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[raven-outlaw]

Soul of Metal pt 7

Night after night - the melody drifted from a small garden across the street. Without thinking, I moved toward it. As I did the singing grew louder and clearer. The garden beyond was filled with red flowers, hundreds of them sitting under a window. The house was surrounded by a short wooden fence with a wooden gate. A woman knelt among the flowers, her hair mostly was gray but streaks of red remained. Bright even beneath the years. She was humming a song, the same song that split the silence. It was terrifying.

The moment I saw her, my chest hurt, it felt tight. I pushed open a wooden gate and the woman looked up. Our eyes met and she looked surprised at first before she smiled politely. It was a  stranger's smile, the way people smile at travelers.

"Can I help you?" she asked. Her voice was sweet but cautious.

I couldn't answer even if I had wanted to - the song, her voice, the flowers. Something inside me was breaking.

The woman frowned with concern replacing her smile.

"Are you alright?"

The question struck me hard in the chest. Because I knew that voice, I heard it in my visions. I knew that voice. The woman stood slowly.

"Poor thing," she whispered. “Are you lost?” She stood closer to me. 

The words shattered something - a memory exploded through my mind. I saw rain against a window, a warm fire burning in a hearth behind me. A woman laughing with red hair kneeling beside a bedside. Her hands on his face, tears welling up in her eyes.

Her voice. “Poor thing.”

I looked up at her and reached for her hand.

I remembered dancing, a promise sealed with a kiss, a ring.

She looked up at a child sitting on my shoulders - a little girl with red hair laughing.

Calling him—

The world tilted and I fell to my knees. The woman gasped and bent down to check on me. The memories started to come faster. Years, decades, an entire life crashing into me all at once.

A name.

My name.

A home.

A family.

A town.

Men in armor.

Men who followed me.

Men who trusted me.

The town guard.

Their faces.

Their names.

I wretched forward, knocking the woman backwards onto the ground. I could hear the heavy footfalls of Biggest Brother running up behind me.

Chains…darkness…the sound of screaming. My screaming. My soul being torn from flesh…forced into steel.

Biggest Brother caught up to me and gripped the back of my neck furiously. I felt my backplate begin to separate before it whipped me back with it - he threw me to the ground, the cobblestone ground scrapping my metal body. He stared down at me, his towering frame daring me to fight back. I gripped my fists and rose to meet his gaze - he stood more than two feet taller than me. 

I remembered everything.

Every stolen year.

Every lie.

I struck Biggest Brother in his gut. The collision took him completely by surprise - he doubled over from the impact. 

The woman rushed toward her home. Then she hesitated, concern etched across her face.

Afraid. Not of me but of what I was. I looked at her - at the woman I had searched for without knowing. The woman whose voice had haunted every dream. The woman whose laughter had echoed through my soul.

“Elena.” 

Tears welled up behind her eyes, her face went pale, pure shock emanated from her face. For a moment the world stood still. Then her hand rose to cover her mouth.

"No..." The whisper barely escaped her lips.

“21!” Biggest Brother growled as he rose up again. “Back to formation.” 

Elena stood petrified in front of the doorway. Biggest Brother rose again, hatred burning in his eyes. Now I stood between him and Elena with my fists still tightly balled, I stared back into his red eyes to challenge him.

“My name is not 21!”

[raven-outlaw]

Soul of Metal pt 6

The first few days I waited. Every morning I expected him to call me to his desk to tell me the work was finished. To tell me the voices would stop, that he found a solution.

Instead he gave us orders - more deliveries. A week passed, then two, then many.

I stopped counting. The voices never left and life continued on.

Some nights they were whispers, sometimes screams. Some nights the voices came paired with visions - visions of  red hair, people laughing, at times they felt close enough to touch. Over time…they seemed less scary.

Master always seemed busy. He would smile the same reassuring smile. The same calm voice as he walked to and from his desk.

"Soon, Twenty-One."

Always soon, and never today. Never tomorrow, just soon. I wanted to believe him.

I did.

But every time he said it, something twisted inside me. A feeling I did not understand. My purpose is to protect him. I did protect him so why wasn’t he helping me? I just want some relief. I just want the voices to stop.

