Prelude to a flood

I am Azazel, even the most ignorant of you humans have heard my name. But none of you know my story, I will tell you the parts you are able to comprehend. I was created above the clouds shortly after the firmament was put in its place. So, I have always been in the light, which is most likely why the creator cast me into darkness for my punishment.

There is so much to tell of how I fell so far from grace. I will start with the day my brothers and I were given charge over humanity's safety. It was when Lilith was cast out of the Garden of Eden. She didn't want to submit to her husband Adam. She was very angry about her banishment and swore she'd have her vengeance.

She sent a serpent to beguile Adam's new wife to eat from one of the forbidden trees. Once the humans' eyes were open, they could no longer remain in the safety of the Garden. The dangers outside of the Garden were numerous. Samjaza and I were given charge over two-hundred sons of God, you humans call us Angels. We fought many battles protecting Adam and his offspring.

Lilith was the first to attack humanity once the couple was cast out of paradise. She waited until their first born was laid to rest his first night alive. She would attack him in his dreams causing him to wake. The child's mother was clueless why the baby couldn't remain asleep. It was Samjaza that went to Eve in a dream. He taught her a soothing spell called a lullaby, to keep Lilith at bay. She said the spell in the form of a song and the child was finally able to sleep.

Samjaza felt very deeply for humanity, he even had a physical attraction towards Eve. He would watch her all day even as she cleaned herself. He sent half our army to protect her. When the foolish woman tried to talk with another serpent. Humanity is very fortunate Samjaza was given greater authority then me. Because I didn't feel the same as he did for Adam and his descendants.

I didn't understand his attitude about humans, because I found them to be repulsive. You humans are made from the soil of the earth. You were graced with the breath of life from the creator. You only had one duty and Adam couldn't even do that. It was only my fear of the creator that stopped me from killing Adam the instant he bit into the forbidden fruit. Because his eyes were open to things he wasn't meant to understand.

Adam was the most cowardly creature to walk the earth. He cried out to the creator for help almost daily. I and the others had to respond to his every call. In a moment of anger and frustration, I went to Adam in a dream. I taught him how to fight the wild beast that no longer feared him. To his credit he became a skilled fighter. And taught his sons the skill as soon as they were old enough.

The centuries past, and Adam's seed multiplied and took d0minion of the earth. They became so stable in life that they could choose mates of their desire. As beautiful men passed their seed into beautiful women, their children were even more beautiful. This became a problem for Samjaza and I, because of the sons of God under our command. They could not restrain themselves from the daughters of man.

We notice they went down to lay with the woman, which was a great crime for us. The greater crime was the sons of God allowed their seed to grow in the belly of the woman. This was a thing we didn't even know was possible. If heaven learn of it all of us would be cast out of heaven, in the same way man was cast out of the Garden. The deed was done, but we hid it from heaven as long as we could.

I Azazel who fought many battles defending humanity from things they didn't even know existed. Would now be cast out of heaven and be considered lower than even the serpent that deceived Eve? All because of the lust of lower angels that produce unholy offspring with the daughters of man. I killed ten of the two-hundred sons of God put under my authority before Samjaza was able to stop me. He told me it was only a matter of time before Michael and Raphael came for us.

Samjaza said he would go down and enjoy the daughters of man before he was destroyed. He felt if he was to be punished anyway, he should no longer restrain himself. I suppose I agreed with him to a certain degree, but I didn't desire the women. If I went down to the earth, I would only want to rule it, and all of humanity.

Then I remembered with only one dream, I turn cowardly Adam into a man able to defend his family. I decided to find worthy men and build an Army like the earth had never seen. Mankind had armies of their own, even swords and shields. But they knew nothing of armament, such as bows and arrows, armor and chariots. With a few thousand men trained and lead by me I could rule the entire earth.

I found a group of nomads and came down to them in my angelic form. The few that were brave enough to stand their ground would be the beginnings of my Army. I told them who I was and my plans for them, one of them expressed discontent. After I explain they could have all they want from their neighbors. He said some very profound words to me.

