The Forsaken Arts

Chapter 28: Mikhail's Nightmare

With a thick fog concealing his path, Mikhail found himself running aimlessly through the night. He came to a stop while trying to catch his breath, his weary legs burned with soreness.

Dry and scratchy, the back of his throat gently stuck together then painfully peeled apart when he tried to swallow. After closing his eyes, he leaned over placing both hands on his knees - breathing becoming more and more paced.

After taking a moment he stood back up, took a deep breath, placed both hands over his face and exhaled while letting them slide down his face and gently fall back to his sides.

While opening his eyes. "What!?" he whispered in disbelief. I was just outside...where am I? Slowly walking forward, he ran his hand against the wall of what first appeared to be an aged cavern. "Shit!" he exclaimed while pulling his hand away and jumping back.

What the...? He brought his hand close to his face and saw the blood that was beginning to leak out of what appeared to be a scratch or... maybe a bite. What concerned him the most, the poorly lit cavern revealed blood on the palm of his hand as well.

Suddenly echoes mixed with squeals and growls filled the carven as they bounced from wall to wall. Leaning in for a closer look, he saw the horrible truth; the walls were made of human bodies that had been decapitated and ripped open.

Fully checking his surroundings now, he noticed intestines and other organs hung from the bodies that were strung up like lanterns. Rats and other rodents of various sizes weaved in, out, and through crevasses of the more decayed remains.

In a panic, he looked back down at his hand realizing what it was that bit him. Drip... drip... drip, drip drip, the once steady trickle of fluid falling began to flow immensely as the cavern floor filled with blood.

The air steadily became more and more humid, which made the lingering stench of feces combined with decaying bodies even thicker and more repulsive. Mikhail, once again ran frantically into the unknown.

As he splashed through the rising blood while knocking away the swinging bodies that dangled from the ceiling blocking his path, demons reached out to him. Grabbing and pulling him back as he struggled to keep moving forward, the atmosphere rose to a temperature that caused the blood that was now knee-deep to boil. He cried out in pain as the skin began to melt from his legs. Finally adhering to the anguish, he collapsed to his hands and knees.

He bellowed an ear piercing scream as his mouth came in contact with the steaming and boiling blood. Demons surrounded him from all sides, one grabbed his arms and pulled him upright, revealing his now melted and disfigured face.

From behind the demons, one that was significantly larger stepped forward. The others spread out making a path as this massive creature with the crooked horn and cracked blue skin grabbed Mikhail by the neck and lifted him from the ground to eye level, leaving the young scholars fleshy skeleton to dangle.

In a deep and groggy voice it spoke, "You will subdue."

At that moment a raging flame burst from beneath, engulfing his body.

Mikhail screamed as he bolted up drenched in a cold sweat. He looked around and saw that he was in his living quarters within Faxon.

What the hell, the same damn dream! What does it mean...?  he wondered, realizing that he'd had another nightmare.

Parched from his rough night, he wiped his brow while swinging his legs from underneath the covers. After placing his feet on the floor, Mikhail stood but felt a slight pinch as he legs buckled under his own weight.

Looking down, he noticed nothing but bone and pieces of bloody flesh where his legs should have been. Terrified with a speechless look on his face, his eyes quickly gave off a flash of white energy as he fainted and collapsed to the floor.