Then something darker. Sometimes it felt like he was watching me, as if  he could tell when the voices became too loud. Like he was waiting to see if I  staggered.

I stopped pressing my hands against my head. He always smiled when he noticed. As if my suffering reminded him of something important, like he was enjoying a secret.

I hated that feeling. I hated myself for feeling it.

Master had created me, protected me, given me purpose. Hadn't he?

Yet every night the voices grew louder, and every morning his promise sounded emptier. Each time we left for a delivery, hope had become something sharp. Something painful. Something that hurt more than despair.

I started wishing that something would happen, like someone or something would try and attack our caravan. If something were to happen…and it came down to me to save his life…maybe I would step aside. I hated myself for thinking that way, I would be going against my purpose if I stepped aside. I would have to save him.

Finally my last delivery came. 

Master watched us load up his caravan outside of his workshop. Biggest Brother pointed and gave direction to the rest of us, Sister helped me lift the really heavy chests. She was always so nice to me. 

We packed the caravan full of chests, Biggest Brother set the team of horses and we were off. 

Every step felt heavy. We had traveled through dozens of villages. They all looked the same after a while. Stone roads. Wooden fences. Smoke rising from chimneys. 

But this place felt different, and with each step I noticed the voices got louder and louder. There was a woman laughing. Men shouting. Children running and playing.

I should have been looking for threats, but instead my eyes were wandering.

There was a bakery, nothing special. There was a well where children ran around.

A narrow alley between two buildings - I knew that alley.

The realization stopped me cold.

I knew it. I had never been here before, had I?

The voices surged - vision flashed through my mind. A younger man laughing as he stumbled from that alley carrying mugs of ale, spilling as he ran. A red haired woman grabbed his arm and softly scolded him. They were laughing together as they sat together in the alley. Then darkness. The vision vanished like smoke in the wind.

"Twenty-One." Biggest Boomed.

I looked up. The formation had continued without me, and I was left standing in front of a small group of people. Human and elf families staring at me in marvel and fearful awe. 

I gave a half hearted wave then turned and hurried to catch up. As I ran  my attention remained fixed on the village. Every building felt familiar. Every street. Every corner. As if I had walked these roads a thousand times. As if I had belonged here.

The delivery took us to the town square where an impressive stone fountain sprang out and ran cold water peacefully. A tall man in very expensive clothes stood near it, waiting to accept the delivery. Master began speaking with the merchant while my brothers and sister spread out around him.

Standing guard. Watching. Waiting. I should have done the same. Instead, something cut through the noise. For the first time in months all the voices stopped.

I heard singing. Soft, faint. A woman's voice, the sound froze me where I stood. The song - I knew the song. I had heard it before, in dreams…in memories.

[raven-outlaw]

Soul of Metal pt 5

The morning came and Master knocked on the door to the lab. Biggest Brother stepped aside and swung the heavy door open. Master walked in with several pages in his hand - he looked intently at them as he browsed through - barely looking up to find his way to his desk. Once he sat down he rubbed his forehead with one hand and spread the pages out in front of him with the other. He mumbled a curse under his breath.

The sentinels remained motionless - they may as well have been part of the walls or considered decorations. I knew this would be my chance…but I didn’t know how he would react. He looks stressed. I can’t push this off any longer, I just can’t…I can’t listen to the voices any longer. My legs never felt so heavy. 

 I can't push this off any longer.

I just can't. I can't listen to the voices any longer. 

One step.

The sound of metal scraping stone seemed impossibly loud. Master didn't look up. Another step. The others remained still. 

Watching.

Waiting.

A woman screamed somewhere inside my head. I flinched. The sound wasn't real…I think.

Another step.

Master's pen scratched across the page. My hands shook. I must get answers. 

The voices have been relentless. Faces I did not know. Places I had never seen. Feelings that did not belong to me. A little girl laughing. A woman crying. Blood pouring onto a stone floor…the blood felt like it was coming from me.

I stopped in front of his desk.

Master continued writing. Seconds passed. Then minutes. Or maybe only moments. I couldn't tell anymore.

My head hurt. The voices whispered a desperate cry. Help us.

