Sins Loom: The Unwilling Weaver

After being informed by Buddie, Ed and Zara sit back down at their desks. Ed’s screen flickers first, changing to show footage of a dark room with a young man on the ground. A few seconds later, the man sits up violently, his breathing rapid. They watch as he shuffles against the wall, eventually turning the light on. They see the man stagger back, staring around the room in a daze.

“No, this can’t be happening. Why am I back here?” Cecílio touches the metal collar, struggling to find a way to get it off.

“The collar’s a little loose on him, don’t ya think? It should’ve started much tighter.” Zara says, putting her hand up to her neck, pretending as if it was the collar.

I could use this as a teaching moment. “We want to give him a chance to find the key. If it started off closer, either he would die too quickly, or it would have to barely move in order to give him the same chance at escaping as now.” Ed explains.

“But why do we need to give them that chance? They’re bad people, they deserve to die. And killing them is a lot of fun too.”

“The company isn’t here just to kill these people, it’s here to give them a chance at redemption. At least that’s what Buddie told me on the first day of the internship. Think of it as a test. There would be no reason for a test if there’s no chance for someone to pass it, right?”

Zara pauses to think for a moment. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”

“Good morning Cecílio. You have been on a very difficult journey. You were rather careful and vigilant, but you knew that eventually you would let your guard down. You should know where you are right now... Strangling someone to death is a horrific way to kill someone... Now it is your turn to understand how gruesome of a death it is. The collar around your neck will slowly tighten, eventually crushing your windpipe, however, you will die long before that. As you have already noticed, there is a keyhole in the back of the collar. That is your only chance at salvation. Somewhere important in this house is the key, as long as you can find it before passing out, you will be able to survive. Good luck, Cecílio.”

Buddie’s voice draws their attention back to the screen, on which they see the collar start to slowly close in. They watch him scavenge through the entire living room, to no avail. The key is in a locked box underneath the bed. Hopefully he’ll be able to remember that and go there first. The collar closes in firmly around his neck, as he moves into the kitchen.

Zara spots the keychain in the fruit bowl. “Is it one of those keys?” she asks.

“No, but he needs them to be able to access the key he needs.” This is a good start. It seems like he remembered the box. It shouldn’t take him too long to free himself. Cecílio picks up the keys, trying each of them in the collar’s lock. As Ed watches Cecílio throw away the keys, he begins to rethink the man’s chances of escaping. The collar now sits tightly around his neck, without leaving any gaps.

Ed’s suspicions are confirmed when Cecílio runs into the bathroom instead of the bedroom. He must have blocked out a lot of his memories regarding what happened. The collar starts to dig painfully into Cecílio’s skin.

Finally, Cecílio runs into the bedroom, desperately searching through everything, turning the room into a mess. Eventually, he looks under the bed, finding the box with the key. He starts coughing, the collar starting to choke him slightly.

“Things aren’t looking too good for him.” Zara says, watching him stumble into the kitchen, with the box in hand. He tries the keys on the box, only for his strength to fade, dropping him and the now opened box onto the floor. The contents of the box scatter, the key clinks as it bounces along the tiles, and a photo falls in front of Cecílio. Its contents fully revealed on screen.

The photo shows a woman, her face swollen, bloody and bruised, her clothes torn to shreds, long cuts going across all of her body. Her fear still present in her dead, vacant eyes, telling of the atrocities borne onto her body. One of her legs is noticeably absent, with Ed barely being able to make out the shape of a leg in the far background of the photo.

“Was your revenge worth it Cecílio? It may have felt satisfying, but you spent the rest of your short life on the run, never being able to walk out from the shadow of what happened, unable to experience the joys of life. Instead, you wound up back here, where it all started. You have now experienced what it feels like to die in such a manner. You tried so hard to escape, only for the last thing you see to be the tortured body of your mother. So let me ask you one more time. Was it worth it? Enjoy Hell, Cecílio.”

The collar continues to tighten as the screen fades to black.

“Yours should be ready soon.” Ed says as he turns to Zara.

