The room reeked of alcohol, timid from the absence of air and light. The mirror standing in the right corner of the room lay shattered, with remnants of blood that trickled down in a straight line. Broken vase and chairs on the left side. Broken glass laced the entire floor with bloody footprints. The once beautiful, dark blue, fluffy bed was now torn to shreds with the shards of broken glass.
The muffled sound of Zeenare's cries echoed in the dark room as he sat on the cold marble floor, his knuckles covered with cuts and blood clutching a piece of clothing. Guttural groans escaped his lips in hiccupping gasps.
"Rhea!" He whispered between growls.
I can't possibly do without you! I'm losing my mind! Why did you have to say those hurtful words to me?
Zeenare stood up, stumbling backwards, raking his fingers through his hair so forcefully that his head trembled. He tilted his head to the side when his battered and dishevelled appearance caught his attention. Then he walked up to the mirror smiling.
"What are you going to do now? She hates you. She doesn't want to see you anymore. Can you live without her?" He asked his reflection. "CAN YOU?" He asked again. "No. No, I can't. Never." He replied frantically as a ripping scream tore out from his core.
A man stood outside the door, his eyes shut, his fists clenched tight, leaning heavily on the wall.
Suddenly, the room door flew open. "I need her. I need her," he said rapidly, as he stepped out of the room, walking hurriedly down the hallway.
"Master, where are you going?" The Man asked.
But Zeenare didn't respond, his pace increasing, murmuring under his breath.
The man followed behind him. "Master, Master!" The Man called multiple times.
Zeenare still didn't respond to him.
Zeenare stopped at a large door with a golden pattern, decorated like a crown with curves. He stood there for a while as if contemplating whether to step in or not. But he eventually stepped forward, reaching for the handle.
When two men stepped forward between him and the door.
"Move aside," Zeenare said to them, but they didn't budge. "Fucking Move Aside!"
Still, they didn't budge.
A rune tattoo appeared on Zeenare's neck, dark mist emitting from it as he stepped towards the men guarding the entrance. The colour in his eyes turned jet black.
"Master, don't!" The man who was running after him stopped him, sensing a death energy emitting from Zeenare. "You can't go in, Master. Remember this is the Madam's room. So you can't go inside."
"I need her, right now." He said in a broken voice, as he brought his hands to his face.
"I know, but you can't go inside," the man muttered, walking slowly towards Zeenare, his arms raised above his head. "Isn't this why you placed the guards here? So you don't go inside with grief?" He added, arms outstretched towards Zeenare, as he counted his steps.
"But I Need Her. I NEED HER!" Zeenare started trembling, his hands over his chest, claws extending out of his fingers, as he bent down, clenching tightly, as the claws dug into his heart intending to pull it out.
"MASTER, DON'T... please!" The man shouted, a foot away from Zeenare, "If you do this, what are you going to do about us? All of us?"
Zeenare's bloody hand slid down to his side as blood droplets hit the marble floor. Zeenare's jaw hardened as he tilted his head upward, knitting his brow, letting out a loud, annoyed sigh. Then he suddenly tilted his head to the side in the man's direction.
"Othimise. You are becoming a nuisance!" His voice reverberated all over the island. Birds flew off the forest as the earth shook, even into the ocean, causing the water surface to vibrate, and the mansion trembled violently.
The two guards at the entrance fell to their knees groaning as their ears rang, blood dripping from each of their ears.
Othimise held onto the wall as his legs wobbled, holding his head, his ears dripping blood.
Zeenare tilted his head slowly back to the door, his eyes on the handle, stepping forward.
"Master, I know you miss the Madam dearly. Truly, I do. But I feel you shouldn't go inside like this! No in this state. Because I know you should, I know you will never forgive yourself."
Zeenare stopped, laughing hysterically, as his knees gave out at the entrance, resting on the door. "Why did you have to hate me, Rhea? Why?"
Suddenly, Zeenare started trembling violently on the floor, as he groaned wildly.
Othimise quickly grabbed him, removing a substance from his pocket, putting it in Zeenare's mouth. "Grab him quickly, the curse is acting out," Othimise ordered.
*
Zeenare's eyes slowly flickered open. As Inaudible murmuring breezed past his ears. He looked to his side and saw Othimise talking to someone— a woman.
Othimise turned swiftly towards Zeenare as he noticed he was seated. "Master, you are awake." He dashed to his side.
"How long was I out for?" Zeenare asked massaging his forehead with two fingers.
