Archangel Chronicles2:Ring of Solomon1-6

The Archangel Chronicles
Act 2
The Ring of Solomon
By Joshua D. Vesper

Prologue
The demons lost their temper. They threw the girl they had captured to the ground and

began to stomp furiously at Johnny and Brendan.

“See What I mean? Retards.” Johnny then said.

“Yep. Retards.” Brendan replied. The two let out a small chuckle as the air thickened

with sulfur fumes, extreme heat, and smoke. The demons charged at them. At the last

second,the two Archangels drew their swords of flame and rushed into battle.

A ferocious onslaught ensued between the forces of good and evil. Johnny’s sword

struck hard against the first demon’s battleaxe as Brendan parried the others demon sword blows

and attacked with fierce punches and kicks. The terrified girl stared at the spectacle, awestruck.

After a short time, Johnny and Brendan gained the upper hand. The demons were

completely subdued. They charged the two archangels one final time, but were incinerated by

holy energy waves released by Johnny and Brendan. The two quietly sheathed their swords and

turned toward the girl. She screamed as the two archangels walked toward her, smirks across

their faces...

Chapter 1

“Are you alright, kid?” Johnny nonchalantly asked the girl as Brendan sheathed his sword

of flame. The terrified girl remained silent. Brendan chuckled and walked over to where the girl

lay sprawled across the ground. He bent over and offered her a hand up. The girl cringed, which

made both Archangels laugh again.

“You need not fear us, little lady. We’re the good guys.” Brendan told the girl and

smiled. Hesitantly she took hold of his hand and He lifted her to her feet. The girl cringed again

and began to slowly step backward.

“W-Who are you?” She asked timidly.

“Well, I’m Johnny and the is my partner in crime, so to speak, Brendan.” Johnny replied

to the girl’s query, “And what is your name, ma’am?”

“Mia. My name is Mia. Jenson.” She reluctantly responded. The two Archangels could

tell she was still a little afraid of the two of them.

“Tis a pleasure to meet you, Mia.” Johnny declared.

Brendan nodded his head forward slightly and swiftly spoke, “Ma’am.” Instantly Gabriel

appeared before the trio.

“Nice work guys!” He greeted the two Archangels.

“Hey Gabe. What’s up?” Brendan responded. Johnny nodded in unison. Gabriel’s

appearance out of thin air was too much for Mia to take. Silently she slumped to the ground,

awestruck at these supernatural beings before her.

“Whats with her?” Gabriel inquired, puzzled. The other two looked at the girl as she sat

on the ground, dumbfounded at what was taking place. They both let out a boisterous whoop

once more and turned to help her up.

“Mia, you don’t have to be afraid of Gabe here either.” Johnny chuckled, “He’s one of the

good guys as well.” Brendan offered her a hand up again. Quietly she obliged and he lifted her

to her feet once again.

“Mia,” he introduced, “This is Gabriel, an Archangel and the messenger of God almighty.

I’m sure you’ve probably heard of him at some point in your life.” Gabriel gave her a small bow.

“You mean you’re the real Gabriel? The from the Bible Gabriel?” She uttered in

disbelief.

Gabriel smiled at her and replied, “See, all those times in Sunday School paid off.” He

then turned to Johnny and Brendan and declared, “I have you two’s new orders.” He handed

them each a separate scroll.

“What’s this?” Johnny queried.

“You two have separate jobs to do on this assignment.” Gabriel replied.

“You mean sort of like Michael and Raphael were doing when we first met?” Brendan

then asked.

“Exactly!” Gabriel responded. The two unfurled the scrolls they had been handed.

Johnny’s scroll read:” Johnny, You next assignment is to watch over the human girl Mia Jenson.

She must not be captured by the forces of evil!” Brendan’s read: “ Brendan, you are to go to

Jerusalem, Israel, investigate recent demonic activity plaguing the city and put a stop to it

immediately!”

“Oh man!” Johnny exclaimed with a smirk, “ You mean I gotta babysit again? The guys

in the Guardians Department must really be slammed.” He then turned to Brendan and asked,

“What about you, B?”

