Mikal

Vausterland

The cell was small and grim, the stone walls grey and cold. Besides the bed where he was chained, an old table and a wooden chair were the only other available furniture. A barred window set up too high, and small enough to let through a raven or two, was the only source of light and air.

Mikal reached out to an almost empty cup of water on the table next to him. Thankfully the chains had been relaxed a bit, allowing him enough freedom to feed himself and turn in his sleep, but not enough to get off the bed and move around the room. He drank the last drops of water before he leaned back against the headboard, his hand absently reaching to the bandages wrapping half of his face. He took in a ragged breath. No matter how long had passed, his heart still sank every time his hands touched the bandages or brushed against the cropped ends of his hair.

Mikal clenched his fists as he found his hands shaking involuntarily. He had been experiencing a lot of uncontrollable tremors like this since he woke up in this place. He took in a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He had to remain calm. And he had to think clearly. He had to find a way to get himself out of here, alive.

He heard approaching footsteps outside and he did all he could to still his trembling. The loud clank of a key being unlocked was followed by the creak of the opening metal door, and next, the gentle healer with the long black hair entered, a warm smile on her face. Two winged guards accompanied her, as usual, along with a young blonde maid. And finally, Tristan walked in regally behind them with his head raised high, looking all smug and dominating despite his wingless human form. Mikal, doing all he could to appear calm, only narrowed his eye slightly at him.

The healer, Heike, as Mikal had heard her being called, walked to his side and landed a new filled jar of water on the table. She turned to him with a gentle smile while the guards stood closely on alert behind her. Tristan stood a little further with scrutinizing eyes and folded arms, while the blonde maid stood timidly by his side, her hands hidden behind her back.

"I hope you are feeling better today," Heike said. She said that everyday anyway. And every time, Mikal never said anything in response. He only looked ahead blankly, uninterested, as usual.

"I have good news." She continued with the same sweet smile, and Mikal only slightly turned his left eye towards her. Her smile deepened at this merest hint of interest. "Today, we are going to take the bandages off your face."

Fuck.

Mikal did all he could not to panic. His heart raced and his breath grew heavier. For the past few days since he woke up in this cell, he had not yet seen what had happened to his face. There were no mirrors here to begin with. And even when Heike came to change the bandages every day, Mikal was not allowed to touch anywhere near the right half of his face. She had told him this was best for him in order to heal safely and cleanly. And he willingly obeyed her. The last thing he wanted was to end up with a scarred face. Just the thought made him shudder, and he took in another deep breath. But now the time had come, and he would finally discover what lay beneath those bandages.

Mikal closed his eyes as Heike slowly unwound the bandages. His heart raced madly, and his whole body shivered. He opened his eyes slowly when Heike was done removing the bandages. He could see clearly with his left eye now, but his right eye would still not open. He had feared this all along. He raised his trembling fingers to his right eye where he found nothing. He moaned in horror, although he knew what to expect. He traced his shaking fingers along a rugged line, apparently a savage scar that extended from the top of his eyebrow all the way down to his jaw. His chest heaved as he panted for breath, feeling sick to death.

Tristan who stood watching silently, gestured to the blonde maid, and Mikal held his breath when he saw the girl hesitantly approaching him with a mirror. He reluctantly took it from her hands and slowly raised it to his face. 

He froze, cold dread surged through his guts, and his single eye grew round with horror at the unfamiliar face looking back at him in the mirror. With his ugly cropped hair, his missing eye, and the vicious scar that distorted his once heavenly face, Mikal, the most handsome man in Engeldom had turned into a monster.

Mikal hurled the mirror with full force to the floor, and the smashing sound of shattering glass was followed by a bellowing cry of anguish that echoed through the cell. He tried to force himself off the bed as he continued to scream, but he was pulled back in place by the restraining chains. He kicked and pulled against the chains, hurting his wrists and ankles against the metal cuffs. And the next instant he found himself being knocked back down as Tristan leapt at him, closing both arms and legs around him in a confining grasp.

