6:15pm

DJ was in bed. He wasn't feeling too well, since his 'meeting' with that strange man. Right now, all he wanted to do was sleep. But he couldn't. He tried it before, but he had a nightmare. He saw a battlefield, something about an old war. Bodies of soldiers lay all over the battlefield. He remembered that the armor was Asian, probably from one of the earlier Chinese dynasties. Or maybe it was Japanese, who knows. Men were also mutilated--hung on crosses, others had their heads on posts, while a few were merely burned in the carnage. It didn't take long for him to wake up, and he was glad he did. Yet something else was unusual..during this dream, he felt a certain pleasure at seeing the slain enemies. Like it was just a hobby, like a game of tennis or football. A sport! Gratification at seeing people burned and tortured. Diabolus found this very disturbing. True, he liked to fight..nothing he enjoyed more than a good street fight. He'd even kill if he had to. But he wouldn't go so far as to kill entire multitudes, thousands upon thousands of people, both guilty and innocent. That was barbaric! He felt that this wasn't like him...then it dawned on him. These feelings weren't even his, they belonged to someone else.

He thought about this. **It all started when that man dressed in black touched me..he gave me something. Or 'someone'.** "Huh? Some ONE? Why did I think *that*? But could it be true?" Whatever it was, whatever he had in him now, it wasn't good. Of that much he was certain.

6:30pm
COLE'S HOUSE

Cole reset the clothes-pins on his red blanket tent. He opened his
knapsack, looking for the book. "Ah! Here it is." It was labeled, 'Hebrew Cabalist Writings'. He turned it to the chapter he was reading in the church, the one on Angelic Seals. The pictures were mostly artists' drawings, probably sketched during the Middle Ages. Cammiel, Raphael..he saw a picture that showed an angel attacking a demon. He looked at the bottom. It showed a trident marking, with a name under it. "Who's this? Hmm..'Uziel, Strength of God. Lower soldier angel, Lieutenant to the seraph or archangel
Gabriel'. Gabriel?" He remembered the man he spoke to in church. Very
spooky, yet Cole sensed he was also very powerful. At the time, he
recalled seeing a crown-shaped mark on the neck. He looked through the pages, trying to find the matching symbol. "Oh, here." It showed a picture of an angel, wings spread out, thrusting a spear down into a dragon. Maybe the devil, who knows. He checked the caption under it. "Okay. It says, 'Gabriel'. What?!" He shivered. He then continued reading to himself. "Gabriel, meaning..'God Is My Strength'. Makes sense, the guy sure talked like a tough angel. And..'Angel of death, vengeance, revelation, annunciation. One of the highest ranking angels in religious lore.' Wow." Cole took a deep breath. Then, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Surprised, he jumped up. "What?!" He turned around and saw a red-haired man wearing a brown coat. He had a short beard.

Right now, he was crouched on the bedpost railing, with hands on his knees. He shouldn't be able to sit like that on a bar, but he was. "It's alright, Cole, don't be afraid. I've come with a message."

"Who are you? You an angel too?"

"Yes. My name is Simon."

"What do you want?" He was still a little unsure about this visitor. It's not every night you see a strange man appear in your room, especially if you didn't even hear him come in.

"Relax, dear child." He waved his fingers across Cole's
eyes. "Shhhh...it's alright, I'm one of the good guys."

Cole suddenly felt very calm now. He sat back down, mysteriously at peace..at least a little. "Okay. What did you want to tell me?"

"I spoke to your friend. Malcolm?"

"Dr. Crowe? You've met him?"

"Yes." He jumped off the rail. "He's *here*, Cole. And he has come
to help you, to guide you. Listen to him. He has much to tell you.
About the future, eternal consequences..and the war between us."

"War? You angels are fighting?"

"Yes. I don't like it, but it's the way things are. Malcolm will tell you more. I need to assure you that when he tells you, you will not fear. You..all humans..have a part in the Plan."

"Destiny, you mean?"

"Right. You must have talked with Cadmiel."

"I did, in church. And someone else. I think it was Gabriel."

Simon stiffened. "What? Gabriel?"

"Yes, he wears leather pants with a white shirt, right? Black coat?"

"That's him! What did he say? Did he harm you in any way?"

"No. He just said to stay away from DJ..Diabolus. Away from Tommy, since he knows Diabolus. Why? WHO is this kid?"

"Gabriel was right. You should stay away from it."

"Why?"

"Diabolus is a nephilim."

"Nephilim? What's that?"

"A hybrid mix of two species. Please don't ask me more, the less you know about them, the better. Find the answers with Malcolm Crowe. So, be prepared for what he will tell you. Do not lose faith, you'll NEED it to survive. If you are confronted by Gabriel..RUN! Do not fight him, it's like going against a tornado or a hurricane."

"Okay. I'll remember that."

"Good."

"When weill I see Malcolm?"

"Soon. He just arrived here. It won't be long. Goodbye, Cole. Be well." He opened the window and jumped out.

Cole shut the window after Simon left. Thgen he closed the book and sighed. "Malcolm..tomorrow. Please, I need to talk to you soon." He couldn't wait to meet his friend agian. He had so many questions that needed answers.