TW: Nudity, Torture, Suicide
Salvar hugged himself tighter, trying to escape the cruel cold wind that showed no mercy to the living. His body leaned against the iron bars of the prison, the chill seeping deep into his bones. He glanced at the guards sitting beside the brazier, warming their hands against the fire while he shivered in silence.
He buried his head into his chest and breathed warm air onto his skin, desperate for even a trace of heat. As punishment, he had been stripped naked and thrown into the cell. Now he remained exposed to the unforgiving winter. The chain around his legs clinked softly whenever his body trembled.
One of the guards looked at him and muttered to the other, "He will not last long at this rate."
"He deserves it," the other replied coldly.
The first guard nodded, though there was a hint of hesitation in his eyes as he looked at Salvar's miserable state.
Salvar heard their distant whispers and slowly turned his head toward them. His long, unwashed hair had turned rough and tangled, falling over his face and blocking his vision. He pushed it back weakly behind his ears and saw the guards talking. Suddenly, they stood up, straightening themselves as they greeted someone.
Salvar followed their gaze.
It was Silas.
A tall man with broad shoulders, thin lips, thick brows, and straight hair that fell past his shoulders. A deep scar ran from his brow down across his eye. His red eyes held a disturbing madness, veins protruding at his temples, while dark shadows lay heavy beneath them.
Salvar looked at him from the corner of his eyes.
"Open the door," Silas ordered.
The guard quickly unlocked the iron door. It creaked open, and Silas stepped inside.
He stood towering over Salvar, who was pressed between the cold bars and the rough wall. One clothed in a perfectly ironed suit, the other naked, dirty, and broken.
Silas tilted his head slightly, his lips curling.
"Are you having a good time in here?"
Salvar did not respond. He simply stared at him. There was nothing left to say that had not already been said during the endless months of torture.
"Oh, why am I even asking?" Silas laughed, the sound sharp and unsettling.
Tears welled up in Salvar's eyes as he turned his face away.
"You do not even have a tongue to answer me."
His body trembled as the memory surfaced. The day he had been dragged into the torture room. His flesh torn open by rods lined with iron spikes. Experiments that pushed him past the limits of pain. And finally, the moment his tongue had been cut out, as if that alone could satisfy Silas's rage.
That was the last day Salvar ever spoke.
After that, his voice no longer mattered. Perhaps it never had.
Being born as an omega had been a curse he carried from the beginning. He had spent his life crawling at the feet of others, begging for scraps of kindness that never came.
The tears finally slipped free, trailing down his arms and soaking into his dry, dirt covered skin.
Before he could gather himself, pain shot through him as Silas grabbed his filthy hair and yanked his head up.
Salvar caught the faint smell of alcohol as Silas leaned closer, a wide, twisted smile on his face.
"What a beautiful face you have. Even covered in filth, it still holds its dignity. No wonder every bastard wanted you."
Moonlight filtered through the high vent, casting a faint glow across Salvar's face. It caught in his emerald eyes, making them shine like jade hidden among stones.
He had grown thinner, paler. His life was slipping away piece by piece with each passing day.
Tears streamed down his face. He wanted to scream that none of this was his fault. He had said it before, again and again, before he lost his tongue.
But Silas had never listened.
He had chosen to believe the lies crafted by those who sat on golden thrones, controlling the fate of others without consequence.
Silas wiped away Salvar's tears almost gently before suddenly striking him.
The slap sent him crashing to the ground. His ears rang as he coughed up blood, gasping desperately for air.
Before he could recover, Silas dragged him up again by his hair.
His weak body struggled to rise from the filthy ground. Salvar grabbed Silas's wrist instinctively, his heart pounding, rage burning within him.
A broken sound tore from his throat.
"Aaaaa…"
His scream was raw and desperate, even without words.
His emerald eyes burned with defiance as he continued, his silent voice filled with protest.
Silas stepped back, startled, covering his ears as if the sound itself disturbed him.
Salvar stumbled forward, raising his trembling fists and weakly striking Silas's chest.
His eyes begged, his movements pleaded, even as his scream carried his rebellion.
Silas backed away completely.
Salvar collapsed to his knees and began striking the ground instead. Dust and sand scattered into the air, glittering faintly in the moonlight.
"Enough!" Silas shouted, his voice echoing through the cell.
But Salvar did not stop.
"I will kill you if you do not stop," Silas warned, his patience breaking.
He pulled out his gun, aiming it carelessly.
Salvar ignored him.
The gun fired. The bullet struck the wall above, the sharp sound cutting through the night.
Silence followed.
Salvar's scream died. He sank to the ground, motionless.
"I will not kill you yet," Silas said coldly. "You still have years of suffering ahead of you."
He lowered the gun and motioned for the guard to close the door.
But before he could leave, something caught his attention.
Salvar had wrapped the iron chain around his neck and was tightening it with what little strength he had left.
Silas's eyes widened.
No.
He would not allow him to die so easily.
He strode forward and loosened the chain.
In that brief moment, Salvar moved.
He grabbed the gun.
Before Silas could react, a shot rang out.
The bullet struck Silas in the chest.
Shock flashed across his face, but it did not last. As if driven by instinct alone, he snatched the gun back and fired.
The bullet pierced Salvar's head.
His body fell still.
Moments later, Silas collapsed beside him, his strength fading as the guards rushed in.
Darkness consumed him before they could reach his side.