Author's note: So, I kinda have an announcement to make. I'm going to be a mom soon! Which means that I might have some difficulties finding free time and energy to write and translate. I'll be doing my best, so please be patient!

Previously: During the meeting of preparation for the Apocalypse that he believes to be necessary since his rehabilitation, Castiel hears Anpiel's voice claiming that Sam's and Dean's souls will be consumed during the fight between Lucifer and Michael, despite what Zachariah had promised him. Castiel decides to act, he leaves the meeting and releases Dean so he can go and stop Sam from killing Lilith who is the final seal. Castiel stays behind to slow down the Archangel Raphael, and is executed for rebellion.

This chapter takes place in season 5 episode 1.

oOo

The miracle

A raindrop falls on my cheek.

Then another one.

My eyes snap open as I am flooded with so much information that my senses are overwhelmed.

The rolling waves' relentless chant. A cloudy sky veiling the sun's radiance. Air rushing into my lungs. Rain starting to drum on my body, pasting my clothes to my skin. The hard and smooth touch of stone under my fingers.

I push myself upright and look around at the scenery, which looks like a painting in faded colors. The pebble beach appears to be glistening under the rain that prickles the ocean with a thousand needles. In the distance, verdant cliffs are eroding in the waves crashing on them.

I can still hear Raphael's fingers snapping. His blinding wingspan is imprinted in my eyes.

Rocks roll under my feet as I stand up, my face raised to the gray sky. My Grace bears the remembrance of the agony that tore through me when the Archangel's wrath fell upon me. Why am I still alive?

A strange sensation of emptiness makes me realize that something vital is missing. It takes me a few seconds to understand with stupor that Jimmy Novak's soul is nowhere to be found. No matter how hard I scan this organic structure down to the last molecule, there is no trace of Jimmy anywhere to be found. Which is impossible. I've never quite listened to Balthazar's scientific ramblings on human vessel possession, but I'm fairly sure that it's impossible for an Angel to occupy a soulless body.

For a second, I fear I'm back in the rehabilitation room, but I quickly dismiss the idea. The Archangels would never have granted a second chance to an Angel who rebelled twice already. Not only that, but I can tell by the position of the stars and the rotation of the Earth around the sun that I am not even in North America anymore and that nearly thirty-two hours have passed since I betrayed the Council and freed Dean from his cage.

What happened between then and now? Where is Raphael? What happened to Jimmy's soul? And how did I end up on that beach in Ireland, so far from the Prophet Chuck's house?

But more importantly...

"Dean…"

My voice rumbles out of my throat hoarsely. I spread my wings but stop short as I open my eyes wide.

I am unable to locate Dean. Or Sam.

It's like the Winchester brothers are nowhere on earth. Like they never even existed.

Anxiously, I focus on my brethren's constant whispering to decipher their voices and try to find some information about the Winchesters. But all I get is reports of meetings, statistics, and statements about ranks in the hierarchy for some specific Angel or Cherub. Absolutely nothing about the Apocalypse, the Winchester brothers or the fight to the death between Michael and Lucifer.

Was Dean able to stop Sam in time?

I know exactly what I need to do. Just to be on the safe side, I lower my aura as much as I can before flying off to the other side of the planet with a strong flap of my wings, over the Atlantic Ocean and North America's wide open spaces in a split second.

With a soft ruffle of feathers, I land on the exact location where I had sent Dean. Ilchester, Maryland. Within the walls of Saint Mary's Convent.

Here, the sun is only just beginning to rise. The dawn light filters through the corridor littered with shards of glass. The stained-glass windows all seem to have imploded as if under the effect of a massive depressurization, leaving the sky exposed. My senses focus on the two partly open doors at the end of the corridor. There is an evil energy radiating from them, along with the stench of sulfur.

This is not good.

Folding my wings behind my back, I stride towards the doors leading to the chapel, slamming them open from a distance with a flick of my wrist, glass crunching under my feet in the dreadful silence.

