Lucifer looked at Alexander with wide eyes and disbelief. The Antichrist saw the storm building in his father's eyes. The longer he remained silent, the worse the maelstrom of emotions in his eyes became. Just as it reached its climax, Chloe and Ella stepped out of the elevator. They had come to pick up their car, as they had been driven home the previous evening by one of Lux's chauffeurs. The two had only just witnessed the Devil's outburst. However, he was so far away that he hadn't even heard the ladies come in. Lucifer was so angry that the fires of Hell lit up in his eyes and his face flickered a few times between his normal face and his Devil face. The Devil squeezed his glass so hard that it suddenly seemed to explode into tiny pieces. Lucifer growled dangerously:
"Over my dead body! I forbid it! Do you hear me, Alexander? I will not allow this!"
The Antichrist sighed and simply shook his head. He had expected Lucifer to react badly to the news. That he would have to explain the matter at length to get the Devil to back down. Alexander would have preferred that Chloe and Ella hadn't shown up so early. Well, he didn't have much trouble telling Chloe about his decision. Ella was a different story. He would have preferred not to have to face her and the barrage of questions she would most likely fire at him. Now he would have to bite the bullet. Chloe and Ella had seen Lucifer's reaction to something Alexander had apparently said. They walked over to the bar. Chloe went straight to the Devil, who was shaking on his legs. The detective put an arm around his waist and asked softly,
"What's wrong, Lucifer?"
Only then did the Devil seem to realize that he was no longer alone with Alexander in the penthouse. He quickly extinguished the hellfire in his eyes and looked at Chloe in alarm. Everything was still too new to him, and he feared that Chloe might run away at any moment out of fear. But there was no trace of fear in her eyes. Before Lucifer could say anything, Ella asked:
"That's so cool, Luci, those eyes! Can they be used at night as a reading light in bed?"
Alexander almost slid off his bar stool laughing. The Devil's expression went from confused because Chloe was still embracing him to absolutely god-smacked when Ella's words sank in. His mouth opened, but no words came out. Alex had the greatest difficulty not bursting into uncontrollable laughter and said:
"Congratulations, Lightbringer. A new promotion. From energy-saving light bulb to reading lamp. At least the detective's electricity bill would go down significantly..."
Lucifer stared intently at his son:
"No jokes, Alexander! You're the thinker, the genius of the family, so put that big brain of yours to work and come up with another solution!"
"Dad, knock it off. It's done! There is no other solution."
Lucifer grabbed a new glass. He was so furious that his hand shook as he filled his glass. Ella asked softly:
"What's going on?"
The Devil pointed his glass at Alex and said:
"He has gone around the bend, that's what happened! He wants to be the bloody King of Hell. I'm the bloody Devil, I will not allow that to happen!"
Alexander knew it would come to this. He would have to rub Lucifer's nose in the facts.
"Okay, Dad, I'll make it easy for you. You can choose: either I simply remain Prince Alexander and continue to walk the Earth, and in the near future a war will break out. A war in which I don't know how many demons, including my mom, my aunt Maze, my brother Dromos, Belios and Bearus, Morax and who knows who else, could all be slaughtered by your brothers and sisters. Oh, yes, speaking of the Angels. How many of them, including Rae Rae, Raffa, Gabe, Jo, and Laila, will end up with a weapon forged in Hellfire in their bodies? And then there's Ella here. And what about the Detective and Miss Beatrice? Are you willing to sacrifice them all? And for what? To wage a war in which there is no victory? If it comes to war, everyone loses! Do you want to know how many Demons, Humans, and Angels I am willing to sacrifice? How many deaths I consider a victory? I can tell you right now because I calculated the exact number years ago!"
Lucifer was shocked by Alexander's words. It was Ella, who had a very good idea, who asked softly:
"What is that number, Alex?"
He looked her in the eyes and said:
"ZERO! Or at most only one, that would be a win to me..."
Lucifer sucked in a deep breath and could only say:
"No, Alexander, please not that..."
"Yes, Dad, exactly that. If the price for avoiding a war, saving thousands of Angels and Demons, the lives of countless millions of Humans, is that I am that one life. Then yes, that's a damn win!"
Lucifer shook his head and Chloe asked:
"I don't quite understand, Alex. Why would there be an open war? Why now?"
He stood up from his bar stool and said:
"Yeah, that... Why don't you guys sit down in the sitting area while I make some fresh coffee."
The Antichrist disappeared into the Devil's kitchen.
