Titans - March of Progress

Sain woke with a start and sat bolt upright, his eyes not even being given the chance to adjust to the dark room as the pain hit. A wave of agony and nausea washed over him, and he turned sideways as the wave of nausea turned into a stream of vomit. He gagged as it left his mouth, splattering on the darkened floor quite noisily. After a few minutes of retching and coughing, the youth just slumped backwards, and groaned, feeling a pillow and mattress beneath him. Taking a few more minutes to just rest, he groaned again as pain seemed to permeate his very existence. All centered on his skull. Which felt like it wanted to split from the sheer pounding going on within it.

Sain tried to think, but his thoughts ran from him beneath the waves of pain and nausea. Groaning again, he sat up and swung his legs over the bed and blinked, realizing he was in a cell. One of his many and temporary homes since his interrogation. He recognized the familiar layout. The same bare stone walls, bleak metal door and the near empty room, the only furnishings being his low bed with a thin mattress, a toilet, and a simple sink.

Easing himself back down onto the bed, Sain lay there, his eyes locked on the ceiling. He couldn’t even think, and the minutes seemed to drag on. Finally, Sain just huffed and closed his eyes, resolving to get some sleep, something he had had very little of in the last few days, mentally exhausted from his ordeal. He felt like he had been hit by a horse. Perhaps some better sleep would make this headache go away. Sure enough, after some time, he dozed off into a light and troubled sleep.

Perhaps hours, or minutes later, Sain was awakened by a loud clang and he sat up groggily, looking at the source of the noise, his eyes locking on the steel door keeping him from his freedom. Seeing a metal tray lined with food on the floor, pushed through a small slot, Sain felt his stomach rumble. Swinging his legs off his bed, he groaned as his sore limbs protested. Shuffling over to the tray of food, he bent down to pick it up and noticed it was an unusually good meal considering the slop he had received the last few days.

Lifting a hand to the door, he banged on it a few times and waited. Before long he heard a guard approach.

“What do you want kid? I have others to feed” the guard snapped at Sain irritably through a small hole in the door. Sain blinked and stared, trying to gather his thoughts, his mouth hanging open slightly in a rather pained expression. His headache was still there, pounding away freely. He tried to speak, and failed, nothing but a faint raspy croak escaping him. The guard gave him a disgusted look and shook his head.

“Kid, you’re fucked” the guard snapped and stepped away from the door, a food cart coming into view.

“I am guessing you are wondering why the good meal. Well, it’s your last. That stunt of your’s earlier moved up your schedule” the guard stated, a look of pity briefly crossing his face before the disgust came back.

“Your date with the firing squad has been changed to tomorrow morning, so enjoy your last meal kid” the guard stated rather bluntly and gently pushed his cart, starting to hum to himself as he moved on.

Sinking to his knees, Sain rested his forehead against the cold metal door just closing his eyes and struggling to think. After what seemed like an hour but was most likely just a few moments he sighed and stood up, his knees creaking in protest. Picking up his tray the youth shuffled over to sit on his bed. He placed the food tray on his lap and just stared at it dumbly, noting the lack of any eating utensil. With another exaggerated sigh, Sain started scooping up the food with his fingers, trying to at least enjoy his last meal.

Finishing it rather quickly, Sain placed the now empty tray of food on his bed and lifted his head to stare at the door blankly. His mind was blank from the throbbing pain, thankfully slightly subsided now, still and he couldn’t even seem to muster the thoughts to look at his situation. He just felt irritated really, a slow anger blooming.

With a sudden burst of anger, Sain picked up the tray and frisbeed it as hard as he could at the wall with a guttural shout. The thing smashed into it and bounced, before clattering to the floor. Then flopping backwards onto his bed, he looked at the ceiling for what seemed like hours.

As he lay there, Sain let his hands move up to the collar he wore, set with that obsidian stone, and he traced his fingers around it, finding there were three more stones set in it now, and he just tensed his jaw. From the pain throbbing in his skull, he did not think it would be wise to try to use magic. One stone had been excruciating. What would four be like?

