III. Gibbet
"Even if the pain continues for eternity."
Seeing the two I most cared for in such a state only brought pain to my heart. I would have preferred the worst of tortures over it. I redirected my attention to the people below the gallows, fixing myself into a more presentable position. If I was to die, I would have preferred to leave with dignity.
Even so...
"Girls... Don't be scared. It'll be alright, okay?" A small smile was given, if only to bring reassurance to the two. Suddenly, I realized that someone had been speaking. Talking of my crimes, of my various tortures and only a fraction of the sinful lives taken by my grasps.
A question of comments.
"..One. I have one thing to say... Please listen closely to what will be my final words." I paused, looking down at the stool beneath my feet. When I look up once more, my eyes are met with hundreds of quiet citizens. But they, they are not my target. The target for my words are the two who I do not look at.
"...We are the daughters of the Lord of Torture. An end like this was always expected. So, it's alright... No need for tears if this was to be expected. Rack, Maiden, please do not cry. Everything will be alright, even if the pain continues for eternity." With that, I fell silent and pushed the stool away myself, using careful nudges of my feet.
No, I wouldn't dare allow anyone to kill me. Not even time itself. If anyone would take me out, I would do it myself.
A sharp and incomprehensible pain appeared as the rope tightened into place. At once, I lost consciousness. Ages later, as it seemed to me, I was awakened with a sharp preasure and a pain on my neck. Sharp pains shot from my neck downwards, slicing through branching lines in my body. I was already aware of a heavy thudding, sharp pulsations that beated almost too quickly for words. I looked around, and saw everything with a detail that was more akin to an eagle than a human. From my position, I could make out each individual hair on each individual head of each individual person. The air was not clear anymore, but filled with near microscopic sized insects.
Already, I was clearly understanding what was going on. Suffocation, the painful lack of air that was a favoured method of Maiden's, had crowned me as it's queen. Without the conscious awareness of it, I worked to move with the faint and fading hope of a precious gulp of air. I did not notice the sharp pains in my wrist as their bondages fell away, or the hands that flew to my neck and gripped at the rope. All it did was worsen the pain, leaving harsh and bloodied marks at my own neck while trying to grasp the thick twine!
A few sputtered chokes, my senses becoming sharper and sharper until I could make out even the distant cry of a baby bird a mile away. And yet, yet my true focus was on the once-more struggling girls- both of them now- trying to reach out to me. That wasn't how it was supposed to go!
"G... Gir..ls... N-no... Stay.. c...lm...! Do... n... cry...!" Each word, that brought only the worst of pains to my burning lungs, was spoken in a squeaked tone that hinted of my life's end.
"I.. l.. lov.. y..u... two..."
What had once been sharp senses were fading, quickly, into darkness and silence. Even the terrible pains and beatings were fading, much to my own relief. The edges of my vision tinged black, then white, and black again. The world fell away, as I had fallen from the stool.
Falling, falling...