Unorthodox

02.5: Hell

When Aspen finally regained consciousness, he felt something tugging harshly at his ankles. Confused, Aspen lifted his head, blinking his eyes a few times to bring clarity to the world around him. Then he realized his restraints. Seeing his shackles made his face grimace; the metal clinked loudly when Aspen moved his leg slightly. He tried desperately to free himself but to no avail.

Aspen looked around to observe his situation, noticing he was chained to a tree trunk. In front of him was a large bonfire, flames lapping at the wood and sending a thick cloud of smoke billowing upwards. Next to the fire sat a hooded man, a knife in his hand as he sharpened the blade methodically. There was a short, blonde-haired boy who was tied up in front of him, kneeling with his arms bound to his sides by silver chains, and next to him, a dead girl sat in a pool of her blood. Her head was twisted at such a strange angle that it seemed like it might fall off. The smell of burning flesh wafted through the air and filled Aspen's nostrils, making his stomach churn uncomfortably.

"You're awake."

Aspen jumped upon hearing the low voice. His body froze, his heart beating even faster than before. Slowly, he turned his head towards the source of the voice, meeting eyes with an almost wholly hidden silhouette sitting on the grass a few meters away. Aspen squinted slightly to make out the figure's features, trying his best not to freak out. If it weren't for the faint glow emanating from the strangers' eyes, Aspen wouldn't have noticed the person was there at all.

He gulped silently, staring at the stranger intensely. After a minute or so of silence, the stranger spoke again, "You got pretty unlucky, kid." They sounded almost amused. "Maybe if you weren't so weak, your brothers would be alive right now."

"How do you know my brothers?!"

"SHHH!" the stranger silenced him, pointing past Aspen. "He's coming."

Aspen quickly turned his head, and after only a fraction of a second, his eyes widened in fear as he saw the man who was previously at the bonfire making his way toward them. His face was contorted, so terrifying that Aspen couldn't help but tremble at the sight. "N-no!" Aspen cried out in panic, attempting to move, which was futile because he was still chained to the tree. "Please! Please don't kill me!" his voice quivered as tears welled up in his eyes. The man's dark eyes met with Aspen's terrified ones, causing Aspen to gasp.

"Good, so you're awake." Without further warning, the man grabbed Aspen by his hair and slammed him forcefully onto the ground before lifting his shirt, exposing his abdomen. His heart beat rapidly as the man ran his cold fingertips along his belly button, leaving a trail of goosebumps across his skin. As the man rubbed his thumb on Aspen's skin, he began to shake in terror.

"Relax..." He reached into the inner pocket of his coat and pulled out a small dagger, holding it close to Aspen's eye level. "If you don't cooperate, I can guarantee it will hurt more than it should...so stay still." The man warned him as he slowly pressed the dagger's point against his skin.

Before Aspen could react, the man stabbed the point of the dagger into his skin, eliciting a scream of pain from him, causing him to writhe uncontrollably underneath the man's grasp.

The man tightened his grip on Aspen's hair and pressed the dagger harder into his skin.

Aspen continued to scream in agony; he lay limply, his body trembling. He glanced up, looking straight into the man's eyes as a tear slid down his cheek. Aspen could feel every inch of his skin burn in excruciating pain. "Please let me go..." he begged. "Please.."

The man ignored him and began drawing a symbol into Aspen's skin. The pain was unbearable; it was worse than anything he'd ever experienced before. Aspen grabbed the man's arm, trying to pull away, desperate to escape. Finally, the man finished, withdrawing the dagger and letting Aspen roll away from him, gasping in pain as he held his bleeding side.

The man got to his feet and frowned, wiping the dagger clean. He walked up to Aspen, grabbing a hold of him by his collar. "Listen here, I don't want to hear another word come out of your mouth, okay?" he said, a hint of anger creeping into his voice.

Aspen nodded frantically, and snot started leaking out of his nose from the crying he was doing. The man stared deeply into his eyes, disgust plastered across his face. "Look at that face, so pathetic." The man scoffed as he threw Aspen aside. He took a cloth out of his pockets and threw it to Aspen, "Cover your wound up; we don't need it to get infected." With that, the man strolled off towards the fire and sat in the spot he had previously occupied.

With a shaking hand, Aspen grabbed the cloth the man had thrown to him and placed it gently over the cut on his abdomen, the fabric sticking to his sweaty skin. Aspen sat quietly, taking deep breaths to calm his nerves. He turned his head in the direction where the stranger had been, only to see the space beside him, devoid of anyone. The stranger is gone? That doesn't make any sense... Are his brothers actually dead? Aspen shook his head, deciding he didn't care enough to think about it too hard as he laid back against the tree. He looked skyward at the clouds passing overhead, wondering how to escape his predicament.

For what felt like hours, Aspen sat in silence, staring aimlessly into the distance. He squinted his eyes as the sun began to rise over the horizon, bathing the forest around him in warm hues of orange. He sighed contentedly. "So this is hell," he mumbled to himself. I wonder if there is anything better than this ...