Disclaimer: Not mine. Don't claim to own it. Nope. Nada. Zip. Zilch. But I do owe a thanks to Lisa who helped me with ideas for this chapter! Smooches!
Erik did not sleep a single wink that entire night after his little chat with the Khanum. He paced back and forth in the irritating silence of his bedchambers, wishing for some sort of cataclysmic interruption to break the quiet. He threw things across the room in frustration, hoping that the noise would quiet his thoughts. Nadir's words bored into the back of his head, as did the memory of his face as he envisioned the torture chamber in full swing.
He looked out the window. It was nearly daybreak. At noon, Alkhir Fhacaad, would be brought out into the courtyard, humiliated, pelted with rubbish and filth, and then loaded into the mirrored room where he would suffer for many hours before choosing to take his life in the hangman's noose.
Erik kicked at a pillow that had fallen off the bed. "What do I care?" he said out loud to himself. "So what if he should die. Everyone deserves to die sometime!"
With every thought, Erik tried to berate himself into believing that he was not responsible for the executions that would take place in that machine, but the Khanum had a way with words. It was as if her reptilian eyes could see his soul's deepest and darkest secrets. So deep that he himself did not realize them until she put them before his very eyes. At a length, he dropped down on the divan, exhausted from his inner fight to deny what she had said about him, and accepted the fact; He enjoyed killing.
Yes, he realized, he did enjoy taking a man's life, if only to revenge himself upon mankind for the fate of his face. He so hated everyone else for living normal lives that when he killed, to him it was a sort of consolation prize. Murder was his escape, his vent to the frustrations of his life.
But now he would not be the one doing the killing. That chamber, which lie so forlornly in the courtyard, one might mistake it for a strange enclosed gazebo, would be the murderer from now on. The man, who makes a pistol, is not responsible for who is shot by it. With this sudden realization, he threw his mask up into the air, laughing. The Khanum was a fool. Because she would forever be entertained by pieces of glass and steel killing people with stifling heat, she would no longer require him to entertain her with his skills in battle. He was free at last!
With this happy thought, he retrieve the mask from where it had fallen but with a thought, put it on the table and set about making a new mask to wear. He had to look his best for the ceremony.
Erik appeared in the doorway of the Khanum's chamber with a newfound confidence in himself. His new black mask shined in the sunlight that had begun to pour itself in through the latticework windows. The expression on his new false face was one of malice and evil. He donned his magician's performance cloak and a special tunic of red silk for the occasion.
"Ah," she exclaimed, "Don't we look dashing in our new attire. I trust you are well prepared for the execution today."
Erik bowed mockingly, grinning behind his mask, "Of course, Madame."
"Good. But before the spectator's congest my courtyard, I should like to see the chamber myself."
"You wish for a private viewing then?" Erik asked optimistically.
"Yes. Show me how it works."
Erik could not have hoped for a better situation, "After you," he gestured for her to go and he would follow.
The Khanum stood outside the mechanism, eyeing it suspiciously. "You call this contraption a torture chamber?" she said contemptuously after banging on it experimentally with her beaded fist.
"Yes," Erik said, wishing he could bind her hands so she could not touch it again.
"It hardly looks impressive to me."
"Really? Last night you were calling it a marvelous machine, if I do remember correctly," Erik retorted.
"Well, one can hardly see properly in the dark."
Erik gritted his teeth together and took a deep breath to suppress his anger. He opened the door on the side for her to see. "You see, the victim is put into the center ring of the chamber, then the door is locked and sealed to assure that no heat escapes. Then this lever is pulled to begin the revolving of the inner and outer chambers. The automat..."
She stared at him dumbly.
"You don't understand do you?" Erik asked impatiently.
She huffed, "Of course I understand! In fact, I'll just see for myself!" With that she stepped inside the chamber and looked around at the reflecting glass walls that all showed her image and the iron tree standing in the corner.
Erik watched her eyeing the inner chamber with the scrutinizing gaze of an incompetent.
"It probably doesn't even work!" she said smartly, flipping the noose aside with her hand.
A cold memory from somewhere in his past screamed at him and he suddenly snapped. He lunged at the chamber door, just as she was about to exit it, shutting it in her face. He heard her angry shouts echoing in the room as her fists pounded on the glass door.
"Let me out you little demon! I'll have your head for this! Let me out!" she howled.
He stood outside, smiling intensely and pondering, "Do I let her out or keep her in there for awhile?" He shrugged his shoulders and called back to her, "You said you wanted to see how it works! Let me give you a proper demonstration!"
And with that, he flipped the center lever down and presently heard the cranking of the gears as they started the rotation and heat. He heard a great thump as she lost her balance, no doubt crashing into the far wall as the dizzying affect of the spinning glass set in quickly.
Erik pulled the second lever and waited for the screams to begin. Right on cue, he heard her start to scream for help, randomly banging on the walls of the rotating glass, now unsure of where the door had been. Erik knew exactly what she saw. First it would be the decapitated monkey, second the disemboweled man, followed by a short procession of other disgustingly tasteless images come to life. After only a moment, her screams shortened to little yelps of surprise and choking sobs to be let out.
