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Lyvia
could not move her head as the black bird pulled
her eye from its socket while another bird took
bits of her lips, the softer parts of her head.
Rachel in her horror, took some stones and threw
them with the intention of scaring the birds.
The birds flew away
but the stones hit Lyvia on her face and chest.
She was unintentionally stoned for a short time.
The birds continued
flying over, waiting for a new opportunity.
Meanwhile the sun began its journey to the horizon.
The soldiers, as dusk approached, had another
task before them. One of them placed the ladder
ono the post, behind the cruficified woman.
He climbed up, a knife in his hands, and proceeded
to cut the ropes holding Lyvia's shoulders.
As the shoulders
were freed, the ropes around the woman's mouth
and neck began to press, cutting the air supply
to her lungs, for a brief moment Lyvia thought
she was finally going to die, but the soldier
cut the rope and Lyvias body was no longer fixed
to the crossbar, she leaned forward, her head
falling over her chest, her body hanging away
from the post, held only by the nails in her
hands and feet.
Some liquid came
out of Lyvias mouth, running down her chest
and dripping to the ground below. Her bladder
opened and emptied itself, the urine flowing
freely as her body seemed to release itself
of the days tension.
Rachel saw Lyvias
as she moved up and down, bending her legs slightly
as she didn't have a lot of room to move. The
sight from afar was grotesque and terryfying.
Lyvias face was full of blood from the wounds
the birds inflicted on her, there were pieces
of flesh and nerves where her eye had been.
The bets on how long
she was going to last changed, the odds against
a longer survival were against her after the
cutting of the ropes. But still, some were betting
that she was going to last until the next day.
Rachel hoped that
she would not. She had gone through the most
horrifying ordeal and if the gods were mercifull,
she should not last any longer.
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