Is it coming from here? Is it coming from inside this room?
The scream stop abruptly. Unnaturally. Once more, there was nothing but silence.
“Nari… are you there?” I whispered in a complete panic.
I listened frantically, all my senses heightened beyond their limits, but the crushing silence continued to spread and devour my surroundings. I opened my mouth again to call out to Nari, but at that exact moment, another agonizing scream pierced through the air. This time it was more muffled, like it was far away. It was a boy screaming. A few seconds later, the screaming ended. But not as abruptly as last time. It ended with a loud gurgling sound, like somebody was drowning.
“Nari… are you there?” I whispered again, but before I could finish the question, another dreadful scream cut my eardrums like a knife. This time it sounded like it came through the wall behind me, but even though muffled, it was more intense and agonizing than the previous ones. It must have come from an adult, but I couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman.
I was in a full-blown panic. My shallow gasps didn’t give me any oxygen and my head was becoming dizzy.
“No, no, no…” I mumbled to myself. “No, no, no… this isn’t happening… this can’t be happening! NARI… ARE YOU THERE?” I ended in a shriek that matched the horrifying screams around me, but there was no answer.
I was alone.
Tears flooded from my eyes, which were still burning from the pepper. They mixed with the blood on my face, and stung the open wound on my broken nose on its way down. As it reached my lips, a strange sensation of salt mixed with metal spread through my mouth.
“N-Nari?” I whimpered again, but the only reply was yet another horrifying scream from down the corridor.
I tried to get loose again, but it only resulted in the ropes cutting deeper into my skin. I felt blood running down my wrists.
Minutes passed. Or maybe it was hours… I couldn’t tell. I had no perception of time. I only knew I was surrounded by endless pain and suffering. One scream more horrifying and excruciating than the other interrupted the short-lived silence in between. Sometimes the screams overlapped and created a deranged symphony of agony.
After a while, my mind started drifting. I saw myself tied to one of the poles in front of the smiling face of infinite kindness of our beloved Father, basking in the soft evening sun. I couldn’t see through the swelling around my eyes but I felt several fingers and toes were missing from my body. I sensed someone was tied to the pole next to me. I knew who it was.
It was Nari.
CHAPTER 18
I don’t know how long I sat alone in my underground cell listening to one scream more horrendous and agonizing than the one before. Some sounded muffled like they carried from far away. Others were so strong and overwhelming I could swear they came from right beside me. Nevertheless, I knew I was alone, and the only thing keeping me company was the pure terror in my heart and the overwhelming feeling of abandonment by my Father - the Great General.
Father… why are you letting this happen to me?
The pain in my eyes from the pepper diminished slowly and made my vision less foggy. With the bag over my head, however, I could still not see anything, except that there was a light above me. Probably a bare light bulb hanging from the ceiling.
The clanking of a key unlocking the metal door to my cell suddenly startled me and made me jump. By reflex, I tried to pull away but was painfully reminded of the rope around my wrists and ankles. As they burned into my flesh, I once more added my harrowing scream to the symphony as fresh blood trickled down my hands and index fingers.
The door closed again, and a set of heavy footsteps approached me. I panted heavily and my heart pounded through my chest. A large figure blocked the light bulb in the ceiling and cast a dark shadow over my pitiful existence. The darkness grew as the man came closer. I pressed my body back into the chair as I felt the now-familiar vile breath through the cloth of the bag.
“I told you we would meet like this again soon.”
I sensed the malevolent smile on Colonel Wan’s lips.
“Please,” I panted. “I haven’t done anything, I swear—”
“Oh, is that so?” Colonel Wan backed away from me, leaving the repugnant stench lingering in my nostrils. “Well, if that is the case, I owe you my deepest apologies, Miss Kim… you’re free to go.”
A silence fell over the room and for a split second, I almost believed he would untie me.
The shadow in front of me, however, didn’t move.
