♦

Lilith had been wrestling with her newfound powers since successfully passing the Seven Wonders. Her current struggle played out in front of her as she attempted to perform decimation on a lifeless bird. The air was thick with frustration, her hands hovering over the creature as she tried to summon her magic. Yet, despite her best efforts, the bird remained untouched.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she rubbed her tired eyes, retreating into her chair, defeated and discouraged. Her desire to be perfect, to harness her powers fully, drives her to relentless practice.

"You're pushing too hard." Cordelia's voice cut through the silence, pulling her back to reality. The familiar authority in her mentor's voice brought both comfort and irritation as Lilith looked up to see Cordelia and Myrtle standing in the doorway.

"I just don't get it. I was able to do it before."

Cordelia and Myrtle exchanged knowing glances before moving further into the room.

Myrtle's soothing words offered reassurance. "You're exhausting yourself, my dear."

"Try to relax." Cordelia chimed in with a gentle reminder. "Don't force it, Lilith."

Myrtle took a moment to explain, her tone measured. "Witchcraft is an art, but our powers only develop as fast as our cerebellum allows."

"So, just give it time. That's all we're saying." Cordelia added.

However, Lilith's sense of urgency wouldn't wane. She shook her head in frustration. "We don't have time. He's coming soon... I can feel it."

Cordelia tried to ease her concerns with a reassuring explanation. "We'll be safe here, in this house. I've placed an aura shield around Robichaux's. Every witch will be protected. No human, demon, or other can get passed the front door."

Lilith nodded, taking in Cordelia's words. Though she wanted to trust in the protection spell, doubt lingered. She couldn't shake the feeling that things were far from simple. At that moment, a shiver rippled up her spine, a familiar chill that whispered to her but she chose to ignore it.

She finally relented, her exasperation giving way to reluctant acceptance. "Okay."

Lilith let out a huff as she moved and flopped onto the couch, Cordelia settling beside her and taking her hands in her own.

"Everything will be okay," Cordelia assured.

Myrtle, sitting nearby in a chair, emphasized the importance of self-confidence. "I've never seen anything quite like your power, Lilith. Doubting yourself is the last thing you should do."

Lilith took a deep breath, her frustration slowly giving way to a sense of reassurance as Cordelia and Myrtle offered their guidance and support. Their words resonated with her, reminding her that her power was unique and formidable. She glanced down at her hands, which had been the source of her frustration just moments ago, and then back at Cordelia.

As she went to speak, the sound of deafening gunshots pierced through the air and the anguished screams of her sisters echoed through the house. A paralyzing fear gripped Lilith's heart. Time seemed to freeze for an instant, and then panic rushed in to fill the void. Her body tensed, and her eyes darted toward the source of the horrifying noise.

Lilith's voice wavered as she voiced the truth that everyone already knew. "It's him... isn't it?"

Cordelia and Myrtle acted swiftly, slamming the doors shut in a desperate attempt to bar his entry. The urgency in the room was thick as they locked themselves in, seeking refuge from the looming threat.

Anger saw beneath her panic, a fiery rage that burned brighter with each passing second. Her family, her sisters, her friends—they were all downstairs, vulnerable, and in danger. Her heart ached at the thought of Michael ruthlessly ending the lives of those she had grown to love and care for.

"We need to leave before Michael finds his way up here," Myrtle urged, her voice holding an underlying tension.

Lilith's resolve was unshaken. She was willing to confront the malevolent force that had once been her lover, the man she had once believed she could save. "What? No. We need to stop him," she argued, her urgency compelling her to make for the door. However, Myrtle blocked her path, determined to protect her.

"We have to keep you safe," Myrtle insisted firmly, her eyes pleading for Lilith to understand.

Her sisters were being mercilessly hunted, and she had the power to intervene, yet her mentor's words rang true. She was not ready to face Michael. He was not the man she thought she knew. He was a monster capable of unimaginable violence.

"Fuck that, they're dying," Lilith choked out, her voice raw with anguish. "He's killing them. I can't just sit back and do nothing."

Cordelia's grip tightened on Lilith's wrist, the urgency in her eyes mirroring the desperate plea in her voice. "There is nothing you can do to help. You are not ready," she reminded Lilith, pulling her closer. "He will kill you."

