“...Daniel? Daniel are you there? It's cold in here… I can't breath…”
(Daniel’s POV)
The lights at the gas station right beside the on ramp for the highway were flickering in the night sky. I had been driving for awhile I silence, the only thing I heard was the sound of gravel under the tires of my car and my own sobbing. Eventually I realized that I would be driving for a long period of time and I would need to fill up my gas tank at least enough to get me on and off the highway I was beside. I turned my car off after parking it in front of the pump, grabbing my wallet and getting out of my car. I didn't bother locking the doors at first, but when I got to the pump a sticker lay right above the nozzle. ‘please pay inside’. I pushed the button for the fuel and then put the pump in my car, filling it with gas. The total was way too much but I had to pay it. I locked my car doors and started towards the dimly lit convenience store attached to the gas station.
I walked inside and the door rang, letting the clerk know there was a customer. She was a younger girl, leaning on the counter, playing with her phone. I opened the cooler on the right side of the store and pulled out a red bull drink, considering I would be driving for hours. I heard a noise, it sounded like footsteps, coming from my left down the aisle. I jolted my head but saw nothing, I could have swore I was the only one in here, but that sounded just like someone walking. I ignored it, brushing the noise off and I bringing it up to the counter.
“This and also the gas from pump 2.” I said, the girl chomped on her bubble gum and pushed some buttons into the cash register. She totalled up my purchase and I tapped my debit card, taking my red bull and walking out the door. I swung my car keys in my hand and hopped into my driver side, placing the keys in the ignition and turning on the car. I didn't realize the car was unlocked when I came back until the lights went on and I felt a knife dart towards my neck and stop right before it sliced. The cold metal making me gasp but not move. I looked in my rear view mirror and saw the person holding the knife and then turned to my side to see another person in the passenger seat, smirking.
“Your car was always the easiest to get into.” the voice from beside me said, the person in the back seat chuckled, keeping the knife steady.
“Cameron, Barry. What the fuck are you doing in my car?” I spat, Cameron just laughed and leaned towards me a bit.
“Got word from Simon some guy was giving you trouble at the camp. Caused you to not be able to carry out the deeds he requested of you.” Cameron spoke, his new yorker accent thick over his words.
“We came down here to help you, but then Simon figured out that the guy you were talking about ain't a threat. No, he a twink like yourself.” Cameron said, Barry laughed loudly from the back, the knife shaking now against my throat.
“Simon’s going to gut him like a fish, eh?” Barry giggled. I froze. They were talking about David. Simon figured out I was lying and then found out who David was? How? I started to heat up, sweat beginning to form on my brow. Had Simon taken David? What was he going to do to him.
“W-wha-what? Si-simon-” I was stammering, not being able to make a sentence. Cameron mocked me.
“W-wha-what the fuck are you saying man? I can't understand you, sounds like you got a dick in your mouth on a count of you being a little bitch.” Cameron spat, Barry roared with laughed, the knife scratching me a bit as he twitched. Cameron cleared his throat and pointed to the road outside of the gas station.
“Start driving to the church. Barry is going to put the knife away but if you do anything that even slightly against my command or his, you’re going to regret it.” Cameron threatened. I didn't say anything as the knife slowly pulled away from my neck. I put the car in drive and started out on the road. I knew the way to the main church like the back of my hand. I hopped on the highway and began the route, it would take about 30 minutes to get there.
I drove in silence, not really paying attention to the road. All I could think about was David. Poor David got wrapped up in my past right after he found out about it. And now what? If he really was in Simon’s hands I didn't know how much longer he would be alive. Of its true that Simon found out about me and David, David had a very slim chance of making it through the night. I just hand to get to that church as fast as I could and pray to whatever god was out there that David was safe and sound. David didn't deserve this.
We drove for what felt like hours but it was only minutes. Passing so many street signs I didn’t need to look at, the night sky still hanging above us. We eventually pulled up to the street before the church and Cameron turned to me again
“Now, when we get to the church you need to park park in the back and me and Barry will escort you out. Understand?” he instructed, I nodded in compliance. We pulled into the church Plaza, the front of the church had a arch with stained glass in the middle, designed with a picture of an eye and a Z, colours of purple and red usually shining through it, but not in the moonlight. I went around back and parked the car, turning it off, watching the headlights fade. Immediately this place brought back horrible memories.
“Why purple?” I asked, I was only 7 at the time, it was one of those afternoons where I had been sent to the Chapel room for reflection. Beth, a girl with curly blonde hair with the same authority as Simon was there sitting beside me. She was writing something in a black notebook as I sat on the window sill, running my hand over the cold coloured glass.
“That's the colour of the life giving drink.” she explained, I nodded but I didn't really understand.
“Why don't we ever drink it?” I asked, Beth didn't take her eyes off her book and kept writing but answered me.
“We are already children of Zeemuug, we don't need to drink it unless we lost our way.” Beth informed me, I nodded again understanding a bit better now. I touched more of the glass.
“and why red?” I asked, Beth looked up from her book this time, giving me a smile.
“Well, that stands for a lot more actually. It's the colour of the eyes of Zeemuug, it's the colour you see before you ascend and it's the colour of victory.” Beth told me, I understood it all accepted the last point.
“Victory?” I asked, she nodded and put her book down, walking over to me and sitting beside me on the window sill.
“Well, when there are people who do want to accept Zeemuug as their savior, we lose, so, we make them ascend. Sometimes it involves blood, and blood is red.” Beth told me. I nodded understanding fully now what the colours meant on the stained glass window.
