Previously: Siosp has been executed by Michael for doubting God's existence, and since then, Castiel lives in constant fear of doubting again. He obeys in Egypt by killing firstborns. Three new soldiers (Pmox, Baradiel, Rzionr Nrzfm) joined the Garrison. Anna has announced that Camael will be forgiven by completing a mission on Earth. But for this, he will have his Grace ripped away and be born as a Human, under the name of Jesus.

oOo

The Annunciation

I should be used to it by now. After all, it's the second time in the last six months that I've witnessed such an event. And yet, the radiant Grace of the Archangel Gabriel becoming liquid and falling like a waterfall on a human vessel is still such a spectacular sight.

The Galilee seems quite dark after this tiny flesh and blood figure has absorbed all this pure, liquid light energy. The facial expression of the young man who accepted the divine mission and the immense honor of welcoming an Archangel into his body shifts from beatitude to a sullen frown. Surrounded by the entire Garrison in a valley towering over the city of Nazareth, Gabriel dusts his tunic and cracks his knuckles while stretching his vaporous wings in his back.

"Not bad." His voice is raspy, his vessel being barely out of adolescence. " This one is a better fit than last time, but still a bit tight."

Balthazar stoops to take a closer look.

"For the next generations, I will work on preparing about a dozen more for you, with Samandriel's help. In time I'll find you a suitable vessel that can survive the experiment."

Gabriel runs a hand through his long brown hair, casually glancing at the dark skin of his forearm. Now that Gabriel inhabits it, there is an aura of power and casual charisma radiating from this lanky body whose limbs seem to have grown too fast.

"Well!" he claps his hands resolutely. "Anyway, I've got yet another Human to knock up. Better get to work now."

We all unfold our wings, ready to follow the Archangel to the city of Nazareth where our mission is awaiting us. However, rather than flying away, Gabriel looks up at us and arches an eyebrow.

"Where do you think you're going?"

The sarcasm in his voice is so obvious Anna startles as though she's been slapped across the face.

"Our mission is to follow you, to witness the miracle and to write a report that will be sent to the Archives and later reinserted into the dreams of the Prophets. That is how we proceeded for the first trial with Zechariah's wife."

Down on the ground, Gabriel snorts and crosses his arms.

"I didn't ask you to parrot the mission order to me. The test was positive with Elizabeth and my new vessel is better adjusted to my Grace, I have more control now so there is no risk that I will accidentally make Mary mute too. I no longer require to be coddled."

"But Michael and Raphael said-"

"I don't give a flying rat's ass about what Michael and Raphael said! I am still your superior, so just do as I say, period. I don't need a flock of giant ducklings following me around and watching everything I do. I order you very officially to get lost. Shoo!"

A murmur runs through the Garrison as we glance at each other. Our General is rigid, clearly displeased, judging by the flow of her Grace inside her body.

"Very well. But it is still mandatory that one of us goes with you to witness the miracle, write and file the report. That's the procedure."

Once again Gabriel resorts to human facial expressions, rolling his eyes and sighing loudly.

"Right. Then only one Angel will have the inestimable honor of tailing me. You, there, you will do just fine."

I blink when the Archangel's tiny vessel points at me with a careless thumb gesture. All eyes are on me.

"I trust you to observe the miracle and write it properly in your report."

I nod, acutely aware of the heavy responsibility that now rests on my shoulders. For this is a priority mission, unlike the announcement to Zechariah, which was only a test to ensure that it was possible to make a uterus fertile, even on a very old, sterile woman, so that Camael could be implanted in Mary's womb successfully.

I silently gaze at my brothers in arms as they fly away, their winged figures merging into the glow of the sun, and then I look down again at the Archangel Gabriel. He is on his way down the valley to the city of Nazareth. So does he plan to walk there? Why would he do that, when he could appear before Mary with just a flapping of his wings?

"Tell me, Castiel, what do you think of the punishment that has been chosen for Camael?"

For a second there, I wonder how comes the Archangel Gabriel knows my name. Perhaps he remembers our brief conversation about Cain and Abel's offerings, but it is more likely he knows me from the trial during which the Archangels judged Camael and I.

Could it be that he picked me to assist him for this reason?

