Shackles

[LUNA'S POV]

'...this hurts... I am on the verge of crying but I don't want Steph to see me like this. Please stop. Please stop this torture on us!'

I had no choice but to remain hanged to the wall with chains attached on my wrist and iron balls wrapped to my feet. I feel at any moment my arms will just tore off and I'll fall into the pool of my own blood. Stephanie is also being hanged to the opposite wall of this room.

But unfortunately she can't communicate with me because first, her head's being banged by a metal rod to keep her mum from protesting, and second, she's deeply upset with me.

In between us, there's this ugly bastard guard who's sleeping on his chair while holding the keys. If only I could take them, but how?!

I can't think of any idea to get out of this situation, and even if I do it, it ain't like I'll be able to escape out of this mansion. So should I just endure the pain and wait for the end? Oh, God. Please give me your strength.

"Hey Steph. Can you hear me?"

For the last time, I mustered my courage and energy to speak to her but she refused to give me any response.

The room reeked from it's putrid smell and was very dimly lit much to my anxiety. I could hear the squeaking noise coming from the corners, of rats feeding on rotten carcasses. The stony wall is all mushy and since I am wearing a thin cloth I can feel it poking on the back of my neck and spine. It's unbearable.

If only someone could save us, but I know no one would.

The only source of light on which my hopes flickered on was the burning flames outside of this cell door which also bestowed it's warmth upon the drops of blood dripping from the two giant iron balls tied around Steph's ankles.

I knew it from the sound, that she's been badly hit. If things continue like this, I'll permanently lose her!

"HEY YOU! GET UP! SHE'S BLEEDING VERY BADLY! WAKE UP, YOU PIG!" I screamed again but this monster wouldn't even flinch an inch from his chair.

My tears which had dried up a long time ago from despair started to fill up again and follow the same course on my cheeks before falling from the tip of my chin. The scratch that it brought along to the corner of my eyes burned like infinite paper cuts and my vision became to get all blurry, but too bad I can't wipe them as my hands are tied.

This cave like cellar echoed with my sobbing for a while until a deep huff grabbed my attention to Steph.

"Why are you crying?... isn't this is exactly what you wanted?" She was struggling to say under her suffocated breaths but her smirk was intact from disgust.

Those words brought an another tear fall from my eyes but I embraced myself as this is clearly what I wasn't expecting.

"What are you thinking, Steph? Do you think I deliberately did this all to you?!" I asked.

"Then for what else would you pull that pathetic act of concern and drag me along with you?"

"I honestly didn't mean it that way, Steph! I was genuinely concerned and didn't wanted you to get food poisoned from that rotten meal!"

"Oh yeah? So getting my head blowed by a rod was much preferable to you?"

I was stunned when she said that.

"Don't blame me for that, Steph. You know it was your fault for picking up a fight with the guards." I reasoned carefully considering her injury in the back of my mind, but she refused to acknowledge my statement.

We argued some more until we both got to the point of exhaustion.

"Anyway. I think I am starting to lose my consciousness now. It seems this will be the last time you see me, Luna..." She scoffed but I took it as a bitter laugh of regret.

I had to do something.

But what?...!

"Steph. Can you raise your legs along with me?" I proposed.

"Heh?... Wait.You don't mean..." I hummed to her guessing as a yes and she freaked out.

"Are you stupid?! These walls are made up of stones, god dammit! First of all, lifting legs with such heavy weights is impossible for us, second, are you trying to crumble this entire mansion?!"

I inhaled a deep breath of spoilt air and answered back after begging for her calmness.

"Listen. That's all the more reason why it would be beneficial for us to grab the attention of guards who could possibly be roaming outside. This guy's knocked out for sure, so ain't no way we're gonna get out of here anytime soon."

Steph still wasn't convinced from my idea thus I had to say the remaining sentence which I initially wanted to refrain.

"Besides, aren't we going to die in this stinky place, anyway? At least our deaths will be recorded in a real accident and would be stated in the legal documents than being faked. This mansion is a hell, so who cares?"

"So, that's what you were thinking about..." She mumbled but just to be safe, I assured her that I came up with this plan only after coming here. I never had such suicidal intentions back when we were happy.

"It's alright. I know you didn't had this wicked plan right from the beginning. You are way too dumb for that."

"Excuse me?!"

"Just take that as a compliment." I chuckled even though I knew she was dissing me and so did she upon hearing me.

We wished each other sarcastically a good luck and began our effort to lift those damn weights. We wrapped the chains around the arms and pulled our torso upwards to swing the weights as wrecking ball.

"Ughhh!!! Just a little more..." I groaned when I managed to detach my legs from the wall at least a little but then suddenly a huge bang blasted my ears and I looked front to see Steph's metal spheres stuck to the wall with the side pebbles crumbling out.

She...did it...She did it!

"Ha, hahaha, been a long time since I exercised my legs with weights. Did you heard the impact?" She boasted and I smiled.

"Yep! Afterall, I knew you are a strong woman."

She gasped as my expression wasn't what she had expected to see. I should've pretended to act more surprised but what can I do when I've already witnessed her display of enormous strength several times in my past life. Although the memories are hazy but I still do remember some crazy stances very clearly. In comparison to those, this is nothing but, oh well, just for the sake of her happiness, I'll act surprised.

"Stop it, I know you are faking it."

"Oops! You caught me. Now then, let's hope someone heard this huge bang and is coming right at us."

"..." She didn't like my cheeky smile, but I loved her frowning upon it. The tease was fun.

"Nah. I think the sound wasn't loud enough. I am gonna give my all on this last swing." She smirked and that brought me to worry.

"WAIT STEPH! THAT'S -!!!" I yelled but her legs were already pulled up high in the air. In that moment, I finally saw her face with trails of blood covering her one half under the vibrant yellow light of distant candles. The weights after reach upto their peak oscillated back due to gravity along with her legs and landed straight onto the wall, destroying everything that came on it's way. The impact was so loud that it caused the sleeping monster fall on ground by jolting on his seat.

But before I could enjoy our success, the sight of her face carrying the broad grin being instantly smashed backwardly hit me like a lightening and without even saying a word what I saw in the very next second was her head hung low with stream of blood gushing out of her mouth and nose.

"STEPH!!!!!!!"

I cried my lungs out and revolted to get rid of those shackles binding me to my place. But no matter how much I tried, I remained pinned to where I was while the red pool only got bigger and bigger until it touched the boots of the guard who was trembling from seeing so much of blood.

He was petrified, so much so that without giving it a second thought he ran away while cussing. Leaving me mortified upon the grief of what I just did.

"I killed her before our journey could even start. I am her murderer. What have I done.... What have I done...." My mouth wouldn't stop mumbling from terror.

The trembling was so severe that I didn't halt pulling my hand out of those cuffs even though they were beginning to cut through my flesh. But I don't care. I need to take both of us out of here. There's no way I'll let her get buried in a filthy place like this.

She has always been a glorious fighter. She may have lost a lot of blood but she's far more stronger than any men I've met in my life. It may be very small but I should not give up on hope that easily.

I started to move my hands more vigorously. It ached. It ached a lot. But for Steph, I'll do anything.

"Please hang in there, Steph! I will free you very soon!"

I screamed amidst crying to keep up my spirits but somewhere deep inside my heart, I feared what if it was too late...