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The slow and steady breathing on the other side of the gate came to an abrupt stop. He could feel itsanticipation grow as it suspected what he was about to do. Without further hesitation, Aaron threw openthe great wooden gates and set his power free.

Aaron gasped as the archaic markings began to appear upon his flesh. They burned from theinside out,rising to the surface to erupt smoldering and black on the skin of his body. He had no idea what thestrange sigils were for, or what they meant, but they were the first sign that the ancient inner powerresiding within him was about to be unleashed.

The sensation was far less painful this time, and not entirely unpleasant.
It's like the world's biggesthead-rush,
 
he thought as he was caught up in the transformation of his body. Muscles that he'd onlyrecently become aware of contracted spasmodically, pushing the latent wings furled beneath the flesh ofhis back toward the surface. Aaron winced as the skin split and tore, the feathered appendages thatwould allow him flight emerging. He flexed the sinewy cluster beneath the skin of his back and felt thestrength within the mighty wings as they began to flap.

The power was intoxicating, and Aaron felt himself caught up in the enormity of its strength. It wantednothing more than to explode out into the world, to vanquish the enemy before it—and then to move onto the next. It was a power of battle that had become part of him, and it reveled in the art of war.

The transformation nearly complete, Aaron gazed with new eyes upon the weapon still clutched withinhis hand. "This isn't mine," he said, his voice like the purr of a jungle predator. He tossed the blade of lightto its originator, the Archangel Gabriel—who caught the sword withease, taking strength from contactwith the radiant weapon.

A sword of Aaron's own design came to life in his hand, and he gazed at the weapon with a growingsense of anticipation. "This belongs to me," he said, admiring the blade's potential as it sparked and lickedhungrily at the air.

"Yes," Gabriel said with a nod. "I believe it does."

The power sang within him, and Aaron found it hard to remember what exactly he had been so afraidof—but only for the briefest of instants, for the monster Leviathan attacked.

"I've found you, Nephilim," it growled, its ruptured eye still dripping thick streams of yellow fluid, the

other wide and bulging. "And what I see, can be made mine."

Before he could act, Aaron felt his mind viciously assaulted, and his perceptions of the here and nowsuddenly, dramatically altered. He was no longer standing in an underwater cave, sword of fire in hand, amonster of legend looming above him; Aaron now stood in the middle of the playroom of his loving homeinLynn,Massachusetts , his foster parents familiarly nestled into their appropriate pieces of furniture. Itwas Friday night—movie night at theStanley household.

"Are you going to sit down and watch the flick, or are you going out?" Tom Stanley asked from his

recliner, the plastic box for the video rental in his lap.

Aaron smiled sadly at his foster dad, a mixture of happiness and sorrow washing over him—and hedidn't quite remember why he would feel that way.

A new feeling forced its way to the surface of his soul, violently attempting to tear the heartfelt emotionsaway. Aaron actually twitched, eyes blinking severely, the level of feelings washing over him so intense.
 
What's going on?
 
he wondered, too old to blame it all on puberty.

"It's the new Schwarzenegger," his dad said, holding up the plastic case. "The one where his family is

killed by terrorists and he gets revenge." There was an excited grin upon his face.

"He always liked those kinds of movies....,"said a voice inside his head that sounded more like an

animal's growl than his own. And again he shuddered.

"Are you all right, hon?" the only mother he had ever known asked from the corner of the couch. She put down her latest in a long succession of romance novels. "You look a little out of it," she said with genuine concern. "Why don't you sit down, watch the movie, and I'll make you up some soup."

The growling voice inside his head was back."That was her first line of defense against all kinds of
illness,"
 
it said, letting the meaning of its statement begin to permeate.
 
"It didn't help her a bit against Verchiel."

An anger fueled by sorrow ignited in hischest, and the palm of his right hand began to grow unusuallyhot, tingling as if asleep.

Lori Stanley got up. "Go on," she said, touching his shoulders. "Sit with Stevie and Gabriel and I'll makeyou something to eat." She headed for the kitchen.

For the first time, Aaron noticed his foster brother sitting on the carpet surrounded by blocks of all sizesand shapes. The dog was sleeping soundly beside him, his breathing rhythmic and peaceful. Aaronscratched at the tingling sensation in the palm of his hand and wondered where he had heard the name Verchiel before.

"I really think this is going to be a good one," his dad said excitedly from his recliner, staring at the picture on the front of the video box. Distracted, Aaron gazed down to see that the little boy was spelling something out in the letter blocks upon the carpet. But that was impossible; he knew Stevie could barely talk, never mind spell.

Aaron knelt down beside the child, his body torn by a maelstrom of emotions that were attempting totake possession of him. He hadn't a clue as to what was wrong with him—until he read what Stevie hadspelled out upon the floor.

Your mother and father are dead,it said in multicolored plastic letters, which he unnecessarilyremembered had magnets on the back of them so that they could be stuck to the refrigerator.

Aaron sprang to his feet, and a fire sparkedin the center of his hand as his mother returned to the roomwith a steaming bowl of soup. Aaron was holding a sword of fire now, and he gazed in awe upon it as ifhe had never seen its like before.

"Sit down, Aaron," his dad said as he motioned with his hand for him to get out of the way of the

television. "This is going to be the best movie night ever." Again, Tom motioned for him to sit, to forget all

the conflicting emotions running rampant through him—to forget that he was now holding a flaming

sword.

"Here's your soup," Lori said, holding the bowl out to him. "It's chicken with stars," she said.

This was what he wanted, more than anything, but something inside him—something very angry andquite powerful—told him that it wasn't to be, that it was all a lie.

He again looked down at the words spelled out in plastic letters.

