Broken wings

Chapter 16

Virgil's eyes fall closed after the light in them seems to flicker for just a moment.
"No." I shake him softly. "Virgil..." I beg him to wake up again. He can't be dead. He just can't. I hear a broken scream pierce my ears and look up to see the girl who helped him in the fight fall to her knees with tears streaming down her face. She must be Virgil's younger sister. Aimee. She looks like him. She's got the same dark brown hair and strong cheekbones. I tear my eyes away from her to look back at the man laying in front of me. What am I supposed to do now? I rest my hands on his chest as I screw my eyes closed in agony. His heart no longer beating underneath the palm of my hand. A rage fills me and I turn towards the man who took him away from me.
"You killed him!" I yell angry at the snake.
"No, primate. You did." Deceit smirks down at me. Looking creepy with his scar. I square my jaws as I look down at Virgil's empty body. I distracted him. He was focused on me instead of his surroundings. I-I caused his death. That revelation possibly hurts even more than the idea that he's really gone. I hear his people shuffle around me. I look up and see shock on most of their faces. I pick up my sword as I stand up slowly. Holding it in front of me threateningly. I promised Virgil I wouldn't be brave. That I'd run. But I'm not sure I have that option anymore. I look concentrated around me. Noticing how some of them get dangerously close to me. I turn around with a swift move when someone tries to sneak up from behind me. My jaw drops when I see even more of them appear all around me. I can't win this. They're with too many. I glance around in horror until I recognize Logan among them. Relief washes over me when I realize he managed to convince the others after all.
"What's going on here?" Someone of the newcomers demands. She looks fierce with her grey eyes and dark curly hair tied in a knot on her head.
"We're making actual progress for once. We dare to change our ways for the better." One of the people that has been haunting my every night sleep speaks up with his chin stuck out. He's smaller than the other one. Short dark blond hair and thick eyebrows. His nose is crooked from Virgil's headbutt. I believe he's Birrol. Logan pulls one of the people off of his sister and frees her. She hugs him desperately as she points at Virgil. His head snaps up to me. His eyes darkened in sorrow. He kisses the top of his sister's head before letting her go softly and he walks up to me.
"What happened?" He wonders with a strained voice as he falls to his knees next to his brother.
"Deceit stabbed him in the back." I whisper. Wiping my face clean of the fresh tears as I keep an eye out for anyone who dares to interrupt his mourning.
"His wings..." Logan hovers his hand over the burn marks on the ground where Virgil's black wings were only moments ago. I've never seen his emotions this clear. He's usually so composed. I square my jaws to fight the pain in my heart.
"They burned up in flames." I sniff softly as I look down as well. Logan snaps his head up when more commotion sounds. I follow his eyes and see the other one, Chasten, now fighting the woman who dared speak up against them. They're fighting a little above the ground. My eyes widen in realization that even though Virgil tried to prepare me for everything, the fact they can all fly is something that completely shifts the cards in my disadvantage. There's no way he could ever show me tricks to fight these kind of battles because his own wings wouldn't take him off the ground.
"Get out of here." Logan tells me before standing up tense. More and more of them start fighting and I can see it escalate. Their swords drawn. I glance down at Virgil who's laying unnaturally still. I've never seen him sleep. I imagined it a couple of times, but this isn't anything like it. This looks wrong. Logan pushes me away. I look up into his eyes and see his determination to get me out. I start stumbling backwards. I promised Virgil. I take one last look at the man I loved before turning around and running.
"Going anywhere?"  A sneering voice sounds behind me. I know I should just ignore it and keep running, but I turn around anyway. The man who looks so similar to my reflection smirks when he sees he has my attention.
"I didn't expect to have a family reunion today. Is mom coming too?" Remus looks delighted as he mocks me. I glare at him. How can I have twin I never knew off? I feel disgust rise up in my throat when I remember what they've done to create him. Mom.
"You're a sick bastard!" I snarl at him. How dares he call us family after what he's done to those women?
