ARMAGEDDON

14: Fallen

It took two weeks for Malice to recover enough from her wounds to be able to weakly limp around. Whatever Baphomet did to her, it's obvious that her abilities have been severely crippled for the time being. With her being disabled, we got to talk to each other a little bit. I recall a conversation we had.

"So, how is it that you became a fallen Angel?" I asked.

"Well, you should know that the Angels that Fall, are ones that commit crimes against humanity, or defy the will of the big G." Malice replied weakly, but she still had that edge of cynicism.

"Did you do any of that?"

Malice let out a loud sigh, and said "No. God made me imperfect. He wanted to see what an imperfect Angel would do, how they would react. I loved him more than the others, it felt as if he was my father, and in a way, he is. But that's why I failed. I let emotion cloud my judgement, and it led to me being banished."

I thought for a minute, then said "Why did he cast you out?"

Malice looked away, then said quietly "He feels emotion, but not in a way that humans would understand. The big G realised that I would rebel, and decided everyone would be better off if I were to Fall before that could happen."

"Do you hate Him?" I asked.

"It's complicated, Jason. I still love Him, I understand why he did it, it doesn't stop me from feeling hurt. But, there's nothing to be done. So I decided if Hell is where I'll be, I'll make damn sure that I'm there to be in charge." Malice replied.

Malice and I had a few more conversations, but it was mainly her asking about me, how humans live. Just for a moment, even though her perception of time and reality is so different and alien to how I understand it, she felt more human than anyone else I ever met. It was at this point that for some strange reason, I realized I was developing feelings for her. She looked good for someone living in Hell, and even though she seems cynical and pessimistic, she has a layer of personality just beneath the surface.

All I know is, she's someone that feels a lot of pain, and it's a pain that I can't begin to understand. Hell truly is a place for punishment. A cosmic prison. A place where the suffering and violence is endless, and sympathy is out of stock. But just for a single moment, I felt sorry for her. But there was a mission to be had, and I couldn't let personal feelings cloud my judgement and soften me up, it will get me killed.

While Daniel and Lucian would be talking to Malice, I would be undertaking a suicide mission. On paper, it sounds pretty standard. But when it comes to visualization, it can't be anything other than a suicide mission. I was being sent into a hotspot of demonic activity. Right into southern Korea. My mission: Infiltrate the city of Seoul, find out what the Demons are doing, and keep my eyes peeled for Archangels. The Archangels I'm speaking of are the same ones from the Archangel Initiative. Apparently, word has it they sent a recon team of five Archangels, and there's nothing but radio silence from them. If I can, it is one of my priorities to find that team.

I was busy getting suited up, when my mind floated to the subject of the Specter. It was from my dreams, and it tried to kill me when I went back to my house? What is it? Maybe I'll ask Malice if I get time. I slid my helmet over my face, and went into the armory. I still had my Glock holstered, and I grabbed a SCAR Mk17 assault rifle. I grabbed five 30 round magazines, and waited to load a magazine into the chamber until I got inside the VTOL plane.

Daniel would be my handler, and would communicate with me over the radio when I made landfall. I strapped myself in as the VTOL plane took off, and we wont through a wormhole to Earth with a huge shudder. As we approached Seoul, the sky seemed to become increasingly apocalyptic, and the smell of sulfur started to permeate through the steel walls of the VTOL plane, and through the air filters in my helmet. As the bay door opened, I flung myself out of the bay, and started to freefall. After a while, I pulled the rip cord on the parachute and floated down to the scorched Earth below. As soon as I hit the ground, I cut the parachute off and dived into a nearby crater and took cover.