Shallow Alliance

The A-men: Furnace

Shallow Alliance

Leviticus 19:18 

You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.

 

 

SOUL Headquarters: Three years ago

                Training had been intense for the last few weeks. Malachi was happy to see such renewed energy around the group. Ever since Rex walked off, morale had become terrible. However Akita’s arrival started to restore hope around SOUL. Even Gabriel who was possibly more upset than anyone had started showing signs of happiness. Malachi couldn’t wait until her training was over so that she could go assist in the field. For now though he was simply happy with her presence. When she first arrived her skills were non-existent. She had never been in a fight in her life so it was no surprise. Now she was dangerous. She wasn’t a cold blooded killer and probably wouldn’t be able to hold her own against any demons yet but she knew how to swing a sword.

                Currently they were in the middle of an intense training session. Malachi wanted to see how much Akita had really improved so he gave her permission to attack with everything she had. Akita did as instructed and fought with all of her might. Malachi pulled most of his punches to make sure he was seeing all of her skill but it took a lot of restraint. He was used to being in battle to kill his enemy but Akita was just a student. With each swing Malachi blocked effortlessly. He didn’t want to crush her spirits so he was fighting with both hands even though he would have easily been able to stop her with one. After a few rounds of faking, Malachi noticed that Akita was on to him. She was barely trying anymore. He still wanted to try and play along.

                “What’s wrong Akita? You usually attack more ferociously than this.” Malachi said innocently.

                “I can see what you are doing Mr. Malachi. Can you come at me with everything? I need to be prepared correctly.” Akita responded.

                Malachi considered it for a moment. If he did his best then he could really hurt Akita. Then again maybe she needed to go through that. The demons would surely torture her if they ever caught her so she needed to be in the best condition possible. “Very well Akita. I’ll show you the very best I have. Oh and by the way, you don’t have to call me Mr. Malachi. Malachi is perfectly fine.” Then Malachi raised his sword and gripped the helm tightly. Akita took a mental note.

                Malachi charged at Akita as fast as he could. She threw her sword up in a useless attempt to keep him back. Malachi disarmed Akita quickly and once her weapon was lost, he moved in for the kill. He shoved the helm into her stomach and then flipped her over. Then he placed the sword at her throat. Akita looked up helplessly and knew that Malachi had claimed victory. Once the angel saw in her eyes that she had conceded, he eased up. When he turned his back however, Akita decided to try and be sneaky. She jumped to her feet and tried to attack Malachi from behind. It was quite the rookie mistake thinking Malachi would not expect such a maneuver. He side stepped her and then knocked her down. This time she actually stayed down. Malachi noticed a cut on her arm. Then he realized that when he moved his sword must have cut her. He went to help her up.

                “I’m sorry Akita. I didn’t mean to injure you.” Malachi said.

                Akita held her arm as if she had just broken a bone. “It really hurts.” Akita’s eyes started to tear up. She did her best to hold them back but she could not. She had never experienced the pain of a sword so she wasn’t ready for it. Malachi placed his hand on her shoulder.

                “It is ok Akita. I know that it hurts now but it will get better. And don’t worry, I’ll always be here to comfort your pain.” Then Malachi and Akita walked away together. “I’d say that’s enough for today.”

 

The Battlefield: Present day

                It had been a while since Malachi had seen Akita. He and the team had been so preoccupied with Dishearten and Sasha’s disappearance that they had not had time to pay attention to her. Unfortunately this time she came with Goliath. Wisdom Woman had the team answer to him immediately. He found something called the Crown on Oppression. Its power was rumored to be able to enslave the minds of whoever it was directed toward. Wisdom Woman knew that they had to capture it. She would never use such abusive powers because she found it wrong. Still she knew that something like that would be disastrous in Goliath’s hands. Goliath had attacked with Hatred and Akita. Gabriel was fighting Hatred. Stone was busy fighting Goliath and Malachi was handling Akita. Devil Chaser was fighting the host of demons that Goliath brought with him as well. Wisdom Woman was in search of the weapon.

