They fight, these forces of the universe, for control of total chaos. One fights for freedom, the other bondage. One struggles to abide by hated rules, the other to be released from them. Arthur parries Lucifer's latest attempt on his life with amazing speed, as if aided by a supernatural being, which in fact he was.

But Lucifer never plays by the rules, and never will. He search desperately for loopholes as does Michael, just with less desperation. Both have reached their highest point, but it satisfies neither and it never will. Gods did not fight, that is why they had angels, their servants, unwillingly loyal to their masters…
But let me start at the beginning…

It all started at a fair, a young girl unsuspectingly walking towards an empty booth, seeing if anyone needed help closing up, not knowing what the wetness was until she turned her gaze upwards, meeting the empty stare of a corpse. She stared into the unseeing eye sockets; hidden slightly by loose carvings of skin and sunken slightly due to the lack of blood flow. She then heard a scream and soon realized that she had been screaming.

Her scream radiated the distance of the fairgrounds as tears streamed down her face. Another teen was first to her, and just stared at it. A scripture was found on the wall written in blood, Exodus 21:24. "Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot…" someone recited, disgusted by the twisted nature of the use of this scripture. The body was missing each of these, its mouth open in a silent scream.

Police Report #1 for MURDER CASE 666
All I did was walk into that tent, I swear. Usually an old woman runs that booth and I wanted to see if she needed any help. I lifted the flap covering the opening, which is never closed, but was then, and something wet plopped on to my forehead. I panicked thinking it was my blood, but as my eyes gravitated upwards and into its eye holes, it took me a minute to realize that it wasn't screaming, that was me.

Police Report #2 for MURDER CASE 666
I was right beside that booth with my grandfather and we both jumped as we heard her scream. My grandfather went to go get help, so I went inside to see what was wrong.  I looked around at first, and didn't see anything.  I thought she was insane, as she was staring at the ceiling and sobbing, but I followed her gaze upwards and all I could do was stare.

Even as the police came, neither teen moved willingly. They were brought out to a car and wrapped in blankets. When questioned for their names, the girl started at them for a second, twisting her blonde hair around her finger. "Anna, Anna Collins." Her eyes fleetingly glazed around the grounds, desperately searching for anything to replace the image engraved in her mind. The boy was a little more put together and answered immediately "Dexter Phillips." They stayed huddled together, as if those few moments had bonded them. His hands found a place around her shoulders, and she found haven in his arms. It wasn't at all romantic, just the need to cling to someone else, for the feeling of terror and chaos reigned in the air.

Most of the police were in shock themselves, this was a small town, not a crime-ridden city, this wasn't supposed to happen, not didn't, it just wasn't ever even thought of. People around here left their doors unlocked and children alone all the time, it just wasn't like this, everyone now glancing at each other, wondering who was the killer. It was one person and already it was tearing these people apart. But within these two teens, holding to each other, it was completely different. They trusted each other and no one else right now.

A feeling of complete horror coursed through every vein, accompanied by trepidation. What they had just seen would never leave their minds, those motionless eyes, forever hollow, forever boring into theirs. No matter what they did, that image still haunted them. To a certain degree, they were numb, but to another, they were feeling more than they ever had. Sleep came to her first, a sweet relief from the swarm of emotions, and slower to him, but soon both of them covered the backseat of a squad car.

Private Arthur Davies stared blankly at his latest case file, not yet fully awake. Two in the morning and they call him out of bed for this, some small town murder? But one look at that scripture and Davies was wide awake. It couldn't be, not this guy, hadn't they put him behind bars years ago? Wasn't he gone? This couldn't be him, could it? He grabbed his coat and sprinted out the door towards a place he swore he would never go to again.

He had another one, another guarding angel, after the last one had let him out, she didn't know, but she had. Sweet freedom from that pitiful mortal, but yet onto another.  He needed to prove them wrong, that he could control this insignificant, grotesque race through terror and fear just as well or better as his brothers could through love.  And he would prove to them all that Lucifer was not easily controlled.

