Chapter 14: Oil, Nerves, and Gears Part 1
[The screen is black. Nothing happens for a while until a voice is heard]
Narrator: This is a story that takes place in a time when life wasn't chaotic. This tale concerns a child's path from sincerity into despisement. This is the tale of Sergio Sinestro.
[Intro]
[34 years ago. Somewhere in the Italian countryside, an orphanage sits in the middle of a lush green meadow. We see the inside of the orphanage as the kids run around the building with the young nuns chasing them while we see a room of kids being taught the bible by the elder nuns. The daily lives of the orphanage are interrupted by several knocks at the door. One such nun named Sister Mastramina opens the door]
Sister Mastramina: Hello. Hello.
Abbess Sophia: Who is it, Mina?
Sister Mastramina: I don't know but I'm suggesting it has to do with this basket
[The sister takes off the veil and reveals a child underneath some sheets. A note is found with the baby as one nun reads]
Sister Julia: "Please take care of him. He was an accident that my lover made out of arrogance. His name is Sergio, by the way. Sorry."
Abbess Sophia: Another child left behind. Even in this world of ours, nobody wants to be a parent anymore.
Sister Mastramina: Even so, we can't assume the worst out of people. We must have hope, abbess.
Abbess Sophia: Fine. You, Mina, are responsible for the welfare of this orphan. You will make sure he's fed, educated, and raised to be a god-fearing, responsible, and educated member of our beloved institution.
Sister Mastramina: Yes, Superior!
Abbess Sophia: (muttering) And you better embrace the old ways like most of us in this orphanage!
Sister Mastramina: Don't worry my child. We will give you a nice home, a good education, and, under God's warm embrace, a wonderful life.
[Sergio coos at Mastramina as she enters the building.]
Sister Julia: Careful, sister. Abbess Sophia might hear us.
[1 year passes and Sergio crawls to the nuns and tries to talk for the first time.]
Sergio: Ma. Ma. Ma.
Sister Leah: Sister? I think young Sergio wants to speak to us.
[The nuns circle the child as he tries to say words]
Sergio. Ma. Ma. Mama.
Sister Leah: Mama? Is he saying that we are his mother?
Sister Julia: I think so?
Sister Mastramina: Oh, Sergio. I'm not your mother. I'm just a humble nun who's loving and caring to all the children in the orphanage.
Sergio: Mama.
Sister Julia: Shh! Careful, Sergio. Abbess Sophia might hear us.
Abbess Sophia: Mastramina! Julia! Leah! What is the meaning of this?!
Sister Julia: Sergio is just beginning to talk, Superior.
Abbess Sophia: Oh, really! Sergio! Can you say Jesus Christ!?
Sergio: Mama.
[The abbess is shocked by his utterings]
Abbess Sophia: Such insolence! He refuses to say anything besides mama! How can such a child say blasphemous words in the presence of the lord himself!
Sister Mastramina: Superior, I think you are over exaggerating. Sergio is just learning to talk. His vocabulary is too limited to say Jesus Christ himself.
Sister Julia: She's right, superior. Children at his age are just accommodating with their surroundings so he might not say the right words at this time.
Abbess Sophia: Alright. But I expect him to say "Hail Mary" by the time he's 4!
[Sister Mastramina continues to teach Sergio to speak while Sophia retreats to her quarters]
Abbess Sophia: Dear Lord, please help me retain my grip in this orphanage. I fear my traditional ways will perish under Mastramina and her progressive attitudes! My work in keeping the old ways flourish is what continues my mission with providing the orphanage anything beyond reliance on machines. I fear for Sergio's safety and that her actions will lead him to a road towards wickedness if left unchecked. Please provide me with the strength I need to lead Sergio to a path of enlightenment. Praise to God!
[A year passes. Sergio, now 2, continues trying to impress Abbess Sophia with his development]
Abbess Sophia: What is it Sergio?
Sergio: Mama. Look. I can walk now!
Abbess Sophia: (disappointment sigh) Sergio. I am not your mother! I am your superior! I also demand that you start saying Jesus Christ in my presence!
Sergio: But mama, I can walk now.
Abbess Sophia: Fine! You can walk. Now, say Jesus Christ and maybe I can look at you with excitement!
[Abbess Sophia walks away in a huff, leaving Sergio very sad before a nun comes to his aid]
Sergio: But . . . I can walk, mama.
