"Is he dead? You didn't kill him did you?" Lizzy had dropped her whip, taking a few steps forwards. 'Calm down... He's not dead. He's not dead... He's just... Asleep.' Lizzy had slowly placed both her hands atop his shoulders before running them towards his neck. Silence filled the air, Lizzy's body becoming more and more pale. "He's... Alive..." She wished she could've lied. If she did, Tallory would've known... She would've called another guard to inspect. She'd make sure this was a fact before getting rid of it.
"Hah! Good! Splash him."
Lizzy released a breath of air. Trembling whilst reaching for the water bucket, she grabbed it. She splashed the water onto Mugen, bringing his pupils back to his lifeless eyes. The water washed away some of the bloodied layers. His deep wounds were revealed. Some even reaching the bone. A frown was present atop his face, eyes soft and lifeless with little to no energy for thought or action. Lost in the midst of fatigue and stress, he was going insane. Ofcourse, he had endured the pain but to be fair... This young man's mind was slowly but surely shattering.
"I don't get it. Why don't you scream hmm? Why be so stubborn? Your country is far beyond unreachable. It's nothing to be honest." Tallory shrugs with what she had left of arms. "Let's be honest now, your fighting for a lost country. Let's say you do win this revolt. What then? Time will just repeat itself. Our home country will just retake your land." Mugen had mustered up the semblance of mind to comprehend her speech. What she said made sense. Mugen however, he wasn't one to work by the rules.
×If that happens, I'll just kill them too.×
Subconsciously, his mouth moved. Subconsciously, air emptied from his lungs. Subconsciously, he spoke what came first.
Mugen was pale. He had lost so much blood that one could truly question as to whether or not he's become delusional. "So that's how it is huh? Hah! To think I'd spare you with death otherwise." Tallory jumped to her feet. "Unchain him." She tells Lizzy. With weak eyes, Lizzy did as she was told. Mugen fell to the floor. His face slammed into the concrete, unable to stand due to his hand and leg bindings. Lifting his body, Lizzy pressed him against the wall whilst undoing his cuffs. She covered her nose as she did so.
The male's wrists and ankles were completely raw, the skin completely rubbed away. What was she doing? Why was she doing this? What in hell's name had the samurai done to have this done to them? These questions had flooded her mind. She was unable to understand the reasons behind this way of thinking.
Biting her bottom lip, she stood up, leaving the somewhat crippled figure on the floor. "Get the hammer." Lizzy's heart dropped. "H-Hammer? Uhm... I don't follow." Tallory narrowed her eyes and approached the female. "You don't understand, Liz-Liz?" She asked, frowning. "What rank are you, baby girl?" She whispered into her ear. "I-I am..."
"Shhhh... Say another word and I'll bite your ear off." She continued to say. Lizzy had grit her teeth, shaking in her very boots. "You see, Lizzy. I've been watching you. You don't want to hurt him do you?" She asked, but Lizzy hadn't answered. Sweat trickled down her face as the warden continued. "As a vice warden, you should be prepared to deal justice, no? How can the executioner have feelings for the executionee? Hmm?" There was a terrible silence between the two. "Well, answer... Don't worry. I won't bite." Lizzy opened her mouth slowly but couldn't say a thing. Her eyes had suddenly been filled with tears. Her body trembled. Was she to answer? Was she to stay quiet? Biting her bottom lip, she chose to keep her mouth shut.
"Good girl. See? It was hard but you did well following the rules. Now go get mommy the hammer and nails." Tallory's voice was soft and loving as she left the girl's ears.
"Yes ma'am!"
Is what she'd like to say. However, Lizzy was incapable of speaking. She had just walked off. There was a large sum of loyalty that was birthed when speaking to Tallory. In a way, the woman was Lizzy's mother. Someone she couldn't defy. Someone who she'd always fear until the very day she died. Lizzy turned away from the woman and began walking.
Her figure passed many cells, an empty glare rising to the ocassion as each inmate eyed her disgustingly. Most of said inmates were japanese. Not only such, but samurai to be exact. The ones who were cpatured after revolting. Ones who led a revolt against the now superior foreigners. With each clatter of her steps, a moment of her childhood had been brought in rays of clarity. She froze, her heart aching, pounding at every thought that raced through her mind.
