Sin of the Saints (Between Delusion and Sobriety Duet #2)

Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Bartimaeus

T he Church convenes, and I’m pulled out of the holy water. The reigning Pope mumbles broken syllables while in prayer, as though he’s only going through the motions, and then a robe is thrown onto me.

No matter how often I blink, the light hurts my eyes. I’ve lived for so long in darkness – I don’t even know how long it’s been – that it feels like that darkness has found a home inside me, just as I did inside it. The darkness enshrouds me. It’s everything I see. God punished me, and took the light from my eyes. A fitting punishment for my sins.

Someone is pushing me forward, I can’t see where, but I feel fluctuations in the dark fog of my sight. I assume we’re entering the meeting room because I notice the faint auras of the cardinals sitting along the long table I remember, like streetlamps in heavy fog, and I feel them staring at me. They’re waiting for the Pope, whose glowing figure passes across the room until he takes his place at the head of the table.

I see Ellis’ aura as he sits next to me, and can smell his excitement. His anticipation makes every muscle in my body tense up. It’s rare for a guardian angel to be invited to these meetings. I was present a few times, thanks to my calling to banish Lilith. Why was he here now?

What’s going on here?

“Gentlemen,” the Pope says, and silence descends upon the huge hall. “I experienced a divine revelation last night.” The gasps of astonishment spread through the hall like a wildfire, and the glow around the Pope shifts as he raises a hand to silence them. I’m as curious as they are to learn what this is about, and focus on his aura as he leans forward and focuses his attention on me.

“And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.” I hold my breath in anticipation. I know the story well.

“The Book of Mark, chapter 10 verse 52,” Ellis says at my side, patting my back so fiercely that my stability in my chair is shaken.

“The healing miracle of Jesus Christ Our Messiah was not just verbal, as many interpret it,” the Pope says, and all one hundred and twenty Cardinals around the table hum in response. “His miracle may appear before us again. For you have tasted of the darkness, for you were cursed in the darkness. But this darkness foretells the coming of another messiah. And when the light comes upon you, you will return to us filled with the teachings of our messiah, Bartimaeus. Only faith will restore your light and sobriety.” The atmosphere in the meeting room grows tense. I feel the need to look down, as it’s not me they’re speaking of. I bear his name, but his name was never so foreign to me. “Most of you have probably wondered why a wingless guardian angel walks among us,” the Pope notes, and sounds of agreement are heard across the hall. “The truth is now before our eyes. The truth that even the man possessing the most tormented soul is worthy of redemption by our Creator, and may earn forgiveness and enlightenment from Him. A guardian angel stripped of his wings is also worthy of redemption, if he returns his heart and his faith to He who sits above.”

His aura moves as he points at me, and I feel all eyes turning towards me. For the first time since my return to the air of the lands of Adam I look at my hands. My skin glows with the holy aura, much more so than the men of God around me. Beyond the dark fog I am glowing in absolute splendor like a full moon. Clean of sin, like the presence of the Almighty Himself in this mortal realm.

What the Hell? “How long has it been?” The question slips through my lips. I must know.

“Three years,” the Pope replies, and I freeze.

Has it really been that long? I try to recall when I lost my grip on time. The day I tasted her, and questioned my faith, most likely.

The day she tasted me, and I lost my sight along with very nearly losing my undeath. The seal of the tombstone, where the image of Belle floated before me, was like a lighthouse in the darkness. But at some point she abandoned me. Her image faded, her scent vanished, her taste was wiped away. Instead I was haunted by nightmarish images. Maybe these were warnings from the Creator himself, showing me my punishment were I to stray from the righteous path again. Does that mean the exorcism was declared a success?

“Bartimaeus,” Ellis turns to me, pulling me from my thoughts.

Why does my name suddenly sound so strange? Why does my skin feel like an unfamiliar blanket over my body?

“What has happened during this time?” I ignore Ellis and address the Pope directly.

“Lilith has vanished, the Council of Demons has taken her, but last night she was revealed to me. She has awakened, and this time you must not fail. You must bring the Word.”

“What Word?” I ask.

“The One and Only Truth,” Cardinal Walter puts his hand on his heart. “All humans are born sinners, bearing within them the Primordial Sin. We must restore their sight, and draw them to redemption. Like you, Bartimaeus. You tasted the corruption of sin incarnated in she who is Most Damned, but your vision will return to you, just as the Damned One will return to the place she belongs once you fulfill your calling.”

“Hear, hear!” all the Cardinals agree with Walter’s words.

You have tasted sin… A flash of memory, Belle’s legs spread open as I savor her forbidden fruit, and her desire that longs only for me. My body goes stiff and I feel my veins clogging up.

“You alright, brother?” Ellis whispers into my ear, and I immediately nod. I mustn’t give away my awareness that her banishment was an utter failure after all.

