"We need to continue… Don't look back." Michonne told her curious followers as they looked at her and then each other. Michonne walked up to a parked green van and stopped in front of it. "We will use this one; it is large enough to carry us all and we must gain the advantage and use this vehicle in order to advance our journey."
"Yeah, this is a good one…But just wait a damn minute … Who the hell are you supposed to be anyway?" Shane asked as Michonne turned to face him. He stood in front of Michonne, face to face.
"I understand your concerns and I will tell you more as soon as we are far from here and the Seeker is safe." Michonne stated with a soft smile. I will only borrow this automobile and then return it when our mission is done."
"Return it?... What do you mean?..." Shane looked at Michonne and then at Gabriel who in turn returned Shane's questioning glare with a shrug of his shoulders and a slight shake of his head. "How in the hell do you expect us to return this shit?"
"Shane!…" Lori called out to gain his attention. When Shane looked at her direction he saw Lori holding Judith who was shaking with her eyes rolled up. Shane ran over to them and took Judith out of Lori's embrace.
"She can feel them, they are coming." Michonne stated.
"Why her?" Lori inquired with tears in her eyes.
"I will provide more information later, but first I need to get her to safety." Michonne turned towards the hood of the van. She opened it and lifted it.
"Wait… We can't go anywhere without keys." Gabriel said as he approached Michonne. She looked at his direction while touching the motor of the vehicle. In a second, the van was on. She looked away, closed the hood and walked towards the passenger car door. Gabriel stood there and looked at the others.
"We must leave now!" Michonne commanded.
"Ok, let's get the fuck out of here!" Shane yelled. Lori entered the van and Shane placed Judith on her lap. Everyone else followed after and entered the van. Shane sat in the driver's side. He looked over to Michonne who was staring at him sternly. "What?" He inquired.
"I do not appreciate the negative language." Michonne shared and then looked forward.
"Are ya kiddin' me?... I can't say fuck?" Shane asked as he looked at Michonne and swallowed hard. Michonne cringed when he said the word again. "Well, that is what we are doin'… Getting the fuc…"
"Shane!... We gotta go!" Lori yelled from the back seat interrupting Shane.
"Um… Ok…" Shane grunted and nodded as he quickly rubbed his head. He put the gear in drive and drove off.
_0_
The group had driven for an hour without an actual destination. After some debating in the van where to go, Carol gave Shane directions to a cabin that Ed would stay at over night when he went fishing and hunting. It was secluded and off the grid. They also needed to rest and find supplies to sustain themselves.
In the cabin as Judith slept, Lori approached Michonne and wanted to know who she was and what was happening to her daughter.
"I get that she has been suffering with something for a while. Since she was three we noticed that there was something special about her." Lori shared as her companions listened and sat on the old and dusty furniture in the cabin.
"Yes, she is quite special. She was chosen at birth to be one." Michonne shared with a smile.
"I heard you call her the same thing that maniac called her before he tried… He tried to kill my little girl. He called her a 'Seeker.'… What exactly was she chosen for?" Lori inquired as she trembled in fear anticipating an answer she knew she would not be ready for.
"Yes, she is a Seeker." Michonne answered. "She was given a great gift. She can feel and see Pure Lights." Michonne smiled when she noticed Lori's inquisitive facial expression. "Sorry… You may refer to us as angels…. Your daughter is an angel seeker… I understand that it has been difficult to see her struggle with her gift. She is still very young and one day she will be able to control it when she is older and stronger."
"Angels?... That is what you are?" Gabriel asked as he breathed in deeply. Gabriel looked at Michonne once again and nodded as she smiled. "I always believed that if I looked hard enough or prayed more… I would… I would see a sign, but this…. It is amazing to actually have a celestial being before us…"
"Yes, it's wonderful and all." Shane added sarcastically as he interrupted Gabriel. "But what about the huge asshole?..." Shane suddenly stopped talking when Michonne gave him a stern look. "I mean the huge… Guy… That attacked Lori and the kids?... The people that have been following us for some months now… Those people are no angels…At least, not the kind I read about in Sunday school… What are they?" Shane insisted as he breathed rapidly anticipating an answer he did not know he truly wanted to hear.
