Finley Cai Aies Hall May 10th,20XX

Instead of a frustrated expression at the loss or even an expression of happiness at my finally calling him great grandfather the old goblin just stayed frozen in place and a torrent of emotions flickered across his face before a joyous smile nearly split his face in half. His fangs were almost fully exposed as he then burst into a heavy chuckle but it did nothing to hide the tears that ran down his face.

“...You brat.”

“Hey, you never said I could only use physical attacks.”

I tried to joke off the weird atmosphere but he didn’t stop his obnoxious laughter or the tears. Something I just learned about myself was that I didn’t like not knowing what people around me were laughing about.

“Come over here, little brat… I wish I could have waited a bit longer but I don’t think that’s an option anymore.”

Well, approaching him while he was in this weird state was probably the last thing I wanted to do, and that wasn’t because I was bad at dealing with complex emotions.

Seeing my reluctance, he took a slow step in my direction but in a blink was already in front of me.

“Stay very still Aies. This will…probably hurt a bit but you should be okay. I believe that much.”

The old goblin’s horn began to glow painfully bright as he chanted out a few indiscernible words in a sombre tone and closed his eyes for half a second. He then sliced into his forefinger with his own horn and pressed the bleeding finger pad onto my own horn. Well, more precisely he drew a circle around the horn and then dotted the top of it with his blood.

The silver tinted blood sizzled on my skin like molten metal for a second and almost made me yell out in pain but I resisted, thinking it would be over soon. But unlike usual this time it lasted a lot longer and intensified by the passing second.

“Ahh, wait, Theodu-“

The pain began to spread from the concentrated spot of my forehead into the rest of my body and in an odd out of body experience I felt my mouth open and an inhumane roar ripped from my throat and out into the air.

I knew I wasn’t supposed to scream or the effects of whatever he was doing would be weakened but that rule almost seemed to personify itself and kick me down as my throat grew ragged from the noises it produced.

My eyes blurred from tears and I found myself curling into a ball to protect my internal organs even thorough the pain wasn’t external. My exposed skin rubbed itself raw and I writhed around on the smooth floor and my now sharpened nails bit into the fleshy parts of my skin, clouding my arms with my discoloured blood. At some point, the screaming stopped and the harsh metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. On some level, I realized I had probably bit my tongue but I was way past caring.

Even if I had to die or at least pass out, I wanted to escape this pain for at least a few moments.

I somehow registered myself crawling up to my knees and preparing myself to bash my head into the pavement when a strong pair of arms wrapped themselves around me and held me still from doing any more damage to myself.

“Just bear through it Aies. It’ll be over sooner than you know it.”

I felt my body fighting against the iron grasp that held me still but couldn’t loosen myself.

I heard the roaring again in an odd dissociative moment, almost like there was someone else in the room making these beast-like noises. The pain had numbed all my senses to the point where I almost couldn’t recognize the pain itself. But like waves, its intensity would always shore up to the banks of my consciousness and become a reality once more.

“Don’t lose to it Aies.”

I was tired. I was in pain. I sought unconsciousness like a golden bough and despaired when it always escaped my grasp. Every time it almost took me away a low but strong voice would bring me back.

“Stay with me Aies. It’s almost over.”

I would stay.

I wanted to go.

I didn’t want to lose.

Losing would be better than staying for this.

I believed the voice that it would end soon.

The pain made me believe it would never end.

I was tired.