The Army of the Devil

***The Army of the Devil*** is the eleventh episode of Salvation Quest.

## Summary

"Our heroes are going to need some backup this time– what are the Crusaders going to do when the Devil has an entire army?"

## Plot

The Crusaders are in their bible study group. Shelley reads a passage from Revelation 20:9-11:

> "*And Satan’s army marched across the earth and gathered around the camp of God’s people and the city God loves. But fire came down from heaven and burned them up.*"
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As she finishes talking, a divine light swallows them up and they are transported to God's throne. God warns the Crusaders that the Devil is resorting to dirty tricks to get his way, and that they need to be prepared for a big confrontation. They are sent back to Earth wearing their hero gear, and the Dowser appears in front of them. They follow it, and it guides them out of town.

Eventually, they come to a rocky outcropping. They see someone in the distance; they immediately hide and peek at the mysterious figure. It's not hard to identify that the tall, red, cloven-footed figure is the Devil. He puts his hands to the ground and says an incantation, and suddenly the ground starts to shake. Suddenly, five beasts of stone rise up from the ground. The Devil is now surrounded by these menacing figures, and he declares that he is their leader and that they shall do everything he says. He then orders his minions to attack the kids that are spying on him.

Realizing that they've been caught, Jimmy falls to his knees and prays for protection from these beasts. Just then, a bright light surrounds all of them, and then bursts out, crumbling all five of the stone beasts into pebbles. The Devil, now stunned from the divine light, makes his escape and promises that him and his stone army will be back.

The Crusaders are now in a bind, as they know that the Devil is gathering his army and they feel uncertain that their holy powers will be sufficient to eliminate the problem. They brainstorm ideas about how to tackle the problem; they come up with wild traps, weapons, and strategies of confrontation, but they are left with no viable options. As TJ's dad walks in the room and sees the Crusaders dejectedly lying on the floor, TJ springs to his feet and explains the situation to his father. His father nods and chuckles and says he knows exactly the solution; he excuses himself to go make a phone call.

A few minutes later, the doorbell rings. The Crusaders answer the door to find dozens of people wearing camouflage, and a highly decorated man standing in front of them. The man introduces himself as Colonel Rigsby, and says that his dad told him about the Devil's army and he immediately knew that he had to act. Now accompanied by dozens of military personnel, the Dowser once again appears to lead them to the location of the Devil.

The Devil stands among the rocky terrain, now surrounded by hundreds of stone beasts. TJ calls out to him from afar; he turns and sees the Crusaders and the military. TJ declares that while the Devil's army might be strong, they have the single best army in the world. Jimmy gets on his knees and prays for the success of the troops. The soldiers and the beasts charge each other, and the soldiers are granted miraculous strength thanks to Jimmy's prayer. The soldiers tear through the Devil's army with ease, and the Devil lets out an anguished cry as he sinks into the ground, accepting defeat.

The Crusaders and the soldiers cheer. As they celebrate their victory, TJ reflects on the importance of the US Military, and declares that the troops are all soldiers of God.

After the scene fades out, a message appears, saying "God Bless America. Support our troops."