He said" Why would I kill another man for what he has built with his own hands? If I want water, there is river from which I can freely drink. If I am hungry there are fruits and berries I can freely eat. When I need shelter there are caves in which I can rest. So, I will not follow the path of Cain and his descendants."

So, I questioned were did he learn such wisdom. He told me his uncle Enos taught him those things. That he lived his life according to that understanding, and never wanted for anything. Once he finished speaking, I tore his head from his shoulders with my hands. Because he was a direct descendant of Seth. He spoke true and righteous words and could have kept the others from doing what I wanted.

After the others witness my actions, they fell to their knees and worshiped me. I felt the life force within me grow as they worshiped me. The more passionately they worshiped the more power I felt. It shocked me to my core because I didn't understand what happen. I immediately flew back to our place in the firmament, to find Samjaza.

Samjaza had better understanding of spiritual things involving humans than I. He explained to me a human worshipping an Angel would give the Angel great power. Once that angel received the power, he can never re-enter heaven. Because the creator would know they received prayer and He'd destroy the angel instantly. Samjaza knew that I had gained power from human prayer and was now doomed.

I knew that would be my last time above the clouds, so I gathered as many of the watcher that would follow me. I found my nomads and we began their training. I must say some men amongst you humans are like clay, that can be molded into steel. These simple nomads became stronger each day of training. Some were even shrewd enough to understand military strategy.

I had great confidence in my men, but we were so few. I lead them on the battlefield in my human form. Even in my human form I towered three feet above them. As we approached the first city we attached, some of the men of the city fled into the wilderness. The few that remained in the city fought bravely but were killed. The men and the sons of God that were with me, went after the women of the town. The young boys and girls were spared any attack by my orders.

We remained in that city for a few months the lower angels that were with me wanted to see their children being born. I felt great empathy for the women that carried the Nephilim in their belly. They would all surely die painful trying to bring forth these blasphemous children. I remember the shrieks of one woman, as the child burst from her belly. The child ran from the city growing inches at a time with each step. It ran into the wilderness knocking over trees and screaming like a wild beast. The other births were equally horrific, and bloody.

The Nephilim children grew to maturity quickly and trained well. But none would be obedient to me or even their fathers. After years of training and many victories these Nephilim and their fathers believed they could defeat me. Perhaps it was my fault for remaining in my human form in their presence. When they made their move against me, I ordered my men to escape into the wilderness.

All of those that remained near me after that order, I considered to be my enemies. As I transformed to my angelic form many of them heard their last words. " I AM AZAZEL", I grabbed the two largest Nephilim by their loins. I used their bodies as weapons to kill the others. All of the lower angels that were there escaped and left their sons to die. I cast the carcasses of my fallen enemies on fire. I did learn a valuable lesson from this betrayal, and that was how powerful a Nephilim can become.

I knew I couldn't trust any of the sons of God again. I also knew they would simply father more Nephilim and continue to challenge me. So, I needed a Nephilim of my own. Only I am an Archangel and none of us had fathered a child with a woman. I also could not stomach the idea of laying with a descendant of Eve. There was only one woman that could father my child, but she hated all angels and all men.

Lilith was not a descendant of Eve and did not come from the flesh of Adam. When I found her, she was more like a demon than a woman. Her casting spells on the sons of Adam over the centuries had mutated her flesh. She was a powerful witch that had full control of herself even in a dream state. I approached her in a dream and told her what I wanted.

Lilith agreed to mother my child, but she had conditions. She wanted me to heal her flesh so that she was beautiful again. She also said she would give birth to the child and nurse it until it was weaned. After that she wanted nothing to do with the child or with me. I found her terms to be acceptable, she conceived, and my son was alive within her.

I don't know how a human father responds to the knowledge his child grows in the woman's belly. I know I felt joy beyond words once I knew my son would soon join me on this earth. I had to stay with Lilith during her pregnancy. To ensure my son did not rip through her body in his haste to enter life. Also, to ensure Lilith didn't use her witchcraft to beguile my son to her control.

The day final came, and my son was born. He could not be brought forth in a traditional birth. I had to open Lilith belly to remove him then I healed her flesh. I decided to call my son Alexander because he would be humanity's new defender. He was a large and health boy; I was well pleased with him. After he was weaned, I thanked Lilith and promised her my protection if she ever needed it.

