"Your choice of location for hiding your camels was juvenile and pathetic. You might as well trumpet your presence to the G.o.ddess." Noah and Uriel glanced at each other like rebuked children. Methuselah finished, "And you are very late. The men are over there now."

Noah and Uriel followed the disgruntled Methuselah back to their secreted camels in the bush.

They were greeted first by Tubal-cain. "It is good to see you alive, cousin. We wondered if the Gibborim had followed you, since we never saw them on our trail."

They embraced. "It is a long story," Noah said.

Uriel smiled at the irony. They were stronger together than apart, and he would never let them separate again.

Uriel cut short their celebration, "It is only a matter of time before the Gibborim find us."

Methuselah chimed in, "The sooner we bind this abomination in the depths of the earth, the better."

"But how do we do it?" asked Tubal-cain.

"That has just become complicated," said Noah. He explained the plan he and Uriel had prepared, the need to catch the G.o.ddess unawares during sacrifice. They would have a long wait until the next moon, but there was nothing else they could do. She would not come out for another month. They certainly could not storm her gates with their paltry six-man hit squad.

Jubal and Jabal, ever the positive duo, spoke up. Jubal said, "But that will give us more time to plan and consider all possibilities." Jabal jumped in without hesitation, "Will we not need more time to find a crevice to cast her into the earth?"

"Yes," said Methuselah, ever the pessimist. "We may need more time than we have. It is easier said than accomplished."

"No," interrupted Noah, "we cast her into Sheol."

The men looked at Noah with surprise.

"She guards the gates of the Abyss to Sheol," said Noah. "Let us kick her into that crevice and let it keep her."

The men looked at each other, perplexed. They wondered if there was a single one of them that would support that death march.

Uriel did not calm their fears. "We must be careful not to follow her in," he said, "The dead who descend never return."

"What of the living?" asked Tubal-cain.

Uriel sighed. His hesitation only made matters worse. "The shades of the dead would eat the living," he answered, punctuating their doom, "eternally."

A pall fell over the group.

"Well," countered Methuselah with dripping sarcasm, "if that is not just the future I have sought for all these years, I do not know what is. Being eaten alive forever and ever."

Jubal and Jabal gulped. Tubal-cain stared off into oblivion.

Noah would have none of it. All he wanted was revenge. He had lost everything and had nothing more to lose, except the one thing that held barely by a thread in his heart: faith. He spoke with the confidence of an archangel, "Well, then, let us avoid Sheol-and go trap ourselves a G.o.d. At least we have plenty of time to prepare."

The men gathered their courage together.

The little girl Noah had seen in the crowd surprised them. She had wandered away from her parents and had followed Noah into the bush. She stood staring at them, as surprised as they were. She glanced fearfully behind her to see if she had been followed. She had not been.

Tubal-cain started to pull his sword by impulse.

Noah stopped him. "I know this little one," Noah said.

"She looks afraid," said Methuselah.

"Poor innocent child," said Noah. He realized he now had a bigger dilemma than when they had arrived. They could not leave this waif alone to die at the hands of her parents and their murderous idolatry. She was not a faceless part of the indiscriminate ma.s.ses to him. She was an individual child with a soul, who apparently knew her destiny and was silently crying out for his help. But they could not take her with them. They were on a deadly journey. She would slow them down and become a liability to their higher purpose. It would take at least one man to watch over her, and that was one less warrior in the heat of combat with the minions of h.e.l.l.

Noah was about to deliberate with his men, when his decision was made for him.

The child screamed at the top of her lungs, "EVIL MEN! EVIL MEN!" and ran back out into the crowd.

Noah's team scrambled.

A dozen men from the crowd ran past the girl toward where she pointed. She continued to scream, "OVER THERE! EVIL MEN! EVIL MEN!"

The first of the rushing worshippers broke through into the trees. They were taken out with a volley of arrows from Noah's band.

"What do we do now?" yelled Tubal-cain. There would be others right behind them in seconds.

"Change of plans," said Noah. "On your camels! Follow me!"

In a flash, Noah was upon his mount. The others followed suit. Noah burst through the brush directly out into the enemy's midst, surprising them. His men followed him like a pride of lions on the hunt.

The worshippers did not know what was happening. The crowd parted in fear as the men raced headlong into the ma.s.ses. The people just wanted to get out of the way of a stampede of dromedaries trampling everyone in their path.

Noah led the stampede through the thinning crowd right up to the temple steps.

The long stairway to the heavens rose upward seventy cubits of stone. His men now knew what he planned. There was no time to consult. They followed him dutifully. By the time anyone in the crowd understood that these riders were hostile, Noah's raiding party was almost to the top of the ziggurat.

