This cannot be real, this cannot be real. Surely youâre still dreaming, yes? You have to be, right?
You think back. You had been dreaming, dreaming of your mother. Then you awake and youâŚyou were lured by something. The mysterious song, andâand that weird light. Why did you do that? What made you do that? Then you felt your body being pulled by a powerful force, and thenâŚ
The noise is deep, yet carries a lightweightedness, reaching every corner of the cavern and bouncing its way back to your ears. Itâs like a rattling throat mixed with the lowest purr to ever exist. It comes again, followed by a string of uneven warbles. Now that youâre more alert, you start to pick up a little of what itâsâ
âFriennnd?â
âŚWhat did it just say?
Slowly, exceedingly slowly, you look from the corner of your eye, and against the dull colors of the cavern you see a lot of yellow. Youâre not sure whether it is excitement or anxiety that compels you, but you quickly whip your head to get a full view, and look up. Your jaw drops.
After a moment he manages to continue. âWe hurried on deck, but no one c-could see what or where it was! I looked down into the sea, and deep beneath us there was thisâŚhaunting glow of white and red. T-Then we were met with wavesâm-monstrous waves that rocked the entire ship, and knocked some of our men overboardâŚ! We couldnât rescue them in time. One second they were screaming, t-then the nextâŚthey were sucked under. N-Never seen againâŚ!
âO-Our captain handed out spears, t-told us to prepare to fight, but we could not see it! Our lanterns were useless for spotting it in the water! Then, there was this loud splash and out of nowhereâŚs-something rose from the sea! Starboard side, right near the railingâŚ!â
âWhat was it?â the captain presses.
Brennan raises his hollowed gaze to Lowrey. âA w-w-white claw, sir..."
Welcome to my greatest project. I am so very proud of this one, and i am happy to finally share it ^^. Please keep in mind that english is not my first language- and i promise chapters will get much lighter after the prologue. (cross-posted on Ao3)
He never remembered much of his life, even now, he still has problems with his memory, remembering even small things is hard thanks to injury to his head. A giant crack across most of his head that, of course, he didnât recall when he got it.
His senses are what helped remember most of his life.
Far too clearly, he recalls the stink of death, the mold that grew on the walls, the dried blood on the whips and the rust of the chains that frayed under his fingers
He didnât keep anything else from his early life,he always had only vague and fleeting feelings to latch on. Maybe he had a family once, maybe back when his skull wasnât broken, but the result of trying to remember âthe beforeâ are splitting migraines, like his head is getting open all over again.
Pain also helped him remember. Like the pain collar around his neck that chained him to the wall of his cell. The pain around his wrists, where shackles dug into his bone as if to fuse with it. The pain of the cold and dirty floor that pricked himself sore back as he tried to rest.
Maybe he was allowed out sometimes?
He thought so at least, but all he seemed to keep from those times were the heavy weights that were strapped to his shoulders to carry. Maybe he was given crates, or stones, or some other material, but like everything else, he didnât remember clearly, he simply carried what he was given in the direction shouts came from without really reminiscing about it.
The first thing he recalled clearly was a rat..a cute little fellow as hungry as he was that scurried around the cells when he rummaged up enough bravery to look for scraps.
During the first few encounters, the little guy had been cautious, watching him from far away as he tried to give him some crumbs from the stale bread he was given sometimes, scurrying closer only to grab them and run as fast as his little paws could take him.
With time, the cute fellow approached the trapped skeleton more often as he ate what little food he was given daily, which he always tried to give the small mouse somehow, even if it wasnât a proper meal for them.
Sometimes, the skeleton would only be given peels, to keep him at bay and tired. It was pathetic, and he didnât understand the reason for such small rations, or why he was kept away from other slaves. He was locked in a small cell to the very back of one of the hallways, he would thankfully never fully realize the real reason for such a thing.
He was being left for dead.
With each day, he was given less and less food and yet he still tried to share with the small mouse that visited him, but he was tired, he was tired and his bones felt like lead pulled down by gravity and the heavy chains that held him captive.
He didn't understand why.
