Preamble
Roxanne's bare paws lifted stone with every stride, she ran fast chased by her best friend, dear Lulu, who struggled to keep up with her. Although the latter wore white athletic shoes, the other one was faster, not at all hampered by being barefoot on the hard ground. They went on the adventure and were more excited than ever! They both laughed out loud, chasing each other through the medieval streets of the theme park. The two little girls stopped only when they reached the drawbridge leading inside the city wall, where the castle stood. The weather was gray and threatened a rain that would not come, contrary to their happy and enthusiastic mood. They watched excitedly and laughingly at the bustle of amused guests who, like them, were about to enter the citadel. Some cast puzzled glances directed at the barefoot girl, but she did not care. She didn’t mind what people might think when they saw her without shoes. She was fine like this, she felt like herself and had no problem showing herself for what she was. The Pokemorph girls exchanged a look of understanding and continued on, affectionately holding hands.
They had known each other for quite some time. They met in the hospital when Roxanne had her left arm amputated after a bad accident with a combine harvester while working the land with her parents. Lulu, on the other hand, was there because of a serious appendicitis infection, which needs to be operated on; they were roommates during their hospitalization and thus formed a strong friendship. They cultivated their relationship over time by writing long letters and trying to see each other as much as possible, which was not always easy because of the distance between them. Every opportunity was good to arrange something and spend time together. This was not the first time Lulu's parents had given the two friends days like that, aware of the deep friendship between them. They were very different from each other. Roxanne, a Rockruff with beige and brown fur, big blue eyes and a thick white tail, born and raised in the country in a small farming community, knew all the secrets of farming and breeding, was cheerful and energetic, always in the mood for adventures. She was wearing denim overalls and a bright green t-shirt. Lulu of Mienfoo, on the other hand, came from the city, studied with excellent grades and loved modern technology, with a sunny, mischievous and easily aroused personality. She had light ochre fur, lilac hair, and dark red lively eyes. She wore a sleeveless dress in purple tones over a white sweater, perfectly matching her trademark sneakers. She was from a wealthy family and was happy to take her friend, who otherwise could not afford, on vacation with her. They wandered around ecstatically, asking questions of the merchants among the stalls and the potters in the stores, listening to the songs of the minstrel performing in front of the inn. All those characters, however, were androids; it was that peculiarity that had made Lulu insistently ask her parents' permission to go there, with her friend of course. She loved technology and those androids left her amazed, so much so that they seemed to be really alive. In fact, the actor-androids were super sophisticated, even endowed with thoughts, for when they were derived from an electronic brain. The physical features were so perfectly replicated that no one could have imagined, without being aware of it, that they were robots. They seemed more Pokemorph than Pokemorph themselves. The duo greatly enjoyed interacting with them, being told stories of the place. But also just observing them as they went about their tasks, solving snags and problems by reasoning, repairing equipment, dueling with swords or riding horses. They spent an unforgettable day, laughing and discovering a thousand new things from that time so far away but so incredibly present and real. The afternoon was slowly coming to an end, and the two friends sat at a bench in the citadel square, eating fruit and waiting to see the jugglers perform.
"This day has been beautiful!" Exclaimed the brunette chewing happily and the other laughed back: "It's not over yet, soon the shows will start, remember? There will be jugglers and then..." Lulu interrupted and widened her big eyes, pointing at an android. "What's going on?" She then asked. Roxanne looked up and also saw that guy standing still in the square shaking convulsively, emitting metallic sounds and a few high-pitched "beeps."
Within seconds, all the robots present began to do the same, some falling to the ground turned off, their eyes turned into flashing red LEDs. All this lasted a few moments, amidst the perplexity of the tourists. Then everyone stopped, ceased shaking and looked around. Suddenly chaos broke out. The androids took to running at the guests, violently grabbing people, lifting and shaking children, uttering unintelligible words in metallic voices. They seemed to have gone mad. The mass of people present there began to flee in every direction, in a frenzy of bodies crashing into each other in panic, with screams of pain and fear as the soundtrack. The two young girls tried to sneak away, taking advantage of the general confusion but were abruptly grabbed from behind. Two androids lifted them up, indifferent to their attempts to free themselves, and headed toward the castle. Kicking and screaming they were carried to the castle dungeon where they were pilloried despite strenuous resistance. Strangely, they had been locked in reverse, not by the arms as usual, but by the ankles. The shackles were locked with strong padlocks and their captors vanished, leaving them captive and shocked.
They both tried to free their respective ankles from those devilish implements that held them, to no avail; to no avail were their efforts.
Part 1
After what seemed like a very long time, the two figures dressed as inquisitors made their appearance and were greeted by shouts and jeers from Roxanne. They had a few long candles in their hands and a grim look on their faces. They imposed silence and one of the two sentenced: "You have been accused of witchcraft, for this you stand before us, we demand your confession."
