First Contact

Alexander, Samantha, and Celine were waiting for the arrival of Azrael, who could be pulled into the dimension by Franklin at any moment. When she appeared, she had wide eyes and a panicked look on her face. He only had to look at her for a split second to see that she was in big trouble. Like Celine, she seemed to be of Asian descent. Only she was much smaller and more petite. The dirty old cloak she was wearing just made the whole picture sad. Alex held his hands up a little to show that they were completely empty and spoke in a soft voice with a smile:

"Welcome Azrael, you are perfectly safe here, no one will hurt you, and your father can't hurt you nor see you."

Due to her fear, she had not been paying much attention, Alex's words had partly escaped her, so she replied in a hurry:

"I have to leave here, I have to go back, he will notice if I am gone too long."

"Godfry won't notice anything Azrael, time works differently here."

Alex said quietly. He had understood very quickly that he would have to handle this Angel with silk gloves to put her at ease. A little humor wouldn't hurt, he thought. Not understanding, she asked:

"Godfry?"

Laughing, he replied:

"That is what I call your father because I find him unworthy of the title of Dei."

He repeated slowly:

"Azrael, you are perfectly safe and hidden from his gaze here. As I said, time works differently here. No matter how long you are here, the moment you return, barely a minute will have passed. And you will reappear in the no-man's-land of Hell, so he will notice absolutely nothing.

"Does that mean I can rest here for an hour?"

She asked in a small voice, afraid of being rejected. Samantha and Celine suddenly noticed that Alex had a very short fuse, it was the first time they could physically feel it. Another new thing that seemed to have broken through with him, Celine thought. She seriously wondered how powerful this thirteen-year-old boy would become. Azrael felt it, too, and became even smaller than she already was. He quickly reassured her:

"I'm sorry, Azrael, I didn't mean to scare you. The more I learn about your father, the angrier I get. I am not angry with you at all."

"Rae Rae!"

She said barely audible.

"What is Rae Rae?"

He asked, not understanding.

"It's the pet name my two favorite big brothers gave me, but no one but Michael uses it anymore, the few times we see each other that is."

"May we use it then?"

Samantha asked with a bright smile, Azrael nodded.

"Rae Rae, is it okay if we sit down for a while? Have a drink and get to know each other. I promise you can get some sleep after that because I think you could use it."

Alex asked, feeling that this poor Angel was more than dead tired.

"Sleep?"

She asked with tears in her eyes. He replied airily, hoping to improve her mood:

"Yes, Rae Rae really sleep. In a real bed with real Egyptian cotton sheets. I have a room made just for you with a view of my beautiful ocean. At least I think it's beautiful, but maybe I'm biased because I sort of designed it with Samantha."

Her eyes opened wide. Forgetting the need for sleep for a moment, she took it all in. She had never known anyone who could create anything except her father.

"Come, Rae Rae, let's sit down because I think you really need to get off your feet."

She took a deep breath and could only nod.

A moment later they were sitting at the table Alexander had manifested for this meeting on the beach near the beach house.

"What would you like to drink, Rae Rae?"

She had to think for a moment and said:

"I've heard good things from a friend about something called tequila. I would like to try that."

"But Miss Rae Rae, that's a bold and adventurous choice..."

Alexander said playfully and for the first time, they saw a small smile on the angel's face. He manifested everyone's favorite drink. Rae Rae took her glass, smelled it, and took a small sip. Her eyes got wide and she knocked the glass back in one gulp. Alexander had a grin on his face and immediately manifested a larger glass and a full bottle. After she finished a second glass in one go, he said:

"Let's get acquainted, okay?"

She nodded vigorously.

"Wonderful, you are Rae Rae, Angel of Death."

"The only..."

The angel said sadly.

"We're very sorry Rae Rae, we can't imagine how difficult and hard this must be for you."

Samantha replied sincerely and placed a comforting hand on the Angel's hand. It was a small gesture, but it was enough to make two big tears run down Rae Rae's cheeks. Alexander let it happen for a moment and continued:

"Rae Rae, we are from another universe. This place is a safe place between your universe and ours. As I said, your father cannot see you here and time does not matter."

That was enough to make her head snap back into place.

"The redhead next to you is Samantha, the Crown Princess and future Goddess of that universe."

To everyone's surprise, Rae Rae jumped up from her chair and then fell to all fours in the sand in front of Samantha.

"Forgive me, My Lady, I did not know....Forgive me."

