Abducted

29

Green eyes stared down at him. He tried to cry out, he tried to move, but he was completely powerless. He stared up at those eyes. They were etched into his memory, a twisting image that spiraled into a horrific memory.

He could feel it. It was a burning spearhead shoved into him without remorse. He cried, tears running down his cheeks. He had lived this. Why must he live this again?

He twisted around. Family members that he didn't remember but did remember standing side by side, watching him get assaulted.

The only face he caught was Tala's. She was covered in dark blood, her orange eyes glowing. Her smirk widened into a smile, seeming more like the Cheshire cat by the second. He felt sick, struggling, kicking, screaming-

"Alfred!"

He pushed himself up. His arms shook under his weight. Sightless eyes moved to where the voice had come from, a large hand petting his hair and rubbing his scalp. It hurt. His entire body felt like it was crushed under stones. Some were heavy, some were sharp, but they all worked together to make every movement ache.

"Are you okay?" it was a morning voice. Early morning voice. Tired and scratchy. He flopped over onto the other's body. He trusted him to catch him and he did.

Hearing him, knowing he was there... he began to weep. His sore arms reached up to grab onto his shirt as he cried rivers into his chest. Ivan rested his arms around his waist, whispering to him that it was okay. That it was all okay.

"Do you want to tell me what you dreamt about?" Ivan asked. One hand reached up to cup his neck as he sobbed.

"No," he choked out. No. Nobody would know about this. He wouldn't tell anyone about what had happened.

For a moment, he thought of how disappointed they would be. In him, for not being able to defend himself. He was strong. He had made himself strong. What if they found out it was all an appearance to keep him from breaking down every hour, every day?

"Do you want to go back to sleep, then?"

"Yes..." he whimpered. Ivan pressed a kiss to his scalp. The kiss stung like a bee sting.

"Then sleep, my baby," he whispered, laying back down with Alfred's head and half of his body on top of him. Alfred continued to whimper, his dream haunting him everytime he closed his eyes. He started to take deep breaths- counted, but he couldn't stop his raging heart.

He moved over Ivan's chest, finding his heartbeat. He attempted to match the tempo, trying to calm himself down while Ivan slept.

It still took him a while to fall asleep. When he finally woke up, the sun was beating onto his face. That meant the window was open and the sun had risen past the mountains.

"Good... afternoon, sleeping beauty," a woman said. His head went to her.

"Who are you?"

"Oh... yes, Ivan and Samuel warned me about your memory loss," she stood, pushing a chair in, "I'm your Archiver."

He thought back for a moment. Black hair and skin, with the most rich brown eyes he had ever seen. Talented mind. Immortal body.

"Kaniqua?"

"Ding-ding-ding, you have a winner," she said, sitting down on the bed. It dipped where she sat.

"I know this can be difficult, but can I ask a few questions?" Kaniqua asked. She brushed some of his hair behind his ear, trying to get a better look at his face before she began to write in her notebook. The sound of pen on paper made his skin itch.