An Orphan's Tale

By: Cypra Posted on: April 30, 2005

Salutations Ladydeath,

I apologise for my delay in sending you the fruitful results of our interrogations. As you know much has happened since then, and I have given the subject little thought. I have recently been able to find the time to compile our collective work, and I hope it is to your liking. As you are already aware of, the results were fascinating. Below I present the final product for you to use as you see fit.

I originally began my research, the fruits of which I will divulge in a short time, to expose the Church for the mockery that it is. I wanted solid evidence of how far the virtues of "Love" extend from the priests and paladins when tending to their beloved orphan flock. I won't say that I was disappointed, because there was plenty of evidence to support the numerous claims to such actions. However, I feel that I uncovered more valuable information than the extracurricular activities of certain church members.

I would first like to congratulate the Church. How pleased was I to find that they have come so far in their endeavors to advance sentient life. I would also like to sincerely apologize to the special few who were involved in these pursuits. What a fool I have been to assume they were incapable of enlightening themselves beyond the scope of their own doctrines. I will not compromise your work, of course, and will keep all names out of this composition, excluding the name of the orphan I interviewed herein, and some of you will surely have been very familiar with her. Though we interviewed more than one orphan, the one I write of gave us the bulk of our information, the others either giving redundant information or presenting nothing useful to our work.

Herein are the results of my research, in conjunction with Vicar Ladydeath, dutifully scribed without bias. Though I may have used what many would consider less than conventional means, I believe they will shed some light on the use orphans have to the church, and why it is so fundamental that Shallam take them under their wing.

Inside a vast torture chamber. Rusted manacles hang on the grubby stone walls holding the remains of traitors firmly in place. A wooden workbench on small castors holds many cruel implements ranging from thumbscrews to elaborate knives, a stretching rack with pulleys and ropes sits idly in one corner. A runic totem is planted solidly in the ground. A sigil in the shape of a small, rectangular monolith is on the ground. An emaciated little girl is here, looking vacant. Demoniac Vicar Ladydeath Aristata is here. You see exits leading southwest and west.

A little girl wearing a torn dress and a dazed expression tells you her parents drowned last season and she has been a beggar ever since.

You say, "State your name. Remember, this is important research, and we need you to be fully honest with us, lies, of course, will have consequences, but I would prefer we do this with a willing subject."

A little girl looks about herself nervously.

A little girl says, "My name is Avia, Ma'am."

Cypra smiles serenely.

You say, "Very good, I will trust that is the truth. I'm sure you understand how important trust will be between us through all of this. As I said, I do not want to see you hurt, but I can not speak for my compatriot."

Ladydeath looks up for a moment from her arrangement of various bladed instruments, clamps and drills, which have been neatly laid out onto a silver tray next to the table the little girl is bound to.

Ladydeath grins, a predatory glint in her eyes.

You say, "Now …Avia, I am going to ask you a series of questions, please answer to the best of your abilities, I urge you to leave nothing out and be as descriptive as possible. Do not worry, we will not use the blades you are eyeing so nervously… yet. Only if necessary."

A little girl says, "T.. th… thank you, Ma'am."

You say, "You may call me Cypra."

A little girl nods her head emphatically.

You say, "Now, when we first spoke, you told me your parents drowned last season? You've been a beggar for that long?"

A little girl nods her head emphatically.

Cypra runs a finger along a wicked scar running down the left side of the young girl's face.

You say, "How did you get the scar?"

A little girl looks away nervously.

A little girl says, "I was attacked… by a dog, it wanted some food I had."

You peer at a little girl unscrupulously.

You nod your head at Ladydeath.

Ladydeath walks slowly from behind the tray and around the table, standing over a little girl, a stern expression on her face.

A little girl says, "What… what are you… I'm telling the truth, promise!"

A little girl says, "I'm not lying, I swear!"

Ladydeath says nothing and grasps the pinky finger of the little girl. Slowly she begins to bend it backwards at an awkward angle, her expression unchanging as the girl begins to struggle and plead with her to stop. After a few moments she bends the girl's finger back with greater force, pulling it back until a sickening ‘crunch' is heard.

Throwing back her head, a little girl screams agonizingly.

You say, "You are not a very good liar. Which is fortunate I suppose, as I prefer you don't lie. I wish to help you, but I simply can't if you insist on speaking falsehoods."

