Authors note:

I wanted to make that climax in the last chapter special, good or bad you choose.

DISCLAIMER #1: The characters in this chapter do not reflect or embody any religious beliefs, ideas or connotations, yet inspiration has been drawn from biblical events and descriptions. The names of these characters as well as the characters themselves are a work of fiction. They are not designed to be taken literally, nor is it intended to offend nor disprove previous beliefs and ideals.

DISCLAIMER #2: I have obtained permission from r/Claudiawolf203 to use the characters you will see in this chapter, these characters and their designs do not belong to me. Any characters not associated with the Heaventaker project are of my own creation.

Chapter XLVII: Holy Graduation

What was that noise? Malina thought, the demon slamming her laptop shut, placing her glass of vodka down onto the tabletop. That was definitely not her imagination, it sounded like it had come from outside, besides...her imagination wouldn't make the table vibrate.

"Fuck sake...why did I chose to live out here, always gotta investigate the slightest noise" she said out-loud, "I moved out here to get away from shit like this!". The demon paused, before shouting; "Stop talking to yourself!". Malina downed the rest of her alcohol, the liquid burning the back of her throat, gasping in a pleasurable manner afterwards.

The Sour Demon reluctantly stood up, leaving her black chair with the red cushion behind, just as she had gotten comfy too. The woman headed towards the exit of her cave, fists clenched.

Whatever had disturbed her Heroes 3 gameplay was going to be slaughtered...

She leaned her head out of the cave's exit and looked in both directions, hoping she wouldn't have to leave her home. "Zdrada?!" she called, knowing her sister was most likely playing tricks on her. "Zdrada! I swear to god if that's you I'm going to cut out your tongue and feed it to Cerberus!".

No reply.

"For fuck sake" she stepped out of her den and decided to see if anyone had been here recently, the demon scanned for footprints other than her own in the thin layer of ash, she scanned for disturbed rubble, any signs of change since she had come home. "Justice? You better not be pranking me again?!" Malina called out, walking along the bottom of the ravine.

No reply.

Malina's cosy little cave was situated at the bottom of a shallow ravine, hidden and out of sight, yet it was not too far away from where the puzzles and traps she was the caretaker of were. She was quite isolated out here, the Sour Demon volunteering for one of the furthest posts away from the safety of the Citadel.

Her duties bound her to a desolate area to the far South of the Citadel, the demon living near one of Hell's most active volcanoes, Malina once scaled the fiery mountain just to see what was inside, she was disappointed.

The Sour Demon began moving towards the exit of the ravine, going towards the source of the noise and vibrating she had previously heard, it had sounded like a distant explosion. However, Zdrada had done something similar in the past, pushing the boulder off of the ridgeline, causing a small scale avalanche, the rockfall crashing down practically outside Malina's front door. Her sister would never just knock...

Malina clambered up the small ledge and she was out of the ravine, the demon now on the true surface of Hell, the flat open landscape allowing her to see far and wide. To her right, the vast, infinite plains of Hell stretched out into the red beyond, to her left, there was a large group of mountains. Malina used the passage between them which lead to the first few cluster of her puzzles.

The younger sister decided to go forward instead, for a barely visible smoke trail was rising into the reddish sky above. "What the fuck...", curiosity got the better of her...

As she began her march, the demon's mind began guessing what the source of the smoke could be. Something was on fire, but who would be making fires out here? A signal fire? Or maybe a lava vent was opening?

"Fucking...hate...my job" she grumbled, stepping over rocks and wishing she had drank more alcohol before she came outside...in fact why did she bother getting out of bed at all today?

The last few years had been especially long, boring...and...lonely...

No one had visited her in quite some time, the last one to visit was Modeus and that was...was it a hundred to two hundred years ago? Eh, probably closer to two hundred. The Lustful Demon was concerned for her mental health, but the demon hadn't received the memo...Malina did not want any visitors...ever...

"Malina! Your sister is worried about you, Lucifer is worried sick! I-I'm worried about you!" Modeus's previous words were bouncing around her head as she walked, one foot after the other...just like every other day in her life.

"Oh, you're all so worried about me are you?! If THEY'RE so worried, then why haven't THEY COME AND TOLD ME!" Malina regretting ever raising her voice at Modeus.

"B-b-because they're busy?" Modeus had replied, the demon knowing for a fact that wasn't the right thing to say.

"Then they don't care at all...neither do you...your only here out of pity" Malina had said, she now cringed intensely as this conversation replayed through her mind.

"How can you say that?! You know I-" Modeus began to defend herself.

"You can leave now Modeus...message received" the Sour Demon had her back turned away. Stay...please...

"R-r-right...Well..." Modeus was at a lost, she didn't know what to say.

"Did you not hear me?" Malina spat. Please...don't leave me...

"I-I h-heard you..." Modeus turned, but she looked at Malina's back one last time before she began to summon her portal. "I-" again Modeus tried to speak, Malina actually turning around now, a hateful glare painted her face.

"I'-I'm always going to be here for you" the demon threw something onto Malina's desk, it was small, handmade, a woven black band.

"Get. Out".

"Your such a fucking idiot Malina...you push all your friends away..." she began speaking to herself again, she was now approaching the smoke, it looked like it was coming out of a small crater, yet it was still a few yards away.

She nervously fingered the tiny black bracelets around her left wrist, out of the three woven bands, one had a small engraving on a silver chunk at the centre of the band. Malina had no idea how Modeus had written in such tiny text. The chunk of text was barely readable, but it went as followed:

'Whenever you're feeling sour, think of us...we are your friends, we are your family, we are here for you'.

The younger sister hated it...but she refused to take it off.

Malina was becoming very cautious of what she would find at the source of this smoke, could this be an enemy? One of Beelzebub's servants? If she had to report this- nah she would kill them and bury the body later...

Malina had finally reached the rim of the crater, the demon carefully peered downwards, something had fallen and made a huge impact onto the Hellscape, the crater had a drop of twenty metres or so. Those red demon eyes then spotted something amoungst the scorched rock and tiny fires that were slowly being stubbed out. There was- there was somethi- no someone in the middle of it!

"Fuck it" she said aloud, the demon jumped straight into the hole, falling to the bottom of the crater. She used one of the only spells she knew off by heart, it was designed to cushion her landing with Hell Energy. The bright orange substance travelled at light speed from her hands to coat the bottom of her black shoes.

The energy slowed her descent and made sure she didn't break her legs at the same time, the drop was not easily scalable, the Sour Demon not realising how she would get back up. But something had urged Malina to act selflessly...for once. She couldn't be bothered to take it slow and steady this time.

The demon landed safely, and dusted herself off, turning her head to look at the object she had seen from afar. "W-what the actual fuck..." she gasped, coming over to the person who lay on her side in the ash and debris. A girl was pinned by a mound of rubble, a medium sized boulder had trapped her entire right side and arm.

"H-h-h-el-p m-m-me please" this thing begged her.

"Y-y-you're an angel?!" Malina stuttered, her mind beginning to wonder, this was insan-

"P-please, I n-need hel-p" the Curious Angel begged once more, letting out a dry, weak cough.

"C-c-come on, let's get you out of here" Malina would not let indecisiveness rule her life, not this time. She began summoning more Hell Energy to help telekenetically clear the debris that she was too weak to physical move herself. "J-Just hold on!".

No one would save me...if I was like that...

"Are you awake?" the female voice called to him.

"Didn't go to sleep...didn't want to wake you" he replied. The man was stood at the balcony of the bedroom, he had been leaning against the doorway for a few hours now, the human originally slinked down and sat against the wall outside as the 'night' passed. He had left the bed when he had known she was fast asleep.

"Ohhh...was I snoring again o-or was I holding on to you too tightly, becau-" the voice asked, but didn't get to finish.

"No, don't be silly. You didn't disturb me, you were a star, made no noise at all" he flashed her a fake smile, the demon blushing at the compliment, she did not hide her nudity, simply allowing his eyes to linger for as long as they pleased. "I just couldn't- couldn't lay there, I wanted to look at the view" he turned his head away from the demon, the man replying honestly this time.

"Nightmares again?" finally the demon got out of bed, she did not care about her current attire, the Helltaker himself was wearing only a pair of black shorts and a loose red shirt, Hell's climate was unbearable on some days, especially at night.

"Worse...guilt" he sighed, noticing her coming closer, allowing her to do so this time.

"What are you talking about? You did all you could..." the demon extended her arm out to hold his right hand, the human was reluctant to let her close, reluctant to even let her touch him there.

"I don't know...I guess we did get the best we could...but-" he finally looked at the demon, her stark naked figure was barely visible in the darkness of the room, the orange light gently illuminating her body.

"But, what?" she asked, coming to stand behind him, kissing his back and shoulders.

"I don't know Mo, I just- I wish I could have done more...Turns out the best wasn't enough" he let himself be calmed, the Lustful Demon always did well to soothe his nerves, even if she didn't have much to say.

"Are you nervous about today? Azazel's graduation? Is that what has gotten you like this?" Modeus, decided to leave him at the window, he could use a drink she thought, he was probably parched.

"You always know how to read me like a book don't you Modeus" he smiled, yes he was incredibly nervous...

"Why aren't I invited again?" she asked retrieving a small bottle of liquid from her pantry. Hell had no natural water cycle, so the demons relied on this strange brown liquid, a sort of alcohol called "Daru". He hated the stuff...tasted like someone tried using dirt and spit to make a coffee and then decided to carbonate it after boiling. The man had tried some on his second visit to Hell, refusing it as often as it was offered to him.

"Here, you're dehydrated" she brought the bottle over to him, the man seeing it and turning his nose up.

"Oh, I'd rather die than drink another drop of that...no offense" he joked, the man simply stared at the distant eruption, he had enjoyed watching the volcano, never seeing one so vibrant and full of life in all his years. Modeus's bedroom had a south facing balcony, it offered a great vantage point of the fiery display, he had spent the last few weeks simply watching in awe.

"Please?" the smaller woman asked again, her concern for his well-being had been apparent over the last few days...last few weeks...

"We'll be going up the surface in a few hours anyway...I can last" his tone plain and monotone.

"Don't make me ask again, you know what happens when people don't listen to me...", she was actually threatening the human.

"Broken kneecaps...I know from experience" he smiled as the demon grabbed his hand and thrust the bottle into it.

"Mmmhmmm" she went back into the bedroom and retrieved one of her red silk robes, the demon deciding that she wasn't receiving the desired 'attention' to remain nude. "You didn't answer my question though".

"I thought it was obvious, you're a demon Mo, you aren't going to be allowed in" the man pretended to take a swig from the bottle, the vile brown liquid almost made him gag as it touched his lips.

"Drink..." she demanded through gritted teeth, noticing his faking.

This time he obeyed, the man taking several gulps as fast as he could, coughing as soon as the bottle was out of his mouth. "F-f-fuck-in-g vile" he spluttered.

"But why are Zdrada and Malina going? They are demons too!" she protested, returning to the original argument.

"Well...that is true" he took one last look at the destructive powers of one of Hell's largest volcanoes before coming back into the bedroom. "But you were there when Azazel was recovering in the infirmary, they have been 'invited'...apparently".

"So its an invite only kind of party...wait a second, you weren't invited?!". Modeus so desperately wanted to go with them, with him, to be shown off. It was her dream to see what the realm of angels looked like, Azazel had only fueled these desires further.

"I'm her guardian Modeus...I kind of have to be there" he came and stood face to face with the demon, placing both of his hands on either hip.

"Isn't Lucifer her guardian too? But I kno-" Modeus stopped speaking, afraid to bring up such a delicate subject now. She slipped her arms around his neck, resting her forearms on his shoulders, crossing her hands behind him, stroking the back of his head.

"You think they'd let the literal devil into Heaven?" he chuckled, ignoring the morbid undertone of this conversation.

"I just want to come with you..." she looked away from his gaze, glaring at their feet.

"I know Mo...tell you what, come up to the surface with us, you can help Azazel dress if you'd like. I know Malina would appreciate it if someone other than her sister was there...Zdrada doesn't lay off the insults...even after everything that has happened".

After a brief pause of hesitation, Modeus looked him in the eye again, there was a smile on her face this time. "I'd like that" she said finally.

"Good, besides you can help me carry some groceries. We have practically nothing in terms of food since we left, god I can't wait to drink actual water".

"Shut up...but-b-before we leave, c-can we-" the Lustful Demon was always so predictable.

"What, four times wasn't enough?! Modeus I'm exhausted, besides we've got a long day ahead of us. You'll have to go see those 'actors' if you're that desperate, I've seen those videos you've been watching, talking about them to Azazel" he teased.

"Do scenarios like that actually happen? Could I go to this 'gym' and expect the sam-" she began, usually the demon would become quite embarrassed, but now she was simply embracing her lewd side...No filter.

"Modeus...you really think those are real life scenarios? They're actors, why don't you believe me?" he laughed at her innocence and naivety.

"Because...well- they all look like they are enjoying themselves and the-" she began her rant, but he did not allow her to continue.

"Oh my, I am not going to discuss pornography with you Mo" he took a step backwards, the man glancing around the demon's bedroom, wondering where his shoes were.

