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Shelly and Fahn tried their best to meet the impossible demands that was imposed onto them by the slavers, hauling load after load of railway carts filled to the brim with heavy rocks quarried deep within the sweltering mines. They were told of punishments that awaited should they fail to meet the quota, but both knew it was going to be hopeless from the beginning. Nonetheless, Shelly continued to forge ahead, motivated in part by the whips that constantly made their presence known at the slightest bit of delay, and to spare Fahn and himself from further bouts of cruelty should they fall too far behind. Fahn's energy was spent long before reaching the mining camp, and could do nothing but tug uselessly against his shackles, forcing Shelly to carry the entire burden, who himself had very little rest ever since his capture. Whether it was by divine intervention or vile misfortune, the two managed to last long enough to be finally released from the mine cart that they were chained to, giving their weary bodies a much-needed reprieve as Shelly and Fahn immediately collapsed onto the rocky floor—lifting their burning feet off the stinging gravel path that tormented their bare soles all day long. Their recess was short-lived however, as they were roughly forced back on their feet and led away from the mines. The pair were taken to a nearby field, and in view were several wooden poles staked on top of a small hill—each one carrying a set of chains bolted on top of the stakes. As they got closer, Fahn could see silhouettes occupying some of the poles—with only a thin horizontal beam seated between each slave's legs keeping them up. Shelly could barely make out the faint breathing that broke up the near-lifeless husks as the two passed by, but the rest were too far away to tell... and he was not eager to find out. The two were eventually made to stop next to a pair of stakes placed closer to each other than the rest, no doubt picked by slavers to provide the slaves with a front-seat view of their friend's suffering. This was to be their punishment for falling short on their quota—a standard penalty for any slaves that failed to pull their weight, along with any other disciplinary measures the slavers deemed fit. Some of the slavers broke off from the group to tend to the other prisoners, while the remainder prepared the stakes for their new occupants. Shelly and Fahn saw some of the slaves being led from the field on their own, shambling with whatever little life they could muster. The two could also see some limp figures being dragged away, revealing the grim fate that awaited them within this merciless hole in the desert. Without warning, a swift blow struck both Shelly and Fahn in the abdomen, knocking the wind out of them as they keeled over from the sudden pain. The slavers wasted no time preparing the slaves for their time on the stakes, ignoring their muffled cries of protest as the two were roughly hoisted and seated into position. ------------------------------------------------- Shelly struggled to stay conscious, heaving through the gag under the oppressive heat of the sun that baked his exhausted body. He was bound to a wooden pole with a multitude of heavy restraints arranged to inflict as much discomfort as possible. His arms were shackled securely behind the pole, raised painfully high to place an enormous strain against his shoulders. But the pain rendered through his upper limbs was simple compared to main setup that gave Shelly the choice to either relieve his burning lungs or lower body, but not both. He had to push up against the log placed between his legs in order to give the collar enough slack to allow easier breathing, but that placed even greater pressure against his already aching crotch. Even without the presence of slavers to deliver the punishments, Shelly was forced to torture himself without a moment of rest. Fahn was bound against the pole in a similar manner, but his bondage was much more tolerable compared to what his friend had to endure. However, Fahn knew it was completely his fault that Shelly was enslaved to begin with, and would have never suffered the excruciating pain had he not called for help and drag another innocent person into a life of misery. Regardless of his regrets, Fahn could do nothing but watch and whimper helplessly as Shelly weakly fought against his restraints, too exhausted to do much else. |
