Author's Note: This is an improved version of a story I wrote a long time ago called The Hustler. Hope you like it.
Prologue
"Brother,"
Lucifer heard the rustle of wings behind him. He stood on the edge of a cloud, looking down on the creation before him. The sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon. Dew glistened on the grass below. Michael stood a few feet behind Lucifer, stiff as a stone. Unfeeling. Uncaring.
"Michael," Lucifer replied. He didn't know how his brother had found him so fast. This was the last place he would have expected them to look for him, watching the ants that his Father loved so much. Then again, if anyone would know he was here, it would be Michael. Of all the creatures in the universe, Michael knew him best. Still, he didn't understand. "How can He ask this of me? He, whose love for humans has placed them above us all. He should understand the gravity of this sacrifice and what it will cost. It is too much to bear."
"I regret your pain. But you must have faith. Our Father has His reasons and it is not our place to question them." Michael's flat tone only fueled Lucifer's anger.
"O, brother, if only I could make you understand." Lucifer gazed down at the newborn in his arms. Doubt filled him. He wanted to carry out his father's order. The Nephilim had taken control of the humans and were rising up against them. As God's right hand, he knew the battle would be costly. It made sense to strike them first. And he had wiped them from his Father's creation. None survived but her now. He looked down at the precious child he held, and couldn't help but question his Father's plan. He could keep her from causing any harm. "I want to obey, brother. I have faithfully obeyed since the beginning of time. I have removed the Nephilim from the earth. They no longer threaten Him, and never will again. His children are safe." Lucifer turned toward Michael with pleading eyes, begging him to understand. "Yet still He asks this of me? "
"Lucifer, she is of the forbidden. She must not be allowed to exist. It is His command."
"But why? She will be no threat to Him. I can keep her from being one. I can make it so she will never know who she even is. Have I not been loyal to him? Still, of all the other angels, he asks me to do this." Lucifer's tone shifted towards defiance. "She is my child. How can he ask me to sacrifice my child for His apes?"
"Brother," Michael warned. "Do not defy Him. Not after the garden."
"Oh please. What Eve did was of her own free will. If I had done anything wrong, I would have been punished."
"Brother, please," If Lucifer had been paying attention, he would have heard the sorrow in Michael's voice. But Lucifer was too far gone to notice.
"All for the love of His creation. His humans. We do nothing but worship their flawed existence. She is a much more advanced being and still He will place His humans over her? Over all of us?""
"Lucifer, if you do not destroy her…"Michael squared his shoulders. "I will have to."
"Oh, brother," Lucifer turned to Michael. His eyes flashed red and he grinned. "You'll have to find her first."