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4. Training

Muriel didn't take long. When Castiel woke up the next morning, she was sitting on the edge of her bed.

"How long have you been sitting there?"

"Ever since I woke up." She shrugged. "Which was about half an hour after you fell asleep."

"Did you… make a decision?" Castiel asked, knowingly treading on thin ice.

"It's tranquil, you know, watching one sleep." Muriel ignored his question. "You get to see their real face, their face when they feel at peace."

Castiel kept quiet.

"I've been thinking about the team you proposed, and I don't like it, or even, I absolutely hate it, but there is no better team to be picked. Except maybe for Azrael, but there is no one else that would knowingly want to die for me."

She sighed. "I wouldn't even want to die for me."

Castiel grabbed her wrist. "We won't die for you, we'll die for the greater good, for the safety of the human race."

Muriel's face twisted. "Oh Cas, you're always so weirdly motivational." She jumped off the bed. "I'm gonna go tell Aziraphale, will you join me?"

Castiel shook his head, "This is something you should do alone."

She nodded. "I know, but it doesn't mean I want to do it alone."

When she left, Castiel slowly did his morning rituals of getting dressed and washing up.

He lingered, not wanting to go anywhere, and jerked up when there was a rapid knock on the door.

"Castiel?" It was Aziraphale.

"Yes?"

"Zachariah requires your presence at once."

Castiel stumbled to the door and opened it, only to see that Aziraphale was already on his way. He followed him suit.

To his surprise, they didn't stop at Zachariah's room, but left the barrack. They passed the other two garrisons and entered the control center.

In a big room with comfy looking chairs (that wouldn't fit Castiel because of his lumpy wings) the rest was already waiting. Muriel sitting in the middle, with Azrael looking quite pale to her left and a very stern Balthazar to her right. Zachariah was standing in front of them, behind a desk.

"Castiel, sit down please."

He did.

"I heard Muriel already spoke to you about the mission, so you're already informed."

"I am."

"How are you feeling about that?" Zachariah sounded so cold, so emotionless. Castiel had been raised in his garrison, had been trained there, but he talked about him as if he was a pawn.

Castiel then realized that that was what he was to Zachariah. A pawn in their games, like Muriel had already told him.

He swallowed. "What must be done, must be done."

"Very well then, we all agree." Zachariah sat down. "Then I propose we start immediately."

Muriel's head shot up. "What? Right now?"

"There is not a minute to be wasted. Aziraphale will help you get to Earth and find a vessel." Zachariah got up and started pacing around the room. "Once you have vessels, you start a special training here, in the control center. This training will continue until we have breached Hell and you can start your mission."

Balthazar started to get up. "Anything else?"

"Yes." Zachariah nodded. "Pack your belongings. You're changing rank and garrison."

"What?" Azrael, who hadn't even moved the entire conversation, suddenly spoke up. "Why?"

"The four of you will become garrison C0. It means you have the highest level of security clearance, you can come and go anywhere and anytime you want, and everybody will leave you be. It's better if we want to make swift progress." Zachariah headed to the door. "I assume you can take it from here Aziraphale?"

"I can." Aziraphale said sourly, and when Zachariah had left the room he added. "For one, I want to state that I do not agree with this mission in any way, but sadly, I have no choice in participating or not."

"What do we do?" Balthazar asked. He seemed to be the only one who was actually into this mission. Or he just wanted to get it over with.

Aziraphale sighed. "You do as Zachariah said and get yourselves a vessel. Once you have the vessel, you get back here. But first, you'll be relocated. Follow me."

Aziraphale left the room, and everyone followed suit, like ducklings trailing after their mother. They walked and walked, and Castiel found that the control center must be the biggest section of the entire training center in Heaven, because it was easily three times the size of garrison G, and that was only from what Castiel could see right now.

"This wing is entirely dedicated to your garrison." Castiel noticed that Aziraphale addressed Muriel when saying 'your garrison'. "It has private quarters, training centers, a library and even access to the Garden."

The Garden was the place in the training center closest to the center of Heaven and only the most privileged soldiers were allowed up there.

Castiel could hear Azrael gasp behind him. "Mu, access to the Garden!"

