"Leave her alone!" I yelled.
"Who? Oh. You mean your sister here?" they teased.
I chanced another look over at my sister. Blood ran down her face and neck, seeping out of the numerous cuts adorning her face. There were long slashes running down her arms and legs, and her back and abdomen were unrecognizable beyond being identified as a small mass covered in blood.
"Please!" I pleaded. "Dekatu didn't do anything to deserve this amount of torture. I did. Leaver her out of this. If anyone should be tortured, it should be me."
"Oh, but cutting up your family members is so much easier, and so much more torturous."
That shocked me into silence. When I finally found my voice my reply came out surprisingly calm, yet strong at the same time.
"What have you done to my family?"
"Oh, nothing. At least, nothing you need to worry about right now."
"Sendio, leave her. Clean your blade, and follow my lead."
The one called Sendio let go of my sister, and she fell to the floor, letting out a small whimper as she hit the floor. She had stopped screaming a long time ago and was probably so numb from the pain of the slashes that she couldn't feel them anymore. But when she hit the floor, she seemed to pass out, either from pain or exhastion. I was betting on both.
My focus returned to the two men heading towards me, blades in hand, malicious intent apparent in the expressions on their faces. I knew what was going to happen next. I knew I wasn't going to like it, but it was better than watching them torment my little sister. I also knew that it was going to be a lot worse than what I had just witnessed. But at least my sister would get a break from her torture.
"Stand up," the other one said, roughly grabbing my arm while Sendio grabbed the other.
I pushed myself to my feet, my head hanging while I closed my eyes and tried to control my breathing.
"Didn't your parents teach you manners? Stand up straight."
My body was racked with exhaution. I tried to stand up, but my body didn't seem to want to respond. If only it could understand what would happen if it didn't comply with the demands of my captors. I continued to slouch, forcing them to support my body as I almost fell forward onto the floor.
"Mitch?" Sendio said, obviously addressing the other man helping to support me.
Mitch's blade was soon pressed against my cheek, pressing ever so softly on my skin, threatening to break it. He dragged the knife down my cheek in such a way that it felt like fire being pressed onto a fresh wound as he cut a slice down my face.
The torture had begun.