CHAPTER 69: CHAPTER 68: YOU ABSOLUTE BASTARD.

Rhydric stood still, chest rising and falling hard, his eyes locked on Azrael’s motionless form.

"Damn it..." he whispered, voice hoarse.

His mind, heart, every single organs in his body was in total mess.

He dropped to one knee beside him, trembling hands hovering, not daring to touch.

The scent of blood and silver hung thick in the air.

Ian could heal him.

That was the only thing Rhydric clung to the only thread keeping him from losing his damn mind.

Eryx stumbled toward the door, his breath ragged, his legs shaking. He yanked it open. The only reason he hadn’t lost his mind, despite the silver in his veins was because, the silver that touched him was little and bearable.

Theo and Ian stood there, frozen.

Their eyes landed on Azrael’s body sprawled on the floor, head twisted at an angle that made their stomachs turn. The room was silent except for the harsh sound of breathing and the faint hum of power radiating from each and everyone of them.

Rhydric turned to Ian as soon as he took a step into the room, eyes wide and wild.

"Heal him. Fast."

He didn’t sound like he was asking. He sounded like a man giving his last command.

Never in his life has he ever been his scared before. Azrael really did get to me in the worst way ever and he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself if anything ever happened to him.

Rhydric had no other choice but to kill him in order to redeem him. Despite how strong the silver was in his veins, how controlling it was, Azrael was still fighting it, he was still fighting against turning into a monster his father is. He had so much control over his monster and his father hated that, he despise it, it reminded him of his wife. Azrael’s mother, whose heart was pure gold.

Azrael hated himself more, and sometimes avoid looking into the mirrors. He took the face of the monster he wanted to defy.

And now, that same face is looking lifeless. Rhydric felt his heart tightened. He clenched his fist so tightly that, he could feel the impact on his palm, that was now dripping red ink.

Ian’s throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. He dropped to his knees beside Azrael and placed a trembling hand on his chest. His skin was still warm. A little too warm. And fuck that’s so concerning.

"I’ll try," Ian murmured. "I...I’m not sure how much I can do. But his natural healing might respond."

Rhydric crouched low beside them, his hands still clenching into fists.

Theo stood behind them, motionless, his face blank, too blank.

Eryx leaned against the wall, sweat soaking through his shirt and face, his eyes fixed on the lifeless figure before them. He was feeling too many emotions at the moment to the point that he didn’t know how to react.

"Then do it!" Rhydric snapped, grabbing Ian by the collar and shoving him closer. His voice cracked with desperation.

"Yes...yes!" Ian stammered, pressing his hands firmly over Azrael’s heart and forehead. He closed his eyes, a faint light pulsing beneath his palms. The air grew heavy, the energy thick but then, it flickered and vanished.

Nothing.

Ian froze, breathing uneven. His fingers trembled as he tried again. Still nothing. He whispering something under his breath as he tried again. But Azrael’s body remained still.

Fuck.

Rhydric’s voice was sharp, almost broken.

"What happened?"

Ian’s eyes met his, wide and terrified.

"I...I don’t know..."

Rhydric’s world tilted. His chest heaved as rage and fear collided, and for a heartbeat, it looked like he’d tear the walls apart.

Theo suddenly dragged both hands through his white hair, gripping it tight, his knees giving out beneath him. He crouched low, slowly, his head dropping into his lap. His shoulders trembled silent, suffocating.

Eryx... Eryx just stood there.

His body pressed against the wall, his eyes hollow.

He wasn’t crying. He wasn’t moving.

He just stared down at Azrael like he was waiting for him to open his eyes and laugh, tell them it was a joke.

But he didn’t.

The room felt smaller.

The air thinner.

Time slower.

Rhydric had no option, yes, but still he felt annoyed. At him. At himself.

Only the sound of Rhydric’s shaky breathing filled the space.

And beneath it the deafening, impossible silence of Azrael’s still heart.

Rhydric’s roar tore through the silence.

He slammed his hand against the wall, once, twice, again and again and again until the plaster split open with a brutal crack. His knuckles bled, his veins bulged, his breathing was ragged. The wolf beneath his skin was fighting to break free; his grey eyes turned gold, deadly, his teeth clenched so hard it hurt.

