You walk forward, you are not forced, you are not struggling and fighting. You are simply doing as they say, robed in gold and red. You are weak and they are strong and they have told you, promised you, that this will make you strong too. Somewhere deep inside you do not want to let them down.
Even though…
“Cahan Du-Nahere.” She is looking at you, her eyes almost hidden behind the mask. Does she know? Does she know what you really think? “You are here before Zorir to receive the god’s blessings.”
“Receive the blessings,” a hundred voices repeat.
“Kneel before me,” a subtle pressure on your arms pushing you down.
“Do you take Zorir within? Do you abide by Zorir? Will you be faithful and true and if you are not do you understand the fire will eat you from within?” You nod. “Speak the words, Cahan Du-Nahere.”
And how can you? How can you when they are lies, when you are confused, when you question. But even though those are your thoughts, your mouth betrays you.
“I take Zorir,” you say, “and may my tongue turn to ashes if I am untrue.” You wait, wait for it to happen as you speak those words knowing you do not mean them. But nothing happens to you. All that happens is a hundred voices intone “and may my tongue become ash”.
“Open your mouth, Cahan Du-Nahere,” says the Skua-Rai, and a monk steps up behind you and pulls back your head. The monks holding your arms grasp you tighter and panic starts to well up within you.
“Receive the blood of Zorir!” shouts Saradis. And you tense up. Too late to stop now. Too late to fight. The cold of the stone cup crushing your lip against your bottom teeth. You taste blood first. Then a bitterness that makes your whole body revolt and squirm and try to escape. “Drink! Drink the blood of Zorir!”
It burns, this is it, you are paying the price for your unfaithfulness, your tongue is turning to ash. You want to spit it out but there is a hand over your mouth. Another holding your nose. You have no choice. You have no choice and now the world is melting into red and orange, the fire is coming, the fire is coming and you are at the centre of it.
You are the centre.
“He will bring Zorir to us!” shouts Saradis, “and the world will burn!”
You are the fire.
You.
Descend into darkness.