Lilith met Cordelia's gaze, fear, sorrow, and determination reflecting in her eyes. She knew that Cordelia was right. She understood that if she confronted Michael in her current state, he would not hesitate to hurt her.

The thought tore at her heart, the painful realization that the man she had once loved had always been a ruthless killer. Reluctantly, she nodded, her spirit heavy with the weight of the sacrifices that would have to be made to stop him.

♦

In a cabin somewhere nestled in the woods, a heavy silence persisted, broken only by the nervous tapping of Lilith's leg. Tears teetered on the edge of her eyes, threatening to spill over, but she held them back with sheer willpower. Her thoughts were consumed by the faces of her sisters – Yesenia, Zoe, Queenie – and the horror that had befallen them.

Cordelia lay on the bed, deep in a trance as she attempted to reach out to their fallen sisters. Lilith couldn't help but steal a glance at her sister, grateful that Nyx had gone out with Mallory and Coco and had been spared from this grim situation. As the remaining witches gathered around the cabin, Lilith's anxiety continued to gnaw at her.

Madison's voice cut through the tension, dripping with disdain for their current location. "The swamp witches shack may be a grimy shit hole, but it's definitely secluded."

Myrtle, seated next to Cordelia, added a touch of levity to the conversation. "The only other person that knows it's here is dear Misty, and she' 's off galivanting with Stevie."

As Cordelia delved deeper into her trance, Myrtle and Mallory sat on either side of her, offering support as she attempted to contact their lost sisters.

Suddenly, Cordelia's body convulsed violently, and pain escaped her lips as she writhed in agony. Panic coursed through the room, and Mallory and Myrtle rushed to hold her still. The screams that erupted from Cordelia were almost too much to bear, and Lilith's heart ached with helplessness.

And then, as suddenly as it had begun, Cordelia's convulsions ceased, and her eyes shot open. She gasped for breath, her body trembling as she grappled with the haunting visions that had consumed her. Mallory and Myrtle, their hands still on her arms, released her cautiously, allowing her to sit up.

Cordelia's face was streaked with tears as she recounted her vision. "It's us, Delia. You're safe now," Myrtle comforted her, offering a reassuring presence.

"I saw them. I saw them, but I couldn't feel them," Cordelia breathed, her voice heavy with sorrow and frustration. She broke down into sobs, her head resting on Myrtle's shoulder, as the remaining sisters gathered closer, offering their support.

As Cordelia attempted to grapple with the harrowing revelations from her vision, Madison suddenly remembered something, her face contorted with dread. The room's attention shifted to her, anxiety ripping through the group.

"What?" Cordelia pressed, her voice fraught with apprehension.

Madison hesitated before explaining, her words heavy with the weight of the truth. "Um... when we went to the house where Michael was born... we found out he could do this thing. After he kills someone, he can... erase their soul. He can like, burn their soul so there's nothing left. They don't go anywhere. They're not ghosts. They're just... gone."

Cordelia's anger flared, and she slapped Madison with a resounding crack. Shock reverberated through the room, and Nyx quickly stepped in to shield Madison, her eyes locked onto Cordelia with astonishment.

Cordelia's fury was palpable as she confronted Madison. "How could you keep this from me?" she seethed, her heartache and rage intertwining.

Madison, stung by the slap, retorted defiantly, "I told you he was the Antichrist, what more did you need to know?"

But Myrtle understood the gravity of their situation and intervened, knowing they couldn't afford to turn on each other. "This will be no good. We can't turn on each other now. None of this will bring back our girls. They're gone, Delia."

Cordelia, tears streaming down her face, met Myrtle's gaze. Her heart was heavy with grief, but Myrtle's words resonated with truth.

The room remained steeped in sorrow, the weight of their losses pressing heavily on them all. Myrtle's wise words had quelled the rising tension, but the reality of the situation was an unbearable burden.

Cordelia, her face a mask of anguish, couldn't hold back her tears. She collapsed to her knees, her body wracked with sobs. "No, please, there must be something we can do."

Myrtle, her own heart heavy with grief, joined Cordelia on the floor, offering support to her broken sister. She understood the depth of Cordelia's despair but now was not the time for succumbing to their grief.

