Unholy Empire: Chronicles of the Host, Vol 2: Chronicles of the Host, Book 2 (24 page)

The commotion was attracting other Sodomites, including some of the king’s soldiers, who joined in the effort to bring Lot down and break in the door.
If only Lucifer were here to see this
, Milicom thought to himself proudly.
He would give me even greater territory!

Lot suddenly felt a strong arm pulling him back into the house. He was thrown onto the floor in the middle of the room and looked up to see the two men standing in the open doorway!

From his perch, Milicom saw Michael and Gabriel in the doorway. “There they are!” he shrieked. “Take those two now!” The demon-inspired men of the town charged Michael and Gabriel.

“There they are!” said a man, who led the charge to Lot’s door. Others followed him as they rushed Lot’s house.

The men stopped for a second as Michael suddenly swung his arm out in a cutting motion. The humans saw only his hand coming down—the demons saw in his hand a great sword. Then a brilliant flash of light pulsed from Lot’s front door, blinding the men of Sodom and sending them scurrying about in a hopeless rage. They staggered in confusion as they left Lot’s house. The sword of the archangel sent the demons scattering, too. Even Milicom was knocked off balance for a moment as Michael cut a mighty, gaping hole in the air.

In the meantime, Gabriel was inside the house talking to Lot. “Gather your family and whoever else is with you and take them out of this city. For we have been sent to destroy it and all who live here.”

Lot quickly rallied his family. His sons-in-law thought he was joking. But the angels seized the family and led them out of the city personally, for they understood that Lot had the compassion of the Lord upon him.

Milicom, however, watched helplessly as Lot and his family made their way through the city, easily avoiding the many blinded men who staggered about. He quickly went to his temple and entered into the heart of Kazak, the high priest whose cult worshiped the demon. Taking control of this man, who had given himself completely to darkness, Milicom caused him to speed to the home of Bera, king of Sodom.

The priest stirred up in Bera’s heart murderous thoughts against Lot.

“How dare Lot invite strange men into his house?” raged Kazak. “These men were undoubtedly spies sent by Abraham to scout out Sodom for conquest on behalf of his nephew. They have defiled the gods of Sodom, and Milicom, our great god, has been profaned! His wrath will be upon you, O king, if it is not appeased.”

“I should have killed Lot when he first came,” said Bera, barely containing his hatred. “Abraham, he now calls himself. The father of nations! Bah! His ambition has become a threat to us all in this valley!”

He quickly arose, with great anger, and ordered the captain of his personal troop to assemble a squad of men to find Lot at any cost. As he put on his garments of war he spoke to the captain of the troop.

“Kill them on sight, do you understand?” said Bera. “All of them!”

Kazak smiled as the soldiers left. So did Milicom.

When the fugitive party reached the gate of Sodom the angels stopped. They ordered Lot and his family into the mountains for their own protection. Lot looked at the distant mountains.

“Please, sirs,” he begged. “We will never make it to the mountains in time. Let me take my family to a nearby town called Zoar.”

“Very well,” said Michael. “We will spare Zoar, though the rest of this valley will perish. Only go—and do not look back, lest evil befall you!”

Lot and his family scurried away, hurrying up from the valley toward the little city of Zoar. Michael and Gabriel turned to see the high priest, Kazak, sword in hand, leading a mob of citizens. With them were the soldiers sent by Bera.

“There are the profaners!” shouted Kazak. “Destroy them! Soldiers—hunt down Lot and his family who have escaped the city!” The soldiers ran through the gate and gave chase.

The crowd suddenly stopped and got quiet as Michael and Gabriel began to transform before their very eyes. The human disguises gave way to their angelic appearance! Seeing the archangels in all their authority, Milicom’s devils scattered. The men of Sodom were awestruck. Even Kazak was taken aback for a moment.

“The judgment of the Lord is upon this place!” Michael shouted. The archangels held their swords toward the heavens.

By this time Bera drew up on horseback, amazed at what he was seeing. Kazak recovered and, inspired by Milicom, who was still in control of his mind, began shouting that these were demon gods sent by Abraham, and that they must invoke the gods of Sodom to war against them.

A flash of light streaked out of the swords of the archangels into the sky and burst like thousands of particles, which began to rain down on Sodom and the other wicked cities in the valley judged by the Most High. Large stones of fire fell on the city, as the people shrieked and scattered, running for cover. Fire and fallen animals added to the chaos. The wardens of the gates thought the city to be under attack and ordered the gates sealed, trapping the people inside.

Kazak rushed back to the temple and was killed when a stone hit him as he prayed to Milicom. He died at the bloody altar as he invoked the name of the god who by now had deserted him, for Milicom had fled when the wrath began to fall. Bera took cover in his palace, hoping to escape through a tunnel that led outside of the city. But the house was quickly consumed by fire, and the king died as it collapsed upon him.

