Epilogue 3 – Angel Feet
“This internet thing is fascinating,” Farah said, tongue peeking slightly from the corner of her mouth as she very carefully navigated YouTube on Umbra’s phone. “There are countless vee-dee-ohs of these tiny feline creatures. Why are they so revered?”
“Because they are small, chaotic, and dramatic,” Umbra replied. “The internet thrives on such traits.”
Farah swiped again, accidentally opening three new tabs. “It is endless.”
“The internet,” Umbra said dryly, “is primarily composed of cats, con artists, and pornography.”
Farah paused mid-scroll. “What is pornography?”
Umbra did not hesitate. “Explicit depictions of intimacy designed purely to provoke rather than to convey meaning.”
Farah’s nose wrinkled. “That sounds crude.”
“It often is.”
“Is all of Earth so indulgent?”
“No. For every indulgent corner, there is another scandalized by it. This world contains both extremes at once.”
Farah considered that. “Strange world.”
“Very,” Umbra agreed.
Farah looked back down at the screen, eyes still bright with curiosity. “It feels as though one could peer into every home at once.”
“In a manner of speaking.” Umbra folded her arms. “Would you like to interact with it directly?”
Farah looked up sharply. “How would I accomplish that? Would it expose us to danger?”
“Unlikely. I created an account on a social media platform two days ago. It already has nearly sixty thousand followers.”
Farah stared at her. “Sixty thousand? You spoke to none of them.”
“Visibility is a currency here. We were already known. I merely provided a place for them to gather.”
Farah turned the phone over in her hands as though it were a delicate artifact. “And what would we do with such a gathering?”
“We could stream,” Umbra suggested. “Transmit ourselves live. You could greet them. Answer questions, if you wished.”
“Live?” Farah echoed. “Without screening what they ask?”
“There is some moderation,” Umbra admitted. “And we may ignore anything foolish.”
Farah hesitated. “Is it safe?”
“Relatively,” Umbra said. “We are already public figures here. This simply allows them to see us as… people.”
Farah glanced back at the phone, then at Umbra. “Very well. But if anyone is disrespectful, I reserve the right to judge them harshly.”
Umbra’s mouth curved faintly. “That, my dear, is half the appeal.”
Umbra pushed herself up from the floor with a quiet grunt and crossed to the bed, lowering herself carefully onto it. The mattress dipped under her weight, her legs extending straight off the edge due to her height, boots abandoned somewhere near the door. One of Farah’s wings was already half-spread across the sheets, luminous feathers catching the lamplight, and Umbra settled partly atop it without hesitation, nestling into her wife’s side as if it were the most natural cushion in the world.
Farah adjusted instinctively, curling her wing slightly to cradle her.
Umbra accepted the phone from her and opened the streaming app with practiced familiarity. “Alright,” she murmured, angling the camera so they were both in frame. “We are live.”
A small chime sounded almost immediately.
“Oh,” Umbra said, watching the viewer count tick upward. “We have people already.”
“You did not warn them,” Farah said.
“I did not need to.”
Umbra tapped quickly, sharing the stream link to her social page. The number jumped.
“Okay, love. A few hundred already. They can see us.”
Farah stiffened slightly. “They can?”
“They can. Would you like to greet them?”
Farah leaned a little closer to the phone, golden eyes bright. “Hello!” she said, carefully in English.
The chat exploded.
Within minutes the viewer count surged past one thousand, then five, then ten. Comments began racing upward so quickly they blurred together.
Umbra adjusted the scroll speed. “Greetings, humans of Earth. I am Countess Umbra Steelblight, and this radiant being beside me is my wife, Countessa Farah Celestinia Valessine Mariselle Steelblight. This is our final day in your world, and we thought it courteous to introduce ourselves properly before we depart.”
The viewer count rolled past twenty thousand.
Farah leaned closer to the screen. “What are they saying?”
Umbra squinted at the rushing text, slowing it with her thumb. “Many are greeting us. Some claim to be admirers. Some are… less articulate.” She paused. “Never mind.”
Farah tilted her head. “Judgeworthy?”
Umbra sighed. “One individual has requested that you sit on them.”
Farah recoiled. “Why?”
“It is a sexual remark.”
Farah’s wings flared slightly. “Terrible.”
“Agreed.” Umbra tapped the screen. “They are banned.”
She cleared her throat and switched fully into English. “Please refrain from crude or inappropriate remarks in chat. You will be removed. You may ask questions of myself or my wife. I will translate those I deem suitable.”
The comments resumed at full speed.
Gy72u0: Do you eat people?
Umbra rolled her eyes. “No. Though I might consider an exception for you. Unless that is your intention, in which case the answer remains no.”
The chat filled with laughing emojis.
bornagainChris10: Is she one of God's messengers?
Umbra read it aloud, then answered, “Yes, but not in the way you mean. She serves the Triumvirate, the ruling gods of Ganymede.”
Killmegently: The moon?
“Coincidental name,” Umbra replied. “Entirely different realm.”
More questions poured in.
UllwenFantatic: What is Umbra like in private?
Umbra clicked her tongue softly and translated the question for Farah. Farah answered in her own language, voice warm and thoughtful. Umbra turned back to the camera.
