Chapter 12
Fortress of betrayal
Roger grabbed Sam by the hair and hauled him to his feet. Eric cried out in protest but was silenced by nameless savages, gagging and restraining him. Roger narrowed his eyes at his 'hostage'.
"You think you're too good for us, outsider?" Sam shook his head as much as he could manage within the vice grip of his captor. He tried in vain to show nothing, but fear of these once civilised savages contorted his features. Roger smiled in cruel satisfaction. Then with lightning speed and strength way surpassing a child of his size, he punched Sam in the stomach. Eric struggled against his captors, muffled calls emerging from clasped hands. Sam collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. "I asked ya a question!" Sam attempted to reply but was cut off as Roger's foot met with his side. Sam rolled until he met with the cool stone of the wall he and Eric once huddled in fear against. Eric increased his struggles against his imprisonment, tears of sympathy, anger and fear coursed down his face.
Jack, who had been observing the activities with a twisted delight, chose his moment to exert his command. "Let him go." The faceless savages hesitated a moment before releasing Eric, who fell crashing to the ground. He scrambled over to his fallen half. Jack slinked towards them, much like a cat towards a trapped mouse. "Samneric, will you join us?" Eric moved protectively in front of Sam, who was gasping for breath where he lay, blood trickling from his mouth. "No." The savages murmured amongst themselves till Jack raised a hand. All present went silent as they waited for their leaders command. "Take them to the stake area. We'll give them some time to think it over."
The better part of the savages broke into cruel smiles, whilst a small group glanced at the twins in what would be a look of sympathy back in the world of rules and order. Some of the larger savages hoisted Samneric up by their elbows and dragged them deeper into the dark cave. The sound of dripping water from the shadows invaded their minds with the crunch of bare feet on rock their only distraction. Samneric were roughly pulled to a stop before being forced up against a large pillar of rock that reached to the roof, shadows obscured the top from sight. Painted hands securely tied the twins to the pillar with a length of something they couldn't make out. Then, as a well-trained army unit would, they uniformly turned and left.
"Sam, Sam, are you-" "-alright? Yes, I'll be fine" "Good I." "Greetings again outsiders." Samneric turned to the source of the voice. "Hello, is-" "-anyone there?" "Jus' me." "Who's me?" The twins asked in unison, as most of their words were. The voice emerged from the shadows. The savage formally known as Jack took form. "Jack!" Jack smirked, his eyes twinkling. "Now, I'm going to ask you again. Are you with us?" "No you're part of -" "-the other tribe. We follow Ralph" "You'd best stop that kind of talk, or else" "Or-" "-Else what?" Samneric attempted the move closer together although held in place by the mystery bindings, uncertainty and fear crossing their identical features. "Or else you'll be let loose and hunted like a pig. We'll take a stick, sharpen both ends and mount your heads like.like." "L..Lollipops?" Jack backhanded Eric across the face. "Yeah, jus' like it, and don't talk back, it's not good for you." Jack's voice had taken on a more mocking tone as he spoke to the twins as if they were little'ens. "You're a bully Jack Merridew and we'll never join." Sam was cut off by a punch to the stomach. Jack smiled at the look of worry and caring Eric's face showed for his brother. "You didn't like that did you?" Eric shook his head, frightened of the boy who was once so like himself, civilised and unpainted, now reduced to savagery. "You wouldn't want it to happen again, would you?" Again, Eric shook his head. "Then, your only option is to join us because as I pointed out before, we don't.take kindly to outsiders. I'll give you until I feel like it to think it over." With that final statement, the savage leader turned and left, laughing menacingly.
"Sam, we have no choice, we have to join Jack's tribe." "What do you mean we don't have a choice, we can choose to not join him, Eric." Eric frowned, for what was probably the first time in his life, at his brother. "I don't want you to get hurt. You don't want me to get hurt do you?" "Course not. But Jack Merridew's all talk, he'd never go through with any of those things" Sam's reasoning sounded uncertain and shaky "You wanna bet you're wrong?" "No, I'd lose, but we can't join Jack, what about Ralph? He's got no-one without us except a bunch of little'uns" Eric thought for a moment before replying, "We can still help Ralph, just not as much as normal. He'll be okay on his own. He's strong." "I'm still not sure." "Sam please, I don't want your head on a stick, like some pig, nor to be hunted like an animal. Please!" "I don't want your head on a stick either," Sam looked towards the floor, the internal struggle taking place inside his head clearly showing on his face, "Okay, we'll join." Samneric enjoyed a quiet moment in which they could still be called one of Ralph's tribe members before resigning to their fate. "JACK!" The twins' voices echoed off the stone cavern walls, carrying the sound further that normally possible. The painted figure emerged once more from a shadow filled passage. Jack "We'll-" "-join."
