Book III: Eden
Chapter 1: The Creation of Eve
As much as I was happy with this turn of events, my overall plans were far from finished—I still needed to create humans who had souls inside them which I could control. I had a new idea, but it was so unusual that I figured I’d better get a higher authority to sign off on it first. On my next trip to Illusia for a hellfire refill, I told Lucifer about my plan. Shockingly, he agreed and returned with me to Terra.
“I see you’ve been busy,” El spat, his voice dripping with disdain as he surveyed the variation of “intelligent” life that now filled the planet. His piercing gaze took in the new creatures, each a testament to my efforts yet incomplete without the final touch we sought.
“It’s a far cry from what I would have achieved with you here, Master,” I replied, exaggerating my subservience to my Lord—not wanting to risk the Dark Prince’s wrath at the fact that I’d done quite a bit without its approval. I bowed deeply, the weight of my words hanging in the air. “Alas, I’ve failed at every turn. I still can’t make Adam or Lilith reproduce men and women like we wanted them to.”
“While I do not need you, Azazel, you will always need me. Never forget that.” El’s voice was a chilling whisper that cut through the air. He then used **The Power of Ze** to bore into me, penetrating my soul, searching for even a hint of treachery on my part. The sensation was excruciating, a reminder of the delicate balance I had to maintain. Somehow, I was able to hide my true plans from Zebub’s son. Then it was that El asked, “What do you want me to do?”
In reality, I didn’t want him to **do** anything—I was actually supremely confident that my new plan would work. And because I knew I might actually succeed in finally creating a being that could be married to a soul from Zebub’s stellarum, there was going to be no hiding this from my master or The Dark Lord. As a result, I needed their blessing.
“My prior experiments had complications, Lord,” I lamented, injecting just the right amount of frustration and helplessness into my tone. “However, I have a new idea.”
“Do you now?” God sneered, the mocking edge in his voice a constant reminder of our tenuous relationship.
Here I became even more cautious, for I knew all too well of El’s jealous nature. For a moment, I weighed my options—wondering if my plan was really worth the risk. Realizing that I’d come this far, I knew I couldn’t stop now; so I rolled the dice and explained my idea to The Illuminated One. I laid out my vision with meticulous detail, emphasizing the potential for success and the ways it would further his grand design.
Thankfully, my words struck just the right chord, and El took my advice—casting a deep sleep upon Adam and then allowing me to perform a cosmic ritual that included stealing one of Adam’s ribs. As you can see, it wasn’t a fun experience for Adam…
After taking his rib, I held the man’s fragile bone in my hand – and with El’s power flowing all around me – God and I [in reality it was pretty much all me] began to shape and direct new flesh and sinew around Adam’s rib. The process was intricate – a blend of divine power and my own infernal ingenuity – and it resulted in the creation of the second woman of your race.
El watched closely, his eyes gleaming with a mixture of curiosity and possessiveness. “This one must be different from the first, Azazel.”
“She will be, Lord,” I assured him, my voice steady despite the excitement bubbling within me as I forced a hang-picked stellarone soul inside her essence.
With a final surge of energy our new human was complete.
“I assume you’ll want to call h—” I asked.
“Eve,” El interrupted me, continuing to play along with our now ages-old joke. His eyes glinted with an unreadable expression as he observed the scene.
Thus it was that the second woman – Eve – lay before us, her eyes fluttering open, her first breath a whisper of life that testified to the energy provided her by the soul I’d given her. As Eve awoke, she looked around, her eyes wide with wonder. El and I stood over her, the architects of her existence. Adam, still asleep, was oblivious to the monumental event unfolding beside him.
“Who are you?” Eve asked, her voice trembling with the rawness of new life.
“I am El, your creator” Lucifer said, his voice soft yet commanding. “And this is Azazel.”
While I worked hard to overlook my master’s insult as he minimized my role, the woman shifted her gaze to the body beside her. With a vague spark recognition in her eyes she reached out, touching his face gently. “And who is he?”
“He is Adam,” I explained. “Your partner, your other half. Together, you will create a new race of beings.”
Little did Eve know I had big plans for her—and her children.
Little did I know that El also had plans for Eve – and that went beyond helping me merely ensure the continuation of human life. What I failed to realize was that God saw in Eve the potential to create a lineage that could serve as his eyes and ears on Terra, a race that could be molded to his will. El thus secretly imbued Eve with a desire for knowledge and thirst for ‘behind the scenes’ power that would set her apart from Adam. This seed of ambition was meant to grow, leading Eve to question, to seek, and ultimately, to defy the limitations placed upon her and her descendants.
While I may not have known El’s plans for my humans, my secret agenda remained the same as it had been for millennia – to create a race of creatures into which I could force my hand-picked stellarone souls (the ones I’d been torturing all along and who worshiped ME as their master!). Eve was another step in this direction, but it would be her children that were the true test – could I have her offspring *automatically* pull one of my tortured souls into themselves at conception? Could I create a de facto production line of warped humans who would be amenable to my will?
That was the stated quest I told myself I was on and I planned to subtly influence Eve’s descendants towards that goal. Yet the Mylar Elara’s prophecy about The Shattered Veil still haunted me in the back of my mind. Somehow I knew Eve’s descendants would play a part in that reed. Therefore, my ultimate hope (perhaps even the one I dared not admit to myself) was that each generation of humanity might bring me closer to finding a human who could break the Firmament for me, thus unleashing all tthe powers of Illyria and Illusia *combined* unto Terra and allowing me to seize control in the subsequent chaos!
Admittedly that goal was a LONG way off, but since I’d allowed myself to hope, I knew there was no turning back now…
The Apocrypha of Azazel 