Within minutes the entire valley was consumed by this fire from Heaven. Even the soldiers in pursuit of Lot were killed by crushing, flaming stones that fell outside the city. Lot’s own wife perished horribly when she looked back, against the archangel’s command. Then the fire stopped falling.

Miles away, Abraham could see a great plume of smoke rising in the east. He made his way toward the smoke with Ishmael, and the two of them looked into the valley, foul with the smell of sulfur, where the cities had been overthrown. He thought of those he knew in that city, and wondered if perhaps his nephew had escaped. The servant with Abraham remarked about the great column of billowy, white smoke that rose high into the air.

But Abraham saw something else—perhaps for the first time. Looking upon the smoldering city of Sodom, and hearing the faint screams of the dying, he sensed the significance of the promise of God that Abraham should bear a Seed to His name. It was no longer about Abraham’s longing for a son, but God’s promise of a savior…

Abraham began to weep. He now understood in his heart that, unless God acted to reconcile humans to Himself, as grim a fate as had befallen Sodom awaited all of mankind.

Chronicles of the Host

Isaac’s Birth, Ishmael’s Scorn

What a day of rejoicing when Isaac was born! The Host of Heaven celebrated noisily along with the house of Abraham. This was also a very important time for Serus, Michael’s apprenticed angel, who was given the important assignment of watching over the boy’s progress.

As the child grew, we witnessed with some amazement how deeply humans could love. Abraham was devoted to the son of his old age. He instructed Isaac in the ways of the Lord. Though he loved Ishmael, and was comforted by the Lord Himself that Ishmael would become a mighty nation, it was Isaac, the child of Sarah’s womb—the child they had waited so long for—who was the object of Abraham’s greater love.

It so happened that over time Ishmael, true to the prophecy spoken over his life, began to mock Isaac, and once more Sarah demanded of her husband that Hagar and her child be sent away. Encouraged by the Lord, Abraham sent Hagar and Ishmael away. The Angel of the Lord appeared to Hagar again and guided her and Ishmael to a new life away from Abraham.

As we watched the boy grow in strength and stature, we understood that nothing could separate Abraham from his son…nothing, that is, except the Lord Himself…

“Serus!”

“Well, Gabriel,” said Serus. “Welcome to Hebron!”

Gabriel walked over to where Serus stood, watching Abraham and Isaac in conversation. The old man looked somehow younger now, as if Isaac had invigorated him. Serus enjoyed watching the two of them together, and indeed was finding his current assignment as guardian of Isaac quite fulfilling.

“Abraham loves his son so,” said Serus. “Just look at the two of them! There rests great hope in that boy for all humans. A fine lad!”

“Yes, Serus,” said Gabriel. “A fine lad.”

Serus noticed that Gabriel seemed quite sullen. The archangel kept his eyes on the two humans—father and son—enjoying the day together as they worked with a new bow that Isaac was making.

“Gabriel, what is the matter?” asked Serus.

Gabriel looked at Serus and smiled a rather weak smile.

“Serus, you understand that as a servant of God you are called upon to execute very difficult tasks at times?” asked Gabriel.

“Yes, of course,” said Serus guardedly. “Am I being relieved of this assignment?”

“No, Serus,” said Gabriel. “In fact you are to carry through to the very end of this task. You have been given a very special season in the life of the promise. It is a great honor for you.”

“Yes, Gabriel, a great honor,” agreed Serus, still uncertain where Gabriel was taking the conversation.

“As I said, we are not always to understand the things of the Lord,” Gabriel continued. “Our honor is in serving God without question as to His motives…”

“Excuse me, Gabriel,” interrupted Serus. “But what is going to happen?”

Gabriel watched as Isaac walked off to try out the new bow that he had made with his father. He then looked at Serus and answered.

“A test. Abraham is going to be tested by the Lord.”

“Tested?” repeated Serus. “What sort of test?”

“A sacrifice.”

“Oh,” said Serus, relaxing a bit. “What is to be sacrificed?”

“Isaac.”

Abraham was hoping that Isaac would get a kill his first time out with the fine bow he had made. It was a sturdy weapon, and should bring down a deer or wild pig if his aim was good. The camp seemed empty whenever Isaac was gone—even for short ventures like this.

As for Ishmael, the last report Abraham had received was that he and Hagar had settled in the wilderness of Paran toward Arabia. He had taken an Egyptian wife and was raising his family in the desert. It warmed Abraham’s heart to know that God was taking care of both of his children.

“
Abraham!
”

Abraham by now recognized the voice of the Lord as one would recognize the voice of a friend. He immediately responded.

“I am here, Lord,” answered Abraham, squinting in the sun as he looked around.

“
Hear Me, Abraham. You must take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love so very much, and you must go to Moriah with him.
”

“
Yes, Lord
,” said Abraham, a bit confused. “
And then what?
”