"Just one more time? Please?!" she was practically begging now.

"I think you've had plenty of time with me over the last few weeks Mo, besides I bet the- the others will be mighty jealous when they find out" he sounded very sad towards the end of that sentence. The man hesitated when referring to the other demons in his harem, Modeus had noticed this, noticed he had been missing them...gravely.

She turned her back on him, facing the mirror on the wall next to her bed, wondering what she should wear today, but its not like she needed to dress up for anything...special. "The time has flown by, I wish that we-" she had begun, but the demon hadn't noticed the man approaching her from behind, the human catching her off-guard.

He grabbed her by the waist and planted a kiss on her neck, Modeus moaning in response. "I haven't slept at all, someone has been keeping me awake all night...every night. I think the time has passed extremely slowly" he teased.

"For you maybe, but for me its gone in the blink of an eye. Besides where else would you have been?" she asked, smiling at the man through the mirror, letting herself be held.

"At home...with my family...all my family" he pretended not to sound upset, but Modeus could see the pain behind his eyes. The colour began flickering rapidly again.

"Y-you-your eyes Taker, they're doing that- th-thing again" Modeus said, concerned by his new affliction.

A strange red hue would consume his irises during these moments, however, sometimes the entirety of his eyeballs would turn pitch black, but only for a few seconds. The pupils would often become dilated and then expand rapidly, switching back and forth. "I know...my arm is hurting again" the man ignoring the needles of pain that stabbed into his right side. He released the demon and went over to his side of the bed, retrieving the sunglasses he had stolen from Justice's collection off of the nightstand, placing them on his face to hide his affliction.

"But-" she again wanted to comfort him, but he was done receiving sympathy.

"Come on, lets get ready. They will soon be banging on our door " he smiled, "They won't be catching us...in the middle of something this time", the Helltaker's smile turned into a grin.

"Heh, I kinda like the risk though" Modeus returned the devilish grin.

"Are you lot ready? I wanted to get an early start, pick up a few things before we go-" he said obtaining his newest white suit jacket from one of the devil's minions. "Thank you", the pale skinned male demon nodding as it was dismissed.

"Uhhh, my head is still fuzzy, anyone got a cig?" Zdrada, alive and well, was laying on the sofa of this lounge type room, the demon hadn't been feeling well over the last few days.

"Head still sore after the what the Hell Priests did?" he asked, the man donning the suit jacket. Tightening the outfit at the neck and waist, adjusting his shirt's cuffs too. The material was surprisingly soft.

"Yeah, I don't know what they did...but I've felt like shit ever since they let me leave" she held a hand against the back of her forehead, a thin layer of sweat was all over her.

"Oh boo hoo, fuck you" Malina spat, the younger sister was also alive, recovering from her battle, but thankfully no injuries she had sustained were life threatening, only a few fresh scars and the lesson to control her powers, anger included.

"You don't have to come if your not feeling up to it Zdrada" Azazel the Curious Angel beamed, the third younger member of the family was also doing well, her injuries hadn't been as severe as the others...the angel only had to endure minimum medical treatment. She did have her soul almost ripped out of her...

"No no, I wanna be there...if I'm ever going to flip off a god, now's my chance to do it" a mischievous grin spreading along the older sister's face.

"Please don't do that" the Helltaker now decided to lean against the doorway to the room.

"Oh no, I am soooooo doing that, sorry chump" Zdrada directed her grin at the man, "Did you always look so ugly or did the Hell Priests open my eyes finally?".

"She's fine. I can see that they didn't mess with your sense of humor" the joke rolled off of him. "How are you coping Malina? No more sudden outbursts, no random fires?" he turned to other woman.

"Eh, can't complain...how's your-" she began, but the demon knew he hated whenever someone asked.

"Don't wanna talk about it, ignore it for now" he said quickly, adjusting his sunglasses, guaranteeing it concealed his eyes, the human's voice serious and monotone.

"Alright...not my business" the Sour Demon began examining her nails again. She deeply cared, but typical Malina being Malina didn't want to show it...

"You sure that-" Azazel had also been concerned about him over the last few weeks.

"Drop it Az...besides...today is all about you!" he said, seriousness turning to lighthearted kindness.

"M-m-me?" she was slightly confused, as if he knew something she didn't.

"Your graduation silly! We don't wanna be late, never think you'd get here huh?" he gave her the signature Helltaker smile.

"Oh- its not that important, its only the ceremony. I still need to decide what I want to do after this...The Legion, The Monastery, do I want to work towards becoming an Archangel, after that I could become a Seraphim" Azazel's eyes were full of wonder...and confusion.

"It's going to be one of the most important days of your life, I think we best get a move on if we want to make it there with enough time to spare" he now removed himself from the doorway, turning his head he looked down the hallway at the sounds of two sets of footsteps approaching.

"Ah, Monica, how's things?" he tried lightening the mood with the now depressed demon.

"Good, relatively speaking...Hell has reached the norm efficiency once more, despite the absence of our Queen. However...we have been left defenceless, since all our defenders and prosecutors have been 'Missing', that's what we have told the general populous" Pandemonica took a moment to breathe.

"I've been helping Mon Mon wherever I can" Modeus interjected, beaming with her eyes closed.

"Yes, you deserve a break Modeus" you'd expect a smile or any emotion other than tiredness and depression to follow after this sentence...none followed.

The demons came into the lounge and Pandemonica turned to face one of the walls, already beginning to manifest the portal that would take them to the surface. Modeus came and stood next to him, the demon had her hands behind her back and was staring in adoration at the man. She was wearing a low-cut turtleneck sweater, the demon was puffing her chest out slightly...wanting to draw attention...there.

"I don't think the population would be ready to learn of the news...yet...we must give them time to recover first, grieve their own losses, their family members which Mantus enslaved". The no longer retired demon was speaking despite manifesting the portal at the same time.

"They will have to learn...one way or another, I'm amazed you have taken on all of- all of Lucy's responsibilities. So much for being retired, ey?" he again tried to inject aspects of humor and a positive attitude into this grim atmosphere. Pandemonica finished her creation of the portal, the woman not wanting to make eye contact with any of the family members.

"I wasn't going to stay retired for long" she said, "Enjoy your trip, I'm sure you'll tell me all about it when you return...". The Tired Demon had the entire weight of Hell's operations on her shoulders, yet she seemed completely unfazed by anything that was ever thrown at her. Like a true professional.

"Thank you Monica, we'll be back soon" he gestured to the portal, "Come on you lot, lets go...shake a leg". Malina was the first to move, picking herself up off of the sofa, stepping through the portal without hesitation. She was followed by a smiling Azazel and Modeus, both of them saying goodbye to Pandemonica. Zdrada was reluctant to move, lying on the sofa had made her feel slightly better, the Bitch Demon flicked the Helltaker's chest as she walked past and into the orange portal.

"Oh.." Pandemonica's voice came from down the hallway. "I've been asked to pass on a message".

"Lets hear it" he said, the man was just about to return back home, now standing back from the orange, sparkling gateway it slowly diminishing in size, glancing at the Pandemonica he no longer knew.

"Tell him I was right".

"Huh, didn't know they were setting up a Tesla dealership here" the Helltaker looked off to his right at the building across the street. The man was speaking to Modeus as they walked, but he was really speaking to himself. The two were walking back to where they had parked the car, the Helltaker was carrying the groceries in his right hand, they had only needed one giant bag, the man didn't need Modeus's help in the end, yet he appreciated the company.

They walked at Modeus's pace, the woman having wrapped her arm and tail around his left, interlocking her fingers with his. When no one was around, she had wrapped her black, pointed tail around their two hands. It was a nice gesture. She maintained a human form at all times, yet her tail could easily be hidden in an instance. The two were wearing large, thick winter coats, both with fur hoods, for winter was well and truly upon them, the two experiencing quite the opposite of Hell's climate. Modeus was wearing a dark, crimson coat, with red mittens, the demon refused to wear a hat as it would mess her hair.

The Helltaker had simply worn his black Parker coat over his suit, the brand new beauty of a suit. The tailors of Hell had taken every measurement needed for a custom fit suit, identical in colour scheme to his original Helltaker suit, yet completely different in material. The suits were made of some strange red and white dyed leathery composite, yet it felt as light and as soft as cotton. The shoes were also made of a black leather, yet this one was like snake's skin. He looked quite stunning, the true Helltaker attire...reborn.

"Hey, look-" Modeus tugged at his arm and pointed with her free hand, the one that wasn't interlocked with his.

The Helltaker looked, a pair of Justice's sunglasses was sat comfortably on his freshly shaven face. The man glanced at the giant Hotel block that Modeus was pointing at. It was an old building, reaching above the modern houses it surrounded. At the top of the building, there was medium neon pink sign that read 'The Victoria Hotel', there was a two-dimensional neon rocket flying above the text, it's trail was flashing repeatedly, the trail turned into a heart that also lit up in random flashes.

"Yeah? What about it?" he kept walking, the Helltaker received a reply in the form of tugging at his arm. She simply planted herself and tugged, pointing, there was an angry, stubborn look on her face.

"Ohhhh...you really have no restraint, do you?" he laughed, moving the demon along. "I'm sorry Modeus, not today...it just hasn't been the same since...". The man removing his left arm from her grasp, the demon looking at his right one instead. Modeus wasn't getting used to the new addition of his attire.

"Are you ashamed of it?".

"I'm not ashamed...drop it...please."

"Alright..." she felt uncomfortable now, but he worked his hand back into her's, interlocking them. Her nerves were soothed a little...but there was still tension in the air. "When can we go somewhere like that though...we wouldn't have to worry about noise at all...and we can-".

"We don't have to worry about noise at home anyway...".

"TAKER!".

"Modeus! You know I'm right!" an awkward silence followed, the man didn't want it to last. "Hey, listen. While we are up there, think of something you'd like to do...like reenact one of those 'scenarios' I always catch you watching... When I get back, we'll do it. Okay?" he offered.

"Really? Anything I want? Will there be...more actors? What about that pizza delivery guy and-" her mind began wandering in all directions, anything?!

"Modeus!" he raised his voice slightly louder. "Your free to go seduce anyone you want, I'm not going to sto-"

"How could you say such a thing?!" Modeus gasped, this conversation was bouncing off in all directions.

"You are The Demon of Lust after all, don't you remember when Judgement had to chain you up with Cerberus, you offered to give the pizza delivery guy, 'the time of his life'. I remember it well" he chuckled.

"You weren't paying attention to me that month! What else was I do to?!" she defended herself.

"You can fuck literally anyone but the delivery man, I'm not stopping you!" he defended himself.

"I can't believe you would think that! Sleeping around like- lik-" the woman trailed off knowing she was losing the battle.

"Look, you aren't bound to me Modeus. You can fuck whoever you want, I clearly don't have the same restraint you have. I've been with- with most of the demons in-". Modeus knowing this to be true already, the man stopped speaking, not wanting to embarrass himself further. After a few seconds of silence, the man spoke again, still not letting go of her hand. They had reached the car now.

"Think of a scenario, ONE scenario and make it count" he smiled eventually, placing the bag down and taking out his car keys, clicking the unlock button. It was always so cute when Modeus got defensive.

"Fuck", she would need to 'research' further into what scenario she would like best to reenact.

"How are we getting there again Az? Your teleporting all of us straight to the front gate?" he asked, downing the last of his whiskey, he needed a little Dutch Courage before he did this. To think that he had faced down death a near infinite amount of times, yet now his nerves were building at an alarming rate, this was going to be a very hard day for him.

"Correct, we will need Eurielle's confirmation before we are allowed to enter. From there... I don't know what we should expect" Azazel was already dressed up in her militaristic angelic uniform, the one that only came out on special occasions. It was slightly different than her normal attire, this one had a slightly higher collar, with longer sleeves and room for the angel to allow for her wings to show...when she had earnt them.

There were white ribbons on either side of her head, the material drooping down to chin level. The shirt was no longer tucked into her skinny jeans, the gown's long sleeves connected to her gloves, no skin on display. The back of the gown was as low as her thighs, the outfit itself was beautiful, the golden, yellow trims woven all over it were of otherworldly design. Sequins and small crosses were dotted along her arms and legs. Azazel looked very lovely...

The two of them were currently in the lounge, the Helltaker and Azazel not being too picky about their outfits, besides, he had already changed in Hell and Azazel had to follow a dress-code. Malina and Zdrada were both upstairs, Modeus was currently assisting them with their fashion choices.

"Eurielle?" he asked, it dawned on him that he was going to have to remember his manners and become bombarded with biblical names.

"The Gate Guardian, she chooses who is granted entrance into Heaven, but we've been invited s-so there shouldn't be any problem there" Azazel took his glass away and placed it in the sink.

"Thank you, but hang on Az, when was the last time you were up there?" he asked, the question never crossing his mind until now.

"Well, I had to report back to Adriel when I had submitted my first Demonology Thesis draft...but-" the Curious Angel trailed off, looking sheepishly at the floor.

"But?" he had sensed where this was going.

"They all laughed at me, Adriel said to come back when I had something solid rather than 'hastily written notes'. I don't think they were impressed with the chapter of how demons consider sexual intercourse a sin yet indulge in it themselves daily".

