Of Kings and Demons (14 page)

“Ready?”

“Your questions.” Jin smiled

Walter swallowed hard. The
attack had take blood off his face and he looked a decade older.

“Perhaps you should just
breathe and get a grip on your erratic senses.”

“You can read my pulse?”

“Not just your pulse, Governor.
I can read your thoughts and senses like I read a book.”

Walter was wide-eyed “After
these ridiculous events, my heart needs an explanation.
My soul
needs an
explanation. I am sorry, not being difficult.”

“Governor Johnson, no apology
is needed. You deserved an answer.”

“You are reasonable.”

“The truth that you must learn
is the sole reason for my arrival.”

“Do I call you angel?”

Jin chuckled.

“Jin will do, Governor.”

Walter Johnson noticed the men
in black robes armed with guns.

“Jin, who are these people?”

“An ancient guild, a group that
was tasked with the defense of leaders of mankind, those we called Kings.”

“Kings? We are done with
monarchy for a long time, Jin.”

“Governor, Kings of Men is that
collective group of men and women who had been born into the race of man and
would one day lead the human civilization. These are people who are like you.”

Walter frowned and Jin
continued. “Kings, leaders of mankind, in all fields, from politics to medicine
to culture and to military, are always the source of your history.”

“I get it now. Kings are the
leaders of human civilization, those who weaved ur history.”

Jin nodded “Your favourite
subject-history.”

“How did you know?”

Jin smiled

“I guessed you been watching me
for a while. Well, history my favourite because if you do not know where you
came from…”

“You will not know where to
head for…”

Walter winced and then smiled.

“You read my speeches? That one
is for the university alumni and continued with his story. Some speech about
greatness.”

“ I am impressed.”

“Greatness recognized no
boundaries. It can occur across the spectrum. My sense of admiration recognizes
no barriers, no political affiliation,” Walter explained. “Please continue with
your story.” Walter said.

“Walter, they all belonged to
the group of special people who were chosen to be leaders of the human
civilization, the standard bearer of the human civilization. Without them, the
race of man will retrograde, resort to the baser instincts of greed and
violence, and degenerate into a spiral of incessant self-destruction. ”

“Please continue.”

Jin explained his identity as a
Guardian Angel, soldier of Heaven, allies of mankind.

“The ancient myths of Angels’
mentorship are true then?” Walter interrupted.

“Direct intervention by Angels is
strictly forbidden by God. Even the Archangels are not allowed to alter God’s
plans. Mankind must shape its own destiny on the basis of free will, that
fundamental liberty to make decisions and choose. Free will is the essence of
the entire history of mankind. It is always up to the Kings to make the choices
that will decide the course of history. There are so many examples, a recent
one like President Kennedy in 1961 over Cuba. His decision changed history. A wrong
move could bring us back to the stone ages. He did not falter.”

“And you played a role.”

“We played our part, in subtle
ways.”

“I can only
imagine.”

“Your imagination is much
appreciated, Walter.”

“What about the attack tonight?”
Walter turned grave.

“You have been targeted for
obvious reasons.”

“I am a King of Men?” Walter
said dryly.

“A future leader of human
civilization.”

Walter cranked his neck in discomfort.

“You this cat out of the bag
that is making me uncomfortable?”

“We foresee enormous danger
ahead for you. The time for the insight has been brought forward. If I, in your
own words, keep the cat in the bag, the information will be worthless if you
are dead in the next 24 hours.”

Walter rubbed his forehead. He
had been bitten by the anxiety bug.

“What is next, Jin?”

 “You have to make a decision,
governor.”

“What decision?”

“Your future, dummy,” a voice
interjected. The governor jerked his head around. Robin had interrupted Jin’s
soliloquy.

“If your family is here, I am
not sure you will call me dumb.”

“This is the moment when you
take the leap of faith,” Robin said in a grave tone.

Jin nodded. “Your friend is
very perceptive. Walter, the Demons wants to destroy you because they
understood the significance of your existence. The Demons will stop at nothing.
They will eliminate you and your bloodline to shut down the threat.”

