Celestial Matters

"No deformities?" she said wonderingly. "Who are we dealing with here?"

We sat in the cold night a little longer. My mind was in turmoil. I only wanted escape.

"Take me with you!" I cried.

Cariel shook her head slowly. Something inside of me broke.

"But then you condemn me to be a slave to that DEMON." I screamed.

The moon was rising, and the water reflected its milky rays.

She looked at me again, a blank look on her beautiful face.

"It won't be that bad. Your body will begin to crave his touch. The magic of the Arch-Angels will see to that ... He is your Awakener after all. You might even come to love him.

I stared blankly at her.

Her voice became far away. "In fact, you'll probably be begging him to take you to bed by the week's end." she said matter of factly.

She turned, and began to walk towards the stream.

"Wait!" I shouted..."I have so many questions."

I don't know if she heard me, because she had already disappeared.

I sighed.

I sat down heavily. Hitting my butt hard against the ground. I flopped onto my back, and listened to the night.

My mind was troubled...

After an hour, I felt a draw to go back to the cave. At first it was almost like an itch. An urge that was annoying, but manageable.

Soon that itch became overwhelmingly painful.

I stood up, and padded across the grassy field back to the cave entrance.

I took one last look at the moon lit sky.

Then I began my descent.

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Voyage into Slavery

~Demons are creatures of Earth and Fire, Blood and Bone. These are their attributes, and they are at their strongest in the presence of these things. Angels are creatures of Air and Water, Tears and Spirit. These are their attributes, and they are at their strongest in the presence of these things.~

First Year Magician Lesson

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-Devnik-

I awoke to total darkness.

The cave smelled foul. Blood and vomit had mixed in the air, creating a putrid odor.

Water still dripped from the ceiling, and the cold was fierce and biting. My hand strayed back down to my stomach. My gut wound had closed, leaving nothing but a hole in my shirt to remember it by. I tried to stand and I managed to rise with something resembling grace.

I stretched and yawned. I felt muscles uncoil as the fog of sleep temporarily lifted from my mind. I held up my hand and concentrated.

Red sparks danced across my finger tips, sending a lurid red light dancing across the cave walls.

I did a silent little jig in the dark.

My powers had returned.

I quickly turned my attention to the squalor I had to endure while my magic was depleted. With a sweep of my hand the blood and vomit disappeared. With another wave I removed all stalagmites. I wasn't taking any chances with those pointy bastards...

I then focused on making the place more livable. I replaced the cave floor with a plush black rug. I created a table with some chairs around it. In the corner where my stalagmite had been I erected a marble fireplace complete with fire. Then I moved my comfy armchair so that it faced the hearth. Finally to round off my new luxury accommodations, I created a king sized four poster bed, with red silk canopy and red silk bedding.

I stretched again.

I threw myself onto the bed and sighed. No matter where I was I always created the same room, with the same furniture. It felt very ... comforting.

I yawned. The fog of sleep was resettling

I was tired enough to sleep for a year. I still wasn't completely recovered, and with my new furnishings I felt very contented.

Very contented indeed ... I gazed at the crackling hearth.

And I drifted back to sleep, with flames dancing before my eyes.

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-Maria-

The trip back down was horrible. With every step I took I felt like I was damning myself. My footsteps grew heavier and heavier, and it felt like a great weight was being pressed down onto my shoulders.

Why did my supposed eternal husband like to live in a cave I wondered?

Then I remembered.

Oh, that's right; he's a filthy demon, that's why he likes caves. Oh, and he stole me away from my true Awakener, who would have been my true angelic love.

I sighed, and continued my trek down the long winding passage ways. While the trip to the surface had been an exhilarating sense of freedom, this journey back down seemed like a voyage into slavery.

I shook my head, and put such thoughts out of my mind. I concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, while my hands stayed close to the cave wall, ready to lend support should the path prove treacherous.

It did, numerous times, but finally I began to see the familiar flickering of orange light. I silently sent up a prayer, blessing that lone candle for lighting my path. I moved through the gap between the two rocks.

My jaw dropped.

This was not the same sordid cave that I had left behind.

The room looked like a noble's chambers.