“My wife says that I am quiet and very affectionate in private. She enjoys sitting beside me by the hearth while we read. She also says I am quite bookish when I am not on the battlefield.”
The chat filled instantly with comments calling them adorable.
“That is exclusively in private,” Umbra added pointedly.
Hearts flooded the screen.
They continued, Umbra filtering questions with sharp efficiency, banning anyone who strayed too far. The viewer count climbed steadily.
Twenty-five thousand.
Thirty thousand.
Umbra exhaled slowly through her nose. “We require moderators,” she muttered under her breath, tapping another name into oblivion as the comments continued to race upward.
StarGazer88: You two are actually so sweet together.
Umbra’s lips curved into the slightest smile as she glanced at Farah and translated. The angel’s eyes lit up, and she boldly leaned over to plant a soft kiss on Umbra’s cheek.
“She says thank you, and that she knows we are sweet together,” Umbra explained with a gentle chuckle.
ArmoredRealist: Umbra, is your armor magical or forged?
“My armour was forged by the Goddess of Justice,” Umbra replied calmly, letting Farah hear it in Ganymedean as well. “It is impervious to most attacks, though even the strongest weapons sometimes leave a mark.”
The viewer count ticked upward past forty-five thousand, the comments now coming in like a roaring tide.
SpicyNoodleLord: Umbra blink twice if you’re the scary one in the relationship.
Umbra flashed a grin, revealing her needle-like teeth just enough to be playful. “I am not the scary one. If anything, I am the whipped one. There is nothing I would refuse her if she asked of me.”
“What did you say?” Farah asked, peering curiously.
“I just said that I love you more than the world itself,” Umbra whispered, letting it sound romantic rather than literal.
“Oh, I love you too, dearest. I even crossed worlds for you,” Farah replied sweetly.
“Yes, you did,” Umbra murmured, letting her thumb brush over the angel’s hand.
FlatEarthReborn: This is government CGI.
“Yes, this is CGI and it’s all a hoax,” Umbra said dryly, then sighed. “I will not let anyone cheapen the sacrifices of those we fought alongside.” She tapped the screen, and the user was gone.
“That didn’t sound good,” Farah muttered.
“Just a detractor. Not worth energy,” Umbra assured her.
AngelFeetFan: show—
Umbra swiftly banned that one too.
StepOnMeSeraph: I also pick her wife…
SleepDeprivedStudent: Why am I watching angel nobility at 2 a.m.?
TeaAndThunder: This is the healthiest relationship I’ve seen online.
EatMeMaybe: But like… hypothetically?
More and more comments poured in, some sweet, some ridiculous, some outright horny, and Umbra did her best to keep the chat civil, translating only the appropriate ones for Farah, who would giggle or frown depending on the message.
Eventually, Umbra leaned closer and whispered, “Darling?”
“Yes, dearest?” Farah replied, her eyes attentive.
“I was thinking, maybe you could take them on a flight.”
Farah’s eyes widened. “Me? Fly for them?”
“Yes, you. I’ll wait here. It will only be a few minutes.”
“I feel strange, like a performer on a stage,” Farah admitted.
“You don’t have to, if you don’t want. We could end the stream now.”
Farah hummed thoughtfully, then smiled. “No, not yet. I think it is a marvelous idea. Let us share this.”
Umbra turned back to the camera, her voice steady and proud. “My wife has agreed to take you all on a short flight. Please, watch and enjoy.”
Umbra carefully untangled herself from Farah’s wing and rose from the bed, giving the feathers a gentle pat before stepping aside. Farah followed, smoothing her robe and rolling her shoulders in preparation.
Umbra held out the phone. “Please do not drop this. It would be… inconvenient.”
Farah drew herself up indignantly. “I am not a clumsy golem,” she said with a soft huff, accepting the device with careful fingers.
The viewer count continued to climb.
WingEnvy: SHE’S ACTUALLY DOING IT
SkyWatcherNZ: NO WAY
Farah moved toward the balcony doors and stepped out into the cool evening air. The city lights of Wellington shimmered below like scattered stars, the harbor reflecting streaks of gold and white. She inhaled deeply, then slowly unfurled her wings to their full span. Feathers caught the wind, luminous and radiant against the night.
The chat exploded.
AngelicSiMp: HOLY—
47653544: THOSE WINGS
BannedForevermore: THIS IS NOT CGI
“Wait,” Umbra called from behind her.
Farah paused mid-stretch. “Yes?”
“Give me that for a moment.”
She handed the phone back obediently. Umbra turned it around and switched to the rear camera, checking the framing so the skyline and Farah’s wings were both visible.
“Whatever you see on the screen is what they will see,” Umbra explained, placing it back into Farah’s hands. “Try not to point it directly into the sun. Or into the ocean. Or into a passing aircraft.”
Farah narrowed her eyes. “I will not crash.”
“That is precisely what someone about to crash would say.”
Farah ignored that, stepping up onto the balcony railing with effortless balance.
Then she leapt. For a heartbeat there was only the rush of wind and the dizzying drop of the city below, the camera tilting wildly as gravity claimed her. The chat lost its collective mind, and then her wings snapped open.
Air caught beneath radiant feathers with a powerful whoosh, and Farah soared upward in a smooth, controlled arc, rising above the building with the confidence of someone who’d been flying for years.