"Are you awake?" I heard a muffled voice say to me as my eyes opened and I felt the restraints that were making me immobile from my shoulders down.
As the world around me began to light up I noticed that I was no longer in the basement of the building where the church had just burnt my brother for stealing a wheel of cheese and a single loaf of bread.
I was now bound to a table and in a strait jacket. This was limiting my mobility and I also saw that I was not alone in this room.
There was a single person that was in the room with me. They were short and slim. This man was wearing a single piece of clothing that covered every inch of his body. Their clothing was mostly white with a massive golden cross on the front of it.
"I will take the fact that you are trying to move around as sign that you are awake and can hear me." The man said to me as I saw him grab a short and thin pieces of metal that had a single small spinnable part that three small spikes on it.
"You can not have your way with me. The church does not allow such a barbaric form of torture". I said to him as he started to place the device on my chest.
"Normally you would be right, but since you were responsible for murdering …" he said as he continued to press down on my chest until the device broke my skin. "… But you see by killing a member of the church of Sarakyth you have require for the church to take drastic measures against you. That is why I was brought in."
As he pressed down and started to twist the device I screamed in pain because with every twist that was made tore my once still flesh to pieces, but shortly after he stopped turning the device my body started to heal itself at a rapid pace.
When the wound was healing, I noticed that a tattoo that matched the symbol on the artifact that I recently touched started to pulse a black color.
"By the grace of Sarakyth tell me what is going on!? How could you possibly have healed yourself from the wound that I had just inflicted upon you!?"
I did not know what was happening to me either, but if this would make it to where I could endure the pain that he was inflecting on me.
"Even I do not know exactly what it is that I have become". I told him in a shocked tone as I was still trying to break from the bonds.
"It does not matter that you can heal from the scars that I inflict upon you. In the end it will just mean that I will get to try out the more intensive ways to torture you that I had planned." He said to me as he started to open a box that was on the table where the o\torture instruments were resting.
He started to relentlessly cut at me for about an hour, but no matter how much he stabbed and cut me my body healed from the scars as fast as he could make them. After that he became enraged at the fact that I was not getting bruised at all and had a very twisted look on his face.
As I saw him grab something out of the box on the table, I heard a deep voice that began to yell at the torturer.
"You were told not to get carried away in the torture that you were to do at the subject."
Then a hand closed the box on the table while it had the torturer's hand still in it.
"Ow that hurt!" the torturer yelled as the lid slammed onto his hand.
"That is what you deserve for defying the orders of The Purity Council."
The torturer lifted the lid of the chest with his spare hand and then began to speak. "You do not know the level of regeneration that he possesses." He then used the tool that he used before to prove his point with a clean cut across my chest that healed rapidly as the tattoo glowed. "See what I mean."
"I can find a use for someone that is not so easy to kill. You can go now I am going to make him part of The Sanctifiers. I don't think that the head of the church should have any problems with it. my reputation should speak for itself." The new male voice said to the torturer which made him stop where he was and pack his torture tools.
"You got lucky this day prisoner. Even I am not stupid enough to defy the leader of The Sanctifiers." He said to me as he walked out of the cell.
Then after the torturer left the new man freed my body from the binds that were keeping me bound to the table.
"Well, I have an ultimatum for you. You can either get killed by the church or if you want to live you can join my branch of the church.
If you join The Sanctifiers; I can at least promise the chance to fight the twelve apostilles of Azerin. With each apostle that you defeat you will help us claim back the much-needed cities that will allow us to claim more of this world back as our own."
Then I stood up and started to slowly pace the inside of the cell as I was weighing the ultimatum that he had just given me.
While I did not appreciate being forced to work for a church that I had strong hatred towards for killing my entire family, but in the end, I knew deep down that I did not really have a choice. It was either that I accept what he offers me or be killed.
"Well, I really do not have a choice. I will accept your offer."
"Alright then put these clothes on and join me in a walk to the Purity Council. They in the end will decide your fate." He said to me as he threw a set of clothes at me and I caught them with my hands.
The under shirt was thin and black. The main shirt was a dark purple with a black skull logo on the front of it. the pants were long and thin but also black.
When I left the cell, I saw that he was waiting against a stone wall where a torch was mounted about three feet above him.
"Follow me" he said to me as he waved his right hand swiftly as if he was in a rush.
I followed him out of the prison and we walked by a giant mob of citizens. They all looked enraged at the mere sight of me. Each of them was carrying stones and started to yell slurs at me as they threw the stones at me.
I instinctively covered my face to protect myself, but as I did, I noticed that the man who had chosen to take me as a possible member of his branch of the church. He swung a pair of curved black swords, and shattered the stones into to dust before they could reach me.
"If any of you try to throw another stone at him again, I will make the relationship between you and the walkway at your feet a very passionate and personal one." He said as he pointed both of his curved swords at the mod.
After that they all dropped their stones and scattered.
Then I was guided to the chapel of the city without any issues. I knew that as soon as I entered this building that my life would take one of two turns. I would either die at public execution, or I would be allowed to become the newest member of The Sanctifiers.