Somewhere Weaknesses Are Strength

"Put the sword down," Hayley commanded again.

Sebastian bit down on her bottom lip, tears perching in her eyes. A sense of helplessness washed over her body. This was the end of her bloodline. There was nothing she could do to save herself. Had she swiped at Hayley faster, she would have been on her way to freedom. But her timing was off and she would pay for her mistake with her life. Sebastian failed as an escapee, a ruler, a sister, and a daughter.

The princess' sword clattered to the ground from her limp hand. Hayley sheathed her own sword, having no need for it now. The gun stayed pressed against Sebastian's temple. In her anger, Hayley found mild entertainment from the tears speckling the princess' lower lashes. Captain Hayley Williams was in control now and she would put Sebastian through as much pain as she could before the princess' final breath.

"I should blow your fucking brains out right now," Hayley stated, pressing the gun harder against Sebastian's head.

Sebastian said nothing, continuing to bite her lower lip and keep tears from leaving her eyes. Her breaths came out shuddered, body racking with unshed sobs. She didn't want to cry. Dying was a sign of weakness but crying was far worse.

"That would be way too easy," Hayley continued.

In swift motions, Hayley removed the gun from Sebastian's head and gripped of fistful of her blonde locks. Hand tangled in Sebastian's hair, Hayley tugged the girl's head back. Pain surged through Sebastian's scalp. A few tears streaked down her cheek.

"If you don't do as I say," Hayley whispered in Sebastian's ear, "this will be a hell of a lot more painful for you."

Sebastian whimpered, holding back the new tears that accumulated in her eyes. She didn't want to die. She couldn't die. Her adulthood was something she wanted to experience.

Insults berated Sebastian's mind, some on her accord and some forcing their way to the front of her mind from distant memories. All agreed she was an idiot, not fit serve as any ruler. This proved them all right. She wasn't fit to be anything more than a princess. A weak, stupid princess.

Hayley tugged Sebastian's hair, forcing the princess into movement. Sebastian stifled a cry in pain. Her scalp was far from used to this type of punishment. She was a royal female. Punishments were never more than a light spanking, soap in the mouth, or a firm talking to.

As they moved throughout the mansion, Hayley's tugs on Sebastian's hair grew increasingly rough. In minutes, Sebastian was yelping in pain, stray tears dripping down her face. Hayley knew she was hurting. Sebastian was more delicate than she liked to let on. The light pressure Hayley exerted on her scalp was enough to send pain through the girl's entire body.

And Hayley enjoyed every indication of pain.

They stopped at a staircase hidden in the far end of the mansion. Hayley released Sebastian's hair, a moment of relief flooding the princess' abused head. It didn't last long. The pirate took hold of Sebastian's arm, grip tight, eliciting another murmur of pain from the princess' throat.

Hayley didn't need the princess to escape, nor did she need her to fall down the stone staircase. Sebastian would be dead by the time she reached the bottom if not fatally wounded. Though painful, it would be shorter than anything Hayley had planned.

Hayley carefully descended the staircase, tugging Sebastian in tow. Sebastian could no longer hold back the tears in her eyes. They stormed down her cheek, free from barricade at last. Sebastian didn't try to stop the tears but kept any sobs as far down in her throat as possible.

They neared the bottom of the staircase. A swift glance around the torture chamber was enough to show Sebastian the horrors she was to be subjected to. She wanted to turn around, to walk back up the staircase and forget she ever tried to escape. Instead, she and Hayley continued to climb into the torture chamber until they were fully on the gray, stone flooring.

Hayley immediately shoved Sebastian against the stone wall, grabbing her wrists and pinning her to the rough surface. The jagged edges of the material dug into Sebastian's back, likely forcing rips into her dress and skin. The malice in Hayley's eyes caused her body to tremble with fear and pent up sobs. With each shake of her body, the stone wall dug deeper into her back, forcing more tears to streak down her face.

A twinge of guilt ran through Hayley's mind, a sense of humanity seemingly taking over for a moment as she watched the princess cry. She snuffed the sensation just as fast as it arose, keeping in mind that Sebastian had betrayed her, almost put them both in danger by trying to leave the mansion.

"You think you're so fucking smart, don't you?" Hayley seethed, "Did you think I was incompetent enough not to notice?"

Sebastian didn't respond, too overwhelmed to speak clearly let alone decipher the thoughts stampeding through her mind.

"Did you?" Hayley yelled, face centimeters from Sebastian's.

"No," Sebastian forced, voice thick with leashed sobs.

Hayley sneered. Sebastian pressed her body harder against the stone wall, preferring the prickling to Hayley's anger. She had only seen a glimpse of Hayley's anger toward her once, when Hayley bathed Sebastian the first time. The fire in the pirate's eyes, the terrifying expression, the tense body, Sebastian had seen it all before but only for a second. This was far worse than the bath time incident.

