Blue's mouth was dry.
The cloth was absorbing all the moisture inside her mouth and even part of her throat and while she had no idea how much time had passed since she was left down here, the dryness was becoming increasingly uncomfortable.
Uncomfortable.
Most of her was either uncomfortable or hurting.
Breathing had not ceased to be a constant thing she needed to pay attention to, forcing herself to be calm and take slow breaths to avoid the cloth from blocking the air on its way to her chest.
She badly wanted to change her kneeling position to at least alleviate the pain in her knees but she wasn't sure she could properly balance herself again with her hands unusable. She was also scared to even move that much in case he noticed and she received further punishment.
Instead she tried to find something else to think about. Something that was not the dryness in her mouth, the struggle to breathe evenly and calmly or the pain in her knees.
For an unknowable amount of time, her thoughts drifted from her family, to the ever increasing pain, hunger and thirst, wondering how long her master would leave her down here, back to her family and home, her friends.
Eventually she fell asleep while kneeling there and her unconscious body fell forward onto the stone floor.
Blue woke when her face made contact with the floor. Initially she was distracted by the ache in her nose and forehead then she noticed the tightness in her chest and rigidness of her throat.
She couldn't breathe.
Rolling onto her side in the hopes that the change in position would allow the air to flow again.
It did not.
In a panic Blue brought her hands up to her mouth wanting to remove the cloth or at least pull it out enough that she could breathe again yet her covered hands would not permit her to grasp the cloth in order to pull it out.
She couldn't grasp enough to pull it out. What was she supposed to do?
It was so difficult to concentrate, to try and find a solution. All she could feel was the growing panic, the desperation for air.
Blues mouth opened as much as it could in a desperate attempt for air, her tongue pushing against the fabric wedged into her mouth.
Something she'd done must have worked for she felt the faint cool trickle of air working its way into her chest. Her body relaxed now that this life giving substance had resumed flowing.
She struggled to not breathe too deeply, worried that doing so would cut off the meager amount she was receiving. It was difficult, so very difficult lying there and not taking deeper breaths. All she wanted to do in this moment was to breathe as deeply and as much as possible, yet she could not. Instead she had to be patient, had to endure and get herself calmer so she could think clearly again and behave as she ought to so this did not happen again.
After several minutes of laying there and gathering her courage, hoping that moving would not cause the air to be blocked again, she slowly rolled to her stomach then propped herself onto her elbows and knees before using her bound hands to push herself back into a kneeling position. Hopefully at least close to where she'd been told to remain.
Blue didn't need to have light to know she did not look the same as when her master had left. She didn't know for certain if he'd notice or not, if he did notice she hoped it would not lead to another punishment. Though she knew the likelihood of that was smaller than an inkfish not being eaten by crows.
Blue was grateful for the pain in her knees and the discomfort of the cloth in her mouth. For it meant she would have a difficult time falling asleep and thus repeating the same mistake as before. At least she thought this would be the case.
She had fallen asleep briefly earlier which meant she had to be very tired. In order to avoid doing so again she repeatedly shifted position on her knees, the pain reminding her she was indeed awake.
To distract herself further she began to think back on when she had been first receiving her instruction with the others of her age among the tribe. If she closed her eyes and concentrated she could feel the humidity of the jungle trails, hear the calls of birds and monkeys high in the trees, smell the damp dirt and the numerous flowers which grew everywhere.
She'd grown up in a small village just outside the Tuncara Jungle. Her father had grown up here as well as had his father and his father before him. She couldn't remember how far back exactly but her father had said their family had always been here. Always lived in the small hut beneath the canopy of purple pod trees.
She'd attended instruction with her friends: Seraph, Eremil, Mithanmyr and Rosa as well as the others of similar age.
There they'd been instructed by Tulgan. A half-orc man who was rather large in build and scars outnumbering his hair.
He'd been very strict without being mean. Except when he needed to be in order to teach them what their future could be like. Those particular lessons had scared all of them, many had gone home crying to parents those days. But all the adults had agreed it was better we be instructed for as many possibilities as we could in the hopes more of us would survive. At least to adulthood.
Many lessons on obedience, drilling it into them until they'd obey without question or hesitation. Lessons on not talking back or at all, on skills such as cooking and cleaning properly. All were taught how to carry things properly and not to complain. Taught how to go longer times with little to no food.
While these lessons were difficult at times they were necessary to prevent many from going immediately to their deaths.
Some of the lessons were more harsh. Particularly the ones teaching varying degrees and methods of cruelty which were undoubtedly awaiting most of us.
It was on days after these lessons that she'd go home and tearfully cling to her mother and father. Begging them to let her stay with them even though they all knew it was not something within their ability to do.
Her mother would hold her close, wipe the tears away and sing in a gentle voice that always managed to calm her down.
Meanwhile her father would make her favorite meal from the purple pods and river fish. Afterwards telling her stories of their ancestors from before the war and the fall of their country, a time when families hadn't been separated and the children hadn't needed to be instructed in this manner.
Just as her thoughts drift towards spending time with her father on the river, noise from the floor above pulls her from the memory.
Blue's head lifts towards the ceiling as the heavy thumps of foot falls make their way around the main floor of the house.
Her master was home.
Perhaps her punishment was over and she would be let out or at least be free of the cloth which hindered her breathing.
She heard the softer sound of a second set of foot falls accompanying the louder more heavy ones. The pair moved almost directly overhead before seeming to come to a halt.
Silence followed. A silence which seemed almost more oppressive than before when she had been alone in the house.
When sound reaches her ears again it is initially difficult to make out. The sounds had to be loud in order to be heard by her through the thickness of the floorboards, yet all she could make out were a series of almost animalistic growls and maybe...screeches.
Blue blinked in consternation upon realizing what the sounds were and immediately tried to block out the noises by resuming her reminiscing of time spent with her parents.
Blue was not entirely successful in blocking out the sounds. She was relieved when they finally stopped and all was silent again.
She waited but did not hear the heavy footfalls of her master again. It did not seem he was intending to come down to the basement any time soon. Maybe he would come in the morning before leaving for the shipyard.
She'd be alright. Morning would come and with it her master.
Surely her punishment would be served by then.