I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head like the thoughts were droplets of water that would run off if I forced them too. When I opened them, Master was staring at me.

Not angry, just curious. Like he had found a strange bug crawling across his desk.

"Twenty-One?" He asked, raising his brow.

I froze, at the sound of my name.

No!

That is not my name! The thought appeared so suddenly it nearly knocked me over.

"What is it?" He pressed, starting to sound annoyed. In the corner of my eye I could see Biggest Brother starting to shift towards me.

The words were trapped, but I knew what I wanted to say. But wanting and speaking were different things. I couldn't speak. 

Not until now.

I pointed a trembling finger toward my head. Master's eyes followed the motion. The voices screamed louder, a thousand voices, a thousand memories, a thousand lives begging me to help them.

I looked at the ground, my whole body trembling.

"Master..."

The sound was awful. Rusted. Broken. Small.

Master's eyes widened. He wasn’t expecting me to speak.

My finger remained pressed against the side of my head as I searched for the right word.

The word, the question eating away at my mind. The only word that mattered.

"Broken?"

Silence. The pen slipped from Master's fingers. For the first time since I had known him, he looked afraid.

Afraid of me. Had I done something wrong? The look lasted only a moment.

He blinked rapidly and took a deep breath. Master's face softened and his shoulders relaxed noticeably. The fear vanished so quickly I wondered if I had imagined it.

He leaned forward in his chair and smiled. The same smile he always wore when speaking to us.

"Oh, Twenty-One." His voice was gentle. "You can speak?"

I lowered my hand.

Master stood slowly from his chair. The movement made me tense, and he noticed.

"Easy," he said. "You're alright." 

I unintentionally flinched when he raised his hand. He tilted his head, and motioned to Biggest Brother to stand down. 

I pressed my hands against my head. Master walked around the desk and stopped in front of me before he dropped to his knee.

"What in the world would make you think that?" He looked sympathetic.

I strained, looking for the words to respond. I pointed at my head again trying to mime my thoughts to him.

Master sighed heavily, as though it saddened him.

"I was hoping it wouldn't happen so soon."

Soon? I stared at him. My thoughts felt slow, or heavy, like my head weighed a thousand pounds.

Master placed a hand against my shoulder.

"You are not broken, Twenty-One."

The words settled over me like a blanket.

Not broken?

“Not broken.” I wanted that to be true.

"Loud." I shrieked, like a confession that slipped out before I could stop it.

Master's expression tightened. For a moment he almost looked sad.

"I know."

The voices screamed.

Remember!

"I know," he repeated softly. "And I am sorry."

I had never heard him say that before.

Sorry. The word hurt almost as much as the voices. Master glanced toward the other sentinels standing around the room.

Silent and motionless - watching.

"It happens sometimes. It is a side effect of the process."

I didn't understand and I wasn't sure I wanted to.

Master squeezed my shoulder.

"Your mind is trying to organize itself. You are learning.”

He leaned in like he was encouraging a child to take their first steps.

"Your brothers and sisters have all gone through this too, but not this young. Your mind is simply taking everything in like a sponge absorbing water.”

The compliment warmed something inside me. Something desperate, the voices quieted for a moment. That moment felt incredible.

Master smiled.

"There is nothing wrong with you." He paused looking into my eyes. "Nothing that can’t be fixed."

Fixed.

The word felt good.

Simple. Certain.

Master returned to his desk and gathered the scattered pages.

"I need a little more time. Of course, I wasn’t expecting to be interrupted today and I have so much to do.”

Something in me felt shamed. I had interrupted him.

"I am close, Twenty-One. Very close.”

His eyes met mine.

To what? I wanted to ask. The question formed in my mind. But my voice would not obey.

Master seemed to understand anyway.

"When the work is finished, the pain will stop."

The whispers faded.

"When the work is finished, the voices will be gone."

Gone? Really? I wanted them gone. More than anything.

Master gave me one final reassuring smile.

"Trust me."

He gathered up his things and turned towards Biggest Brother to let him leave. He stood aside and Master left the room, a layer of dirt fell from the doorframe. Then the room fell silent. The other sentinels stood motionless.

I returned to my position along the wall. It felt like they were all staring at me. 

