Michael couldn’t believe the turn of events. His big brother, the original leader of the angels, the Angel that made him feel admiration and jealousy; the one he had wanted to be like, the one he needed to defeat… was going to return.

“If he breaks that seal, a second great rebellion is going to happen,” Michael said.

Raphael looked up at Michael. “There’s no knowing how much destruction he would cause this time around… He would eradicate the humans again and possibly us angels as revenge.” Raphael muttered, this time the other Arc-angels agreed with his pessimistic outcome.

Gabriel was too distraught to say anything, something that Uriel noticed, causing her to snap back into reality. “What can we do? There has to be something, warden Hades!” She had started to regain her confidence.

“That's the thing, we’ve already started our initiative.” Damaris finally spoke up, a small smirk on her face. “Papa called his vessel ‘Christ', and Lucifer essentially created his own version of that vessel. Let's call it the antichrist vessel.”

“The moment Luther killed the three humans, the Anti-antichrist initiative began,” Hades chimed in, taking out a small stack of papers. Uriel looked at the document cover that read Anti-antichrist Initiative; at that moment she figured it out and looked at Michael, who also came to the same conclusion as her.

“The Tryfing…” Uriel whispered. “That’s the true purpose of the third Tryfing and why we took the last spot as a team.”

“Bingo.” Damaris pointed at her sister and winked at her. “This Tryfing is really a front to stop Lucifer.” Damaris looked at Hades to continue the explanation.

“We need to rehabilitate the original soul I placed in Lucifer’s vessel. It took Lucifer many years and ather to create that vessel, so he needs this vessel now. Especially since we are all aware of his plans. The only way to rehabilitate Luther’s soul is to place him in a subspace area away from Earth and Lucifer’s influence.”

Michael thought for a few seconds and came to a realization “The Fantasia world, the battle world created for the Tryfing.”

Uriel spoke next, “Not only that but Father stops the flow of time for Earth, so Lucifer can’t influence anything else.”

“Exactly. Pick Luther as your retainer, take him away from Lucifer influence, and have him live a life on his own terms. Only he has the ability to truly break and erase the chains that Lucifer sunk into his soul. Father set up this Tryfing for this sole purpose. And why he chose you four,” Hades said.

“Hades recommended Achilles to be the judge, and he is one hundred percent aware of everything. He has three of his fellow Greek deities powering an extra barrier around the Fantasia world that is being created. This is the first time other deities have helped create the Fantasia world!” Damaris said. “Achilles is going to let some things slide for the greater good of rehabilitating his soul, like allowing certain retainers with taints in their souls to participate.”

“The hero needs villains to vanquish,” Gabriel chimed in, having just regained his composure. The other three Arc-angels all looked at Gabriel and nodded. They all at that point had the faces of composure, faces of purpose. Their Father had asked them to do this task of grave importance. Michael took command instantly.

“Uriel, you and Raphael grab Luther from his cell. Take him to a subspace prison and have Hades ward the room. We need to make sure while the Fantasia world is being created Lucifer can’t reach him here. Gabriel, we need godsends for Luther to use, just our four personal weapons aren’t enough. Head to our armory, grab the chariot of flames, the one that took the prophet Elijah and the armor of David. I’ll register those as my own godsends, alongside the blazing sword.” The other arc-angels nodded and warped out of the room.

Michael turned to Damaris, he snapped his fingers and a regal gold key appeared. It was shaped like a cylinder with thick ridges. “I believe in Uriel and Raphael but this is Lucifer they are going to be facing. I’ll be rounding up the few angels here in Elysium just in case.”

He handed her the key, which looked comically huge in her palms. “Head to the armory and grab the holy weapon that’s locked in the Ark of the convent. From there you’ll know what to do once you see it.”

“Aye aye, leader sir!” Damaris saluted Michael, winking at him at the same time. She warped out with the key in tow.

With only Michael and Hades left in the room, Hades pulled out a long spear-like weapon from his briefcase. It was shaped like Poseidon's trident but was missing the middle blade; it was called a bident. He then pulled out a folded obsidian black cloak. It had real stars on the cloak, scattered all throughout it.

“I already spoke to Achilles. Take my godsend, Death ruler. It's a flame godsend so it should synergize well with your sword,” Hades said with a smile. As Michael grabbed the bident, Hades presented the next item. His face filled with sorrow as he handed the cloak to Michael. “Persephone made me this cloak before Lucifer took her away… She hand-picked all the stars herself.” Hades wiped the tears with his finger. “She called it the cloak from the stars. Michael, I failed her once, and I feel like I failed her again when Luther's wife died. We can’t fail a third time.”

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Michael grabbed the cloak made from Persephone’s love, something like this… something that meant so much to Hades, was given to him for one purpose alone.

“He’s not going to succeed. We will stop Lucifer,” Michael declared.

///

Uriel and Raphael tore the subspace veil in Luther’s cell. “He’s going to know we are here, Uriel, grab him quick!” Raphael said, holding the hole they tore open. Uriel hovered above Luther, who didn’t even realize the angels were even there. He was still sitting on the floor against the wall.

As Uriel was reaching to pick up Luther, a strong aura started to radiate from him. This woke Luther from his dead stare. He looked up to see the two angels. Just as his eyes widened, the whispers screamed into his mind.

“DO NOT LET THEM TAKE YOU! KILL YOURSELF IF YOU HAVE TO. DO IT NOW!”

The whispers were the loudest and strongest he had ever felt, he started to thrash and scream as if possessed by a demon. “Stay back! Get away from me!” Luther crawled to the corner of his cell and started to slam his head against the stone wall.

