“Who? The president?”
“Surprisingly, no. But leave that to me,” I said, resting my hand gently on the top of her brown hair.
My sister glanced at Miriam. “And why steal a vehicle? Why not just fly?”
My love rolled her crimson eyes. “I’ll return it, silly. And because we don’t want to chance getting you sick, even if you do seem to be immune.”
Amelia’s brow furrowed. “When that agent guy tested me after that fight in our backyard, their radiation meter didn’t even click around me.”
Miriam and I exchanged a glance.
‘What do you think?’ I wondered.
‘It’s up to you, love. I know you want to be cautious, but she truly does seem immune. If I fly her there, slowly of course, then we’ll probably all get to the woods near Riley’s house at the same time. Otherwise, it might take me an hour or more to drive her there, never mind the eventual return trip. Realistically, I probably wouldn’t waste time returning the stolen vehicle, but still.’
‘What about drones or satellites?’
‘Humans don’t have the technology to monitor wide areas like an entire city. Whether we’re in the air, or on the ground, it would be like them trying to find a needle in a haystack. And we don’t have a GPS on us for them to track.’
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, speaking to my sister. “Okay, Miriam will fly you there then. But I’ve got to go. There’s a man I need to have a little chat with. Love you.”
Amelia quickly gave me a hug around my torso. “Love you too. Be careful.”
“I will,” I promised, though there really wasn’t a need for it.
I was basically invincible by human standards, even if I hadn’t let that power go to my head. I supposed my fight with Ragnarok gave me a healthy dose of mortality, considering I’d hurt myself just punching him. And, even with my warping ability, I could still be one-shot killed by whatever his laser attack was, if I ever got hit by it.
Without wasting any more time, I dashed away from my sister in order to put some distance between us before I took off, ready to get the next phase of our plan accomplished.
Chapter 13: Ultimatum
Since I could speak to Jericho despite the distance, she wasn’t too surprised when I appeared out of thin air nearby, both of us extremely high in the atmosphere – to the point that it almost looked like we were in space, even though we weren’t quite there yet. Miriam and I were still deeply connected in our thoughts, so it was almost like having her here as well, though she was more focused on my sister at the moment, socializing a little before they flew back to our hometown.
Jericho caught up to me right away as I began descending in the direction where my target resided, several hundred miles away from where we were. From the information Miriam gathered, the person who was directly in charge of the mission, related to the demons, was a Major General Wolfe, though that wasn’t who I needed to speak to.
The man with the authority to make the decisions was a step above that – a Lieutenant General Bradbury. And currently, he should be in his office, unaware that he was about to have supernatural company.
Or at the very least, I assumed there wouldn’t have been time for him to be notified yet about the incident that took place only a few minutes ago. No doubt Wolfe would be up to date on the recent events, but Bradbury might not have received that phone call yet.
And even if he had been notified, it was doubtful he’d think he was going to be targeted next.
Within a minute, the two of us were hovering within the clouds, one of the many military command centers in the country directly below us. I was only hesitating because I was waiting on Jericho to make her decision.
‘Promise you two will protect me?’ she asked silently, feeling embarrassed by her weakness.
It honestly wasn’t her fault though. Her strength was based on the cards she’d been dealt when becoming a Ryujin, or possibly it had to do with her human genetics – but either way, she was far from the weakest of them. If anything, she was in the middle of the upper range of strength, but even that paled in comparison to the Rulers.
And even if she was stronger, no one could blame her after what she’d suffered at the hands of Ragnarok.
‘You’ll need to work with us to help keep you out of harm’s way,’ I replied sincerely. ‘But yes. Protecting you from unwarranted reprisal is definitely one of our priorities.’
‘And what if it is warranted?’ she wondered hesitantly.
I knew she wasn’t planning on doing anything against their laws, but it was more a matter of principle. However, I didn’t exactly have the answer she wanted, so I silently asked Miriam, relaying what she said.
‘Objectively,’ I began replying. ‘You’ve unjustly suffered one of the harshest punishments administered. If you become guilty of a transgression worthy of such punishment, then it will be considered as having been previously imposed. There will be no future consequences for you. And Miriam is confident everyone, other than Ragnarok, will agree with that.’
Jericho’s eyes were tight as she listened, before she nodded once.
“I’m trusting you both,” she replied out loud.
“You can still change your mind,” I reminded her. I wasn’t even attempting to press her to join me. I simply laid out the options available and was letting her choose. But I supposed she knew what I preferred even if I hadn’t indicated it. Otherwise, why even present that as an option, if not for the fact that it was what I wanted?
Jericho didn’t respond, instead dropping from the sky.
I could see in her mind that she was presently focusing on the task at hand, now that her decision was made. She had always been confident, even despite her poor luck in the past, but this incident with being wrongfully tortured nearly broke her.
But she was trying to push that aside now, not wanting the humans to see beyond her usually confident exterior.
Like Miriam and I had done earlier, both of us plummeted until we hit the ground, our legs becoming buried up to the knees in the hard frozen earth. But it only took a moment for us to use our massive wings to extricate ourselves, like massive hands pushing us up out of the ground. And the dirt didn’t stick to our skin as it might have done if it were wet.