What I find in there confirms everything I feared. The chapel is in ruins, the roof ripped off, leaving it open to the sky. The wind gusts into my trench coat and makes my tie flutter as I take one step forward, then another, eyes riveted on the bloodstained altar in front of which a gaping abyss digs into the ground forming a perfect circle. Yellow bands have been drawn all around, fluttering like a frightened bird's heart. Leaning over, the tips of my shoes hanging in the void, I sharpen my senses to peer into the bottom. The pit dives down to the planet's molten core. Far, far down, I can see the lava flowing like a glowing sea of fire.

The stench of sulfur is overpowering.

I look up, frowning, and slowly walk around the gaping hole, following the trail of dried blood that surrounds it and leads to the altar adorned with candlesticks whose wax has long since melted and solidified.

I crouch down to run my fingertips over the dark blood, a sliver of my Grace probing the molecules. This is all I need to be sure. Just like I feared, this is Lilith's blood.

The last seal has been broken and the Cage is open.

Dean failed.

I look up to gaze at the bright gray sky. I still can't locate Dean and Sam. Could it be that Michael and Lucifer already possessed the Winchester brothers and their death fight is over?

This doesn't make sense. Had the Apocalypse occurred, Humanity would be destroyed and Earth would be on fire right now. Heaven's legions would be ready for war. Yet, except for a few hurricanes on the other side of the planet and some electric tension in the air, it's like nothing happened. It shouldn't be that quiet.

I don't understand.

What did Raphael do to me? Did he spare me with the intention of inflicting me with a similar fate to the one Camael went through? Did he rip Jimmy's soul out of my body for a specific reason?

I cannot trust the Garrison soldiers who all betrayed me, nor the Council members who bow to the Archangels' destructive plans. Until I have all the facts, there is only one Angel I can trust and who can answer my questions. The one who caused my second rebellion.

Still crouching by the altar, I look down at my bloodstained fingers, focusing my Grace to reach my sister.

"Anpiel. Join me. I need to talk to you alone."

I barely finished projecting my voice through the celestial channels when I hear a jumbled flutter of wings and a startled gasp.

"Castiel?"

I slowly rise to my feet to face the Angel. Anpiel is staring at me with wide, bewildered eyes. She hasn't even folded her wings and the wind is blowing her short hair up.

"Hello, Anpiel."

She hesitantly steps towards me and stands on her tiptoes to touch my shoulder with her fingertips, my wing feathers, and then my vessel's hair.

"It really is you…" she breathes out. "But how can it be? You died. I saw it. We all did."

I grab her wrist to stop her awkward palpations.

"What do you mean you saw it?"

Anpiel obediently stops and stares at me in wonder.

"Raphael aired your execution live through all the celestial channels to make an example out of you. Let me tell you no one in Heaven even dared to blink the wrong way when the Cage was formally declared open and the Apocalypse imminent."

I release her wrist and shake my head.

"You have to be mistaken. Perhaps it was another Angel? Clearly I wasn't executed, I'm here, and very much alive."

"I'm not mistaken. We all watched the scene happen just like in a movie theater. We watched your vessel explode, Raphael seize your Grace and your holy spirit and burn them to ashes. Then he declared that the Apocalypse would bring back Paradise on Earth and a new era of blessings, and that anyone opposed to this would end up just like you."

Anpiel frantically nods as she blurts out these words in a cracked voice, her disheveled hair grazing her forehead.

"With my own eyes I saw your wings burning, I felt deep inside me your existence destroyed. Your death was announced officially in a memo. I saw a Reaper sweep your vessel's soul away to the Axis Mundi. You were dead, Castiel. You were dead, and it was all my fault."

Her voice grows strained on these last words, but she squares her shoulders, a fiery glow brightening her eyes. A smile spreads over her face, revealing her teeth, one of which is missing and creates a black hole. She taps my chest with the tip of her index finger.

"And now you're here. Alive. You know what that means? It's a miracle, Castiel! A miracle!"

