Lady Lust, Gabriel (FULL)

(A/N: In this chapter, I recommend listening to "And The Waltz Goes On" by Sir Anthony Hopkins for much more immersive reading:))

Now having no ability to suppress her anger, she shouted in annoyance and with resentment. "The divines are but powerful beings that oppresses and controls the mortals like pawns! We do not need any divinity's existence!"

"Throughout the beginning of Existence, the divinities had to always interfere with the lives of those without power! We spirits had to do their bidding even when we do not want to!" She cried and continued, "I once saw millions of people killed just because a divinity ordered the Spirit King to declare war against humanity because they were advancing way past the divinity is capable of handling!"

"Later on, I was forced to become the Embodiment of Lust just because The Holy Temple said so! I was sent to Shakkar to produce offspring for them!" With indignance, she added, "It was your brother himself who brought me there."

Gabriel looked down, not letting anyone see his expression. Despite this, she continued, "Even in the ranks of mortals, spirits are, by far, the race that is always forced to do the divinity's bidding. There is just no equality even amongst the mortals!" Aware that she cannot use her left hand, she began to attack with her right.

As the claws neared his face, from his ribs, another arm suddenly grew and gripped it by the wrist. She did not even have the time to react when Gabriel began to speak, "We were once a perfect match. We had love for each other unlike any being in the universe at the time. As one of the first beings of this universe, we know each other more than anyone else, excluding the Father, but it was destined for us to separate."

"Fate wills it so."

As answer to his "omniscient-like" remark, Lady Lust snarled, "Then, Fate be damned!"

Boom!

As if reacting to her crass remark, the skies, as if angry, darkened, and thunder boomed.

Without even heeding what was happening above them, she continued, "Yes, we were once just two lovebirds being each other's lifeline; we've been like that for almost a millennium. But, despite the long period of us being together, you still had the heart to not do anything and let your brother drag me to a place where I was sure to be transformed into this damnable and filthy existence!" Tears pooled up in her eyes as she looked at Gabriel with anger, disappointment, and melancholy.

"I loved you, Gabriel! I trusted that you loved me equally when you said that you would offer your life for me." She sobbed, "You can't even disobey your father's orders for us, let alone go against the entire universe just like how I would."

Then, Gabriel slowly raised his head and looked her in the eyes, while tears ragingly fell down his eyes like waterfall, and asked her once more, "Do… you want to kill me?"

She hesitated for a second before having a fierce expression on her face, and replied, "Yes."

Oddly, Gabriel's eyes softened. He smiled at her lovingly, and immediately after doing so…

Splat!

Golden blood scattered across the ground. Gabriel's divine blood slowly dripped down Lady Lust's fingers. "Y-You…" She was shocked. She did not expect him to release her left arm, letting it plunge deep into his chest. The third arm on his body gradually lost strength before retracting into his body fully, allowing her right clawed hands to slash at his face.

Like a bloody mess, Gabriel looked at her eyes weakly before lifting his arms once more, one to grip down the arm that punctured him, while the other pulled her body to his embrace.

"L-Let me go, Archangel. Let me g-go…" Lady Lust stammered whilst trying to break free from him. In response, Gabriel inched his head near her ear and whispered, "You know I can't do that."

He then added, "Let us have this last dance to ourselves."

"Damn you, Gabriel." She cried in a hushed tone as she gradually succumbed and fell into his arms.

At this moment, it was as if the entire world ceded to the Principal Archangel's request. The darkened clouds revealed the blue skies, the sun shined its warm light at them as the cold breeze brushed past their skin.

It was as if they returned to a moment in the past. The power of their thoughts was quite powerful, dragging all the sane men into this lost memory belonging to the Archangel.

Birds chirped happily as they saw two happy and loving beings running through the flowery prairie. On the horizon, a tall, crystalline palace emanating a strong and majestic aura could be sighted.

When the two stopped to catch their breath beneath the only tree in the vicinity, the man looked at the woman who was running desperately and laughed whilst she was catching her breath. "Y-You were too fast!" The woman, whose beauty and elegance were beyond belief even when compared to most angels, gasped in exasperation.

"How can I not be fast when you're the one trying to catch me?" The man, adorned with two pearl-colored wings laughed in reply. "You cheeky angel!" Incensed by his haughtiness, she once again tried to catch him.

But, with quick movements, the woman ended up being pulled into his embrace, her back facing his chest. Seeing her current "predicament", she pouted. Knowing her expression even without seeing it, the man laughed joyously.

"I hope things always stay like this." Looking at the distance, she expressed her dreamy thoughts to him.

"It will, forevermore, Celestine." He replied and burrowed his face on her nape as they swayed with the windy breeze, not knowing where Fate would bring their relationship the next day.

Suddenly, from the palace, the sound of harps reverberated. Releasing her from his embrace, the man adjusted his hold of the woman, with her hand resting atop of his palm, while his other hand placed her other hand down and took her by the waist as they waltzed to the sounds of the heavenly tunes singing in the distance.

At the vicinity of the hall, Noah watched as the archangel Gabriel swayed with the woman that they were considering their enemy just a while back and felt something tug deep within his chest; a sense of aching. He couldn't describe how he felt this way just by watching two people dance.

Above the heavens, when his brothers saw what had happened to Gabriel, they were stricken with shock. When they unraveled their wings, planning to fly down from The Holy Temple with aims to help their brother, their feet suddenly felt as if they were glued to the ground. They turned around, and saw their father looking at them. Realizing that this was all planned by Him, they soon felt a sense of remorse.

"Father! Let us retrieve Brother Gabriel, we beg of you!" Mikael cried out.

"I support my brother's thoughts, Father! Please, allow us!" Raphiel seconded.

In reply, He shook His head and said to them, "It was your brother's last wish; to be allowed this one last moment together with her."

Shuddering, Mikael asked Him, "What do you mean, Father?"

"Your brother knows that his time is nigh." He answered, which made the two almost lose balance in grief, "Instead of waiting for it, he chose to spend it together with the only woman he loved."

The two Princes then turned once more to look at their brother below with eyes of sadness and pity. Knowing that they had no ability to do anything that would change his fate, they lowered their stances and bowed respectfully towards their dying brother. The divinities and the angels of the Heavenly Army also paid their respect to him, kneeling down and placing their fist on their chest.

He, who was seated on the Crystal Throne, then turned to look at Enoch, who was beside Him. Understanding what must be done, he sent His will to Noah. The latter receiving it, closed his eyes and moved the array that he had conjured beforehand below the hall beneath the two before releasing more divine energy into it, effectively completing its entire structure.

The array, once completed, shined bright as the stars in the night sky. At this time, it was as if there were two suns that was giving light to the world; above the skies and on the surface of the Earth.

As the angel and the Embodiment of Lust danced, their feet were gradually encroached by the array's power, turning them slowly into stone. Soon, their entire body was suspended in an everlasting waltz, together, for eternity.

Noah, having done what he must, saluted the Principal Archangel one last time as respect to his authority. Although he hadn't had the chance to know him much, he was still a fellow servant of the Almighty God, worthy of respect.

With the mastermind of the entire problem gone, the spell of lust began to slowly receded from everyone's minds. Knowing that they would feel forever burdened by the knowledge of what they have done, Noah did what was must and erased everyone's memories before their conscious self takes over.