“They will return.” Walter
murmured.

Jin nodded. “Yes. They are
emboldened by their earlier success. I have hidden you well away from the
clutches of darkness in the past. However, there will come a time when you have
to make a stand and flexed your freewill to defeat them.”

“Hidden me?”

“The Demons have always tried
to seek out and destroy potential Kings when they are just in their childhood.
They never found you because of the efforts we made. You were as inconspicuous
as a child so that no Demons noticed you.”

Jin’s words seemed to awaken
Walter. Memories of his past flowed back like gushing waters. His history of
illness was infamous, as a child—malaria, yellow fever, and bronchitis had
almost killed him in one way or the other. His maternal grandfather, Financier Roger
M. Banks, once remarked to his daughter that he did not foresee the frail
grandchild living beyond his sixth birthday. That pessimism.

Jin smiled and nodded. “I am deeply
sorry for your pain but the short-term suffering you undergone served the
long-term mission. The Demons would never notice a dying child in the
hospital.”

For a moment, Walter felt as if
he were a tiny child in front of a towering giant who had watched him for
decades. “You have my gratitude, Jin.”

The Guardian Angel bowed.

They were abruptly interrupted
by some unexpected changes in the weather – a breeze and sheets of lightning.
Walter cringed and his security agents shielded him, all flashed their weapons.

However Jin bade them to stay
their fingers.

There was whizz in the air and
a ring of light descended. Then the flapping of wings was heard, and a figure
landed. It was Eugene the Healer, the lithe warrior who had battled his way
through the mayhem.

 Jin smiled at the arrival and
they hugged.

“My brother”

“Jin, it was not easy.”

“I understand. Look at what we
have here.” Jin nodded in the direction of the governor.

“Another of
your warriors?”

Jin nodded “Eugene
was one of our youngest. He was raised to the ranks two hundred years ago.”

“Two
centuries? Young?”

“Relatively.”
Eugene answered firmly

“He is a
product of the American civil war.”

Walter was
speechless and nodded at the dark-skinned angel whose character is accentuated
by the white eyebrows and glimmering wings.

“I am sure you have been
through many battles.” He asked

“Enough over the last two
centuries and had the honour of witnessing such incidents when the true leaders
of mankind are blooded through intensive struggles.”

“Leadership is a trial.”

 “Leadership is a noble
sacrifice,” another voice offered. Father Norman Bellator had just emerged from
the woods and bowed in deference to the Governor.

“You are?” Walter asked.

“I am a member of the Order of
Defenders.” the priest explained and continued. “Making a sacrifice for your
civilization is a great act. Governor, wasn’t that your goal when you joined
politics?”

Walter nodded and Bellator
added, “Great men have accomplished great tasks because they are capable of
making that supreme act that never fails to defeat all Demons through the ages.
It was a supreme quality.”

“What is that quality, Father?”

“Sacrifice,” Jin whispered.
“That is a common thread that runs through human civilization and formed the
cornerstone of all great creations of man. Without that quality, all great
achievements will fail. Sacrifice adds the quality of durability and permanence
that Demons cannot destroy. Sacrifice is based on the quality of selfless love,
the bane of all Demons. The thought of that concept can whittle a demon.”

“Sacrifice.” Walter repeated
the word.

“Whenever a man carries out a
selfless act, Demons are helpless. They have no powers to undo or overcome the
strength of a selfless sacrifice.

Walter smiled “The sacrifices
of our Founding Fathers ensure this great nation carries on through the years
of trials and tribulations.”

“George Washington, Alexander
Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin secured the foundation of greatness for this nation.”
Jin explained. “You have that opportunity to carry on that tradition, Walter.
Every generation of mankind has looked for a hero, Governor. You have to decide
whether you are ready for the historic mission.”

Jin continued. “If you choose
to fight, all the forces of good, the armies of the Angels, will stand by you.
There is no dishonour in failure, only shame in not trying, and trying hard
enough.”

