Shafir’s body burned, a quiet inferno creeped through his bones and out his skin. Chains held him, bound him to the tree, and his hands tugged at them. The hot metal only scorched his skin but did not budge. He couldn’t pull them apart. He had to get free. If not, the fire that slithered up the grass like a snake to the roots of the tree would burn him alive.
“Help!” Shafir yelled, his legs engulfed in the flames. He threw his head side to side as he looked for someone, anyone, to help him. His eyes searched the faces of the crowd but all that stared back were shadowy forms and their yellow eyes glowed. They burned holes into Shafir’s body, the judgmental stares only intensified as the fire rose higher. The forms pointed and laughter arose from the dark pits that they could call mouths.
“Look at how they view you. Nothing more than a spectacle to laugh at,” Ghaisu’s voice said in the dark. Sweat dripped from Shafir’s head as the fire warmed him. Oddly enough, he wasn’t feeling pain yet but he wouldn’t put it past the dark elf to set Shafir ablaze even in his dreams.
“Wake up! It’s just a stupid dream!” Shafir screamed louder hoping to force himself awake. He struggled against the chains again and he felt them burn into his skin, pain finally registering in his mind. There had never been a time he had burned himself and he hadn’t wanted to experience being burned alive. So he had no time to let his mind wander about his pain.
“Just a dream indeed, but stupid children dream of stupid things don’t they?” The dark elf’s form was like a ghost barely there but tangible. His hands were just as strong as the chains. Why did Ghaisu torture him like this? Over and over his nightmares became worse. They steadily grew in frequency to drive him insane. If Ghaisu’s end goal was to drive him into submission, it was working. His mind barely had the strength to fight these dreams off anymore. That was apparent when it wouldn’t even respond to Shafir begging himself to wake up.
Just as the fire grew to his chest Shafir noticed a familiar face. He was a stark difference from the black shadows; the figure dressed in a white cloak with eyes blue.
“Help me, Eli-”
Before Shafir could call out to that figure something hot and wet pressed against his mouth. Shafir’s eyes closed tight in fear when he felt it pry his lips open. He wanted to vomit and scream. He didn’t want Ghaisu forcing him to submit like this. It was too much. He would break if pressed further. Clawed hands buried themselves in Shafir’s hair and his eyes flew open. The figure turned away and Shafir bit down on the intrusion and had enough time to scream.
“HELP ME!”
Shafir lurched awake, sweat dripping down his forehead drenching him in his fear. His chest burned as if someone had lit a torch in his ribcage. It was understandable how desperately his body was trying to calm itself down. Getting out of bed was a feat as his legs crumbled beneath him like sand as if the dream wasn’t horrifying; the tumble from his bed was for sure embarrassing. The dark elf got to his legs and stumbled into another room. He made his way to the vanity and looked at the mirror.
Shafir looked normal. Nothing out of the ordinary and no burn marks. Though his face was flushed red and his eyes bloodshot with fear. Why did Ghaisu have a hold over him like this? He despised how weak he was. Something in the corner of his vision caught his eye and Shafir looked down at the vanity table.
Useless items lay strewn here and there but the one thing that stuck out to him was the bandages that covered his curse mark. He was tired of being tied down by that black blemish just like those chains had tied him to the tree. It burned his mind with fear, the flames from his nightmare burned him with pain. When he looked back into the mirror, he faced his worst weakness.
He was crying.
Shafir flung everything off the vanity. It didn’t quell the complicated feelings that held welled up and spilled out. His anger had grown in the last weeks since working with Eliqinor and his loneliness grew along with it. The fact of the matter was he had no clue who to blame. Was it his fault this was happening? Or was it because of Ghaisu’s influence over him? The smallest thing could make Shafir’s blood boil and he was losing his temper over every comment. If he ran to the office right now, would Eliqinor be there? As if he could sense the dark elf’s need to not be stuck in this never-ending cycle of torture.
No.
He wouldn’t be there. Shafir already knew there was no need for the high elf to be there in the middle of the night like this. The isolation from others Shafir felt made it impossible for him to even show how much he was struggling, so there was no way he would go to that office searching for someone who wouldn’t be there.
Shafir bent down and calmly picked up the things he had thrown to the ground. He hoped it hadn’t woken up the neighbors, he would have to get an apology fruit basket and give it to the landlady. Even with her wrinkled smile, it made Shafir happy to hear her say he had a good eye for the freshest fruits.
The thought of the lady’s warm smile made Shafir feel better. She reminded him of an older version of his mother. He missed his mom… If he could run to her right now he would but his stubbornness held him back. They were still fighting and Shafir knew she wouldn’t let him hear the end until she won the argument. How alike they were in that regard.
Shafir looked toward the doorway that held his bed. If he went to lay back down would he be able to dream peacefully? Or would those terrifying dreams continue again until he gave into the whims of Ghaisu? He would never know the outcome of his sleep unless he attempted to force himself to overcome that fear. If he never slept those dreams would never come.
If those dreams never came… Then maybe he could live a normal life. One where he didn’t have to fight all the time. Where he could greet Eliqinor with a cheerful smile on his face rather than his usual scowl from his lack of sleep. Shafir wished the dreams to never come again before climbing back into bed.
If the bed swallowed him whole and he never woke up, drifting in a sea of nothingness. That would be nice too.
