Veil of Deception

**Chapter 7**

**Insidious Covenant Church**

Rakael stood amidst a sea of mutilated bodies. The putrid smell didn’t seem to bring her back to reality as she stared at the empty sky. The rain washed the blood of her family from her face. Finally, she let out a deafening scream, muted by the downpour.

“Rakael… Rakael… Rakael.”

Rakael jolted awake, her heart pounding. A female voice called to her from outside.

“Rakael.”

“What?” Rakael barked, her voice hoarse.

“The Lord summons all high members of the Church, and if I may remind you… you are one of them now,” the voice said, fading away.

***

Crimson drapes covered the long windows of the church. The choking aroma of incense filled the dimly lit room. A long wooden table separated the highest members of the church, six on each side. Veyan walked briskly into the room, taking a deep inhale of the incense. The other members rose upon noticing him, and he took his seat.

“Glad you all could make it on such short notice,” Veyan said.

“What’s the wait for? We’ve had the boy for some time now. How are you sure he isn’t forgotten? I’m not sure the church is willing to risk Micah’s artifact for a non-factor,” Rakael said, her tone sharp.

“Straight to business—I like this girl,” a cool, masculine voice said. He raised his hat, revealing a patched eye, the other eye examining Rakael, who sat across from him. “Where did you find this one?” he asked.

“I happened to stumble upon her, Orion. What do you think? She’s good, eh?” Cedric said, grinning.

“Shut up, creep,” another voice snapped, this time feminine. “Master Veyan, why don’t we go out in search of the other artifacts? We can gather enough strength to get Micah,” she continued.

“Nova, that can’t happen. We need the Divine Compass to locate the rest… Micah will surely come.”

“And if he doesn’t?” Nova asked.

“We wait,” Veyan said calmly.

“Why wait? You’re after power, and it’s within your grasp, yet you want to wait?” Rakael shouted, slamming the table.

Veyan chuckled. Flickers of flames slowly gathered beside him, forming a humanoid ram charred by fire. His demon slowly let out its ominous spiritual energy. Rakael didn’t hesitate to manifest hers—two sea dragons coiled around her.

“I like this girl,” a slender lady in a crimson gown adorned with heavy jewelry said, smiling. Her slit eyes lit up.

“Lilith, take your eyes off her. She is mine,” Cedric said, still smiling.

“Well, not anymore. Everyone has their eyes on her,” Orion said.

“Including the boss. This girl cannot be tamed. What happened to her that she has this much hate inside her?” Orion continued.

“Well, we have to make use of that hate,” another woman said as she stood up and approached Rakael. Her long blonde hair stood out alongside her pale, fair skin. “My dear child,” she placed her hands on Rakael. “We know you harbor a lot of hate for the church. I understand.”

“Don’t tell me you—” Seraphina’s hand released a green aura, and Rakael’s demon slowly dissipated.

“That’s a good girl,” she smiled. “Lord Veyan, you may proceed,” she said.

“Don’t let any of their smiles or promises get to your head. Remember, they are all demons—so am I,” Henri whispered in Rakael’s ear.

***

Rakael walked outside the large church building, heading toward the field in front of the church. Seraphina stood there in a white gown with a golden tiara on her head, smiling brightly like an angel. Rakael walked past her, ignoring her completely.

“Rakael, dear, that’s not a nice way to address a senior member.”

Rakael continued, paying no attention to her. A vein crept under Seraphina’s smile.

“I took my time to look into you, Rakael, and I must say, you have quite an intriguing past.”

Rakael stopped.

“Glad I could get your attention, dear,” Seraphina said as she slowly walked toward her.

“I don’t need anyone looking into my past, and I would like to keep it buried,” Rakael said.

“Your parents were strong devotees of the church, but they were killed during the last raid by the Exorcist Church,” Seraphina continued. Rakael resumed walking toward the field.

“You’ve been training on your own, which is why you have such good mastery over your demon,” Seraphina added.

“What do you want?” Rakael asked.

Seraphina smiled. “I want to help you, you see,” she appeared in front of Rakael. “I too have been a victim of the Exorcist Church. I lost my fiancé and my child to one of their raids. Those monsters killed them in cold blood. Let us seek the Arcane Tome.”

“What’s that?”

“The Arcane Tome is one of the seven artifacts that Veyan is looking for to merge the four worlds together. It is an ancient book bound in dragon hide, filled with scripts containing otherworldly and powerful spells. With this book, you can have the power you seek to exact your revenge. No power granted by demons will be enough to take down an Exorcist Church, but with that book, you’ll have all the power you need.”

“Isn’t that going against what Lord Veyan wants?”

