The twins arrived at their destination in silence. The tall stone building gloated ominously over the two as they paused at the edge of the clearing. In the girl’s left hand was a stout wooden club with thick plugs of iron inset along the head. It felt as if it weighed a million pounds as it hung heavily in the girl’s hand, nearly brushing against the ground. It was sodden with the knowledge that it would be used on her brother when they reached their final destination. Her punishment for her mistake.
They took a breath in unison, and exhaled, before continuing into the clearing. A lone guard nodded to them in recognition, then opened one of the heavy iron doors to allow them entrance. The girl’s right hand was clasped tightly in the boy’s left, the occasional trembling hidden by the sway of their stride as they crossed the threshold. They weaved silently through the passageways in a foggy haze. The path was second nature and they had walked it thousands of times. The staff members and guards stepped to the side allowing them to pass freely. Some of them smiled at the twins, but others showed open fear and nervousness as the experiments walked passed them.
They came to the end of a long hallway with a single reinforced door at the end. Taking a deep breath as they walked towards the door, both of their chins held high despite their churning stomachs. The walls around them nothing more than a blur as they tentatively took their steps towards that dreaded door. Their advancement on that door halted abruptly. The girl turned and looked at her brother, who in turn, looked back at her. They studied and stared in silence as the minutes ticked on.
“One is… regretful.” The girl’s mind gently spoke, “One’s mistake is the reason we are here.”
“One must not be regretful. One must learn from this, as must the other. He told us so,“ the boy’s mind responded. “One cannot help. The other must be strong.”
“One will be strong for the other.“ She sighed. He sighed. They both took the final steps towards the awaiting punishment. Obedience to His orders ingrained so deeply into their training that the concept of avoidance or running from it wasn’t even a consideration. They released each other’s hands with another simultaneous sigh. The girl placed her right hand on the door knob and the boy overlaid hers with his left. They turned that knob together and stepped into the room.
They entered that room deathly silent, not even the door betrayed a whisper of sound as it closed behind them. The room was empty aside from simple furnishings, two sets of four chains attached to the wall and a man who immediately caused them to drop their eyes to the floor. On the floor were several iron drains which were stained red with the passage of time and gore from their previous lessons. Opposite each other were two sets of chains in sets of four. One end of the chain hanging loosely and the other lost to darkness via individual holes in the wall. Nearby each set was a mechanism that allowed for more length to be drawn out or pulled in. There were no manacles on the chains. At the far end of the room sat two chairs, a solitary table upon which rested a single large D-ring. Leaning against that table, stood their chosen disciplinarian. The human known as Keliek. His short light brown hair was slightly damp and matted on his head, no doubt because of the stuffy red hued plate helm that was on the table next to him. His right hand smoothing out his thick mustache as he looked at them, the left gripping the edge of the table. The twins hands clasped together again, squeezing tightly. The urge to avoid Keliek’s piercing gaze as he stared at them was difficult for them to ignore. The imposing man sweated authority.
Fear and anxiety leeched out of the twins as they approached. The girl’s eyes and then the boy’s went to the D-ring upon the table. Its purpose was altogether well known to both of them. “He’s expecting us…” the girl suggested as they stopped a foot away and looked up at the man.
Keliek’s green eyes studied the boy first, a slight smile coming to his face before turning his glare upon the girl. His right hand moving to grip the edge of the table, which issued a slight creak in protest, as he waited expectantly. “… He is. One must act alone from here.“ the boy silently replied.
The girl’s stomach flopped and somersaulted next to her pounding heart. She swallowed the tears that threatened to well up in her eyes as she forced herself to lift her chin and look the Commander in the eyes. She opened her mouth for a moment, pausing agape for several seconds as if she struggled to find the bravado to break the silence. She took a deep breath, strengthened by her twin’s silent presence. “Keliek, we have been told to… “ She paused, taking another deep breath and exhaling as she changed her words, “One has made a mistake that requires reinforcement so as to avoid repeating it in the future.” The girl hoisted that million pound club and extended it out to the glaring man.
Pushing off from the table, which groaned from the strain, Keliek stood up straight. His eyes moving to the club then back to the girl’s face. His smile shifted to a smirk as he seemed to enjoy watching her arm shake from the stress of holding it out to him. Just as it seemed the girl’s arm would surely give out he reached out with his right hand to take hold of the club.
“Take your positions, “ his gruff voice ordered.
