Hey everyone, thanks for the reviews…good to be back from Tennessee, had lots of fun so enjoy the latest chapter….R&R
Had it been days? Weeks? Months? Maybe even a year? Erik had lost track of all time around him and found himself at the foot of abuse day after day. How badly he tried to escape the filthy cage that he was forced to stay in twenty four seven but failed to do so. He was Baba's newest attraction which swarmed in so many people a day that there was hardly ever a moment where someone wasn't staring at his distorted face. Baba stood beside the cage almost every second of the day yelling "Come, come in and see the Devil!" Erik was no longer called "the Devil's child." he was called the Devil himself which made his heart ache. Once people paid, they could stare at him, and through rotted food and animal feces at him. How past memories haunted his mind and hurt him so badly as each person stared and laughed at his disfigurement. Once the day was over and the money was over flowing the bucket that Baba put out he would leave Erik hungry and filthy to sleep in the grossly smelling cage.
Due to being filthy all the time bugs had started to eat away at Erik's chest and stomach causing infection to most of the bites and wounds on his flesh. He had lost weight and smelled worse than he had when he was a child. The hay which he lied in was wet, smelly and very uncomfortable to lie in. His body had grown weak from lack of nourishment and the bad infections on his flesh. "how much longer would he last? How many more people would stare at him and laugh at the distorted face that god himself had given him?" was all that Erik could think about..
It had been weeks since Christine's ship docked in Persia. She had spent endless days and nights searching for Erik but always came up short at the end of the day. She had rented out a room in a local inn and swore not to leave until Erik was found. "what if he was dead? Or hurt? Or just plane locked up in some prison somewhere?" was all that Christine could think about. She was beginning to loose all hope of ever finding him when one morning she awoke and looked out her window to see Philippe and some of his men sitting by a food stand. She rose from her bed and walked outside when Philippe noticed her and made no hesitation in approaching her in confusion. "my dear Christine, what are you doing here?" he asked. "on vacation." said Christine in disgust. "oh well you will be happy to know that the Opera Ghost will be haunting you no more." he replied. "how so?" asked Christine trying to hold back her fear. "we have captured him and placed him back in his natural habitat." said Philippe with a laugh. "natural habitat?" questioned Christine. "yes, come I shall show you." he replied. Christine followed Philippe, not being able to get to where he was fast enough. She then noticed that they were getting close to a crowd of people who were surrounding something. As Christine and Philippe pushed their way through the crowd, what was at the end devastated Christine to no end. There was her sweet Erik lying helplessly in a cage surrounded by filth and bugs along with people throwing things at him. She approached the bars and noticed that he wasn't even flinching at the objects that were hitting him or even paying attention to who was around him. "great isn't it?" questioned Philippe with a hardy laugh. "it's terrible to be treating him like an animal." said Christine. "where is your boyfriend? He might want to see this too." said Philippe. "he couldn't make it, he had to go away on business." said Christine. "will you meet me for dinner tonight?" asked Philippe. "not tonight." said Christine. "then tomorrow?" he asked. "maybe." said Christine. "maybe is a great answer." said Philippe. "why is he in that cage? Aren't you afraid of him escaping?" asked Christine. "twenty elephants couldn't escape out of that of they wanted to. The only way out of there is with the key." said Philippe. "I have to go." said Christine. "I shall see you tomorrow." said Philippe as he took a piece of rotted fruit and chucked it at Erik's body.
When night had fallen, Christine walked back to where she was earlier that day. The crowds had gone, leaving just Erik's cage and a tent with a man sitting outside of it. Christine approached Erik's cage and wanted to cry at the sight of him lying lifelessly on the dirty hay. She couldn't even tell that it was him because of how dirty and black his flesh was. "hey! If you want to look at the Devil you must pay me first!" yelled Baba from where he sat. Christine turned around and walked towards him, and said "why would you do that to him?" "because he's the Devil. Miss you have a lot to learn about him, he's…" "a genius." interrupted Christine angrily. "how on earth would you know that? I raised him, fed him and gave him a place to stay." said Baba. "no, you paid a man to capture him for this disgusting show of yours. He once lived in the greatest opera house in all of Pairs. His voice was amazing and the music that he wrote was more than perfect. His face is the shame that he must live with but putting him in something like this is just disgusting." said Christine.
