The Pearl Fox

The Broken Box

He was shoved into a dark cell that was damp with sticky stained walls and terrible smells. There were bones in the corners, along with old piles of rags. There was just a filthy old wooden pile to do his business, and that was all in the dark. Hanzak was now expected to sit in there, without light, except the feeble glow from some torch on a sconce in a corridor outside of his cell, and there was just not enough light to see. The door to his cell was wooden and covered in sharp iron studs. There was a small speakeasy with bars that allowed him to get visibility out into the corridor of darkness. All that he could see was just a flickering torch glow on the grime black walls ahead. The cell he was in was one of many network of cells built within the dungeon and the guards reminded him that where he was is better than inside the oubliette. Considering his crimes, if found guilty, that was where he'll end up next. Hanzak could hear drips dripping, but thanked the gods it wasn't inside his cell but out in the corridor. When they brought him here, there were puddles on the floor. No one ever fixed that leak. They never gave him food in the long journey inside a tight prisoner's wagon where he sat in a cage. Later, he was just given a smack across the face, a splash of dirty water thrown at him, then a few beatings from some of the guards, before they put him in the cell.

Many hours passed, and the time felt wrong, as if hundreds of hours passed. He wasn't sure. The cell door opened, and a plate was set on the floor next to the door, but a flagon of water was thrown towards him. He caught it, and opened it, ready to drink. Warm fluid that tasted horrible, and not like water at all. It made him feel sick. He searched blind in the dark for his plate of food. He crawled over to where he guessed it might be, where he knew the door was. It felt squishy and smelled terrible, he wasn't going to eat that. He crawled over to a corner, and curled up there and fell alseep. He later woke up, unsure of the time, or how long he'd slept for. He noticed the red glow of a torch dancing on the surface of the wall, filtered through the very small speakeasy caged window on the door. There was faint shouting coming from within the castle, rebounded and echoes like sounds from within the dungeon. Footsteps, keys, clanging of shutting doors, a few wails and then, silence and his own breathing. He fell asleep again, and this time, when he woke up, he found himself covered in sweat. A pair of red eyes faded into darkness. To his horror, he noticed that this wasn't a dream. There was something in the cell with him, staring at him as he slept, but there wasn't anything here now. It was gone. He yelled, calling for the guards. "Help me! Help!" None came. He waited, thinking about what he'd seen, and then he yelled again.

"Be quiet!" a voice shouted from the corridor, or another cell. He wasn't sure if it was a guard or another prisoner. Hanzak wasn't afraid anylonger. He wanted this shadow with glowing red eyes to return, so that he could kill it. And then he would eat it. He dozed off again, because now he was woken up in a room filled with firelight from toches, and two guards stood over him. "Time for you to see the maistrate, thief!" said one and kicked Hanzak's foot. Hanzak felt glad to see other human beings again. The guards pulled him up, then pushed him towards the cell door.

"Are there any rats in the cells?" Hanzak asked, thinking of the creature with red eyes.

"Yes, you!" Gruffly replied the guard. Hanzak laughed.

"What the fuck are you laughing at, thief?" asked the other guard now.

They wore gauntlets and a few knocks from them would shatter any man's jaw. They pushed Hanzak along the dank corridors, then gridlocked him by clenching his arms to tight that he wasn't able to feel them, as they went up stone steps. Hanzak was soon brought into a courtroom, and shoved inside a caged box that was one of many wooden gibbets lined up in the room, containing other prisoners. It so narrow that he could only stand up and wasn't able to sit or kneel inside. He looked around and observed guards, all throughout the room, the court officials, including one fat dark skinned man in blue robes seated behind the judge's bench. The fat man was called Judge Delight and Hanzak laughed. A guard turned and punched the bars of Hanzak's cage. Judge Delight raised a finger and a young official stood up. He had enormous bouffant white hair with curls and he wore black robes. He addressed the court in a musical voice.

"Your honour, Judge Delight, this is another trial of suspects here". He looked at the prisoners and the people sat throughout the court. "I'm Prosecuter Lyons and I will read out the list of prisoners names that we have before us. Lim. Irons. Cattle Fog. Hanzak. Sterling. Marpus. Boil. Wayne. Dove. All of you are accused of theft and robbery. You thought you could escape but you were caught. This trial will decide your punishment and whatever befits you, based on the seriousness of your crimes." This young man with huge curls reminded Hanzak of a white peacock. Prosecuter Lyons went on: "Lim, you stole from a bakery in Whispering Village. Not once, but hundreds of times. It's any wonder that you're not fat. Irons, you stole money from your employer, a sum totalling four thousand Blue Rolls (4kBr). Cattle Fog, a bank robber with a violent nature. I bet your father is ashamed of you. Hanzak, you stole relics from a religious temple outside of Belldark". As Lyons said this, all eyes were on Hanzak. Even the other prisoners stared at him. "How low can you get, stealing from the gods? Disgraceful!" Shouted Lyons. Hanzak felt their gaze bore into him. Stealing from a temple was considered the worst sin. He listened to the peacock continue. "Sterling! Wake up! You stole food from someone's kitchen, after breaking into their house. These are law abiding taz payers you stole from. Sterling, you're scum! Marpus, begging is illegal in Diaphry, so you must've been living in a cave to not know about that. Boil, I doubt your parents gave you that stupid name. Nevertheless, you committed fraud. Dove, whatever made you steal shoes from a shop in Whispering Village? You took four pairs and you don't need all of that. Finally Wayne, you've been caught robbing from graves. Disgusting!"

The courtroom was just buzzing and humming full of disgruntled people who sat in the public gallery. Lyons took a parchment from fat Judge Delight, and then he spoke to the prisoners. "The judge has made a ruling. You'll each be punished as follows. To Lim, you're going to do forced labour at a construction site outside Portston. Irons, you'll be serving three years in a Moondome prison. Cattle Fog, the same goes for you but five years. Hanzak, forced labour at a quarry near Moonlake Town. Sterling, you'll spend two years in prison at Moondome, then once you've served time, you'll do forced labour at Portston. Boil, forced labour in Nee Town to pay your fine in twelve gold rolls (12 Gr). Finally Dove, prison at Moondome for two years."

After the sentance was given, guards opened the gibbets to release the prisoners, one by one, and pushed them out, and escorted them from the courtroom. Hanzak's wooden gibbet fell apart when the guard unlocked it, sending a loud clattering of wood and nails. Everyone fell silent, including Judge Delight. This enraged Prosecuter Lyons who flared up. "Someone hammer the damn thing back in place! Whatever you did to that box, Hanzak, will be added to your punishment. Damaging court furniture is going to be a fine of twenty bronze rolls (20 Br). This means an extra year to your punishment at Moonlake Town. Get out!"

Hanzak hated the bastard of the white curls, but there was nothing else he could do. The box simply broke. He wanted to argue that the carpenter who put it together should be blamed, but this would've put him in deeper trouble. The guards dragged him down into the dungeon, and back into his miserable cell. In the morning, they would chain him and put him on a prisoners wagon then take him to Moonlake Town and its quarry for forced labour. He sat in darkness. He drifted in and out of sleep, and thought about red eyed rats in his room so he could devour them. But he felt something move, and it was cold and wet. Then there was a hiss. A pair of red eyes looked at him. "A fucking snake! Guards!"