Chapter Nine

I remember yelling at Lucifer and then everything went dark.

Angels don't dream, at least I have never experienced a dream, we sometimes relive memories, otherwise, sleep is just a nothingness that allows us to charge up our power quickly.

***

I open my eyes to see Azazel's face mere centimetres from my own. My head is resting on his legs.

I shoot up almost headbutting him in the nose.

"Woah! Princess, slow down," he says falling back into the cloudfluff, "you just woke up take it easy."

I wait to hear the sizzling of cloudfluff when Azazel hits the clouds. A noise that never comes.

"Azazel the cloudfluff!" I say excitedly, "Wait, what about Lucifer and the demons?"

He stands up and helps me up with a steadying hand on the small of my back. He moves to show me all the demons helping the angels out of the layers of cloudfluff.

I watched awestruck as the fallen angel Phoenix, kneeled by a heartbroken angel, tucking a strand of glowing orange hair behind her ear.

"Come on now Gabriel, you have to get up," she says kindly to him, "There are still many things in this world you can love and adore, like yourself, and your fellow angels."

To my surprise, he shakes off the cloudfluff and props himself up on an elbow. Tears slowly dried on his face.

"Phoenix? I thought you were banished and turned into a bird," he says, surprised.

A tear escapes down her cheek as they pull each other in for a hug, "Oh Gabby, I missed you so much,"

I turn away from the scene to see all the angels helping each other up. Azazel grabs my hand and laces his fingers between mine. My heart swells and I feel the heat rising to my cheeks. Whatever is going on... I like it. I think I'm grinning like an idiot.

"Azazel, we need to get everyone's attention," I look up at him.

He looks down at me and smiles, "Don't worry I can handle this," He lets go of my hand and holds both his hands out in front of him.

I watch as his powers swirl around his hands like a whirlwind of flames and ash. It starts as a ball and then quickly takes shape into a microphone.

"Testing, testing," he says into it.

His power is amazing, it sends his words through all of Heaven without hurting anyone's ears. His range is remarkable.

He smiles and passes the microphone to me.

"I want to start by saying, welcome back, to our once exiled brethren," I pause and everyone erupts into cheering, and hugging, "God is gone, for good this time," there are some sobs, and gasps, but no one collapses, "the human realm is in utter chaos, they know there is no God, we have to do something if anyone has any suggestions please step forward,"

There is silence until a hand shoots up in the back of the crowd and everyone steps to the side to show Abezethibou. The one-winged angel, there was a complication when he was created that lead to him being created with one wing. He fell because he was tired of god looking down on him.

"What is your idea Abez?" I ask him.

"Why don't we just take over the Earth's surface?" he looks around at the nods from the other angels, "I mean we can put the humans out of their misery and start our own race down on the surface."

I scan the crowd and note the few nods of agreement and the many disagreeing headshakes. 'As the Princess (not prince) of angels, and sustainer of mankind, I have to disagree with that suggestion.'

"Thank you for your suggestion, are there any more?" I ask the crowd. There is a long pause before a boy and girl step forward holding hands, they don't look older than eight or nine.

The light brown hair, the emerald green eyes, the forever neutral expression, it's The Irin. One of two pairs of twin angels in all of heaven, and half of our supreme angelic court.

As if on cue the other pair of twins, two boys holding hands, step out looking identical with their blonde hair and freckles, looking not a day over seven. The Quaddisin twins.

"We have been surveying the humans and we believe to have found the solution," the girl says in a monotone voice.

"Yes, the solution is quite simple," one of The Quaddisin boys says, his brown eyes scanning the gathered angels.

"If there is no god, then we can all become gods and create our own civilization," The Irin boy explains.

"Yes, we can forget our identities as angels and create new ones as gods and goddesses," all the twins say in unison, "follow the Greeks and we will become gods to them."

My skin crawls as they disappear back into the crowd. 'Those twins have always freaked me out.' I look around.

"Well, any other suggestions?" I ask into the microphone.

Everyone is dead silent. I look at Azazel who is fuming with excitement, we smile at each other.

"Let's vote then," I exclaim, "All in favour of becoming gods, please, raise your hand," I say as I raise my hand.

I look around and every angel raises their hand. Now it's my turn to grab Azazel's hand. I reach over and slowly lace my fingers between his, making sure it's okay. He notices and takes my hand too.

I smile and move closer to him, he takes the microphone, "Then let's become gods," he yells and raises our joined hands for the crowd to see, "TOGETHER!"

Everyone erupts in shouts and cheers of joy and excitement. I look over to see The Irin twins making their way up to us.

"We will assign each angel a new identity based on what we think they would do best at," the girl says, green eyes staring straight at Azazel and I.

I just wanna yell at her 'Blink child! Blink!'

"We will take you one at a time and give you a new name as well as a new responsibility," the green-eyed boy says.

"You will be automatically sent to one of three civilizations," the girl explains, "Olympus, which will be built up here in the clouds. Atlantis, the lost city in the ocean, don't worry your body will automatically make any adaptations it needs to. Finally, the Underworld, the place where human souls get put to rest."

While the girl was explaining, the male counterpart built a little hut out of clouds, which they promptly disappeared into. They begin calling the angels one by one, in alphabetical order this time.

I couldn't help but feel I was running out of time. My heart constricts at, not the thought of forgetting heaven, but forgetting Azazel. I swallow and sum up my courage, to tell him what I should have told him earlier. I take a deep breath.

"Azazel," I grab his hand, "I - I think I'm in love with you," I look up into his eyes.

He leans down and smiles, "Meta, I think that ever since you dragged my sorry butt out of hell, I have been rapidly falling in love with you," before I could reply his lips were on mine, I don't know why but, it feels, right.

I close my eyes and hold him there with a hand on either one of his cheeks. We stand there with our lips locked not wanting to let go until his name echoes across the heavenly plain.

He whispers into my ear, "Wherever you are, I will find you again," I wrap my arms around his neck and he plants a kiss on my temple, "see ya later, Princess."

I stand there and watch as he walks into the tiny cloud hut, and doesn't come back out.