She looked to her brother and he at her. Their thoughts a jumble of affirmations as their fingers slipped from each other’s hands as her mind touched his, “We will survive this. “
“We will learn from this and do better, “ he reassured.
The girl turned and walked towards the chains that dangled, like iron nooses, against the wall. She could have found those blood encrusted chains while blindfolded. After all, they had known each other for nearly her entire life. She turned and watched her brother walk silently to the center of the room and take his place. Tears threatened to spill over at the anticipation of what was going to happen.
Keliek turned to the table placing the club down with a heavy thud as if to remind them of it's weight. He then lifted the D-ring from the table and unscrewing the bolt that formed the straight spine as he walked to stand before the girl. His smirk still in place as he took hold of the chain to her left and slid the curved iron piece through the last link. He silently waited as the girl’s left arm came up to allow him to place the metal rod through the hole in her left arm. He finished tightening the two bolts in place that now connected the chain to her arm. Keliek dropped the heavy chain he had been holding abruptly after he finished bolting the ring closed. He turned and walked back to the table, smiling slightly at the girl’s strangled cry. The weight of the excess heavy iron chain suddenly pressing on sensitive nerves within the girl’s arm. Her right hand immediately went to the chain to alleviate the weight off her arm. The abruptness of the white searing pain nearly causing the girl to vomit where she stood. Arik standing in the center of the room risked a quick glance in his sister’s direction at her cry, but only briefly before looking straight ahead again.
Keliek lifted the club from the table and moved to stand in front of Arik. Her turned his head to his right to look at Kira. “Do you understand the purpose for this reinforcement?” he asked her.
She kept holding the weight of the chain off the ring with her right hand, blinking back tears. She looked up at Keliek as she attempted to strengthen her resolve. Her chin lifted slightly as she forced herself to meet his eyes, “One made a mistake. One should not have been touched and held by the one who called itself Rotep. This reinforcement is for one’s own benefit so that one may improve one’s self in the future and not disappoint Him again. “
“Wrong, “ Keliek said to her. His right hand swung the club up to rest on his own shoulder. Arik flinched slightly as the movement brought the club close to his face. With his left hand, he punched the boy in his stomach. Arik took a step backwards from the force of the blow, his hands reflexively moving to cover his stomach. He stood there bent over a moment taking in gasps of precious air. “That is the reason, but not the purpose.” Keliek said before turning his head to regard the boy. His hand reached out to grab the boy’s hair at the top of his head before he once again turned his gaze back upon Kira.
The girl’s knees threatened to crumple themselves as she watched her brother doubled over in pain. The girl’s mind tried to work out the words, distracted by the pain her brother was in. Her eyes darting from her brother to him, “The purpose is to learn from the one’s mistake. It is incentive to not repeat it in the future.”
Keliek pulled the boy by his hair up straight without taking his eyes from the girl. Arik stepped forward obediently with the painful tug. The young boy’s face did not show any of the pain that he must have felt. “That is too vague,Kira. Since you do not yet know… allow me to instruct.” Keliek said calmly as his hand moved down to the shoulder of the boy. Keliek’s fingers began to grip tightly at his shoulder as he forced Arik into a kneeling position before again looking back to him. He then slapped the boy hard across the face, the strike causing him to fall onto his side.
Kira flinched as her brother was struck. Her words spilled more quickly than before with only a slight increase in volume. “One will do better. Please tell me what one should learn! Do not hurt –“her voice stops abruptly without finishing the sentence.
Keliek turned to regard her, the club tapping on his shoulder. His face smirking again. “Now Kira, you know better than that. I am not the one that is hurting him… “Keliek circled around to the back of the boy never taking his eyes from her. “… you are.” He said. Arik spat upon the floor blood mixed with saliva as he started to move. He painfully and slowly started to prop himself back up into his kneeling position.
Kira desperately tried to keep her face on Keliek’s, her brow creasing. Her mind murmuring apologies to her brother, her world. Her words are still rushed, spurred on by desperation to end her brother’s pain. “The… That… The… The lesson is that if one makes mistakes… it endangers those one loves the most.”
Arik finally managed to get himself back to his kneeling position, his head bowed in front of him. Keliek turned his eyes to look down upon Arik once more before kicking the boy in the back, sending him face first into the hard stone floor. Several seconds passed as he lay there quietly groaning before Keliek spoke. “This is to teach you to understand those dangers, Kira.” He said to her as he smiled watching Arik stubbornly place his hands under himself in an effort to again rise.