I knew no one could know about Alexander because they'd either kill him or control him. The boy could walk at ten months and could run before he was a year old. I started training him right away, and he learned quickly. The first thing I had to teach him was concealment spells, that would even work on angels. I also taught him how to push his flesh beyond human limits. He grew more powerful with each passing year. I knew I couldn't hide him much longer.

So, after twelve years of training, I brought him out of hiding. My son had the stature of a grown man at that age. No man could overpower him, he could even assist me against angels. When I brought him before my men, I didn't tell them who he was. I made it clear he would be the leader of my armies. My generals kept their complaints to themselves, but I heard them murmur against him.

After twelve years my armies had grown vast, and powerful. The territory we controlled was also vast in size. I even taught the people how to make paint and other colors to make our cities beautiful. We were so feared that I only needed to send messengers to a city, and they would surrender. I was receiving prayers from hundreds of thousands of people, and it was intoxicating. But I knew all of this would soon be coming to an end.

I felt the presence of Uriel on the earth, he is a powerful archangel. He would not leave heaven if not sent by God. Uriel spoke to the son of Lamech called Noah. It was clear heaven had taken notice of us. Soon we would have to fight a battle that could not be won. Heaven's three champions always fought together. So, it was only a matter of time before Michael and Raphael were on the earth.

I told these things to my son and taught him how to fight my brothers. Alexander couldn't be defeated by any man or Nephilim. However, against an archangel he would only be able to land one strike before they responded. All Alexander's knowledge of warfare would only be useful against the armies of man. There is no strategy that would work against the armies of heaven.

My son and I had seven years of success, before Uriel came to earth. I watched Alexader chase down an entire army and defeat them single-handedly. I was proud of him and loved him more than anything. I caused him to fall into a deep sleep. Then I removed a fourth of my grace and bound it to his heart and soul. I knew he would fall once we battled my brothers. But I hoped my grace would keep his essence alive until we could reunite.

I tried to send my armies away because they would be useless in this fight. But they said they'd rather die protecting me, than live even a day without me. I taught them some protection spells, and hoped they'd use them to hide. I am Azazel and never felt fear on the battlefield, until I heard the screams of Samjaza. He had one hundred of the watchers with him. Michael defeated them all bound them and cast them down into darkness.

That meant my son and I, would have to contend with Raphael and his staff. I found a clear place where we could fight and maybe see them coming. Sure, enough we heard a trumpet sound, and the sky became very bright. Raphael brought Gabriel with him to contend with my son. Heaven must have thought Alexander to be powerful, if they sent an angel just for him.

In every fight Alexander wanted the upper hand. He was not afraid of Gabriel's horn. Alexander put an enchantment on his battle ax and flung it in the air at Gabriel. The ax hit Gabriel in one of his wings causing him to fall rapidly to the ground. Without missing a beat Alexander drew his sword and ran towards the spot Gabriel would land. He screamed the loudest battle cry I had ever heard from him.

Raphael flew down rapidly and landed next to Gabriel. He waited for Alexander to get into range and struck him with his staff. I flew feet first and kicked Raphael in the head. In the moments Raphael was dazed, I sent Alexander away from the battlefield and hid his location. Raphael grasped my feet and flung me to the ground. He then struck me several times with his staff. While I was dazed Raphael bond my hands and feet, then cast me down into this darkness. He then cast sharp rocks on top of me.

I have been in this place for nearly seventy generations. With no knowledge of anything outside of the pit. The darkness cannot be described with human word. It is not merely an absence of light. It is tangible like a blanket of darkness. I can feel the weight of it, and it has gotten heavier with each passing year. I welcome the appointed time, when I will be cast into the pit. The suffering there will be even greater. But at least in that place I will have the joy of seeing human suffering. Say what you will about me humans. But none of you will ever be as great as I was. I look forward to your suffering.

This story was an expansion on part of the story told in the seventh chapter (An Angelic Ally) of the book. I Once Was Blind, but Now I See by Qa'id Harris