A soft rug of black wool lay covered the hard cave floor. A dinner table and chairs set with silver plates and cutlery occupied a corner. What I had mistaken for the lone candle was actually a roaring fire, set in a breathtaking white marble fireplace. But that's not what caught my attention. Sprawled on a four poster bed was the demon. His dark hair a tangled mess over his perfect pale face. He was shirtless. His body was well defined, and his alabaster chest was hairless.

I edged closer to him, trying to get a better look. While sleeping he looked utterly harmless. With his taunting red eyes closed he seemed more like a boy of eighteen-years, rather than the twenty-year old I had mistook him for. I slowly reached out a hand, and I brushed his hair out of his eyes. His eyelids fluttered, but he stayed asleep.

He was so beautiful.

I quickly realized what I was doing, and yanked my hand away from his face.

This was getting out of hand, I thought. An angel tells me that I am going to be a mindless lusting animal for this vile creature, and the first thing I do is start clucking over him like a mother hen...

This was not the way to prove Cariel wrong, this was not the way to get back to my old life. I glanced at his sleeping form one more time. Then I quickly turned away.

I made my way through the opulent decorations to the fire place, and eased myself into the the plush black arm chair. I gazed into the hearth.

The chair was warm. Either from the fire, or from ... him.

The latter gave me goose bumps ... and that worried me.

-------

-Devnik-

I woke with a start. I had been having the most erotic dream. The dream starred a beautiful golden haired girl. It had been a gripping fantasy. A sheen of sweat covered my bare chest.

Maria...

I was almost sorry the angel had taken her away. She had been such a pretty half-breed. I rose from the bed, and summoned my black silk sleeping shirt. It materialized around my body. It felt good to have my powers back, I had missed the luxury that they afforded.

The cave was warm. The fire had burned down to a low ember, setting the cave in a calm dim glow.

And there was a girl in my chair...

I blinked.

There, curled up like a cat, was Maria. Her blond hair fell in disorganized waves over the arm of my chair. Her slim face looked stunning contrasted with the firelight. Its dull light played off her high cheek bones. She looked innocent, she looked peaceful. The silver eyes that looked upon me with such hatred were closed. I watched her for a minute.

Her breathing seemed to get faster.

Her cheeks flushed, and her bosom was heaving. I found my gaze straying towards her breasts. They were two mounds of female perfection. Roughly the size of grapefruits, they were quite large for the eighteen years that she claimed. I drew my gaze away, and looked at her more closely. Why was she still here? Why hadn't the angel taken her to everlasting happiness? A place forever denied to me.

Did the Light think she could serve as a spy? Surely they knew I hadn't played a part in Lucifer's war on God for six centuries ... but what if they didn't know who I was...

I tried to remember if I had ever told Maria my name. Did I? At the brothel perhaps ... no, during our talk ... no. I had never told her my name ... I paused ... maybe she could be a spy, attempting to figure out why a demon awakened one of their own.

Fools, I thought. They must think I have some personal connection to this girl. I would have to prove them wrong ... if she turned out to be a spy I would show no mercy.

I clicked my fingers.

A spark of red flashed, and a whiff of sulfur appeared in the air. Sulfur ... the stench of Hell.

The space in front of me became distorted, until it reorganized itself into a crouching mass.

"Hello, Turkik," I said.

"How may I serve you Lord Devnikolus?" he said. His voice sounded oily, and his speech uncouth.

Turkik possessed the body of a human baby, with hands shaped like bat claws.

I pressed my finger to my lips, and motioned to the sleeping girl.

He bowed low to acknowledge his understanding.

"Turkik, earlier today an angel and this girl talked outside this cave next to a small stream. I want you to discover who this angel was." I said, keeping my voice as a whisper.

Turkik bowed again, "It will be done."

With a small pop, he disappeared.

I exhaled.

If Turkik discovers that the angel Maria talked to was Terial, the leader of the angelic spies, or one of her agents, I would kill her.

With a wave of my hand another black armchair appeared. I turned it so it would face the sleeping girl.

I watch her breath in and out.

I watched the way her rumpled white shift clung to her young nubile body.

I watched her delicate face.

All the while I pondered the most entertaining way to kill her...

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Blessed are Thou

-Daniel Fleeting-

(1097 AD. Somewhere outside Jerusalem)

"Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum.

