27
It had been about twenty-six hours total that Orion slept, and the long
rest helped more than anything to
make him feel somewhat well the next day. When Groctis came in,
he was already awake, and sitting weakly
up. The vulture grinned at him and asked him how he was.
Orion whispered that he was okay, he guessed. An
improvement on the day before.
The vultureman went to his counter and got an antiseptic gel and the
painkilling salve out. "I have to
look at your feet again all right? This will hurt a little bit,
but I've got the salve here."
Orion nodded reluctantly and didn't put up a fight when Groctis gently peeled the bandages off. "Thanks," he whispered.
Seeing that the boy's feet were not nearly as swollen as they had been, he was glad. He applied the antiseptic and salve.
He was taken back to the cells and checked up on the next day and the
next. Although feeling closed in
in the little cell, Orion was glad of the rest, and spent much of his
time there sleeping. Each time the healer
came, he put some salve on Orion's battered feet, and sometimes on
his back where the most of the lashes wee.
Orion thanked him gratefully for it.
The day he was to be put back to work, Blackmoor walked in on them as Groctis was putting the painkilling salve on.
Orion gasped, thinking that Groctis would be caught after having been
told no painkillers. Orion was
afraid he, not the healer, would be in trouble...
"What is that?' Blackmoor asked.
"Antiseptic gel," Groctis answered, smooth as silk. If anything,
he was a good liar. "It should prevent
infection with him walking around on the ground."
Blackmoor only nodded dismissively, not bothering to see what ws written
on the jar's label. "You
ready to work today?" he asked Orion.
"Y-y-yes, M-m-master..." Orion whispered immediately.. He wans't.,
but since when did Blackmoor
care?
"Good. And will you run away again?" He got an immediate
negative. Blackmoor snorted. "Why do
you make me have to go through all of this before you act as you're
supposed to, you miserable kkrekk? Why do
you give me such trouble?" His tone was disgusted, as if he were
talking to the lowest beggar that ever lived.
Orion swallowed and looked at the bed. "B-b-because I'm stupid."
The words were barely audible. He
said it half because it was probably what his master wanted to hear,
and half because he believed it himself.
Blackmoor made a noise of disgust and began to walk away. "Hurry
up with that antiseptic. Then get
Orion back in his restraints and into the dining hall."
"Yes, sir," Groctis said, and winked at Orion as he finished with the
painkiller. Orion felt the effects
almost immediately, as the bandages were wrapped back around his feet.
A soothing tingling, and a fading of
the pain. He gave Groctis a shaky smile of pure gratitude.
"Come on, kid, let's get you to the dining hall."
Orion would be allowed to go nowhere for a while again without escort.
He ahd to start all over again in
Blackmoor's hell.
The day itself was a few different kinds of hell for Orion. he'd
been given another pair of breeches, and
had been chained again. And he kept stumbling on them.
And that hurt. After a few hours, the painkiller wore
off, and his feet throbbed with lancing pain as he walked, enough to
make him silently cry. The blood ahd begun to soak through, even
he could see that. And many of those that ate at the establishment
took it upon themselves to ridicule the wretched ,looking creature.
Orion only took the abuse as he limped as fast as he could to get the tables
cleaned. once one of them had tripped him, making him cry out as
he hit the ground. But even then he said nothing, only slunk into
the back to get a clean towel.
But finally the day was over, and he was escorted from the building.
As he and the Reptilian made their
way across the compound, Phiron happened to be passing,. He wisely
said nothing to Orion, who had not even
seen him. But he narrowed his eyes. It ws physically apparent
what Blackmoor ahd put him through. He looked
down at the blood soaked bandages on the child's feet and closed his
eyes. Shaking his head. he reluctantly moved on.
Orion was fed, and given a threadbare blanket to sleep on in the tiny
cell. The door was barred...and the
light in the hallway prevented complete darkness. And that was
good. Still, it was a while before he fell asleep.
After a few days, he began to get back into the rhythm of the place.
He was kept on somewhat easy duty
for a while, in relatively clean places. No mines or greasy hangars
or dusty cart-pulling; Blackmoor didn't want
his feet to get infected. They'd have to be amputated and then
he'd be virtually worthless. But that was okay,
the jackal had plenty for the cub to do. He worked him harder
than he had before, reasoning aloud to the boy that
if he was too exhausted to move, he couldn't plot escape. Orion
had said nothing.
