This picture is part of a challenge by Sue Vincent at scvincent.com. Participants must use this image as inspiration. I would like to submit this Micro Story for your edification or perhaps your amusement.

A little background:  A circle of standing stones is called a henge. It is a prehistoric monument believed to have been used for ritualistic purposes or perhaps to mark astronomical events. The manner in which they were built is still up for debate. The following is my submission for how.

The Sentence

“Will the accused please stand.”

On shaky knees he stood. His hands grasped the table in front of him. He was afraid to breathe.

“AnokCranor. You have been found guilty of conspiring to commit genocide. You and your fellow conspirators attempted to eradicate the people on a planet in the Milky Way. Fortunately, your attempt was thwarted but the millions of people that died must be avenged.  It is our way.”

There was silence in the court.

“The others await your arrival.  You will all be taken from this place and incarcerated for a term of no less than 10,000 years. Each of you will be encased within a standing stone.  All 20 of the conspirators will then be transported to earth to be erected in to what the indigenous population call a henge. You will bear witness to the people you so desperately tried to destroy.  It is fitting that you will reside on the planet that you deemed unfit. May you live for 10,000 years and may they show mercy upon your soul.”