After what felt like years, my lids slowly began lifting, bringing me back into consciousness after what felt like an eternity of hell. I was beginning to lose count of how many times I had woken up from that deep abyss. My screaming now stopping completely as my throat can no longer carry it, only grunting as it came wave after wave. My vision now nothing but an array of colors, only objects that were big enough silhouetted black, the rest blurred and unfocussed, as if they could be at any point in the room, moving around the cell. The sight brought a wave of nausea through me and I crouched on all fours, my knees numb and sore from collapsing on them again and again as I started heaving and waiting for my body to choke up anything in my stomach, but even that was too much effort as I heaved nothing but air and phlegm. How much longer will this go on for? Is it nearly morning? Will I survive another night of this? The logic starting to finally flow back to me, the thoughts of killing and bloodshed fading to nothing but a doubt of whether trusting them is right. With a final heave I coughed and felt my throat dry and numb. As I swallowed harshly I reached my hands out, my vision still barely there as I felt along the cobblestones, my fingers gliding over the dents in the wall that were the claw marks Lucian had left behind and letting my body curl in a ball, resting my cheek against the stone floors and cooling the heat of my forehead down, slowly trying to stay focused on getting through this.
A click began to go through my head, over and over, growing louder before stopping and returning the cell back to silence. It wasn’t until the flames of the torches were blocked by a shadow and the room went into darkness that my brain began to register what the clicking was.
Footsteps.
I turned my cheek and squinted through the haze of my blurred vision but could only make out the silhouette of a figure, nothing to indicate whom they were. The silhouette started moving closer to the cell, as close as the bars would allow before stopping and standing there, saying nothing as I tried to make out who it could possibly be.
“It’s me.” The figure tried to explain. I just stared up at the person and squinted harder; trying everything to find whose voice it belongs to.
“You look at me as if you’ve never seen me before.” The voice came out faint and lower then anything humanly possible, as if I’d been near an explosion and the voice was nothing but a drone, of course my body had been through one. Could my hearing have been affected like my eyesight? Nothing could tell me whom the voice belonged to. I opened my mouth and started to speak but nothing came out, only air. I swallowed roughly despite the protests it gave and still nothing, my hands snapping to my neck as I tried to ask this person who they were.
“Ah, you’re a little short on sight and hearing. It’s probably best you didn’t know I’m here anyw...ust han.. in there Al… you’re needed for a far greater purpo…. I need you…” The voice continued to hum and drone, going in and out before failing completely. I reached out for the figure but it had already turned and was nothing more then a flash of blackness before the room lit with torches and the cell was empty once again. I let my extended hand drop to the ground, hitting the stone floor with a harsh thud and rolled over, feeling the familiar weight of sleep pull me, and this time, I let it take me willingly.
* * * * * * *
Just a small second part of the chapter! But soon Almira will embark on an adventure that is far from short.....