"By the order of the Divine?" Zorfis's voice was sharp with disbelief. "Do you mean you're one of the denizens who betrayed Hell, Sir Damon?"
A grin crept across Damon's face. "That's correct."
Zorfis stared at him, incredulous. "But why? You're a high-ranking demon! Why would you join the likes of them?"
Damon shrugged casually. "Nothing really. I'm just sick of Hell, that's all."
Infuriated, Zorfis clenched his fist. A seething white aura erupted from him, engulfing his entire body in radiant fury. "You traitor! Even as a high-ranking demon, I will put you down!"
"Go ahead then," Damon replied, his tone flat.
"Conjure!" With a furious roar, twelve colossal energy spheres—each as massive as a mountain—materialized around Zorfis and shot toward Damon with deadly speed.
Damon's face remained expressionless as he calmly watched the barrage approach. In one fluid motion, he drew one of his twin swords from the sheath on his back and effortlessly dispelled all twelve spheres before they could strike. "Is that all you've got from a second-ranked demon?"
Zorfis's rage only deepened. Gathering his power, he conjured a swirling portal beneath Damon, pulling him through and hurling him toward Earth's molten core.
Inside the blazing heart of the planet, Damon considered his next move carefully. Any reckless use of force to escape could devastate the world above, endangering the humans he swore to protect.
"That won't be enough to kill him," Zorfis muttered, eyes narrowing.
Suddenly, a spiraling portal burst open, and Damon emerged unscathed, immediately charging into close combat. Zorfis lunged with a devastating punch, but Damon dodged effortlessly—the resulting shockwave splitting clouds across the globe.
Zorfis's relentless barrage continued, but Damon suddenly stopped evading, allowing a brutal blow to land. A powerful kick sent Damon flying at supersonic speed, crashing through several cities already ravaged by natural disasters. Unfazed, Damon summoned a colossal energy sphere and unleashed it with devastating force, obliterating the city beneath them down to its mantle.
Wary, Zorfis teleported them both into the cold void of outer space. There, with immense effort, he conjured a supermassive black hole, its crushing gravity designed to trap Damon forever.
"That should do it," Zorfis said triumphantly.
But then, shock rippled across Zorfis's face—the black hole began freezing from within, ice crystallizing the swirling darkness. As he struggled to comprehend Damon's true power, the black hole shattered violently, triggering a cataclysmic cosmic explosion.
Before the blast could engulf them, Damon struck with a single slash, tearing through space and time itself. The two were suddenly hurtling back toward Earth, crashing down in Texas, USA.
General Clement watched the scene unfold. "It appears demons are siding with mankind, just as the intel suggested."
Felicia frowned. "But why would they assist us?"
"Perhaps it's divine intervention," Clement mused.
Felicia scoffed, "A demon as divine intervention? Hardly."
Nearby, Lamia moved with lethal precision, her blade a blur as she dispatched her opponent. Then her eyes sharpened, focusing on Damon and Zorfis. Zorfis lay on the ground, bleeding from Damon's slash, struggling to rise as his wound slowly regenerated. Lamia stepped forward, pressing him to heal.
"So you truly are a traitor," she said coldly. "I respected you once, but now I will kill you—and when you resurrect, you will be bound in Hell forever."
Damon met her gaze, calm and unwavering. "I know you're strong, Lamia, but foolish. How could you refuse the Divine's offer? You could have a place in paradise, fight for the Divine's army in the ultimate battle of salvation. Instead, you choose a losing fight, destined for the lake of fire alongside the other denizens."
Lamia's expression hardened. "You speak as if you've already won, as if the denizens will lose! Why you?!" she spat in Greek, her voice sharp as blades:
"Δηλητηριώδης αύρα. Αύρα βροχής μετεωριτών."
(Pronounced: Dee-lee-tee-ree-O-thees A-vra. A-vra vro-HEES me-te-o-ree-TON.)
Visions flashed in Damon's mind—meteor showers crashing into planets, annihilating stars. He stood transfixed, caught in the trance.