The private reluctantly walked through those hated doors, just as Lucifer sped into his last casing, driven insane by funneling the power of an immortal. "Hello Arthur, back again? What are you going to blame me for again?" He spat through the mortal's lips, how he hated using these things, soon he would be able to show them all what he really looked like.
Arthur was all to use to this, how he knew his brother, or the one he held's brother. "Lucifer, you might as well call me Michael, just as I will call you by your real name. Now why are you doing this again? Was it not good enough the last time you insisted on feeding?"

That last word was twisted from the angel's lips; how he hated being reminded of their species' fault, their one weakness. How they needed these mortals' essences, literally their very souls.
Lucifer grinned, knowing he was bedeviling his brother, and probably normally nothing more, but this wasn't normal times. Spiking his voice with fake worry, he started. "Didn't anyone tell you?" His tone flew into the normal malicious accent he was known for. "Or has being down here too long thrown you out of the loop?" He taunted his brother, drawing the darker side out of the other immortal.
Suddenly Michael threw himself at the bars between them, wanting nothing more than to snap the other man's neck, but he knew he had to keep his temper, he was the good one. He kept his feeding down to a minimum, ignoring that ever-bearing pain, he used fully those he took, and most importantly, he asked them. Lucifer wasted, leaving those he took deranged and half dead and never asked.

Unfortunately killing this human wouldn't do anything, as Lucifer would just move on to another. Killing an immortal, forever ending them, was much harder than just snapping a neck. It required the power of a God, and theirs would never agree. Gods were without limitation, but always up held the rules, and those damned Accords kept the angels in line. If those things didn't exist, a war would have taken place by now, and the universe would have been completely unraveled.

He had to remind himself that none of this mattered now, what had he missed? What could possibly be so important that Lucifer would risk his eternal spirit? Or risk another; what did those mortals call them, Holocausts?  Nothing less than the end of their kind could ever really motivate his self-centered brother to actually want to do anything for him. He must be baiting me. The eldest thought.  Or would Lucifer really tell him?

"What? What have I missed?" Michael laced his voice with false sweetness and a bit of need, hoping, no, praying that his brother would tell him. It worked, or at least seemed to, as Lucifer smirked, his lips curving up towards his brother, who was still standing. But he only said two words, "He's here." And with that, Lucifer flew out of that casing and into his newest, the one he had used to immolate his first demon last evening, just as the sun set beyond the horizon.

Anna and Dexter, miles away, simultaneously rolled over as their dreams woke them from their fitful sleep. They shuffled out of bed and towards their families. Both pairs of parents hadn't gotten any sleep, showing by the bags under their eyes. All four had been haunted by nightmares, the dreams varying by which parent they were. One pair had nightmares as Lucifer entered them, the other pair warning them, and saving them from being taken. But neither child knew anything about the nightmares, the angels, and the private, or how big a part he was going to play in their life.

The Private's head wouldn't quit swimming, how hard it is to hold an immortal's thought in a mortal's mind!   He's here? What the crap does that mean?  With that thought, Arthur decided he needed coffee, and he needed it now. He poured himself a large mug of some, then on a whim, added a bottle of vodka, he thought he deserved it. The little voice in the back of his head, stronger than most people's, whispered; you shouldn't be doing this; it'll kill you twenty years early. But by this time, Arthur already was three sheets to the wind. Half the mug and bottle were gone, and the private was stumbling around, incapacitated.

Anna needed that dreaded image to flee her mind forever, to never see it again. Dexter meanwhile, was strumming on a guitar, finding it freed his mind for a split second and he needed that relief. She didn't know this, but for some reason she couldn't explain, she found herself clearing off the ancient black grand piano that sat in the family's library room. Usually her mother's pride and joy, but it had been forgotten lately. Her fingers moved towards the chords of a familiar piece, remembering everything her mother had taught her. He strummed the same chords, and with miles between them, they made a beautiful accompaniment. Both teens had been through hell the past couple of days and they knew it. Why is always the faithful that have the hardest trials?

A few days later, Dexter stood in front of Anna's door feeling out of place and nervous. Who wouldn't? The only reason he knew this girl was because they had found a freaking dead body. Not exactly the most pleasant way to meet someone. I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't even recognize me. He thought dryly. It's not as if I've haunted her dreams the way she has mine. He couldn't even blink without seeing that image of her, nestled in his arms in the police car.

