Let There Be Light! Ch.19 (Patreon)

— God —

Penelope, Enoch, and Methuselah rose to their feet and immediately looked at me, inspecting my form from head to toe before realizing their rudeness and looking at me in the eyes.

“First things first, let us talk about you, Enoch.” I smiled warmly at the bearded man whose eyes widened in surprise and confusion.

“I know not what I could have done to deserve your words, My Lord!” Enoch bowed his head again, but I waved my hand, and the wind gently raised his head.

“You’re incredibly humble, Enoch. You have done more than enough to deserve my praise. For years, you have lectured the people of my word, and when I asked you to speak against my angels, you did so without hesitation or fear of what others would think of you.”

“I did what you asked of me, Almighty God.” Enoch scratched the back of his head.

“And you did it well. You have earned your place in Heaven.”

All three of the human’s eyes widened at my last sentence.

“...T-Truly?!” Enoch questioned with his mouth hung open.

“I do not lie, Enoch. Should you wish to go now, then so it shall be.”

Enoch’s surprise wore off, and excitement lit over his face before he looked at his family, who looked back at him with happy faces. The excitement left him rather quickly as he looked down at the ground and clenched his fists.

“Must I leave my family?”

“That decision is up to you. You may choose to stay or go.”

Silence descended upon the front yard where we stood.

Enoch stared at Penelope and Methuselah for a long while before approaching his wife. The woman outstretched her arms and hugged Enoch tightly. Soft whispers escaped her lips as tears dripped out of her eyes.

I felt bad. I was separating a family, but Enoch deserved eternal peace in Heaven, and if it’s what he wanted, then it’s what he’ll get.

Enoch pulled away from Penelope and looked at his son. The two men hugged each other tightly as Enoch patted Methuselah’s back. The embrace was long and heartfelt before Enoch pulled away and gave me a nod.

“This is not a permanent farewell, not by any means. You all will meet again.” I assured them, giving them a warm smile before I snapped my finger, and Enoch was spirited up to Heaven in a flash of light.

Penelope broke down in tears, and her son comforted her with a hug. I gave Azazel a sideway glance, and it seemed she was still preparing herself for what was to come.

“Now then.” I said after several minutes, earning everyone’s attention. “Azazel, would you like to explain your resolve?”

The black-haired fallen angel gave me a quick, albeit nervous nod and stepped forward.

“Penelope, Methuselah…” She addressed them both before pausing. Azazel crossed her arms and placed a hand on her chin, pondering on how to express her decision. “I have decided to depart from Heaven.”

Both of their eyes widened, and their jaws dropped.

“Lady Azazel, how could this be?!” Penelope shouted in shock and fear. Her eyes snapped to me, and she threw herself onto the ground with her head bowed. “P-Please, Almighty God, do not close t-the beautiful gates of Heaven on Lady Azazel! What she did was for the betterment of us… for Humanity!”

“Penelope…” Azazel stepped forward and crouched down. She placed her hands on Penelope’s shoulders, and when the blonde-haired girl looked up, Azazel smiled at her. “You didn’t hear me. The decision was mine, not Our Lords.”

Penelope blinked and looked at me once more before snapping back to Azazel.

“Lady Azazel, why would you make such a decision?!”

Azazel waved Penelope off nonchalantly. “There are many reasons. Decisions I made that have burdened others, this was my choice, and I’m not going back on it.”

Even though Azazel acted nonchalantly as if it didn’t matter, Penelope could see through her. The blonde-haired woman stood up and frowned before crossing her arms under her large bust.

“The actions of others are not your burden to carry, Lady Azazel!”

“True.” Azazel nodded, rising up to Penelope’s level. “But I choose to carry them.”

Penelope stared at Azazel for a long time. Methuselah remained quietly.

Smart man.

“You wish to carry the burdens of others?” Penelope asked, earning a nod from Azazel. The way the human woman’s eyes crinkled in slight annoyance nearly made me smile, and the same effect was present on Azazel. Penelope let out a long sigh. “Fine, but you won’t deal with it alone.”

“Excuse you?” Azazel asked, tilting her head.

“I wish to help!” Penelope clarified.

“I don’t know if that’s a good-”

“Forgive me for interrupting, Lady Azazel, but this all happened because I asked you to help me!” Penelope grabbed Azazel’s hands gently and rubbed them soothingly. “The fault is mine, and the burden is mine.”

“That’s not-”

“You’re being stubborn, so I shall as well!” Penelope smiled warmly at Azazel, and my first fallen daughter stared at Penelope, flabbergasted.

“Do you mean what you say?” I asked the human woman. “Do you truly wish to carry the weight of others sins on your shoulders?”