Benedicta tu in mulieribus,

Et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus.

Sancta Maria, Mater Dei,

Ora pro nobis peccatorbus, nunc,

Et in hora mortis nostrae.

Amen."

I moved to my next bead. And I began again. Battle was nigh, and I alone continued to say my prayers.

All around me men sat by the campfire.

Weeks of forced march had made their minds weak and their spirits corrupt. They sat and drank their ration of beer, and spoke of carnal pleasures outside of wedlock, and boasted of how many men they'd slain. And they claimed to be soldiers of God ... pathetic.

Most had already discarded or lost the cross given to them by their legates. Mine lay safely in a pine box I made with my own hands.

But I was different. I believed in our cause. The rest were mere sell swords. They offered their blades like a whore offered her body ... if the price was right. They were all of them sinners.

I looked up from my beads. Father Fredrick the legion's priest sat before me.

I hadn't heard him approach.

"My child," he said. "Are you aware that before dawn that we march into battle." His voice was soft and wise, like a Father's should be.

"Yes Father," I said. "I am not afraid." If I die, then I would go to Eternal Happiness, Pope Urban the Second himself said this to be true.

Father sighed.

"And yet, it saddens me that you alone spend your time with your rosary and with God," he lamented. "The rest seem to find more comfort in the devil's debauchery."

I replied with fire, "I am not like them Father, I will see God's will done. Deus Vult!"

He raised his hand to calm me. "Yes, I can see that. That is why I have come to you out of so many others."

"What would you ask of me Father?"

"Tell me child, have you ever wanted to be a Priest?" he asked.

I treated this as a test of faith. "Good Father, I am not worthy to be the voice of God," I replied. I diverted my eyes down to my hands, which were clutching my rosary.

Father gently shook his head. He reached out and calmly took my chin in hand, and lifted my eyes to meet his.

"No child, you are worthy, and God needs you this night," he said, his voice grave.

I tried to speak. He cut me off.

"No, my boy, time is short, and you must know the dangers that you face."

I nodded, and remained silent.

"Tonight we will lose the coming battle," he said calmly.

I leapt up to protest.

He waved me back down. "Peace, child, peace. Let me say my piece."

I returned to my seat.

"As I was saying, we will lose tonight's battle, lest you take up the challenge I must present you." He paused. "Tonight, leading the forces of the Seljuk army is a demon."

My jaw dropped. "Satan himself meddles in this Holy War," I cursed.

Father shook his head. "We do not know how involved the devil is in these affairs," he said. "But this demon stands in his inner most of unholy circles."

I was in shock.

Father drew himself up. "That is why we need you Daniel. This demon and his army shall slaughter us this night lest you give us your arm in battle. You alone are pious amongst these barbarians, so only you have a chance of success."

He paused to draw breath. "Though priesthood normally requires a life of devotion to God to achieve, my order has sent me to extend it to you. If you should accept, you will become the first warrior Priest, of the Order of the White Cross."

I bowed, "What would you have me do Father?" I asked.

"Come with me." He said.

Father Fredrick rose, and made his way through the dusty camp ground. I hurriedly moved to follow him.

The men all around were drunk. They drowned their fear in drink, to numb themselves to the coming battle.

By now, the enemy banners were visible on the dark horizon.

I paid the men no mind. Sinners are nothing in Gods eyes, and they were nothing in mine.

I continued to follow Father Fredrick, his billowing white robes helped me keep track of him, as the fires about the camp were fading, and none bothered to rekindle them. Battle was too close to think of such things.

Father Fredrick entered a brown tent on the outskirts of camp. I followed him in.

An altar occupied most of the tent. A wooden cross hung above it, attached to the material of the tent.

Father turned to look at me.

"Kneel before the altar Daniel," he said.

I kneeled.

Father Fredrick smiled. "Now, child, don't move during the ritual unless I tell you to."

I nodded.

Father Fredrick reached down under the altar and produced a censer. He lit it with flit and tinder. Smoke began to rise, and the most wondrous smell filled the tent. He began to swing the censer, and he slowly began to walk around me and the altar in a circle. All the while swinging the censer.

A certain peace filled my mind.

