Celia Elliott
"Come on, must you walk so slowly?!"
The guards shouted at me, annoyed at my slow pace. I tried to pick up my pace, but it felt like I was walking over sharp thorns, in contrast to the smooth wooden boards beneath me.
I let out a small hiss because of the pain, furrowing my eyebrows together. I can't help remembering what happened yesterday, how my vision is blurred with red.
They say they are the righteous, yet down below, where none could see, they pick up their whips, the needles they requested from their sweet, loving wives and put them onto the guilty and innocent.
Once you've been down there, you would know that the small, bruised wounds meant nothing down here. They'd shed off their kind masks, and reveal their true twisted nature. The guards would release all of their anger, all of their sadness all in one, single whip.
Just one, and all you can see is red.
Yet you hear no screaming.
The only sound you can hear are joyous laughter, ringing throughout the whole space under.
I never thought I'd end up in a place like this.
But I can't say I'm surprised.
To the outside world, I'm the spoiled daughter of Count Elliott, a noble who only loved pleasures and wonder. I'm the spawn of the devil, so wicked that I'd attempt to poison my father just so I could inherit his title and riches. So wicked I'd push my kind, beautiful sister down the stairs because I'm jealous of her.
But in truth-
Something hit my head, sending a constant ringing I can't get rid of. Then, a rotten, pungent smell went right up my nose. It's a smell that makes your stomach turn, vomit piling up inside. I suppressed my urge to vomit, trying to keep up with the unfriendly guards while reaching up to touch my uncleaned, messy hair.
Ah.. it's a rotten egg.
The crowd seemed to be encouraged by whoever who threw the rotten egg at me, as more and more of disgusting, rotten things got thrown towards me. My limbs were frail and weak, and I didn't have the energy to dodge any of it, but luckily, they had bad aiming. However, some of those rotten things still caught me, tainting my used to be white gown with all kinds of colors, with the majority being green.
With the hour coming closer and closer, it was doubtful I'd reach the execution site in time. An officer came to my direction, and said something to the tall, sly looking guard walking beside me. He somehow resembled a rat.
The guard who resembled a rat quickly frowned when he heard what the officer said, eying me from head to toe, then rolled his eyes. The officer must have told him to drag me over to the execution site, seeing how he walked up to me and tried to find a clean spot for him to hold.
With no where he can put his hands on, he took a rough, thick rope and tied it around my hands. The rope was then pulled with great force on the other side, causing me to lose my balance and dropped onto to ground.
Thud.
The guard didn't seem to be too bothered though. He continued to drag me along with the rope in his hands, my right cheek brushing against the wooden floor. It didn't take long for it to start burning.
I don't know how long he dragged me around for, but we finally reached the site when the sun is at it's peak. My body is now covered with bruises from head to toe, caused by banging into objects whenever the guard took a turn. I gently carassed my right cheek, still burning. I even felt blood.
Dong.
The town clock chimed as the hour has come. The guards standing around me then quickly got me up and forcefully made me kneel in front of the whole audience, placing my head onto the wooden board right in front of me. The officer shouted something towards the audience, but I wasn't focused on that right then.
There's... children in the crowd.
Their parents didn't seem to mind their beloveds watching a young woman's head getting cut off before their very eyes. I attempted to form a small smile on my lips towards a baby in the crowd, one that seemed so very innocent. But my smile must have been crooked, as the baby burst into tears immediately after making eye contact with me.
Shame.
I closed my eyes, waiting for the blade to come forth.
As the clock chimed it's last, I too, have reached my last. The feeling of death wasn't as painful as I imagined. All I felt was first a small, sharp pain in my neck before everything became cold. The metal blade felt cold. The wooden floor felt cold. The warm sun... also felt cold.
Unlike in the stories I've been told, I don't feel the pull of gravity that's supposed to make my head drop onto the ground. Instead, I felt like I was floating, with all of the pains of my wounds disappearing one by one.
For some reason, I can feel my eyes again. Slowly, I opened my eyes, but all I can see is... nothing. I tried blinking my eyes, making sure that my eyes aren't still closed.
What is this place?
I stood up. Indeed, all of the wounds are gone, and I can walk freely again. But no matter where I walked, which direction I turned to, this place doesn't seem to have an end. Suddenly, I lost my foothold, my entire body falling down towards the abyss below.
Then, the nothingness formed into squares of different sizes, showing different scenes in each. I know what those scenes are. These are all my memories.
Then, a hand seemed to caught me, and gently lifted me up. I was placed on a small platform, with only a door in front of me.
"Go." A gentle voice said, coming from all directions.
Hesitantly, I placed my hand onto the doorknob, and twisted it open.
Then, it was all bright.