“I can’t wait to see this scumbag die. Buddie, how much longer until it’s ready?” She says, sliding over to her desk.

“It will be ready in a few minutes Zara.”

“Thanks Buddie. So Ed, what are we going to do today?” She swivels to face him.

“I’ve got some plans I already made this morning before work. It’ll probably take up all of my time, so you should just figure out something to do by yourself.”

“Aww, but that’s less fun. Why don’t I just join you? I promise I can help.” She begs jokingly, looking at him with puppy dog eyes.

“Trust me, it’s not going to be fun at all. You should definitely go and do your own thing.” I need to figure this out on my own. “Why don’t you go and check out this mansion when you’re done. I’m sure you could have a lot of fun talking with all of those people.”

Zara’s eyes light up as she nods her head excitedly. “That sounds like fun, I’ll do that!”

After a little while, Zara’s screen flickers, showing footage of an opulent and expensive looking bedroom. Inside is a middle-aged man sleeping peacefully, with a young woman cuddling up to him on his chest. He really didn’t skimp on the decor.

“Ugh, what a scumbag.” Zara says, spitting to the side. The spit disappears before it hits the ground. “I don’t believe anybody would sleep with him willingly.”

“Good morning, Sir. Your breakfast will be ready shortly, and the morning’s newspaper is already set out on the table.” An old butler walks into the room.

They watch as the man teases the girl, causing her face to go red from embarrassment. What a sleaze.

“What do I have planned today?”

“You have a meeting with your advisors at nine, lunch with your investors at noon, and a public speech at three o’clock.”

The man sighs, stepping into a pair of slippers, now turning his attention back to the woman. “Make sure to have yourself ready by the time I get back. I’m going to need some stress relief by the time I'm finished talking with my advisors.”

They watch as he sits down at the dining table, enjoying his breakfast and tea, while reading the newspaper. The screen splits in two, the one with him in it shrinking until it fits snugly into the upper left corner.

The new footage travels along the road leading up to the manor’s gate. A crowd of tired and filthy looking people starts to form. People of all ages start to gather in front of the gate, starting to shout. The sound starts getting louder and louder, causing the guards at the gate to raise their weapons.

“Step away from the gate!” A grizzled old guard shouts. He looks experienced. This is probably not the first time something like this has happened. The tension between the two groups continues to rise as the crowd continues to grow.

A servant appears, peeking his head through the front door, before heading back inside to inform the butler. The first camera enlarges back up to taking up half the screen.

“Sir, it looks like a situation is developing outside, and we may have to postpone your morning appointment.”

“Great. I never liked talking to those scumbags anyway.” The man says, completely relaxed, even taking a long sip of his tea. “So, what’s happening out there?”

“It seems like some poor people are rioting at the front gate. However, the guards seem to be handling the situation just fine, and they are ready to shoot if the need arises.” The butler says, also not taking the situation too seriously.

The man stands up, keeping hold of his cup of tea. “Let’s go to the balcony. I should be able to enjoy the show from there.”

It feels like something is missing... Ed sinks into his thoughts as the two make their way upstairs.

“It’s been a while since it’s started. Don’t you think Buddie should’ve given his speech by now?” Zara turns to ask Ed.

That’s what was missing! “Yeah, I agree with you there, maybe it’ll happen soon.”

Their attention is brought back to the screen as the rioting grows more intense. The crowd starts pelting tomatoes over the fence. Some splatter against the guards, while most of them hit the ground harmlessly.

“FUCK YOU MIKE.” One of the voices comes across clearly, punctuated by a well-timed rock smashing through one of the windows. The smashed window is shown clearly on screen, with a maid standing scared stiff behind it.

“Find whoever threw that rock. If they can’t find them, just tell them to pull out a random person, I don’t really give a shit. I want to set an example.” They watch as Mike steps back inside. The guards quickly move into action, firing their guns into the sky, the deafening sound silencing the onlookers.

