The dank cell walls close in around me once more in the wake of my brief reprieve from execution. My mind still reels at the rapid shifts of emotion - from resignation to my imminent demise, to shock at young Alyssa's brave intervention, to Damian's inscrutable dismissal of the entire grisly affair.
I curl into a tight ball on the cold stone floor, chasing warmth that never seems to penetrate this subterranean pit. Weariness weighs heavily upon me, the futility of our struggle against Damian's tyranny an aching burden.
How many more must suffer and die before this endless cycle of oppression is finally broken? Can one child's enkindled defiance possibly be the spark to reignite the flames of resistance in the hearts of those floor so thoroughly under Damian's boot?
My restless ruminatio