Tears fill a little girl's eyes and begin to slowly run down her face.

A little girl says, "I'm sorry… please let me go, I'm scared."

You say, "You shouldn't be afraid, just answer truthfully. After I am done speaking with you, you may leave. I promise."

A little girl nods her head, tears running down her face.

You say, "Now, how did you get the scar?"

A little girl pauses for a moment, a fearful look in her eyes.

A little girl says, "…Another orphan, at the orphanage… they cut me, they were angry."

You raise an eyebrow questioningly.

You look thoughtful and say, "I thought you said you had been a beggar since your parents were drowned, you didn't mention the orphanage."

A little girl bites her lower lip fearfully.

A little girl says through unhappy tears, "I didn't want to get in trouble, I'm… I left there… I ran away."

You look thoughtful and say, "Really? Well do not fear, you will not get in trouble for telling us the truth, we only wish to hear your story. I am sure it is quite interesting."

A little girl looks at Ladydeath fearfully.

You smile and say, "She will not hurt you if you do not lie to me."

A little girl nods her head emphatically.

A little girl takes a deep, unsteady breath.

A little girl says, "My parents did die from drowning. It just… it wasn't last season. It was, umm, it was probably three or four years ago I think."

You tilt your head and listen intently.

Ladydeath tilts her head and listens intently.

A little girl looks nervously at Ladydeath.

A little girl says, "I was homeless afterwards, nobody wanted to take me in. I don't know if I had any other family."

A little girl says, "A little while after, I don't know how long, a man, he seemed really nice, he gave me a candle. He said it was a symbol of the light or something, I don't really remember. But he told me to follow him and he would take me to a place where I could get food and shelter."

A little girl says, "So he led me to the orphanage, to the choir the church has for orphans. I stayed there for a long time. I swear nothing really happened there, I did get food and shelter, and I sang in the choir. But… umm… Then this boy was mad at me, they don't like the ugly children in the choir, and he was ugly. So he… He cut my face with a piece of broken glass."

A little girl says, "Oh, they taught me about Lady Tarah and Lady Lorielan there, and compassion and enlightenment and how good people act. Also, umm, they taught me how to read, and I got to read the Codex, that's the holy book, it's written by Gods!"

You frown and say, "Anything else?"

A little girl says, "Umm…"

A little girl shakes her head.

You give a pained sigh.

You say, "I'm really disappointed in you Avia, I thought I could trust you. I'm afraid I have no other recourse than to leave you and continue this tomorrow. Maybe Ladydeath will help persuade you to speak to me with greater sincerety by then."

You nod your head at Ladydeath.

(It should be noted I left at this point, the next bit is recorded from the vision of Vicar Ladydeath.)

Ladydeath grabs the ring finger of the little girl, her face expressionless as the girl pleads with her to stop. She bends it back slowly, then with great force, smiling faintly at the satisfying crack. As the girl screams and struggles, she repeats the process again, this time with the middle finger.

A little girl howls in insufferable pain.

A little girl thrashes about wildly

Ladydeath pauses for a moment.

You look thoughtful and say, " Have you ever heard of the Seven Truths of the Lord Sartan?"

A little girl says through unhappy tears, "N..no. Please… You're hurting me."

You say, "I believe that is the point. Falsehoods lead to pain. Let me teach you of the Truths, so that you may better understand, perhaps it will help you renounce your lies."

Ladydeath holds the index finger of the little girl, once again bending it back slowly.

You say, "Truth One: What is called evil is simply the drive for advancement, for greatness. We seek, through discipline and pain, to spur the advancement of nothing less than sentient life."

Ladydeath pushes the girl's index finger quickly back, listening as it cracks.

Throwing back her head, a little girl screams agonizingly.

Ladydeath continues, grabbing the girl's thumb this time.

You say, "Truth Two: Cruelty - the application of pain - is the method by which one weeds out the weak and feeble-minded from the population."

Ladydeath pulls the thumb back towards the top of the hand, applying a great deal of pressure before it finally breaks.

A little girl moans like a wailing banshee.

Ladydeath moves to the other side of the table.

You say, "Truth Three: Weakness must be eliminated in all its forms: Physical, Mental, and Spiritual."

Ladydeath grabs the pinky finger of the little girl's left hand, pulling it back with immediate force, resulting in an audible ‘crunch'.