"Hypocrites aren't they?" he grinned, making the angel blush slightly, the smile returning to her face once more. "This Adriel? She is your mentor or instructor if I'm not mistaken?".

"Correct, she is an instructor of sorts, the 'Holy Instructor' is what they angels call her. She is a teacher to all the young Hosts, I have remained under her command ever since I was of age to be recruited". Azazel sat down on one end of the sofa. The Helltaker was sat in Malina's chair, the man sitting up right in order to not crease his outfit.

"Hosts? Sorry Az but I'm going to be asking alot of questions today" his mind going towards the all important questions he had lined up for the 'big man'.

"A group of Angels, of the same age and of like-mindedness" Azazel provided him the definition off by heart.

"Well I'd like to have a few words with this Adriel, she also needs to answer my questions" he spoke with a stern voice. He knew he wasn't going to be able to threaten anyone with violence, but he could still be passive aggressive about it. He needed to remind Zdrada and Malina that too.

"Please don't say anything that would embarrass yourself...she tends to use that to her advantage..." Azazel speaking from experience.

"Oh I won't, I just want to ask her some questions. I don't think I'll stop asking question today to be quite frank" he smiled again.

"You'll have quite the sore voice if you do, just like those first few weeks, your voice was unbelievably deep!" Azazel reminisced.

"Yup, a gift from J-Judgement. Modeus couldn't stay away, apparently a deeper voice attracted her even more" the man rubbing his throat, he remembered the semi-burnt flesh, the painful sensation of his vocal cords burning whenever they were used. "Speaking of which, will there be refreshments? I realised I should have eaten something for breakfast" the man eyeing the entrance to the kitchen, wondering if there was enough time to grab a quick bite to eat.

"Well...there isn't hunger in Heaven, so I'm not sure..." Azazel tapped the tips of her two index fingers together repeatedly.

"No hunger? Well I shouldn't be surprised, it is paradise after all. I'm guessing no thirst, no tiredness, no fear bla- bla. Sound about right?" he had made the angel giggle again.

"Affirmative" she replied beaming.

"Just don't be surprised if things have changed since you've last been. If the impact of what has happened in Hell has reached up there, then the place might have entirely changed". He paused and gazed out of the kitchen window, the late morning winter sun was providing barely any heat, rising over a hypothermia inducing calm sea. "We've come along way since that beach walk huh? That felt like months ago" he slightly relaxed, his body no longer being so tensed and rigid, leaning back in the chair slightly.

"Because it was months ago! I think precisely two months and four days to be exact, the last days of Earth's summer!" the angel wishing to only tell the truth.

"Felt longer than that, it's almost-" the man stopped mid-sentence and clutched his right hand, using his left one to massage feeling back into the numb limb. That electrifying pain was flowing through it...again.

"Is it hurting again?" Azazel asked, standing up off of the sofa and coming to stand next to his chair. She rested her white gloves on his arm.

"It comes and goes, but really...i-its fine" he winced, "Its nothing...h-hardly feel it". That was an extreme lie, far from the truth. He was thankful she couldn't see his eyes as the colour began changing wildly.

Azazel closed her eyes and traced a circle with her finger on the top of his hand, next to his knuckles. She whispered something inaudible, releasing her touch in a flash. "There? Any better?". This was only a temporary remedy.

"Better..Thank you...I- its getting worse Az. Soon I don't think this kind of soothing will work...but its a comfort knowing your not too far away" he flashed the signature wholesome Helltaker smile, holding the angel's tiny hand in his.

A set of footsteps was plodding down the stairs, he turned to see The Bitch Demon was the owner of them, coming into the lounge. She looked quite embarrassed. Zdrada and Malina had been forced to wear white outfits keeping in line with the expected dress code of Heaven. So, since they had none of their own, Azazel had lent whatever clothes they had wanted from her wardrobe.

Zdrada had picked out a white bomber jacket with golden trim, on the front it had a two dimensional golden rose patch on the lapel. The jacket itself was quite standard, Zdrada had wanted to add some additions to it, but the Helltaker wouldn't let her ruin Azazel's clothing. In protest, Zdrada had worn all the jewelry she owned to deviate from a smart, holy aesthetic. She had her black rosary beads with the cross in the centre around her neck, on each hand there were new black gauntlets, big one on the right wrist, smaller one on the left. Her lip piercings and earrings had all been replaced with pitch black metal ones. The mascara and eye shadow remained the same, the demon not caring about any stupid dress code. Her pointed tail and demon horns were on display, for all to see.

She wore another plain white T-shirt underneath the jacket, the shirt being her extent of how smart she was willing to look. The demon also wore skinny white jeans which ran all the way down to her knee-high black boots. All things considered, she just looked like a rebellious angel going through her goth/emo phase. "How do I look?" she said, coming into the lounge and twirling, her loose fringe flowing as she span.

"Very smart Zdrada, I do say I'm glad to see the jacket fits, I hope you-" the Curious Angel had sat back down on the sofa again, but unfortunately was cut-off from speaking.

"Yeah yeah yeah, what do you think?" she spoke, turning to look at the Helltaker, arms gesturing at her body.

"I think you'd pass as an angel, one that had her wings snipped and her parents kicked her out because they caught her smoking" he teased.

"Well soak in the view big guy, you won't see me dead in an outfit like this again. And no, I will not be dressing up like this so you can live out an angel fantasy next time we fuck like rabbits" the demon grinning as she took a step towards him. "Move" she demanded, not afraid of the punishment.

"Do us both a favour and fuck yourself" he smiled but his tone was hostile, yet playful enough so that Zdrada knew the limits. The man stood up now and decided to remain standing, he went and stood in the corner of the lounge near the hallway, arms crossed.

"Bet you'd like that you freak. You and Modeus have been getting awful cosy. I think you've become too attached, spending all that time with her while we were in the infirmary" Zdrada had wanted to this to be another sex related insult, but this just came out as generally hurtful.

"Zdrada, I was there everyday...I think you're forgetting the fact that you were unconscious for- what was it? Three-ish weeks?" he jabbed back.

"You've got alot of making up to do" the demon not acknowledging his point. She was sat in the chair sideways so that her back was resting on one arm and her legs were drooped over the other one. Zdrada jumping over the fact he was there all throughout their recovery infuriated him slightly, but he didn't show it. Not too far behind Zdrada, Malina and Modeus finally came downstairs and joined the rest of the family.

"Are you sat in my fucking seat?!" Malina took one look at the black boots drooping off of one her chair's arm.

"You bet your sour ass I am Malinka, what are you going to do about it?" Zdrada turned her head as the Sour Demon came around and stood in front of her sister, arms crossed.

"I'm going to kick your fucking ass bitch!" her tone was frosty, yet no different than the norm that was projected between demons regularly in the Helltaker's house.

"Well done Modeus" he spoke quietly as so those others did not hear, he was speaking to the Lustful demon who was standing next to him, "They both look great, you do have an eye for fashion, both in Heaven and Hell" he smirked.

"Ah! No worries...I live to please" she teased, her heart shaped pupils making intense contact with his.

"You always please me" he put his arms around the demon and hugged her, it was his form of saying goodbye...for now. Modeus nuzzling into his embrace.

Malina was wearing a similar style to her sister's demonic outfit, a short-sleeved pristine white shirt with golden buttons, it seemed the buttons were...struggling...Malina's bust was bigger than Azazel's...Along with this tight shirt, skinny fit white jeans were also making the demon uncomfortable, it came with a white belt with golden circles connected to one another, there was a shiny platinum belt buckle in the centre. The Sour Demon too had black boots and did not want to hide her demonic identity, there was room for her tail to move freely.

Malina had also raided her surrogate mother's jewelry collection, Lucifer had quite the hoard of lavish necklaces, rings and crowns. The devil would no longer be able to stop her... The younger sister had picked several golden rings from the devil's collection, as well as a thin golden pendant, there was magnificent sparkling five carrot diamond in the centre, just above her chest. The pendant sat well on her slim neck, the jewelry complimenting her outfit well.

"What did you fucking say? Speak up!" Malina had only briefly heard the end of the what the Helltaker had said to Modeus.

"I said you look great Malina, Modeus did a good job. God knows what slops you two would like without her" he did indeed speak up.

"Modeus, didn't do shit..." Malina lied, the Helltaker knew straight away.

"Yeah, yeah" he looked away from the sister and over at the angel, "Are you ready to transport us?".

"Yes, give me a minute and I should have everything ready" she beamed, hopping off of the sofa and moving over to the corner of the room, turning away from the family.

"Oi, bigshot, why do you think we were invited anyway? Ya think its the whole angel shabang?" Zdrada did not move from Malina's chair, the older sister gesturing to an imaginary halo floating above her head.

"Most likely, speaking of which..." he gave both Malina and Zdrada a serious look.

"What? Stop looking at me like that" Malina glared back.

"Best behaviour, both of you. No trash talking, no violence...no killing" he was particularly serious about that last point.

"Dude...you really think we'd kill an angel?" Zdrada laughed at him, the Bitch Demon was just about to manifest a cigarette.

"Yes, I do. You don't have to be friendly with them, hell you don't even have to speak, but I most certainly think they will try to strike up a conversation..." he trailed off, the implications of angels striking up conversation with Malina and Zdrada would be...nasty...to say the least...

"Fuck you, we aren't your daughters" Malina felt she had to remind him...again.

"No, you are not...but you WILL listen to me...or face the consequences...", he was dead serious.

"Now that's more like it!" Zdrada's eyes become wider as the human's tone changed. "I'm more inclined to disobey now...I'd like to see how you'd punish me". The demon licked her lips with her pointed tongue, those sharp teeth being flashed, there was an animalistic hunger burning behind those red eyes...

"Ewww gross sis" Malina left the conversation and now walked over to the angel, wanting to watch the angel who had her eyes closed, whispering and mumbling. Her hands were together in prayer.

"I'm serious Zdrada, no messing with anybody...they'll be plenty of time for that later" he decided to grab another glass of water before they departed, heading over to the kitchen.

"Oh really? You saying I'm going to get some?" she smirked, the Bitch Demon deciding to follow him, to get as much tormenting in as possible befor they left.

"If you're a good girl...so no then" he teased.

"Ha...Ha...aren't you just the comedian, why have you been so reclusive over these last few days. I heard from Modeus you wouldn't even fuck her sometimes" the sister catching him out.

He looked at Modeus who had also joined them, the demon too wanting a drink. "You told her?" he said after finishing a glass of ice cold water, feigning that he was hurt by this spilling of secrets.

"I- I didn't mean to- she forced the knowledge out of me, you know how she is!" Modeus tried her best to defend her innocence once more.

"Its alright Mo, I don't care..." the man dropping his hurt tone immediately. "But you know why I haven't been myself...you both do" he said looking between the two demons as he drank his water.

"Is it because of..." Zdrada began, but she didn't need to continue.

"Justice, Judgement, Cerberus, Beelzebub...Lucy" he suppressed his sadness, anger paving over it.

"I know, but it's not like-" Zdrada began but...the look in his eye, she stopped speaking.

"Come on, this is supposed to be a happy day. Lets not get bogged down over what happened" he said, placing his empty glass in the sink and leaving both Zdrada and Modeus in the kitchen. The Bitch looked at the nymphomaniac, Modeus simply shrugged following him out, Zdrada sighed, no longer wanting to smoke as it wouldn't annoy him today, nothing would. She headed to the hallway.

"Ready?" he smiled, coming to stand with the other two.

"Ready" Azazel beamed back, the angel reaching for and holding onto the Sour Demon's hand.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Malina retracting her hand instantly.

"I must make physical contact if we are to reach Heaven safely" Azazel sounded hurt, looking between the human and the demon.

"Come on Malina, I know you aren't used to physical contact but you wanna get there in one piece don't you?" he grinned, reaching to hold onto Azazel's gloved hand with his left.

"Don't make me cut off your cock and balls...it would be a shame to lose your only redeeming feature" she struck back...hard.

"Zdrada, get over here" the insult simply rolled off of him again.

"I'm coming, we aren't late...chill" the demon replied.

"We're gonna be if you two don't stop fucking about and delaying us" he half joked, the man looking over to Modeus now. "We'll see you back down there, have a safe journey. Don't linger here too long Modeus...they need you" the man took hold of Zdrada's hand, the Bitch Demon interlocking her fingers with his. The older sister grabbed onto Malina's hand, Malina begrudgingly took hold of her sister's and Azazel's hand once more.

"I'll see you in...what, a few hours?" Modeus was trying to work out the time difference.

"Azazel?" the human turned his head to the left.

"I should have probably mentioned this before...time doesn't obey the normal rules in Heaven...The Law of Time isn't applied" the angel speaking in a confusing manner.

"What..." the Helltaker was confused but understood what she meant, the man almost speechless.

"Time doesn't pass in Heaven?" Malina was also shocked.

"Damn" Zdrada added after her sister was done speaking.

"Correct...will that be alright?" the angel's grip on his hand loosened.

"I guess we will be right back then Mo" he smiled, turning to look at the angel. "Alright, take us...there" he readjusted his grip on the angel's hand. He was hesitant, everyone could see this.