"What I think is irrelevant," I say cautiously. "It is the divine Will, and the Lord works in mysterious ways."

Gabriel makes an annoyed gesture as he steps through the tall grass, drawing a trail in the valley.

"Spare me the boring preaching and high praises to Daddy. Tell me what you really think."

There is something unsettling about looking down on this tiny person on the ground, while being intimately aware that he holds enough power to wipe me out of existence with a mere snap of his fingers. Gabriel might sound less formal and distant than Michael, but he is still an Archangel, one of the most fearsome weapons of Creation, one of God's eldest sons.

Siosp has been executed for blaspheming in front of the Archangels. I can't afford to let even the slightest hint of doubt filter through.

"It is a merciful punishment," I say as I strive to keep the movements of my Grace in check. "Camael rebelled, his lies put Michael in a dangerous situation and caused a valuable weapon to be lost to Heaven. Instead of execution, our Father is granting him a chance to preach the Holy Word and instill His worship among the Humans. This is a good thing."

For every five hundred steps Gabriel takes, only one from me is sufficient. He has reached the gravel path now, at this rate we should soon arrive in the city.

"I was opposed to it." Gabriel throws me a sharp look. "A good old-fashioned execution would have been neater and faster. I was the one who gave Camael the idea of the seal he used on Cain, so it's partly because of me that he's in this situation today. Tearing an Angel's Grace off and shoving it into a Human's uterus? And making him a Messiah so the Humans will worship Dad by following a bunch of rules? I love my brothers, but there are times when I have this overwhelming urge to bang their heads together..."

If any Angel of my rank dared to question the decisions of God and the Archangels like this, he would be immediately sent to rehabilitation or executed on the spot. I can't help but tighten my wings behind my back uneasily. I cannot give an Archangel a call to order, nor agree with his discourse.

"As an Angel of the Garrison..." I say in a whisper that fuses with the wind, "I believe Camael will be proud to bring Faith to these creatures that we have seen evolve over millions of years. That God judges them worthy to worship Him is an accomplishment in itself."

"Some accomplishment here. And until then, I'm on insemination duty like a common bull."

A man pulling a cart takes a puzzled look at Gabriel, probably wondering why is this boy talking to himself. The first stone-built structures appear, and we enter Nazareth. The Archangel is striding resolutely towards the house where the young Mary lives - she is there, surrounded by chickens and feeding them by tossing seeds around.

"Alright, sweet Mary," he says bluntly as he reaches her. "Let me lay it out for you."

The young girl yelps when the Archangel slips an arm over her frail shoulders, his wings showing up clearly on his shadow at their feet.

"Hey! Let me go! Who are you?"

Gabriel's grip is so strong that she can't free herself, and she drops her basket of seeds on the ground - immediately, a bunch of chickens eagerly rush in around their feet.

"I am the Archangel Gabriel. You have been chosen by God, great honor, blessing, yadda yadda yadda. In nine months you will spawn a kid you will call Jesus, who will be great and will be the son of the Almighty. Questions?"

The young woman stops struggling and stares at him with wide, dismayed eyes.

"What? How could I be pregnant when I'm a virgin?"

A glimmer ignites in the palm of the Archangel's hand. Camael's holy spirit, fragile and stripped of its Grace.

"I managed to make your old aunt Elizabeth fertile six months ago, there's nothing I can't do."

He presses his hand flat against Mary's belly, and the holy spirit sinks through fabric and skin effortlessly. She falls to her knees in shock, and yelps again when Gabriel disappears before her eyes in a fluttering of wings.

He reappears perched on my shoulder, so light in his vessel. There is an austere look on his face as he looks up to me.

"Keep what I told you earlier to yourself, brother. I need you to write a positive report on this miracle, otherwise Michael and Raphael will pester me even more, they already don't trust me since what happened with Cain."

"Understood."

"See you around, Castiel!"

He disappears and I remain there for a long time, looking down at Mary who is stroking her belly with a disbelieving look.

I will have to embellish my report with plenty of praises to God for it to be approved by the Archives.

oOo

Balthazar is hovering high in the sky, so slowly that he appears to be static. Invisible to human eyes, he holds a sphere of light in his hand, so bright it eclipses the radiance of his Grace. From afar I can see him moving through the night sky, leading to the East the Three Kings who believe they are following the star which appeared in the omens that we massively diffused in the dreams of Humans in recent decades.

