Five young women walked towards a large fenced area. All in line from oldest to youngest. One with a sword in her belt. One with a long pole. One with a thick knife. One with an elegant fan. And one with nothing. All five had guns on the right side of the belt.
Dirt.
Filth.
Disease.
Flies.
Danger.
Pyongyang pulled her gun out and shot three times by the entrance.
Bang
Bang
Bang.
Everyone scrambled.
The strong pushed the weak.
And the weak crumbled.
Rason swiftly pulled out her knife. A straggler struggled to get up. With a forceful movement, he was stabbed in the back. The knife cruised up his back. Revealing flesh and bone. Cracks and blood curdling screams were produced while sharp bones filled the ground.
"Control yourself." Nampho's voice was low and filled with concentration.
Through gritted teeth Rason replied. "That's what he gets for being slow." The knife was carefully put back into its holster.
Sinuiju snapped the fan open and closed. "I hate this job..." A mutter came from her mouth.
A low, mature voice spoke up. "Be careful of how you speak." Pyongyang too hated it. Orders were orders.
In the back, Kaesong had her eyes half closed and half opened. Still had to see where you were going. The sights still sent chills to her bones.
Running up and down her spine.
A man was limping to where the others were going.
There was an almost invisible hesitation in Nampho. She quickly spun the pole around. Pyongyang and Rason bother ducking milliseconds before getting hit. The pole smacked the man's right leg and it came around and got his torso.
"Get up!" Her voice quickly rose. Nampho had learned to accept her horrible job.
A yelp with a crash.
He didn't move. The five walked past him with almost no care. Kaesong looked back and a small whimper came up.
In the distance, North watched with several officials. Hoping they wouldn't mess up. A slow deep breath was taken in.
"Let's try this again." A voice came from behind him. "Shall we?"
Only a small nod was produced. Disobeying the Dae Wonsu would be a poor decision.
Noises came from below and the official's attention turned. North's heart sank.
A line of able men and women had appeared. Rason angrily punched a man's face.
A strong hand grabbed Rason's shoulder and pulled her back. Through gritted teeth, Pyongyang spoke in her ear. "Keep… The fire… Down. Understand?" Her eyes were narrowed and concentrated on Rason's. She didn't wait for a response. Instead pulled her further back to where the other girls were standing. Her attention turned to the man and slowly walked over to him.
"I will give you one chance to live." Pyongyang grabbed the man's loose clothing and pulled him up from the ground. "Only one chance."
Years. Years of training. Perfection in her voice and eyes.
The man slowly was able to stand on his own. "One… One chance?"
Pyongyang patiently waited for his answer.
"You… You can not hinder…" Deep breaths were taken between words. "What is right… And what is wrong… You… Even gave me… A freedom to speak…"
She had enough. Swiftly taking her gun out, she bashed the man's head with the butt. "I never said I gave you a freedom."
He began to get up. A shuffling of feet could be heard from behind. Nampho grabbed Rason's arm and pulled her back. Excitement ran through Rason's body. One wrong move would set her off.
Pyongyang left the crumbled man and slowly walked down the line of prisoners. Carefully looking each one in the eye. "Each and every one of you knows why you are here." Reaching over to her sword and slowly sliding out of its holster. "And should not get along with us…" Now lifting the sword, she slid it by her right hip and stabbed the man she previously hit with the gun.
He didn't have much to his body. The sword went straight through his guts.
Pyongyang skewed the sword a little before pulling it out. "It's better to stay down."
Dark, black blood flowed out of the man. Falling onto his knees and in his own pool of blood. Long, pink tubes gushed.
Blood dripped down the long blade onto the barren ground. "Do any of you dare wish to speak against North Korea?"
Silence filled the air.
"I suggest you speak the truth." Pyongyang stopped in front four men. Eyes cold as icicles. Piercing and digging deep into their souls. "You four helped that man. Now explain why."
If abandonment was a crime, the four have committed numerous counts. The silence was growing louder by the second.
Pyongyang had lost all patience. She turned to her sisters and slowly nodded. Nampho let go of Rason's arm and pulled her gun out. Rason and Sinuiju followed. "I do not wish to see your faces any longer." Pyongyang clicked her gun and held it up in front of a man's face. The other girls came up behind Pyongyang and followed. One gun to each face.
Kaesong slowly put her hands to her ears. She moved further away. Not wanting to see anything.
"I will give one more chance for you four to speak the truth. Tell me why you would spread such capitalist junk." Pyongyang's voice was filled daggers.
One man opened his mouth. "It is not junk. It is what will free you!" Soon the others joined. The silence soon quieted and the air filled with desperate voices.
Only an exasperated sigh was produced. "You are lying." Her head nodded to the right.
A snicker came from Rason. "My favorite part."
The four guns went off.
Bang bang bang bang.
"I worry about you…" Nampho put her gun back and looked at Rason.
"Back to work." Pyongyang looked at the results and walked off. The three followed suit. Kaesong felt the air tighten around her lungs. It was no use trying to hide.
"Pyongyang is fine. As usual." The Dae Wonsu watched as the girls began to go to other parts of the camp. "the rest still need work."
North's body hurt. "I know…"
"Tell Nampho to step it up. I see potential."
"What more do you want from her?" North's voice shook. "It has taken her years to accept her job and years more to get to this point." He faced the Dae Wonsu, anger filled his heart. "What more do you want from her?" He controlled his voice from truly escaping.
"I want all four to reach Pyongyang's level."
"That's impossible! Pyongyang has trained far longer than all of them!" It was no use in hiding.
"I do not care. As long as you get them to be better." Dae Wonsu's eyes were filled with hatred. Far more than anyone else's. "Get Rason to calm down. If she keeps acting up, something will go wrong. I want Sinuiju to step up and do something. And Kaesong… If you don't do something. We will. She's pathetic." He spit the words out.
"I won't let you do that!" Kaesong was the only one with a pure heart. North wanted her to stay that way.
A leathered hand swept across North's face. "You have one month. Understand?"
Hot tears came up. Quickly blinking them away, he turned his head and slowly nodded.
"I am glad you understand." Dae Wonsu turned and walked away. The other officials followed the same suit.
North looked down at the camp and watched the five girls. There was nothing he could to protect them.