I draw my eyes back to the bloodstained altar where Lilith lived her last moments, sacrificing her life to free her master and creator. My mind is racing as I try to process something that can't be possible. In forty-two million years of existence, I have seen countless Humans resurrected, I brought thousands back to life myself. An Angel coming back to life, though? That never happened to my knowledge.

"This isn't possible, Anpiel. Miracles only apply to Humans and are planned centuries ahead of time by the commission headed by the Council, under the Archangels' authority."

"I'm not talking about the miracles per century quotas or the saints' canonization! That's just bureaucracy trying to legitimize their pointless position at the top of the hierarchy, and you know it! No, I'm saying this is an ACTUAL miracle!"

My Grace is whirling so hard in my veins it makes me lightheaded. I stare again into Anpiel's eyes, filled with Faith.

"You mean..." I clench my fists, forcing the words out of my throat because the thought seems so utterly unbelievable. "… that God resurrected me?"

I whispered the Lord's name with reverent hesitation. This Father I have so strongly rejected and cursed these past months, this Father I turned my back to and openly disobeyed twice, why would He want to bring me back to life? Why, after hundreds of thousands of years not answering my prayers?

Anpiel nods, getting more and more ecstatic.

"This means that it was He who put this information about the Winchesters into my mind! And that He doesn't want this Apocalypse to happen, and He brought you back to stop it!"

"Had God wanted to save Humanity, He would have allowed Dean to stop Sam's arm. From what I see here…" I wave at the bloodied altar and the gaping abyss. "… Lucifer runs free and the Apocalypse is about to hit Humanity. There is no reason to rejoice."

Anpiel crosses her arms, holding her chin high defiantly.

"Nah. The Lord works in mysterious ways. He worked a miracle in bringing you back, which means He supports your actions. That makes you the bearer of His Will. I will join you in your mission, since following you is now the safest way to please our Father."

Judging by her pouty lower lip and the fanatical tone in her voice, it's pointless to discuss the matter any further, Anpiel will just stick to it. I sigh and dig my hands into my trench coat pockets. Sunrise is casting a pale light on the shattered walls and the demon blood stained altar.

I push aside the unsettling and exhilarating idea that my Father did a miracle for me, and stepped in to help me. That He chose me, over any of my thousands of older, more devoted or powerful brothers.

"I need to know what happened, Anpiel. Where are the Winchester brothers?"

"I haven't told you everything, Castiel. Zachariah is keeping it secret, but another miracle occurred even before you were resurrected. When the Cage opened, Sam and Dean were somehow moved into an airplane flying by. No Angel was ordered to do this, I checked in the Archives. It has to be divine intervention!"

Anpiel's aura simmers with joy every time she mentions a miracle from God.

"If Zachariah doesn't want this to be known, how did you find out?"

My sister casually shrugs.

"Zachariah discharged Hester and Zedekiel from the rehabilitation room before their conversion was complete. Zedekiel took the whole experience hard and told me all about it. I'm a good listener and he really needed to vent. And since I have nothing to do given the fact that crossroad demons stopped working, and instead are having orgies and slaughtering parties on Earth to celebrate their daddy's homecoming with all the other demons, I had plenty of time to spare. Anyway, Zed told me Zachariah has been on edge since your number two rebellion and named himself Garrison General to lead the operations. As soon as the Cage opened, he showed up before the Winchester brothers to pressure Dean into accepting his role as Michael's sword, but your Human used a banishment seal. I have no idea how he learned to do this, but it took hours before the Garrison soldiers finally tracked down Zachariah who was lost in rural Australia."

Anpiel lets out a cackle that sounds like a pig grunting. Now that I think about it, in my last moments alive I used the forbidden seal in front of him to send Zachariah away, that's when Dean probably memorized the marks.

After undergoing two banishment seals in a row in such a short period of time, I can only imagine Zachariah's state of frustration and rage...

"What happened next?"

"The Winchester went MIA. They must have found some way to hide. From what I heard, Lucifer is courting one of the best vessels in the bloodlines prepared by Balthazar. He clearly has no desire to wait for Sam to show up again and he's going to settle for this proxy to start bringing the Apocalypse to Earth."

