The Edge
by Autumn Win-Dow
(AoGA House Cup. Words: 600)
You knelt on the ground, ignoring the slight pain you felt in your knees when they contacted the small but sharp rocks on the ground. You couldn't get back up – you couldn't even raise your head and stare in the eyes at the very people of whom you betrayed. As you knelt down in front of them, you could feel their condemning glares on you, as if you were being pushed down onto the ground – and it was impossible to rise from your stance.
You wanted to ask them if they knew why you had committed such a heinous crime. You felt like you were going mad, restless, restrained – all because of your wish for the ultimate vengeance.
An eye for an eye.
A life for a life.
A death for a death.
All you could do was glance to your right, where your partner in your crime knelt beside you. Initially, you had absolutely no clue why she looked so calm as she knelt – her pride was usually stronger than a brick wall, yet she had no objections to kneeling down in front of the 'menial citizens' who once apparently never needed to receive her sympathies or apologies.
But as you looked closer, you could tell that she was not at all sorry.
Hotaru Imai never regretted the decisions she made – not even the act of murder. Because unlike you, she carefully thought about her decisions while weighing her options, but for this act of vengeance, she was absolutely definite. You had never seen her make such a confident, quick decision in your life.
Sometimes, you wondered if her rage was even stronger and out of control as yours, even when she was much better at hiding it.
It was like she was happy, ever since that day.
Her face was content. She had finally done the deed which satisfied her feelings of vengeance.
She was even happy with dying.
You suddenly felt a heavy weight on your shoulders. While Hotaru was able to stare in the eyes of the enraged citizens and spit out an obvious lie, you couldn't even look up. It was as if something was holding you back, pushing you down with enough force to keep you still in your position. Your hair hung in front of your eyes, creating a dark curtain between your eyes and theirs. You scratched your wrists as you felt a sudden itchy sensation, and the more you scratched, the more it started to hurt and tear at your skin.
In the end, you couldn't move an inch. Your jaw was tense, your neck was hunched, your wrists were aching.
Like Hotaru, you didn't regret your actions, no matter how hard it was to look up.
How could you regret your actions, when the man whose blood was on your hands was also a killer? The killer of your best friend and your lover? Two people who never deserved to die in the harsh world, but had their lives taken away from them in an instant?
Even to the day of your death, you knew you would never regret such an evil decision. Killing never solved anything, but you could only laugh at this sudden relief you felt.
Had you ever felt this evil? Being happy over a death which you committed was against all laws of goodwill, but in the end, you didn't care anymore.
"Off with his head."
You died laughing, as you briefly felt the razor sharp blade of the guillotine touch the hairs on your neck.