Claiming the Phoenix-Prologue

1

         Fighting against the Father at Lucifer’s side for equality had gained the Angels nothing. He and his brothers-in-arms fell hard to Earth after the rebellion.  The Almighty blasted them instantly from his side to the world they so despised yet, held an insatiable curiosity for, only showing mercy to those that lay prostrate in the dirt, their beautiful faces twisted with a grief so heavy that their tears formed puddles of penance around their battered bodies. Of the two hundred that had waged war in Lucifer's name, fifty remained standing. HIS squadron. He had investigated them himself and all were loyal to their awe inspiring leader. A fearless group of angels devoted to Lucifer and his philosophy: humans were less than dirt and to repeat Azriel; sucked ass.

         When his troop witnessed the others be forgiven despite the battle; they cried out for mercy as well and, as he was the ranking Angel, God looked directly at him. He dropped to his knees and lowered his head, full of disgrace. Every strained, battle weary muscle flooded with warmth as God's light drifted over and through him. "Raise your head, my son." God said. It was the purest tone the fallen angel would ever again hear. Taking a deep breath he looked up and met the Father's glowing eyes. The healing wave that flowed through his body intensified briefly and abruptly disappeared. He knew then that it was gone for Eternity.

         His shoulders dropped as God's, heavy with burden, straightened resignedly. The angel would never forget what his Lord then said, “My son, you have many shadows in your soul. Sadly, you still harbor admiration for Lucifer, though he has abandoned you to face my wrath alone. I command you and your squadron go; appeal to him for admittance into his new brotherhood." And, with that proclamation, He left his rebellious angels bereft and scrambling in the dirt where they had landed. To reside in Hell with Lucifer, or wander for eternity among humans were their choices and, he had an unnatural hatred for humanity. He stood and angrily shook himself off, signaling to all of his brethren; now the Fallen, to gather with him to search out the doorway into Hell.

         Along the way, the fallen angels heard many things from many demons. Foremost was that when Lucifer blew through Hell’s gate like a conqueror of old, Hell’s Throne had trembled in awareness, gently embracing God’s former highest angel like a lover when he sat confidently upon her. And, through the tales of Lucifer's success, the Fallen were again renewed with Pride. Hell’s Throne had accepted their brother as her master. The ousted King of Hell, Beelzebub III, I and II having died on the Throne, had sought refuge with his supporters and was even then preparing to one day reclaim his fiery Kingdom.

         After forcing their way past Beelzebub's underlings into the bowels of Hell, the motley crew were granted an audience with the new King. Certain of welcome, they laughed and joked with one another at His feet, expecting him to allow them a safe haven. But, Lucifer grew angry at their joviality and smugly refused them entrance. Spewing them out from the comparatively peaceful darkness of the abyss, back into the glory, gore and vice of the mortal realm; the fallen angels again landed in the dirt bloody, torn and disoriented. Effectively trapped on Earth, most elected to fade and became as wraiths; silent and floating in the shadows, others, like him, began to search for redemption that would never come and, he swore that he would never be so close to Lucifer again without avenging this betrayal of his faithful followers.

         With that single minded purpose born of betrayal, the fallen angel, once the right hand of Lucifer, ransacked every Holy site on Earth seeking an instrument for divine forgiveness among the precious artifacts protected by Heaven's trained caretakers, the Saints. Methodically, he poured over Scripture left behind a stone of the Vatican in a forgotten scroll; he drank from the mystical Holy Grail when he found it clutched in the petrified jaws of King Arthur's red dragon in a cavernous chamber under the legendary castle. Thousands of lifetimes he had searched, when he realized there was no hope for him. Soul worn and weary, he fell to the ground. And kneeling among the worshipers, in the dust surrounding the sacred Mary's Well, he ended his quest for redemption, to settle as near to the Heavens as he could get; while he wallowed in the underbelly of the beast that would become New York.

         He began scouring the profane for an Unholy way to get even with the one who had consigned him to his fate. Sending treasonous inquiries to their small Community elders for many millennia, he was finally overcome with his need for vengeance. And, no longer keeping secret his desire to find the catalyst for Lucifer's downfall, he recklessly made his quest public to all supernaturals. An answer was immediate and came in the dead of night. He arranged to meet with the old crone after receiving her letter describing an obscure prophecy, written in the sixteenth century, that all but guaranteed him victory against his greatest enemy.