"Come with me."
She heard Tallory's voice. Turning swiftly, she saw no one.
"Your brother is hungry isn't he? Where will he eat?"
Again, Tallory's voice had flared into her ears. But this time, she knew of what was happening. Raising her shaken hands, she hugged herself in an attempt to comfort what little sanity she had left. 'It's alright... It's ok... Just follow the rules. Just keep calm. You owe her your life. So just... Keep at it.' She thought to herself.
"Vice Warden." Lizzy turned slowly, a cell marked the number of '58' waiting before her. Lizzy, failing to compute with her sense of reasoning approached cautiously. "Help him. Please. I beg of you, help Sora." Yuki approached the cell's bars, veins pulsating from her very lower body up to her face. On her right side, her veins perked up, jerking to the side as blood flashed through the thin tubes. Lizzy had never seen the prisoner like this. It had taken her breath away. "If you don't, I'll kill her. That's a promise." Now, Tallory had another conflicting matter.
She bit her lip, realizing that this wasn't right. Was she truly going to kill Mugen? He's just a boy, right? Why would she commit to something like that? That's right... She doesn't have a choice. "I can't. My brother, I still have to protect him." Closing her eyes, Lizzy continued. "I won't let her harm you, nor your brother." Yuki continued, scratching her sharp nails against the rusting bars. Lizzy bit her bottom lip, turning her face to her in mild shock. Yuki sighed. The stress was building, and the veins only rose by many.
"I'm the only person you torture. When you do, we share something no? To say this is that you hate it here is an understatement, correct?" Yuki held her head down, hating to have to resort to this. "Trust me, Liz. Look around you. Tell me. Do you truly believe this is right? How long have you worked here? You mean to tell me that you believe everyone here's guilty?"
Those words had struck her like a bullet. "No... Yu-Yu... But... None of us have a choice. It's nothing we can control. I'll... I'll try something. But that's all I can say. I won't guarantee a thing." She bit her bottom lip and continued walking. "I'll give you ten minutes." Yuki rose both hands and stuck them out of the cell. "If he's not free by then, I'll chop off Tallory's legs then sew her mouth shut while she's conscious. I'll then rip her nails out like she did to Sora before feeding each and every one to her."
The thought had chilled Lizzy to the bone. Why? Why was she the one placed in this situation? Choosing between a mother and justice. The woman that raised her, that picked her off of the streets... Or the people who are in the right. The people who didn't deserve the pain and suffering spread towards them. These thoughts echoed throughout her skull. Her pace increased, she was unsure as to what was happening. What was she doing? Where was she?
Before she had realized it, she was already heading back to Mugen's cell. She had a hammer in one hand with a box of nails in the other. Her nerves went haywire. She was unsure of what she needed to do. Nearing closer and closer to the cell, her nostrils were reminded of the carnage she caused. She held her nose as she entered, stepping in a large puddle of blood that had taken it's leave from Mugen.
"There you are! Your finally back! Delightful." Tallory turned her head, a brazen smile taken to her face. "Now, you know what to do, don't you?" Lizzy didn't respond. She had simply turned to Mugen. He wasn't moving. He was barely breathing. He didn't stand a chance if she chose to kill him right now. But alas, she approached with a large amount of hesitation. "Make sure he never holds a sword again." Tallory said, a shit-eating grin plastered across her face. Lizzy knelt down to him. She trailed her hand from his sternum-revealed chest down to his lifeless, cold palms.
'Do it.'
'Don't do it.'
She took hold of his thumb before piercing his skin with the nail. Lining up the joint with the nail, she brought the hammer back.
'Do it.'
'Don't DO IT.'
She enhanced her grip, railing the hammer forwards before pulling back once more.
'Do it.'
'____ DO IT!'
She swung at full force, her mind going blank for a moment, "Warden Hammer?" She stopped, a bead of sweat racing down her face. "Yes?" - "Apologies for bothering you, but Vice Warden Rox has returned. He says he wishes to speak with you." Tallory turned her gaze at Lizzy then sighed. Taking to her feet, she cracked her neck. "Don't start yet. Wait till I get back. I wanna hear his screams." She stated as she left the cell, leaving the two by themselves.