Chapter Text
Gabriel hated to admit it, but he was lost. Not just in the physical, literal sense, but in every single way possible. Like a forgotten childhood toy caked in mud under a shrub. Like a fish in the Sahara Desert. Like a dog left to its own devices after the death of its owner. Like a sock that had fallen behind the washing machine. Like an archangel that had lost its purpose in life.
Gabriel knew where he was, or at least pretended he knew. The sky was magenta like that of the layer of Lust, but his surroundings were so unfamiliar. He'd seen its-
Best not think of that.
Around Gabriel were heaps of crumbling concrete, shattered glass, and splintered wood. Destroyed buildings, that much he knew. He wasn't stupid. The roads he traversed upon were cracked, potholes full of muddy water which he occasionally, deep in thought, stepped into. Damned potholes, did no one-
Oh, right. He'd let that blasted thing feast on the denizens' blood like they were Capri-Sun pouches.
What did it matter anymore, anyway?
Gabriel was growing tired. Though he knew he didn't need to rest, he was quite literally created to be perfection in form, his mind was yearning for a moment of slumber. A moment to be free of thoughts. Though, sleep was not restful either. Nightmares, nightmares, nightmares... That damned machine's cold, metallic hands around his throat, its gun pressed against his temple, his own blood pooling on the tiles beneath him, his own raspy breaths, the machine's disgusting whirring, its fans blowing hot air on his face, the stench of blood, the-
Butterflies fluttered in his chest just at the memory.
With a heavy sigh, Gabriel made his way into one of the buildings that still stood. It was one of those apartment blocks, whatever mortals had called them. Not that they were there an-
Stop. Thinking.
With an even heavier sigh, Gabriel shook his head to rid himself of these damn thoughts. He then made his way up the stairwell. He didn’t know why, but he loved places that were high up, it was almost as if they were calling to him. No, no, he wasn’t a bird. It wasn’t ‘the bird instinct’. To Hell with whomever dared compare THE archangel Gabriel to a fucking bird-
Good old days, yes. Or bad old days, whatever. He missed those days nonetheless.
Gabriel made his way to the topmost apartment. Everything in the building had already been ransacked; curtains from the windows, sheets from the beds, even the wires from any electronics. It was truly a miserable place, but at least it offered some shelter from the weather. The cupboards in the kitchen were torn off the walls, the windows busted, and the floorboards pulled apart in search of any hidden treasures. The bedroom wasn’t off any better. Mattress stolen, slats snapped in half, bedposts sawed off.
However, a couch in the living room was surprisingly intact. Though it was missing one of the back cushions, it was barely torn at all… and didn’t smell like vomit. Or other, less holy, bodily fluids.
Weary, with his limbs aching horribly from all the walking, Gabriel lay down on the couch, covering himself with a torn cape he’d snatched off of some corpse. After a wash, it still reeked of death and decay. Perhaps he’d just washed it poorly. Perhaps the stench wasn’t actually there, and it was just an olfactory hallucination. Perhaps Gabriel himself was the one that smelled of death. The possibilities were endless, none of them pleasant.
Rain tapped on the patched-up tin roof above Gabriel, and wind howled through the apartment. Great, just great! Another storm! Excellent, just his luck.
Gabriel cursed under his breath, wrapping the torn cape and his wings tighter around himself. He wasn’t about to let some quirky weather ruin his rest. His thoughts once more wandered towards that blasted machine, how it’d absolutely annihilated him more than twice but less than thrice. Their third encounter didn’t count. It’d spared his life, like the asshole it was, not putting the disgraced archangel out of his misery right then and there when it had the damn chance-
He was getting pissed off again.
Yet he continued recalling their moments together. How exhilarating it had felt to be so utterly, thoroughly powerless. To have his entire being dangle in the balance of some glorified toaster’s whims, to be tossed around like some wet rag left out in the rain for weeks. How it felt to have every cell in his body crack as he slammed against the tile floor, to have any semblance of grace stripped from him. It had fought him like an animal, just as he’d asked, no, begged of it. It had scratched and torn at his body, devoured any of him it could. Like a starved animal. Perhaps he was a starved animal, too, just a different kind of starved. Starved of affection, of touch, of anything to make him feel anything other than that agonising-
Thinking like this wasn’t going to let him drift off to sleep.