“One accepts the lesson, Keliek…” she said, swallowing the bile that rose in her hroat.
“Not yet, Kira, “ Keliek said before making a soft ‘tch tch tch’ sound with his tongue and shaking his head side to side. A cut on Arik’s forehead was slowly dripping blood on the floor as he struggled to again get himself to a kneeling position. The blood began to flow down his face when he finally managed to sit up straight, his head tilting backwards as he struggled to hold it up. “The lesson will be learned when it is over. It cannot be accepted Kira, “ Keliek ended his sentence by lifting the club from his shoulder and dropping it to his side.
Kira fell to her knees abruptly, a scream torn from her lips as the ring in her left arm is pulled. She immediately raised the arm high in the air to stop the pain. Her eyes going to the club and then her brother, watching the blood drip down his face. Her lips opening to mouth the word, “No… No... No... No...” silently over and over. Her mind touched his desperately, “One is here… One is here… the will be over soon…”
Keliek swung the club in an upward arc, the thunk of wood on bone resounded throughout the room. Though it was only a glancing blow it was enough to send the boy skidding across the ground three feet in her direction. Arik’s last thought was for her as his left hand reached out to her before his mind dimmed and went silent. Keliek’s eyes turned to regard the girl once more.
“Arik!!” she screamed. She immediately started to crawl forward to go to him. Her own shrill, sudden scream stopping her in place as she put the slightest pressure on the ring embedded in her arm. She immediately retreated away from him, tears openly falling down her cheeks. Her desperate eyes searching for the rise and fall of his battered chest. She screamed his name again in a hopeless attempt with the distance between them.
Keliek walked over to the mechanism near the door that controlled the distance of the chains. He unlocked it, turning the wheel that would loosen the chain enough to allow the girl to try and reach her brother.
Kira looked over to Keliek and then back to her brother who lay crumpled upon the cold floor. Her right arm reached back to pull at the slack as the wheel turned. She dragged herself slowly towards him, still crying out his name. Her right hand paused between the chain and the floor to periodically stretch towards her brother's limp hand. “Please, Keliek… Please let me go to him… Please…”
Keliek slowly turned the wheel, grinning and savoring as he watched her crawl towards the unconscious boy. She continued to inch closer, her left arm stretched awkwardly behind her towards the wall. She tried to reach out again toward her brother’s hand, screaming as she pulls against the ring. Her fingertips just barely touching her brother’s skin.
As soon as her fingers brushed against his, Keliek locked the wheel back in place. The Commander turned from the mechanism to face her once more. “Should you be captured and killed, Arik would be alone Kira. This lesson is to teach you what it means…” Kelief said walking towards her. He stopped reaching down with his left hand to grab the back of the boy’s shirt and drag him out of reach of the girl’s fingers.
“No, no, no, no, no, no, no… “ the words spilled from her mouth as Keliek dragged her brother. She stretched to reach him, the ring pressing against those sensitive nerves inside her arm. She screamed, the muscles of her body tightening with the agony. Keliek abruptly released the shirt, allowing the boy's lifeless body to slump to the floor.
“… to be alone." Keliek finished with a satisfied grin as he looked upon her stricken face. He then dropped the bloodied club to the ground with a clatter before he made his way to the door and out of the room.
Kira flattened herself to the ground, her fingers clawing over the stone floor towards him. The desperation was evident on her face as her finger struggled to gain a few pathetic centimeters. She couldn’t feel him anymore, their connection severed by the unconsciousness. “Arik… Arik… Arik!!” she sobs. She started to spiral, beginning to panic in her solitude. She needed to hear his voice, to touch his skin, just to be reassured that he was only sleeping. She jerked on the chain, attempting to flounder herself closer to him. The resulting sound that escaped her lips was truly inhuman in its suffering. For a moment, she felt the warmth of his still living skin, fingertip to fingertip. Then it fell away as the blinding agony fell upon her with a vengeance. Her stomach immediately heaved in protest, spilling its contents onto the stone tile by her head. Her body convulsing and curling with each wretch and each inadvertent pull of the ring. A vicious cycle as her stomach heaved, pulled her arm as her body contracted against the chain and caused her to heave again.
Kira lay exhausted on the cold floor after dozens of attempts to overcome the pain to merely touch her brother again. Her face in a pool of her sweat, vomit and tears with her right arm towards her brother as far as she could get without pulling her left against the damned ring. She desperately tries to keep her eyes open and to keep her brother’s bloody face in her sight as long as possible. She finally joins her brother in unconsciousness, her tiny body succumbing with a sigh. Both twins lay on the ground only a couple feet apart, a small distance that felt like the abyss to their two bonded souls.