Sebastian was going to die this time, whether she welcomed it or not.

Hayley threw Sebastian to the stone floor. Sebastian cried out, her body slamming against the flooring, a sickening thud echoing through the chamber. The entire length of Sebastian's body stung. Her arms shook as she forced herself to an upright position. She kept her eyes to her lap, tears staining the skirt of her dress.

Hayley circled the princess, steps slow and deliberate. She glared at the princess' shaking form but said nothing as she walked, letting silence draw over the pair. She wanted to hurt Sebastian. God, she wanted to hurt her, to make her feel the pain she felt.

But a small part of her wanted to take Sebastian back to her room and nurse the wounds that had already begun to show tints of blood.

The pirate shook the thought from her head. Sebastian was a risk to her safety and needed to be taken care of as such.

"I liked you," Hayley stated, venom leaching onto her words, "I bet you didn't know. No, you were too busy coming up with this ridiculous escape plan to notice."

Before Sebastian could process Hayley's statement, the pointed tip of a boot dug into her stomach, a quick, sharp jab that left Sebastian doubled over and gasping for air.

"I treated you better than I've treated a captive in my life. I didn't punish you, I fed you, I clothed you, I didn't make you work, I kept you safe. And how do you repay me? Certainly not in a flourish of appreciation."

Hayley rammed the tip of her shoe into Sebastian's side. A mangled sob, forced its way from Sebastian's throat. Tremors ran through her body, pain surging through her system. Silent alarms in the back of her mind ordered her to get out of the situation.

All she could do was sit there and take it.

"Maybe I should have punished you from the beginning. You would have fucking learned then. But I went easy on you. I treated you like a human being instead of a piece of meat like you were supposed to be."

Again, Hayley kicked Sebastian in the side. The force sent Sebastian to the ground. She curled in the fetal position, hoping to keep her throbbing midsection from harm's way. It was impossible. Each breath she drew dragged her body through more pain.

"I'm sorry," Sebastian cried.

"You're sorry?" Hayley laughed.

The sadistic noise sent a shiver through Sebastian's body.

"You're sorry," Hayley yelled, raising her boot and jabbing the heel into Sebastian's partially protected stomach, "It's too late for 'sorrys,' sweetheart."

Sebastian's sobs were audible, wrenching from her throat with vigor. Pain pulsated through her body. She curled herself tighter into a ball on the biting stone floor, tucking her head into her knees.

"Get up," Hayley demanded.

Sebastian didn't move, opting to stay curled on the ground. She didn't know if she could move if she tried. It didn't matter anymore. Death was her fate. Hayley could punish her all she wanted because Sebastian refused to move. But death would be the one to finish her.

"Get the hell up," Hayley growled.

When Sebastian didn't move, Hayley gripped the girl's hair and yanked her to her feet. Sebastian released a cry, heart-breaking in tone. Hayley paused, regretting each of her actions. She didn't let it haunt her long, stuffing the regret into the far corner of her mind where the rest of her pent-up, unnecessary emotions went.

Sebastian's whole body ached. Her head to her feet throbbed with pains she never thought she would experience, pains she never wanted to experience. She knew what she had coming would be worse. She doubted that she could handle anymore.

But her body would decide when she had enough. It wouldn't correspond with the pleas in her head. She just wanted it to be over. Her body would fight to stay alive.

Hayley let go of Sebastian's hair, gripping the dress and pulling the already ripped fabric from Sebastian's body. Completely vulnerable, Sebastian stared into Hayley's eyes for a reason behind her undressing.

"That will just get in the way," Hayley said, nonchalant, "Not that you deserve to be clothed anyway."

Without waiting for a response, Hayley gripped Sebastian's arm, more blood perking from the stone-made wounds at the sudden pressure. She pulled Sebastian to the Saint Andrew's Cross situated in a corner of the room and pushed the princess' back against it. The straps attached to Sebastian's wrists and ankles with ease, as she didn't struggle, situating her body into a X-shaped formation. Hayley checked each strap once to make sure they were tight.

The skin of Sebastian's wrist and ankles pinched under the straps, her blood flow slowly being cut off. Her hands and feet would be numb soon, she knew it and she was sure Hayley knew it too. Her sobs increased, anticipation of Hayley's next action causing her to become nauseous.

"Please don’t," Sebastian begged.

Hayley ignored Sebastian's plea, turning her attention to lighting a small fire pit next to her case of branding devices. She kept Sebastian's cries from reaching her ears. Care was cracking through her torture-oriented mind. If she listened to Sebastian, let the princess' tortured sobs reach her ears, she would give in.