He didnât know that he was being left because they couldn't sell him fast enough. He didnât realize they were letting him die.
If he had the strength to, he would have been angry. But his vision was clouded and his bones sore.
âŚIt all culminated one particular dayâŚor maybe it was night? He didn't know..itâs all still a blur for him.
The small fellow came to visit again, holding a small crumb of bread toward him.
The little one, who the skeleton had come to cherish so much, held in his little paws the piece like the skeleton himself had done many days.
And then the little buddy was no more.
To this dayâŚhe doesnât know what happened.
The small one was sitting right in front of him..and now the crumb was discarded to the side, and the little fellow laid unmoving.
He looked down at his bloodied hands confused as blood spilled down his teeth and down to his chin.
There were loud noises outside his cell, like stomps of heavy armored boots, but all was muffled and confused..he felt flesh between his teeth and droplets of blood running down his sore throat, refreshing it like water would do.
Even if he didnât understand his actions, he cried, tears he hadn't felt in a long time ran down his face. He only knew that the little fellow wasnât going to get up anymoreâŚâby the great crown of Reaper-â was the first thing he was able to make out from a pained and soft voice outside of his cell.
The captive skeleton turned to look at the voice that came from a strange man.
The man looked at him with a sad expression from behind the bars, holding onto one of them to look down at the prisoner.
He simply stared at the man unmoving and quiet like he always was.
The man stood before the bars that kept him in, staring at the chains that bound him to the walls.
He was small, a third of the size the prisoner was, but he still looked imponent and powerful, an old golden scar ran on one side of his face.
The skeleton couldnât tell what he was thinking, but the way his deep seafoam eye grazed over him, almost made it seem like he was looking for something.
Then he suddenly opened the cell.
The captive skeleton tensed up, his instincts screamed at him, adrenaline rushing in his mana lines immediately once the man stepped into the cage. He heard him say something along the lines of a reassurance as he carefully approached him while showing his hands. But it didnât matter at that moment, the captive was terrified.
Once the man was close enough, the skeleton leaped at him, biting down on his forearm.
He bit down hard on it. He was scared and his mind was clouded but he still heard his groan of pain and saw his golden blood spilled down onto the dirty floor.
Guards of his tried to approach, but he yelled back at them, ordering not to come close.
The captive skeleton didn't care, he still held his forearm in his maw..
As the adrenaline started to die down, he heard him speak finally.
âItâs alrightâŚI know you must be scaredâŚitâs okayâ he spoke between his teeth and his voice trembled as he gently moved his free hand to the slave's back, âI startled you by approaching, didnât I? I am sorryâ
He slowly relaxed as he started to finally understand what he was saying. He felt his hand stroking his back as he kneeled down on the ground, almost hugging the slave as his teeth bore into his forearm, letting blood drip down in golden flocks.
He kept speaking softly, apologizing for scaring him âŚhe was nice, and slowly, the jaw with a vice grip on him released his arm. The slave felt a small prick on his neck and he finally passed out in the man's arms.
âââââââ
When he woke up again, he felt softness under his head first and his fingers grazed over a blanket that was wrapped around him. Was he in bed?
It was a struggle at first, but he was finally able to open his eye after a lot of tries.
He was, indeed, laying down in a bed.
The slave slowly ran the blanket between my fingers, it was a very nice âcottonyâ material. He looked around, trying to figure out where he was.
The room looked like an infirmary, it was luminous thanks to the large window beside the bed he laid in, giving him a full view of the garden outside. He figured he was on the third floor of whatever place he had been taken to.
The sun was peeking behind the horizon and night was falling judging by the colors of the sky.
He looked around the other side of the room and he froze when he saw the man he had bitten sitting on a chair beside his bed. The captive skeleton calmed down when he realized the man was sleeping soundly.
He had dark circles under his eye and his forearm where he had been bitten was wrapped in bandages. He studied the man, he didnât look relaxed even in his sleep, he held a rag in his hand tightly and he was slumped in the chair. Had he been awake all night?