They took a breath in unison, and exhaled, before continuing into the clearing. A lone guard nodded to them in recognition, then opened one of the heavy iron doors to allow them entrance. The girl’s right hand was clasped tightly in the boy’s left, the occasional trembling hidden by the sway of their stride as they crossed the threshold. They weaved silently through the passageways in a foggy haze. The path was second nature and they had walked it thousands of times. The staff members and guards stepped to the side allowing them to pass freely. Some of them smiled at the twins, but others showed open fear and nervousness as the experiments walked passed them.
They came to the end of a long hallway with a single reinforced door at the end. Taking a deep breath as they walked towards the door, both of their chins held high despite their churning stomachs. The walls around them nothing more than a blur as they tentatively took their steps towards that dreaded door. Their advancement on that door halted abruptly. The girl turned and looked at her brother, who in turn, looked back at her. They studied and stared in silence as the minutes ticked on.
“One is… regretful.” The girl’s mind gently spoke, “One’s mistake is the reason we are here.”
“One must not be regretful. One must learn from this, as must the other. He told us so,“ the boy’s mind responded. “One cannot help. The other must be strong.”
“One will be strong for the other.“ She sighed. He sighed. They both took the final steps towards the awaiting punishment. Obedience to His orders ingrained so deeply into their training that the concept of avoidance or running from it wasn’t even a consideration. They released each other’s hands with another simultaneous sigh. The girl placed her right hand on the door knob and the boy overlaid hers with his left. They turned that knob together and stepped into the room.
They entered that room deathly silent, not even the door betrayed a whisper of sound as it closed behind them. The room was empty aside from simple furnishings, two sets of four chains attached to the wall and a man who immediately caused them to drop their eyes to the floor. On the floor were several iron drains which were stained red with the passage of time and gore from their previous lessons. Opposite each other were two sets of chains in sets of four. One end of the chain hanging loosely and the other lost to darkness via individual holes in the wall. Nearby each set was a mechanism that allowed for more length to be drawn out or pulled in. There were no manacles on the chains. At the far end of the room sat two chairs, a solitary table upon which rested a single large D-ring. Leaning against that table, stood their chosen disciplinarian. The human known as Keliek. His short light brown hair was slightly damp and matted on his head, no doubt because of the stuffy red hued plate helm that was on the table next to him. His right hand smoothing out his thick mustache as he looked at them, the left gripping the edge of the table. The twins hands clasped together again, squeezing tightly. The urge to avoid Keliek’s piercing gaze as he stared at them was difficult for them to ignore. The imposing man sweated authority.
Fear and anxiety leeched out of the twins as they approached. The girl’s eyes and then the boy’s went to the D-ring upon the table. Its purpose was altogether well known to both of them. “He’s expecting us…” the girl suggested as they stopped a foot away and looked up at the man.
Keliek’s green eyes studied the boy first, a slight smile coming to his face before turning his glare upon the girl. His right hand moving to grip the edge of the table, which issued a slight creak in protest, as he waited expectantly. “… He is. One must act alone from here.“ the boy silently replied.
The girl’s stomach flopped and somersaulted next to her pounding heart. She swallowed the tears that threatened to well up in her eyes as she forced herself to lift her chin and look the Commander in the eyes. She opened her mouth for a moment, pausing agape for several seconds as if she struggled to find the bravado to break the silence. She took a deep breath, strengthened by her twin’s silent presence. “Keliek, we have been told to… “ She paused, taking another deep breath and exhaling as she changed her words, “One has made a mistake that requires reinforcement so as to avoid repeating it in the future.” The girl hoisted that million pound club and extended it out to the glaring man.
Pushing off from the table, which groaned from the strain, Keliek stood up straight. His eyes moving to the club then back to the girl’s face. His smile shifted to a smirk as he seemed to enjoy watching her arm shake from the stress of holding it out to him. Just as it seemed the girl’s arm would surely give out he reached out with his right hand to take hold of the club.
“Take your positions, “ his gruff voice ordered.
She looked to her brother and he at her. Their thoughts a jumble of affirmations as their fingers slipped from each other’s hands as her mind touched his, “We will survive this. “
“We will learn from this and do better, “ he reassured.
