Two Men in the Sky

The night had turned into noon.

A single presence brought all that light…

Facing the source of the light, the man in white continued to float towards the sky. With each step he took in the air, the confident smile on his face became synonymous with fear.

Descending from the clouds, an ethereal creature rebelled.

Flying down from the clouds, contrasting perfectly in the turbulent sky, a white dragon, a creature with a colossal body, carrying four wings and six legs, descended, flaunting a golden crown on its forehead.

The eyes, with three layers of eyelids, revealed themselves to be golden with an alarming blink.

"Oh… You still live, heavenly creature," said the man.

The dragon returned to the sky. However, this time, it skirted a hole in the clouds: emphasizing a single being that descended…

He was the conjurer of that light.

"Are you, fragment of the divine, supreme knowledge? Sephiroth Daath…" he said in a snobbish tone.

"Do not feign respect for the one you despise—Samael, the first shadow." Daath retorted, his voice echoing through the heavens like thunder. "Tell me, why do you rebel against your creator again? Was the punishment Michael gave you not enough?"

The light, in the end, was overshadowed by Daath.

Three pairs of wings covered a body equipped with pale armor; the central pair had appeared on the chest, following the collarbone and taking shape on the dorsal. Strands of white hair flew with the wind that the dragon created.

Violet eyes stared directly at Samael. However, there were only two pairs on his face…

There was a violet eye on each wing. In the solar plexus, another eye was demonstrated, along with a small eye on the left hand.

Knowledge was targeting everything and everyone, at every moment…

"Why are you in this world?" Daath asked.

"I got tired of the world of flames. We, the kings, got bored and found that world small… We decided to mess with those who were quiet," he replied with an arrogant smile.

"Return, fallen angel… We have bigger problems than you, frustrated demons."

"Hmmm… I will deny the proposal."

Conjuring a spear of golden energy in his right hand, Daath proclaimed, "Fine… Therefore, I will do what the Archangels refused to do."

In a microsecond, Daath drew his arm back and threw the spear at Samael. A golden beam exploded, creating a straight line between the two beings.

However, with just two fingers, Samael stopped the attack. The atmospheric pressure created a storm in the region.

The dragon flew around Daath before charging at Samael like a shot.

Discarding Daath's spear as if it were a simple coin, Samael crossed his arms and waited for the impact with the dragon... But nothing happened.

Floating to the side, the beast was merely used as bait. Samael's eyes widened as he saw the Sephiroth of Knowledge's true intention…

Appearing in front of Samael with his right fist clenched, Daath punched the fallen angel downwards with an upward strike, similar to an axe.

The shock of Sephiroth's punch upset the atmosphere.

Gales became confused, breaking their senseless directions, creating diverse pressures and altering speed.

The ground in Detroit gradually began to crack.

Samael was thrown against the ground, creating a vacuum zone that traced his path. However, before hitting the ground, he stopped floating with his arms crossed.

A morbid, sarcastic smile appeared on Samael's face.

He crossed his arms and glared down at Daath.

Falling like a meteor, the Sephiroth of knowledge tried to hit the fallen angel again, however, the latter dodged towards the side where the Packard Automotive Plant buildings were.

Daath contained the punch, without causing damage to the structure to preserve the soldiers who could barely understand what was happening.

Taking shallow, floating leaps, Samael moved away towards the buildings. The Sephiroth, however, after containing his fist, charged at absolute speed.

Samael couldn't blink before Daath reached him and grabbed him by the head. Dragging the fallen man across the courtyard, Samael felt like he was going to be thrown against the wall. However, he didn't.

They went through the walls.

'Transiting between the earthly plane and the spiritual world?' he pondered, as he felt the universal energy run through his body.

Snatching Daath's hand, the fallen angel delivered a kick to the stomach and created a massive distance between them.

"You remain unpredictable!"

Daath's silver hair was shaped like the tough skin of a bird, completely covering his body with a whitish helmet.

Opening his right palm, he conjured a golden book with a single blue rune glowing on the cover.

"Answer me, Samael. How did you come to this world?" Daath asked.

An ethereal current formed into fine silver particles, completely consuming Sephiroth's left arm. Contrary to the ethereal form, Daath's entire body was consumed by white fur, leaving only a violet glow to shine through the gap in his helmet.

The current stretched out from his back and floated independently, creating new branches within itself. At the end of each current, huge, oppressive eyes stared at Samael in the distance.

The fallen angel smiled and allowed a slight whistle to escape, taking the moment with sarcasm.

"Well, well. I am the devil, and you are the one who seems to be the monster around here?" Samael scoffed.

"Demons pretend to be what they are not, to reveal who they are. You should not give yourselves the grace of doubt, or even question yourselves…"

"Of course! The fragments of creation, the all-powerful ones, above all and below only the Creator. Don't you think you've made this speech to me many times?"

"Indeed… It is time to cut the speeches, and make you regret having left your kingdom."

A page of the book turned eternally.

'The book of knowledge… I will be able to know the weakness of all the angels and lords of this universe.' Samael smiled.

