Chapter 21- The Spiral Prison (Part 3)
Chapter 21- The Spiral Prison (Part 3)
The screeches of the old gates opening up poked everyone's ears and made them squint slightly. On each gate, you could see the rage of time, fighting these massive metal bodies and dealing strong blows to them.
Then, the bright light of the inside finally escaped the confines of the prison and was freed into the outside world. However, it didn't take long for the shadows of the looming prison to completely consume it making it vanish before being able to reach the bright rays of the sun. As if even light itself wasn't allowed to escape this cursed place.
From inside came also a group of guards that had the same uniforms as the guards that guided the prisons inside.
"You are late, Terys." One of the guards stepped forward and addressed the leader of the guards.
"It is what it is, the ride was bumpy. We had to deal with some nightmare creatures on the way."
"Tsk, we can't handle any more late deliveries. You know that." The man replied as he clicked his tongue annoyedly.
"Just take them and leave it be. I will buy you some Brown Crow Ale tonight."
"You better remember!" The man's smile cracked open as he flashed a meaningful glance at his group of men.
Instantly, they all moved forward and took the chains from the other guards before they started dragging them again.
"This week's batch seems like a promising one."
"They are all scrawny idiots."
"Well, as long as I get my pay, I don't care. Most of them will die anyway."
Hearing those words, Akio's face paled visibly as he looked down.
The way the guard said that they would die so causally made him certain that whatever was awaiting him inside wasn't going to be good, at all.
"Move! Don't let me beat you up!"
One of the guards pulled Akio violently as they were all pushed inside the prison. Looking back, Akio saw the two guards that were conversing staring at them. On their faces were wide smiles. They were a mix of disdain, loathing, and even some pity… pity for what they were about to experience.
Then, slowly, the doors slowly closed back, trapping Akio inside.
Closing his eyes, he took a few deep breaths before he looked ahead of him. They were now inside a huge corridor. The height of the ceiling was a staggering 20 meters and had a width of 10 meters.
The ground was made of stones, the same type of stones that made the outside walls of the prison. The sheer density of these rocks could be felt as Akio walked on them. They were definitely something that only existed in Holem.
On each side of the corridors were tens of armed men, standing still as they stared at the newcomers. Each one of them held a spear in their left hand and each one of them had a shiny armor that covered their whole body.
These people were emitting a strong aura that exceeded the one the green-uniformed guards had. It didn't take a genius to guess who were the ones that actually guarded this place. Even the looks in their eyes were more savage and experienced.
*Tap* *Tap*
For a good 2 minutes, all Akio could hear was the ragged breathing of his fellow prisoners and the tapping of their bare feet on the ground. Calling the atmosphere heavy was an understatement.
Everyone was on the edge, including the guards that were surrounding this group of sinners.
Eventually, they ended up in front of another gate. However, this one was drastically different from the other gates.
It was way noticeably thinner than the entrance gates. Not only that, but it had holes in it for people to see from the other side. Basically, a typical prison cell door albeit bigger.
As soon as they reached it, the gate started lifting up slowly from the ground as the sound of metal chains moving in the background echoed in the long corridor. The group was then led inside, revealing a sight that made the prisoners freeze in their place from shock.
Then, one of the guards stepped ahead and said with a smile.
Akio looked around him, in pure, unfiltered horror. They were standing inside what seemed to be a battleground made out of pure dirt. The wide arena-like area was surrounded by tall walls that pierced the sky. On them, countless windows filled every nook and cranny and extended to the ceiling of the prison. It looked like a bee hive albeit for humans.
The spiral way the walls were built made it even more intimidating and quite literally mind-boggling. The realization quickly hit Akio and everyone with him. Each and every window was a prison cell.
'There are thousands of them.' Akio thought as he stared around him.
The bigger problem from this is that Akio was standing right in the middle where everyone from every single cell could look at him. His face was now something that every single prisoner here recognized.
"Welcome to the spiral prison, sinners." The guard announced in a neutral tone. Well, it would've been neutral if his amusement and disdain didn't betray him.
The moment he said that chaos erupted everywhere.
*BANG* *BANG*
Prisoners inside the cells started hitting the walls and door, as they screamed and shouted loudly like crazed animals. The sound of thousands of people screaming at the same time was a horrifying experience, to say the least.
"Finally, some new faces! I grew bored!!!"
"Hahahaha! Here come the new saplings!"
"They need a warm welcoming, you bastards!"
"Ah~ we have good-looking ones this week, don't we?"
"Hehehehe, blood, I smell blood… I can feel it."
"Friends… I want friends… I need someone. I need a hug."
Hundreds of voices spoke out at the same time, creating more noise that pierced Akio's head like a sharp spear, poking his brain as it pleased.
'What the… hell?!' He wondered in disbelief.
From all the things Akio expected, this wasn't on the list at all. To be put in the middle of a place filled with crazy bastards, criminals, psychopaths, serial killers, and every other possible abomination a human can commit was not how prisons worked back in his world. Weren't they supposed to be thrown immediately inside a cell or something?
'Why did they do such a…' As he was about to ask himself this question, he looked at the guard's face and the truth instantly dawned on him. Seeing that smile, that dark, twisted smile, only further proved his suspicion.
The guards wanted the other prisoners to see these people. Maybe it was the entertainment they were seeking that drove him to do such a thing or maybe it was the cruel thrill of seeing the fear crawl into the newcomers' hearts. Either thing was worse than the other.
"Hahaha! This place is as bad as I heard… No, fuck that. It's way worse." The scarred man suddenly chuckled coldly as he spoke out.
The other prisoners nodded their heads as if to approve of his words. The only one that didn't show a reaction the whole time was Toru. The handsome young man was simply as expressionless as a doll.
"This is enough, drag them to the hole." The guard said.
The other workers then quickly started pulling Akio and the others toward another gate on the other side of the arena.
Right under the screams and yells of the Spiral prison inmates, Akio walked, in an aggravated silence. His mind was bugging him with worry and uncertainty.
He hasn't been inside this place for more than 10 minutes yet he already wants to leave as soon as possible.
However, unfortunately, this was merely the start. Whatever will happen in the near future is something that is sending chills down his spine. Dealing with monsters might've been deadly, but dealing with insane monsters in human skin might be even worse than even that.