"Stella, wake up!" Angel yelled, using Stella's phone speaker.
"I am up." Stella said as she sat up in her bed and rubbed her eyes.
It has been a whole week since she was kidnapped. Angel maintains a constant link with her phone at all times in order to know if she is safe. Her father was still investigating the connection between Aries and Stella's kidnapping, but so far nothing has come up.
"Good. You have nothing to do today and I have finally finished reworking this operating system so it is better. Plus it now supports my avatar. So you can see me." Angel said letting her excitement be known.
"Nice, I will take a look after I get out of the shower." Stella said as she got out of her bed.
"And don't forget 231 has the day off. So I am responsible for you." Angel said, prompting Stella to stop and hesitate before going into the bathroom.
Stella spent a longer time than normal, she was thinking about how this is the first time Samael had asked for anything. It was very unlike him to something like this. After realizing how long she had spent in the show she turned the water off.
"That was a long shower." Angel said from the phone.
"Sorry about that. But do you know when Samael asked for today off?" Stella asked as she sat on her bed and started to brush her hair.
"I mean I do know. But I don't really think it is my place to say." Angel replied.
"Is it something bad?" Stella said as she walked over to her wardrobe and started to look through her clothes.
"No it is not bad. He will be back later. You should really ask him yourself." Angel said, trying to get Stella to stop asking her questions.
"One last question, why don't you want to tell me?" Stella said as she walked over to her phone.
"There are a lot of things I will do knowing it is for 231 own good. But this is not one of them, and it really is not my place to tell you what he is doing right now. I know I overstep my boundaries with him a lot, I only do it because I know him so well. He would also be really mad at me if I just told you. So I am sorry but my lips are sealed on this matter." Angel said as Stella got dressed.
"That is fine, I am glad you are at least open with me." Stella said as she picked up her phone.
"Well why would I not be open with you. But now that you are done changing, would you like to see what I look like?" Angel said, waiting for Stella to unlock her phone.
"Sorry, let me unlock my phone." Stella said as she looked down at her phone and unlocked it.
"What do you think?" Angel asked as she appeared on the screen. Angel has made her snow white hair a little longer so it was about waist high and she had on a tight fitting black dress. Her body took up most of the screen but behind Angel the phone's icons were still visible.
"You look really good Angel." Stella said as she watched Angel spin around on the screen.
"Thanks. Now if only I could get 231 to even look at me." Angel said and she let out a sigh.
"What does Samael not look at you?" Stella asked as she started to walk over to her desk.
"Are you kidding me? I can walk in front of him with nothing on and he will not pay attention to me." Angel said as Stella sat down at her desk.
"I mean I don't think he looks at anyone like that. But you are really bold to do something like that. I think I would be too shy." Stella said as she thought about Samael.
"No trust me when you have known 231 as long as I have you become really comfortable around him. I think he does not like to pay attention to me because he knows that I am only doing things so he will look at me." Angel said as Stella opened up her computer.
"Why do you try so hard to get his attention?" Stella asked as Angel walked onto her computer monitor.and sat down in the corner of the screen.
"Hard to say really. I think it is because I see him as my older brother. It is fun to poke fun at him and try to get a good reaction out of him. But I always fail." Angel said as laid down on the screen.
"I can not really relate. I am an only child." Stella said, opening a document on her computer.
"Well I may not be older than you but you can think of me as your older sister Stella." Angel said as she looked at the document.
"Why would you be the older sister?" Stella said as she looked at Angel.
"For I can handle 231 better than you do. Plus being an AI I am also smarter thank you. For instance if you adjusted the output of the left coil and moved the fifth coil up half a millimeter. You would get a better end product." Angel said as she turned around to look at Stella.
"You are right. I could get a better product by doing that. Ok I yield you can be the older sister Angel." Stella said as she started to make the changes to the document.
Samael walked along a cold and empty walkway. The light rain hitting his coat and his footsteps were the only sounds that could be heard. He was walking down the central pass of a large cemetery.
The only thing around him was the slowly wilting flowers and stone grave markers. Samael could remember the faces of every man he had ever served with. He could pick out each one of their personalities and things that made them the people they were.
Samael himself never talked to them much but he had always been watching them. He looked at each of the grave marks and could remember the men that once wore that name on their uniform. His memory was both a gift and a curse.
The grave markers were different but they all had the same beginning 184th I.D. He was looking for one grave in particular, a man that Samael would never forget for as long as he lived. He counted the rows as he walked past them till he found the one he was looking for.
"Row 284, Space 6. It has been a long time, Jasper." Samael said as he walked over near the grave. The grave read,
184th I.D.