“Wait a minute!” Colonel Wan exclaimed with gleeful malevolence. “I… I feel like my brain is trying to tell me something… it’s trying to remind me of something. What could it be… what could it be…? Ah, yes… now I remember! I remember having heard those claims before. Hmm… come to think of it, I distinctly remember hearing that exact claim from every single prisoner I have ever brought down here. It’s quite remarkable, actually. Not a single one of them had done anything wrong… they were all as pure and innocent as tiny little newborn babies,” he scoffed. “So, if you don’t mind, Miss Kim… I’d prefer if you to stay where you are so we can continue our little conversation for just a teensy bit longer.”
I tried with all my might to scream for him to let me go, but my mouth knew better than to let out any sounds.
Colonel Wan paced in front of me, making the light bulb appear, disappear, and appear again. Together with my pounding heart and shallow panting, the flickering of the light made me dizzy. I could taste blood in my mouth, but I wasn’t sure it was real.
“I bet you think you’re pretty smart,” Colonel Wan said. “But I hate to break it to you… you’re by no means the first I’ve encountered who have used pepper to disguise your hatred for our beloved Father… to pretend you’re sad he’s no longer with us—”
“I am sad!” I shrieked, unable to contain myself any longer. ”I’m devastated! I’ve always loved the Great General… even more than my actual father… you must be—”
“As I said, Miss Kim,” Colonel Wan cut me off. “You’re far from the first person I’ve caught pretending to cry. Some cried without tears, some put salt in their eyes… but you’re all the same, so you can save your breath… for now.”
He continued pacing. The only sounds I heard were his footsteps, my shallow panting, and the beating of my heart. Maybe the screaming around me had stopped… or maybe my mind had just blocked them out.
“I have to confess, Miss Kim… I was furious when General Roh snatched you away from right under my nose the last time. Of course, at that time, I had no idea who you were, or who your father was… but you were my little piggy who had just been lined up for slaughter. You were mine.” The light was again blocked and I felt the warmth of his repugnant breath. I clutched my hands around the hard metal chair and turned my head to the side in a futile effort to get away from it. “But now… I can’t believe my luck,” he whispered.
Luck? What is he talking about?
“You see,” Colonel Wan continued. “After you left, the good General gave me the task to look into your father’s case. At first, I was shocked, of course… such a thing was unheard of… questioning the guilt of one of the Strayed… I don’t know what you did to make him do that, but… in the end, it doesn’t matter. Because what I found was like a present from the Great General himself. I found out who your father is, Miss Kim… and more importantly… I found out who your grandfather was.”
“M-my grandfather?”
My intense terror was suddenly diluted with confusion.
“Yes… your grandfather. The great Kim Hyun Woo… the hero of Choson… the founder of the Public Food Distribution System. I wonder… did you know him personally?
My confusion grew exponentially.
What does my dead grandfather have to do with anything?
“I… I met him once in a while,” I panted. “Not much… just on some national holidays… on the Day of the Sun and so on… some birthda
ys…”
My brain raced as fast as my heart in an attempt to grasp what was going on.
“Mm… no, I didn’t take him for much of a family man,” Colonel Wan said. “We knew each other, you know… back when I lived in the Capital. I worked for him for quite some time… even considered him a mentor of sorts.”
“Y-you knew… my grandfather?”
“Indeed I did. And not only did I know him… he is the reason I’m here in this Great General-forsaken hellhole.” The towering figure once again blocked the light. “Don’t get me wrong, Miss Kim… I have grown to like it here. It definitely has some advantages that were not available to someone like me in our dear old Capital… filled to the brim with self-righteous pretentious hypocrites. Great General, how I hate all those arrogant bastards!”
I had the ominous feeling I was in more trouble than just being caught fake-crying… although remembering all the mutilated bodies I had witnessed being shot to shreds in the last ten days, I doubted if that was even possible.