On the third day, Blackmoor had taken the terrified cub into the main
disciplining room, he whimpering
the whole time, asking what he had done wrong.
"Nothing," the jackal said calmly, raising Orion's feet again.
The boy burst into tears. "Only giving you
a reminder."
The heartless jackal applied the bastinado torture once more, the beating
of the soles of the feet. He
didn't beat them as severely, or for as long. But he did break
open the healing wounds again before he was done and sent Orion to the
healer to be bandaged. Yes, he was sure that Orion would not ever
dare try that again.
Time does heal all wounds...those that are physical anyway. The
young slave did not ever think that he
would get the horrible sight of his friend's death out of his mind
though. Even now, three months later, it was
still fresh in his mind. He had gone through the months with
relatively little trouble. he ws too terrified to give
any kind of disobedience, even a question, or speaking when not told
to. he did not even look at anyone unless
they told him to. And that had been Blackmoor's goal of course;
he was pleased.
Orion still slept in the tiny, cold cell; although it was getting warmer
out it was still cold at night. he
still wore chains. He had once asked a taskmaster that he halfway
liked what had happened to Hyder; he had
expected the worst. The taskmaster told him that he was all right.
Not very happy, as he'd been harshly punished as well, but all right.
But Orion would not be allowed to see him for a long long time.
He wasn't sure whether to be happy or not. He was happy that Hyder
wasn't dead or badly hurt...but he
was unhappy that he would not be able to see him. But he dared
not say anything.
Eventually, all of Orion's physical wounds healed, and he had gained
a little weight. He was never fed
right, but in the pit he'd become gaunt, unhealthy. he'd been
fed very little. Now at least, he resembled a
skinny kid, not an emaciated prisoner. His ribs showed, but didn't
jut out with such stark contrast. His stomach
no longer cramped for want of food.
The boy wans't exactly happy, but his life had gone on with its own
miserable monotony. He was in the
mines again, something he hated. He was barely in check of his
fear as he worked. He breathed hard, shook as
he used the hammer n the soft rock. He remembered all too well
the cave in a few years ago. But Blackmoor
had told him if he behaved exactly as he should for a couple of weeks,
he could go on cart duty. Orion was only too happy to comply.
It was not until the end of summer that he did finally see his friend
again. Orion had gone through the
long months silently, speaking only when he had to, and then usually
with the stammer he'd had as a small cub.
He never lost it, but it had gotten infrequent...now it was in every sentence he spoke.
Orion had finally behaved long enough for Blackmoor to let him work
again in the hangars and parts
yards. Hyder had been there already for two months, working with
Phiron. Even the hyena cub had been quieter
than usual,. and was now just as terrified of Blackmoor as his younger
friend.
And now, nearly a year after they had tried to escape, Orion was in
the hangar again. but he did not
know that Hyder was there that day, and had silently sought out a mechanic
that had been getting his own parts.
The higher ranking slave was only too happy to have someone to fetch all the parts, and gave the boy a list.
Orion could read a very little in Plundaarian, and vehicle and machinery
parts were most of what he
knew...things he had to know to survive. Although this was one
of the only times that Hyder was not with
him, and he was afraid of messing up. Still, he tried.
The child yelped in alarm, jerking violently away, when a pair
of arms were suddenly around him.
"Orion!" cried a voice.
He looked around wildly, his body tensed, having been badly startled.
But when he saw who it was, he
burst into tears of relief, and relaxed completely. It was Hyder,
his manacled arms around the young cat like a
vise grip. Orion did not mind. His own restraints prevented
him from returning the embrace...but he didn't care at the moment.
He was just happy to see the hyena unharmed.
"J-jeez, Orion...I-I thought he'd done something to you. I thought...I
thought he might've..." Hyder
couldn't finish his statement as he tightly hugged the little cat.
After so long, and after what had happened, he
was reluctant to let go.
"N-no..." Orion whispered. "I-I'm okay..." As okay as he could be in the miserable prison.
Finally Hyder let go of him and put his hands on his shoulders to look
him over. Some traces of his
ordeal were still evident in the form of scars. "He did a number
on you...dind't he? The other slaves said they
thought he put you in the pit..." Hyder spoke in hushed tones
now, almost as if he didn't want to say such a
horrid thing aloud.