Your mother and father are dead.The wordswere like the powerful blows of a sledgehammer, breakingaway the false facade of a world that no longer existed, and Aaron began to scream.

He lashed out with his sword of fire, giving in to the rage that tried so hard to show him the deceit of itall. Aaron felt nothing as the weapon of fire passed through the form of his mother. She wailed like themournful screech of breaks on a rain-soaked highway. His father cried out as well, still eagerly holding onto the video box as his body slumped to one side, consumed by fire.

"It's all a lie," Aaron bellowed, letting the living flame from his weapon extend into the playroom, burning

away the untruth—and the screams of the unreal grew all the louder.

Aaron became conscious in the grip of Leviathan, the monster recoiling from the ferocity and violence ofhis thoughts. This was the personal heaven of his angelic nature unfolding within his skull that the seabeast now bore witness to. A heaven consisting of untruths burned away to reveal reality, the enemyvanquished— consumed in the fires of battle. It was a version ofParadise that Aaron doubted the greatbeast had ever created in the minds of its prey—a perfect bliss that involved its very own demise.

And it could not stand the thought of it.

The monster howled its displeasure and hurled him away. He could not react fast enough, his wingscrimped from being entwined in the multiple tentacles of the beast, and bounced off the cave wall, fallingto the rocky floor.

"What's the matter?" Aaron asked as he struggled to his feet, and slid across the loose rock. He flexed his ebony wings, their prodigious span fanning the stale air of the undersea cave. "See something you didn't like?"

He sensed that the power within him had a streak of cruelty; exploiting the weaknesses of his enemy,prying away at the chinks in itsarmor, and that it would stop at nothing to achieve its victory. Aaronwondered exactly how far it would go—and, if it became necessary, was he strong enough to stop it? Hewould just have to hope that he was.

Aaron spread his wings and sprang into the air, sword at the ready. A savage war cry escaped hismouth that both frightened and excited him with its ferocity. He flew at the swaying monster, ready tobury the flaming weapon into the creature's flesh and end the nightmare's threat to the town of Blithe—aswell as to the world.

He slashed at the half-blind beast, his sword of fire connecting repeatedly with the body of Leviathan. Sparks of flame leaped from the weapon's contact with the monster's scaled flesh, but to little avail. Thescales were like armor, protecting the ancient threat against his attack. His angelic nature yowled withdispleasure, and he attempted to push aside the overwhelming bloodlust so that he could rethink hiscourse of action, but the ferocity was intoxicating, and he continued with his fevered assault upon thebeast.

"Strike all you wish, little Nephilim," it gurgled as sparks of flame danced into the air with each new blow

upon its seemingly impenetrable scales. "It matters not to me."

One of Leviathan's multitude of limbs lashed out, wrapping around one of his legs. Before he could bringhis blade down to severthe connection, the monster acted, whipping him back against the wall, withsavage ferocity. His head and upper body struck the side of the cave wall and he felt himself grow numbfrom the impact.

"They have all thought themselves superior," the monster continued, slapping him against the opposite side of the cave with equal savagery. "The righteous against the wicked—is there ever any doubt against the outcome?"

Leviathan then threw him upon the ground, and it took all the inner strength that he could muster not toslip away into unconsciousness. The inner angel struggled, but it, too, was fighting not to succumb to theferocity of the attack.

Aaron heard the gigantic animal shift its mass closer—and then what sounded like the fall of heavy rain.

He could not begin to discern the source of the sound until he felt the chitinous limbs of one of Leviathan's

spawn scurry across his outstretched hand. Its spidery children were crawling out from beneath their master's scales to pour down upon him. Aaron could feel them moving across his back and legs and was filled with revulsion.

"They never could imagine the strength that I amassed," the behemoth boasted. "Overconfidence has

always been their downfall."

Aaron felt it again attempting to intrude upon his mind and he blocked it, temporarily locking it behindthe fortified fence that he hadmentally erected to keep his newly awakened angelic nature isolated. Heneeded to think, to come up with a way to vanquish the monster before it had a chance to do the same tohim, but time was of the essence.

Aaron picked himself up from the ground, the hissing spidery abominations clinging to his clothing,attempting to reach his mouth where they could crawl inside, making him docile enough so that theirprogenitor could consume him with the least amount of effort. He would have none of that; tearing themfrom his body by hand and spreading his wings, beating them furiously.

Leviathan loomed closer and opened its damaged eye to glare at him. The injured orb had begun to heal,but the reminder of his sword's cut across it could still be seen.

"Nowhere for you to run, nowhere for you to hide," cooed the beast. "Others far mightier than you have

tried to destroy me—and look what has befallen them."

Aaron's glance shot to the severed digestive sacks. He could see that many still lay within the protectivecocoons of oblivion, while others, he believed, were most likely dead, their life forces drained away bythe nightmare before him.

Leviathan slithered closer, and Aaron gazed up into the monster's flapping mouth, staring into its soft,pink gullet—and an idea began to coalesce.

His angelic nature had received its second wind, and surged forward eager to continue the struggle. Aaron gritted his teeth with exertion, placing a mental choke chain around the powerful force's neck anddrew it to him. The power of Heaven fought, wanting to ignite a sword of fire and again leap into thefray—wanting him to battle against the ancient evil from the primordial depths.

But that was not his plan, even though holding back was probably one of the most difficult things he hadever had to do. Aaron stifled screams of pain as the essence of his angelic nature fought against him to bereleased.

"Not yet," Aaron whispered through gritted teeth, as the monster shambled closer to where he crouched. The beginnings of a heavenly blade sparked in his grasp, but he wished it away, turning his entire attention to the beast that now lorded over him.