Walking in a desolated high security maximum prison. Me and my traveling companion searched around for supplies that might have been buried from the biggest incident in human history.
From an estimated 9 billion people used to live in this world is now left behind with just barely a hundred thousand. Or less if we’re pessimistic. A war that could have been avoided from the very beginning.
And now we travel across deserted places and old civilizations that used to prosper these lands now left to dust. We took our time well in this place since it's pretty huge for a maximum prison including the basement cells.
Should have a lot of supplies laying around to keep this prison running before the great incident. Plus the majority of this place is still in lockdown so a lot hasn’t been touched. These prisons had airtight seals from the surface so they could have survived for the most part or at least I think so.
The Girl did her best looking around the food lockers on each floor. As we delved deeper, and deeper into the prison which is surprisingly still running due to the solar panels outside that probably survived.
While scavenging the things we needed in our travels. I thought I could break the ice with a story again.
“Hey, you wanna hear a story while we’re here?” I asked.
“What’s it about this time?” The Girl asked.
“About a prisoner this time.” I replied.
“Is this another similar story to the criminal?” The Girl wondered.
“No, this one is different. It’s about an inmate who is on death row. Of which will be facing the chair for the crimes he never even had done. Here’s his story.” I replied to her question.
Some time long ago…
A Man lying down on his back inside his solitary confinement waiting for his judgment to come. He lost count of his days in this prison. For a crime that he was never guilty of, if not even had done anything at least from what he thinks.
“Hey, it’s time for you to eat. It’s been years since your last trial.” The Prison Guard after sliding the inmate’s food.
“Why do I have to worry about the next one? I know my fate has already been sealed off, literally.” The Inmate replied as he stood up
“I’m surprised how you kept yourself sane after all these years. Most of the other inmates have become shells of their former selves here. And yet you’re still here keeping yourself intact. I wanna know your story.” The Prison Guard asked while peeking through the window.
“It’s a story of obsession and how that brought me here. Betrayed, left to rot, while she lives another day without me. I, myself, am still staggered by how it all happened too quickly.” The Inmate replied as he sits down on his bed
“Wait someone snitched and you were used as a scapegoat?” The Prison Guard asked while he grabbed a chair nearby.
“You could say that but I can’t sue her for anything. Because I don’t have any proof she had done anything apart from manipulating a lot of people in the past. Including me, she said that this was not the first time she manipulated a guy who was blinded by love.
What luck, right? And I’m gonna be the 4th guy she had placed into death row. I guess I was pathetic in terms of my decisions in life.” The Inmate answered the question.
“She was beautiful and evil too. She was very sinister and can act very vile at times. But for some reason I would do anything to her. Like I was destined to die for her and I was even ready to kill myself for her.
At this point you would call me crazy and I understand but there was just about her that made me act like that. Just whatever I could do to make her smile. If I succeed, I’ll count all of our sins.” The Prisoner chuckled a bit.
“So this woman let you rot in here to be executed while she’s out there doing more crime as we speak?” Asked the Prison Guard.
“If the world hasn’t ended yet, who knows how many she has killed by now or if she’s with a new man that she replaced me with. It’s been years since I’ve heard any news of what’s happening outside.” The Prisoner replied as he stood up staring at the blank wall.
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“Bewitched by someone’s beauty to be taken advantage of to do their horrible bidding to satisfy their hunger. Sounds rough for you buddy.” The Prison Guard was shaken by the thought of it.
“Who knew I was a weak man against her charisma. Before I knew it I was already in prison suffering from the crimes I never did in the first place. Then again I can’t plead innocence from being bewitched right?
After all it was my decision to follow her words and fall into her hands to be played with. Left to die with no parole. Not even a visit from her one last time. What is it that makes you wanna talk to me in the first place?” Asked the Prisoner as he did his pull ups.
“Well one is that you’re our most cooperative prisoner on death row. Quite surprising to be honest that you’re that willing to be on death row. And the fact that I’m your personal prison guard isn’t gonna stop me knowing what happened to you and how you accepted your fate.” The Prison Guard adjusts his seat.
