Alexander was half hanging from his hanging couch. After finally getting his cappuccino from a rather pale-looking Sandalphon, who then quickly excused himself, he had held a washcloth under cold water. He drank his more hot-milk-than-coffee mixture and fell onto the couch after putting the washcloth to his eyes. After a while, Trixie entered his loft and saw him hanging around. Without moving, he asked:
"Is it necessary for me to flambé Lucifer because your father had a heart attack and Raffa had to heal him?"
Trixie giggled at the question and said softly:
"No, oddly enough, Dad had already figured out half the truth. Apparently Lucifer is not as good at hiding things as he thinks he is. Especially when he is angry."
Alex snorted:
"Hmmm, half the truth... Does that mean the other half lived in denial?"
"Yep..."
"I swear, the little club that Lucifer has gathered around him seems to get weirder and weirder with each new member. I wouldn't be surprised if Sasquatch, dressed in a three-piece tailored Prada suit and claiming to be Lux's accountant, were the next to arrive.
Trixie burst into laughter at the picture Alex painted. It made him smile, too. He removed the washcloth from his eyes and sat up straight. She asked:
"Are you okay, Alex?"
He put the washcloth down on the coffee table and answered:
"Yes, I'm just tired and a bit homesick. My arrival in this universe, shall we say, was not as successful as I thought it would be. It was kind of a hard landing, one could say, and it took a tremendous amount of energy. Sending Amenadiel and Muriel back upstairs didn't help either. I have not been here long enough; my connection to the thrones is not stable enough. Having a busload of angels in the garden, one of whom had nothing better to do than take apart my cappuccino maker, doesn't help either. Any word from Doc Linda?"
Trixie's face tightened a bit at Alexander's question. His eyebrows went up, and he asked:
"What's up, Bee?"
"Well... It could be that Raphael placed one of the angels at the bedroom door as a kind of guardian..."
Alex sighed deeply:
"And how exactly could Raffa have come up with that idea?"
She blushed a little, looked at her shoes, and said softly:
"Maybe because I, hmmm, interrupted by knocking on the door every few minutes and asking that question..."
He shook his head and said quietly but amusedly:
"Bee, you are twelve; I'm sure you learned about the flowers and the bees by now in school. Hell, I'm a boy, and such details usually don't interest us boys at all, eeuww, but even I know that childbirth can take a while."
Her eyes lit up completely, and she regained her typical wide smile:
"Yeah, I know, but I'm just tense, and I can't wait for him to be born, and I can see him and hold him."
She dropped into the seat across from Alex and launched into a monologue about what she planned to do once the baby was born. He figured that he must have been partially hit in the head when he crashed as well because he listened with interest as Trixie went on about things that normally wouldn't have interested him for a second. A subject from which he would have walked away very quickly. The thought that occurred to him was that she was some kind of mini-Rae-Rae, and with her enthusiasm, she was not so different from Casiel.
He could not tell how long he had been listening to Trixie when there was a knock at the door, and Gabriel entered with his eternal smile. At Alex's invitation, he took a seat in the lounge and said:
"I cannot tell you how happy I am to finally meet you, My Lord."
Alexander quickly raised his hand and said:
"Please leave out the titles, Gabriel, especially here in what will soon prove to be my only space of privacy. Here I just want to be Alexander or Alex."
"As you wish, Alex. Rae Rae has already informed us that you hate the whole protocol thing."
"You have no idea how much, Gabe. Okay, so Daniel didn't need medical attention. What about Lucifer and the others?"
The angel pointed at Trixie and said:
"Her dad will be just fine. Amazing man, actually. Once he gets over his mental crises, he might turn out to be the most even-tempered of Lucifer's friends here on Earth. Nice man too. But..."
"Yes, that but. That's what I wanted to talk about. Gabe, I'm probably going to ask you a lot of questions that you think Rae Rae already told you I should know the answers to because she had schooled me on those topics. To be honest, I often struggled to understand what Rae Rae was talking about. Especially when Casiel was there and those two... I don't really know how to describe it..."
Gabriel laughed out loud, and his smile became very wide:
"Got bubbly?"
"Oh gosh, thank you for understanding! Jesus Christ Superstar, how those two can babble!"
The angel nodded and said:
"The babbling isn't so bad if only Rae Rae could concentrate on one subject. She tends to jump from one subject to another and back again a few seconds later. When she had paid you a visit and reported back to our little group, then...wow...Raphael, Zadkiel, Mataron, and I lost the thread so quickly that we had all the trouble later putting the pieces of information together. Mi, Michael, on the other hand, was in the worst shape. One minute she was talking about important internal political matters, which she was teaching you, and then in the same sentence she was talking about going to a movie or a play with Casiel on her next visit. Since your birth, Mi has developed a nervous tic that only occurs when Rae Rae talks about you and the other universe. When his left eye begins to twitch, you can tell he's reaching his limit. That's the moment when I or Raffa quickly intervene and try to steer her away."
