Page 174 of The Spider Queen
I glared at him. “It’s not like you’ve given me a proper rundown of all of this.”
We’ve been occupied…
“This may be a dumb question,” I voiced, ignoring Thane’s desire at the end of our mental thread. “But what about God?”
Thane and Gabriel exchanged a look.
“What?” I demanded. “What does that look mean?”
Gabriel sighed and shook his head. “It means, we’re sort of…on our own.”
“I don’t get it.”
“God,” Gabriel explained, “is, well, alaissez-fairesort of being.”
“You mean to say God is an absent creator? And doesn’t care what happens to humans or angels or anything?”
“It’s not that he doesn’t care,” Gabriel interjected. “Just that, he lets things play out. He doesn’t interfere.”
“Why not?”
“At some point, man, beast, angels, demons, and all the creatures in between, must take responsibility for their actions,” Gabriel explained.
“God knows the outcome,” I murmured.
Gabriel nodded.
“The world is about balance,” the fallen angel explained. “At all times in history—not just human history—there has been a push and pull between good and evil. One cannot exist without the other.”
“What happens if Lucifer and his army win?” I asked. “Earth as I know it won’t be the same. What happens to humans? What happens to us?”
“Darkness,” Gabriel said. “For a long, long time. But balance would eventually be restored, and light would shine once again.”
“But humans will be destroyed in the process, right?”
“Why would Lucifer want to destroy humans?” Gabriel asked.
I frowned in confusion. “He wants Heaven for himself. He’ll destroy Earth to get there.”
“Earth is merely the battlefield. Humans will die, but Lucifer has no plans to destroy them all.”
“I’m still not following.”
“Those that serve Lucifer will be given free reign of Earth,” Gabriel said. “There are worse things than death, Poppy.”
I sat back in my chair, suddenly chilled despite the fire glowing in the hearth.
“Humans will be commodities. They’ll be slaves, some of them will become food, and many will be used for pleasure,” Gabriel added, his tone grim. “If Lucifer wins, humans will survive. They just won’t want to.”
Chapter 18
Gabriel’s words rang through me. An eerie premonition that wasn’t a premonition at all. I’d never felt such defeat, such desolation.
“You aren’t human anymore,” Gabriel said, cocking his head to one side. “Why do you care what happens to them?”
“My parents are human. Everyone I’ve ever known or cared about is human, remember? And as you pointed out, this isn’t just about what happens to humans, but to all of us.”
“I wasn’t trying to anger you. I was merely curious if you still held any affinity for them.”
