Romakus sighed down at the angel in his arms, and stepped into the tunnel, Julisa behind him. The rest of the Damall were already in the tunnel, pushed back by Livian again, but they all stared at Mia as she joined them in the cave, Vin, Kas, and Adron behind her. Not fast enough. Mia ran up to Romakus and Julisa, got in front of them, and waved her arms.
“Are they alive!?”
They looked at each other and shared a grimace that spoke volumes but didn’t tell Mia a damn thing. But once everyone was safely in the tunnel where the raging inferno outside wouldn’t reach them, they both set their angels along the tunnel wall, and Mia got down on her knees between them.
“Yosepha!”
The angel smiled at her, but it was weak, and she lifted her head only long enough to pull it back so it could rest against the rock wall.
“She’s alive?” Galon asked, before coughing up a spray of blood. His white silks were more soaked than Yosepha’s, a single gash against the side of his neck that flowed blood without end. His wings were drenched red.
“I’m alive,” she said. “You… You… moron.”
Galon chuckled and tried to wince with pain, but the effort was too great. He sighed, satisfied, and looked down at himself, his bloody clothes, and the red stream leaking down his neck over his chest.
“Good,” he said, smiling softly.
“Why’d you do that!?” Mia yelled, glaring at Galon. With each moment, the angel grew blurrier, and Mia sucked in a breath as she wiped the tears from her eyes. “You… You’re hurt, and… and…” She looked back, and regretted it immediately. Yulia stood there behind Julisa’s leg, staring at Galon.
“I didn’t think… Moriah would do that. My bad.” Again he laughed, and again it stopped short as another splash of blood fell out of his mouth.
“You can… heal yourself, right?” Mia came in closer and grabbed the man’s shoulder on his good side. “Gabriem can heal themselves. You can heal yourself, right?”
Galon didn’t answer, smile unending.
Yosepha reached out and touched Galon on the same shoulder, and her hand fell a moment later.
“Azoryev,” she said, “is… growing fanatical. I didn’t know they’d respond this way, and when I ran into Moriah on the way back to the vortex, only to meet a battalion informed by Azreal, Shir, and Noah, I–” It was her turn to cough and sputter.
Yulia crawled over to them, knelt beside Galon, and put her claws on his legs as she leaned in.
“You’re an angel. You’ll be fine, right?”
Galon’s smile did not falter. Yosepha faltered for him, looking away and grimacing. In any other world, any other circumstance, everyone nearby would have gone silent as the grim reality sank in, but demons were demons and they didn’t do remorse. The tetrads, Vinicius, Kas, Adron, they stood in silence, looking down at the two angels as they waited, but the rest of the Damall chatted among themselves about what they were going to do now. Except Yulia.
The bat lady planted herself beside Galon, faced him, and touched his wound. Galon didn’t have the energy to so much as groan. Even among the sound of snarling demons arguing with each other, Yulia’s whimper cut through Mia’s guts.
“You’ll be fine!” Yulia said, and she stroked Galon’s crimson wing. “You’ll be fine.”
Mia didn’t like remorse, mourning, the pain of losing someone you cared about. No one did, but it wasn’t something she’d ever experienced. Fictional stories she’d read had been enough to scar her for life, but she’d never had a family except her brother. Except, maybe, Hannah…
There was that funeral, that one time, but neither David nor Mia had really cared about the deceased. David had shut down hard after that, and it’d taken weeks before he talked again, but that’d been because of something else. And that something else was happening right here in front of Mia, and she tried to look away from Yulia before the same thing happened to her.
She couldn’t look away.
The demons barked at each other about the battle they’d missed out on, until Romakus silenced them with a roar and swing of his wing.
“The inferno continues,” Julisa said, “and the angels have fled. We’re safe for the moment.” She joined the rest of the Damall and pushed the small crowd back down into the tunnel, away from the two angels and the crying demon. “But Tacitus will be here soon to investigate, and he will not come alone.”
“I know,” Romakus said, “I know.”
“Then you should–”
“I know! Just, give us a moment, Julisa.”
The four-armed bitch frowned at her leader, but agreed and continued guiding the rest of the Damall back down the tunnel. They were probably going to the big cavern with the stalagmites, where they’d had their meeting about what to do with Mia and the leash.
Yulia stayed. Livian reached for her, but Romakus blocked her hand.
“Azoryev,” Galon said, “is going to be a problem. If they”–more coughing–“keep hunting for you like this, Mia. They don’t know mercy.”
“Were those three angels you saved me from, from Azoryev?” Mia asked.
“No,” Yosepha said. “They’re from Ravid, same as I. They must have spoken with someone from Azoryev, and they responded with… preparation.”
“Azoryev must be watching the vortex,” Galon said. “They… probably spoke with them after I left. The–” Again, the man erupted into coughs, but with no energy, they were sad, weak things, and blood bubbled on his lips. “The Azoryev council will convince the others to act, after this.”
“Then we’ll convince the council,” Yosepha said, and she set her hand on his leg. Her blood leaked from her punctured wrist down to join his. “We–”
“Make sure she eats my heart,” Galon said, and he set his perfect, bronze eyes on Romakus. “She can’t go back to Heaven. And she needs resonance.”
“I won’t!” Yosepha yelled. Tried to yell. Her muscles clenched down, and she squeezed the white silk of his clothes, earning more blood from her punctured wrist, but her voice was weak. “I won’t.”
Galon smiled at her, his perfect, warm smile, and winked at her. All Yosepha could do was look down and bite back quiet sobs as tears ran down her cheeks.
“Yulia,” Galon said, slowly turning his head to her. “Keep on an eye on Mia for me, would you?”
“You keep an eye on her!” Yulia grabbed the man’s shoulders with her wing claws and leaned in close. Very close. “You do it!”
“Sorry, I don’t think… I’ll be able to.”
“You do it! You do it! You…”
“Hey,” he said. “Kiss me.”
Sniffling, tears running down her cheeks, too, the bat demon leaned in, and kissed the angel.
She pulled back. Galon smiled, and his head lulled forward.
His smile never faded.