Godforsaken: Book 1 (Shade of Light) (24 page)

“Did Samael fight for her?” Lily wondered
hastily. “Did he have her?”

“Samael’s sharp sword sent a lot of brave
spirits to Dead Island for Lilith's favors,” Raphael confessed
reluctantly. Lily’s eyes froze on Lilith, in her mind’s eye
imagining a wicked Samael tearing maniacally at the fools who had
dared to fight him.

“My brother wasn’t as kind to any human he
met before you,” Raphael went on. “The Samael you know now is
different than he was, even I can’t understand him sometimes.”

Lily was listening to him, but her gaze was
on Lilith. The emotionless queen spotted Samael walking along the
pathway on the opposite platform. She bent forward, her full
attention on the gray-winged man, her eyes widened in surprise and
her eyebrows raised. Lily looked at Samael and noticed him
desperately staring at Lilith too.

“She recognized him,” Raphael had noticed
their eye contact too. “I wonder what they're both recalling now.
Samael was the undisputed champion of this arena. I believe there
are a lot of creatures longing for revenge.”

Lily kept her silence. Her soul darkened,
listening to Raphael talk about Samael. But the keeper of Eden had
told her he had been a devil once, and that she had fallen for
wrong person. Despite that, she knew that you cannot force yourself
to fall for someone, it was something that happened of its own
accord.

The battle was still raging when they
crossed the platform. Lily had already seen enough to give herself
nightmares for years to come. Lilith watched them with her cold
eyes the entire way. For a moment, Lily was happy that she was
invisible, and didn’t have to meet Lilith's monstrous eyes. Samael
lead them into a corridor, similar to the ones inside the mazes
they had come from earlier.

“Oh no!” escaped Lily’s mouth as she found
herself between the sandy walls again.

But this corridor was shorter and more
illuminated. There was a black door at the end, and as they
approached it, Lily caught a glimpse of a picture on it – a huge
man wearing a long cloak and sitting on a throne. Two snakes were
on both shoulders, as if they were crawling out behind the throne.
Lily didn’t have much time to examine it carefully as Samael opened
the door with a wave, not even touching it.

A large room opened behind the door – a
king’s chamber like the kind Lily had seen in historical movies.
The ceiling was very high, and it had a battle painted upon it.
There were two winged creatures in the picture, fighting against
each other. The one with blonde hair and cold eyes was definitely
Michael, but the other creature was unfamiliar to Lily. He had long
black hair which shaded his face.

The room was less illuminated, leaving many
things unseen under the shadow of the high walls, but a large bed
toward the back of the chamber couldn't be missed by any means.
Samael swiftly made his way toward the bed, Lily and Raphael had no
choice but to follow him. The chamber was clean and even felt
comfortable, and if she couldn't hear the moans of a woman, Lily
would almost like the place.

There were no windows in the stony walls,
but Lily saw many pictures in her peripheral vision. The marble
floor was like a chess board – checkered in black and white – and
Samael’s footsteps echoed off it.

The door closed behind them with a
thunderous noise. The moaning woman trailed off immediately, most
likely straining her ears for the intruders. Samael didn’t stop,
didn’t even glance back, as his eyes were staring straight ahead.
And then Lily spotted movement. A shape sat up, and in the same
instant another shape followed, putting its arms on the first
person’s shoulder. The first person was a man who stood up lazily
and, picking up his trousers, made his way to meet Samael. The
other one was a woman. She slid out of the bed, straightened her
hair back and strode after him. She didn’t bother to put something
on, and soon enough her naked body appeared in front of Lily. Her
breasts were swaying to and fro.

“Samael?” the man burst out, surprised.

Now Lily saw his big black eyes full of
confusion from meeting the angel of death in his chamber. This man
would undoubtedly be Azazel. Lily’s eyes studied him from head to
hip. He was broad-shouldered, hairy-chested and large-muscled, with
an arrogant stance. He was naked, and Lily couldn’t help sneaking a
glance at his large erection. Samael didn’t reply, but only glared
at the bewildered Azazel. The woman halted a step behind Azazel as
she heard the gray-winged angel’s name.

“What the fuck are you doing here? You
shouldn’t be here,” Azazel went on accusingly. “Who let you
in?”

