Babylon – 2:06 A.M.
The air was thick with the stench of sulfur. The ground trembled beneath Nathaniel's boots as he stepped through the ruins of Babylon. Ahead, the blackened trench where the Euphrates once flowed now pulsed with an unnatural energy. The very earth felt wrong, as if something ancient and malignant had been unearthed.
Leah walked beside him, her eyes scanning the desolate ruins. "Something's coming," she whispered.
Lucien adjusted the strap of his rifle. "Correction. They're coming."
Nathaniel followed his gaze—and his breath caught in his throat.
The trench had begun to crack open further, and from the depths, they rose.
Four figures. Shackles still clung to their wrists and ankles, but the chains had been shattered. Their bodies radiated an aura of absolute terror.
The Four Angels of the Euphrates.
Leah whispered a prayer under her breath.
Lucien raised his weapon. "Tell me we have a plan."
Nathaniel swallowed. "We stop them."
The nearest of the figures stepped forward. Its body was unnaturally tall, wrapped in a flowing robe of darkened gold. Its face was veiled, but beneath the cloth, a single burning eye glowed like a star. When it spoke, its voice was like a thousand whispers layered over each other.
"The hour has come."
Nathaniel's grip tightened around his pistol. "Not if I have anything to say about it."
The angel tilted its head slightly, as if amused. Then, with a flick of its hand, the ruins of Babylon exploded into motion.
---
The Arrival of Ezra – 2:15 A.M.
The Vatican jet touched down on the outskirts of Baghdad. A single figure stepped onto the tarmac, his black coat billowing in the wind. His silver hair gleamed under the floodlights, and in his hand, he carried a blade marked with scripture.
Ezra D'Angelis did not believe in hesitation.
The moment his boots touched the ground, he was in motion.
Two black-clad operatives rushed toward him. "Inquisitor," one of them began, "the situation is escalating—"
Ezra ignored them. He already knew what had to be done.
His contacts in Rome had confirmed it. The Third Woe was underway. The Four Angels had been loosed. And the man behind it all—
Rahim.
Ezra's grip on his blade tightened.
For years, Rahim had operated from the shadows, manipulating the threads of prophecy like a master weaver. But tonight? Tonight, the reckoning had come.
Ezra turned toward the horizon, where the blood-red sky loomed over the ruins of Babylon.
"The time of judgment has arrived," he murmured.
And with that, he vanished into the night.
---
Babylon – 2:20 A.M.
Nathaniel barely managed to dodge the first strike.
The angel moved like a storm, its body a blur of golden cloth and raw power. Every step it took shattered the ground beneath it.
Leah fired three rounds. The bullets disintegrated before they even made contact.
"Yeah, okay, bullets don't work," she muttered.
Nathaniel ducked behind a crumbling pillar. "We need to bind them again."
Leah's eyes flickered with realization. "The chains. They were bound before. That means they can be bound again."
The angel turned toward them. "You seek to chain what was ordained to be loosed?"
Nathaniel exhaled sharply. "Something like that."
He reached into his pack, pulling out an ancient scroll.
The angel lunged forward, but Lucien moved on instincts. He raised a hand, his voice steady as he began to chant. The words of the old covenant.
"By the Flame that sealed the firmament,
By the Breath that birthed the stars,
By the Hand that struck the Serpent down,
Return, O Chain of Heaven."
Nathaniel's voice rose beside his, harmonizing with sacred defiance:
"Bound were you by the Will Most High,
Loosed only by the folly of man.
Now, in the name of the First Light,
Be chained once more beneath the Word."
For the first time, the angel hesitated.
Together, their voices thundered through the ruins:
"As it was written in fire,
As it was sealed in blood,
So let the covenant bind thee—
In the name of the Everlasting Judge!"
The moment the last word left their lips, chains of pure light erupted from the earth.
The angel's eye flared with rage as it fought against the bindings, but it was too late.
The first of the Four Angels had been restrained.
One down.
Three to go.
Nathaniel allowed himself a breath. "We can do this," he muttered.
But then—
A slow, deliberate clap echoed through the ruins.
And Nathaniel froze.
Because he knew that sound.
The figure stepped into view, his crimson cloak flowing like liquid silk. His golden eyes glowed in the darkness.
Rahim.
"Impressive," he said softly. "But futile."
Nathaniel met his gaze. "You knew we'd stop them."
Rahim smirked. "I counted on it."
And then—the ground split open beneath them.
Nathaniel barely had time to react before the world collapsed into chaos.