Chapter 7

"Would you mind if I hurt you? Would you mind if I tried to, cause you have turned in to my worst enemy, you carry the hate that I feel,"

Commandant Cartman could not deny the feeling of satisfaction he felt the moment he witnessed the Jew's pupils shrink, or fight the smile that formed from his lips when his already pale skin lightened enough to match that of the whitest snow; he tried his hardest to not laugh when his limbs seemed to turn to rubber. Cartman had done it, he had finally brought the fear out of the Jew and to him it was oh so satisfying; almost euphoric.

But you know this isn't what you want, Eric.

Cartman shook his head to block out the annoying voice some people called a conscious. Of course this was what he wanted. Ever since the first day he met this Jew he wanted him to be afraid, he was a Jew after all. They should all fear him. "No, no no!" Kyle struggled weakly against the two soldiers who were already holding him.

"You two keep a hold on the Jew, you two," he snapped to two other soldiers who were watching on the sidelines keeping the other prisoners back. "Take the freak," they entered the crowd instantly to carry out their orders. "Take him to the podium," Cartman ordered with venom.

"No! Cartman don't do this!" Kyle begged as he struggled against the iron grip of the soldiers. The Commandant approached Kyle close, he was seething and his initial instinct was to slap the red haired Jew, but something held him back. No. Something inside him would not allow him to strike the Jew again. Instead he opt for gripping his chin firmly, very firmly with the intent to cause him pain. He lifted his chin so that Kyle could look into his eyes; the defiance was still there from the Jew, but his fear was very prominent. "Please, you know this is wrong," Kyle pleaded softly with the Commandant in hopes he would somehow see reason. The look Kyle gave Cartman nearly shook him to the core, it was a look of pure hopelessness. Cartman saw this look in so many other Jews, nearly all of them in fact, but on Kyle it looked...wrong. This was what Cartman wanted more than anything, then why did it look and feel so wrong?

Listen to him Eric. He's right. This is wrong, you know this is wrong. Don't do this.

For a brief moment Cartman hesitated, his grip slacking on Kyle's chin. Maybe he should stop this? Cartman again shook his head with an angered grunt and reaffirmed his rough grip on Kyle's chin. "No you listen here you filthy Jew rat. I warned you from the very beginning to respect meh authoritah, but you chose to not listen and your little friend here will pay for your screw up," Cartman then snapped his fingers again to order the soldiers to continue taking Tweek up onto the platform. While Kyle was struggling to break free of the Nazi soldiers restraining him, his green eyes found Tweek's own blue.

"It's okay Kyle," Tweek assured him and then mouthed two words that Cartman could not make out and let out a small groan of frustration.

"Tie him to the post!"

/

Pinky promise. That was what Tweek had mouthed to Kyle. He was telling Kyle that he would be ok, but Kyle knew Tweek well enough by now to know that he knew it meant so much more. Kyle knew Tweek was telling him that he did not blame Kyle for what was about to happen, that he accepted any fate that was about to befall him; even if it meant his life. But Kyle couldn't accept that. There was no sugar coating it, this was Kyle's fault. He had admitted to a crime in the camp that he did not commit, he had defied Cartman, spoken out against him, touched him, and the worst part of all-he called him a "fatass". Kyle should be digging his grave, not Tweek's. He should be the one punished or even killed.

The very moment the Commandant ordered Tweek be taken up onto the podium Kyle could no longer think straight and nearly exploded into hysterics. The podium housed the gallows, a necklace of death to any that defy the Nazi regime, and his new best friend was about to be hung for Kyle's own defiant mouth. Kyle tried, he begged and pleaded with Cartman to let Tweek go, to do the right thing and instead punish him. For a brief moment Kyle thought he had gotten through to the wicked Nazi, for a split second he thought that maybe he was having some type of revelation, in a single moment he thought he sensed hesitation from the Nazi, he was dead wrong. He still ordered him to be taken up, but what really shocked Kyle were Cartman's next shout of orders.

"Tie him to the post!" post? Post for what? Kyle watched in panic as soldiers turned him around with his back to the crowd and bound Tweek's wrists to a post above his head. A thousand different scenes were playing out in Kyle's head while this was happening. Was he going to be left there for days to possibly starve to death? Was this a form of torture for the Nazi's to laugh at? To mock? Were they going to see how long he could stand until his legs buckled beneath him and kill him as punishment for not being strong enough? All of this and more went through Kyle's mind, but he wasn't prepared for what Cartman announced next. "Let's see, I think 20 lashes for speaking out, another 20 for taking bread from the kitchens, and 40 for insulting your Commandant when all he has done is try to make your stay here as enjoyable as possible," lashes?! As in whipping?!

"No! Commandant, this isn't fair! Stop this please! Put me up there! Not Tweek!" Kyle screamed, Kyle begged still fighting against the soldiers who held him.

