Epilogue
Metatron leaned over his desk, his wrist worn out by the intense scribbling. Hand trembling, he dabbed a handkerchief on his brow.
“Finish it,” a deep voice said, with equal assertiveness and encouragement.
The Recording Angel pushed himself to keep going – to finish the page – and so, the golden quill started dancing again, like a ballerina across the page.
And as it were, the war between Heaven and Hell came to an end. Gabriel decided to put his trust in his enemy’s enemy, and because of that, the Heavenly Host, led by Uriel, defeated the denizens of Hell on the Battlefield of Armageddon. But the victory came at a steep price, and many angels were lost that day.
Michael, who would not agree to Gabriel’s strategy, was sent off to fight alone – to hunt down evil wherever he could find it. In his righteous rage, he slew not only Leviathan, but also Wormwood, Balor, and many more of the escaped Angels of the Pit.
Abaddon and Azrael were last seen sailing over the city of New York, and it is likely that their blades are still clashing somewhere between the worlds – forevermore locked in an eternal battle.
The relationships between the nations of the world were shaken by the global wars and catastrophes, but the zealously determined guardian angels managed to prevent the weapons of mass destruction from being used, and thus saving the planet from total annihilation.
After being dismissed by Evan, Raphael set out on a quest to help those in need, starting in Yemen and the places worst affected by the war. She could be seen amongst the ruins as a nurse dressed in white, tirelessly tending to the sick and wounded.
Lucifer had broken the sacred First Pact, and her meddling with humanity nearly brought the world to an end. As punishment, she was once again sentenced to the Pit. In exchange for helping with her capture, Lix Tetrax had made a deal with Amanda to be locked inside the same cage as Lucifer, and before the door slammed shut, the last look on the Deceiver’s face was one of abject horror.
And Amanda, the mortal heroine of the apocalypse, who had defied both good and evil in her quest for love, chose to stay on Earth despite her broken body and her shattered heart...
***
Amanda rolled over in the bed, her shoulder thudding with a dull ache. She pressed down harder, forcing out an explosion of pain. Perhaps it wasn’t what Evan had meant with voluntary suffering, but it was the one thing that could fill the yawning void in her heart, even if only temporarily.
Gasping for air, she wallowed in the pain. The chalk-white ceiling of the hospital ward appeared on her retinas. She hadn’t paid much attention to the diagnoses of the doctors, but her body was far more mangled than she had thought, and they refused to release her, even when she begged them.
She rolled to the other side, preparing herself for another stab of pain. But someone put their hand on her hip, stopping her. Rage and despair shot through her veins like venom.
“Don’t touch me!” she screamed. “You don’t have the right!”
“I know, but I don’t like seeing you hurt yourself.”
Amanda groaned and started struggling. “You’re not real…”
“I’m sorry for everything I put you through,” Marc said, his voice thick with regret.
“You’re not real!” Amanda sobbed and wriggled away. “You’re nothing but pain meds!”
“It was selfish to bring you into my world.” Marc gently lifted her out of bed, carrying her in his arms. “But I’m a selfish man. It has always been one of my flaws.”
Amanda’s heart started beating so fast that she almost passed out. In a blur of tears and strange vertigo, she looked up into his dark eyes. She had hallucinated before, and horrible dreams had plagued her since the events on the roof, but none of them had felt like this – so strong and protective – so caring and tender.
“How?” she mumbled. “You’re dead!”
“I was dead. And for a long time, I drifted between the planes. I watched you take control of my army, and I watched you stumble through the desert alone. With each step along the way, my love for you grew. I watched you face Wormwood and Lucifer, and I watched you blossom into a true queen.” The muscles in Marc’s cheeks tightened. “I heard your prayer... and I guess someone else did too – someone who hasn’t been answering prayers for a long time.”
“I prayed to see you.” Wide-eyed, Amanda reached up and touched his face. “Please tell me this is real.”
Marc smiled and kissed her deeply. “This is real.”