Michonne looked around as worry covered the faces that were smiling a few seconds prior. "I understand that you have seen what they can do. You are partially correct." Michonne confirmed as her gaze rested on Shane. "Those people are not people and they are not who they used to be… They are the Fallen."
"Fallen?... What do you mean?... Fallen angels?... They have powers too. I saw what they did to poor Jim, Dale and Jacqui. Making them into flesh eating monsters." Shane spoke as he looked down trying to keep from tears from exiting his eyes.
"They are demons?" Gabriel inquired as his eyes opened wide. "Aren't they?"
Michonne turned her gaze to Gabriel. "Humans have given them many names, but they were once angels. They were pure and bright spirits… They once believed, but now, they linger in the darkness and have fallen completely from Father's grace… They do have certain powers, but they are not all the same."
"What about our friends… How and why did they make them into monsters?" Carol asked with tears in her eyes.
"It is a form of possession of the body after the soul has exited." Michonne answered as she looked at the faces of her listening companions. Their eyes began to broaden, their brows began to cover with sweat and although neither of them wanted more information, they all knew they needed to know everything possible in order to be fully prepared. "It is an unfortunate tactic that the Fallen have used to create armies of the undead with hopes of vanquishing their enemies and ending the journey of Seekers and those that accompany them… I am so sorry that your friends' corpses were used in such a manner."
The room became quiet as the information received encouraged all forms of thoughts. Michonne looked at each one and knew that despite their current courage, there was fear brewing in their hearts. "I will go and inspect the exterior of the cabin to secure that we are safe. We must also search for needed supplies." Michonne was about to exit.
"So, you're our advantage?... Is that what you are?... A means to fight these demons and monsters?" Shane inquired as he placed his hands on his hips.
"I have been sent as the Seeker's defender." Michonne replied.
"Her name is Judith." Shane stated as he tried to contain his anxiety and other battling emotions with deep breathing.
"I do apologize…I do know her name." Michonne shared with a warm smile.
"So, we're fine with you right?... You can beat them all like you did with the huge guy in the woods?" Lori queried with an anxious smile as she nodded and looked over at a pensive Shane.
"I was sent to defend the…" Michonne looked at Lori and Shane and smiled. "…Judith, but her enemies are many and very powerful. Blake is a very powerful archangel and I merely stopped him, he will come back and there is very little that can deter him permanently."
"So, what are you telling us?... If you can't defeat him, then what are we going to do?... Why are you here then?" Shane stated loudly.
"Shane!... Please." Lori pleaded with tears in her eyes.
"I understand your concerns, but I assure you I will be here for Judith and all of you… And that is my mission… I will stop at nothing to protect you all." Michonne looked over at Shane and offered him a warm smile but he shook his head repeatedly and walked outside. Lori quickly followed.
Gabriel approached Michonne. "You are a defender?... What do you mean?"
"Father chooses and sends a defender to protect the chosen Seeker." Michonne responded.
"Father… You mean God?... Since when has this been happening?" Gabriel enquired.
"Oh yes, God… Well, that is how you call him. You humans have many names for him… Seekers were chosen ever since humans were cast from Eden. The first murder was not just random hatred from one brother towards the other. One was a Seeker and the other was possessed by Father's enemies to destroy his plan." Michonne's words almost left Gabriel speechless as his eyes and mouth were very ajar. He managed to gather himself to speak.
"Are you talking about Cane and Abel?... Was Abel a Seeker?"
_0_
Shane was pacing back and forth outside of the cabin. Lori walked up to him.
"Shane, baby talk to me." Lori extended her hands to gently grab his face so he can focus on her. "I know this is a lot, but we can do this."
Shane stopped his pacing and placed his hands on her hers and breathed in deeply and closed his eyes.
"Michonne is going to help us." Lori's words did not bring the comfort that she intended. Shane quickly opened his eyes and moved back leaving her empty hands in the air.
"Lori… Do you really think she… Or it… Or whatever the hell she is can help us?... Those things out there hunting us are beyond impossible to stop. I understand that she says she was sent and all that… But Lori… I just get this feeling she's no match for what's to come." Shane's ominous words were followed by a chill that came down his and Lori's backs almost simultaneously.
