Pain. That was the first sensation that entered Lhakya’s groggy, waking mind, a sharp, biting pain all over, stabbing into his flesh, cutting into his skin like a million tiny barbs. But there was another pain, too, one that throbbed in the side of his head, and as his unnatural sleep gradually began to wear off, he became aware of other sensations, as well. A sticky wetness that slowly crawled down the side and front of his face, a feeling that was mirrored in a hundred other places, though to a much lesser extent…
And a faint, tantalizing scent, a scent that sent off warning signals in Lhakya’s confused mind: the bittersweet smell of copper and overpowering scent of roses.
Roses? Lhakya grimaced slightly, slowly working his eyes open, though he wasn’t so sure he really wanted to, and not just because of the pain that blazed suddenly within them. He didn’t know why that seemed important or significant, but his mind really wasn’t functioning at its best right now, and he was painfully aware of that. His thoughts felt as though they were coming to him through a thick fog, though they were surprisingly lucid once they finally registered. Well, clear for someone who had suffered a head injury, at least, and Lhakya knew he had suffered at least that much. What had happened to lead up to this, though, he really couldn’t remember at the moment. And as for the other pains, he wouldn’t be able to say what had caused them and how bad they were until his eyes started functioning. Right now, though, there was no difference between what he saw behind veiled eyelids. Just pure black, and every eye-blink sent pain coursing through his eyes.
He was pretty screwed up, that was certain.
Painstakingly slow, as he waited for both his vision and any increment of strength to return, he attempted to piece together what had happened prior to, apparently, being knocked silly, but it seemed as though that tidbit of knowledge had been knocked from his brain in the process. He <I>knew</I> he’d gotten in a scuffle of sorts…but that was nothing new for him. Fighting was a part of life for a creature that was both predator and prey.
That last thought, however, unnerved him as soon as it occurred to him, his hazy mind working as quickly as it could under his body’s stress. Obviously, he hadn’t come out on the long end of things, and that brought up a series of potential…problems. He had fought with someone. <I>Who</I> and <I>why</I> had they been fighting? He hadn’t come out well…but how well had his opponent? Who had initiated the attack? Where was he now?
Who had been the hunter, and who the hunted?
His vision was not yet clearâ€"far from itâ€"he still felt infinitely exhausted, his head hurt, and, hell, his body hurt all over, but those thoughts spurred him to action. There were so many unknowns. He couldn’t take a chance. He <I>had</I> to get out of here, wounded and sightless and tired or not.
But, to add to his long list of problems, another one made itself known as soon as he attempted to move. Pain shot through his body, those pinpricks of pain heightening, and then as he shifted he could actually <I>feel</I> a hundred tiny barbs driving deeper into his flesh, and feel something tangled about his limbs. Immediately his struggles stopped, pain, dizziness, and sheer exhaustion, both from blood loss and his head wound, staying his attempts at freedom.
And it was then that the previous odd smell of roses clicked in his mind.
In this case, he had been the hunted.
And, apparently, his captor had a creative, if sadistic, means of making sure his victims would not escape. Lhakya could not see what had been done, but now he knew what had. He could feel it...
Indeed, there, in the woods, blood smeared thickly across his eyes and matting his jaw-length hair, which was black save for a patch of reddish brown in the front, a young human slumped where he was confined, tangled in an unnatural mass of thorny, blood spattered vines. At least…on first glance he looked a human, save that his ears were pointed, and if he were to bare his teeth, his canines would be dangerously sharp. On closer glance, claws also tipped each finger where blunt human nails should have been.
A few rose blossoms, red as the blood that dripped from the many lacerations on his body, grew from those vines, only adding to the scene’s gruesome appearance. But their scent was strong and sweet, overriding the bitter scent of freshly spilt blood. Clearly, it was a small measure taken so as to better hide the soon to be kill from other potential predators while still ensuring a successful torture.
Breathing heavily with exertion, Lhakya’s eyes shut for a moment, their color undetermined with the blood so thick around and in them, and he took a deep, calming breath. He had to get out of here. And quick. He doubted any predator would leave their prey alone for long. Shit. How he was going to get away...that was another story. He couldn't move without pain. He couldn't use his hands, for each was wrapped tightly, thorns piercing his wrists. He couldn't see...
It was indeed getting increasingly difficult to breathe calmly, but he held onto what rationale he had and racked his fuzzy brain for something, anything, that could lead him out of this mess.
