaweh could do it; Lucifer could too; therefore he, Abdiel, could do it. And he would have to, soon.

So that’s the way the wind is blowing, Mephistopheles decided. How interesting; they’ve finally decided to commit themselves. He didn’t know whether to be pleased, amused, excited, or worried. It was clear that the situation called for something.

It occurred to him to wonder if Yaweh would do anything about this. Well, if he did, it wouldn’t be pleasant.

He looked up at the window and saw Satan emerge. So, he decided, the Lord Satan is committed too. Or is he?

Mephistopheles decided that if there was trouble, the lake would be the safest place to be; he began moving toward it.

Satan stood at the window, his cloak bright at his back, his emerald clearly visible upon his breast. He surveyed the angels before him in their thousands. He tried to guess what they were thinking. He saw that he had their attention, at least. Most of the faces he could see held doubt and confusion. So Lucifer had shaken them some, anyway.