“Whoever threw that rock better show themselves before the count of ten, or the next bullets will be shot right at your faces.” The same guard as before shouts. The guards step forward in unison, shoving back the people against the gate with their guns. “10, 9, 8, 7...” While Zara is focused on the crowd, watching as they start to fear for their lives, Ed notices that one of the guards is looking even more nervous than them. I don’t see this ending well. “...6, 5, 4, 3-” Ed watches as the young man’s eyes flicker around the crowd, his gun following in the same haphazard trajectory, until both suddenly come to a halt, his finger squeezing down on the trigger.

“Hey Ed, look! Someone’s trying to sell out the guy who threw the roc-”

BANG.

Zara and Ed both watch as the bullet pierces through the woman’s head, causing it to burst open, splattering onto the unsuspecting crowd.

The guards, Ed, and Zara, turn to stare at the young guard as he drops to his knees, panicking over what he just did. The old guard smiles. “See, that is what’s going to happen to you if you don’t hand the man over, so everyone better step aside and let us do our job.” They watch as the crowd disperses, leaving the young man to be surrounded by the guards, and dragged behind the gate.

The camera focused on Mike disappears as he steps outside, nonchalantly walking up to the young man who is now kneeling on the ground, in full view of the crowd. Mike pulls out an old-fashioned revolver, using it to lift the man’s chin. “You’ve just damaged my property, how are you going to pay for it?”

The young man splutters nervously, “Please Sir, I-” The cold barrel of the gun presses against his head.

“Think about your next words carefully. I’m not as merciful as my guards here.” They watch as he kicks the young man in the stomach, who keels over, groaning and rolling around from the pain. The man freezes as Mike presses the gun against his head.

“Now tell me. How are you going to pay for it.” He says through gritted teeth, clearly enunciating every word.

“You can’t do this to him, he’s just a boy.” An old frail man walks shakily out of the crowd, as if he could be blown over by the wind at any moment. His voice is barely audible but is filled with immense anger. I can already see where this is going. Ed turns his head away, not wanting to see it. On the other hand, Zara leans in, becoming fully engrossed in the story unfolding in front of her.

“Father don’t-” A woman yells out, trying to reach her father through the crowd.

BANG.

Ed flinches at the gunshot, the appearance of the old man reminding him of his own grandfather.

“Does anybody else feel like questioning me?” Mike says before turning his gun back to the young man who is now quivering at his feet.

“Wow, this is getting interesting. Wish I had some popcorn.” Zara bounces on her chair, excited to see where this will go.

Ed turns his head back to the screen, seeing a middle-aged woman hugging the body of the old man, sobbing loudly.

“Good morning, Mike. You have committed many atrocities, and the public has now wised up to what you have done. You have killed many people, and enslaved countless more, through your militaristic strength. But one day, your guards won’t be able to protect you from the true anger of your people. Repent and change your ways. Give the people what they need, and they will fight for you, not against you. This is your last chance to-”

BANG.

The young man’s head bursts open, splattering blood onto Mike’s shoes. “Shut up! Do you think just because you have a megaphone you can talk like you’re some kind of saviour?” He begins to walk away from the crowd, leaving the guards to handle the clean-up. They watch on as the crowd grows furious, charging at the gate with no care for their safety. The gate topples over with a groan, the rioters flooding in and crushing the guards underneath their immense numbers.

The rioters quickly surround Mike, punching and kicking him. Zara starts cheering them on. “Yeah! Woo! Beat the shit out of that prick!”

“As I was saying. This was your last chance to change your ways and save yourself from the fiery damnation of your people. But you have failed, inciting their anger, and igniting the passion in their souls. You no longer hold control over them. Enjoy Hell, Mike.”

The screen fades to black as Mike’s face disappears beneath the raging crowd.

“Now that you have both completed your projects, you are free to spend the rest of your day doing whatever you want. You have each been paid ten credits for your traps.” Buddie says.

“Well, it looks like I should go now. I’ll see you tomor-” Before Ed can finish his sentence, Zara has already excitedly raced out of her chair, hoping to join in with the crowd.

“Bye!” She shouts back before disappearing through the door.

I guess that works. Ed cracks his neck, getting out of his chair and heading to the door. It’s time to start looking for some answers.