The Commander examined the crown of spikes closely, turning it in his hands over and over again, brushing his fingertips over the ends of the spikes and his eyes darkened at the meaning behind the device. Yet another creation made at the hand of a cruel sister.
Mindbreaker, indeed.
"Where was this contraption even found?"
He passed it over to the Healer at his side, and he took it in gentle nimble hands, turning it over to examine in his way. He pressed a finger to the tip of a single spike and hummed softly as he pulled it away to reveal the small drop of red blood that had been left behind from its point, nodding he passed it back to the Power before them.
Michael turned to his brother in question, "Have you seen this before, brother?"
"Not personally, though the scars that had been left have been laid witness to, I believe this device was used recently.", he pressed a rag he'd pulled from his robes to his bleeding finger to staunch it, "Though why they possessed such a device is beyond my reasoning, and to attempt to use it one a fledgling?", he shook his head, leaving it on that note, but the disapproval and disgust was written clear on his expression as he turned to reattend to the fledgling curled tightly into her master.
The Chief shrugged, taking it back in hand when it was passed over in return, the Archangel wiping his hand on his sleeve as if the mere touch of it disgusted him, and from his expression is was more likely then not. The fledgling they had recovered had buried herself into her Choir Master's arms and had yet to return to them again, the Morningstar looked alarmed, arms curled tightly around his small fledgling, eyes wide as he stared at the contraption that had nearly been used on his tiny fledgling.
Nisroc tucked the torture device into the cloth they had wrapped it up in, if only to hide it from the fledgling it had nearly been set up and passed it behind him to Haniel.
"Does anyone know where they are being stored?", Michael was set, eyes hardened and jaw tight, he was not happy with this recent revelation and the possible numbers it had effected.
Again, none could answer, but a flash of sadness darkened the Power's eyes. The youngling he had taken underwing, once under the charge of the cruel sister, might know where they were kept. He loath to return him to the place that had caused him so much pain, and perhaps it would be asking too much, but he knew the boy would agree to do so if not hesitantly if only to please them. He was most certainly trying to get back in their better affections after his actions, and though they were more then explained from his time as a fledgling and who had been tasked with rearing him, he was not the only one to have suffered in silence at the hands of another and not risen above it, thus he would do so too.
Just as the Baby Power had proved.
Tragedy does not define you; it can shape you, but never define you.
A slow process, it was, but he was starting to get the youngling who was barely out of fledglinghood to open himself up to others. They spent much time together, training and other moments, he was growing rather fond of the boy. Though all the younger flocks of warriors were technically under his charge, no longer under the nurture of a guardian, he had found himself falling into a pseudo role for the boy.
He would make a great Power someday if they could get him to open his heart for others, being one of them was more then just skill at combat, it was about compassion and love.
They could defeat armies near effortlessly, while on the other hand, have to be able to tend to the fledglings that migrated in their direction during moments of peace. Such as the Baby Power had.
"Not myself, but the boy, Paul? He was her charge. Perhaps he would know."
The Archangel nodded, "I want them all destroyed. Send them to the Blacksmiths and have them melted down. I never want to see one of those again. Am I understood?"
Both Powers saluted him in time to his order, Michael relented a moment, grasping at his Chief's arm, "I know you are fond of the boy, I trust your judgement my friend, if you do not wish for him to show us I will not force the order onto him."
Nisroc wanted to deny him making the order but having them all destroyed was for the better of the Host, despite his ways of going about it, Castiel did have a point. The betterment of the Host was above all else.
"I will ask him on this matter and see what he says, sir."
"I thank you, my friend."
Just as the two Power's were about to make their leave, they were all stopped midmotion at the small voice that spoke up behind them. Iridescent eyes peeked out from the Morningstar's protective hold to look at them all.
"I know where they are."
They all stared at her, even after she had turned to hide away back in her master's shoulder, not sure how they were meant to respond to that. Her knowing would mean that this was not the first occurrence of her seeing one of these cruel crowns and that thought frightened them, a fledgling should not know where to find devices used for torture.
Nisroc and Haniel saluted again, agreeing to meet them at dusk to retrieve the others at their sides, none of them had ever ventured to the cruel sisters lab though the stories that had been passed around and made it to their ears shed some light of the experiences one gained from being taken to the place.
Michael sighed, rubbing a hand down his face, as the door to his office clicked shut and he turned back to the Healer. Glancing a quick sad smile to the frightened fledgling in their care, he focused solely on the other Archangel, who looked back in similar fashion.
"Was that the cause of what you saw?"
He nodded to the soft-spoken inquiry, "Indeed, it is, the markings match those of the make of that cruel device."
"He has taken to you whilst in your care, has he mentioned a name of those responsible, how many?"
It was Raphael's turn to sigh deeply, and rub a hand over his face, "It is hard to say brother, he has been through many tortures, despite what I am to believe he was sentenced. It is a trying task to get him to share much of anything. But judging by the fading and beginning signs of scarring, I would say it happened within the last two earthen years. And most certainly not while locked in the Prisons."
"Then it was on Earth where he suffered that torture?"
