Tragedy ✔️

Chapter 30

I am in the same situation as Charlotte. Chained to a chair next to her and Susan, who is also chained. Tape covers our mouths and I can hear Charlotte crying; I wish I could tell her that it is okay. That everything will be fine, but I can't give false promises.

The king, Richard, and Starla sit in a small round table in the other corner of the room across from us. They whisper, so I can't make out what they are saying. Their hands move about and their lips open and close. Finally, they all nod and stand up at once.

Starla cat walks toward me and whispers in my ear with a seductive voice, "Ready for hell, pretty boy?"

She then rips the tape off my mouth and I grit my teeth. My eyes spit fire at her. The way she moves and talks makes me want to rip her hair out.

Then, the king approaches me and stands in front of me for a good amount of time without saying a word. It's almost as if he is deciding how to baste me.

At last, he gives a sly chuckle and says, "It is time, Colin West."

He waves his hands and the chains release me. He gestures for me to stand up and I obey, even though I would rather sit. I stretch my arms slightly, flexing my muscles that have become stiff from sitting too long.

Starla and Richard escort me to the far side of the room from where I was sitting. In front of me is a big round pool filled with a thick, red substance. I look carefully at the liquid and my stomach turns and I feel bile come up my throat when I realize it's blood in the pool. About fifty gallons of it. I can smell the sour stench of it.

"Get in," barks Richard.

When I don't budge, I feel a strong force lift me up from my feet and I feel my weight hit the hot liquid. I lift my head above the blood and try not to puke, even though there isn't much in my stomach to throw up. I feel the sticky blood all over me. In my mouth, nose, ears, and eyes. I wipe my eyes with my hands and I see the king is now standing in front of Starla and Richard.

"Are you ready to change the world, Colin?" says the king, "In order for our plan to work, you must give yourself in willingly."

"You keep saying that," I say frustrated, "But what exactly do you want me to do?"

"Die."

A sense of Déjà vu hits me. I have done this already. When I died, it wasn't an accident. I knew what I was doing.

"I already killed myself," I say, "Why is this any different."

"You didn't give yourself willingly to death that time," he says, "You were just angry with your sister for abandoning you. The blood is inescapable. The more you struggle to free yourself, the more the blood feeds off your will to survive. Eventually, you will be so exhausted of trying to break free that you will have to give up. Because you will be completely drained at that point, you will die."

"And how will that help you?" I ask.

"That isn't your business," his voice booms, "All you need to know is that you are needed out of the way."

"I am your weakness, right?"

His eyes are on me in a flash and he grits his teeth. His face scrunches up in a raging anger I have never seen on anyone in my life or death. Then, his features relax and he's too calm now, that it scares me. He has a friendly smile on his face and he walks towards me. He snaps his fingers and Starla runs with a chair and places it by the side of the pool. He plops into the seat and motions me to come closer.

Walking in a pool of blood is a hassle. At last, I reach the side of the pool and I am in front of the king. My face is emotionless and I stare at his eyes hard as a rock.