“J, I’m going to Jerusalem to stop the demons plaguing the city!” Brendan responded.

“Trade ya!” Johnny then said. The three Archangels softly chortled and turned to go their

separate ways.

“See ya later, J!” Brendan told Johnny and vanished into the night.

“Yeah, I gotta get going too. Later J!” Gabriel then told Johnny.

“See ya, Gabe!” came the response. At once Gabriel dematerialized from the site, leaving

only Johnny and the bewildered Mia.alone in the park. He turned to the girl.

“Well, looks like we’ll be together for a while.” Johnny stated to her. All at once a soft

gurgling sound became audible. Mia’s stomach roared from having not eaten for a few days.

She looked away from him, slightly embarrassed. After a short time, she spoke.

“Could we go somewhere to get some food?” She nervously asked.

“Do you happen to like cajun food?” Johnny replied. Before she could answer, he took

hold of her hand and the two of them disappeared into the night.

Chapter 2

From nearby shadows in the park, an imp that had been injured before the fight between

the Johnny and Brendan and the two demons had slowly crawled his way over to where the battle

ensued.

“Oh no!” it thought as it watched the two demons get obliterated by the two Archangels.

“The boss isn’t gonna like this!” it mumbled to itself. Using what was left of it’s power, the

injured imp teleported away from the park to report to his lord, the demon Baal, what had

transpired. Instantly he reappeared inside a rundown tenement in Jerusalem.

“General Baal, We have trouble.” It called into the darkened building. It was no longer

able to move. Almost immediately, the unholy beast that was Baal appeared to the creature. It

had the appearance of a minotaur, with scaled claws for hands, a serpentine tail, wings like that

of a humongous black bird. It’s eyes glowed sickeningly green and tongues of infernal fire leapt

from it’s nose. A truly horrifying sight to behold.

“What is it, my servant?” It bellowed to the dying imp.

“M-master, Your sons Erebus and Nyx are dead.” the imp reported, struggling to finish,

“Two new Archangels destroyed them. And now the Archangels have the zion and are alerted to

our presence here.” Once it finished, the imp collapsed. Its corporeal remains spontaneously

combusted, and after a couple of moments, nothing was left of it.

“Damn!” Baal roared in fury. “I will have revenge for this travesty!” it screamed. At once

another one of Baal’s imp minions appeared.

“Master, we have found a clue as to the location of the ring’s whereabouts.” It

exclaimed. A sinister smile formed on the vile creatures face. The imp continued relating the

information.

“A human here in the western district of town is said to have come upon the ancient map

to the location of Solomon’s Treasury, and his signet.” It chattered on. The news pleased Baal to

no end.

“Finally, after searching for three thousand years, the army of the Djinn is within my

grasp.” Baal chuckled evilly, then turned to the imp and ordered, “Go and wreak hvoc until you

have found the map. Take a few soldier demons will go with you in case those accursed

Archangels decide to appear.”

“It will be done master.” the Imp replied and vanished from sight. Baal laughed with glee

as he thought more on the prospect of finally having the lost army back under his control...

Chapter 3

Brendan reappeared in the western half of Jerusalem. Police were cordoning off a section

of the city in the area. Screams emenated from the closed off section of town, and he could see

smoke rising from a few blocks away. Straightway he walked up to one of the officers blocking

entry.

“Whats going on, officer?” He asked them nonchalantly.

“Some kind of monsters are attacking the town. We are trying to prevent them from

reaching the rest of the city.” one of the cop replied and turned back to stay on guard. Brendan

watched the palor of the officers ashen as blood curdling pleas for help edge eversocloser toward

them.

Suddenly a small group of people ran out toward Brendan and the cops from a side street.

Chasing them was a pack of soldier demons and imps. Brendan immediately went into action.

Transporting between the people and the demon horde, he drew his sword and charged

into battle. Swinging ferociously, he quickly hacked his way through the entire group of demons

and in no time he had destroyed the mass of evil entities. As he finished with that group, another

group of soldier demons appeared and surrounded him.

