The War in Heaven by Kenneth Zeigler

are doing. Looking into their books is hazardous enough; looking into Satan’s is too dangerous to contemplate. We see him only through the eyes of others. We can only guess what his real motives and plans are. We know that he has long contemplated an invasion of Heaven to settle scores with Michael and Gabriel, but we do not know when such might happen.”
    Tom looked at Abaddon incredulously. “Surely he doesn’t think he has a chance of defeating God.”
    “He doesn’t have to,” said Abaddon. “He will seek God’s permission to challenge Michael and Gabriel in armed conflict.” “Surely God won’t allow it,” replied Tom.
    “Don’t be so sure,” cautioned Abaddon. “He allowed Satan to persecute Job. God moves in mysterious ways, as you might have heard.”
    “OK,” continued Tom, “could Satan really pull it off? Could he defeat the angels?”
    “Not if I have anything to say about it,” replied Abaddon. “As Satan has a score to settle with Michael and Gabriel, so I have a score to settle with him. Revenge is not among the more noble angelic virtues, my friend; then again no one is perfect, least of all me. I will defeat him and end his reign of terror. I shall personally see that he is brought to justice, that he pays for his crimes against humanity.” Abaddon paused, his eyes took on a greater intensity. “And you will assist me. Together we will change the face of Hell.”
    “As I said before, I’m with you all the way,” assured Tom. “I owe you a great debt, and I intend to pay it. Anyway, I think I have a score to settle with old slewfoot as well.”
    That brought a broad smile to the dark angel’s countenance. “I expected no less. From the day I saw you on that altar, I knew you were a man of honor. You had the aura of such. Your selection goes well beyond your expertise in physics, it also hinged on your character. Welcome to the fight.”
    Tom returned Abaddon’s smile. “When do we get started?”
    “I want you to take a few days to get solidly on your feet and clear your mind,” replied Abaddon. “Get familiar with this place. It has over twenty miles of developed tunnels, and hundreds more that are scarcely explored. The surface above our heads is a realm of intense cold, like your Antarctica, only eternally in night. It is highly unpleasant, even for immortals such asourselves. So for the time being, these caverns are our world, but only for the time being.”
    Now Tom saw where Bedillia got her confidence, her hope. Abaddon’s positivity and confidence was contagious. Maybe he could really do it, as incredible as it all seemed.
    “Come, my friend,” said Abaddon, motioning toward the door. “Allow me to show you our facilities. Let me show you why we have hope.”
    During the next hour, Abaddon gave Tom a tour of sorts, a tour very unlike the one he had received from Bedillia. Tom saw the power-generating facility, a device totally alien to any technology he had ever seen before. He also saw labs, complete with many things one associated with laboratories on Earth. They had common tools like beakers, flasks, and burners, all assembled from base materials found in the very rocks around them.
    “Assembling simple compounds like the silicon dioxide for glassware or the copper wire to transmit electric current are tasks that your friend Dr. William Wong has already mastered. Our problem is in fabricating more complex items like small electronic components, integrated circuits, chips, if you will. That is where you come in. I will leave it up to Bill Wong to teach you the finer points.”
    “But that sphere, I mean, telesphere,” asked Tom, “the one that allowed us to communicate with the angel, where was that manufactured?”
    “Heaven,” was the matter-of-fact answer. “The artisans of Heaven have refined the creation of such things to a fine art. This particular one was manufactured by an inventor and scientist with whom you may have some familiarity. His name