Chapter 35: Building a plan

Meiko and Lola were sitting in a small hideaway that not many people knew about. Meiko had fortunately managed to stumble all the way to Lola's room. As Lola saw the tough hearted angel was on the verge of tears she dragged her away to her favourite place. The little hideaway was dark, not too dark that you couldn't see, but dark enough that it felt nice and cost and private when you were alone. Surprisingly Meiko was handling the darkness pretty well.

Meiko had told Lola everything that had happened with Miku and was now sobbing into her shoulder.

"It will be okay," Lola murmured into Meiko's hair. "We'll find her, don't worry."

"What if we don't?" Meiko cried. "What if Miku's already killed her?"

"Do you believe for a second that Luka is dead?" Lola asked.

Meiko shook her head.

"Well then." Lola smiled. "Cheer up."

She pushed Meiko back slightly so she could wipe the tears from the angel's eyes. Meiko looked at Lola and did her best to smile in return, although it was extremely wobbly.

"Where are we, anyway?" She asked eventually.

"My favourite spot," Lola said. "It's actually where I met Leon."

"Where you met him?" Meiko questioned.

Lola nodded and went on to explain. "Well, I already knew him, or knew of him, we were acquaintances. I mean, he is my sister's best friend's brother's best friend's wife's brother, so of course I knew him. I mean, that sounds like a lot but it's not, especially when this is a small community. But anyway this was where I really got to meet Leon.

"It turned out both of us took quite a fancy to this hiding place, and so we bumped into each other here. We got to know each other and both decided to keep meeting here. This was where we first confessed, first kissed, all that kind of stuff. It's kinda of a special place, it means a lot."

"So why did you bring me here?"

"Because I thought you needed a special place to make you feel better."

Lola smiled yet again. And Meiko managed to give a decent smile in return.

"But isn't this your's and Leon's place?" Meiko asked. "Am I not intruding?"

Lola shook her head. "Of course not. I think by taking you here I can show you that I trust you. I think we could be really good friends. Don't you?"

Meiko pulled back slightly and just stared at Lola. Just before the stare could cross over to too awkward she smiled. "You would have made a perfect angel."

Lola looked surprised, but only for a brief second before she gave he ex-archangel her warmest smile. "Thank you."

"Told you we'd find them." A voice suddenly cut through the air.

The pair looked up to see Leon and Kaito standing over them. Leon was wheezing slightly (he wasn't particularly known for his athletic ability) but Kaito seemed perfectly fine. The angel blood in him, for sure.

"What are you guys doing here?" Leon asked as he crouched down in front of his girlfriend.

Lola stroked Meiko's hand. "Comforting those that need comforting."

Leon glanced at Meiko. "You all right?"

If Meiko had been in the right mood she may have snorted, but she was far from being in the right mood. Instead she just sighed. "No."

The ex-archangel looked up and saw Kaito standing just behind Leon. Kaito smiled down at her. "We'll find Luka, don't worry."

"It's not the finding her I'm worried about," was all Meiko said in reply.

Kaito sighed and then came up to her, Leon shuffling to the side slightly. The blue haired angel held out his hand and so, after another sorrowful sigh, Meiko took it and pulled her up to her feet and straight into a hug. Meiko whimpered slightly as she hugged him back.

"I just want her to be all right," she whispered. "Luka's like a little sister to me, I can't bare the bought of losing her."

"You won't, I promise," Kaito whispered back.

Leon then pulled his own girlfriend to her feet and turned to face the other two. "Anyway, Big Al has ordered us to go to the conference room. He wants the three of us there."

"The three of us?" Lola questioned with the unsaid but clear thought 'but there's four of us' left hanging in the air.

Leon nodded. "Kaito, Meiko and I, I don't know why me, but apparently he does. You're to go and find Sweet Ann and keep an eye on the children. She told me to tell you to go straight to the living room."

Lola didn't look at all pleased by her own task, but nodded nonetheless.

That was when Meiko spoke up. "I want to go with Lola."

"With Lola?" Leon asked. "But Big Al specifically asked for the three of us to meet him. Something about your 'heavenly advice'."

"Well he can have Kaito's," Meiko replied, pulling away from the blue haired angel. "I am just not in the mood for a meeting. I have just lost Luka, I really am no in the mood."