"Scared big guy?" Zdrada smirked, the four of them were now all holding hands in a rounded square, all looking at each other. There was a mix of excitement and nervousness evident in the group member's faces.

"Shut it...when your ready Az" he closed his eyes. Please don't be another portal, please don't be another portal.

"Okay, here we go", The Curious Angel also closing her eyes.

"Should we close ou-" Malina was about to say to her sister, but it was too late. The Helltaker's feet gave way, Modeus watched as the four of them fell through the floor, disappearing into a golden vortex of light, The Lustful Demon thought she could see clouds just as the gateway closed.

What came next was indescribable.

A sudden, yet amazing feeling washed over him, the man's anger, his guilt, his sadness, his hidden fears, the pressures he had once felt and continue to feel...all simply melted away. He was afraid to open his eyes...to experience what death truly felt like. Yet he would face his death with the same courage he had now...the man slowly and reluctantly opened his eyes...there before him, he saw it...Heaven.

The four of them were stood on literal clouds, it was as if the floor was invisible and a constant fog machine was coughing out smoke to hide where their feet were. He looked around him and saw that it was the same in every single direction, the only distinct landmark in sight was those golden gates in front of the group. He looked up at the sky, it was as if they were at the outer edge of the atmosphere, the stars and the endless void of space were intermittently visible to them. It was terrifying...it was beautiful...

The man began walking away from the gates, only a few steps, but he just wondered how endless the clouds truly were...

"Hey! Not that way! Come on, you said we don't wanna be late" Malina called to him, snapping him back to reality.

"I know, I'm coming" he took one last look at the endless horizon and followed the two sisters, Azazel had already gone on ahead and was talking to someone stood in front of the enormous gate. Those giant holy walls...they stretched on for eternity...

In both directions, the golden fence stretched as far as the eye could see, a full-proof barrier to stopping those who wished to invade. The fence was made of thick golden pillars that stretched from top to bottom, but the gaps between the pillars weren't big enough for anyone to move through them. The Helltaker was unaware, but these fences also had an invisible, holy barrier built in, preventing any unwanted entities from entering their realm. They wouldn't have been allowed in if they were truly uninvited.

At the centre of this wall, the entrance loomed above them, he could see a tall woman with golden hair was stood in their way. The Helltaker couldn't decide if the gates were golden or white. Maybe that's why they called them pearly...The human felt weightless, his movements did not seem to tire him, his energy wasn't being drained, he felt powerful! The man could do a triathlon and feel ready for more, Modeus would be downright angry when she found out about this unlimited stamina. There wasn't a bad feeling in him at all!

However, he realised he was getting ahead of himself, the Helltaker decided to restrain his desires to run around like a young pup who had just learnt it could run. So this is what it feels like...not to be weathered by age, not be encumbered by injuries or afflictions. Heaven.

"Azazel? Is that you dear?!" a soft but yet loud voice came from the entrance to the realm.

"Eurielle! Its good to see you!" the Curious Angel jogged slightly over to the older angel and threw herself at the woman, the two having a giant hug.

"My dear! You've grown wonderfully, you're becoming quite the young lady aren't you!" the angel's voice chuckled in reply. The other three of the family now gathered in a line to watch the display of affection.

"This must be your Guardian, Azazel. The human? As well as your family?" the angel released Azazel and now revealed herself to them. The woman was another stunningly beautiful creature, her looks to rival those of the finest demons in Hell. She had soft flowing locks of golden hair, a bun protruded from her head holding the mess of hair up, there was a shiny yellow hairband holding the bun in place as well as a few tiny golden hair clips. Above her head, there was the telltale sign of an angel, a radiant white halo was hovering motionless.

Eurielle, The Gate Guardian. She was a tall woman, of medium build, yet with a very muscular physique that put the Helltaker's to shame. The woman also had a medium bust size with a thin waist, it was almost as if she was the equivalent of the High Prosecutor for Heaven. Come to think of it...she looked somewhat similar to Justice. The man looked into those deep blue eyes...it hadn't occurred to him that the angels of Hell might all be curvy, sharply dressed women too.

Heaven might not have been a bad ending after all...

However, looks, a pretty face and a soft voice could be deceiving. Her outfit was that of a battle hardened warrior, evidence of previous conflict were in the notches and dents all along the angel's armour, up her greaves and gauntlets. Eurielle had white battle armour that had been scratched and scuffed beyond belief, the plates of god knows what were designed to look like scales, each scale interlocking with the next as it went down her arms and shoulders. All along the rim of the armour, golden decorations were dotted, flowers and crosses scattered up and down the edges of her arms and on the knuckles of her greaves.

The armour allowed for mobility, flight, dexterity, it even had armour plating to protect the two unused wings that lay inactive on her back at the moment. She would give Judgement a run for her money...

"This is the Helltaker" Azazel gestured to the human, "And these are my sist- uh I mean friends! Malina and Zdrada". Azazel went red after realising her slip-up.

"It is a pleasure to meet you...Eurielle" the Helltaker extended his hand, wondering if she gave off the same electrifying satisfaction he received whenever he made skin contact with Azazel.

"The pleasure is all mine human, thou will be staying awhile I hope?" she joked, reaching out her own hand to greet his, the two shaking, he left the tinging sensation shoot through his hand...

"Well, so far Heaven has made a good impression. I might be persuaded to stay" he cheekily grinned.

"Only a minute up here and he has already started flirting" Zdrada scoffed to her sister.

"I hope these two are welcome, you must understand my wariness" the man gestured to the two demons either side of him.

"Ah, I knew we were to expect a human...but these two demons? I don't think I can allow this Azazel" the protector turning to her own. "You say they are your family and I trust you...but I cannot al-" Eurielle suddenly falling silent, her eyes staring through the angel. "The demons?" she spoke to no one, as if answering a voice in her head. "I was not made aware, Your holiness" she again said aloud.

"Oh boy, more people with voices in their head's" Zdrada again scoffed, testing to see if she could manifest a cigarette, she was successful. "Score!", she clicked her fingers together, igniting her middle finger and lighting the cigarette.

"You're really gonna smoke? Here?!" Malina ashamed by her sister's actions.

"Hell yeah I am" Zdrada grinned back, blowing her fiery middle finger out in Malina's direction, a breath of smoke also followed.

"But My Lord, you forbade this-yes, yes I know..." Eurielle was still far away, not present yet.

"Are they all going to be like this?" he joked with Azazel, crossing his arms.

"I hope not, or it shall make for a dull ceremony!" the Curious Angel giggled.

"The demons may not impose any imminent threat? What if they are spies? What if this is simply a form of reconnaissance?" Eurielle having an argument with someone who was not here.

"These two are not demons Eurielle! They are one of us and I invited them! Do you remember the last time we were invaded by demons?".

"Yes, I know...We haven't had an invasion in sixty-three million years, but that may yet change!" she was definitely losing.

"They were responsible for preventing the most recent invasion, you read the reports, they stopped the attack that occurred three Hell weeks and two Earth days ago".

"My Lord, I beg you to reconsider..." Eurielle pleaded.

"Do you trust Azazel?".

"D-d-do I trust Azazel?" the archangel looking at where younger angel now stood, "Undoubtedly..."

"Then trust your heart, it will guide you to the truth".

"On your orders then...My Lord" The Gate Guardian accepted the word of her creator. Eurielle turned immediately and cast forth her hands into the air, as if calling down a higher being to open these golden fortress walls. The silent groaning of metal was a strange sight, the Kingdom of Heaven was opening. The Helltaker took a deep breath, gulping down the killer anticipation that had been building since that beach walk...all those months ago. . . . It was very anti-climatic.

Inside, the infinite cloud floor continued to stretch on forever, once the gates were opened the group could see there were two women stood a few yards away, both looked exceptionally angry and annoyed. One looked like...like a tour guide? The other looked like a...like a drill sergeant?

"Thou will go with Beatrice and she will escort you to the gathering" Eurielle was addressing the human and demons. "You'd best hurry Azazel, Adriel is waiting".

"Will we see you inside?" Azazel asked, wondering if she could drag the guardian away from the frontline.

"Yes, you will see me amoungst the crowd, I wouldn't miss it for the world..." Eurielle beamed, closing her eyes temporarily. "Please accept my humble apologies for the delay", the archangel looking at both the Helltaker and Azazel.

"Its alright! Gotta dash Euri!" the smaller angel giving the women one last hug before walking through the open gate at quite the pace.

"I look forward to seeing you in there" the Helltaker again laying it on thick.

"As do I...human" the Guardian winked, deciding it was best not to get distracted till the shift was finished. She turned and resumed her stance, one of constant defence.

The group didn't see her eyes begin changing from the original deep blue to a sparkling rainbow of colours, the entire universe was passing through her mind, for she had the foresight of Heaven's greatest protector, a piercing gaze to see all...

She could see...everything...

"Come on you-" he hadn't realised that Zdrada was now leading him by the hand, he didn't even feel his feet moving at first. "Look who is making us late now" the Bitch Demon laughing.

"YOU'RE LATE AZAZEL!" an unfriendly voice yelled ahead of the group, the owner being the angelic drill instructor. She was currently tapping a small horse whip on the palm of her gloved hand, it looked telescopic...or retractable.

"I-I'm sorry Adriel...I thought we were ahead o-" but the poor angel was cut off before she could defend herself.

"WELL YOU WERE WRONG! WE ARE ALL WAITING FOR YOU! THE CEREMONY STARTS ON THE HOUR, NOT A MINUTE AFTER, NOT A MINUTE BEFORE...NOW COME ON!", Adriel, The Archangel of Discipline lead Azazel away. He didn't get a good look at her, but he now began realising how militaristic Heaven really was. Adriel was wearing a commander's hat, the entirety of it was white, with the visor being black, the trim of the visor was light orange.

In the centre of the hat there was a pair of golden wings. In between the wings there was a sparking silver sword pointed downwards. Black hair covered one half of her face, the left side to be specific, on the other side, a decorated silver ribbon was hung. In the centre of her chest, there was large ornate golden cross above a grey uniform. She also wore a large loose white coat over the top of it, covered in golden decorations, similar to Eurielle's outfit, it ran all the way down to her golden cross cuff links. He had also noticed a thorny black rose slightly above her left breast next to the cross.

He wished he had brought a floral decoration...The Helltaker also wished he had gotten a better look at Adriel before she had lead Azazel away, he noticed the younger angel had her head down, looking at the floor in embarrassment."Azazel!" he called seeing her in her current state, "Chin up" he smiled.

The Curious Angel stopped walking and listened to what he had to say, smiling in return, obeying his instructions. Adriel also stopped, turning and simply giving the human a disgusted look, "Come Azazel" the older angel commanded, but in a slightly softer tone.

"She sounds like a bitch" Zdrada said, taking a drag of her cigarette afterwards, blowing the white vapour gently, letting it flow slowly out of her mouth.

"Takes one to know one" Malina countered, the group walking to meet with this new angel.

"You are also late, you better hope they left some seats for you" the woman spoke, her arms crossed. The demons and the human now stopped moving, standing in a line opposite her. The man guessed that she was to guide them to where they needed to be.

"And you are?" Malina glared.

"Beatrice...at your service" she said through gritted teeth. "And who might this disgusting creature be?" the demon gesturing to Malina.

"Oh...that's not very nice! He's just an average human, he's not that ugly" Zdrada butted in, leaning up and wrapping her left arm around his neck, putting the human in a slight headlock. The demon did well to defuse the situation.

"Indeed, so...you're the Helltaker...and these must be your 'demons'. What are their names? Smokey and Grumpy?" Beatrice half joked, half insulted.

"This is Malina...Smokey goes by Zdrada" he gestured to the two demons in turn, the man had now been released from the head lock Zdrada had put him in.

"Yo", Zdrada was smiling a goofy, dumb smile on purpose, giving a small wave with the lit cigarette.

"Your lucky that they allow smoking in Heaven..." she paused before briefly looking into her satchel. The woman retrieved a notepad and she began flipping through its pages, looking for the guest list, she manifested a pen and crossed off something on the paper, demanifesting the white plastic pen afterwards. The Guide then read something off of the page for just a moment, eventually returning the notepad back inside her bag. She adjusted her cap and turned around, "Come on then, they will be starting soon. Follow me please...".

Beatrice, The Heavenly Tour Guide reminded him slightly of a more relaxed Pandemonica, utilising her notepad like that...she also had an ID badge hidden under the satchel's strap. She had thick locks of black hair that had been pushed into a large, puffy ponytail hidden under her white, black and golden hat, there was also thick bangs drooping either side of her face.

Her outfit consisted of a grey uniform with a white collared T-shirt underneath, a black belt with a golden buckle separating the monotony of grey. She too had golden crosses as cuff-links, on her shoulders there were light blue ribbons...or were they an indication of her rank? On the hat there was an Anthurium, yet it was a unnatural light blue, matching the angel's eye colour, there was a golden Spadix at the centre of the flower.

Beatrice was one of the first angels he had seen who did not have a halo orbiting her head, come to think of it, Azazel didn't have her halo visible either...she was probably so used to hiding it...The three now walked behind the angel, all remaining silent as they walked into the Kingdom of Heaven...which was surprisingly...empty.