The Healer nodded slowly, "Seeing as to who we took it from, and the measures we know they are willing to go, I do have an inkling of who is responsible. Or, at the very least, who had given the task out to be done.", he rubbed at his chin lightly, "Brother I know you said to allow bygones to be bygones, we cannot grow if we don't allow ourselves to, but that seraph and his humans have been known to cross unspoken lines. I do not like them."
"I know Raphael, I know perfectly well, and your resisting such urges to deal them a hand of your own is something I am proud for.
He turned to the Messenger, who up until now, had been standing silently at the Morningstar's side looking to his 'little nugget' sadly.
"Gabriel, I am to believe that the angels stationed on Earth are under your charge?"
"That would be correct."
"I know you are fond of the seraph—"
"This is too far. He will be dealt with accordingly. Him and any of those who would sit back and allow this to have happened."
…
The eight of them stood before the looming building in no time, little Akeelah standing behind her Master, little fingers clutching tightly to his robes, peeking out at the building she had sworn to never enter again in any circumstance.
She wasn't to know of course, not being able to read minds, but on the other side, standing next to the Chief Power her adversary was thinking much on the same lines.
"You do not have to do this if you don't feel as though you can."
Nisroc had his fingers curled over the younger angels shoulder as their Commander addressed him softly, the young warrior in training nodded slowly, staring over his shoulder at the dimly lit hall that led into the place that had been known to cause so much pain.
"No, it's okay.", the Power's fingers tightened minutely on his shoulder, "I can do it."
He stepped around the Archangel and out from the steady grip of the Power to stand in front of the entrance of the place he too had sworn never to enter again once he'd been sorted into his legion. Though history has a way of repeating itself, and this was their time to see and learn from those mistakes made, to keep history from repeating once more.
The young angel looked down when he felt fingers curl around his hand, the iridescent eyes of the famed 'Baby Power' stared back up him, she didn't smile up at him, but her grip did tighten.
Akeelah had stepped out from behind her master when she watched the trainee, she cared little for step away from her big brother and Nisroc and stand before the gaping doorway that lead into the lab, she knew more about him then they thought she did. They had a past together, their meeting hadn't been just made, and it was something they would only share with each other. She stepped around the others, the Power and Commander falling silent, as the fledgling stepped up to the boy, they all knew she was adamant about not liking and took his hand.
They stared at each other for a long moment, "This doesn't mean we're friends." And he nodded "Agreed."
The two of them looked over their shoulders to see the others staring at them, and nodding in unison, stepping forward into the entrance. The others were quick to follow, the setting sun casting shadows over the broken walls and through shattered windows, and the two Power's carried lit torches to brighten the rooms as they entered.
Paul looked forlornly through doorways, into back rooms, still clutching tightly to the hand curled around his. Beside him Akeelah did much of the same thing, skirting around the upturned metal table in the main room sitting in the middle of the lab.
The Powers bent to see the tools closer, the Messenger and Healer following, and noted the remnants of dried blood on them.
They passed rooms with barred doors on them, some hanging precariously on one hinge, others still closed securely, and then there was the ones that the doors had been pulled from them completely. The Morningstar frowned softly when the little fledgling let go of the boy's hand to venture into one of the cell-like rooms to pick up something that was unseen in the darkness of the shadows, Haniel moved his torch closer, and they each saw the stained little cloth doll she clutched in one hand as she went back to holding the young warrior trainee's hand too.
"Akeelah, what is that?"
Lucifer had asked the question that as on all of their minds, but none wanted to know the actual answer to.
"It's my doll."
The implication that the small statement held was enough to catch a breath in all of their throats. Still though, they followed the two of them down a side hall, Nisroc and Haniel waving the torches around to illuminate rooms as they passed them. A reddish-brown patch of dried blood was painted in the corner of one room and the dried imprint of a hand on the window of another.
The horrors that had most certainly been faced in these rooms darkened the place even more. The only consolation was knowing the one responsible would never again step foot out in the open freely.
Akeelah and Paul stopped outside of a room, the door cracked open, and exchanged looks again, before the youngling reached his free hand out and pushed it open.
The room itself wasn't too big, it was barn except for the rusting metal table standing in the middle of the room and the upturned cart on the other side, above them a skylight allowed the shine of the stars to glow down on them. Those who found themselves strapped to the table could see the freedom above the with no hopes of ever reaching it. They guided them to a closet on the opposing wall and Akeelah reached out to open it, the crowns were hung on hooks in the wall, among various other devices they had never seen. Michael stepped up behind them, placing a reassuring hand on both of their shoulders, and eyed them all closely.
"This is something that pains me greatly.", he eyed the walls aligned with torture devices, "Mindbreaker indeed. I want these all melted down first thing. Never to be seen again."
He turned himself and young angels around, the others following, and left the room to itself. The devices would be handed over to the Blacksmiths to be smelted down to forge weapons to defend instead of weapons to harm.
As soon as they stepped out of the looming building, into the glowing light of the stars above and the warm glow from the torches in the two Powers' hands, the two young angels let go of each other's hands, Akeelah made a show of staring at it in horror as she moved back to her master's side and Paul wiped his hand on his top as if to wipe away the remembrance of her touch.
They all rolled their eyes at their antics.