Premortal

by Damien Passmore

  Despite the situation he now found himself in, there was no feeling of remorse. There was no thought that, perhaps, he would have been better off without ever involving himself in the rebel plan. There was no thought of his mother or father. If there had, it would only have been to curse them. His was the sorrow of the damned. He had been so blinded by his journey, and the choices that he had made, that he failed to see any connection between his current predicament and those choices. He despised his current situation, and the misery that he felt, but he ascribed it entirely to foul luck. He did not, and would not, contemplate that he had contributed to it in the slightest.

  He had passed his own personal ‘point of no return’ long ago and thus, not only was the pathway back too difficult, but it was entirely concealed from his view. He was on the only possible pathway for him now, and the road back was blocked. He could only move forward into whatever awaited him. He had surrendered his agency entirely and now his fate awaited him with certainty. He just needed to discover what that fate would be. Like every other spirit, Sturd had been given his freedom. Unfortunately, he had surrendered that agency through the choices that he had made.

  60 punishment

  A few hours later, Sturd was led before a vast gathering. There were fifty-five thousand attendees in all, being the five military divisions and also the members of the inner circle. Of course, the noble counsellors were also in attendance with their esteemed president. In a sad irony, the gathering was held in the same amphitheatre that Sturd had been in when he first received the joyful news that he had been selected as a member of Lucifer’s army. The crowd had intentionally been kept waiting for some time and they jeered Sturd as he was led out, as though the delay was his doing.

  Troy was to question the accused. He strode onto the stage dramatically before facing the captive, who had been seated to face the multitude with a guard standing immediately behind him. Before commencing, Troy positioned himself to the side of Sturd and was standing side on so that Sturd had to turn his neck at a right angle in order to properly see him. This Troy did so as to allow the audience, who surrounded the stage on three sides, to best see the captive, and also so that he could address both the crowd and the accused. Troy circled Sturd, before moving back to the place that he had selected initially, and then commenced his address.

  ‘Sturd, we are gathered here today to consider whether you should be punished for your crimes. I have been asked to question you and I see no cause for delaying these proceedings. Firstly, I would like to understand precisely the level of authority that you were granted by your commanding officers in regards to ordering an attack?’

  Sturd was overwhelmed by both the size of the audience and the response that he had received as he walked onto the stage, so an answer didn’t immediately come to him.

  ‘Well man, if you don’t answer me we’ll just pronounce you guilty right here and now.’

  This jolted Sturd into action.

  ‘I-I was t-told that we could attack where the situation w-warranted it,’ he replied haltingly.

  ‘When you say ‘warranted it’, what do you mean?’ asked Troy sharply.

  ‘I-I mean that we could attack when the situation w-was s-serious enough,’ clarified the former officer.

  ‘Serious enough? Alright then, let’s explore this a little,’ said Troy buoyantly.

  ‘How many spirits did you attack?’ he enquired.

  'About three thousand,' replied Sturd dishonestly.

  'No Sturd, we know of the fateful follow up battle. How many spirits did you attack initially?'

  Sturd paused, wondering whether there was anyway that he could massage the truth.

  'Come on Sturd, how many men did you attack initially?' Troy said forcefully.

  ‘One,’ replied Sturd, realising that lying any more would be entirely futile.

  ‘What, pray tell, did this spirit do to deserve the attack?’ pressed Troy, having elicited the response that he had been seeking.

  ‘He was rude and arrogant and had to be taught a lesson,’ said Sturd firmly, overcoming his fears and attempting to mount some sort of defence.

  ‘Did he attack you or your men?’

  ‘No he did not, but'

  'Did he attack you or any of your men!' bellowed Troy, interrupting the accused.

  'No,' replied Sturd quietly.

  ‘Did he challenge our plan in any way?’

  ‘Not really, but'

  'Did he challenge our plan in any way!' screamed the prosecutor.

  'No.'

  ‘Did you think to clear the attack with your superiors, Sturd?’

  ‘No there wasn’t time. We had to make a quick decision.’

  ‘Why, were you or your unit in any danger?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Then why could you not have waited until a later time so that you could clear the attack with your commanding officers?’

  To this question Sturd paused once again, not knowing what to say. He looked out at the vast gathering that was before him, hoping to see some empathy among the sea of faces, but if it was empathy that he was after he would have been better located at the other end of the Kingdom.

  ‘M-my men and I made a quick decision under trying circumstances,’ was the only reply he could muster.

  ‘Were your men supportive of your decision, Sturd?’ asked Troy knowingly, the prosecutor having managed to calm down somewhat from his blood vessel popping anger of just a few moments prior.

  ‘Yes they were.’

  ‘So you had their full support and no one tried to sway you otherwise?’

  ‘No they did not. I had the full support of my division,’ said Sturd confidently.

  To this Troy turned to his leader and addressed him.

  ‘Lucifer, I request your permission to call forth witnesses from first division,’ requested Troy.

  ‘You have it,’ replied his leader, who was very much enjoying the proceedings thus far. Indeed, one might even have called him merry.

  Troy turned to the men of first division and called for his first witness.

