“Kneel down,” Bishop Angus commands Elder Brier. The boy has been caught disobeying the rules of The Order one too many times to escape punishment. The priests have convened and ruled that Brier must brave the stretcher, one of the most challenging tasks they can throw at a missionary. It is a long wooden plank studded with pegs meant to stretch out a boy’s asshole as he makes his way from one end to the other. The pegs get larger as he progresses, and many boys do not have the grit to make it all the way through. However, Brier has no idea what to expect. All he knows is that he is in for ...

“Kneel down,” Bishop Angus commands Elder Brier. The boy has been caught disobeying the rules of The Order one too many times to escape punishment. The priests have convened and ruled that Brier must brave the stretcher, one of the most challenging tasks they can throw at a missionary. It is a long wooden plank studded with pegs meant to stretch out a boy’s asshole as he makes his way from one end to the other. The pegs get larger as he progresses, and many boys do not have the grit to make it all the way through. However, Brier has no idea what to expect. All he knows is that he is in for some intense discipline. He is guided to the stretcher by Bishop Angus, who has taken a personal interest in the boy’s journey towards the higher ranks of The Order. Brier’s head is totally covered by a red hood, and he is in complete darkness as he feels around for Angus’s guiding touch. He trusts the man, but he understands that his disobedience could cause even the most caring of priests to turn against him.