Eventually they arrived at the road that separated the starting area from the contest area. Jacob could now see a corral set with posts each about six feet high. Each post had a ring near the top, middle and just above the bottom. The posts were planted in the ground about six feet apart. Several unsuccessful, now captured hunt prey, stood tethered each to a post. Since most prey were only restrained with rope when they were captured, they still had the use of their fingers. Thus, it was important to keep them from reaching each other. The hunters were all well enough trained to tie inescapable bondage, but that would not necessarily prevent the fingers of tied hands working the knots for another subject. Separated anchor posts and a short tether removed that temptation.

As they reached the gate of the corral Sally dismounted and led Jacob to a hitching post nearby. She tied his reins to the post and quickly fastened his hobble. He was, after all, a wild animal that could not be trusted to be left unrestrained.

The girl with the blonde captive had secured her pony next to Jacob. No separation was necessary for ponies. Their hands were completely covered inside their arm binders and their mouths were bitted. Even if they were inclined to try to help one of their fellows, something trained out of them, they were effectively unable to do so.

The girl led her captured blonde to the gate. A man and a woman at the gate talked briefly to the girl. One of them examined the inside of the lower lip of the captive, looking for any registration mark; then they examined both flanks for signs of any previous brand that may have been obscured. Satisfied the woman wrote 4467 with a marker on the right flank of the new captive. The girl then led her captive into the corral and tethered her with a loop over her neck to one of the posts. Her ownership had been established and the captive had been registered to her new owner.

Lady Clair followed the girl with her two new slaves desperately keeping close. The gate attendants did not seem surprised to see the two men step up to the gate even though not visibly leashed. The same process was repeated for each of them and soon they were tethered, each by his collar and control ring, to their own private post. Lady Clair did something at the pouch of their belt and then left the corral. She must have deactivated the electronic leash because there was no reaction from the men when Lady Clair left the corral.

As soon as he was left alone, the large male pulled back to the length of his tethers clearly testing their security. Jacob, if he were allowed to speak, could have told him that he was wasting his time. These tethers were extremely secure and the new slave was not going anywhere. On the other hand the prospect of belonging to Lady Clair would be unthinkable. Some of the captives stood in quiet resignation. Not the large male. He pulled and twisted and jerked at his bonds. Jacob watched for a time but became bored and then looked away. He knew the male was going nowhere. The male, even if he had not yet accepted it, also knew. Desperation would fuel him for a time before acceptance fully set in.

As Jacob turned his attention from the captured male he saw a small brunette approach Lady Clair. They spoke for a moment. Then the two of them walked back into the corral and approached the small male. He was tethered to a pole close to Jacob, in fact, just on the other side of the corral fence. This close proximity allowed Jacob to see and hear everything that took place.

Lady Clair unfastened the small male’s gag. “I am told you have a proposition for me.” She said.

“Yes, thank you”, the male said. “I am willing to buy my freedom. I will give you one million dollars to let me go.” Jacob wondered if this was the reason he had given in so easily. He had another plan for his escape.

“And just exactly how would that happen?” Lady Clair asked.

“Release me from capture and I will bring you the money.”

Lady Clair laughed. “Once I released you you would be free. There would be no way for me to get the money. Not that I don’t trust you darling.” She started to lift the gag back to his mouth.

“Wait.” He gasped. “Melanie can go get the money and bring it to you. Let me speak with her alone and I will tell her where it is.”

Lady Clair looked at him for a moment and then at Melanie. “Are you willing to do this?” She said to Melanie.

“Yes. I can do that.”

“It would have to be done this afternoon. Once the registration is finished you will be a slave and then any transaction would have to go through the registry. Once you are fully registered I can sell you, but freeing you would be very complicated. I am not inclined to free a registered slave. So, is that possible?”

“Yes.” He said. “The money is close she can have it and be back in less than two hours.”

“Ok.” Lady Clair said. “But if this is some kind of trick, the pain you will suffer is something you don’t even want to think about.” Lady Clair walked away leaving Melanie with the now ungagged slave.

The small male leaned down as best he could in his situation and put is mouth to Melanie’s ear. Both Sally and Lady Clair watched from distance to make sure that Melanie didn’t try to do anything other than talk to him. Finally Melanie nodded her head and left the corral. Lady Clair returned and lifted the gag to his mouth.

“Do you have to do that?” He asked, but she said nothing, just pushed the shaft of the gag against his teeth until he opened his mouth and accepted it. She pulled it tight behind his head. It almost looked from his reaction like she had pulled it even tighter than it had been before. Then she gave him a slap on the flank with the quirt that always dangled from her wrist and walked from the corral.

Jacob felt very jealous. He had not liked this male. He had not liked him when he had deserted his friend during the hunt; he had not liked him when he had surrendered with no effort at all to escape; and he really did not like the manipulative attitude that he was watching now. “Why is it that the slime balls always escape?” He thought to himself.

Sally watered Jacob and led him to a food trough to eat. When he had eaten she replaced his bit and returned him to his place on the hitching post. After that Jacob could not see where Lady Clair and Sally had gone. He had seen a building nearby and assumed that the humans were taking lunch there. Jacob did what ponies do. He stood where he had been tethered and he waited at the pleasure of his owner.

It had been what felt like several hours when Melanie, Sally and Lady Clair came back into the corral. The three women approached the small male. Lady Clair did not remove his gag. They were all smiling.

“Looks like for once in your life you are telling the truth. The money was right where you said it would be.” As Lady Clair spoke she reached over and stoked one of his nipples. Jacob shuddered as he remembered when she touched him in this fashion. It was something she did all the time, and it was not affectionate, it was not soothing, instead, there was something about the way that she did it that conveyed her power and control. Jacob had only felt terror. Some of that terror was creeping back into him. He brought his focus back to what was happening. He hated the idea of this guy going free.

But then Jacob straightened up. “But, we don’t like your deal. That money is tainted with your fraud. If any of us took any of it we would become parties to your crimes.” Lady Clair paused and looked into his face. Jacob remembered that look and shivered, but he was transfixed with what was happening before him. “So, since it is not your money you don’t have anything to offer. The money has been turned over to the authorities.” The small male gasped through his gag and shook his head and body back and forth.

“We made another deal instead. Melanie gets $200,000 as a reward for finding the money. I get a facilitation fee of $50,000. And, the most special part, I keep you.” Her fingers closed on his nipple as she pinched and twisted.

Although completely muffled behind the gag Jacob could tell that the male was yelling: “NO.” His head was wildly shaking from side to side.

“And here is something more that you are really going to love. After you have finished your six months of slave training and are a good proper slave, I have agreed to rent you out to your victims. I already have ten of them signed up to rent you for a month each. The list is so long you may turn out to be my most profitable possession.” She ran her nail down the side of his head, reached down and stroked his caged penis, then she turned and all three women walked away. Jacob watched as Melissa continued to chat with the other women, they did not even look back. Jacob wondered what the relationship between Melissa and the new slave had once been.

The small male stood without moving for about a minute staring after the three women. Then he threw himself at his tethers while he twisted and pulled at his tightly bound arms. Moans and screams only partially filtered by his gag, caused others to momentarily stop what they were doing and look at him, but only for a moment. After all, he was only a tormented slave, and in the end who really cared?

Jacob found himself smiling as best he could around his bit. He had not generally been happy with the concept of others being captured and turned into slaves or animals, but in this case he made a very big exception.

Jacob realized that he had not seen Local Girl. However, hitched where he was at one end of the corral he could really only see about half of the restrained occupants. He wondered how many there were altogether. He wondered if any runners had made it. From what he had seen it did not look like the odds of escape were very good. Even so, he resented the fact that he had had no chance to run the hunt. But, as he thought about it he realized that this was not meant to be fair. This was not some type of due process to give the potential ponies and slaves a way out. It was only entertainment and the prey was not meant to escape. A few probably did, but they were almost certainly locals who knew the terrain well, and they could be counted on not to talk about what went on here.

It was late in the day when Sally finally released Jacob from the hitching post and rode him home. It was almost ten miles and it took over an hour, but it was an exhilarating ride, he was held at a trot for most of the ride. Although Jacob had mixed emotions as to what he had seen and been part of that day he somehow felt satisfied and was able to relax when we was safely secured back in his stall.

Although Jacob was glad to get back to his stall and felt the sense of security from his familiar surroundings he was overcome with sense of loss. He stared across the corridor at the empty stall that had been occupied by Local Girl for most of the time Jacob had been here. He had not seen her during or after the hunt. He had no idea what had happened to her.

“Do you think she made it?” Asked Reluctant Pony, looking at Jacob, who was still staring at the empty stall.

“No. Nobody can make it. It is impossible.” Jacob gave Reluctant Pony a withering glance.