The workshop felt warm. I felt warm like my face was blushing. But for the first time in what felt like forever I could convince myself that everything was ok.

For the first time in many nights, I felt hope. 

[promptcalender]

'Bickering when Stranded in Space together' Dialogue 🚀

“Of course, out of all people, it you I'm stuck here with!”

“I can't get over how much smaller everything looks from up here. Well, everything besides your ego. I think that's doubled.”      “…Don’t push it.”

“If we don’t make it—”      “We will.”      “You don’t know that.”      “No. But I refuse to let the last face I'll ever see be yours.”

“Hey! Watch where you’re floating!”      “You floated into me!”

“Look, arguing won't solve this! We're stuck here together. Let's at least try not to make each other want to take a one-way space walk, alright?”

“It's so beautiful…”       “Yeah. … You know, they’re not even really stars. Most of that light is already dead.”     “Must you always ruin things?”

“Mission log, day 12: morale remains low due to insufferable crewmate.”

“Don’t call me that.”      “It’s your name.”      “Yeah, well, no one calls me by my first name.”      “Hey, we might die together. If anyone's earned the right, it's me.”

[Prompt Calender: May 5th, National Astronaut Day]

[raven-outlaw]

Soul of Metal pt 4

The memories of that silhouette followed me for a long time. I replayed that moment over and over in my mind, I felt like there was something I was supposed to learn or remember from her. Or was it just a spell? Did I fall for an elaborate enchantment? Am I still under a spell? Am I dangerous to be around?

I stood in formation in the dark lab. In line with my brothers and sisters, the only visible light came from the smoldering coals left in the forge. The room was completely silent. But I couldn’t get my mind to slow down! It kept going and going, the silhouette, the whispers, the laughter. Over and Over. As the hours dragged on an urge began to swell within me. RUN! Get out! Run and don’t look back!

I stood opposite of Biggest Brother in formation - my back to a stone wall - while he blocked the door. Even if I wanted to run I would never make it past him. I looked around the room, no one else seemed to be as restless as I felt. Could they hear the voices too? Did they learn to ignore them? Or is this just me. Am I broken? I am the youngest…or newest sentinel. Perhaps Master did something different when he made me.

“Am I where I belong?” The question burned into my mind. For hours I silently wrestled with this question in the dark. If I could speak I would have screamed! Just to hear something besides my own thoughts. 

I pushed the desire deep down. Everything will make sense when Master comes back to work in his lab tomorrow. The urge returned - run! Get out! I could feel my posture being weighed down by the mental barrage. I couldn’t escape, mentally or physically. There has to be a way out - a way to make it stop. 

I found a solution! My mind stopped, the urge subsided. I made a deal with myself that night, when Master returns I will break formation. When he is at his workbench I will walk behind him and talk to him. I must be careful - if Biggest brother sees me as a threat he will cut me down before I have the chance. Then again, if I did get cut down wouldn’t that stop the voices too? 

[luna-azzurra]

CHARACTER DEATHS IDEAS!!

.⋆♱ She kept saying his name like it would do something. Like if she said it enough times the universe would get tired of hearing it and give him back.

.⋆♱ "Stay awake," he told her, and she laughed, actually laughed, which was somehow worse than anything else. "You're going to have to give me a better reason than that," she said. He couldn't think of one fast enough. He's never forgiven himself for that.

.⋆♱ The machines made a sound and everyone in the room knew what it meant and nobody moved for a long time. His mother was the first one to reach him. She smoothed his hair back the way she used to when he was small and said, very quietly, there you go, baby. There you go.

.⋆♱ "Does it hurt?" she asked. He thought about lying. He'd been lying to her for months, what was one more. "No," he said. She looked at him for a long moment. "You were always terrible at that," she said softly, and held his hand tighter, and didn't let go.

.⋆♱ Nobody tells you that death smells like something. That it has a texture, a sound, a particular quality of light. She'd read about it in books and none of them got it right. None of them mentioned that the hardest part is the moment the room goes quiet and you realize you've been waiting for them to say something and they're not going to.

