TDT/COJ - II. | armine's Blog

He found himself deep inside a cave, much like the previous occasion; fires were burning, children were singing and the strong man appeared once again at the altar.

But this time, he was their special guest of honor.

Or was he their evening sacrifice?

His wrists and ankles were tied; he watched as the leader had the knives washed until they gleamed in the dim firelight. He felt a sharp pain across his chest - he knew he was bleeding, and it appeared as though the blood was being collected and the droplets placed in steel tubes. The ringleader donned an eyemask, and his cutting was very clean and precise. He was beginning to think that this was not so bad... but then he glimpsed the axman poised behind the ringmaster, and his blood went cold as a blindfold was slipped in front of his eyes.

He was being positioned onto a wooden plank; his heart thudded wildly in his chest as he was laid on his back on its surface. He could feel the presence of the axman nearby - but the blindfold was suddenly ripped off of him and he found himself staring at the ringleader. The stranger's eyes plunged deep into his core, probing, searching... inquisitive yet secretive and unreadable. A quick second later he felt the wooden plank beneath him give way, and then he was falling into a pit of unknown depth as fear overtook his mind and senses.

Then, all of a sudden - nothing at all.

A frightened, distraught Resi sat perched at the edge of the bed, staring wide-eyed at her lover as her heart raced with fear and confusion.

"What has happened to you?" she whispered into the dark room. "You seemed like you were trying to kill me. What is the matter with you?"

Herr Herdt got up from the bed so quickly that Resi had to muffle a scream; an icy panic gripped her soul as he bent down and grabbed her blond locks.

"Perhaps", he whispered back in a menacing voice, "you should talk to your husband about it".

He left the house a few minutes later, leaving Resi in the dark bedroom. She watched him leave through the window, and knew that things between them were no longer the same...