Powers and Principalities Ch. 1-8

Powers and Principalities Ch. 6

Chapter 6

         Belief soothes the horrors of the soldier’s deeds as he continues invariably; since it must be done. Just as everyone did on what was a normal day for countless people; at this exact moment that millions of people spend living their lives; tending to children, working in an office, and even loading rifles... I existed as a captive.
         When sick; go to the hospital. When working; do what your boss instructs. When relaxing; do whatever you heart desires. When a captive; there is no right answer and no certain future. All is halted, all life events are put on hold, and nothing else matters. Every breath consumes a small amount of time until the captor returns.
         Beyond the hood impairing my vision; the cold room stood dark and still while unyielding handcuffs drew my hands and feet painfully close together behind my back while cloth tied around my face made sure talking was an impossibility. No position was comfortable and every one was painful. If my hands were free I could have easily ripped that stupid hood off, but instead it sat there complacently on my face.
         Not being able to see made me acutely aware of my others senses. Every joint of my body ached from the awkward position it was being contained in. Without making a sound; I felt a brief tremor of movement. It was almost doubtful if it had even occurred; but it surely meant that I wasn’t alone, for better or worse. Not knowing how to react or what to think, I remained as still as the room itself. Time didn’t exist there, not in the normal sense. My body melted together into one mass, no distinguishable features as far as I cared, and I was close to death.
         The sharp sound of a key quickly being shoved in a metallic slot cut through the terrible silence. A door swung open violently as heels with taps could be heard and felt approaching. It walked past me and stopped at my companion, the individual that something inside me was screaming about, a presence looming to my right. After hearing cloth being moved around, possibly removing a face cover like mine, someone spoke. The dream was over, it was time to wake up and face reality.
         “Who are you?” a muffled voice asked. His breathing sounded strained, reminiscent of Darth Vader. Obviously he was wearing some kind of mask.
         “Lance Sergeant Yuji Tokita, birthdate: 12/07/99, UID number: 20485710” a strong voice said without hesitation. Instead of a response, I heard the clicking footsteps approach me.

Click

Click

Bang

         My hair was taken in a violent grip and ripped back, forcing my chin up while my cover was removed. It was dark enough so that I still couldn't see clearly, it was obviously just so that I could speak.
         “And you?” the voice asked impatiently. My brain was a dumpling in a soup of fear and frantic thoughts. The fact that this man held the power to kill me was more prominent in my mind than what he actually asked me. As much as I wanted to satisfy him so he would let go of my hair, I couldn’t answer his question. My face burned as I felt a glove like sandpaper crash against my face.

“Who”

Sting...

“Are...”

Red specks of light flash in my vision...

“You!?”

         A fourth and a fifth crushing blow follow like clockwork. All I could think of was counting the blows. My neck felt like it was being torn from its place, having to whip my head back in place after each blow. I wanted to know when it would stop; how much longer could it go on!? Hopeful thoughts of his arm tiring were fleeting.
         When he let go of my hair and stepped away a sigh of relief left my lips as a natural reaction, even though there was little relief to be had. The clicking raced over to the door and I heard a horrible crashing noise, metal against metal; he must have kicked the door. Again and again he shot the violent sound waves at me, then he let out a shout of the ultimate frustration. Finally, a light was turned on.
         Following a moment of blindness, my vision was filled with a startling view. A nearly empty room with metal walls, like a bunker or a cell, held the three of us. An Asian man in his 30s was tied up next to me wearing a Maxomian uniform. Staring at me was a horrifying figure, scarcely human looking.
         My body quaked with the floor as the roughly seven foot tall figure rushed over towards my companion. The only visible flesh on the figure were his massive arms. His left arm; lined with bulging muscles, veins, and wrapped with a tattooed sleeve, lunged forth at my companion. The fingers of his brown glove wrapped around Yuji’s neck, and lifted the soldier’s whole body off of the ground; choke slam style.
         His gas-mask turned towards me as he shouted between breaths; “You are a real tough guy!! The silent type right? You shouldn’t mind me taking some frustration out on your friend then. Speak up if you change your mind.”
         Yuji made a horrible squealing sound as his breath was pounded out by a fist seemingly the size of a bowling ball crashing into his hid-section. I could feel my face begin to swell and blister from the injuries as I watched Yuji acquire some of his own. If only I could have answered his questions, Yuji would be spared. An armored vest of some sort rested on the figure's chest with camouflage pants that must have been a specialty size from "Big & Tall." It took me this long to recognize these humble things amidst the pure terror that hung in the air, distorting my vision. I felt guilty of his injuries even though I knew there was nothing I could have done. Each one seemed to flow endlessly like the ones I received until I couldn’t take it anymore.
         “I DON’T KNOW WHO I AM!! I WISH I DID! Please stop beating him!” I yelled with everything in me. I wanted there to be no trace of doubt in his mind about my authenticity. The figure lost all interest in Yuji and allowed his body to plop to the floor. The limp body’s face was blue and without movement.
         “HOW STUPID DO YOU THINK I AM!!!?” The figure roared. His voice ripped through my flesh and kept going past me. He pulled a small table towards the center of the room and placed a small metal box on the table, then took a seat on the opposite side of us.
         “Its unpleasant to create a pool of sweat in this mask, so I decided on an easier and more fun way to loosen your lips. This device will release small amounts of cyanogen chloride into the air. You might want to use your lungs for talking while you still can,” he said cooly as he pushed a button on the box. The faint and innocent sound of air being released filled my hears. Yuji’s eyes were open, but he was struggling to breathe.

         "What a difference a day made, twenty-four little hours..." The old blues song popped up in my mind inappropriately.