.⋆♱ "I need you to listen to me," she said, grip fierce on his collar, "you do not get to do this, you do not get to leave me here, I swear to god —" He put his hand over hers. Just that. Just his hand over hers. She stopped talking. She pressed her forehead to his and she stopped talking.

.⋆♱ He'd planned what he was going to say. Had it all worked out, all the important things, all the things that had been sitting unsaid between them for years. But when it came to it she was so small in that bed and she looked at him with so much love and everything he'd planned dissolved. "Hi," he said. "Hi," she said back.

.⋆♱ "Tell me something good," she said. Her voice was going thin, stretched out at the edges. He looked around the room—the bad lighting, the cold floor, the blood that was both of theirs now. "Remember that summer," he started, "the one where the car broke down and we had to sleep in that terrible motel—" "The one with the broken fan," she said, and almost smiled. "Yeah," he said. "Yeah, that one." He kept talking until she stopped hearing him.

.⋆♱ She had six missed calls from him on her phone. Six. She'd been in a meeting. She'd looked at the screen and thought I'll call him back after. She thinks about that a lot now. The specific weight of after.

.⋆♱ He left a voicemail the night before. Just rambling, nothing important, hey call me back when you get this, I found that restaurant you wanted to try. She has it still. She has listened to it one hundred and fourteen times. She knows because she counted.

.⋆♱ "You're going to be okay," she told him, which was a lie, and he knew it was a lie, and he loved her enough to pretend he believed her. "Yeah," he said. "Yeah, I know."

.⋆♱ He made it to the door. She needs people to know that. He almost made it.

.⋆♱ "You're going to forget me," she said. "You're going to forget what I sound like and then what I smell like and then it'll be little things, the small stuff —" "Stop," he said. "I won't." But he has. Pieces of her. And he hates himself every time he reaches for something and finds it gone.

.⋆♱ They found him with his book still open. Page 247. She bought the same edition, read to 246, put it down. She doesn't know why. She thinks she's waiting for something. Permission, maybe. She doesn't know who she's waiting to get it from.

.⋆♱ "It's not supposed to go like this," he said, mostly to himself, kneeling on the ground with hands that couldn't do anything useful anymore. "I know," she said. "I know." She was talking to him but she was also talking to the sky, to whatever was up there, to anything that might be listening.

.⋆♱ She was fine and then she found his handwriting on a grocery list stuck to the back of a drawer and she sat on the kitchen floor for a very long time.

.⋆♱ "Don't cry," he said, which was rich coming from him. "You're crying," she pointed out. "I'm allowed," he said, "I'm the one dying." She laughed. She hated that she laughed.

[raven-outlaw]

Soul of Metal pt 3

That night master built a fire. We stood in a circle around the camp, we don’t need to sleep, we need to keep watch. Sister stood beside me with a large sword strapped to her back. I kept a large long bow on my back with a quiver of arrows on my waist. A small fire burned behind us and Master lay curled up next to it. 

For hours we stood watch. The full moon rose in the sky high above the treeline. The moonlight poured through the branches and kissed the ground below, it was as beautiful as it was ominous. A soft breeze ran through the forest around us causing the branches to cast dancing shadows like dancing puppets on a stage. As I watched I could hear something - I could hear voices. I looked at Sister and my brother beside me, but they remained stoic. I don’t know if they could hear the voices too.

The voices seemed to be coming from in front of me. I searched and found nothing. I could hear whispers, the voices sounded like they were talking to each other. I looked back at Sister and pointed at the side of my head, she looked back at me and tilted her head at me. I pointed at the side of her head and mine where ears would be - she shook her head at me.

Laughter! Laughter sounds next. The laughter is…happy. Children? 

The whispers continued but the laughter was distracting. I searched the trees desperately - nothing but branches, dirt, and trees. 

“Are we in danger? Is someone watching us?”

I looked back at Master. His eyes were closed. 

I look around at the circle, no one else is reacting at all. The voices continued and grew louder and louder. They didn’t sound scary, but I felt a deep need to find them. I felt like they were talking to me…they were trying to get my attention. 

Sister could see that something was bothering me. She placed a hand on my shoulder. Her hand was scratched up, much like the rest of her body. I don’t know how old she was, but she had seen a lot of fighting. Her hand there gave me courage. I looked towards the tree line and walked away from the formation. 