"You will not touch him," Daath retorted.

Samael's smile disappeared, and a pot face appeared.

He clicked his tongue.

"How boring… I forgot that you can read minds and see the future. Isn't life boring? Knowing and doing everything?"

"Not at all. If so, you wouldn't be pursuing that same life."

"You know me so well!" Samael brought a hand to his cheek. "But…"

A sadistic and manipulative smile appeared.

[Synchronization complete]

Daath raised an eyebrow. What was that? A voice? Why was it only in Samael's mind? Why was there nothing about that voice in the dictionary of fate?

[Virtual Fragments collided with this world.]

Turning the pages of the book, the Sephiroth of knowledge tried to discover… He searched the universe; everything Ein Soph had created. Every word of the destiny of existence… There was no such synonym anywhere.

"Are you curious?" Samael asked, stepping forward and grabbing Daath's face. "This is an existence you cannot understand, only support…"

Taking Sephiroth up, the fallen angel reached the sky again. With a sonic boom that expanded throughout Detroit, Samael suddenly disappeared.

The streets of Detroit were nearly empty thanks to the storm and the lack of communication. Except for a few people walking to different destinations, it was completely silent…

Silent, though, until the wind changes that.

A whistle ran down a different street. A small gust of wind blew through the godforsaken night.

Bad omen… That wind carried this.

In a fraction of a second, the surrounding buildings, human and animal lives, as well as any matter in that small street, was fused into the vacuum of space…

Suddenly, everything was wiped off the map.

After creating a trail of destruction by carrying Daath through the city, Samael dropped the Sephiroth to the ground and charged again into physical combat.

Throwing two punches, which were easily blocked by Daath, the fallen angel Samael took a step back and conjured dozens of swords of light on his back.

Floating and pointing towards Daath, the swords were launched like projectiles. However, before they reached their final target, they were disintegrated into particles of energy.

[Daath used Spell Negation ]

The Sephiroth shrugged his shoulders and was startled by the voice in Samael's mind.

"Ah, so this is the enchantment behind my defeat?" Samael joked, watching a floating screen with black edges appear.

"What?" Daath gaped and froze.

Samael couldn't contain his laughter. His laughter could be heard from a distance, like thunder in the morbid sky.

He placed his hand on his chest, as he wiped a forced tear from his face.

"Knowledge knows nothing! That is beautiful!"

Materializing a crimson blade, then pointed it at Daath, the fallen angel proclaimed:

"Know, knowledge. This young world will rot like this."

With a brutal and precise thrust, Samael quickly reached his enemy. However, Daath was not pressured.

Sephiroth decided to remain conscious, as his eyes studied that voice. He dodged all the blows by putting his arms behind his back.

Floating through the scene of pure destruction, the two "angels" battled where the moon could no longer touch.

Crimson gashes exploded across the floor, tearing through the concrete like scissors and paper.

Taking a step back, Samael raised his energy. His white hair flew and soon fell down.

"Tell me something, Daath…" said Samael, this time in a serious tone. "I was the one who was called proud, and you are the one who is bragging?"

The serenity he had created was obstructed by the ironic comment.

"But seriously now…" he said, after seeing that Daath wasn't in a proper mood. "You see, don't you?"

"The proud will never admit they are wrong…" commented Sephiroth.

"And the proud, in the end, were never wrong… See around you, angel of light."

Samael opened his arms and led Daath's eyes beyond that destroyed scene.

"I said as soon as the light appeared in this creation, men would corrupt themselves to the fruit of perdition. They would give themselves over to the flesh, therefore, they would violate freedom…"

Daath looked down, waiting for Samael to finish.

But, he already knew all of that…

"They have called us sinners, but are their protégés any different? They have never served the Father, and they never will! They serve us, whom they fear so much!"

"That is their choice. Whoever seeks the Lord will find him in yourself. A house will always need a new lamp."

Crossing his arms, Samael asked:

"Will you protect these subjects from sin?"

"Until the Lord comes down to protect them alone, we will go."

"Why?"

"Free will. They chose to sin, we chose to protect them."

"Did they choose or were they programmed?"

'Programmed…' Daath thought, turning a new page in the book.

Samael jumped with his eyes back.

[An external administrator is accessing the system…]

[The external administrator has been identified as an attacker…]

[The system is battling the invader…]

'Damn!' thought Samael.

[Data is being combed…]

[Data is being copied…]

[By order of Administrator Samael, King of Pride, the system will be shut down…]

"You thought I wouldn't figure out your trick…"

[Samael used First Trumpet ]

"You…" Daath muttered, before a blood-colored beam of energy filled his vision.

[The Domain of Pride has been conjured into the physical world.]

[Dominated nation: United States of America]

Covering his eyes with his arms and wings, Daath only heard a voice announce in his head:

[Samael started the Great Tribulation ]

[The imprisoned Kings invaded the world of the oppressors…]

Consuming the entire United States, a crimson energy tower expanded across the entire country, causing seismic shocks and decimating anything weak with its own strength.

The short three and a half years of peace were gone.

A long period of chaos and war began to unfold.