Seraphina laughed uncontrollably. “Rakael, don’t be so naïve. Veyan just wants power for himself. He doesn’t care about what happens to any of us. So, what do you say?”

***

**Saint Agnes Basilica, Sancta Vertica**

**The Chancel**

Micah and Tyreel stood in front of Ecclesiastical Commander Daniel, both looking in different directions, avoiding his gaze.

“First you, Tyreel—you assaulted a fellow exorcist and caused a large crater on the field.”

“A fellow exorcist? That’s a devil, for Christ’s sake,” Tyreel said.

“Quiet!” Daniel commanded, slamming his cane on the ground. “And then you, Micah—causing a scene and using your Divine Form, knowing full well that it’s prohibited due to its high volatility.”

Micah pouted.

Daniel exhaled. “We have a serious issue at hand now. Get yourselves ready; you leave in an hour. Dismissed.”

“Yes, Commander,” both said in unison.

***

Jeremiah took a deep breath, the wind blowing against his face.

“If I want to reach that level of power, I have to be able to battle without the help of Eosphoros,” he said to himself. Purple flames swirled around his body as he clapped his palms loudly, releasing a thin blade of flame into the open field.

“If you want to improve significantly, you’ll need at least a target—and maybe a teacher,” Kaiky said.

“You aren’t here to ‘exorcise’ me, are you?” Jeremiah made air quotes.

“No, not at all. But that doesn’t mean I side with what Micah is doing. But it’s better to be on his good side than his bad side,” Kaiky grinned.

“Oh…”

“So, a fire-based retribution—we seem to be a good match because I’m privileged to have received a grace from one of the archangels of the Four Main Families.”

“Main Families?”

“Yeah… after the worlds got separated and humans became vulnerable to their assailants, four priests went back to Yahweh and begged for a way to fight back. Out of His love, He granted them the graces of the four archangels, and these priests later founded families that became the pillars of the four Exorcist Churches: Ecclesiastical Commander Daniel Uriel for Saint Agnes Basilica, Ecclesiastical Commander Kevin Gabriel for Saint Cecilia Sanctuary, Ecclesiastical Commander Jayna Raphael for Saint Clare Chapel, and then the mightiest of them all—Jerome’s elder brother, Jamiel Michael at the Capital Church.”

“So, how do you plan to help me?”

“I’m gonna teach you how I use my grace. You see, when an angel grants its grace to more than one exorcist, the power of the grace dilutes the more it’s spread. That’s why it’s more advantageous for some to get a regular angel’s grace. But an archangel’s grace is much more powerful, and when you’re chosen by an archangel, it’s not like you can say no. But there is a way around it.”

“How? Quit with the suspense,” Jeremiah rolled his eyes.

“Ecclesiastical Commander Daniel has ninety percent of Uriel’s grace, so the ten percent left has to be used wisely by making your grace unique.” Blue flames slowly surrounded his body. “I’ve learned to change the temperature of my flames and do this.” He condensed his flames, forming a small ball of fire the size of a golf ball. Casually, he flicked the ball of flame toward a large statue far in the distance. The flame expanded upon impact, incinerating the statue out of existence.

Jeremiah stared in awe. “That’s incredible… good God,” he chuckled.

“Oh, ‘twas nothing,” Kaiky blushed.

Jeremiah raised an eyebrow. “Why are you blushing?”

“Nothing,” Kaiky wiped the hysterical tears from his face. “For you to be amazed by my

 least technique really means you have a lot to learn.”

“You call that ‘least’? If I could do that, I could be as strong as Micah.”

Kaiky laughed loudly.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Wait… wait… wait, let me catch my breath,” he tried to stop laughing. “Micah shouldn’t be the one you look up to. Sure, Micah is strong and touted to be the strongest exorcist in the country, but there are still monsters much stronger than Micah, such as the Prelate and the Commander. Those levels of power are what you should be looking out for, Jeremiah Mason,” his tone suddenly changed. “A devil isn’t accepted in the Exorcist Churches. Even the son of the Prelate wasn’t an exception. I knew Master Israel from my time at the orphanage. I’ll teach you everything I know. You seem like a good kid, so I’ll help you, but know this—I wouldn’t hesitate to send you to hell, no matter how strong you become,” he said as he walked back toward the church.

“Kid? I’m older than you,” Jeremiah muttered to himself.

“I’m going to rescue your friend. Learn to separate your flames from your body and condense them by the time I come back.”

“Wait, what? Just that? Hey, come back!” Jeremiah called out to him.

Kaiky waved at him as he walked away.

Jeremiah grunted. “At least I have something to work toward. I’ll become strong enough to be acknowledged—just you watch,” he smiled.