Chapter 61: The Calm

"Odd to see you down here, Michael."

Amy sat down and looked to her right, where a man was sitting silently on the bar stool. The man had shoulder-length golden blonde hair; his blue eyes glowed behind black-framed glasses. An extravagant blue suit rested on the man's very physically impressive body. The man nodded, placed down the cup of wine, and turned to her.

"Chamuel." Michaels's voice was deep and had a hint of a Romanian accent. "You've been lax with your responsibilities."

"...uh." Amy chuckled and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. She looked away and then focused on all the decorations the bar they were in had to offer. Several other patrons walked around and spoke loudly.

"No matter." Michael shook his head and sighed. "...Uriel and Gamaliel are dead."

Amy's eyes widened in shock and disbelief as she spun around to look at her brother. "What... did you say?! That's impossible!"

Sighing, Michael took another sip of his red wine and looked down at the glass. "They were killed several weeks ago. We believe it was done by a relatively large army of powerful demons and devils. After investigating the battlefield, we found that their main goal was to acquire possession of Longinus's spear."

"Why wasn't I notified before!" Amy growled and stood up from her stool. Her yell got the attention of a few people, but they all shrugged and went about their business.

"Calm yourself, Chamuel." Michael's being radiated power that immediately compelled Amy to obey. Amy felt herself sweat slightly; she never lost her composure in front of Michael before. A surge of shame erupted inside her.

"My apoligies, brother." Amy bowed her head slightly. Careful to show proper respect for her superior. "I didn't mean to lose my composure like that."

"It seems like all your time with the humans has caused you to relax and forget yourself." Michael chastised her but then looked up. "You weren't informed because we feared the remaining demons and devils behind the attack would target you next. At least that was what I thought, but when they made no move to attack you, it led me to believe that the angels stationed on Earth were not their true goal."

"The spear of Longinus." Amy said. "A weapon capable of killing gods. Could their goal be an attack on God?"

"Unlikely, Lucifer would never allow such an attack. Regardless, we can't rule that out." Michael stood up and walked over in front of Amy. "The situation here has grown above your capabilities. You are to return to Heaven. From here on out, Angels will no longer be stationed on Earth to serve as humanity's guardians. I've given you and your siblings centuries to prove that this race of beings was still worthy of our protection and attention. They are nothing but lost creatures who will inevitably destroy themselves. You are to return within one week's time. That should allow you to make peace with the humans you've involved yourself with."

Amy's eyes widened. She grew angry and wanted to argue against Michael's proclamation. As she was about to open her mouth, Amy bit down on her tongue and looked down at the dirty bar floor. "…very well."

Looking up, she saw an empty bar stool and a glass filled halfway with water. Sighing, Amy sat back down and grabbed the sides of her head. Just when she finally found a place where she felt she truly belonged, it was taken from her. After centuries of performing her responsibilities, didn't she earn the right to do what she wanted? To do what made her happy with the people she grew to care about deeply?

"You look like you could use this."

Amy saw a drink being placed in front of her. It was an old-fashioned. Looking up, Amy saw the bartender smile at her with a crooked, easy-going smile. The man wore a green striped button-up shirt and had messy, brushed back, black hair. Amy smiled slightly and grabbed the drink.

"Thanks." Amy said. "I appreciate it."

"No problem, it's on the house. I'm Nick, by the way, Nick Miller." Nick smiled and held his hand out. Amy shook his hand and smiled.

"Amy Josef." Amy chuckled slightly at the mention of his last name. "My friend has the same last name. Small world."

"Oh yeah? Tell me about them."

•••

Harvy turned the engine to his red Honda off and kicked out the kickstand. Taking off his helmet, Harvey got off the bike and set down the helmet. Sighing deeply, Harvey looked forward at the Evergreen Cemetery and gripped his backpack straps. Walking forward, Harvey made his way deep into the center of the cemetery. After a few minutes, he arrived before a well-maintained gravestone. The name Roberto Williams was etched onto the front.

Wiping off some dust on the top of the gravestone, Harvey smiled and kneeled next to stone. "It's been a while, Roberto."

Slipping the backpack off his body, Harvey unzipped it and pulled out a box. Sitting in front of the stone, Harvey smiled and opened the box to reveal an animal-themed chess set. "Sorry, I haven't visited in a while. It's been a hectic few weeks."

"I've made sure to check on Ms. Johnson and the kids once a night. I'm not sure if it's necessary anymore; everyone in that area talks about how they always see Vengeance on the rooftops every night. It is safe to say no criminal or felon even thinks about committing any crimes or hanging around there at night. The neighborhood has never been safer." Harvey smiled and quickly set up the chessboard. After deliberating for a second, he made his move.

"Regardless of whether it's safe or not, I'll keep checking up on them regularly. I owe it to you and promised Teacher to ensure nothing happens to them, so that's what I'll do." Moving Roberto's pieces according to how he always did, Harvey chuckled and removed one of his pawn pieces.