"Maybe there is," Myrtle finally uttered, her gaze shifting toward Lilith, who had remained perched on a chair throughout the tumultuous events. She urged Cordelia to follow, and Lilith let out a shaky breath, her emotions a turbulent storm within her.

The room was fraught with a heavy silence until Cordelia and Myrtle began to discuss a power so rare that it bordered on the unbelievable.

Myrtle's explanation of Tempus Infinitum, the power to change past events and alter history, seemed like an impossible task. Madison's incredulous reaction mirrored Lilith's own doubts. The idea of ​​​​time travel was so far-fetched that it felt like the stuff of fiction.

Cordelia, however, was undeterred. She turned to face Lilith and implored her to consider the possibility of using this power to save their coven. The pressure on Lilith's shoulders was immense, the responsibility almost suffocating her.

Myrtle added a sobering note to their discussion. She explained the absence of documented cases of a witch successfully executing Tempus Infinitum and the grim endings that befell those who attempted it.

Lilith's gaze shifted to Nyx, her sister's shock mirrored in her own eyes. Yet, despite the seemingly insurmountable odds and the risk of death, Lilith was resolute. She knew that if they did nothing, their coven was lost, and this was their only glimmer of hope.

"There was a risk with the Seven Wonders; this is no different." Lilith declared, her voice filled with determination.

♦

Lilith stood awkwardly in the bathroom, realizing she needed to believe in her abilities if she were to have any chance of succeeding. The events were unfolding faster than she could comprehend, and deep down, she harbored a slim hope that Michael might change his mind, although she knew it was a naive thought.

As Myrtle and Cordelia prepared the bath, they turned to face Lilith. Myrtle began to recount a historical event from February 1913, a grand celebration in St. Petersburg marking the tricentennial of Russia united under the Romanovs. She painted a vivid picture of opulent feasts, enchanting operas, and fireworks illuminating the night sky. Myrtle expressed her desire to witness the grandeur of that era, even mentioning the fantasy of being a "fly on the wall" during a royal dance.

She described how, five years later, the world changed irrevocably due to the Bolshevik Revolution. On that fateful night, the czar's youngest daughter, Anastasia, had attempted to stop it with a protection spell. To Lilith's astonishment, Myrtle revealed that Anastasia was one of them. Tragically, her power wasn't sufficient to alter the course of history.

Myrtle added that, while the Bolsheviks had already triumphed, the survival of young Anastasia would serve as proof of Lilith's success. She lifted her hand, revealing a beautiful relic. Lilith stepped closer to get a better look at it, her curiosity was piqued and extended her hand to receive it.

Lilith held the artifact close to her chest as Myrtle had instructed, feeling its cool, reassuring presence. As she stepped into the warm water, Lilith's dress clung to her legs. Despite her shaking hands and the fear gnawing at her, Cordelia's comforting smile gave her a much-needed sense of assurance.

With Cordelia's support, Lilith slowly lowered herself into the tub, the warm water enveloping her. She settled into a more comfortable position, her lower body submerged, but her torso resting above the surface.

If she were being honest with herself, Lilith despised being in water. The sensation of being submerged, the inability to fully control her surroundings—it all left her feeling vulnerable and exposed in a way she couldn't quite articulate.

Myrtle's voice was measured as she acknowledged the high stakes. "Bear with me, dear. This is an unfortunate case of the blind leading the blind. Which I'm sure is of no comfort, considering the risk of failure is death, but here we are."

"Thanks for the reminder," Lilith breathed out.

Myrtle settled on the edge of the tub, holding a leather-bound book, while Cordelia knelt beside Lilith, offering support.

"Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Let my voice guide you. In order to achieve this feat, you must place yourself in a different state of mind, so shed your ego, disengage from this realm. Focus your energy on the jewel. Use it to place yourself in that night. See the cellar." Myrtle's voice was a steady guide in the swirling chaos of Lilith's thoughts.

As she closed her eyes and focused, her grip on the jewel tightened. It became the anchor to which she tethered her consciousness, allowing her to disconnect from her present reality. She focused all her energy on the jeweled tightly in her hand, allowing it to become a conduit to the past.

