After some time, four cars drove up to the courtyard: an armored cherry Ford Explorer and three Hummers escort. Having come out of the car, she appeared in a completely new look. If, while working at the office, she practically didn’t take off her medical gown and office clothes, now she could afford herself to look really pretty. Having accorded to her facial expression, it was noticeable that she was pleased with herself and was generally glad that things had forced her to get out of the office.
A cream mini dress and peach-beige high heels clearly contrasted with the colors of the securities. Having received several commands, the squad scattered around the perimeter providing security. Having opened the door, she went inside and stopped in the center of the room.
“Hi guys,” she went to Midnite and kissed his cheek. “I haven’t seen you for eternity or more.”
“So this is not very far from the truth,” he noted.
“I’m not mad at you. This is all John.”
“I’m glad that we understand each other,” and he added. “Are you not afraid that John might decide not to return, and we’ll be left with nothing?”
“Nope. I trust him.”
She came up and put a hand on John’s shoulder, having given him the opportunity to take her leg. At this point, he had already cleaned the washbowl and laced the shoes.
“Ha-ha-ha. You’re also lovers! Well, then everything is clear,” he broke into Cheshire cat’s smile. “How did you manage to get him to bed?”
“He didn’t resist much.”
“Mammon sent greetings to you,” John joined the conversation.
“How’s he there? Very angry?”
“He’s in sorrow. I’ve shown him the window of opportunity. Let him think.”
“It’s funny …”
“Funny is another. He’s considering how he’ll use us for his own purposes when you and I, and you, Midnite, too, go to Hell.”
“When the pigs fly. He’ll have to pay well.”
“Hah. Your approaches to business don’t change… Let’s come back to reality,” Midnite summed up. “How’s the ascension going on? I’ve never seen this.”
“There’s nothing complicated.”
Four eyes stared at her with undisguised curiosity.
Series of trucks and escort vehicles lined up in front of the gates of SBC Broadcasting & Entertainment. Although they carried special cargo, there were no warning signs on them. After checking all the necessary documents, they crawled toward the warehouse at a speed of fewer than five miles per hour.
From there, several warehouse vehicles went to meet them, having begun carefully unload containers. Having sat in a chair, Balthazar carefully watched the work of his people through webcams. The understanding that everything was in order confirmed him in the correctness of the decision.
With a smile, he accepted the transcript of John’s message to Gabriel with the address where the mediums were taken. He’s ordered to prepare the first strike group, which would have to be divided into several little ones that have to lay mines on provided places. The area of the explosions ensures that all mediums, like their defenders, are destroyed along with Gabriel’s special force. The second strike group, a little later, will have to pay a visit to Suicide Canal and finish Rick and Megan off.
During these matters, Mammon has contacted him. A slowly pulsating purple-red oval appeared in the middle of the room. Least of all, at that moment, he wanted to listen to instructions and report.
Balthazar’s stay on Earth made him significantly independent of his boss. He’d have been glad to jump off, but it was precisely under the mandate of Mammon that he, as the sanest of demons, was approved not only by Lucifer but also by the Lord. He didn’t want to come back more than anything. Having sighed and adjusted his suit with a tie, he made contact.
“Hi, Balthazar.”
“Hello, Mammon. What’s happened?”
“Any reason?”
“Yes.”
“So it’s happened. What’s up with an ‘all of us to death beloved’ exorcist?”
“Nothing. He’s fine. I’ve pulled him out of oblivion. Now he’s doing useful work.”
“May he live on and on.”
Balthazar grimaced.
“Performing useful tasks, you say? When was the last time you talked to him?”
“A few days ago.”
“…but I’m a couple of hours.”
“Are you serious? Did he die?” Having come to life, Balthazar asked.
“No. He’s just crashed to my house in Hell to talk.”
“Did you kill him?”
“No. Why? There was no reason for this.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“Nope. He interferes with everyone; let him continue in the same spirit. He’s doing pretty well.”
“What did he say?”
“That they’ve poured shit on you, and now they are slowly smearing it. That the Angels decided to overtake me on the corner. Tell me,” he began to change his voice, “my faithful subordinate, what did you do in order to not lose power?”
Balthazar hated talking to him in such a tone but couldn’t do anything about it.
“John found a place where the mediums were brought. I’ve decided to liquidate everyone there.”
“And mediums? No way! I forbid this! Mediums will come in handy for us.”
“But … John …”
“I prohibit this. It’s not discussed. If you have problems with this, I know a place where you won’t have them at all. I’ve noticed that being on Earth has relaxed you. This is fixable.”
