Blend the Light

Please, Stop

The stone surrounds me from three sides, and the iron bars trap me in from the fourth. Mars appears out of thin air. He's closely followed by Minotaur, Blade, and Twig. Where's Rex? My Blended form, my other half, is nowhere to be found. "Who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?" Minotaur growls. My heart sinks at the Wasteland guard's words. My least favourite question.

"I-I won't answer," I say, but my voice wavers and lacks the hard edge I intended.

"Oh, Hawk. Your resistance if futile. I'm going to ask one more time, and one more time only, so answer: who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?" Minotaur advances in slow, deliberate steps. A sick grin oozes across his face. I move backwards, but my back slams into the wall. My heart races in my chest.

"Who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?"

"Who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?"

"Who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?"

"Who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?" Minotaur asks the question over and over, and Twig and Blade join in. Their voices repeat, becoming hundreds, thousands, then millions of voices talking all at once. I press my hands to my ears. But I can't block it out. Their voices continue chanting. My body trembles as tears start to roll down my cheeks. "S-stop! S-st-st-stop! STOP!" I scream.

"Who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?"

"Who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?"

"Who is the leader of The Loyal Order of Thorny Devils?" It becomes all I can think. The eleven words, sixteen syllables, forty-three letters, fifty-three characters take over my mind. "S-stop. P-p-please," I beg.

Then it stops- the millions of voices fall silent.

I draw in shaky breaths in an attempt to calm down. The walls are closing in. The iron bars grow thicker with each passing second, blocking out the dim hallway light. Mars prowls closer. The red, flashing light in his eye brightens, taking over the darkening room. I try to run, but I'm frozen in place. Blood orange spreads like a sickness over Mars's black eyes. My hands curl into fists as I choke for breath. Every muscle in my body is screaming for me to run, but I'm rooted to the spot. Mars's claws click on the stone. It's the only sound I can hear- I can't hear anything else, even my own ragged breathing. The last of his black eyes turn into that hideous blood orange, but the red light continues to flash. One second on, one second off, one second on, one second off. Just like clockwork. My legs give out, and I fall to the ground. The stone scratches my skin, hurting, but not drawing blood.

The robotic Rottweiler is right in front of me. His blood orange eyes glow, reflecting the blinking, red light. His short, black and brown fur is stiff with anger. His breaths are slow and steady, the opposite of my shallow and gasping ones. He snarls, baring his fangs.

When he lunges, there's nothing I can do. I'm frozen in fear, but I want to fight. I can't move. Mars moves in slow motion. His attack is drawn out, letting me soak in every moment of despair. He hovers above me, floating as his paws arc in a swipe. My heart flutters in my chest as I watch in horror. Is this the end? Mars continues to inch closer, and there's nothing I can do; I can't fight back, I can't resist, I can't move, I can't do anything. I'm powerless, reduced to nothing. My fate is set, and there's nothing I can do about it. The plaid bandana falls from my head. I try to pick it up, but my hands remain frozen to the ground. I'm forced to watch Mars with big eyes as he draws ever closer. A sneer spreads across Mars's face. His shoulders rotate as he draws a foreleg back, giving him all the power he can to his attack.