Back on my Gabastle propaganda. Trigger warnings are in the tags.
Gabriel felt numb. The Forgotten One was destroyed. The Earth and Humanity were saved, once again. He couldn't return to the people he saved, no. Gabriel was far too gone. He wasn't human anymore, and the beings within these cold stone walls knew that. They still gave him a wide berth, untrusting of what the former knight would do to them. He couldn't blame them, any that did brave his presence, were only met with animalistic behaviors from him. Teeth and claws tearing into the flesh of both men and monsters.
His eyes hurt from the light. They were now red and swollen from his crying and the transformation. He could barely keep them open anymore. Why couldn't the sun just kill him like it did to every other that bore this curse? He didn't know what day it was anymore. Gabriel cursed the Brotherhood of Light and the God they worshipped. Why couldn't he have just gone to hell? It was what he deserved.
The armor, that he used to take meticulous care for, now filthy and rotting. The responsibility it represented, now too heavy for him to bear. Was this what Atlas felt? Carrying the world on his shoulders, never once allowed to feel relief? His legs dragged him through each room, like a puppet with their puppeteer. There was a whispering in his ears. Telling him that they loved him. Telling him they would keep him safe. That they understood him. Never once had he found the source, but he hadn't stopped moving since sealing Laura, shortly after his battle.
He makes it to the throne room. A room he never saw in his fight with Carmilla. Or maybe he had. Was this the room he fought the vampire lord in? It felt like a fog was covering his brain. He limps once. Then twice. His legs then give out and he collapses on the stone floor. He panted, his heart starting to skip beats. With the last bit of strength he had, Gabriel rolls onto his back. His eyesight was blurry, but he knew he'd only be met with the same stone that his head was laying on.
It didn't matter anymore. His eyes were closing as his heart slowed down. Gabriel had a false hope, that once his heart finally stopped, he'd open his eyes to Saint Peter. To the gates of Heaven. That he'd hear the voice of his beloved Marie. He knew he wouldn't, but he begged for this in his last prayer to a God he no longer knew. The world went quiet as his heart finally gave into the curse, and stopped moving. His body was limp, and his eyes closed. Had someone come in, they would've thought him truly dead. Maybe even at peace with his death.
But it was never that easy for Gabriel. No. The whispers came back, intruding in this moment of peace. They called him back to the decaying carcass he called his body. He didn't want this. He didn't want to come back. This darkness was so peaceful.
He could hear the soft coos, but you need to come back. We cannot do this alone. We need you, my Prince. Prince? Him? Gabriel was nothing. He was born nothing, and died nothing. What more could Gabriel offer? We need nothing more than your blood. It whispers. His heart stopped. He had no blood to give. The familiar smell of rot and death filled his nostrils.
He felt his legs get lifted, and each boot removed from his body. Something warm and wet touched his feet through his wool socks, before removing them. If he had the breath to gasp, he would've. Warm tendrils squirm under his armor and clothing, tearing each piece apart. He expected to feel the cold stones under his back, but it was.... Being nice to him. It encompassed his cold, broken body within its warm, and, dare he say it, loving tendrils.
My prince. We love you. We can protect you. We can provide all the love and acknowledgement that humans failed to give you. Oh, did that sound so nice. We will watch your back. Give you anything you may want or need. Never will you go without. A catch was coming. Gabriel knew it. There was no way whatever this was, was just going to give him this for free. In order for us to do so, we need your blood. With your permission, we will make a bind with you, and be your companion, for eternity. Eternity? There was no way this thing would actually stay with him for that long, but he wanted everything it said. Yes. Yes. Please. He needed this. He needed it.
At his permission, it began its work. Its tendrils cut open each vein that led to his heart. Gabriel could feel it wiggle under his skin. It was unbearably hot, like hellfire. But his body didn't have the strength to do anything to stop it. This molten heat poured into his veins, forcing its way to his heart.
Bump. Ba-bump. His heart... Had restarted? Gabriel slowly opened his eyes. Red. His sight was filled with a fleshy, squirming red. Looking down, he saw his heart. It was still skipping beats, but this creature had brought it back. Gabriel would've laughed at his numbness towards his body being splayed open, his organs being out for all to see. But this being... The creature closes his wounds. It heals him from the inside out. There. Rest now my Prince. It curls around his body more, and the exhaustion finally takes him.
Rest now. We have you. The creature wraps its tendrils tighter around the broken body of the knight. We will never leave you, for you are my Prince.