Sister Mina: Don't be sad, Sergio. The abbess just wants you to follow the ways of our orphanage. In due time, you will see her in a different light.
[Two years later. Sergio, now 4, is in the dining hall with a bowl of porridge along with several other orphans who are eating their meal. Sergio, however, takes his bowl, goes outside, puts his bowl on the ground, starts a fire in a clay oven, sprinkles some stuff on the bowl before putting it inside, waits for it to puff up, takes it out and eats the porridge turned bread joyfully before some kids find out and tell. Sister Mastramina responds.]
Sister Mastramina: Sergio. Did you make bread in this oven?
Sergio: Yes, sister. I created a yeast mixture that can make any bread dough turn into a loaf without any unnecessary wait time. In the end, we have this nice focaccia for lunch.
Sister Mastramina: Sergio, this is a blessing. Your gift from God almighty has shown me the light of your genius. Oh, Sergio, I can only say . . .
[Suddenly, the focaccia Sergio holds gets knocked off his hands, a splash of water sizzles the oven fire, the clay oven gets destroyed afterwards and Abbess Sophia glares at Sergio angrily]
Abbess Sophia: Satanismo! How dare you violate God's laws by creating an unholy presence in the eyes of our Lord!? Have you no shame!? Do you not understand why "good things come to those who wait"!?
[She immediately crams a spoon of porridge in his mouth and then slams an entire stockpot of porridge on the ground]
Abbess Sophia: You will eat the entire pot of porridge until you understand my words! Now eat, like the pig you are!
[Abbess Sophia leaves with Sister Mastramina in tow as Mastramina looks back to see Sergio eating the porridge in tears. The sister tries to confront her superior about her behavior]
Sister Mastramina: You really didn't have to do that. You hurt the poor boy's feelings.
Abbess Sophia: He was practicing Satanism like some game! Our Lord demands humility not arrogance! Patience not wrath! Equality not division!
Sister Mastramina: Not every technology after 1940 is evil. I know what you've told me about your past but my Sergio will not become like Mussolini.
Abbess Sophia: Men who have ideas and speak about its brilliance eventually become their own anthesis. There is a reason why humility is a virtue, Mastramina. I do not want Sergio to be the cause of humanity's extinction.
[The abbess' words leave a bad taste on the young nun that Mastramina begins to rethink her options in the orphanage. A few years later, Sergio, now 6, is with a group of kids and Sister Mastramina as they go to the village outside and learn about the things there. The group, besides Sergio, consists of Alessio, a lanky redhead with a dent on his face, Brutus, a stocky redhead with a missing bicuspid, Lorenzo, a black-haired boy with a frazzled afro and a stick on his hand, Luca, a blonde boy who tidies up despite smelling like olives, Olesia, a brunette girl with freckles and a worm birthmark on her arm, Gia, a blonde girl with blue nails on her fingers and smells like sourdough, and Nikola, a black-haired girl with pigtails and a sour look and some other orphans who look bored.]
Sister Mastramina: This here is called a sidewalk. This is where we, citizens, walk on. That is the road. That is where people drive cars to go from one place to another.
Olesia: Yes, sister.
Sergio: Interesting.
Sister Mastramina: And that's a bakery. People called bakers make, bake and sell bread to locals in the village.
Gia: Yes, sister.
Sergio: Also interesting.
Sister Mastramina: And that's the police station. People called cops help our village from criminals, people who sin their lives by stealing and harming other people.
Alessio: Yes, sister.
Sergio: Oh!
Sister Mastramina: And that out there is the village aqueduct. Originally built by the Romans, it was left incomplete due to the collapse of the empire. Despite the crumbling infrastructure, I see it as a loving monument. A reminder of our ties to the past and a beautiful history lesson for future generations.
Alessio: That pile of bricks is "beautiful"? Please! If it were me, I would tear it down and build a house.
Sister Mastramina: Please say no such things. Without our past, we would repeat it. And history itself has been full of blood.
Brutus: Yeah, Alessio! Don't say such things!
Alessio: Don't look at me. I been hearing it from Sergio all this time.
Sister Mastramina: Sergio. Is Alessio telling the truth?
Sergio: No, sister. Alessio just misheard me.
Sister Mastramina: What do you mean?
