"You poor man," Ameana said without any sympathy.

"Poor is right. You wouldn't believe the overhead."

"What did they need the weeping oil for?" I asked.

"Yeah, like they would tell me."

"Make a guess, Tony. Guess as if your life depended on it," Ameana suggested to him.

"I'm guessing they just need information about a human's past. And once they've found the memory that they are looking for, they'll dispose of the human. That is, if the weeping oil hasn't already done that."

I had a lot I wanted to discuss with Ameana. What in this Emerson person's past did the Akons want to know? Which of the three Emersons would they give the oil to? What could we do to get the same information without hurting a human? Now wasn't the time to talk. Tony should not know more than necessary. He could not be trusted. No Seller could, really.

"What is the other thing they brought?" I asked.

"You mean stole. That's why we need a union. It makes no sense to get the gift of eternal life if any Akon, Runner or p.a.w.n can take anything from us! How are we supposed to make a living? It's always the same thing. We live here in peace, and every six-six-six, you and Akons come and take whatever you want. It's injustice, is what it is."

"You can save your speech for the union meeting, Tony. We just need to know what the other thing was they bought," I told him.

"You guys are supposed to be the good guys. Don't you care about the injustice and unfairness of life as a Seller?"

"No," Ameana said.

He looked her over. He admired her beauty and her body. That irked me. I wonder if it would have had I not been her boyfriend.

"Tony, you try really hard not to stare at her like she's a candy apple. And I'll try really hard not to split you open like one, deal?"

"Ah, yeah. Sorry about that. What was it you wanted to know again?"

"What was the other object they brought?" I said impatiently.

"They got a Trimeter. The only one I had."

"So, they can gauge who has and has not been tagged by the council?" Ameana asked.

"Yeah, it takes a few hours, but the council's mark should show around the area of the clue."

"Good. We'll let them take us to the right one and take it from there," I said.

Tony joined in the conversation.

"It's been so long since I've been a part of saving the world. It's been like ten or eleven cycles at least."

"You're not a part of anything. If you had not given them the oil and the meter they wouldn't have an idea of what they are looking for," I pointed out.

"Hey, they threatened to kill me. You have no idea what it's like in that d.a.m.n womb. Nine months is a long time to wait. Not to mention living off mashed peas and banana."

"You don't care that the world could end?" I asked.

"Only the humans would worry about that. The rest of us know it's pretty much live and let die, you know?"

I rolled my eyes. Ameana and I headed for the door. Tony called out to us.

"Can I ask you guys just one question?"

"What?" I said curtly.

"You guys are the first Guardian couple. I'm thinking that's gotta be kinda cool, right? Like Bonnie and Clyde?"

"They fought for the other team," Ameana pointed out.

"Yeah, but they were a team. You know, one for all, all for one type stuff. Are you guys anything like that?"

"No, we're nothing like that," I said, looking pointedly at her. And for the first time today, she didn't argue with me.

CHAPTER SEVEN: THE GIRL.

It was the day after New Year's and we were certain that the Akons had singled out which Emerson they needed. Rio was right: it was the one with the olive wave. Emerson had hidden inner strength. The twins went to Emerson's school to keep a lookout in case the Akons sent Runners to get him. The other two Emerson's were being followed by Reese and Jay.

Ameana and I went looking for Julian. The last place he had lived in was Roswell, New Mexico. We flew there in hopes of finding him. I'm sure Julian is paranoid. No matter how many cycles he spends on Earth, he always remembers that three large, powerful beings are very unhappy with him.

We arrived at a small cafe with ugly green paint and scary-looking creatures on the wall. Everything had an alien theme to it, from the alien-head coffee mugs to the flying-saucer pancakes. We asked around and the girl behind the counter pointed to a small room in the back. We walked in and found a small group of people milling around a few booths.

Julian was the first vendor we ran into. "The next show starts in ten minutes," he said as he motioned to a row of black T-shirts that read, "We won't go peacefully." I rolled my eyes. Yeah, this guy is all kinds of nuts. I wonder if he'll be any use to use at all.

"Are you Julian?" Ameana asked.

"The one and only, honey."

"Don't call me honey."

Julian turns to me and says, "She a real firecracker, huh?"

"You have no idea."

She glares at me. Yeah, we're definitely gonna have another fight later. That's the thing about her; she puts everything on the backburner until the business at hand is taken care of.

"Tell us about your abduction, Julian," Ameana said.

Suddenly he ran out of the room knocking down everything in his path. We went after him. He was headed down the street. There was no way to fly and get him. Too many people were around. We ran and caught him, but not before he started throwing things in our path to stop us.

"I know who you are," he said, terrified.

"Julian, we are not here to hurt you," Ameana said.

"I think they-" Before Julian had a chance to finish, a ball of fire hit the wall next to him and set everything around it ablaze. Ameana yanked Julian down to the ground. I used my body to cover them both. Rage was on the rooftop above us; he threw another fireball that nearly roasted us all.

"Keep moving," I instructed her. She pulled Julian along with her effortlessly. I picked up a metal rod that lay on the ground and hurled it at Rage. I nearly hit him, but he dodged to the side in a fraction of a second and the rod flew past him.