But then...

A scream.

They all froze. All attention shifted to him.

Azrael.

His back arched violently on the floor, his head snapping from side to side as a guttural cry ripped from his throat. His hands clawed at the tiles, his entire body shaking as if on fire. His veins glowed faintly under his skin, silver lines burning like molten lightning.

Ian’s eyes widened. "He’s..he’s healing. Fuck." he muttered, voice trembling.

The process wasn’t gentle. It never was.

Bones that had been twisted and broken cracked back into place with sickening pops. His veins pulsed as the silver bled out, sizzling through his skin like acid. His muscles spasmed violently, fighting the poison still lodged in his bloodstream. Every breath he took sounded like it was being torn from him.

Eryx’s eyes filled with tears but he blinked it back as he stared down at him, his whole body trembling. Theo’s face lit up, a smile breaking through his crying face, though his lips quivered. "He’s alive," Theo whispered, voice cracking. "He’s really..."

But Azrael’s scream cut him off again.

Rhydric moved before thinking, dropping to his knees beside him, trying to hold him down, to steady him.

"Don’t!" Ian barked, his voice sharp. "Don’t touch him! Let him heal — the silver is still burning through him!"

Rhydric froze mid-motion, his hands trembling inches from Azrael’s skin. All he could do was watch — watch as the man he’d just killed came back to life in agony because of him.

Eryx’s throat bobbed. Theo pressed a hand to his mouth, tears falling fast. The sound of Azrael’s cries was tearing them apart from the inside.

Rhydric felt guilt crawl up his spine, cold and suffocating. It wrapped around him like chains, sinking deep. He could feel it in every breath, every heartbeat — this was his fault. All of it.

Azrael’s body jerked once more — then went still.

For a moment, nobody breathed.

Then Rhydric broke first, shoving Ian aside and gathering Azrael into his arms. His heart thundered as he held him close, his fingers digging into his shoulders.

"Azrael," he muttered, voice shaking. "Come on, breathe. Breathe, damn it."

A faint groan escaped Azrael’s lips.

Everyone froze.

Then — his voice, hoarse but still laced with that dry, unbothered edge even after everything—

"Rhydric... you trying to kill me again... or was that your way of saying hi?"

Theo blinked. Eryx’s jaw dropped. Ian choked out a disbelieving laugh.

Rhydric just stared at him, wide-eyed — the emotion in his face unreadable — until his lips twitched, and he let out a sharp exhale that might’ve been a laugh, or maybe just relief bleeding through the cracks.

Theo wiped his face roughly. "You absolute bastard," he said, voice breaking with half a laugh, half a sob. "You nearly gave us all a heart attack."

Eryx crouched lower, shaking his head in disbelief. "You’re lucky you’re already half-dead, or I’d kill you myself."

Azrael just gave a faint smirk through the pain, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Good to know I’m still loved."

.

.

.

Azrael sat up slowly, wincing a little as he adjusted the blanket around his waist. His chest rose and fell with heavy breaths.

The room was too quiet. Everyone was just looking at him, like he might shatter if someone sneezed too loud. So nobody breathe.

Rhydric leaned against the wall, arms folded, his head tilted back like he was trying to disappear into it.

Theo was slouched in a chair beside the bed, chin in hand, staring.

Eryx sat at the foot of the bed, elbows on his knees, also staring.

And Ian stood a few feet away with his hands in his pockets , you guessed it, staring.

Azrael blinked at all of them. "You guys planning to burn a hole through me, or is this an intervention?"

Theo snorted, but it came out a little shaky. "We were just making sure you’re not gonna drop dead again."

Azrael smirked. "That’s cute. Didn’t know you cared so much."

Eryx groaned and ran a hand down his face. "Care? Bro, I almost peed myself when you screamed. I don’t ever wanna hear that again."

Theo laughed, pointing at Eryx. "You did look like you were about to faint though. I swear your soul left your body for a second."

Eryx threw a pillow at him. "Shut up, clown. You were the one crying!"

Theo gasped dramatically. "Those were manly tears of loyalty, thank you very much!"

Ian, still standing, finally spoke with a lazy smirk. "Loyalty, huh? Sounded more like a dying seal."