Southasland/History/Double Execution I

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http://www.imageviper.com/displayimage/406/0/Southasland-Artris.png" The History of Southasland

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The following was published by Vos Estis after the execution of Thorus and Acelan 2005-02-20

Vos Estis descends into the dungeon…

“Thorus! Acelan! You two should know better. Acelan, you most of all. You know the rights that a judge holds over someone who’s been banned.”

“I don’t care what you do to me!” Acelan retorted. “I did the best I could do to topple your pitiful excuse for a realm; killing me will only further draw the ire of Atamara!”

“Let’s see what Atamara thinks of THIS!” I screamed, lunging at his shackled frame, choking him for nearly a half-minute before allowing his gasping, writhing frame to droop as far as the chains would allow it.

Thorus sat in his corner of the dungeon, watching disappointedly, knowing there was nothing he could do to stop what was happening to his friend. “You’ll get yours, Judge,” he mumbled under his breath.

“What was that, you little rat?” I approached him, squinting as I asked. “You wanted to try out my new invention? Is that what you said? You want ‘Mr. Thingy?’” He looked at me as if I was joking. “Guards! Bring in Mr. Thingy!”

“Testing out my baby on random peasants was no fun. My conscience bothered me for that. It’ll be nice to finally make real use of him for a change.” Thorus began to fidget nervously.

A loud rumbling could be heard from the outer chamber of the dungeon. It got louder and louder as Mr. Thingy was brought nearer and nearer to where Thorus sat. Finally they brought it around the corner into the chamber where we waited.

Mr. Thingy resembled a system of pulleys and levers. In fact, Mr. Thingy was a system of pulleys and levers. That, and a big pike. Thorus, still chained, was set in the middle of it.

“You can’t do this to me! I’m a noble!” Thorus screamed as he was tied down to hold him still.

“A noble? Not that I’m aware of. Last I checked, you were banned from this realm and made a rogue. That means that if you were caught again, you could be killed – legally! That’s what makes this so much FUN! Now just be quiet. Save your energy; you’ll need it to scream.”

Acelan, seeing all this unfold, yelled, “What’re you going to do, kill him and then me? Good! Then I’ll be rid of your dungeon and go to be with my fathers!”

Without facing him, I replied, “When I’m thru with you, you’ll wish you were back here sitting in chains!”

Thorus was finally strapped down. “Wind it up!” I ordered. One of the guards grabbed the wheel, turned his head to look away, and began to wind it.

Thorus’s arms, tied together in front of him at the wrists, shot upward as if he were fighting some imaginary butterfly. Two audible “pop” sounds were made as his shoulders each dislocated. Thorus took this one pretty well, only moaning at the discovery that his shoulders were breaking in half.

Then, Mr. Thingy pulled each of Thorus’s feet out sideways, making him look as if he were doing the splits. But, his waist being held down by another strap, the machine soon started to strain as it worked to break both of his hips. Thorus began to scream in pain. First the left hip snapped like a twig in September, and a loud cry came from the soon-to-be cripple. Then, the right hip went. (I must say, that one did sound pretty rough.) Thorus scream was blood-curdling; no doubt the other prisoners feared for their lives.

Now, with his hands still tied behind him – but shoulders broken – and his hips broken, but feet above his head, Thorus bowed his head, crying and moaning in sheer pain and misery. “Just kill me! Get it over with!”

“Naw, it’s not that simple,” I whispered in his ear. “Not when there’s two of you. Look up and see Acelan there, strait across from you. You two will both get the privilege of watching eachother die.”

“No!” Thorus screamed. “Kill me! I will never see my judge murdered!”

“Your judge?” I replied. “I have no idea who your judge is, but it most certainly is not Acelan.”

Turning to the deposed judge of Southasland’s former regime, I said, so, Acelan, what will it be? Watch him die? Have him watch YOU die? Or both of you watch eachother die?” Acelan turned to look away from me, saying nothing in response to my offer.

“Very well then!” I yelled. “You shall not see it, but you will hear it!” I pulled my dagger and proceeded to gouge both of Acelan’s eyes. His screaming was worse than Thorus’s.

As Acelan hung there, his eyes bleeding and body limp, Thorus sobbed from across the room. “Are you ready to die?” I called to him.

“Yes, yes,” he softly sobbed.

“Then turn the crank some more!” I ordered. As the guard turned the pulley, Mr. Thingy’s long pike slowly drew itself closer to Thorus’s stomach. As it did, I told him, “Prepare to wish you had never rebelled!”

As the contraption’s spear pierced slowly into Thorus’s abdomen, I inserted my own sword into Acelan’s ribcage at the same slow, excruciating speed. Acelan, already nearing death, only winced at the painful sensation.

Thorus, nearing the end of his own life, called out, “Acelan, may I see you in the land of our fathers!”

Acelan whispered back, “I will go there with you together, my son.”

They both collapsed in death at the same moment.

The guards all stood motionless, knowing the gravity of what had just been done. “Today, fellow Tuchanon III citizens,” I said, “Part of our oppression has been avenged. Now, we return to our daily activities in hopes of a better life for us and for all of Atamara – free from oppression, free from incompetent rulers, and free from all sorts of unsavory plants that others eat for food!” I walked up the stairs out of the dungeon, talking with my scribe, Danihel. “Yuck! Seriously, some of those things are just disgusting! I mean the panhel, and the quabark, and what about th…”

Vos Estis
Dictator and Executor of Southasland, Baron of Cori

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