                Malachi found himself struggling with Akita. Her attacks were coming so fast that he found it difficult to block and almost impossible to fight back. Akita was smiling. Every time Malachi did squeeze in an attack, she blocked it effortlessly with one of her two blades. She thought back to the days when Malachi had to pretend just so she could keep up. Now the roles had reversed. She was the one holding back because she wanted Malachi’s death to be more significant. After a few minutes of faking, Akita noticed that Malachi was unto her. She tried to play along for as long as she could.

                “What’s wrong Malachi? You usually attack more ferociously than this.” She said sarcastically.

                “I can see what you’re doing Akita. Just fight me with everything.” Malachi said.

                “Very well then.” Akita said.

                Akita charged at Malachi as fast as she could. He threw his sword up in a useless attempt to hold her back. Akita disarmed Malachi quickly and once his weapon was lost, she moved in for the kill. She shoved the helm into his stomach and then flipped him over. Then she placed the sword at his throat. Malachi looked up helplessly and knew that Akita had claimed victory. Once she saw in his eyes that he had conceded, she eased up. It wasn’t that she wanted to be merciful; it was just that she wanted Malachi’s death to be alone where he could scream and beg while no one showed to help him. When she turned her back, Malachi decided to try and be sneaky. He jumped to his feet and tried to attack Akita from behind. He should have known that she would expect such a maneuver since she had attempted it many times before. She side stepped him and knocked him down. This time he actually stayed down. She pulled his head up.

                “I could kill you but it would require a death far better than you deserve. You get to walk away this time but you will live in constant fear.” Then Akita ran away.

                Malachi couldn’t see the rest of the battle field but he may have taken comfort in the fact that the rest of his team wasn’t doing much better than him. Stone was getting his face shoved into the ground by Goliath. Chaser was having a hard time keeping the demons at bay and Gabriel found himself running. He would turn back for a second to fire one of his arrows but it was unsuccessful since Hatred was just dodging them. Wisdom Woman searched frantically to find the crown. She knew that her team was in danger but she also knew that this was the only time none of their enemies would be focused on securing it. Goliath finished Stone off right as Wisdom finally found what she was looking for.

                Goliath knew she found it because she suddenly started throwing rocks out of the way. Goliath raced toward her in hopes of stealing it for himself. Gabriel saw him from his vantage point and shot an arrow at him. It pierced his arm. It was enough to slow him down but not enough to stop him. Goliath changed course and headed for Gabriel. He picked him up and threw him down. Then he took his bow and broke it in half. Next Chaser tore away from his group of demons and got in front of Goliath. He put his shield up and braced himself for impact. The shield was strong enough to keep him from feeling any backlash but Goliath still brushed past him like he was a rotting piece of wood. Now the only thing that stood between him and his prize was Wisdom Woman. While she was no warrior, she wasn’t simple to deal with.

                Goliath kept charging toward Wisdom Woman in hopes that she would bail out of the way. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw that she didn’t move an inch. She showed absolutely no fear. In fact she was the one who approached him. Goliath wasn’t afraid of her initially but watching her show such bravery worried him. It was clear to him that she had something planned. It would make sense to leave now but he couldn’t allow her to know that inside he was afraid of her. So he taunted her in response.

                “Come on Wisdom. I’ve never seen you lift a finger. Let’s see what you’ve got.” Goliath said.

                Wisdom kept advancing toward him without saying a word. Her eyes were fixed on his and she seemed so sure of whatever it was she was about to do.

                “You can’t scare me with that stare! I’ve seen horrors far beyond you.” Goliath said. While the statement was true, for some reason he couldn’t bring any of the supposed horrors to mind. It was as if Wisdom Woman was currently the single greatest terror in the entire world. Nothing else existed. His mind started to break down at the mere sight of her. It was time to stop pretending. He really was afraid of her. Once he admitted to his fear, he felt his legs moving. But they weren’t moving toward the crown he wanted so badly, they were moving away from the dread he wanted to avoid more than anything else. As he was about to turn and run, Wisdom was struck in the back by some type of pinkish fire. Suddenly all of Goliath’s fear was gone. He looked at Wisdom who was laid out on the ground and tried to figure out why he had ever doubted himself.