“She said she had a plan.” New Pony had jumped into the conversation. The tone rose, hopeful, more than believing.

Jacob wanted to think positive thoughts for Local Girl. Even though he had said and thought some bad things he knew he didn’t mean them. “Escape from these people is impossible. You should have seen the way we took down two men. One of them looked like an NFL linebacker but Sally and Lady Clair had him roped and hogtied before he even knew what hit him. If he couldn’t make it there is no way that Local Girl made it.”

“Who is Lady Clair?” New Pony asked.

Jacob paused and stared at him for a long time. “Believe me. You don’t want to know.” New Pony stared back and then broke eye contact.

“I think she made it. She is very clever. Only brains can work to get out of here.” Reluctant Pony turned back into his stall. Jacob looked across at New Pony. Neither said anything. They both hoped Reluctant Pony was right.

The adrenaline that had been surging through Jacob for the last two days was gone. He was tired, very tired. He lay down and was asleep before he had a chance to think of anything else.

There was activity in the stable. Both Reluctant Pony and New Pony were removed and taken from the stable leaving Jacob standing at his gate. The other three ponies, located up the corridor were in their stalls, but seemed to pay little mind to what was going on. Jacob wondered if his curiosity would disappear with time. Right now he wondered what was happening with his stable mates. Why had they been taken away?

What seemed like a long time later Sally came to his stall. She smiled as she bridled him and led him from the stable. As they left the stable Jacob saw both Reluctant Pony and New Pony standing at a rail near the tack room. They were both adorned in fine looking leather tack with well polished buckles and connections. Leashed to the rail they could only stand and wait whatever their owner desired.

Jacob was led into the tack room and saddled. Jacob was curious why he was dressed in normal tack and his work saddle, not even the fancy tack and saddle he had worn for the calf roping, while the other ponies were all gussied up.

When Jacob was saddled, Sally led him out to where the other two ponies waited. She attached a lead line from New Pony to the back of Reluctant Pony’s collar and another line from the front of Reluctant Pony’s collar to Jacob’s saddle. At least Jacob would be ridden rather than towed along behind. As he thought about what he had just thought, he almost laughed. He had grown so accustomed to carrying Sally on his back that he did not find it in the least humiliating. Clopping along on the end of a leash attached to another pony’s saddle was a completely different thing. He smiled. At least he moved the corners of his mouth up as much as the bit in his mouth would allow.

It was a beautiful day, the sun was out, but the air was not too hot. There was a gentle breeze. Jacob was kept at a comfortable trot. Jacob could have gone a lot faster, but Sally kept looking back over her shoulder at the two ponies following in tow. Jacob knew they could both keep the pace; even New Pony had had enough time to be in shape. The only thing Jacob could think of was that Sally did not want to get them lathered. They had been dressed so nicely.

After a time Jacob could see that they were returning to the hotel and the arena. There must be some type of competition he thought.

Sally guided him past the hotel, past the stable, and around to the far end of the arena where he had not been before. He saw a rather large corral. It reminded him of the corral at the hunting ground. Six foot posts stood separated at about five to six feet from one another. They were in rows of eight posts. Each post had rings strategically placed near the top, in the middle and at the bottom. Jacob had seen how effectively these posts could be used to hold a pony in place.

There were a number of ponies leashed at posts. All appeared to be hobbled, each was leashed by their reins to the post. The length of the leash was sufficient to allow each pony to move around slightly more than had been the case at the hunt. The ponies were all dressed in their best tack, which was well shined and flashed in the sun. In addition, each pony had what looked like a four inch long wooden rod hanging on a short leather line from between their legs swinging back and forth about six inches below the crotch.

Sally halted Jacob outside the corral, dismounted and tied his reins to a hitching post along the outer edge of the corral. She unfastened the leash line to the two ponies that had been compelled to follow and she led them, still connected together, into the corral. At the gate of the corral Sally handed some paperwork to a woman who then took down some information, and with a marker pen, wrote a number on the flank of each pony. They were 4478 and 4479. Sally was then allowed to lead them into the corral.

There were two empty posts immediately on the other side of the rail fence next to where Jacob stood. Sally leashed her two ponies, one to each of these posts, and hobbled their ankles. Another woman came over and hung a clip board on the back side of each of the posts away from where the pony stood. Then she clipped a short six inch leash with wooden dowel tied at one end to the ring in the end of each pony’s penis. The dowel swung back and forth as each of the two ponies moved about sensing the pressure on their sexual organ.

Then Sally left. Jacob followed her with his eyes as she wove through the corral occasionally stopping to look at other ponies, freely touching, and then looking at the clipboards. Jacob noted that in order to see what was written on the clipboard it was necessary to lift a cover sheet. The cover sheet prevented a pony from reading what was on the clipboard even though it was hung next to where the pony was tethered.

Jacob’s realization of what was happening gave him mixed feelings. This was the pony sale, and he was not gussied up and inside the corral because he was not being sold. His two remaining stable mates, on the other hand, had been delivered to the block and were to be sold.

Jacob was not terribly surprised that Reluctant Pony would be up for sale. He had been in the stable for the longest of the three ponies in training and was probably considered to be sufficiently trained. New Pony, on the other hand, was just that. He was new, very new why was he being sold? Jacob was happy that he was not being sold, but he knew he would miss the company of the others. Local Girl was gone. He didn’t know if she was free now or being training in some other stable. The three older ponies had not accepted him. They would not talk to him. In fact, as best Jacob could tell they never talked at all. Jacob was feeling very sad.

Jacob watched as people moved in and around the ponies. Some were alone, some in groups of two or three. They would poke and prod; look into ears, eyes, and mouths; touch and examine the sexual organs; run their hands over the muscles of the legs, thighs, shoulders and abdomen; and flip through pages on the clip board. Jacob saw some of them make notes. He also saw the purpose of the wooden dowel, as he watched it was picked up and used as a handle for a short leash to move a pony to one side or the other. Connected in such a tender area the pony always responded quickly. On the males it was connected to the ring in the end of the penis. For the females it was connected to the ring through the clitoris. All the ponies were very responsive to its use.

The process was invasive. Jacob felt humiliated on behalf of his fellows who were being subjected to this inspection.

Jacob saw a young girl, late teens at best, small of stature accompanied by an older man move up to New Pony.

“Look daddy.” She said. “He is just perfect, don’t you think?” She had picked up the dowel and compelled New Pony to move toward her, he responded quickly reaching the limits of his reins.

“I don’t know. He is pretty small.”

“But he is tall and we can bulk him up. I think he is just wonderful.” Still holding the short leash in her left hand she had moved her body in close to his and started to move her right index finger down his chest and across his abdomen.

“He is still wild, not even saddle broken.” The father had picked up and was looking at the clipboard.

“I know, it is wonderful. I can be the one to saddle break him.” She kept the pressure on the line attached to the end of his cock and moved her right hand to his buttocks. “I can’t wait to get my whip on him.” She looked up into New Pony’s eyes only a few inches above. “You want to feel my whip, don’t you boy?”

New Pony’s eyes were wide and Jacob saw him tremble. This was just a small girl, no more than 80 pounds, but New Pony looked like he had just been confronted by a mother grizzly bear. Jacob thought maybe New Pony would prefer the grizzly.

At the words of the whip New Pony pulled back trying to turn first to one side, then the other. The girl let him move at first, then jerked hard on the leash line. He squealed and moved back. She was in control and knew how to exert it.

“He doesn’t even know his positions.” The father complained.

“He will . . . or his training will be very painful.” She smiled, still looking into New Pony’s face. He continued to look at her seemingly frozen in place except for the tremble that now seemed to be even more visible. “A pony never quite responds to other in the way they do to the one who trained them.” She was still looking at him.

The father stopped looking at the clipboard and hung it back on the post. He sighed. Jacob knew what that meant.

“Please daddy, please, can I have him. You said I could pick the pony I wanted. And he should be a bargain because he is not trained.”

The father smiled and put his arm around his little girl. He would, of course, give her what she wanted. She leaned up against him and he gave her a fatherly peck on the cheek. The girl turned back to New Pony, gave him a mischievous smile and a final tug on the line to his cock before she dropped it. “See you soon pony.” She turned and walked away with her father. “A name. I need to think of a great name.”

New Pony had not moved. Jacob could see a puddle on the ground around New Pony’s left hoof. He had wet himself.

Jacob was not sure how he felt about what he had just watched. The girl was very young, but there was something in her demeanor, something obvious even from the spot where Jacob stood that said she would be a very strict and maybe even a cruel mistress. New Pony would learn the feel of the whip. But the girl had chosen well. New Pony would be very afraid of the whip. He would do whatever the girl wanted. She was right. She would be able to train him perfectly.

