The last day

Hatred, it can consume us all at some point during the life. It can trap us when we expect it the least, it can haunt us for an eternity. Love creates hate; hate creates suffering; suffering creates revenge. All those feelings we know about are tied to each other in one way or another, it’s like those almost invisible threads in a spider’s well woven web.
It wasn’t I who chose my path of hatred and pain; another chose it for me. Why or who; those are things I do not know. Everything happened so quickly, and it left me sore. I don’t know for how long my soul has been left to rot in this hell; the hell of mine that someone decided to give me with reasons that remain unknown. It feels like an eternity, but I can still remember the time before this. The time when I smiled, the time when I was someone, the time when I was not left all alone. Who am I now…?
Each and every day is now the same, it makes me lose count of the days I had before and yet makes me remember them all the better. It’s like they wanted me to remember, they wanted me to hate… They wanted me to die. Why am I still here…?
I guess my own will and determination was to blame for that… I’m indestructible after all, they can harm me to their hearts content, but I’ll not break entirely. I cannot break, because I am Za’afiel. They can try all they want; I’ll just make sure to escape from these chains when I get the chance.

The steps in the stone cold stairs echo between the dark walls; which were just as cold as everything else in this chamber. The light that should have been warm and caring was to me cold and harsh, appeared on the wall close by to the stairs.
I thought to myself; so it’s about to begin again, is it? I thought with an empty gaze, eyes locked on the women who appeared in the stairs.
The fear I should have deep inside of me was not there, and my strength to resist had left me all alone long ago. So in my silent thoughts, I wished that it would come back to me.
“Oh, look at you! How pretty you are! Laying there in your own filth and your own blood…” the women cooed, seemingly overjoyed, as usual, when she came closer to me. “What do you say, lad…? Should we make you even prettier today?”
She put the lantern on the large wooden table that still was covered with lacy trails of blood. My blood to be precisely. The woman came closer with the bronze keys glittering in the dull light. I was past caring about the pain I felt as she took hold of my wings to drag me up from the floor, and unlocked the chains. Still laughing that insane, maniacal laugh, as always.
I thought to myself; this is my chance to escape. I thought when she had unlocked the last chain.
My mind responded in each and every way possible, and squirming with pain, but my body didn’t respond. Not at all. In fact; it simply had no strength to resist her brutal touch. Helplessly I let her carry me to the table where she let go of me.
“Now then… How do we make you pretty today, lad…?” she whispered those disgusting words while she leant forward. Her head with the black, greasy hair fell over me and I tried to get it off. However, my efforts were in vain, my body too sore to answer my commands.
“Oh my, so you’ve brought it out again?” the man had apparently come down without me noticing it.
“But of course, we still have so much to do with him!”
I despised them; those two humans shouldn’t even be called humans to begin with. I watched them with my eyes that had lost everything. My mind didn’t bother with listening to their discussion, why should it? They only tried to decide how they should make me look even “prettier” than what I already did.
A pair of grey tongs was what they apparently had chosen for today. The man took hold of me and held me tight, one hand gripped around my wing and the other around my chest. Those disgusting hands were weathered and strong; there was no way I could fight back.
“Stay still, little one…” the woman had that insane smile all over her face again and those muddy brown eyes had an even brighter maniacal gleam than usual.
She moved the tongs closer to my right wing and a part of me screamed to not look, but I couldn’t turn away either. One after one she removed my feathers. Each one hurt even more than the one before and for each one a drop of blood dripped down on the table. I couldn’t scream in pain, because my throat was far too dry to make a single sound. Both of them laughed their insane laughs, they seemed to enjoy it more than sual. But I did not enjoy it, no, not at all.
I reasoned with myself; I want to kill them. I want to end this. I thought as they started to remove one feather after another on my left wing too.
Their laughs echoed all around me and within my own mind, I couldn’t shut it out nor could I ignore the pain that made my whole body feel numb. When the two of them had removed my last feather, the man picked me up and threw me in my corner again. He didn’t even bother with putting the chains on me this time. I couldn’t move, so I decided to lay still and just wait. Just wait for the right time to escape from this hell they had cursed me to live.
“Sleep well, lad…” the woman was the last one to leave the chamber due to that she had to wash the tongs. “We’ll put your pretty feathers to good use while you rest.”

I must have fallen asleep even though my mind could not find rest. My body was still numb and I couldn’t move when I finally woke up. It was dark in the chamber, no lights were to be seen anywhere. Still, I could hear someone breathing in the darkness. I recognized that heavy breath, it was the man. Why had he come here all alone?
“You seem to be in quite much pain…” the man spoke now and thanks to that I could make out that he was right in front of me even though I couldn’t see him. “It’s such a shame… Shall I put you out of your misery?”
I thought to myself; good luck, I’m indestructible you know… I’m Za’afiel after all… I might break a little but I cannot break entirely. I thought grimly to myself. If I had been able to smile, I would have.
“Are you unable to respond?” the mad picked me up since I couldn’t resist. “… Allow me to assist you…”
After that it happened so fast. I felt a sting of pain in my chest as he stabbed me with a knife. I was still awake and alive as he dropped me and I hit the stone floor below. I laid there as he walked away from me, laughing that laugh I despised so much. Before I realized myself, I floated in the sky, watching myself laying in pitch black puddle of my own blood. Was I dead..? But that’s impossible, I couldn’t die…
My body had turned purple and it could no longer feel any pain, but the scar where the knife had sunk in still remained. My mind however did feel the pain and it did feel the hatred. As I watched myself I wowed to never forget; to never forgive; to take out my revenge on the ones who had made the last chapter of my life into hell.
I reasoned with myself; they’ll regret doing this to me… And they’ll never do this to anyone else ever again… I’ll haunt them and make sure they die in fear. I thought, a furious anger bubbling inside of me.
I, Za’afiel, was murdered that night so long ago and I never left those alone. I will never stop haunting the ones who cursed me to this existence.