Nameless

I have been burned before. It was when I was a child carelessly touching the stove while my mother cooked. I remember the feeling. An indescribable hot, stinging covering my skin. It really hurt, but that pain was nothing compared to this. My tears didn’t have time to fall from my eyes before they evaporated. Well, at least that was my theory.

The last thing I remember was Afi’s eyes glowing with the reflection of fire. A crude grin on his paper pale face. His almost black eyes glimmering with mischief. “You’re hated,” he told me gripping my shoulders, pushing me backwards. “No one is going to miss you, Kari. That’s why you’re perfect for this experiment.” I struggled to get free. Fear clutching my heart.

“Wha-what do you mean?” I stammered trying to find traction so he couldn’t bring me back any further. He laughed. His face taking on a sickening look of power.

“Oh you’ll find out soon enough. Freak.” he spit out. My back started to heat up, and sweat trickled down my spine. My grip on the ground loosened, and I knew I was going to fall.

“Please don’t do this!” I begged him starting to feel the lump in my throat. It was hard to breath, especially with the smoky smell contaminating the air. I desperately grabbed at any sort of hope. My body started to shake. “Please…” my voice cracked. My vision started to get blurry.

“You poor girl. Enjoy hell!” He pushed me to the edge letting go, a wicked smile on his face, glowing orange against his crazed eyes. I screamed out reaching for his jacket before my body started to burn, a sickening smell entering the air.

Pain is all I knew. I couldn’t hear, smell, or see. Because four of my were senses eliminated, it intensified the one that still worked, touch.

My hatred burned hotter than the flames consuming my body. He will not be forgotten.

The world went blank.

Like a shadow following your every move, the pain of my burns haunted me. My vision returned through smoky lenses. I seemed to be floating above the world. What’s going on? I lifted my hands to my face only seeing smoke. What the… am I even human? I looked at my surroundings seeing Afi covering his mouth in disgust. My rage boiled inside me. He burned me alive. I can’t believe it. What kind of human would do that? And for what? A science experiment? I raced towards him. He glanced up and screamed stumbling away.

“What is that? What did you do?” a shaking voice pierced through his screams.

“I-I don’t know!” he stammered his black eyes wide with fear. You burned me alive! I tried to scream, but nothing came out. Emptiness filled my body, and I stopped moving. What have I become? A monster? Their screams of fear faded to background noises, and eventually they were gone.

I wandered around sensing that something wasn’t right.. Afi doesn’t have fully black eyes, and his friends are too afraid to blame him. The world isn’t tinted red, and clouds aren’t black.

“There it is!” someone exclaimed. I turned abruptly seeing the villagers pointing guns at me, “Open fire!” One of them yelled gesturing to me. I flinched as the bullet tore right through me, but felt nothing. What? I glanced down at the spot where the bullet went through but saw nothing. I looked at the people that shot me, their faces blank with confusion.

“Not another one of these.” A girl emerged from the crowd, “I told you it’s the smoke figures. It’s not a human. Your mortal weapons will not harm it.” I looked at her, her short blonde hair bouncing with every step. I tried to form the words, “what do you mean?” but once again, nothing came out.

“Nina, not one of your Enenra folklore's again.”

“It’s not a folklore. Can’t you see? It’s right in front of you,” she gestured to me. The villagers left seeming to be annoyed with her theories. She stared at the floor, her blue eyes reflecting her pain. “You are in the unknown. The place where everyone goes when they have not come to peace with their death. You especially, because of your form.” She then turned and walked away disappearing on the the horizon.

Visions of my living life came to mind like blurry paintings. A girl with long black hair, left out. Snickers of classmates as they passed her. Afi pushing her into the fire, and parents that were never there. Even though I have no eyes, I still felt the tears of understanding fall from my face, and at that moment my burns disappeared. A feeling of peace entered my body. I have let go.