A man entered. Already Jack knew nothing good could come of this.
The man unlocked Damian's cell and walked over to where Damian was sitting. Damian looked up, knowing what was coming, no fight left. Jack, however, was not ready for it.
The man hit Damian, punches, kicks, relentlessly beating the small boys limp form. Jack screamed at him to stop, helpless to do anything but watch as his friend is attacked.
The man seemed to tire of Jacks noise quickly, and spoke something into his walkie-talkie. Soon after a woman came in holding a strange leather and metal thingy. She unlocked Jacks cell this time, walking over, then jumping on top of him. Normally Jack could have thrown her off him in just a few seconds, but he was half starved, dehydrated and sleep-deprived, altogether a lot weaker than he had been.
She pinned him to the ground, laughing as he struggled weakly against her. She managed to slip the metal thing-muzzle, he now realised-over his head, then she left. Jack couldn't open his mouth. All he could taste, all he could smell, was leather.
Then he heard a weak cry. The man had gone back to beating Damian, stomping on the poor kids legs and cackling when he heard the sickening cracking. Damian had began to sob, laying on his back, defenceless as the man broke his legs. Jack screamed against the muzzle, the sound coming out strangled and muffled.
Finally the man left. Damian had stopped sobbing, now just laying still, and the only sound was Jacks breathing. Jack began to sob. The leather in his mouth was painful, the strap around his skull too tight, and he couldn't get it off. His whole body trembled as he pulled at the strap, panic making his hands fumble at the buckles.
The leather and metal had begun cutting into his lips, he felt blood drip down his chin and was overwhelmed by a feeling of claustrophobia.
Then he heard a soft voice. "Let me do it," Jack turned around to see Damian, tired and hurting, through the bars separating his and Jacks cells. He must have dragged himself up.
Jack shuffled over to the bars, still shaking, and lowered his head to Damians waiting hands. Damian undid the buckles in a matter of seconds. Jack felt the release of the leather, and finally, finally, he could breathe. He gasped for air, trying to get that horrid taste out of his mouth. Then he couldn't hold it back anymore. He cried, leaning his head on the cold metal bars. He felt Damian stroke his hair through the bars, the barrier between them. Finally the two fell into a restless sleep, heads touching through the gaps.
