Phantom Pain (trilogy)

Demon Radio

Chapter 16: Demon Radio

The first thing I noticed was that Dariel was still asleep. It felt safe under his wing, and at first I did not want to move. They could have been mine, the feathers against my back. I could have been back with the legion, sleeping with all the others around me. I could have not been alone.

The second thing I noticed was movement. Many of the others were already on their feet.

I did not blame Dariel for his unconsciousness. Coming back from the dead was exhausting. I had first hand experience. Ever so slowly, I moved his wing up half an inch. The feathers were completely dry, I noted. They were more sleek and polished than Micheal's, which had been downy in feel. I tried to remember what my wings had been like, but a tingle of pain ran up my scars. I knew. I could feel it laughing at me through the haze of my mind, but I refused to remember. A wave of nausea surged through me, as I sat on the ground beside my still sleeping brother. His other wing was folded tight against his back. He slept on his stomach, as was natural for us.

Gavyn and Dez were talking on the other side of the room. They both looked up as I noticed them, and I crossed the floor to reach them.

“Good morning, Ramie” Gavyn said.

“Not the best.”

He cracked a smile.

When Dariel awoke he briefed our company on the Salt Lake City situation. He also helped them plot the best route to get there. They were shocked and afraid when Dez mentioned the true size of the storm, but they were grateful to have a plan. The idea was to check in with those in Salt Lake City, then return for the refugees in Castle Moore.

“What are you doing?” Gavyn asked me, as Dariel talked to Charles.

“Dariel wasn't alone when he came into the storm.” I said. “I have other brothers who were not lucky enough to fall into the flood water. I'm going to find out what happened to them.”

Gavyn's eyes darted over to the angel. “Are you going with him?”

I shook my head. “I'd only slow him down. He needs to report in.”

There was a pause. I took the moment to really look at Gavyn. His face was not the same as when I'd first encountered him. His skin was dark, but bags were still visible under his eyes. He also looked older somehow. There was a small bruise on his jawline—a million ways he could have gotten it.

“Could the angels have been taken to the same place as my father?” he asked.

“It's a possibility,” I said, not wanting to influence him in either direction.

I did not want to go alone, but I was also painfully aware of the huge amounts of danger I would be placing him in.

“I'm going with you,” he said. It wasn't a question.