As they were walking, he felt Zdrada interlock her hand and fingers with his left one, the man turning to look at her. "Hand holding? Really? Always surprises me, its never your style".

"Shut the fuck up" the demon began walking at his pace. "You're lucky...I hate hand holding" she took another drag of her cigarette.

"Then why are you holding mine?" he asked, the man only just realising that their voices had been slightly echoing ever since they had arrived.

"Because it's you...plus it makes Malinka jealous-" the Bitch Demon said glancing past the human, trying to see if her sister was looking.

"Shut it Zdrada" her sister growled without even turning her head, staring straight ahead.

"I also...I wanted to check that this is real..." Zdrada confessed.

"Its real alright Zdrada" he said, the group continuing their journey through the clouds. He squeezed her hand as reassurance. "Beatrice...if you don't mind me asking. Where are all the people?" he decided to break the silence that had followed.

"You should be lucky you were allowed here human, we are in a restricted sector of Heaven, the Angel's Personal Domain, APD for short. If you are referring to humans, they are in a different sector of Heaven...enjoying 'The Afterlife' for short,-" she said that last part with quite a morbid tone, "-that's the sector's name".

"Then where are all the angels?" he asked, glancing around them as they walked, peering across the empty, endless sea of clouds.

"Just ahead of us, the ones unable to attend are currently working, not all angels can afford to take time of work" the woman speaking truthfully.

"I get that" he said, still glancing around them for any signs of life.

"Please don't wander off. Being a tour guide barely pays the bills so please don't get yourself lost, I don't want my paycheck docked again" the angel had noticed him glancing around, he obeyed, despite her ramblings.

"Yes Ma'am" he chuckled slightly. Even here there was jobs and currency, just like Hell...

"A tour guide? You shitting me?" Malina scoffed in disbelief. Heaven needed a fucking tour guide?

"They also don't pay me enough to talk to a human's bitch" the angel retaliated.

"At least I don't spend my life as a fucking tour guide" Malina jabbed again, the Helltaker deciding to let her vent.

"Oh, I'm sorry...what is your job?" Beatrice now stopped and turned, getting uncomfortably close to the Sour Demon, there was an awkward silence.

"She is a puzzles and traps manager, basically a caretaker for Hell's defences" Zdrada inputted from the human's left, purposefully not taking sides in this argument, blowing smoke as she spoke.

"Pah! Puzzles and traps? A caretaker?! Please accept my deepest apologies, I didn't know I was dealing with royalty!" she laughed to herself, the angel was in hysterics, turning and beginning to walk once more, the woman actually struggling to stop laughing.

"Fuck y-" Malina began, but a hand on her shoulder stopped the profanity from flowing.

"Malina...save the insults till we get back" the Helltaker ordered, walking past the demon. Zdrada teased her sister by sticking out her long, pointed tongue as she walked hand in hand with the Helltaker.

Malina's blood was boiling...

A few yards ahead of them, a large staircase of seven steps made of see-through golden light rose in front of them. On this elevated platform, there was a small audience of people seated in rows of twenty by twenty. They were sat on chairs made of the same transparent material as the floor. He couldn't make out how many people there were.

It looked like they were in fact late...

He decided to match Beatrice's pace, the demons following suit, the group ascending the stairs rapidly. When they reached the top, the man realised they were no longer in the clouds, the perpetual beauty of the stars and the observable parts of the solar system were on display at all times. "You're on the three seats at the back, far right, Jesus is waiting for you, she will be sat to your left" Beatrice spoke quickly, the angel already turning around, beginning to descend the stairs once she had finished speaking.

"J-Jesus?" he stuttered, the man slightly in shock.

"Did I fucking stutter? Yes...Jesus! She is waiting for you" the woman looked at the group, all of them poised to enter the ceremony. "Well go on then!" the angel finally turned back around, now leaving.

"S-she?" the man was so utterly confused.

"Come on dude, we're gonna miss it" again a demon was dragging him by the hand, the Bitch Demon looking for their seats. On top of all this new information, he found it bizarre that this place had no walls or doors or even a roof, it was all open...exposed...Zdrada took the initiative and lead them to the only three free seats she could see, assuming they were theirs. She gently shoved the Helltaker into the row, the man thankful that he was not stood in the way of anyone. He shuffled along and took his seat, followed by Zdrada and lastly Malina.

There were angels teleporting into their seats at the last moment, the man noticing that there were alot of vacant seats, but they filled as soon as he blinked or looked away. The place was now reaching its maximum capacity, he thought he saw Eurielle arriving at the last moment. The man adjusted his suit before sitting, moving those old aviator sunglasses from Justice to sit more comfortably on his face, they felt new to him.

"Hello, you must be Evan!" an innocent voice came from his left. The man turned, the information he was trying to process had made him instantly forget who was waiting for them.

E-Evan?

He turned and saw who they had been expecting...a smaller...yet all powerful angel...she was sat on the seat to his left. "W-what did you just call me?" the Helltaker's hands were trembling, his voice threatening to break, it wavering temporarily. He was so overwhelmed, the man ignored the new pain that was coursing through his right arm.

"Oh! I wasn't supposed to address you that way yet! It was supposed to be a surprise...You must be the Helltaker!" the clumsy angel tried correcting her mistake.

"E-Evan?" he hesitated to even say the name...it felt so...familiar.

"I'm Jesus, its a pleasure to meet you at last!" the embodiment of Innocence was smiling at him with a happy gaze.

He was looking at quite a small, petite woman with long black hair, there was a stray strand jutting out of the top of her head just behind a headband. She had the typical light blue eyes of an angel...yet there was something more...There was an incredibly powerful aura that surrounded her, as if her very being projected a holy light of compassion and kindness.

She had a large golden headband with a cluster of light blue flowers at either end, the headband had a wreath style pattern engraved into the metal. Jesus was wearing a white militaristic overcoat loosely on her shoulders, underneath she had a light blue buttoned uniform, there was a dark blue belt with a golden buckle around her waist. She had her light blue sleeves rolled up, a dark blue glove was on each hand. Along with these blue denim like jeans, she looked any other angel with the militaristic garb on, yet she had a more blue, more casual look than most of her colleagues, simply wearing the proper uniform over her shoulders...just like Justice...

Those rosy cheeks and thin face, the innocent, yet battle hardened gaze. It was dawning on him how alike demons and angels could be...

"I-I'm- uh" his right arm began to hurt intensely now...so much so that he finally noticed it. He crossed his arms in order to try and suppress this pain, crushing his right hand in the crook of his left arm.

"I know who you are, you- Oh! Look! The Ceremony is about to begin, we will talk afterwards!" she smiled. This holy being of unlimited power reached out her left arm, gently resting a gloved hand on his right one, he instantly relaxed, the electrifying pain was soon numbed, "It's alright..."

A wave of ecstasy crashed over him, his nerves calmed once more.

"Azazel, please step forward" the announcer's voice boomed.

"Ah, finally!" Zdrada said, the demon leaning back in her chair. The ceremony had been over two hours long, plenty of speeches and guest speakers, too many...There were around thirty one students all graduating at the same time, each one being called individually, their projects and overall work ethic being commented on before they received their certificate. Azazel had been the last demon to receive her certificate, saving the best till last.

No sign of the 'big man' so far.

"Don't ruin her moment" he whispered, smiling purely out of pride as Azazel stood up from her chair.

He was so incredibly proud of her...

"I'm sure you'll figure out a way to do that" the Bitch Demon hissed back.

The Curious Angel was now in the centre of the stage, her halo was now orbiting her black head. There was a much larger, much older angel awaiting her at the speaker's podium. The woman was holding a scroll with a golden seal burnt onto it. The Helltaker was looking at the Archangel of Mercy, Zadkiel, one of the highest ranked angels, she had been the main speaker throughout the ceremony. However he was too far back to see her facial features or what specific clothing she was wearing.

"Azazel, after your thesis; 'Demonology, an extensive review. The Modern Sins of Our Existence', as well as your flawless exam results of one-hundred percent" the Archangel pausing for extra suspense. "I am please to say...that you are to graduate with a First Class Honours. Congratulations...Angel". Zadkiel spoke softly, her tone was serious at first, but she had a comforting smile throughout. She handed the scroll over to Azazel's trembling hands.

A thunderous applause followed after this announcement, it was much louder than when any other angel had received their scroll, it was because everyone knew Azazel...everyone had secretly wanted her to succeed.

The Helltaker stood up out of of his chair and began clapping, the human's clapping the loudest by far out of the small audience. Both Malina and Zdrada remained seated, but both clapped just as loud, in truth they were proud of her too...even if they didn't show it at first. The Angel turned to face the crowd, her eyes easily finding the Helltaker as he was the only one standing, the man giving her a big and proud smile as he clapped furiously. She had fulfilled her dreams at last... after everything she had been through...

Suddenly, beautiful white, feathery wings sprouted from her back, growing upwards and stretching. Azazel noticed this transformation and flapped her wings a few times, stray feathers being fledged off of the Curious Angel's back. She was almost tempted to take flight there and then.

She had finally earned her wings...But the praise wasn't over...

"And...for your admirable efforts in the face of adversity, we are awarding you the Virtue of Bravery and Courage", the Archangel manifested a small box, opening it as soon as it appeared. She took the objects out of their box, gently pinning two medals to Azazel's left side, one was a silver medal with a sword inbetween a pair of angel wings. The other was a golden medal that had a silhouette of a holy figure descending into Hell, that one had been a personalised engraving. Azazel didn't see it, but Adriel who was sat on the front row actually smiled upon seeing the medals being attached to her lapel. A small ounce of pride being shown.

"In times of conflict, we look to our angel's courage, we look to their bravery, we must face the unknown...even if it includes endangering ourselves...and the ones we love". Zadkiel, placed a hand on the shoulder of Azazel. "Sacrifice...we all know the burden" she spoke quietly, just enough so only the younger angel could hear. "Look upon this model Angel...know from this moment forward, Azazel is to be treated as an equal, she has already fought for us and will continue to do. She is our sister and we are her's, for we are all one under the eyes of the almighty".

"For we are all one under the eyes of the almighty" the audience repeated in a cult-like fashion. The Helltaker simply shrugged when his demons looked at him puzzled.

"Azazel, would you like to say a few words before we conclude the ceremony?" Zadkiel stepped back from the speaker's podium, gesturing for her to take the floor.

"I-I don't-" the Curious Angel was overwhelmed, there was so much to process. However, Azazel stepped forward regardless, standing on the slightly elevated part of the podium, staring with terrified eyes out at the crowd. "I-" she stuttered, the angel hesitating as she had not imagined delivering a speech to such a large crowd. "I-wan-", she was unable to get going. Her voice was being projected loudly, as if she was speaking into an invisible microphone. "I-" Azazel began to panic, her hands and forehead were becoming incredibly sweaty, she was allowing embarrassment to consume her. Her hands became tightly locked around her certificate, almost crushing the paper.

"What's wrong with her? Why isn't she speaking? Looks like she has made an embarrassment out of herself again. Knowing Azazel, this doesn't surprise me" voices were whispering to one another, he could hear them even from the back row.

He had to do something...so he did.

"YOU CAN DO IT AZ!" he shouted, the man standing up from his chair. "I BELIEVE IN YOU!". The man not really realising how obnoxious, rude and off-putting he was being.

"What the fuck are you doing dude?! This is so embarrassing!" Zdrada hissed, trying to hide from all the eyes that had turned their way.

"COME ON AZAZEL, DON'T LET THESE ANGELS PUT YOU OFF!" it was Malina who was shouting now, stood up too, the demon surprisingly full of encouragement. The memories of when her and Azazel first met were flashing through her mind, the demon could remember when Azazel had first told her of the plans she had. The dreams of success.

"Fuck sake you guys..." Zdrada hesitated, taking a deep gulp of air, swallowing her pride. "KNOCK EM DEAD AZAZEL!" she shouted but did not get out of her seat.

"You can do it Azazel!" Jesus decided to join in, offering more encouragement to the nervous angel, her innocent voice was also shouted from the back, but much quieter than the others.

"Please! Please! Let us have silence!" Zadkiel commanded looking at the murmuring audience, her blue eyes also focusing on the standing demon and human. The family from Hell obeyed, the two sitting back down and trying to avoid eye contact from the other members of the audience. Everyone was waiting in anticipation for what Azazel had to speak...but she was more than ready.

"I'd like to thank my family for their constant, undivided attention and support they have given me throughout this difficult time, I would not have been able to function without their love and affection" her beam expressed how happy she was. The fears had gone..."I'd like to thank-" she was about to hesitate, but she was done being indecisive. "No, I'd like to thank Ms. Lucifer...of Hell...she had been like- like a mother to me" a touch of sadness was gulped down quickly, gasps of shock and worry were being expressed throughout the crowd.

Maybe not the best move there Az...

"She is- she...was- she is currently unavailable and unable to attend. I'd also like to thank...the Helltaker, the man has been my guardian since I first met him, he has always sought to protect me and support me in everything I do" the angel made eye contact with the human. "I only wish I can be as good as a guardian to him as he was to me...".