Sergio: I was muttering to myself that I would take down the crumbling bricks and rebuild it with steel and concrete and open it as a power plant for the village.
Sister Mastramina: (aghast) Sergio! That's worse than destroying it.
Sergio: How so? My idea sounds like a blessing.
Sister Mastramina: Sergio. Historical buildings are remnants of our past. They exist to make the case that someone wants to help their society progress to a better future. What you are saying sounds like converting the Statue of Liberty or The Pyramids of Giza into some hotel?
Sergio: How does that make sense?
Sister Mastramina: Sergio, we must preserve our past, not erase it. If monuments like the aqueduct were meant to be destroyed, then you probably sold your soul for a travesty disguised as a blessing.
Sergio: (remorseful) I'm sorry, sister.
Sister Mastramina: It's okay. Just remember to be humble. Humanity needs more humility and less arrogance.
[He has been sent to Abbess Sophia's quarters for something bad he did in the orphanage. He unfortunately encounters some of the orphans who don't appreciate his presence]
Alessio: Hey look. It's Sergio.
Sergio: (dryly) Oh, hi Alessio. How are you?
Alessio: What did you do this time, Serge?
Sergio: Being a genius, what else.
Lorenzo: Well, maybe the abbess will spare you this time?
Alessio: Not to him. He can't even make a candle by hand. He needs a machine made out of car parts to make one candle.
[The kids laugh at Alessio's response]
Abbess Sophia: Sergio!
Sergio: Mother.
Abbess Sophia: MY CHAMBERS! NOW!
[Silence brims the hallways as Sergio enters the room scared and sits down to hear Sophia's complaint]
Abbess Sophia: Do you know why you're summoned to my chambers?
Sergio: For not reading the holy scriptures enough?
Abbess Sophia: WRONG! You are here because some of the orphans caught you traversing around town asking for building materials! They even told me you were in the streets begging for metal scraps and a ride to the village junkyard.
Sergio: I was just trying to give the orphans the power of electricity, running water, and this thing I heard called "internet". Nothing bad about that.
Abbess Sophia: That is how temptation works! First, our God gives you a brain to think and create something that will provide all of humanity everlasting peace and then the devil tempts you into making powerful weapons that'll destroy the entire world out of sheer arrogance! Pride is a deadly sin and you should be ashamed for suggesting to make that the norm! We see things done the traditional way and nothing else!
Sergio: But, mother superior, the orphans want to stop reading in the dark and having to light candles every night. We want this orphanage to use water that doesn't rely on an old well. We want them to have a computer in this place. All I'm doing is helping them by making those desires a reality.
[Abbess Sophia responds by slapping Sergio numerous times until he obediently stands still]
Abbess Sophia: You will stop with this atrocity! These lies you spout out your mouth! 100 prayers for you today! Go towards the chapel and start praying for your arrogance!
Sergio: (deflated) Yes mother superior.
Abbess Sophia: May God almighty help this poor excuse of an orphan.
[Sergio, however, ignores the mother superior's order and heads to his room. Depressed, he pulls out a journal under his bed and starts reading his scientific notes in front of his bunkmate, who he doesn't notice]
?: Hey, Sergio! Why are you mumbling?
[Sergio continues to read while ignoring his bunkmate]
?: Such a weirdo.
[Suddenly, Sister Mastramina enters the room looking for some kids to play outside and encounters a depressed Sergio in his bunk.]
Sister Mastramina: Sergio? Are you ok?
?: Don't fret, sister. He's just being weird for some reason.
Sister Mastramina: Don't call him weird, Luca. He's probably in trouble with Sophia again.
Luca: Well, if I were him, I'd probably be attending mass like everyone else rather than write numbers in a journal for no reason.
Sister Mastramina: Luca! Go outside and play with the other kids! I'll handle my fragile Sergio.
Luca: Okay.
[Luca leaves to play outside while the sister tries to comfort Sergio]
Luca: (muttering) I hope she's not taken from us. Lord help me if she disappeared?
Sister Mastramina: Sergio. Are you okay, my dear boy.
Sergio: (sotto) I'm fine. I'm just reading.
Sister Mastramina: What did Sophia do this time?
Sergio: She was upset about some ideas I had to spruce up the orphanage a bit.
Sister Mastramina: Oh, Sergio. The mother superior didn't mean to say those things. She's just overprotective with the orphans from causing any harm that came from your ideas.
