"Drip…Drip…Drip…"
Droplets of water cascaded down onto her eyelids, awakening her from what seemed like an eternal slumber. Her eyes widened when suddenly pain shot into the left side of her head, half shutting her curious eyes. She moved her hand to grab the painful area, but something felt awfully heavy and cold.
She noticed cold chains grasping onto her tiny wrists, too heavy for her to move her hands freely. They drained her of her strength as if they had been magically modified. The same for her slender legs, haunted by more heavy, rusted chains.
Where am I? No… I need to find a way to escape
She looked around her; the room was indeed dark, so dark that it swallowed her vision; she could not tell what she was staring at but understood that she was against a wall.
I might find a window or a door if I follow the wall
She mustered up the little strength she had and stood, leaning against the wall, as if she would fall at any moment. Her hands stretched slowly against the walls, searching for a way out.
"Knock… Knock…"
Her hands caught onto what seemed like a piece of wood, barricading the window; she dug her nails and clawed into what seemed like a piece of the frame. She forced her hands and muscles to pull tightly until a ray of moonlight gleamed from the small crevice she had created.
"Gah!"
The piece of wood flung off, and she fell back, hitting the floor; in pain, she turned and twisted her body, stomach down, unable to touch her back due to her chained hands. But what she saw next erased her pain and replaced it with shock.
"Who are you?"
In front of her was a girl covered in green feathers; she looked around sixteen, maybe younger. The girl's head was down, not allowing others to recognise her facial features.
"Are you ok? Hey, can't you hear me?"
She is a Valkyn, but where are her wings?
[Valkyn: Bird-like, winged, and feathered beings that roam the skies of Vyrmorin. They have large wings for hands and sharp talons but exhibit a human face, albeit covered in feathers. The colour of the feathers varies based on status and power; they are swift and territorial]
The chained girl then stood again to get a better look; to her horror, she did. The feathered girl's hands were covered in flimsy bandages, drenched with blood.
A sense of nausea eroded into the girl's gut. She forced her hands to quickly grasp onto her mouth, and her eyes twitched with disbelief when she noticed that from the shoulders down, her hands had been cut off, severed, removed.
H-How could a living being do something so dreadful to such a young girl?
She staggered closer to the Valkyn, her chained feet rattling on the cold ground.
"Hey… We need to get out of here!"
But the Valkyn did not respond; the chained girl knelt down and placed her hands on the girl's shoulder.
"My name is Livora... P-Please…we need to escape quickly!"
Livora gazed at the girl and noticed a slight twitch on her trembling lips.
The Valkyn girl whispered in a broken voice.
"R-Run away"
Tears streamed down her face, and she made an excruciating expression as she explained.
"Run away from here, those... those monsters, tho-those wicked monsters killed m-my mother, they are going to kill us too… you have to escape…"
Before the girl could talk, large thuds of footsteps approached from outside the room. Livora heard the sound and quickly moved towards the side of the door, awaiting the door to open so she could ambush or even sneak past to seek help.
The steps became louder and louder.
Livora grabbed onto her bloodied metal chains, wrapping them around her hands and wrists. She bit onto her lips, trembling with fear, then steeling her nerves, awaiting in silence.
"Creeeeeakkk"
The doors slowly opened, and coarse and loud voices followed out of the shadows.
"Haahh…which wench should we take next?"
A devious and younger voice responded.
"They're all wretched monsters, who cares which one we take."
The poisonous voices echoed louder as they laughed.
"I wonder if the red hair is awake. We didn't get to torture her and hear her screams."
"Yeah, we should make her like the bird brain before the ritual, haha."
Livora knew at an instant that these heinous criminals had been the ones that had locked her and the poor injured girl in this room. She gritted her teeth.
T-These monsters! How could they do such horrible things!
Livora wanted to smash their heads against the floor, but she knew she was outnumbered and, more importantly, out of strength; she had to keep biting her lips in despair, waiting for them to pass through so she could slip into the darkness.
The men entered. Livora is behind the door. Both men recognised the broken barricade and ventured towards the window. Livora used this opportunity to tip-toe around the door to escape, but she heard a loud shout.
"Who damaged the barricade!"
"More importantly, where is the redhead!"
At that moment, Livora's chains rattled on the door frame. The two men sharply gazed at her. Livora shut the door. She used the chair outside to block it from opening and ran as fast as her legs could carry her.
I have to find a way out and get some help, or that poor girl will die
She hurriedly ran through the passage until she found a door, a moment of relief.
I can finally go outside
Just as she approached the door, she was slammed onto the floor. A giant, rugged man grabbed onto her head, lifting her up from the floor and suffocating her. His face seemed to droop from the side. Like his structure, he uttered in a low and sluggish tone, each syllable tumbling out in a lazy, uneven rhythm.
"M-Master s-said no escape… Master angry"
The giant man then carried Livora on his shoulder; she kicked and kicked, but it was useless. The man took her into another room full of rugged, bandit-like people.
"How dare this repulsive thing try to run away… Knock the creature out and tie it up; it's next!"
Her eyes were closed shut by a piece of cloth, and before she knew it, someone had hit the back of her head with a log.
