Collateral Damage (bxb)

22. Light

A.N. Contains some violence.

Bang, bang, bang!

The sounds echoed with loud crashes and snaps following them. Another set of bangs.

Bang, bang, bang!

Wolf yelled, "Get down!" I ducked behind the concrete slab to escape the explosive percussion and what followed it, bullets. The cold and damp shirt under my jacket just came to mind. Was it my blood? I checked and my palm is covered in crimson red, but not all of it was mine... I think?

Is this what you want for him? To hide and cower as you fight for nothing more than scraps...

I... I knew this voice. Was it him?

Bang, bang, bang!

The sound made me stir upwards, to jump and run for the next piece of cover, but what lay before me was a car door as the suspension of the vehicle was rattled by the uneven road. I caught my breath as cold sweat ran down my face. It was just a bad dream, just a bad dream, I thought.

"Shit, man. Don't jump out the roof. Jesus," Wolf sarcastically commented as he caught a glimpse of my panicked movement. He must be bored out of his mind driving all day. "Thought you might have died."

"Ha-ha. What time is it?" I asked him, but someone else answered.

"It is a bit past six," Ian said while shooting a glance over his shoulder. "How did you sleep?" He smiled.

I couldn't help but smile back at him. That nightmare ended and I was greeted by that adorable mess. "Could be better. I hope we can finish what we have to as soon as we can."

Before Ian could say something, assuming it was reassuring, Wolf interjected, "Ye, ye, you are on a clock, we get it." I huffed in annoyance and understanding. Best case, I have a bit over a day and a half at this point, worst case, I explode in under 24 hours.

"Aren't we all?" I mumbled as I covered my face to avoid getting up, but my responsible self would want to kill me for being a baby so I sat up and took the middle of the seat.

I huffed out loud and sunk into the seat to gain a bit of the lost comfort. The sky was dimming lazily as the sun kept on sinking lower to the horizon. Soon the sky would be covered by a crimson drape and sink below the horizon fully. Funny how I slept off almost the entire day. I might die before seeing another sunset. I never questioned that I'll die, but not like this. Who would have thought that it would be because I made some bad decisions?

I waited for Peter to speak to me, but nothing came through. He would berate me for such thoughts passing through our link, but all that there is an empty feeling of loneliness. Will I die without even having to see him once again despite his disheveled state? What happened to him? He was... broken. Peter, what have you done to yourself?

Ian stopped me from spiraling even deeper, "How are you holding up?" He looked at me awaiting a response.

I swiveled my head back to look him in the eye. What should I say? Do I just say what I was thinking or reassure him? Ian must be going through a lot himself, but my possible demise might be one of those things. "I am all right, Ian. Just thinking is all." I told a half-truth while faking a smile.

Ian pierced me with a questioning gaze, probably thinking that I am being too upbeat for the situation at hand, but dropped it a moment later. "Glad to know you are holding up fine." He looked ahead to the road that was passing underneath us every moment. "We'll soon be there and meet up with this Angel person." He said it with a hint of worry in his voice.