I give a nod, pondering over a strategy to find Sam and Dean and put an end to the Apocalypse for good. The Winchester brothers are skilled hunters, familiar with witchcraft and supernatural phenomena. This isn't the first time they hide from our eyes. Last time, Uriel had no hesitation threatening Dean through a dream. Whatever their method is, it won't keep them safe for long. Not with all of Heaven and Hell chasing them.

They won't make it on their own.

"I need to find them quickly."

"Zachariah might find them before you do," Anpiel says, sobering. "He's setting a trap for them as we speak. He's planted a vision in Prophet Chuck's head to get them exactly where he wants them, and since this is his last chance before he is voted out of his top Council position, he's not going to go easy on them."

I look up sharply, feathers puffing out on my wings.

"Where?"

My thoughts get jumbled with panic. If Zachariah gets his hands on Dean, he won't bother with free will to get the consent he needs to fulfill his mission and keep his place on the Council.

"In North New York. Castle Storage, at 42 Rover Hill. But you're not planning on...?"

I'm gone before she even completes her question.

oOo

This place reeks of demon blood.

Lurking in the shadows, I fold my wings as silently as possible, resorbing my aura as much as I can. There are corpses smelling of sulfur lying on an anti-demon seal on the ground.

I assess the situation with a glance. Zachariah is there with Mgam and Eboza. Their wings are folded and they exude confidence and superiority. All three have their backs to me and none of them have noticed my arrival.

And at their feet, faces twisted with agony, the Winchester brothers are prostrated on the ground. Sam looks like he's suffocating, and there is blood dripping from Dean's mouth.

Zachariah leans over Dean to grab his jaw threateningly.

"You're going to say yes, Dean."

A kind of rage like I've never felt before hits me, igniting my Grace with fire. I did not tear Dean from decades of misery in Hell so that Angels could torture him too!

"Just kill us," Dean snarls in a hoarse voice.

I slowly stand up, forging my blade in my veins until it pierces my forearm skin and slips into my hand.

Three on one.

I step toward Eboza like a shadow, raising my blade which gleams ominously.

Zachariah hasn't fought in billions of years, too busy pulling strings from the top of the hierarchy. Mgam and Eboza, however, are powerful and experienced warriors who proved their worth during the ten great wars. I would have a hard time defeating them in a fair fight. I need to get rid of them first, using the element of surprise, starting with the most powerful one.

"Kill you?" Zachariah echoes, straightening up. "Oh, no. I'm just getting started."

I thrust my blade into Eboza's neck and watch unblinkingly as his wings spread and crumble into ashes while his Grace blazes in a blast of pure light. My soldier's empty vessel collapses to the ground just when Mgam grabs his weapon to attack me.

I jump back as he wildly slashes at me with his blade. Maybe it's because he saw his brother in arms die right in front of him or because he's facing an Angel who's supposed to be dead, but his assault is chaotic and it's easy for me to kick him away and then punch him in the face to rip his Grace from his vessel's neurons.

The split second he's slowed down allows me to disarm him and destroy his vessel by beating him up and finally overpowering him.

I slam his head against a metal shelf hard enough to crack the skull, then plunge my blade into his back, right between his wings. It dives into the flesh and bones as if it were made of water.

I watch the blinding flash that comes with his Grace's extinction and the empty body slump to the ground with the ashes of his wings.

I just killed two Angels with my own hands. Two of my brothers, my soldiers.

And I feel nothing but dark satisfaction.

Snapping my wings wide open, I turn to Zachariah, tightening my grip on my blade. My superior is staring at me with raw fear - I can feel it in his aura and I see it in the way his wings are sagging.

He knows he's at my mercy and that I will have no qualms in killing him. I certainly have the urge to do so.