Beat...

"Without him...I'd be lost...without any of my family...I would not be who I am today...".

Silence.

"T-thank you for listening" she finished quickly, the redness on her face indicated the pressures that had built up in her head. Azazel hurriedly returned to her seat, not needing to be dismissed by Zadkiel. She joined her fellow students, sitting down to the right of the group. Her colleagues were all giving the angel confused, but impressed looks. The Archangel admired the angel's bravery...speaking openly like that...She stepped up to the podium, she was about ready for this formal bullshit to be over.

"Thank you for that refreshing and...different...speech Azazel, I think we could all learn a thing or two from such words". The Archangel paused, "That concludes the graduation ceremony for this year, thank you all for coming and I hope to see you afterwards for refreshments and Canapés". The sound of a trumpet boomed above them, the Helltaker hadn't noticed but a small blonde angel flying above the audience, she was blowing into a large, elongated golden trumpet above them, there was a white ceremonial banner mounted to the bottom of the instrument, that emblem he had seen before; a pair of wings with a sword in the centre. She was playing a special angelic fanfare he had never heard before.

Her white angel wings carrying her majestically. The sound was signalling the end of the ceremony, as was tradition. "What a riveting ceremony!" Jesus smiled to the group on her right after she too glanced at the winged trumpeter.

"Eh, it was alright" Zdrada flicked her half-smoked cigarette butt into the crowd in front of them, a mischievous grin painted across her face as she heard the angels complaining, covered in ash particles.

"Does alcohol count as refreshments?" Malina asked Jesus, speaking across the family.

"We have anything you desire, you will see!" Jesus stood, moving out of the row. "Please follow me! I have to help Zadkiel prepare!".

"Come on girls" the Helltaker said standing up, a constant smile on his face.

Well done Azazel.

"You were amazing Az, you showed them something different today, you showed them you weren't afraid to go against the norm. They won't be forgetting that speech for some time" he brought the angel into a big hug, lifting her up slightly, her feet off of the floor. "I'm so proud of you!".

"Ah- ha, thank you" she buried herself in his embrace, the angel thankful that the ceremony was over...and she was no longer the centre of attention. "I meant everything I said, I couldn't have done it without you...".

"Good thing we have each other then" he smiled, closing his eyes for a brief moment. He received a happy, quiet giggle as a response.

"Hey...Jesus, what is this?" Zdrada asked, the Innocent One turning around, she had been watching the human and angels reunion. Jesus turned to see the Bitch Demon approaching with a glass of colourless and odorless liquid in her right hand.

"Ah, I'm sorry, but I don't know what its true name is, but we have grown to call it by its nickname; 'The Essence of Everything'. I think its true name has been lost, you'll have to ask some of the older angels involved in its procurement" she beamed with her eyes closed.

"And why do they call it that?" Zdrada came back over to the group now, hesitantly sniffing the glass, the Helltaker gently dropped Azazel now, their attention turning to the conversation the other two were having.

"Well, apparently it is supposed to simulate any liquid known to the taste buds, in theory, you could drink anything and everything, the explanation for its nickname" Jesus also looking at the human, extending the explanation to the Helltaker too. "Think of something you'd like to drink and you will taste it".

"Wait, anything!?" Zdrada couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Anything and everything!" Jesus repeated, beaming.

Without hesitation, Zdrada took a huge gulp and gasped. "Holy shit! Y-you're right!", the tastes of a mix of expensive alcohol burning the back of her throat. She took another sip and this time thought of something different, the smell and taste of a sickly sweet salted caramel milkshake. It was the best milkshake she had ever had! "And its unlimited?!". The demon tipped the glass, pouring the infinite supply onto the floor, the liquid falling through the clouds.

"Indeed, please try not to over indulge!" Jesus's advice fell of deaf ears, Zdrada was already leaving.

"Holy shit! Malina! MALINA!" Zdrada hurried away to try and find her sister, her drink sloshing out of the glass as she hurried away, the two demons had originally gone off to explore the refreshments on offer. The Helltaker had watched as Zadkiel and Jesus had transformed the graduation ceremony platform with the click of a few fingers. Most of the audience was now stood mingling, groups stood around tables, feasting and drinking.

Jesus and Zadkiel had converted the space into a large open room with actual walls, there were tables with white sheets and Canapés dotted around the room, a bar was at one end of the room with glasses of that colourless liquid, the drinks reappearing on the bar constantly. Behind the bar there was countless bottles of otherworldly liquids of colours he didn't realise existed.

"Congratulations Azazel, me and Mother are very proud of your achievements and heroism" Jesus shook Azazel's hand, taking a good look at the medals on her lapel.

Mother?

"Thank you" Azazel was flushed red with embarrassment once more.

"That speech was also...rousing, its not everyday that someone thanks the mother of our enemies mid-speech. I am aware that demons are not the sole enemy to our realm, but seeing the cooperation, the cohabitation between demons, angels and humans...it fills me with hope" the young deity beamed.

"If I may interrupt Jesus, why was Azazel awarded those medals? Not saying you don't deserve them Az" he smirked.

"Allow me to answer that one little goddess" a voice came from behind them. They turned their heads and saw a strange sight approaching, a figure concealed by a pitch black cloak covered from head to toe, there was a giant, freshly sharpened scythe attached to their back.

"Azrael! Why didn't you change before attending the ceremony?!", Jesus could never sound angry.

"Azrael? I think I'm looking at the Grim Reaper rather than the Angel of Death" he joked, crossing his arms.

"They are one in the same my dear" the voice...giggled, a grey hand extended from the cloak and clicked its fingers. The transformation changed the outfit of the angel, her black cloak disappearing in a flash, her white and gold militaristic uniform forming around her curvy body, a pair of black feathery wings protruded from her back. The black haired angel revealed herself, he was staring at a face he would come to recognise once again...at the end of his life, she would be the one that would guide him to the underworld or up through the clouds.

She looked identical to a grey demon, other than the tail and horns. She was identical to Judgement's kind, the angel was like her in almost every way. Another prosecutor type... The grey angel had a kind, yet deceivingly young face, she was in fact one of the oldest angels in existence, almost as old as time itself. The halo hovered motionless just above her head like any other angel, she was a tall yet muscular woman, the Helltaker's male gaze coming into effect once again...not the last time. She had a large bust, with curvy hips, the man having to remove his eyes from staring at her body for too long.

The angel wore an outfit similar to Eurielle's armour, yet it had less armour plating and less damage inflicted upon it, her six-pack and mid-rift was exposed as well as...her cleavage. The woman also had medals adorned upon her armour, there were six in total, three on either side. A well decorated warrior it seemed...The woman had an almost immaculate face, yet her outfit hid a lifetime of conflict, scar tissue and various healed wounds were out of sight, some of them were actually inflicted by his very own prosecutors. Azrael, The Angel of Death.

"Azazel has faced down the forces of darkness, we have been watching you Azazel, you too human. Your triumph over Mantus did not go unnoticed" Azrael smiled, a kind but wise smile.

"I wouldn't call it a triumph" the Helltaker briefly looking at the floor, but he did not want to deviate from the praise they were singing. "Azazel was incredibly brave, she has saved me multiple times, I owe her my life...and I mean that" the man smiling at his angel.

"Well- I wouldn't cal-" the Curious Angel began.

"No, I won't hear it! Azazel deserves the highest awards you have" he looked between Azrael and Jesus.

"I'm sure she does, her bravery is a shining example to all angels" Azrael glanced behind her as the two demonic sisters were drinking their fill from the bar, the demons were actually laughing...loudly, making quite the noise. "Those two have the right idea, would you like a drink my dear Helltaker?" she gave him a flirtatious smile.

"I'll have what you're having" he returned the flirting, watching the curvy angel walk away, towards the bar. "Jesus...before I get too distracted, can I ask you something?" his eyes lingering on this new angel.

"Ask away, I'll try my best to answer it!" she beamed full of optimism.

"Why are most of the angels female? Why are you female? Our bible depicts you and your angels as men", he had to get an answer.

"Oh...well..I- I don't think I'm at liberty to explain that in depth, we were always in the form of women, b-but the men of Earth depicted themselves as more superior. When I came down to forgive humanity of their sins, they scrubbed my true identity away over time" the woman hesitated looking down at the floor, rubbing her left elbow, she looked quite sad. "They didn't think a woman could save them...", Jesus spoke honestly and the Helltaker believed her.

"That...explains alot" he was overwhelmed with this information, it was all a lie...well, half a life. That seemed like a delicate subject...better to leave it for now...

"You see now how you men are all that's wrong with...everything!" said another, more crazy voice he did not recognise.

"Azazel if I had one guess, who would I say is the owner of that voice? Because to me it sounds like Malina" he said before turning his head.

"It is not Malina...but- just as sour", Azazel grinned at her old friend.

"Just as sour?!" the voice shouted. "I ain't sour!" the demon now coming to standing with the rest of the group. The human turned his head to see who it was...what a surprise, another angel.

"Come here Az!" the woman smiled, Azazel meeting her halfway for a big hug, this new angel's long black hair came in between the hug. "I missed you, you stupid, frigid schoolgirl. Have you got laid yet?" the unknown woman teased.

"No!" Azazel hissed, the angel felt like she could die of embarrassment...yet again...

"Yeah, I would have seen it...what a sad sight that would have been" Azazel's friend jabbed. When the two finally parted, the new angel turned to the human. "Fuck sake, guess I gotta introd-"

"Wait, let me guess who you are before you introduce yourself" the Helltaker was enjoying himself, all these biblical characters...how many were there? "Archangel Michael?" the man said with a mischievous smile.

"What? No! Fuck that guy! What a cunt" the woman crossed her arms.

"Are you the Goddess of Love?" he teased.

"Oh if you keep making such shit guesses, I feel like I'm gonna have to shoot you right NOW!" the unstable angel shouted, tempted to un-holster her weapon.

"Shooting? What are you? Cupid?" he chuckled, the man receiving no laughs.

"Yeah, I am fucktard! What are you? A fucking suck-up for devil pussy?" she fired back, a cruel smirk on the angel's face.

Beat...

He was in fact talking to Cupid, the Mentally Unstable Love Sniper. Cupid was responsible for, and you guessed it, ensuring human relationships flourished, she had the unpleasant job of causing people to fall in love and ensuring they were 'successful' in the bedroom. The angel hated her job, but someone had to do it...especially during the first few days of early human evolution...a guiding hand.

The angel looked quite different from her colleagues, she had long strands of black hair flowing down to her breasts, bangs of black hair also reached down to her collar. Atop this mess of black hair, she had made a bow with her hair held together by a black scrunchie. On the sniper's face, she had two lines of blue face paint applied to both cheeks, the colour matching her eyes, around her neck there was a thick black collar with a tiny belt ontop, apparently it helped regulate her breathing. Around her neck, a pair of soldier's dog tags on a small chain lay, he was too far away to read what was engraved on them.

Her outfit consisted of a white uniform with four grey pouches with crosses ontop, the crosses splitting in half when she opened a pouch. There were two of these pouches on both of her large breasts as well as two on either hip. Underneath the uniform it looked like she was wearing a grey tanktop. Again, this angel had both sleeves rolled up.

On her hands, fingerless black gloves were worn, there was thick leather cuffs on either wrist with small golden spots dotted around the cuff, on the bottom of each cuff there was a small golden chain drooping down. On the sniper's back, her sniper rifle was holstered, he could see the scope reflecting light. It seemed the women kept all her equipment on her person at all times...

The Helltaker could also see there was a brush of sorts attached to a belt on her thin hips, there was also something else on her back, it looked like a tool of sorts, something to clean down the inside barrel of the sniper. He had remembered cleaning his assault rifle in the army, using a tool similar to what she had. Maybe he would be better off not insulting this woman...

"Oh boy, I'm in way too deep here. I apologise Cupid, forgive me for insulting you" the man deciding to bail on his jokes.

"Your lucky I don't clobber you right now! I've seen you fuck dude, you ain't nothing special. Don't make me go on about your average sized dick!" the Mentally Unstable Love Sniper grinned. Why did everyone have it out for him and his genitals today?

The Helltaker simply burst out laughing, glad that the mood had been lightened by someone other than himself. "I'm glad you're here Cupid, I needed that. Thank god not everyone is here is as serious as you" he said after laughing, wiping the spit away from his lips. Despite everything, even here he was being insulted.

"Damn right. I'm glad you agree...'Helltaker' if that's what you want to be called" her grin began to slowly fade.

"Here my dear, I have a drink for you" Azrael returned and offered him a glass. "Did I miss something?" the Archangel of Death saw him trying to contain his laughter.

"Thank you Azrael and no, I was just getting well acquainted with Cupid" he took the glass, instantly taking a sip. It came to him in the form of cool, crisp, fresh mountain water, the best water he had ever tasted, it instantly revitalised him.

"Cupid, please can we limit the obscenities. We have guests after all!" Jesus said in a non-threatening manner.

"Yes boss, have you seen Marchosias? I don't know where that bi- that dog is" Cupid knew when to show respect.

