I sat in my glass cage dreading every second that passed as the clock ticked overhead. Gazing around the massively oversized room I was placed in, I tried to ponder my new existence as a human only 3 inches tall. I tried to focus on the wondrously large bed across the room from me, the floor lamp that easily rivaled the size of a skyscraper at my height, the drop to the floor below and the height of the ceiling above. Really, I focused on anything I could to avoid focusing on the clock above me.
It was almost 7:00 pm and soon my tormentor would be back from wherever he goes during the day. Every hair on my body stood on end. I usually try to have my dinner of scraps and water around this time of day to keep the dreadful anticipation from eating away at me, but my kidnapper had forgotten to leave me any food in the morning and my water bowl had gone dry. The only water in my cage was the sweat pooling against my skin as I waited for 7:00 to arrive.
I heard the shimmying of the doorknob as my captor’s keys undid the lock. The door swung open and there he stood. Chester.
He would probably be pretty tall even to a normal person. At my diminutive size, he towered over everything as he strolled over to the desk atop which was my clear prison. His emerald eyes locked on to mine as he approached, a plastic bag swung from his muscular tree-trunk arms.
“How are you doing, squirt? Having fun being my little bug pet? You look lonely. I know just the thing that will cheer you up!”
As he lifted the plastic bag above the table, a ruffling could be seen as something squirmed inside. Chester poured the contents of the bag out onto the table revealing two naked men and two naked women, only about half my size.
The small people were initially beset by confusion and bewilderment, but those feelings gave way upon turning to see their kidnapper to awe, anger, shock, and terror among others. For the chubbier of the two men, this manifested into outrage and indignation.
“You there! What the hell do you think you’re doing! Do you know who I am?!?”
Chester rubbed his stubbly chin, feigning deep thought. “Hmmmmm. Nope! And I don’t care either! To me, you’re just a toy just like everybody else here.”
“I’ll have you know my company has ties to every shop, factory, and business in the entire state! Let me go right now or I’ll see to it you’re locked up for a long time and can never work again!”
Chester stood to his full height and grabbed the round man by the collar of his shirt. For his part, the tiny man swung fiercely at Chester, whether as an act of bravado, stupidity, or both. “Good god, do you ever shut up! I swear, there’s only one place for an ass like you!” Chester said as he dropped the tiny man into his chair.
The portly man’s complaints gave way to begging and pleading as the fabric of Chester’s exercise shorts stretched against his rump as he began to squat over his seat. I could tell from the look on Chester’s face that he was loving every second as he descended back down into his seat. Finally, I could hear the creak of the seat’s leather cushion as his butt landed on its target.
Chester kicked his feet up on the desk, letting each sneaker collide with its wooden surface with a thud. The three remaining people outside the glass tank were in a panic. They ran around the desk trying to find a way down and away from Chester. But I’ve been trapped here long enough to know that there was no escape. The blonde woman started to scream for help, but that only drew Chester’s attention.
“Sorry little mite, nobody’s coming to help you. But since we’re here, you might be able to do something to help me. See, I’ve had a huge workout at the gym and my feet are killing me. Why don’t you make yourself useful and give me a quick foot rub.”
He kicked off his right shoe as it almost landed on the other shrunken woman. Grabbing the buxom beauty, he dropped her onto the sole of his sneaker. The last shrunken man suddenly sprang into action trying to scale the side of his shoe. Bemused, Chester gazed down at the tiny man with a predatory look in his eye.
“Looks like we have a little hero trying to save his damsel. I know just what will put you in your place.”
Chester winded his finger back and with a mighty flick sent the man flying off his shoe until he landed with a sickening crack. I could barely watch as he struggled to get back on his feet. A huge welt was developing on the side of his face. I couldn’t understand why he didn’t just stay down and hope Chester forgot about him. Finally, he spoke.
“Please! I’ll give you the foot rub if you want! I’ll do anything you want! Just don’t hurt my big sister!”
“Oh, I didn’t realize I managed to nab a pair of siblings. Well, I wouldn’t dare to have her brave my big old feet alone if she’s your sister! After all, I would have to be truly heartless to break up a happy family. Thankfully, I think I have just the thing! You see, I actually have a left foot too!”
The small man tried to run, but could only hobble due to his injuries and was promptly placed in his other shoe as he slid his foot in on top of him, sealing him in. He was about to put his right shoe on as well when he stopped. He slid his dirty crew-cut sock off of his right foot, freeing the massive hairy foot inside. I could only imagine what thoughts went through the older siblings head as Chester’s bare sweaty foot invaded her tomb.
Normally, after putting a tiny human in his shoes, Chester would walk around his room for a while, but this time he had a more devious plan. Slowly, Chester pressed his feet against the side of my tank. It was rare that I could hear the screams of Chester’s victims, but as his feet pressed the duo into his soles, their pained and agonizing wails reverberated against the glass, assaulting me with noise from all angles. I clutched my ears, but I couldn’t block out the horrid shrieking.
The last remaining woman from the bag, a small Latino woman, curled into a fetal position. The stress of the situation had finally gotten the better of her. Unfortunately for her, she was the only one left and Chester had already made up his mind what to do with her. As he lifted her to her face, she mumbled something, but there was no way I could ever hope to hear her. Chester on the other hand, yelled his response loudly, presumably so I wouldn’t miss a word.
“Of course I’m not going to crush you. I have something much better in mind. See, I’m feeling a bit peckish and I need a little snack to keep me going, and I couldn’t help wondering what you tasted like.”
I knew better though. He knew exactly what she would taste like. I had seen so many strangers enter his maw. He probably knew more about eating tiny humans than anybody. The final victim was scooped up by Chester’s tongue and slurped into his mouth. I could see his jaw working up and down on her. It was one of his favorite ways to play with tinies in his mouth. He would bite them just hard enough to leave marks all over their body, but not hard enough to break any bones. In his own words, it was so they couldn’t even look at themselves without remembering what he had done to them.
Finally, Chester stopped pressing his feet against the glass and lowered his head so his face would eclipse my entire view. His jaw swung open and the woman fell out of his mouth. Her tan skin was peppered with huge red scars, her hair was matted all over her face, and she was laying face down in a pool of Chester’s saliva.
Tipping his shoes out, the brother and sister pair plopped onto the desk. They were drenched in sweat and exhausted. The sister was smeared in toe jam and the brother smothered in sock lint.
Finally, Chester stood up and presented his first victim of the night. His leg was bent unnaturally and his skin was pale. He sobbed and wheezed between heavy, belabored breaths. All four of his victims were beaten to the point they were unrecognizable, but they were still alive. Chester was good at prolonging his prisoner’s suffering. He could take weeks or even months before they would finally perish in his sick, twisted games.
“That was fun!” Chester exclaimed. “You might be the best set of toys I’ve ever gotten my hands on. Hopefully you last longer than my last set!”
He bent over and started tapping on the glass to my prison. “But I have to know, what did my cute little ex-girlfriend think of the show? I think I really outdid myself with that one!”
I didn’t respond, still shaken up. Chester poured the four tiny humans back into the plastic back and left the room, leaving me once again alone with my thoughts. I could only pray that one day, Chester would tire of forcing me to watch his sadistic games. Until then, I tried to lay down and sleep, drifting out of conciousness to the sound of the ticking of the clock overhead.