"How are you…"

"Alive?" I complete for him. "That's a good question." I point at the Winchester brothers still writhing in pain on the ground - Sam's face is turning blue and he looks like he's about to pass out. "How did these two end up on that airplane? Another good question. Because the Angels didn't do it. I think we both know the answer, don't we?"

Zachariah is staring at me wide-eyed as though I were an Archangel, or God Himself. I've never seen him so fearful, so hesitant. Gone are the mocking and patronizing comments now.

My Grace is flaring with a rightful sense of superiority. My resurrection is the undeniable proof that God is on my side. On my side, not Zachariah's or the Council's.

"No," he breathes out in fear. "That's not possible."

"It scares you. Well, it should."

I let my aura wash over the room, crashing the air with the divine wrath inside me. It's exhilarating to see my superior bend under my glare, he who tested and manipulated me for millennia, and I can hardly hold back the temptation to make of him my third murder of an Angel.

"Now, put these boys back together and go," I say threateningly. "I won't ask twice."

A wide range of emotions flash through his eyes and I can see the exact moment when God's fear chases everything else out of him. He obeys and disappears in a hurried flutter of his wings.

I never thought I would see the day when Zachariah would bend to my will.

Perhaps I should have killed him to buy the Winchesters more time. But I'm not here to seek revenge for Zachariah's lies and games, nor to shed my brothers' blood, no matter how despicable they are. I came back to carry out God's Will, and for that reason only.

Sam and Dean scramble to their feet, healed and looking bewildered. It's a strange sensation to have them right in front of me, while still being unable to locate their position on the planet. The dark energy characteristic of witches' and demons' curses is radiating from the small spell-bound bags in their pockets - I don't even need to see them, I can feel their impact clouding my ability to pinpoint them on the physical plane.

A useless artifact if all it took was a fake prophecy to lead them headfirst into a trap hardly more sophisticated than the one Uriel had used to get his hands on Anna. Had I not interfered, Zachariah would have tortured Dean into saying yes to Michael, and the demons would have done the same to Sam so their maker would be able to triumph.

"You two need to be more careful."

"Yeah, I'm starting to get that," Dean replies, his lips still glistening with blood. "Your frat brothers are bigger dicks than I thought."

"I don't mean the Angels. Lucifer is circling his vessel."

I glance at Sam and pause as I realize from the look on his face that he doesn't know. He doesn't know yet that he's Lucifer's vessel, that Heaven and Hell were cruel enough to pick Dean and Sam to kill each other and won't give them a choice, just as they didn't give any to Cain and Abel. If Zachariah hasn't disclosed to Sam his role in this Apocalypse, I certainly won't. Not now. Not until I really have to.

I believe I can stop the Apocalypse and fulfill the mission God assigned me by bringing me back to life. There is no need to distress these boys any further.

"And once he takes it, those hex bags won't be enough to protect you."

I clench my wings and walk up to them, seeping my Grace into my fingertips. Without warning, I plant my hands on their chests, and with a pulse of energy I carve a variety of intricate prayers into their ribs to cut them off from our tracking networks. From now on, no celestial Grace will be able to locate them on the planet.

Dean and Sam let out a grunt of pain and stare at me in betrayal like cats that had their tails stepped on.

"What the hell was that?"

"An Enochian sigil."

No need to tell them this is a seal I read in the book I stole from the Sisters of Fate, and had my first rebellion been successful, I would have had a significantly better seal at my disposal that would have saved them from Heaven, Fate, and Hell's schemes forever.

For the first time, I not only understand Camael's actions, I envy him. If only I too had managed to complete this seal in time...

But this is not the time for regrets. I have a divine mission to carry out. Time flows differently in Heaven and I don't know how Zachariah will react to my resurrection and his hindered plans for the Apocalypse. He will probably summon the Council before making a decision, which buys me some time to work out a strategy.

"It'll hide you from every Angel in creation, including Lucifer," I explain.

"What, did you just brand us with it?"

"No. I carved it into your ribs."

The thought seems to upset Dean on a high level, while Sam looks at me with an expression I can't describe.

"Hey, Cas... were you really dead?"

