After some time, they came for us. One of the guards from the council room came out to talk to Job. The two of them held a conversation in their white noise language, the guard either refusing to use English, or else didn’t know it. Either way, he acted as though I was not at Job’s side, looking only at him. He led us back to the room, where the three older council members were waiting. A pit of coals had been added to the room. The red glow of the embers helped reality sink in – there was no turning back.
Job never let go, holding me around the waist, facing me. His hands start to shake from the anxiety of having to watch what I was about to endure. I only wanted him to be there to talk to me, and remind me why I had made this choice.
The sandaled man stepped near us, his demeanor serious and withdrawn, as he waited for my longing stare to end. “This is your last chance to change your mind,” he said, once I had turned to him. “You are giving up everything in your life for him. Do you want to continue?”
I looked back at Job, holding onto every facet of his face, so I could recall it when it started: his honey hair that swept across his forehead; his deep brown eyes that shimmered gold in the light of the fire; the smooth skin of his cheeks; the quiver of his lips as he waiting for my answer.
I wasn’t just attracted to his physicality, but everything inside him, as well. He had developed a personality all his own. He was able to express himself in ways I thought impossible. He was caring and honest and loyal. He would do anything for me, and would keep me safe. He was a beautiful man I had fallen madly in love with.
“I do,” I said, without turning away from Job’s gaze.
Giving a nervous sigh, Job gripped tighter, never breaking his stare. I tried not to look away, but I could see the coals being stirred, sending small specks of orange up in the air, where they glowed brightly for an instant before burning out. A short metal rod was being pulled from the embers, the emblem Job wore on his hands blazing at the end of it, red hot. I gasped unintentionally, and could feel my breathing quicken. As much as I had readied myself, my expectations were far different than the reality.
“You can still stop this, Emily, you don’t have to,” Job pleaded.
Turning back to him, fixed on his eyes, I put my hand out, waiting for the pain to start – promising myself I wouldn’t scream.
I could never have imagined how it would feel to be branded by a hot copper iron. At first, it was just hot, like accidentally touching a pan on the stove without wearing an oven mitt. As shocking as it was, I tried to withdraw my hand from what was causing the pain, only to find that it was being held out against my will by a set of unknown hands. Without being able to yank my arm back, the intensity shot through me, and I could feel the brand searing the skin off my hand. The smell of charred flesh hung in the air. I couldn’t control what my mouth was doing, and the scream erupted before I could make any attempt to hold it in. The agony crawled up my arm, feeling as though they had just submerged it in the coals. All concentration on Job was lost. I could see him holding his breath, waiting for me to stop, but it continued, unabated.
He held me closer against him, stroking the small of my back with jittery hands, keeping his face close to mine. His breath and touch was comforting, but not enough to keep the burning of my hand at bay.
“They are done with that one. It’s almost over. Please, just stop this. I don’t want to watch–”
I didn’t let him finish. Nearly hyperventilating, with tears streaming down my face, I shakily held out my other hand, waiting for the branding to start again. He buried his face into my shoulder, unable to watch anymore.
The second round was as bad as the first. My legs gave out completely as the screaming continued. I couldn’t feel the pain in my other hand, as I was overcome by the fire of the new one. As much as I tried to free my hand from the fire, someone was still holding it, forcing me to keep still. Job was whispering in my ear, but everything around me was hazy. Even though I knew the brand had been removed, the charred skin kept burning, over and over. I slowly gained power over my body again, and was able to manage only a small whimper instead of the full onslaught of screams. Both hands were throbbing almost equally, now.
“It’s over. It’s all over. I’m still here. I’m not going anywhere. I love you so much.”
I could hear the choked up sound in his voice. He was trying to hide it, but when he backed up, I could see a tear stream down his lovely face. He smiled to make me feel better, but it was strained.
I felt something wet on my hand that began to sting. The coolness squelched the burning sensation, but just the touch sent the sharp pain back up my arm, and I gasped as I squeezed my eyes tight, waiting for the pain to fade. “It just water. It’s going to help. Give it a minute.” Job’s voice was reassuring, telling me that the worst was over, and the time for healing had begun.
Before the wet cloth could be placed on my other hand, I looked down to see the black charred outline of the symbol that had cauterized on my skin. An eye was permanently tattooed to my hand. It would match Job’s in every way, yet I had been given the choice, whereas he hadn’t.
Moving my fingers hurt too much, as the backs of my hands swelled around the brands. The agonizing throb continued till Job held my hands by the wrist and placed them on his shoulders. The aching diminished slightly, though any movement sent sharp pain back down my arms.
He held out the necklace between us – letting it sway back and forth, as if to hypnotize me. He didn’t need to ask if I wanted it back. I had just proved that I did. I would never take it off again.
He slipped it around my neck, running his smooth finger down the chain to the penny, holding it there for a moment, as though to demonstrate that it was back where it belonged.
“You know, a ring would have been better,” I said, trying to focus on humor instead of my hands.
His puzzled look showed he wasn’t getting the joke. It seemed to not be something he was familiar with. “I’m supposed to give you a ring?”
It was hard not to laugh at his confusion. “No. It’s a human custom in a situation like this. I don’t want one. I have everything I need right here.”
I leaned up to him to kiss him, but he had stopped me, still perplexed. “What other customs are there for this? Maybe I can do something else?” he asked curiously.
“Well the only other one I can think of, you can’t do either, unless you can give me your last name?”
“No. I can’t.” He looked away from me.
He was thinking – mulling over something in his head. I became afraid that, in just this small fragment of time, he had started to regret my decision. Before I could say anything, he looked back down at me with his loving eyes, yearning for a way to please me.
“Can I have yours?” he asked.
“Hmm. Job O’Neil. It has a nice ring to it. You can have it, but I want it back, if you ever decide to leave me,” I joked, watching his infectious smile gleam in the light of the fire.
“I don’t think that will be an issue. See, it’s our custom that we never leave the one we are meant to be with. We stay together for life.” His voice was soothing.
“Well, it better be a long one, then.”
Foreheads pressed against each other, I could feel his warm breath on me. He knew it would relax me and help me forget for a moment about the pain. I leaned in further to kiss him, only to have him pull back teasingly, as though I wasn’t allowed. It made me smile and bite my lip, rolling my eyes at him. He laughed softly and drew in for a kiss, caressing my back with his hands. I didn’t care who was watching. I was fine with being the sappy couple that couldn’t stop showing affection. As twisted and cruel as fate had been, it had brought me everything I had ever wanted, but had been too scared to find on my own. I knew I was with the man I loved – the man I would spend forever with.
Epilogue
The young girl was alone in the dark, as usual. In the silence, she curled up in her chair, listening to the sound of water
dripping from the wall she couldn’t see, reminding her of the prison she could never escape. She had been here for years, yet the solitude was a comfort from what hatred lay in the outside world. She knew she would spend the rest of her life like this until things changed, until the war could end. She heard the voice again, even though there was no one around to provide it. From the small dark space, the message rang clear in her mind, and it scared her
All humans are dependent on New Energy
Trust has been built with the humans
Planet Earth has been repaired, and destruction is reversed
Almost all Sayners have been eradicated
Begin preparations for phase two
Copperback Page 27