Atonement
"Leave us alone, leave us both the hell alone!", hoarse voice, tears in eyes.
"James!", another piercing scream of terror called in vain. The screams were ended swiftly, her eyes opened so wide in that sudden moment of pain.
"No! Maria!", James screached in response.
The blood mixed with her tears and slowly dripped down her face.
The two figures either side of the now lifeless body stood perfectly still, as if they were statues.
Statues, inanimate objects that felt no remorse. They slaughtered, tortured and degraded without fear or consequence.
They stood without expression, or any sign of emotion for that matter.
Face, that is, if they even head a face, was constantly shrouded from view by a menacing triangular helm.
No face, no expression, no emotion.
They stood high above James, he stood in thier shadow. They stood as though they there were gods, gods of divine retribution.
Trembling in thier shadows he was frozen with fear, finally confronted. But was he ready, was he prepared? Was he ready to face his judgement?
All he'd done, all he'd learnt of had come down to this point in time.
"To atone for my sins...", he whispered, sighing the words out from the depths of his being.
As he gently spoke the demonic Pyramid Head gods from the depths of his darkest nightmare advanced.
With methodical and deliberate steps they drew closer to James, closer to his destiny.
James wished he could be as the beings, free from guilt and remorse.
But he was mere human and the emotions overwhelmed him. Built up, higher and highed, they rose before finally collapsing with full devastating force, like looming waves on a calm beach.
And it was now, now with its unmeasurable and complete force that it hit him.
He braced himself as they approached, in his mind he ran. Ran as far away as he could. Attempting to escape the pain, mentally and what would surely soon be, physically.
He left his body frozen, perfectly still. His body stood without his mind as he silently willed himself to remain as such.
With what remained of his fractured mind however he wished that it would be quick, prayed the pain wouldn't last.
They neared James now, it seemed to take an eternity.
Still, still and silent he remained as they readied thier deadly spears, still dripping with Maria's fresh, crimson blood.
That would be the last thing he saw.
"Mary...", he began to whispered as he clenched his eyes shut, "I'm sorry...".
His body instinctivly flinched as he heard the spears ripping through flesh. Ending life... Stopping it completely, right were it stood.
He slowly opened his eyes, he felt no pain.
He searched his body with his hands, he felt no wounds.
He searched his mind, he found no answers.
As he slowly regained awareness his eyes became fixated. Fixated on the Pryamid Head demons... Fixated on the spears.
They had pierced flesh, but it wasn't his, it was thier own.
Question ran hot through his mind as he stood, shocked.
He felt his stomach rise and his eyes sting with newly forming tears.
"Why?!", he growled savagely.
Why didn't they kill him, punish him? Why did they do this?
"Mary... Mary, Mary, Mary!", he repeated the name again and again as he dropped to his knees, screaming through the tears and pain.
He was spared, however psychologically scarred.
He would rather be dead.
Dead like Mary... "Mary...", he finally sighed.