I recall the Archangel Raphael's snap of fingers, the excruciating pain, and then... nothing. Absolutely nothing. No peace, no suffering.

Nothing but the annihilation of my existence. The absence of everything. There was no space, no time, no awareness.

Between the time I died and the time I woke up on that beach in Ireland, I completely ceased to exist. Until I rose from the void again, with my memories, my thoughts, my doubts and everything that has shaped me throughout my life.

I've always known that nothing but oblivion awaits Angels after they die, but experiencing it has wiped out all fear in me. I no longer fear death. I no longer fear disobeying. I no longer fear to doubt or to feel.

"Yes."

I look up as the Winchester brothers gaze at me expectantly.

"Then how are you back?"

I know who brought me back and why, but I can't explain how God managed to resurrect me after Raphael obliterated every last molecule of my being. I don't think Sam and Dean realize how impossible and unprecedented an Angel's resurrection is. Many Humans, including the Winchester brothers, have been brought back to life over the millennia by command or through pacts between Humans and demons. Since Humans have a soul, we just have to use it to rebuild the body and breathe life into it. Which is strictly impossible for an Angel. Only the Lord Almighty could achieve such a miracle.

And that's something I could use to successfully carry out the mission He has entrusted to me. A strategy is starting to build in my head, and I fly off to put it into action.

oOo

It's been nearly two thousand years since I last set foot in this sunlit part of the world.

The lush vegetation, the striking blue of the Lake Kinnereth and the fragrance of flowers are the same as they used to be. Were it not for the lack of shepherds leading their sheep up the hill, I could almost believe time had no grasp on the lake nestling between these high hills.

Hands deep in my trench coat pockets, I tilt my head back, shutting my eyes to let the May sunlight bathe my face as I focus on the steady flow of celestial voices in my Grace.

A rustle of feathers signals an Angel's landing behind me. But I keep my eyes closed, knowing my brother in arms' familiar aura.

"I can't believe it. So it's true, you really are still alive."

The sound of his footsteps gets closer until he comes to a stop at my side, our wings brushing against each other. I slowly open my eyes. The sun is shining high in the blue sky, marking its brilliance in my vision. If not for my Grace constantly healing my eyes, they would have burned by now.

"Hello, Balthazar."

I look down to meet my older brother's gaze. He's still inhabiting the Mormon body with blond hair and a light beard shading his jaw. His eyes glitter with amusement, along with that hint of sarcasm that never quite leaves him.

"Cassy, Cassy, Cassy…" He slowly shakes his head, his lips stretching into a fond smile. "You little bastard. You know I almost shed a tear when I watched Raphael ace you? I don't know how you did it, but I have to say I'm impressed."

"How did I what?"

Balthazar blinks and stares at me like I just said something stupid.

"How did you fake your death, of course! It was a brilliant move, by the way. I totally bought it."

I look away, embracing the lake view, so large that Humans once referred to it as a sea.

"I wasn't faking it, Balthazar."

"That's what she said."

"I did die that night, killed by Raphael. God brought me back to life."

"… Right. And I'm Celine Dion."

I'm used to my brother's sarcasm and dubious humor, I won't give him the pleasure of asking who Celine Dion is and how that relates to the miracle of my resurrection. I learned in the early centuries after Balthazar joined the Garrison that the easiest strategy is to ignore him, and that asking questions can only lead to pointless chatter and more mockery laced with cryptic references.

I cast a stern look at him.

"As an expert on human vessels, please explain to me, Celine Dion, how I am in possession of Jimmy Novak's body when his soul is in Heaven?"

My brother's smirk falters and he reaches out to touch my forehead with two fingertips. I hold his gaze unblinkingly, allowing the pulse of his Grace to probe my vessel.

Unlike Anpiel who was ecstatic and fervent in her reaction, a troubled look flashes through Balthazar's eyes. He withdraws his hand and averts his gaze, straightening his black jacket over his t-shirt whose collar shows a few blond hairs from his vessel's chest. His jaw clenches as he stares at the distant lake, his face darkening.