Jacob felt suddenly lucky to have Sally. Sure she whipped him. But not unnecessarily, and he understood the importance of the whip to both training and performance. He realized that when she used the whip he never felt bad thoughts toward her. He realized that he had been whipped because he needed correction or encouragement. Jacob knew that there were other owners and trainers who enjoyed whipping and punishing their animals.

His thoughts turned to Lady Clair. Just the thought of her made him shudder. He would be so happy when this festival was over and she got on her plane and left. It didn’t help that she kept noticing him. He felt sorry for the two males they had captured during the hunt, well, at least one of them. He wondered what was happening to them now. He was sure it was both painful and disorienting. Something designed to instill in them the hopelessness of their situation and the need to fear and please Lady Clair instantly and completely without second thought, and no matter how difficult, humiliating or painful, because the alternative would always be unbearable. And with her, they would have to learn to bear the unbearable.

The people had left the corral and entered the building. The inspection was over and the auction was beginning. One by one, ponies were unleashed and led into the building. Jacob could not see or hear what was going on inside. Several attendants had the ponies lined up and moved them with a well practiced efficiency. One at a time they were removed from the line, leashed, and led into the building.

When a pony was brought out of the building it was hooded. Some were led back to their post and leashed, although they remained hooded. Others were led to a flat area that looked like a loading dock. When there, their knees were strapped together; they were placed on their stomach and then their ankle hobble was brought up and fastened to their arm restraints putting them in a strict hogtie. They were turned so that their hooded head faced out and a short leash was fastened from their collar to a ring in the front of the platform.

Reluctant Pony was hogtied on the platform. New Pony was returned to the post. Jacob could see another number, in red, written over the top of the 4479 on his flank. New Pony had been sold. This was confirmed when the young girl and her father appeared, the father with papers in his hand. One sheet was handed to the gate attendant who then removed New Pony from his post and brought him, still hooded and hobbled, to the gate and then handed the end of the leash to the daughter.

She gave her father a great hug, jumped up and down a few times then turned and walked away pulling her new purchase behind her. “Keep up pony.” She didn’t have a whip, but she turned and used the end of the leash to slash his upper body before starting to pull again. Still hooded, New Pony squealed and hurriedly shuffled after her, trying to keep the pace and at the same time sense the direction.

Jacob watched other new owners collect their purchases and lead them from the corral. Nobody was taking any of the ponies lying on the shipping dock. Several workers were moving about, checking on tags tied around their necks and talking among themselves.

Then Jacob saw a number of wooden crates nearby. These ponies had been sold as well, but they were not staying in the valley – or, perhaps, even leaving on planes with their new owners. These ponies were being shipped. Jacob was not sure exactly how that was to work, but the thought of being packed in a box and sent to some unknown location sent a shiver through his body.

He did not get a chance to observe any more of what was happening at the loading dock because Sally had returned, released his reins, and climbed into the saddle. She brought him to his feet and guided him away from the corral and back toward home. What had been a beautiful day was turning into a lovely evening. The sun was low in the horizon, the sky was still clear and the temperature, which had cooled just a little, was very nice. The road was clear with meadows, pastures and forests along the sides. Jacob should be enjoying being out and trotting along in this wonderful location, but he had just watched the aftermath of his two stable mates being sold. There was a sadness that consumed him. It did not show in his response to the commands of his owner, which was now rote and not something he even had to think about. But it sat deep in his stomach like a heavy weight.

They were back at the stable before Jacob realized it. He did not know if he had made very good time or just been lost in his own inner space. He was angry at Sally – or whoever was responsible – for selling his friends. But he knew to hold it inside. Sally and the owners did not care what he thought, and any attempt to express himself on such a subject would likely lead to punishment.

Jacob had been mucked, cleaned and returned to his stall. He had been fed and watered. He considered lying down, but he was not really tired. He looked across the corridor to the empty stalls. He looked to his left and right, more empty stalls. He wondered why he had not at least been moved up next to the older established ponies, although he really did not want to be in a different stall. This was his stall. But it was so quiet, so very quiet.

Then it was not. There was noise in the corridor. Jacob heard grunting and shuffling of feet. It was the commotion of a struggle.

Jacob went to his gate and looked out into the corridor. He saw Sally and another trainer leading a blonde girl. She was tall, almost 6 feet. She had a body that evidenced a good regime of exercise. Probably a runner, Jacob thought as he looked at the structure of her legs, although dressed in the steep pony boots, the lines of the leg always looked amazing. She was naked but for her harness. Tan lines at her hips and crotch spoke to a real tan. No tan line at her breasts spoke to her self-confidence.

Her breasts were well formed and firm. A C cup Jacob thought, although he did not pretend to be an expert on women’s breasts. Her breasts were small for a pony, but he knew that would change with the ranch’s regime of hormones and injections. He suspected that this girl was completely happy with the current size of her breasts and would not appreciate having them grown. However, of course, that was not her choice any more.

Her blonde hair had been cut to a Mohawk, but otherwise left very long. At present, she was not bridled and her hair hung from the top of her head to the left side. The white skin of her head contrasted with the tan of her face and body.

She had been ringed at the nose, nipples, and clitoris. Jacob could not see her arms, but could tell they were held tightly behind her. One of the trainers was leading her with a leash to her nose ring. A nose ring was always effective, on a newly pierced septum it really hurt. Sally was balancing from behind with a leash to the ring at her clitoris then pulled back through her legs. Jacob recognized this as the control procedure for potentially unruly ponies.

Her booted legs were cuffed and hobbled at about eight inches.

The girl was twisting her body back and forth, but she would move forward with each jerk to the ring in her nose. She would try to twist from the direction she was being pulled, but would straighten back when Sally jerked on the line attached to the ring in that most tender part of her body.

The girl’s face was red and she was breathing heavily. Her ongoing tirade even caught the attention of the older ponies further up the stable.

“You can’t do this. . . . Let me go. . . . You will go to jail forever.”

“Silence. Pony’s don’t talk.” Sally’s comment was punctuated with a slash from a crop across the buttocks of the girl.

She yelped and jumped forward. She tried to turn to look at Sally, but the other trainer tugged on the line to her nose ring and her head followed. Jacob thought about how effective and humiliating it was to be controlled by the ring through your nose. He had never really adjusted to this indignity. This girl was having a very difficult time with it.

The girl had noticed Jacob standing at the door to her stall. She looked into his face from only about four feet away. Her eyes were a blue gray that drew him in. “Help me. Please.” She said to him.

Sally was standing to the side closest to the girl and she let her eyes travel from the girl to Jacob. She saw Jacob stare back into her eyes. “Yeh, right.” Sally laughed and pulled on the line between the girl’s legs to point her toward the stall directly across from Jacob.

The trainer opened the stall door and started to pull the blonde in. As she was turned away from him, Jacob could see her arm bindings. He recognized her predicament and felt sorry for her. Her wrists and her arms just below the elbows were cuffed. The wrist cuffs were connected by a single chain link and then held by a chain to the back of the collar. Her hands were clenched into fists and covered by leather pouches effectively removing any use of her fingers even if she could move her arms. At this point, her hands were six to eight inches below her collar. A treaded metal bar was connected to the cuffs just below her elbows. The elbows were separated by about eight inches. The threaded bar had a small junction in the middle with a slot for a hex wrench.

When the girl was almost abreast of the opening to the stall she balked and attempted to plant her feet. The trainer jerked her forward, punctuated by another shot from Sally to the girls thighs with her quirt.

With the girl just inside the stall, the trainer fastened the end of the leash from her nose to a ring in the far wall. Once the trainer had let go the girl tried to turn and rush out the gate. As the leash to her nose ring came tight, she was jerked around right at the doorway. As the girl turned back toward the gate, Sally closed and latched it. Sally and the other trainer turned and walked away making small talk that Jacob barely heard and of which he had no interest or knowledge.

Jacob continued to stand at his gate looking at the new arrival. The leash from the back of her stall to her nose ring forced her to stand just back from the gate in order to square herself toward Jacob. For a period of time they just stood looking at each other.

The girl looked away from Jacob, stepped back slightly then started to twist and shake her upper body. Jacob could see the muscles tightening and moving in her shoulders and upper arms. He knew this stage. She was trying to free her arms. He could have told her that it was a hopeless endeavor, but he also knew it was something every new pony had to learn on their own. It was also a behavior, even though useless, that would return over and over again in moments of despair and frustration.

She turned and rubbed her leather covered hands and her arms against the side of the stall. That did not help. Her eyes were getting puffy and Jacob could see tears filling them and beginning to run down her cheeks.

She stopped rubbing and twisting and moved toward the gate. She looked at Jacob. “Help me. Please help me.”

