(Continued)

Phoenix's POV

I'm ripped out of a dream-memory by Castiel shaking me awake.

"Come on, young one, your last lot of trials start today." He smiles.

I give him a nasty look and begrudgingly get out of bed and walk to the bathroom without a word.

I shower and get dressed into the same suit from yesterday, though, it's been washed since then.

After I've brushed my teeth, Cas and I walk back to the church from yesterday and take our seats in the exact same place.

"Thank you all for attending day two of the Angels Initiation Ceremony. There is only 20 contestants out of 50 left. With these next 3 trials, we will be able to see who will and who won't become an angel." God states.

The audience cheer as he smiles brightly.

He raises a hand and the audience instantly silences.

"Can the remaining Angel Contestants please come stand up the front again, so we can get trial 3 started." God beams and motions for everyone to line up out the front.

Sighing, I stand up and walk up the front of the building and stand with the others.

"Today trial 3 begins. Today my children will have to work together or alone to survive for 24 hours. Those who fail will not be passing to the next trial." God announces.

The audience looks confused.

Someone raises their hand.

"Yes, my child?" God says, looking at the person who raised their hand.

"Um.. why has the 3rd trial been changed?" They ask softly, almost like they're scared God will smite them or something.

"I decided I didn't like the old trial. I thought this one would be better. These days I want my angels to be able to work well together and alone." He explains, looking around at everyone to see if there's anymore questions.

There isn't.

"Good luck, my children." God adds before the room suddenly changes to a completely different biome.

Looking around, I notice I'm stuck in a group of 3 other people.

I mentally groan.

"Damnit I hate working with people." I mutter.

"Guess what, pet? So do I." A voice says near me.

I look towards the voice and see that the three others are grouped together and are sneering nastily.

"Pet?" I question, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, 'pet'. Everyone knows you're one of God's favourites, besides the originals. What the heck makes you so special anyway?" One of the others question bitterly.

"My charming good looks." I reply snarkily.

Their sneers grow more obvious and they narrows their eyes in sync, glaring.

I remember their names.

The first person who talked to me is named Ian.

The second that spat words at me is named Cora.

The third who has yet to speak, and seems to just be following the other two is named Zeph.

Rolling my eyes at them, I turn and look around.

"We're in a Woodlands biome." I state, and start to walk away from them, towards the trees.

Zeph follows me instantly, but the other two are more reluctant.

***

(Some hours and arguments later )

We all finally agreed on somewhere to spend the night, but only after almost 3 hours of complaints and arguments, mainly from Ian and Cora.

Zeph, once again, stayed silent unless he was spoken to, so his opinion on where to go was completely nonexistent.

We all agreed on a cave with a dead end, to keep any potential rain and wind off us once the sun sets.

It took ages.

Working with other people has always been something I've had difficulties with.

I hate people with attitudes that go against what I'm trying to do.

I'm so used to being independent and doing my own thing, it screws me over when I have to go along with what others want to do, especially when I disagree with it.

If these guys keep questioning what I'm saying and butting in with useless ideas, I know there's going to be a fight.

That much is pretty obvious, tensions are already thick from when we all found out we had to work together.

Them calling me a pet, and God's favourite did not bode well with me.

They've made themselves an enemy.

Zeph is okay, he's more of a follower than a leader.

But Cora follows Ian, and backs him like she has nothing else in life.

It's annoying as all hell.

We're all out looking for food and collecting wood to make a fire. Zeph is with me and Ian and Cora are obviously together. Zeph is surprisingly a really good hunter. So far we've already got 3 squirrels, all thanks to Zeph.

I'm impressed.

After grabbing a couple more bigger chucks of wood, I turn to Zeph.

"How about we head back and see if we can get the fire started?"

Zeph nods and we both start walking back to the cave.

***

3 hours later

We finally got the fire going after 1 and a half hours of struggling, not long after it was going, Ian and Cora arrived back, carrying a couple fish and 2 small birds. Silently we all help to prepare the food and cook it.

After eating, we clean up any mess we made and all laze around the warm fire.

"I'd say we've done pretty well so far." Ian disturbs the silence.

"I agree!" Pipes in Cora.

I roll my eyes.

"Of course you do." I think.

"What do you think Zeph?" Ian asks, completely ignoring me.

"Yeah.. I think we've all worked well together so far.." he utters, making sure to put emphasis on 'all'.

Awe, he included me.

Ian turns to look at me, mouth curved into a sneer and eyes narrows to glare.

"You still think you're top shit, huh, pet?" Ian leers.

"Here we go again." I think, sighing.

"You keep putting me on that pedestal like it's a bad thing, yet you're so jealous. Do you want to be God's favourite?" I snark back.

Ian fumes silently but doesn't say anything else after that.

The sun starts to set quickly and before I know it, darkness has fallen.

I add more wood to the fire and then announce I'm going to sleep.

Zeph and Cora end up going to sleep not long after I've said I'm going.