Alexander looked at him and was less than impressed:
"And how did that work out for you?"
"For about half a minute it worked very well, I have to say..."
"Oh, how happy I am for myself! I have a twin who could be a younger copy of that angel who seems to have swallowed a truckload of happy pills, and now the probably real twin of that same angel has decided to come live here with her chicken..."
Gabriel blinked for a moment and asked quietly:
"Chicken?"
Alex closed his eyes, raised his hands, and shook his head:
"Don't ask. Just don't ask Gabe. It's just one of those things that happens, and we have to accept it."
Gabe thought for a moment, shrugged his shoulders as if accepting the information, and asked:
"Okay, how can I help?"
"Metatron. Besides his work as head of the archives, he can also cleanse a soul, or at least help cleanse it, right?"
"Yes, that is one of his gifts."
"Would you please ask him if he could free himself to come to Earth for a moment and take care of the gray spots in Bee's dad's soul?"
The eternal smile around Gabriel's mouth barely faded, but his voice was serious enough to hear the change:
"My Prince..."
"Gabe, I just said..."
Alexander was interrupted by Gabriel, who raised his hand and said:
"Stop talking now and listen for a moment!"
The Antichrist wanted to say something but wisely decided to shut up for a moment.
"Alex, you are a prince of heaven. There is only one other with an equal title at the moment. You don't have to ask for anything, especially not in such a pouty way. Just say what you want, and it will happen.
Alexander shook his head vehemently:
"No, Gabriel! I am not your Father. I don't bark orders; I don't want to bark orders and then see Angels, Demons, or Humans jump through hoops. I want to be able to deal with them in a normal way."
"I understand that, little brother, but this is not the way."
"Little brother?"
Alex asked in surprise.
"Yes..."
Gabriel nodded enthusiastically and explained:
"I always wanted a little brother. I was always the youngest of the archangels, and well, Mi, Luci, Raffa, Zad, and the rest are not always the most pleasant in the house, if you know what I mean. So I nagged Mom and Dad for a little brother. Apparently, they took my nagging personally. The price we paid is that instead of a little brother, we got Rae Rae. So whether you like it or not, you're going to fill that spot, and you're going to listen to your older brother for a while, okay?"
Alex just nodded, and Gabe said:
"You don't have to give orders or bark like you say to get things done. Think about your dad and mom for a moment. How do they do it? Are they begging for favors and treating everyone as if they were their closest friends?
He thought for a moment about the conversations he had seen and followed in the throne rooms of Heaven and Hell in the other universe and how his mom and dad managed things. His dad gave orders, but that was Hell; things ran differently than in Heaven. Relationships there were more rigid, more controlled by protocol. His dad had once explained that it was the nature of the demons and that they expected him to be short with them. That they respected that attitude. But he had also noticed that there was no real cutting or arrogant authority behind the orders his dad gave. On the contrary, there was a palpable respect for the demons he surrounded himself with in Hell. Nor did his mom ever give orders from the throne room in Heaven. But in fact, as Gabe said, when it came down to it, she didn't ask piously, as if asking someone for a service. No, she pointed to someone and just said in a friendly tone what needed to be done, and it was done.
Alex nodded:
"I see. The golden ratio."
Gabriel returned the smile:
"I knew you were a smart little brother. Indeed, the golden section. You are the prince, and everyone expects their prince to know what he is doing or asking for. So act like a prince. In your case, the good, kind, warm prince that you really are, but the prince nonetheless. Will you try again, Alex?"
Who nodded and spoke:
"I need the Metatron. I want him to take a moment as soon as possible, come to Earth, and take care of the stains on Daniel's soul."
"All right, boss, I'll pass the message on to him."
Trixie had listened intently to the conversation between the two of them and remained silent because she understood that something important was happening here. Alex, as inexperienced as he might be, was taking his place in the hierarchy, and Gabriel, who had decided not only to serve his prince but also to serve as a mentor. When the two had seemingly accepted their roles, she asked:
"What about my daddy's soul?"
Alex looked at her and said:
"Nothing to worry about, Bee. Nothing he can't manage himself with a little help from above."
She looked at him thoughtfully, and he explained:
"I am not God, and therefore not an omniscient Bee. What I know is bits and pieces. Just enough to make things a little easier here and to intervene in a healthy way at certain times. What I do know is that your dad and mom went through a difficult time before they split up. Your dad did some pretty stupid things, but he has since corrected his mistakes. However, he feels guilty, and that is dangerous for a soul in this universe. For it weighs down the soul, and when the soul becomes too heavy, it is pulled toward hell."
The girl's eyes went wide, and she looked a little frightened, so her voice sounded very soft as she asked fearfully:
"My dad can go to hell?"
Alexander got his smirk back on his face and replied:
"No, not as long as I have something to say about it, Bee!"