"I believe I saw her talking to those other demons I had the pleasure to meet, by the bar!" Jesus pointed across the room. While they were all looking over to the bar, the Helltaker noticed that Adriel was standing with her back to them a few tables away...alone.

"Marchosias! Come here!" Cupid stomped her way over to the bar. "Are you getting drunk with those demons?!".

"If you will excuse me, I need to leave for a moment too" he took a gulp of the finest bourbon he could imagine, it giving him another ounce of Dutch Courage, the man placing his glass onto the table next to where the group was standing.

"Where are you going?" Azrael asked, not wishing to stop admiring this man.

"I'm simply going to have a little chat with one of your colleagues, don't worry...I'll be back Azrael" he smirked, moving away from the group now. He nodded to Eurielle as they passed, the Gate Guardian coming over to Azazel in order to congratulate her.

His hand was hurting...again. It was getting increasingly worse each time...

He winced, suppressing the pain, trying his best not to show it as he approached the angel that started all of this worry, all of this doubt, the source of Azazel's misery; Adriel, The Archangel of Discipline. "Adriel..." he said softly, coming to stand at her side, he did not express any hostility, he only wanted to talk.

The Archangel sighed, "I expected you would come to confront me, you wish to discuss my treatment of Azazel..." she did not look at him, getting straight to the point.

The man gave the angel a once over, she was smaller than the average sized woman, a large bust with a medium waist, she had not changed from when he had seen her earlier, her outfit remaining the same. The Archangel no longer had her horse whip equipped, the tool of punishment attached to her belt, hidden under her white coat. However the now nervous angel was simply taking rapid sips of the colourless liquid, trying her best to hide her face with her short black fringe and peak cap, trying to avoid his eyes.

"I wish to tell you about when Azazel first failed her exams" he said calmly, the man taking a canapé and throwing it into his mouth. "Mmmmhm, what are these?" he spoke aloud, chewing while his mouth was full.

"I'm not a fucking chef, say what you have to say and go" she spat back.

Fine.

"Azazel, upon realising she had failed her exams became...downright suicidal. I imagine you did not comfort her during this time, from what I've heard you never did comfort her...From what I've seen you enact a strict discipline. Beatings rather than words of encouragement" he continued to speak calmly and softly.

"I- I didn't know-" the Archangel confessed. "I am a tutor to my students, not a carer. They will receive no sympathy from me, neither will you".

"I've also been told, Azazel did not receive a mentor...whereas the other angels did. Since she passed with the highest grade, you have both succeeded and failed" the Helltaker wanting desperately for the angel to look at him.

"Azazel did not receive a mentor becaus-" but she was cut off.

"Because you and the rest of the winged demons bullied her, you abused her, the stigma you attached to her just because she wounded up in Hell. Let me guess, it was frowned upon for her to travel there...'Fallen Angel' huh?" he crossed his arms.

"Y-you are smarter than most humans, you can read me well" Adriel chuckled to herself.

"Why? Why treat one of your own like this?".

"I'm ashamed to say it-" Adriel whispered.

"Well, now its time to confess. I'm not leaving until I know why" he was determined to find all the answers he could ever need today.

"Because I am jealous of the girl! There, I confess human! Azazel obtained what no angel could ever hope for!" the angel kept the rim of her visor low, the commander's hat just about hiding her sombre face.

"What does she have that you don't?" he asked, the man becoming more of a therapist than he realised.

"A family! A family that loves her and wishes to spend time with her. Being an angel we are not allowed intimacy nor partners nor a damn family!" she almost shouted the end of the sentence.

"Aren't these your brothers and sisters?" he gestured to the other miscellaneous angels scattered around them at the neighboring tables.

"They are nothing...b-but colleagues...you would not understand 'Helltaker'. You are her world...I have...no one..." Adriel slumped her head. An awkward silence followed, he so desperately wanted to insult her for all the damage she and the other angel's had caused, to laugh at her and say she didn't deserve such a thing...but he couldn't do that...He thought of another thing to say instead...

"Maybe...instead of being the Archangel of Discipline, you save that persona for your job and only that...You reinvent yourself when you are away from work", the woman decided to finally look at him as he spoke. "I had-have a- a friend, you might have fought her once. Judgement, The High Prosecutor. Lucifer's right hand, the protector of Hell. Well...she had a similar problem to you, couldn't change who she had been molded into it" he smirked and looked away, the best memories of his favourite grey demon flashing through his mind.

"After a harsh battle, I won her over and after a year of living together. I finally broke her down, the kind hearted woman I came to love appearing before my very eyes". He looked over at the commander, the angel's steely blue eyes were filled with anger yet they showed she was listening, acknowledging what he had to say.

"What are trying to say?" her tone was frosty, yet she was secretly touched for his concern.

"You can change...for better or for worse...don't let another angel ever feel like Azazel had been on that day. Make sure you're there for them...she won't be the last. Do not isolate your students" the man's stern gaze remained unshaken. "Kind reassurance is more powerful than fear and punishment".

"You dare lecture me on how to do my job?!" she threatened, slamming the glass down onto the white linen table cloth, a splash of colourless liquid flying in all directions.

"I dare" he dared, the man not flinching in the slightest at this gesture.

"Human, you may leave me alone now...Let me give you some advice though; don't ever try to comfort me again" she glared at him with her one visible eye, she thought the conversation was over.

"You look awfully lonely here...you're welcome to join us if you'd like" the man was done being confrontational, the signature smiled returning, paving over the pain his arm was causing him.

"Leave. Now" she commanded through gritted teeth.

"Can't change if you aren't willing to try...It was a pleasure meeting you Adriel" he began walking back to his group's table, he said goodbye incase he didn't get the chance to speak to her again. There was a few more unknown figures as well as the two sisters who had gathered around their table now.

"The pleasure was all mine..." she whispered to no-one.

"Come on Marchosias, try to imagine a shot. Have you never had alcohol before? Vodka? Whiskey? Spirits?!" Malina babbled on.

"Have you ever smoked before Marc? Would you like to try? Zdrada manifested a cigarette from thin air, offering it to their new friend.

"P-please, my masters forbid I indulge myself!" she hesitated from taking another sip from the glass Malina and Zdrada had given her.

"Surely you've had alcohol before come on, I remember the stories about you in Hell!" Malina was just about to start the story but she had noticed the Helltaker had re-joined the group.

"W-where have you been?" Malina slurred, turning her head to look at him, taking a huge gulp of the colourless liquid.

"Just went to have a chat, I see you are enjoying yourself" he grinned.

"Hell yeah, H-heaven is the place to be, infinite a-alcohol!" she again slurred, the drinks already starting to go to her head.

"Adriel wanted me to pass on her congratulations Azazel" the man smiling to the angel in question.

"I knew she was too much of a coward to say it to me herself!" the Curious Angel actually sounded slightly angry for once.

"I'm sure if you were to go over there with the same determination you had during that speech she would" he gestured to the lone commander.

"I- I'm going to try! Yes! I think Ms Adriel deserves to be given a piece of my mind!" the small angel stormed past him, the man shaking his head while chuckling to himself. Go get em tiger.

"Your drink" Azrael handed him his glass again, the colourless liquid still filling it halfway.

"Thank you, now do tell me Azrael...If I may be so blunt, I'd say you are almost obsessed with me...like a certain Lustful Demon I know. Why does an Angel of Death have such an interest in a human like me?" he knew she had been restraining herself from speaking openly to him.

"W-Well...I just want to say firstly, I'm a huge fan" causing the man laugh slightly, blowing air out of his nose loudly, the man sipping an exquisitely aged red wine.

"You flatter me" he teased, taking another sip and finding the taste of a sweet salted caramel milkshake filling his mouth.

"My obsession with you? I can never call you mine, you evade me everytime" she smirked, those deep blue eyes locked onto his, the man's sunglasses were reflecting the white light of heaven's cloud floor.

"I can't help it, you know I'm cursed then?" the woman peaking his interests, maybe someone who could help.

"I have known since the first time you died, I've seen every single one of your death's...my dear" she reached and placed a warm hand on his left cheek, the human shuddering at the touch. "Y-you...you poor, poor man".

The Helltaker sighed deeply, while this was pleasant...he did not want sympathy. The man reached up with his right hand, moving her's away. "One day we will be together" he smirked, knowing fully well she was enjoying every second of this back and forth flirting.

"Oh...the day cannot come soon enough my dear" Azrael's face becoming flushed red for a moment.

"I think I'm gonna barf" Cupid took another slug, gulping the drink down her as fast as she could, she was involuntarily listening to their conversation.

"Agreed" Malina held out her glass allowing Cupid to clink her's with Malina's, the two were indulging themselves heavily in order for their minds to cope. Both of them were sat on the top of the table, seeing who could out drink who...the start of a friendly rival.

"Have you smoked before Jesus?" Zdrada had just finished successfully convincing The Good Demon to have a drag of her cigarette.

"No! It ruins a human's lungs, I do not wish to receive the same affliction!" she blurted.

"Nahhh, come on. Try some!" Zdrada offering over a fresh cigarette. The Helltaker simply turned his head away, smiling to himself.

"Well...would you like to introduce me to these new faces. As much as I'd like to keep you all for myself" the Helltaker decided that he should mingle rather than focus all his attention on one angel, for the time being.

"Well then...you have already met Beatrice and Eurielle I believe" the two angels were in earshot, they were currently conversing with one another. Eurielle waved while Beatrice simply scoffed, turning the other way, holding her glass up to her lips but not drinking from it.

"Ladies" he nodded, moving past them with Azrael to the next two angels he hadn't spoken to yet.

"Girls, this is the Helltaker. Azazel's guardian, you both probably saw him when they cheered the poor girl on" Azrael introducing the human. He extended his arm out to the new faces.

"Zadkiel, The Archangel of Mercy. At your service" the woman spoke in a peaceful tone. Shaking his hand softly, that electrifying ecstasy coursing through his hand. This grandiose angel was a tall thin woman, the angel having blondish, golden hair similar to the colleague she was talking to. Her slim almost malnourished face was a sign of her commitment to the almighty, the angel vowing to reduce her intake and indulgence of food and liquids. A form of Penitence. Ontop of this, Zadkiel had barely any clothing on compared to her colleagues, simply wearing a large, white toga that was doing well to cover her body.

In her golden hair there was silver wreath of metal leaves around her head, she would often wear the hood up too to hide head and face, but she wanted to reveal herself this time. On her wrists there were silver shackles, the object having a meaning that was far beyond his understanding. These shame shackles were also tied around her ankles, she was allowed to move freely, yet the metal made a constant noise whenever she moved. Around her neck there were red rosary beads with a silver cross above her chest. As his eyes went over the necklace, he noticed Zadkiel had a small bust, his eyes then going to her tiny hips, he realised years of living with demons had made him perverted. She was quite different than the normal voluptuous angels.

Finally, he turned to the other angel, offered his hand to her. "Gabriel, The- uhhh, the trumpet woman?" the blonde haired angel laughing at her own joke. Gabriel, The Holy Trumpeter was quite energetic and hyperactive compared to the other women of Heaven. The young angel had large pale grey and blue eyes, more grey than blue. She was able to manifest her giant trumpet at a moments notice, it was her primary instrument after all.

The young angel wore a dark blue shirt, unbuttoned at the top, the collar having a white trim. On her large chest there was a sunflower symbol, the centre of it being light blue with yellow petals surrounding it, two blue ribbons fell away from the plant. On either shoulder there was a strange emblem of four symbols, he couldn't get a good look at it...it looked like a stain glass window with a skull and- a cross? He couldn't see the rest.

On her arms, she was wearing a strange white robe that only connected with her at the forearms, the material drooping behind her like a cape from her torso downwards. She also wore a light blue woven belt, the first one he had seen that was different from the other angels. Finally he noticed she was wearing tight grey trousers, exaggerating the curves of her body. Get your shit together man he mentally slapped himself.

At least they didn't all have the same basic colour scheme like demons did, well mostly it was just white, blue, black and gold. The energetic trumpeter took his hand and squeezed it tightly while shaking it, however this unfortunately occurred at the same time as pain struck his right arm once more, the human wincing slightly.

"A pleasure to meet you" he said half through gritted teeth.

"Ah, sorry! Don't know my own strength sometimes!" Gabriel smiled while closing her eyes, this boisterous angel had a deeper voice than the rest of the other women.

"You're the Archangel of Mercy? You the ying to her yang?" he turned to Zadkiel, pointing at the angel to his right with his thumb.

"In a manner of speaking...yes, we both work together. You cannot have one without the other, there is a balance that must be achieved. But I won't ramble on about mine and Azrael's job, you must be mighty proud about Azazel's achievements. She has become quite the young angel" Zadkiel glanced over to the heated conversation that Azazel and her instructor were having.

"Always, I'm so proud of her" he replied, following her gaze.

"Seems you have instilled a new found confidence in her too" Zadkiel reaching over and taking a canapé, biting it into small chunks, chewing it slowly.

"Wish I had been that smart!" Gabriel chimed, "At least I get to play the trumpet all day".

"I must say I am jealous, I never learned how to play properly, I always faked it in marching band. Somehow I always got away with it, but part of me always regretted not trying" he confessed, trying to relate to Gabriel.