Sam and Alex had jumped up at the same time and got down on their knees beside the frightened Angel. Samantha said quietly:

"No Rae Rae, there is nothing to forgive because you have done nothing wrong. My parents, the God and Goddess, are not like your father. We don't want our angels to throw themselves into the dust like that. We find it unworthy and humiliating. That's why I don't want it from you either, ever."

The Angel looked confused at both Samantha and Alex as they helped her up and put her back in her chair. There she tried to refill her glass, but she trembled too much. Samantha took the bottle out of her hands and did it for her. It was almost enough to break the poor Angel. A future goddess serving an Angel, impossible. Alexander had taken her free hand firmly in his and smiled encouragingly:

"Things are different in our universe than in yours, Rae Rae. We are going to tell you things that will sound absolutely incredible to you but are absolutely true. And I, I need your help so badly. Okay?"

She nodded a very weak yes. Alex continued:

"Okay and don't get in the sand again Rae Rae, just don't, just stay in your seat."

He said with a playful smile.

"Like I said, this is Samantha, the Crown Princess, and she is my girlfriend. Does that mean I will be the God when she becomes the Goddess? Yes, but not in the way you are thinking now. I'll come back to that later."

He pointed at Celine:

"That bored-looking lady over there is a Demon, as you have already sensed, and her name is Celine. This big bad Demon's main job for the last thirteen years? To be Samantha's nanny and bodyguard."

Rae Rae almost choked on the swig of tequila she had just taken.

"Now you're kidding me..."

He looked at her with a smug smile and said:

"No, not at all Rae Rae. I told you, our universe works very differently than yours."

He gave the Angel a moment to absorb this information before dropping his next bomb:

"And that brings us to my little person. My name is Alexander Markus."

He deliberately omitted his newly adopted last name for a moment.

"And I'm doing my best to knock your father off the throne and become the new Dei in your universe."

Rae Rae had narrowed her eyes to slits and said quietly:

"Impossible, no one can knock Father off the throne, no one is powerful enough.

Samantha and Celine laughed softly, and the Angel looked at them, not understanding. Sam said:

"Rae Rae, when someone tells Alexander that something is impossible, the next thing that happens is easy, he makes it possible."

"But my father is God, no one is as powerful as he is!"

"Rae Rae look at me and tell me what you see, please?"

She did as she was asked.

"You are a beautiful boy, but you are still a child."

He nodded and held out his hand:

"You won't recognize me after all these years, but please allow me to introduce myself, I am a man of wealth and taste..."

Rae Rae looked at him in bewilderment, as if he really didn't have it all together. Her eyes suddenly began to blink as the pieces of the puzzle slowly fell into place.

"You... you... You're Lu's son?"

"Yes, Aunt Rae Rae, and it is a real pleasure to finally meet you."

He stood up and she didn't know how fast she had to be in his open arms. The taps had really opened now, and it took a good ten minutes for her to calm down. Once back in her chair, she asked:

"But how did you find your way back to us?"

"Through my mother, Aisha."

"Your mother's name wasn't Aisha, it was Elise."

"True. I suppose it was you, as Angel of Death, who took my soul from her baby's body when Raphael had determined that she would die at my birth? And immediately gave that soul to Gabriel so he could transfer me to another universe?"

She just nodded, not quite understanding where this was going.

"When my mother died, did you happen to see her soul leave?"

She shook her head and said:

"No. It's not unusual for souls to find their way. I only see the souls that get stuck."

"But you were in the room, shouldn't you have seen her soul leave?"

"No idea, as I said, I only do the souls that are stuck, so I am never there when a soul leaves when that soul finds its own way. But I wasn't paying attention either, I was a little busy with your soul and Gabriel. He has no experience in transporting souls and was more than a little nervous at the time."

"You didn't see a soul leave Rae Rae because there was nothing to see."

"I don't understand."

"Don't worry Rae Rae, for my mission to succeed I cannot and must not reveal certain things. And certain things I am going to tell you are absolutely not to be repeated to anyone until after the coup. The only people you can share it with are Michael and Gabriel, but not at this time. You must wait another five years, and even then you are not allowed to share this information with anyone else. And then only when you are absolutely alone with Michael or Gabriel. This whole business with your father is so delicate that its success depends on the smallest detail and on the ironclad discipline of each individual who participates in it. Do you understand?"

She nodded:

"Yes, I understand Alexander. But we never thought you would come back. Especially not that you would take on Father. Not one Nefilim has survived. You shouldn't be here; you shouldn't be contacting us."