Balthazar gritted his teeth but suffered. “He’s managed to come to him at the most inopportune moment. Now Mammon will be confused under my feet.” In order not to end the conversation on petting against the wool, he, for the sake of formality, asked about other matters, to which Balthazar answered without much involvement.
“Good. The conversation is over. I warned you.”
“I got it.”
The connection was over. Mammon caught himself thinking that he almost missed Balthazar’s game behind him. His desire to destroy mediums accurately indicated that obeying him became a burden, and he felt himself a completely independent figure. The desire to drag him back to Hell was growing, but he was well aware that beheading half-breed Demons would lead him to lose his last leverage on events.
Mammon had no illusions that Balthazar wouldn’t use, instead of plan A, plan B, or even C. Against the backdrop of these events, John’s request for help against the Lord and Angels looked like a pretty good chance.
“If the father made a deal with the Lord, then there’s simply no better moment to declare me. But … in this way, I’ll do a free service to John. This is wrong…” he remembered the existence of Angela. “Oh! Bingo! How I hadn’t thought of this before! Ha-ha-ha John, you have sat down to play at the table with the wrong person!”
The Initiation Festival gathered crowds of followers from all over the country every year in LA. Short Way Church was holding many diverse events inherent in most protestant churches: seminars, lectures, and concerts. As in previous years, everyone could jump from a cliff in the name of Christ.
At the same time, the state authorities planned a congress dedicated to security and law enforcement, which would not only ensure the proper level of security in general but would also help to conduct anti-terrorism exercises. Cops from all over the country wished to participate in this event. Angela, like other officers, had to ensure security in the territory entrusted to her.
After the event with mediums on Suicide Canal, the team, almost to the eyeballs consisting of half-breed Angels, began to shun her, and this was alarming. All Angela’s attempts to find a common language were met with resistance. There was no such reaction even when she was helping John and Candy. All this bothered her, having given that the information from Constantine didn’t add hope.
She grabbed a badge, car keys, ate both donuts, and headed for the exit.
“Where are you going, partner?”
“I’ll go to Andrew. Take care of papers.”
“Something serious?”
“Never mind.”
Lately, she felt growing anxiety. Angela guessed what the reason was, but she didn’t want to disturb John and Gabriel, so she chose one of the few correct solutions, namely, go to Andrew. Twenty minutes later, she stopped at the church of St. John. Having gone to the door, she crossed herself, kissed a pectoral cross, and entered. There was not crowded at all.
“Andrew!” She happily called him.
“Angela, come in, please! Confess you?”
Confession took a little time, after which a friendly conversation ensued between them.
“I cannot recover from anxiety and worry about our future.”
“John?”
“He doesn’t lead me up to date, but apparently we’re head over heels in …”
“…in chocolate, right?”
“Hah! Yes, but the taste is different. I’m a medium, and I feel that everything’s changing, but I want to be in charge… I wanna help, and don’t sit idly by.”
“What exactly do you feel? How do you feel it?”
“I’m sure I’ve been called, but something’s stopping me.”
She tried to explain to him, but to no avail. At some point, Angela despaired and dropped her hands. There was the sound of jewelry hitting a wooden bench. Instantly, their gaze was fixed on her bracelet.
“Did John give it to you?”
She nodded positively.
“Do you think the reason is in it?”
“Without any doubts. Only by taking the risk, you may know how deep the rabbit hole is.”
“John said something to me about the desire of the Angels to enter our world. If something goes wrong?”
“I’ll try to have time to put it back on,” Andrew answered with confidence.
She’s nodded, having given her consent. They walked into the side room. Andrew invited her to sit down. Angela sat down on the bench and, with a movement full of determination, took off the bracelet. Amazing metamorphoses began to occur. She was instantly caught in a stream of bliss passing through her. The walls no longer existed; the mind prison fell. Such abrupt changes frightened her greatly, but there was no way to experience fear. Before John appeared in her life, she had visions. But … any like this hasn’t been. There was a feeling of complete peace. Problems, passions, emotions: everything’s gone. The first thing she wanted was to call her sister.
“Isabelle, my girl. I love you. I miss you. Where are you, sweetie?”
“I’m here, sis! Are you dead? What happened?”
“What? No! What… am I … It’s impossible!” She caught herself, having realized that she’s in Heaven. This didn’t happen to her before.
“Lately, a lot of things have changed. Mediums have become frequent guests here. I even dunno why.”
“Is there anyone else besides me now?”
“Yes, sister. Follow me.”
“How?”
“Materialize thoughts.”
“How can I even think?”
“Relax, darling. Just follow me.”