As Cordelia and Myrtle chanted the incantation, the atmosphere in the bathroom became charged with mystical energy. The candles flickered wildly, casting dancing shadows on the walls, and the bathwater began to boil and darken.

Cordelia's hands on Lilith's shoulders provided a reassuring anchor as she gently guided her under the water. Lilith took one final breath, fully surrendering herself to the spell, and as the water closed over her head, she felt as though she was being drawn into a different realm, leaving behind the present and hurtling toward the past.

Lilith's eyes blinked open, and she found herself in a vastly different place and time. Startled guards with guns surrounded her, and her gaze swiftly fell upon a young woman on the floor in the corner, frantically attempting a spell. Lilith knelt beside her, realizing this was Anastasia. She needed to act quickly to avert the impending danger.

"It's okay," Lilith reassured the young woman urgently and offered her hands to Anastasia. "I'm here to help you, you can't do it alone. Take my hands."

Anastasia hesitated at first, but fear and desperation in her eyes eventually drove her to grasp Lilith's hands. They started to chant together, weaving a protective spell as shots rang out, bullets harmlessly bouncing off their magical shield. Anastasia was startled, but Lilith encouraged her to continue, emphasizing the importance of their survival.

Their voices grew stronger, and the magic intensified, reflecting bullets and repelling the impending danger. Lilith felt the spell taking hold and guiding Anastasia in the protective incantation. Shots continued to ricochet off their protective barrier as they chanted in unison.

When Lilith sensed that their magical shield was stable, she released Anastasia's hands and stood, determined to create an escape route. However, her focus wavered when she noticed Anastasia's panic and their protective enchantment began to fade.

Fear coursed through Lilith as she desperately tried to figure out her next move. She watched in horror as Anastasia's family members were mercilessly shot or stabbed. Amid the chaos, a man lunged at her, and Lilith screamed, on the brink of being impaled.

Lilith's eyes snapped open, her body tense and trembling, bracing for the impact of the unknown. Her screams, raw with terror, pierced the air as her mind grappled with the disorienting shift from one reality to another. Panic surged through her, constricting her chest, making every breath a struggle.

Tears of crimson streaked down her cheeks, mingling with the blood that pooled from her nose, creating a haunting image of distress. Her cries reverberated through the bathroom, a cacophony of fear and confusion.

Cordelia and Myrtle, their faces etched with concern and urgency, moved swiftly to pull her out of the bathtub, their hands guiding her trembling form to safety.

"I couldn't do it." she cried, her breaths coming in ragged gasps. Her mind raced with the realization that something had gone horribly wrong, that she had failed in a mission with dire consequences.

Cordelia, her touch gentle but firm, ran her hand along Lilith's cheek, her soothing caress an attempt to anchor her turbulent emotions. Myrtle hovered close, holding Lilith's hand and tenderly stroking her hair, providing a comforting presence.

"Shhh. You're here," Cordelia enfolded Lilith in her embrace. Her voice was a lighthouse in the storm of Lilith's emotions, a whisper of reassurance and love. "You are with us. You are safe. It's me. It's me."

Lilith, her breaths gradually slowing, turned her gaze toward Cordelia. Her eyes, still brimming with red tears.

"I couldn't do it. I'm so sorry." Lilith sobbed, her words reflecting her feelings of failure and regret.

"Shh... It's okay." Cordelia, unwavering in her support, continued to cradle Lilith in her arms, offering the solace and forgiveness that Lilith desperately sought. She pressed a tender kiss to the crown of Lilith's head.

♦

Lilith's anguish and frustration were radiating off of her as she sat, her trembling fingers bringing a cigarette to her lips, her gaze fixed on some distant point beyond the walls. The despair seemed to engulf her, and her words reflected the helplessness she felt. "That's it. We're fucked."

Nyx sighed softly, her worry for her sister etched on her face. "Don't say that."

Lilith turned to address Nyx, her voice laced with frustration. "I don't know if you noticed but I couldn't do it."

Mallory chimed in, attempting to boost Lilith's spirits. "But you did. You traveled back in time, and you came back alive."

Madison couldn't resist casting a shadow over the moment. "We're putting our lives in the hands of a girl that can only do things half right. Great."

Coco spat out a rebuke. "Shut up, Madison. You're not helping."