A little girl twitches spasmodically.

Ladydeath grabs the left ring finger of the little girl.

You say, "Truth Four: The enemies of strength are those who trumpet the effeminate values of forgiveness, tolerance, and laxity of discipline."

Ladydeath thrusts the finger back, pursing her lips as it cracks under the pressure. She then grabs the middle finger of the girl.

A look of utter despair crosses a little girl's face.

A little girl whimpers like a wounded puppy.

You say, "Truth Five: The body may be made stronger through combat."

Ladydeath smiles serenely as the next finger breaks beneath her hand.

A little girl begins to weep uncontrollably.

You say, "Truth Six: The mind may be made stronger through the elimination of conscience. One does this by inflicting pain on others."

Ladydeath grabs the index finger next, slamming it back violently.

Throwing back her head, a little girl screams agonizingly.

You say, "Truth Seven: The spirit may be made stronger by enduring hardships, both self-imposed and externally-imposed."

Ladydeath grabs the final unbroken finger of the girl, her left thumb, and pushes it back as hard as she can, finishing only when it snaps.

A little girl wails like an old woman.

A little girl heaves an almighty groan.

You ponder the situation.

You say, "It seems we are out of fingers, though I did indeed finish the Truths. We'll have to find something more creative I guess."

A little girl shivers violently.

Ladydeath moves to the tray of instruments, carefully sorting through them before selecting a thin, sharp needle. After inspecting it carefully, she returns to the girl's side, placing one hand so that her fingers pry open the girl's right eye.

Tears fill a little girl's eyes and begin to slowly run down her face.

You say, "Don't blink."

(It would be tedious for me to record all that was done in the first session of torture. So I will cut it short at this point and continue with the interrogation procedures. However, I believe you will find that Vicar Ladydeath's work loosened Avia's tongue rather well.)

Inside a vast torture chamber. Rusted manacles hang on the grubby stone walls holding the remains of traitors firmly in place. A wooden workbench on small castors holds many cruel implements ranging from thumbscrews to elaborate knives, a stretching rack with pulleys and ropes sits idly in one corner. A runic totem is planted solidly in the ground. A sigil in the shape of a small, rectangular monolith is on the ground. An emaciated little girl is here, looking vacant. Demoniac Vicar Ladydeath Aristata is here. You see exits leading southwest and west.

Ladydeath stares coldly at the unconscious form of a little girl.

You peer at a little girl unscrupulously.

Ladydeath says to You in Mhaldorian, "Ready to continue?"

You nod your head emphatically.

Cypra eyes the little girl, noting the wounds acquired after she left. A bloody cloth covers her eyes and her fingers are twisted at odd angles, the skin black and blue. Several glaring bruises and puncture wounds hint at internal damage the girl might have received.

Cypra takes some smelling salts from a canvas backpack.

Cypra gently places the smelling salts beneath the girl's nose, letting them rest there long enough for her to regain consciousness.

A little girl wakes up with a gasp of pain.

Cypra smiles softly at a little girl.

You say, "Greetings Avia. I hope you are feeling better today. I do apologise for yesterday's activities, but it was necessary. It is my hope that you will be more willing to tell us your story now, we are quite interested."

A little girl rasps hoarsely.

You say, "Would you like some water? I'm sure you throat is terribly parched."

A little girl nods her head emphatically.

Cypra takes a mug filled with clear water from the tray next to the girl. She lifts it gently up to the girl's lips, letting her drink from it for several minutes.

You say, "There, that is enough for now."

Cypra takes a sharp syringe and a jar filled with a yellow fluid from the silver tray. She slides the needle into the jar, pulling the fluid into the needle.

You smile and say, "This will help with the pain, judging by your wounds, I imagine you are in a great deal of it. It won't heal what has been done to you, but if you do as I ask, I may be able to help with that."

Cypra presses the needle against the wrist of the little girl, sliding it into the soft flesh. The little girl winces for a moment, and struggles faintly, but her struggles cease as the fluid begins to flow through her vein, leaving a warm sensation, and dulling the intense throbbing that pulses throughout her body, so very acute in her hands and eyes.

You smile and say, "Please, let us begin from when you were led to the orphanage and I want you to tell me everything that happened there, the truth this time."

A little girl nods her head emphatically.

You say, "Alright, start with when you entered the orphanage, let's begin there."