I lay on the ground, warmed by the fire but unable to fall asleep.

I keep my eyes closed though.

For hours I lay awake, keeping my eyes closed as two 'members' of my group sleep soundly.

My instincts keep me awake though.

And thank goodness they do.

Sometime close to early morning, I hear the ruffling of clothes and peek my eyes open.

Cora and Ian are awake and putting pouches of something over the left over food, that was going to be for breakfast.

"God's probably watching. They're not going to make it into the next round." I ponder to myself.

I watch as Ian walks over to Zeph's sleeping form and takes a knife out of his jacket, I didn't even know he had on.

He covers Zeph's mouth with his hand and slits his throat. I close my eyes tightly. Just what kind of psychopaths am I stuck with??

I peek at them again only to see Ian and Cora working together to lift and carry Zeph's limp, bloodied form out of the cave.

My heart beats wildly as I watch them leave, before quickly hauling myself to my feet and running out of the cave in the opposite direction.

"Oh my fuck, oh my fuck, holy fuck" I mutter repeatedly while running like my life depends on it, because it does.

I keep running and as the sun starts to come up, the scene around me changes to my bedroom.

God and the original angels walk in through the door. I watch them cautiously, unsure of what I'm seeing is real or still part of the trial.

"The third trial has been finished early, due to some issues, which I'm sure you're well aware of, Phoenix." God states. "Those two have been sentenced and will no longer cause harm to anyone and Zeph has been saved, luckily."

I nod, my heart slows it's crazy beating, and my lungs stop aching from the lack of oxygen.

I'm able to catch my breath.

"You succeeded in trial 3, though you didn't get along with the others in your group, you still worked along side them to survive in the middle of no where, and for that, it shows great leadership qualities." God tells me, once the original angels have exited the room.

"What you saw was horrific, and if you need a couple days to restablise yourself, you may have them." God says softly, rubbing my shoulder comfortingly.

(A/N: does god rubbing Phoenix make him seem pedophilic or is that just me? 😂)

"I'm fine. I can finish off these last two trials." I mumble. "Can I check on Zeph?"

God nods, smiling proudly at me.

"Of course you can." He beams.

The world changes and we're suddenly in a hospital style room, Zeph is hooked up to multiple different cords and wires are surrounding him.

It looks like he's on some sort of pain killer drip, as well as a blood transfusion.

He's awake though.

"How are you feeling, Zeph?" I question softly as I walk over to his bed and gently hold one of his hands.

Zeph uses a notepad to write; "I feel great, minus not being able to talk. Apparently those bastards-"

God clears his throat after reading the swear.

Zeph guiltily crosses it out and continues writing; "those meanie heads cut my vocal cords, which will take longer to heal, but I'll be able to talk again, but only because of magic."

I nod. "I'm sorry I couldn't have prevented it from happening." I utter remorsefully.

Zeph smiles lightly, but it's genuine.

"It's not your fault, I should have known they were up to no good. I heard them whispering about poison when you went to sleep." He writes.

"Alright, come along young one. Trial 4 begins soon, and you'll want to get some proper food in your belly, along with some fresh water. Perhaps even take a refreshing shower?" God tempts me.

I roll my eyes but nod. "Alright. Get better soon Zeph." I wave goodbye as the room fades and I'm back in my own.

"Cas will bring you food and drink. Feel free to have a shower now." God says, before disappearing.

Sighing, I walk off to the shower, strip down and then step in.

I thoroughly wash myself and then get out, not bothering to relax under the warm flow.

I get dressed into a new suit. It's pure white but there's engravings in the tie and jacket of flowers and leaves.

Once finished dressing, I walk out of my bathroom and sit on my bed and start eating the food from the tray placed on a bench nearby.

After eating a proper meal and drinking 'pure' water, I stand up and make my way out of my room, searching for God so that I can start my next trial.

As I walk down the hallway, I see a figure ahead.

A familiar figure.

My heart drops.

As I approach the figure, it becomes much more obvious of who exactly it is.

Rune.

"Rune?" I whisper softly once I'm close enough that he'd hear.

Rune turns around and smiles lovingly at me. My heart skips a beat.

"W-what're you doing here?" I stutter in confusion.

"To get you, my love. I'm going to help you escape so we can go back to Earth and find somewhere nice to live together." Rune states, moving closer and taking both my hands in his own.

"Okay..? How do we do that..?" I ask, still confused.

"This way!" Rune whisper yells, before taking off running down the hall, holding my hand and dragging me with him.

"We can get married when we turn 18, Nix. Would you like that? We can get a house together after we get married and then adopt a bunch of kids once we've got stable jobs, I know how much you want kids!" Rune vocalises while dragging me and running towards the supposed exit.

"We can even get one of those olden style houses with the vines growing over them." He continues.

I stop.

Rune always makes fun of me for liking those kinds of houses. He told me they were ugly and he wouldn't be caught dead living in one.