                “It appears you would have been unsuccessful had I not decided to intervene.” Folly said. Her hand was still smoking from the attack she had just dealt her rival.

                “I would have been fine.” Goliath said.

                “Of course you would. Just get whatever it is you came for. I would like to see someone other than myself make progress with our plan.” Then Folly disappeared.

                Goliath walked past Wisdom Woman and over to where she had been digging. When he reached the spot he found exactly what he had been looking for. The Crown of Oppression was out in the open and waiting for him to claim. He picked it up and admired it for a moment. There were so many things he could do with it right now. He could probably destroy the A-men. Unfortunately he was under the strictest of orders. He called for a portal and before long a ring of fire appeared before him. He ordered all of his allies to retreat. Hatred, Akita, and the demons that survived followed. The last thing Wisdom heard before Goliath disappeared was a tantalizing laugh. Then the ring abruptly closed.

                Wisdom Woman got to her feet. She flew over to Malachi who was still on the ground. He was too distraught over his defeat. Devil Chaser and Stone also came over. Stone started to try and comfort Malachi but Wisdom quickly cut him off.

                “There is no point in talking about what happened. We must move forward now. With such power in his hand I would like to know why Goliath didn’t at least try to take out one of you. He just grabbed it and left. That isn’t something he would do. There is no time for pity; the A-men have work to do.” Then Wisdom pulled something from her side belt. It looked like a bible. However it was a very thin one.

                “What is that?” Stone asked.

                Wisdom looked at him and smiled. “This is called the Bible Gateway.” Then Wisdom opened the book and a huge gate appeared. “3:23, 6:23, 9:8, 10:9, RR” Wisdom said loudly.

                “What do those numbers mean?” Stone asked again.

                “It is the password to operate the gateway.” Gabriel answered. “They are the verses of the Roman’s Road.”

                Right as Gabriel said that, the gate opened and a huge bright light shined through. Wisdom signaled the team to follow her and then they all walked through. Once they were inside all of them were amazed by what they saw. It was as if they had just stepped into another dimension. There was light everywhere and a myriad of mirrors showing numerous locations around earth. Malachi looked down and saw that he was indeed walking on a literal road. They continued to walk for another thirty seconds and then everything changed. The road started to wrap around all of them and the light converged on them. All of the A-men with the exception of Wisdom Woman started to panic. They thought something was going wrong but Wisdom knew better. They were simply being transferred. As soon as it started it was over.

                Malachi and the others found themselves on their feet but in a completely different place than they were previously. Chaser looked around and realized that he didn’t recognize anything. He had never been anywhere like this before. He saw a lot of trees but they weren’t normal trees. They held fruit that he had never seen before. The grass was blue and the sky was yellow. The surrounding ocean was likewise golden. Stone could see that they were on a huge cliff. He studied a lot of geography. Not once had he ever seen anything like this. He was looking at what could be called completely impossible. Then all of the A-men saw it. There was a huge castle like structure in front of them. It was no other color than gold and it looked beautiful. Everyone was in complete awe. Stone and Chaser had never seen such exquisiteness in their entire lives. Malachi and Gabriel thought back to Heaven. They had seen nothing like this since they left their home thousands of years ago. It was like a breath of fresh air.

                “I would like to officially welcome you to the Counsel. It is better known as, my home.” Wisdom said. She walked toward the entrance. “This is where I come when I need to be alone with the Master. It has inside of it everything one might ever need for exactly what we are doing. It is also completely secure. The only way to reach it is via the Gateway. Our enemies can’t access it unless we allow them in which of course we would never do. Also you can rest up your spirits here. There is no need to remain in those bodies. Your physical selves will do just fine. There are rooms for each of you. I have a training area, a garden, and of course the ocean which you are all free to use at any time.”

Then Wisdom Woman departed to let them see their way around. Malachi and Gabriel went inside the structure to find the training area. David wanted to see what the garden was like and Rex raced for the ocean. Everyone was satisfied with what they found. Gabriel and Malachi found all sorts of weapons and armor that looked like they had been sitting for years. Gabriel found a new bow. It was much nicer than the one he had before. He also found plenty of ammo. Malachi got a new sword. It wasn’t fancy or anything like that but it did have Malachi’s name on it: literally. David walked around the garden for a while. He tried every piece of fruit he could find. They all tasted better than he could ever have imagined. They were full of juice and flavor. The grass was so soft and lacked the annoying quality that green grass had. It didn’t itch at all. Rex was enjoying his swim. The water felt so nice that he thought he could just fall asleep in it. The water got in his mouth and it was fresher than anything he had ever tasted. All of the team members knew they were going to like it here.

 

Demon Headquarters: The next day

                Akita had no idea what Goliath had called her for. She knew that Goliath hated seeing her so there was no reason why he should have need for her at all. For some strange reason he called her away from their usual spot. There were no other demons or likewise entities that could see or hear anything that was going to be discussed between the two of them. She entered a dark room that was lit by nothing more than a single candle. Goliath was waiting for her.

                “Come in Akita.” He said. He didn’t sound angry like usual and he hadn’t followed up his statement with a degrading name or insult. Instantly Akita knew that he had something especially devious on his mind.

                “What do you want? I have other things I could be doing.” Akita said.

                “Of that I have no doubt but I need your help. Recently we have acquired something of a valuable artifact. It holds the power to help us accomplish our mission. I’m sure Folly has been briefing you on operation ‘Furnace.’”

                “Of course.” Akita began. “She didn’t tell me much but I know enough.”

                “That is all well and good. Unfortunately we just discovered another artifact. It could very well be used to put the nails in the coffin, so to speak. However if the A-men get their hands on such a weapon, it could be catastrophic for us. I don’t know if they know about it or not but if we all go after it they will surely come to investigate. That is why I am sending you. You are going to have to find an old ally of SOUL since it is sealed within one of their cases. Only they will know how to unlock it.” Goliath said.

                “I know exactly who to go to. I won’t fail you Goliath. Just know that if I run into any trouble, I’m not pulling any punches this time. I will kill Malachi if he gets in my way.” Then Akita left.

 

New Hope Baptist Church: The following day

                Rex and David were satisfied with the morning service. They always loved the second Sunday of the month because that was when church was the most interesting. Now they were heading out so that they could go back to the wonderful new home that they had. David took a little longer to get outside than Rex because everyone wanted to talk to him. He didn’t want to be rude because that wasn’t right. However once he finally did reach the outside, he wished he had gone straight there. Amongst all of the people he saw Malachi. Talking to Malachi was someone who he never wanted to see.

                “Akita?” David asked. Malachi turned around. His face revealed all that David needed to know.  Clearly he was having a conversation with the enemy and was embarrassed that anyone had found out. David ran to Malachi as fast as he could. He didn’t know what was going on but he wasn’t going to wait to find out. “This conversation is over Akita. Goodbye.” David said harshly.

                Akita did not seem fazed at all by his impolite gesture. “Oh believe me David this is the last place I want to be. Regrettably Malachi has something I need and I have access to something he needs.”

                “What is she talking about?” David asked.

                “Goliath has located the artifact called the Golden Tongue. It is a tool that can be used for good or evil. The limits of its power are unknown but I am certain that kind of power in Goliath’s hands is too much. He already has the crown. I won’t allow him to get this as well.”

                Rex had just chimed in. “Wait so Akita is going to take you to go find this thing wherever it is and then she is just going to let you walk away with it?”