"Five hours, Sir," he replied, passing Zeenare a glass of water.
"Mogxecheni." A tall, medium-sized woman with an hourglass shape, big, glass-like teal eyes and cognac coloured hair flowing down her back. Greeted.
She was dressed in a floor-length white silk gown with a soft A-line flow, which was fitted at the bodice with pleated detailing and thin golden straps resting on the shoulders. A single deep green gemstone at the centre of the chest, framed by a bronze leaf design. Woven with golden embroidery in vine patterns that ran from the sides of the bodice down to the upper thighs, fading into the fabric. The sleeves were sheer and loose, ending just past the elbows with golden cuffs, while the back dipped into a low V.
"Mogxecheni, Vaelithra Ravira," Zeenare replied.
Then he spoke to Othimise, "Othimise, was it that serious that you had to call Ravira to come over?"
"Yes, it was!" Ravira chirped in. "I believed, before I left to look for exquisite herbs, I told you not to go overboard with your emotions." She sighed, waving her fingers as if playing a keyboard, as teal-colored, shimmering, vine-like magic extended from her fingers onto Zeenare's body. "I guess you simply can't do that. Anyway, I've prepared a new batch of potions for you. Master, please, do not overwork yourself too much. I'm serious about this. If not, the curse will become frequent. As we all know, the madam is not here yet, so you have to be careful."
She turned to Othimise. "Feed these to the Master." She handed him a pack of glowing bottles. "These are stronger relievers than the previous ones."
"Are you leaving again?" Othimise asked.
"Yes, I have to. These pain reliefs are no longer working as much as they were before, so I have to step away to research to refine stronger components."
She turned to Zeenare. "Mogxecheni." She curtsied, then walked out.
Zeenare got off the bed as he pulled off the clothes from his body, stepping into the bathtub.
Zeenare changed into pants and a T-shirt which was buttoned halfway. He walked into his room then into the corridor, towards the golden black door from before. He stood there for a minute, exhaled sharply, then turned the handle, stepping inside.
As he entered, he stood at the foot of the entrance, staring intently at the big black bed with a golden thick silk quilt, then sat on it, scanning the entire room.
Rhea. I bet you don't know the pain I'm going through right now because of what you said. I was completely shattered by what you said. But it's not your fault.
He crawled onto the bed, gathering the quilt together over his face, inhaling the scent, and coiling up with the sheets.
You don't seem to remember anything and it's okay. But how'd I have borne the consequences of my actions, if I'd stained this place with my grief. This is our sanctuary, where we've created different happiness together in different lifetimes.
"Master, if you'll permit me, I'd want to share a word with you" Othimise's voice softly cut through from the entrance.
" Hmm." Zeenare hummed, giving him permission to go on.
"Master, I don't think going about it headstrong will work with the madam," Othimise said.
" Why wouldn't she see me! Why wouldn't she remember?" Zeenare said between the sheets.
"Master Zeenare, I believe she's different from the past," Othimise added.
Zeenare turned, visibly confused by what he meant.
"She doesn't remember anything about her past lives, sir. She doesn't know you as you know her," Othimise added. " She's nothing but a mere human now.
Zeenare sat up and turned to the open window staring through the vast field, into the forest, as a tear trickled down his cheek. The ocean wind bathed his face, his hair dancing along the wind.
"What do you suggest I do then?" Zeenare asked. "How do I make her see me? How can I be hers again?" He clenched his chest, bending over slightly. "Because I can't bear this pain, and this longing anymore." His lashes were heavy as his eyes welled up.
Othimise knitted his brow tilting his head to the side, as he pressed his hand on the door. "Go softly with her. Don't be as intense as you are now. It will keep pushing her away. Give her time. For the visions to come to her. Or the dreams."
Zeenare let out a sigh. He turned from the window, walking towards the door. "How is Aluna?" He asked opening the door.
"He's healing up well, Sir." He replied.
"I'm going to the ocean. Don't prepare anything for me," Zeenare instructed.
"Yes." He gave a bow.
Zeenare strode down the shore, the heavy wind beating his skin heavily as his clothes flapped with the wind, the water cold on his feet.
He stared into the warm evening sun, the glittering water holding his reflection.
"I miss you so much. So much that it hurts." He fisted his palm within his pocket clenching it hard. "It hurts so much, even more than this damn curse."
His gaze shifted to the ocean, "I don't want you to hate me. And I want you to see me. Remember me if possible. So I'll do my best to make you want me."