“That’s just how it is, my good man. I don’t have much choice to either die from guilt or die as a celebrity well in terms of criminals that is.” The Prisoner laughed at his own fate.
“Can you at least tell me what was the reason why you became her personal scapegoat? At least some context should help me understand you more.” The Prison Guard asked one more time.
“Here I ask you why are you asking about this anyways?” The Prisoner replied with a question.
“Talking is cheap and it's nice to learn something while I’m here with nothing to do.” The Prison Guard replied to the Prisoner’s question.
“I guess that’s true. But I met that woman a long time ago now in a park. And asked me this specific question. ‘Are you interested in killing me?’ A bright young woman with a dark green dress approaches me from like out of nowhere.
Asking me such an obscure question and or was she giving me an order from her amber colored eyes I can tell she wants me to do it. Without second thoughts I replied to her. And with it, everything became blurry.” The Prisoner sits down by his bed on the ground.
“What happens next?” The Prison Guard anticipates a continuation.
“Let’s just say I was completely under her control. Countless number of murders with no goal in mind except to just satisfy her. I didn’t even realize I had a talent for murder. I just realized by the end of the day that I had a knife in my hand covered in blood.” The Prisoner continued his story while chuckling.
“What were you doing before? Like before you met her.” The Prison Guard asked this to the Prisoner which raised an eyebrow for him.
“I was… An accountant, pushing paper, and numbers every single day. It was dreadful I tell you that. Until I was fired for reasons I don’t remember, and I ended up becoming jobless. I guess the accumulated stress got the best of me bringing it out on other people. At least I think so..?” The Prisoner was vague with his answer.
“Don’t you have a solid answer on how you became good in murder? Like moments where she betrayed you. She could have told you what she did to you to become the person you are right now.” The Prison Guard asked another intriguing question.
“That I can’t explain.” The Prisoner was left speechless.
As the Prison Guard was about to continue their conversation it was cut short by an announcement…
“Death Row: Inmate Number 112. On your feet, it is time.” As the ominous announcer calls out the Prisoner’s number.
“Wait, I’m not finished talking to you!” The Prison Guard tries to get the info out of the Prisoner as two bodyguards take the Prisoner out of his cell.
“I guess this is where we say our goodbyes Mr. Prison Guard.” The Prisoner walks out while the Guard is trying to get an answer.
“At least tell me what it was that made you follow her schemes.” The Prison Guard shouted as the Prisoner went away.
“I guess I can tell you this Mr. Prison Guard… Turns out we were both insane by the end of things. I guess I was never a fool after all.” As the Prisoner looks back and his nape shows a tattoo saying…
“Vanitas Vanitatum…” The Prison Guard was shocked as the gate to his cell area closed in front of him.
Back to the present…
“So what happened to the Prisoner, Mister?” Asked the Girl while rummaging the boxes.
“He was executed without screaming. Via the chair.” I replied back as I checked the file cabinet looking at the file folder named… ‘Solomon’
“I guess in the end he was beyond reason by the time he was used up by the woman who manipulated him.” The Girl wondered into her thoughts on the story.
“I can’t say for sure but I know that man has found peace even in the depths of hell. Actually I have a bonus part for the story.” I looked at the girl while I was packing up the bag.
“What! What! Tell me!” The Girl excitedly springs back from sitting down.
Somewhere after the execution in the afterlife…
“I knew that we’ll meet again soon.” Solomon sighed.
“Is everything still in vain for you?” The Lady giggled as she walked over to him.
“Well of course… Everything is in vain without you my dear.” Solomon replied as he hugged her.
“I told you, you’d kill me someday.” The Lady hugged tightly.
“I knew you’d do the same. And now we’re here suffering together.” Solomon smiles as both of them burn out.
Returning to the Present…
“Woah… I never thought you could recover such words even after they were dead.” The Girl was impressed.
“Let’s just say humans have the last words after death that I can recover for recording. After all I’m just an observer in the end. Anyways get your things up, we have a weeks long journey ahead of us.” I stood up, grabbed my bag and we headed back to the surface.