The Chronicles of the Black Crystal. Vol: 1: Andrew River

Fresh air was the first relief that I had when they took the bag off my head. The second was the chance of freedom. However, freedom was not my best friend for the time being. All I knew, I was standing in the same clearing as before. And I knew what this would mean. Another “interrogation.” But what will pertain to this questioning, I had not known? What will that monster do to me now? Will I look like Kaden at the end of it? No other emotion except fear and anxiety crept inside me.

There was no other person in the clearing except for Dylan and me. Which was very concerning to me. My wrists were still tied in front of me. I felt the presence of Dylan by my side. When I looked, he had been staring his hateful eyes into my soul.

" Andrew, it is just me and you tonight. Don’t be scared; there is no one to hurt you here. All I want to know is where it is? ” Dylan said in a comforted tone. But I knew his choice of words were lies.

" I do not know what you are talking about, where what is? I assure you I do not have anything.” I stuttered out of fear.

" I beg to differ.”

" Honestly, sir, I would have told you.”

" Stop lying to me!” His completion changed completely. The monster inside him came out. I backed away out of fear.

" Please, I don’t have anything," I yelled.

" Do you know what I can do to you. I can give you such pain and agony. What you had from your last visit was only scratching the surface of the pain you will gain. Now tell me the truth. Where did you put it? If you do not have it, who did you give It too? Does Jim, have it? Does David, have it?”

" Dylan, listen, I pray. I do not know what you are speaking of. Please, believe me. I have nothing! Wait, you know Master Jim? Who is David?”

“Don’t you dare play that game with me! I had enough of this fooling around!” He screamed.

" Please, Dylan. Please believe me. I don’t know what you are speaking about. ” I mumbled.

" You do not know when to keep your mouth shut, Andrew. Enough is enough.”

He placed his strong hand on my shoulder and squeezed. The feeling of delusional hot irons burned my flesh.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” I wailed.

As each minute past, the burning sensation grew to the next level. When the next round of pain happened, I thought it could not get any worse. But I was wrong completely. Soon the heat became so intense my body would go numb. After some time, a greater pain occurred than before. An unimaginable agony I had, was indeed indescribable. I thought at a point I had been in a burning furnace; that no water could quench the flames. When each level of hot irons occurred, I wailed to a new extreme. Then something strange happened. The torture halted.

I prayed it was over. The pain concluded. Relief. My body gave way. As I fell to my side, paralytic stress dressed my nervous system. Dylan had knelt by my body looking at me. He took his hand and groomed my hair. I couldn’t move. Then he spoke in a whisper, “Andrew, where is it. Where did you hide it? Just tell me.”

I couldn’t speak; he hoisted me back up on my knees. My body ached all over. What did he do to me? Sharp pains were all over my body. In front of me, Dylan had been pacing from left to right. His continuation of walking to and fro proceeded for a good few minutes. When he did stop, he took out a hidden compacted pocket knife, out of his sleeve of his coat. You can only imagine what I had been thinking. He walked over to me and bent down to cut the robes off my wrists. The ropes dropped to the ground. My arms fell clumsily to my side. Dylan soon picked up my right hand. “Andrew, where is it?”

“I don’t know what you are talking about. Where what is?” I groaned.

“It!” He yelled in my ear. And he took his knife and produced a deep slash on my hand. When the knife cut me, it burned my flesh. Blood gushed out, covering my hand. A river of blood went onto the ground. Leaving a small pool. My heart started to beat faster and faster, as I saw the river of my own blood. I looked up at Dylan; he had no emotion in his eyes. Just a small grin upon his face. He looked down on my hand, and folded my sleeve up, to my elbow. He had revealed my untouched arm. He placed the blade of the knife, which still had traces of my blood on it, on my unscathed skin. The blade was cold and sharp.

“Andrew where is it?” He said. I looked up at him with tears in my eyes.

“I don’t know what item you have spoken to me about. Just let me go. I promise that I won’t tell. Just let me go.” I said as I pleaded.