“So your one of the Archangels causing the trouble for General Baal!” the lead soldier of

the new pack of demons. Brendan smirked and bowed to it arrogantly, infuriating the mob of

devils beyond reproach. The mass closed in on him.

Instantly Brendan countered the horde, slashing through some and blasting others with

holy energy. After a few moments the fierce skirmish ended, leaving only the wounded lead

soldier demon and Brendan standing.

“I want info, demon.” Brendan demanded.

“Burn in hell, Archangel!” it screamed in defiance. The reply angered Brendan.

“You first.” Brendan responded and with a quick slash of his sword split the demon in

half lengthwise. Someone screamed in a nearby alleyway. As Brendan turned to go check on the

person screaming, the soldier demon dropped to it’s knees and parted into two symmetrical

halves.

Brendan quickly found the source of the screams. A small imp was attacking an old rabbi

in an attempt to take an old looking scroll. Brendan ended the struggle by vaporizing the imp,

but not in time to save the man’s life. Quietly he walked over to the dying man. He began to lift

the man, but the old man struggled to get free.

“Look Mr., I’ve got to get you to a hospital.” He tried reasoning with the old rabbi.

“No, there’s no time. Take this and guard it with your life!” The old man managed to

say, then died. His soul appeared the instant he died.

“Y-Your not human!” The soul of the old man exclaimed as he saw Brendan inm his true

form of an Archangel.

“No sir, I ain’t! My name’s Brendan and I’m an Archangel. I suppose someone will be

here shortly to lead you to the pearly gates.” Brendan replied. As soon as he said the words

Michael appeared.

“Mike, What’s up?” He greeted the older Archangel nonchalantly.

“B. What are you doin’ here?” Michael replied in surprise.

“Well, I was tryin to save the old man here.” He replied, “But instead of letting me take

him to a hospital, he handed me this scroll and told me to guard it with my life, then kicked the

bucket.”

“What scroll is it?” Michael asked. The two stared drop-jawed as Brendan unfurled the

scroll, revealing it to be the map to Solomon’s treasury...

Chapter 4

Johnny and Mia appeared outside a small diner in the french quarter in New Orleans.

Through open doors the aroma of creole and other cajun delicacies wafted gently on the breeze

coming off the Mississippi River. Mia felt her mouth water at the smell. She turned to Johnny,

who was about to enter the restaurant.

“Where are we?” She asked him, disoriented from traveling at the speed of thought.

“The Big Easy.” he replied and walked on into the restaurant. A few seconds later he

stuck his head back out the door and queried, “You coming to eat or not?” The girl nodded her

head and followed him inside.

As the two ate, Mia tried to wrap her mind around the fact that she and the odd man with

her had just travel over a thousand miles in under a second. It completely blew her mind. She

decided that it had to be a dream that was taking place.

“It’s no dream Mia.” Johnny told her between scoops of creole. She choked on a bite of

food when she heard him answer her thoughts aloud.

“How did you know what I was thinking?” she demanded of Johnny once she regained

the ability to speak.

“I can hear your thoughts. You know, telepathy.” He replied, never turning his attention

from his food. The answer annoyed Mia somewhat, though she couldn’t decide if it was his

answer or the way he answered.

“So if you’re an angel, why do you eat earth food?” She snidely remarked.

“Well, why not?” Johnny responded with the same level of sarcasm. Unable to argue

with the logic of his answer, Mia gave up with an annoyed huff and returned to eating, no longer

fearing him but still rather annoyed by his attitude. She had never thought angels to be

smartasses, but rather just, holy beings with large wings singing praises to God and happily

watching over the affairs of the planet as guardians of people and places from heaven afar, never

coming to earth unless God wanted to deliver a message.

“You know, I just saved your life back there. And I brought you to eat.” Johnny declared

suddenly, “You could at least thank God for the food and your life.”

“Huh?” came her puzzled response.

“Yeah.” he elaborated, “Without God, I wouldn’t have been there to save your ungrateful

butt and you would most certainly have been ripped to shreds by those demons, instead of eating

creole in New Orleans. So show a little respect.”

