Decipher | Watty's 2017

LX. Draconian

Draconian

/drəˈkōnēən/

adjective

excessively harsh and severe

It was one of those days when Luke was in and out of meetings all day and unable to come and accommodate my needs again, which left me to catch up on sleep in the bed that I found to be excessively large without Luke's body to fill in the gaps. Between the multiple weeks since I had been rescued and that day, the bed of Luke's room had very rarely not been occupied by two bodies at night.

Soon after our first large argument, it became apparent that both of us were unable to live without each other, leaving me to practically move into his room. The only remaining things of my room were small objects and a few clothes that had yet to make their way to the other room.

Overall the arrangement we had was good. It left Luke with the ability to rest without worry clouding his mind, and it left me feeling refreshed as I finally felt as though I had a place in this world for once: in Luke's arms. My only reservations concerning the idea of us staying together was what the other boys would think, especially Michael who had taken it upon himself to become a brother figure in my life, taking my safety beyond the point of overprotectiveness.

My body began to relax into the bed, finding an equilibrium between my tiredness and awakeness as my eyes closed gently, losing myself slowly to the overwhelming feeling of sleep. The peace that flooded my system was unlike any I had ever felt, reminding me much of how my body was affected when Luke wrapped his arms around my torso.

Slowly my breathing steadied and allowed my mind to pass through my subconscious, leading me into the vastness of my mind. Although I never found myself scared of my mind or having night terrors, for some odd reason they decided to present themselves this time.

In a life-like animated dream, my body walked down the dirty, gray corridors of an area unknown to me. It was as if my spirit had risen from my body and was walking down this hall as I passed numerous of soldiers without attracting any attention. Something in my body told me that this was wrong and the effects of my feet taking me down this hallway would be catastrophic.

Rustic lights littered the ceiling of the hall, flickering off and on, which made my heart rate increase as the drowsy feeling soon wore off, all of my senses suddenly alert. The concrete walls were not as clean as those of the colony, leading me to believe that his was not a place well inhabited. Maybe it was the eerie mist covering every inch of space that gave this clue, but the joints of my ankles seemed to lock up, unwilling to move down the dooming hall.

My ears perked at the sound of a person screaming down the corridor. The soldiers passing seemed to have no reservations about this behavior, expecting it and keeping their composers easily. Inside of me, a sudden snap occurred, causing me to sprint down the hallway in order to find the source of these cries.

No one tried to stop me as I pushed them out of my way and glanced around, taking mental notes for an escape route. However, something inside of my gut told me that I would not be needing an escape plan. Deep down I knew I was still in an altered reality that my mind had developed; in spite of this, there was a disconnect that caused me to believe that this was real life and my heart rate to increase as though I was in danger.

The hall only seemed to grow longer as I pushed my way through men and elbowed those who wouldn't move with a simple shove. It was as though I was fighting my way to my death, sweat pouring down my brow as I took deep breathes, unwilling to accept the outcome of an innocent civilian being in trouble.

When my body finally reached the source of the noise, my eyes found lights covering te empty space of the room, pointing directly at the person tied in an automated chair. People moved around very little, only switching a few buttons in order to increase the person's level of terror and the amount of screams escaping their throat.