Balthazar has been put in charge of the communication strategy towards Humans to make them receptive to the word of God that Camael - Jesus - will teach them. Once again, he is directly involved in the highest command of a mission with his expertise. Judging by the fervor among the Humans since the... birth of our brother, these efforts have been fruitful. The very sight or even the mere evocation of the infant unleashes passions. And now, kings and crowds are traveling to come and worship him.

I look down to the three Humans walking with their arms full of gifts and their eyes riveted to the light leading them to Cam- Jesus. That name... it means "God gives salvation", and I hope it bodes well for the future. This mission shouldn't last longer than a human lifespan, which is a few decades. Camael's unfortunate situation is only temporary. He will retrieve his Grace eventually and rejoin the Garrison once his mission is completed. Faith will spread to mankind and - finally - all Creation will be united in the love of the Lord.

The Three Wise Men are walking in a single file, drawing a trail of trampled grass behind them. The soft tones of my brothers' voices are echoing through my head as the wind blows ripples over the grass. Some are singing Father's praises with fierce devotion, while others speak of Camael and the new era that will open for us all. An era where, as it was in the past, there will be no Hell and no Heaven, and where we will all live united in the love of the Father.

I look up at the shining orb which has stopped, having reached its destination.

And for the first time in thousands of years, I find myself feeling hope.

oOo

"But... Why are they doing this? Why would they slaughter their own kind, especially newborn infants?"

Crouched down with his head lowered, Pmox is staring in bewilderment at the human army as they methodically slay all male children under the age of two.

"Humans are much more complex than plankton, Pmox."

Pmox looks up with wide, sad eyes at me.

"But why?"

I silently avert my eyes as crying mothers hold their inert, bloody children against them, and fathers are killed when they try to resist the armed soldiers. This is not the first time I've witnessed injustice, wars, slaughters and brutalities, and I have had my own share of responsibility in Egypt for obeying orders. Yet it is hard for me to remain unaffected by such a scene, the suffering of these mothers, the turmoil of these families, the terror of the children... and I can see the guilt of the soldiers in their troubled souls. They are obeying not because they understand or approve but because orders are orders.

I see in those confused but inflexible soldiers a sick mockery of my siblings and I. But I can't make such a farfetched analogy. For even if we do not understand the orders, they come from God, and therefore are right. And Father is nothing like Herod, King of Judea.

I squint and look up at the misty horizon.

Ephra moves closer to Pmox and lays a comforting hand on the top of his head.

"It's very simple, Pmox. Any collective survival instinct that Humans used to have in the past has been extinguished by their selfishness. They consider their own interests before what's best for their species. The king of this land has heard the omens and feared that the glory of Jesus would make him lose his hold over his people."

Pmox blinks and lowers his head quietly, looking even more lost. He clearly did not understand a word of it. This is not surprising coming from an Angel who has watched for millions of years over microscopic organisms, which, while essential to the balance of life, lack free will and a conscience. Humans, on the other hand, are so diverse, creative and unpredictable...

"Don't worry," I say softly. "They will enter Heaven and rest in peace."

That's what I keep telling myself each time I witness innocent people die a violent death. After all, the lives of Humans on earth are but a brief test to determine whether their place belongs in Heaven or Hell. No infant soul goes to Hell, because nothing has stained it yet.

Once Camael has fulfilled his mission, peace and harmony will rule over all of Creation. There will be no more suffering. No more doubt. No more unforeseen events. Everything will be perfect - as it once was, long before the Garrison was created, according to what Hester and Baradiel told me.

There is a group of women sneaking along the walls and hiding in shadows in an attempt to hide from the troops roaming the city. They're holding infants wrapped in blankets tight against their chest, shaking with sheer terror, tears rolling down their cheeks. From where we stand, we can see that they are unknowingly heading towards soldiers around the corner. Pmox reaches out to them, but pauses. He withdraws his fingers and shuts his eyes, probably not to watch the impending bloodshed.

