The Armadillo with No Heart

Chapter 18: The Day of Sacrifice

Don't feel afraid... don't feel afraid... don't feel afraid...

Kuro kept his head down as two guards escorted him through the streets of Greentown towards the town square. He tried to think of nothing, to keep his mind completely empty, to focus only on those three words, repeating them over and over again in his head...

Don't feel afraid... don't feel afraid...

Through the corner of his eye, he could see the many Dillos who had come to watch him as he headed to the site of his execution. He could hear them talking, but their voices were too low for him to make out what they were saying.

It'll be over soon... it'll all be over...

Although he kept his eyes on the cobbled stone pavement, Kuro knew that they were almost at the square. They were close now... very close... death was just a few steps away... his heart thundered, in a futile attempt to cling to life... even as he moved forward, the wild animal inside him wanted to survive, to run in the opposite direction, and the more he tried to suppress that primitive side, the more desperately it tried to take control...

Don't feel afraid, don't feel afraid, don't feel afraid, don't feel afraid...

The guards stopped, and Kuro looked up.

The square was crowded. Hundreds of Dillos were gathered on all sides, packed together as if they were one, some silent, some murmuring anxiously. All of Greentown had come to witness the fulfillment of the prophecy. The large area at the center of the square had been left empty, except for two Dillos standing about thirty feet away – Lord Shiro and Cyrus Bailey. Cyrus' expression was grave; his blue eyes were turned toward the ground rather than Kuro. Shiro, however, looked almost bored.

And there it was, in Cyrus' hand.

A knife.

Kuro stared at it, not able to take his eyes off of the sharp steel blade, glistening in the sunlight – the weapon that would take his life. Very soon, that blade would be dripping blood over his motionless body... he could almost see his blood staining the ground, seeping through the cobbled stone, painting everything red...

Would it be quick enough for him not to feel anything?

Noticing Kuro's hesitation, one of the guards gave him a slight push on the back.

"Courage, son. Don't stop now," he said.

And Kuro began to walk forward, toward his final fate. This time, he kept his head up, trying to hide the sheer terror that coursed through his veins like icy water. The square fell silent as he approached the middle.

He stopped right in front of Lord Shiro. They looked each other in the eye, and Kuro saw a slight smile appear on the governor's face.

"My fellow Dillos," Shiro announced, turning to look around, "you know why we are here today. We are here to sacrifice the Dillo with No Heart, the Wretched, the harbinger of pain and suffering. By taking his life, we will fulfill the prophecy and purge our race of its sins. By making this small sacrifice, we will honor our forefathers, who sacrificed so much to grant us the order and harmony we enjoy today."

Lord Shiro made a brief pause, during which Kuro could only hear the desperate pounding of his heart. His whole body trembled. Drops of sweat trickled down his neck. It was fear in its most primal form.

"As all of you already know," Shiro went on, "this cold-hearted beast tried to defy the prophecy. He thought he could run away from his obligations. He was so arrogant as to value his own life over all of ours. So, before we kill him..." Lord Shiro turned towards Kuro and smiled again, "we must make him understand what it is to feel pain. We must punish him."