“I can’t do anything to help.” Jacob said, feeling frustrated. She was a very pretty girl and he would have loved to come to her aid. But, even though he was not secured to the back of his stall like her, the combination of his hobble, the armbinder and the closed gate were more than sufficient to keep him in place. “Even if I could get out of here – which I can’t – I couldn’t help you.” He turned to show her his armbinder.

She broke eye contact looking down at the ground. Did she feel bad because she had underscored his helplessness or was she just feeling sorry for herself? Jacob could not be sure.

She looked up and down the corridor as best she could with her nose ring leashed to the wall behind. Finally, she looked back at Jacob. “What the hell is this place?”

“It is a pony farm where they train us to be show, cart and riding ponies.”

“That is completely insane. How long have you been here?”

“I am not really sure, about three or four months now. I am trained as a ridding pony. Sally is my owner.” Why had he said that last part? It had just come out.

The new girl looked at him like he had two heads. “This is fucked up. You may be into this kinky shit, but I am not going to do it.”

Jacob knew he had given the wrong idea. “Look, I don’t want to be here. I am just like you. Look for god sake.” He turned his back again, and pulled and twisted at his arms. This time it was a real, but, as he knew, a fruitless effort.

“Bull shit. They cannot get away with this shit. I am not going to do this.” Jacob could hear her kicking at the door. The hobble greatly restricted her efforts making it sound more like a gentle knock. The effort also caused the leash to tighten and pull at her nose ring.

The girl turned away from Jacob and walked to the wall where her leash was tied to a ring. The ring was just six inches above her head. With a free hand, she could easily untie the simple knot fastened there. She leaned up against the wall and tried to stretch up toward the ring. She was already forced up on her toes by the boots so she gained no distance with this effort. She reached with her mouth and managed to grab the leash with her teeth. Then she backed away from the ring and tried to pull the line loose. While it was not tied in a complicated knot, it was sufficiently tied so as not to slip with the simple pressure applied by pulling. Jacob continued to watch in fascination as the girl tried to pull from different angles and directions. None of it worked. Finally, she stomped her hoof, let the leash drop from her mouth, and screamed in frustration.

She turned and walked back to the gate. Her eyes, still puffy from tears earlier, were red and angry.

“This is fucked up. They can’t do this to people.” She was squirming and twisting her arms again.

“Yeh, but they have done it. . . And there is nothing that can be done about it.” He paused and looked at her as she looked up once more into his eyes.

“I don’t know why you agreed to this, but there is no way I’m going to be anybodies ‘pony’. They can just go fuck themselves if they think I will cooperate with them. FUCK.”

Jacob thought about how he felt when he was first captured and put in a stall. He remembered being scared. He remembered being angry. He remembered feeling defiant. There was no reason telling her those things. She was going to have to learn for herself.

He had dropped his head, but he looked up again as she made eye contact once more. “I really need to get my hands loose. My arms and shoulders are aching. Is there anything I can say to get the guard to come help?” Her face transformed into a pleading look.

“Whatever you do don’t call out. That will only get you gagged. You will get used to the pain in your arms. Over time, it dulls. Eventually you will not even miss your arms.” Jacob was trying to be helpful, but the girl’s facial expression changed to horror.

“What do you mean? How much of the time do they kept our arms tied?” Her volume had raised and there was a quiver in her voice.

“It is permanent. They have two purposes. The first is just their rationalization. Ponies don’t have arms, so, neither do we. But, it does make it clear to you that you are different. The second, the real reason, I think, is for security. They are very careful. I am always leashed, hobbled, or corralled, sometimes all three. The opportunity for escape is zero.”

The girl was looking at his shoulders and arms. Jacob actually turned to let her once again see his armbinder. Over the months his body had bulked and his thighs, legs and shoulders had all picked up layers of muscle due to the combination of the drugs they fed him and his exercise regime. But, his arms had not been used. And, even though most of his arms were hidden inside the armbinder, the upper arm above his restraints showed the difference in development. “Why are my arms pulled up so high behind me? They could at least lower them down like yours. Is that a reward or something?”

“No.” Jacob couldn’t keep eye contact. He had not wanted to tell her this, but he felt like he needed to now. “I am a ridding pony so my arms are held lower to accommodate my saddle. It looks like you are to be a show or cart pony. They are putting your arms in what is called a reverse prayer. They have been what they consider to be kind by leaving a gap between your elbows and having your hands not pulled so that they touch your collar. As you adjust to the strain on your shoulders, they will tighten the clamps at your elbows. When they are done, your arms will be together, touching, held vertically in the middle of your back. Your hands will reach to your collar. They will be unusable.”

Her eyes were wide. She shook her head from side to side. She looked down at one shoulder and then the other. Then she looked back at Jacob. “That is impossible. I’m not flexible. They can’t do that.” She was starting to sob.

“I am sorry. I wish I hadn’t told you, but there is nothing you can do about it. The only good part is that your body will actually adjust and it will start to hurt less.” Jacob was trying to be reassuring, but he didn’t feel like he was helping.

“I can’t do this. I just can’t.” She was not talking to him; she was looking down at the floor as she turned from the gate and walked back into the stall.

Jacob’s stomach knotted. He stood at the gate looking across the corridor and into the stall of the soon to be mare. She was not looking back and eventually she slid down the wall. He could hear her sobbing but could only get glimpses of the top of her head. He was not sure how long he stood there, but finally he was sure she was not coming back. She had wanted him to protect her. She had reached out to him. But, he was able to do nothing to help her. Jacob had never felt so completely helpless. He wanted to go to her. He wished he could at least touch her and let her feel another close to her. He looked at the simple wooden gate at the front of his stall, simple, but solid enough to restrain a hobbled pony and to keep him in his place.

Jacob lay down and tried to sleep. He could hear low moans, rustling of straw, and the occasional sob from across the corridor. It was not loud, but enough, when accompanied by his thoughts to make sleep difficult. Eventually he did sleep.

Jacob could hear sounds in the stable. It was morning. Slowly Jacob stretched and worked his way to his feet. Across from Jacob, two young women were bridling the girl from the night before. She clearly did not like the idea and was twisting and pulling to prevent the action. Jacob heard the all too familiar strike of a riding crop on tender flesh followed by a shriek from the girl.

She was not going easily. At least two more strokes and screams punctuated Jacob’s thoughts until the bridled new mare was pulled, at the end of her reins, from the stall. In the corridor, she twisted and pulled back and away from her trainer. This earned her another swipe of the crop and then, seeming to understand that her resistance was only bringing pain and in the end was pointless, she stopped struggling and followed the lead of her reins.

Jacob hung his head. He knew that she would try to resist. He knew that she would try to fight. He also knew that in the end she would give in. The only way to avoid the pain was obedience, and she would learn to obey. Jacob wished he could have done something to make her feel better. He had tried to talk to her last night, but he felt like he had only made it worse. She was looking for someone to rescue her. Jacob would have loved to be her savior. He would have loved to throw off his restraints, leap over the stall door, and save her from these villains. But, he had not. He could not. He was just a helpless pony bound and controlled to perform as directed. He knew the pain she would experience and he knew that in the end, a pony learned that the only way to avoid the pain was to obey. He had learned, and he had become obedient. So would she.

As the new filly was led away, Jacob saw Sally approaching. Usually he was happy to see her, but for some reason he did not feel that way this morning. Maybe it was the effect of the new stable mate. He wished Sally would just leave him in his stall today, but that was not to be, and he knew better than to resist.

Sally bridled him and led him to the tack room where he was soon saddled. Jacob looked around for other ponies, but saw none saddled. Whatever they were going to do, it was apparently only Sally and him.

Sally mounted and started Jacob at a slow pace. She guided him away from the stable, then, when clear of all buildings, she opened him up quickly to a full gallop. The road was straight and flat, but this was not to be leisurely. Sally kept urging more and more speed. He felt the sting of her crop on his flank, something that rarely happened when they were out for a ride. He snorted and shook his head but was only rewarded with another slap of the crop. He dug down and found some more speed.

The road stretched gently through fields under cultivation. Jacob’s hooves clopped on the hard dirt kicking up chunks of hard clay.

Jacob was not sure how long he had run. He knew he was breathing hard and thought he would drop at any moment when she finally reined him back to a walk. That was almost worse. His head spun and his eyes were having trouble focusing. He was sure he was going to collapse. But, he didn’t. Somehow he managed to walk through it. Finally, his breathing returned to normal. He was not sure how far they had come. He did not know where they were. Nothing looked familiar. It seemed like they had gone for miles, but more importantly it had been at a very fast pace. As fast, if not faster than he had ever run before.

Finally, they left the fields and Jacob saw they were approaching a copes of trees near a stream. Sally slowed him, guided him up to the stream and brought him to a halt. She dismounted and quickly attached his hobble. Then she tied his reins loosely to a tree branch so he had enough room to kneel and drink from the stream. The water was cool and tasted sweet. Sally moved slightly upstream from him and also drank from the stream. She had had to actually walk around him to get up stream. Either side of Jacob allowed equal access to the water so the only reason for her action was to drink upstream from the ‘livestock’.