My siblings noticed that I walked away, they watched me as I followed the voices. I could hear what sounded like a name…like they were calling to me. The dancing shadows started to swirl around me as I walked through the trees. A name called to me, the shadows seemed to form silhouettes of women dancing. They held hands and laughed around me.

One silhouette broke away from the group and paused. 

“Was she looking at me?”

She walked towards me slowly and tilted her head. I stood frozen in front of her. Something about her felt…familiar. She extended a hand to me - I tried to turn around - I couldn’t see the camp. The silhouette came closer, close enough that she could rest her hand on my chest plate. Her hands felt…warm…warm? I looked down into her face. Her silhouette was breaking…her hair was now visible, and her eyes. Her eyes were a piercing green, and her hair was red. Something deep inside me started pounding, a new sound grew louder and louder. She looked up at me and her face started to come into view.

That’s when I first heard it. A scream. A scream of pure agony. A voice so overwhelmed by pain all it could do was scream. It resonated where the pounding started in my chest. Then it rang up into my head, my vision started to blur.

“Is that me? Am I … screaming?” 

Her silhouette continued to fade, but this time instead of revealing more of her she was fading away. 

“Wait, I have questions! Can you hear me? Wait!?” 

She was gone. The voices, the laughter, and the screams were all gone. I stood there for a while. Lost in my own head.

“Why was her hair red? Did she know me? Was this a trick or a spell?” Maybe Master will know.

I turned and quietly walked back towards camp. I had wandered deeper into the woods than I had realized. I had been away longer than I realized as well. A gorgeous sunrise now painted the sky, each color pushing away the night and blending into itself. Orange, yellow, streaks of purple fought unified against the darkness. As I broke the treeline camp became visible again - Master was setting up his team of horses. Did he notice I was missing? 

As I got closer Sister spotted me and waved her hand. Everyone else had fallen in formation ready to continue our journey. Master saw me approaching and said nothing. He fixed his eyes on the road and urged the team forward. I stood next to Sister and pulled my hood down over my face. All stayed silent as the cart rumbled over the forest ground.

[raven-outlaw]

Soul of Metal pt 2

My body doesn’t get tired. We walked for miles alongside our master’s cart. He sat and steered his team of horses dragging the creaking cart over rocks and dirt. The master didn’t like to travel on common roads and he kept a thick grey blanket draped across the back of his cart. My siblings and I all wore heavy cloaks - mine was a dark red. I liked the color red.

Sometimes we would visit other people with carts. They would give master items and he would give some back. Then we would walk home. Our home was built under a church surrounded by headstones. The master kept us in the room I woke up in, we would watch him work. He would talk to himself as he ground up ingredients or mixed liquids in different vials. Sometimes he would melt metals and make pretty things like rings or necklaces - he liked to give those away on our walking trips. 

One day we went on a long walk, longer than we normally walked in a week. Biggest brother was walking in front, the axe head resting on his shoulder as he walked. I walked beside one of my sisters, her cloak was dark purple. She had a carving of a sun on her chest - I liked walking with her because she made me feel safe. We were walking through a thick forest, lots of trees, and lots of noises all around. 

The cart master was driving made lots of noise, like glass bottles butting against each other with every bump on the road. I looked down and noticed the cart was dripping something and leaving a trail behind us. I walked to the front and gestured at the cart - waving my hands and pointing. Master looked back, but his eyes aren’t good. He must not have seen the trail because he looked back at me with disappointment. 

 “Yes yes it's loud. Just keep walking.” 

I thought he would care a lot if he knew the vials he spent so long working on were spilling. I pointed again but he ignored me and snapped the reins. I pushed myself to walk faster and kept waving but he kept ignoring me. I reached my hand out to touch his shoulder - as soon as I gripped his shoulder…

*Thunk!* 

The force of the blow knocked me back and I stumbled to the forest floor. I crashed hard and even slid backwards a little - I could feel dirt and twigs getting caught in the joint of my left shoulder. Biggest brother was standing over me, looking down at me through the veil of his hood. The rest of my siblings kept walking except sister, who stood behind biggest brother. Master shot me a threatening glance then snapped the reins again.