Their cries and pleas are so loud, and it is not long before the ground absorbs warm blood. All of Herod's kingdom is swarming with pale and misty shadows taking hold of the children's souls one by one.

Thankfully, Jesus is not in any danger. We have warned Joseph about this through a dream, and they have fled to Egypt to be safe.

Ephra pats Pmox's head one last time before giving me a serious look.

"Let us hope that Jesus will grow up safely and be able to carry out his mission. I fear that Camael's punishment and this conditional redemption will be a source of protest among our ranks. I heard whispers disapproving of the method, and I have to agree with them. Tearing off an Angel's Grace has never been done before, and a proper execution would be preferable. Less demeaning."

I draw my attention away from the city resounding with screams and laments.

"The punishment might be severe, but not as definitive as an execution. Not only will his Grace be returned to him, but he will have achieved great things: unifying Creation and leading the Way to Humans. Should they accept the Lord in their hearts and souls, the kind of violence we are currently witnessing will never happen again. Camael will come back to the Garrison cleared of his sins."

Ephra nods without conviction.

"I will be glad and relieved to have him back with us. We have been waiting for this for more than a thousand years. But until then, we have to watch him blend in with the Humans and we can't be of any help to him. Within a few years he will have lost his memories and true identity, and will really think he is one of them. I don't like that part. Camael is an Angel, the son of God, not a Human. No Angel should deny his nature, voluntarily or not.

"I would like to meet Camael." Pmox stands up with his back to the slaughter still happening down there. His eyes have regained their cheerful glow. "I have heard so much about him - as everyone else has - and I have prayed so many times for Father to forgive him! If only I could talk to Camael..."

"You can't. It's forbidden."

There is a hint of frustration in my voice, which shuts Pmox up. Humans are under our charge, Camael is our former brother in arms, yet none of us is allowed to get close, and we are not given any information.

I find this quite offensive.

The chain of command has decided that only high-ranking executives would be included in this critical mission, including Brap, Zachariah, and Anna, who is not authorized to provide us with the details of the plan.

All we know is that Camael – Jesus – must bring Faith to Humans. Then again, if this was just about talking to the Humans, why couldn't Camael take a vessel? Why become Human, have his Grace ripped away and his identity wiped out? Perhaps it's just a way to make his punishment an example...

I cut off the flow of my thoughts. There is no point.

None of this will be of any importance once Camael has completed the mission.

oOo

Adam smiles at Cain with fatherly love, leaning over to show him how to keep the fire going. Frowning in concentration, young Cain throws a log into the flames, trying not to smother them and not to burn his fingers. The crackling of the fire licking the bark and swirls of smoke rise into the rustic room. There are shadows dancing on the walls to the rhythm of Eve's lullaby.

Abel's eyes are closed, eyelashes fluttering on his cheeks still holding the roundness of childhood. He snuggles up against his mother who smiles and keeps stroking his hair and humming her song, fingers dipping into the brown curls.

Everything is so peaceful.

I know it's only a memory. Abel's happiest memory, that he has been living over and over again since the day he died. It all looks so real that if I couldn't perceive the very slight translucency of the items, the landscape and this family, I could be fooled. But when I focus, I can see Abel's soul glowing peacefully and the hollow shapes surrounding him, all floating above the path that binds all human Paradises together – it's only an illusion replicating his happy memory in every detail, lost in a world of silence and void.

Abel is alone for the rest of eternity, neither his parents nor his brother will ever be able to join him. Eve has become one with the Mother of Monsters, Adam has been wiped out of existence, and Cain is doomed to wander the earth forever. Even if he managed to die at some point, he would go straight to Purgatory and not to Heaven. As for these mountains, this house, this wheat field swaying in the wind… the Apocalypse and the Flood have destroyed this landscape on Earth a long time ago.

At least, Abel is happy and unaware of any of this.

I turn to look at Uriel and Virgil. They are not paying attention to Abel's soul, and, standing in the fake landscape, they are talking to each other in a low voice. Our brothers from the Garrison arrive one by one in this Paradise, all of them throwing puzzled looks at Uriel.

