by D A Rice
He raised an eyebrow as my breathing became labored and I swayed, sitting down as my tantrum abated, suddenly tired. My hand covered my face as I hid my tears from him. I could fight him; my stomach had healed enough to give me a better advantage than the last time he had accosted me. He did not move, though, the silence between us piercing in its quality. If I were being honest, even without my injuries, I had no idea who would win in a fight between us. I was so used to being the best that being thrown down by someone else was humbling. “So you look to get to the Tree of Life, but you do not believe in Adonai?” he finally asked, voice soft.
I inhaled deeply as I finally met his gaze, my hand dropping, “I do not know, Gabriel. I do not know what I believe in right now.” I could hear the fatigue in my voice as my shoulders dropped, giving up.
His eyes held mine for a long moment and he sighed, “fair enough.” He stood then and kicked dirt onto the flames before us, picking out the meat packages next and tucking them carefully into his pack. He tossed me some of the dried meat strips, “eat up. We have a long journey ahead of us.”
My eyes widened as my hands closed around the jerky in a tight grip, “you will help me?”
Gabriel smiled as he paused, “I suppose I will. You may be selfish, but I do not think Isaac is. Maybe that is what saved him. By your own admission, he even saved your life many times while the corruption ran through his veins for a week,” he glanced back at me. “If I can help you set things right, maybe there is redemption for not just him, but for you as well, lass.” He pulled his pack closed and shouldered it before saying so softly that I almost didn’t hear it, “and me.”
He scooped up his water canteen, having already stowed the bowl he had used earlier to feed me,and nodded, “we’ll need to find a stream to refill on fresh water before we go. I will check your wounds there. I was able to use some herbs you likely do not have in your dome on both of your claw wounds. Just in case you were wondering.” Gabriel’s eyes twinkled as he came up to me, holding out the canteen, which I took before he helped me to stand.
I had noticed that the wound on my arm had looked far better than it had even a few days ago when they checked it within the Organization. I hadn’t thought to ask him why. I hadn’t thought much about it at all, actually. “Stay by me. As I said before, the Corrupted do not usually pick fights with me, but I have no guarantees for you,” he added as he stepped back from me and I nodded. There was a story there, I could tell, but I did not ask. I wasn’t sure he would tell me, even if I did.
He turned, “off we go then, lass. I hope that your cure is worth it. It will be a long and difficult journey to get where you want to go.”
Locating a stream had been easy for Gabriel. It was clear he had been out here long enough to know the land as well as he knew all the herbs and animals within it. After refilling our canteens for water and cleaning his cooking and eating utensils, he had me ease into the water. He had taken my armor off when he had cauterized the wounds in my stomach, tucking them away in his pack. How he made room for them I did not know.
Now I only wore my tunic and the leggings I wore under my armor. My sword stayed with me, always on my back, but he did take my knives. I pulled the sword off now and did as he asked, easing into the coolness the water provided. I did not strip down as he followed me in, tentatively lifting my shredded tunic to survey the wound beneath as he unwrapped my stomach to let me wash my wounds.
How the demon had been able to claw me so well with my armor on was cruel fate. Either I had not strapped my plates on as securely as I had thought in my rush, or the angle had been just right to get up and underneath it.
Gabriel handed me moss and nodded, “this will help cleanse the wound itself after you are done.” He backed away from me, his eyes surveying the flowing stream, “we will follow this as long as possible north. It should flow into the Rhema River. We will deviate there, and continue Northeast until we reach the garden.” His eyes found mine again with a smile, “it should take us three to five days, depending on how quickly your wounds can heal as Angel-blessed.”
I looked up from my stomach, which was red and still risked re-opening if I got into a fight, but it looked as if no infection had spread. A minor miracle for a claw wound. It had already healed well, even for someone like me. “We will make it as close to three as is possible. Isaac does not have much time left.” I cringed as I stood. The blood that had been caked all over my stomach flowed down the stream. Gabriel met me on the bank, holding a bandage out to me. I shook my head, “you had better do it.”
