Today was a bad day

All day today I was tortured.

I guess I now know where those screams were coming from. I wasn't the only one in that room in the tower today.

Yes, I said tower. THere was a single window to the outside. I saw a loooooong way down. I think there were some decomposing bodies hanging on the outer walls. And there were sort of patchwork birds flying around, kind of like vultures. That description sounds almost like something out of an Oz book, but believe me, if you saw these you would feel nothing but terror.

My--our--torture was part of the training for the soldiers. I'm guessing the others there were previous disobedient "children". Actually, some of them were children.

A few didn't make it to the end of the day.

I'm lucky I survived myself.

The day started out reasonably enough (given the situation), with my whole school (students AND faculty) coming in for training. Mostly against their will. They beat me and the other prisoners to a bloody pulp. For round two, the Witch lent us some strength. Still didn't help much, since she favored the others over me now.

Many of the younger children screamed and cried uncontrollably.

It only made me angrier.

But things started getting insane when us victims stopped being injured by our unwilling oppressors and we started threatening each other.

I'd rather not talk about some of the things said and done during this time, but I had to fight back. It was the only way to stay alive. I did it out of instinct (and maybe her control). I shouldn't have. I shouldn't have.

Oh God what have I done!

It all became chaos and when all the yelling and insults and attempted beatings and successful attacks were over, the place was stained red.

Well, more red than it already was.

We weren't the only ones crying. The teachers and students and others were crying too. They didn't want to be there.

Some of them seemed to start hallucinating and tried to escape. The Witch strung them up to the inner walls. I guess she has no tolerance for even the slightest hesitation now.

The remainder of the soldiers also attacked each other and trash talked. It was a very strange thing to see. She said all of this was for gauging how well they could do in various combative situations.

I did notice that gross gray stuff amongst the mold.

Eventually the Skin-Taker and Horace Horrible came in, stabbing random people, to, as she put it, "test their threshold of pain" so she could know how much extra control to exert on the cowards.

I couldn't bear to watch. It was horrible.

I hate the Witch.

I am now all bruised and bloody with cuts all over. But I fared better than some. My whole right side aches. I think a rib or two could be broken. I don't think she'll let me see a doctor.

"well," she said to those of us who survived being punching bags, "looks like I might just give you another chance."

She smiled and her beauty almost returned to her face for a second. But not quite.

I think she was creating a sort of special team (or, like she says, army) for "the End" and seeing how we would work together and stuff. But it can only be for some evil purpose.

I'm home now, resting. I won't be surprised if I die of internal bleeding or something. I feel horribel.