Well, I'm waiting for an explanation too. Why did he summon us to join him here in secret, and more importantly, why did he tell us to keep Anna out of this? Usually, it is always Miz who calls us to witness all the Humans' absurdities behind our General's back. But we are inside a Paradise now, and judging by Uriel's contained anger radiating off him, it is not to tell us the goat incident joke once more – he is the best storyteller of us all, no one else can make us roar with laughter like he does.

Zedekiel arrives last with his feathers ruffled.

"What's going on, Uriel? It better be important, I was working on my report on human superstitions and beliefs for..."

"It is important," Uriel interrupts sharply. "I have summoned you here because no one will come to look for us here, in one of the earliest Paradises. The entire hierarchy is currently in a meeting, Anna won't notice we are missing from our stations. As you have noticed, there are unacceptable things happening."

Virgil is standing stiff by his side.

"If this is about Camael's punishment again, we've talked about this before," Htmorda says, holding his head high. "I know you think that he is in a demeaning situation, but he only has a few years to live as a Human, and then he will come back to us. Is it too much to ask for a few decades without you bitching?"

Uriel's purple eyes flash with anger as he snaps his wings open, radiating raw power.

Virgil holds him back with a mere hand gesture. "There's more," he says sternly.

Glaring daggers at Htmorda, Uriel reluctantly folds his wings back. Then he turns his back on us, his feathers still puffed up angrily.

"Indeed," Uriel says in a restrained voice. "I heard whispers and I went back to their source. A second ranked Cherub from the Archives caught a glimpse of a meeting report that Zachariah was holding in his hand. He was only able to read a few words, but he's adamant. They are hiding things from us. The hierarchy is keeping us in the dark about Camael, even though we are directly involved."

"Stop stalling and tell us what you know already!" Zedekiel says restlessly.

"Camael's Grace has not been saved, the Archangels destroyed it. Camael's holy spirit is trapped in his hairless ape's body. He will live and die like a Human. He will never come back. Ever."

… What?

As I let it sink in, I remind myself of Gabriel's hand touching Mary's belly to implant the holy spirit of Camael inside. Was he aware at that moment he was sentencing Camael to a mortal's life expectancy?

"Oh no..." Pmox gasps, sounding horrified.

Silence falls on the Garrison while Eve keeps singing softly and rocking Abel in the fake landscape.

"I suspected as much," Levanael says, staring dejectedly at the wheat field. "Siosp has been executed in agonizing pain over an instant of misguidedness. Obviously, Camael would not get away so easily."

"Wait, so that's why you made me come all the way here?" Rzionr Nrzfm snorts. "Don't bother including me next time. I don't give a damn about human-loving rebels."

And on this note, he flies away, leaving Abel's Paradise.

"Rzionr Nrzfm has got a point," Rachel points out. "Camael put himself in this situation by prioritizing a Human – worse, a Phoenix – over the Will of the Lord. He even came very close to killing Castiel. His fate is regrettable, but he deserves it."

"This isn't what it's about, Rachel!" Uriel snarls as he turns around, his eyes blazing with wrath. "Don't you see? Can't you see what's happening? Forget about Camael for a second and start thinking, brothers!"

"I don't understand," I say, genuinely confused.

"I don't either," echo Pmox and Zedekiel.

"Stop focusing on the punishment and look further for the meaning behind! All I see is that the hierarchy - that our Father is willing to sacrifice an Angel for the sole purpose of communicating with those arrogant and ignorant monkeys! In His eyes, we are less valuable than the evolution of a bunch of filthy, slimy fish! How long before He gets rid of us, once His favorites worship Him and He no longer has any use for us?"

"The Lord would never do such a thing," I protest, crossing my arms. "He is righteous. And He loves us."

Uriel sniggers.

"He loves the Humans! We are no longer worth anything ever since He created them! In fact, the Garrison was created only to serve them and help them proliferate and invade the planet!"

"That's a lie!" Htmorda spits out, raising his voice to cover Uriel's. "I don't believe a word of it! Camael's Grace will be returned to him once he has brought Faith to Humanity, and Father will be grateful to us! A new era will come where all God's children will live in harmony as equals!"

"Right, and then we will all hold hands, surrounded by rainbows, and sing the praises of love and God," Balthazar mocks.

