Free Hero's Curse by Jack J. Lee

go back before Jesus Christ and look at any and all of the historical records, you will see that every culture used magic. Greek, Roman, Goth, Assyrian, Egyptian; all wrote about magic as if it was commonplace. The Bible even describes a magical duel.”
    He was telling me the bible was historically true. Fuck! I listened without an expression as he quoted a passage from Exodus I knew well. ‘Then Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did as the LORD had commanded. Aaron threw his staff down before Pharaoh and his servants, and it was changed into a snake. Pharaoh, in turn, summoned wise men and sorcerers, and they also, the magicians of Egypt, did likewise by their magic arts. Each one threw down his staff, and it was changed into a snake. But Aaron’s staff swallowed their staffs.’ [2]
    Aidan was in full absentminded professor mode, tugging again at his hair, as he explained, “When Jehovah created man, He gave him free will. He hadn’t meant to give angels free will, but that’s how it worked out. He was shocked to find out angels and humans could interbreed. ‘There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God had relations with the daughters of men, who bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.’ [3]
    “Humans with angelic blood can force their will upon the Universe. Humans with angel genes can work magic.”
    Aidan leaned back. I could see him making sure I was still paying attention. Satisfied, he continued, “The standard story is that Lucifer and the third of the hosts of heaven rebelled because they refused to bow to man—not true. They didn’t rebel out of high-minded principles. They rebelled because they wanted to make their own choices and decisions.
    “Jesus’ crucifixion, death, and resurrection fixed Jehovah’s mistakes. Christ gave all men a way to salvation and at the same time took away free will from angels. Angels no longer could have children. Our Universe is a reflection of God’s will. A human who keeps his magic use to a minimum remains human. If he starts using magic regularly, the Universe starts treating him like an angel and his ability to make all his own decisions begin to wane. Magic disappeared from history after Jesus because magic users eventually lost their free agency.
    “I’m a defector from another Universe. I come from the same dimension as the Redcaps.”
    I was incredulous. He was claiming to be a fairy? On second thought, it explained a lot. His miniature stature and his claim to have known one of my ancestors now made sense. I resisted my temptation to ask him more about his home dimension and why he defected. He knew more than I did and he claimed we had limited time. For now, I had to let him judge what I needed to know. Aidan noticed I was distracted. He courteously stopped talking, waiting for me to ask a question.
    When I shook my head he continued, “My powers do not come from God, but when I defected, I had to pass what you might call a citizenship test. I learned the three holy books—the Torah, the Bible, and the Koran and agreed to bind my soul to Yahweh. I am forced by my binding to defend and protect Earth from the minions of all other gods. Now that I know the Redcaps are here, I have no choice but to fight them.
    “Tim got his start as a follower of Aleister Crowley. He got good enough at magic to lose his ability to make all his own choices. He now has to help defend the people of Salt Lake City. Ever hear stories of men who can’t swim jumping into deep water to save people from drowning and then dying themselves; of men who run repeatedly into burning buildings to save others? That’s what happens when they try to resist God’s commandments for too long. The strength of the compulsion causes them to become suicidal.”
    I couldn’t help it. I started to laugh. The shit just kept on piling higher and higher. It was a bitter laugh and Aidan looked concerned.