The Lord was unmoved by his cries. He raised his staff and stamped it on the ground. It sent a tremor through the ropes that held the bridge together.
In horror, Abraham watched the ropes fray. Then the wooden steps began to fly apart and disintegrate in the blaze. He ran forward toward the other diviners. Toward the Lord. They all frowned at him. None reached out a hand to help. He felt himself falling as the bridge dissolved in flame. He felt himself collapsing into the demon shape that came rushing up out of the fire to absorb him.
“Nooooo!” He sat bolt upright in bed, drenched in sweat. An ordinary person might have breathed a sigh of relief that it was just a bad dream. But he was the diviner. For him, a bad dream was never as simple as that.
***
The following morning, Abraham decided to pay a long overdue visit to his son Daniel. He wanted a progress report. The evil sending of the night before had convinced him that they were running out of time. Fortunately, this was one of the rare days when his son hadn’t sequestered himself in the libraries of the Fallen. He found the young man alone in the compound study room.
Daniel was seated with his back to the door, poring over a stack of volumes he had brought with him from the city. He didn’t turn around to see who had entered. Abraham noted the public library tags on the book spines as he drew up behind his son.
“Father!” Daniel exclaimed in surprise and alarm when he saw who was looking over his shoulder. “I… uh… that is… uh… I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”
“I daresay you weren’t.” The old man attempted to soften his fierce gaze. No sense in alarming the boy too much. Nothing could be gained by that. Abraham took a chair across the table. “I see you are hard at work,” he observed pleasantly.
“Yes, yes I am.” Daniel bobbed his head in agreement. “I spend most days at the library in the city until Brother Jeremiah comes in the van to bring me home.”
“And what have you learned so far?” The old man kept his tone deliberately mild.
Daniel sighed deeply. “I have made very little progress. At first, I tried on my own, but it was too difficult navigating the Fallen library records, so I finally had to ask for help.”
Abraham felt a shockwave travel down his spine. “You spoke to one of them? You know that our community is set apart. We are God’s chosen ones. We cannot allow ourselves to be contaminated.”
His son looked guilty. “Yes, Father, I know, but there was no other way. I had to ask a research librarian, and he was very kind. Not at all what I expected.”
“Really?” The old man raised a skeptical eyebrow.
“He was dressed very neatly, and he wore a gold cross around his neck. He said he was a Christian.” Daniel smiled at the memory. “To me, he looked like one of the seraphim. His hair was golden, and it curled around his collar. He must have been about thirty. My age.”
“Remember, my son, that the devil often appears in a pleasing shape. He adopts the guise of the young and fair, the better to gain the trust of the unwary.”
Daniel frowned slightly, unconvinced. “His name was David, and he seemed very knowledgeable. He had the most beautiful blue eyes—”
Abraham cut in. “And how did this knowledgeable young man help you?”
“He showed me something he called the internet. A wondrous device that can call up information instantly from anywhere in the world.”
“Yes, I’ve heard of it,” Abraham said darkly. “I feared you might be exposed to its evil influence.”
“Evil?” His son looked puzzled. “How could it be evil? In the space of a day, I was able to learn more information than I had been able to accomplish on my own in a week.”
Abraham felt a growing sense of uneasiness. “My son, I told you there would be unexpected dangers in the world of the Fallen. This device, this internet, is a gateway to all sorts of temptations. Only think what other pernicious information is also available to you at the touch of a button. Vile things that no Nephilim ought to know.”
“But Father, I was very careful. I asked only about ancient languages, and David did all the typing. He knows how to command this internet machine. I really think it will help us find the answer.”
Abraham’s attention was caught by the title of the book sitting on top of a stack of other library volumes. “What is this?” His tone was deliberately sharp.
“Why, it’s something David thought I might find interesting. A history of comparative religion.”
“Religion is never comparative!” the old man thundered. “Your immortal soul is never comparative!”
His son was taken aback and stammered a protest. “F… Father, he m… meant no harm. I meant no harm by reading it. P… please, don’t be angry. I had no idea there were so many other faiths in the world.”
“The faith of the Fallen has nothing to do with us! We are not like them! We are a race set apart!” Abraham sprang out of his chair and pounded his fist on the table for emphasis. “My son, you are being seduced by their world. This is the way their evil influence begins. They convince you there is no harm in anything they say. They draw you in, and before you know it they have taken your soul. Do you understand what you are