  ‘As my first witness, I call the colonel of first division.’

  Sturd could not have been more surprised to hear that name. It had never occurred to him that he might already have been replaced. A moment later his heart sank as he saw the former major of his division moving to the stage to be questioned.

  For effect, Troy had had a seat placed upon the stage for the witnesses. The new colonel was motioned into this seat which he took, preparing himself to respond to any questions.

  ‘Colonel, are you willing to answer my questions?’ enquired the prosecutor.

  ‘Certainly,’ replied the colonel.

  There was no thought of requesting that the witness make any promise as to the truthfulness of his account. Truth was not a high priority in these parts.

  ‘As you can see, we have detained the former colonel of your unit. Your former leader insists that no objections were made to his decision to attack Michael the Archangel. Is that an accurate account?’

  ‘No, I’m afraid it is not. I told him that it was Michael the Archangel and that attacking him would have very serious consequences.’

  ‘Liar!’ yelled Sturd from the floor.

  Troy turned to him in fury. ‘You are without rights in this court. If you call out like that again we will simply pronounce your guilt immediately and move directly to sentencing!’ he screamed.

  This left Sturd with no choice but to stay quiet and listen to the lies being told to condemn him. There is no doubt that he was between a rock and a hard place, but it was he who had pried the two apart and climbed in.

  The new colonel continued to render his account without any concern for the truth. He outlined the way in which he had pleaded with his leader to return to base and clear the attack with the generals. He recounted the way in which he had been told by Sturd that the generals and Lucifer could go stuff themselves. For effect, at this particular juncture, the new colonel
stood and saluted Lucifer and the two generals in a show of respect that was intended to be in direct contrast to Sturd’s treachery.

  Once the colonel had finished his testimony, it was supported by the former first captain of the division, who by coincidence was now the major. His testimony agreed perfectly with the second captain, who had mysteriously become the first captain. The former first lieutenant, who was now the second captain, gave an identical testimony to the second lieutenant, who was now the first lieutenant. The evidence was overwhelming but Troy was not yet finished.

  ‘You have heard the evidence of your very own division Sturd. What do you have to say for yourself?’

  ‘I say that they are not telling the truth,’ replied Sturd indignantly.

  To this response the whole stadium erupted into roars of mocking laughter. After joining in wholeheartedly, Troy eventually silenced them with the motioning of his arms.

  ‘Oh c'mon Sturd; do you seriously expect us to believe that the best men in first division would not give a true and accurate account of exactly what transpired?’

  ‘Yes, that is what I’m suggesting because that’s the way it is,’ asserted Sturd.

  ‘Let the record show that the prisoner lied in an attempt to avoid justice,’ responded Troy.

  There was actually no record; Troy had simply heard that statement, when studying earthly courtrooms, and wanted to use it.

  Next, Troy directed the attention of his courtroom to the events subsequent to the attack, for which Sturd was now to be brought to account.

  ‘Now Sturd, tell us why you didn’t report the attack to your superiors, but rather encouraged your men to keep it secret from them.’

  Sturd didn’t even bother denying that accusation. If he was unable to deny something that he didn’t do, what chance had he of denying something that he did. Troy commended him for being spirit enough to acknowledge his guilt on that point. The prosecutor then turned his attention to the final battle.

  ‘Sturd, I’m hesitant to trouble the noble officers of your division to return to the witness stand a second time. Accordingly, we have taken sworn statements from them concerning your conduct in the final battle.’

  Again there were no sworn statements but Troy thought that it would sound better if he said that there were. The honourable prosecutor continued.

  ‘I’m afraid to say, Sturd, that the sworn statements do not paint you in a very good light. Each officer reports that they, and all of their men, fought valiantly in battle but that the morale of the whole division was severely impacted by your cowardice. They outlined the way in which you were soundly beaten by Michael and then begged for his mercy. Not only this, but when they pleaded with you to approve a second attack, you refused, commanding a full retreat.’

  Sturd was disappointed but not surprised by this fresh round of allegations. It was true that he didn’t actually recollect anything of the battle, after giving the initial order to attack, but he was fairly certain that it didn’t go the way that his division had reported it. He tried to defend himself but each time he attempted to do so he was threatened with the immediate discharge of ‘justice’. As such he was forced to wait for the trial to proceed to its foregone conclusion.

  Ultimately, the trial concluded and the verdict was affirmed. Sturd was convicted of treason and sentence was to be passed immediately. As prosecutor, Troy’s role had concluded. Guilt was affirmed by the entire congregation, by unanimous vote no less; the sentence however, was to be passed by just one. Troy called Lucifer from his elevated seat in a most dignified manner. The leader then moved to the centre of the floor to thunderous shouts of adoration.

  ‘Brothers and sisters, I thank you for ensuring that justice will be carried out here today. I thank you also for vesting in me the authority to sentence Sturd.’

  No such investiture had taken place, but who was going to argue.