Baba laughed and said "he killed my brother when he was a child, that monster deserves everything he gets." "he killed someone that I once loved too but I didn't put him in a freak show." said Christine. "go home miss, there is nothing you can do about it." said Baba. Christine stormed away in tears, and sat down on the steps of the inn that she was staying at. The shame and anger that was all built up inside Christine had just poured out into tears. "how am I ever going to save him now?" cried Christine as she buried her face in her hands. Just then she felt a tap on her shoulders and looked up to see a man in Persian robes standing beside her. "are you ok madam?" he asked in a soft tone of voice. "no, please just leave me alone." sobbed Christine as she buried her face back into her hands. "is there any way that I can help?" asked the man. "not unless you're the king of England." cried Christine. "well I don't know about a king, but I am a doctor." said the man. Christine looked up at the man and wiped her eyes. "my friend is trapped in this side show act and it's all my fault." "it wouldn't be the man with the distorted face now would it?" asked the man. "yes that's him, how do you know?" asked Christine. "madam, I think that everyone in town has paid to throw something at the man. Not me of course, I seriously think that it is appalling to do such a thing to someone." replied the man. "he's sick, I want to help him so badly." cried Christine. "I've seen that cage, it's tough enough to hold twenty elephants without getting loose. The only way to get him out is with the key." said the man. "could you help me?" asked Christine. The man smiled, and said "I shall, and only because I think what that man is doing to your friend is wrong. I'm Nadir by the way." Christine stood up and wiped her eyes. "Christine Daee." Nadir smiled, and said "come let us go to my room."
Christine followed Nadir to his room, where he began to mix a white powdery substance in a bowl. "what brings you to Persia?" asked Christine. "I am here on a mission to help some of the wounded Persians who got injured in the mining accident a week back, but I myself am a Persian. I live in another town pretty close to here so coming here to help was not a problem at all." he replied. "what's with the powder?" asked Christine. "well we have to get the key. One sniff of this and it would knock out a heard of zebras if needed." said Nadir as he poured the white powder into a small paper bag. "what are you going to do with it?" asked Christine. "wouldn't you like to know." laughed Nadir.
Outside, Nadir loaded up his horse, and helped Christine onto it. He then lead the way back to the tent where Baba was still sitting at the fire. "ok Christine, I am going to enter his camp and offer him a drink once he has fallen asleep we must move fast in order to save your friend." said Nadir. "thank you." said Christine. "thank me later." said Nadir as he entered Baba's camp.
Nadir entered the camp, and Baba looked at him, and said "get the hell out of here." "sorry sir, I am a nomad in need of some water and rest." said Nadir approaching Baba. "what do you have to offer me in return?" asked Baba. "whisky." said Nadir. "fare enough, I always said "A man with Whisky is a man of good taste." laughed Baba. Nadir smiled, and took out his flask full of whisky and said "do you have a glass?" Baba turned away for a second, giving Nadir the chance to pour the white powder in the flask. Once Baba held out his glass, Nadir poured the whisky into it. "I haven't had a drink of whisky in a long time." he replied. "enjoy." said Nadir as he looked over at Erik's lifeless body. "maybe the man in the cage would like some." suggested Nadir. Baba finished his glass, and said "he doesn't deserve anything, the worthless piece of garbage." at that moment Baba stood up and stumbled before falling to the ground with a loud thud. Nadir then grabbed the keys off of his belt and motioned Christine to come out from hiding.
They both approached the cage, and Nadir placed the key in the hole and unlocked it. "what now?" asked Christine. "stay with him, I'll get my horse." said Nadir. Christine touched Erik's dirty lifeless hand, and said "you're safe now Erik." Once Nadir brought his horse over to the cage, he motioned Christine to grab a hold of his arms. Nadir grabbed his legs, and lifted him up onto his horse before helping Christine onto it as well to hold onto Erik. Nadir then pulled Baba's body into the cage and locked the door and through the keys aside. "lets see how much you like it." he replied before leading his horse away. As Nadir's horse was walking, it stopped and chewed at something on the ground. "come now Dargona, this is no time for a snack." said Nadir as he pulled at his horse's rains. Just then Dargona lifted up his head and had something white and dirty in his mouth. Christine snatched it, and noticed that it was Erik's mask that the horse was chewing at.
Once Nadir and Christine got Erik back to her room, Nadir immediately tended to his wounds. "Christine, go get me a basin of water please." he replied. Christine grabbed the basin that was sitting on the dresser and filled it up with water as she was told to do. She then brought it back over to Nadir who was soaking a cloth in some sort of substance. "is he alive?" asked Christine. "yes but barley." he replied. "what's wrong with him?" asked Christine. "lots of things. Lack of nourishment, dehydration, tick and mosquito bites along with open wound infections." said Nadir. "the bites, will they heal?" asked Christine. "the bites will heal but I won't be able to tell if he caught a disease from them." said Nadir. "what can I do?" asked Christine. Nadir poured a thick liquid into the basin and said "I have done what I can for him, you must dab the bug bites with what's in the basin. Do it several times a day and only after you bath him, then you must nurse him back to health with food and water." "how can I ever thank you?" asked Christine. "don't leave the room, stay here and don't let anyone in or out. I leave in a few days and shall help you move him to where ever it is you are from. Each night I shall return to check up on him, thank me by keeping yourself safe." said Nadir.