Htmorda chokes in anger, but Baradiel replies before he gets the chance to: "Our existence is meant to do the will of God. Even if He were to destroy us as He did for the dinosaurs, or to lock us away like the Leviathans, I would humbly accept my fate. Being around Humans so much, you have developed expectations that you shouldn't even begin to consider. Wishing to be loved by God? Do you even realize how arrogant this is?" He shakes his head disapprovingly. While his eyes blaze with fiery shades of molten lava, his bluish Grace is flowing through his body like a river pouring out of a mountain of ice. There is a stark contrast between his stoicism and our restlessness. "Disobeying or turning our backs on our Creator would break us in ways that death could never do, and in a much more definitive way. Death is only one step in the circle of life. Whereas we are nothing without God."

Htmorda and Rachel fervently nod at Baradiel's wise words, while Uriel lowers his head with a distraught, ashamed look. Virgil leans over to whisper a few words to him, and Uriel clenches his fists with some semblance of newfound confidence.

"Humans only live for a few decades..." Pmox says. "Does it mean that Camael will die soon? Is he going to Heaven the same way Humans do?"

"What? Of course not!" Balthazar replies. "Even trapped inside a shell of flesh and deprived of his Grace, Camael is still an Angel. He has no soul, but only a holy spirit that cannot survive without Grace or without a body to inhabit."

"So Camael cannot be saved?"

The answer to my question is clearly written in Balthazar's eyes, extinguishing the last glimmer of hope inside me.

"He can't. Should the Grace be destroyed, a holy spirit can only survive inside a body until it dies."

I look down in silence.

"There is no point arguing about this," Zedekiel hisses fiercely. "I see no reason why the Archangels would have destroyed his Grace. This Cherub in the Archives must have misread, or he made it all up!"

"Absolutely!" Htmorda agrees. "Father is tough, but certainly not cruel!"

Levanael's wings twitch skeptically, but he remains silent.

"That's true." Virgil stares us down coldly. "Or it would be if it really were Father's decision…"

He shares a look with Uriel, like they both know something that we don't.

"If this rumor about Camael's Grace turns out to be true, what do you intend to do, Uriel?" Rachel asks defiantly.

Sadness flashes through Uriel's purple eyes and his wings slump.

"I don't know."

It is so unusual to see our brother who is always so self-assured like this, it silences us all. Only when Virgil lays his hand on Uriel's shoulder and flies away with him, do all my brothers leave Abel's Paradise in dismay.

I stay alone there, listening to Eve's crystal-clear voice humming her lullaby, the one Abel will be listening to for all eternity.

oOo

Rachel slams his fist on the table, rising up with his wings spread wide.

"No I won't shut up, Anna! Not this time! We have a right to know, Camael is our brother!"

"It's a matter of confidentiality, I can't tell you anything, and that's not the reason I called you here!"

A murmur of protest runs through our ranks, and Htmorda stands up as well, his amethyst-colored eyes flashing with indignation.

"Are the rumors correct, Anael? Has his Grace been destroyed? He's been born for four years now, and you're the only one who has ever seen him up close! Why are we being kept away, with are we forbidden to approach or talk to him?"

"My name is Anna," she snaps back, narrowing her eyes. "That's the name I chose for myself. Don't you ever call me Anael again."

Now it's my turn to rise up to my feet.

"Answer our question." I stare unblinkingly at her. "Please, Anna."

My brothers follow my lead in a rustle of feathers. Anna's three green orbs widen at us with astonishment that quickly turns to anger.

"Sit down, soldiers, or I'll have to report your behavior."

"Camael is going to be sacrificed on the altar of Humanity, and you're condoning it?" Uriel spits out.

"He's not being sacr-"

"Really? Then look us in the eye and give us your word in the name of the Lord that his Grace is safe and that he will get it back! Can you even do that?"

Anna averts her gaze wearily.

My Grace congeals with dread. Was Uriel right after all?

"So it is true!" Rachel exclaims in a horrified tone.

"SILENCE!" the General roars, startling us with a vibrating wave length of fury.

Her eyes are blazing as she stares us down.

"Don't you remember what happened to Siosp?"

Silence.

She observes us for a few seconds.

