Garrison Fawkes’ POV

The vomiting was a disorienting experience and I had to sit down for a while after that. Uriel wiped my mouth with a cloth and had to help me finish a glass of water because my hands were shaking too hard. 

“Sorry,” they apologised. I blinked. “I should have warned you that I was going to do that.”

“Why?” I rasped hoarsely. 

They grimaced, their mouth twisted with emotion. “It’s best to leave Azrael alone when she becomes Sathanas.”

“Sathanas?” My mind felt slow and light-headed.

“Yes,” Uriel clarified. “That’s Wrath.”

“Wrath.” 

“We should leave soon,” they said. “Azrael will block all travellers soon and we must leave if we do not wish to be stuck here.”

My breath was no longer as shallow as it had been moments ago. “Alright. We’ll pack and leave immediately,” I nodded. The flash of fire in Lady Azrael’s eyes played in my mind and I shivered. “Let’s go.”

~

Uriel and I hurry to the docks. We do not make our goodbyes to Lady Azrael this time. Already, there are soldiers at the port, visiting each ship and explaining the lockdown decrees. Azrael has worked very quickly. Some of the ships have already been docked and emptied, their crew opting to go home and stay with their families. The rest are packing up and getting ready to set sail by tonight. 

One of them is Charon. His crew members remain busy even as the soldier hands him a scroll that he reads and tucks away. It is his ship that Uriel and I approach. 

“Charon,” I call out.

His head pops over the side of the ship. “Oh, it’s you again. What do you want?” he shouts down at us.

“We need a ride,” I yell back.

Charon squints at us. “What’s in it for me?”

I glance at Uriel. “We’ll help you find your family.”

“Come aboard,” he says. Once onboard, Charon scrutinises the pair of us. “How will you find my family?” he demands sceptically. 

“You’re looking for your family. We are looking for our own people,” I told him. “If we come across any information about yours, we’ll let you know.”

He eyes us suspiciously. “Where do you need a ride to?”

“Mainland,” Uriel answered for us. 

Charon backs off and nods. “Fine. I’m going there to stock up on supplies. The two of you may come along till then.”

“Thank you,” I said sincerely, for no other reason than being on a ship was far more preferential to portalling again. 

Also, Uriel did look a little tired after the last portal. They had admitted that it would be best to travel as close to our next destination as possible before they tried to portal again. And it would take a couple of days to reach mainland, which would give Uriel enough time to recuperate. Probably.

Until then, we were installed in a cabin. Charon didn’t seem to want us exploring his ship, though he was too polite to say so. I caught him whispering to his crew and them watching us with clear suspicion after. 

As much as we could, Uriel and I stayed in our cabin. Once, while looking for something to do other than hiding in our cabin or stand on deck—even that was enough for a crew member to keep an eye on us—I found my way below deck. Surprisingly, there were far fewer crew members than I’d expected. Most of it was empty spaces and a strange collection of soil and iron shackles. I went back up quite quickly, unable to shake the disconcerting feeling.

Two days couldn’t pass quickly enough.

At night, Uriel would not wander off as they had done previously when we shared lodgings. There was no doubt that this was Charon and his suspicious nature’s doing. Even Uriel was too discomfited to hang around outside now.

Guiltily, I didn’t mind the part where they would be forced to spend time with me instead. There was this quiet desire to just be around them, and I was enjoying the quiet company far more than I should. Despite this, I never once saw them sleep. 

Uriel would read a book in the flickering light of a candle beside me, and I’d watch them until I fell asleep. They didn’t eat either. I’d gotten used to that. 

With them around, I couldn’t exactly…relieve myself, but I found that I didn’t really want to. Being around them gave me a different kind of ache that was in my chest instead. I identified it as appreciation for the simple domesticity of being around Uriel and tried not to think too hard about it.

Worryingly, Uriel’s constitution did not improve as I’d hoped. The only thing that kept me from outright asking them, was the fact that they had not deteriorated either. Nothing had changed with Uriel by the time we arrived on mainland, at the edge of the coast. 

The coast, however, was almost empty of its previous amphibious population. They had apparently retreated into safer waters. Those left behind lived by the beach. And they were the ones that Charon hired to restock his ship.

As Uriel and I disembarked, the men began to load up the ship with boxes and crates of food. Far more food than I’d expected Charon’s skeletal crew to consume. Perhaps, they were travelling very far and not going to have a ready supply for a while.

In any case, I turned back to Uriel. “Ready to leave?”

They nodded. “Close your eyes this time,” Uriel warned.

I shut them instantly. I had no plans to go through that again.

~

When I opened my eyes again, we were nowhere near the coast.

“Where are we?” I asked. 

The sun shone almost glaringly down on us. “Pradera,” said Uriel. “We are here to see Cassiel.”

I took a good look at Uriel. Under this lighting in the middle of a tall grassy field of wheat, they looked washed out. “We should find someone,” I said, squinting in the sun.

Uriel took my hand. The coolness of their palm was enough to stun me into following quietly as they led me away. I couldn’t tell where we were heading towards, my attention too focussed on the point of contact between our hands.