                Akita laughed. “Of course not fool. I know where it is and Malachi knows how to actually obtain it. Both of us need the other in order for either of us to be successful. Once the artifact is secure, it will be the prize for whoever is still breathing. So Malachi, do you accept my terms?”

                “David take Rex back to base and tell Kimora where I have gone. Tell her that we are not to be followed. Hopefully I’ll see you all later.” Then Malachi walked off with Akita.

 

Unknown Location: A few hours later

                “I had every intention of coming to save you Akita. Things didn’t go the way they were supposed to.” Malachi said.

                “I don’t want to hear it Malachi. You and I were supposed to be teammates but when I needed you the most you weren’t around. It doesn’t matter what your intentions were because all that matters is what happened. But it’s ok, everything worked out. I have new skills that I would never have learned from you. Plus I have a new objective that keeps me going, however if your guilt is really that bad, stay calm. You die today anyway.” Akita said.

                No sooner did she say that, did a sharp dart land by her feet, missing her by an inch. She looked up and saw a masked figure standing on a hill top. She assumed that this new arrival was the source of her previous attack. Before she had time to say anything, the figure blew another dart her way. She dived to avoid it. As soon as she got up another one was coming her way. This time she knew she didn’t have time to avoid it. Thankfully Malachi had fast reflexes. He pulled his sword and cut the dart in half before it could touch Akita.

                “Are you alright?” He asked.

                Akita pushed him to the side. “I didn’t need your help. I could have done that myself.” She said.

                The assailant jumped from the hill top and faced the two. “We have come seeking the artifact. Where is it? Give it to us now.” The voice sounded masculine and Malachi assumed it was a male.

                “I don’t see more than one of you. I won’t give you anything. I can take you myself.” Akita boasted.

                “Brothers front and center!” The mask figure said. Then smoke started to appear everywhere. Once it cleared there were five additional masked men surrounding Akita and Malachi. They all had swords drawn and looked like they were ready to fight to the death.

                “Nice trick but I am not intimidated. I can handle them all no problem.”

Then Akita drew her blades and proceeded to attack her enemy. While she was certainly keeping herself from getting killed, she wasn’t winning by any definition of the word. The men were not on Malachi’s level of swordsmanship however their numbers made it harder for Akita to keep up. She found herself falling behind and realized that she would soon be overcome.  Malachi knew that Akita didn’t deserve his help but he knew it was the right thing to do. He took his sword and entered the fray. He fought his way to the middle where Akita was and soon the two were standing back to back. Malachi blocked swings that would have otherwise killed Akita and she did likewise. The two made quite the impressive team. After a while the men backed off. They knew that they wouldn’t be able to defeat the two as long as they were working together.

“Who are these clowns?” Akita asked.

The first masked man that attacked spoke up. “We are the Brothers. A group of both SOUL and demon rouges. We are all human with only one goal in mind.”

“And what might that be?” Malachi asked.

“That is for us to know and for the world to find out later.” The man said. “You will know us as your murderers. I am Nicolas Winters better known as Awol. These are my associates. Now as we said before. Give us the artifact or we will kill you and take it.” Awol said.

“We don’t have it. So you are out of luck. There is no way you can get it. Only a few have the necessities to access it.” Malachi said.

“You are correct. Fortunately some of us have been with SOUL so long that we picked these things up along the way. We know exactly how to get what we need.” Awol said. “Now all we have to do is kill the two and you and then we can be off.”

“Alright Malachi, I grow tired of hearing them talk. Just follow my lead and try to keep up.” Akita said.

“Wait a minute. You’re Malachi the founder of SOUL? Oh I am going to enjoy this.” Awol said.