Lilith, however, remained trapped in her own self-doubt, her voice trembling as she took another drag from her cigarette. "I can't fucking do this."

Coco emphasized the urgency of their situation. "You have to, okay? You're the only option we have."

As the door creaked open, Lilith's attention snapped to the entrance. Cordelia and Myrtle stepped inside, their presence expected, but it was the figure trailing behind them that caught Lilith off guard.

"Josiah?" Her voice emerged as a breathless whisper, disbelief coloring her tone. Her lips parted slightly, forming a silent question as she stared at the unexpected visitor.

"What the fuck?" Nyx exclaimed, "What's he doing here?" She turned her accusatory attention towards him.

Josiah, his expression fraught with trauma and sorrow, tried to explain his presence. "I'm here to help. I... found out what he did to your school." His voice trembled, his eyes on the verge of tears. "He killed our brothers, too."

Nyx, however, wasn't convinced and maintained her glare. "Why should we even trust you?"

Cordelia stepped in to provide context. "Josiah is the one who told us about you, where to look to find you."

Lilith, still skeptical, rose from her seat and extinguished her cigarette in an ashtray. She questioned Josiah further. "How could you have possibly known about my power?"

Josiah, realizing the urgency of the situation, implored them to set aside their doubts. "That's not what we have to worry about right now. Michael has his hands on a thousand nuclear bombs, and they've already picked a date."

Lilith's disbelief and desperation deepened as she processed the gravity of his words. "What?" She shook her head in sheer disbelief, everything quickly developing into a very present reality. "How can we stop that?"

Cordelia, her expression grim and determined, delivered the harsh truth. "Michael's already too powerful. He can counteract anything we hope to try."

"God, I finally find my place in the world, and now it's all gonna end. I am not ready to die." Coco's words, while laden with a hint of selfishness, revealed a rare moment of vulnerability that cut through the tension. "Oh, not to make it all about me or anything."

"Actually, it is about you now," Myrtle remarked, her words resonating with a sense of responsibility. "Your father will be purchasing tickets for you and your family to inhabit one of the Cooperative's Outposts."

Madison couldn't help but voice her skepticism. "Coco is the plan? The calorie counter is going to save the day?"

"No." Cordelia shook her head, her gaze shifting towards Lilith, who had unwittingly become the linchpin of all of their plans. "Lilith is," she affirmed, her voice heavy with the weight of the world.

"Lilith and Nyx have been selected by the Cooperative for survival, they already have a spot," Josiah explained.

Cordelia, her eyes brimming with sorrow, proceeded to unveil their grim strategy. "And Coco is going to secure Mallory a place in the bunker," she explained, each word carrying the weight of their impending separation. "We have one chance to use Tempus Infinitum and we can't risk it until Lilith is ready."

Myrtle delivered a sobering assessment. "The only place where we know you'll survive is under Michael's nose. In one of his bunkers."

Madison voiced her concerns with a touch of sarcasm. "He can smell a witch a mile away like some kind of evil truffle pig. He'll kill them before she can do anything."

"That's why we're going to place Coco and Mallory under an identity spell. You'll forget that you're witches. You'll forget everything you ever knew about yourselves. The spell will give you new identities, new personalities." Cordelia explained.

Cordelia turned her gaze towards Lilith and Nyx, her expression tinged with sadness. "Since you two have a past with him, we will have to remove any memory of your time here... with us."

Lilith, her voice barely above a whisper, couldn't hide her dismay. "What? No. Absolutely not."

"It's the only way." Cordelia urged.

Myrtle interjected, her tone serious and practical. "Yesenia had written instructions on how to feed responsibly. We've put it in your family's grimoire so you can find it easily."

"Now, when you're in the bunker, we made sure that there was a no copulation rule. Without constant energy, you will weaken in order to mask your powers from him until the time comes." Cordelia explained further.

Lilith rubbed her eyes in disbelief, unable to comprehend the enormity of the situation. "You can't be serious." Her attention then shifted to Josiah. "How long do we have?"

"A year and a half," Josiah replied somberly, his gaze filled with empathy for their dire situation.

