The morning sun hit the stone floor of the servant's quarters with a cheerful brightness that Elian found personally offensive.
He woke up on his straw mattress, his back aching, his heart feeling like a bruised peach. There was no warm Alpha body curled around him. No smell of cedar and rain. Just the smell of unwashed socks and the snoring of the stable boy three bunks down.
Elian stared at the ceiling.
[Current Hearts: 14 / 1000][Current LP: 5][Time Until Death: 92 Hours, 00 Minutes.]
"Ninety-two hours," Elian whispered, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "I slept away eight hours of my life. It wasn't even good sleep."
He dragged himself out of bed. His body felt heavy, not just with exhaustion, but with the phantom weight of memories that only he held.
Cassian remembered none of it.
"Right," Elian slapped his cheeks. "Pity party over. Time to go to work."