The girl turned and walked towards the chains that dangled, like iron nooses, against the wall. She could have found those blood encrusted chains while blindfolded. After all, they had known each other for nearly her entire life. She turned and watched her brother walk silently to the center of the room and take his place. Tears threatened to spill over at the anticipation of what was going to happen.
Keliek turned to the table placing the club down with a heavy thud as if to remind them of it's weight. He then lifted the D-ring from the table and unscrewing the bolt that formed the straight spine as he walked to stand before the girl. His smirk still in place as he took hold of the chain to her left and slid the curved iron piece through the last link. He silently waited as the girl’s left arm came up to allow him to place the metal rod through the hole in her left arm. He finished tightening the two bolts in place that now connected the chain to her arm. Keliek dropped the heavy chain he had been holding abruptly after he finished bolting the ring closed. He turned and walked back to the table, smiling slightly at the girl’s strangled cry. The weight of the excess heavy iron chain suddenly pressing on sensitive nerves within the girl’s arm. Her right hand immediately went to the chain to alleviate the weight off her arm. The abruptness of the white searing pain nearly causing the girl to vomit where she stood. Arik standing in the center of the room risked a quick glance in his sister’s direction at her cry, but only briefly before looking straight ahead again.
Keliek lifted the club from the table and moved to stand in front of Arik. Her turned his head to his right to look at Kira. “Do you understand the purpose for this reinforcement?” he asked her.
She kept holding the weight of the chain off the ring with her right hand, blinking back tears. She looked up at Keliek as she attempted to strengthen her resolve. Her chin lifted slightly as she forced herself to meet his eyes, “One made a mistake. One should not have been touched and held by the one who called itself Rotep. This reinforcement is for one’s own benefit so that one may improve one’s self in the future and not disappoint Him again. “
“Wrong, “ Keliek said to her. His right hand swung the club up to rest on his own shoulder. Arik flinched slightly as the movement brought the club close to his face. With his left hand, he punched the boy in his stomach. Arik took a step backwards from the force of the blow, his hands reflexively moving to cover his stomach. He stood there bent over a moment taking in gasps of precious air. “That is the reason, but not the purpose.” Keliek said before turning his head to regard the boy. His hand reached out to grab the boy’s hair at the top of his head before he once again turned his gaze back upon Kira.
The girl’s knees threatened to crumple themselves as she watched her brother doubled over in pain. The girl’s mind tried to work out the words, distracted by the pain her brother was in. Her eyes darting from her brother to him, “The purpose is to learn from the one’s mistake. It is incentive to not repeat it in the future.”
Keliek pulled the boy by his hair up straight without taking his eyes from the girl. Arik stepped forward obediently with the painful tug. The young boy’s face did not show any of the pain that he must have felt. “That is too vague,Kira. Since you do not yet know… allow me to instruct.” Keliek said calmly as his hand moved down to the shoulder of the boy. Keliek’s fingers began to grip tightly at his shoulder as he forced Arik into a kneeling position before again looking back to him. He then slapped the boy hard across the face, the strike causing him to fall onto his side.
Kira flinched as her brother was struck. Her words spilled more quickly than before with only a slight increase in volume. “One will do better. Please tell me what one should learn! Do not hurt –“her voice stops abruptly without finishing the sentence.
Keliek turned to regard her, the club tapping on his shoulder. His face smirking again. “Now Kira, you know better than that. I am not the one that is hurting him… “Keliek circled around to the back of the boy never taking his eyes from her. “… you are.” He said. Arik spat upon the floor blood mixed with saliva as he started to move. He painfully and slowly started to prop himself back up into his kneeling position.
Kira desperately tried to keep her face on Keliek’s, her brow creasing. Her mind murmuring apologies to her brother, her world. Her words are still rushed, spurred on by desperation to end her brother’s pain. “The… That… The… The lesson is that if one makes mistakes… it endangers those one loves the most.”
Arik finally managed to get himself back to his kneeling position, his head bowed in front of him. Keliek turned his eyes to look down upon Arik once more before kicking the boy in the back, sending him face first into the hard stone floor. Several seconds passed as he lay there quietly groaning before Keliek spoke. “This is to teach you to understand those dangers, Kira.” He said to her as he smiled watching Arik stubbornly place his hands under himself in an effort to again rise.
“One accepts the lesson, Keliek…” she said, swallowing the bile that rose in her hroat.
