Punishment on Aginfeld
Alix laughed softly to herself. She knew whom he meant—the commandant. “Justice for what Zach? You’re hurt feelings? You should have gotten over it years ago. Why don’t you go back to Habitat Rosly and mature to something like adult?”
“Tomorrow, Alix. I’ll be there. I’ll see it all when you learn your punishment.”
* * *
An Enforcer came and told her if she wanted, they could supply her with an enema, to prevent pre or post death humiliation, or a tranquilizer, if it would make the process easier. Alix refused.
“It’s my death. At least I know when and how it’s coming.”
They had explained the complete process to her. Only after they left did she allowed herself a few moments of terror. They allowed her to bathe, which she appreciated more than the last meal she turned away.
“Surveillance?” she asked.
“Yes.”
She nodded, not caring.
Water was not a problem on Aginfeld. According to the cell guard, not since the rain century. Indeed, Agin’ers indulged themselves. So, sinking into a tub of neck-level steaming water, she sighed, forcing tomorrow morning from her mind. The water eased the pull of gravity on her body.
Over the years she had developed her own form of meditation, finding inner peace unobtainable elsewhere. Her calm always seemed to involve conquering water. Subduing her fear brought the complete relaxation she sought. In the quiet of the bath, tranquility came. Her mind settled. At the end of her life she allowed herself to consider the devils that drove her. She thought of her mama, of Isa and Mira, Daddy and Vincien. At least this was the last time she would disappoint them. Then she dwelled on Jorge.
After awhile someone knocked.
“I’m still alive, must I get out?”
“No, just checking. It has been fifty minutes.”
“God forbid I should drown myself, and miss the main event!” she mumbled low. At ninety minutes, they insisted she get out. The water had cooled anyhow. For the first time since leaving Celeste she felt clean. There were still six hours to get through.
“Do you play chess?” she asked the guard. She knew it as an Aginfeld sport of choice, so a safe question. They played until a man came with her party costume. She thanked the guard for the games. He nodded and resumed his duty.
She donned a long loose-cut red gown, and a pair of absorbent panties. She asked for and was given pins to put up her hair. A clergyman asked if she wanted to pray.
She smiled. “Thank you, but I’ve already said my prayers.”
She didn’t feel that assured but knew no other way to handle fear than to ignore it. If the man started talking to God about her soul, she knew she could not ignore what she must.
The red bands placed on her wrists when she attempted escape before leaving Celeste, were manacled behind her back. Then they placed a black mask lacking eyeholes on her.
“Please, don’t.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am, but it is obligatory.”
A guard on each arm guided her to the place of her execution. From the change in sound, they walked down several corridors. An expelift then whisked them in several lateral and upward motions. Once they stopped and the lift opened, they warned her of a step and she negotiated that. People sounds echoed softly indicating a large room and an audience. She listened to their rustling movements.
Her guards brought her to a stop. Her crimes were read, and her sentence. No opportunity for last words was offered. One of the men holding her told her to kneel. Despite the turmoil in her stomach, the weakness of her limbs, she managed to move. The arms holding her allowed her to gracefully sink to her knees. She landed on a cushion, and suddenly her arms were free of support. When she felt her body sway, disoriented, she took a breath and stiffened her spine. The room became deadly silent. This then, was the end to all her misdeeds and her feeble attempts at atonement. Let them get it over with.
Her mind, thankfully, went blank, able to hear and respond, but void of thought. She refused thought, even when her super-tuned hearing caught the soft hiss of a blade. Someone moved nearby. A sliver of cold touched her neck, probably imagined, but she shivered. Then, within her mask, she closed her eyes. Don’t scream. It’s over soon. Don’t scream. Her heart stopped and she waited for the swing she hoped never to feel. Time extended into the unimaginable.