Penelope froze like a deer in headlights when I addressed her. I sent a pulse of my presence at her to soothe her instead of scare her, and it calmed her down considerably.

“I-I do.”

Two words. That’s all it took to soothe my heart greatly. As much as it hurt me to say goodbye to Azazel, at least for now, it did wonders for my heart to know that not only would she grow while being away from me, but she would have someone beside her through it all-

It’s… a weird yet comforting feeling.

“Wondrous.” I smiled, stepping toward the two women. “Then, may I ask you a favor.”

“A-Anything, My Lord!” Penelope whispered as I stopped right in front of her. I could see the red blush on her cheeks and hear her prayers of forgiveness for feeling carnal desires while observing me so closely.

“Stand beside Azazel for the rest of eternity. Do that, and I vow to repay you.”

Penelope, Azazel, and Methuselah’s eyes widened at my request.

“Of course!” Penelope promised, and the smile on my lips grew even warmer.

“Good.”

I touched her head, and a golden light shone around her. The light quickly started to darken into a deep black, and when the black light cleared, Penelope looked a great deal different.

Purple hair, a tighter body than before, slightly larger breasts, and a firmer backside, but perhaps the most noticeable change would be the ten black wings behind her.

“It is done. I have tied your life to Azazel. Should she die, you will perish as well, but the same does not apply should you die.” Penelope looked at her hands in shock. As she inspected her new body, I looked over to Azazel. “I leave the rest to you, my dear.”

Azazel smiled sadly at my words. She approached me slowly, almost cautiously, and touched my cheek.

“I… I can still visit… right?”

“I’ll visit you.” I shook my head. I couldn’t allow her to corrupt any more pure angels, and knowing Azazel and how much she could talk, she definitely would.

“That’s fair.” She giggled.

We stared at each other for a long while before Azazel leaned up and softly kissed my lips before pulling away.

“I fully expect you to give me more than that next time we see each other.” Azazel placed her hands on her hips, and I let out a barking laugh.

“Of course, I look forward to it.”

I ignored the gobsmacked looks from Methuselah and Penelope as I gave Azazel a final wave, which she returned before teleporting back up to Heaven.

I appeared in my office within Seventh Heaven and instantly crashed into my chair. I stared at my desk for a long while.

Regret filled my mind. More than anything, I wanted to say fuck the future and grab Azazel and keep her up here with me for all eternity-

But that would be wrong.

This was her choice, and who the hell was I to oppose her will? Well, God, I guess, but it wouldn’t have made me feel good about messing with her free will.

… But damn, did it hurt to see her go.

— Azazel —

Several hours after God had left, Azazel was standing on a mountain, watching as her siblings interacted with the humans for the last time in a while.

She hadn’t told them of the beast, the Trihexa, but she told them that they shouldn’t interact with humanity for a while, and they were rather quick to accept her order. She had become a leader to them, and while she couldn’t for the life of her understand why, she relished the opportunity to make up for failing them previously.

“Are you alright now, Lady Azazel?” Penelope asked, approaching from behind.

“I… don’t know,” Azazel admitted. She had chosen to leave behind all of her siblings, and her father, and she didn’t know if she could feel anything but sadness for such a thing. “I… need to adjust.”

“I understand, Lady Azazel.” Penelope smiled warmly, walking forward to stand beside Azazel. “Should you need anything, simply ask me, I will carry out my duty, until the end.”

“Thank you, Penelope.”

“... Actually, Lady Azazel-”

Azazel raised an eyebrow at Penelope’s sudden squirmish behavior. “What is it?”

“Well, I’m not a human anymore…” Penelope admitted with a frown, inspecting her hands. “Yet, I still feel attached to Humanity. I know we can’t interact with them anymore, but do you mind if I… watch?”

“Watch humanity?” Azazel asked, crossing her arms and tilting her head. “That’s fine, I already intended one do that.”

Penelope looked up and smiled brightly. “Thank you, Lady Azazel!”

“No, thank you, Penelope.”

Penelope’s smile brightened a tad as she stared off into space.

“Penelope was the name of the wife of Enoch and the mother of Methuselah. My husband is gone, and soon I must say goodbye to my son. Penelope is dead.”

Azazel looked at the purple-haired woman with concern. She didn’t like seeing her so upset, but there was little she could do now.

“I wish to watch Humanity while remaining in your inner circle, Lady Azazel.” The newest fallen angel admitted. “So, I ask of you, to call me Penemue, the follower of Azazel.”

Azazel’s eyes widened for a long while. For Penelope to give up her life and dedicate it to her-

It meant the world.

“Thank you, Penemue.”

— Chapter End —

Author’s Note: Chapter by chapter they kick my ass even more, believe it or not. I’m honestly surprised I even got through this chapter.