A/N - After one year in silent development, I believe this story is finally ready to be shared. It is not a sequel to In His Own Stars, though it does take place in the same universe. I will be making tweaks along the way, so as you follow me in this journey, please share your feedback with me. Now, please enjoy this new entry:
Where Angel Fears to Tread
Part One of the Tides of Leehrra Saga
Where Angel Fears to Tread
Chapter 0
Savoring the Silence
"Tell me your sins." A rancorous sound in the dim cell. Tired eyes find the figure standing above. Repentant voice failing to speak. "Relinquish your sorrows." Subtle shift in the air. "It will improve you." An empty promise for an empty body.
Binding iron chains clattering. Empty noise fails to drown out the sound. "Save yourself." Tired eyes wander along the concrete floor. The dim bulb burning above too brightly. Hairline fractures scattering among the concrete foundation. "Only through me will you find salvation." A web of cracks.
Salvation. A laugh. The figure cocks its head. Revulsion. Chains rattling in disgust. One fracture bifurcating, tracing two paths to the cell door, copper in the weak light.
A sigh. "This is your own doing. You can save yourself—remember that. It is your choice alone that keeps you in here." The shuffling away of an unwanted guest. Savoring the noise. A sliver of white. The door opening, iron in the harsh light. "Please reconsider your obstinacy. No good will come from it." The blackness resuming.
The concrete is cool, inviting. Burning cheeks are grateful. A thumping echoes from far away. Thinking of them. Of one. Cheeks growing hotter. Thumping is closer. Heart thumping. Loud. Fast.
Missing the sun. The warm caresses of dusk. The sand shifting between splayed toes. The others ebullient on the beach. The crystal waves shattering. One serene on the beach. Repentant voice failing to speak.
A sliver of light. Heart thumping. Frightened. Two shadows enter the darkness.
"Well, 'ello there, how ya doin'?" one slurs. Fermented stenches sicken the already fetid air.
"Look at it," the other says. Lazy gaits as they walk about the cell. Different from the one before. Less demure. Less caring. Less careful. One nearly falls on the web of cracks. The other giggles.
"Hey now, shaddup!" it barks. Giggling dying. It crouches. Eyes meeting. "We're gonna take you for a bit o' a trip…howzat sound?" Its turn to chuckle. "C'mon, up ya go!" One chain falls away.
Enough energy for a slash. Claws glinting in sparse light. Sparks as it connects.
"Ow! Damn it! Put it back on th' chain!"
Swinging claws. Following the fermented stenches. More sparks. Tearing. Gripping flesh. One of them yelps.
"C'mon, bind it up in 'em!"
The chain coils. Pinning arms. Flexing, squirming against the metal pressing into flesh. A thump. Falling.
"Hey, nice swing 'ere, guy…aight, looks like we got it good. Pick it up…yeah, you…cuz I'm the super'or officer, tha's why."
The other wrist is free. Squirming resumes. But the chain holds fast. Up into the fetid air. Stronger stenches bellowing. "There we go…now tha's bett'r, yeah?" Door creaking wide open.
Light explodes. White dazzles. Head throbbing. Blinking tired eyes. Moving. Two gray figures holding tightly. They walk, stumble, away from the cell. The door, iron in the harsh light, closes behind them. A soft glow pours over it. "Yeah, it'll be much bett'r where yer goin'."
Disbelief. Struggling blindly. Endlessly. Fruitlessly.
Room after room. Barren. Only the three of them in the hallways. Plodding somewhere. Heart thumping. Louder. Faster. Struggling again. A jab of pain dazzles. Limp body. Tired eyes blink.
Chains slither away. Arms moving. A shimmering curtain. Pounding against it. Pleading with it. Endlessly. Fruitlessly. The two stand away. The air is fresh.
"Man, is this the right thing'a be doin'?" one ventures too late.
"Yeah, these things're dangerous! We can't keep it 'round here anymore. This is fer the good'a errybody…trus' me!"
"Yessir!" Giggling again.
A rancorous sound in the shimmering cell. Tell me your sins. On the beach. In the warm caresses of dusk. Thinking of them. Relinquish your sorrows. Of one. Heart thumping. Frightened.
A rush.
Solitude. No sound. No giggles. Savoring the silence. Tired eyes wander along the emptiness. The dim star burning above too brightly. The door, copper in the weak light, closing. The blackness resuming.
Salvation. Repentant voice fails to speak. Cheeks growing colder. Heart thumping. Quieter. Slower.
Finding the sun. The cool caresses of an alien dawn. The sands shifting between another's toes far below. The crystal waves shattering far away.
Tell me your sins. For them. Relinquish your sorrows. For one.
Solitude in the alien dawn. No sound. No voice. Savoring the silence.
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For good measure:
Disclaimer: This story is a fictional work. Any references to any persons, living or dead, are coincidental. This fiction is intended for personal consumption. It is not intended for commercial sale or distribution. "Stitch" and all related media © The Walt Disney Company. All other media included in this work © Euphonemes.