I blocked Ameana and Julian so that Rage could not get a clear shot. He sent another fireball at me, and I flew around it. The blaze was so intense my wings felt like they were on fire, although I was a few feet away.

I picked up the same rod and launched it at him again. He was so focused on throwing fireb.a.l.l.s at Ameana and Julian that he didn't clear out of the way in time. He howled as the rod ripped through his shoulder. Just then, Julian slipped out of Ameana's grip. She had put all of her effort into protecting him and didn't think that he would flee when she wasn't looking.

Now, out of Ameana's hands, Julian was an easy target for Rage. Ameana called out for him to duck, but he didn't do it in time. The ball of fire went right past his head. I flew over to where they were. I tackled Rage, and we both hit the ground. Just then I saw Ameana take out her cell.

"Julian, run," I said. As soon as I said that, he took off. Ameana came over to Rage and I. She lifted him up into the air and backed him into a plate-gla.s.s window.

"The twins just called. The Runners are coming for Emerson," Ameana said.

"Go."

"What about you?"

"I can take care of Rage. Go!"

The ball of fire landed right where Ameana stood. Had Reese not called and Blinked her over to him in that very moment, she would have been gone. I breathed a sigh of relief as I headed after Rage.

Julian had not gone far. Rage swooped down and s.n.a.t.c.hed him seconds before I got to them. I was hot on their tail. We were moving so quickly, we looked like a quick white flash. Most people dismissed ever having seen it.

Rage had never been able to out-fly me. He knew I would catch up to the two of them in a matter of time. I wondered why he didn't just drop Julian. Then I realized that they didn't want him dead: they knew he would only come back. They just wanted him to prevent him from telling us anything that might be helpful. That meant he definitely knew something.

Right as I caught up, Rage threw down a fireball and set a building on fire. Instantly, people started to scream. I wasn't torn for a second. Julian could wait. He would have to. I had to make sure the humans were okay. I swooped down and entered the building. People were running out so quickly they were in danger of trampling each other.

I picked up an old lady who had fallen near the entrance. I carried her out and placed her safely on the side walk. I went to leave her, but she called out for me.

"Please don't leave me," she begged.

I asked her what her name was. She said it was Clara. I told her how pretty her eyes were. She took my hand. We waited for the ambulance. When we got to the hospital, she said I could go. I guess she knew that I had somewhere to be. Before I left she said, "You're an angel. Thank you." I smiled and walked around the corner.

I wasn't worried that Clara knew that I was an angel. She mistook me for a kind human with a good heart. In truth there are three (here I would add the Paras-making it four) kinds of angels on Earth. The least powerful angel is the Traveler. They are the go-betweens for the council. They travel back and forth from Earth to give news bulletins to the council so they stay current.

The second type of angel is the Ground Walker. They are the ones most talked about in books and movies. They are the stars of the angel world. They get to follow humans around and guide them into making good decisions. The misconception about Ground Walkers is that they actually have bodies. They don't. They are on Earth as pure spirit and travel from person to person. A Ground Walker will see a good soul who might need courage or strength and will go inside that person's body and help them help someone else.

The last kind of angel is us-Guardians-teenagers who died too soon and who have been chosen to ensure humanity won't meet a similar fate.

As I landed on the roof, I saw Rio there waiting for me. I knew they were worried. I was supposed to be back hours ago, but the fire had really held me up.

"Where you been?" he asked.

"Rage thought it would be fun to barbecue a building full of people."

"Everyone okay?"

"Bruised, but not broken. What's up? Why do you look so upset?"

"Just thinking...."

I knew what that meant. Someone had brought up his Core. He hated talking about the last moments of his life on Earth. Both of them did. Since we all know that, I guessed the Emerson guy had brought it up. I didn't think it was a good idea to press the issue, so I let it go.

"How's this Emerson guy?" I ask.

"He's fine, considering he isn't a 'he' at all."

"He's a girl? Are you sure?"

"I haven't been on Earth in a while, but I think I can still pick out a girl from a guy."

"What's she like?"

"She has purple eyes and a weak stomach."

"Purple eyes?"

"And absolutely no sense of fashion."

"Is that all?"

"No, she's pretty cool. I mean she cried a lot, but that's to be expected. All in all, I like her. And Miku's in love with her."

"Miku loves everyone. Tell me more about Emerson."

"She threatened to beat up Jay if he didn't get out of her way. I was right: she's got a little fight in her."

"Good. She's gonna need it."

We went down to the living room where Ameana, Jay, and Reese were already gathered.

"Where were you?" Ameana asked.

"At a barbecue."

"You okay?"

"Yeah, but Rage got to Julian."

Reese called out for Miku and the girl to come out of the bedroom. I picked up the Muse and started looking thought it. I had a feeling that Tony-Tone wasn't being completely honest with us. I would have to run that by Ameana and see what she thought.

Finally, Miku and the girl came out of the room. I had already set it in my mind that I wasn't going to like this person. She would somehow try and get in my way, and that meant that I had to be leery of her.