Eventually as he lay there, his eyes misted, and he realized he had started to cry silently, his anger having turned into an intense sadness. Hiccupping quietly, he dashed his eyes with a thumb and tried to wipe away the tears, but they seemed to never stop until he eventually simply cried himself to sleep.

* * *

Sain lay awake, resting on his bed, his eyes swollen and puffy from his nights crying. He was a little more lucid now, the pain in his skull having near completely subsided and could make some coherent thought. He laid there, his arms behind his head as he listened to the heavy footsteps in the hall. A large group approached.

It seemed as though his hearing had adjusted to the vast silence of his cell, to the point that even the faintest sound rang loud in his ears. As the footfalls came to a halt, he turned his head to the side, locking his eyes on the metal door of his cell. A key rattled briefly in the lock and then the door swung open, silent on well-oiled hinges. Four armed guards filed into his cell then, and a fifth man, completely devoid of any sort of body armor or weaponry.

The man was dressed in neat clothes, and held in one hand a closed book, and in the other a string of beads, every fourth bead looking to be a black obsidian stone. Sain just scowled as he stared at the main.

“No need to give me such a dagger eye lad” the man said, his voice almost gentle. Sain looked him up and down, still scowling. The man had long blonde hair, tied back against his head, sharp blue eyes and a well cut and short blonde beard. He carried himself well and was rather well built, if not lanky.

“Alright, that is enough staring. Up you get, or the guards will drag you out. I am only here as a precaution due to your violence yesterday” the man stated, and gestured with a flick of his hand, causing a guard to step forward, manacles being displayed. Sain swung his legs off his bed, a small sniffle escaping him even as a hand came up to rub at his puffy eyes before he held both his hands out to the guard in resignation and defeat. There was no way past this now really. He had no magic, and being beaten was not on his list of things to do.

As his hands were secured, he was basically hauled forward, the guard using the link of the cuffs to pull him and then thrust him out into the hallway. The guard then pushed Sain, his hand between the youth’s shoulder blades, and continued pushing him as they walked through the corridors. Sain heard the other’s fall in behind him and he deflated, the resignation only worsening. Even his intense anger seemed to subside, knowing a repeat of the other day was not an option. His magic was beyond his reach.

Sain was forced to turn a corner and he locked his eyes on the door at the end, particularly its sign that identified it as the execution yard. He froze and felt a cold shiver run through his entire being.

The guard behind Sain pushed him hard, causing him to stagger and fall forward on his knees, his knee’s slamming hard into the concrete floor beneath him. Wordlessly, two of the guards stepped forward, grabbing him under his armpits and lifting him up before proceeding to drag him towards the yard.

Sain started to struggle and tried to shake them off as he caught his feet, his resignation now turning into a panicked fight response, and his struggles caused the guard behind him to clout the youth hard in the back of the head. Sain blacked out briefly, barely a second, but it was enough to drive home that any real resistance was futile, and he simply sagged in the guard’s grip as the group reached the door, his resignation coming right back. He just let out a sole whimper.

As the door was opened, another guard came into view, just standing there. He stepped sideways wordlessly, allowing the group to enter the yard, and Sain looked up, tears threatening to burst forth at any moment. And to his horror, Sain found the tall dark-haired man waiting patiently for his arrival.

Sain gaped at the man who was standing in the galley at one side of the yard, his face completely impassive. He stood there straight, hands clasped behind his back, eyes just locked on Sain, trailing his movements.

The guards did not wait for Sain to register where he was, and took him straight to a post in the yard, against a bare brick wall. Sain stared at the wall, seeing a number of holes and chips in the bricks, right behind the post, like bullets had hit it. Again, Sain protested weakly, trying to wriggle from the guards grasp, achieving nothing but a small grunting noise as he was turned around by the two guards holding him, who held his arms down at his sides as another guard strapped him to the pole, first around his chest and his arms, and then his legs, all wordlessly, seemingly completely devoid of emotion.

Sain whimpered again, his eyes wide as the guards let him go and stepped away, before leaving the yard all together, leaving only the black haired man, the man with the obsidian beads, and a third person. The third person was just out of view on his left side and Sain bit his lip hard, trying not to cry. The person finally came into view and Sain’s eyes widened as he looked them over. It was a woman, dressed rather smartly in business attire, and by all standards Sain knew, she was beautiful.