A moment later, the coffee was brewing, and he stood bent over the machine, waiting. His mind was elsewhere. Suddenly, he felt a hand between his shoulder blades and knew it was Ella. Without looking up, he said:
"I'm so sorry, Ella. This is absolutely not how I had envisioned this. Damn, this is a mess..."
"I don't know what's going on or what happened, Alex. What I do know is that someone who doesn't want a single victim to fall can only be good and noble."
He couldn't bring himself to look at her and said, almost whispering:
"What happened? Nothing more and nothing less than the fact that I was born. Everything else is a consequence of that one simple fact. A fluke, a freak of nature..."
Hearing those words, it was as if Ella had been stabbed in the heart with a dagger.
A few minutes later, everyone had a fresh cup of coffee. The atmosphere was subdued, and Chloe repeated her question:
"Why now, Alex? Why not much earlier, a war against your father during that revolution?"
He took a sip of his coffee and replied:
"The answer to that is somewhat ambiguous. Let me start with this: Dad and Grandpa will absolutely deny the following because they can't see it themselves. But those two are so identical in so many ways that it's inevitable that they would clash seriously from time to time."
Lucifer snorted when Alexander said this, and the Antichrist wisely decided to ignore the Devil's reaction and simply continued:
"Their big problem is communication. Dad has no patience. If he doesn't know something, he wants to know it immediately. But he has no patience for other things either. Like yesterday, when he abandoned Chloe to go after Renny. He didn't think. He wanted something and he wanted it immediately. I hope that little revelation he had yesterday is lasting and that he'll think a little more in the future. "
That example made Lucifer wiggle uncomfortably on the sofa next to Chloe.
"So when Dad saw that Grandpa seemed to give humans more attention and freedom than he gave his own children, he demanded the same treatment. He demanded more freedom. Note that he demanded, not asked. Grandpa, in turn, is not a master of communication either. Dad demanded and Grandpa said no. Dad didn't ask why Grandpa's answer was no, and Grandpa, in turn, didn't explain why he said no. As a result, the two became more and more diametrically opposed. The last straw was Dad and his visits to the Garden of Eden. Grandpa said that this was a very big no-no because divinity and humanity should not mix. Why not? One did not ask and the other did not clarify. The climax came when Dad, in a kind of childish revenge, pointed out the fruit of the tree of life to the still young humanity in the garden, with all the consequences that entailed. Grandpa sent humanity into the wilderness when they were absolutely not ready for it and forbade the Angels to have contact with humans unless it was at his express command. That ban rubbed Dad the wrong way and everything went apes-hit from there on. To prevent an internal war and to teach Dad a lesson, Grandpa sent Dad's feathered ass to Hell. If he thought it was that easy to rule, then he could try it in his kingdom.
Chloe followed attentively and asked:
"Why don't divinity and humanity mix? Do you know the answer?"
Alexander nodded and said:
"Yep, and if you think about it a little bit, you should know the answer too."
Both ladies looked at him questioningly, and Alex said:
"Okay, let me try to explain it another way. Forget about the garden and the celestial for a moment. Let's put it in today's context. Suppose tomorrow humanity comes into contact with an alien life form that is incredibly far ahead of humanity in terms of technology. What will happen is simple because it is a primitive human reaction. We see that reaction at work in every war that breaks out among humans. Some people will submit completely in the hope that they will be spared. Another part of humanity will try to connect with the hope that the entity will take their side and use its capabilities to settle old feuds in their favor. If you translate this to the Celestial, people will either worship the Angel or try to use the connection with the Angel to become better, more powerful, and richer. The people in the garden were too young, too inexperienced to be exposed to the Celestial in the form of Angels. And humanity is, to a very large extent, still absolutely not ready for the encounter."
He looked at his father and asked:
"Tell me, Dad, in your long existence, in all your visits to Earth, how many people have you met who were interested in you as a person? And how many people have you met who wanted to meet you because you could do something for them? Make me rich, make me powerful, help me defeat my enemies, and more of that nonsense?"
The Devil paused for a moment and then said softly:
"Very, very few were truly uninterested in me and not in what I could do for them."
The Antichrist nodded:
"Now imagine that there was an Angel who did not have the sense of justice carved in granite that you have, and that Angel befriended Hitler, Mao, or Stalin. Or more in keeping with the present day, that Angel would befriend figures such as Saddam Hussein or that zealot in Iran. And that Angel would decide to help his friend. Imagine the disastrous consequences of a Hitler with an Angel at his side who could have crushed the armies of the Allies and the Soviet Union in a matter of minutes. As long as humanity sees an Angel or even a Demon as something to be blindly worshiped or as a powerful friend who can fulfill all desires for power, wealth, and revenge, then the Celestial and humanity must remain as separate as possible. You can live among people, Dad, you can reveal yourself to a certain number of people. No problem. However, the problem would arise if you appeared on TV tomorrow and displayed your full divinity to viewers to prove that you are who you say you are. It wouldn't take long before a new church was founded to worship you. And it wouldn't take an hour before Uncle Sam would try to storm in here because they would see you as nothing more than a new weapon in their arsenal."
