Into The Storm

14

Benedictus sat on a wooden throne, his hands and legs tied tightly with belts. Wolfgrimm stood in front of him. By his side, was a table with many tortuous instruments laid out, ready to be used on the victim. There was a hatchet and a knife, accompanied by a single, long, thin metal spike and a mallet. Resting in a pit of burning coals was a red hot poker. Wolfgrimm looked down at his victim, being prepared to go through with the inquisition.

"I am giving you one chance and one chance only to escape this without the pain that I will have to inflict upon you." Wolfgrimm told him. "I want to know everything that Rosalis is planning to do."

"I will never betray her." Benedictus told him.

"So be it." Wolfgrimm took hold of one of the monk's fingers and bent it backwards, breaking it. Benedictus screamed. "Is she planning to stop me?" He asked, still holding the monk's broken bones. "How is she going to do that? She would need to bring an army with herself. But then again, she does have an army back in Frinnor."

Benedictus seethed through his teeth, gritting them through the pain. He looked up at the inquisitor. "She will stop you. She may be alone, but she will find a way to stop you."

Wolfgrimm released the monk's broken fingers and then grabbed the hatchet from the table. In a flash, he brought it down onto the monk's fingers, separating three of them from the middle knuckle. Benedictus screamed in agony as they fell to the ground and blood began to splash onto the floor rapidly. He clenched his teeth and suppressed his screams, adrenaline running through him. Wolfgrimm released the hatchet, letting it hang there. He looked at him. "You do understand that you are dead to her? She is not coming back for you. Unless she has some sort of a death wish. But no. It is just you and me here. I am giving you a chance to live here. Tell me what Rosalis is planning to do with me, and I will spare your life."

Benedictus breathed heavily and said nothing. Wolfgrimm drew out his greatsword and drew the blade across Benedictus' hand. A large wound opened up and fresh blood poured out, splashing onto the floor. He clenched his teeth, suppressing his scream and then chuckled slightly, began to laugh. "I am right on the verge of death, so you are free to do whatever you like with me."

"Really?" Wolfgrimm sheathed his sword and stepped over to the poker that was burning in the pit of coals. He picked it up and brought it up to the monk's face, allowing him to feel the scorching heat from it. He grinned at him. "Oh, I am going to enjoy this immensely."

Benedictus chuckled. "Oh, I am sure that you are."

Wolfgrimm responded with a chuckle of his own and then pressed the burning poker to one of Benedictus' cheeks. He screamed as it sizzled, frying his skin, searing it. Some small wisps of smoke rose into the air and he took the poker away, looked at the scar. Turning round, Wolfgrimm threw the poker back into the pit of burning coals and reached for the knife. He looked closely as the monk. "Are you familiar with the term lingchi?"

Benedictus panted, letting the pain settle and then looked up at him. "Can't say that I have."

"It is a torture method that is used by the Chinese. Not that I have been to China myself. To put it in simple terms, it is death by a thousand cuts. Prolonged torture." He drew a long incision in one of the monk's cheeks. He screamed. Wolfgrimm looked at the first cut. "I can do this all day and all night, there is nothing rushing me."

"So...whilst you are enjoying yourself in causing me pain, you are simply going to let Rosalis plot behind your back on how to kill you?" He chuckled. Wolfgrimm frowned and then inflicted a second scar.

"What is she going to do? She is alone."

"Need I remind you that it is not just her and Edmund? They both have knights at their command."

"And I also have an army at my command. We are evenly matched. Well...not evenly, I would say. After all, I have the greater power here." He sliced a third cut. Benedictus groaned in pain. "She is outmatched, she would be heading straight for a slaughter."

"It is not just brute strength that wins wars. There is strategy to it. Have you ever learned that?"

Wolfgrimm inflicted a fourth cut, seeming to be in no rush at all. "Why would I need to? I break down her army with mine, kill anyone that will fall to the ground with my blade and carry on until both Rosalis and her little king are dead. What is the challenge in that?"

"You will die in this war. Just you wait and see. You will get what you deserve, you sadist."

Wolfgrimm shrugged. "What can I say? I am a sadist." He drew the knife back and forth along Benedictus' opposite cheek, inflicting at least ten cuts. He looked at the scarred and dying monk. All of a sudden, he put away the knife and took a cleaver, swung it down onto one of the monk's wrists. The blade cleaved through the bone like butter and Benedictus screamed in unimaginable agony as his hand was separated from his wrist. It fell to the floor and blood spurted out rapidly, covering the stone tiles. Once the pain had settled, Benedictus began to breathe heavily, trying to get over the shock and the fact that he now had one hand. "Renounce God. Join me, and I will spare your life."

"The Lord is with me and He always will be. You may be able to hack all of my limbs away one by one, but you will never take Him away from me."

"Can I?" Without another word said, Wolfgrimm swung the cleaver into the monk's foot, shearing through the bone like it wasn't even there. Benedictus roared in agony again and then suddenly stopped, passing out, the pain being too much to bear. Wolfgrimm looked down at his work. Blood covered the place like a horror show. After a few small moments, Benedictus stirred and awoke. Sweat ran down his face and his remaining hand shook uncontrollably, adrenaline running through him. His face was as pale as death.

"I am..on...the verge of...death." The dying monk pointed out, being almost too weak to form the words. "Joining you...will be of...no use. I'm a dead man."

Wolfgrimm then lost the point of it all. Benedictus was rather going to die than give in. So he decided to give him his wish. He took the cleaver and swung it down onto the table, letting it stay there and undid the belt buckles. Grabbing the monk by his hood, he dragged him out of the chair and began to drag him over to a balcony, leaving a large smear of dark red blood on the floor as he did so. Forcing the monk to his knees, he took his head and placed his neck onto the balcony. Benedictus closed his eyes and began to silently pray, knowing that this moment would be his last. Wolfgrimm drew his sword out and swung it down onto his neck, decapitating him. He took his headless corpse and threw it over the edge, letting it fall to the ground. He looked at his blood stained sword and then turned round, making his way back into his castle.