Killer Empire

Chapter 03

OUTSIDE, THE STORM brewed on. Thunder crackled only moments after a brilliant bolt of lightning tore through the skies, jumping from one cloud to another. This short, fleeting action by Nature was enough to illuminate the world of mortals below. With the storm, gathered the clouds. Sunlight could no longer be seen, blocked by heavy puffs of dark gray that hung from the heavens.

In fact, Devora wasn't even fully sure that it was daybreak outside. She had already lost her sense of time.

She had found her own corner away from the rest of her cellmates. In her own spot, she rested her chin on her knees, arms wrapped around her legs to preserve as much warmth as possible. The three siblings that Devora had just conversed with were in their own little corner, just a few meters away from Devora. After all, the room wasn't overly spacious, to begin with.

It seemed as though the three had fallen asleep to the rain's lullaby. Or at least, they appeared to be asleep. They had been quiet for far too long. Arguments could no longer be heard from Travis's or Leah's lips. In fact, the entire room was wordless, no one conversing at all despite the thirty-something people that filled the place. Occasionally, echoes of young Tammy's whimper would fill the confined area but even those quietened down within a few short seconds.

The noise never lasted. It was too quiet, almost chilling to the bone.

Sounds of swinging keys and the clicking of boots boomed from the corridor outside. Without warning, the door opened to reveal a burly man, the sudden action causing Devora to jump slightly in fright. From the minimal lighting the corridors provided, a backlight was cast onto the man. It was plentiful to see his appearance, not not in detail due to where Devora sat in the room. He had large tattoos that decorated his entire body, starting from his neck and trailing off into the collar of his loosely fitted shirt. The tattoos allowed his skin to set ablaze with multiple colors, the ink curling to reveal haunting designs of skulls and dragons.

From her little dark corner, Devora shivered, curling into a tighter ball on reflex due to fear. The man's eyes were like the devil's, gleaming maliciously as he scanned the area with a sneer.

"Dinner time, yer little scrumps."

All too casually, he threw a dozen or so rock-hard items onto the ground. Crumbs split off the sides of the objects due to the impact, sending it flying in all directions of the room. Immediately, a filthy and pungent smell infiltrated the room. Devora scrunched up her nose in disgust, eyeing the dozen or so balls that now laid on the ground near the man's feet. She tried her best to resist the urge to gag, biting down on her inner cheeks even though the sour taste in her mouth only grew.

The man said nothing more, turning on his heels, leaving the room with an ear-splitting bang of the door as the lock clicked shut.

As soon as his shadow disappeared from the walls, a few of the children started to crawl out from the dark. They edged nearer to the objects the man had thrown, prodding it with their fingers only to withdraw in revulsion. Some of the more desperate ones that had been starved to their wit's end dared to pick it up, biting into it only to either spit it out immediately or not even succeed in biting through at all.

Cautiously, Devora stretched out an arm to poke at the mysterious object as well. It was hard to the touch with rough jags and a rock-like texture. The little cookies smelled strongly like a mixture of rotten eggs and blue cheese, a sickening combination. In her head, she couldn't help but applaud the bravery of those children that actually had the guts to attempt to ingest such a foul and poor excuse of a food.

"What the hell is that thing?" She questioned aloud to herself, wiping her finger on the cotton tee.

"It's the food they serve us," Travis replied, his voice echoing slightly, bouncing off the walls. He crouched near Devora, picking up three of the wretched cookies. He chucked them into the pockets of his jacket. "Not very sure what it's made of but they probably won't kill us off so easily if they're planning on selling us. Strangely enough, Tammy likes this stuff."