Oh, hell no.
Adam started storming over to Angel In Charge, but before he got there, the angel waved their hand toward Minos with something of a smirk. Adam stopped and looked back at Minos with dread, waiting to watch him fade into the ether, or whatever the hell was about to happen. Only Minos just looked sort of bored and rolled his eyes at Angel In Charge.
Adam looked back, and Angel In Charge didnotlook amused. They waved their hand again. Then blinked. Then waved.
“Ummm, you look kind of stupid?” Adam drawled, stifling a giggle. “Just saying. Like all blinky and wavy.” He couldn’t help a little imitation at that, which made the angel look even more aggravated.
“Obviously you don’t get to fade Minos ‘into the ether’,” Adam added, using his signature hand quotes. Adam giggled again, partly because the angel did look ridiculous, and partly out of sheer relief, because Adam had really thought for a moment that he was going to lose his demon.
He sauntered over and Minos promptly picked him up and cradled him. Adam gave him a big fat kiss on the lips, then he turned back to the assholes in front of him.
He probably hadn’t been paying enough attention to his surroundings, because at that point he noticed that the walls werereallycracked. Like holy shit, was the room even gonna stay standing? The cracks were speeding up, too, spreading across the walls in hairline fractures. Some were getting wider and deeper as well. And, was that…? Ewww, yep, it sure looked like blood. Leaking from the cracks. Ok, total horror movie moment now.
Based on the way that Minos was currently squeezing him tightly, he wondered if his sexy demon was somehow responsible for the demolition of this heavenly room. He couldn’t blame his big guy.
“You know, you guys have gone and fucked things up good. Minos is an Infernal King of Hell, and he is probably way older than all of you, and he is probably way above your pay grade, and when we sat with Lucifer and Yahweh, theybothsaid that I got to stay with Minos, and Iknowthat Yah is your boss, so I don’t know what makes you think you get to do whatever the hell, or heaven, you want. But you don’t.”
It was like using Yah’s name created an instant change in the room. The Leadership Team stepped back, looking at one another and then at Adam and Minos. By the time Adam’s little tirade was over, a glaring white light was filling the room.
He threw his arms over his eyes to shield them, and when he pulled them away, the angels were all on their knees, faces averted, and Yah was standing (floating, maybe?) in front of everyone. Only this was not the tired, human-looking Yah from downstairs. This was a shining, blindingly bright, scary-ass motherfucker of a Yah.
“Hey, Yah,” he said, giving a little wave and getting a nod and half smile in return.
“I totally love the look. Very old testament cool. Totally bad ass. Thank god”—Adam giggled, he couldn’t help it—”you showed up.”
This was gonna be good, Adam just knew it. So he settled back into his demon’s arms and gleefully waited for some heavenly fireworks. This was definitely a Yah you did not fuck with, and he had no doubt all wouldfinallybe put to rights.
Chapter22
Minos
There had been a brief moment when Minos had wondered if they could, in fact, terminate him. On their own, it certainly would not have been possible. Angels could not get rid of a demon, particularly not an Infernal King of the Underworld. But all areas of the Leadership Team together? Angels, demons, ghosts, the reincarnation division—well, all together they had formidable power. Certainly not more than Yah and Luce, but more than he did on his own.
Could he be recreated? That was sort of Yah’s thing—creating something from nothing—so he still hadn’t been too terribly concerned. Yah had given their word, and that was not a thing to be taken lightly.
Nevertheless, there had been a moment of disquiet in Minos. He knew Adam would be grief-stricken if he disappeared, and he had no desire to have his human upset for one more moment in time. So it was with some relief that nothing at all happened, and he could only roll his eyes to show Adam that he was absolutely fine and there was no reason to worry.
He had forgotten the whole god’s name thing, too. Upstairs that was a thing—you were not supposed to use god’s true name. He was actually pretty sure Luce had started that at a point in history when angels and humankind were both equally demanding of Yah’s time, and Yah was conscientious and caring enough to always come when called. Luce was always saying Yah was too kind for their own good, and then somehow he had made it so that you didnotsay god’s true name. Luce didn’t bother with his own name, because he felt no need to answer when called. Invoking Lucifer was as likely to get you engulfed in flames as it was to get you an actual visit.
If Minos had thought of it himself, he would have simply invoked Yah’s name from the start as soon as he entered the door. Though Minos hated to bother them, Yah would clear this mess up.
Alas, living for all eternity meant things occasionally slipped your mind.
Yah was here now, however, and it was certainly not a pleased god looking down at their Leadership Team.
Minos smirked with grim delight, clutching Adam tightly in his arms, which was exactly where he belonged, as the voice of the Leadership Team began rushing out explanations.
“Most High and Majestic Creator, we can assure you that we did not invoke your name in this small matter that shall shortly be driven to a satisfactory resolution. It is a minor inconvenience”—Adam huffed at that statement—”of a misplaced soul and a negligent placement angel which are being handled. The soul is being accorded to their proper afterlife designation, and the placement angel has been properly disciplined for their actions. Rest assured that the write-up for their errors shall be handled and filed in due course.
“As for the…ahh…”—the angel looked up and glared at Minos at this—”demonthat is apparently in heaven, we are most aggrieved to say we have no idea how such a thing has occurred, but you can once again rest assured that the security team will be addressed for their dereliction of duties in regards to this.”
Yah simply stared down at the kneeling angels, saying nothing.
“Oh, you guys arein for it,” Adam chortled. His little human was really very gleeful about this entire incident.
The angel glared up at Adam this time, and Minos growled low in his throat. Adam merely patted Minos’ chest, however.
“Where, exactly, were you planning on placing this soul?” Yah asked in an eerily calm voice.