Samael eyed the woman, who was frozen in
place. “Get out of here,” he ordered crossly.

At first the woman flinched, not knowing
what to do, then Azazel nodded in approval, and she rushed out of
the room.

As the door shut Azazel came to his senses,
and he raised his right leg lazily to put his trousers on.

“What is the reason for your visit?” he
asked while dressing. “Don’t tell me that you missed my world, and
have come to ask me for a little fun like the old days.”

“You’d like to call your prison your world,
wouldn’t you?” Samael teased. His lips curled into a thin sarcastic
smile.

“Whatever it is, it’s a place where you
don’t belong anymore,
Angel of Death
,” Azazel hissed
wickedly. “This place I created for myself, and what have you done?
I heard the garden hasn’t changed. You haven’t altered a single
stone in the garden since it was passed to you.”

Samael kept glaring at him, his mouth shut.
Lily wondered what he was thinking about, what he had intended.

Azazel chortled and made his way towards the
wall on Lily’s right. There was a board like counter there. He
picked up a sumptuous bottle, one of many, and offered it to
Samael.

“Drink?”

“Yes.” To Lily’s surprise, Samael agreed
calmly.

Azazel poured two glasses. Lily followed
him, then she peered back at Raphael, who was looking at the
situation as if he was watching a thriller movie.

“Can Azazel feel us too?” she asked
worriedly.

“I’m doing my utmost to prevent it,” Raphael
murmured.

Azazel’s came up to Samael, handed the glass
to him gently, and then took a sip. Samael brought the glass to his
mouth, smelled the drink, and took a sip as well.

“What can I do for you Samael?” Azazel broke
the silence again, his voice strangely composed. “What do you
need?”

“You were in Eden, Azazel,” Samael spoke.
“You saw Lucifer falling in love with Eve.”

“Yeah, I was watching him,” Azazel confirmed
dryly. He tightened his lips. “I heard Eve’s heir is still alive.
You know, I slashed the head of that fellow who brought the news to
me. Lying about the great Samael is a big mistake, even if he’s not
my brother anymore. He is still respected, after all. But then I
pondered over it. What if you missed someone from Efran’s family,
but–”

“You–” Samael opened his mouth, but Azazel
interrupted him, jabbing his finger against him.

“I know,” he went on, “that you never miss.”
He trailed off with enlarged eyes, staring at Samael maliciously.
Then he allowed himself a grin. “Why did you do that, Samael? Why
didn’t you just kill Efran’s entire family instead of saving one?
Why endure a life in exile because of nothing? You knew that one
day a female heir would crop up, but nevertheless you let the line
continue,” Azazel sighed. “Why did you let Lucifer fall if you left
a glimpse of a chance for him to rise again?”

“You know that the war was lost that time.
And don’t even try to fool me, I know you knew it,” Samael said
confidently. “The love Lucifer had, the power he bore, neither was
enough against the wrath of Michael.”

“No, my friend,” Azazel disagreed. “You
merely didn’t want Heaven to fall that day. The game was going to
be over soon, but you, like a child, wanted to play on.” He shook
his head. Samael gazed at him, his eyes narrowed and plaintive. He
didn’t even try to protest. “Yeah, you took the right side at the
right time,” Azazel grumbled sarcastically. “I don’t blame you, I
should’ve realized the way the wind was blowing too, but I stayed
on Lucifer’s side anyway.” He took a sip, glanced around, then came
up to Samael. Standing in front of him, Lily saw that Azazel was a
head taller. “It was only a matter of time until Lucifer gathered
all his power back. You obviously predicted that. But even knowing
that, you preferred to set him up.”

“I never gave him my word to be his obedient
servant,” Samael protested at last, blowing out an exasperated
breath. “I helped him to enter Heaven, as he asked of me. It was
his job to destroy it.”

“But apparently you missed something at that
time, didn’t you? You must have, otherwise, why have you come
here?”

“I need some answers,” Samael drained his
glass, lifting it up to show its emptiness to his companion. Azazel
nodded, and Samael made his way toward the bar to fill his glass
anew. “You saw Lucifer loving Eve, you saw his first achievements,
you watched him in the garden.” His glass filled with something red
that might have been wine in the right light. “It was you who
convinced me that Lucifer had power like God's, wasn’t it?”