Orion swallowed hard, looked at the ground, and nodded. "Yeah..."
he said. "He did..." He bit his
lip, trying not to cry again. "F-f-for a long time..."
he did not even want to talk about what Blackmoor had done to him, the
pain he'd endured...
But there was no need. Hyder understood, and only held the younger boy close again for a moment.
"Come on..." he said, clearly wanting to talk more but afraid of getting
into trouble. "You'd...you'd better get
there rest of the stuff the other guy wants." He sighed.
"Me and another slave are helping Phiron...maybe tomorrow we can work together
again."
Orion nodded. "I-I hope so...I really...I r-really missed you..."
Before Hyder could reply, an irate taskmaster came around a pile of
junk and scowled at them. "Get
back to work you lazy wretches before I tell Blackmoor you've been
slacking!"
Poor Orion nearly jumped out of his skin, and even Hyder jumped a little
bit. Orion gave his meek,
immediate reply and slunk off. Hyder sullenly gave his own answer
and watched his friend acting so beaten.
He felt a deep sorrow. but after a moment he too went back to
work.
The boys got to talk later that night, however...
When Orion, finally unescorted again, trudged wearily to the little
cells on the east side, he'd been
stopped by Blackmoor. The terrified cub swallowed hard and asked
timidly what he'd done wrong, and hoped
that it was nothing too bad.
Blackmoor smirked, but Orion did not see it. he was looking down
at the ground as he was supposed to.
"Nothing brat...get on your knees, stupid child. You should have
done that in the first place."
Orion whispered an apology and got on his knees as he was told to.
No hesitation, only fearful
compliance. he looked at the ground, hands clasped in his lap
as he was supposed to. He was aware of pair of
taskmasters walking by, snickering, and a few others slaves looking
their direction, but he did not look up.
"That's better." Blackmoor loomed over the young cub as he looked
down on him. "Now. Reports of
your behavior the past months have pleased me, Orion. You've
behaved as a slave should behave. How old are
you?"
How old was he? Orion was shocked to find he didn't know exactly.
He ahd to do a quick calculation
in his stressed mind to remember what the date was, and how long he'd
been there...the answer in itself nearly
made him want to cry. "I-i th-think I-I'll be eleven e-end o-of
f-fall..." the seasons were different here, but he
was alarmed to realize he did not remember what Thundera's seasons
were like.
Blackmoor laughed. "You think?" he cuffed Orion lightly
in the head, making him cringe. "Idiot child.
It took you that long to learn how to act."
Was this all Blackmoor wanted, to humiliate him? Insult him? Orion said nothing, only stared miserably at the ground. he wasn't sure what Blackmoor wanted form him.
"Well. As I was saying, your behavior has pleased me, and Hyder
has been behaving as well. I will put
you in adjoining cells once more. I know you like being near
the miserable little wretch. But one act of disobedience, and you
won't be sleeping near each other for a year. You got that, brat?"
Orion was pleasantly surprised at this revelation, and nodded his head, stammering his answer.
"In a year, if you keep behaving as you have and showing me your obedience,
you and he may be back
in the dorms. But I expect complete obedience, slave, understood?"
Again Orion answered immediately. To be back in the warm slave
dorm, instead of shivering in the
winter and suffocating in the summer in the stone cells... yes
it was worth it.
"Good. Get to your cell. it is the same one; Hyder has been moved."
Orion answered up once more and skulked off, finding that Blackmoor
had not lied. He stood by the
bars of his friend's cell only a moment before catching the impatient
glance of the cell guard and slipping into his
own cell to be locked in for the night. Once the guard had gone
to his post, (a chair outside the corridor's end
door) he whispered, "H-Hyder?"
"I'm here, Orion...I'm so glad they finally let us be near each other."
"Me too..." Orion found that he was not quite sure what to say,
but even his friend's silence was all
right. he knew he was there. A year was so long to be away
from him.
As the young slave lay atop the thin blanket though, they did begin
to talk. They carefully avoided the
subject of their escape and the subject of Tamarin. They talked
mostly of the work they had been doing, a
few incidents here and there; there was not a lot to talk about.
but that they were able to talk to each other
ws good enough. Soon they were too tired to stay awake any longer,
but both slept better than they had in a year.
Chapter 28
Table
of Contents
ThunderCat
Stories Page
Main
Page