Tale of Four

Stepping out, Isis looked up at the sky, trying to see past the city, unable to make out whether what she was seeing was the sky or the rooftops. Seth stayed close behind, his alertness never falling. Grabbing Isis’s shoulder, he smiled when she looked up at him.

"We should leave this place. There is nothing good here, not even the stories you want." Isis went to nod but stopped. Not even silence filled the gap between their conversation, the humming instead trying to crack through their minds.

"He dragged her outside." Looking at Seth, there was a thin, bitter smile, knowing what she had done, "You said re-education. What does that mean?" Seth sighed and looked deep into her eyes, his foggy and snake-like eyes peering deep.

"Do you really want to know Isis?" With a deep breath, he asked. Isis could hear the same disgust in his words that he spoke of Danmor. The disgust of cruelty for cruelty’s sake. Thinking she slowly nodded. Sighing, Seth turned her around.

"Come," leading her through the labyrinth, Isis’s mind wandered, trying to clear her mind of what she had done to Teja, knowing she couldn’t. The story may exist of who the person was, but she couldn’t help but wonder if it was right. Teja feared the fate that awaited her. The fate if re-education failed. All of it showed that things may have been better if she had simply lived as 15 for the rest of her life.

The grey labyrith felt darker as her mind wandered, the worst of everything she felt coming to mind. Behind it all, the humming used those thoughts to burrow deeper to make itself even more known, never letting them rest, reminding her of what happened. Seth watched and grabbed her ears, covering them.

"We are going to get close to the tower. They will provide guests with protection from it when we do. For now, bear with it." Isis nodded, able to make out his muffled words. Slowly, they got closer to the tower until a small clearing opened up. Around the tower, no building stood, yet the grey never vanished, all grass and trees, all signs of colour bar its brown gone, covered over by grey paths.

Seth carefully led her closer, showing discomfort at the humming that was no longer background noise as a master walked over holding earmuffs. Handing them to the two, Isis quickly put them on and sighed in relief when the humming vanished.

"You wish to see our products?" Isis widened her eyes, able to clearly hear the master, despite not understanding him. Seth nodded, and the man smiled as wide as he could, indicating for them to follow into the tower.

"That crystal was made with runecraft, as were these earmuffs." Seth said, seeing Isis confused by it, "All masters who can afford to wear them inside the city do." With a nod, they entered the tower. Isis’s eyes widened. She had expected the smell of blood, a building full of unspeakable horror, but instead, she was met with a grey tower that had numerous floors, held up by wooden support beams.

On each floor, doors and rooms were tightly packed next to one another, with nothing to allow someone to see inside. Seth stepped forward before the master could speak, "We are going to look around. My lady is rather interested in your teaching method. She has had some issues with disobedience recently."

The man looked at Seth and Isis, judging them. Seeing that their outfits were worth a little, he nodded, "Of course. Please take your time." Seth smiled and led Isis away.

"I’ll ask again. Do you really wish to know how they make people like that?" Isis nodded once more, looking at the numerous rooms. Taking her up the steps to the second floor, he dragged her over to one of the doors and opened the small slit on it. Moving to the side, Isis peeked through, her breathing stopping as she saw inside.

A lone man sat, tied to a grey chair, a metal mask on his face, the same carved into the helmets of the soldiers of Cras, dressed in grey rags. Every inch of the room, the floors, walls, and roof, was lined with mirrors, reflecting him. "Take the ear muff off for a second," Seth said, and Isis did as told. The moment she did, the humming nearly caused her mind to shatter, its effects burrowing deep inside, scrambling every thought she had, never letting her focus.

Slamming it back on, she fell to her knees, finally breathing, clutching her beating heart. "There’s more," Seth said and helped her up, taking her up to the next floor. Going to another door, he opened the slit and let Isis see inside. Strapped to a table, a woman stared at the ceiling, where a small tube slowly dropped water on her head. Next to her, a man circled, wearing the earmuffs that blocked the humming.

"Your name." After every drop of water landed, he spoke with a flat tone. The woman refused to speak, desperately trying to break free. The man never lifted a hand to punish when she refused, instead continuously circling. Water dropped, and the woman desperately fought to break free, her face contorted in pain.

"He.."

"Incorrect." The man spoke, cutting her off. "Your name." Isis watched, her breathing shallow.

"There’s more," Seth said, closing the flap.

"No. I get it." Isis said in a weak voice, looking at the door before glancing around the large tower to see how many other rooms there were. Each one held a person, each one being used to systematically break them. The part that she knew even without seeing was that the people held inside were likely never physically harmed, each one walking out without a scar but also without an identity. "Seth. How is this better than Danmor? This place." Looking around, she finally realised the reason for the chill when she entered Cras, "This place is hell."

Seth stared at her and led Isis away. "What do you think is worse than making someone forget who they are?" Seth said with a hateful look. Passing the master who guided them in, they ignored his flattering look and strolled past, throwing the earmuffs off once they got far enough away.

Isis thought and shook her head, unable to think of anything worse. Seth smiled and stared at the grey labyrith before them, "Make them thankful they are a slave. Make them glad you took everything from them and reduced them to nothing." His voice struggled to hide his contempt for the city’s very existence, "And when they aren’t thankful, punish them. Punish them so they will understand the mercy of slavery."