A little girl says, "Well, there is this man at the orphanage, he enrolls all the orphans. Every time someone brings another ninny in …all the new kids are called that…. They get led to one of the rooms and get to stay at the waiting room if the priests decide they are good enough… umm… It was summer, because it was really hot, when I was taken there, and another summer had passed when I was moved, so I guess I stayed there more than a year…."

You say, "The waiting room?"

A little girl coughs softly.

A little girl says, "Yes, uh… that's what they call the orphanage where all the kids are taken, see, most of us don't stay there."

You raise an eyebrow questioningly.

You say, "Go on…"

A little girl frowns and says, "Umm, I guess the best way I can explain it is with how I was sent away… is… is that alright?"

You say, "That is fine, if I feel it is insufficient I will ask you further questions."

A little girl says, "Well, when I was taken to the orphanage, which is in the Chrisalis Basilica, that's the big church, Master Handel, he's the choirmaster, he handed me over to a priestess to show me my room and get me started in the choir. The priestess told me how lucky I was, and how very pretty I was, she said I would be a good addition to the choir. I was a little nervous, but pretty excited, I was just hoping they would have food really. I had a really hard time finding food when I lived on the street, I was always hungry."

A little girl says, "Can I have some more water?"

You say, "In a little bit, keep talking."

A little girl says, "Things were really good there at first. I had a place to sleep, a lot of us sleep in one room, but we get clothes and good food. They would have choir practice for us, and we would learn to sing, and sing the hymns to Lady Tarah and other holy Gods. They would tell us stories too, at night, before we went to bed. About Maran La'Saen and how brave he was to sacrifice himself to try to bring Lord Deucalion back, and how he ascended to become Lord Pentharian. Also they told us scary about…"

A little girl bites her bottom lip nervously.

You say, "About what?"

A little girl says, "About… about Mhaldor, and Sartan. They told us you were evil and bloodthirsty and… I'm sorry, please, that's what they said."

You say, "I appreciate your honesty, Avia, it is understandable that the church would tell you such things. They are foul heretics and do not understand the Truths of Lord Sartan and the strength of Evil. Do continue with your story, and tell me, when you say they, who do you mean?"

A little girl says, "The women and men of the church, they were priests, sometimes paladins, they're holy knights, they would visit also. Sometimes they brought toys."

You say, "Give me names."

A little girl says, "Well umm… there was Mr. S, he was a priest, sometimes we called him Devout S. There was Sir M and Lady C. There was Mr. F, we called him Anointed F sometimes, him and Mr. S were priests, and those were kind of their titles I think. There was Ms. R, who was also a priest, I… I really can't remember if there were any others, it was awhile ago and they came and went a lot."

(I have cut the names so as not to reveal identities, why disturb the practices of these individuals, as they may be beneficial to Shallam's future, be it repenting for its heresy, or burning to ash. I leave it up to the reader to discern whether the first letters coincide with the actual names of the individuals.)

You say, "Good, good, alright, continue, you are doing very well, Avia. Tell me a bit more and you'll get that water. When you finish everything, I'll even give you food, how do you feel about some roasted rabbit? I keep a private stock of unusual food, it's all very good."

A little girl sighs in relief.

A little girl says, "Thank you, that would be nice, I'm very hungry."

A little girl says, "Well things were going alright, and I was learning to sing, I was very good at it. Master Handel was very proud of me, he told me so. But there this priest who would fill in for Master Handel sometimes, or help him when he needed it. His name was Mr. V. One day I noticed him staring at me, it made me really nervous."

A little girl frowns and says, "We had a performance for the city, a lot of people were there, I got to be the lead soprano at one point. Afterwards Mr. V congratulated me, he told me I had a lot of potential. He said he wanted to see me in his room later, and would have me sent for, so he could talk to me about me taking a bigger role in the choir. He made me kind of nervous, because he was always looking at me since I noticed it the first time, but I was excited about maybe being the lead soprano more."

A little girl says, "When one of the priestesses brought me to his room that night he had me sing for him. After that he would send for me a lot, and just listen to me sing. Sometimes he would give me gifts, like pretty dresses and teddy bears. When I would bring them back, I noticed that the other children would look at me funny, and refuse to talk to me sometimes. I didn't understand why. There was one girl, Hannah, she had been a lead soprano also, but it was decided she wasn't good enough. Sometimes after I came back she would just glare at me, more than the others, and a couple of times she started fights with me during recess, which was our free time during the day."