He frowned:

"Then why did you do it?"

"You have the Lightbringer's light in you. We couldn't let that go out, it had to be saved. If that light could shine in another universe and that universe could shine even a little more, then at least we could have saved something, not all would have been lost."

"How did Gabriel find the universe he wanted to take me to?"

She thought for a moment and said:

"It was actually something strange, as he told us later. It wasn't the universe he imagined. He was sort of pulled into it, then your soul was pulled into the body of a baby that was going to be stillborn, and Gabriel was pushed back into our universe. We never thought about it because we had never visited another universe, we thought it was normal and you were safe."

He said softly:

"I wasn't safe at all, Rae Rae, but that doesn't matter..."

He rubbed his curls for a moment:

"Now that we have the introduction behind us, dear auntie, I think you could use some sleep. Sleep as long as you want, time doesn't matter here. Afterwards, we must get to work, because I need mountains of information."

Samantha walked arm in arm with Azrael towards the house. He stayed behind with Celine and manifested his cigarettes.

"What's going on Alex? I know that look by now."

"Let's wait for Sam because I have to sort this out too."

Ten minutes later, Samantha appeared at the table with a wide smile. As she sat down, she said:

"Her head barely touched the pillow and she was out. The only one I've ever seen doing that is you, Alex."

"Well, I hope she doesn't get any nightmares."

He said seriously. Only then did she notice how seriously the two at the table looked at each other. Celine said gruffly:

"Spill..."

He nodded:

"Someone is playing me, and by extension everyone in both universes, like a two-dollar banjo!"

"Talk, give me facts and your conclusion."

In his mind, he put it all together. He took a few sips, lit a cigarette, and said:

"Through Mom, in this case, Aisha, we know that I really shouldn't exist. That my conception was an impossibility, an inexplicable miracle. Lucifer cannot have children with a human. Aisha was supposed to end up in the body of a baby who would later grow up to be a woman who was supposed to be barren. By chance, she ended up in the body of not just any baby, but a descendant of the Magdala. The woman who became the mother of not one but two children of another Nefilim. The baby from that bloodline turns out to be fertile after all, which allowed me to be here. For the first time in thousands of years, the Goddess of all creation fails to choose the baby in which to place her soul. Not only that, but Aisha's failure sets in motion a whole series of falling dominoes because, for the first time, she seems to have chosen the wrong baby. Next point, the four angels who tried to smuggle me into another universe had no intention of bringing me into your universe. You heard it, their Gabriel was just pulled into your universe against all odds, and I was pulled into this one particular body. The four never expected me to return or contact my universe. My rescue was exactly what it was, a rescue to allow a piece of their Lightbringer to survive."

He stubbed out his cigarette, obviously upset:

"I happened to die at thirteen and suddenly have enough time to be trained to accomplish my task. Your universe happens to have a future goddess without a god, a natural-born angel. However, this Goddess cannot marry an Angel because they are all her siblings. How much do we differ in age, Red? Oh, right, we were born on the same fucking day! If I succeed in removing Godfry from the throne, my universe will have a God without a Goddess. Oh yeah, come to think of it, I never thought of that before, this whole thing has brought it to the surface. Sam, have you ever noticed the color of your parents' hair and your own?"

"What about that?"

"The chances of your parents having a child with as beautiful red hair as you have are practically nil! They may be gods, but you were born naturally. So you are the product of their genetic makeup. Is it possible for them to produce a child with such red hair? Of course, but the chance is very small."

"Okay, but I still don't understand."

"The baby who should have been stillborn, but into whom Aisha's soul entered, was a descendant of The Magdala. Coincidentally, the color attributed to The Magdala, anyone want to guess? It's red!"

"Conclusion?"

Celine said briefly.

"Something or someone wants to bring Samantha's universe and my universe together, as one universe, for some reason. Something I was planning anyway. We are in love; we love each other and we want to be together forever. So I have to get these universes to connect somehow."

He lit another cigarette:

"There are too many coincidences and I can't accept that. I don't believe in coincidences especially not so many in a row. So I am afraid that when all this is said and done, the next problem will arise. We are already poking around in a multiverse.

"I'm afraid I can't follow you for a moment, Alex."

