Naked in the pillory

Marcus spent the night curled up and sobbing in a ball, locked away in one of the dungeon cells underneath the castle. It was dark and cold, and he only had a bed of dirty straw to keep his naked body from the uncomfortable stone. He was so worried about what had happened that he barely slept a wink. There'd been so sign of his parents yet and he had no idea what Lyra was planning to do with them or him, only that it was sure to be awful and cruel.

All he could think about was the things she'd said on the stage, those terrible lies about him, the Kingdom and his family. Of course he knew none of it was true, but her voice kept going round and round his head anyway. He'd manage to nod off for a few minutes at a time before he'd wake up again and hear her yelling about starving children or how she was going to save this country. How could she sound so sure of herself when she was talking such rubbish?

The young prince was still exhausted when that scary, brawny man Jack opened the door to the cell and fastened a chain to the front of his collar. He didn't even bother trying to fight when he was led naked out into the dungeons, nor when a bucket of cold water was dumped over his head to wash him clean. The cruelty off these people hardly even surprised him anymore and he was too tired to do anything but sob hopelessly and shiver. Worse still, Jack kept glancing at his naked body, dark eyes flickering over the exposed flesh of his butt and thighs. He couldn't help but remember Lyra's promise to loan him out to her followers like some party favor. The thought of being in their hands made his stomach turn, but if that was what she wanted to do with him, how was he supposed to stop her?

"Sorry about this, boy." Jack sighed suddenly, as he stood there shivering like a leaf and dripping cold water on to the stone floor. "You're not going to like what she's got planned for you. Just go along with it, do as she says, and it'll be over sooner."

Marcus raised his head, staring at the brawny man anxiously. Jack was looking genuinely ****, but how could he trust any of these awful people to want to help him? It was probably more lies, trying to trick him into going along with their wicked plans. He just curled his lip and glanced away.

When he was dry, Jack pulled again on the chain and marched the naked prince back up through the now empty palace. Marcus just felt empty and broken, letting himself be led like an animal of a leash. It was only when he realized that he was being pulled out of the castle and down into the town that he started to panic. There were people here to see him, men and women waiting on the side of the streets like this was some kind of awful show.

Every single one stopped to stare as he was yanked past, naked and shuddering, a fierce blush on his cheeks even through his utter terror. He tried to cover his dick with a hand, but it was already hard to keep his balance with Jack yanking him forward every few moments. So many curious stares, flickering over his exposed flesh. Soon the young prince was sobbing with shame, utterly heartsick.

Lyra was waiting at the town square, her arms crossed over her chest. She had a few of her men with her, the same tall, brawny types who'd kept the crowd at bay last night. When she saw him, she smiled thinly, her one good eye glowing with satisfaction.

"Welcome, prince Marcus." She called out, her voice cold and mocking. "I trust you slept well, in the very same cells where your parents imprisoned those who spoke against them. Don't worry if it was all a little uncomfortable for such a pampered boy. I have prepared a new place for you just for today." She waved her hand towards the center of the square, where there was a statue of his grandparents built to celebrate a great victory over the barbarians from long before he was born. The heads of the former King and Queen had been sliced clean off, and there was awful, rude graffiti all over the white marble. Marcus bit his lip, feeling a flicker of rage. How dare these dirty peasants do this? His grandparents were great rulers!

Then he saw what Lyra was pointing at, and felt his heart go cold in his chest. There, in front of the desecrated statue, was a wooden pillory, like the ones used to punish criminals. It was hanging open, ready for someone to be **** inside, bent over and exposed for everyone to mock and laugh at. Worse still, Jack was pulling him right towards it.

"No!" He screamed, struggling against the awful yanking round his neck. Not like this! They'd put him in there, naked! How could they?

"Why so ****, boy?" Lyra sneered. "This is a mild punishment indeed compared to what your crimes deserve!" Jack gave him another hard pull of the collar and he stumbled forward, helpless to resist. Before he could even scream, the brawny man grabbed him by the shoulder and **** him towards the awful pillory. He shoved into it and bent over, even as he fought with all his strength to resist. Holding him there with one hand, Jack yanked his flailing arms into the slots, and then closed the top of the pillory before he could even fight free. The device locked together with an awful clicking sound, and suddenly Marcus was totally stuck, with his neck and wrists in holes that were too small for anything else. No matter how much he pulled frantically back, using all the strength his scrabbling legs could muster against the cold cobblestones, his head and hands just wouldn't slip out.

In the end, he just gave up and collapsed, sobbing like a child. Lyra was staring at him with that same sick satisfaction, her eye drifting over his naked body. Her men were watching too, and the hunger in those awful gazes made him want to vomit. What now? Were they just going to leave him here?