Erik waited a few more moments before returning the levers to their resting position. When the inner chamber came to a halt, he reached up and opened the door to let her out, but only a small crack. He walked away from the courtyard before she could come to her senses enough emerge. He knew in the back of his mind the penalty that awaited him for such an outrage against her but strangely, he did not care. It had been well worth it to hear her plead for help.
At eleven thirty, he appeared in all his grandeur in the courtyard. The crowd that had gathered to witness the execution of the first victim in the torture chamber threatened to suffocate the small space. There were people on the rooftops, hanging over banisters and out windows. Erik made his way through the tight crowd, which amazingly enough, parted quite far to let him through. His eyes trailed nervously up to the Khanum's balcony. She had not yet appeared.
Before the main attraction began, there were jugglers and fire-eaters to entertain the crowd, as well as the pre-tortures of several other prisoners who would follow Alkhir Fhacaad. At long last, Erik looked at his pocket watch and saw that noon had come. He heard the drums from the guards as they marched Alkhir into the arena in shackles. The poor man looked half dead already. He could hardly walk on his own, Erik noted, as they had beaten him severely in the prison. Erik looked up when he heard the crowd cheer. The Khanum had appeared, veiled and surrounded by her servant girls, on her private balcony. She raised her hand to silence the crowd and delivered a speech, which Erik was not concentrating on. Although she spoke to the crowd, she stared directly at him the entire time, making him very glad for the presence of his bodyguards.
When she was finished, Erik grandly gestured for the man to be escorted into the chamber. He turned to the crowd and began to weave a Romany spell, then fire spouted from his bare hands and with a flourish, he produced a black raven seemingly from thin air. The crowd hushed in awe and fear at the sure sign of death in the hands of the Khanum's favored servant.
Erik held his hand up to quiet everyone as he slowly made his way to the side of the chamber that held the control levers. The Khanum waited tensely for him to pull the first switch, as she watched Alkhir Fhacaad through the glass rooftop of the chamber. Erik raised his arms high above his head and very suddenly clapped his hands together. In a bright explosion of sparks and smoke, he disappeared into thin air!
After a moment of shock, a hushed murmur ran through the crowd and the Khanum lowered her slit eyes and clenched her hands on the balcony in sheer anger. Her servant down below looked up at her for guidance and she nodded only once for him to pull the switch on the chamber. She did not stay to watch. Her need for vengeful wrath was too great to enjoy the entertainment now. Erik had privately and now publicly humiliated her and his disobedience would not go unpunished!
Erik did not sleep a single wink that entire night after his little chat with the Khanum. He paced back and forth in the irritating silence of his bedchambers, wishing for some sort of cataclysmic interruption to break the quiet. He threw things across the room in frustration, hoping that the noise would quiet his thoughts. Nadir's words bored into the back of his head, as did the memory of his face as he envisioned the torture chamber in full swing.
He looked out the window. It was nearly daybreak. At noon, Alkhir Fhacaad, would be brought out into the courtyard, humiliated, pelted with rubbish and filth, and then loaded into the mirrored room where he would suffer for many hours before choosing to take his life in the hangman's noose.
Erik kicked at a pillow that had fallen off the bed. "What do I care?" he said out loud to himself. "So what if he should die. Everyone deserves to die sometime!"
With every thought, Erik tried to berate himself into believing that he was not responsible for the executions that would take place in that machine, but the Khanum had a way with words. It was as if her reptilian eyes could see his soul's deepest and darkest secrets. So deep that he himself did not realize them until she put them before his very eyes. At a length, he dropped down on the divan, exhausted from his inner fight to deny what she had said about him, and accepted the fact; He enjoyed killing.
Yes, he realized, he did enjoy taking a man's life, if only to revenge himself upon mankind for the fate of his face. He so hated everyone else for living normal lives that when he killed, to him it was a sort of consolation prize. Murder was his escape, his vent to the frustrations of his life.
But now he would not be the one doing the killing. That chamber, which lie so forlornly in the courtyard, one might mistake it for a strange enclosed gazebo, would be the murderer from now on. The man, who makes a pistol, is not responsible for who is shot by it. With this sudden realization, he threw his mask up into the air, laughing. The Khanum was a fool. Because she would forever be entertained by pieces of glass and steel killing people with stifling heat, she would no longer require him to entertain her with his skills in battle. He was free at last!
With this happy thought, he retrieve the mask from where it had fallen but with a thought, put it on the table and set about making a new mask to wear. He had to look his best for the ceremony.
Erik appeared in the doorway of the Khanum's chamber with a newfound confidence in himself. His new black mask shined in the sunlight that had begun to pour itself in through the latticework windows. The expression on his new false face was one of malice and evil. He donned his magician's performance cloak and a special tunic of red silk for the occasion.
"Ah," she exclaimed, "Don't we look dashing in our new attire. I trust you are well prepared for the execution today."