Our landing was directly in front of a very long seven-story building with rows and rows of windows overlooking what would likely be a very lush lawn in the summertime, the brown grass residing between the command center and a filled parking lot.
There was a fancy stone monument, out towards the lot, that most likely displayed the name of this location. And the concrete pathway, that led to the main entrance on the side, also had a fancy monument.
Focusing on the multitude of minds inside the building, I figured out where the Lieutenant General was, just as several people took notice of the two demons on their lawn. It wasn’t enough time for them to do anything about it though.
Not wanting to release any radiation, I darted up the frozen landscape and leapt into the air, aiming for my target’s office, four floors up.
Instantly, I burst through the wall-sized glass window, with it erupting like it had been hit with a cannonball, entering into a very startled man’s office with Jericho right on my tail.
The pale middle-aged guy had blonde hair, brown eyes, and a medium physique, being taller than Jericho – tall for a human – but still shorter than my newly obtained stature.
Bradbury yelled in shock the moment my feet hit the floor, before reacting almost as if on instinct, whipping out a gun from his desk and firing it at me until he emptied the magazine. In the meantime, Jericho walked right in front of the gunfire, getting hit a few times herself, as she went to lean against the door with her hands holding the handle behind her lower back, ensuring no one could enter.
It was nice to see her smug expression return, standing there like she was a supermodel casually relaxing against the wall in between photoshoots for the new stylish white-stone bikinis.
Her icy blue eyes almost appeared amused at the human’s attempt to harm me, a small grin tugging at her tan lips, some of her white hair tucked behind her pointy ear.
And, apparently, appearances truly mattered, because he’d barely paid any attention to Jericho, instead being hyper-focused on the red-eyed demon standing before him.
The moment gunfire turned to empty clicks, the man whipped out what I assumed must be mace, and sprayed me in the face for a solid five seconds, before he seemed to get ahold of himself and realize his efforts were entirely futile – I didn’t even blink.
He then finally dropped the mace and held up his hands in defeat, his expression reserved instead of afraid, his eyes finally darting towards Jericho before focusing on me again.
It was noisy in the hallway now, and someone had finally begun jiggling the handle, but I ignored it as I wiped my face off and sat down in a plush chair in front of his desk, draping the midnight bony fingers of my wings over the back of it.
“I just want to talk,” I said firmly, gesturing towards the phone on his desk. “So call whomever you need, to calm everyone down before someone pulls the fire alarm or something. It’ll be difficult to have a conversation here if it gets any louder.”
The man hesitated, not moving a muscle as his eyes darted towards Jericho again, his hands still raised in the air.
“Look, Lieutenant General, as I’m sure you’re aware, we’re radioactive. And we are doing our best to avoid exposing anyone to excess radiation, but the sooner we can get this conversation over, the better for your health.”
Bradbury slowly dropped his hands, and then reached for the phone, only hitting three buttons before speaking evenly over the intercom system.
“This is Lieutenant General Bradbury. We have an unexpected situation with the building’s infrastructure. Everyone please calmly make your way to the nearest exit in an orderly fashion. Do not pull the fire alarm – there is no fire. Wait for further orders. That is all.”
Not even two seconds after Bradbury hung up the phone, it rang again, prompting him to pick it up.
“Yes,” he said immediately. “Yes, we have some unexpected company. No, that won’t be necessary. Correct. Please do that.” He hung up the phone, only for it to ring again immediately, prompting him to unplug the cord, before taking out his vibrating cellphone and turning that on silent too, setting it on the table.
“Okay, you have my attention,” he said simply.
I leaned forward in my seat slightly, noticing crowds of people pouring out of the building on the other end, some of them pointing in this direction, though I doubted they could see me.
I gestured to his phone. “Why don’t you record this? It’ll make everything more simple.”
Bradbury hesitated again, before picking up his phone to turn on the camera. He then tipped it on its side, getting a wide angle of the room, including the angelic demon, and leaned it against his office phone. He gave me a nod once he was finished.
“I’m Michael, by the way,” I began, focusing on him instead of the phone. “And this is my friend, Jericho.”
Bradbury’s eyes narrowed for a moment, before they instantly turned as wide as saucers. “Wait, you’re not…you can’t be…”
“Michael Thorpe?” I asked simply.
“You’re the boy who was kidnapped?” he rephrased in disbelief. “Y-You’re…” He seemed to be struggling for words.
“Taller? Stronger? Faster? Red eyes? Horns? Wings? Tail? Yeah, all that and more. We call ourselves Ryujin in our language.” I gestured to Jericho. “And as you can see, we don’t all come in such demonic appearances.”
“H-How is that possible?” he asked in disbelief, looking even less reserved, though more baffled. I had to give the guy credit, because whether he was afraid or not, he had never once shown it. And now, even more so.
“It’s not possible,” I said definitively. “At least, not for the vast majority of people. I’m a unique case, whereas my younger sister, and my parents are not. They would die if subjected to this transformation. You would die if subjected to this transformation. Very few people can become this. But that’s not why I’m here. I want you to leave my family alone. Do so, and there won’t be any further problems. They know nothing of this, and don’t need to be involved. My sister does know I’m different now, but nothing else beyond that. And my parents believe I’m missing, which I’d prefer remain the case.”