He laughed, “You think it’s that easy.” He slashed my arm opened. A window of fresh blood spilled out.

“AHHHHHH.” I wailed. More tears came out of my eyes.

He let go of my arm and stood up. He looked down on me. Dylan grabbed my face with his strong hands, squishing it in the process. This process forced my face to look up at him. His eyes were of hate and evil. His eyes led me to his soul which was just as worse. One glance at him brought fear to the strongest man. The longer I peered, slowly his soul crept inside mine. My mind was becoming his; darkness spread throughout. Reaching to every part of my being. Then he let go. He thrust my body violently back on the ground. Making that side writhe in pain. I sat up a bit, placing my whole hand on my wound, which created a numbing pain. Trying to stop the bleeding. My hand became warm with fresh blood that had been gushing out. Glancing up at my torturer, he continued to pace, getting more and more impatient. The longer I peered his way, the more I heard his echo. The same sound could compare to the events with Master Jim in the parlor. Dylan’s faint angry voice. His mouth was not moving as he formed the conversation with himself, “I’m going to kill him! I had enough. Who does he take me for?”

“You would have already done it.” I moaned out loud.

He stopped, peered my way, “What did you say?”

“You are not going to kill me, for you would have already done it already.” I repeated between my breaths.

He smiled and trotted over my way. He came back to my pathetic level on the ground and whispered, “You do have them still. You are not as hopeless that I thought you were. Maybe when this is all over I can use you for a better use than what Jim is using you for.” I didn’t say anything, I continued to stare at him. He proceeded, “I know all of this must be all confusing, it’s confusing for us all. But I can make it better for you. I can teach you things that you couldn’t believe possibly. What is Jim teaching you?” Shock formed in his face, “He isn’t teaching you anything, is he? He doesn’t know what you can do?” My secret was out. Somehow, this man knew exactly what was happening to me. “I won’t tell him, I promise.” He whispered as he formed a smirk on the corner of his mouth. “Give me It, and all of this will be over. You can live with me, and I can teach you how to use what you have properly. Without fear of the reaction of others. What do you say?” And he backed away, to give me some space.

“Dylan, I can’t give you something if I do not have it in my possession,” I mentioned in between my exhausting breathes. He bent down to be eye to eye with me. He had a hateful grin on his notorious face. His eyes caught the glimmer of my necklace. The grin disappeared to form confusion in his eyes. He placed his knife on my throat as he reached to the chain. He pulled the chain up to reveal the charm. He held the charm in his hands for a few moments looking at it with hatred and lust. A tear formed in his eye and ran down his face. He ripped the necklace off my neck and clenched it in his hand. He had now taken everything from me. My emotions, and the presence of home. His blood-stained knife was still on my throat. This knife seemed like a new friend to me. A friend that only brings sorrow and anguish. He looked at me with anger. Wriggles started to form on his forehead from his intense glare.

“Where did you get this, Andrew?” He whispered in between his yellow teeth.

“It was a gift.” I breathed.

“From whom?” He whispered.

“I think if I would tell you, your anger will spark into a new level.”

“Tell me!” He yelled.

“It was a gift from Master Jim.”

A new emotion formed on his face. Betrayal. “It is not a gift anymore; it is a burden that you will bear. You will pay the price, for again taking something that is not yours to have.” And he slipped the trinket into his coat pocket. “You think this is a game!” He yelled. I didn’t answer for my fear and weakness that this session of his produced. “Answer me!” When I didn’t, he stabbed me in the leg and threw me on the solid Earth. Landing on my slashed arm and hand. As my body hit the ground, my arm heated up with a new level of pain. “AHHHHH!” The pain was so bad that a lost consciousness.

When I woke up, I could see a lone fighter attacking Dylan. A moment later, my lifeless body was hoisted up. I still couldn’t move from the dramatic experience from this overwhelming stay. The surroundings spun around and around. My vision blurred.