"How admirable, but you need to learn a lesson Kyle. If you keep speaking out and resisting my men I will add more to his sentence. You don't want that do you Kyle?" This shut Kyle right up. No, he did not want to add to Tweek's punishment, especially when it should be his punishment. Kyle noticed Cartman had actually used his name and a strange feeling erupted in the pit of his stomach, but Kyle couldn't think about that now. He had to stop fighting, he had to be quiet; he couldn't make this worse for Tweek.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Craig say something to Cartman but Kyle couldn't hear it. The Commandant waved him off, said a few words under his breath and motioned for a soldier to get on with the punishment. A male soldier came up behind Tweek with a whip, readied it and swung. Kyle looked away when the sound of the whip met Tweek's back, he couldn't look, he was too ashamed in himself for him taking the blame. He couldn't watch this. "Don't look away Jew. This is your fault, you don't get to look away," screw you fatass! Kyle growled deep in his throat, bit his lip and raised his head. 'You wanna play this game fatass? Fine,' so Kyle looked on, watching his best friend getting whipped, lash after lash. With each crack of the whip on the inside he was screaming, he was crying, he was begging God that something or someone would intervene and put a stop to this injustice, but he knew nothing would stop the retribution before his eyes. On the inside he was a crying child, but on the outside he was as he had always been in the Commandant's eyes-defiant and strong. He owed this to Tweek, Tweek had been proud and strong to accept punishment on Kyle's behalf and in turn Kyle wouldn't let this break him. He wouldn't do that to Tweek.

Kyle noticed that Tweek never once screamed, he would cry in his throat, moan, but never screamed; Kyle knew this was his own act of defiance and he knew it had nothing to do with the Commandant. Knowing the Commandant had his attention on Tweek for the moment, Kyle risked looking at his first officer, Craig. After hearing his history with Tweek, surely this was affecting him. They had been so close, Tweek admitted that he loved him, seeing his former best friend being whipped in front of him has to rip at him in some way. The look of trauma on Craig's face told him he was right.

/

Just as Kyle had pleaded with Cartman, so did Craig. The moment he ordered Tweek be taken panic had overcome Craig just much as it did Kyle. He had followed Cartman up onto the podium, whispering over his shoulder that none of this was right, that he should be punishing the Jew, not Tweek. But Cartman wouldn't see reason. While Tweek was being bound to the post, Craig leaned in close to Cartman. "Wouldn't you get more pleasure from seeing the Jew whipped? Don't you want to see him bleed?" he was saying anything he could to convince Cartman to take the Jew over Tweek, but Cartman waved him off.

"This should please you to watch, seeing that fag being beaten. Unless there is something you want to tell me Craig?" Craig froze in silence, in fear. God damnit Cartman. "Just sit back and enjoy Lieutenant," but there was no way he could enjoy this, not at all. Tweek.

He wanted to look away, with everything inside him he wanted to look away, but after what Cartman had yelled at Kyle he knew Tweek would be punished more if he looked away as well. So he watched while he was whipped and did nothing, though everything inside him screamed to do something.

Tweek never screamed, why wasn't he screaming? He had to be in pure agony. His striped shirt had been torn apart from the whip after the first few lashes, and his back was now covered in deep bleeding lacerations that were sure to scar; if they didn't get infected first while they healed. Craig didn't keep track of how many whips had already past, but it felt like way more than Cartman ordered. "Cartman isn't this enough?" Craig whispered at his side, his hands forming fists. But Cartman didn't answer, he continued to watch the Jew out in the crowd. What was so special about that Jew that he wanted Tweek to suffer this much? They had all been friends at some point hadn't they?

After a bit Tweek had passed out, probably from the pain. His body was slack against the post, his back bleeding profusely from the savage marks that now mapped his back. Yet the soldier continued to whip him. This couldn't possibly go on, surely with him now unconscious Cartman would put a stop to this. But he was wrong. He didn't stop the whipping at all, he just continued to stare at the Jew with those wild crazy eyes of his. Craig knew what today meant to Cartman but this was ridiculous; Craig had never seen Cartman looked this deranged. Craig half expected Cartman to up and shoot the Jew at any given moment.

"Sir, Tweek isn't even conscious. Call this off, I think the Jew gets it," Craig mumbled at his side and Cartman's attention turned to the unconscious Tweek. For some reason while he was distracted, Craig chanced a look to the Jew that held the Commandant's gaze so much, but Kyle was already looking at him. It was as though he was silently talking to Craig, pleading with him to make Cartman stop this. But why would Kyle-he knew. Tweek had told him about their past relationship and he was asking Craig as an old friend to help him. Kyle knew this was killing him just as much as the Jew. "Eric, as your friends…" Craig whispered while taking another chance to lightly touch Cartman's shoulder in hopes the touch would draw him out of this deranged episode he was having. For a few moments nothing happened, everything was the same and Craig feared this would continue. But finally Cartman raised his hand.

"Enough! You may release him Lieutenant," and with that Cartman turned to walk away, away from the podium, away from the crowd and never once looked back at anyone; not even Kyle.

As soon as Cartman gave the order to release Tweek, Craig had never moved so fast. "Get out of my way!" Craig angrily ordered at the soldier with the whip so he knew to back off. Craig pulled a knife from his belt, cut the binds at his wrists to free him. Tweek's limp body fell from the post and into Craig's arms. "It's okay Tweek, I've got you, you'll be okay, I promise. I've got you."