So, Gabriel thought of other things. Those two kings, who’d escaped their prisons. Or rather, had been freed of them. That cursed machine, incompetent enough to let them free yet not be able to defeat them. How stupid could a fucking camera on legs get? And now those two were out there doing Lord-knows-what! Not that it mattered, everything was fucked anyway, but… He just hoped they wouldn’t find him, he’d be no match to them in this miserable state of his. Sisyphus? He’d definitely pulverise Gabriel’s ass. Minos, however? He couldn’t be sure. Last Gabriel had heard, the King of Lust was pissed when released. But maybe, perhaps, he’d take pity on a pathetic little archangel who’d lost everything.
No, Minos would deck him too.
After rolling around on the couch for what felt like hours, the rain tapping away on the roof, Gabriel sat up. This was pointless. He wasn’t able to fall asleep now, so why waste his time here?
The best course of action would be to scavenge for any kind of supplies. Maybe the palace still had something? No, Minos would probably be there and that wouldn’t end well. Though… Gabriel did really need supplies, maybe he’d risk it. And what were the odds of Minos being there anyway? One in five, or maybe 50/50. Even if Gabriel were to get so unlucky as to meet the king, he could always fly off. Not that his wings could carry him far anymore, but at least a safe distance away.
Gabriel wrapped the torn cape around his shoulders, and moved to sit on the windowsill. His legs dangled over the abyss that was the crumbling city below. The winds had calmed down slightly, yet the rain continued, tapping away at his helmet. He knew he could take it off, no one was around to see him, yet… he’d grown quite attached to it. It felt like a part of him at this point. The gilded parts of his helmet had been dulled by dirt and time, and he’d neglected to take proper care of it. Yet it was… him. Had he been dulled by dirt and time?
Gabriel made his way to the roof of the building. It towered over the land, like a tree left standing after harvesting timber en masse. Though those trees would perish soon themselves. Were trees, or in this case buildings, capable of dying from loneliness? Perhaps plants and even heaps of concrete were more human than he was.
Sitting down on the wet tin roof, Gabriel gazed over the horizon. He could see the Palace of Lust in the distance, its spires casting shadows over the crumbling city. Thank the heavens that massive fucking husk of Minos was gone, it had been quite the eyesore. Well, he had caused it to be that way, but, well… Suppose the machine was good for something, after all. In his mind, Gabriel could still see the parasitic worms and smell the stench of decay. He couldn’t blame anyone else but himself for-
No, the damn Council had ordered him. He had just been doing his job, his duty, his-
The past was just that. The past. Better not linger, lest he sit there for the next millenia.
Well, time's-a-wastin’. With a running start, Gabriel took off towards the palace, gliding back down to the cracked street. He didn’t want to attract too much attention, now did he? He felt a renewed sense of optimism course through his veins. Minos wouldn’t be there, he’d find plenty of supplies, everything was going to be just fine.
● ● ●
Gabriel chose to enter through a side door. He knew the palace inside out, even in its dilapidated state, having been there plenty of times before… before that incident. He still remembered which floorboards creaked when stepped on, he remembered which doors were always kept locked.
Quietly stepping inside, Gabriel took a deep breath. It…
It still smelled like it used to.
The palace was supposed to be abandoned, derelict, close to collapse, it shouldn’t have still had that scent..! It brought back so many memories, too many memories.
Gabriel stepped back outside. He looked down, and saw his hands shaking. What the hell was wrong with him? It was just a familiar smell, just a scent. He leaned against the wall, trying to rid himself of those blasted thoughts.
Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out.
Just a familiar smell.
Just a scent.
Just a reminder of every moment he had ever spent with the man whom he then went onto cut down in cold blood while he was begging for him to just fucking listen for even a-
Breathe, damnit.
Let bygones be bygones. He could not change the damn past, he could not fix things anymore. He was a better person now, wasn’t he? He wouldn’t make such choices anymore.
After a moment, Gabriel stepped back into the palace. The scent was there. With a shake of his head, Gabriel ignored those thoughts, and snuck deeper into the palace. The hallways were surprisingly pristine for having fallen victim to disrepair. The carpets barely had any dust fly up when he stepped on them, candles on the sconces seemed brand new, torn wallpaper appeared to have been patched up.
Ignoring the warning sirens blaring in his head, Gabriel snuck up the stairs in the main lobby. He stepped past the steps he recalled would creak, and quickly made it to the top. It wouldn’t hurt to just take a peek into Minos’ old bedroom, just… just for memories’ sake. To remember the good days.
