Nikola had created a sled and was now giggling as he was rushing down a slope. This place had gotten a lot of work, and he had gotten tired. So, he ended up playing. Trees with autumn leaves covered in fruit stood side by side with ones in full bloom. Mary heralds of both autumn and spring.

The snow decked the ground like a blanket. Nikola had tried creating animals, but found that he could not. They, apparently, didn’t end up here. And they were God’s creation, anyway.

He reached the end of the slope and stood up. Taking the rope of the sled, he tugged it ever forward. Trees appeared the further in he went. He was going to create mountains too. But, he needed to rest first.

He was still alive and so had limitations. Nikola picked up a cherry from a low-hanging branch and ate it. It tasted like a normal cherry. The same rich sweet color. It even smelled the same.

Then, something happened that hadn’t before since he got here. He heard laughter. He stood up and took the rope of the sled again, walking in the direction of the sound.

There was a man playing in the snow. He was making snow angels and there were apple cores not too far from him. The man saw him and Nikola waved.

“Look, friend, this place got a face lift! I thought I was going to get mad in here. It is good to eat again!” Nikola grinned, glad that someone had appreciated his efforts.

“You are welcome,” the man blinked.

“You did this?” Nikola nodded. Then, the man saw the sled and his face split in a grin. “Can I get a turn?”

Nikola saw where the man’s finger was pointing and nodded again.

“I can make you one of your own, if you’d like,” he did so and the man ran to the sled, getting in. Nikola took the rope and began tugging the man to the next slope. “We can go down together.”

“Man, that is bringing some memories. But, why snow? Why not grass?” Nikola shrugged.

“I like snow. And, there are plenty of autumn and spring trees around to add color. You want grass?” Nikola was not against making the man a meadow. Something with the same flowers that grew in the back of the cottage.

Thinking back on the cottage made Nikola think about Sadik. What was he doing now? Was he on a hospital chair, waiting for Nikola to wake up. Sadik wouldn’t abandon him, Nikola knew. But he would need to move, soon, and then maybe the hospital staff wouldn’t let him take Nikola with him.

That saddened Nikola. He should have taken Sadik up on his offer. Then, perhaps, bringing back Jake wouldn’t have gotten him in a coma. He wondered how the boy was — now. Was he dead already?

Uriel’s words came back to him. Jake had been supposed to die that day? Or was it still today? Nikola had lost track of time, playing around in the snow.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Nikola looked back at the man, who had a cheerful smile on his face. He had not been human, when he had been alive. To have ended up here. Still, neither had been Nikola. And he was nice enough.

“I was thinking of the people I left behind,” the man got an understanding look on his face. His smile dimming.

“Yes, that is tough. I left a wife and two children too. What were you, before? I was a Leviathan,” Nikola racked his brain for what that might be, but found he did not know.

“I have no idea. I am the product of two angels, though,” the man made an oh shape with his mouth.

“They must have been pissed off when you were born. Angels get down and dirty with each other all the time. But, they rarely get pregnant,” Nikola snorted. They were at the slope now. He let go of the rope and got in the sled. He kicked himself down the slope and let the wind whip around him.

Furthermore, he heard a whop of joy from behind him and didn’t need to turn around to see that the man was gaining up on him. Nikola got a mischievous look in his face and angled himself, so he could get more traction.

Despite that, he still saw the man next to himself in a second. The Leviathan winked, and Nikola threw snow at him. The man threw some back. And the war began.

When they hit the end of the slope, they were both covered in snow and laughing silly.

“I have to admit, one can’t do something like that with grass,” said the Leviathan, and Nikola nodded. Snow was more fun indeed.

“You are the first person I have seen here. Where are the rest?” Asked Nikola, and the man shrugged.

“Here, there, anywhere. The rules are that everyone had at least fifty kilometers worth of space in Purgatory. The place is huge,” Nikola’s eyes widened. Sure, he needed to just by a place now for trees to sprout. And the snow was already on the ground when he got around. But, it will take him an eternity to change this place.

If he wanted to get out, he needed to work smarter. He willed a mahogany desk to appear. Then, a laptop and a mouse. He booted it on, noticing that the battery icon was showing that the laptop was plugged in, even though there was no charger.

“What is that?” The Leviathan moved to the laptop and poked it.

“A laptop. A sort of computer, but more compact. I think I know how to get out of here. But, it will take some work,” Nikola, to be a security programmer, knew quite a bit of hacking. He had plenty against using it, when the occasion didn’t call for it.

However, now, it did. A string of code appeared on the scream when he booted up the JDK. It looked strange and had many print screens on them. Nikola read that it was four types of things. Snow, random autumn fruit tree, random spring fruit tree and slopes.

Well, that just couldn’t do. He needed loops and methods. He deleted all the code and the only things that were left were the desk, the laptop, and the Leviathan.

“Oh, man,” the Leviathan groaned.

Nikola grinned and began to type and the Leviathan began to float only to fall soon after when the snow piles and trees were brought back in a blink. This time spanning all around Purgatory.