Prologue

I remember the pain, when I finally opened my eyes. The blue sky was fluorescent above me but it hurt to 

look at it - to see the clouds and the dusk of the sun setting. A thousand things crashed around me, noises, sights, even smells - and me, smack in the middle of it all - could not move.

Thought could not find me, and I could not reach for them no matter what amount of strength I used, it was hopeless. Then - almost all at once - time picked up again, the singularity of that moment was finally at a pass while the words of the song, stuck hard into the CD player, seemed to blare into my ears. Thousands of things moved at once, images flying past my fluttering lids. First - I was lifted up, forcibly removed from the comfort of the Earth, the warmth of the sun leaving my lifeless skin. Second - my body slammed while the para-medics rushed me into the back of the ambulance - asking for my cooperation where I was unable to comply. Finally - the vehicle lunged forward, the IV striking into my flesh with what should've been a painful pinch yet my body could not respond. Faster and faster they carried me away from the scene - away from the memories, leaving everything behind. My brothers. My Angels. Every memory I used to hold onto. And even, me.