Time with distance was felt differently here. It was amusing to follow Isabelle. These were not steps in her usual understanding but jumped from side to side. “Cool. I like being here,” she caught herself thinking. It lasted for some time, but she still couldn’t understand how far they traveled.
“Why don’t we meet anyone?”
“It’s amazing, right? This is a feature of Heaven. If you don’t want to see anyone, you just want to.”
Isabelle stopped, having motioned to do the same.
“Now look over there …”
At the same time, in an unknown place, the doctor, dressed in a white gown, was pacing the lab. All her movements showed how much impatience possessed her. Having walked to the cages with rats, she poured them food and walked back to the control zone, where the operators ran some processes.
“Yes?”
“Not yet! Twenty seconds left.”
“Get them an adrenaline rush. They’d overcome contact without any problems.”
“It’s done,” the operator began the countdown: “Five, four, three, two, contact.”
Time slowed down so that it completely lost its meaning. These anomalies occurred every time the worlds came into contact, and this case was no exception, but this time everything became different. Sensors continued to record tirelessly everything that was happening. The performance of the brain and heart of the experiment participants was at average marks but left hope that at hour X, everything would go smoothly.”
Candy was the most capable medium in this group since she was not only the very first participant to come into contact but also the only one who could communicate with the Archangels at the Lord’s Throne without the threat of falling into madness. If earlier she motivated other mediums having provided them with support, now their training was boosted with the help of medications and didn’t give a 100% guarantee of success. Having received this data, Megan kept it in the strictest confidence both from Rick and Raguel in order to avoid stopping the whole event.
“You just need to say: “I’m Angel of Death, the harbinger of the Lord, coming back to the Lord’s Throne.”
“In English?” asked Midnite.
“Well… you’re definitely not strong in Hebrew,” she laughed.
“It’s nonsense! It can’t be that simple,” John snapped.
“What’s the catch?”
“If you wanna go to Heaven like Gabriel, you need to be Gabriel. John, you must have all the qualities: virtue, impartiality, disinterestedness, leadership. Try John. Go ahead! If you don’t succeed, say what you wanted there. I’ll do everything myself.”
“It should work.”
“Come on,” Midnite supported him.
John got up and began to pace the room. Having gathered his thoughts, he returned and sat down in the chair. Having changed his expression from indifference to determination, he began to utter Gabriel’s blank.
“How soon is this supposed to happen?” Midnite whispered.
“Almost instantly. If everything’s done correctly and approval’s received.”
John finished, but nothing happened.
“Remember everything you did for people. Come on one more time.”
“You can do it.”
“I’m Angel of Death, the harbinger of the Lord, coming back to the Lord’s Throne.”
“Nothing.”
“Gab, I’m full of shit. It just won’t work for me. To hell! Why can’t I say who I am?”
“Try it. Why not?”
“So, what do you say?”
John was silent. “Indeed. Heck! What to say? I’m John, who wants to reach Heaven in order to stop the Angels’ plans to enslave humanity? No, that’s not good,” having concentrated, he opened his eyes.
“I’m John Constantine, an exorcist, suicide, an advocate of common people… I want … I want to face the Last Judgment.”
“No! John, no! Don’t do this!” Gabriel yelled.
She rushed toward him, but his outline began to fade. This happened until he completely disappeared.
“Midnite, this is the end!” She fell on the chair with a completely doomed look.
“Don’t panic ahead of time. I’m shocked not less than you,” he spread his hands. “You have to get him out.”
“When? How to guess with time?”
“How much time does he need to contact with friends and not be sent to Hell or locked up in Heaven?”
“About fifteen minutes of our time.”
Candy felt unusual. She, like other mediums, has felt an incredible surge of strength, but this time was much stronger than the previous ones. With curiosity, gradually turning into anxiety, she watched all this. Despite the fact that she was saved by John, she still remained the medium that the Angels have been preparing.
Archangels, in their actions, relied on the intel that our heroes sent them. Rick had been one hundred percent sure that everything’s under control and passed this confidence up. While the other “carriers” continued to go through the “running test,” Candy was able to resist it because of John’s amulet.
She looked inquiringly at the amulet as if asking him the question: “Is it all your fault?” She straightened the hand and took it off.
“Oh, shit! No… no… no… no! Just not again! I don’t want it!”