He chuckled and then set to re-wrapping my wounds after I had spread the moss over them in filmy layers, “you should be dead as well. You are stronger than even you think. We will make it in three.” Gabriel stepped back with a nod, tucking away the bandages again, “I am not sure how well you will be able to fight, however.”
I pulled my sword onto my back, tightening the straps as I gave him a look, “I will manage.” Without the armor I would have to be careful fighting, but it would also make me faster, lighter on my feet. Until I was strong enough to put my armor on, I would have to manage without it, but there was no way I would sit back and let another fight for me. It just wasn’t who I was. If I had been less distracted a week ago, Isaac would not be suffering now. I would not make the same mistake twice.
We began to walk north, Gabriel shouldering the pack and anything else we needed. Occasionally, he would pause, kneel, and look at something in the foliage before rising and continuing. I had no idea what he was looking at or for, but I followed him anyway. I had no choice, for he had my map and my book. He moved slowly, leisurely, but I knew that he was doing so for me. I did not want to admit it, but I was still very tender and very tired.
We did not pause to eat; Gabriel just handed back food whenever he got hungry and I accepted it. Day began to darken, and Gabriel finally found a clearing that he deemed suitable for another night’s rest. I collapsed near a tree, my eyes shifting to the stream beside us as Gabriel set to building a fire in the small area. He pulled out a pack of venison and opened it before disappearing into the woods. I closed my eyes, not reopening them until I heard a rustling noise and opened my eyes to see Gabriel arranging red berries around the meat. He nodded, satisfied, “I saw these and thought they would be the perfect accompaniment to venison.”
I glanced towards the route he had taken, calculating in my head how far he had gone and how much brush was in the way between here and there. My brows furrowed. How had he seen berries that far away? I had not even seen them with my enhanced eyesight. I gave him a look, “how...?”
He waved me off, “I wouldn’t worry about that right now, lass.” His eyes focused on something beyond the clearing and I followed his gaze before jerking back against the tree with a start. I came up to my haunches, my hand reaching back for my sword. Gabriel threw a hand in my direction before I could draw, “Wait. I do not think you are going to need that.” It was the darkest part of twilight, when Corrupted began to stir and come out of their nests. One was perched on the edge of Gabriel’s firelight, silhouetted by the encroaching shadows. I could see the red of its eyes. It snorted and growled as it shuffled forward, then back again.
Gabriel looked at me in amusement then turned his attention back to the demon pacing before us. I blinked as recognition settled on my shoulders, my hand dropping, “is that-?”
Gabriel nodded once, not bothering to look back at me “aye. He’s looking for you.”
“He’s- Wait, how do you know that?” I asked, bewildered as I moved to stand, my hand slipping once on the tree beside me. There was a snarl and a snort and Gabriel cocked his head, almost as if he was listening. My eyes widened, “you can understand them.”
Gabriel finally looked at me, “aye, lass. I can speak the language of Angels.”
His words slammed into me as an echo of what Isaac had said before looped through my mind. This was the warrior on the outside. I had all the confirmation I needed. �
��How?” it was all I could get out.
Gabriel’s lips twitched as he glanced at Isaac, who crouched, his cracked face becoming visible in the firelight. What little of his dark brown hair remained, drooped into his red eyes as he watched me. I could see the recognition there as his eyes drank me in. “Lass, I have been out here all my life, there’s not much I can’t do.” Gabriel’s voice shattered through my mind, snapping my eyes to his in astonishment as he tossed a piece of the meat to Isaac, who caught it with one hand, his eyes never leaving mine.
I had expected Gabriel to have been out here for a while. Years, in fact, but his whole life? How was that possible? My mouth dropped again as my mind reeled and he gave a low chuckle, “it would seem that it is my turn to tell a story. Get comfortable, lass, it’s a long one.”
