It is time for the new God to go to work. If he had thought it through a little bit he would have built in an extra day of rest because he would have realized that Mondays are never a good starting point...
All the Angels were gathered in the throne room. This was the day on which their new life would begin. On which they could be Angels again. All had received the message from Gabriel, and no one thought that the undisguised threat was meant for them. The fate of the children no one had known anything about, which they had not even suspected existed had come down hard on everyone. This new God, who in those few hours he has been in Heaven had proven to be so much better, warmer, and more loving than their father. If this new God had claimed those little ones as his own. If this new God had chosen as his own a graceful young Angel from another universe who had met them with nothing but warmth and love in those few hours she was in their universe. If that was his, their choice, then they would stand behind that choice. The children and this possible new Goddess could be assured of their protection and their service. The Angels did not yet know what the future held for them, but things could only get better from now on.
The side door opened. Celine, Michael, Gabriel, Lucifer, and Ella stepped in first. Ella as the only Human present was quite uncomfortable. She had no idea what the protocol was in Heaven for Angels in the presence of their God. They were followed by Alexander with Elise on his arm flanked by Samantha who had Sarah on her left hand and David who walked in the middle had given them both a hand. They walked up to the throne where David and Sarah let go of their hands. Alexander whispered something in Elise's ear, but she shook no so resolutely that it was visible for everyone present. The Angels could see him smile warmly as he said:
"Well apparently someone doesn't want to let go. I hope you guys don't mind."
Some soft laughter could be heard as he took his seat on the throne with Elise. It was another revelation that this God was nothing like their father. This Dei just radiated love and warmth as he took his seat on the throne with the little girl on his lap. The next moment a second throne appeared next to his and both changed their appearance to the amazement of all. Where his, the original throne, was a monstrosity of pure gold. It changed to a much smaller size and was kind of a soft pink marble with soft blue veins while the second had soft green veins. Once that happened, he asked the girl on his lap who clung to him:
"Are you okay now to sit with Aunt Jo while I talk to the good Angels here for a while?"
Elise's answer was almost enough to break his and Samantha's hearts. It was the first time he had been addressed like this, and it came with such intensity and vulnerability:
"No Daddy, stay please, I stay..."
Some soft chuckling could be heard in the hall. He kissed the girl on her head:
"Of course, you can stay honeybee."
He stood up and extended his hand to Samantha to guide her to her throne. She took her seat on her throne modestly and gracefully. David and Sarah sat down on the floor in front of them as they too refused to be far from them. Alex took his seat back on his throne and made sure a large cushion appeared first so the two could sit more comfortably on the floor. He pointed to it and in no time the two of them were sitting on the pleasant cushion.
At that moment, all the Angels got down on their knee and bowed. Ella followed Lucifer's example. Only Michael's voice could be heard and he intentionally involved Samantha in their oath to their new God. He knew all too well what Samantha meant to Alex so he would not miss a single opportunity to put them on equal footing and he would serve as an example himself to all other Angels as far as his image of Samantha was concerned. An image he wanted to instill on the rest of the Host but would not drive down their throats. He knew alto well what his new God thought about free will. So he would only serve as an example and let his brothers and sisters make their own mind up what to think or feel about Samantha.
"MyLord, MyLady our allegiance belongs to you and only to you."
Samantha and Alexander grasped each other's hands and he spoke:
"No, loyalty must be earned! And I have every intention of earning it. Please stand, I've already said I don't like it when someone kneels before me. Next time I will make sure that everyone has a seat during meetings like this."
Everyone quickly stood back up and they were more than a little tense, nervous about what would follow. Big changes were coming that much they had already understood because rumors were circulating in Heaven as fast as anywhere else.
"As I said previously, Heaven will henceforth be governed by a council, no longer by one tyrant. That council will consist of the Archangels who will head their own departments. No one will ever again be forced to work day and night. Working days will be limited to twelve hours maximum until we put everything that is wrong in Heaven back in order and will then be brought back to a maximum of eight hours. so that you will have time for leisure and there will be no more than six days of work but preferably five after which everyone will observe at least one mandatory day of rest. Where you can do as you, please."
A multitude of astonished voices rang out. This was unseen that they would have time to themselves, to do things they wished to do. He raised a hand:
"However, we have a big problem to solve. There are more than two and a half billion souls trapped in Hell who absolutely do not belong there. Your father's strict rules have unfortunately banished them to that terrible place."