"I could teach you if you'd like!" the angel becoming hyper at the words 'marching band', this angel was easily excited. "I love watching the parades, ceremonies, music festivals and parties you human's throw, makes me wish I was down there, living amoungst them!".

"In another timeline...you might have been. I'm sure you'd only add to the creativity and talent on Earth" he smiled, this was turning out to be quite the wholesome moment.

"You think?" Gabriel's light grey, blueish eyes were wide and full of wonder.

"I know so, seeing your performance at the start and end of the ceremony, I'd say you are already a pro", the man reaching for another canapé, he couldn't stop eating, despite not knowing what they were. He guessed that they were like the colourless liquid, everytime he chewed he got a taste of something different, beef, pork, steak, smoked salmon, creme cheese, monkfish. Sometimes he could never place a finger on what it was, it disappeared as soon as he thought he recognised the taste.

"Gee, thanks Mr Helltaker! I wish all humans were as kind as you were. I definitely think that-" but Gabriel was interrupted when the last unknown face came over to the group of four.

"Masters! I regret indulging in such activities, please do not punish me for such-" the canine-like demon realised she was interrupting. "O-oh- d-did I-" she began.

"And this wonderful creature is Marchosias, The Good Demon. Marchosias changed her ways centuries ago and Jehovah decided to forgive and forget, the silly girl still thinks she will be punished if she doesn't change" Azrael explained, patting the much smaller demon on the head. This last stranger was very similar to Cerberus, the woman not having any horns or a halo, simply having black and white furry ears instead, replacing human ones. Upon her face there was a constant look of nervousness, those red eyes not wishing to upset anyone.

Her outfit consisted of a large white cloak over her shoulders, the lining looked similar to Beelzebub's fly blazer, the interior like a fly's wings. There were two metallic golden cylinders on either of her shoulder's, black flowers filled the circles atop these metallic cylinders. Under this militaristic garb, Marchosias was dressed in typical demonic fashion, wearing a black waistcoat and black suit pants, she had red sleeves and black fingerless gloves, the material coming up to her knuckles.

The Helltaker didn't notice at first but there was also a strange red snake with fiendish yellow eyes hiding in her outfit, wait, the man upon seeing this then looked at her red tail that protruded from under her white cloak. It was a dry tail of scales, not fur, was she half-reptile...half-dog? Her hair was a magnificently huge mess of black with highlights of white, the hair being so long it reached down to her backside in a ponytail, white scrunchies separating the clumps of hair, reaching just above her tail. Ya know what, he had been overly analysing what the angel's...and demon looked like, he should just accept them at face value for now.

"Marchosias ey? You wouldn't happen to know another certain demon hound would you?" he decided to get eye-level with this demon. The man kneeling slightly.

The red snake on the demon's shoulder hissed slightly, but a disapproving look from Marchosias made it retreat into the nest of black and white hair, disappearing from sight. "C-Cerberus?! Is she looking for me? Does she want to kill me?!" he would learn that while Marchosias was well behaved, she was very easy to frighten too.

"No! No, she isn't looking for you Marchosias. I just wondered if you knew her, she is-" but the Helltaker didn't finish his sentence, instead standing and deciding to bestow a signature Helltaker headpat on Marchosias. She had lovely hair, soft to the touch, her ears drooping as his hand approached. "Ah...doesn't matter. Who's a good girl?".

"M-me?!" Marchosias both not knowing how to react and secretly loving the affection. No one had ever petted her properly before!

"Yeah, that's right! I miss having Cerb-" but again he didn't finish, he was getting caught up in his emotions. He tried his best to swallow the sadness, trying not to wallow in guilt like he had been doing for the last three weeks. God damn it..

"Marc! Get over here and let's do some more shots!" Zdrada shouted, the demon was tired of trying to trick Jesus and the other angels into sharing a cigarette with her, thankfully Zdrada had brought the escape from this sadness that he needed. If he had petted Marchosias any longer he would have convinced himself that he was petting-Cerberus...

"Ah- c-coming Z-Zdrada!" Marchosias reluctantly removed herself from the man's affection. "I will be back!".

"Don't overdo it Marc" Cupid was being quite hypocritical as she was currently engaged in a drinking contest with Malina, both seeing how much of the colourless liquid they could down. Malina was losing.

As the mingling continued, the Helltaker found himself alone with the angels, Malina and Zdrada were taking advantage of the free bar with Marchosias, Cupid and Beatrice joining them occasionally. Azazel had returned from the heated debate with her instructor, amazingly she had succeeded where he had failed, somehow convincing Adriel to join the group. Now he was being bombarding with questions, left, right and centre.

"How much does a Tour Guide get paid on Earth? Bet its much more than what I'm on" Beatrice had asked, the woman deciding not to drink any more today.

"God, I don't know, probably more than minimum wage and then some. Besides what are you even getting paid?" the man never fully understanding the currencies of Heaven and Hell.

"Paid in peanuts" Beatrice muttered, looking away, the sarcasm not answering his question in the slightest.

"That doesn-" but someone else wanted to ask him a question.

"What's it like living with- wait, how many demons do you cohabitate with?" Zadkiel was curious about this infamous harem she had heard so much about.

"I used to- I live with ten of them, twelve if you count Cerberus's three bodies. Its quite nice...chaotic at the best of times, didn't think I'd come back out of Hell with a family" he gave a brief smile to Azazel.

"What inclined you to do such a thing?" the mood between Adriel and the Helltaker was still frosty, yet they were civil with one another.

"To go into Hell? Or to live with demons?" he smiled wanting to confirm her question.

"Both, I'm amazed that those vile creatures didn't banish you as soon as you stepped foot into their realm" Adriel had her arms crossed, the women now slowly sipping the transparent liquid.

"Well...as strange as this sounds, thats exactly what they did. I went into Hell because-" it sounded stupid saying it out loud. "Because of a dream I had" he smirked trying not to die from embarrassment, the memories of constant death were quite pleasurable now. They were worth it, considering where this journey had lead him.

"A dream? What type of dream?" Azrael quizzed him. Could angels not dream either?

"It would be too inappropriate to speak of now" he quickly replied, preferring they didn't go down that route.

"As the Gate Guardian I am gifted sight over all, we have all heard about your...'power'. My question is why? Why keep trying?" Eurielle had decided to change, but for her a casual outfit involved simply removing her gauntlets.

"Greed, Power, simply because I could...Take your pick, because I can't tell you why I did it" he confessed, the man simply wanting to be honest.

"Do you have any regrets? Forgive us for this interrogation, it has been many millennia since we had the pleasure of speaking to a living, breathing human" Jesus chimed in, smiling.

"Too many...but none concerned when meeting my guardian angel" he again tried deflecting the conversation off of himself and onto Azazel...this was her graduation after all.

"Azazel's work is definitely unique, the Thesis will be a vital cornerstone for further increasing our understandings of demon's and their culture" Zadkiel was again eating another canapé. Last one for the week.

"I read that report! I wish you had covered what music they produce and enjoy, it would be interesting to compare their instruments and musical talent!" Gabriel was now sat ontop of the table with Cupid.

"I'll try to cover it next time" Azazel smiled, blushing slightly.

"Their's is probably just as shit as our's up here" Cupid muttered, the sniper receiving a jab in the side. "F-fuck! I was joking!" she coughed, Gabriel elbowing her colleague in the gut.

"Do you sleep with all your demons?" Azrael suddenly blurted, the man receiving alot of disapproving looks from the less sexually orientated angels. Some had looks of intrigue.

"No comment" is all he could say, the man glancing over at the bar in order to avoid the awkward silence that filled the air. He saw Malina and Zdrada were currently behind it, Marchosias lingering on the other side, afraid to go behind it and...break the rules. Looks like they were taste testing the entire collection...

"This man, this guy right here!" he turned and saw Cupid was looking through her sniper's detachable scope at him, the demon breathing on it and rubbing a small rag against it to clean away a smudge. "This man never needed my help...take that how you want, I've seen him in action" a mischievous grin again painting her face.

"Thanks...glad to get a professional's opinion" he jabbed back, the atmosphere was now getting incredibly awkward. The Mentally Unstable Love Sniper hopped off of the table and approaching The Curious Angel. "Take a page out of his book Az" Cupid teased the younger angel putting an arm around her shoulder.

"Cupid!" Azazel hissed, her friend was always was like this...

"Come on, lets go join your friends for a drink" the sniper leading the other towards the bar. He watched as the two younger angels left, Jesus had also silently left the gathering, the small angel talking to some other archangels a few tables away. The man had now been left alone with these incredibly beautiful women; Zadkiel, Eurielle, Azrael, Beatrice, Gabriel and Adriel.

"What's it like living with Lucifer? The woman is known to have a fiery temper, yet she settled for a human...it fascinates me" Zadkiel asked, the older woman occupying much of the conversation. He knew that Eurielle and Azrael practically knew everything so they didn't have much to contribute. Adriel was just shy, Gabriel was just goofy. "From when I r-remember her...she wouldn't settle for anything but the best...no offense".

"Sh-she..." the man hesitated, the emotions he kept locked away were threatening to burst out of the dark space they occupied...again. "She w- is one of a kind...she was actually quite jealous she wasn't invited" the man lying, not really answering her question while also trying to lighten the mood.

"Is Justice still blind?" the Archangel of Mercy asked another question.

"S-she is, but still just as witty" he smiled, "You two ever cross paths?".

Zadkiel looking at Azrael, the two smiling as well, "Oh...maybe once or twice, definitely my favourite demon...other than Marchosias".

"Well I'd love for you to tell me all about those encounters, I'd love for J-Justice to be here to confirm them...but I'm afraid...time is short". The pain in his arm was becoming unbearable. Thankfully he was getting better at hiding it.

"Well...it seems that everyone has taken a liking to you, Helltaker. You'd fit right in up here...Fit right in me" Azrael muttered the last part.

"Hah, in another life maybe, but I am banished from dying...that is my curse, you all know this. It was one of the reasons why I came here...I n-need to find some answers" the man looking up into the stars as if that was where his answers would be.

"She'll call you soon enough, don't worry. Jesus will tel-" Zadkiel was cut off, funnily enough...it was time.

"Mr Anderson! Mother is ready to see you. I will take her to you now!" The Innocent Bean not hesitating, grabbing hold of his hand and instantly teleporting the two of them away.

"Wait!" is all he could say, but the man had already vanished into a swirling golden light, his glass dropping out of his hand, falling through the clouds.

"Man...Jehovah sure doesn't like to be kept waiting" Gabriel said looking up, following the two lines of golden light as they flew up and away, speeding past the stars. "I'm gonna go perform on the bar. Nothing like a trumpet solo to liven the party!" she skipped away smiling.

"Oh dear god, we must drink more if we are to withstand an encore, my dear friend", The Angel of Mercy lead the way over to the bar, her best friend following.

"Agreed Zee, let's see what they stocked the bar with this time", The Angel of Death replied, she too watching the two fading beams of light disappearing into the eerie void of space.

"More like what is left after those demons have ransacked the place" Zadkiel chuckled. Adriel, Beatrice and Eurielle began chatting amoungst themselves, but they too would soon join their colleagues at the bar.

"Wait, where'd he go?" Zdrada looked to where he had been standing, the Bitch Demon stood behind the bar, helping herself. The woman taking another slug from her half-empty glass, there was a strange racing green coloured liquid replacing the colourless one. God knows what it was. She had brought a mahogany wooden board, the never-ending canapés were doing well to sate her hunger.

"He will be back, he has gone to meet Jehovah!" Marchosias was timidly sipping from her glass, she was sat on the other side of the bar. The Good Demon was taking in bigger and bigger mouthfuls of the liquid overtime...intoxication was not far away.

"Damn it...I really wanted to give God the bird" Zdrada glanced from the stars watching her sister climbing up the bar and reach a bottle at the top of the shelf, smirking, awaiting her failure.

"T-t-the bird?" the new demon asking confused.

They were flying through the stars at an unbelievable speed, billions of tiny bright lights flying past them in seconds, galaxies, supernovas, gas giants, the darkness and the light, Jesus guided him through it all. The lights were being reflected off of Justice's sunglasses, his eyes soaking in...everything. But before he could even process the speed and route of their journey, it all abruptly came to a stop. There was nothing but blinding white light all around them, the man having to hold up an arm in order to prevent himself from going blind, his sunglasses were useless.

"Ah, I apologise for the setting. I will adjust our surroundings to be more suitable". There was a single clap and the darkness of space reappeared instantly, the Milky Way Galaxy appeared beneath their feet, the two of them were walking on nothing...He could finally see properly, his colour changing eyes adjusted to the light, the man seeing a golden ball of light traveling towards them, but this didn't last. The ball transformed into the silhouette of a person, a woman.

This was it...

This...was...Jehovah.

"At last, Evan Anderson. We meet...though...not in the way one would normally meet their creator", the Deity was slowly walking towards them, softly traveling across the space, one step after the other.

"I-I have so many questions...and I-I need your help" he pleaded, the man collapsing to his knees, his voice wavered, breaking apart completely.

He was done pretending the last three weeks didn't mean anything. He was done hiding his sadness...his guilt.

"I will provide all the help I can".