Blood of the Pure [COMPLETE]

Chapter 24 - Part 1

Chapter 24

DEO

– The Path of Daleth. The Black Brothers.1 –

"If I could be the light that lights your way, I wouldn't wish for anything more of this finite passage over this lost world. And not even all the shadows I carry, nor all the thorns that torture me,
would be strong enough to pull me away from my destiny."

I remember coming back to life in a warm wave of pain. My whole body hurt as if I'd been a victim of some serious spanking. I groaned as I took a deep breath, and then groaned again just to make sure I'd recovered my voice.

The weight of the air around me left me immediately alert and, with some more groaning through clenched teeth and a lot of cringing, I finally managed to turn to the other side. My eyes were immediately on him, on his perfect figure, and my heart sped up in a conditioned response.

Gabriel was sitting on the floor, his back against the wall opposite to my bed, keeping enough distance to spare me from all the annoying shaking and trembling. He had his knees bent, his long arms resting on them, and was staring inexpressibly at me, completely motionless and quiet.

I thought that, once more, I could've easily mistaken him for a white statue, if not for the red gleam that crossed his violet eyes, which made me considerably nervous and apprehensive. Contrary to how it might look, he was very much alive and it was with a huge amount of effort that he kept the wrath boiling inside him under control.

I smiled weakly, since even the smallest movement sent shards of pain through my body, and breathed in making sure my voice wouldn't fail me.

"Hey," I whispered, although that hadn't been my intention at all. "What are you doing there, sitting on the floor?" I asked as lightly as I could, but he didn't move an inch, nor did he reply, making me sigh in frustration.

Clenching my teeth hard so that my face wouldn't show another single painful expression, I pulled my quilt back and tried to sit up, angry at my shaky arms that just wouldn't obey me. I could feel his gaze on me, following my every move, and so I focused my mind on trying to minimize the situation. Even so, I was all too aware of my weakened state to even consider the possibility of being able to stand up, and so I let myself slide to the ground and looked at him with a defiant smile.

"You're quite right. This isn't half as bad," I joked, even though I was trembling inside. Somehow I had the distinct feeling that this absence of reaction was a hundred times more dangerous than his explosive furies. Besides, that red gleam in his eyes made me unsure of even my own safety.

I took a deep breath, contracting the muscles in my arms to make sure that they'd obey me, and crawled on my hands and knees towards him.

"What are you doing?"

His soft but cold voice made me stop for a moment and I took the chance to recover from what felt like an immeasurable effort.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" I asked and, as he didn't answer, decided to crawl some more.

The tremors came back ruthlessly, making my whole body hurt even more than it already did. But, even so, I only stopped right in front of him, sitting on my heels.

"Those eyes ... are terrible," I noted between forced inspirations. His presence, even contained, was too intense and palpably threatening. "Is that anger? Desire to kill someone?" I asked and his lips moved all so slightly, just enough to let a few words escape.