Emiel Regis x Reader

Thirty-Four

Usually, the regeneration of the injuries wouldn't have taken him longer than a few minutes. An hour maximum. But the magic of the cave suppressed his full potential with all its might. It was as if the cave did not want him to be a vampire. As if it demanded from him to heal like a human.

But if he would have been one, he probably would have been dead by now.

The blood that still filled his lungs felt like water. It moved with every movement he made, hitting the wounds and caused a sharp pain to chase through every inch of his body.

It was strange. Usually, a vampires body was not this fragile. A simple hit form a strange creature like this wouldn't have been this threatening. However, in this cave he was less of a vampire and more of a human. (Y/N) on the other hand seemed to be unaffected. Regis had already thought about this a few times.

Maybe it was because you were half human. Or maybe it was because the cave had a connection towards you. After all, the first statue reacted to your blood and the cave allowed you to enter.

Maybe it had been a bad idea to separat from you.

But no.

Hastily, Regis closed his eyes and shook those thought off. He wasn't supposed to question himself now. He had made a decision to protect you. Now was not the time to regret that decision. He would have never regretted that decision.

Still a little tired but with new motivation, Regis back on his feet. The numbness in his legs and the loss of blood made him stumble, he almost fell back to the ground but managed to grab a hold of the wall.

When had been the last time that he had been this weak and exhausted?

Breathing heavily, he pressed his forehead against the cold wall, that was shaped like a door. Sweat was dripping over his skin.

"Fucking hell...", he cursed, pressing his hands against the cold stone to push himself up.

In that moment, the door moved.

Frightened, he jumped back, holding his breath. For a moment, his eyes wandered over the stone wall that had made the door appear like it was just decoration.

Now, it was slightly tilted. Air was coming out of it, spreading a cold but fresh feeling. The dust that had danced in the air was slipping though the crack and escaped into the unknown that was laying behind the brick wall.

Carefully, Regis pushed a little, the wall moved. He pushed more, the wall moved again. He repeated the process a few times until the opening was broad enough for him to slip through and enter the other side.

If he wouldn't have been careful he would have probably died.

The other side was a cliff, about as huge and deep as a canyon.

Surprised, Regis stumbled backwards, pressing his back against the wall. One step forward and he would have fallen into the depths without being able to safe himself your the ability to fly. The sheer thought of hitting the ground form a hight like this pressed the air out of his lungs. The unpleasant feeling of shattering bones chased though his body, causing an unpleasant shiver and goosebumps to crawl over his back.

"Shit...", he cursed again.

Funny, how he managed to always stay polite but a cave like this made him swear like Geralt. That made him smile mildly.

For quite a while, Regis climbed along the narrow path that ran along the wall. The fog blocked his sight, so every wrong step could have meant his death. The nebula was not an ordinary nebula. Regis couldn't see through it.
It must have been magical. On the other hand, it seemed too powerful for that. Too vicious.

What person was capable of creating such a thing?

Was that person still in that cave?

If so, was that person friend or foe?

With each step the ground came closer. He could feel the fog getting thinner and his eyes began to see things again.
Relieved, he breathed when solid ground was under his feet again and he no longer had to watch where he stepped.

At least he thought.

Testing, he turned his gaze upwards and looked back to where he came from. Now, the path seemed clear without any fog blocking it. The small path he had taken even transformed into proper stairs.

What was this kind of illusion?

Puzzled, he turned around to look at the new cave, that he had discovered.

How many more caves were hidden in this labyrinth of caves?

A deep sigh escaped his lips, as he turned back, only to suppress a scream that wanted to rise in him.

More stature. More fucking stature.

A cold shower ran down his spine.

How little luck could one being have?

This time, he wouldn't get too close to any of these statues. Not a single step.

Without letting the statures out of sight, Regis walked around them, along the wall, instead of walking through the middle, where a clear path was marked. He would not go into the middle of the nine statures guarding the path as if they were bloodthirsty dogs. He reckoned that at any moment their petrified faces would burst open and new monsters would emerge from his worst nightmares.

He caught himself looking at the stature over and over again, without paying attention to the ground in front of him. Although, even with more attention, he wouldn't have realized that there was a trap hidden in front of his feet.

Suddenly, the ground beneath him opened. Scared, Regis wanted to jump back and fly, but his legs were too weak and he wasn't fast enough. Hundreds of sharp spikes shit from the ground, piercing through his body as if he was a piece of meat.

Spices shot through his arms, his legs and chest. He got swept off his feet and remained hanging in the air, being forced to slowly sink deeper into the spikes because of gravity and his weight.

Blood splashed, covering his face, the floor and the walls.
A scream escaped his lips, loud and painful, as he tried to move. By the gods, never before he had felt pain like this.
Tears filled his eyes as he let his head sink back, the spikes had spared it. Weakness filled his body.

He wanted to die.