Lori swallowed hard. "Shane… We have to give her a chance… We have to trust her. I saw what she can do… And having her is a hundred times better than having no one at all like her with her abilities…. I am not going to fail my children, my family, our friends and those that we lost… We are going to fight… You hear me?... And she is going to help us!" Lori's words cut deep through to Shane's heart. Her unrelenting tears that she swiped away with one quick movement moved Shane deeply. He walked towards her to provide comfort, but she extended her arm towards him and showed the palm of her hand requesting him to stop. "I am not looking for a hug or for you to tell me that 'things will be okay.' I'm looking for you to fight for your children, your family and friends… For me!"
"Fight?... Lori, what do you think I've been doing?" Shane stated in a loud voice.
"Then keep doing it and don't give up!" Lori said her peace and walked back in to the cabin leaving Shane shaking his head as he squinted looking up to the bright sky.
_0_
Night had fallen upon them. Michonne was standing at the window keeping watch. Everything was quiet and the cabin was surrounded by sounds from nocturnal creatures and darkness. Michonne did not need to sleep as she kept watch but the other adults would alternate with each other to keep watch at other windows throughout the small cabin. The silence was finally broken with slow footsteps walking towards Michonne.
"Are you really an angel?" Michonne turned to answer the owner of the inquiry and saw it was Carl.
"I suppose I am… are you really a little boy?" Michonne laughed. Her smile was welcomed with a smile from Carl.
"I'm not a little boy anymore. I'm twelve years old." Carl corrected her with a false stern look that quickly returned to a smile. "So what's it like?"
"What?" Michonne inquired.
"You know… Being an angel. I saw what you did. Are you full of laser energy or something?" Carl asked with wide eyes and anticipation.
"I do have certain abilities given by Father, but I don't know if I can fully answer your question… What's it like being you and twelve?" Michonne asked the curious teen.
"I guess better than being eleven. I get to stay up later than when I was younger." Carl replied with a smile.
"Are you supposed to be up this later?" Michonne questioned with a side stare.
"Well… Maybe just a little…" Carl was interrupted when he heard quick footsteps coming from one of the back rooms. It was Carol running towards Michonne.
"She's having another one!" Carol shouted.
"They're here." Michonne stated in a low tone.
_0_
The group quickly gathered their belongings and rushed as quietly as possible to the van. Michonne kept watching everything to see if the enemy was approaching. Once everyone was in the van Michonne was to enter last, but was swiftly grabbed from behind and thrown to the ground. Michonne could hear that the ignition was on and some of the inhabitants in the van began to screams. Some out of fear because they knew that the enemy was close and others out of concern for her safety.
"Michonne!.. Come on!" Carl yelled as he tried to exit the van to help her, but was held back by Gabriel.
"Go!... I will follow!" Michonne yelled. Shane nodded and hesitated but knew he had to take the others to safety. Despite Carl's screams the van sliding door was closed and the van drove off.
Michonne stood from the ground. The darkness concealed the identity of the Fallen that grabbed her and through her to the ground. "Show yourself. Be valiant and show me your image."
Michonne's request did not go unanswered. From the darkness appeared a figure that slowly converted to a clear image of a woman with light skin, blonde hair and shiny bright blue eyes. "I see the image you choose to display… Care to show me your true self?"
"Who is it that calls upon me to show my natural form?... From here I can see that who stands before me is no archangel or warrior of many centuries… Tell me, why did He send you?... Surely, there are many more much stronger and more capable than you."
"I said; show me your true form!" Michonne demanded.
"Are you sure you want to behold what I mask?... You reek of purity and simplicity… You think you can fool me with your false confidence and firm words?... My true form will cause you to run in fear… Simple one." The Fallen mocked.
"I know you Andrea… I know your true form and it is you who should be running." Andrea smirked at Michonne's words and began to trot towards her but suddenly stopped when she saw Michonne reach behind her back and pull out a small ancient vial. Michonne opened it and poured a small amount of a red substance into her palm. She looked down, said a few quick words in a low tone and then looked up at Andrea. "You have used the elements of this earth to destroy many cities, you have taken many lives and you caused too much sorrow among man. I will not allow you to hurt the Seeker or those that love her… You are a Fallen and I condemn you to imprisonment for your actions." Michonne blew on the substance and it lifted off of her hand twirled in the air. It rapidly took the shape of a large tornado with howling winds and unyielding force.
