Heir of Cinders [FADING EMBERS #1] - ON HOLD

10.2 - Old Friends, New Allies

In that moment of stillness, Mira found herself gazing deeply into the scarlet eyes that shimmered with fear, taking in all the wariness and the fatigue that swirled within them. The glimmering moonlight made Feal look paler than he already was and she could see the slight tremble of his long, thin fingers. The yildean broke their eye contact, darting his gaze towards the cold, hard floor of the train compartment.

"The damned visions. It's getting worse and worse, Mira," he whispered in a voice that lacked any sort of energy. "It comes and goes without any warning, those... nightmarish sights. Whenever they come, she comes with them... the pale woman..."

Mira pursed her lips at the hushed mention of the "pale woman". Feal had told her a lot about her: a pale, almost transparent apparition of a woman clothed in white. It bore no face, only a blank white slate with nothing on it. The "pale woman" was a recurring element in the hellish visions that plagued him. Neither of them knew what caused these strange hallucinations of his, but Mira knew that it was a mental torture for Feal.

"What did she say to you this time, Feal?" Mira asked him as she gently held Feal's hand, intertwining her fingers around his. She felt his fingers clutch at hers to stop themselves from shaking.

"The same thing she always says," Feal spat out, the bitterness apparent despite his tired voice. "'You owe everything to me, now it is time for you to pay your debts.' She keeps on whispering it, again and again like a raving madman. I tried to ignore it but it just won't leave me be. The noises- it's deafening, Mira, it's..."

Feal stopped, catching his breath. "I want to make it stop. I have to make it stop. I have to find a way. This is draining me Mira, I can't keep up with this forever. If this continues, I might end up with a blade through my heart."

He tugged his hand away from Mira, balling it into a trembling fist. Mira stared at him, his scarlet eyes riddled with panic and fear. Two emotions which she never thought that Feal would ever show to anyone, even to Mira herself. A part of her was glad that he allowed himself to lower his guard and open up to another, though another was worried for her dear friend's mental state. She watched him unclench his fist and dig his claws into the armrests of his seat as she struggled to assemble her next sentence.

"Feal, look at me." Mira gently placed her hands on Feal's face and firmly turned it towards her so that their eyes met. "Don't pay attention to them. Look into my eyes."

His scarlet gaze met hers with some reluctance. The poor man looked so close to breaking down at Mira's feet. How long has this been going today? she silently wondered, shaking her head slightly. Looking at his state almost made her want to break down alongside him and cry it off.

Feal calmed himself for awhile, placing his hands over Mira's and gently holding them in place. He closed his eyes and drew in a shuddering breath. After what felt like forever, Feal finally opened his eyes. Mira could see that his eyes bore a new, rekindled flame within them. It was almost as if he had succeeded in drowning out the whispers around him.

Mira didn't try to pull her hands away. She kept them on the sides of his face, attempting to grant him comfort in some way. She never thought of the days where her presence could be counted as comforting. Everywhere she went, people would often make crude remarks of her scales or her alcoholism. While she agreed with them in regards to her fondness for alcohol, their cruel and brutish remarks on her origins made her wish that she could become a storm and blow them all away like driftwood.

She was surprised when Feal first came to her and told her about everything that he had been experiencing, from his frequent hallucinations to his constant nightmares about the Primeval Flames. She still remembered the first time she saw Feal break down in front of her, with his haunting screams and rambles about his situation. That night managed to scare her more than any Mist-born monstrosities. The sight of his features, contorted in agony, was still plastered within her mind. From that night on, she resolved to help him, to put an end to his nightmares once and for all.