“Sorry. Its just that you are not at all what I imagined an angel to be like.” She replied

apologetically. He looked up to her somewhat shaken visage with a smirk on his face.

“It’s alright. I wasn’t always an Archangel.” he told her. The statement blew Mia’s mind

again.

“H-How is that possible?” she exclaimed, now terrified she was eating dinner with a

complete lunatic, or worse, that she was the complete lunatic.

“Well, long story short,” Johnny explained, “Brendan and I were once human teenagers

just like you. Then we got killed by a biker gang. And we were led up to heaven by Michael and

Raphael, two of the original Archangels. There Jesus asked us if we wanted to do a job. We said

we would and poof here I am, an Archangel and protector of mankind. A warrior of God

Almighty.” The answer somewhat calmed her nerves, though she still couldn’t comprehend his

tale fully.

She looked at him funnily as he returned his attention to finishing his food. Slowly she

then turned to her own food and began eating again. Silence ensued as the two of them finished

the rest of their food.

Johnny stood up after finishing his food.

“I’ll be right back. I’m going to pay for the food.” he exclaimed and walked over to the

cashier to pay as Mia silently ate the food left on her plate. A few moments later he returned.

“Ready to go?” He asked her. Silently she sat her fork down and stood. The two of them walked

out the door, hand in hand and vanished once again into the night.

Chapter 5

“Mikey, tell me I’m not hallucinating here!” Brendan exclaimed as both Michael and he

gazed upon the map. The old rabbi’s soul waited patiently. The two turned to the spirit of the

old man.

“This is the map to Solomon’s Treasury. Where did you get it, sir?” Michael queried.

“It was an heirloom passed down in my family for generations.” the soul replied, then

asked, “When you say Solomon’s Treasury, Do you mean King Solomon?”

“That’s exactly who we mean, Rabbi.” Brendan then responded. At once another large

group of soldier demons appeared around the trio, snapping the two Archangels out of the

momentary fix.

“Hey Mikey! Care to tangle with some soldier demons, for old times sake?” Brendan

sarcastically asked the elder Archangel.

“You know it, B!” came the reply. Both drew their flame swords and dove into the thick

of the latest demonic horde, slashing through demons right and left. After a few minutes, the

skirmish was over and the entire mass of demons had been destroyed.

When all was calm again, Michael turned to Brendan and said, “Well, that was fun. But

now I think I should get the old man on to Heaven. Later, B. Hey, you want me to take the map

up to heaven with me, for safe keeping?”

“Thanks for the offer Mikey, but no thanks. I’ll hold on to it myself.” Brendan replied

grimly. He looked away from Michael. The elder Archangel took the old man’s soul by the hand

and turned to go away when Brendan turned his flame sword against him.

“What’s going on, B?” asked the slightly puzzled Elder Archangel.

“Show your true form, demon!” Brendan demanded. A look of shock appeared on

Michael’s visage. “I said Show your true, demon!” Brendan repeated the command.

“B, It’s me, Mikey.” The older Archangel stated, but Brendan was not disuaded. He took

a small swipe at the Michael with his sword, then held the tip to his throat. At once, the elder

Archangel’s form began contorting into unnatural shapes. After a few moments of disturbing

convulsions, Baal stood in his true form before Brendan.

“How did you know that I wasn’t Michael?” The Demon General snarled.

“For one, you reek of Hell.” Brendan stated arrogantly, “ Two, the real Michael has never

to my knowledge gone by the name Mikey. And three, He has never called me B. He has always

referred to me as Brendan. Isn’t that right, Mike?” As if on cue, the real Michael appeared on

the scene.

“That’s right, Brendan. How’s it goin?” He answered, drawing his own sword of flame

against the demon. Baal howled in rage.

“Curse You Archangels!” It snapped and grabbed hold of the old rabbi’s soul. At once

they disappeared and in their place yet another wave of soldier demons. Michael followed Baal,

trying to save the old man’s soul from the demon as Brendan entered yet another confrontation

with the army of Hell.