“You see, Miss Kim… I like to have fun in a slightly different way than most people,” he paced before me again. “Quite different, actually… but I was always very careful not to involve anyone important. A pleasure girl here… some farmer’s daughter there. But your grandfather - the King of Arrogance himself - thought my inclinations were not appropriate of a servant of the Great General… that it wasn’t in line with the sacred principles of Juche,” he scoffed. “As if being flawless servants of the Great General is the only thing we are meant to be…”
The hard sound of his boots against the concrete floor grew in intensity and pounded against my already throbbing brain.
“So, he stabbed me in the back, your grandfather… turned everyone against me, and sent me here… to rot. I also had friends there in high places… don’t get me wrong. My family was very influential… and still is… but him… he was the great Kim Hyun Woo… nobody dared oppose him. That must have been… Great General… more than twenty years ago now. Twenty years since I had to give up my comfortable life, my career, my family… and come to this muddy hellhole. They turned me into a lowly guard. I had to endure being called Private Wan for a whole year, for Juche’s sake… can you believe it? They discarded me like garbage! But him? Him they revered like a divine being… as if he was the prodigious heir of the Great General or something.” He scoffed again. “Luckily for me, General Roh came not too long after my arrival here. Of course, he wasn’t a general at the time, but still… he was fairly high-ranking from the start. He immediately recognized and valued my skills, and… as he slowly climbed to the top, I climbed right after. And now… twenty or so years later, I can’t lie… this is my home, and I like it here… but I have never… ever… ever…forgiven your arrogant, self-righteous bastard of a grandfather for what he did to me.”
Colonel Wan’s face was now mere inches away from mine and I could feel his spit hitting the bag over my head. His breath made me nauseous, and I was afraid I would vomit. But the Colonel seemed to calm down a bit and took a step away from me before continuing.
“And then came little old you,” his voice now carried a playful tone. ”The granddaughter of the Great Kim Hyun Woo… right under my nose, and to think I almost missed it,” he chuckled.
“I… I… I’m sorry, Sir… I’m sorry for what he did to you,” I whimpered. “It was unfair… arrogant of him… but… but I—”
“But that doesn’t have anything to do with little old you, right? He did this to me, and you just happen to be a distant relative of his… right?” He chuckled again. “Well, let me remind you, Miss Kim, that in our society, guilt extends three generations. The Great General himself created that law in Juche Year 37. It was, in fact, one of the first laws he created, which means it’s also one of the most important laws of our great nation. And in my book, that means you, Miss Kim… and your sister… and your parents… are just as much to blame for what your grandfather did to me as he was. Or… do you disagree with the commandments of the Great General, Miss Kim? I mean… you pretended to cry and mourn his death, so it wouldn’t surprise—”
“NO!” I screamed in utter desperation.
“No… what?”
“No… I… I…”
“It doesn’t matter, Miss Kim… frankly, I’m completely disinterested in your opinion on the matter. The Great General has stated that guilt extends three generations, and his word is law… literally.”
“Please,” I panted.
“Please, please, please,” Colonel Wan mimicked mockingly. “How many times do I have to hear this infernal please from you people? I swear… sometimes I just want to rip out your tongues before I start working on you. But then, of course, you wouldn’t be able to confess… it’s quite the conundrum.” He cleared his throat. “Either way, Miss Kim, you can save it… and I’m going to be completely honest with you. I don’t care about you one way or the other. It’s like you said… you hardly even knew the man.” I almost started feeling relieved, but then Colonel Wan stormed down on me and clutched my arms with this hands, his fingernails piercing deep into my skin. I screamed from the shock and the pain. “But your father,” he wheezed. “Yes… that’s a whole other story, isn’t it? Yes… when your father came of age, your grandfather conveniently forgot about the whole best man for the job bullshit he always preached about and took his son in as his protégé… surprise, surprise! And the result? Hundreds of thousands… maybe even millions, dead! And their blood is on your father’s hands. Now, if I would have still been in the Capital serving in the Ministry of Food Distribution, maybe I could have put a stop to it. Maybe. But I wasn’t… I was here, rotting away… because your two-faced grandfather couldn’t be a professional and disregard his personal opinions about my inclinations. But his son… he could wreak havoc on Choson, starving people to the left and right, and nobody would think less of him… because he was the son of the great Kim Hyun Woo!”