Maj. Jasper Simons
Taken on the 4th day
Defending hill 909
"It has already been a whole year since I was here last." Samael said as he squatted down in front of the grave. He looked at the grave marker carefully. It was a clean rectangle made out of polished stone with a clean engraving of the letters.
Samael ran his fingers across the letters. He was thinking about how Jasper was the first person to really talk to him. Jasper was his first commanding officer in the 184th, he treated him really well. Samael remembered it like it had happened yesterday.
The mud was thick and climbed together under his boots as 231 walked through the trenches. The war had been a stalemate for a long time and both sides had dug in already. The trench systems were vast and complex. Both sides had made little to no ground in the last ten years, until the shock troopers arrived.
231 and the other shock troopers were trained to fix that. To turn the tide of the war into their favor. The troopers were separated out and divided up among all the active units. It was the only way to divide the limited numbers from the first two classes.
He had been with the 184th for three months now and had helped them to take over six kilometers of territory. The next assault was going to happen in a matter of moments and 231 still needed to report to Major Jasper.
As 231 turned around a corner he saw Major Jasper standing with his war-torn uniform. He was not too tall and like all the soldier's on the front had a shaved head. Jasper was standing with his helmet under his arm and his rifle leaning against the side of the trench.
"Major" 231 said as he walked up to Jasper.
"Good to see you in one piece my boy." Jasper said as he put his hand onto 231's shoulder plate.
"No injuries, Sir." 231 said as Jasper picked up his rifle and put his helmet on.
"Good to hear, and I have told you this before but relax. I am not going to take your head off. I care about you boys. We all look out of one another so we can all go home together." Jasper said as he started to walk down the trench.
"Yes Sir." 231 said as he followed Jasper.
"You never change. Now if only I could get your name." Jasper said as he patted 231 on the shoulder.
"My designation is 231, Sir." 231 said promptly after Jasper finished talking.
"I know your number, my boy. But I want to know your name. I mean everyone has a name." Jasper said as he walked past some soldiers getting ready for the battle.
"I have only ever been known by 231, Sir." 231 said as they passed another group of soldiers.
"Well that won't do. Are you religious, my boy?" Jasper said as he stopped and looked at 231. 231 was in the standard shock trooper armor, it was battle damaged and had several deep scratches in the plates.
"Negative, Sir." 231 said as Jasper looked over his armor.
"That is not a problem but I think I got a name for you boy." Jasper said as he smiled and pulled out a cigarette.
"What would that be Sir?" 231 asked as Jasper lit the cigarette.
"How about Samael? In some stories he is an archangel but to some he is known as the destroyer. With how well you help us push the enemy back I think it is kinda fitting." Jasper said as he picked up his rifle.
"If that is what you would like to call me Sir that is fine with me." Samael said in response to Jasper.
"Samael it is then. Glad to have you in the unit Samael." Jasper said as Samael picked up and shouldered his rifle.
"Ready when you are, Sir." Samael said as he looked at the exit to the trench.
"See you on the other side, Samael. ALL UNITS OVER THE TOP!" Jasper yelled as he started to run out of the trench.
That was the last time Samael had seen Jasper alive. That day they had taken hill 909, but the counter assault came. Jasper chose to hold the hill without waiting for reinforcements. Samael had moved into the low ground and taken the trench network just to the west of the hill.
He did get the communication for aid from Jasper. Samael held the line of trenches and when backup arrived he made his way over to hill 909. As he climbed the hill Samael saw the massive number of body's scattered around the hill.
Samael got to the top and jumped into the half destroyed bunker at the top. Walking around he saw dead men from both sides of the conflict. He made his way till he saw the remaining 184th soldier standing near the exit, they had gathered around the body.
As he walked over Samael already knew who it was. He pushed his way past the men and looked at him. Jasper had been shot several times and was holding his right side as blood gushed out.
Samael reached down and picked him up, turning around and started to make his way out of the bunker. He did not want to waste any time. Jasper did not have much time left.
"Good to see you, my boy." Jasper said as he spit up some blood.
"Don't talk, Sir." Samael said as he started to move faster.
"It is all right. It is my time to go." Jasper said as he grabbed Samael's neck and pulled his head down so his and Jasper's foreheads were touching.
"Sir, we don't have time for this." Samael said but Jasper did not let go.
"Listen. You are and will always be more than that number of yours. You have a name. You have your whole life ahead of you Samael. Live it." Jasper said with his last breath, as his words finished his body went limp.
"I will try, Sir." Samael said as he moved his head so their foreheads were not touching anymore.