Biggest brother looming over me, reminded me of an important rule. “Don’t touch master.” His deep metallic voice lacked tone but the message was clear.

I stood back up and kept my gaze down. Then he turned back to the convoy.

Sister helped pick the twigs out of my shoulder as we walked back, the tail of liquid still leaving a trace behind the cart. 

[raven-outlaw]

Soul of Metal pt 1

Tapping…twisting…turning. I lay on a wooden table unaware my body is being worked on. White hot metal plates are bent into shape with each strike of the hammer. Intricate pins and screws hold the plates to my body. My body is an artful maze of armor and…and something else. My master dutifully works over me. The spacious workshop is lined with my brothers and sisters - twenty restless sentinels standing motionless along the walls of this stone hall. Sunlight descends from a paneled window from somewhere up above. Master has an impressive set up - large lenses hang from the ceiling to gently guide the light towards me. Master’s eyesight is fading. The light helps him.

He is working on one final piece of metal. He has spent hours heat treating it and bending it into shape. An expressionless face - with two simple rectangular eyes cut into it - master takes it off the anvil and plunges it back into the fire. His slender silhouette faces the flames, his back is to me. There is a table beside me, with vials and bottles of various liquids. Some of them have blood in them - I think some of it is mine…maybe some of it belongs to my brothers and sisters.

The master pulls the mask out of the flames and turns to face me. His grey hair protrudes from his head and face like straw from a scarecrow. His eyes seem to glow like the white hot metal he brought over to me. The mask is lowered onto my head -  the metal screamed out as they were forced to bond. My eyes open and I can see master’s cracked and broken teeth peering through as he smiled down at me. Eventually the mask finishes cooling, but he wastes no time. I can hear him grabbing something from the table next to me. 

He leans over me again with a sharp metal chisel and a vile that he places next to my head. He’s carving something onto my head - into my head? It's hard to know for sure. He spends a long time tracing then cutting into my head, it must be something intricate. He pulls away to stretch and rub the back of his neck before he returns to keep working on me. Finally he places the chisel down and grabs the vile. A small cylindrical tube with a cork stop on the top. 

His blackened fingers grabbed at the cork before it finally came loose.

*Shunk*

He poured the blood from the vial into the markings on my head. The thick cold liquid seeped into the grooves - through the divots and curves. Master smiles again then leans in close to whisper to me.

“You exist to serve a singular purpose.” His voice was wheezy and a bit hoarse, he took long drawn out breaths as he spoke. 

“You will protect me and my assets. You will go where I tell you to go. You will kill who I tell you to kill. If there is a choice to defend yourself or to save me you will carry me on your back without question.” He paused to wet his lips.

“You will obey my every command.” He placed his hand on my chest and used it to push off and stand up straight again. Then he reached for a rag and began cleaning his hands. 

The table creaked as I sat up. The light reflected off my hands and chest. My silver skin felt heavy and strong. I looked across the room to the largest of the sentinels - He stood at attention with an expressionless face similar to mine. A large double sided axe head rested at his feet, both his hands gripped the handle. I gave a wave - I didn’t know what else to do - no one else moved. 

I looked around at the rest of my brothers and sisters. Everyone was armed, and everyone had similar markings on their bodies like I did. I looked back to my master - I had so many questions - like where was my weapon? Do I get one? 

He started to leave the room without talking to me. I rose to my feet and paused.

“I am tall!” I thought to myself. I stood almost two feet taller than my master. My brothers and sisters are also tall, but the one with the axe is the tallest. My master continued to walk towards the door - I took a step towards him and I felt the entire weight of my body. “I am made completely of metal.” 

My heavy footsteps echoed hard off the stone floor and the high ceiling. The master must have heard me because he stopped right when he reached the door and turned to look at me. He had eyes and mouth but he was expressionless too, he nodded his head toward a corner of the room then left. Dirt fell from the doorframe as the door closed behind him.

I looked at the corner, there was a gap in the line my brothers and sisters formed, a gap for me to fill in. I walked over still with so many questions but I took my place. No one moved, the room fell silent. I stood with them.