Pierced

Araceli stared into the lingering flames, watching the dancing orange heat blur as tears streaked down her face. Neighbors muttered and talked amongst themselves, small comments blending into one another to form a background noise so the only thing left in the world was the fading blaze, pain, and herself.
She fell to her knees, continuing to stare into the dying fire, watching as everything she had ever loved and owned burned. The crowd suddenly stopped talking, and Araceli half listened as the crowd shifted. A loud clanking noise was heard, and a heavy hand grasped her shoulder.
She looked at it numbly, then slowly gazed up. An Avean guard smirked down at her, before raising his hand and placing a finger on her temple.
"Magic", Araceli mumbled to herself as darkness started to overtake her vision.
"That's right, girly. I'm taking you to see somebody special. Somebody who'll decide what to do to you." the guard said, chuckling darkly.
Everyone knew what it meant when a guard takes you to see 'somebody special'.
It means you never come back.