The fox boy- chapters 1 and 2

The strong wind blew mercilessly against my weak, blood scarred face. My dull, blue eyes were shut gently, and I felt I didn’t have the strength to even try to open them. I’d been hanging below the rough shelf which jutted out from the floating island’s rocky walls since an early 5:30 in the morning. It felt like hours had passed since my misunderstanding with my master, and it was starting to get dark. If it was evening, I still had another 12 hours till I would be free of this humiliating and torturous punishment…and night was the time of flesh seeking insects and stronger winds…

I could have died…I was suspended by my wrists, to a large metal rung which was firmly fixed into the rocky shelf. My hands were numb, and I no longer had the urge to struggle. It was dangerous anyway, if the rope snapped, I would fall through the sky...and I would not survive that.

I was only a young teenager of 15...but I had learnt to stand the hellish treatment and harsh ways of my masters and his people. If you didn’t, you wouldn’t stand a chance. I’d often watched brave, stubborn teenaged boys be killed for their disobedience.

(My master didn’t care for girls, or for anyone younger than a teen. He thought they were weak and would not work hard enough for his liking. He didn’t keep any girls, but the few young boys he kept were often treated harsher than the older boys, and I would often feel their pain…though I had my own to deal with a lot of the time.)

I was losing consciousness all the time. I was struggling to deal with the pain that coursed through my arms, and the cramp in my neck was unbearable.

Before being hung up, I had been whipped at least 100 times, and my chest and back were swollen with scars and bruises which were left exposed to the harsh, bitter cold.

Yeah….EVERYTHING was harsh…but I had learnt to live with that…I didn’t know any other life.

I forced myself to open my tired eyes, and stare out ahead at complete blackness….no stars could be seen, not even the moon was visible. I could still hear the guard shuffling his feet above as he awaited the hour when he would no longer be on watch.

Every now and then, he would peer over the edge at me, and teasingly tug the rope which suspended me. At one point, he winked and pointed his gun straight at my anxious face…but he laughed and never shot me at all.

Still, for at least an hour I had not heard anything at all from him, except from the occasional yawn, or the barely comforting sound of humming.

It was sad really….he was at the most only 3 years older than me…we could have been friends. Uh, what am I saying…I couldn’t have even tried to make friends with a guard.

I had to keep hanging on…at least until morning.

C2:

“…..is he still alive?”

“I don’t know…”

“Well why not check you idiot?!”

My eyes were still closed, but I could hear the quiet whispers of guards talking to each other from above. I felt sick; I wanted to throw up…

I could no longer feel my arms…and I could almost feel the ache of my heart beating hard in my chest.

I tensed slightly as I felt someone grab the rope and begin to pull me up towards the shelf.

I forced myself not to try to open my eyes yet, they were weak, and I knew the wind would make them water unbearably.

A hand grabbed at my tied wrists, and I was hauled up onto the shelf’s concrete.

I moaned slightly and trembled harder as I wondered what would happen next.

“See? I told you he was alive!”

“No you didn’t, you said he’d be dead!”

“Urg, you piss me off Yuji. Boy, get up.”

I curled slightly as I felt the guard kick me viciously in the side with a hard boot. ‘Yuji’ stifled laughter, which made me grit my teeth as I propped myself up onto my hands and leaned my weight onto them to help me up.

I stopped almost immediately, a tiny scream of alarm and pain escaping my lips. My right wrist burnt intensely, and the cracking of bone made me whimper like a little child.

Sweat poured down my face, clinging to my ebony fringe, and I lay back panting heavily.

“What’s the matter, boy? I said get up, do you hear me?!”

“I…..c…can’t…s…sir…”

“Get….up…now!” He kicked me again, and again Yuji struggled to contain laughter.

I forced myself to concentrate on the unbearable aching.

My wrist still trembled with agony and nerves. I cast a quick look at it, and seeing that it was bent badly, I whimpered and shut my eyes tightly.

“What is wrong with you?! If you don’t get up, I’ll shoot you alright?!”

“Dude…that’s harsh, but so funny!”

Yuji and his friend burst into laughter, and I held back tears which threatened to spill from my eyes.

“And once I’ve shot you, I’ll kick you over the edge, and it’ll be ‘bye bye’ for good.”

Again, they laughed hysterically.

I couldn’t see what was so funny…NOTHING was funny.

“Please…help me up…”

“Why? You can get up yourself…you’re not a baby.”

“No…but my wrists broken and I’ve just been hanging for a whole 24 hours if that counts.”

He flinched at my brave attitude, and then smirked. 

“Well use your other wrist. You can still get up.”

“Help me up…”

“No.”

“Help me up.”

“No.”

“Help me up!!!”

He took a step back, but I don’t know why. It’s not like I could have hurt him or anything.

He sighed, and offered me his hand, I hesitated, and took it with my own good hand.

Once on my feet, I put a lot of effort in staying up…but at least I was up.

“Let’s go then…”

“Boy, are you gonna die.”

Die…? That wasn’t right…but it wasn’t exactly wrong either.