Book VI: The Illuminati
Chapter 3: Lucifer – The Scourge of God
Unfortunately, I had little time to pat myself on the back for being so smart because when my master realized he couldn’t recall any of my back-stabbing colleagues, he did the next best thing and brought ME back to Illusia to answer for their actions!
The moment I arrived, the atmosphere in Lucifer’s grand throne room was palpable with menace. The walls, adorned with dark crystals and pulsating with an eerie glow, seemed to close in on me as I approached the throne. Lilith, although still in chains, was now perched regally beside Lucifer as his queen. She looked down at me with a twisted smile, her dark eyes sparkling with malicious delight, as she relished every moment of my humiliation.
A handful of baals – the very demons I’d gifted to Lucifer and who were supposed to still be loyal to me, viciously dragged before new lord Baal-Zebub! The weight of impending doom pressed down on me and I knew that Lucifer’s wrath would be severe.
The Dark Prince himself leaned forward, his eyes burning with fury as he hissed,. “Azazel, my baals told me you stood by idle as Gabriel and Michael came to Terra? You let A’H’s scum meddle with my people, my planet, and my lumenarcs and then you let them escape back through the Firmament – without doing anything to accost them or discover their secrets! Is this true?”
“I..I…master, I,” but the words just wouldn’t come out.
“That I had to hear this news from someone else makes it worse for you.” Lucifer sneered. “You have failed me for the last time.”
My master raised a hand to unleash god-knows-what-kind of magic upon me, but before he could act I threw myself at his feet, my voice trembling with desperation. “Baal-Zebub, please! I have always been loyal to you. Do not destroy me. I can still be of use!”
Lucifer’s laughter echoed through the chamber, a chilling sound that sent shivers down my spine. “You speak of loyalty, yet you have allowed dissent to fester among your ranks.” He glanced at Lilith, who chuckled softly, clearly enjoying my torment.
The Mother of Demons leaned forward, her chains clinking softly, yet her smile widening. “Oh, Azazel, how the mighty have fallen,” she practically purred. “Look at you, groveling like a worm. It’s almost… endearing. Almost. I’m going to enjoy watching you die.”
Knowing I was on the edge of oblivion I swallowed the last of my pride and begged my nemesis. “Gr-great Lilith, intercede on my behalf. I brought you here to be the Dark Queen, to serve my Lord, surely yo-u” but then voice cracked, betraying the depth of my terror.
Lucifer’s eyes narrowed as he watched our exchange. “Enough! Why should I spare you, Azazel? What do you have to offer that could possibly redeem your failures?”
Desperation clawed at me as I scrambled to find the right words. “Send Inanna and Samyaza with me, Master! They can provide the extra evil I need to win. Together we three can set things right back on the planet you made – we can still destroy Terra and set you free!”
[You’ve met the evil seductress Inanna before – I used her to create the Morati ages past, but Samyaza is new to you. You’ll learn about this brute in due time].
The Dark Lord knew well that the two lumenarcs I named were perhaps the most twistedly evil of all the fallen ones in his stable. In addition, it was no secret that Samyaza and Rhokki hated each other so the thought was that the former would teach the latter a lesson for his treason.
Before he replied, Lucifer’s gaze flicked to Lilith, who gave a slight nod of assent. My master then agreed, “Very well. But this is your final chance, Azazel. Do not fail us.”
Relief flooded through me as I was granted a reprieve, but the look in Lilith’s eyes told me she expected me to fail and thus she was eagerly waiting for my return – when I would surely be destroyed. Even as I was forcibly escorted out of the throne room by Baal-Zebub’s demon dogs, I could feel Lilith’s gaze burning into my back, along with Lucifer’s laughter echoing behind me.
And so I was able to return to Terra again, but this time I had company — Inanna and Samyaza leaving Illusia to join me on your world. As expected, even after they came to Terra they remained loyal to Zebub’s cause. This was both good and bad for me — on the one hand it allowed me to remain alive, but on the other it meant I would have people looking over my shoulder, which was a nuisance since Inanna and Samyaza soon required my constant supervision. I assured them that, together, we would take every action to get our master free.
Like Baal-Zebub, they believed my lies…
The Apocrypha of Azazel 