"Lie still!" Tristan shouted as he lay on top of Mikal, pinning him in place.

"No!" Mikal wailed, squirming beneath Tristan's full weight, and to his horror, he found the guards closing in at him as well and shortening his chains to the limit, giving him no room to even move or turn. He screamed again.

Tristan's weight left him for a moment, and the next thing Mikal knew, Heike was standing before him with a cup in her hand and a deep frown of sympathy on her face.

"Please drink this, it will make you feel better," Heike said, her voice barely heard amid Mikal's screams.

"Fuck you!" Mikal cried out, engulfed by fury and horror, as he turned to Heike with a deadly glare. "What have you done to my face! Useless whore!"

The next instant, Tristan's palm fell against Mikal's left cheek with a sharp slap.

"Shut up!" Tristan snapped. "Don't you dare speak to her that way!" And with a single gesture, the guards quickly came to Tristan's aid, one holding Mikal's head up, while the other grabbed his jaw forcing open his mouth.

"No!" Mikal still cried and squirmed as Tristan took the cup from Heike and held it against Mikal's lips, forcing the bitter liquid down his throat. Mikal gagged and coughed, and despite his efforts, he wasn't able to block out the burning potion without the risk of choking to death. By the time he stopped resisting, most of the cup's contents had already found its way into his body.

When Tristan seemed satisfied enough, he and his guards let go off Mikal. He lay his head back down while he still cried and coughed and gasped for breath.

"Water?" Heike approached gently with a cup of water despite everything, but Tristan only gestured for her to stay away.

Mikal's cries subsided to soft sobs, and strangely he started feeling his body grow weightless. He still attempted to tug against the chains, but his body didn't cooperate, not only because the chains restrained him, but because he could not even feel his limbs anymore. What have you done to me?  He tried to speak, but he couldn't form the words. His tongue was tied and his voice was stuck in his throat. He barely moaned and moved his head to the side where his eye fell unto a hazy vision of distorted figures surrounding him. His eye rolled to the back of his head as he felt his whole body floating, and he could no longer feel any pain or sadness as he fell into a peaceful sleep...

***

He could see her in the distance, her round honey eyes sparkling and her long chestnut waves shining beneath the winter sun. The long skirts of her pale lavender dress fluttered with the early morning breeze, brushing against the lush green grass that covered the field. A radiant smile lit up her sweet face as she eagerly walked his way.

"Alina..." He barely whispered, reaching out for her hand. Their fingers had barely touched, when her warm smile suddenly disappeared, and darkness enveloped the field as a blanket of charcoal clouds shielded the skies. The breeze turned into howling winds and thunder roared like a furious beast.

Alina looked up at Mikal, and her eyes turned round with shock, horror written all over her face. And next, she let out a long scream before she turned and fled as if she had just seen a ghost.

Mikal turned to look behind him where a large gold framed mirror stood in the middle of the field, showing him his own reflection. A single eye that looked back at him was the only part not covered in blood, while his whole face was a distorted mess of peeled off skin and ripped flesh, with sharp white bones poking out at the corners of his cheeks...

Mikal woke up with a sharp gasp, his heart pounding hard from the dreadful nightmare. His hands flew quickly to check his face. There was no blood or ripped flesh or protruding bones. But the long vicious scar that stretched along his right cheek throbbed beneath his shaking fingers, confirming the dreadful reality. 

His beautiful face was ruined. Forever. 

He was no longer the most handsome man in Engeldom. He was a hideous beast!

Mikal let out a long scream that resonated through the night. He tossed and writhed as he continued to cry. His chains rattled in chaos as he pulled against them, and his non-stop howling wails echoed eerily throughout the castle, piercing through the midnight silence. 

***************

So, how do you feel about Mikal? Do you feel bad for him or do you think he got what he deserved?

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