"You can't explain it," I assert since he remains silent, "because it is a miracle. An authentic miracle, a divine intervention of the Lord. Balthazar, don't you see? This is what we have been waiting and hoping for for thousands, millions of years! A sign from our Father!"

"Well, about that, to be perfectly honest with you, Cassy, I consider myself an atheist."

Thrown off track, I snap my mouth shut. His tone was casual and mildly ironic. As it often happens with Balthazar, I can't tell whether he's joking or being serious.

"Atheist?"

Balthazar rolls his eyes and gestures dismissively.

"I know what you're thinking. An atheist Angel has no more business working for Heaven than a virgin whore for a Calcutta brothel. There was a time, hundreds of millions of years ago, when I was myself a good old fanatical soldier praising the name of the Lord all day long. No need to make that face, yes, I used to be boring in my youth, that's not a secret, I never kept it from you. Good thing I grew better as I got older, when I finally realized that if there is a God, he left a long, long time ago."

"Balthazar, are you denying God's existence?"

My brother blinks and arches an eyebrow.

"Yes, and? What are you going to do, report me for blasphemy? You, our poster child for rebellion?"

"Siosp was executed for less than that."

He shrugs.

"Siosp was an idiot. He should have kept his mouth shut and his thoughts to himself, just like I did since the day I stopped believing in this Father I've been harped on since my creation."

I close my eyes briefly, straining to shut out the memory of Siosp's harrowing agony that thousands of years have hardly dulled. My Grace is pulsing in me, inside this organic arrangement of veins, bones and flesh that no soul inhabits anymore.

"You can deny it all you want, Balthazar, but God created this world, He created us, and He brought me back to life."

My brother sighs loudly and extends a wing to wrap it around my shoulders.

"Fine. Let's say you're right. After thousands of years doing nothing, Daddy came out of his apathy to save your ass. Then what? Why haven't you seized the opportunity to retire? Have you any idea how many times I've considered faking my own death to get away from Heaven and its bureaucracy?"

I frown, casting him a sidelong glare. The sun illuminates his hair with a golden glow, and his vessel's contracted pupils display a shade of blue as clear as the sky.

"Because God brought me back to fulfill a mission. I have to stop the Apocalypse and the fight between Michael and Lucifer by overthrowing the Council with an insurrection of the celestial armies."

"I feel like I'm going to regret asking, but, how do you plan to do this?"

I turn to him, pinning him with a fiery stare.

"With your help."

Balthazar rolls his eyes somewhat derisively.

"There it is, just like I was saying, I regret asking."

"I need you, Balthazar. Please, listen to me."

His wing retracts from my shoulders and he dispassionately holds my gaze, gesturing for me to go on.

"Anpiel is a good start," I say, narrowing my eyes, "but she lacks your influence and is an outcast in Heaven since her creation. You, however, are respected among our brothers and sisters. They will listen to you. Tell them of the miracle of my resurrection. Tell them God doesn't want this Apocalypse. Tell them the Archangels and the Council have abused His authority and must be impeached. We need to destroy the Council's power by converting the celestial armies Angel by Angel."

Balthazar scrunches up his nose as though a foul smell is invading his nostrils.

"When Anpiel told me you wanted us to meet on the Mount of Beatitudes in Galilee, I assumed we would be chatting about the good old days when Camael was on Earth healing lepers and showing off to Humans by walking on water, or at least that you would be apologizing for making me think you were dead. Not recruiting rebels for a celestial coup."

"You know I'm right, Balthazar. Deep inside, you know it. Our Father has not been giving orders up there for a long time, and it's long overdue for us to stand up and fight the Archangels' and the Council's oppression. They are the ones who executed Siosp. They ripped Camael's Grace off and allowed the Humans to torture him to death. They led Uriel to kill Levanael, Miz, Ephra and Pmox. They started this Apocalypse by tricking the Winchester brothers into breaking the seals."