"Now, now. That's no way to greet your long lost twin." He giggles. "Are you sad about your little boyfriend? Is that why you're acting out?" He asks me with a sickeningly sweet voice while pointing at Virgil on the ground. My eyes involuntarily linger on his pale body.
"Perhaps you should join him." Remus speaks up. "Wouldn't it be fun to die?" He wonders as he raises his hand. Too late I try to jump back out of his reach. He's already got a tight hold of my shoulder. His red eyes drill focused in my green ones. My heart races when I remember what happened to those women when he touched them.
"Get on with it." He lets me go with a smirk. For a moment I'm petrified for what's going to happen, but I don't feel anything. Remus looks confused and I smirk.
"I don't think it works on me." I look pleased. "Brother." I mock his high pitched voice. He frowns furious.
"I guess I'll just have to kill you myself then." He growls before launching forward. A mace suddenly in his hands. I've seen Virgil pick his dagger out of seemingly thin air. Can this man do the same with such a brutal weapon? I raise my sword to block his hit. He's strong. The weight of the mace in his advantage. I grit my teeth as he keeps trying to hit me and I keep blocking him. Remembering the training Virgil taught me. When Remus grows more frustrated, he also grows less careful. His hits become sloppy and I manage to twist the weapon out of his hands. It doesn't land as far as a sword would've, but it's still effective.
"Stop this madness." I threaten.
"You know, I actually like the madness." He snickers. His sharp teeth flashing. I look at it in disgust. Realizing my mistake too late when the man crouches down and hooks his foot behind my ankle. Making me lose my balance. I fall hard on my back. The air knocked out of my lungs as my sword flies out of my hand. Never get distracted. I hear Virgil's voice in my head. I roll over and jump up. Grabbing my sword from the ground, but before I can turn back towards him, Remus jumps on top of me. His weight makes me go through my knees in agony. He hits the sword out of my hands again.
"Tsk tsk tsk." He snickers disapproving. I manage to turn around underneath him. Trying to kick him off with my knees or hit him in the face with my hands. My heart racing painfully fast when I can't seem to gain an inch of freedom. I lift my arm to hit him again and he shoots down to bite me. I cry out when I feel his sharp teeth sink into my flesh. I feel around me for my sword with my free hand. My fingers brush on a large stone. I grab it and hit him against his temple. He falls off of me and I scramble upright with a hitching breath. I dive for my sword.
"Big mistake." The other man mutters furious when he looks at the blood on his fingers after touching his head carefully. It's not as dark as Virgil's, but darker than mine.
"You're one big mistake." I bite back angry. Tightening my grip on my sword. He picks up his mace and yells out as he launches forward. I groan with every move. Trying desperately to ignore the white pain in my arm. Remus is strong, but he doesn't have technique. I use all the lessons I learned from Virgil. Slowly pushing the other man back. I hear the others fight in the background vaguely, but I'm only focused on the man in front of me. Remus jumps forward with his entire body as he holds the mace above his head to smack my skull in. You always have a choice. Virgil's voice sounds up again. I dive sideways and launch my sword forward at the same time. I choose death. I look in horror at what I've done. My sword buried deep in the other man's side. His eyes widen in shock when he looks down. The mace drops heavy out of his hands and lands in the grass with a thud. He looks up at me as if he can't belief what's happening. His knees buckle and he falls to the ground. I pull my sword back. Scrunching up my nose when I see how more blood instantly decorates his black attire. He tries to stop the bleeding frantically by holding his hands on the wound. His fingers covered in his own blood within seconds.
"No." He groans desperately. "No, I was supposed to lead." He looks furious up at me. I clench my teeth. Feeling nauseous. Vomit threatening to come up. I never killed anyone before. I never even witnessed death before Virgil.
"You won't be leading anything." I whisper. Watching him bleed out in front of me. He deserves everything that got to him after what he's done. And yet I can't do it. I close my eyes and look away. Shaking all over. I feel cold. When I look back at him I notice he's dead. Without a warning I turn around and puke in the nearby bushes. What have I done?