11
Gabriel took a moment as he crouched on the balls of his feet near the fire, hands out toward the flame. He did not have gloves on, but then he probably did not need them. As the night cooled, I found myself shivering and scooting closer to the fire. It was not yet winter, but I could feel it coming in the end-of-summer air. The leaves were still green, however, and the days were still warm. We did not have seasons like we used to, especially inside the dome, where everything was controlled. My mother once told me that out beyond the walls, a winter could kill even the toughest warrior. Then again, she had told me that no one lived in the land between domes, and yet….
My eyes shifted to Gabriel, who took a deep breath, as if deciding just how much of his story he was willing to share. I waited, my arms crossing over my knees as I pulled them in front of my chest. My hair was pulled back. I had washed it in the stream, but there was only so much I could do with what I had. I had no doubt a good brushing was in order for it, but at the moment, I did not care. Isaac shifted before us, eyeing the deer meat in his hands before tearing it apart and eating it. He growled a low noise that caused Gabriel to smile sideways before he spoke, “I suppose I should start with my parents.”
He sighed as he sat back, turning his head towards me. His eyes held so much weight in them that I lay my head on my arms, saying nothing. “My father was an exile, kicked out from the Faraday dome when I was just a babe. My mother had been infected while pregnant, and they had hidden it from the government for as long as possible before it became evident of what she was becoming. My father locked her in the basement, hoping to at least get me out of her before she changed, chaining her up like an animal, if the stories are to be believed. After I was born, she went on a rampage and they killed her. They banished my father from the dome with me, an abomination. I did not look like a corrupted, but they did not know what to think of me, being born from one.
“My father took me into the wild. He became infected, but he did not change right away. Desperate for a cure, he found ways to inject corrupted DNA into my body, pushing me and training me. He was an elite warrior within Faraday once, my mother a scientist. He had learned enough from her to know what equipment to look for in every abandoned city we came across to further his experiments. My father took years to make the full change. I am not sure how he was able to put it off for so long. Unlike with your Isaac, my father did not love me. I am of the belief that it was his own sense of self preservation that kept him alive, his own determination. He may have even found something to prolong the effect with his experiments. Either way, I suffered for it,” Gabriel stood fluidly, his hand coming up to his hair before he took me in beside him.
“I am not much better than the Corrupted you kill, Zakiya, but instead of physically turning into a monster, the DNA my father gave me made me something else entirely. I have all the strength and stamina, all the reflexes of the Corrupted, yet I still have my humanity. I have no idea what my father did to me in detail, but when he trained me, I only became stronger. Strong enough, in fact, to kill him when he finally succumbed to the corruption,” he glanced at Isaac here.
I was silent for a moment before asking, “how old were you?”
Gabriel’s gaze shifted back to me. He studied me for a long moment, “I was but ten when I beheaded my own father. I learned how to survive as a human, what food to eat so that I could sustain myself. I learned to speak by watching others, those who came from the domes. I travelled, and I grew. When I did, I realized that not everyone could understand the Corrupted as I could. I learned to hide among them. I did not know why they hunted others but never me.”
“You were so young; how did you ever figure out what happened to you?” I asked him, voice soft. I knew that I could barely remember my own childhood at that age. Was it part of the DNA that ran through his veins that he could?
Gabriel knelt down again, handing me food and tossing more meat to Isaac, who growled hungrily. He took a moment to answer, “I remembered most of it. Do you know how odd it is for a teenager to suddenly remember his entire life, and understand all that had happened? I found that I could read, speak, and understand things not many others could. I’ve observed many coming in and out of the domes, all across this dying land. I had my mother’s mind, her scientific mind and perfect memory, and my father’s warrior blood.
“Somehow, the DNA he gave me only enhanced that in me and it kicked in when puberty did. I am, for all intents and purposes, an anomaly. I am a super soldier. I am other,” his lips twitched as Isaac wiped the back of his hands across his mouth, having devoured the meat Gabriel had given him. “I am other, just as he now is. I have no idea how long it will take, but everyone turns. Maybe even me.”
