This World Belongs to Us

17: Liara

Being carried by an angel was a strange sensation. Liara rested in the being's arms as it flew up the long dark stairway. The arms of Qui were strong and warm. But she couldn't focus on the wondrous sensation. She had a job to do. They were going to negotiate and make peace with the humans.

Liara still was a little mistrustful of the angels. None of her friends seemed to share this point of view. It felt to her like she was building a puzzle no one else could see, and she only needed one more piece for the image to become perfectly clear.

The dark stairway was much shorter when they were traveling by angel wings. It seemed like only ten minutes had passed before Qui flew out of a pit and came to a stop in front of the door. The other angels arrived shortly after, carrying her friends.

"We're in the basement," remarked Azarial with surprise.

"The stairs lead to many places," said one of the angels. "Both near and far."

Qui helped Liara to her feet. She stepped forward and pushed open the door. She recognized the statues and furniture draped in cloth.

"We shall have no further need of this entrance point," said Qui, motioning to another angel.

The angel returned to the pit. It raised its hand and spread a large amount of light over the darkness. The light subsided. The pit and the stairs were gone. Now it was just a small empty room.

Everyone headed out of the basement and met in the main area of the cabin. All the entrances were still boarded up and barricaded.

"Where's the fifth angel?" asked Liara.

"We shall meet Quoa outside."

"What should we do?" asked Azarial. "Are we all coming with you?"

"No," said Qui. "Only myself, Quoa, and Liara shall appear before the humans."

"You sound very confident that we can reach a resolution."

"We will achieve peace," said Qui in a way that felt oversimplified.

With that statement, everything was settled. There was no reason to waste any more time. The demons cleared the furniture away from the main cabin doors. Liara and Qui exited into the snow. It was all happening too fast.

Liara had been given no instructions on what to say. As she suspected, she was told to believe in herself and allow God to speak through her. She responded to this with an awkward "okay".

The tent was ahead of them, just down the path a little. They had to move past Azarial's destroyed car, the obelisk, and then walk down a slight slope. Qui no longer glowed very brightly. In fact, the angel blended in with the white landscape and the falling snow.

"I can feel so many souls drifting here," Qui said mysteriously.

Before she could ask what that meant, Quoa swooped down from the trees and landed in front of them.

"Qui. Liara," it said quietly. "The humans dress in armor and carry heavy weapons. I believe they plan to move soon."

"Are they both in the tent?"

Quoa responded with a nod.

"Then let them behold our light."

Qui and Quoa floated roughly twenty centimeters off the ground. The glow around their forms increased and they began to gently glide toward the tent. Liara followed. It was strange how calm she felt. They stopped a few meters away from the tent. The humans weren't aware of them.