"Noooo!" Andrea screamed and turned to run but the mighty winds surrounded her completely.
Michonne slowly walked up to her and looked at Andrea in the eyes as she struggled to set herself free. "I may be simple… But I don't scare easily." With those words Michonne left to meet up with the others as the winds covering Andrea converted into flames. Andrea was completely consumed and vanished leaving the night dark and silent.
In the distance Blake and other Fallen watched everything unfold between Andrea and Michonne. Blake stood with his arms crossed breathing heavy.
"I have never seen one of His angels do something like that before… Where does she get the ability?... She's not even an archangel." Martinez, one of Blake's soldiers stated.
"It appears that He gave her something to fight us with, but it won't stop me." Blake shared through gritted teeth.
"I'll destroy her!" Martinez demanded as he prepared his weapons. He suddenly stopped and looked up to the sky when they all heard something flying over them and towards Michonne's direction.
"Practice patience… Let's see how far she gets to live now." Blake said as he grinned.
"She doesn't have much time left, now that Rikart is following her… I hope he makes her suffer for what she did to Andrea." Martinez shared as looked on.
"Pity… I was hoping to have fun with that one." Blake chuckled. Blake and Martinez watched on as Rikart got closer to his target.
Michonne continued to run. She knew that she was being followed by one of the enemies, but she also knew that she could not lead him to the others, especially Judith. She ran through an open field, but needed to shield herself. She saw from her peripheral vision that there was an abandoned warehouse. She ran towards it. The door was locked, but with a swift kick, she broke it open and ran inside. It was abandoned, cluttered with rusty mechanical equipment used on farms and lots of dust and cobwebs. She hid behind a rusty plough. She hoped that the darkness and the machine can shield her as she figured her next move.
"I sense that you wish to avoid me. I appreciate your awareness to your limitations… Against me." Rikart stated as he walked in the warehouse without concern. He looked around and pushed whatever was in his way with great force that they went to the other side of the room crashing against the concrete walls. He was approaching Michonne and she knew she had to act quickly. She placed a hand on the plough and it turned on hastily. She turned it to face Rikart so it can charge towards him and create a diversion. She took the needed opportunity and ran to a window and broke the glass as she jumped out through it. The distraction was almost nonexistent as the plough came crashing through the brick wall making a huge opening. Michonne continued to run, but stopped momentarily to look back and saw Rikart emerge from the dust and falling bricks from around the large opening. He extended his wings in one swift movement and jumped off the ground towards her. He lowered himself to where she was and as she was running as quickly as she could, she was lifted from the ground in one swift moment. She was grabbed by one arm. She could see on either side of her the flapping of large black wings. She instinctively looked down and saw that the ground was far from her feet and getting further away. She could feel that she was held tightly. She needed to free herself any means possible. She closed her eyes and summoned all her energy and shot at one of the wings. The impact of the blast made her captor yell out in pain and before she could stop herself from falling hard, she was already on the ground. On her left side.
Michonne could feel the dirt jump up off the ground and land all over her after the impact. She sought for balance as she slowly stood. In front of her was a tall wired fence. On the other side he stood. Rikart had landed on his feet. He looked at his left wing and then rested it behind his back. He walked towards the fence where she stood. She placed her right hand on the fence to hold herself up and looked him in the eye. He stood right in front of her as the fence stood between them.
"I know you Rikart…I know your true self and I am not only here for the Seeker… I'm also here for you." Michonne's message caused Rikart to tilt his head and squint his eyes. He stance was no longer of a warrior ready to battle but of a vulnerable and confused being trying to comprehend the words that were just told to him.
"What do you…" Before Rikart could finish his question he heard a large vehicle pull up behind Michonne. It was the others in the van. Shane yelled for Michonne to duck and run to the open side car as the others shot at Rikart who continued to stand in awe of what was said by Michonne. Michonne did as she was told and rushed to the van. She limped all the way towards them and was pulled in by Gabriel and Carl who slammed the side door shut. Carol was driving and they sped away. Rikart simply looked up at the sky.
"Who is this messenger?" Rikart whispered and looked down.
_0_
So, there are many secrets and many will be revealed in the next chapter. Why is Michonne there and why did she say those words to Rikart?
Thanks for reading!