Camerons grip on my wrist was familiar in a way. It was always so firm and I never dared to attempt to break out of it. The knife Barry had back in the car was out again and pointed to my gut as we walked into the back doors of the church. They lead me down a hallway and through a room I had never seen before, passing bathrooms and finally sitting me down in the main foyer in a pew in the middle of the room. The ceiling was as high as I remembered, the gloss on the benches chipping away leaving the rough wood material accessible. Barry and Cameron sat on either side of me, Barry still keeping the knife at my side as we sat in silence, the only sound was the one of the building settling. I looked down at my feet, noticing the kneeling stool right under me.
“When we ask you to kneel you are supposed to kneel.” Simon scolded me, I was 8 at the time. There was a tall, pale man standing in front of everyone and speaking words from a book that I didn't understand. They were in a different language.
“But Simon my knees hurt we have been kneeling for a really long time I just need a second.” I said. This was a mistake. Sometimes, it really was better just to lie. Simon hit me across the face and I jumped to my knees, going back in the kneeling position I was in seconds ago. My knees hurt really badly, and we stayed like that for a while. When the service was over Simon pulled me aside from the group and ushered me into the parking lot of the church. He brought me to a corner and pointed at a pile of sharp rocks on the ground.
“Kneel.” he said. I was hesitant at first, not moving from my spot, not wanting to kneel on the rocks, but Simon raised his hand again and I quivered to my knees, the grey stones digging into my knee caps. The pain was unbearable. Tears started to fall from my eyes as Simon stood there and watched me with his arms crossed.
“Next time when the elders ask you to kneel, you will kneel.”
It was quiet in the hall, after about 10 minutes of nothing music started from the alter. Cameron and Barry stood up, jerking my shoulder as they did so causing me to stumble to my feet. Out of the back of the altar emerged Simon, wearing his white outfit with the black tie I knew to well, his green eyes darting at me. He stood in front of a podium and cleared his throat.
“ladies and gentlemen,” he acted as if he was speaking to a crowd when in fact it was just me, Barry and Cameron.
“We are brought together today to bring forth a sinner amongst our own counsel. This individual has shown time and time again to be unfaithful to the teachings and wishes of Zeemuug, along with lying to the group authorities and avoiding work that is assigned to him.” Simon's voice boomed, he cleared his throat and then gathered some papers he was holding and placed them down on the podium.
“The accused is Daniel Everdeen, age 23, lost son of Zeemuug and underling of myself and Mr. Cameron Sanchez. Daniel has failed to meet the requirements that the elders have set and has disobeyed orders from Zeemuug himself. For this a grave punishment will be bestowed upon him. What should his sentence be?” Simon announced, his voice always made me tremble, especially when it was echoing around the walls of the main hall. Barry jumped up and giggled loudly.
“Trial by fire! Trial by fire!” he shouted, Cameron shushed him and he slowly stopped jumping and became silent again. Cameron cleared his throat.
“Listen Si, I love killing as much as the next person, but what lesson would that teach Daniel? He doesn't deserve the sweet release of ascension. He needs to be rehabilitated, he is a useful asset in our cult.” Cameron spoke, rehabilitation into this sick cult would be a fate worse than death. Simon chuckled and nodded his head to Cameron and Barry.
“Although I love your enthusiasm Barry, Cameron is right. Daniel needs to be rehabilitated instead of being able to ascend.” Simon told them. He stepped down from the altar and walked towards us, he stepped into the pew in front of us and stared at me.
“Oh Daniel, I am glad to have you back, you know I have always thought of you like a son.” Simon said, he reached his hand out to pat my head and I ducked away from him, he frowned and crossed his arms.
“Well, sons are often disappointments to their fathers.” he said, I raised an eyebrow at him.
“Oh, is that what your father used to tell you?” I asked, Barry laughed under his breath and Simon grew angrier.
“Got a bit of an attitude now don't yeah?” he asked, I narrowed my eyebrows at him.
“I got something to live for now.” I replied, Simon laughed unexpectedly and then smirked at me.
“Oh, you mean that brunette with the green eyes? Funny how you should mention him and living in the same sentence…” he spoke, my blood began to boil and my fists clenched.
“What did you do to him?!” I shouted, Simon shushed me and and snapped his fingers, silently instructing Cameron and Barry to escort me away to another room of the church. They lead me outside of the main hall and down narrow stairs, into a white room with a tiled floor and ceiling. I knew this place well, and I knew what was to come next. It was the start of my rehabilitation, the bleach. Cameron and Barry walked out of the room leaving me inside with Simon at the doorway. Simon closed the door and stood outside of the room, going and turning some knobs, causing the bleach to run through the pipes and eventually pour out of the nozzles on the ceiling above me, burning my skin and clothes.
“Just keep your mouth shut and everything will be fine.” Jen told me, we were 9 at the time and I was having a panic attack over the bleach shower after someone else had died from the toxins.
“If you don't ingest it then you will live.” she told me, it was like a secret to survival. We went into the bleach shower and they turned on the faucet. I did as Jen told me and kept my mouth shut, and my eyes too and let the liquid pour around me. When we were done in there I realized her words were true. I was ok.
I took that lesson with me everyday after the bleach showers. Sometimes I just kept my mouth shut to survive, and sometimes I worked. Sometimes.
A/N I don’t really want to have Daniel be punished with a trial by fire by the way... my self insert in this is just a crazy person.
Anyways ~ thoughts about the chapter? There was lots of flashbacks from Daniels past! The book is ending soon that's insane isn't it!
Love you guys thanks for the reads will get the next chappy out ASAP!