~~
"Sskkrrttt"
What is that snake-like metallic noise?
For a brief second, Livora regained consciousness; she felt her head heavy and her body being dragged. The noises were her chains screeching on the cobblestone floor. Her arms felt the presence of two people on both sides carrying her away, her vision still dark from the blindfold placed on her.
A burning, ash-like smell permeates the air around her and invades her nostrils.
What is this burnt smell? It's not the scent you smell from a burning tree, but…
The dragging had stopped, and the men who grabbed her arms let go. Unable to stand, she fell onto the floor.
"REMOVE THE DEMON'S BLINDFOLDS!"
A sharp crimson red penetrated her iris, and she could not determine what she was looking at. She slowly re-organised her vision; it was a great fire, but something was being burned.
A moment of hesitation, then realisation struck her eyes, which widened with terror and shock.
W-Why… Why is… Why is there someone being burned…?
Livora grabbed onto her mouth but soon vomited out everything inside her onto the floor.
Her face was riddled with nausea and tears.
A narcissistic voice pretentiously echoed from the other side of the burning stake.
"Disgusting creature! How dare you spoil the lands of Arkalon with your vile innards!"
'Hang the blight on the empty stake; we must get rid of this filth quickly!"
"Well? What are you waiting for?"
"Yes Lord! As you command"
The men grabbed Livora and tied her up to a stake. She did not resist, her face filled with lifelessness as if she had given up.
Slowly, without energy, she lifted her face to gaze upon the voice. A round, stubby man dressed in a white doublet adorned with gold sitting on a raised chair on a small podium. It was a human noble. Around him were men dressed in rugged tunics, but that wasn't all; she was surrounded by the elderly, women, and even little children.
"What are you looking at, you vile swine… your gaze is filthy like your predecessors."
Livora looked at the noble and murmured.
"W-Why?"
"Huh! Is the filth broken already?"
She vocalised in a fit of anger and resentment.
"WHY ARE YOU KILLING US! WHY ARE YOU BURNING US! WHAT DID WE DO? WHAT DID WE DO TO DESERVE THIS?"
The noble sarcastically repeated.
"Why… Why ...Why…"
He was mocking her.
"That's what you creatures always say, 'why' I'll tell you why."
"Because you are vermin. YOU ASHRIVEN WRETCHES. You and your filthy kind need to be tortured, burned, and eradicated. You, who destroy the lands, seep blight onto the balance of the world, will be cleansed".
[Ashriven: remnants of blight]
"B-But we are just normal people like everyone here. We don't spread blight. We don't kill, nor are we monsters."
'PFFT... Bahahaha… 'Normal people'…. you? You can't possibly compare to us, noble humans. Do you think I don't see your demonic horns that you hide under your hellish hair? Do you take me for a fool? Do you think I don't know what you are capable of? You demonic beasts must be cleansed before you bring blight to my village… you will be burned, and you should be grateful because your essence will be purified by our saviour Arkon."
[Arkon: A legendary hero of the past who had slain the great demonic lord that terrorised the lands and ascended to become the ruler of humans]
Livora was shocked; she could not believe what she had just heard; the deranged voice echoed from ear to ear.
This man is crazy…
She turned her head in disbelief towards the people crowded around her and spoke.
"Please you must sto…"
But to her despair, they cut off her words.
The men and women chanted.
"BURN THE MONSTER! BURN THE BEAST!"
The elderly kneeled, forming a circle with their hands, praying:
"Arkon, grant us your blessings; we offer this vile creature as a sacrifice."
A child in the crowd turned to her parents and excitedly chirped.
"Mama! Papa! I can't wait to see the fire! Can't you burn it quicker!"
Livora, choking on her despair, let out tears in silence. Her voice was too broken by the disturbing chide she just witnessed. The crowd acted as if she was a caged beast, the fuel to a fire at a festival… She was something they regarded as worthless.
They are all crazy…
The Noble stands up from his little podium and preaches.
"Now! Now! The sacred people of Arkalon."
"It's time…"
"Let us eradicate this filth from this world and incur the blessings of Arkon."
Like an insane, eccentric cult, the crowd cheered.
'Burn the BEAST! Burn the MONSTER!"
A man, holding a large torch, began approaching the stake All sound began to disappear, and all she could hear were the large steps the man took. Death was slowly creeping towards her.
With each step, Livora protested; she moved her hands, wiggled her feet, and turned her body, but all for nought.
The man took his final step and threw the flame at the straw beneath her. Livora was too tired to move, her hands too bruised to twist and turn, her legs too broken to jump up and down. The blaze approached her.
"Crackle… Crackle…"
Is this it? Is this how I meaninglessly die? Why? Why? Why…
"Mother… I wish I could see you again…"
She shut her eyes with intense worry and fear.
The fire had caught up.
Just as Livora acquiesced to her demise, a large gust of wind invaded the centre where she was. Its power blasted away the people in the crowd, knocking them off their feet.
Livora slowly opened her eyes, and in front of her was a mysterious man.
"Who are you?"
The man responded to her.
"Do you know where I can find a doctor?"
Livora, awestruck with confusion.
"Huh?"