Bradbury waited for a moment, possibly to make sure it was his turn to respond, before clearing his throat. “We only got your family involved because some of your…people…have been dumping radioactive energy around your father’s property.”
“Yes, well that was an unintentional mistake. You see, the Ryujin are truly radioactive beings. We absorb radiation for energy, eliminating the need to eat almost entirely. And, in case you were wondering, our diets are extremely mundane. We do sometimes eat meat just like humans do, but the vast majority of our diet is consumption of metal and other minerals.” I slowly stretched my wings out for emphasis, his eyes immediately darting to their movement. “After the incident in that field, where you guys thought I was being held hostage, I ended up consuming a lot of very odd items, including a road sign – yes, I realize that’s probably illegal, but I’m sharing this with you since there seems to be this unwarranted fear that my kind prey on humans.”
Obviously, I was lying through my teeth, at least partially, but there was no way in hell I was going to admit that to him.
Again, Bradbury hesitated for a moment, glancing behind him at the rows of plaques on the wall. “If that’s the case,” he finally said evenly, giving me his attention again. “Then would you mind showing me?”
I shrugged. “Sure.”
He stood, his feet a little unsteady, as he grabbed a large plaque off the wall, sitting back down as he slid it towards me on his desk.
I leaned forward more and grabbed it. “Sure you want me to eat this?” I clarified. “Looks important.”
“It can be replaced,” he said simply, his eyes darting toward Jericho again.
She had continued to stare at him, prompting his eyes to return to me, seeming uncomfortable holding her icy gaze. There was no hostility in it, only a hint of amusement.
The plaque was mostly wood, and I knew it was the metallic dietary needs that he was curious about, so I began peeling off some of the metal surface, only to tear a large piece off and pop it into my mouth. For me, it wasn’t much different than a human chewing bologna or sliced turkey, so I swallowed after just a handful of seconds, tearing off one more piece, before setting what remained back on the desk.
Once I had swallowed my last bite, I spoke up, ignoring his slack-jawed expression. “Anyway, other than the radiation, the Ryujin are no threat to humanity. However, I should also be clear that the humans are absolutely no threat to the Ryujin. You have no technology that could harm us, not even a nuclear bomb. And if your bullets earlier weren’t clear enough, then ask Major General Wolfe how a missile to the chest affected my health.” I paused for emphasis, letting him absorb that, since apparently it was true that he hadn’t been updated about the situation yet.
“Didn’t even feel it,” I added. “And the heat from the explosion was quite comfortable. Just like home.”
The moment I said it, I instantly regretted it. Because I hadn’t wanted to give out too much information.
“And where is home?” Bradbury interjected without missing a beat.
Dang it!
‘What should I tell him?’ I asked Miriam silently. She and Amelia were already on their way to the woods near Riley’s place. ‘Should I just not answer the question?’
‘They aren’t a threat,’ Miriam confirmed. ‘But that would be too much information. Not without approval from my father, which is unlikely. Doubtful the other Rulers would ever share where we live, even if they aren’t a threat. Because all it would do is make them focus all their extraplanetary efforts on Venus.’
�
��I’m afraid I can’t say,” I explained to Bradbury without delay. “As you can imagine, I’m now subject to new laws that have existed a lot longer than I have. I’ve been given permission to come here and share with you that we’re not a threat, though there isn’t anything at all you could do if we were a threat. Still, we aren’t, and that’s what matters. What your people saw in that field wasn’t a Ryujin trying to harm me or use me as a hostage – she was trying to save me from the radiation sickness she had unintentionally caused. Something that was only possible because she knew I could become this.”
I paused for a moment, debating whether or not to mention more about Miriam, but decided to leave it at that.
“And as I said, we eat mostly inorganic material, and we absorb radiation for energy. The Ryujin have existed among you for basically all of history – they are from where your legends of demons…” I paused to gesture at Jericho. “And even angels come from. Yet, all these assumptions about our nature are based on appearance – you’ve proven that incorrect assumption yourself, when you paid her little attention, likely because her eyes aren’t red, and her horns aren’t black.”
I paused again, to let him absorb that. “Color, and what it represents, is a cultural phenomenon. There is no truth in it. Red eyes are no more an indication of evil than blue eyes are. My friend here is no different from me, and yet I think you might have focused more heavily on her if she were the one with red eyes and black horns.”
Bradbury finally interjected. “I shot you because you were the one who busted through my window.” He then paused, glancing at Jericho again, his tone more reserved. “But you’ve made you’re point. So now what?”
I shrugged. “Now, I should probably leave, so I don’t get you sick. And we will move away from the building before departing, since we release a lot of radiation when we fly.” I stood, towering over the still sitting human, only to pause, realizing I might need to reemphasize my main point.
I hadn’t considered how imposing my newly transformed body might be, but he seemed uneasy as he glanced at my muscular torso before meeting my gaze again. And sure enough, a small peek into his mind revealed that my body alone would have caused him to avoid a fist-to-fist fight with me had I been human, even despite his training.
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