"No!" A voice roars. A large man with half long black hair stares furious at me. Chasten. His eyes go from Remus's still body to me. Fire blazing in his eyes.
"You will wish for a quick death." He threatens as he flies towards to me. Sword in his hands. I stumble back. I can't outrun him. I hold up my own sword as I try to find a way out. Panicking when I can't find one. He raises his sword and I block him. I never won a single battle from Virgil. I know I can't win this one either. I try my best to keep him back, but I can't hold on much longer. My arm is throbbing and my fight with Remus already wore me out. Sweat droplets roll down at the side of my face when I block another one of Chasten's powerful blows. Forcing me on my knees. I grit my teeth. This is it. Just when I'm sure I'm done for, he stops and looks over my head. Relieved when his weight is gone, I roll away from him. Panting rapidly as I try to gather my strength again. I look up at what distracted the other man and squint my eyes at a sudden bright golden light. I lift my good arm to block the painful rays. I hear how everyone stops fighting to look at it. When the lights start to dim a human shape is visible in the middle of it.
"Impossible." Chasten mutters in shock when he sees before me what or who it is. I glance at him for a moment before looking back at the shape. The light dims more and more until I see....No. My mind must be playing tricks on me. Virgil is flying in the sky with large, full, golden wings. My eyes fill with tears when I sees he's not actually dead. He's not gone.
"Stop!" His voice sounds up louder than anything I've ever heard before. It's almost as if it rings inside my head. He opens his eyes and they blaze a similar golden light.
"There has been too much betrayal. Too many preventable fights." He continues. I notice how Deceit turns back into a snake and tries to sneak away. Before he gets far, Virgil throws his dagger at him. I startle when I see it hit the snake. Deceit hisses in pain when he turns back. The dagger stuck in his shoulder.
"Forgive me." The man begs. His smug posture completely gone. His eyes looking up at Virgil in fear. Virgil raises his hand and the dagger flies out of the man and back into his hand. He slowly descends until his feet touch the ground again. His new wings resting on his back.
"You've caused too much harm for too long." He steps closer to the wounded man who started it all. His eyes stop blazing and I can see his brown irises again. His voice no longer ringing in my head, but sounding like its normal low pitch. It really is him. My heart skips a beat. I haven't lost him.
"You've put your twisted plans in the heads of our brothers and sisters. Last time our grandfathers' generation had enough mercy to let you live. Why would we do the same?" He looks angry at the man who rolled on his back to look at him.
"Because I'm one of you." Deceit speaks up. I frown and notice that, for once, I'm not the only one confused by that statement.
"He's a liar!" Someone calls.
"I am, but I'm not lying now." Deceit lifts his hands as he looks pleading up at Virgil.
"Explain." Virgil gives him a chance.
"My name, my real name, is Janus." The wounded man speaks up. I hear some surprised gasps at the reveal, but I'm still clueless how this would help him survive this. "Millennia ago I came down to earth." The snake continues.
"I wanted to meet the primates. See how they live. At first it was great. I shared some of our knowledge and they were grateful." He shuffles upright with a hiss. Virgil keeps a close eye on him. "But then things went south. I saved one of them who was on the brink of death. Instead of thanking me like they should, they deemed me a monster. Suddenly scared of everything I offered them. They attacked. I fought back. I killed some of them in self-defense and when I tried to fly back home-" He squares his jaws and I can tell he's saying the truth for once.
"I fell." He mutters. "It was their fault. The primates made me lose my wings. They deserved everything I did to them." He looks up at Virgil with fire blazing in his eyes. I get thrown back in time to when I was a little kid. Laying in bed as my nanny told me a story. I had asked for a scary one and she told me about an old village long long ago. How a demon from hell terrorized all its villagers one night. Killing every man, woman and child. She talked about a monster with broken angel wings and devil horns. Eyes blazing red as it rampaged with the strength of a hundred men. I remember being scared until my dad told me there's no such thing as monsters. When I look at Deceit laying on the ground. The hate in his eyes. I'm not so sure anymore.
"But it didn't change anything, did it?" Virgil replies knowingly. Begrudgingly, Deceit, or Janus, shakes his head.