Now a very big smile appeared on her face, her eyes sparkled, and she jumped to her feet. But before she could do what she really wanted to do, Lucifer suddenly appeared in the loft with an entourage. Alexander said sarcastically:
"But of course, Mr. Morningstar, you are welcome to enter and relax. There is no need to knock on the door, as it is merely for aesthetic purposes."
Lucifer, followed by Chloe, Dan, Rae Rae, and Ella, entered his loft room and heard his cutting remark. Lucifer, as usual, didn't really look comprehensible when someone made a comment about a door. The same look he got in his eyes when Doc Linda or Chloe made a comment about him flying into their house or office without knocking. The other four, however, seemed to get the message and immediately understood that privacy was very important to this boy. With a gesture, Alexander invited everyone to sit down. Trixie immediately sat down next to Dan and hugged him. He didn't quite seem to understand why his daughter was suddenly so affectionate. Alex stood up, extended his hand to Daniel, and said:
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Espinoza. I would apologize for Lucifer's idiotic behavior, but you've known for some time that he can be an idiot."
He glanced at Chloe, looked back at Dan, and continued:
"Your ex has adopted that behavior lately, it seems. Very unfortunate."
Daniel, Trixie, Ella, Rae Rae, and Gabriel obviously only understood half of the double message Alexander had hidden in his words. The half about keeping Lucifer's true identity a secret. Chloe swallowed softly but inaudibly. She understood that this boy would not soon forget or forgive her idiotic behavior with the priest. Dan said:
"Just call me Dan. Man, this is going to take a while to sink in. Lucifer, the real devil, oh man. Amenadiel, who is not as good a guy as he made it out to be when he befriended me, and Maze, a real demon. Well, Maze is actually the one I have the least problems with. She can be really scary when she wants to be, you know."
Alexander chuckled:
"Then try to put yourself in my shoes, knowing that Lucifer would be your father."
Dan's eyes widened, and he said:
"Oh man, that would be so... weird?"
"You have no idea, Dan!"
The man took a good look at Alexander and said:
"You don't really look like Lucifer."
With a grin on his face, Alexander replied:
"No, I got lucky in the genetic lottery. I inherited both the good looks and the intelligence from my mom. Lucky me..."
Holding a glass of whiskey to his lips, Lucifer muttered something. Probably a retort that his own looks were absolutely perfect or something. The others wisely decided to ignore him, knowing that they shouldn't provoke the devil at this point if they didn't want to hear a half-hour sermon about how perfect he was created and that half the town could act as witnesses to confirm this not only about his face but his entire body. Alex had absolutely no desire to undergo any kind of trauma.
"So you're the son of Lucifer, the real Antichrist?"
"'Yep..."
"But you are also not what the church and popular literature say you are."
"Nop, well, not quite."
Daniel, Chloe, and Ella got a questioning look in their eyes and apparently needed a lot more information to make sense of that sentence. Alex dropped back into place and manifested for everyone out of the blue their favorite drink. Rae Rae said, smiling:
"I see your powers are slowly coming around."
He nodded and said to the angel before explaining to the humans:
"Slowly my connection with the thrones is getting stronger. It is just frustrating to feel that so many thrones have to learn to cooperate with each other and not work against each other. It takes energy, a lot of energy."
Lucifer's head shot up, and he asked with wide eyes:
"Thrones? Exactly how many thrones are we talking about here, my boy?"
He looked at his father a little mysteriously and said:
"Let's say three in this universe, two in the other universe, and of course the powers Grandma poured into me when she abdicated her position."
Alex ignored Lucifer as he tried to imagine in his mind what powers would produce a connection to so many thrones. He addressed those present:
"No, I am not one hundred percent the Antichrist as described. I am not here to conquer the world, exterminate ninety percent of humanity, wage war with Heaven to take God's place, and ultimately lose and be sent to Hell with Lucifer for the rest of eternity. But there are some grains of truth hidden in the whole story of the Antichrist as it is told. Yes, I will have a falling out with some of the angels. But this group of angels would like to see humanity destroyed because they see you as inferior and a failed experiment. No, I do not want to go to war with them, and I hope to settle this dispute peacefully. I don't think we'll be friends in the near future, but I hope to keep it completely civil. Yes, I'll probably have a fight with Grandpa El, you know him better under his title, God. No, it won't be a physical fight, and no, I don't want to knock him off his throne. No, I'm not here to start the apocalypse. Yes, I have something to do with the Apocalypse, but exactly the opposite of what you think you know or have ever read somewhere. The apocalypse that is coming, and there is an apocalypse coming in the future, is an apocalypse created by mankind itself. So what do I have to do with it? I'm here to minimize its effects, or at least ensure that humanity survives it and can make a new start."
The three sat looking at him with big, wide eyes, and finally Dan was heard saying:
"Sweet Jesus..."