"Then why didn't he stay with your mother when she turned out to be pregnant?"
Asked Linda with a frightened suspicion.
Oh, ask your son's father. It is yet another wretchedness he has caused. Unfortunately, I must admit that at the same time, it was also the solution to this shitshow."
Replied Alexander bitterly:
"My mother and Lucifer had what you might call a kind of vacation love. He was on vacation from Hell, and she was on vacation in the south of France in the summer of 1998, and he ended up in a kind of commune that stuck to flower power, free love, hippies, and drugs. In other words, everything Lucifer likes... liked."
He added with a gentle smile. Lucifer shot straight because now he suddenly knew who Alexander's mother was and something he had always refused to reveal. He said softly:
"Elise, it was Elise with her red hair."
"Indeed, Dad, it was Elise, something I can only tell you now, but you knew that."
He looked sad for a moment and said:
"Don't worry, Dad, I've had two other mothers who took care of me. I'm sorry I never got to know Elise. From everything I've heard, she was an extraordinary woman. To have met her in person would have been too dangerous; nothing was allowed to jeopardize this goal we have in mind. Well, back to you, Lucifer. Of course he could not promise anything because Amenadiel could reappear at any moment. My mother wouldn't commit to anything at all because she was a completely free spirit. Lucifer was long back in Hell when my mother discovered she was pregnant. Not a hair on her head thought of giving me up. And that's when four of Lucifer's siblings got wind of the pregnancy. Michael, Gabriel, Azrael, and Raphael. They took turns keeping an eye on Elise. Raphael as a healer could easily move among the hospital staff. He scanned my mother unnoticed and came to the terrible conclusion that she would die in childbirth and there was nothing he could do about it. The four put their heads together and came up with a plan that was so stupid and seemed so off the mark that it might paradoxically work. Oh, no need to applaud them because the idea that a paradox could be the solution never occurred to them. Their only thought was to get me away from under the attention of Godfrey in a place where he would never find me. I was born in 1999, and I am just over 6,000 years old."
He stopped talking for a moment to let this news sink in with Linda, Ella, and Daniel. You could almost hear the cogs creaking in their heads. It was Ella who got wide-eyed and blurted out:
"You went back in time, as you said."
Alexander smiled and said:
"Indeed, Miss Lopez, but we had already established that. That is also, unfortunately, why I could do nothing to help or save Jesus. He was absolutely unwilling to betray his God and remove him from the throne, so I had to stay out of it. Had I done it anyway, I would have ended up in an infinite time loop. You know the paradox of time travel, and you know what it entails and what a hornet's nest it can be. However, there is much more. We also have the multiverse, and yes, it absolutely exists. I was born in this universe, but I have lived here for exactly one second. Dom, Dom, Dom, and Dommer had the genius idea to pluck me out of this universe and dump me in another universe. Gabriel, as the messenger of God, can travel between universes, but he has absolutely no experience in transporting souls. Long story very short, I was not yet born when they put a whole bunch of wards around me, including Azrael, who took me out of sight, and a few others. In this universe a mother would die giving birth to a healthy child, and in the other universe a mother would give birth to a stillborn. Just the big switch trick, and the dead mother has a dead baby, and the living mother has a healthy son. This would have been fine were it not for the fact that I ended up in the body of the wrong baby, which brought with it a not-so-healthy childhood. I was a soul that didn't belong in that universe, and of course that set off all the alarm bells in the Heaven of that universe because the wards of the four don't work there. Or rather, not quite; their Heaven saw straight through it. This put me under the full attention of that Heaven, who were following my doings to find out what I was doing there. The wards that the four had placed on my soul may not have worked to hide me from view; they did ensure that the Nefilim part could never break through, and thus I was trapped in the wrong body as long as I lived."
He took another glass and yet another cigarette.
"I died in 2012 when I was just under thirteen, well, almost died, one might say, were it not for the intervention of the Goddess of the universe in which I lived."