Once Nadir had left, Christine took a wash cloth and cleaned his body of the filth and dirt that covered his flesh. He didn't move or make any kind of noise at all, which made Christine upset. Once his flesh was it's pale color once more she soaked a cloth in the basin and dabbed his small wounds with the medicine covered substance. Most of the bug bites were on his stomach and chest, consisting of dime sized holes in his flesh where the they had eaten away his skin. They were the least of Christine's worries, what worried her more were the mosquito bumps that covered his arms. In Persia mosquito bites were deadly due to the diseases and virus's they carried. Christine wanted to kick her self for ever getting herself into Raoul's funeral. If she hadn't gone to the funeral she wouldn't be in Persia fighting for Erik's and be back in Paris making love to him in his dark lair.
Erik awoke to the sight of Christine standing over him with a cloth dabbed up against his chest. "Christine?" he asked in the weakest state he had ever been in. "shh…I'm here." she replied. "my eyes hurt." cried Erik. "Erik please don't talk, you need to save your strength." said Christine. "water." was all that Erik could force himself to say. Christine immediately filled a glass with water and held it up to his lips as he drank it. "Erik, are you hungry?" asked Christine. Erik nodded, and relaxed himself up against the pillows that were placed under his neck and head. "go away Christine." moaned Erik. "what?" asked Christine as she prepared him a plate of fresh fruit and vegetables. "you…betrayed me." gasped Erik. "don't talk crazy like this Erik." said Christine. Erik pushed her away from him with as much strength as he could manage and said "you went to Raoul's funeral. You lied to….me….after I gave you my…virginity." "I shouldn't have gone Erik and for that all I can do is apologize. Raoul is dead and there is nothing left of him." said Christine. "Philippe." said Erik. "you're safe now Erik." said Christine.
Christine sat down next to him, and held up a grape to his lips. "eat Erik, you need your strength." "I'm too sick to eat." said Erik. "your body needs it." said Christine. Erik ate what she held out to him, and said "you shouldn't be near me. I might be contagious." "I don't care what you are Erik. I came out here to find you and I did, and now I'm never going to let you out of my sight." said Christine. "you don't love me Christine." said Erik. "now would I be here with you now if I didn't love you?" questioned Christine. "out of pity." snarled Erik as he turned from her. Christine looked down with sadness in her eyes and said "Erik, the pity left once I made love to you. There is only love and a few mistakes." "there are no mistakes." said Erik. "yes, me going to Raoul's funeral was one." said Christine. "no Christine, that is betrayal." said Erik. "I love you, please forgive me angel." begged Christine. "my heart can't take much more of your game playing. You try my patience all the time and it only makes me sick." said Erik. "one last chance Erik, please I want you, I want to be with you." said Christine. "you're an actress Christine and nothing more." said Erik. Christine began to cry, and sang to her angel of music.
"no ones more than perfect everyone but you.
I know I broke your heart now please just see me through…
I can be your lover be beside you every night. I'm here no one can harm
You those days are long gone. I can't hide the truth, the truth about
My love…it's Raoul he was my lover, my life and my lover. He's
Dead and buried…now please just love me too….it's you, you are my life,
My lover and my life…it should have been you, you from the start not Raoul or any other
Just you as my lover. I was too blind too blind to see it through, it's you
You in my life, you wanting me as your wife…."
Erik sobbed in pain, and began to sing back to his angel of music in such anger.
"Christine there's no such thing as mistakes, everything happens give
Or take. You were bound to love him once you saw his face, he's
Beauty, beauty beyond me because pity's not your taste. Nothing more than passion,
Is all I'll ever need and you lying beside me wanting what love means.
If I were much handsome you'd want me every night, making love in darkness
Under the pale moonlight. You did it out of pity, pity of my flesh. You knew
What woman, what woman would want make love to this horrid mesh?"
Christine blew out the candles, and lied down next to Erik's body and touched his distorted flesh. "oh Erik I know mad at me, just please don't t\hate me." "you do everything out of pity Christine. I can't be with a woman who is only with me because she is willing to show me what I'll never have. I need a woman who will be there for me because she wants to be. If every time I look at you and see you as my prisoner then I'd rather not have love." Cried Erik. "I won't lie to you Erik, I did love Raoul. He was my childhood sweetheart how could I not love him? But the childhood sweetheart left him leaving only hatred and the lust for me. You loved me ever since the say I came to live at the opera house and you still love me." said Christine. "I was stupid to ever think that a beautiful girl would ever love a man like me." cried Erik. "could I confess something to you?" asked Christine. "what?" cried Erik. "a few weeks ago after Raoul's funeral his brother read the will. Raoul left me everything he owns and gave me to his brother like some piece of property." said Christine. "you belong to someone else?" asked Erik. "I didn't go Erik, I chose to stay with you because I want to be with you." said Christine. "you still belong to Philippe though." said Erik. "I don't care about that anymore Erik, I want to be with you an no one else." said Christine. "I'm too sick to care right now Christine. All I want to do is sleep and get better and if Philippe wants you then I suggest that you go to him." said Erik. "I won't because I love you." said Christine. Erik rolled over and said "we shall see."
More to come soon….R&R