"I understand your anger," she continues, her voice softening. "Camael is my brother too. But I don't ever want to see any of my soldiers be killed before my eyes again for talking when they should have kept quiet."

She lowers her gaze and sits down again, waving at us to do the same. Pmox complies eagerly, and so does Miz. Everyone else obeys reluctantly.

"If I were to disclose any confidential information, I would also be facing execution. I will only say what I am allowed to share with you."

Castiel…

My eyes snap open at the crystalline voice that has just echoed through my head. Where did that voice come from? Why would an Angel try to contact me directly and not through my immediate superior?

No, it was not an Angel. This is a human voice... a child's voice... Could it be that someone is praying to me? That's impossible. There are no humans who know my name, I have never once been prayed to.

Anna doesn't seem to have noticed my confusion and keeps talking.

"All I can tell you is that Camael's mission is the latest attempt from Heaven to instill Faith, love and fear of the Lord in Humans."

Castiel... It's me. Camael.

Even if in this life I answer to the name of Jesus.

Camael.

I can hardly keep my wings still and control my Grace not to betray my shock. Camael, in his human body, is praying in Enochian. To me.

In a flash, I re-live our fight in the sky above Cain's terrified eyes, stripped of his memories.

Why would Camael want to talk to me? He tried to kill me. Does he still resent me for what I did to the Phoenix a thousand years ago?

"Regardless of whether the mission is a failure or a success, this is the last time we will operate directly on Earth," Anna continues. "We will then revert to a purely observatory mission, like in the past. The reason you are not involved in the mission is your reputation for insubordination. For such a small number of soldiers, we have a staggering rate of rebellions and insolence compared to other divisions. As a precaution, the hierarchy has prohibited any contact or communication between you and Camael until he loses his memories and identity. Only then will you be included in the mission."

There is something I wanted to tell you, Castiel.

The child's voice sounds like an autumn breeze in my head.

"And I expect you to behave with dignity, and obey without question! I won't allow any of you to be stupid enough to rebel and get killed: that's the last thing the Garrison needs!"

I should report the prayer to Anna. It is my duty. No contact with Camael is allowed. But as I rise to speak out…

Something I've wanted to tell you for the last thousand years.

Please listen to me without anger.

"Yes, Castiel?" Anna asks, her voice laced with a combination of surprise and irritation.

Wait. If I report this prayer, I will never know what my brother was going to tell me. Anna stares at me unblinkingly, waiting for me to say something.

I slowly sit back down.

After all... it is forbidden for us to approach or contact Camael, not the other way around... I am not disobeying by remaining silent. I have not received any specific order to report an attempted contact from Camael.

"Cas?" Levanael whispers to me.

All my siblings are watching. I have to say something.

"When will Camael lose his memory?" I say to explain why I intervened.

I injured you, I nearly killed you, when all you did was obey orders...

I am so sorry for that. I hope you can forgive me someday.

I try my best to look like I'm paying attention to the meeting while all my thoughts are turned towards Camael. I wish I could tell him that I forgave him a long time ago, that he's already being punished enough for my resentment to be added to that.

But I can't do anything but listen, since I don't have the right to talk to him.

"Soon. Within a few weeks or months, if my calculations are correct," Balthazar chimes in.

"Oh, right." Zedekiel huffs. "Balthazar knows all the confidential bits and never tells us a single thing."

"Why would I? Confidential bits are meant to be confidential, you know."

But that's not all…

"Good. The issue is closed. I have an announcement to make that directly concerns your functions in the Mission."

If this is my last chance to be understood, I don't want to let it pass.

You've seen Cain's memories...

There is something I want you to know.

"From now on, you will only be watching the West. You will no longer write reports on the East, and will avoid as much as possible going to these areas, unless instructed otherwise. I will provide you with a map of the detailed areas to avoid. In the East, only the former sector of Siosp will remain in your jurisdiction until further notice."

"What? But why?" Ephra says, stunned.

I would do it again without hesitation if I had to. I don't regret any of my actions.

Do you know why?

I lower my eyes and wait for Camael to answer his own question. I'm listening to two conversations at once, I feel a bit overwhelmed.

"Because the East will be entrusted to the pagan gods."

"To the what?"

