The Tapestry of the End

The young man slowly opened his leaden eyelids. A sharp herbal scent hit his nose. He cast his blue eyes around the half-empty room, frantically trying to piece together the information with his current situation.

"So... Where am I?" he asked himself as he tried to stand.

CLINK

The metallic clang cut through the surrounding silence. Looking down, he saw the shackles binding his wrists and legs again. In panic, he jerked, feeling the cold metal press against his skin. He tried to remember how he got here, but the only memory that flashed through his mind was the failed escape attempt.

The room was dimly lit, with the only light source being an old, intricately carved metal lamp, which only heightened the feeling of oppression. Scattered papers lay on the table next to him, seemingly filled with notes. He reached out, but the shackles hindered him.

"I need to get free," he thought, reaching for the table again. Every movement was difficult, but he knew he couldn't remain in the dark. His eyes fell on one of the unfinished pages: scrawled in untidy handwriting were the words:

"The subject, surprisingly, has no essence. For further experiments, the subject must regain consciousness."

"What does that mean?" he whispered to himself, studying the scribbles. Suddenly, he heard footsteps behind the door. His heart raced, and he pressed against the wall, trying to blend in. The door opened slightly, and a male figure appeared in the doorway.

"I see you're awake," he said.

"Wh-who are you?"

"My name is Morris," he said with a slight smile, walking towards the prisoner. His face was unusually calm, his gaze wary.

"Why am I here?" the young man blurted out.

"I bought you," came the immediate reply.

"You see... I believe you are the key to something big. A man without essence... ha-ha-ha-ha... it even sounds absurd," he continued, stepping closer.

"How does your body even work? Does it use something else or just look like ours on the outside? Different muscle structure? Bones? Organs? Or something completely different?"

The young man froze, listening to Morris's words, his mind racing between fear and confusion. The questions multiplied, and panic grew.

"What the hell are you talking about? What key? I'm just a person!" he said desperately.

Morris squinted as if assessing him. "A person, yes. But you're not quite ordinary. I observed you while you were unconscious. It's remarkable how your body reacted to the simplest spell. The average person would be immobilized for only a few minutes, but you were out for several days."

The young man gritted his teeth, trying to focus. "Essence... what even is that?"

"A complex question. For most, it's something internal, something that defines their life force, the link between body and soul," Morris leaned in closer, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

The frightened young man backed away, pressing against the wall.

"Don't worry or resist, I won't harm you. Well... as much as possible. After all, I bought you for a fortune, get it? It would be very disappointing if you broke," Morris said with a smirk.

"Here. Drink this, and once our experiments are over, I'll let you go," Morris said in a monotonous, calming voice, holding a small vial with a thick, dark green liquid.

"What the hell is this?"

"What difference does it make? Even if I tell you, you wouldn't understand."

"I'm not drinking this crap!"

"Ugh... why is it so difficult with you? Isn't cooperation something conceivable for you? This is in your best interest, why resist?" Morris muttered to himself, putting on black leather gloves.

WHACK

Turning, he grabbed the young man by the neck and slammed him against the wall.

"Just drink this shit and don't complicate my life," he said irritably, forcibly opening the young man's mouth and pouring the dark green liquid in.

Gulp

Gulp

Having no other choice, the young man drank the liquid. As soon as it hit his stomach, his terrified consciousness became muddled, everything blurred before his eyes, and an unpleasant ringing filled his ears. A second later, he collapsed, losing consciousness again.

=====

"Damn it..." the pale young man said, opening his heavy eyelids. Glancing around with his hazy vision, he realized he was in a different room, lying on something like an operating table. His hands, legs, and torso were immobilized with tightly bound straps.

"Oh... I see you're finally awake," Morris said, standing in the corner, rummaging through some strange instruments.

"You know, you were supposed to be paralyzed for only 10 minutes, but you were out for an hour. It's fascinating how your body reacts to substances containing essence. An ordinary person fully recovers in just 10 or 15 minutes. Do you think I should reduce the dosage? Or change the composition? Must note this down!" he said, starting to rummage through a drawer.

Pulling out a small but thick notebook, he began writing, speaking aloud:

"Interaction of the subject with essence-containing substances leads to loss of consciousness. It is necessary to consider reducing the dosage or changing the components of the substance."

"Let me go right now, you bastard!" the young man shouted, struggling to break free.

"Of course! Just let me put away the notebook!" Morris said sarcastically, putting the notebook in his pocket and turning to the instruments, putting something on his hands.

"Well then... let's start our experiments!" he said, turning to the young man and baring his white teeth in a half-crazy smile. In his hands, covered in white gloves, gleamed a vial with a purple liquid.

"Since your body shuts down when interacting with essence, let's see what happens if we put its concentrate in you," he said, approaching and forcibly opening the young man's mouth, pouring the liquid in.

As soon as the insipid and viscous substance hit his stomach, his entire body was pierced with sharp pain. It felt as if countless tiny needles were stabbing every millimeter of his body, both inside and out. He writhed on the table, trying to cope with the excruciating spasms rising from the depths of his abdomen.

Morris stood nearby, watching the young man's reaction with curiosity. "Interesting reaction. Hm... I expected you to pass out when essence entered your body, but rejection? This is fascinating," he said with satisfaction.

While his subject writhed on the table, Morris began jotting down his thoughts in the notebook again:

"The subject's body reacts to essence concentrate with severe pain and spasms. Instead of losing consciousness, a pronounced rejection is observed, opening new research possibilities."

=====

A minute passed... the second, the third. Finally, the young man's body stopped convulsing.

"Well. For further research, we need to see the body's reaction to restorative potions," Morris announced, pulling out a small vial with dark blue liquid.

The young man wearily turned his head, looking towards his tormentor with tired, tear-filled eyes.

"Don't look at me like that. I don't like this either, I'm doing it solely for scientific purposes," Morris said in an emotionless voice, pouring the potion into the young man's mouth.

The sweet-bitter liquid coursing down his throat marked the beginning of a new session of hellish pain.