“Not yet, Kira, “ Keliek said before making a soft ‘tch tch tch’ sound with his tongue and shaking his head side to side. A cut on Arik’s forehead was slowly dripping blood on the floor as he struggled to again get himself to a kneeling position. The blood began to flow down his face when he finally managed to sit up straight, his head tilting backwards as he struggled to hold it up. “The lesson will be learned when it is over. It cannot be accepted Kira, “ Keliek ended his sentence by lifting the club from his shoulder and dropping it to his side.
Kira fell to her knees abruptly, a scream torn from her lips as the ring in her left arm is pulled. She immediately raised the arm high in the air to stop the pain. Her eyes going to the club and then her brother, watching the blood drip down his face. Her lips opening to mouth the word, “No… No... No... No...” silently over and over. Her mind touched his desperately, “One is here… One is here… the will be over soon…”
Keliek swung the club in an upward arc, the thunk of wood on bone resounded throughout the room. Though it was only a glancing blow it was enough to send the boy skidding across the ground three feet in her direction. Arik’s last thought was for her as his left hand reached out to her before his mind dimmed and went silent. Keliek’s eyes turned to regard the girl once more.
“Arik!!” she screamed. She immediately started to crawl forward to go to him. Her own shrill, sudden scream stopping her in place as she put the slightest pressure on the ring embedded in her arm. She immediately retreated away from him, tears openly falling down her cheeks. Her desperate eyes searching for the rise and fall of his battered chest. She screamed his name again in a hopeless attempt with the distance between them.
Keliek walked over to the mechanism near the door that controlled the distance of the chains. He unlocked it, turning the wheel that would loosen the chain enough to allow the girl to try and reach her brother.
Kira looked over to Keliek and then back to her brother who lay crumpled upon the cold floor. Her right arm reached back to pull at the slack as the wheel turned. She dragged herself slowly towards him, still crying out his name. Her right hand paused between the chain and the floor to periodically stretch towards her brother's limp hand. “Please, Keliek… Please let me go to him… Please…”
Keliek slowly turned the wheel, grinning and savoring as he watched her crawl towards the unconscious boy. She continued to inch closer, her left arm stretched awkwardly behind her towards the wall. She tried to reach out again toward her brother’s hand, screaming as she pulls against the ring. Her fingertips just barely touching her brother’s skin.
As soon as her fingers brushed against his, Keliek locked the wheel back in place. The Commander turned from the mechanism to face her once more. “Should you be captured and killed, Arik would be alone Kira. This lesson is to teach you what it means…” Kelief said walking towards her. He stopped reaching down with his left hand to grab the back of the boy’s shirt and drag him out of reach of the girl’s fingers.
“No, no, no, no, no, no, no… “ the words spilled from her mouth as Keliek dragged her brother. She stretched to reach him, the ring pressing against those sensitive nerves inside her arm. She screamed, the muscles of her body tightening with the agony. Keliek abruptly released the shirt, allowing the boy's lifeless body to slump to the floor.
“… to be alone." Keliek finished with a satisfied grin as he looked upon her stricken face. He then dropped the bloodied club to the ground with a clatter before he made his way to the door and out of the room.
Kira flattened herself to the ground, her fingers clawing over the stone floor towards him. The desperation was evident on her face as her finger struggled to gain a few pathetic centimeters. She couldn’t feel him anymore, their connection severed by the unconsciousness. “Arik… Arik… Arik!!” she sobs. She started to spiral, beginning to panic in her solitude. She needed to hear his voice, to touch his skin, just to be reassured that he was only sleeping. She jerked on the chain, attempting to flounder herself closer to him. The resulting sound that escaped her lips was truly inhuman in its suffering. For a moment, she felt the warmth of his still living skin, fingertip to fingertip. Then it fell away as the blinding agony fell upon her with a vengeance. Her stomach immediately heaved in protest, spilling its contents onto the stone tile by her head. Her body convulsing and curling with each wretch and each inadvertent pull of the ring. A vicious cycle as her stomach heaved, pulled her arm as her body contracted against the chain and caused her to heave again.
Kira lay exhausted on the cold floor after dozens of attempts to overcome the pain to merely touch her brother again. Her face in a pool of her sweat, vomit and tears with her right arm towards her brother as far as she could get without pulling her left against the damned ring. She desperately tries to keep her eyes open and to keep her brother’s bloody face in her sight as long as possible. She finally joins her brother in unconsciousness, her tiny body succumbing with a sigh. Both twins lay on the ground only a couple feet apart, a small distance that felt like the abyss to their two bonded souls.