His heart pounded and he stared goggle eyed at her as she stepped around him and came to stand at his front. Sain locked his eyes on her face, her light green eyes and long, free brown hair stark to the grim environment he was in.

"Sain Belford. I am here today as the representative of the Rindai government, to read your charges to you, and to record any last words you may have for your loved ones” she stated, her voice rather hard, and distinct from her almost soft appearance.

“Your charges are as follows. Sain Belford, you have been charged with five cases of murder, one case of reckless endangerment and one case of illegal use of magic, which resulted in multiple deaths and injuries to the citizens of Rindai. In such an extreme case of blatant misuse of your given abilities and the severity of your crimes you have been tried as an adult and sentenced to die. In addition to this, you have had additional charges of murder in the first degree, and one case of attempt to escape lawful custody. These charges have been added to your record” she stated, that voice still hard and rather formal. This was her job no doubt, and it seemed she took little joy in it.

Sain looked past her now, seeing the face of the dark-haired man, who simply stared right back at the youth, his expression completely blank. Sain sucked in a shuddering breath and looked back to the woman before him.

“Now that I have read your charges, do you have any last words for anyone, or a statement to go on record” she asked of Sain, that formal tone still etched into her voice. Sain started to cry then, a small shudder running through his body, and tears running freely down his cheeks. He opened his mouth and tried to speak, a jumble of incoherent words escaping him. Sain shuddered again and closed his eyes, trying to focus his thoughts. After a short time, he tried again.

“It, it wasn’t me” he whispered. Turning his gaze, he looked at the man with the obsidian beads and the man simply shook his head, seemingly reading Sains thoughts and telling him not to try a repeat of his previous escape attempt. Sain let out a shaky breath, knowing he wouldn’t be able to handle the pain with so many obsidian stones nearby.

"Tell my brother Niall, and my father, that I am, so so sorry. Please, tell them that” he let out before a string of sobs escaped him. He looked up then, tears cascading down his face as he stared at the womans face. The woman’s gaze softened quite considerably then, almost as though she pitied him.

“I will Mr Belford. I will” she stated, her voice considerably softer now. She stepped away then, her gaze turning to the dark haired man and offering a nod.

“Begin” she stated and stayed standing there, her eyes turning on Sain, to witness his last moments.

Sain sobbed still as the dark haired man turned and approached a door at the back of the yard. He opened it and four men filed out, three with a rifle, and one with a linen hood.

The man with the linen hood approached Sain and held it up.

"Mr Belford. Would you like the hood?" he asked and Sain just stared at him a moment, and then gave a shaky nod. He just wanted this over. There was no saving himself here. Only death awaited him. As the man nodded and moved forward, Sain just looked up at the sky, looking to the morning sun, now rising over the yards wall to his left. He gulped. He would never see it again. Nor feel its warmth on a cold winters morning.

As the linen hood was pulled over his head, his vision was obscured and he just closed his eyes and tried to relax, despite his body shaking like a leaf in the wind.

He drew his senses in to himself, and felt the rough fabric on his face, as well as the itch of his woolen shirt on his chest. He felt the warmth of the sun tingle his bare arms, goosebumps rushing over his skin.

He just kept his attention focused on himself, trying to clear his mind of thoughts. To be at peace. There had been so much he wanted to do. He had wanted Niall and Regas to be proud of him. He had wanted to get away from Rindai and its life of crime. He had wanted to get closer to Rin, and to make more friends. But now that would never happen.

"Aim" came a command and Sain jolted, clearing his mind. Wanting to let go of his regrets.

"Fire" came a command followed by three bangs.

Sain felt the impacts, and the heat of the pain, all in his chest, and he just slumped, air escaping his lungs in an instant, in a low wheeze, followed by a gurgle.

Then, everything just stopped, as Sain drifted off, almost like he was going to sleep as a sad smile crept over his face accompanied by one last stab of incoherent rage that seemed to ripple through him, from his very core.