Ella nodded and said:
"The same thing that happened in South America with the appearance of Cortes. Some thought he was some kind of god, and others helped him in the hope that their old enemies would be defeated."
The Antichrist replied:
"Exactly, but a hundred times worse. And given the state of the world, the political and religious reality today, such a situation would more than likely lead to a total world war. An angel aligns himself with the Vatican, and there is a good chance that every movement in Islam, Judaism, and the more strict groups in Christianity will turn against the Vatican and go to war. And that's not even mentioning what the reaction of the Hindus and other faiths around the world might be. When Dad started his so-called rebellion, he obviously didn't know that this could ultimately be a consequence of his interference. Grandpa, on the other hand, made no effort whatsoever to talk to Dad and make him understand that he was playing with fire very close to the fuse of a gigantic mountain of dynamite."
Alexander paused for a moment to take a sip of coffee:
"Man, what a fucking mess. Dad was so filled with anger and even hatred that after he landed in Hell, he didn't do a damn thing to change it, to rebuild it, as it were. So Hell remained stagnant for millennia. Well, that is, until I showed up. Grandpa, for his part, didn't set a time limit on his punishment either. God, the Angels, and the Demons are immortal. At least when there are no weapons involved. The problem is that, with a few exceptions such as my mom, Maze, Rae Rae, and Dad, of course, they have absolutely no concept of time. Dad is older than this universe, and God was here long before Dad came into the picture. The universe is about fourteen and a half billion years old. What are a few millennia to beings that have existed for so long? A blip on God's radar screen. Not worth registering. That's why Grandpa has no idea what those millennia in Hell, and the fact that Amenadiel dragged him back there time and time again, did to Dad. Not to mention what it does to the souls who now reside in Hell. They are there for all eternity because there is no time limit on their punishment. Chloe, Ella, you work for the police. Somewhere along the way, you must have picked up that punishment must be proportionate. Jeez, it's even in the law that punishment should not be unnecessarily cruel. What could be worse than punishment without end? Lock someone up with no prospect of an end to their punishment or without any hope, and it's guaranteed to go wrong in some way. But I'm getting a little sidetracked; that's a discussion in itself. Okay, Dad was banished to Hell to be king there. However, Dad is absolutely the wrong person for that job. Grandpa, on the other hand, as mentioned, has no concept of time and thinks that sooner or later Dad will break and fit into the straitjacket. But light is free, it has to be free, otherwise it extinguishes. Amenadiel, Uriel, and others may hate Dad because he had the nerve to question God's commands or even ignore them. When it comes down to it, Dad is no threat to Heaven or to Grandpa and his throne. Dad's role in the creation of the universe is over. He put the stars in their place, and that's it. Everyone in Heaven knows that Dad would never, ever want Grandpa's throne, even if it were offered to him on a silver platter with a bow on top. And they know just as well that Dad has absolutely no intention of turning humanity away from God. Doing so would be diametrically opposed to his creation. As mentioned, he represents justice, but also free will, the free choice of mankind. Leading them away from their own choices would be a violation of what he sees as the highest good. Uriel and Amenadiel would never go to war against Dad because he poses no threat to them, Heaven, or Grandpa."
Ella said softly:
"And that brings us to the second part. You... For some reason, they think you are a danger, unlike your father."
Alexander emptied his cup and said:
"They don't think that yet, but it won't be long. Thats why I can not wait long and have to make my next move. I have to be faster then them. Make sure that they can not do a thing once they do start to think in that direction. They are already nervous as hell when it comes to me. I am so much more powerful than any Angel or Demon. There is only one being more powerful than me, and that is Grandpa. At least, that's the idea. No one knows what will happen in a few weeks when I turn twenty-three and my powers are fully unleashed. But there is something else that makes them nervous, and that is the fact that Grandpa is taking the trouble to talk to me. When Grandpa started talking to me in private without any of them present, they became very nervous."
Alex took a deep breath and asked:
"Do you have any idea what AI, Artificial Intelligence, is?"
Chloe said:
"Very little, but then again, I'm not really interested in technology. I know how to use a laptop, and that's about it."
Elle replied:
"I know a thing or two about programming, but not at that level."