Walter shut his eyes and
deliberated.

“The choice, the first choice
that will initiate you march towards your true destiny as a King of Men,
Governor,” Jin said.

The Guardian Angel’s voice was
calm and, like the sea waves of the night, it beat against the perimeters of
the woods and sent the trees swaying.

The rustling of the leaves
echoed in Walter’s mind as he rubbed his palms. They were wet.
I must
decide.

“Free will, my friend, Jin said.
“Your decision will decide the future of mankind,”

After Gwyneth parted with
Maganus, she confronted the unpleasant insights which spun in her celestial
mind alone. Solitude was her best ally in quelling the turbulent emotions. In
another part of the woods, she spent a good hour to negotiate with her debilitating
prophetic abilities.

When she regained her calmness,
she set off in her search. There were no destinations; her instincts were her only
guide.

Gwyneth had originally assumed
her instincts were related to the fates of the endangered kinglings who were
stranded in the nature reserve of Delaware. Then she had one of those rare
catastrophic insights that drove her to leave Maganus alone to find and rescue
the trapped kinglings. The vision of towering darkness and deaths was not to be
ignored.

Gwyneth had maneuvered along
the northeast coast to locate the source of darkness that usually indicated the
presence of a congregation of demons or a single powerful Demon Lord. As she
flew from state to state, the robust darkness intensified and her anxiety deepened.
Gwyneth was prepared to turn up every inch of earth until she located the
source of darkness.

She is not going to repeat a
critical mistake that she had made before. It was the 1920s, right after World
War I, when she was mandated to search Europe after an alert on subversive
activities of the Demons. She failed to weed them out and, consequently, lost a
group of key individuals to moral corruption and seduction by the Demons. That
group of individuals went on to seize power and set in motion the chain of
events that precipitated the Second World War.

Gwyneth could take no chances
now.

When she finally reached New
York, she detected a monstrous miasma. A huge cloud of darkness hung over the
City of New York like a suspended blanket.

With lightning speed, Gwyneth swooped
into the city and perched herself on the crown of the Statue of Liberty to
ascertain the situation. The miasma seemed to have originated from Manhattan.
Gwyneth moved to the State Empire Building to position herself for a better
view.

Angels, their allies, and a few
selected mortals have the ability to see supernatural phenomenon like a miasma,
a crescendo of dark light, the darkened pupil of the eyes of demonized humans,
and the halo of light over noble characters.

The miasma of darkness was a
clear indication of the presence of Demons and their associated elements. Men
who had been infected by the Demons were also known to emanate these vibes, a
result of the base emotions in their hearts—greed, jealousy, and hatred. The
strength of the darkness corresponded to the strength of the demons. In this
case, a Demon Lord of high rank was in the city.

Gwyneth eventually landed at Nassau
Street, where the clouds of darkness were thickest and hung like a canopy. With
great caution, she stepped into the streets, which were particularly crowded on
that Friday evening. As usual, Angels were invisible to all humans, and Gwyneth
walked the streets without being spotted. If she was spotted, she would have
found her target.

After an hour, Gwyneth could
pinpoint the hub of demonic activity. It was the New York City Hall, and there
was a social event, with a huge congregation, on the premises.

Gwyneth determined it was
charity ball being held in conjunction with UNESCO and the City Council to
raise funds for victims of an earthquake in Turkey. The sight of numerous
luminaries—politicians, celebrities, and sportsmen worried Gwyneth. The
presence of the miasma coincided with the presence of members of the
establishment.
Does a Demon walked amongst them?
It might be an
individual, or a group of them, who are under the influence of the Demons; or
it might simply be the presence of a Demon Lord.

Gwyneth mingled in the crowd
and checked every face. The undercurrent of emotions churned in her chest and
attempts to master it failed. She heard a wave of murmurs and Gwyneth realized
something. She looked out a window and found it snowing! The sight of snow
elicited cries of surprise and amazement from the congregation. Many had not
expected snow that early.

