Finding the Madman

I

    Castiel was unsure how he would bring this up to the Winchesters.

    A large uproar has risen in Heaven, cries of protest and rebellion, demanding answers they had never received previously. Cas's personal opinion, on one hand, was that it was stupid and over nothing. On the other hand, the angels had a point, and their anger was understandable.

    He never thought he would be faced with this once again, not the situation, but those few of whom he had assumed to be long gone by this point. Those who he had once considered his friends, now discovered once more, and now known to be alive to the rest of Heaven. It was quite a shock to quite a few of the angels, however, considering that their existence wasn't revealed to many of them. Cas was one who knew, one God had trusted with the knowledge of their being. In the beginning, it had simply been a great honor, though later, he came to appreciate it more as a gift, a chance at a greater relationship, and something that led to be much more than an initiation of other angels. Though it was an exciting time for those in the garrison who did know, considering that angels hadn't been welcomed into Heaven's army for many years up until that point.

    The most vague surprise that he had learned later on after meeting these five angels was that they weren't to join the garrison, after all. God had had different plans for them to do greater things. Though what those greater things were was unknown to Castiel.

    He recalled the day in Heaven when he learned that they had left. The day he had been filled with the most disappointment, knowing that his friend was gone. He tried to search for her, though obviously, never found her. When he questioned God, he only said, "It was time for them to go."

    That was the day he lost the angel that was like a younger sister to him, Esther. She was always a close thought in his mind for the months following her disappearing, along with the others like her, but he soon moved on to greater things. The only thing that made it harder for him was how his Father had left him not too long after she had left as well.

    His vanishing was a bit harder to cope with.

    Now, God is back. He has been back for a while now, and the thought of Esther and the other angels had slipped his mind. Hearing of how her brother, David, had been found now sparked a new memory within him, along with a new hope for something greater than what he had faced, though the uprisings and accusations of betrayal have begun to cause a chain reaction among Heaven, Hell, and Earth.

    Angels have been protesting their lack of knowledge from God, saying it was wrong to keep such a large secret from them, a secret of a stronger, more powerful and intellectual breed of angel, but from Cas's experience with them, they were no different from any other angel. Yes, they were to be a more powerful type of angel, but none of them had any poor intentions, only looking for the good. Well, that was at least how Esther seemed to be. She was young, innocent, and despite aware of her strength, ignorant to her potential as well. He could never picture her being intimidating, or even willing to kill, let alone fight a war. He trusted there was a reason they were never apart of the garrison.

     Meanwhile, in Hell, something was going on. The Winchesters weren't sure why, and just assumed it was Crowley trying to expand his empire, and Cas felt guilty for knowing why they were taking initiative now and just not telling the brothers. Though when they set aside their blatant grudge against the King of Hell, none of them actually knew whether or not Crowley had any part in what was going on. Random murders have been spotted across the world, each reported to be brutal and in masses. So far, there have been seven, taken place in Ireland, the Czech Republic, Mexico, Greece, Uganda, Canada, and the United States. Each of the witnesses had reported the murderer to have black eyes, and to have been accompanied by a dog, as barking could be heard. The only issue with their testimonies is that there was no dog to be seen, and the cops had just assumed the murderers had black contacts in hopes to better hide their identity.

    The Winchesters were prepared to question Crowley if another massacre were to be reported, but Cas was still cautious, in case the King brought up the angels. He knew he couldn't lie to the brothers, especially not Dean, and he was hoping to find Esther and introduce her to the two in hopes that he could better explain the situation at hand. He knew that Sam and Dean wouldn't wish to get involved, considering they were trying to stay out of trouble for as long as possible, just working smaller cases while leaving demons and angels and other supernatural creatures out in the world to sort their larger quarrels out among themselves.

    And so, he left the Bunker for a day. He booked a room in a motel the next town over, where he had planned to stay for the night while he hoped to reach Esther and possibly find a way to sort everything that's going wrong out before things only got worse. His feelings were rather bittersweet about seeing her again, considering he was somewhat frightened by the possibility of her changing, both for better or for worse, while they weren't in touch.

    As he trudged up the stairs that led to the patio of the motel room, he fumbled with the key in his hand, running over what might have happened while she was gone, and contemplating what might be going on now, only below the surface where he may not be able to see. He unlocked the door, reaching out for the door knob. The cold, metallic feel of the knob made him recoil slightly. Sighing, he pushed his way into the dark, silent room. He flicked on the light, filling the room with a warm glow, illuminating the soft green hue that coated the walls, and the blood-red sheets that blanketed the bed. The room almost had a feel resembling Christmas withing it.

    Closing the door behind him, Cas made sure to lock it as well before walking over and gingerly sitting down on the soft bed. He looked around, his heartbeat thumping prominently in his ears. He heaved one last deep sigh, before he looked up to the ceiling, pleading to a being who most likely hadn't even acknowledged his presence yet, and who was most likely already preoccupied with her own business. Cas needed her, no matter how pathetic he sounded. He didn't want this to escalate into something bigger than it needed to be; he was enjoying his moments of peace.

    "Esther," he began to pray, "it's me, Castiel... Please, I need you. We need you -- everyone, that is, angels, humans... Even if there really isn't anything you think you can do to help, I know there is something you can do. There always was..." He stopped for a moment, thinking about what he just said. "I'm sure," he continued, "that you've already received word of David being found. The angels are upset with news of his being, and Heaven is once again in a state of unrest.

    "I would understand if I were the last person you would come to in a time like this," he said forlornly, eyes falling slightly to the ground. "Please, Esther. I just want to end this before it gets too out of hand. It pains me to see our brothers and sisters turn against each other,"

    He finished, and all was silent. He hoped to hear something, some response, some confirmation that his prayer had been heard, and that he was capable of actually contacting Esther. Though he also worried about whether or not she would actually come.

    "Cas?"

    Castiel looked up, eyes widening, his heart skipping a beat. He couldn't believe what he saw, and the only thing he found himself doing was smiling.

    Before him was a girl, a young woman, with dark auburn hair, side swept bangs falling in her bright, gray eyes. Freckles spotted her round face a warm smile simultaneously plastered across it. Though despite never seeing this vessel before, he couldn't have mistaken the angel behind those gray eyes for anyone else.

    "Esther," he cooed, standing and pulling her into a tight embrace. She only giggled, wrapping her arms around him tightly, burying her face in his trench coat.

    "I've missed you," she said softly. "I've been on this plane for too long."