I don't want to die.
Even when his body ached badly. Even when at death's door.
The faint thought echoed in his head.
"I made a promise... dying means breaking that promise." Gabriel thought, gritting his teeth. From his position, he could hear it, the screams, the cries, and the growls, though they were muffled for some reason.
"Did Cassandra survive the crash?" He couldn't help but think.
"Ughhh," letting out a soft groan, he struggled to rise though feeling a bit lightheaded.
Each step he took caused nerve-wracking pain, yet he continued forward, clenching his fist.
The simple attack from that creature had sent him far away from immediate danger.
Standing before the window of the house he had crashed into, he discovered he was a few metres away from the cliff.
"If I remain here, it won't be long before they find me and tear me apart. I can't stay here." He thought with a grimace.
Eyes still fixed on the cliff, a crazy idea formed in his head.
He wasn't living his fate in the hands of a bunch of humans he wasn't sure would even come. He needed to get as far away from the settlement to avoid the detection of the monsters.
"Then what?" The thought crept into his mind, but he paid it no attention.
With his body fueled by adrenaline and the will to survive, he ignored the pain and slowly made his way out of the building.
Each step left a bloody imprint as he continued forward.
His heart ached as he advanced further away from the building. He decided to shut off any thought from wandering into his mind. He didn't want to think about them. Those he was leaving behind.
The thought of Cassandra being torn apart by the hideous creatures popped in his mind, causing him to stumble in his tracks. Gritting his teeth,he shook his head furiously, causing a spark of pain.
The pain cleared his mind as he continued forward. His senses were back again now he was far from the rift. Though he had to be careful going through the area.
"Damn coward! Useless fool!"He couldn't help but curse himself. Tears rolled freely from his eyes down to his cheek as he followed the path.
He hadn't gone far when he realised a few monsters were onto him.
Shit!
He struggled to go faster. Stumbling through shrubs and getting back to his feet. His wounds that had stopped bleeding–albeit, were now bleeding profusely.
Even when the monsters drew nearer, he continued with hardened resolve. He knew it was inescapable. The more he clung to survival, the more he realised how far he was from it.
"It's fine. At least I get to escape this hell of a world. But I'm not gonna die in the hands of these vicious creatures," he thought, gritting his teeth.
Finally reaching his destination–the cliff edge. He stood contemplating jumping. He didn't move…maybe he was still hoping for a miracle to occur.
Unfortunately, the sound of the hideous creatures behind him woke him up from his dream. Miracles rarely happen in this world. Hoping for the gods to save you was a futile effort.
In this vile world, only one's strength truly mattered. Being weak wasn't just a sin but a death sentence.
"Curse it all!" He yelled with a croaky voice. Even when it brought along a wave of pain. He just wanted to scream out his pain.
Sensing the creatures a few metres away from him, the decision was finally made.
He was going to join them in the afterlife.
Why continue this damn life...?
Turning towards the approaching monsters, he raised his middle finger, a wide grin etched on his face as he took a few steps backwards, falling into the darkness.
This is it.
That was his last thought as he plummeted down the hill, the sight of the settlement slowly fading away along with the hatred burning in his heart.
"At least I get to decide my death." He thought in pain. Even now, the idea of dying still caused great pain in his heart.
And so he fell. The wind blurred out all the sound.
Just when his eyes were slowly closing, giving in to the darkness, he felt a searing pain on his shoulders. His face tightened in grimace as he became aware of his surroundings once again.
He realised one of the monsters hadn't given up in the chase even jumping down with him. Also, he could hear it, the flapping of wings.
His descent had stopped abruptly, and he was slowly getting carried back to the cliff.
Too exhausted to do anything, he succumbed to the nagging unconsciousness.
He didn't see the monster fly past the cliff and back to the destroyed settlement, his broken body barely hanging limply in its mouth.
He didn't see when the monster entered into the rift, traversing the dark region and dropped him before a strange object before exploding into pieces of flesh.
"Hehehe!"
"Even till death, you still have a strong will to live. How ironic."
The weird laughter and the sharp, toned voice stirred him from his unconscious state.
"Ohh. He's still awake." Then came another round of laughter. "His body is really a perfect host. I wonder… would he be able to contain a little of its power?"
Gabriel lay on the ground, unable to move a single part of his body. He had lost a lot of blood, and the cold embrace of death was slowly kicking him.
"Y'know... you can survive this..." the voice said with a pause.
Gabriel lay silently thousand thoughts going through his head. "How did he end up here? Just what was this place?"
He had never sensed anything like this before. The air was strange. The only thing he could sense was before him.
"...All you need is a little help... which I can render." The voice continued with a delightful tone.
But that didn't matter. The strange voice had talked about helping him survive. Something he needed more than ever.
"Hehehe. I wonder how a young boy like you got filled with such deep desires."
"Damn you! Where the hell am I?" He decided to try it. conveying his message through his mind.
"Where are you? Of course, you're in my domain. I'm the one keeping you alive right now. I think you should be a bit more grateful."
Letting out an agonising hiss, Gabriel pondered for a minute before throwing his next set of questions.
"What do you mean by your domain? Tsk. Screw that. You said you could help me... how?"
"I won't bother wasting time on such matters. Your mortal mind won't be able to comprehend that... for now." The voice said, turning a little serious.
"Your second question. The solution is quite easy…" The voice said with a stifled laugh."
"All you need to do is grab onto the object before you… and smear it with your blood…"