"But-"

"No buts." Lola gave her partner a stern look. "She can come with me if she wishes."

Leon sighed. "All right. Well I guess we'll talk to you later. Come on, Kaito, Big Al is probably waiting for us."

Kaito nodded and, with one last smile at Meiko, disappeared along with Leon.

"That was pretty pointless," Leon muttered as they quickly made their way to the conference room. "Do you think Big Al will mind if Meiko doesn't show up?"

If Kaito had been in the right mood he may have laughed, but he was far from being in the right mood. Instead he just sighed. "No."

In the mean time Lola took Meiko by the hands. "Let's go, shall we?"

Meiko nodded and glumly followed Lola to the living room, dreading the thought of losing any more of her angels.

"Where's Meiko?" was the first thing Big Al said when Leon and Kaito drifted through the door and into the conference room.

"Not here," Leon said, but the dry humour wasn't welcomed and was met with a stare. Not any particular type of stare but a stare nonetheless.

"She didn't want to come," Kaito explained calmly, seeming to put on a more mature posture than he normally had. "She can't handle being in a meeting. She's just lost Luka, she has to get over it."

"We've all lost someone," Big Al remarked. "And we haven't lost Luka, we're going to get her back."

This time Big Al was met with a stare, but by Kaito instead. "She's JUST lost Luka, she has to get over it."

Big Al sighed and just beckoned the two guys inside. Leon closed the door swiftly and they both joined the group of people gathered in the centre of the room.

It seemed Kiyoteru was there already, along with Rook. Kiyoteru had a frown on his face, presumably because his daughter had only just been threatened by the evil goddess, whilst Rook look more worried. Rook generally acted as a tough, no nonsense guy, loud and slightly obnoxious, along with his wife, but everyone knew how the pair of them got extremely worried extremely quickly.

Tonio, the man whom had let Oliver, Yuki and Ritsu disappear in the first place was also there, a Destroyer turned Preacher. Leon noted how neither of the three fathers were looking directly at him. Even though they all had their children back they weren't ready to forgive the man whom had simply let them disappear, not yet anyway.

"So what's this meeting for?" Kaito asked as he looked around at the other people there. He didn't recognise the majority of them, but he hadn't been down on Earth long so who could blame him?

"Well, most people are probably wondering what the black out was about, and why some of us seem to be a little more panicked than usual." Big Al stood up a little straighter as he talked, which wasn't necessary as he already towered over the rest there, with the exception of Rook whom was very close to being as tall. "So I'm guessing I better start at the beginning.

"I suppose it starts when three of the children - Oliver, Yuki and Ritsu - meet missing outside." Nobody needed to look at Tonio to see how ashamed he seemed. "Eventually Gakupo and our resident angel Luka, whom I'm sure you all know by now, found them."

Leon coughed. "Don't forget I was there, and so was Tonio."

Big Al shook his head slightly. "Okay, so Leon here helped out, maybe a smidgeon, and so did Tonio."

Leon noted Big Al refused to look at the other man. Leon also noted the other man had his eyes cast down at the floor.

"Anyway, along with the three children we found a forth child, a green haired boy by the name of Ryuto that we decided to take in," Big Al continued. "Unfortunately this little boy turned out to be a disguise for none other than the goddess herself, Miku."

A sharp intake of breath passed over the room.

"The goddess herself was here?" Rook asked, wide eyes.

"Sadly she was indeed, hence we took down the power temporarily to lesson her powers, and it seemed to work. Gakupo should be dead but thankfully he isn't."

"He's all right?" Kiyoteru asked, having been one of the few to witness Miku's attempt to kill him.

"He's not dying, but he's temporarily in a coma," Big Al said, and the comment was met with silence.

"How long is temporary?" Leon asked.

Big Al sighed. "To be honest I have no idea."

That comment was also met with a silence, in which a further silence was added when Big All added, "To make matters worse Miku has taken Luka with her. We don't know whether Luka is alive or not, but we're going to assume alive, and we're going to assume that we can get her back."

"But how is the question," Leon muttered.

"Why do we need her?" Tonio asked.