To his relief, he saw Ella lean closer to Lucifer and nestle under his protective arm. He winked at her and said:
"This is where it gets really interesting for a fellow nerd like you, Miss Lopez. Although both universes are very similar, primarily in terms of human history, there are some notable differences. For example, Heaven and Hell do not live on a war footing. But I find myself getting a little too far ahead of my story. My intention was to first explain a little of how I lived my life. So let me stick to a few main points. As a young kid, I quickly noticed that I was pretty much always the smartest in the class, that my IQ was much higher than it could naturally be. I always had my nose in the books, and the library was my second home. So I was the ideal target for bullies. That taught me three things: 1. Hide your intelligence to the point that it's not noticeable, and it's always better that they underestimate you; 2. Learn martial arts as soon as possible; and 3. Take full advantage of every opportunity you get to beat up a bully. Unfortunately it never came to that because I died so young."
Everyone was hanging on Alexander's every word. This was news to them all. Of those present, only Celine knew the whole story; not even his confidants from Heaven and Hell in this universe knew it. And it was a lot darker than Alexander told.
"I was taken into the Heaven of that universe and finally prepared to undertake my long journey. Well, yes, once I had recovered from the initial shock."
Before anyone could say anything, a new Angel appeared. This one stepped up to Lucifer and laid his battle gear at his feet. Lucifer looked down at what he had not seen since his fall. Gold and silver bands on the sleeves and a breastplate decorated with stars and a silver lion and gold dragon. The exact opposite of Michael's golden lion and silver dragon. The Angel looked at Lucifer, blood-serious, and said sharply:
"No wound if it is avoidable! Understood?"
Lucifer replied softly:
"If it depends on me, no wound at all."
The Angel nodded and turned to Alexander:
"Everything is being prepared and will be ready at the appointed hour. When the time comes, you and Lucifer, along with Michael and Rae Rae, will be expected at the gate. Those who are on our side are going to keep everything under control in the city. Azrael's confidants are going to take care of the outside of the palace. Then it is up to Lucifer, Michael, and Gabriel for the shock effect in the palace and throne room. Gabriel the inside of the palace, Michael and Lucifer the throne room for the ultimate shock. After which it is up to you to deal with Father. These are not my words but Michael's: you are NOT the first in the throne room; those are Michael and Lucifer. You will not enter the throne room until the situation is under control! Understood?"
Alexander had a smile on his lips and said:
"Yes, Raffa, I got the message."
The Angel growled gruffly.
"While you are here, Raphael, will you do me a favor? Scan Charlie, Beatrice, and Miss Lopez for me."
The gruff Angel said:
"What do you think I am? A mobile CAT scan?"
Yet he did as asked. First the sleeping baby Charlie, then Trixie, and finally Ella. The surprise was evident on his face as he looked at Alexander. The latter merely said:
"Thank you, Raffa."
With a simple nod, Raphael took his leave to prepare his healers in case urgent help was needed. In a fight, no matter how much one tried to avoid it, there could always be serious injuries, especially when dealing with a group of Zealots. Ella asked nervously:
"What was that? Why did Raphael have to scan me and the children? And what was that look between you two?"
Alexander got a mysterious smile on his face and said playfully:
"Miss Lopez, in a few hours we are going to knock God off his throne. I swear I am not going to, or will not, adopt Godfrey's habit of God working in mysterious ways. Raphael has only confirmed to me that a certain future is possible for the three of you. Not something set in stone because it is related to your own free will. If I were to fully explain everything now, the free will and the possibility of it happening would disappear. So, dear Ella, trust me when I say that this is something you must figure out for yourself, find your own way, and make your own choice."
Alexander's soft eyes and his genuine smile were enough for Ella to believe him. Unconsciously, she pulled the protective arm Lucifer had around her even tighter against her, and Lucifer let it happen as if it were the most normal thing in the world, as if it was supposed to be that way. The two were totally unaware that what Raphael had told Alexander without words had been confirmed by that one small act. He could not and should not say anything at that moment, but he could almost cry out with joy that after Decker and her influence had disappeared from the scene, his father was finally leaning against his real true love.