"Is this the effect of your powers?" Damon said, unfazed and uninjured. "You wield your relentless aura to target and crush opponents with precision. The meteor showers I saw show just how much aura you used to attack me. In other words, I felt the force of meteor showers destroying entire solar systems."
Lamia's eyes flickered with challenge. "Whether you understand my powers or not, you can't avoid them once you're targeted." She intoned again in Greek:
"Δηλητηριώδης αύρα. Αύρα βροχής μετεωριτών. Πολλαπλή ηλιακή εισπνοή."
(Pronounced: Dee-lee-tee-ree-O-thees A-vra. A-vra vro-HEES me-te-o-ree-TON. Po-la-plee ee-lee-a-KEE ees-pno-EE.)
Images of meteor showers wiping out solar systems flashed through Damon's mind once more, pulling him into another trance.
"This one was much better than before, Lamia," he said.
"Then take this fight seriously!" she warned.
Damon smiled coldly. The air around her dropped to absolute zero, freezing her solid. Her body cracked and shattered, yet she broke free.
"Did you think freezing me at a molecular level would stop my power? You underestimate me!" Lamia hissed.
Damon glanced at her with disinterest, as if the fight bored him.
BEFORE TIME
"Is it true?" Zorfis asked quietly. "We could live like the Divine if we join Lucifer's army?"
"That's what I've heard," Lamia admitted. "I'm struggling to decide whether to join."
"Why?"
"Our sole purpose, as created by the Divine, is to praise and worship endlessly," Lamia said, eyes distant. "Which is… fine, because the Divine is all-powerful. But we have free will, and I want to explore that."
Zorfis nodded. "I understand. Sometimes I wonder if there's more than just worship and praise. Sometimes I want to see what the Divine is doing on Earth."
"We could gain all this if we join Lucifer and overthrow the Divine," Lamia said, voice heavy. "But it's not easy—the archangels like Michael and Gabriel stand loyal to the Divine, opposing Lucifer's ideology."
Zorfis sighed. "The archangels are powerful. Without them, defeat is certain. But what if we simply ask the Divine to grant our desires, instead of risking our lives for Lucifer?"
Lamia smiled faintly. "The Divine already has. Through free will."
Zorfis blinked. "How?"
"We have a choice—to chase our desires, to choose our path. We must decide whether to join Lucifer. That time is coming."
Zorfis swallowed hard. "And which side will you pick?"
Lamia hesitated. "I don't know yet."
DURING THE GREAT REBELLION
"Conjure!" Zorfis shouted, unleashing a barrage of gamma rays that tore through a dozen angels—except one.
"Impenetrable shield!" came a firm voice in Greek. Αδιαπέραστη ασπίδα! (Adiaperasti aspida!)
Zorfis's attack reflected back, knocking him off the realm of Heaven.
Lamia faced her own battle. "Aura! Colliding black holes!" she cried in Greek. Αύρα! Σύγκρουση μαύρων τρυπών! (Avra! Sigkrousi mavron trupon.)
Her devastating aura erased her opponents from existence. But amidst the chaos, one figure stood untouched—Raphael, the archangel of healing and mercy. His celestial blue robes flowed around him, his wings shimmering with iridescent light, radiating peace and divine authority. His eyes, filled with compassion yet firm resolve, locked on Lamia.
"Lamia," Raphael's voice cut through the destruction with serene clarity. "Why have you chosen to ally yourself with Lucifer? Have you forgotten the eternal light entrusted to us by the Divine?"
Lamia's expression hardened, but uncertainty flickered in her eyes. Her aura faltered beneath Raphael's overwhelming presence. "Raphael," she answered, defiant yet shaken, "I want to exercise my free will. Lucifer promises freedom from the shackles of blind servitude."
Raphael's wings fluttered, stirring a gentle breeze. Holding his staff, he cursed Lamia with unspeakable diseases and torment. Her internal organs melted, skin swelling and burning beyond endurance. Overwhelmed, she succumbed, losing the battle.
Thus, Zorfis and Lamia were cast among the angels who chose to join Lucifer's rebellion.