"Over time my wings burned up completely. I thought I was dying. But then when I woke up, I had new powers. I didn't age. I could turn myself into a snake. I had found a new way to get my revenge on the primates." He looks devilish.
"Why come after us?" Someone else wonders.
"Because you all left me! No one went looking for me. No one helped me. You all deserve just as much hate as those filthy primates!" He spits furious. His face reddening with anger. I hate to admit that I feel for him. He lost everything and it drove him insane. I look up at Virgil. At one point he lost everything too. But he didn't turn into a revenge seeking monster. I look back down at the wounded man. He might have been hurt, that doesn't mean he gets a free pass for going on a murder spree and starting civil wars. He's sick. He broke down everything that was him and build himself up into this hateful creature.
"None of us were there when this happened to you generations ago. You've been living in a bitter hate, Janus. And I don't think you can pull yourself away from it anymore." Virgil speaks up. The snake glares at him.
"Let me." A low, monotone voice sounds up. Logan steps forward out of the crowd. He's bleeding from several wounds, but looks relatively okay. His precious glasses are broken and he tosses them to the side.
"Wait, no! Have mercy." Janus looks at him with big scared eyes. Virgil looks at him for another moment before nodding at Logan and stepping aside. I flinch when I see Logan stick his sword deep in the man's chest. Janus lets out a gasp.
"That's for killing my brother." Logan hisses. He twist the sword.
"And that's for manipulating my sister." He adds in a cold voice. Blood trickles out of Janus' mouth and his breathing stocks. When Logan pulls his sword back, the man falls to the ground. His eyes staring blind into the distance. I turn my head away from it. It's quiet for a long time until Aimee fights her way over to her brothers. She hugs Virgil tight and he hugs her back. Relief visible on his face when he buries his face in the crook of her neck and picks her up. I'm glad he's got his brother and sister back. He's gone so long without them.
"What about Birrol and Chasten?" She wonders. Virgil lets her go and looks at the two men who forced him to fall. Who started this whole ordeal by believing the lies Deceit put in their heads.
"Spare them." Virgil speaks up to my surprise. I frown as I look at the man who tried to kill me just moments ago. How can he be so merciful towards them?
"They can live with the horrors they've created as they rot in the cell." He adds with a glare at the two men.
"I won't spend eternity in a box!" Birrol yells angry before driving his dagger through his own heart. I stiffen in shock when he falls to the ground. Gasps are heard all around and I carefully blink back up at the dead man. His dead eyes looking right at me. I feel a shiver in the core of my bones. He's gone. He can no longer haunt me. When the shock lifts, two nearby women grab Chasten before he can do the same.
"I won't struggle." The man promises as he throws his sword to the ground submissive.
"Neither will I." The woman who captured me in the woods and who brought the two female humans speaks up as she throws her sword on the ground as well.
"I'm just as guilty." She bows her head.
"We'll decide together at a later time what we'll do to you." Virgil speaks up. I notice the relieved breath she exhales before nodding.
"Everyone, go take care of your wounds. Go home. Remember this day so we won't ever repeat it." Virgil raises his voice so everyone can hear him. I look around when one by one people start disappearing until only a handful of them remains. Virgil, Logan and Aimee among them.
"We need to discuss-" Logan starts.
"Not now." Virgil stops him when he looks at me for the first time since coming back from the death. My eyes fill up when his eyes cross mine. He rushes up to me. I open my mouth to say something, but never get the chance. He rests his hands on my face before pulling me in a desperate kiss. I feel my heart flutter and kiss him back. My arms resting in his neck as happy and relieved tears stream down my cheeks silently and mix on our lips. Giving the kiss a salty taste. But I don't care. He's alive. He's holding me. That's all that matters to me right now.
"I thought you were dead." I whisper when I pull back to catch my breath.
"So did I." He admits as he pulls me against his chest. I wrap my arms around his waist and bury my face against his hard chest. 

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So when I said there would be character deaths... I didn't actually mean Virgil ;)