Sally usually talked to him when they were out on a ride. Well, it was not really talking to him as in a conversation, more talking at him. She did not expect, nor did she allow any response. She just wanted to talk. But today, she was very quiet. She looked at him and stroked his head. It seemed something was bothering her. Something was wrong.

After a time, Sally removed his hobble and mounted. They moved out. She brought him up to a trot, but did not push the pace any higher. He thought he would have tightened up from the earlier run, but his legs stretched out nicely, and pretty soon it felt good to be trotting.

Jacob saw the forest approaching as the road snaked forward. He was having no problem maintaining a good trot and Sally's weight was well balanced on his back. Even with the blinders blocking peripheral vision he could see the gentle winding of the road, but he did not follow on his own. He would not have even tried; instead, he responded to the pressure from her knees. He had learned that he must not anticipate his rider's intentions and that doing so could, no, would be painful.

They had not gone far into the woods when a shift in her weight and pressure from her knees communicated that they should stop. Jacob came to a stop and waited for further command. The tap of the quirt against his thigh with the command "mount" told him that Sally intended to dismount. He quickly settled to one knee, keeping his back straight so as not to jostle or disturb his rider.

Sally swung from the saddle. She left the reins hanging at the back of Jacob's neck. Normally she would have him kneel, then hobble him, before telling him to rise. Then she would tether him to something, but this time she just kept him kneeling. Jacob could not see what she was doing or what she was looking at until he heard a crash, followed by thumping and breaking branches all moving down and away from his position.

For a long while Jacob did not move. A pony was supposed to hold position. The sounds had come from behind and to his right. Finally, he tried to turn his head to the right, but the check chains prevented it. He could not sense Sally behind him, but he could hear movement some distance away and well below him. Finally, he inched his body around until he could see. The edge of the roadway where he knelt ended with a steep slope down to a fast moving stream below.

At first Sally was nowhere to be seen, but then he heard sound down the slope and was able to lean his body forward just enough to see down. Sally had apparently slipped and slid down the embankment. She was now a good 30 feet below Jacob trying to work her way up the steep slope. She did not look injured from her fall, but she was having a lot of difficulty with the steepness of the slope and the loose soil.

Jacob realized he was not hobbled. He was not tethered. He was not even confined to a closed area. He was as free and unrestricted as he had been since his capture. He had been waiting for a chance to escape. This was it . . . or at least as close to it as he could expect. His arms were still tightly bound behind him, but he had already learned that that was a permanent condition, so this was as good as it was going to get.

Jacob jumped to his feet, looked down at Sally now about 20 feet below, and then he turned and sprinted down the road. He was not really sure where he was going, but his first task was to put as much space as he could between himself and his captor/trainer. He knew she could not catch him, but he didn't want her following him if he could help it.

As he ran he tried to come up with a plan. He knew he needed help getting his arms free. He also knew that such help would need to come from an outsider. He needed to get out of the valley. He had run about a mile and he was breathing heavily now, more from anxiety and excitement than exertion. His stomach was completely knotted. He had run away. Sally and the others would come looking for him, and if they caught him, he would be severely punished. They used pain and the threat of pain to control him, but right now the threat of pain prodded him on toward escape, because he knew that whatever he did now there would be pain, a great deal of pain if he were recaptured. Sally had been good to him. She had taken care of him. But, she commanded and controlled him and did not accept any disobedience. He was afraid of Sally, and right now, the fear was of being back in her hands. She might even send him to Lady Clair. That thought almost made him stumble.

Jacob had not seen anyone else nearby, human or livestock, since he started his escape. That was good. He moved off the road and into the trees so that he was out of sight. That gave him a chance to study the terrain and try to develop a plan. The blinkers and check chains made this more complicated, he could not turn his head and his peripheral vision was blocked. He had to turn his entire body to try to see where he was.

The terrain slopped slightly downhill from where he was. He was at the edge of the woods and could see out over what looked like a large expanse of farmers' fields. He could see people and livestock working in many of the fields. If he went that way, he would be seen. Having been made to run straight with blinders and check chains, during the times he had been ridden, meant that although he had seen the road he was traversing and a little bit of what was ahead, he had little ability to put it in context with what lay around. As he now turned back and forth, he was able to actually look at a panorama of the area for the first time. He could now see the full expanse of a very wide valley framed on both sides with rocky looking old ridges punctuated by peaks. Jacob did not know what lay beyond, but crossing those ridges would be a challenge even with proper gear. Naked and without the use of his arms it would be deadly. He pictured himself plummeting off a steep outcrop toward jagged rocks below, not even able to extend an arm to try to break the bone crushing landing.

He knew that there was at least one paved road in the valley. He assumed it ran from the highway up the valley to provide truck access to the many farms and finally, the lodge. From where he stood, at the edge of an undeveloped wooded area on higher ground, he could see pieces of what looked like a paved road, but from here on down to the main road, the terrain was very open. The road he was on, before going into the woods, continued down to where it intersected into a network of narrow dirt roads that connected the farms and fields.

He also knew, from the times he had been ridden on the larger roadways, that there would be traffic on the roads, some motor vehicles, but mostly carts, riders and ponies. He could see some ‘traffic’ moving below. It would be impossible to go far without encountering it. He knew that any other pony would not hesitate to carry their riders in pursuit of a runaway pony - what he know was. He knew that when a rider mounted your saddle and took your reins you followed the instruction without a second thought. If he were seen, he would be quickly cornered and captured. It would be necessary for him to avoid the traffic.

The valley became wider as it extended down toward were the main highway must be. He tried to make out the little town he remembered to be at the mouth of the valley. That was where he thought the highway was. He couldn’t make out anything that looked right, but it had to be at least 20 miles away. In his current conditioning, he could easily run that in several hours, but not without a rider and out in the open. He doubted he would make it a third of the way before he was seen and captured. If he was to get to the highway, he needed to be stealthy.

He did not know how good the hiding places would be, but he knew he would have to travel by night and hide by day. That meant finding a place to hide until dark. Today he could use the edge of the woods. After that, it would be a lot more difficult. But for now, he needed to rest and get a few hours sleep. As he found a place in the bushes and curled up as best he could, he was assailed by mixed feelings. He had become accustom to his stall, but it was nice to sleep where and when he wanted, and not to be under another's control.

Even though it was only the middle of the day, he fell asleep and slept so soundly he did not see several ponies, with their riders, moving up and down the road. The riders were looking to one side and then the other. By dark, when Jacob awoke, they were gone and the area was once again deserted.

Jacob could see that his night time journeys were going to be a bit more complicated than he thought. Initially he tried to set out overland and off the roads. But, he kept coming up on fields and farms. When he tried to circle around, he would run up on terrain he could not navigate without the use of his arms, or fields that were fenced. They were not high fences, but they were high enough to deter an animal, him. He considered trying to crawl over or through, but the risk of getting caught up was too great.

It was also difficult to keep his focus on going the correct direction. There was virtually no moon, which helped him not be seen, but it made it very difficult to figure out where he was. He knew he needed to travel downhill, but the valley was wide enough to present false slopes sometimes leading in the opposite direction from where he wanted to go. He ended up having to stay pretty much on small roads and paths. But, once he had left the higher ground, he could not tell where the small roads and paths went. He moved slowly and studied the area ahead before moving forward. His reins were hanging from his bit and he had to be careful not to step on them or let them snag.

Once he came up on a farmhouse. He stayed as far as he could from the house as he moved along the roads and paths.

Later he followed a path only to be faced with a simple gate. It was latched with a very simple lift latch. Even though it was on his side of the gate he could not open it. He struggled at the latch for 10-15 minutes with his bitted mouth before he finally gave up and retreated to look for another path.

Still later, he found himself passing the open door of a stable from which he could hear the sounds of sleeping ponies. His curiosity urged him to take a quick look. He snuck up to the first gate and looked over. Inside sleeping on the straw was a beautiful ponygirl. Her arms were locked in a binder behind her back. Her legs were hobbled, and she was connected to a ring in the back of the stall with a chain from her nose ring. "A lot of security for a girl," thought Jacob, "she must be new to her harness". He admired her beauty for a bit, and then realized how stupid he was being. He could not help her or any of the others by being caught. And, if one of them woke and made a fuss he would be in big trouble.

He was hungry and thirsty. He had stopped at a small stream near the woods where he had slept, now a long time ago. He could suck up water around his bit, but with the bit in place how could he eat? If he had to go without food, it would put a limit of several days for him to find help. If he could not get help he would eventually become too weak to keep going. Would he eventually become so desperate for food that he would find a human and surrender? He did not think so.

