"Kill him, kill him!" The words echoed, a whisper yet as piercing as a thousand clashing cymbals. I

could feel their malice. I smiled.

"He's a murderer-kill him!" The villagers roared, their voices unrelenting.

I slumped against the wall, my resistance already spent after grappling with officers who looked like they'd trained for this moment their entire lives. Then it came-the first stone. Sharp, searing pain shot through me, though it felt strangely distant, like the sting of a thorn. And then the deluge began. The stones pelted my skin, relentless,

furious, as though they carried the rage of the mob itself. Each strike chipped away a bit of his consciousness

Still, a part of me wondered-what does the afterlife look like? I wanted to see it.

l exhaled slowly, surrendering to the inevitable. My mind grew lighter as the weight of my worries faded. A satisfied smile spread across my

face.

And then... blackness.