The ground continued to rise as they approached Empyrean, as if they were climbing the steps to the doors of a great cathedral. The light was brighter here and everything was more beautiful. The most mundane blades of grass, the simplest flowers, seemed to hold wonders and mysteries forever beyond the comprehension of man. The damned souls fell silent as a sense of awe and fear fell over them and many began to drag their feet, visibly wishing they could just slink away before God noticed them.

     The mass of invaders now stretched all the way to the horizon to both sides and behind as all the armies joined up at last, forming a solid ring around the Throne itself. A throne that they were finally beginning to see in the dazzling brilliance ahead of them.

     All the blessed souls that had retreated before them were gathered before the Throne, trapped there with nowhere else to retreat to. They stared with horror and terror at the advancing massed ranks of the damned and glanced back at the Throne, wondering when God would rise to defend them and hurl back the invaders, but nothing happened. A few remaining demons not busy restraining angels soared overhead on widely spread black wings.

     Some of the blessed souls stepped forward to confront the invaders. Dozens of popes, Gloom saw, along with bishops, archbishops, cardinals and common priests, all dressed in the full finery of their vestments. There were also a great many men and women wearing poor quality clothes and even rags and Gloom guessed that they were saints from all over the world and all ages of history.

     “The greatest and holiest now stand against you,” said Father Anthony gleefully. “Do you dare look them in the face, Gloom? Do you dare even breathe the same air as these great men?”

     “Great men?” replied Gloom. “Did you ever study the lives of the popes, Anthony? Pope John the twelfth murdered quite a few people and was killed by a man who caught him in bed with his wife. Is he one of those fine people standing against us?”

     “Just because one pope went bad...”

     “Pope Urban is said to have tortured the Cardinals who conspired against him. It's said that he complained when they didn't scream loudly enough. Alexander the sixth was guilty of nepotism. Leo the tenth spent money like it was going out of fashion. He’s estimated to have spent a seventh of the entire fortune of the papacy on one ceremony. Sergius the third ordered the murder of another pope and had an illegitimate son who went on to become yet another. John the twelfth raped female pilgrims, drank toasts to the devil and invoked the aid of pagan gods. And what about Innocent the fourth, an ironic name for the man who started the inquisition. He had quite an imagination when it came to devising new instruments of torture. He said again and again that the end justifies the means.”

     “The end does justify the means,” said Anthony. “As for the others, I fully accept that bad men occasionally rise to power. No doubt those you mentioned went to Hell for their crimes and are now members of your army. Most popes were good men, though. Holy men, and it is they who now stand against you.”

     “Good, holy men who have no problem with healers being tortured forever for not being Christian. There is not one man ahead of us with the moral authority to denounce my friend here.” He indicated Nacoma, standing beside him.

     “Your friend had every opportunity to embrace the true faith. He has no-one to blame but himself. Had he done so, he might very well be standing among the saints ahead of you right now.”

     “You think the saints are all wonderful people? Do you know how many saints had anti Semitic views? Denounced the Jews in the vilest terms, called for them to be tortured and killed...”

     “Again you fixate upon the handful of bad examples and ignore the vast majority whose lives you would have done well to emulate. You are a small, spiteful man, Gloom. Petty and ignoble. You have decided that all of Christianity is wicked and evil, and wherever you look you see only those things that confirm your preconceptions. I wish you could have known true Christians whose lives are shining examples of all the finest virtues of mankind.”

     “The finest virtues of mankind are to be found in people of all cultures all around the world, but most of these wonderful people are condemned for the crime of being the wrong religion. I will believe that these Christians are good people when they recognise the virtues of people who are not Christian.”

     “If they were good people they would be Christian. The truth of God is obvious after even the briefest glance.”

     “No-one doubts the truth of God," said Gloom. "What I question is His right to judge people based only on their religion, ignoring all other considerations...”He broke off as he became aware that a spokesman had emerged from the delegation of the Catholic dignitaries and was stepping forward to confront the invaders.

     It was a man in the uniform of the Roman army and he was carrying two swords. The one in his left hand looked quite ordinary, but the other glowed with a soft blue light and the assembled Catholic dignitaries gave a great cheer as he raised it over his head, as if they expected him to throw back the invaders all by himself. The man looked confident, as if he thought he could do just that, and a murmur of unease ran through the ranks of the damned souls. Could his confidence be justified? Surely they had to come across serious opposition sooner or later, and what better place than this, so close to the very throne of God Himself?