Colonel Wan released my arms and walked over to the corner of the room. My dented skin pulsated. Through the deafening pounding of my heart, I heard the clanking of metal against metal from what seemed to be some sort of table in the corner.
“How I have dreamed about having that old geezer here… how I have dreamed of what I would do to him… it saddened me greatly when I heard of his passing,” Colonel Wan’s voice was now low and melancholic. ”But now… his son is here, together with his entire family… and frankly, that is more than I could have ever hoped for.”
He slowly walked back over to me, and I had the feeling he was holding something in his hand. I held my breath as he just stood there for a moment with an aura of light around his towering figure. Then he grabbed my left hand and forcefully extended my index finger. A sudden and intense pain made me scream at the top of my lungs as he slowly inserted something long and sharp into the flesh under the fingernail. I screamed and screamed until my voice failed me, then I just hissed as tears streamed down my face. The pain I had felt the first day as I rubbed pepper in my eyes was nothing compared to the pain I experienced now. Nothing was like this pain. It spread until it consumed my entire body… my entire existence.
“Most people don’t understand,” Colonel Wan’s voice carried through my pain from somewhere far away. “Guards come up to me and say this or that prisoner has broken a rule, let’s execute them,“ he scoffed. “And I keep telling them… if you want to punish somebody… I mean truly punish them… you always start by going after their family and friends. It’s not something that should be done quickly… you have to take your time… you have to savor it. You should make him suffer by making them suffer… then you have the pleasure of watching his soul die little by little every day. Once he’s broken and all alone… that’s when you start working on him. And only when there’s nothing left of him to torture, then you can execute him… but I would personally drag it out a little longer still. I know, I know… it’s not in line with the camp rules… blah, blah, blah… I know… but if it was up to
me, the camp rules would be quite different. Just killing people when they break the rules… and most of the time, not even then… what kind of message does that send? What kind of example does it set for the rest? After all… and let’s be honest… after having been here a while, to many people, death no longer appears as the worst option! It starts to symbolize the end of their suffering… people stop being afraid of it… they even welcome it. But… no matter how bad things get, you always want to protect your loved ones. So if you know your loved ones will be punished for your actions… then you embrace your true and unavoidable fear… the fear this camp needs to fulfill its purpose and sacred mission.”
He walked toward me again. My left index finger throbbed in waves of unbearable pain as my panic reached a new unprecedented level.
“No, no, no, no… please no!” I whimpered barely audibly through my swollen throat.
The image of Jae Eun’s bloody corpse in the Center of Ideological Struggle flashed before me.
Soon I will join her in one of the unnamed mass graves up on Cemetery Hill… together will all the other people who have lost their lives this past week…
“Shhhh,” Colonel Wan was right in front of me again. “So, that’s what I will do, Miss Kim. First… I’ll take care of you.” He caressed my cheek through the cloth of the bag. I tried to pull away, but there was nowhere to go. “Then… I think your sister’s next… although I understand Private Gang has started taking care of her already.” He let out a hearty chuckle. “I have to admit that surprised me… that little sissy boy manning up like that… who would have known…?” The intense, shocking pain in my finger had been replaced with a perpetual burning pain, throbbing and pulsating like my finger was on fire. “After that… I’ll go after your mother. She’s a pretty little lady, I have to say… even considering her age. It’s remarkable how much she looks like… well, that doesn’t really concern you. Either way, I’ll do her real nice and slow… unless General Roh wants her for himself, that is. And then… poor Mr. Kim will be all alone… working in the mines from morning till night. Maybe he’ll have an accident down there. But not right away… first I want to watch him break… little by little, day by day, as he slowly fades away… it might take months… if I’m lucky, even years—”
The Weeping Masses: A Young Adult Dystopian Survival Saga (Juche - Part 3) Page 15