Her search was not easy as it
was synonymous to the proverbial finding a needle in the haystack. There were
so many beautiful individuals, all well-endowed,  self-assured and accomplished
in their respective arenas.

Gwyneth transported herself to
a higher floor for a better view. Her senses had registered the solid presence
of glimmering darkness, a sure sign of Demons. Gwyneth scanned the floor with
vigilance and stopped abruptly. She spotted someone—or rather she had been
spotted. She felt eyes on her.

Cautiously, she turned and
spotted the source of darkness. A familiar silhouette.  It was dressed to the
hilt, resplendent in a purplish gown with overflowing tresses and fair shoulders.
She was outstanding.

Their eyes locked on each
other. After a moment of mutual study, which felt like an eternity to Gwyneth,
she moved in, but the purplish seductress turned and fled, disappearing into
the crowd.

Gwyneth raised herself airborne
and spotted the lady in an alley on Chambers Street. The White Angel dove
immediately into the dark and damp alley.

“Stop!” the White Angel ordered
and was surprised when the lay stopped. She had expected the Demon to flee.

Without uttering a word, the demonic
lady turned around and unleashed a bolt of purplish lightning. Gwyneth shut her
eyes and murmured a prayer, and the purplish lightning crystallized and fell to
the ground, shattering upon impact.

“I should have known it was you,”
Gwyneth said. “The hair, the look, and the posture; they were so familiar.”

“Gwyneth.” The lady spoke in a
silky voice, tinged with resignation.

“Seraphina, your attraction is
undiminished. What are you doing in New York?”

“Gwyneth, you are beautiful as always.
The aura, the grace, and …” Seraphina sniffed. “You knew it was me, didn’t
you?”

“No, I didn’t until I saw you.
The City Hall is not a place for you, Seraphina.”

The demonic dame looked away,
subdued and uneasy.

“That’s not like you; it’s a
far cry from your usual disposition.” When Seraphina remained circumspect,
Gwyneth was suspicious. “Do you no regard for the rules of engagement set by
God and your overlord?”

Seraphina was silent.

“Explain your exact purpose.”

“Lady Gwyneth, let me remind
you it is my mandate to tempt the feeble-willed amongst the human race. Do not
make it sound like I came here to start a new war. The fault lies with the
humans and their leaders, whom you call the Kings. They are all the same,
strong in the head, but soft in the groin!”

Gwyneth was insistent. “You are
not answering me.”

“I don’t owe you an
explanation.”

The sounds of hisses heralded
the arrival of Seraphina’s assistants. Down through the alley, Gwyneth saw
countless serpents slithering towards her. The venomous creations of Seraphina
were notorious for their lethal nature.

Gwyneth shut her eyes in deep
prayer. Instantly, a blanket of ice spread across the alley and froze the
snakes. The seductress meanwhile had fled through the alley and headed for the
sky. Gwyneth darted across the space and followed, and soon found Seraphina on a
rooftop.

The White Angel extended her
right hand and unleashed a bolt of white energy that hit the ground and formed
a layer of ice over Seraphina’s feet.

“You are not going anywhere until
I get a satisfactory answer.”

Seraphina blinked rapidly.
Trembling she complained “Do you have to be so rude? You will spoil my boots! ”

“I want my answer.” Gwyneth
crackled her knuckles and flashed her fist.

“Always so keen for a fight,”
Seraphina sniggered. “Fist fights are not always the best solution to
disagreements.

“Fancy a complaint and plea for
peace from a Demon.”

“You will get the fight you
want, Gwyneth, when the time comes.”

Gwyneth froze. She unrolled her
fist. The voice was not Seraphina’s. The answer, robust as a Roman spear, had
come from behind her. As the memory tunnel revived, she felt weakness snuffle
her limbs.

Her pulse had increased as she
fought her slide into sentimentality. The snow had returned. She noticed the sinister
gleam of satisfaction on Seraphina’s face. The seductress has been buying time.

