Demon Hunters

Casus Belli V

The first thing Gabriel saw was a faint light flickering in the distance. At first, he assumed that he had arrived in heaven. However, as intense pain slowly began to coarse through his body, he became convinced that this was most certainly not the case. The almost unbearable ache seemed to radiate from every part of his body: not only were the injuries he had sustained during the fight flaring up, but now he was also suffering from an intense headache. He shifted slightly without opening his eyes and felt that something was constricting his movements. Gabriel didn't have time to consider this strange state of affairs, however, as an extreme wave of nausea hit him, forcing him to double over and vomit profusely. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking due to the sudden brightness. Once his eyes had been accustomed to the lighting, he realized that he was staring at a pool of his sick, dotted by coagulated chunks of blood. Gabriel felt nausea take over him and vomited again. This time, too, his regurgitations were coloured crimson.

"Are you done? The smell is bad already as is."

Feeling every part of his body still ache, Gabriel sat back up and studied his surroundings. By the looks of things, he was sitting in the back of a carriage – one in motion, judging by the constants bumps that rocked the frame, though the canvas draped over the back precluded Gabriel from seeing where he was. Sat on the opposite side of the cramped cart was one of the inquisitor's bodyguards, the one who had been wielding the crossbow that had spelled Gabriel's doom. The same weapon was currently leaning against the bench next to the man. Of course, this fact was meaningless to Gabriel, as he was in no condition to be thinking about using it himself: not only was he still very much wounded, but his hands had also been tied against his chest with a familiar contraption.

"I'm sure I don't need to explain to you what that thing does," the guard said, nodding toward the apparatus.

"You do not."

Indeed, Gabriel was familiar with the rig. It consisted of a set of straps that had been wrapped around his chest, metallic clasps that held both of his hands in a prayer position against his chest, and, finally, a trigger mechanism connected to a sharp spike that had been aimed directly at his heart. 'Prayer cages', they called them, the church's tool for restraining hybrids who ran amok. Certainly, with his enhanced strength, Gabriel could easily break free of its clutches. However, this would also release the spike that had been tensioned with springs, which would pierce his heart and kill him instantly – it was a simple yet frightfully effective way of detaining hybrids against whom normal methods would fail. How exactly his captors had acquired one was a mystery, as they were considered something of a secret within the church. Still, Gabriel didn't have the energy to ponder this question. He leaned against the uncomfortable bench and stared at his captor.

"Why am I alive?" he asked.

The guard chuckled.

"I'd like to know as well. The way you were bleeding, I would've thought you dead a dozen times over. But no, apparently the regeneration your kind can muster is something to behold – even if we had to really fight to keep you alive immediately after you fell unconscious."

Gabriel had been so distracted by the pain that only now did he realize that his horns were jutting from his forehead - this explained his headache, as overusing his demonic powers like this was far from healthy. However, Gabriel also knew that his regenerative powers were also the sole reason he was still drawing breath. Gabriel concentrated, and his horns receded back into his head. At the same time, the pain he felt intensified, though he didn't feel any of his wounds reopen.

How much do they know about me? Clearly, they don't know that cutting off my horns would stop me from using my powers, Gabriel thought.

"You know that isn't what I meant when I asked why I was still alive," Gabriel said, now in his own, undistorted voice.