“You saw his underworld too,” Azazel smiled,
remembering the old times.

He took a sip and lifted his glass. Samael
picked the bottle up and approached him.

“Don’t you ever wonder?” Samael asked,
filling Azazel’s glass.

“I guess I didn’t,” he said turning back to
Samael. “At that time, I just needed somebody else to believe in. I
needed changes, you see? Lucifer made them, he could give you
freedom. The light he created was as bright as the sun, but much
warmer.” Azazel sighed. He was lost in thought for some seconds,
then glanced at Samael over his shoulder. “You needed freedom too,
as you rushed down after your eldest brother at once. But you’re
the youngest, and Father forgave you.”

“You know that I’m not forgiven.”

“Look at me and tell me, Samael,” Azazel
snarled through clenched teeth. “Which one of us is punished, you
or me?”

Samael made a step forward, frowned at
Azazel. “Do you think I like roaming over tiresome Earth like a
homeless tramp? With no way to Heaven and no way to Hell? We’re
both outcasts, Azazel. Unlike me, you can do everything you want in
here, but I have to follow the rules your lord Lucifer and our God
signed in the Torah. You think I’m free? I’m as much a prisoner as
you, Azazel.”

Samael tilted his head and dropped his eyes
to the glass.

“You know that by destroying this world we
can’t create a new one. That time, Lucifer wasn’t ready to capture
the throne yet, because of his love for Eve,” Samael put in. “He
longed for revenge.”

Quiet fell as Samael trailed off. Then he
took a step back, glanced in the direction where Lily and Raphael
stood, and took a sip.

“What do you need, Samael?” Azazel broke the
silence, sounding sharp. “Give me your question.”

“What does Lucifer need from Eve’s heir? How
does possessing the garden which once was yours affect the oncoming
war?” Samael asked tonelessly. “I know that everything started
there, but what can be finished there?”

Azazel chortled. “You’re a fool, Samael,” he
laughed sincerely. “You’ve been ruling Eden for more than two
thousand years and you’re still not aware of its destination. It’s
really amazing.”

“What kind of destination are you talking
about?” Samael cried out boldly.

“When Lucifer made a deal with Father he had
two choices – first, to live his life with Eve until she died,
second, to have her female heir and take the garden back. The
garden was the start of the system, Samael, he couldn’t lose it.
The garden opens a lot of different roads. The garden is the first
place where we understood life and conceived of freedom,” Azazel
announced solemnly. “The garden hides the most powerful secrets of
the system.”

“Where did it start?” Samael asked
tonelessly.

“What?”

“The beginning. Where did Lucifer feel the
change?”

“Didn’t he ever tell you?” Azazel sounded
surprised. He smiled wickedly. “
There, where the first rays of
sun hit the glade, life began.
”

Samael’s eyes became magnified, and though
he tried to hide his feelings, Lily saw satisfaction and victory in
his green eyes.

“What does it mean, Raphael?” she asked the
monk.

“I don’t know,” Raphael seemed confused. His
head was tilted, staring at the floor. “I think we need to get out
of here immediately. I have to try to figure everything out.”

“You can’t leave me here alone,” Lily
reminded him forcefully.

“I’ll take you with me–”

“I won’t leave Samael alone,” Lily insisted.
“What about him?”

“He–” Raphael scowled at the gray-winged
angel irritably and his mouth remained opened, as though the monk
had forgotten his words.

“He was standing on the top of a rock
looking down flabbergasted,” Azazel went on. “It was the first time
in my existence I had ever seen such an expression. His eyes were
no longer empty. Being just an angel, I didn’t realize what was
going to happen. Who would dare to come in contact with an
archangel, after all.”

“To begin with, the garden is the ultimate
symbol of life. The first human took his first breath there. You
were born later and didn’t see the bustle when the garden was made.
At least, we all liked it, except him. Lucifer always thought there
was something missing there.”

“What? What was missing?”

“I don’t know,” Azazel replied candidly.
“Ask your brother – Michael.” He arched his eyebrows as he
mentioned the archangel’s name. “By the way, has he forgiven you,
Samael? He should have, as you delivered unto him the victory
against Lucifer and made him famous.”