Samantha said to which he replied dryly:

"My universe is singular, your universe and mine together is plural, the multiverse. Then what is the superlative? Remember how Aisha and Franklin said that there must be more than one multiverse and therefore a pair of gods who also created them? I think we are being played by these gods and it all started when Aisha got into the wrong baby. Aisha made no mistake in her choice. She was drawn into the body of the wrong baby, just like me! Or should I say the perfect baby considering the Divine bloodline?"

"Holy fuck..."

Celine cursed and Samantha stared at him wide-eyed.

"Ladies, this is going to stay under our hats for a while. Sam, it makes absolutely no sense to burden your parents or my parents with this at this time. If there is a problem, it will be ten years from now, after I have removed Godfry from the throne. I have enough shit to deal with in the next ten years, and Celine and I have enough shit to deal with in the next six thousand years. So just let this crap wait because I really can't deal with it right now."

She nodded slowly.

Rae Rae didn't wake up until around ten the next morning. For an angel who didn't need much sleep, it seemed like she had slept for several days. She stepped out onto her balcony and what she saw was so unimaginable. A future God and Goddess, in their bathing suits, having a good time in the water and obviously enjoying themselves, judging by their laughter. All this under the watchful eyes of a Demon in a rather daring bikini on a comfortable deck chair. A little later, she stepped onto the beach, a little unsure of herself in her totally inappropriate attire for a beach. Not many people walk around the beach in a dark gray cloak. She looked at the two teenagers with a smile. When Alex noticed her, he and Samantha immediately approached her hand in hand.

"Good morning Rae Rae, I hope you slept well."

"I slept very well, Alexander. It has been a long time since I could sleep through instead of taking catnaps."

Samantha said:

"Then you have to stay a few more days and nights. Alex and I are taking some time off anyway. Relax before things really get crazy."

With a sly laugh, she added:

"We only have this demon with us because Dad and Mom want a spy to make sure we don't do anything naughty."

Celine replied tiresome as if the kids were really draining all her energy:

"Little Hellion, I'm not a spy and you're old enough to know not to do anything stupid. I fucking raised you better than that."

Sam and Alex had to laugh, it was just too much fun to poke the Demon from time to time. Not as pleasurable as poking Samael, but still a good second. The Angel, meanwhile, looked at them with wide eyes. It was a shock to hear that she was welcome, that she could sleep for two more full nights. From what Alexander threw on top, she started to wobble a bit and had to be helped by Sam and Alex.

"Yes Rae Rae stay, you seem to need it very much. And for the next five years, if you need it, come over for a few nights. I have placed a marker on you so that you can always enter the dimension. When you enter the dimension, we will know immediately that you are here, and we will come to be with you. We would love to spend time with you and hear all about my family in that universe especially Lucifer but also the others like Michael, Gabriel, and Rafael."

Alex and Sam put her on a chair. Sam asked:

"Would you like some tea or coffee?"

"Tea please."

She said quietly. Alex snapped his fingers and there was tea for two and coffee for him on the table. He called over his shoulder:

"Celine, do you want anything?"

Without looking, the Demon raised a large glass of rum and called back:

"No, I'm fine. But maybe you should send Rae Rae back inside for a quick look. I've got some outfits on the kitchen table that might make her feel more comfortable on the beach."

"New clothes for me?"

The angel asked, stunned.

"I haven't had new clothes in ages."

Sam jumped up and grabbed Rae Rae's hand, practically dragging her back into the house:

"Then it's about time."

When the two came out fifteen minutes later, Alex and Celine had to do their best to hold back their laughter, but they could not keep a wide smile from their faces. The Angel of Death in her earthy cloak had suddenly turned into a California surfer chick. Baggy shorts, a baggy T-shirt with so many colors it almost hurt the eyes, a baseball cap turned backward on her head, and purple sunglasses. Alexander quickly manifested fresh coffee and tea and asked Sam:

"Sam dear, how about a nice brunch?"

She nodded enthusiastically and he snapped his fingers again and the table was set for three.

"What's with the finger-snapping all of a sudden Alex?"

He looked contemplative and said in a serious tone:

"You know I have been thinking about it the last few days. What is cooler when manifesting things, finger-snapping, or hand-waving like your mom? After a few tests here and there, I decided that snapping is way cooler."

She shook her head:

"Alexander Marcus Morningstar, sometimes you really are five years old."

He stuck his tongue out at her and said:

"I'm at least six Red."

"Morningstar? You took Lu's name, his title?"

Rae Rae asked in surprise.

"Lucifer Morningstar is my father Rae Rae what other name would I take? I may have been born here and lived here under another name but in reality if my father adopted his title, Lucifer, as being his name then my name is non other than Morningstar."