A little girl says, "One night, when I visited Mr. V, he told me he didn't need for me to sing that night. He said he had something else in mind."

You tilt your head and listen intently.

A little girl sniffles softly.

A little girl frowns and says, "He… he wanted me to undress, he was telling me how beautiful I was, and he said he wanted to see what I looked like underneath my clothes. I was really nervous. He… he touched me, not like a hug…"

(I will exclude this part for two reasons. One, it is redundant in regards to what is already known about the actions of the Church, and two, it is rather graphic and I do not want to lose the ability to expose the further actions of the Church and Shallam by offending the more sensitive reader. To paraphrase what Avia told us, She was molested regularly by Mr.V for some time, he also gave her many favours because of his amorous desires for her. She was promoted to lead soprano full time, give numerous gifts, and given her own room, as well as finer meals. She also gained a private tutor and was educated further than the other orphans.)

You say, "I'm very proud of you, Avia, that must have been difficult to relate, I will give you the water you wanted."

Cypra leans over the little girl with the jug of water, letting her drink her fill.

A little girl thanks you profusely.

You say, "You said earlier that "that was before things changed" in regards to Mr. V and the gifts he gave you. What did you mean?"

A little girl clears her throat.

A little girl frowns and says, "It was Hannah…"

A little girl says, "She hated me more and more, and would do all she could to pick fights with me. She would tell me how I wasn't so great and I'd be replaced just like she was. I think she was jealous, I think Mr. V used to do things to her also…"

A little girl says, "One day… One day she picked another fight with me during our recess. She was screaming at me and calling me a whore. When we came back I went to my room. I went to leave a little after, for choir practice. She was waiting for me in the hall, she had this piece of a mirror in her hand, she had broken it I think, her hand was all bloody and she was just staring at me with this look…"

A little girl shudders violently.

A little girl says, "I felt like I should get away from her fast, but I was scared. I didn't know what to do. She started walking towards me and I was frozen. Then… Then she lashed out with the shard at my face. It hurt horribly. There was all this blood…"

You say, "And that is how you got that scar?"

A little girl nods her head emphatically.

A little girl says, "She was just laughing, I ran away as fast as I could. I ran to Mr.V I thought he would protect me…"

A little girl creases her brow into a frown.

A little girl says, "Mr. V had one of the priestesses help to heal my face and he gave me something to help me sleep, then he sent me to bed. I was told to stay in my room for a few days, so that I could heal fully. Mr. V said it should heal fine after the help of the priestess. I was told Hannah would be punished. Only, it didn't really heal, the scar stayed. I kept staring in the mirror at it hoping it would go away…"

A little girl gives a pained sigh.

A little girl says, "One day one of the younger priests came to get me, he told me that I would be useless in the choir with my scar. He told me only the pure children could be a part of it and I was no longer pure, that I was tainted. He said he would have to take me to another place, where I would be more useful. They made me leave my toys behind and any of the clothes I wasn't wearing."

A little girl sniffles softly.

A little girl says, "The next day a carriage was sent for me. They made me wear this huge cloak and hide my face so no one would see me. I looked for Mr. V, I figured he would fix everything if I could just find him, but I never saw him."

A little girl begins to cough for a moment, her small frame shuddering.

A little girl says, "The windows of the carriage were covered and I didn't know where we were going at all, there were two strange men with me, and they wouldn't tell me anything. The ride seemed like it took forever, I was kind of relieved when we stopped, even though I didn't know what was going to happen to me, I thought maybe they would put me out on the street again."

A little girl says, "We were somewhere near the docks, I could tell that, the smell was awful. The men with me kept blocking my view, making me look directly forward, so I couldn't see much. We ended up at this huge building. It was really scary, I didn't want to go in it, all the windows were boarded up and the doors were huge. It reminded me of this nightmare I had after my parents died, where the sea rose up into this beastly wave, and there was this horrible screaming face in it, and all it wanted to do was swallow me up. Only this time it was the building I thought would swallow me up."

A little girl coughs softly.

A little girl says, "Please… I can feel the pain coming back, and I'm so tired…"

You say, "Continue, I will ease the pain when you finish. But your story is quite interesting, you have suffered much, I wish to know more."