He could see the glow of the approach of dawn in the sky. At least he now knew where east was. He also knew that things started early on the farm, so he figured he had better find a place to hide. He didn't really trust farm buildings, but the open fields provided no cover. And, the woods were now too far away. He was also thirsty again. There was a small farm nearby. He headed up the road toward it. He did not know if this farm kept ponies, but he did see a watering trough by the side of a small building with a large open door. Most of the farm was downhill from this spot and the level ground in front of the building provided some cover from observation from below. He slipped quietly over to the trough, knelt and sucked water through his bitted mouth. He was a long way from the farmhouse, and the outbuildings here looked like they were seldom used. If was far from ideal, but he hoped one of them would provide a place to sleep through the day. He wished he knew how far he had come. More importantly, he wished he know how far he still had to go.

As he lifted his head from the water, Jacob became aware of movement. He had to turn his body to see, but as he did, he saw her standing there. It was a teenager. About 18, but very small of stature, she was standing with a backpack in her hand watching him. She was between Jacob and the road he had entered. His first instinct was to charge her, knock her down, and escape down the road. But, escape to where? While he tried to figure a plan, he just looked at her.

She reached into her backpack and came out with a slice of apple. She extended her arm and held out her hand with the apple sitting in her palm. He had been thinking of doing her damage and she was offering him food. He was very hungry. But, he was very frightened.

He shied away, stepping back through the door into the outbuilding hoping to use it to circle around her. What if she grabbed his reins? She was so much smaller than he was. She could never control him, not even with the reins. But, he was so very hungry. She stepped slowly toward him, her arm extended with the offered piece of apple. He stepped back. The apple looked so good. He was so very hungry. She wasn’t being threatening, just offering him food. And, she was really so very small.

He still did not know what he was going to do, but he figured it would not hurt to have some apple while he figured it out. Maybe she would even release his bit so he could. If she did that he would gain some important additional freedom. He took a step forward, toward her. She did not reach for the bit; her left hand still held the backpack. Her right was held up with her hand extended the apple sitting in her palm. He stood frozen just feet away. She continued to hold up her hand very still. There was no movement to spook him. He looked down into her face. She stood very still looking up at him. He looked over at the apple. It hadn’t moved. He leaned forward with his head, slowly, carefully, keeping his eyes on her as best he could. Then he took the piece of apple with his lips. He raised his head looking back at her. She had not moved other than to lower her arm. He could taste the sweetness of the apple on his lips. He focused on the apple piece. He was afraid it was going to slip out of his grasp. He leaned his head backwards to let gravity help him. He needed to work it past the bit to where he could break it down and eat it. This seemed to be working; he actually had it in his mouth and was able to work it between his teeth and the bit. Pieces were coming loose and falling back into his mouth.

It took what seemed like a long time to eat the apple piece. But, it tasted so very good. Satisfied with his accomplishment Jacob lowered his head to look at the girl. He froze. The young girl had a leash line in her hand holding it by the clip at one end. She moved her hand forward toward the loop on his control ring. "NO." He thought and started to step away. He almost fell over. While he had focused on the apple, she had fastened an eight-inch hobble line between his ankles. He caught his balance, but she was still coming with the clip. He tried to turn and maneuver away from her, but she was very fast, and he was off balance from the hobble. He heard the click of the leash as she fastened it to the loop on his control ring.

To begin with, it was just wrong to have someone six years his junior with her hands so close to his penis and balls, but she did not touch them, and she acted as if it was something she had seen, if not done, a million times. And, of course, she probably had. Living on the farm she would not expect to see clothing on animals even the once human variety. She was probably use to washing and caring for them.

Jacob was still trying to turn away from her even though the leash was now attached. He was rewarded with a sharp jerk on the leash and sudden pain shooting through his testicles. "Kneel." She commanded. He looked into her face as he dropped to his knees. He hadn’t even thought about it. He had been well enough trained that he just responded. What should he do? He felt himself freeze.

She quickly fed the leash through his legs and stepped around behind him. He knelt with his legs apart as he had been trained, without moving. He could feel her do something with the hobble. She had linked a second eight-inch hobble to the first. The two hobbles were connected to a ring between them. The result was a new 16" combined hobble with a ring in the middle. Then she fed the leash line from his balls through the ring between the two-hobble lines. All of this took only seconds, but it felt like hours to the frozen pony kneeling on the floor.

"Up." She directed. Jacob responded in a slow well-trained movement as he got to his feet. The now relatively long hobble provided almost no impediment. With his movement, he started to unfreeze. Fear! He could not be caught. Terror! The punishment would be terrible. Panic! He had to do something. Anything!

As he stood, the girl brought the running end of the leash up and pulled it through the clip ring in the leash she had fastened to his control ring. Jacob could not see it but the ring on the clip end of the leash had a pressure buckle through which the line was now run. This type of buckle held the line in place with a spring and teeth on the buckle that closed on the line. The line could be pulled through in one direction (tighter) but it would then hold against being loosened until the buckle was pressed down to open the teeth.

Jacob paid no attention to what she was doing. He was wildly trying to look for a way out. He could see the road. It was straight ahead of him. There was no other person in sight, just him, and this small girl. With a step, he tested the hobble, although still in place, it had been lengthened to almost two feet. She must be planning to lead him somewhere. He could not let that happen. She had moved back in front of him. He felt the leash line around the side of his thigh from behind him to where she held it in her right hand. He was leashed. There would be pain, but if he surprised her, maybe he could pull it from her grasp. He was hobbled. The length was not great, but it was much more than he was use to. Once he got past her, he may still be able to break away and find a place to hide through the day. He had to try.

Jacob pushed his body against the girl and broke for the road. She slid out of the way with almost no contact. She seemed ready for this move. She crouched and held on to the leash with both hands. Although she only weighed about seventy pounds, as he tried to run, that meant there was seventy pounds of pressure tightening the line that led from his balls through a ring in the center of his leg hobble and then back through the pressure buckle at his control ring. The looping of the line even gave her a two to one mechanical advantage. As he moved forward and her weight dragged on the line the looped leash between his balls and the hobble shortened. At first, it pulled his ankles toward each other as the ring in the center of the hobbles headed for his balls. Then he lost his balance and pitched forward onto the ground. But, the girl was not done. She kept pulling on the line throwing all of her weight into it until the ring between the hobbles hit the buckle at his balls and no more line could play through.

Jacob lay on the ground. He was hogtied with each foot pulled to within eight-inches of his balls. What was most mortifying was that he had just been subdued, recaptured, by a teenager. They must teach even the children how to handle ponies. These people had been doing this for years. His hopes for escape were crazy. What chance did he ever have - none!

“What a bad pony, trying to run away. You obviously need some serious training.” Jacob looked up at her from where he lay on the floor of the farm building. He was only two feet from the door he was dashing to reach, but he realized now, he never had a chance to get there. From the moment he took the apple he was effectively caught. He flushed at the thought of what had happened. He had been caught by a child, but even more devastating. He had been outsmarted by a teenager. He had acted like a poor dumb animal, lured by food, and then caught.

She knelt down next to him. He tried to roll away, but she quickly clipped another line to the leash wrapped between the hobble lines and his control ring, now held within inches of his balls. Then she tied this new line off to a ring hanging from a hook that was swinging back and forth in the middle of the room. Jacob’s eyes followed the line to the hook and he saw that above the hook was a block and tackle. Where had she gotten that?

He tried to twist and shake his body. He rolled to the limit of the new restraint. Meanwhile, the girl had started to pull on the line to the block and tackle. It was slowly rising. Lying on his side and looking up, Jacob could see that the rope in the block and tackle looped to create at least four maybe five loops. She would need no strength at all to handle his weight. This became clear when the line tightened and started to pull him over onto his stomach. He resisted, but it was useless. At first, he was pulled onto his stomach, and then, he was dragged to the middle of the room until he was under the new line.

She didn’t stop there. She kept tightening. Jacob was terrified that she was going to lift him off the ground by his balls. At least she did not do this. She did keep pulling until his balls were lifted and stretched. He had to raise his butt, bending at the waist, just to ease the pain in his balls. He tried at first to keep his thighs tightly together using them to hold the sides of the ring around his scrotum, but it did not take long before the ring together with his balls and penis slipped through. By the time she stopped, his balls, and the ring holding them, were pulled behind his thighs, stretched so that his penis was held about eight inches off the ground. Only then did she tie off the rope from the block and tackle, fastening it to a cleat on a nearby post. As Jacob looked at it in dismay as she left the building.

The position was impossible for Jacob. Because his hooves were also pulled up into this rig, they were held up and behind him. If he tried to pull down on his hooves, to keep his knees on the floor, it pulled at his balls. It was an unnatural position and he could not just keep his legs bent with his hooves held up. He could only manage by utilizing the pressure from the line connected to the hobble. This meant that there was a constant pressure pulling toward his hooves and then on his balls.

