Syri cooed as he was laid on the bed. A slight smile came to Jae's lips as he heard the small sound. The true blood eased the zeta under the covers before easing himself onto the bed. Sensing the familiar dip in the mattress, Syri instinctively rolled into the true blood as the prince positioned himself under the covers. Feeling the touch of Syri's head on his arm, Jae turned behind to see the zeta asleep next to him.
Slightly startled by the zeta's unconscious movement, Jae unsurely lifted his arm. To the prince's surprise, the zeta nestled his head onto the true blood's shoulder and closed the distance between the two men until there was nearly none. Adding to Jae's surprise, Syri remained sound asleep the entire time. Using the greatest caution, Jae slowly lowered his arm until it was lying flat across the four down pillows. After making sure the zeta was still asleep, Jae closed his eyes and let sleep overtake him while hoping Syri would have a peaceful night.
The zeta slept soundly in the arms of the prince. The hours passed as Syri dreamed of a field filled with butterflies. The sun was high in the sky, and the wind was blowing a calm breeze through the zeta's pink hair. The sounds of footsteps caught the zeta's attention as he sat in the field and absorbed the warm sun. Syri looked up to see the silhouette of a man walking toward him. The sun shined behind the man's head, creating a halo. Syri felt warmth and excitement flood him as he watched the man approach him.
Sadness pained the sleeping zeta's heart as the dream continued. The man held out his hand, and Syri took it, being pulled into a comforting embrace. Syri knew this dream well. He had dreamt it often, his mate finding him and whisking him away from his life of constant labor and persecution. 'No! Don't take his hand. He's your mate! Run away!' Syri called out in his mind. He knew what was coming next. The dream had changed after the zeta had been taken by Jisue. Just like how the morphed dream ended, Syri was dragged into the earth and chained in a dark room.
Syri gasped for air as dirt filled his mouth and suffocated him. The cold sting from the metal around his wrists shot through Syri's arms as he felt the familiar sensation of being shackled. The zeta struggled against the restraints but, just like the other hundred dreams, failed. An evil chuckle reverberated throughout the dark room, causing Syri to halt his fight against the chains.
This was new. There was no chuckle in the other dreams. A light switched on in the front right corner of the room, revealing a set of stairs leading up to a door. The zeta's heart raced as the creaking of the door indicated it was being opened. Syri watched in horror as the door opened and Jisue descended into the room.
"Hey there, Mutt," Jisue sneered as he walked down the steps and neared the chained zeta.
"No, no, no. I should have woken up by now," Syri whispered to himself as he watched the shadow of the man grow.
"There's no waking up from this one, Mutt," Jisue said as he knelt in front of the zeta and placed his thumb beneath Syri's chin. "You see, this isn't a dream anymore."
Syri's eyes widened, and a cry escaped his mouth as pain assaulted his mind.
"Thanks for letting me in again, Mutt. I couldn't go another day without seeing you." A laugh erupted from the alpha's throat as his eyes turned red. Syri froze as he felt Jisue's fingers curl around his neck. A whimper escaped Syri as the alpha leaned down and placed his lips next to the zeta's ear. "What are you going to make me do to make you mine?" Jisue's voice was quiet and low, sending shivers down the zeta's spine. Syri hated Jisue's voice. He would rather go deaf than listen to the alpha speak to him.
"What do you mean? You've already marked me," Syri managed. The zeta's entire body shook as a growl resonated from the alpha.
Jisue's grip around Syri's throat tightened as he snarled, "Marking wasn't enough. I need more. I need power! I don't care what I need to do to get that power. And believe me, I will get it. I don't care if I have to mate you both here and out there. I will find you and make you mine."
Syri's breathing grew haggard as Jisue opened his mouth and bared his fangs. Forcing the zeta's head to the side, Jisue lowered his head to Syri's exposed neck and licked the mark set by Jae. Immeasurable pain shot through the zeta as Jisue bit down into the mark. Syri let out a cry as Jisue dug down deeper before retracting. Blood covered the alpha's mouth as he left the mark unset once again.
'Syri, wake up!' Aska called in the zeta's mind as Jisue exposed his claws and slashed them across Syri's chest, ripping the zeta's shirt and slashing his skin.
'I can't, Aska! I've tried, but I can't resist him! I can't let him mate me. I don't care if it's just in my mind, I don't want this man touching me. What do I do?! I can't move!'