Anna stood in front her door, staring through the peep hole at Dexter. She really wished he would knock on the door, because she was too scared to open it. He seemed so much happier then when they first met, but then again, the whole dead body thing didn't help any. Not the nicest chance to get to know someone. Does he even remember me? She wondered to herself. Well, duh, he's here, isn't he?  But there's no chance he's been dreaming about me the way I've been dreaming of him. Oddly enough, one minute couldn't pass without her thinking of him.  
Finally, he found the courage to knock, and after she opened the door, Anna threw her arms around the brunette's neck. His arms snaked around her waist, and anyone who passed would've thought that they were romantically involved.  

Arthur drove towards the teens, remembering Michael's warning. He'll do anything to get to them, you must protect them.It didn't make sense to him, but then again, this immortal stuff never did. But he did it anyways. He didn't even know where this voice came from, nor was he ever going to ask. The only reason I had taken it… He shook his head, interrupting the thought. The slowpoke in front of him finally turned, and he shoved the gas pedal down, knowing he wouldn't get caught be any cops. Being possessed by an angel has its advantages.

A maniacal grin covered the general's face as his fingers hacked into the computer's mainframe. That little voice in the back of his head told him to enter a certain address, for the location of a seventeen year old. This teen wasn't his next victim, they were his crowning glory. He had finally found a God before they came to power. And he was going to make sure this one never did…

Just as this was happening a CEO nearly shattered a nearby glass with her waking scream. Her housekeeper, a motherly Hispanic woman, stormed in, armed with a broom. "Senorita, are you alright? You woke most of the town with that scream!" As the elderly woman, took a closer look at her employer, she noticed the tears streaming down the woman' face. "Niña, ¿qué está equivocado?  Child, what's wrong?"The other woman could only manage one word, "Death." before the Mexican's heart stopped. The pair looked into each other's eyes, seeing what was wrong. One collapsed into the other arms and soon both women were sobbing.

A few minutes later, the younger woman ran out of tears and she was all business. "Maria, there's a seventeen year old down the street that applied for that techie job. Make sure to tell Mr. Stevens' to inform him that he has gotten the job, and will be moving here. I don't want that child out of my sight." The older woman nodded, being used to her friend's odd outbursts.  "I will Nicole, I will. Is there anything else you would like?" "Would you bring two mugs of coffee up to my office after you've told my secretary? I need to talk to you."

Just as Anna and Dexter separated, the private swung into the driveway. Anna leaned up to Dexter's ear and whispered "Who's the showoff?" The other teen shrugged, the new arrival didn't look familiar and neither did his car. A close inspection showed, he wasn't even from the same state, as his license plate was from a state nearly 200 miles west. "Whoever he is, he's come a long way." He replied.
Well great, now they're staring at me.  Well what did you expect? Just because you agree to hold me does NOT give you invisibility to any and everything. </strong> Now what do I do? Hm, first you need to open your door and get out…</strong> I mean how do I talk to them?You just get out, I'll do that part.</strong>
Some days Arthur hated having two voices in his head, especially when they had conversations. It made him feel like he was crazy.

Back with the CEO, she's pacing the floor hurriedly, face ashen with worry. "Nicole, chica, there's no point in worrying. They're the best we've got, if they can't get him back-" Apparently the Mexican realized now that approach wouldn't work.  The Society needed that boy protected. And they needed it now. This wasn't just another angel in training, this was a GOD, and therefore must be protected at all costs. This was what the Society had been waiting for nearly three thousand years.

"If you want to live, get in the car." That's all you give me, and you really expect them to come with me?Just trust me will you?With a mental sigh, Arthur realized he really didn't have a choice. To the private's surprise, the pair exchanged looks and got in the car. It was as if they trusted him completely.  He followed a prompting and  started the engine immediately.Ok; I've got the kids, now what?Go to NicoleThat was all the man needed before he sped off towards a house he was all too familiar with.

What should have taken an hour (but only took ten minutes,) later, the private and the angels-to-be pulled into an all exclusive neighborhood filled with heiresses and wise men galore, all members of the Society.  All untied with the one goal of keeping the Archangels and the next God safe. They would all go to war for these three teens.