He was bent at the waist so that his weight was held on his knees and his upper chest and shoulder. He tried to bend further and get higher from the floor. He was able to take some of the pressure off, at least for a while, but he could not maintain the position, and fell toward his side. Although it was only a few inches, it ended with a jerk on his balls, first from above as the line became taught, and then from below as his legs tried to pull away.

Jacob shook his head and screamed in a combination of pain, frustration and rage. He twisted and pulled but the only result was to rock back and forth on the tether at his balls, at one point almost hanging him suspended. He thought he was going to pass out. He tried to relax. He worked on controlling his breathing. He worked on pulling his body into the bent position that most relieved the pull to his balls.

He had been glad that the little bitch had left, but now he was afraid he would be left like this. It wasn’t possible. He could not stay like this. Certainly she knew that. She had to come help him. It seemed like he hung there forever. He tried to look at the sunlight pattern cast through the doorway. He measured its movement. The light had moved at least a foot before the girl returned. She was not alone.

“See. A wild pony. And I caught him so he is mine.”

“How can he be wild if he is already wearing tack and a saddle? A runaway is what he is.” The new comer was older closer to Jacob's age. She was clearly too young to be the mother, so likely an older sister. She had red hair, the same shade as her younger sister, and perky although not fully developed breasts making points in her cotton shirt. Jacob tried to look at her with the best pleading look he could muster around his bit and the strain etched on his face from the pain in his balls and now cramping muscles.

“Well, he is not branded so I should be able to keep him. He tried to run me down and didn’t follow directions so I have to punish him.” Jacob noticed that the small girl now had a crop in her hand. An involuntary shudder ran through his body and he whimpered.

“He still belongs to someone. This is expensive tack. But, if he ran away maybe they won’t want him back. You will have to tell papa though. He will not be happy if he finds out you are taking in strays.” She walked over and knelt down next to Jacob. She stroked the side of his head and ran a finger over his shoulders. “Good muscle tone. I bet he is a dream to ride. I worry about him being saddled. I bet he threw his rider then ran away.” She reached under his chest and twisted one of the rings in his nipples. She turned back to her sister. “Give him 15 strokes; make sure he feels them so he knows who is in control. We don’t know when he ate last so we need to feed him. But let’s just let him try to figure out how to eat the way he is.” She giggled turning back to Jacob and patted him on the buttocks. She was not going to help him. Jacob shook his head and whinnied loudly, but he really had no hope to avoid punishment.

As the young girl stepped forward, Jacob heard the swish of the crop and felt the pain on his right thigh. For such a small person she had hit him very hard. He was going to be well marked before she was done. By the third stroke, his eyes were blurry from the tears, but in his mind, he saw images of Sally. She was standing next to him holding his reins and stroking his head. She was so wonderful. How could he have been so stupid to run away from her? He didn’t even know if she was hurt. What if she needed his help when she had fallen? How could he have left her? Every time he had something good in his life, he fucked it up. He deserved this punishment. This was entirely his fault.

The beating was over. He felt some residual pain, but not that bad. He knew from experience that tomorrow it would hurt more. The older sister approached with a shallow pan. It contained a mixture of oats, nuts and dried fruit. She sat it down next to his head.

“Pony feed is expensive, so I want to see every last bit gone when I return this evening. If there is anything left in the bowl you are not only going to spend the night that way but I am sure I can think up some ways to make it more interesting.” He did not like the look in her eyes or the smirk on her face. He was frightened by this girl. She slapped him on the buttocks, making sure to find a sensitive spot, and then she left the building.

These sisters were a couple of monsters. In addition, he was completely confused from being talked to. That never happened with Sally and the trainers he had worked with to date. These people were rank amateurs. They did not know what they were doing. They knew nothing about training ponies. He wondered if he would ever see Sally again. He was Sally’s property. These people did not have a right to keep him. It was theft.

Jacob was very hungry. He stared into the bowl next to his head, but to get any food he had to raise his head off the floor and shift his weight back. This put pressure on his balls. But, he knew he had to eat. He was hungry, but he also did not want to be punished. He got his head into the bowl. The bitch had not even removed his bit so he had to work his tongue around the bit, pick up some food, and work it back into his mouth where he could break the big pieces against the bit and then try to swallow. At least half of what went in fell back out, only now it was lumpy and soggy with his saliva.

Eating also required him to hold his head up. When the pain in his balls was too great he let his head down to take off some pressure, paying no attention that it was in the middle of his food bowl. Clumps of wet food stuck to his face.

He rested for a time, and then, once again, went to work on the food. Usually with a bit in your mouth you used your lips to secure the food and then tipped your head back, but strung up as he was by his balls, he could not tip his head back so he had to continue to try to use his tongue. It had been at least an hour. His balls were burning from the pain and although he had managed to moisten almost everything in his bowl, he had only been able to eat a small part of it.

He was angry. He was scared. He was frustrated. He screamed again and shook his head back and forth. His chin hit the side of the dish and it skidded away. His face was no longer in the bowl. It was now about 18 inches away, mostly to his right, but also up and away from his head. “Ok, that was pretty stupid.” He thought to himself. Then he reached for the bowl with his head. He was short. He tried to turn his body toward the bowl. He thought he was going to pull his balls off doing this. He almost wished they would come off. But, even when he had turned his body, the bowl was just out of reach. He could look down into the bowl and see the mess he had left, but he could not get his head into the bowl. He tried to stretch forward. He thought he would pass out in the process, but he neither passed out nor reached the elusive bowl. Feeding time was over. He lowered his head trying to take as much weight off his tortured balls as he could.

The rectangle of sun coming thru the doorway had shifted and elongated into a sliver. The older girl returned. Jacob didn’t care what she did to him as long as she let him down from this hook holding him up by his balls. Jacob’s muscles had cramped from the strain. The pain was almost enough to cover the pain in his balls; the radiating pain from his groin ran up his legs and through his abdomen, it felt like burning tendrils had been pulled through his flesh.

Perhaps she realized that his focus was completely on the pain radiating from his tortured groin. She released the line to the block and tackle and allowed him to flatten his body to the floor. Even though his balls were still pulled through his thighs, and held by the metal collar, the relief from being lowered was beyond ecstasy. He wished he could touch them or at least straighten his legs. He did lift them and try to move his feet back and forth within the limits of the hobble chains. Blood must have been returning to his scrotum and balls, because now they burned, and he noticed that even the slightest tug on the ring, occasioned by movement of his hobbled feet in the now loose hogtie, hurt terribly.

“So, you are not only a runaway you are disobedient.” She was looking at the shallow pail so close, but yet, so far from Jacob’s head.

Jacob could only groan. “I think it’s thirsty.” The younger girl had appeared in the door and was looking down at him.

“You are right. We need to water him. But he didn’t eat his food, so we need to make sure he drinks.”

Jacob had a bad feeling about this as the older girl moved his body a few feet across the floor, then ran a strap across his body from one side to the other just below his shoulders. There apparently were rings in the floor that she used as anchors. Then she fastened a line to his control ring and ran it back to the wall behind him where she tied it off. She did not pull it tight enough to cause any more pain to that now sensitive part of his body, but it was tight enough to make him aware of its presence.

Jacob knew he was not going to like this as she pushed the bowl with the remainder of the food under his face. The bowl was about 18 inches in diameter and about four inches deep. The younger girl held a small strap, no more than six inches in length with a clip on each end. One end she fastened in Jacob’s nose ring. The other end she fastened to the bottom middle of the bowl where there was a small flange. Jacob’s head was now held over the bowl. He could lift his neck so that his face was about two inches above the top of the bowl but he could not move his head far enough in any direction to clear the edges of the bowl.

The older girl then appeared with a large bucket and started to pour water into the bowl. She did not bother to remove any of the uneaten food. The water turned grey as the remaining oats soaked up water. Jacob had been resting his face in the bowl, but he was now required to lift his head as the water filled the bowl. The girl did not stop until the bowl was filled to just less than half an inch below the top edge.

“I suggest you start drinking, and you drink it all before you get to tired to hold your head up.” The older girl spoke as she stroked his buttocks. “You will need to be hydrated and have the food for your punishment.” Jacob had not moved, he did not know what to do. “I said drink.” She punctuated her command with a slap of her hand on his buttocks.

He had felt things that hurt a lot more than that, but he got the point. He pushed his face down into the water and started to suck it up. There was a lot of water. He did not think he could drink all this water. And, the pieces of fruit and grain floating in the gray mixture did not make it any easier to drink. The water was not cold. It was not even cool. It was warm as if the bucket had sat in the sun for some time, in fact, it tasted warm and tinny.