  ‘We have heard of the seriousness of Sturd’s crimes, but before I pass sentence I would like to turn your minds to the implications that his actions have had for each one of us. As you know, with the exception of Sturd, each of you is the very best of the best. Indeed, you are the shining lights of the Kingdom. Within a very short period of time each and every spirit will be given the opportunity to vote on the plan that they would like to support. You would also not be ignorant of the very great support that we now have within the Kingdom. Indeed, with every new day we drew closer to a majority.’

  A murmur of general agreement exuded from the gathering.

  ‘But then enter Sturd with his act of treason. Now we have lost many of our tier one students, and a number of our tier two students, and that is to say nothing of the millions we were working on, who will no longer listen to our message.’

  To this revelation, a certain measure of aggression erupted from the crowd which was directed at Sturd. Lucifer paused to allow this process to mature somewhat. He walked back and forth in front of the prisoner, glaring at him, then turned his back on him once again to face the crowd. Next, Lucifer spoke a little on the tragedy for those spirits who needed the protection of their plan, but may now never consider it. He spoke very briefly on this though, as he knew that this gathering was not particularly concerned about the implications for other spirits. Finally, so as to speak the language that this particular gathering understood best, he turned the topic to a bit of old fashioned self-interest.

  ‘Now, my brothers and sisters, as merely an incidental matter, which I’m sure concerns you far less than the welfare of other spirits, I must spend a brief moment to outline the implications of Sturd’s actions for each of us. As I have said many times, each one of you is a credit to the Kingdom. You are the brightest and most intelligent spirits here. Before long I hope that this will be recognised and you will be appropriately rewarded. If we are successful in gaining a majority then I will ensure that you are properly recompensed and that you will preside over your brothers and sisters, both in the Kingdom and on earth.’

  A general murmur of excitement escaped the crowd, but shortly thereafter, sly looks and a general feeling of ill-will prevailed, as each spirit wondered just where he or she might rank in the hierarchy. Although Lucifer enjoyed the sly and competitive looks, which could be utilised to his advantage, he didn’t allow himself the pleasure of breathing them in for too long, as his role here was to demonise Sturd.

  ‘I regret to say that Sturd may have cost each of us very dearly. While we do not yet know the exact timing, it is clear that the final vote is not far away. For this reason it is crucial that we work hard to secure a majority vote before it is too late. You should know that prior to Sturd’s treason we were progressing speedily to a healthy majority. I’m afraid to inform you tonight, however, that our influence has been severely damaged by his treacherous acts!’

  Lucifer finished the sentence loudly, pointing at the prisoner for additional effect.

  ‘We have done our best to quantify the effect and I believe that we have already lost well over a billion votes!’ exclaimed the orator. ‘I’m afraid, my friends, that this number is still climbing, meaning we are much less likely to obtain a majority, and the chances of our plan being successful has been severely impaired.’

  Lucifer needed to clarify the result of losing these votes in non-numerical terms as mathematics was not the strong point of most of those gathered. In fact, nothing much of any use was the strong point of those gathered. Lucifer, knowing only too well what manner of spirits he was dealing with, took a moment to join the dots for his listeners.

  ‘This means, my dear friends, that all of the honours that you so richly deserve may never come to you, because of the actions of this spirit!’

  Lucifer yelled this accusation also, clenching his fist and moving close to Sturd, threatening to do him physical harm, before stepping back, as if he had restrained himself in the interests of seeing to the proper carriage of justice. At this revelation, and incited by Lucifer’s aggressive gesture, the rage of the entire crowd eru
pted and all started to press towards the victim. Having achieved his purpose, Lucifer speedily passed sentence. Above the swirling venom of the crowd he screamed:

  ‘Brothers and sisters, we will punish this traitor with our powerful army. Divisions one to five, attack Sturd!’

  Each division, desperate to unload the rage boiling within it, reacted quickly. Divisions one to three launched themselves at Sturd and took immediate possession of him. Divisions four and five also moved quickly towards the victim, but waited a moment, as they had not yet administered an attack and wanted a quick demonstration. After only a few seconds however, they had learnt enough and launched themselves at Sturd.

  Lucifer, brimming with anger, had intended merely to observe the attack however, being the fearless giant that he was, he couldn’t constrain himself. Having seen fifty thousand of his men attack a single spirit, he simply couldn’t resist the temptation of joining the fray and making it fifty thousand and one to one.

  Seeing their courageous and noble leader participate, Troy, Ham and Jezebel could hardly have been expected to resist and they piled into Sturd as well, unloading their hatred and anger.

  Observing the fabulous four launching their attack, those of the inner circle were not to be denied either and the three thousand brutes and two thousand brutesses added to the orgy of venom and fury that tore at every fibre of Sturd’s being.

  Sturd was entirely defenceless to the attack. He did not have a shred of faith to protect him, and his brittle self-esteem had been ripped from him when he was demoted from colonel. Any lingering shred of self-worth expired when he was betrayed by his own division. He was a shell when attacked, and each of the fifty-five thousand attackers ground out any substance at all that he had left. They destroyed his soul, hating it, ripping it, tearing it, stamping on it, kicking it, slapping it, punching it, gouging it, spitting on it.