Demon of the Skies [Book 1]

Inferno

Promised y'all I wouldn't wait a year to update again and I plan on keeping that promise even with like... 13 other stories I'm writing at the same time. Enjoy!

Chapter Quote:
"Blood does not define brothers."
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Chapter 14: Inferno

Cipher

"On to the next mission!" Elizabeth exclaimed excitedly, pressing play. She had grabbed some more ice cream out of the freezer, making this the last carton of her stock. Then again, Genette and I were on our last ones as well. We were all fiends for ice cream in this family.

"There's your boyfriend," Genette remarked. His sister slapped him on the arm as hard as she could. I cringed ever so slightly at the sound of her hand hitting his skin because I swear I felt the vibration from it, even though I was on a completely different couch from them. Genette was about to say something else when he was interrupted by Pixy's voice. He either chose not to speak or was just as distracted by the TV as his sister. Regardless of the reason, I was glad he didn't speak because I didn't want him getting hit again.

We listened to Pixy recount the mission of Hoffnung. He seemed to gloss over the mission a bit, but knowing what I did now, I knew the real reason behind that. I grabbed the remote and paused it when he was done speaking. Before my niece could berate me for stopping it, I asked, "Would you two like to have the full recount of that mission?"

My niece and nephew nodded eagerly.
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June 1, 1995...

I woke up with Janie in my arms every morning since Pixy's birthday. It was good to have her back because I'd told her the truth. The closest I'd ever felt to being like I was home was when I was with her, and with recent revelations and encounters during the war, I needed home. I needed her. I didn't want to admit that I needed anything from anyone because that's not me. That's not who I am. I am an independent person who needs no one but their family. But I'd created a family here on base without meaning to, a family that included Janie, Pixy, PJ, and even Hammerhead. Pixy was like my twin brother I never had (which in all honesty is probably a good thing) who was born slightly earlier so he liked to try and lord that over me. PJ was like a little brother to me, one who had yet to really experience anything horrific, one that I felt I needed to protect to the nth degree. Hammerhead was like the older brother who watched his little brothers squabble, and stepped in when he needed to. Janie was the perfect girlfriend who could shut all of us down with a single glance.

Life was pretty great.

Other than the war we were waging.

But even then, it seemed to winding down a bit. Our sorties were becoming less and less, but I wasn't complaining. It meant I could see my family sooner. That's all I cared about. It was early in the morning when I rolled out of bed. Janie had left earlier for some reason, but I'd been too groggy to hear what she had to say. I went and took a shower first and foremost because I'd skipped it last night, and I smelled like a dog, although that was from going out to the bar last night in town and finding three massive Bernese Mountain dogs which I proceeded to let climb all over me when I sat down. It was a good thing Janie liked dogs so much, although in hindsight, maybe she left early from my room because she couldn't stand how doggy I smelled...