“It took your father years, perhaps it will take Isaac even longer,” I said softly, my gaze shifting to Isaac, who was perched on the edge of the clearing, eerily still as he studied us.
Gabriel watched him thoughtfully as well, his hand coming up to his jaw, “I don’t think so, lass. He is already much further along than my father was after many years.”
I sighed as I considered all he had told me, “I do not know, but I will not give up hope for him.”
Gabriel nodded, “and that is all you can do.” He shifted back as he took me in one more time, his gaze assessing me, “he says you need rest,” he said after a moment.
I smiled as I glanced over at Isaac, who snarled again, without moving, “does he now?”
Gabriel shifted beside me and I turned to find him pulling off his long fur coat. He had a dark green tunic on underneath that v’d with dark laces criss crossing over it. He flicked the coat and lay it down next to me, opening it so I could wrap it around myself if I got cold. My eyes met his briefly and he smiled, waving a hand without speaking. I shook my head, glancing out toward Isaac again, who only nodded. I lay down on the coat gingerly and wrapped the rest around my body, my arm cushioning my head as I watched Gabriel sit beside me, poking a stick at the fire. He said nothing for a moment, “I will take first watch with your boyfriend. Rest.”
My eyes found themselves closing of their own volition before he even finished his sentence and a soft chuckle followed by a snarl chased me into my dreams.
Someone was shaking me awake with a gentle nudge on my shoulder and a soft, “lass.” My eyes peeled back groggily to find Gabriel kneeling over me, a finger to his lips. I was awake in an instant at the tension radiating off him. He shook his head before I could speak, “something’s got the Corrupted in a stir, your boyfriend included.” I could see that he had put out the fire before he had woken me, and I could feel the brisk night air seep into my light clothing. I shivered as I sat up, Gabriel’s coat sliding off my shoulders. He helped me up the rest of the way with a hand on my elbow, before retrieving his coat and pulling it around my shoulders once more. Gabriel motioned for me to be quiet again before beckoning me with two fingers to follow him. I nodded. He pulled up his pack and his bow, sliding an arrow free from his quiver as we moved.
Gabriel’s eyes took in the night as snarling hit my ears. It wasn’t just Isaac out here anymore, more Corrupted had joined him, and they sounded hungry. I bit my lip as I pulled my sword up from the
ground where it lay next to me, following Gabriel. He picked his way across the clearing and towards the stream we had been following earlier that day. He halted once, his head tilted as he listened to the snarling and grunting around us. The hunter nocked the arrow in his hand, pointing his bow towards the ground, ready. He glanced back at me and nodded before him. I nodded again in acknowledgement and we proceeded on light feet.
I could not see where Isaac was, but I could feel my heart pick up its pace as I assessed our situation. I had no idea what was going on, even if Gabriel seemed to. Or, at least, he knew more than I did. I also could not fight at my full capacity. I had no armor and my stomach still weakened me more than I cared to admit. My grip tightened on my sheathed sword as my other hand pulled Gabriel’s coat tighter around my collar. How he was not freezing, I did not know. Perhaps the corrupted DNA inside of him made him less susceptible to the cold.
A soft snort beside me had me flinching before I saw Isaac, who had appeared next to me out of nowhere. Could he not speak anymore? I cringed with the thought as Gabriel paused in front of me, his gaze meeting Isaac’s. Isaac growled low, his nostrils widening as his shifted away from me. Gabriel glanced at me once and shook his head, his eyes meeting Isaac’s beside me again. I glanced between them, curiosity almost overcoming Gabriel’s need for me to be quiet. Something was going on between them, a decision being made, and I felt annoyed at being left out, even if it was not by anyone’s choice. I snapped my fingers between them and they turned to me. I raised my eyebrows and Gabriel’s lips twitched up in amusement.