He said with a big smile. She looked thoughtful for a moment and said quietly:

"But your father is the Devil Alexander. People will often react very, very negatively to that name."

"True, but is Devil his job, is Devil his species, or is he The Devil as in the ultimate evil? In case of the latter, why did you find it absolutely necessary to save some of his light?"

"Lu is not evil, Alex. Amenadiel and Uriel told those vicious lies at Father's behest."

"If he is not evil and you are innocent, don't you think it is long overdue for someone to release you both from your punishments?"

"Only Father can do that. Lu would be instantly destroyed if he tried to enter heaven. The fire of Heaven would immediately incinerate him. As part of his punishment, he is just as vulnerable to the fire of Heaven as Demons are. I'm hardly ever there because I'm always working.

"I will have to correct you anyway, Aunt Azrael. Right now, only your father can do it. In a few years, I will kick him off the throne, sit on it, and do it myself."

She looked at him suspiciously:

"You really are convinced that you can do it, aren't you, Alex?"

"Not just convinced, Rae Rae, I am sure. Not right now, of course, I have to grow into my powers first."

She thought for a moment and refilled Samantha's tea and her own cup before saying:

"For many of us, it is not a matter of belief, Alexander. It is a matter of survival. There is no alternative. We would cling to the last straw, and if that is you, we will cling to you. I myself believe that if anyone can do it, it should be the son of the Lightbringer. Who better to bring light to our darkness?"

She looked deep into his green eyes and asked:

"How can I help you?"

"First by eating, and then we'll get to work."

He said with a broad smile.

Step one of his plan was already behind him, his flaming sword. Now step two could begin. After a very elaborate brunch where Rae Rae wanted to know everything about Samantha and Alex, but were he omitted what was done to him, it was time to get to work. He manifested three writing pads and two pens, the pen for himself was the priceless treasure he had received from Samantha for his birthday. Celine wanted none, her purpose at the table was to listen to every word spoken. To find dangers for Alex and then press further on those. Alex began:

"All right Rae Rae, we have a mountain of questions for you because we need as much information as possible. I'm sorry if this seems like an interrogation. That is really not the intention. I'm afraid it can't be otherwise. If you need to take a break to think or just get some air, go ahead, okay? Everybody needs to get some air from time to time. Go for a walk or go for a swim in our ocean."

He added with a mischievous smile:

"Ask Celine for a bikini, I'm sure she has some in reserve."

That one sentence brought a blush to Angel's cheeks, which was exactly what Alex was trying to do, and Sam giggled too.

"Just take some time to relax and enjoy. No one gains anything if certain details don't come up because you get too tired."

"I understand Alexander, please start."

"Languages, is it the same in your Hell that the King of Hell absorbs the knowledge of every language that enters it?"

"Yes, it works automatically because the King must be able to communicate with every soul. He doesn't even have to be on the throne. Every celestial gets this information when they take a step into the realm of Hell. Take me for an example, I have never been inside Hell, just no-man's-land and at the gates to deliver souls. That was enough for me that I know, speak and understand every language. Writing is a different matter, that is not as easy transferable. But once you speak and understand a language the learning how to write it should be a lot easier."

"So when I step into your Hell, I automatically get all the knowledge of all the languages that the souls in Hell speak?"

"Yes, indeed, that is how it works for us."

"Perfect, I am so incredibly happy with this answer Rae Rae."

These words from Alex and the fact that both he and Samantha looked at her with heartfelt smiles made her feel completely at ease. She decided to give this boy everything she had.

"Who has your flaming sword?"

"Well, I have the sword itself because it is needed to cut the life threads of certain souls that are stuck on Earth so that they can be released from Earth. However, three other parts are needed to ignite it."

Totally stunned, Alex said:

"I beg your pardon?"

He smiled mischievously as he began to suspect where this was going.

"Well, there are three components. The sword itself, the guard, and the pin that holds the whole thing together. Once the sword is assembled, the Lightbringer is needed to ignite it."

Alexander burst out laughing. After a minute or so he regained some control with tears in his eyes. Celine had raised her eyebrows a fraction of an inch or so. Rae Rae stared at him as if he had lost his mind. Samantha asked with great amusement, knowing that something typical of Alexander would come out again:

"Is something funny Alexander?"