Erik bowed mockingly, grinning behind his mask, "Of course, Madame."
"Good. But before the spectator's congest my courtyard, I should like to see the chamber myself."
"You wish for a private viewing then?" Erik asked optimistically.
"Yes. Show me how it works."
Erik could not have hoped for a better situation, "After you," he gestured for her to go and he would follow.
The Khanum stood outside the mechanism, eyeing it suspiciously. "You call this contraption a torture chamber?" she said contemptuously after banging on it experimentally with her beaded fist.
"Yes," Erik said, wishing he could bind her hands so she could not touch it again.
"It hardly looks impressive to me."
"Really? Last night you were calling it a marvelous machine, if I do remember correctly," Erik retorted.
"Well, one can hardly see properly in the dark."
Erik gritted his teeth together and took a deep breath to suppress his anger. He opened the door on the side for her to see. "You see, the victim is put into the center ring of the chamber, then the door is locked and sealed to assure that no heat escapes. Then this lever is pulled to begin the revolving of the inner and outer chambers. The automat..."
She stared at him dumbly.
"You don't understand do you?" Erik asked impatiently.
She huffed, "Of course I understand! In fact, I'll just see for myself!" With that she stepped inside the chamber and looked around at the reflecting glass walls that all showed her image and the iron tree standing in the corner.
Erik watched her eyeing the inner chamber with the scrutinizing gaze of an incompetent.
"It probably doesn't even work!" she said smartly, flipping the noose aside with her hand.
A cold memory from somewhere in his past screamed at him and he suddenly snapped. He lunged at the chamber door, just as she was about to exit it, shutting it in her face. He heard her angry shouts echoing in the room as her fists pounded on the glass door.
"Let me out you little demon! I'll have your head for this! Let me out!" she howled.
He stood outside, smiling intensely and pondering, "Do I let her out or keep her in there for awhile?" He shrugged his shoulders and called back to her, "You said you wanted to see how it works! Let me give you a proper demonstration!"
And with that, he flipped the center lever down and presently heard the cranking of the gears as they started the rotation and heat. He heard a great thump as she lost her balance, no doubt crashing into the far wall as the dizzying affect of the spinning glass set in quickly.
Erik pulled the second lever and waited for the screams to begin. Right on cue, he heard her start to scream for help, randomly banging on the walls of the rotating glass, now unsure of where the door had been. Erik knew exactly what she saw. First it would be the decapitated monkey, second the disemboweled man, followed by a short procession of other disgustingly tasteless images come to life. After only a moment, her screams shortened to little yelps of surprise and choking sobs to be let out.
Erik waited a few more moments before returning the levers to their resting position. When the inner chamber came to a halt, he reached up and opened the door to let her out, but only a small crack. He walked away from the courtyard before she could come to her senses enough emerge. He knew in the back of his mind the penalty that awaited him for such an outrage against her but strangely, he did not care. It had been well worth it to hear her plead for help.
At eleven thirty, he appeared in all his grandeur in the courtyard. The crowd that had gathered to witness the execution of the first victim in the torture chamber threatened to suffocate the small space. There were people on the rooftops, hanging over banisters and out windows. Erik made his way through the tight crowd, which amazingly enough, parted quite far to let him through. His eyes trailed nervously up to the Khanum's balcony. She had not yet appeared.
Before the main attraction began, there were jugglers and fire-eaters to entertain the crowd, as well as the pre-tortures of several other prisoners who would follow Alkhir Fhacaad. At long last, Erik looked at his pocket watch and saw that noon had come. He heard the drums from the guards as they marched Alkhir into the arena in shackles. The poor man looked half dead already. He could hardly walk on his own, Erik noted, as they had beaten him severely in the prison. Erik looked up when he heard the crowd cheer. The Khanum had appeared, veiled and surrounded by her servant girls, on her private balcony. She raised her hand to silence the crowd and delivered a speech, which Erik was not concentrating on. Although she spoke to the crowd, she stared directly at him the entire time, making him very glad for the presence of his bodyguards.
When she was finished, Erik grandly gestured for the man to be escorted into the chamber. He turned to the crowd and began to weave a Romany spell, then fire spouted from his bare hands and with a flourish, he produced a black raven seemingly from thin air. The crowd hushed in awe and fear at the sure sign of death in the hands of the Khanum's favored servant.
Erik held his hand up to quiet everyone as he slowly made his way to the side of the chamber that held the control levers. The Khanum waited tensely for him to pull the first switch, as she watched Alkhir Fhacaad through the glass rooftop of the chamber. Erik raised his arms high above his head and very suddenly clapped his hands together. In a bright explosion of sparks and smoke, he disappeared into thin air!
After a moment of shock, a hushed murmur ran through the crowd and the Khanum lowered her slit eyes and clenched her hands on the balcony in sheer anger. Her servant down below looked up at her for guidance and she nodded only once for him to pull the switch on the chamber. She did not stay to watch. Her need for vengeful wrath was too great to enjoy the entertainment now. Erik had privately and now publicly humiliated her and his disobedience would not go unpunished!