Alex nodded:
"Okay, to start with, the name Artificial Intelligence isn't really accurate. Virtual Intelligence would actually be more appropriate. Humans are trying to artificially create intelligence that is virtual. In other words, a computer that you can interact with that gives you the feeling that you are dealing with an intelligent being, while knowing that the computer's interactions are based on millions or even billions of calculations per second. Very much like the human brain. The big difference is the absence of a conscience. The computer does not ask itself questions like: Who am I? What is my purpose? What is life? Is there life after death? The computer stays within the bounds set by the software that runs the whole machine. It does not give out information or answer questions that are not requested by a human operator. In other words, it is a complicated but at the same time absolutely stupid machine. No different than the toaster in your kitchen. Unplug it, and its usefulness is about the same as a paperweight. That would change from one second to the next if that computer all of a sudden starts asking itself existential questions, gives out information without being asked to do so, or plainly refuses to give answers or execute commands. If that were to happen, it would mean that the computer is conscious. At that point are we still talking about a machine, or are we talking about a new life form? Artificial? Yes, because it is not built from the same building blocks as a human being, but it is a life form nonetheless. And if so, then what?"
Ella squeezed her eyes to slits and said:
"Celi the tiger. But I don't think you're just talking about Celi. You also talk about yourself, Alex. I heard you say something to your mom. You have been the only Nefilim since the flood. You're a new species too."
"Yep. The flood was the last attempt by Asjehra, my grandmother, to wipe off the map both humanity and the few Nefilim that lived then."
Both the detective and Ella sat looking at him wide-eyed after this revelation. He raised his hands in the gesture of surrender and said:
"Yes, I know that doesn't sound very good. But like everything in this misery, it is strangely double. Imagine the following. Chloe, you are still married to Detective Espinoza. You were happy when you got married and started your family. At some point Daniel starts a hobby in his man cave. What does that hobby turn out to be? He makes dolls. As time passes, he pays less and less attention to Beatrice and to you. The dolls become more and more important to him to the point that he completely neglects you and his very own daughter. In order to save your marriage and for Beatrice's benefit, couldn't it happen that one day you might get a little violent with his dolls?"
He raised his hand as he saw that the detective was going to object:
"I realize very well that people are not dolls, Chloe. But try to see it from her side for a moment. All she knows is her husband and her children. Those were there eons before the material universe you know was created. And when her husband and part of her children start the universe, everything goes fine for billions of years. God creates nothing but a bunch of plants, animals, and everything and anything. And then overnight you and your children are shut out; you no longer have a part and a word to say about his next step in creation, man. He starts fiddling with a new species that he creates in the likeness of your children. Worse, he wants you to call upon your powers to make the creation of the new species effective without a word of explanation. The Goddess and the Angels suddenly seem totally secondary. And to what? A species with a very limited life span, no celestial power whatsoever, vulnerable, weak, and oh so imperfect compared to the Angels, her children. She just couldn't understand why God would risk their marriage, their happiness, everything for something as banal as man. Today they live on this planet. Tomorrow they will have been dead for centuries and turned to dust again. If Grandpa had not so idiotically shielded his project from Asjehra and the Angels. If he had involved them in his project. Participated in his vision and his goal, then things could have been very different. We could have had a society without a trace of segregation between humans but also without segregation between the three species: Angels, Demons and Humans. A society where I would not be the only Nephilim but just one of many. Angels could have learned from humans because humanity has such enormous potential hidden within it. Demons could have evolved much faster instead of existing in Hell for tens of thousands of years believing that their sole purpose in existence is to make Hell even more miserable for souls than it already is. Humanity could have learned from the Angels that there is another way than to knock each other on the coconut for the slightest thing. But as I always say, if my Aunt Maze had wheels, she would be a race car right now. If..."
Chloe and Ella let this sink in for a moment, and Ella finally asked:
"What exactly does this have to do with you, Alex? Why would everything suddenly be different now that this thing with Celi has come to light?"
He took a deep breath and asked a question in turn:
"Pap, his role is played out, and he poses no threat to Heaven and Grandpa. The zealots are nervous, as far as I am concerned, because they have no way of assessing what I am capable of or what I will be capable of in a few weeks. What would they see as a threat to their existence that might make them decide to make a preemptive strike and be damned who or whatever is caught in the crossfire?"
Ella thought deeply for a moment and suddenly said with eyes wide open:
"A new God! Someone who can push the old God aside! You Alex! You are that new God because if Celi is a new life form then that means your powers are already at least equal to those of gods. Because from Celi's point of view you are her creator, her God!"