Point of View: Tharok
I woke up abruptly.
An intense pain spread through my entire body. My head felt heavy, and my muscles were numb. For a moment, I didn't understand where I was… until the memories slowly began returning.
The elixir.
Sara.
The dungeon.
I clenched my teeth.
—I was drugged...
Now I understood. The elixir Sara gave me hadn't only altered my fur and scent.
It had something else mixed into it.
That was why my mind had become sluggish.
Why it had been so hard to think.
Why my memories felt blurry.
But then she drugged me again.
The effects were probably only fading now.
I tried to move.
The chains immediately tightened.
A metallic sound echoed through the darkness.
My body was severely injured. I could barely gather any origin energy inside me. And worst of all...
I slowly looked around.
There was no light.
Only darkness and dampness.
I released a heavy breath.
Inside dungeons, recovering energy was much slower. Without resources or special treasures, recovery could take days.
And in my current state...
I lowered my gaze.
—This wasn't improvised...
As my mind cleared, I began noticing strange details.
Sara must have prepared that elixir long before arriving in Frostfang.
But the alliance distributed the elixirs.
I frowned.
—How did she get an altered one...?
It made no sense.
Sara alone could never have prepared something like that.
Then...
—The alliance...
A heavy feeling settled in my chest.
I didn't want to believe it.
Why would they help set a trap for me?
I couldn't remember doing anything to deserve this.
While trying to organize my thoughts, I heard footsteps slowly approaching through the darkness.
Firm.
Calm.
And then a voice.
A voice far too familiar.
—So... you finally woke up.
I raised my head.
A torch partially illuminated the cave.
It was Sara.
Point of View: Sara
—So... you finally woke up.
Tharok didn't respond.
He only stared at me in silence.
The torchlight partially illuminated his chained body. He was in worse condition than I expected, though it was still difficult to ignore how resilient he was.
I walked slowly while brushing one hand against the rocky wall.
—You must be confused... wondering why I'm doing this.
Silence.
But I could see it in his eyes.
Pain.
Fury.
Betrayal.
And that only made the tightness in my chest grow stronger.
I stopped in front of him.
—You're intelligent, Tharok. You know no one would do something like this as a joke.
I looked at his wounds.
He was no longer bleeding.
I had personally taken care of that.
I couldn't let him die yet.
First, I needed to say it.
I needed him to understand.
His breathing was heavy. Every time he tried to move, the chains rattled.
Finally, he spoke.
His voice was hoarse and filled with restrained rage.
—So what do you want to hear?
—That I should thank you for drugging me...?
—For bringing me here?
I clenched my teeth.
I crouched in front of him and grabbed his jaw, forcing him to look at me.
—This is your fault, Tharok...
His eyes hardened.
My voice trembled for just an instant.
—You disappointed me.
He let out a dry, painful laugh.
—Disappointed you...?
I ignored his tone.
—I thought you would be different.
—I thought you... would give me what I wanted.
For a moment, I remembered everything.
The conversations.
The dreams.
The expectations.
Everything I imagined.
And then...
Nothing.
I felt the rage rising again.
Without holding back, I punched him directly in the face.
The impact echoed throughout the cave.
His body was thrown backward and slammed into the rocky wall before crashing heavily onto the ground.
The chains shook violently.
But he didn't scream.
He didn't even complain.
He only breathed with difficulty.
That only made me angrier.
I quickly approached and pressed my foot against his face, forcing it against the floor.
—Do you have any idea how hard I worked...?
—Do you have any idea everything I did for you?
I pressed harder.
My breathing became uneven.
—I thought I could finally have everything...
—I thought you would be the one to take me there...
But he still didn't respond.
That hurt more than I expected.
I slowly leaned closer until my mouth reached his ear.
And I whispered:
—You're going to die, Tharok...
I paused.
Then I smiled.
—But before that... I'll tell you why I did this to you.
His muscles tensed.
And then I spoke the words I had waited so long to say.
—And I'll also tell you... how I killed your mother.
This time, he reacted.
His eyes widened instantly.
And my smile slowly grew wider.