“Don’t you?”
“No.” His voice is steady, unmoved. “Whether you like it or not, this world is ending. It’s been decided, and neither you nor I nor any of my brothers has any power over that.”
I fume as I jerk the reins, directing Enoch back to the path. Only later, after I settle somewhat, does he catch up with me and try to restart the conversation.
“If you were paying attention, then you’d realize I’m not killing off the planet, which I assure you, with time, I could do. I’m only taking what’s needed and cycling the power back to Him so He can remake the world when it’s time or reuse the power to fight the battle we will inevitably face at The End of Days.”
“Why would He need the power?”
“Because He’s given everything to his creations, and there’s simply not enough of him left to win this war if He doesn’t draw some of it back to Himself. Also, this test for the souls can’t be a true test if there is no sacrifice, no opportunity to show that in desperate circumstances, they will still choose to rise above the madness and do what is right. It’s what will earn them their place in Heaven.”
I stew on this long enough that he goes on to explain further.
“Only when we’re truly tested do we prevail or perish.”
My glare earns me a small chuckle. “Do you even know who walks among you in these last days? What sort of souls do you believe are worth saving?”
I place my hand, which has grown stiff with pain, behind my pommel and stare down at it as it shakes uncontrollably. My leg is a blazing inferno of agony that has me gritting my teeth with each step my horse takes. My mind is cloudy as thoughts of another dose keep blinking in and out. Even my stomach roils in on itself with nausea. However, the conversation momentarily takes my mind off the pain, even if only for a moment, giving me something else to focus on.
He doesn’t wait for my reply. “The top six levels of Hell. All the souls who resided there. That’s who is reborn and will face judgment. All the others have already been tested and either reside in Heaven as we speak or in the last three levels of Hell, and those unfortunate souls won’t get the opportunity for redemption. They’ve proven they don’t deserve it.”
“What do you mean, souls… like demons or?—”
“There’s a great difference between the souls that reside in Hell and demons. Souls there are the dead who are being punished for their actions during the lives they were given. Demons are altogether different.”
“How?”
“The first demons are creatures created by Lucifer himself. They are bred from when Lucifer and his brethren, the Fallen, held more power and shared small pieces of themselves to create guards for their new realm, Hell. But eons have passed, and very few demons, if any, are created anymore. The ones who are, are born and bred from other demons.
“It’s different in Heaven. God pulls power from both himself and the universe, splits a portion of his soul, and gifts it to everything he creates. Lucifer and his lords gave very little of themselves because they had little to give. And their abilities to create were rudimentary at best. Their vile creations are responsible for the hordes that now exist in Hell. Without culling, they’ve continued to spread and procreate. Hell is overrun with their kind, and still they persist. But with each generation of demon, the power grows thinner. To the point that very little of God's essence exists, if at all. They are mindless beasts. Evil incarnate.
“We call these demons, The Soulless.
“They are savage and lack the ability to choose right from wrong. They hunger for something they cannot name. They feed on the souls in Hell, rape, and cause a never-ending cycle of destruction because they ache for something they can never receive. Especially the lower species, far removed from those Fallen turned out of Heaven or their spawn.
“It has created absolute chaos in Hell, and it is one of the reasons Lucifer fights so hard to rule earth or take over Heaven itself. He essentially created his own purgatory and does not want to live in it anymore.”
“So you’re saying all the humans alive in this generation?—”
“Are souls who previously died and until recently resided in Hell awaiting this day. This is their opportunity to earn redemption. That is who we have been sent to test.”
I turn to meet his stare.
He eyes me critically, then says, “You being the only exception.”
This takes me off guard. “Why? How do you know?—”
“Your soul has never touched Hell. I would be able to sense if it had. Yet, you live here, now. How is that possible?”
“I have lived much longer than I was originally designed to.”
“And you achieve this how, exactly?”
I stay silent but can feel his piercing gaze probing for this answer.
“Wait. Stop,” he says abruptly, startling me.
He then speaks a few words in a language I don’t understand, and both horses come to a halt. In one clean movement, he is off his horse and at my side. “You’re bleeding.”