"Nix?" Rune looks at me curiously, "come on, baby. We have to leave." He says, moving towards me to grab my hand again.

I move back.

"This.. this is another trial.." I whisper.

Rune gently cups my face and presses his lips against mine.

I melt into the kiss and move my lips in sync with his.

We kiss, and kiss and kiss and then kiss some more. We pull apart when neither of us can breathe. I pant softly as Rune presses his forehead against mine and pants too.

"Nix.. we have to leave now." Rune says softly. "You want to be with me, don't you?"

I gulp.

"I do.."

But if I go with him, I fail and I will never be able to go back to him...

Rune smiles, "come on then, sweetcheeks. Let's go."

"I can't." I state simply, even through it causes my heart to ache.

"You.. can't?" Rune asks, confused.

I nod. "This isn't real. It's the fourth trial. I'm not falling for it. As much as I would love to be with Rune romantically, I know that will never be a reality. He doesn't love me as anymore than a brother, and I can live with that, as long as I have him by my side." I declare.

Rune's fake form shimmers and starts to fade. I watch tears run down his cheeks.

"I love you, Nix." He says, before fading away completely.

I turn away to leave, only to be stopped in my place when I see God and Castiel.
Castiel steps forward and pulls me into his arms. He hugs me firmly.

God watches me over his shoulder.

"You did well, young one. As much as you desire to have Rune and leave Heaven, you know you can't. That shows great mental strength as well as emotional and physical. You didn't get greedy with the  temptation by your greatest desire, although, the kissing was tipping the scale a bit. You didn't leave with him, or try anything else." God notes.

My cheeks heat at the comment about our kiss, but the more obvious thing is the wetness sliding down them and onto Castiel's suit.

I bury my face in Cas' shoulder and cry softly.

Castiel rubs my back gently in a soothing manner.

"You've succeeded in showing just how far temptation and greed can lure you, Phoenix. You have great strength and amazing capabilities. You'll continue on to the fifth trial once you've got control of your emotions once again." God states, before turning and leaving the room.

Castiel holds me for a good while, comforting me and letting me cry without a single complaint.

I pull away once I've calmed down.

"Thanks Cas." I mutter quietly, while keeping my eyes downcast in embarrassment.

"It's all good, Phoenix. Everyone needs someone there for them when they break down. Don't think too much about it, alright?" He says before ruffling my hair.

Smiling lightly, I swat his hand away.

"Last trial, are you ready?" Castiel questions as we walk to where the next trial takes place.

"As I'll ever be." I reply.

We arrive at the church once again and walk inside. I stand up the front with the other 8 remaining contestants.

Looking around, I notice a huge pond filled with water.

"That wasn't there before." I examine.

As people pile into the church and take their seats, I look around for any signs of God.

There is none.

***

(35 minutes later)

Once everyone was seated and silently waiting, God appeared in the pond.

"It's time for the last trial." He starts, looking around at all the people who have come to watch.

"The remaining contestants will have to stay in this pond of Holy Water until they are completely cleansed. If they can't handle it, they can leave, but they won't continue on to become angels." God explains.

He looks at us.

"Step forward Angel Contestants." he orders.

We do as we're told until we're all standing along one side of the pond.

Our clothes all change into pure white outfits.

No more gold or other colours, no more fancy flowers and leaves embroidered into the jackets and ties. 

Just pure white suits.

"You may keep your shoes and socks on if you wish, but I recommend removing them." God explains.

I easily nudge the white shoes off my feet before lifting them slightly and pulling off the white socks.

Most of the others do the same.

God motions for us to get into the water.

We do.

Hisses of pain are heard all around me.

I ignore them and focus on the burning sensation in my feet.

Cleansing, huh?

I step further into the pool as a couple of the others hesitate. The burning sensation creeps further up my body the deeper I walk into the water. Taking a deep breath, I dive under the water.

Instantly the burning sensation increases to maximum, it feels almost like someone's just shoved me into a bath of antiseptic after having re-cut open wounds all over my body that had been infected, except the burning kept creeping deeper inside of my body.

Like it isn't just cleansing my skin, but my soul as well. I suppose that's what Holy Water does though, right?

I come up for air when I can't hold my breath any longer and greedily take in deep breaths. The burning gets stronger and much more painful.

I start panting and struggling to stay above water. I move to the shallower areas. The sensation increases tenfold and I scream. Blood starts to appear in the water around me, changing the colour of it, from clearness to red.

My ears ring from the intensity of my scream and I can't hear anything that's going on around me. I scream again as another painful sensation takes over.

What the hell is this?

Glancing at my suit I notice it's completely stained red. The water around me is also red and the colour spreads out through the water.

Suddenly God's holding me and telling me something. I can't hear what he's saying, dizziness washes over me and I close my eyes. I scream again, louder than before, louder than I've ever screamed before. Then, everything goes black, and I can't hear a thing.

I've faded into unconsciousness.