"We haven't done anything, let us go!" shouted Lulu in a trembling voice followed by her friend's angry voice. "It will be worse for you." Was the response they received.
The inquisitors placed the candles under the girls' paws, one in each paw, not before removing the shoes, to whoever wore them. They then lit them with the aid of a torch and stood waiting a short distance away. Being long enough, the flame came within a few inches of the poor unfortunate paws. Sweet Lulu began to squirm, that heat was unbearable. To escape it she forced her feet to stretch upward as much as they could, ignoring as much as possible the muscle cramps induced by that tense and unnatural position. She began to sweat profusely, straining to keep her paws away from the flames, moaning and begging to be released. On the other hand, Roxanne endured the heat much better; she had been accustomed since childhood to walking barefoot on any ground, and the skin on the soles of her feet was leathery, hard, and calloused. She did not make much effort to avoid the burning, as she felt it just below her hardened and dirty paws. She then began to snarl improperly at their captors, giving them looks filled with rancor and stubbornly trying to free herself from the stump. Her friend meanwhile tried with all her might to keep her feet away from the searing heat of the flames, with miserable results. She was suffering from muscle spasms and cramps caused by that forced tension and had to give in despite herself, leaving her extremities more relaxed. This resulted in the excessive exposure of her feet to the heat; within seconds the air was filled with the smell of scorched skin and fur. Lulu began to cry and scream from the pain of cramping and burning. "So, do you confess?" Insinuated their tormentors, impassive. "NO!" Was the response of the two ones. Extraordinarily also of Lulu who, despite the pain, feared more the possible and unknown consequences of that confession. Those robots had gone mad; they could have done anything. Or maybe they are dreaming of being free, and this is just their way of exercising their free will. But at that moment no one could know that, especially not them, innocent prisoners for a crime they had not committed. Finally, after a few hours, the candles were consumed and extinguished. The androids looked annoyed and walked out without speaking. The two girls exchanged glances that betrayed fear and confusion. In the blink of an eye, the guys re-entered with a well-stocked arsenal of feathers and brushes of various sizes, heading toward them.
Shrouded in almost religious silence, they both armed themselves with a stiff-bristled brush in one hand and a long feather in the other. With those they began to brush the soles of their captives' feet, which, in response, attempted to free themselves by forcefully wriggling free. Soon the intensity of the rubbing increased, and Lulu began to hear roars of laughter pooling in her chest, quivering to get out. She tried to escape that mean torture, but obviously to no avail. She quickly gave up and began to laugh out loud, unable to control herself. The tickling inexorably increased in intensity and resulted in the corresponding hysterical laughter of the girl, who was writhing with her hands on her taut belly. As expected, Roxanne was harder to bend, perhaps because of her fighting temper or the thick skin on her paws, but she finally had to surrender to that unbearable stimulation. Her tormentor had soon abandoned his brushes and feathers, which were too gentle on her tough skin, and had continued tickling her with his own android fingers. The little girl gave in with an unstoppable roar of hysterical laughter, which made her tear up and choke as she tried to catch her breath. She tried stoically to resist the tickling that gave her no respite, but she had no chance. She laughed louder and louder, almost unable to fill her lungs with air from the constant laughter. Lulu, from the pillory next door, was doing the same wiggling. She feared her vocal cords would snap from too much laughing; her abdominal muscles ached terribly from over-exertion. That sadistic torture continued indefinitely, the two persecutors did not stop tormenting them, even when they asked for the much desired confession. The nerves of both Pokemorph suffered from that overstimulation and consequently clouded reasoning, triggering panic in them amidst the excesses of laughter. It was too much for Lulu who, fearing to go mad, shouted in spasms: "Stop it! It’s enough! I confess!" As if by magic, the torture ceased and she drew deep, sobbing breaths, broken by the exhaustion of laughter. She was exhausted and slumped, releasing all the muscles in her body, desperately trying to catch her breath. For Roxanne it was not over, she continued to laugh hysterically while being tickled, but she was at the end of her emotional and physical endurance. So she confessed too, screaming with what little strength she had left. The torture ended and the girl, gasping for oxygen debt, let go devoid of energy. The two inquisitors stood up, satisfied that they had obtained the confessions they wanted so much, and left the room confabulating under their breath.
Neither had the strength to speak once they were left alone. What would become of them? They stood there wondering silently, on the logs, drowning for breath. Every muscle of their bodies trembled, clamoring for vital oxygen. They were too exhausted even to think; their minds were clouded. Their ability to think was reduced by the sudden drop in adrenaline that left them helpless and defenseless, at the mercy of their uncertain fate.