Below them, men yelled for arms and began climbing the long flight of stairs upward.

At the top of the temple mount, the humans scattered. The priests cowered.

Ereshkigal was already gone, disappeared back into the fire pit.

Methuselah yelled above the growing din, "I thought we were supposed to be secret about this!"

"Dismount!" yelled Noah, and the men obeyed. Noah walked up to the pit of flames and peered in, Uriel by his side.

"What is he doing?" Tubal-cain asked.

Methuselah replied, "The same thing he has done all his life, since he was a boy, rushing in before the angels!"

Methuselah looked back down the steps. The sight reminded him of a swarm of angry fire ants streaming up the stairway, almost upon them.

The men gathered around Noah.

Noah looked to Uriel. "Is this the entrance to Sheol?" he asked.

"No," said Uriel, " to Ereshkigal's lair. Sheol is deeper."

"Good. That buys us time," said Noah, and he jumped.

Methuselah turned just in time to see Noah disappear into the flames. "NOAH!" he screamed, too late.

Uriel followed Noah. Unthinking, Methuselah followed Uriel.

The first of the mad mob reached the top and were upon them. Tubal-cain plowed down the first few attackers. Jubal and Jabal did not think it through. They ran and leaped into the flames, disappearing from view. Tubal-cain fought on all alone, with a growing swarm of angry idolaters circling him, pressing in, the flames at his back. Tubal-cain muttered a prayer, "Elohim, I trust in you. Noah, I am not so sure of, but please have mercy on my ignorance."

Tubal-cain turned, and bolted for the open pit. He leapt into the fire, closing his eyes. He pa.s.sed through the wall of flames, only an instant of sheering heat. The next moment, he struck a floor and rolled to break his fall. He took stock for a moment to make sure he was still alive, could still feel pain. He rubbed his knee, bruised from the fall. He was alive with pain. He looked up into the eyes of Methuselah, who stood smiling down on him.

Methuselah mocked, "Nice of you to join us, hippopotamus. I was not sure you could make the jump."

Tubal-cain looked around. They were on a large outer ledge that encircled the flames rising in the center of the pit. The fire obscured the presence of the ledge from those above. Tubal-cain got up and drew his sword, looking back up through the flames.

"Do not fret yourself, cousin," said Noah, "They will not follow us into the pit of sacrifice."

"No, they will not. Who would be so foolish as to do that?" quipped Methuselah.

Tubal-cain grinned at him. "I do believe you peed your tunic, you old grizzled lizard. How is your bladder doing?"

Methuselah looked down, "I did not pee my tunic!" The men chuckled.

"Enough, you lovebirds," Noah chuckled. "Let us keep moving." He set the tone for this band of warrior poets, and they followed. He drew his weapon; they drew theirs. They followed him cautiously around the ledge to an entranceway on the other side of the flames.

The carved stone ledge gave way to a long portico of marble floors lined with pillars on both sides, twenty cubits wide and a hundred cubits long. Torches lit the way to the end, where a set of large wooden gates inlaid with bra.s.s bid them stay away. So they moved forward.

They inched cautiously toward the gates.

Noah whispered to Uriel, "Is this the first of the Seven Gates of Ganzir?"

Uriel didn't reply, all his senses honed on surveying their environment.

When they had covered half the distance, they heard a distinct rattling sound, then soft sc.r.a.ping of claws on a marble floor. They stopped. Something hid behind the pillars. Some things. All around them.

"Draw together," Noah commanded. They did so, blades out, ready for anything.

The shadows moved from behind the pillars on both sides of them. Strange creatures stepped out into sight, but they did not attack. The men could now see their stalkers. They were scorpion-men. Monstrosities with the upper torsos of human soldiers, and the lower bodies of man-sized scorpions, they were armed with bladed weapons and ready tail stingers.

Noah and his men were surrounded. Their hands tightened on their weapons, glancing around, waiting for the first move.

The scorpion-men did not attack. They were waiting.

Noah thought to himself, What more abominable creatures could these Watchers create? What kind of sorcery enabled them to produce such demonic crossbred mongrels like these? The bird-men soldiers, the lion-men and bull-men guardians, the Nephilim as well, all were unnatural violations of the created order. What was the plan of these Watchers?

Suddenly, the huge doors at the end of the portico creaked open. Everyone's attention shot to two large beings about five and a half cubits tall gliding through the doors. It was Ereshkigal. The second Watcher stayed by the door as Ereshkigal strode toward Noah and Uriel. The shining being kept her wings taut behind her back and stood a safe distance behind the scorpion-men.