Lilith, grappling with the enormity of her role in this perilous undertaking, expressed her uncertainties. "I don't think I can be responsible for the lives of seven billion people," she admitted, her voice trembling with the daunting responsibility.

Cordelia, unwavering in her belief in Lilith's latent potential, offered unwavering reassurance. "Yes, you can. And when the time comes, you will," she declared, her voice imbued with a quiet strength.

"How will I know when that time is if I'm under a spell?" Lilith wondered aloud, her words laden with a sense of helplessness.

Cordelia provided a response that offered a glimmer of hope. "Your powers will emerge when they are ready," she assured, seeking to alleviate their doubts.

"So this is goodbye?" Nyx uttered, her voice quivering with emotion.

Cordelia, her smile tinged with sorrow, nodded as she tried to hold back her tears.

"Lilith," Josiah began, his voice cutting through the tension, "I need to speak with you... alone."

Lilith's gaze flickered between Josiah and the other witches. With a silent nod, she followed him outside onto the porch.

As they stepped into the cool evening air, Josiah's suggestion caught her attention. "You might wanna sit down for this," he motioned toward the old rocking chair positioned on the porch, its worn wood creaking slightly in the breeze.

"Okay..." Lilith replied, lowering herself onto the chair, her eyes fixed on Josiah as she waited for his revelation.

"So, you know how Lucifer is Michael's true father?" Josiah began, his words cautious as he settled into the chair opposite her. Lilith nodded slowly, her curiosity growing with each passing moment. "Well, the reason that I know things about you... how I knew to guide the witches to you... is because of mine."

Lilith's brows furrowed in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"The Archangel Michael... He, uh... He had a part in making me," Josiah confessed, his voice laden with precariousness as he fidgeted with his hands. Lilith's eyes widened in surprise at his revelation. "I didn't really know it then, but he would show himself to me, and not long after we left, he... reached out to me. He told me things."

"Uh huh," Lilith murmured, absorbing his words, unsure of where this was leading.

"What I'm trying to say is... He also had a part in making you, too," Josiah finally revealed, his tone heavy with significance.

"What?" Lilith's eyes widened in disbelief, her mind struggling to process Josiah's words. "You're kidding, right? I had a father."

"Biologically, yes. So do I," Josiah affirmed, his expression solemn as he leaned forward, his hands clasped tightly. "But he is your true father... our true father."

Lilith recoiled slightly, her brows furrowing in confusion and skepticism. "Wouldn't he have shown himself to me then?"

"He has," Josiah explained. "You're mind has grown accustomed to blocking it out because your memories were being wiped so often."

Josiah's words lingered, each syllable a heavy weight on Lilith's already burdened mind. As his explanation sank in, a storm of emotions brewed within her. She rose to her feet, frozen in disbelief, her hands trembling as they pressed against her flushed cheeks.

With a tremulous breath, Lilith lowered her gaze, her eyes skittering across the floor as if searching for answers amidst the tangled web of her thoughts. The pieces of the puzzle fell into place with a chilling clarity, and a surge of recognition coursed through her veins. She recalled the day Yesenia and Cordelia had told her about the blockage in her memory.

As Lilith's thoughts raced like a hurricane within her mind, she grappled with the devastating revelation that her memories had been tampered with. Fingers of suspicion coiled around her consciousness, probing the depths of her psyche in search of answers. In the searing crucible of her emotions, a single name echoed like a thunderclap in the recesses of her mind.

Her mother.

Her breaths came in ragged gasps, her chest heaving with the force of her emotions. Tears welled in her eyes, burning hot against her skin as they spilled down her cheeks in rivulets of pain and fury. In that moment, Lilith felt a primal urge to lash out, to scream and rail against the injustice of it all.

But even as rage consumed her, a stubborn defiance flickered in her gaze. She shook her head vehemently, as if to banish the truth that threatened to overwhelm her. The sheer audacity of her mother's betrayal left her reeling, grappling with the enormity of the deception that had shaped her life.

"This... This is fucking insane," Lilith uttered, her voice trembling with raw emotion. Her words echoed in the stillness of the porch, a defiant declaration of her refusal to accept the twisted reality that had been thrust upon her.

"Lilith," Josiah exhaled, his breath heavy with the weight of unspoken truths. "Think about it. Haven't you ever felt different? Haven't you ever done things that seemed impossible, unexplainable?"

