Children of the Archangels

CHAPTER 51: BORN OF THE SMOKELESS FIRE

Figures Jurgen would summon a creature that represents what he looks like on the inside—ugly, lonely, and desperate to please his master.

The cage rose from the water and opened up like the layers of an artichoke, revealing a beast who was a mashup of so many different creatures it was like an orgy gone wrong. First thing Luke noticed was a dog-face. When he noticed a dog face rising out of the water, it didn't look like a cute Beagle trying to do the doggie paddle. It had the face of a hellhound with tusks that put a walrus to shame. It's ears were hidden behind flaps of scaly olive skin, and it had the head frame of a crocodile.

But wait, there's more.

While the head looked like it suffered from an extreme case of dry skin, the rest of its body was covered in dark gray fur and not the fluffy carpet kind that tempts you to lie on it. It was the rough brittle welcome mat kind—tough enough to scrap the dirt and blood from its enemies. Instead of paws or arms or legs, it had flippers like those of a turtle. Finally, whoever created this thing played pin the tail on the ugly because it had a horse's tail in the back (maybe God was a bit drunk when he made this one).

So yeah, an orgy gone horribly wrong.

Luke and Sirius looked at each other with an "oh shit we're screwed," look on their faces. The thing wasn't as big as a Chuchunya, but it was still the size of a fully-grown tiger and those things could maul a person's face beyond repair.

"Do you like it?" Jurgen said. "He'll keep you two plenty of busy—long enough for you two to be trapped here to fend for yourself until the cove opens again...if you can survive that long."

Luke hadn't really been paying much attention to his exit, but Uriel wasn't lying when he said they needed to leave before the lovers kissed. The two cliffs were closing in on each other, forming what would eventually be a massive gate. The water in the cove had been cut in half and was shrinking. Luke looked down at his hourglass watch and noticed the sand dangerously low on the top half.

"So you were the one who summoned the Zengan at SGA," Sirius pointed his finger at Jurgen.

"Guilty," Jurgen said nonchalantly. "One of the perks of having been reborn through the smokeless fire."

Sirius gripped his head as if a sudden migraine had come on or maybe he was having an aneurysm from using his teleportation power too much. Either way, what Jurgen said must've triggered some memory inside Sirius that had been suppressed.

"But how..." Sirius gritted through his teeth. "You shouldn't be able to summon anything into this place."

Jurgen pointed at the creature in the water. "That's not anything, that's an Iumenti. This is where the extinct species spend their afterlife. The Aboriginals used to call this particular Iumenti the Bunyip. Level 3 Iumenti if that matters to you—it certainly didn't matter to Gonja, who imprisoned him underwater because of his features."

There's that name again, Luke thought. Gonja, what does that mean?

But Luke didn't have enough time to answer questions. The Bunyip was close to devouring Nil and Alpha. Alpha was still slowed by the poison Jurgen injected into him. He was vomiting white liquid that looked like melted cheese. But even while doing so, he managed to move Nil out of the way of a cricket bat swipe that would've sent Nil skidding across the water like a pebble.

The thing could barely move on land. It looked like a walrus trying to move its blubbery body across the sand. But it wasn't a Level 3 Iumenti for nothing. Soon the tide of the water began to rise and the boat that they had dragged pretty far inland was being drawn out into the cove and the Bunyip was coming closer.

It swiped again at Alpha, but suddenly Sirius appeared in front of them and swiped his sword Absorber across one of the creature's fins. Luke imagined the fin being sliced off like pork loin, or maybe even the Bunyip's soul being absorbed into Sirius's sword.

But the light of the sword bounced back and burned the right side of Sirius's eye. Sirius screamed and fell to the ground. Luke looked to Jurgen, but he was racing towards the cove with the backpack full of plants and herbs from the Garden of Eden. Luke at first really couldn't stand the idea of Jurgen having his hands on something that could potentially make him better and stronger than him. But now he definitely didn't want to see those materials given to someone much more powerful than the two of them combined—especially if that person was anything like Jurgen.

Luke raced after Jurgen, wishing he had his whip so he can trip him and hogtie him down. He didn't want to fall into the shadow of his own monster that wanted to kill Jurgen for what he had done. He simply wished to bring him back to SGA and prove to everyone that he knew "Victor" was no good from the beginning. What's the old saying, don't look at how a person treats his equals, but his inferiors?

Well Jurgen treated his inferiors like crap and hence he was the same.

Luke charged up his left hand, molding the electricity to from the base of a new weapon. He kindled his right hand, creating something stiff, yet flexible. Then he did something he hadn't successfully done before. He crossed the fire with the lightning.

In his left hand he held an electric bow, and in his right hand, he held a living arrow of fire—a stiff snake that hissed at the tip of the arrowhead.

But Luke had to make a decision. Sirius was injured from his reflected blast, his eye burning from the intense light. He was trying to hold off the creature with sand strikes, but it was only buying them time at most—time they couldn't afford to waste. Alpha was in no condition to move, and Nil was still recovering from having eaten the fruit. The Bunyip managed to drag the tide further inland, because everywhere it went, the water followed. Its walrus tusks were ready to start raking flesh. If Luke shot it, the Bunyip's attention will turn onto him and Jurgen would be able to escape.

Meanwhile, Jurgen was heading for the boat, a good distance away from the Bunyip. If he let him go, he will flee with their only ride out of the Garden of Eden. He will escape and take the fruit and herbs to his master who could eventually use them against SGA, because SGA stood at the ready to fight alongside God—and Jurgen's master, Lucifer, existed to thwart God.

Luke had to choose—save his friends and risk being stranded, or save their ride and stop Jurgen from causing the apocalypse, even if it would mean killing him.

If only the others hadn't lost their bags when falling from the sky. But some things were inevitable.

Luke released his grip on the bow, allowing the tension to release from his body.

And he'd knew he would have to live with this decision for the rest of his life.