It was the day after the declaration of the verdict. The High Order was preparing for the event this warm night. The Lama had sent one detachment from the administration to do the job, along with a section of the Holy Army. In the domain, a hundred villagers gathered around a bundle of stakes that were propped up in a circle, they laughed and chatted about how their days had been so far. It seemed mundane enough. But inside, they were ravenous for justice and blood. They were waiting for the very moment that they could see the punishment coming to the accused.

From the back part of the temple, a group of abbots carried the criminal with a pair of chains wrapped around the latter’s wrists. In a complete loss of energy and heart, Usheniko cast her eyes downward and ignored the endless insults from the people. No more strength, nothing left to live for her daughter, she gave up. To struggle meant to make herself more vulnerable, and for sure, doing so might cause the execution to be more of a slow, excruciating torture. After all, everybody wanted her gone.

With Usheniko standing still, the villagers poisoned the air with their words. Some of them wished death upon her entire family. Some of them wanted to cut her head and drain her blood upon the ground for the gods to consume. Nasty they were, Usheniko held her sobriety.

The woman dropped to her knees. Running her fingers through the blades of grass, the touch of nature reminded her well of Azukunika. She missed the good times with her daughter before the revolution; braiding her hair, helping her pick the right herbs, and giving fortunes to each other, she yearned for such times to last forever. Cruel as reality was, those memories became unpleasant even if she tried to forget it, and it left her a void in herself.

From the crowd, Neha and Sachen pushed themselves to Usheniko’s side. The moment they saw her, the duo whimpered.

“My little sparrows, you shouldn’t be here. Where are your parents?”

“T-they let us go out for this occasion,” said Neha. “And I don’t want to leave you behind.”

Sachen pinched her own elbows. “Me neither. But Usheniko, how can they do this to you?! They are telling lies! We believe you, that you were not there in the forest back! Perhaps that they have mistaken us for you! But why must they hurt you like this, just why?! And for them to accuse you of vengeance, it’s ridiculous! A good person like you is incapable of doing that!”

“My dear, please don’t worry about it. Everything is my fault, I led myself to this point. Even if they found out it was you, they would use me as a scapegoat anyway, since I held so much suspicion to the people. Sure, you’re right on the vengeance part; I don’t even have the will to do so, for I never think of defending anybody by inciting maliciousness. But still, I don’t know what to think or to say anymore. My heart is completely broken.”

Neha stroked the woman’s head. “U-Usheniko, I think that your daughter needs to say sorry to you. There’s no way that you have committed those accusations from yesterday. But for your daughter to betray you, I feel so bad. I don’t want to imagine what her reasons might be.”

“I don’t know either,” Usheniko said. “But for certain, she hates me since the day she arrived here. Her being aloof and cold towards me, it seems that I am a bad parent to her. Isn’t that right?”

“N-no, not at all!”

“Haha. Neha, it’s okay. I’m not a good person anyway. I shouldn’t have given you the chance to go to the forest and find Kuraizang right away.”

In astonishment, Sachen grabbed Usheniko’s hands and caressed them against her cheeks. Usheniko pouted, before retreating to her gloom. Sachen let go of her hands and scratched herself, and she went close to Usheniko’s face. Her eyes drooped.

“You must know something about the cave, if I may ask? What is Kuraizang dealing with as of now? I remember when you approached us before our search for him; your face seemed distressed and sad. I didn’t want to point it out right away, but if you don’t mind, can you please tell us? Even if you don’t know much, then you should have something.”

All the sudden, Usheniko glanced away. She stammered and grimaced. The chains around her wrists itched her, causing her to get rashes. At first she hesitated, for she thought that her answer might scare the girls, but perhaps it was preferred that she could say something at the very least. She returned her eyes to them.

“Listen to me girls, and listen very well. Your classmate, Kuraizang, is in danger. Whether he is in the cave or not, there is no guarantee that he will survive.” Usheniko lowered her voice as the abbots were getting impatient at her. “Heck, he might not be in the forest, but don’t let that discourage you. The cave in which he’s supposed to be in will soon become his eternal prison. The boy might lose something that is a part of him, mentally or physically, and from that alone, the High Order considers it as a way to make the gods happy. The purpose of the spiritual mission is to detach a person’s soul and everything within it, in the most painful manner possible. Most of the time, people who are assigned to the missions did not return alive.” Usheniko’s mouth ached. “I should have said this to them a while ago...”

An abbot jabbing the woman’s back in impatience, Usheniko walked forth. Neha and Sachen followed her trails until they reached the stakes. Usheniko winced and expelled a sigh, the voices of the villagers drowned in her ears. She closed her eyes.

“I know this, because I was-” Usheniko’s words suddenly clogged in her throat. Her face turned crimson and her jaws stiffened. Memories struck her like lightning, it was then that she became too anxious to finish her sentence. She diverted her concentration to the current situation.

Despite the chains weighing her down, Usheniko with her dying strength lifted her hands and loosened her emerald necklace. She could see from the jewel the reflection of her melancholy to which it had subjugated her above all things.

“Before I go, I want to give you this. Take it as a little present.”

Usheniko gave it to Sachen. It left the girl puzzled. “Huh? Your necklace? But why?”

“Because you remind me of Azukunika, a tenacious and strong-hearted girl. In fact, this necklace is a replica that I have made a long time ago. Azukunika has the real one, but she does not wear it anymore. I’m sorry Neha, that I don’t have a spare. The necklace is designed to give you blessings and happiness, in case that you would experience some harsh times. Please wear it Sachen, so that I can see it.”

“Sure...”

Neha going behind Sachen, she attached both ends of the strand around her friend’s neck. The emerald dragged Sachen a bit, and it clinked on her chest.

“You look stunning, just like my daughter before then,” said Usheniko. “I wish that the necklace will be with you forever, so that you will remember me always, although that is a selfish wish coming from me, haha.”

Not much time left, Usheniko strode to the stakes and headed inside the circle. Her heart grew wings and fluttered out of her bosom, there came little in her but emptiness. In the wake of her coming doom, she smiled at the two girls one more time. Eternity in oblivion was about to unfold. She wished them to lead good lives, so that they could find happiness.

“Well guys, I guess this is goodbye. Oh please don’t cry for me, for you are beautiful little ones. Please preserve your everlasting beauty. I am thankful that you guys are my friends. I will forever hold you in my heart. I love you both.”

She said no more. Neha and Sachen collapsed into tears and wailed so much that the earth shuddered. In desperation did they try to yank the chains and retrieve their friend. But heavy they were, the girls exhausted themselves in a matter of minutes.

“No!”

As Sachen was going to attempt the endeavor again, the soldiers came into the domain and pulled the girls away. They tossed them into the crowd. The soldiers then approached the circle and brandished the rifles from their hips. A fellow soldier from the side was bearing a torch, the heat from it scorched the faces of the villagers. Neha and Sachen hugged each other, they shut their eyes and quivered; within themselves did they hold dread. To lose their best friend was the worst present the world had to give to them, so what was the use of accepting such a present if it would later tear them bit by bit?

The last visible stars fell from the portrait of the night sky and became a blank canvas. The world materialized into solid darkness. The villagers hushed and watched the event with a buildup of gratification, as if the woman’s death would add meaning to their lives.

Gunshots rang. The soldier threw the torch in the circle. The wings of inferno led Usheniko into a realm of nothingness. Peace soon extinguished her.