Sergio: Like what?!
Sister Mastramina: Well, your attempt to make those street lights near the entrance.
Sergio: They were engineered by me with exact precision. How can my streetlights cause harm to us?
Sister Mastramina: Well, suppose a spark came from lights themselves and caused a fire that burned down the aforementioned orphanage.
Sergio: Sister, I never leave any imperfections. My mind is as sharp as the pages of Abbess Sophia's bible.
Abbess Sophia: And that's the last thing I want to hear from a blasphemer like yourself!
[Abbess Sophia stands in front of the doorway with an angry look towards Sergio]
Abbess Sophia: Arrogance! Devilish, sinful arrogance! I told you to pray at the chapel and you ignore my order to read your heresy! If words don't convince you to change, then corporal punishment might!
[Abbess Sophia drags Sergio out his room by the ear, enters her quarters with him, opens her closet to reveal several punishment tools, pulls out a chicote, collar and leash, and proceeds to whip the boy while holding him by the collar on his throat until he pleads for mercy. Abbess Sophia, however, ignores such pleas, and continues whipping until he hemorrhages a pint of blood. Sophia then picks up the bleeding child, walks towards the basement, chucks him on the floor and shuts it tight. The nuns who witness the brutality say nothing. Sister Mastramina, however, is upset and confronts Sophia.]
Sister Mastramina: Mother superior, this has gone too far. Sergio has suffered enough for his misdeeds. Please forgive the boy!
Abbess Sophia: He must learn the costs of arrogance! If he continues to impose this sacrilege, I must direct him by force! My rules are just and only just!
Sister Mastramina: Mother, I've been obedient from this orphanage from the day I came here but your attitude has been an immense negative! The kids are denied necessities beyond your deluded sense of traditional values. Potential parents are limited because of your insistence on the villagers raising the kids rather than couples outside this village. Our staff is scarce because the nuns we get from other convents fail your unrealistic expectations. If I had the powers of God himself, I would make you see the error of your ways.
[Abbess Sophia slaps the nun out of passionate anger]
Abbess Sophia: I never liked you anyway! You represent the lackadaisical generation of society. The people who insist peace is at hand instead of understanding how history repeats itself! At least I show the kids how things are done the old fashioned way! If things were done your way, these children wouldn't even know that bread comes from wheat which is done by planting seeds on the ground! There is a reason why I prefer the villagers instead of foreigners! At least they know how to preserve the traditions of our society rather than burying them like a corpse!
Sister Mastramina: Mother superior, I have had enough. Tomorrow morning, I am leaving this orphanage. I'm leaving and I'm taking Sergio with me.
Abbess Sophia: You dare take that heretic with you! He will grow up without any sense of humility in his soul! We will vanish from existence if I don't correct that boy right!
Sister Mastramina: I will take Sergio with me! I will take him to America and give him a childhood so bright that will lead to him a better future than the one you insist on giving.
[Sister Mastramina leaves in a huff, with the other nuns trying to cope with the drama. Abbess Sophia, on the other hand, seethes in fury over the Mastramina's plan. In the middle of the night, somewhere in the dark alleys of Rome, Abbess Sophia, in casual clothes, scours the streets for a seedy dive. She finds one in the bad side of town, enters the bar, sits on a stool, orders a glass of merlot, and is spotted by the numerous gang of thugs around her. A group of them boastly walk up to her.]
Thug 1: Hey! Aren't you too old for a place like this?
[Sophia gives no response]
Thug 2: The silent treatment! We got ways to make you talk!
Thug 3: I'll get her purse, you get her hands, and if she resists, pull out your knife, Carlo!
[Carlo pulls out his knife and tries to slash the abbess only for her to dodge, swipe the knife, throw her merlot wine at the second thug's eyes, blinding him as she then throws the knife at the third thug's hand and then responds by kicking Carlo in the balls. The gangs in the bar who sit and watch the fight then bow down to the abbess herself.]
Abbess Sophia: I need a group of kidnappers that can remove a "certain someone" from my life. I am willing to pay handsomely for your services.
Thug 5: Are you sure you want a group of losers doing this job? Why not the Camorra or the Ndrangetha?
Abbess Sophia: I want this to be a smooth operation. Getting the mafia involved will arouse suspicion in my small village. Besides, this kidnapping involves a young woman.