The incense smelt wonderful, and my mind became foggy. Father Fredrick began chanting. At first it sounded like Latin. But then I realized it was something else. Something better. The words of the mysterious language filled my heart with joy.

The chanting lasted five minutes.

Finally Father stopped his circling and chanting. He stepped behind the altar and produced a book. It was not the Bible.

The Father looked at me kindly. "Daniel, I am going to ask you some questions, and I want you to respond, 'I do'. Nothing more, nothing less."

I gave a nod.

He began.

"Daniel Fleeting," he intoned.

"Do you renounce Satan, and all his works?"

"I do."

"Do you fear God, in accordance with the scriptures?"

"I do."

"And do you accept by choice, the life of the Judicar."

"I do."

"Then stand child, and take up your sword..."

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(Paris 1623)

I awoke with a start. The night's chill wrapped my sweat covered body with its caress. I dreamed that dream again. It was the dream of that night, so many years ago, when everything had changed.

I only had that dream when he was close.

I smiled to myself. I would find him again...

He would never escape me.

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Lust

(Outskirts of Paris 1623)

-Maria-

Consciousness returned to me slowly.

I stretched out on the black arm chair, and sat up. The room was warm, but the fire had all but gone out. A few smoldering coals provided nothing but a dim light to see by. A faint outline of a man was visible.

Sitting on an identical chair was the demon. His glittering red eyes were trained on me.

"Glad to see you in the land of the living," he said sarcastically.

I blushed. "Umm, good morning," I said.

He smiled.

"Actually it's evening, my sweet," he said lightly, "you just can't seem to keep track of time,"

I harrumphed.

He continued unabated. "So, why did you come back?" He said. "I thought the little fairy that came and visited would have spirited you off to the land of eternal sunshine...? Or are there currently no vacancies?"

His words rang in my already muddled head. What he just said was technically not a command, but I could feel my bodies' desire to give him an answer, even though my mind was loath to describe my situation.

"Tell me why you returned", he said very calmly.

That was a command.

These words rang even louder in my head. So loud it was almost deafening ... it took all my strength of will just to shake my head.

I never saw him move. But suddenly his right hand was around my throat, and my legs were dangling in the air.

"I'm going to ask you again," he said. "And I will be very displeased if you don't answer me."

The ringing now sounded like a church bell. I could feel my mind caving ... and my body leapt at the chance to obey his orders. My mouth started moving, even though I didn't have enough air to talk.

He set me down. "Try again," he said.

"The angel said that they would not accept me because I was awoken by a demon," I said in a rush. I had enough control left to leave out the part where he could give me orders and expect me to obey them ... that would just be uncouth for a young girl to say.

It seemed that my status as a creature of 'The Light' prevented me from telling direct lies, but lies of omission didn't seem to be a problem.

The beautiful dark haired youth returned to his seat, and put his chin in his hands.

"Yes, they would be suspicious of you wouldn't they," he mused. "Or maybe they're just prejudice ... I should have anticipated this ... anything else you want to tell me?"

This caused some slight ringing, and I could feel my body eager to tell him of his control over me. My mind, however, was able to make the wanton thing shake its head.

He continued muttering to himself... "Yes, well, it'll be more fun to wait for Turkik to return anyway..."

While he was talking to himself, I started at him. I locked my gaze on his perfect face.

I curled up on the chair again, and watched him like a dog watches its master.

My sex was dripping wet. But I ignored that.

-Devnik-

She seemed uncomfortable in her chair.

She was constantly fidgeting like she couldn't get comfortable ... hmm, I thought, maybe she knows she's in danger? I didn't know ... it was hard to tell with this girl.

For one thing, I still didn't understand her reasoning for returning. Even if the angels didn't want her, why not run back to Paris? Why run back to me, a demon? I was by nature an enemy to her kind. I didn't doubt her explanation of why they wouldn't let her into Paradise.

As a member of the Light she couldn't physically lie ... but if she was a spy she would hardly tell me. The angel would have certainly taught her how to avoid telling me of her true intentions...

The one thing I did notice, was that she smelled. Not terrible, as it was my opinion that a sweaty dirty girl could never smell bad. But she did have a certain air of musk to her. I decided to help her with that.

I concentrated.

A red spark popped in front of my nose.

The white shift that had become filthy with a week's worth of grim began to glow red.