Hey, I'm back!
If anyone remembers reading Book One, which I posted awhile back...I just wanted to let you know that I finished the rough draft of the second book! I think I may start posting it here, but I'll start out with the Prologue first. If you haven't read the first book, you should. 
Otherwise, you won't understand a bit of what's going on here. It's still in the forums; just do a search for my posts.
Unfortunately, the first Four to Stand is edited enough to be vaguely unrecognizeable from what it is now, but reposting is a royal pain in the butt...so it'll suffice, if anyone actually takes the time to read it.
Anyway, enough with the ranting and on with the posting...!
But FYI, I remember getting a comment that said, "Don't call the second one 'Four to Stand 2'!" So...the first book in the series is called, "Four to Stand: The Mortal Angels." This one is called "Four to Stand: One to Fall." So. Yeah. That's all.
On to the Prologue...!
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Prologue
Ness hurriedly walked down a long, marble-floored corridor. The ends of the long black robes she was wearing swept out behind her, billowing in the air currents made by her swift movements. She tried not to look at the walls on either side of her—after all, they were made out of fire. Their heat pressed in on her from all directions, and she didn’t like it—she didn’t like it one bit.
It was, however, a constant reminder that the flames were there.
She tried to stay right in the middle of the hallway as she made her way toward the end. She knew that she’d eventually have to face it, and only in a matter of seconds.
Lucifer had called her. She had to go to him, to find out how he wanted her to serve him now. These were trying times: the operation was supposed to run smoothly, to take the Side of Light by surprise. But, of course, they found out…and now the Mortal Angels were involved again, or so she’d heard.
Well, that’s what happens when you’re dealing with the Omnipotent, she thought as she reached the end of the corridor.
It seemed like a dead end. A wall of fire stood in front of her, barring her ability to move forward. But this—like many things in the Underworld—was a lot more than it seemed.
She sat there staring at it, listening to the horrifying screams that littered the air around her. Then, she gritted her teeth and stepped through it.
The fire scorched her flesh and her hair. She could hear sizzles, could smell the burn.
It hurt every single time, but there was no other way to get to Lucifer. Besides, Lucifer seemed to enjoy the pain his servants had to endure because of him.
A huge scarlet and black throne sat on the other side of the fire. It was made of ebony and covered in velvet, and on top of it sat a black-haired man.
Even sitting down, the man was tall. His muscles were so large and intimidating that a sense of physical power radiated from him. A pair of massive, leathery wings adorned his back. They were ugly creations, with long, thin bones running through them.
The man’s face was very attractive in comparison to the wings. His strongly-chiseled features held such a handsomeness that one could almost completely ignore the wings if he or she just let their eyes rake over his face—until, of course, they reached his eyes.
They were completely black, thick and liquidy, like a dog’s. They reflected the fire-constructed walls, which made them shine with an eerie inner light that could only be rightly described as evil.
The man on the throne was Lucifer, the king of this horrible, fiery underworld.
Ness got down on both of her knees and bowed so low that her nose touched the hot marble floor.
“You may stand,” Lucifer told her lazily. Ness obeyed.
Her eyes stayed on the floor, however, looking at the feet of the man who stood on Lucifer’s left. This other man was Moloch, the demon who had proven himself worthy enough to stand by Lucifer’s left hand—the one demon who was sent to complete the dirtiest of all the dirty work Lucifer wanted done.
“You’ve heard of the return of the Mortal Angels, have you not?” Lucifer asked, spitting out the word Mortal Angels as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.
“There’s been talk, my Lord,” Ness replied truthfully. “But I didn’t believe it was true.”
“It is true, and painfully so.”
“Yes, my Lord.”
“Unfortunately, this bond that they share is stronger than most of the Angels we’ve had to deal with in the past centuries, and it will prove incredibly difficult to break it.”
Ness nodded her head to show that she understood.
“They’ve already taken Eve’s Candle into their possession,” Lucifer continued. “You know the importance of the Candle, I presume?”
“Yes, of course.”
“We need the Candle, do you understand?”
“Yes.”
At that moment, another person burst through the flame wall behind Ness.
“Forgive me, Master,” a slippery voice pleaded. Ness saw the body of a man who had the yellow eyes of a cat and the face of a snake fall on his knees beside her. “I do not mean to interrupt.”
Ness couldn’t hold back her surprise. “Archimago!” she gasped. “I thought you were killed.”
“Rise, Damien.”
The demon beside her stood, wincing at the sound of the human name. Lucifer was the only one to refer to him as Damien, and maybe a few of the Light angels did—after all, he’d been on their side once—but everyone else knew him as Archimago, the master of disguises.
“You do not know, then, that Damien can only be killed by those whom he’s betrayed?” Lucifer asked with the hint of a smile showing in his voice.
“All others can harm me,” Archimago said, pulling apart the front of his robes. Ness gasped when she saw a huge indent in the middle of his chest, almost creating a hole in his body. “This is a wound inflicted by a Mortal Angel. They have returned, indeed.”
“What is the purpose of your interruption?” Lucifer cut in. “Is there a reason for you to barge in on our meeting?”
“We have received more information about the Key, Master.” Archimago said the word key as if it should be capitalized.
“Ah, yes—the Key. What has been discovered?”
“In order to use the power of the Candle, one must obtain the Key,” Archimago explained.
“Yes, we know about the Key, Damien. And that is what I was discussing before you forced your presence upon us.”
Archimago fell silent. “Yes—I am terribly sorry, Master—”
“Yes, yes. Of course you would be—and I should punish you for it, but your services may be needed again.”
Ness felt the eyes of Lucifer turn and lock on her.
“And tell me, what do you in order to use a Key?” he asked.
There was no answer. The only thing that could be heard was the penetrating screams that always filled the air in the Underworld.
“You must first turn it,” Lucifer explained, and he let out a laugh so deep and disturbing that it made Ness wince as it vibrated through her body. However, another noise began to ring through the air—something so high-pitched and disturbing that Ness couldn’t help but pay attention to it.
“There won’t be any…distractions, now…will there?” Lucifer asked, his tone serious once again.
Ness paused. The noise was overwhelming. “No,” she answered, trying to ignore the sound and be true to her word. Lucifer smiled, and the noise stopped.