“Sinners must repent for their sins. We will fight for every soul, we will spread the Word, we will spread redemption!” The Pope’s aura shifts as he raises his hands in the air, and all those present cross themselves and kiss the crucifixes they wear around their necks.

I hurriedly cross myself and kiss my crucifix; It leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. “Thus we have been commanded to fast and abstain! To fulfill His teachings so long as He wishes for us to stay in the realm of Man. So that we do not repeat the mistakes of the past, I feel obligated to again repeat the laws of the Church.” I cast my gaze downward, continuing to study my skin as it is surrounded by the ring of gleaming light. It’s blindingly powerful, stinging my eyes. “None are safe from darkness, not even the most holy. Be alert and aware of this at all times. The Devil is elusive and clever, and we must not let him infiltrate us. For this you must undergo the rituals of the Church on a regular basis, and not skip any of them. It is persistent redemption that has no end. You saw with your own eyes that when Bartimaeus resided at the Demon Academy and missed the rituals, he became vulnerable, and thus the Devil managed to subdue him. Learn from his mistakes.”

I grind my teeth and make angry fists of my hands. Ellis grips my arm, and I glare at him. His aura floats before me like a white cloth on water.

“Relax, he’s just being hard on you because he believes in you. We must all learn from our mistakes. It was his mistake too. He’s the one who decided to send you on that mission, and he’s being no less harsh on himself for that, but that’s what had to happen, for all our sakes,” Ellis whispers in my ear, and I force myself to relax.

Ellis is wrong in thinking that the Pope’s words are what stirred me. It’s the image of Belle that continues to haunt me, the flashes of memory erupting from the cracks in my heart.

“We mustn’t replicate the Primordial Sin,” the Pope continues his speech. “The answer is absolute abstinence from all pleasure, especially the most loathsome – sexual lust.”

“Even though we know the secret to banishing the Damned One?” I interrupt the Pope and feel all those seated here staring at me severely.

“ Especially now ,” he lowers his voice in a warning tone. “She seduces na?ve men just like you for only one purpose.”

“What are you talking about?” I ask, not understanding his meaning.

“Lilith is the source of Primordial Sin! She has returned to haunt this world, seeking for someone to plant seed within her.” He strikes the table with his fist, and I shrink back.

That makes no sense. “But once demons or angels are claimed by our creators, we can’t bring life into the lands of Adam.”

“Lilith has been claimed by neither! She is her own entity, whom the creators themselves fear!”

“So you’re saying…” I choke on my words.

“She could bring forth worse creatures into the lands of Adam than Satan himself. More like her. Entities that answer to neither higher nor lower powers. Angels are created by our God, but Lilith’s sin was arrogance, and she sought to create on her own. She is the creator of demons, and accursed Eve and all the women of Adam were infected with the same sin. She will bring Armageddon upon us, a world without faith. We must banish her from the lands of Adam before she brings the end of all things down upon us.”

Enraged voices echo in the hall, and my head is spinning.

Did Lilith try to entrap me? I reexamine the aura around my palms. What does it mean? Is this aura a testament to her failure?

“How do we do it?” Ellis asks the question running through my mind.

The Pope’s aura moves, but the Cardinals’ hysterical voices don’t die down. He strikes the table with his fist and shakes the walls of the hall itself.

“Silence!” he yells, and everyone immediately falls silent. “We don’t need lust of the flesh for that. We will shed her blood in the manner in which she exposed her secret to us, and we will banish her to the void from whence she came.”

“How?” I look directly at him.

“Fortunately for us, we’re equipped for precisely these situations.” The Pope clears his throat and Ellis rises from his seat. I hear his steps as he walks across the room. I follow his aura and return to the Pope as he continues speaking. “The tools are a bit rusty, but it hardly matters. History has proven their efficiency.” What the hell is he talking about? I try to decipher his words. Damn it, I can’t see anything but vague auras. Ellis returns to the table but I can’t see what he’s doing. The sound of metal landing on the table sends chills through my body. “The Pear of Anguish,” the Pope answers, and slowly moves towards Ellis. Every step wears on my nerves until I’m sure I’m about to explode.

He takes the object; I hear the metal move. The sharp tremor of a metallic slice turns my stomach.

“After you take her blood using this device, we will stone her and send her back to the inferno from whence she came.” The satisfaction in his voice nauseates me to my core.

“Yes!” Cardinal Josef rises to his feet and my gaze jumps to him. His excitement stirs up the other Cardinals, and they rise one after the other, cheering.

I watch them in shock. Suddenly they no longer seem quite so holy to me, but more like unrestrained demons, thirsty for blood, awakening at the thought of their victim’s suffering. Their dim auras slowly go cold as impure thoughts flood through them.

They claim I tasted evil and my soul will be redeemed, but all evil has been revealed to my eyes in the holiest place in the world.

Her name strikes my still heart like a drumbeat, quickening my blood and reviving my dead body. My aura flickers at the same rhythm as her name.

Belle .