Deep to the north of the island was a sacred hill that non of the villagers dared even approach as it was said to have the spirit of their god 'Were', when the missionaries came, they blocked off the routes that led there stating that, 'You have disgraced the one and true god, any and all crimes committed are punishable by death or enslavement, choose wisely'
It was then turned into a place for the holy knights and arch bishops to stay when they were in the village, away from those filthy commoners as they described it.
A tavern was set above, where the men would drink themselves silly and indulge in manly desires, such as sex, gambling and the occasional wresting on wooden benches. Ah yes indeed, what a lavish lifestyle to lead in these troubling times.
As the men partied on top, they had no idea what was happening about 16 feet below them. Gil's screams were drowned out by their chanting.
"Now, now. No need to be so loud sonny." An old man in old brown rags said, his voice low, "Yer will attract the ghosts that live in this here dungeon."
"Wait, their ghosts in here?" Beside him was Justine to his left and Angel to his right.
"Get a hold of yourself, its embarrassing." Angel glared at him her hands crossed behind her back.
In the old man's hands was a metal rod they used for branding cattle. He dipped it in hot coals and the metal edge glow a light orange in the shape of a thunderbolt.
"They like to roam the halls at night." The old man continued, "If it weren't for those there maniacs at the top you could hear their whispers."
"You can't be serious." Justine began looking around, "How the hell am I going to torture something that doesn't feel pain?"
"Hey old geezer, can you hurry and wrap this up, I can't stand being in the same air space as this idiot." Angel commanded, "I'll pay you twice if you do."
The old man didn't need to hear anymore, "It'll be over in just a minute sonny."
Gil hung off chains tied to his wrist. Stripped off his clothes down to his underwear. The hot metal came in contact with the left side of his chest.
AAHH!
Pain surged throughout his entire body as he let out a loud cry, still drowned out by the party animals upstairs. His voice cracked as he chocked, and in an instant the pain disappeared and he was left there staring at a red mark now embedded forever on his skin.
"The branding in finished." Said the old man, "Now he won't be able to leave yer sight ever again, even in death."
He handed over the metal brand, "Just make sure to take good care of this, otherwise…" He let out a sneeze.
"Otherwise…" Justine urged.
"Otherwise what?"
"We don't know, weren't you suppose to tell us?" Angel was clearly not in the mood for this.
"Oh, I can't remember, but he'll probably die if you break it… I think."
"You think?" Justine sighed, 'And she says am the idiot.'
"Release him." Angel ordered staring directly at him.
"Geez, I didn't know you were my superior now." He rolled his eyes.
" An order from mother, not mine, do you want to disrespect her?"
Justine moved, "Goddamn women, why can't we go back to the time when the only thing you did was have kids and cook." He complained as he pulled out a bunch of keys from his rugged pockets. Shuffling through each one, until he found it.
"Sexist piece of shit." Angle spat back at him.
"Well, its better than being a damn dog for an owner that doesn't love you."
He opened both locks that held Gil's arms up. Making him fall face first into a puddle of his own blood.
"What the fuck did you just say to me!" She stormed over to confront him. "Prick."
"Calm down little lady," He shoved her back, "This isn't a pagent, I'll fucking kill you. I suggest you know your place before coming at me again."
"Fuck you!" She clenched her fists and moved, shoving the old man out of the way.
"Must have struck a nerve." Justine walked back to the man, "So you leaving or…"
"Or?"
"I don't know, I wanna close up shop and head out, drink a little, then get the hell away from this country as fast as I can."
"You're leaving?"
"No use staying, I've inflicted as much pain to the citizens of this place as I can. No use sticking around."
"So, I should leave as well?"
"Do you wanna stay?"
The old man turned and quietly made his way through the dark corridor, disappearing as he went up the spiral staircase.
Justine chuckled to himself as he locked the doors.
COUGH!
Gil let out a loud cough as now turned to his back, 'What makes you so special?' He wondered.
"Born into this world with nothing to give, joining the church to try and fill a role you could never and quickly realizing that that which you thought was righteous was nothing more than a hoax. Actually, I lied, you already knew that, the village you lived in before, weren't their priests who did nothing but take too? Were you waiting for a dusk? Waiting for a dawn? Instead, you got a never-ending nightfall. Why did you join the church?"[1]
Gil said nothing, Justine squatted, "If you can't be honest with yourself, then just die."
"There's no point in living with false ambitions and lying to yourself that their true. You know why you joined don't you? You know your true intentions, don't live for someone else's ambitions, but I guess you can't see right now, its too dark."
KILL YOURSELF!
"Don't waste your time."
With that, he left spitting into a pool forming from the cracks that let in sewage water. Just like that Gil was left alone. He had no idea how long he was in there for, everywhere was dark. Occasionally he'd hear footsteps as a guard bringing food in an old bowl with holes at the bottom. However the contents of the bowl was something he himself would never see, as he often huddled in a corner slowly waiting to go insane.
The bishop tried hitting him back, but as air in his lungs began to toxify he no longer had the strength to fight back. Gil could only remember the smile he had on his face, a crooked one. And even when Justine told him all those things, unknown to both of them, that smile was on his face.
"I would do it again."
NO.6 END!
TO BE CONTINUED
[1] I'm wondering if this makes sense or if i'm just making shit up at this point