His eye fell on his wrapped arm and he felt his soul tightened upâŚeven if he had bitten him, he now had no chains on himself, his scars were wrapped and he was in a comfortable bed. The skeleton didnât understand why, beasts like him that bit were discarded and never seen again..and yet, here he was alive and relatively well.
The man stirred and made a small noise, like cats do when first waking up. His gaze shot to the man in alarm, his eye was blown wide as he slowly woke.
The man noticed he was awake, almost relieved, âah..there you are. How do you feel?â He stirred in his seat, fixing up his posture, âis there anything you need?â He kept asking with a patient and kind tone , his eye roaming over the sheets to check the skeleton without moving.
His throat felt tight and his voice came out raspy as he started to shed tears, âIâŚ.sorry-â he wanted to apologize, but his vocal cords burned, âI..bit- iâŚ.sorry-â his voice was barely a whisper, but he was thankful the man heard him.
His features softened, âthere is no need to apologize..I simply startled you-â his words didnât hit him right away, he kept crying desperately, sobbing as he tried to breathe between hiccups. âSo- rry..â he sobbed again.
The kingâs hand moved to his skull, gently petting away from his old injury. âPlease donât cry, there is nothing to apologize forâ the skeleton slowly calmed down, shutting his mouth as tears ran down his face. He moved the rag in his other hand to wipe away the tears, âdo not weep, I beg youâ he looked at me with pitiful eye still, like he had done when he was in his cell.
âMy name is Nightmare. Could you tell me yours?â
His name? He didnât remember his real name, did he even have a name? âH-Horror. My nameâŚis Horrorâ he spoke weakly, that was what he was called a couple of times, he figured maybe that was his name then.
He smiled again, gently petting the skeleton, âIt is nice to meet you then, Horrorâ he tucked in his blankets and he got up, âare you hungry, Horror?â He was making it a point to use his name for some reason.
Horrorâs eye widened at the mention of food. Horror nodded uncertainty and Nightmare smiled. âFor now, you will have a light diet, but I am sure you will soon eat anything you wishâ he brought out a plate full of nutritious food for his and the skeletonâs mouth watered.
A bowl of hot porridge stood at the edge of the tray, next to it layed a scrambled egg, a couple of pieces of toast, juicy fruits and fresh vegetables. He settled down the tray and helped the skeleton sit up against the pillows, âthere we go, dig right inâ he smiled at him as he handed him the food.
He could only stare at it. It smelled like the greatest feast on earth and yet he couldn't move.
He remembered just then that the handlers loved to flaunt their food to them, the punishment for trying to sneak a bite was often a sound flogging to the back. The king stood beside me as he stared at the foodâŚthe man- Nightmare, seemed safe, but fear locked up his joints.
He sat beside Horror, gently taking the toast from the plate and decorating it with the scrambled egg. âWould you be more comfortable if we ate together?â He leaned the toast and egg toward him, âgo on, no need to hesitateâ
Horror trembled, but he still leaned in, following his order.
He took a small nibble out of the corner of the toast before looking at him uncertain again, his expression changed only to smile at Horror. He took a small bite as well before passing the bread to the freed slave again. He felt relieved to see him eat as well and so he took a bigger bite of both toast and egg.
The toast was nicely roasted on some walnut wood from what he could tell and the scrambled egg was soft and garnished with high quality herbs. He made a soft groan as he tasted the parcel on my tongue, it was the most divine thing he had ever tasted.
He took another hungry bite, and then another, and then yet another until the toast was no more. Nightmare smiled at him, handing Horror the spoon for the porridge.
He ate that as well, without hesitation this time.
The entire thing was finished, he made sure not to leave a crumbâŚbut now he felt bad, looking sadly at the man beside him since he hadnât left anything for him other than fruit, he simply smiled again.
âI am glad you enjoyed that, itâs good that you have an appetiteâ Nightmare petted him gently, âplease do not worry. I promise I will eat as well now, but you need to restâ he nodded, all he wanted was for Nightmare to eat too now.
The king gently tucked him in again, making sure he was comfortable. âRest now, I will come back to visit you soonâ .
Horror looked up at the ceiling above once Nightmare shut the door behind himself. He didnât know what would happen next, but for once, he wasnât scared.
