I opened the door. Cilith stood in front of me, breathless.
"Is everything alright?" I ask, concerned for once.
"We released the marked set, things got out of hand, they went berserk, they killed about 10 of us before we managed to lock them all in one of the rooms." She said catching her breath.
I refused to believe what she was saying.
"How many did you release?" I asked following her to the room they were kept in.
"100" She replied.
"Any children among them?" I asked my heart already racing.
"About 20".
"What exactly did you do to them?" I said as I heard their screams of agony, hunger and revenge - echoing like ghosts clawing at the edges of my sanity.
"Unexplainable things, experiments." She replied afraid to reveal more.
"You don't want me to do something i'll regret". I said - a warning maybe the truth.
"Their blood was used as food for the king, it made him eternal. their skin was ripped of them to make masks for the hithers sent to earth, to make them look like one of the hunaam. Their children kept away from them to experiment on them, tearing them apart from limp to limp....The pretty ones taken by the king to..." she paused looking away, unable to speak. "To?" I urged. "To be consumated, and to be treated as as his personal slaves.
I stood there unable to speak, unable to process what she had told me.
"Open the door and stand back, I don't want a single soul to be in sight of me."
The door is opened.
The sight before me makes my sould leave my body, leaves me gasping for air, for sanity.
They sit there, devouring the deceased bodies, covered in blood - Black, some with silver.
They freeze upon seeing me. Making me wonder how I'm any different from the oblivions they attacked - Killed. How they see me. Wishing not the same way as I do.
I closed the door behind me, it was just me and the 100 people feasting on bodies, on flesh - souls.
"Stop" I said my voice on the verge of breaking, the smell of blood intoxicating, Heavy holding me captive, making me almost gasp for air.
"Why" I started, struggling to find words. "Don't" I continued as I released the breath that had stilled. "You are safe now, no one will dare hurt you any more .And you are not to harm the oblivions by any means." I looked around scanning their faces.
There was an odd expression on their faces, something new.
It wasn't fear.
Nor was it horror or guilt
It was recognition.
"You are one of us" A voice among them spoke.
"I want all the children gathered on one side the rest on the other, now" I demanded.
Pain striking my chest as though someone had put a dagger through it.
They shuffled around, gathering into groups.
My eyes landed on a girl, she was sitting on the ground her knees hugging her chest, hands covering her ears. Terrified. A bit younger than me maybe.
"I was scared before you came, I'm alright now" The voice bounced in my head as the memory flashed time after time.
I managed to escape it as I went toward the girl sitting on the ground. I held out my hand for her to reach. She looked up at me eyes brimming with tears, cheeks stained, clothes soaked with blood and ragged. Her shaky hands took mine as I brought her up to her feet. I pulled her into my arms as she cried out into my chest her body trembling, repeating the same words over and over; "I had no choice".
"It's alright, you're gonna be alright now." I said patting her back.
She let go of me first. She looked like someone I knew. Someone hiding, too afraid to come out again.
I gave her the comfort I wish I'd received, but did I do the right thing?
"Soon enough I will be sending you back to your homes - As for the time being you are to follow my orders."
I said feeling each pair of eyes glued on me.
I opened the door as I let cilith in. "She will take you to your respective rooms, go clean." I said to the group of all adults. "I will be taking the childrens with me, you have made it clear, they can't be trusted with you." I said waiting a minute for any defiance. I left the room. Leading the children into mine, My mind filled with a million thoughts one shining the brightest among them, "Can they be trusted with me?" The question appearing bigger with each passing second.
"Alright each one of you, go get cleaned up one after the other." I said my voice soft my heart breaking for them. They all nodded finishing the food I gave them.
They got nervous hearing that, I bent down to their level my hands on two of their shoulders my eyes taking in their innocent faces.
"Don't worry, no ones gonna hurt you, I promise" I said holding out my pinky. Their tensed bodies relaxed as all of them rushed to link their pinky with mine.
"Know do you want to stay in the same room or groups or what?" I asked once they all cleaned up.
"Please don't separate us" A little girl spoke among them.
"Same room it is, I said looking at her, giving her a small smile. Their faces immediately lit up.
"Get them settled in the room beside mine, do not bother them, rather make sure they stay safe" I said to the guard escorting the kids to the room.
"Please don't leave us" a little boy said behind me, just as I was about to leave.
"I'll be back as soon as I can, till then you rest, ok?" I said, closing the door after receiving his tiny nod.
I came to a stop in the middle of the hallway as I turned toward the guard.
"Gather the council members in the arena, oh don't forget to tell them to bring their families along with them. I said to the guard heading to the basement.
I walked along the citadel looking for cilith, when I finally found her.
"Cilith. Have you gotten them settled?" I asked
"Yes, but what about the others?" She asked her lips twitching every so slightly.
"If you are referring to the ones in the basement, keep them there for the time being, however I want the ones that are released to be treated with gentleness, especially the children." I said walking to the arena.
"Yes I already informed them about that." She said clearly confused for as to why I was walking to the arena.
"Oh call upon the entire empire to be present here, I'd like to make an example." I said,
My voice dripping venom for the first time.
I could feel the fear and confusion settling into her heart. Exactly how it should be.
"Example for what" She asked cautiously her voice a whisper.
"You'll know soon enough" I declared stepping into the arena finding the crowd already starting to gather around it, the council members standing in the very place I... .. killed. In the ashes of those they called the symbol of strength.
I headed to the man, he brought his wife with him.
"Do you love you wife" I asked my head slightly tilting to get a better look at her. She was beautiful indeed.
"I love her with all my life."
"Oh, is that so?" I said waiting for a response. That makes it perfect.
I walked toward the broken, burnt dagger still hanging on that wall and picked it up.
"Kill yourself or kill her, don't and you both die." I said not out loud, inside his head, it whispered in there in a loop until I made it come to a stop. "You have five minutes." I said out loud this time. My voice cold, dangerous.