Raw Footage: Day Three

The camera panned its view towards the girl sitting on a balcony overlooking the cliff. She had short black hair that cascaded down her neck, a pair of golden eyes adorned her almond complexion and she was wearing casual clothing which consisted of short shorts and a tank top. She was staring at the volcano on the horizon. A gray spire of smoke could be seen coming out from its crater.

The man behind the camera cleared his throat. This caught the attention of the girl, who turned to look at the screen. "Let's start the interview." The man said.

The screen cut to a clip of an overhead view of a small island located in the middle of an ocean. From the looks of things, one could immediately tell that the island was isolated. No power lines were present, no urban infrastructures could be seen, and the only thing that resembled civilization on this piece of land was the houses made of concrete and wood that were scattered around nearby fields of crops.

"Heartfire is a little island located two-hundred and fifty kilometers west of the Polynesian Islands." The narrator began. "It's an isolated island in every sense of the word and has little to no contact with the modern world. The people living there are said to have developed a bizarre kind of lifestyle, but that was not the only quirk this island has in store. Legends say that the island itself is alive. And that their locals revere to it as some sort of deity. Every ten years or so this deity is said to demand a sacrifice…a human sacrifice to appease it or it will purge the island of its living inhabitants with an all-consuming fire out of its volcano that was located at its center. The locals were said to have made a grave mistake several years ago of defying the deity. And they paid dearly for it, losing three-fourths of their population in one fiery and disastrous incident. Since then, the people of Heartfire complied with what it wanted and life on the island has been quiet ever since."

"Despite being a reclusive group of people, I managed to arrange an interview with them, specifically with this decade's sacrificial tribute. I am John Francis Mirasol, and this is Seven Days And A Sacrifice."

"Can you tell us your name?" John said behind the camera.

"Come on, you already know that." The girl on the screen quipped. She grinned as she said so.

"It's for documentation purposes."

"Enna Kanue."

"Age?"

"I'm not telling." Enna grinned again at the camera, this time with a bit more hint of mischief.

There was a brief moment of silence within the exchange. One could easily sense the slight feeling of frustration that emanated from behind the camera.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" Enna said. "I'm twenty-two years old, the youngest tribute so far. Do you want to get coffee after this? I really love the look on your face when you get the uh, what do you call it again? Oh right, the jitters."

"Maybe. Now let's get back to the interview."

Enna Kanue was Heartfire Island's thirty-seventh sacrificial tribute. The middle child in a family of five, her parents earn their living as fishmongers. They were living a rather humble life when all of a sudden the local government delivered them the news that would completely change their lives.

"What was your family's reaction when you got chosen as this decade's tribute?"

"They were horrified," Enna answered matter-of-factly. "My father had dark skin from spending too much time fishing under the sun but when I saw him talking to the government people, his face turned white as snow! I knew something bad was going on by then. I just didn't realize it was that bad."

"Did they ever oppose the decision?"

"Of course not! Although deep down I knew that they want to, but it's for the greater good and people's lives depend on it."

"I see."

"Plus, they'd be living like kings when the whole ritual finishes anyway." Enna added.

"I want you to elaborate on that."

"Elaborate?" Enna tilted her head in confusion, probably wondering what the word meant.

"Sorry, I mean explain in great detail." John said.

"Elaborate." A small smile formed on Enna's face. "I learned a new word from you again. Jitters, snow, and elaborate."

"Yes, yes," Even though John was behind the screen, it was easy to tell that he was waving off what Enna said. "Now about the part where your family will live like kings?"

"Later. Can we get coffee first?"

There was another brief moment of silence behind the screen.

"Please?" Enna said with pleading eyes.

John could only sigh softly at his interviewee's request.

The screen cut to an interior view of a small coffee shop located beside the street. It was nothing like the ones that could be seen in an urban setting. Calling the menu 'limited' was being generous. The shop literally had only one flavor of coffee they were serving to their customers, and it was the local native type. Enna, along with the unseen John was sitting at a table beside the windows. On their table were two small cups of native coffee and a glass jar filled with brown sugar. The sounds of stirring cups, and gentle breeze occupied by the occasional passing carriage near the street added to the rural appeal of the place. It might be small, but it was definitely relaxing.

"Feeling shaky yet?" Enna said to John as she took a sip of her hot beverage.

"Not yet." John replied flatly.

"Drink more then. Everything's free for us here." Enna gave a sly wink at the end.

"Is everything really free for the tribute?"

"I think so." Enna said as she put down her cup, a small wisp of steam was coming out of it. "I have a strong feeling that I can get away with anything at this point. Except for killing people, that is." She then went back to drinking her coffee, but not without blowing on it slightly first.

"So about living like kings…" John reminded her.

"Oh right," Enna said as she put her cup down once more. "My family will receive special treatment from the government once everything is over. They'll get a new house, a bigger one than the one we have right now, a piece of land for us to farm on, and a very large pension. They're pretty much set for life." She then took another sip out of her cup after that.

"And they'll be spending it without you."

Enna almost did a spit-take upon hearing John's words. "Rub it on my face, will you?"