12: Salkatar Prison, Sarania

Day Five

Alora hadn't seen Walna ever since the guards took her away. She had asked a few of the other inmates in Wing D for two days about what exactly the box is and what happens there. They all said their different vague things about the box but the one thing they all said at the end was,

"Its where the sun never shines and where it never will."

The day was over, Alora had just gotten out of the shower. She was walking along the hall and saw two guards casually having a chat. The guards looked familiar to Alora and then it hit her, they were part of the mob that beat up Walna a few days prior.

"And that's the problem with these fucking non-humans, they disgust me the whole lot of them.", she over heard one guard say.

"Trust me these past few days have nothing but a thrill dealing with that filthy fairy. I haven't had a rush like that in ages." the other guard said.

She walked past them and she heard them laugh loudly, probably about what they did to Walna for the past few days. She entered the cell and to her suprise Walna was there sitting on her bed sobbing quietly.

Her right eye was swollen shut and parts of her face were swollen and puffed up. Her entire body was bruised and battered. Walna's bright skin was damned. Her left eye was a sea of red. She had cuts all over her arms that had just started healing. Her knees bruised and one toe was missing on each of her big feet. She looked like she had been through hell and back.

"Walna you are okay!", Alora sighed in relief. She held Walna's arm, Walna flinched in pain. Alora pulled back and she just couldn't keep her eyes off her violated body.

"Im so so sorry.", Alora was apologetic in her movements trying to help but Walna kept to herself, "What happened to you?"

Walna turned to the wall and stared at the wall, she didn't blink not even once. Alora could see that was shaking in fear. Alora sat down at the edge of her bed, she played around with her fingers stretching them in and out.

"Jade killed my friend, well he wasn't really my friend but I knew him or at least I was getting to know him for who he was and who he was seemed special and worth knowing.", Alora said, "Ever since my father got executed in front of the entirety of Sarania, I made a promise to myself that I would never let anyone take away anyone I care about. It's been a hard few years for me and I am just angry and bitter all the fucking time because I blame myself for my father's death. He should have run with me in those tunnels but I left him for dead."

Alora waited for Walna to say something but all she got was silence. Alora threw herself on the bed and laid down.

"They be-ee-at mee-eee for thr-three days and nights.", Walna said softly , "The-ey tortured me, mocked me, cut me every where they could just because of what I am, different."

"Im sorry, it's all my fault if I listened to the guard none of this would have happened."

"Trust me that wa-wa-was going to happen either way.", Walna said, "They cut off my wings the first day I got here and fed them to me as dinner and trust me they were beautiful. It was like I had a rainbow on my back."

"I know I haven't been the best of cell mates but I'm willing to try things on a new page.", Alora said sincerely.

"Always willing and always have been."

"Im glad we can try this nicely." , Alora said.

"But I envy you.",Walna said, "Because in a few days you will be out of here and I will probably be killed before you even get to Vallath."

*******

The sun had dawned over the prison. All the prisoners were let out of their cells and headed straight to the yard. The heat was merciless and what made it worse for the prisoners was that they were given nothing to drink.

"Drink your saliva.", the warden told the prisoners, "If you have no Salva left, cut off your tongue and drink your blood."

They continued digging and digging, they didn't find any stones because of the extreme heat. The warden didn't care he would have forced them to continue mining even if the sun fell to earth. He saw each one of their lives as meaningless, especially the non humans, and he had made it very clear the very day he got the job.

Alora and Walna were digging next to the yard wall. Walna's wounds gushed out blood and it dripped onto the sand and trickled down to the pickaxe. She could barely hold onto it and could barely stand or do anything. She was sweating all over and the sweat mixed with her blood.

"Are you okay?", Alora asked with a concerned look on her face.

"Yeah I'm fine.", she assured her. She continued trying to dig but she was fading. She fainted into the sand.

Alora dropped her tool and rushed to Walna. She placed her hand on her forehead and it was drenched in sweat and blood.

"Help!", Alora cried, "Help!"

The two guards walked over there with all the time in the world. One of the guards picked up a long stick from the ground and pocked at her unconscious body.

"Looks like we got another one.", his face lit up with a sinful smile across his face "Come on let's get the useless walking goat shit out of my sight."

One guard stood over her head and while the other one stood over her legs. The guard standing over her legs spat on Walna right on her face. He laughed sadistically and the other guard joined in too.

Alora was fuming, she walked up to him and punched him right across his jaw. He fell to the ground and held onto his jaw, trying to relocate it. All the other guards came rushing to the scene. Dozens of them surrounded her and had bats in their hands ready to beat her down on the spot. The warden signalled for them to stand down. They all moved away from Alora and carried Walna away to a cooler place.

Alora continued to work through the heat and collected nothing but sand. She went back to her cell and found a suprise visitor standing in her cell.

"Strong right hook.", the Warden said, "Nice."

"I know you did not come all this way just so you could tell me I throw a decent punch.", Alora said.

"I like order in my sanctuary and the stunt you pulled earlier today should have landed in the box, Im sure your friend has told you all about it.", He said timidly, " But you are a special prisoner and it's unfortunate that the princess of Sarania isn't my prisoner to keep. I can't lay a hand on you Emperor Sebastian's direct order but I can do anything I want with that fairy friend of yours."

"No don't you touch her!" Alora outburst. "She didn't do anything wrong!"

"Oh but I can and I will. This is my house and I'm not going to let Sarania's favourite orphan stop me ", he said, "She will suffer for all your sins until your short stay here comes to its abrupt end."

The warden left the cell. Alora stared at the ceiling for hours on end. She couldn't help but think about all the horrible things they were doing to her. She was nearly dead the first time she was taken. Alora couldn't help but think if they were going to finish off the job.

A few moments later Walna strolled right back in hopping on her one good leg. She looked better despite the disfigured face and the bruises all over her body.

"You look like you've seen a ghost.", Walna said, "So I guess I'm not dead yet."