Blood poured from the bandages wrapped around his forehead. Uriel knew she needed to swiftly grab Luther. She swooped in and forcefully yanked him. He tried to hold on to the toilet but Uriel was too strong for him. She broke the toilet when she yanked Luther, causing a pipe to spray water all over the cell.

Uriel began to fly into the subspace portal when a strong force pulled her back. She turned around and saw one ethereal black chain that went through the ground connected to Luther's chest. This was Lucifer’s hold onto his soul.

A tug of war match that would decide the fate and future of the human race.

Uriel pulled and pulled; the resistance was too much for her to bear. She let out a scream of frustration, flapping her wings in desperation.

Trying to get any momentum, she placed her foot into the portal, using the rim of the portal as leverage to help pull herself. She thought about the rebellion, about the deities and angels that died because of Lucifer. Her older brother and her leader Michael entrusted this mission to her.

Uriel couldn’t fail. She had her left arm wrapped around Luther’s waist; she was using her right hand to help pull his body but it wasn’t enough. She then used her right hand and grabbed the ethereal chain. The pain she felt was unimaginable.

“LET ME GO!” Luther screamed as he flailed his arms and tried to squirm away. He was making this already difficult situation worse.

Uriel flexed every muscle in her angelic body, tightened her grip on the chain, and let out another scream of anger and frustration. Little by little she moved back towards the portal, smoke, energy, and angelic blood coming out of her hand that held the chain.

She was winning but it was taking everything she had in her. But this was Lucifer as her opponent; he wasn’t going to sit down without attacking her physically, mentally, or emotionally.

“Ooooh I didn’t recognize you at first, thought you were just some random lil angel.” A voice shot from the chains, a voice that only Uriel could hear.

“SHUT UP!” she shouted. She needed to act quickly and block his voice. Lucifer knew the right things to say to hurt one’s psyche and ego.

“It’s funny, after all this time being sealed away, I had to hoard and hone my ather energy. It was such a painstaking long process just so I could do the things I’ve been doing for the last few centuries,” Lucifer said.

“Stop crying, you deserve that punishment. Now shut up and let go of this human!” Uriel was talking through her teeth. She flexed and pulled harder than before, pushing herself beyond her limits.

She heard the maniacal but calm laugh of Lucifer all around her. “I’m not saying I don’t deserve this punishment. In fact, I agree with it. If anything shouldn’t you be punished? Where were you when Michael and Ra faced me? Where were you when I killed the battalions of our angel brethren? Where were you when I killed—”

Raphael was watching the struggle from the portal he had his own battle to deal with. Lucifer, using his aura, was trying to forcefully crush the portal to close. It was taking everything in Raphael’s power not to faint against Lucifer’s immense strength.

“Uriel!! What's going on?!” Raphael screamed.

“SHUT UP SHUT UP! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!” Uriel was getting her mind crushed.

“Where were you when I killed…” Lucifer sent images and visions into Uriel's mind.

“Persephone.”

“STOP!”

“Brigid.”

“I SAID STOP!”

“Mixcoatl.”

Uriel started to sob incoherently.

“Thor.”

Silence.

“Amaterasu?… Where were you?”

In a flash key events of the Great Rebellion appeared in her vision. Lucifer killing the five deities, devouring pieces of their souls before they went into the eternal oblivion. Lucifer systematically defeating each Archangel, until only Michael was left.

Uriel remembered being on the ground still awake watching the destruction. Unable to get up.

“It’s funny, I gotten weaker in this seal. But you're still the same, powerless to beat me. Poor lil Uriel.”

“Please stop, no more you win…” Uriel started to loosen her grip slowly; she was being pulled with Luther away from the portal.

“You angels have stagnated without my leadership. Don’t worry soon I’ll make sur—”

Raphael jumped and grabbed Uriel by the waist, using his wings to hold himself from the inside of the portal.

“Uriel, please. Whatever is happening to you, you’ve got to snap out of it! I can’t do this by myself, I'm not strong like you. Please, I need you, sister!” Raphael cried. He was trying his best to reach her.

Stretching his wings more he stepped out of the portal and onto the ground. He used one of his hands to try and pull on the chain. He instantly let go after a jolt of pain hit his palm but tried to grab it again. He didn’t have the same willpower like Uriel, but he wasn’t going to give up.

He grabbed the chain a second time just as a sickening voice started to echo into his mind.

“Raphael, still the weakest of all the Archangels, I see.” Lucifer started to attack Raphael’s mind. Raphael had been the first Archangel to fall in the penultimate battle with Lucifer. So, the visions he saw were that of Lucifer’s first person recounting of the rebellion. He experienced every feeling Lucifer felt.

“Think about it, Raphael. If only you didn’t faint first. If only you withstood my first attack on you pathetic excuses for Archangels. Maybe things would have changed. Actually… they would have. It’s your fault the battle was prolonged, that all of your fellow brothers and sisters died!” Lucifer coldly said.

Raphael tried his best to resist but he fell quicker than Uriel. “Damn it why… WHY DO YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL!” Raphael screamed at the top of his angelic lungs, until he couldn’t make another sound. The two Archangels floated and stood frozen in place. Even with the mental and emotional defeat, their angelic bodies stay flexed, still fighting.

But the tug of war to determine the fate of the human race had been won… by Lucifer.

3rd Tryfing

Official judge: Heroic Greek deity, Achilles.

Support judge: Angel, Damaris.

Chosen deities:

Ra: Demi-God: Darren Donaldson

Lugh: Knight: Ariel Morales

Zhong Kui: Exorcist

Inari: Polymath: Kento Sanosuke

Freya: Assassin: Charlie Wilson

Nuada: Conqueror

Minerva: Tactician

Team Arc-Angel: Hero Luther Satenly

Fantasia world: underdevelopment.

Starting year: not yet decided.

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