Noah noticed a look of familiarity cross Uriel's face. Ereshkigal kept her eyes trained on the archangel; the one she knew had the power to bind her. "Uriel," she croaked, "I thought I smelled you."

Uriel responded, "Ramel, I see you have built quite a kingdom for yourself on earth, along with Sariel." He glanced at the other Watcher by the door. "I take it he goes by the name Nergal?"

In the mythology the Watchers had established, Nergal was the name of Ereshkigal's husband. He had become her spouse after he had insulted her for not being able to attend a banquet of the G.o.ds. Anu sent him down to the underworld to receive punishment from Ereshkigal. Nergal turned the tables on the chthonic queen, overpowering her and raping her on her own throne. This reputation stained Ramel's pride and he resented it. But he could do nothing about it for the present. It took a few generations to change a myth. He would have to tolerate the mockery of his rape by the other G.o.ds. He could not leave this underworld domain because he was bound as the guardian of the gates of Sheol.

Ereshkigal sneered with contempt at the archangel's condescension. "My earthly kingdom with all its limitations is still more satisfying than the a.s.sembly of Elohim. You should have joined us in the rebellion."

Uriel said, "Unlike you, I have no interest in dressing up as a G.o.ddess."

Ereshkigal belittled him. "You prefer being a slave. Why are you here?"

Noah blurted out, "To bind you into the depths of the earth." Uriel closed his eyes with embarra.s.sment.

"Indeed?" said Ereshkigal, turning her gaze to Noah standing just behind Uriel. "And who is this presumptuous little one?"

"Noah ben Lamech, son of Enoch, destroyer of G.o.ds."

Uriel rolled his eyes. He wished Noah would just shut up.

Ereshkigal chuckled at Noah's audacity. An unexpected thought crossed her mind. She turned back to Uriel. "I have word that Semjaza and Azazel seek Elohim's Chosen Seed. Is this your doing, Uriel?" Her eyes kept trained on Uriel, ignoring Noah.

She knew only that the Chosen Seed would be a son of Enoch the prophet. None of the other G.o.ds bothered to tell her anything. She had to fight for every bit of information, being isolated in her miserable cosmic mountain.

"As you said, I am a servant," said Uriel sidestepping the question.

Ereshkigal looked into Uriel's eyes for some kind of revelation. But she could not find it. "Of course," she concluded, "And so you shall die as a slave."

She turned on her heel and walked back to the gates where Nergal waited. Casually, she ordered the scorpion-men, "Kill them all. Save the bodies."

The creatures raised their swords. They surrounded the men, one to one. But twenty circled Noah and Uriel. They knew the most important and difficult kill would be these two.

The scorpion-men attacked. These were the first opponents Noah's men had encountered who also had swords. The creatures were capable, as well as armored with helmets and shields. But their weapons were bronze, unlike the iron swords that Noah and his warriors wielded.

What Tubal-cain lacked in fighting skills, he more than made up with his brawn. He shattered the swords of his foes. Jubal and Jabal did a dance of brotherhood protecting each other back to back, dodging stingers and blades alike. One sting from the tail of a scorpion-man and the victim would die in minutes.

Uriel cut off stingers and sword arms with his usual finesse, but he had to work at it a bit more than usual. These creatures were among the best fighters he had encountered.

Tubal-cain cut the tail off a scorpion-man before it hit Methuselah. "You are too slow, grandmother!" In the instant he took to breathe those words, Methuselah turned and impaled one of the infernal insects about to strike Tubal-cain. "Fast enough to save your hide, chubby infant!"

Noah broke through the circle of attackers and reached the gates.

The creatures surrounded Uriel, pressing in tight. With Noah out of the way, this was just what Uriel needed to perform his signature move. He held out his blades and spun like a whirlwind. He cut down the last of his ten adversaries in a splatter of gore. When he looked up, he saw Jabal about to be hit from behind. Uriel threw a sword like a javelin and pierced the creature against a column. It screamed in agony.

Noah's company were the only ones left standing. They gathered together. The corpses of scorpion-men littered the floor. Noah asked if everyone was whole, and they took account, catching their breath. This battle had taxed them. Some cuts and bruises, but all alive and well.

Noah turned to Uriel and asked, "Who are Semjaza and Azazel?"

"Fallen Sons of G.o.d. They led the rebellion. And now, they masquerade as the G.o.ds Anu and Inanna." The men continued to catch their breath.

Tubal-cain jumped in with disgust, "So the G.o.ddesses are all males in female disguise?"

"Do not let their pretended s.e.x fool you," said Uriel. "They are all Sons of G.o.d, and Semjaza and Azazel are the mightiest."