Chapter 6

Baal and the old man’s soul reappeared on the outskirts of Jericho. Michael manifested

before the two of them, sword still drawn. A flame of determination flashed in his eyes. Baal

released the soul of the old man and drew its own sword. The two supernatural entities stared

one another down, each poised to strike in an instant.

“Commander Michael, what can I do for you today?” Baal sarcastically asked the old

Archangel. Michaels face hardened and his hand clenched tighter around the hilt of his weapon.

“Don’t talk at me like that demon!” He responded angrily, then as an afterthought he

added, “I mean, private!” The smug smile on Baal’s face turned at once to a scowl of anger. It

swung its sword mightily at the holy warrior. Michael easily parried the attack with his own

sword.

“Private Baal, now don’t try anything stupid.” Michael egged on, further infuriating the

Demon General, “You should just take your army and go on back to Hell, where you can await

the day that the master returns to fight against you.” The demon attacked in a blind frenzy.

Michael blocked or dodged every sword swing thrown at him, then went in with a flurry of blows

that Baal was barely able to defend himself from. It quickly broke off the engagement. Both

combatants stood poised to strike again.

“I know what your after, demon. You will not succeed in obtaining the army of the

Djinn.” Michael then spoke with serious ferocity.

“That’s where your wrong, Commander.” Baal retorted, “I will have the power of the

Djinn army. The army of Hell will finally be complete for the first time in three millenia!”

“Never!” Michael shouted and charged at Baal. But the demon dematerialized away from

the scene, leaving the old rabbi’s soul with Michael. The Archangel sheathed his sword and walked over to old man’s spirit. Quickly The expression on the Archangel’s face changed to one

of hapiness.

“Well, sir! I bet you haven’t had that much excitement since the forties!” Michael spoke

to the old rabbi cheerfully, “So why don’t I take you on up to be with the master!” The

Archangel extended his hand to the old rabbi. The old man’s spirit took hold of Michael’s hand

and in an instant they were gone from the earth to heaven.

******************************************************************************

In Jerusalem, Brendan was engaged in ferocious battle with the soldier demons yet again.

Blasting through some while slashing others to pieces, he was making short work of the vile

creatures. At once Baal reappeared on the scene.

“Give me the map, boy!” It snarled at Brendan. The young Archangel responded by

letting loose a wave of holy energy at the demon commander. Baal was infuriated.

“So thats the way you want to do things! Baal roared, “Then let’s see you save the entire

city from the army of Hell!” At once the Demon General summoned forty legions of demons to

attack the entire city. Brendan looked at the situation with grimace.

“Okay, Now what?” He said under his breath as he continued to fight. He was sure he

could take the forty legions, but not all at once. “How will I save the city?” he thought. The

demon legions began to tear through the city. Brendan and Baal began attacking one another.

Suddenly a wide rift opened in the sky. Brendan looked on as Michael came through

leading a charge of seventy legions of the army of Heaven. At once the armies of Heaven and

Hell clashed.

Michael landed where Brendan and Baal stood. The two were battling with extreme

animosity. Michael joined in the fray. The two Archangels fought against the Demon General

for over an hour,. Finally Baal broke off the skirmish. The demon legions attacking the city

immediately broke off the fight against the army of Heaven. All the forty legions of demons

vanished from the scene.

“You will not stop the inevitable. I will have the army of the Djinn at my command and

we will conquer Heaven!” Baal growled. It then vanished into the night with the rest of the army

of Hell. The legions of the army of Heaven stood down, sheathing their gilded swords.

“We should get out of the city.” Brendan then told Michael.

“I agree.” he responded. A few officer angels appeared before the two Archangels. One

stepped up to speak.

“General Michael. General Brendan. What are your orders?” The officer asked.

“Take the legions to the open area north of town.” Michael ordered.

“We’ll meet you there and figure out our next move.” Brendan added. The officer

nodded slightly and then saluted.

“Yes, sirs!” he said to the Archangels. At once the rest of the officers saluted the two and

vanished to tell the troops of the orders. Michael and Brendan dematerialized from the scene

from the scene as well....