A little girl nods her head emphatically.

A little girl says, "Well… the warehouse was my new home. It wasn't just me, there were other children there. We all called it the Cage, because… well that is what it was, and I think because we were locked in the sleeping rooms except when we were made to work or fight."

A little girl says, "Some of us they decided they wanted as workers… those were the lucky ones. They would sew most of the day or make toys for the orphanage and to be donated to poor families. I did that for awhile, we would make these pretty little wooden ships, and paint them in reds or blues, the paint smelled awful, and the tools they gave us were very dull, I remember my hands would ache and bleed by the end of the day."

A little girl says, "I used to imagine what the children were like who got the toys. The ones who still had families… I would dream about how they must go to the park everyday, to sail the boats, and about how sunny it must be there, the warehouse was so dark…. I would sometimes imagine I was one of those children, and that when I was done with making the toy, my parents would come and get me, and I could sail it with the others…"

A little girl's lower lip begins to tremble as her eyes fill with heavy tears.

You crease your brow in a frown.

You say, "Please stay with the purpose of the questions, Avia, I have little use for such extraneous information."

A little girl gives a pained sigh.

A little girl says, "I'm sorry…. I'll try to do better."

You nod your head emphatically.

You say, "Continue."

A little girl says, "The headmistress of the Cage was horrid. I couldn't handle the work, my hands hurt everyday, and all I could think about was my old room at the orphanage, and singing in the choir again. Oh… I really missed singing in the choir, it's so lovely to hear your voice rise up, praising Lady Tarah or Lord Pentharian, and to hear the other voices align perfectly with yours… I would feel like I was glowing…."

You massage your temples, your patience visibly wearing thin.

You frown and say, "Focus, Avia, Vicar Ladydeath has less patience than I, and mine is waning. I imagine hers' is almost gone. I'm sure you can appreciate how much you do not want her to lose her patience."

Ladydeath absently lets a hand wander across the cruel instruments on the tray next to her, letting the instruments shift beneath her fingers so that a quiet scraping can be heard as they slide within the tray.

A little girl gulps nervously.

A little girl says, "Of… of course."

A little girl says, "The headmistress. I kept trying to tell her that I didn't belong there. I know that if Mr. V had just known where I was he would have come back for me. She wouldn't listen though, sometimes she would just pretend like I wasn't even there, a few times she had me put in the box…"

You raise an eyebrow questioningly.

You ask, "The box?"

A little girl shivers violently.

A little girl frowns and says, "They would put us there, when we were bad… There was this grate in the cellar, they would open it up and make you crawl inside… It was so hard to breath, and so dark… It was horrible."

You say, "Of course, how terrible. I didn't realize such wretched things were done to mere children."

You say, "You poor child. Please, continue with your story."

A little girl says, "One day I noticed the Headmistress speaking with a tall man. I was working at the time, but I could see them out of the corner of my eye. They were pointing and looking at me while they talked. It made me really nervous, and I had trouble focusing for the rest of the day, my stomach felt like it was in knots because I could just feel something was wrong."

A little girl says, "When I went to sleep that night, I woke up and there was something covering my face. I couldn't see anything, and I was tied up. I tried to scream or get free, but I couldn't. I felt myself being lifted up by hands, and then I was being carried… though I couldn't tell where."

A little girl says, "I felt this pain in my neck, like something stabbing me, I remember that pretty well. Then I just kind of… passed out."

You tilt your head and listen intently.

A little girl says, "When I woke up, I was laying on straw in this tiny room. It smelled… awful, and I was locked in, I was all alone. It was pretty scary. It seemed like forever before someone came to get me."

A little girl says, "It was the man who had talked to the Headmistress. He grabbed my arm and dragged me outside the little room and took me to this huge room with a cage in the center. One wall had all these half borken knives, and it really scared me. But… that wasn't the worst of it…"

You say, "What was the worst of it?"

A little girl says, "They had decided I didn't need to work in the factory anymore, they decided I needed to fight…"

You say, "Go on…"

A little girl says, "Everyday they would train us, there were other orphans there… they would hand us wooden knives and make us practice with them, practice fighting each other, though I didn't know why at the time. Then one of the other children told me we had to "compete". When I asked what he meant he told me that a big crowd would come to watch us, and they would pay money to bet on which one of us would survive against another…."

A little girl rasps hoarsely.