[The gangs in the bar have their eyes lit up as Sophia lays out her plan. After returning to the orphanage, Abbess Sophia heads to her room and goes to sleep, contentful. Unbeknownst to the entire orphanage, the dive bar thugs arrive in a huge van, sneak into the premises via an unlocked door with a note by Sophia to the entire building, open Sister Mastramina's room, blindfold, gag, and tie up the sleeping nun, drag her out the orphanage, put her in back of the van, and drive off. One of the thugs, however, gets lost and enters the basement that reveals an unconscious Sergio in a pool of blood. Unaware of the events prior, the thug, out of pity, takes the boy out of the basement, tries to find his room, finds his name on a door, enters the room, puts him on his mattress, lays a sheet on him, and flees the orphanage with his gang in tow. As the night turns to day, we see the orphanage getting ready for the day. Sergio, still recovering, wakes up to find that he's on his bed, gets out, dresses up for the day, and tries to find Sister Mastramina only to go to her room and find an empty room.]
Sergio: Sister! Sister! Sister! Sister! (worried) Sister! Sister! Sister! Sister! (panicking) Sister! Sister! Sister! Sister!
Abbess Sophia: What are you looking for, Sergio?
Sergio: Abbess Sophia, where's Sister Mastramina?
Abbess Sophia: Sister who?
Sergio: Sister Mastramina. The sweetest nun a young boy like me needs in his life!
Abbess Sophia: Oh, Sister Mastramina. She left!
Sergio: What?!
Abbess Sophia: Sister Mastramina left the orphanage! She decided that life here was suffocating and you were a waste of time!
Sergio: No, not Mastramina. She loved me with all her heart.
Abbess Sophia: Oh, Sergio. She loved all the kids here. Just not you. She was pretending to love you because she didn't want to hurt your feelings. But, now I'm here and I demand that you tidy up all the orphan's rooms, wash the floors and clean the organ pipes by 12 pm!
Sergio: Yes, superior.
[Abbess Sophia stops Sergio in his tracks]
Abbess Sophia: Where do you think you're going!?
Sergio: I need a bucket of water and a rag to clean the floors.
[Abbess Sophia rips Sergio's shirt, takes a glass of water from a table, pours it onto the shirt, and gives it to Sergio.]
Abbess Sophia: Now clean these floors and tidy your bunk mate's bed! It's disgusting here!
[Sergio gets to work on his chores as the day turns to noon and the other kids just gawk at the overworked Sergio as he cleans the organ pipes while exposing soot to himself. As lunchtime nears, Sergio tries to head to the dining hall only to be denied entry by the abbess herself and is ordered to return to the chapel and organize the bibles by yearly release. Noon then turns to dusk and Sergio, now exhausted, hears the dinner bell and tries to run in the effort to eat something. However, the abbess blocks his path, re-directs him to a classroom with a blank chalkboard, and orders him to write "May God Have Mercy on My Soul" until it covers the board. Dusk then turns to night, Sergio is now losing consciousness and tries to hold some sense of alertness. He leaves the classroom, heads to his room, until the abbess grabs his arm, drags him to the kitchen sink, gives him another piece of his ripped shirt, and orders him to wash the dishes or risk chicote whippings. Sergio, scared to alertness, spends the entire night washing dishes until dawn. By that time, Sergio, almost fainting, tries to catch some sleep only for the abbess to appear behind him, whip him with her chicote, and make him repeat his chores. One nun witnessing the scene tries to reason with the abbess]
Sister Mona: Abbess, I think the boy has worked himself to death. He really needs to sleep.
Abbess Sophia: He surrendered his privilege to sleep when he committed the deadly sin of pride. My punishment for refusing to show humility in front of our Lord.
Sister Mona: Abbess, please reconsider. Your actions on Sergio might convince the other kids that so long as Sergio is being punished, any accident caused by them will be redirected to Sergio. Please abbess, show some humility!
Abbess Sophia: Watch your words, you impudent worm! Mastramina disappeared out of thin air one night ago! Don't let history repeat itself with those being your last words!