"The pagan gods. Don't ask me what it is, all I know is in the note I've been sent earlier. I'll transfer it to you right now."

She raises her fingers to her temple. And the next second, a flood of information pours into my head, containing names and stories of many gods, and...

There is a loud gasp. Zedekiel's feathers are all puffed out as if he had been struck by lightning.

"These… gods… fit the description I sent to the hierarchy in my report on human beliefs and superstitions around the world, but… I am positive, they don't exist except in their fertile imagination!"

I believe you might be able to understand me.

I disobeyed and betrayed everything I knew to save Cain, because...

Balthazar's eyes sparkle mischievously.

"Well, it looks like they're real now, Zeddy…"

… devotion has no chains.

"The meeting is over," Anna raises her voice to avoid any questions that may come up. "Dismissed!"

Farewell, Castiel.

My siblings fly away, protesting in a few shared whispers about how the Garrison is being disrespected and information withheld.

They're all gone now, leaving me alone to stare at the empty room. The child's voice echoes are fading away, and not even the thousands of distant celestial voices can fill the void within me.

oOo

The sun is pouring down blazing light onto the Earth. Under the cloudless sky, sun rays relentlessly hit the walls of Jerusalem and drive Humans to cover their skulls with white cloth.

The majestic Temple of Herod towers in the centre of the city. Its ochre stone structure and marble columns reflect the sun's gleam so brightly that Humans have to shield their eyes to not be blinded by it. I can't help but take pride in this treasure of art and architecture built to the glory of my Father. Humans have grown so much since the day they crawled out of the ocean...

Mary and Joseph are climbing the steps to the Temple, their faces pale with worry. They walk among the columns and stop, breathless, at the sight of Jesus, whom they had lost sight of for the last three days. I spent these three days watching them search everywhere for the child in agony and tears.

Jesus is twelve now – he lost his memories of his true identity years ago, and we have been allowed to watch him and guide him on his quest through dreams that are imposed down to the last detail by the hierarchy. Years have passed, but looking at Jesus still makes me a bit uneasy. For one, I am now the only one who knows exactly what happened between Cain and Camael, since both are walking the Earth deprived of their memories. Moreover, looking at Jesus is hard because he appears to be completely human, but no soul shines in him.

I can see Camael in his calm and quiet attitude, in his gentle voice and confident manners. Like an echo of my brother in arms.

In the shade of a column, the young boy, sitting cross-legged, is in deep conversation with about ten priests surrounding him and drinking in his words. Like all the natives of these sun-drenched lands, Jesus has dark, velvety skin, thick curls of black hair, and warm, lively brown eyes. He stops when Mary and Joseph walk up to him and scold him for having disappeared. He doesn't seem to be surprised or sheepish as a human child would have been, instead he reacts like the Angel that he actually is. Calm and emotionless.

A sudden rush of whispers into my head distracts me from his reply. I press my fingers to my temple and squint, trying to listen to them all. Like the tide, they keep growing and growing with every second, until it becomes nearly deafening.

From what I hear, it looks like the hierarchy finally confirmed that Camael's Grace has been destroyed – there have been rumors about this for almost a decade which have caused a lot of unrest among soldiers. The voices are getting louder still. Some of them sound neutral and indifferent, but they're drown out by thousands of outraged whispers laced with disbelief and anger…

Down at my feet, Jesus is rising to his feet and following his parents out of the Temple just when the whispers shift into loud cries of protest.

Then suddenly, the silence.

Silence, followed by dispassionate voices of Generals of divisions listing the names and ranks of their insubordinate soldiers who have been sent to rehabilitation.

I don't hear Anna's voice among them, nor any names of Garrison's soldiers. The information was not new to us, which prevented us from reacting as strongly as the rest of our brothers. We had time to come to terms with the idea that our brother will live and die as a human being. To get into our heads that nothing can change this.

oOo

In the next chapter (next sunday, april 19th)

"This has nothing to do with phrasing. The real problem is how the teachings will be misinterpreted by listeners."

"If God has decided to bring this message to Humans, it is because He knows that they are ready to hear and understand it."

"While it may be understood by those listening to it now, it will only take two or three generations for the message to be distorted or lost. That's the way Humans are."