cassiopeia ꒱ markhyuck

twenty four

As he slept that night, Donghyuck found himself inside of a strange, haunting nightmare.

He was still in the palace bedroom, lying on the bed with his eyes still closed, his body seemingly asleep while his mind was halfway awake and aware. A breeze brushed past his cheek, like the displacement of air as someone walked, and then there was a voice against his ear, hot breath on his neck.

"You look so peaceful, Your Highness," the voice said, deep and husky and completely unfamiliar. "You're the most beautiful when you're asleep. Has anyone ever told you that?"

Donghyuck's body let out an aborted twitch. Even as his brain became more alert, he found that he was unable to move his body or even open his eyes. Fear and panic coursed through him as he tried to move, tried to look and see who was speaking to him, but he couldn't. He had no choice but to lay there and listen, and hope that whoever it was wouldn't do more than talk to him.

"I can't wait to see how beautiful you are covered in blood," the voice continued, with an excited lilt that made Donghyuck shudder, "the moment I kill you will be the best moment of my life. I've killed many omegas before, but none have excited me as much as you do."

Donghyuck felt the soft, feathery touch of a fingertip against his cheek, tracing over his face. He wanted to flinch, squirm away and avoid the touch, but he couldn't. He continued to lie still, his breathing starting to get heavier from panic.

"Are you scared, Your Highness?" The voice laughed, most likely taking notice of his quickened breathing. "Omegas are so cute when they're afraid. They look at us alphas with those big eyes, tears on their cheeks, pleading for their lives so adorably. It's always so funny to watch... because they don't know how it just makes us want to kill them even more."

The most Donghyuck could do in his state was let out a soft whimper. He fought so hard to regain control of his muscles, to wake his body so that he could run away and find one of the guards, but he remained frozen and helpless.

"I thought about killing you here, tonight. It would be so easy, your guards are asleep in the hallway and you're all alone, so weak and vulnerable," the stranger hummed, his fingertip now ghosting over Donghyuck's lips. The omega felt his stomach lurch with nausea.

"But I thought about it... and I think I would enjoy it more if I made your king watch me take your life."

Panic settled heavily over Donghyuck's body, threatening to suffocate him.

"How fun would that be? To force him to watch as I ravage your body and slit your throat, to let him see you defiled and covered in your own blood. I bet he'd lose his mind... how much do you think it would destroy him?"

Donghyuck whimpered again, the farthest extent of protest his body was allowing him at the moment. The stranger just laughed, apparently amused by Donghyuck's distress.

"My leader would be so pleased... to see the queen dead and the king completely ruined. It would be almost too easy for her to take the throne then," the voice chuckled, his nail scratching against the side of Donghyuck's face as he moved his fingers down to caress his jawline. "Who could've guessed that the crack in the king's near flawless reign that my leader has been searching for all these years would turn out to be a measly omega? This is why your kind needs to be eradicated, all you ever do is make alphas weaker."

Donghyuck's fingers twitched. The stranger pressed an unforgiving thumb up against the omega's scent gland, digging painfully into the spot where his mating bite was supposed to go.

"It's almost a shame that I have to get rid of you though. You're so gorgeous, I'd love to keep you as a little pet."

The thumb was removed. The air around his face became cooler, indicating that the stranger had stood up straight and was preparing to leave the room. Donghyuck let out a shaky sigh of relief.