[The nun leaves out of fear as Abbess Sophia continues imposing her force towards the boy. Sergio, working rigorously and silently, finishes cleaning the floors of the chapel and tries to complete his next task until the abbess walks in with the orphans and a wheelbarrow of dirt, asks the kids to pick up the dirt, and throw it around the chapel. Sergio, now distraught, is tasked to reclean the chapel again. Night passes and Sergio finishes cleaning the chapel. Heading back to his room, he unfortunately trips from some orphans who want to "talk" with him]
Alessio: Hey Sergio! Why are you busy cleaning the floor everyday?
[Sergio gives no response]
Lorenzo: I don't think he wants to talk.
Alessio: Well, since you do our chores I'll tell you what, you can clean my room, shine my shoes, offer me your lunch and give me a glass of water every night for the next five years. What do you say?
[Sergio gives no response]
Brutus: He said, what do you say!?
[Brutus kicks Sergio out of anger and tries to ask the same question to the overworked boy. Eventually, Alessio, Lorenzo and Luca join in to beat up Sergio. Daylight appears and Sergio, unconscious, is awoken from a splash of water at his face. Sputtering, he finds Abbess Sophia carrying a bucket, looking upset towards him. She responds by whipping him]
Abbess Sophia: Lazy, inconsiderate, arrogant boy! Go to the kitchen, turn on the faucet and wash the dishes this morning!
[Sergio, wearily running, heads towards the well, picks up some water in the bucket, runs to the dining hall and arrives for his shift only for the orphans to trip him and fall. He falls to the wooden floor with a carpenter's nail lodged into his left leg. Undeterred, he enters the back room to finish his task only for the abbess to interrupt his chore to whip him again.]
Abbess Sophia: This is all your fault! I asked you to do one simple task and you decide to pretend to fall down and injure yourself to get sympathy from your bunkmates! If you want to feel sorry, apologize to God himself for your insolence!
[After whipping him, Abbess Sophia makes him continue cleaning the dishes from breakfast and lunch. After cleaning the dishes, Sergio tries to leave the dining hall and try to enter his room for a little nap only for the orphan boys to jump on him and drag him to an abandoned factory outside of town, tie him up, and make a game out of it.]
Alessio: Gather one and gather all. Have the opportunity to punch the ever loving daylights out of our servant, Sergio!
[A line gathers with a lot of orphans, mostly boys and a few girls, to take part in punching Sergio]
Alessio: Okay, who's first!
Luca: Let me at him!
[Luca punches Sergio in the gut]
Luca: Hey, why don't you want to talk, Sergio?
[Luca punches Sergio in the face]
Luca: I bet you think Sister Mastramina will save you again? Yeah right!
Lorenzo: As if! Mastramina was a puttana first and a nun never!
[Luca leaves as Lorenzo walks towards Sergio and whacks his face. The other kids then take their turns punching, kicking and slapping the boy until nighttime falls and the last line of kids show blood on their hands.]
Gia: Yeah, that sister. You know, despite her being an airhead, she's kinda pretty.
[Gia kicks Sergio knee as Olesia punches his left eye]
Olesia: Oh, she's pretty. A pretty stupid puttana!
[The last orphan on the line walks towards him to deliver the final blow. Nikola, brushing off her pigtails, notices the nail on Sergio's leg, takes it off and jams it on his neck.]
Nikola: Hey! Look! It's Frankenstein's cheap copy!
[Everybody laughs at Sergio, now beaten up and near comatose, as they leave the factory with the boy still tied up. Night turns to day at the orphanage as the orphans and nuns continue with their lives unaware about Sergio's disappearance. A few weeks pass by as nobody asks about the missing Sergio until a day outside with the orphans and Sister Una has Abbess Sophia asking Alessio a question]
Abbess Sophia: Excuse me, Alessio. Where is Sergio?
Alessio: Beats me? Haven't seen him since a few weeks ago. Lorenzo, have you seen him?
Lorenzo: I heard he left the orphanage and never wants to come back. Something about wanting to find Sister Mastramina himself.
Abbess Sophia: What?
Alessio: Yeah! We've seen you whip the boy and berate him, so we assumed you wanted him to leave this place. After all, isn't Sergio gone from the orphanage a blessing?
Lorenzo: I mean, him and Sister Puttana share the same dopey viewpoint on the world.
[Every single nun's jaw dropped from the boy's explanation.]
Abbess Sophia: How can you say such things!? I may be rough on the boy but that was to steer him in the right direction. I was just teaching him how to be humble in his pursuit of arrogance.