Lilith's gaze softened, her eyes locking with Josiah's penetrating stare. At that moment, the veil of uncertainty began to lift, revealing glimpses of a reality she had long struggled to comprehend.

"It's because of him," Josiah continued, his voice tinged with a solemn reverence.

"Why?" Lilith's voice trembled with disbelief.

"There's been a holy war going on for longer than anything conceivable," Josiah began, his voice a solemn echo. "A battle for control of the Earth. He knew the Antichrist was coming."

"Angels aren't allowed to procreate," Josiah continued. "St. Michael has broken the laws of Heaven by creating us... especially creating you."

"You were made to stop him," Josiah declared, his voice solemn but resolute.

"Why me?" Lilith's voice wavered, her eyes pleading for answers. "Why can't you do it?"

"I have power," he acknowledged, his voice tinged with a sense of humility. "But I'm not as powerful as him. Not as powerful as you."

"Why tell me this?" Lilith's lower lip quivered, her tears tracing glistening paths down her cheeks. "I was already supposed to be the one to stop this, why tell me?"

Josiah's expression softened with empathy as he met her tear-filled gaze. "Because you deserve to know," he replied, his voice laden with sorrow. He took a shaky breath, struggling to maintain his composure as tears threatened to spill from his own eyes. "And... despite everything my brother has done... will do... I'm hoping you can find another way."

"Another way?" Lilith's breath caught in her throat, her heart pounding in her chest. The notion of an alternative path, a possibility beyond the inexorable march toward conflict and destruction, ignited a flicker of hope within her.

"He loved you, Lili," Josiah whispered, his tongue darting nervously over his lower lip. "He still does."

Lilith's reaction was visceral, a scoff that rippled through the charged atmosphere like a crack of thunder in the stillness of the night. "Even if that's true... Josiah I... I'm not enough, you weren't even enough. You said it yourself."

"I could have done more. I could have approached it differently instead of judging the things he did wrong, that was my mistake. But you... he listens to you."

A bitter laugh escaped Lilith's lips, the sound of a bitter melody echoing the discord of her thoughts. "Ha!"

"You understand him on a level that I never could." Josiah's voice carried a plea. His gaze, intense and searching, bore into hers. "That means something."

Lilith's fingers danced restlessly over her lips. "How?" she whispered. "How can I save him?"

"I'll think of something." Josiah's response was resolute. "Anything."

"Oh, yeah, great plan," Lilith muttered, her tone heavy with sarcasm.

"Lilith, listen to me." Josiah's voice cut through the air like a clarion call, commanding attention and demanding focus. Rising from his seat, he closed the distance between them, his hands finding purchase on her shoulders with a firmness born of urgency. "Whatever happens, I don't know how it's going to play out so I need you to understand that before you agree to this."

Lilith contemplated for a moment. If there was even a glimmer of a chance to save everyone, to redeem the irredeemable, then she was willing to embrace it, consequences be damned. "Okay," she whispered.

"Yeah?" Josiah's expression softened, relief and gratitude playing across his features as he searched her eyes for reassurance.

Lilith nodded her hands instinctively rising to rest atop his, a silent affirmation of her commitment and her trust. "Yeah."

With a surge of emotion, Josiah enveloped her in a tight hug, pulling her close. Lilith returned the embrace, her arms encircling him in a gesture of support.

"So... you're my brother?" Lilith asked, her cheek resting on his shoulder.

"Pretty much,"

"Does that make Michael..."

"No," Josiah replied, his laughter fading into a quiet reassurance.

"Okay, good," Lilith breathed, a sense of relief washing over her as she allowed herself to momentarily bask in his comfort.

Their moment was soon interrupted by the appearance of Cordelia, her presence a harbinger of impending action. With a sense of urgency, she beckoned them to follow her back inside.

As they reentered the confines of the shack, Myrtle's voice drew them together in a circle, their hands interlocked in a gesture of solidarity and shared purpose.

"And so it falls to us to save mankind from itself," Myrtle intoned, her words imbued with a solemnity that resonated deep within their souls. "And yes, some of us will die, but you four will live. So the Coven will live on. So the world will live on."

♦