Shining Through Shadows

Glimpses Of The Past

TRIGGER WARNING ABOUT BRANDING.

Go to the part after '***' to skip the trigger in the flashback.

Lydia

Where was I?

Everything around me was blurry as my head snapped back and forth. Nothing seemed familiar, but again, I could barely see anything due to my cloudy vision.

The searing pain between my shoulder blades appeared again, and I whimpered silently before closing my eyes.

“BRAND HER!” A deep and hoarse voice yelled. He yelled so loudly my head throbbed.

Somebody brutally forced my upper body down onto a flat surface and my cheek was pressed against something cold. I could barely remember how to breathe as I desperately heaved for air, afraid of what was about to happen to me.

Two large and calloused hands were wrapped around my wrists, holding me in place as the man behind me, with his hand on my head, ripped my shirt to expose my back to the cold winter air.

Another whimper left my lips and tears streamed down my cheeks. I could feel deep within my bones that something terrible was about to happen…

“What’s taking so damn long!?” The man with the hoarse voice demanded.

“Sir, are you sure she’s the right one?” The man behind me spoke cautiously as if I wasn’t there.

“Of course she is! Look at her hair!” His answer came immediately, and I could tell he was coming closer to where we were.

“But... But she’s only a child…” I whimpered from his sudden hesitation. I was only a child? Whose nightmare was this?

“Move! I always have to do everything myself!” He spat. I could hear the sound of metal against stone, while embers were hissing softly in the darkness.

And that was when I felt it… The most horrible and intense, searing pain I’ve ever felt.

My skin was melting away from underneath the scorching hot metal and the smell of burnt skin permeated the surrounding air. I cried out in pain as tears streamed down my cheeks, soaking the surface underneath my limb body.

The pain was too much for me to handle and I drifted into unconsciousness while the men were ordered to throw me back into the dungeons…

***

I opened my eyes, ever so slowly, to find myself in my bed in the servant's quarters. Had it all been nothing but a dream? Nothing but my vivid imagination?

I could vaguely remember watching the ceremonial fire and the frozen girl. The flames… Flames.

A strange kind of pain appeared between my shoulder blades at the memory of the burning flames. Without thinking, I jumped out of bed and went to the shared bathroom to look in the mirror.

What the…

A strange mark I couldn’t recall ever seeing was nestled right between my shoulder blades. It was slightly blemished and bumpy at the edges. How long had this scar been there? Apart from the redness and bumpiness, it seemed to be an old scar.

“Lydia!” Jena gasped as she found me in the bathroom. Her sudden presence almost made me jump in terror and I removed my hand from the scar immediately before turning to face her. “How are you feeling?”

“I think I’m fine,” I answered before adding. “Thank you for your concern.” I gave her a small smile, but noticed she was no longer looking at my face. Instead, her eyes were locked on the reflection of my back in the mirror. Lydia, you fool…

“What is that!?” Jena asked, her voice etched with worry as she took several quick steps toward me. I tried to escape her, but she cornered me beside the vanity and I held up my hands in defeat.

“I swear to you that I’ve never seen it before.” She frowned at me, not at all believing me, but she gave me some space nevertheless. “I felt a tinge of pain when I woke up from the weirdest dream and then I saw it in the mirror.”

“And I’m supposed to believe you don’t know about a huge mark on your own back? Seriously, Lydia! It looks like you’ve been branded like cattle!” Her voice was raised now, and she grabbed my shoulders to turn me around to inspect the mark closer.

“What does it look like? Is it infected” I asked with a small voice, my arms holding on to the uniform over my breasts.

“I cannot believe this…” She whispered in disbelief. I felt a finger softly trace the sore mark on my back. “It looks like…” I waited patiently, hoping she could describe it better for me. “I don’t know, actually…” She finally sighed. “Maybe a circle or something with a… I’m sorry, it’s hard to tell.”

I didn’t have time to feel disappointed because a loud c***k resonated through the house followed by the sound of a beast on the loose…