For a split second, she disappeared. Having gathered all willpower, Candy began to resist the call. Having noticed on the surveillance cameras that something was wrong, a guard rushed headlong into her room. At this moment, she resembled a drowning woman who, panicking, is rapidly losing strength. Having gathered the remnants of her will into a fist, she picked herself up. The ties pulling her along began to weaken. She sat in an armchair and was unable even to move her fingers. She wanted to call for help, but she only had the strength to open her mouth in silent supplication. There were only a few seconds left until the next call, and the amulet still hung on the fingers. At that moment, the guard ran into the room. Having seen the amulet, he rushed to her and immediately put it back on.
“Tha… Thank you. If it’s just a little bit longer…”
“Everything’s fine. Breathe. Calm down.” He spoke in a soothing voice. From his facial appearance, we could be told that he was her age. “I’m Richard. You can call me Rich,” he carefully took her hand, having given her confidence. “You can rely on me.”
“Thank you … It’s so nice of you. Where’s the Gab? I need to tell her about this.”
“She’s away with John.”
Candy grabbed the phone from the coffee table and frantically began typing. From weakness in the body, it fell out of her hands. She rushed after it and knocked over the table. “What’s going on?” Not without Richard’s help, she, having mastered her body, picked it up and called a number.
“Gab, I took off the amulet!”
“Don’t even think about it!”
“Already. They nearly pulled me in again. Thanks to Rich, he managed to put it back. Everything’s very serious there. It bothers me so much.”
“Wait for my arrival.”
“Where’s John?”
“He’s THERE. I can’t say anything else. I need to be on the alert.”
“Come back soon. I’m so worried about you.”
She pressed a red icon and dropped the phone from her hands.
John went through the ascension. Being overflowed with pacification didn’t change his purpose. He expected to receive information from Chas and Beeman about what’s really going on in Heaven. He didn’t abandon the hope that the Angels were planning all this outside the knowledge of the Lord. He couldn’t even imagine that HE would violate the Principles laid down by himself when creating people.
John was in a crowd of souls, having waited their turn at the Last Judgment. “It’s good that I’ve got some time.” Having wasted no time, he called his friends.
“Chas! Beeman! I need your advice.”
After a few moments, two figures appeared next to him, having differed from all those present in their brightness.
“Are you dead, John?” Chas worried out of habit.
“No. I’m in transit here.”
“Lemme guess. You need help, huh? Follow me.”
They flew to the side, having wished that no one was around.
“Beeman. Angels want to rule the world of people.”
“They want to,” he confirmed in response. “They’re angry with them, for His mercy.”
“Has there anything changed lately? They cannot prepare it in the strictest confidence.”
“Yes, there has. We’ve got some changes.”
“For example, John, now mediums can come to us without even dying. It’s cool, isn’t it? Too bad, you’re not one!”
“Yeah. Beeman, where’s the contact going on? What’s there?”
“But you know … Angels cannot go against the will of mediums. This is against the rules.”
“ Fuck the rules, Beeman! The all-in game began. Read my memories.”
Beeman made contact with John’s memories.
“It’s nuts! You’ve been right. There’s no reason for us to go to mediums. They’ll just grab you and throw into Hell so that you don’t get confused under their feet.”
Silence hung.
“We must get an audience with the Lord. I hope that He’ll intervene and stop their plan,” John insisted.
“There are Guardians of the Throne. It’s not too simple.”
“So distract them! Keep’em busy!”
“John, that can cost me everything.”
“I’m with you, John. We must hurry until your turn comes,” Chas supported both.
Beeman pointed in a direction, and they immediately set out on the road. The group flew over various zones into which Heaven was divided. Some had many souls, like Angels. Others, on the contrary, were practically deserted and somewhat resembled platforms with technical facilities. Then further, they moved more often than Beeman had to stop and get permission to access.
“John, Angela’s as a medium here.”
“What the heck! I hope she controls what she does.”
“Isabelle is with her. They sniff out like you.”
“There are less than a hundred souls left before John,” Chas recalled.
“We’re almost there.”
Before the gaze of John the “House of God” appeared and, in the distance, the Throne was visible.
“He’s here? How it works?”
“It’s a trial, John. Every stair, every step you take. After you reach the last stair, He’ll appear.”
“What to do with Michael, Raphael, and Uriel?”
“Rely on me.”
Having done, only known to him manipulations, Beeman was able to gain access to this territory. He turned to John and made it clear that he should begin as soon as he disappeared. Chas stood apart and had nothing to do. Out of habit, he began to bombard John with questions, but all of John’s attention was focused on Beeman. He, in turn, made some actions, after which the Archangels lift-off, having disappeared into the distance by three beams of light.
“Here we go!” He said to himself.
Chapter 17. Megan and Raguel: Two Of Kind Chapter 19. The trials. Can His Soul Survive?