Big Al gave him a cold stare. "She's been taken hostage, we try to rescue any hostages of ours, regardless of whether they are being held captive by another human or a goddess."

"No, I mean-" Tonio sighed. "Look, I know you're not exactly fond of me right now, but just listen to me with out a glare, will you?"

Big Al seemed to be slightly taken aback by the remark, but not obviously so, and instantly relaxed his face. "I'm listening."

Tonio sighed again. "Saving a hostage from a human is the one thing, saving a hostage from a goddess? That's entirely different. She's got magic, she's powerful. How are we supposed to combat that when we can barely save people being held hostage by our own kind?"

Big Al returned to glaring. "What do you mean we can't save people being held hostage by our own kind? Of course we can, we do it all the time."

"We're not always successful though, trust me, I know." Tonio countered with a cold stare of his own. Big Al wanted to counter with something else but there was something in Tonio's cold, slightly sorrowful stare that stopped him from doing so. Instead he just waved his hand to indicate to the man to continue. "The question is, is Luka important?"

"Of course she's important," Kaito said, and he would have followed up with more if Tonio hadn't silenced him.

"That's bias speaking," Tonio said. "We need to think from an unbiased point of view. I'm all up for saving Luka, she's a kind person, similar to Gakupo in a sense, but what I'm getting at is do we need her? Is she vital for taking down Miku because if she isn't then we don't need to put in resources for saving her, we could focus our energy on something else."

People were silent for a second as they pondered this.

Rook was the first to speak. "He has a valid point. As much as I owe Luka for finding Ritsu, do we need to find Luka?"

"I reckon the only way we're taking down Miku is via angels," Leon inputted. "You're an angel, Kaito, what do you think?"

Kaito was quiet for a moment but then said, "Luka. We need Luka. In my honest opinion, I think Luka is the only one who could take Miku down."

"Would you like to offer any insight as to why?" Leon asked, glancing at Big Al whom was listening silently.

"To be honest, I don't know," Kaito said with a shrug. "But something is telling me we need Luka."

"So then it's decided, we're saving Luka." Big Al looked at Tonio as he spoke, but his stare was no longer cold.

"I guess it's up to Kaito and company to save Luka then," Leon said. Kaito raised his eyebrows in question and so Leon quickly explained. "Presumably the only place Miku would have taken Luka is to Heaven, right? So normal humans can't get to Heaven, but angels can."

Kaito nodded. "I could easily fly up there, praying Miku doesn't spot me, and snoop around to try and find Luka. I say easily, but it would probably be the hardest thing I'd ever have to do."

"How hard?" Big Al asked.

"Extremely," was all Kaito said in reply.

"But even if he does get to Heaven successfully," Rook said. "How can you find Luka? I'm going to assume Heaven is a larger place than what we generally think of it as."

Kaito nodded. "That's true, getting to Heaven is one thing, finding Luka is another."

"Not that hard," Kiyoteru said. "There's a tracking device in her arm. Provided it's still attached to her you could easily track her down."

"There's a tracking device in her arm?" Big Al asked with a frown.

"Her metal one, the one I made," Kiyoteru said. "I can track any contraption I make, it's simple really. I give Kaito a tracking device and he can track Luka down."

"That's an idea and a half," Rook said.

Tonio nodded as Leon asked, "But how is Kaito going to get there with Miku watching?"

"We create a distraction," Big Al said. "We're destroyers, go out and make a bang! Get Miku's attention somewhere else just not here. Rook can I leave you in charge of that?"

"Yes sir!" Rook responded.

"All right, Rook, go organise a small group together and get to it. Kiyoteru I want you to talk Kaito through that tracking device of yours. Leon, can you tell Sweet Ann we have a plan. Everyone else is dismissed, apart from Tonio, I want to talk to you."

"To me?" Tonio asked.

"Yes, you," Big Al replied. "Now everyone scram! Let's get this show on the road!"

There was a serious of enthusiastic 'yes, sir's and everyone filed out of the room. They were going to find Luka, they were going to bring her back, and they were going to destroy Miku.

~Author's Notes~

I have nothing to say about this chapter, apart from the second half is so bromantic. So dudey. Such manliness.

No, it wasn't intentional. Promise.

~Kate