ALDRIC
I walked down the corridor and let the silence settle around me, not as something empty, but as something that belonged to me now.
Gabriel's body moved differently than mine ever had, lighter in a way that bordered on fragile, the muscle softer and less defined, shaped by years of confinement instead of discipline, but it was still functional, still responsive, and more importantly, still mine to command.
It would do.
It had to.
I turned the corner and slowed near one of the tall windows, where light spilled in from outside, warm and golden, stretching across the stone floors in long, quiet streaks that felt almost too gentle for a place like this that had experienced violence just hours ago.
For a moment, I simply stood there.
Then I looked down at my hands.
Well… Gabriel's hands.