Inhaling deeply, she turned to
face the new arrival. Gwyneth eyed the swaggering figure, seven feet tall, the
epitome of all things sinister and twisted. The arrogant countenance, the hands
on the hips, and the vintage scalding gaze that set lesser beings on fire are
all so familiar.

The memories gushed into
Gwyneth’s consciousness, beyond her control, like an angry stream of cold water
and brought on a shudder.

The Demon Lord still possessed
that innate suaveness, although Gwyneth detected a stronger ring of dark power
around him; an aura of evil that had augmented since their last encounter. His
presence was venom to the innocent and stifling even for an Angel. The dark
robes lent an air of unquestioned authority and domination.

“Darius,” she said in firm
voice and the snow stopped falling.

“Lord Barbatos, please.”

“That name is a badge of
infamy.”

“I am proud of that name, my
friend.”

“This is the sort of treatment
you reserve for friends.” Gwyneth looked around her.

The dark lord uttered a
deep-throated chuckle, generating a ripple of energy that beat on Gwyneth’s
face.

She wished Maganus were there.
He would love a fist-fight with Barbatos.

“Gwyneth, you are always in my
thoughts.”

Gwyneth clenched her fists.
“Your sentimentality is not appreciated.”

“I’d expected a better
reception.”

“Explain your purpose on Earth,
in New York.”

The Demon Lord grinned, a look
of confidence on his square-jawed face. Within a split of second, Barbatos has unleashed
a bolt of dark energies from his gloved-palm. It came swiftly, so swiftly that Gwyneth
barely leapt out of harm’s way. The powerful bolt hit the ground. Debris hit
Gwyneth and sent her into the skyward, like a baby thrown into the air by a
ruthless marauder.

Gwyneth tried to land but the
rippling darkness was too great, and she had to execute a series of somersaults
to mitigate the impact. She brought her wild projection to a halt with sparks
of light created by the fiction with the particles in the air.

When Gwyneth regained
equilibrium, she found herself staring at the quilt of lights that was New
York, Manhattan, Bronx, and Queens. Barbatos has blown her nearly into space.

She circled in the chilly
stratospheric heights, gathering her strength. Barbatos’s powers had improved
beyond her wildest imagination. Gwyneth sped towards the rooftop, her heart beating
erratically.

But Barbatos and Seraphina were
nowhere in sight; all she found was the carnage of a damaged rooftop. There was
chaos on the streets with crowds in panic and shock, wailing sirens in the
background. There were bodies lying around, crushed by the fallen debris.
Gwyneth crossed her heart and said a silent prayer.

I must locate Barbatos. His
presence meant only one thing, a larger scheme of evil.

Questions crowded her mind as
she struggled to make sense of Barbatos’s presence on Earth.
If Barbatos had
orchestrated the wave of killings, what will be his next step?

As sirens blared as ambulances
and police arrived, the heavy snowfall returned. 

#

The governor put down his mug
of coffee and asserted, “Jin, I am not a jelly-spined and honey-toothed
politician. I made tough decisions and I am ready to make this one as well. I
have had such moments in my life, and they were never easy to make. However, I passed
those tests.”

“Walter, nobody doubts the
strength of your character.”

“I know this is an incredible
opportunity to make history,” the governor said. However I need to be sure I deserve
that opportunity.”

Jin could see the halo of light
forming over Walter Johnson. This was the moment of
Suscitatio—
awareness
and awakening that comes to all Kings who grasp the value of their existence
and understand the ultimate destiny. The light was weak but it will grow with
the strengthening faith.

The conviction in the governor,
his posture, the strut and the tone of the voice, spoke of an inner reservoir
of strength that belied the grey hair, wrinkled brows, and slight slump in the
shoulders. Even that caution and thoughtfulness for the family was part of a
kingly disposition. The perchance to think twice before a major decision
denotes a caution that is much desired in the Kings. There are sometimes too
much at stake to tolerate a modicum of recklessness.