Which made him shake his head again for a moment with laughter. He quickly regained control and replied with a smile that almost made his mouth hurt:

"Oh yes, incredibly funny. What a bloody idiot. He is totally convinced that he is immortal and invincible. That he is in control of everything and absolutely everything. And on top of that, totally but completely loony tune level paranoid. They should have made a cartoon out of him. He's about at the same level as Yosemite Sam!"

"But he is immortal, right?"

"No, Rae Rae, he is absolutely not, and if he deviates from my scenario, I will prove it. Then his head will roll in the throne room."

He lit a cigarette and looked at Sam and Celine first and said:

"Do you remember what I told Micky during that first meeting with our parents present? That Godfry had already been removed from the throne on the day of my birth but didn't know it yet."

They both nodded and he continued with a big smile:

"That idiot broke the only weapon that could defeat me in the throne room into three pieces and banished the one person who could ignite it to Hell. Even if he holds the three pieces in his hand, he will never be able to ignite it. It remains a simple sword, no more and no less, and we all know that an ordinary sword can hurt me as much as a fly!"

And again he burst into laughter. Celine sat gaping at Azrael with her mouth open, she simply could not believe this news, the stupidity behind it. Samantha sat wobbling in her chair until her Alex calmed down and explained what it meant. Azrael looked at him in complete disbelief. When he had fully recovered, she said:

"I don't understand what's so funny. The gates of heaven must be broken with the sword. If the gates remain intact, Lucifer cannot enter Heaven. It is impossible to break the gates without the flaming sword."

"What's so funny? Lucifer, the Lightbringer, is the only one who can ignite it, and your father cannot bring him back to heaven to ignite the sword because he will be destroyed as soon as he arrives. And what about the impossible Aunt Azrael? Hmmm, let's see."

Celine and Samantha began to giggle, knowing what was coming. The second part of his demonstration was not what they had expected.

"Where is your sword, Rae Rae?"

She manifested her sword and put it on the table. He snapped his fingers and a wooden box appeared on the table. Samantha shook her head and grinned.

"What Red, it's just cool!"

And with that, she giggled even more. He picked up Rae Rae's sword, looked at it for a moment and said:

"Auntie, this is really a toothpick if you ask me.

The next second, the sword ignited.

"How...how...that....that should be impossible..."

I'm the son of the Lightbringer of course I can ignite this little thing and minor things as missing pieces, bah... not my problem. He placed the blade in his hand, closed his hand around the blade, and pulled the it through his closed hand. Rae Rae screamed:

"Alex NO...!"

The flames had gone out and he opened his hand. When she saw no wound or burn. Her mouth fell open.

"You can keep your toothpick, Rae Rae, I don't need it. I have something better."

He opened the box and took out the katana. He lit it and she immediately saw the mixture of celestial fire and hellfire. Both flames played with each other as if they were dancing. The sight alone made her dizzy, never before had she seen fire from Heaven and Hell working together.

"What I said, I don't need your sword."

He made a very small cut on his arm with his sword and put it back in its scabbard.

"But...but my sword? It can't ignite without the other parts."

Alex replied:

"My dear favorite little aunt, nothing is impossible, nothing!"

At these words, both Samantha and Celine burst out laughing. When everyone had recovered a bit, Rae Rae asked, still in shock:

"Alex, you are thirteen, and as you said yourself, you have not yet fully grown into your powers. So how powerful are you going to get?"

"At least much more powerful than your Father ever was and more than enough to kick his ass every day of the week and twice on Sunday, so let's hope we can do this on a Sunday..."

Was his short and emphatic answer. Rae Rae started to cry:

"It's true what you said. You can and will stop Father! In the name of all that is holy, thank you, Alexander, for coming back!"

"You don't have to thank me, Rae Rae. I couldn't possibly turn my back on all the misery in your universe, in my universe. Let's take a little break, okay?"

He stood and gave a subtle nod to Rae Rae, and Celine immediately walked over to Azrael and took her in her arms. The Angel let herself fall completely into the demon's comforting arms without a second thought of the roles her father said Angels and Demons should play. He walked across the beach to the water and Samantha quickly walked beside him, taking his hand. They walked into the water until they were about waist deep. He lit a cigarette and stared out over the ocean without speaking. After he finished his cigarette, she asked:

"What do you think about love?"

"Tomorrow..."

Was the only word he said. He put his arm around her waist, she snuggled up against him and laid her head on his shoulder. She knew only too well that he was not talking about the literal tomorrow, but that he was looking into the future of his universe, and knowing him, he was already thinking three steps ahead, about both universes and the next step after the unification...