     “Sinners!” he cried, pointing the divine sword at the damned souls closest in front of him. “Begone! Go back to the fires from which you came. I, Mercurius, command you  Defile this holy place no longer, or the punishment you have suffered so far will be as nothing compared to what will come.”

     “Mercurius,” said Gloom. “I know that name. One of the warrior saints, I think.”

     “He looks like a Roman soldier,” said Benson.

     “Yes. Many of the early saints were Romans who converted to Christianity. Mercurius... Yes of course, I remember now. Mercurius, the warrior saint. The strong and courageous. Also called Abu-Seifein, the holder of two swords.”

     “That'll be him, then. He's got two swords.”

     “Indeed. The second sword was said to have been given to him by the Archangel Michael himself, to help him defeat the Berbers. It's said that when the Roman Emperor Decius went out with his army to fight the Berbers he became afraid when he saw how many of them there were, but Mercurius said “Do not be afraid, because God will kill our enemies and bring us victory.” It was during that battle, after several days of fighting, that Michael appeared and gave him the sword with which he led the Romans to a great victory. He was named a prince by Decius as a reward.”

     “Nice. Always wanted to meet royalty. Speaking of Michael, where is he? Could he have been defeated, do you think? Are there a couple of demons holding him prisoner, like we left Sammael holding Netzach? That just doesn't seem possible! Michael is said to have defeated Lucifer himself in single combat during the first rebellion.”

     “Michael may well be stronger than Lucifer, but Netzach was stronger than Sammael,” pointed out Gloom. “Sammael won with the help of thousands of human souls. It's possible that Lucifer defeated Michael the same way.”

     “You don’t sound convinced,” said Benson.

     “I'm hardly an expert on such matters, and we've seen only a tiny part of this war. Who knows what‘s been going on elsewhere while we've been trudging across Heaven? What I do know, though, is that Michael has a reputation for honesty, fairness and justice. He can't be happy with the way God has been treating people.”

     “You think he might have joined Lucifer?” exclaimed Benson in astonishment.

     Gloom  laughed. “No, I can't see him going that far, but I can sort of imagine him taking a back seat for the duration of the war. Maybe making himself scarce for a while.”

     “But God would command him to fight, wouldn't He? And if Michael refused to obey then he would be siding against Him even if he never lifts a finger in combat.”

     Gloom nodded, but before he could reply his attention was taken up by a commotion in the crowd ahead of him.

     A small man holding a sword was walking forward from the ranks of the damned souls to confront Mercurius. He had clearly been a military man in life. It was obvious from the way he walked and the casual, familiar way he handled his weapon, but there was no way of knowing what country or army he had once fought for. That so many of the other damned souls stood aside to grant him the honour of facing Mercurius told Gloom that he was someone of tremendous fame, though. Or perhaps infamy. He strained his eyes in an attempt to see his face, even though he knew there was almost no chance he would recognise him.

     “Why do you wait until now to challenge us?” the damned soul demanded in a strong Japanese accent. “We have been ‘defiling’ your fine land for many months now and only the common folk have tried to stand against us. The answer is obvious. You fled before us, like everyone else behind you. You fled until there was nowhere else to flee, and now you try to bluff your way out of your final fate. Put down your swords and accept that we will pass, whether you like it or not. You cannot stop us.”

     “You think you can defeat me?” laughed Mercurius. “I have killed enemies beyond count. Never in all my years have I met an enemy that could match me in battle.”

     “Until now. I am Miyamoto Musaji the Swordsman. In my life I was called Undefeated under Heaven. Never have I lost a duel, not even against my own training masters.”

     Mercurius laughed. “Undefeated under Heaven? Have you forgotten where you now stand?”

     “I have not, but you have, I think. How much fighting have you done since you died? You no longer have a body. The muscles that wielded your swords have long since turned to dust. We are souls now. You have been dead long enough to know that. Even if I had never held a sword before, I would be able to defeat you. It is not the strength and skill of our bodies that will decide the day, because we no longer have bodies. The martial skills we had in life are of no use to us now.”

     “Then I will rely on my faith. It is not we who will defeat you, but God Himself. Even a wretched sinner like you must know that.”

     “Then stand aside and allow our defeat at His hands to take place.”

     “We shall do so, but first I shall demonstrate to your deluded followers just how hopeless your situation is. Prepare to defend yourself.”

     The two men raised their swords, and Gloom noted that Miyamoto was holding his weapon as though it were a Japanese katana, even though it was in fact a European sabre. How well would he be able to fight with an unfamiliar weapon? he wondered with growing unease.