Return of the Angels

The humans came racing out of the building the moment they heard the scream penetrate through the air. They knew it was Celine and they definitely knew that there was distress in her voice. She had never once screamed, especially not like that in the amount of time they had come to know her. They rounded around the corner of one of the gates that led to the desert and when they made it there, the angels had already gathered together. Azrael was kneeling on the ground and Kristen stepped through to recognize Herald in his true form with a hole punctured through his stomach.

"Is he dead?" Kristen asked scared for the angel he had once hated for so long.

"Not yet, but he's close," Azrael replied. "We need to get him to a room as quick as possible." He picked up the angel and handed him over to another dark haired angel who had stepped forward to take him off his hands. "Raphael," he addresses the angel who had taken Herald. "Do what you must." Raphael nodded and stretched out his wings and took off with a few angels following behind him.

"Where's Celine?" Karl and Apollyon stated at the same time. They glanced at each other and then focused intently on Azrael.

"I don't know but Herald must know," he stated angrily with clenched fists. "We'll wait until Raphael says he's in shape to be interrogated." He started to walk back to the base. "Everyone in the conference room, now!" he demanded. "Humans, you too!"

XxX

Everyone had gathered in the conference room where Azrael took up the spot next to chair that Celine had once sat in the meeting before. Storm sat on the other side of the chair and everyone else took up the same seats as before. Everyone was silent, watching Azrael who sat in anger. His mind was thinking on his daughter, trying to find her but he came up empty. She was in a secluded place he was unable to access. He opened his dark sapphire blue eyes and anger made his ocean like eyes become like a hurricane.

"All we have at the moment is the obvious information that someone attacked Herald and kidnapped my daughter." He began. "Are there any cameras in the area where Herald was found?"

"There are no cameras that are have that area in their sights," Kristen replied.

"And why not?" Azrael said angrily, as if blaming him that they've got no more evidence.

"We didn't think that it was necessary…"

"That's right! You didn't think!" he shouted, slamming his palm on the table as he stood up. "That's where you're carelessness has now led us! Celine, our leader, has been kidnapped by god knows who and we don't know how to get her back!"

"Calm down, little brother!" Apollyon stated calmly although he was just as pissed. "The humans don't have the capacity to look too far into the future. When a problem arises, they deal with it then. They don't stop to consider consequences first." To all the humans in the conference room, they felt very insulted although it was pretty much the truth.

"What else do we know?" Apollyon stated to keep the conference going.

"Whoever kidnapped Celine knows what she is, who she is and why she's important to all of us." Gabriel replied. "Also they might know that she's your daughter, Azrael."

"Shit!" he snapped and his fist struck the table, cracking it.

"They won't be able to take her out of the dimension, so she's definitely still on this planet." A male stated, sitting near Sin. He was a black haired angel with black wings. His eyes were just as black, his muscles bulged as he kept his arms crossed and he definitely intimidated the humans.

"Shade," Azrael acknowledged. "Are you sure you're information is accurate?"

He scoffed, insulted. "I'm learning to be the angel of dimensions, of course it's accurate."

"That narrows down the search," another male next to Sin scoffed. "But we've still got an entire planet to search!"

"Oh shut it, Zariel!" Shade demanded, glaring at the angel.

Sin hit them in the face with her palms. "The pair of you shut it. You're both irritating everyone with your arguing."

"What about you Zariel? What can you tell us?" Azrael asked, looking at the near to being twin of Shade except his eyes were different. Zariel looked at him with his strangely ringed eyes of green. His eyes were definitely just as intimidating as Shade's appearance.

"She's not too far from us towards the east. She's near no cities but where she is there is a barrier located around it where I instantly lose the scent. I can't pinpoint her exact location."

"You'd be able to take us to where you lose the scent, can you?" Zariel nodded at him.

"Wouldn't she be carrying around that communication device?" Fiona speaks up and the rest of the humans look at her as if she had gone crazy. Van was talking to her a hushed voice, telling her how much that was a really bad idea.

"Hold on," Azrael stated, catching Van's attention. He looked at Fiona. "Communication device…? What is this device?"

"It's where she's able to come into contact with this base from any distance on this planet." Kristen replied. He thought for a moment. "I think Fiona may be onto something."

"Why don't you tell us…Fiona?"

She nodded. "If she's carrying it, then we'd be able to track her location from the computers, since there is a tracking device in it to ensure that if something bad happens, we can instantly go to the last location she was in."

"Excellent!" Azrael commented. "You humans aren't as stupid as I had thought. Well, bring it on the screen would you man," he said to Kristen. He did something and the big screen turned on and turned to a really difficult part where the angels instantly got confused with their technology. "Okay, what is all this?"