The following he said with just a little with more bitterness in his voice than he himself would have liked:
"Please tell me that I am wrong, that I am mistaken. But I do not believe that the soul of a mother who has seen her child die of an incurable disease and feels guilty because she could do nothing to alleviate her child's suffering belongs in Hell because her guilt weighted her soul so much that she was drawn to Hell! I don't believe that that mother or that father belongs in Hell. I believe those souls should be reunited with their child here in Heaven. I do not believe that an adolescent who was subjected to physical or mental abuse all of his or her life and saw no other way out of his or her miserable existence than to step out of life in hopes of finding peace belongs in Hell. I do not believe that a cop who killed a criminal to save innocents belongs in Hell because there are no exceptions to the commandment. I believe these souls belong in Heaven where we can embrace them with love and warmth and where Raphael's people can assist them if they are in need."
He held back his words for a moment. Samantha had squeezed his hand and that told him that his temper was threatening to gain the upper hand. Alexander took a few deep breaths:
"The system set up by your father and mother is no good. Yes, the truly guilty are punished in Hell but many more innocents are punished, and for what? Because they felt too much love? Because they were victims? That is going to change from today. From now on we are going to do things so that no innocent soul ever has to go to Hell, so that we can save every innocent soul and give them a place here in Heaven. I thank you for the opportunity you have given me because without your support none of this would have been possible. This is the morning of a new beginning. This is the morning of a new existence. In a few hours, the Archangels will be able to inform you of what needs to be done. In the meantime, enjoy a few more free hours."
Concluded Alexander with a warm smile.
The Angels began to leave the throne room and were busily speculating among themselves. Alexander and Samantha received no small number of looks of gratitude. A lot of Angels made another bow in their direction on their way out. Only the Archangels, two of Jo's Angels, Ella and Celine remained behind. Samantha stood up from her throne and said to the children:
"Come children let us visit the garden for a while. Alexander has a lot to discuss with his Angels and I'm sure it's far too boring for children."
In his head, Alex heard:
"They are standing in the garden? Sure, they are harmless towards the kids?"
"Yep totally."
Alexander didn't need the throne to create certain things. Samantha and he had concluded that if the children were to be let loose in the palace garden to expend their energy at least a playground should be available. Alex, however, had conjured something more than that out of his top hat. Indeed, he had pulled out a playground with swings, slides, and all the trimmings but also animals. Not just any animals, but animals out of fantasy. Bunnies, squirrels, chinchillas, guinea pigs, and unicorns in all sorts of rainbow colors. All are completely benign and easily approached by children. They were tangible holograms but one could not tell the difference from the real deal. For Elise, he had made some foals of unicorns not much larger than herself. Samantha took Elise on her arm and the other two children each took an Angel by the hand, the small group walked toward the exit of the throne room. Ella wanted to follow them but Alexanders' voice stopped her dead in her tracks:
"Miss Lopez, where are you going? The workday just started and your presence is requested at this counsel table."
She turned a bit pale but stayed put. At the same time, Crowley and Aziraphael entered the hall along with an overenthusiastic Maximus. All the Angels in the hall stiffened. They instinctively knew this was a Hellhound and feared the worst. Instead of shooting at his master, Max suddenly became very calm again and stepped toward the children. Elise looked at the big cat and said to Samantha:
"Step please"
Sam, who knew about Maximus, put her on the ground without fear and the little girl practically flew at the panther and embraced it by its neck. The beast let Elise do whatever she wanted quietly after which he lay down on his back and as a sign of total submission. He showed his belly while his tongue drooped out of his muzzle, seemingly the cat was enjoying the girl's attention. At that moment, all the Angels who did not know the cat let out a collective deep sigh. The two other children, led by their little sister, also flew up to Max and started petting him and he absolutely loved it. Alex let them be for a minute or two and then spoke from the throne:
"Maximus"
The Hellhound turned his head to his master for he knew an order would follow:
"From now on Samantha is equally your master, obey her as you obey me. Above all else, protect our children from danger at all costs."
One could swear by the sounds the Hellhound was making that he was not a Panther but a Husky, and for a moment one could see the Hellfire in his eyes. His way of announcing that he had understood the order and would carry it out. Samantha smiled at Alexander. Max stood straight and followed Samantha flanked by the three children. Elise suddenly had no more desire to be carried and held the cat by its neck hairs. Once they were gone Alexander said:
"Anthony, Azi, has everyone been delivered down there in the meantime?"
Aziraphael nodded, and Crowley spoke:
"Everyone neatly and safely home boss. Your luggage and Anna are in your suite. Those extra angels Rae Rae has at her disposal came in handy to move everything in one go. Most of your stuff is up in the attic as directed by Anna. She said you would like to sort that out yourself later. It could be that we were a little confused with Decker's destination it looked quite sandy."