Seis : the Ruins of the Wind

Chapter 3: Bloodstones (part 2)

A few minutes later, they arrived at a crevasse near the guard post, which he had noticed on the day of his arrival at the prison. Two other penitentiary staff members were present. They wore slightly different uniforms, with purple epaulets. This meant they were officers. They seemed older; one of them, very thin, with a face emaciated by wrinkles, had the silver hair of the elderly. He turned to the newcomers:

- "Is this the smallest you found?"

- "He is the youngest and most frail of all the inmates, Chief."

Seis looked at the gray-haired man with some fear. What could the prison director possibly want with him? The man crouched in front of him so that their faces were at the same level. Looking Seis straight in the eyes, he continued:

- "What is your prison number?"

- "I am 6666, Chief."

- "To me, prisoners have no age, 6666. I'm not going to treat you differently from an adult, do you understand that 6666?"

- "Yes, Chief."

- "Very well. Here's the situation: one of my men, Ben, a good guy, has disappeared near this crevasse. We suspect he fell, but we have no proof. Ben is a great guy. If he's dead, I want to know, and I want to at least be able to send his body and badge to his family. Do you understand?"

- "Yes, I understand, Chief," replied Seis in a monotone voice. The suffering of the guards could not move him.

The director then stood up and stroked his long nose, which gave him the appearance of a bird of prey. He approached the crevasse and looked into the dark void, then declared:

- "No one can descend into this crevasse without risking death. There is a tunnel that goes down to the heart of this abyss. But it partially collapsed over 10 years ago. Now, it's too small for an adult, but you might be able to squeeze through. Go down, find my man. And we'll bring you a meal of bubuflon meat. A feast even for a noble. That's my promise."

This time, Seis said nothing. The offer was enticing. Even when he lived in the Barony with his sister, he had rarely eaten bubuflon meat. The one time he had, the taste had left a lasting impression, and after several days of hard work in this prison, the promise of a delicious meal awakened his senses. He salivated at the thought. He nodded while wiping his mouth.

He followed the two guards to a round room with a wooden hatch in the middle. One of the soldiers handed him a pole and a mana lamp and then said:

- "Jump in there," pointing to the cavity under the hatch, "find Ben. If you have a problem, don't hesitate to scream. But it's likely we won't be able to help you."

- "And if I find Ben, how do I get back up?"

- "Well, you improvise. No one will come to save you."

Seis looked at the hatch, covered by a wooden shutter. The shutter was square, at least two meters by two meters. The hole seemed immense. One of the guards bent down and, with great effort, lifted the heavy wooden panel. There was a small damaged rope ladder on the side, which descended into a gaping chasm. Seis couldn't see more than a meter down. He took a deep breath and tried to convince himself that everything would be fine. The other guard tied a rope around his waist and tightened it with a sharp tug. Then he detached the mana lamp from his belt and handed it to Seis. The latter attached the lamp to the rope near his waist.

He then began to cautiously descend the ladder. His right foot gently searched for the next step, while both hands held the ladder firmly. He looked straight ahead at the barely lit black stone, avoiding looking down to prevent increasing his fear. Below him, the rest of the ladder seemed to have been torn off, and a pile of stones reduced the free space to advance. He suddenly understood why the guards had called on him. No adult could have entered through this space. Even for his small frame, it would be particularly difficult. He placed his feet on the top of the pile of stones. Again being cautious, he slid into the small space the stones had left. This tunnel must have collapsed decades ago. Despite the light, there was nothing to see. The black stone reflected the little light and dazzled him, so he turned off the lamp. The absence of noise, the absolute darkness, and the sensations on his skin made him feel like he was in a nightmare. Occasionally, he felt unknown creatures, probably insects or plants, brush against his skin, but he neither could nor wanted to know. His descent seemed endless; he had to stay focused to avoid injury. The walls around him seemed to shrink as if to swallow him. The young boy, chilled to the bone, was trembling. He was too cold to think. He simply applied Jason's methods. The soldier had always told him: