“You know you really shouldn’t talk to strangers,” I say to the little blue-eyed child before me. Based on the Chesnut pigtails and the sparkly unicorn-adorned overalls, I would assume the creature was less than a decade on this earth.

The little girl silently walks over to a rusted green bench beneath an oak tree and beckons me over by patting the seat next to her.“There is not a stranger left to me in this universe, demon,” replied the child in a voice that was young and old, new and ancient, a voice that was dripping in wrath and swathed in grace. This was no child but rather an eternal being, a guardian, seraph, celestial being, a divine messenger. It was an angel.

I never understood why some angels chose to appear to humans as a child. My assumption was that in their true form, they would strike fear into the hearts of their God’s followers rather than awe. Or maybe it was the fact that they could eat for free at most restaurants. Who am I to judge?

I, on the other hand, choose to walk this earth dressed as a thirty-year-old woman who looks just pretty enough to notice but not enough to remember. I chose dark brown hair that fell to just below my collarbones and brown eyes to compliment my olive skin.

Looking forward at the orange and brown-hued park filled with young families and old men feeding ducks by the pond, I asked the ancient child, “why is it an agent of God has summoned me today? Are things getting boring within the pearly gates?”

“The opposite,” she responds, “I have summoned you, demon, because I need your help. There is an item that must be retrieved, and I cannot do it on my own”Now, this should be interesting.“Why do you believe I would be willing to help you? Our interests are, by nature, misaligned. Why not ask another one of God’s soldiers?”

She pulls her attention from the crowded park to look up at me. “I need your assistance because the object in question can only be recovered when the forces of heaven and hell cooperate.”

I turn to look down at the cherub. “What do I benefit from this little arrangement?”Her blue eyes seem to pierce through the veil of her human form. Making me shrink back slightly. Despite her youthful appearance, she was much older than I was and likely more powerful. “You continue to enjoy the existence of this earth as it is. Heaven continues its holy pursuits, all while hell carries on corrupting humans. All will remain the same if you complete this task. If you do not, then both will cease to exist.”

I start to shiver a bit. I am unsure if it's in response to her words or the cool autumn wind. “Where are we going?”

“There is no “we” in this journey. I am an archangel my place is in heaven. You will work with another. An angel who has already accepted this task.” She explains

I looked up at the blue sky and contemplate my options.

I turn to the angel next to me and ask, “ What is it that I am seeking? What is it that can end us all?”

“The key of life,” She responds, “ Within it lies the power of ultimate creation and complete destruction. It was the tool used to create all life and was lost to us millennia ago. Some wish to use it as a tool to destroy heaven and hell and leave the earth in chaos. This cannot happen. Heaven and hell are necessary to provide balance to the universe. Without good and evil, there is no order.”

I was born in the frigid darkness of hell, and after spending millennia on this earth, I have grown to enjoy my existence here, and I have no desire for it to end.

I stand up from the bench and turn to the child. “When do I begin?”