At the end of the hall was an ornate door, which Gabriel slowly creaked open. Just to be careful, just in case there was actually anyone there. He peeked his head in through the crack.
Oh no.
Oh… no no no nonono-
Minos was standing there, right in front of the door as if he’d just been about to leave. The Prime Soul’s hole of a face stared down at Gabriel, a swirling abyss which sure as hell didn’t seem happy.
Gabriel was frozen in place. Even if he’d wanted to utter a word, he couldn’t. His throat felt as if it’d clamped itself shut. And, surprisingly, it appeared to be the same for Minos.
They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity and half, before Minos finally spoke.
“...Gabriel..?”
Like a lighting bolt from a clear sky, in a sudden moment of rage, Gabriel lunged forward, pinning Minos to the floor. He knew the Prime Soul didn't need to breathe or anything, yet he found his hands gripping Minos' throat.
"Thou art looking a tad less radiant from when I last saw thee, Gabriel.”
“Time hasn’t done you any favours either, has it!?” Gabriel hissed.
“...That was not meant as an insult.”
Gabriel scoffed, tightening his grip around Minos throat. “Oh, sure it wasn’t! As if I’d believe a word you say.”
“...Ah.” Minos let out a soft sigh, surprisingly content despite being actively strangled by one pissed off archangel. “Is there something bothering thee, my angel? I-”
“Oh, just shut it, won’t you..!”
Out of muscle memory, or whatever one might call it, Gabriel moved one of his hands to cover Minos’ mouth, but instead plunged it deep into the face hole. It was like… cold, pitch-black liquid, which seeped right through Gabriel’s gloves. It seemed to go on for eternity, as in the matter of seconds Gabriel was elbow-deep.
“W-what the fuck..?” Gabriel quickly yanked his arm back out. The abysmal goo clung to his arm like glue, no matter how he tried to get it off. “Why the fuck are you like this?? This is fucking disgusting!”
“Thou plunged thine own arm in there by thyself. I played no part in this,” Minos said casually, almost as if this was an everyday occurrence.
“I-I-I didn’t..! You, you…” Gabriel struggled to come up with any insults. His anger was gone, instead replaced by mostly confusion. “S-stop having a gooey face..!”
“Oh, how thou wound me… I was born this way!”
“...You weren’t, asshole.”
“I was. Though ‘reborn’ may be a more fitting word…”
“Just… shut up.” Gabriel grumbled as he got off of Minos, still desperately trying to get the remaining goo off of himself. “...Why aren’t you killing me, anyway? Didn’t I, like, kill you and all?”
“Hmph.” Minos quickly got up himself, and wiped off some of the inky goo that had gotten on his robes. “...’Twas back then. After some reconsideration, I came to realise thou hast not acted of thine own volition.”
…How much did this man know of the occurrences after his imprisonment? Did he know how the Council-
No. There was no chance in hell that Minos knew.
Not a chance.
“...Did you hit your head that hard? Of course I acted of my ‘own volition’, there’s no one in the whole universe besides the Father who could order me around! Do you think that little of me?” Gabriel crossed his arms. His exhaustion truly was starting to get to him a little, he no longer had the energy to stay angry.
“Thou dost seem rather vexed, Gabriel.”
“Yeah, no shit! I got exiled from Heaven, my kin despise me, I no longer have the Father’s Light, I’m starving, cold, exhausted, and everything is my fault..!”
Everything that had been on Gabriel’s mind spilled forth at once, the cacophony in his head finally quieting down as he got it all out. The boiling hatred, bubbling fear, indescribable hurt, agonising loneliness. If all that had been mixed in a pot, the colour of the concoction would’ve been darker than the purest abyss.
Minos listened silently, occasionally nodding along. After a while, he spoke. “That… doth seem most troubling, my angel.”
“...Don’t call me that. It makes me want to throw up.”
“My apologies, Gabriel.” Minos exhaled, in whatever manner a being without a respiratory system would. “...Nonetheless, thy predicament hath certainly troubled me.”
“Why would it bother you? Just let me take some stuff and I’ll be-”
“Thou couldst stay here.”
Gabriel was about to just scoff and shrug off the offer, but the more he thought about it, the more tempting it became. A proper roof over his head, warm quarters, a soft bed, perhaps even an actual, nutritious meal? And all he had to do was deal with Minos every now and then?
“...We’d be like roommates, wouldn’t we?”
“If thou wouldst prefer to call it such.”
“...” Gabriel thought for a moment longer, until he came to his conclusion. “...Fine.”