4:
My name is Guard 273, and I am surely about to die.
The Commandant requested my presence. The guard I had called friend – Guard 278 – lay on the floor, his mind shattered from the heavy application of the collar. I felt … sad. But I knew, I would never end up in such a state.
I was obedient.
The Commandant ordered me to end his miserable life. Guard 278 could no longer be made to obey.
I raised the sword I was given.
Something … terrible filled my heart, filled my soul. I was frozen, unable to act, unable to move.
The Commandant knew my hesitation, I am sure. He used the collar, for the first time in years.
And still, I was unwilling – unable – to obey. I failed. Again and again, I failed. Tears filled my traitorous eyes, and I fell to the ground, and not from the pain of the collar.
The Commandant deemed me worthless.
He took the sword from me, and struck Guard 278 in my stead.
I am worthless.