A weird twitch runs through Balthazar's wings as he seems deep in thought, in an inner struggle with himself. Then, he gives out a dramatic sigh.

"All right. You win, Cassy. I'm on your side. I'll be out spreading the word among the Angels like a nice little Jehovah's Witness if that makes you happy. But may I say, there's a flaw in your celestial guerrilla plan. Two flaws, actually."

I tilt my head to the side, squinting and waiting for him to elaborate.

"You weren't up there to see it when the Angels rioted after Camael's death, but there were a lot of them, and they still got squashed in no time by Michael and Raphael. Everyone clearly remembers this, and no one will dare to oppose the Archangels again. No offense, brother, but your cute miraculous resurrection won't persuade them to go up against the most terrifying weapons in Heaven. Even if I could win over the entire celestial army with my charm and wit, it would not be enough to defeat Michael and Raphael. And don't get me started on Lucifer, his demons and his Horsemen of the Apocalypse who surely won't stop until they get their big fight. Believe me, Cassy dear, if you don't want your revolution to turn into a suicide mission, you need a strong ally who will rally all the troops on your side."

"Who?"

Balthazar spreads out his arms and wings simultaneously for theatrical effect.

"Well, God, of course! Since Daddy brought you back, you must be his favorite, right? I'm fairly certain that if you find him and convince him to help you beat the Archangels to a pulp, not only will all the Angels follow you blindly, but no one will have to die this time around. It will be a complete and crushing victory."

I look down with a frown, my Grace bubbling up. At my feet, the green grass is brushing against Jimmy's shoes.

"Finding God…"

The whispered word floats in the warm air and floral scents. There is an ant climbing up a blade of grass, unaware of the presence of an Angel of the Lord. Right now, I feel as tiny, as insignificant as an insect. I think back to the Tower of Babel, to our laughter at the arrogance and ignorance of Humans who expected to reach God by piling up bricks with dung to build a tower only a few dozen meters high.

"I wouldn't even know where to start," I say, looking up to my brother.

Balthazar flashes me a smile.

"Well, you do have something to work with, Cassy. If Daddy brought you back to life, it means he cares about what happens to you and how things are going. So, there is a high probability that he is somewhere on Earth. All you have to do is find out where he is and ask him to join the party."

"But how?"

"Easy. You know that I was involved in creating celestial weapons in the past, and that I know things no one else does? Let me reveal you something. Your precious Dean Winchester owns a very special artifact, forged in Heaven thousands of years ago and lost in the Apocalypses..."

At the mention of the righteous man, I become more attentive.

"What is it?"

"He probably has no idea, but the necklace around his neck is a unique device that can detect the immediate presence of God. It looks ordinary, but the pendant shines brightly when in the presence of our Father. The necklace will lead you to God, Cassy. Find him, and all of Heaven's divisions will line up behind you like obedient little ducklings."

I nod, a newfound sense of excitement rising in me. If God agrees to help me, everything will be fixed right away. Just the thought of standing in front of my Creator, who has been the focus of all my thoughts and actions since the very beginning of my life, makes me lightheaded. My broken Faith rises from its ashes, brighter than ever.

"Thank you, Balthazar. I owe you."

"You're welcome."

With a wave of his hand to bid me farewell, Balthazar turns his back to me and spreads his wings, so beautiful in the sun light. But before he flies away, he pauses and tilts his head in a somehow hesitant way.

"Just tell me one thing before I jump back into this celestial hornet's nest. Rumor has it that you're the one who killed Mgam and Eboza... Is that true?"

I can't see his face, but his voice sounds as casual as it always does.

"I did have to get rid of them," I reply hoarsely. "I had no other choice to save Sam and Dean from Zachariah."

Balthazar nods quietly and flies away with a silky flutter of feathers - the shift in air deploys my trench coat and makes the leaves on the trees behind me rustle.

oOo

In the next chapter

"I need a phone to make a phone call."

"Really? Not to make pancakes?"

"No. To make a phone call."

"Usually they all do that, that's kinda why we call them phones."