Alessio: Abbess, how arrogant is he?
Abbess Sophia: He wanted to install a computer in this orphanage!
Lorenzo: So? I mean, we are curious to know what happens outside of this village.
Abbess Sophia: If you want to know more about the outside world, you read a book!
Sister Una: If I may Abbess, we know that Sister Mastramina was kidnapped.
[Suddenly the hall was dead silent from the revelation. All the orphans were dumbfounded]
Olesia: What is kidnapped?
Gia: Kidnap? In a Catholic orphanage? In front of God himself?!
Nikola: Who would want to kidnap Sister Mastramina?
Abbess Sophia: And you bring this accusation based on what?
Sister Una: A few villagers spotted you with some unruly people and opened the door to let them in.
Abbess Sophia: And your excuse for leaving him there?
Gia: We saw you treat Sergio like that, we thought that's how we did it in the orphanage.
Abbess Sophia: God Almighty, what have I done?
[The nuns follow the kids as they lead them to the abandoned factory. Splitting up to find the tied up boy, the nuns go with some orphans into separate rooms. The ceiling lights start flickering until everything goes dark. A few months later, one of the orphans, Alessio, finds himself chained up to a wall. Before he can sense his surroundings, a sharp pain hits him immediately. Alessio notices his left arm has been sliced clean and bandaged while his right hand is missing. Panicking, he tries to scream only to get electrocuted into submission. Wincing in pain, he looks up and sees Lorenzo's head impaled on a long stick. Before the batshit scared boy can utter a word, Lorezno speaks]
Lorezno: (sotto) Please let me die. Please let me die. Please let me die. Please let me die.
Alessio: Lorenzo. Are we dreaming?
Lorenzo: (raising his voice) Please let me die. Please let me die. Please let me die. Please let me die.
Alessio: Where are we? Where's Luca? Where are the nuns? Why are you on a stick?
Lorenzo: (yelling) PLEASE LET ME DIE! PLEASE LET ME DIE! PLEASE LET ME DIE! PLEASE LET ME DIE!
Alessio: Hey, Lorenzo. Can you hear me?
Lorenzo: (bawling in horror) PLEASE LET ME DIE! PLEASE LET ME DIE! PLEASE LET ME DIE! PLEASE LET ME DIE!
[A bullet shot rings the empty room and silences the screaming child. Sounds of shoes clicking and clacking the stairs echo as Alessio tries to find out who's doing this horrific madness. Out of the shadows, Sergio appears and makes Alessio upset.]
Alessio: Sergio, why are you here? Where are we? Who did this? What happened to us?
[Sergio makes no response before uttering something to Alessio]
Sergio: So, you and Abbess Sophia like to torture me, right?
Alessio: Excuse me?
[Sergio pulls out a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a bladesaw, rips out Alessio's bandages exposing his amputated wound, shoves the bottle into the wound, and lets the little orphan yell out in agonizing pain]
Sergio: You get some sick pleasure out of making my life miserable? That's a violation of the holy book, right!?
[Alessio can't answer due to the excruciating pain he's enduring. Sergio, upset, pulls out a makeshift gun and shoots the boy in the head to shut him up. The lights turn on as we see rows and rows of mutilated orphans tied up and hooked onto numerous mechanical devices as Sergio continues playing with his new "friends". Abbess Sophia, meanwhile, is somewhere in the factory, duct taped to a chair from head to toe, and forced to watch the horrific nightmare Sergio's inflicting. Her legs are numb, her arms are nailed shut to the armrests, her expression is of batshit traumatized, and her eyes are bloodshot crimson red due to lack of sleep and Sergio placing screws and jumper cables to her ears to wake her up.]
Sergio: Say, Brutus, care to say something funny?
[We see Brutus, with tubes jammed into his body, his flesh legs replaced with cork stoppers, and pleading to his former victim]
Brutus: (crying) What is this inside me!? Where's Luca?
Sergio: That is bleach. The very substance I replaced your blood with to cleanse whatever filth flows within you. As for Luca, he's inside you. More specifically, his heart and lungs are inside you.
[We then see Luca, whose head is hooked onto a makeshift iron lung device]
Luca: Help . . . me! Help . . . me! Help . . . me!
Brutus: Why Sergio?
