H

e stood alone at the back of the cell with his hands chained together and his legs chained to the floor, still decked out in the armor that over the past few years had become his final anchor to reality. No inch of his flesh, interior or exterior, had escaped examination. They had even stolen the poison gas capsule under his right thumbnail. Bastards. Vermin. Worthy of far worse than he could deliver. There was just enough give in the chains on his legs for him to contort into a sitting position but his mind was far away, so he kept standing.

Seething hatred swirled in his eyes as he stared forward. Frothing, roaring, wordless. It had been subdued by the promise of revenge but was now untethered and roamed free, filling every corner of his mind. Threatening to never subside. He pulled hard and sudden against the chains on his wrists and was met with only distant pain. Outside the cell there was the sound of an opening door. The guard snapped to attention.

Into view came three people. Soldier, advisor, and Her. His jaw clenched hard enough to rattle his skull. They spoke briefly but he couldn't hear it over his anger. If not for these damned chains. He stared at Her with rage boiling over and She looked back at him with no expression. Murderer! The guard jumped. Soldier and advisor looked to each other in discomfort. Advisor whispered something long to Her. "NO".

The room was getting warmer. "NO". It was a denial of all he had been. A curse on all that remained. He looked into Her eyes. Something flickered in there. Soldier shifted its weight forward, sniffed and scratched its face. Nervous. It touched the gun on its hip to be sure exactly where it was. The air was almost too hot to breathe.

She spoke and the guard saluted, moved towards the cell door. An exhale. Jingling and then heavy clunks. Her eyes were still fixed on him. All at once he realized his chains were red-hot and steaming. She took a step forward and he saw the soles of her boots had melted, sticking to the floor and lifting up in amorphous clumps.

Bloodred flame was about Her. It was too bright to look at but he could not look away. She lifted her arms. Soldier and advisor went up like paper. Then the guard, the bars, the walls, the floor, the ceiling, his chains. Only him and Her floating in a burning void. The flames licked at his heels but there was no pain.

She floated towards him. The fire was in Her eyes. In the black of Her pupils he saw his feet engulfed and burned. He could not move. All you are will be consumed and the ashes will sit on your throne. She ripped the helmet from his head and it buckled in the heat, collapsed in on itself and disappeared. Aureliano, do you understand? She cradled his head in Her hands. Do you understand? The hatred in his gaze had been replaced by something else. She needed an answer. His legs were burning away but he still couldn’t feel anything. When he opened his mouth to speak flame rushed in, and he could feel himself burning from the inside out.

The guard pushed the door open and the trio entered the cell. Soldier tried to position in front of Her, but was pushed to the side as She continued forward. Advisor remained by the bars. She stopped a few paces from Aureliano. Just far enough to be out of reach. He felt heat radiating from Her but there was none. She bowed shortly.
“Lord Vitali.”
She waited for him to respond. He did not.
“I apologize for this indignity. We had no more suitable accommodations available on such short notice. Perhaps you might announce yourself with a missive instead of mortar fire in the future?”
Aureliano wrenched his gaze from Her and scanned the room. Nothing was out of place.
“How did you do that?”
She followed his gaze around the room.
“Do what?”