A little girl says, "I didn't believe him…"

A little girl says, "I should have though, you know? I was there for months, I know because the seasons must have changed, it started to get very cold at night. A lot of the children got sick, and a few died. I was lucky… Well, I don't know…"

You raise an eyebrow questioningly.

A little girl says, "One night Mr. G., that was the name of our trainer, the man who had talked to the headmistress, well, one night he woke me and a few of the other children up. Told us to get dressed because we were going to put our skills to use. I had this creeping feeling in the back of my mind the whole time that that boy hadn't been lying."

A little girl says, "We were led into a large room I hadn't seen before. The whole place was hot and smoky, and packed with all kinds of people, though I couldn't see any of them well because it was so dark. It was really noisy, too. I did see a large cage though, in the very middle of the room, there were lots of torches around it, so it was easy to spot. Each of us was handed a knife and led to a small room where we were told to wait."

A little girl says, "It was me, the boy who had warned me, and a few others, and we just stood there. I don't think most of us knew what was going to happen. I kind of knew, but I was still hoping…"

A little girl pauses for a moment, lost in her thoughts, her visage wracked with pain from her wounds.

A little girl says, "One by one they led us out, until only I and the boy were left. He… he told me his name was Algerro. I won't ever forget his name. I can't."

A little girl says, "Mr. G came then. He led us out and pointed at our knives, then he pointed at a large man next to the cage. He told us we could fight in there and have a chance for survival… or the man would kill us. Then he shoved us over to the cage and locked us in."

A little girl says, "When I looked out of the cage… I could see that man staring at us, and then I saw… I saw Mr. V. He was just watching us, and the look in his eyes… I knew he wouldn't help me. I knew I was going to die. Algerro and I stared at each other for a bit, we didn't really know what to do. Then he.. he rushed at me with this scream. I managed to dodge out of the way of his knife, but I knew he would kill me if he could."

A little girl says, "I did what I had to do… I didn't want to, honest. I just… his back was turned to me for a second, and I just… stuck the knife in him. Just like that, I couldn't think at all, I swear, or I would have rather died. He didn't even scream or cry out. He just kind of stood there for a moment. I could feel his blood flowing all over my hand, it felt like it was fire."

A little girl says, "Have you ever felt like time stood still, like everything just stops around you? That's how I felt. For a moment nothing moved, I could just barely see Mr. V with this horrible smile on his face. I just stared at him. Then Algerro fell, fell right to the floor with my knife in him. I knew he was dead…"

A little girl struggles to find the right words.

A little girl says, "I don't remember much of the night after that. I just kind of blocked it out. It… it happened again though, the fights, me… me killing. Until I couldn't feel it at all anymore."

A little girl says, "I wish I had died, I wish… I wish I had burned up in the fire."

You say, "Fire?"

A little girl says, "Yes, there was a fire. It wasn't an accident, I know. One of the children got a tinderbox somehow. They wanted out even if they had to die. So did I though. The whole place was in a panic, and there was this thick black smoke everywhere. I just started running, you know, trying to get wherever was safe."

A little girl says, "Only, I found the doors. I found my way out. You know, it didn't matter then, it didn't mean anything. I don't know why."

A little girl goes deathly quiet.

You say, "What happened then?"

A little girl says, "I just kind of wandered, avoided anyone with candles obviously. Then you came, and gave me that lollipop and told me to follow you to a better place. So… That's all there is. I swear it."

You say, "I believe you."

You ponder the situation.

You say, "One more thing and I will help you be free, alright, Avia?"

A little girl says, "Yes, ma'am."

You tell Demoniac Vicar Ladydeath Aristata, "I think she is indeed finished with her story."

Ladydeath tells you, "Yes, what should be done now?"

You tell Demoniac Vicar Ladydeath Aristata, "Well, she has been terribly accommodating. We ought to let her go, I think. Only…"

You tell Demoniac Vicar Ladydeath Aristata, "We have been so short of vivisection subjects."

Ladydeath tells you, "Understood."

Ladydeath takes a shining scalpel from the tray before her.

You say, "Rejoice, Avia, it will be only a short time before you are free."

(I have removed the rest of our studies as they are of an entirely different subject and would be better placed within my collection of vivisection experiments. I do hope you don't mind.)

I hope this missive finds you well, and that it is of use to you.

Sincerely, Cypra