Sergio: Let me think. You did absolutely nothing when Alessio was hurting me. You let Abbess Sophia continue with her torture even when I did nothing to any of you. And to top it all off, you called Sister Mastramina a whore! (laughs)
[Brutus tries to laugh with Sergio, thinking it might be some misunderstanding they can patch through. Unfortunately, Sergio takes a monkey wrench and slams it to Brutus' face, knocking out the crying orphan. Suddenly, moanings echo the factory floor as Sergio grins in excitement. Taking out a remote, he presses a button that activates the mechanical devices to follow the kid genius. Abbess Sophia, who still remains trapped, has several of her restraints removed and is escorted by hooded figures to a room. Entering the room, she encounters Sergio and the orphans crowding to a slab that has a blanket on top of it. Sergio, still grinning, pulls away the blanket to reveal Nikola, with Olesia's upper legs attached to Nikola's lower legs, Nikola's fingers attached to Gia's arms, and the three girl's faces stitched together, along with dyeing her hair blue, to make her appear more like Sister Mastramina. By the time Sergio shocks the body to wake up, the first thing she does, in her new voice, is react to the surroundings.]
Mastramina Copy: Oh my. What happened? Where am I? Why are there kids smiling at me? Wait! Whose arm is this. (looks at Gia's birthmark) OW! The pain! The excruciating pain! Why am I in pain! Where's Olesia? Where's Gia? (finds a glass shard and drops out of horror) WHAT HAPPENED TO ME!? Serge? Sergio? Sergio!? What are you doing here?
Sergio: Hi there, Mastramina. Glad to see you.
Mastramina Copy: S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-S-Sergio?
Sergio: Mastramina! (hugs her) I was told by some big meanines that you were kidnapped and I prayed with all my might to bring you back here and here you are. In my arms, my sight, and my life.
[Sergio hugs the copy so tight that the stitches start to come loose and immediately the copy falls apart to reveal the body was just a head and torso.]
Mastramina Copy: Sergio? What happened to my body? What happened to my face? Why are there stitches on my face? Why is my hair blue? Why is Gia's birthmark on me? Why am I dressed as a nun? Why is my voice different, Sergio?! What happened?! (she starts to have a panic attack and starts screaming until Sergio pulls out a nail and stabs her forehead, killing her instantly)
Sergio: (sigh) Another failure. No matter how many times I try to reattach these wounds, she always starts screaming. Maybe this was another false start.
Abbess Sophia: Sergio! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?
[Sergio responds by shooting Sophia's left leg with a makeshift pistol. The sheer pain grits the abbess' teeth as she feels the bullet shattering the femur in pieces while blood, oozing out her wound, drips to the floor as the abbess tears a piece of cloth and covers it.]
Sergio: You're concerned about me? Where was that when I was told to clean the chapel thrice!?
Abbess Sophia: Sergio! Our holy god will smite thee for this insolence!
[Sergio shoots Sophia in the arm for that remark]
Sergio: Nerts to your God! In fact, nerts to you and your GOD! I suffer and you laugh! I'm deprived of sleep and you laugh! I lost my favorite nun and everyone here calls her a slut! Now, I'm in control! And my first order is to have you kill one of my bullies in the head!
Abbess Sophia: Sergio! Thou shall not kill is one of the 10 commandments!
[Sergio, upset, goes towards a drawer, pulls out a clunky metal crown, jams it on Sophia's head, runs to grab a nailgun, jams two nails onto the skull of the head nun, pulls out a remote on his left pocket, presses a button, and activates the crown to make the abbess obey his every command. Resisting in agonizing pain and contorting every limb, the abbess eyes turn ice white as she becomes completely obedient]
Abbess Sophia: I'm sorry. My hearing was off. Care to rephrase that, Sergio?
Sergio: My first order is to have you kill one of my bullies in the head.
[Sergio puts the makeshift gun on Sophia's hand and points it on Brutus' head. Brutus prays out of fear from what's about to happen. Under Sergio's orders, Abess Sophia pulls the trigger and shoots him point blank. She starts laughing as blood comes out of the crippled orphan while tears from her eyes drip to the floor. Sergio smiles as he sits down on a chair and pushes a button. We then shift to the village's aqueduct and the ancient structure explodes to dust as Sergio's eyes cover the night sky and turn red out of vengeance.]
End of Chapter 14