Fortress of betrayal
Roger grabbed Sam by the hair and hauled him to his feet. Eric cried out in protest but was silenced by nameless savages, gagging and restraining him. Roger narrowed his eyes at his 'hostage'.
"You think you're too good for us, outsider?" Sam shook his head as much as he could manage within the vice grip of his captor. He tried in vain to show nothing, but fear of these once civilised savages contorted his features. Roger smiled in cruel satisfaction. Then with lightning speed and strength way surpassing a child of his size, he punched Sam in the stomach. Eric struggled against his captors, muffled calls emerging from clasped hands. Sam collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. "I asked ya a question!" Sam attempted to reply but was cut off as Roger's foot met with his side. Sam rolled until he met with the cool stone of the wall he and Eric once huddled in fear against. Eric increased his struggles against his imprisonment, tears of sympathy, anger and fear coursed down his face.
Jack, who had been observing the activities with a twisted delight, chose his moment to exert his command. "Let him go." The faceless savages hesitated a moment before releasing Eric, who fell crashing to the ground. He scrambled over to his fallen half. Jack slinked towards them, much like a cat towards a trapped mouse. "Samneric, will you join us?" Eric moved protectively in front of Sam, who was gasping for breath where he lay, blood trickling from his mouth. "No." The savages murmured amongst themselves till Jack raised a hand. All present went silent as they waited for their leaders command. "Take them to the stake area. We'll give them some time to think it over."
The better part of the savages broke into cruel smiles, whilst a small group glanced at the twins in what would be a look of sympathy back in the world of rules and order. Some of the larger savages hoisted Samneric up by their elbows and dragged them deeper into the dark cave. The sound of dripping water from the shadows invaded their minds with the crunch of bare feet on rock their only distraction. Samneric were roughly pulled to a stop before being forced up against a large pillar of rock that reached to the roof, shadows obscured the top from sight. Painted hands securely tied the twins to the pillar with a length of something they couldn't make out. Then, as a well-trained army unit would, they uniformly turned and left.
"Sam, Sam, are you-" "-alright? Yes, I'll be fine" "Good I." "Greetings again outsiders." Samneric turned to the source of the voice. "Hello, is-" "-anyone there?" "Jus' me." "Who's me?" The twins asked in unison, as most of their words were. The voice emerged from the shadows. The savage formally known as Jack took form. "Jack!" Jack smirked, his eyes twinkling. "Now, I'm going to ask you again. Are you with us?" "No you're part of -" "-the other tribe. We follow Ralph" "You'd best stop that kind of talk, or else" "Or-" "-Else what?" Samneric attempted the move closer together although held in place by the mystery bindings, uncertainty and fear crossing their identical features. "Or else you'll be let loose and hunted like a pig. We'll take a stick, sharpen both ends and mount your heads like.like." "L..Lollipops?" Jack backhanded Eric across the face. "Yeah, jus' like it, and don't talk back, it's not good for you." Jack's voice had taken on a more mocking tone as he spoke to the twins as if they were little'ens. "You're a bully Jack Merridew and we'll never join." Sam was cut off by a punch to the stomach. Jack smiled at the look of worry and caring Eric's face showed for his brother. "You didn't like that did you?" Eric shook his head, frightened of the boy who was once so like himself, civilised and unpainted, now reduced to savagery. "You wouldn't want it to happen again, would you?" Again, Eric shook his head. "Then, your only option is to join us because as I pointed out before, we don't.take kindly to outsiders. I'll give you until I feel like it to think it over." With that final statement, the savage leader turned and left, laughing menacingly.
"Sam, we have no choice, we have to join Jack's tribe." "What do you mean we don't have a choice, we can choose to not join him, Eric." Eric frowned, for what was probably the first time in his life, at his brother. "I don't want you to get hurt. You don't want me to get hurt do you?" "Course not. But Jack Merridew's all talk, he'd never go through with any of those things" Sam's reasoning sounded uncertain and shaky "You wanna bet you're wrong?" "No, I'd lose, but we can't join Jack, what about Ralph? He's got no-one without us except a bunch of little'uns" Eric thought for a moment before replying, "We can still help Ralph, just not as much as normal. He'll be okay on his own. He's strong." "I'm still not sure." "Sam please, I don't want your head on a stick, like some pig, nor to be hunted like an animal. Please!" "I don't want your head on a stick either," Sam looked towards the floor, the internal struggle taking place inside his head clearly showing on his face, "Okay, we'll join." Samneric enjoyed a quiet moment in which they could still be called one of Ralph's tribe members before resigning to their fate. "JACK!" The twins' voices echoed off the stone cavern walls, carrying the sound further that normally possible. The painted figure emerged once more from a shadow filled passage. Jack "We'll-" "-join."