DΛЯK DΣᄂIGΉƬƧ

Lucid

The dream began like it always did. Eustass stood nervously in the corner of the large dining room, clutching a tray, eyes darting to his brother Yami, who was serving food beside him. The sound of clinking glasses and chopsticks echoed around the room as their extended family ate together. Eustass's palms were sweaty, his heart pounding in his chest.

Shirahoshi, their mother, sat at the head of the table, calm and composed, her presence the only thing keeping the rest of the family in check. Eustass tried to focus, to keep his hands steady, but as he poured tea for an elder relative, his hand slipped. The cup tilted too far, and the tea spilled onto the table, staining the pristine cloth.

There was silence. Eustass felt a cold wave of dread rush through him. His eyes flicked to his mother. Shirahoshi shot a deadly glare at one of the distant relatives who had risen slightly from his seat, her gaze telling him to sit back down. For a brief moment, Eustass felt relief—maybe this would be the end of it. But that hope vanished when his mother left for her mission later that evening. She wasn't there to protect him anymore.

The scene shifted.

Eustass found himself outside, barely clothed, trembling as the cold night air brushed against his skin. His wrists were tied together, and his body was coated in sticky honey and seeds. He thrashed, begging, tears streaming down his face.

"It was an accident! Please, I didn't mean to!" he cried, his voice breaking. But they didn't listen.

They threw him into the garden, the very place he had once admired for its beauty. Now, it was a cage. The birds that he once watched with awe, with their vibrant feathers and graceful movements, looked at him hungrily. Their beady eyes glistened in the moonlight as they descended on him.

The first peck landed, sharp and agonizing, tearing through his skin. He screamed, twisting and turning, but the birds—vultures, crows, and a towering secretary bird—relentlessly attacked, ripping the seeds from his flesh as they drew blood. His tears mixed with the dirt and blood as he lay helpless, feeling every peck like a brand on his skin.

The scene blurred, darkness closing in. Eustass crawled back toward the house, his body aching, bleeding. His mind was foggy, a mess of pain and humiliation.

As he reached the door, strong arms lifted him. Yami's face was grim, his eyes filled with anger, but his voice was soft. "I'll make sure it won't happen again," he promised, holding Eustass close. Eustass sobbed into his brother's chest, feeling the warmth of Yami's embrace against the cold night air. But even as Yami held him, Eustass could feel the sticky wetness of his brother's back. Yami had bled too. He had been beaten for trying to defend him.

The dream shifted again.

Eustass watched as Yami, older now, gritted his teeth through lashes on his arms. Eustass had gotten a base wrong during training, and Yami had stood up for him. His brother's face remained calm, but Eustass could see the tension in his jaw, the burning fury behind his eyes.

Another shift. Yami's face was swollen, blood dripping from a fresh wound on his lip after talking back to one of the elders. All for Eustass's sake. Yami never hesitated to take the punishment, no matter how severe, as long as it meant shielding his brother.

The final shift came swiftly.

Yami, now 18, stood in front of a raging aunt, her hand raised to strike a trembling 12-year-old Eustass. But before her hand could land, Yami grabbed her wrist. His eyes were blazing with fury. In one swift motion, he slammed her against the floor. The sound of her body hitting the ground was sickening, her head snapping back as blood spilled from her mouth. Yami stood over her, fists clenched, ready to do more. She gargled, choking on her own blood. It took several family members to pull Yami away, but not before he had left her a broken, barely conscious heap on the floor.

Then, the final image seared into Eustass's mind—the one that always haunted him.

Yami stood in the middle of a room, bodies scattered around him. Blood dripped from his hands, pooling at his feet. His face was shadowed, eyes glowing faintly in the darkness. He didn't look human. He looked monstrous. The sheer weight of his presence was suffocating.

Before Eustass could react, Yami's face twisted, and the world rushed toward him. A punch—faster than anything he could process—hit him square in the gut. The force knocked the wind from his lungs, and his vision blurred as he fell.

The last thing he saw before consciousness faded was Yami's figure standing over him. "Be free before you even think of looking for me," Yami's voice echoed in his ears.

Eustass jolted awake, gasping for air. His clothes were drenched in sweat, his heart racing. He sat up, his body trembling, the lingering pain of the dream still gripping him. As he looked around, he noticed Josei curled up on the floor beside him, fast asleep, likely from all his tossing and turning.

It was the fourth night in a row he'd had that dream. And every time, it left him with the same hollow ache.