With a laugh, he looks down into Elina’s eyes, expecting to see defeat, what he finds instead is defiance.
Her eyes lock onto his and she erupts with the power inside of her. The tattoos on her skin surge with the heavenly power of never ending faith and his hands begin to burn from the contact with her skin. With a sharp explosion, he is thrown back from his prey and driven into the shield wall behind him.
The impact breaks his remaining wing and the skin on his face and chest has been burned completely away, leaving the charred muscle and bone exposed to the world.
As he lifts himself from the ground, he looks at Elina with lidless eyes and watches her drop to her knees. He looks at the golden Aramaic script emblazed on her skin and his eyes go wide with shock.
At that moment he realizes, the Keeper is the final piece!
Fighting back the darkness that threatens to take her Elina holds her hand over her chest covering the holes from his claws. Blood is running freely down her arms dripping to the ground in puddles. The tattoos on her skin are dimming and she struggles to stay awake.
His pain is gloriously intense, it tells him he is still alive. Looking at the shield he sees that it has also dimmed, he is getting weak, and he needs her blood.
With that thought he jumps at Elina, like an animal, pinning her to the ground by the wall and sinks his teeth into her shoulder once more. Immense power floods his body as he leaches the essence from her body.
The pain from the Mockers teeth shocks Elina into action. She can feel her life force slipping away. Keeping one hand over her chest, she strikes at the Mocker, driving her fist into his raw flesh ripping at the very muscles of his body.
She feels the pressure of his mouth lessen. She hits and pulls more, tearing at the tortured blackened flesh. Finally, she hits something and with a gasp of pain he releases her. Her head is swimming from her injuries and blood loss.
Stumbling to her feet, she looks at the Mocker and watches as his body is reforming right in front of her horror filled eyes. His lush white wings snap out fully feathered, his face reforms back to its glory, his body is completely regenerated. He looks down at his now beautiful body and laughs before turning to look around.
Alex watches with a look of horror, understanding on his face. Elina is the final piece. “Noo!!” he screams and starts running towards them, praying that God will help him stop the Mocker.
“Too late! I am reborn!” He says, looking at what is left of the Keeper, “Where is your God, Keeper? Who is going to save you and your pathetic humanity now?”
He turns away from the ruin of the woman before him and drops his shield, showing all what he has become. A wave of his hand and a huge portal opens again to his realm.
It screams a tortured sound as unholy energies force the two realities together. With the portal open his sons and their legions pour through into the world above.
Chapter 33
He is too late. Alex looks on in disbelief. This is not possible, this was not part of the plan. They are supposed to win! He skids to a stop and watches the horrors marching into his world to look once more at his sister.
He can see the blood running down her body. She falls to one knee, no longer able to support herself. A loud boom rocks him on his feet and he turns to see Michael and the other archangel’s flying toward the growing horde of demons firing lightning at them to slow down the tide. Black charred bodies fall across the ground from explosions, only to be stomped upon by the monsters behind them fighting to escape hell.
“She’s dying,” he whispers and all sound fades. He scans the ruins that were once his village and finds Jake and the other Keepers. With all of the angels busy fighting back the Mockers army, they will be no help.
Jake is on the other side of the village fighting with Makaio and his son Loe. The battle has pushed them back from the center of the village where the portal first opened.
Jake is bleeding from his neck and arms with cuts on his face. Makaio and Lao only look a little better from the heavy fighting of the demons. They are in a group pushing a pack of dog demons back towards the open portal. Every strike sends a plume of dust and debris into the air as they beat the hell hounds back.
Alex yells, “Jake! He’s killing her! Jake! She needs help now!”
Jake hears the scream for help and what he finds stuns him. Horror shows on his face as he takes in the scene and Elina’s current condition. The Mocker is standing over her bloody body, taunting her, as he watches his sons lead their armies out of hell with an insane smile on his face.
Alex has a flash of an idea. “Jake, catch her!”
Before it even registers with Jake, Alex attempts to port Elina away from the Mocker, as she did him. His intention is to send her to Jake and the others Keepers so they can help her.
Evil is not so easily fooled. The Mocker feels the power surge around the brutalized bleeding woman at his feet and reaches down quickly snatching Elina’s ankle. Fueled by the power of the keeper’s blood, he drags her into his arms and explodes straight up into the night sky.
Elina fights, but she knows she is no match for the demonic archangel. He is fueled by the power of her blood. Weak from the fight and blood loss she watches the ground fall quickly away.
The Mocker searches