"This is how we're able to track her last known location," Kristen replied, still doing something that made the screen appear with a map that was zooming in on a location. A very isolated place appeared on the screen and instantly threw all the humans off. "Where the hell is that place?" Kristen demanded from anyone of the Guardian Force.

"There's a better way," a male spoke from the doorway. Everyone turned to face them, seeing a dark haired angel supported a golden blonde haired one. Herald was up and walking! His face was pale; his eyes had deep dark circles underneath them. "Herald was trying to heal himself when he received the blow to his abdomen, plus my healing and some other angels, he was able to heal even quicker." He said to explain his miraculous recovering in such a short time.

But he looked like he's been through hell and back just to stay alive.

Herald looked across the seating of the angels and his eyes widened when he spotted a familiar angel sitting there. His arm stretched out towards him, accusation on his lips. "It's him! He kidnapped Celine!" everyone turned to face the golden haired angel who looked just as confused and as surprised as everyone else. He stood from his seat, ready to demand where the hell this was coming from when Apollyon grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the table.

"Where the hell is she Michael?"

"Apollyon, he can't answer if you choke him to death!" Azrael shouted, equally as angry.

Apollyon lightened the grip around his throat, but he allowed the angel to know that he was dealing with the wrong person.

"Well?" he demanded.

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about!" Michael managed out.

"Are you lying to me?" he narrowed his eyes. "The Creator had asked you to kill Celine when she was born. It's not surprising that you'd kidnap her too!"

"I was nowhere near Celine and I would certainly not attack a fellow angel!"

"You liar!" Herald shouted and instantly regretted it as he started coughing. "You're the one that stabbed me!" he accused.

Michael turned to look at him. "I did no such thing!"

"Herald, what happened?" Kristen asked him, trying to sort things out.

"I was watching Celine from a distance making sure she was safe," Raphael led him to the chair that Azrael pulled out, and he sat down grateful for their existence. "Azrael was the first to approach me, asking me how she was doing and before he left he told me to keep her safe. Then Michael approached me. We talked, and he had asked me some strange questions."

"What kind of questions?" Azrael asks, standing at the armchair.

"He asks how long I've known about her, and I told him ever since I first arrived here and she was three at the time." He continues. "He asks if that's how long I've known she was his daughter, I said yes and mentioned that Azrael trusted me enough with the secret. He asked if I was a fallen, I said no. He acted strange when he asked it, as if he feared the fallen."

"Why the hell would I fear the fallen?" Michael states. Herald look up to see that he was standing, but Apollyon was right next to him in case it proves that he had kidnapped her.

Herald shrugs his shoulders. "I don't know; it's just when you asked me that you seemed quite afraid of me then." Michael lifted an eyebrow up at that. "He asks why I obey Azrael, I told him that he saved my life and I know about the purpose of why he saved me. He then asks why I still obey him; I never quite gave him an answer to that question. The last thing that made me really suspicious of him was him telling me that 'it won't be for very long'."

"Won't be very long for what?" Apollyon asks.

"For me to continue to protect Celine as long as I live…"

"So that's why you were attacked…" Azrael breaks the silence. "This guy wanted you out of the way so he could get Celine. But I know Michael would never fear my fallen, so it's definitely someone else. Whoever it is has the ability to disguise oneself so that they can confuse others. Just like what happened with you. It was a ploy to get us fighting amongst ourselves and it nearly worked…" he said looking at Apollyon.

"Demons fear the fallen…" Apollyon suddenly stated, crossing his arms.

"What did you just say, Apollyon?" Azrael asks.

"I said demons fear the fallen…" he repeats but in confusion.

"You're right, too damn right. Fallen have abilities that not all angels have. Distinguishing angels from demons is one of them. That's why this 'Michael' feared you if you happened to be a fallen since you obey me."

"But demons don't know that Celine's your daughter, right?" Herald asks.

"How exactly did you introduce yourself to this 'Michael'?"

"I said my name and what my profession was in relation to Celine." He answered.

"What exact words did you say?" Azrael pushed.

"'I'm the one that was ordered by Azrael to protect his daughter.'"

"Shit!" Azrael cursed. Everyone looked at him. "Herald, you're going to hate yourself if I tell you." Herald looked at him confused. "They didn't know that she was my daughter, until you told them."

"How did I tell them?" Herald looked far beyond scared, not for his life, but for Celine.

"When you introduced yourself," Azrael replies.

"How…?" he questioned; still not quite understanding.

"You told him I ordered you to protect my daughter…" Herald's eyes widened and fear broke through the surface. Fear that was for Celine.