He started to blow a barrage of darts at Akita and Malachi. The two dodged the ones they could and cut up the ones they didn’t have time to avoid. When they finally reached him, they were surprised when they found out he was more than just a man behind a dart. He disarmed both Malachi and Akita and flipped Akita on her back. Malachi started to punch and kick but Awol blocked all of them. Akita got back up and kicked Awol in the back of the leg. While it did slow him down, it didn’t finish him. Awol once again outmuscled Akita. Malachi tried to push Awol away but it just got him into more trouble. Awol elbowed him in the stomach and knocked him over. Akita was stuck underneath Awol’s foot. He aimed his weapon at Malachi’s face. One dart to the forehead would end the angel once and for all.

Akita looked over and saw that Malachi’s death was imminent. She thought back to the good times she had with Malachi. When he first met her and recruited her. Those were some of the best times of her life. Then she remembered the torture. She remembered all of the pain she had been forced to endure because Malachi couldn’t be bothered to save her. Malachi didn’t deserve a quick death. He deserved agony the likes of which he had never seen and she was going to be the one to deliver to him the torment. But first, she had to take care of Awol. With all of her might she pushed up from underneath Awol’s foot. Then she pushed him away from Malachi. She gave a right hook then a left hook. When Awol was stunned she kicked him and knocked him over. She started to beat on his face. Then she broke his ribs. She grabbed his arm and tore one of his bones out and stabbed him in the chest with it. Once he was incapacitated Akita continued to hit Awol as hard as she could. Malachi got up and tried to stop her.

“Akita enough, he’s beaten!” Akita did not stop. She kept punching repeatedly even though her own hands were now sore. Malachi finally pulled her off of Awol. He was left practically lifeless and bloody.

“I decide when it is enough!” Akita said.

The rest of Awol’s men ran over to him and picked him up. It was impossible to tell their expression because of their masks but Malachi imagined that they were either shocked or afraid. One of the men spoke up. “Alright you win this round but the Brothers will be back. Revenge will be ours!” Then in another blast of smoke, they disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. Malachi looked at Akita who showed no signs of regret.

Malachi and Akita went on their way to find what it was they were both looking for. After another hour of tireless searching, Akita found a buried case. She called Malachi over so that he could open it. Malachi wasn’t an idiot. He already knew what Akita was planning.

“I figure you’re going to take a cheap shot once I open this so you can get away. I just hope you understand the consequences of what you are doing.”

Malachi took the case in his hand. He uttered something that was inaudible and then the case opened. In side of it was literally a golden tongue. Malachi had never seen it before. He had only heard about it and what it could do. He knew that power like this could not belong to Goliath. As he was about to draw his blade, he felt the familiar feeling of impalement. Akita had sneaked a small knife and stabbed him. Malachi fell over and Akita took up the artifact in her hand.

“I told you that you were not going to walk away with this. I also promised that I would kill you. Unfortunately I can’t keep that promise. Although it sickens me to admit, you saved my life twice today. I only saved yours once. That means that I am indebted to you. I repay your saving of my life by sparring yours. We will finish this battle another day.” Then Malachi blacked out.

The A-men could have been in a lot of trouble now but they had an enemy who was just too proud for her own good. Akita knew that Goliath owning the artifact would mean the end for all of the A-men. She had to make sure Malachi did not fall by anyone’s hands other than her own so she threw the tongue away. Then she deceived Goliath into believing that the A-men had the artifact. Malachi already believed she had it so there was no problem there.

In short the entire day was a failure on both sides and the alliance was completely pointless. The only thing it did was reveal the existence of a new enemy. The Brothers might not have seemed like much but it was only their first appearance. There was no telling what else the future would hold for them. When Malachi told Wisdom Woman that he lost the object he was panicked. Wisdom Woman however wasn’t worried at all. She knew that everything would be taken care of.

 

Unknown Location: Midnight

                Akita was completely depressed. She had her chance to finish Malachi off but her code forbade her from carrying it out. She had to spare Malachi and what was worse; she was only alive because of Malachi. These were all of the things that made her want to give up sometimes. It seemed every time she got her chance, something came up and she had to give it up.

                “I hate you Malachi!!!” Akita screamed at the top of her lungs.