"But I guess that's becoming more common now throughout the city. I make sure to patrol the more looked-over parts of the city where law enforcement looks over. Sometimes, the kids there yell my name and wave at me. It's odd being appreciated for what I do. Now, if only the LAPD could do the same." Harvey sighed as Roberto claimed his knight. "After being Vengeance for almost a year, I think I'm getting the hang of it all. It used to be hard and taxing on my mind, but it's not as hard as before. I'm not sure if it's experience or the constant changing of my body. Haah, I really wish I knew what I was or what I'm becoming."

Harvey sighed and leaned back on his arms, and looked up at the sky. Looking at the various colors ranging from hues of orange, red, and purples of the setting sun, Harvey smiled and enjoyed the piece. "Regardless of what mystery being I'm becoming, I'm at a pretty good place right now. It's been a long time since I've been… happy. I have such great friends and a girlfriend now, so you no longer have to worry about me finding a girl. I know you and Alex would have gotten along well. She's amazing at chess. I've gotten close to beating her once. Heh, she made sure that never happened again. I know you would have enjoyed playing with her."

Closing his eyes, Harvey leaned forward, picked up his king piece, and moved it forward. "Her family has been very kind to me. I can't imagine my life without them and Pritchett's and Tucker's. It's never a boring day when they're around. The crazy situations they find themselves in are just hilarious. Phil and Claire… it's like I have my parents back. Back when they were around when I was young. I wonder if it's wrong for me to think of them as my own… my mother was always busy when I was young. She never had too much time to spend with me. I remember what she always told me, 'we'll spend some time together this weekend.' But when the weekend rolled around, she always got called in to work or was elbow deep in work."

Frowning at the memories of his youth with his mother, Harvey's mind flashed to Claire. The way she constantly intruded into his life whenever he came over or when she would text him to check on him every other day. It was nice. Of course, he heard how annoying it was that Claire invaded their personal lives from Luke, Haley, and Alex. But to him, it was refreshing.

Thinking about Phil, Harvey chuckled at the man's nature. Phil deeply loved his family and wanted the best for them. Harvey couldn't help but smile at the memories of the Dunphy patriarch. Just last week, he, Luke, and Phil went out to Sky Zone Trampoline Park and just jumped around and enjoyed themselves. They all tried to perform the most impressive-looking tricks for two hours. It was a lot of fun. Harvey thought back to when he and his own father spent time together. Shaking his head, Harvey refused to think about that man right now.

"I know what you would say right now. 'Don't look back at all the bad times. Look forward to all the good ones to come.' And you're right. I'm not going to hang on to my past anymore." Harvey nodded his head and captured Roberto's kingpiece. "I'll keep moving forward and work on my future. The future I want to have."

Harvey looked over at the gravestone. "Ready for match two?"

•••

"Eric? Eric, you here?"

Simon closed the door to his brother's flat and slid the key he copied into his pocket. Walking around the messy living room and kitchen, Simon was surprised to see the place in the state it was. Eric was always clean and orderly. He even had a slight case of OCD. So, to find his home in such a state was concerning.

"Eric!" Simon yelled. "I've been trying to call you for days! Are you here?!"

Hearing no response, Simon headed into his brother's bedroom and found the bed made. "That's odd. Everything else is a mess, but his room is spotless. Is he not sleeping?"

Feeling a sense of worry build up inside him, Simon left the room and headed to his brother's office. Walking up to the office's double doors, Simon grabbed the handles and swung the doors open. "What the hell?"

Disaster. That was what the room was. Papers filled with writing and drawing lined the walls erratically. The desk had stacks of papers piled on one another, and a laptop could be seen buried under several folders. Walking further into the room, Simon turned his head and saw the back wall covered in papers, pictures, and red string. Looking at all the details, he saw that it was some sort of plan, following the strings to the center. Simon found a blurry picture of a hooded man.

"Wait a minute… isn't that the vigilante, Vengeance?"

Inspecting the papers and reading their contents, Simon understood what this mess of papers and documents meant. "Eric… are you trying to come up with a plan to capture Vengeance? Why?"

Walking up to a small desk lined with paper, Simon found a map of West Hollywood. A large red circle was drawn around the West Hollywood Gateway shopping center. Frowning at the map, Simon picked up the folder next to the map and opened it. Reading the contents inside it, Simon felt sweat build up on his forehead. "Just what are you doing, Eric?"

Looking over his shoulder, Simon saw Eric's safe left open. Kneeling in front of the safe, Simon saw a vail filled with a red glowing liquid. "This must be that vail the plans were talking about. Why would this be a last resort if it can give you superpowers? But can this thing really give someone superpowers?"

Simon reached into the safe and grabbed the vail. Standing up, Simon walked over to the picture of Vengeance and glared at it. "Don't worry, Eric. I'll capture him for you. You've always looked after me; I'll have your back this time. All I have to do is hold him long enough for you to come talk to him, right?"

Simon smiled and looked down at the vail. He'd put Eric's plan into action tomorrow. Turning to the right, Simon saw a calendar with a date circled frantically. It was for Sunday, which is three days away. Whatever Eric was trying to do, he was running out of time. So, as his little brother, it was up to Simon to help. He wouldn't let his brother down.

"Don't worry. I got this, Eric."