"It's a small compensation for the price we're going to pay." Balthazar huffed.

"Make yourselves comfortable, I'll be back in a few hours and we'll descend to Earth." Aziraphale shot one last, moody look at them and then left.

Muriel and Azrael immediately started exploring and chatting and running around, while Castiel and Balthazar stood awkwardly in the middle of the room.

"What now?" Castiel asked.

"Get comfortable." Balthazar said, mimicking Aziraphale's voice.

They followed the two girls down into the corridor they were exploring.

"Cas!" Muriel called. "This door has your name on it!"

Castiel walked forward and opened the door, which led to a luxurious room with a large bed.

"Wow." He said, entering the room. It was twice, maybe even trice the size of the room he shared with Muriel. It had a large bed, library, bathroom and study.

"I gotta see my room." Muriel whirled around and ran to the other side of the corridor. There was a short silence and then a gasp. "CAS, I GOT CABLE!"

"You've got what?" Castiel swung his head around the corner.

"Cable."

Muriel's room was different that Cas'. It was the same size, but hers was very… uhm… pink. Literally everything was pink, from the walls to the bed sheets. Muriel's room was about the same as Cas', except that instead of a library filled with books, hers was filled with slender boxes.

"What's this?" Castiel asked.

"DVD's." Muriel grabbed one. "They're stories on a disc. You can play them."

"Why have I never seen any of these things?" Castiel took another disc and turned it around in his hands.

"They're from Earth. Man made them. I think these rooms are designed to fit our personal desires to make us feel comfortable." Muriel was silent, but then added. "I went to Earth a couple of times. Secretly."

Castiel looked at her, shocked.

"Vices and virtues, darling." Muriel laughed. "Vices and virtues."

Balthazar cocked his head around the corner into Muriel's room. "Muriel, what happened here?"

"Pink!" She giggled.

They rumbled around in their rooms for some more, until Azrael said, "We should really get to Aziraphale."

Aziraphale was in his office in garrison G, and the group nervously entered the room. The Angel was reading a book and held up a finger, reading some more before closing it and putting it down.

"Sit, please." He said. He was silent for a moment when they all took a chair.

"I've taken the liberty to track down your perfect vessels. I believe you have paid enough attention in culture class to know what I'm talking about, right?" Aziraphale looked up at them expectantly and they all nodded.

Every Angel had their true vessel, the one they were meant to be for. The moment the inhabitant of this vessel dies, it reincarnated immediately, just with a different soul in it.

Aziraphale passed files around. "These have pictures, and don't freak out. You should also know that your true vessel looks exactly like you, except for the wings."

Castiel opened his file. His true vessel was a man named Jimmy Novak, who lived in Pontiac, Illinois. Even though Jimmy's expression was different from Castiel's, he did realize that this man was him.

"Mine is a child." He heard Azrael complain. "Damn, I've got bad timing."

"Mine's still a child too," Muriel reassured her. "Look,"

She showed them the picture. Sarah Walker, a little redhead, only nineteen years young.

"Mine's handsome," Balthazar smirked.

Aziraphale let them chatter for a moment, but interrupted them soon.

"Get down to Earth and do what you must to get in your vessel. If the vessel will not comply, find another. Get back here in two months." Aziraphale got up. "I've got more important matters to attend."

And he teleported out of the room, zap, like that.

Balthazar laughed, a full body laugh that seemed to vibrate through the room. "Okay. Well. Mine's English."

"French." Azrael chuckled. "This is never going to happen."

"Well," Balthazar closed the file and got up. "I've got no time to spare. Two months is not much to convince a vessel."

He looked around the room, trying to decide what would trigger teleportation to Earth.

"You think of where or to whom you want to go." Muriel said helpfully.

"Yeah," Balthazar smiled. "I was just deciding on a custom, you know, trademark."

"Like?" Castiel frowned.

"Like, uhm," Balthazar flexed his wings. "Like a pirouette!"

He did one and disappeared.

"Okay." Azrael said. "France it is."

She closed her eyes and frowned. And then disappeared.

"Leaves us." Muriel said. She looked uncomfortable.

"Leaves us." Castiel nodded.

"Good luck, Cas," Muriel smiled at him and teleported out of the room.