His neck was starting to hurt. He tried to turn his head to the side, but he was stopped by the line leading to his nose ring. He had sucked up what seemed like gallons of water, but there was still over two inches of water in the bowl. This made the bowl heavy enough to hold his nose down. He thought about just lowering his head and breathing in the water. It would all be over. He would be able to escape.

But, he wasn’t sure he could do it. It was not like him to do such a thing. But, maybe it was the best way out. Maybe it was the only way out. Besides, his neck was getting so tired. He did not think he could keep his head up. It was shifting down. He felt his face enveloped by the water. The water had tasted bad, but it felt inviting around his face. It felt soothing.

He had not been breathing, but he had not really been holding his breath either. Without thinking about it, he realized that he needed air and his head bobbed up above the water to take a breath. He didn’t know if he was relieved or disappointed in himself. He went back to drinking, but there was just too much water. Maybe they meant this as a kindness. There were many ways to kill someone. He had heard that drowning was peaceful. It was like drifting off into oblivion.

He dropped his head this time he kept in down. He knew it was almost time to take a breath. What would it be like? He would soon know. He forced himself to expel the old air in his lungs feeling the bubbles escape around his face. Then he took a tentative breath of the water.

His head flew up; he coughed and gagged around his bit. Water shot out his nose. His nasal passages and his lungs felt like they had been scalded. That wasn’t peaceful. That was horrible. He knew that his body would not willingly submit to drowning this way. If he were to drown, it would only be after a long fight, with him resisting until he was too tired to raise his head, and even then, after continuing to fight for air well beyond the point he thought he was done. This was not an option.

He did not want any more water. He sucked in water. He tried to turn his head to the side and spit it out of the bowl, but the limited range from his check chains and the nose line kept him centered close to the middle of the bowl and did not allow a high enough angle to get the water out. The water only fell back into the bowl. He screamed.

To survive he had to drink. He had to drink it all. So, that is what he did, at least down to the point that the bottom of the bowl retained only a slimy puddle about half an inch deep. He had done it, but he was not proud of himself. He was not even satisfied. He was too busy trying to keep from throwing up. He knew where that would go. He would not get any sympathy. In fact, his tormentors would probably revel in seeing him held face down in his own vomit. He would control it and deny them the pleasure. This became his one little victory.

As his stomach came to terms with its contents, and the urge to refill the bowl with his own vomit subsided, he lay his head down in the bowl. The pasty contents coated his left cheek, his chin and the side of his head. He didn’t care. At least he was finally able to rest his head. His neck hurt terribly He tried to shift his body, but the strap across his shoulders held him motionless. He closed his eyes. Maybe he could actually get some sleep before his tormentors returned.

“Did you enjoy your meal?” The voice was melodic with a taunting edge. He really hated this girl. He opened his eyes but he didn’t move his head. He could move nothing else anyway.

“We need to address the fact that you ran away. Running away is not only disobedient; it is the height of disloyalty. Ponies are obedient, respectful, and most of all loyal to their owners. An important reason for loyalty is that your owner controls everything about you. Your owner can dispense pleasure or pain. And, the pain can be more than you can bear. But bear it you will.” The older girl continued to speak, but Jacob could tell there was someone else there. He assumed it was the younger girl, but he was not sure. He could only see what was in front of him. It really didn’t matter. He knew that this girl was going to hurt him. He assumed she was going to hurt him a lot. And he knew she was going to make sure he knew that there was nothing he could do to make her stop. Jacob twisted his body – nothing. Jacob twisted his arms inside the binder, something he had not done in a long time – nothing. He tried to lower his legs. This time there was some movement before the hobble line pulled short tugging on his very sensitive balls, something, but meaningless in terms of relieving any aspect of his helplessness and pain.

He heard something being moved behind him. Held to the floor as he was, it was impossible for him to look back and see what was happening. Knowing something was happening, but not knowing what, was terrifying. Then he felt one of his ankles being released. The other leg was left cuffed to his balls. He considered trying to kick with the now free leg, but decided that would be ineffective and only invite worse punishment.

She straightened his leg. That felt good. He could feel his foot resting on top of something, but did not know what it was. Then he felt the straps and laces of his pony boot loosened and the boot removed. It felt strange to have his leg and foot bare. The web nature of the boots allowed water to move through them, thus allowing them to be left on virtually all of the time. His now bare leg was pulled straight and he felt his ankle placed down into something curved. A top piece mated with the bottom. He could tell that his foot had been locked into a stock. Protruding through the back, the foot was being held about 18” above the floor. Instinctively he lifted the leg, but the stock held tight.

The same process was followed with his other leg and that leg was quickly locked into the stock. His feet were separated by about two feet. He had offered slight resistance with the second leg. It was ineffective and earned him a swat with a crop on his buttocks. The tendons in his lower legs and ankles had adjusted over his time as a pony to the steep angle of the pony boots and even with the boots off maintained the same downward angle from his legs. He tried to straighten his foot. It hurt to do so. He returned his toes to the pointed position. both feet extended from his captured ankles with the soles up and parallel to the floor.

Jacob tried to move his legs but found that the stock holding them was very solid. It may have even been fastened to the floor because he could not seem to move it at all. This meant that he could not move his feet at all. His upper body was still strapped to the floor. This was not good. The position was more comfortable than earlier, but he had no ability to move. He was worried about his bare feet pointing out behind him. They felt very sensitive. Was this because they were exposed for the first time in so many months or was it his anticipation?

There was no sound. For long minutes - was it minutes - he heard nothing. He knew the girl was still there behind him. He felt there was someone else there, but he could neither see nor hear what was happening. He had no idea what she was doing. Suddenly there was a swishing noise. It actually whistled. It was followed by a loud thudding “swak” sound. Jacob did not have to guess. His right foot exploded in pain. He had never felt anything like that before. He gasped, and started to cough, as his involuntary gasp sucked in pasty liquid from the bowl that still held his head. Then he screamed. The bit mitigated the sound. But, a bit does not fill the mouth. The tortured sound, moved across his vocal chords, slid around the bit and exploded into the night air. It must have been heard for half a mile. It was the sound of a wild animal in mortal pain. The muscles in his leg contracted with the pain, but even with the great strength of his well-developed legs, his foot did not move. He struggled to catch his breath.

Just as he started to breathe and get control, he heard the sound again. It was the sole of his left foot. The first stroke had not acclimatized him to the pain. His mind could find no place of reference for pain like this. It was beyond him. It was too much. It had to stop. It had to stop now.

The cane cut the air again. It was only a millisecond from the backstroke down to the sole of his foot, but he heard it in slow motion as he tried to tense his body to receive the unacceptable strike of this implement across the defenseless sensitive bottom of his foot. He had expected her to go back to the right foot but she did not, it was the left again. Jacob wondered why he was still conscious. Wasn’t the body supposed to protect you from such pain by letting you pass out? He tried to point his toes down to reduce the target angle, but he couldn't hold in that position and slowly his feet straightened out to the position they were now use to.

The fourth cut of the cane returned to the right foot. Now each had now suffered two strokes. Jacob could not see the soles of his feet but he could feel the burning even after the cane was pulled back. Why was he still conscious? The next strike almost got him there. He did not feel the same level of pain as he had with the other cuts. He felt like he was looking at the world down a long tunnel. He didn’t even tense for the evening stroke to the other foot.

Time went by. He started to tense. Where was the next stroke? Was she done? He was sure she was not done yet. He had had enough. Then he felt something on his feet. She was rubbing something onto the soles of his feet. “A couple of good stripes.” She said. “I am going to let you rest a little before the next stripes.” He heard her walk away. He thought he heard giggling.

“No.” He tried to shout around his bit. This was not fair. If she was going to cane his feet then the least she could do is get it done. The pain was just too much. He couldn’t have it again, his feet hurt from just three stokes each. They hurt terribly. He twisted and pulled at his bonds. It wasn’t even a controlled or measured effort it was frantic effort born in near panic. He hardly moved.

After a time he began to settle down. He knew he could not escape. He also knew he could not avoid whatever she was going to do to him. All he could do is try to relax and hope that having now been baptized to the bastinado it would not hurt as much the next time. And he knew there would be a next time – very soon there would be a next time.

He closed his eyes and tried to will his thoughts away from the pain. He felt a gently touch on the side of his head. He opened his eyes. The girl was looking into his face. He now saw, for the first time, the cane she held in her right hand. It was about three feet long. At its base, it was the width of her thumb. It tapered only slightly along its length. He could not take his eyes off it as she swished it back and forth a couple of times. She smiled. If they had been seated in a bar and she had given him that smile he would have moved over to talk to her. But here, now, it conveyed to Jacob that she wanted to make sure that he knew that she totally controlled him and could do whatever she desired. He could do nothing but accept.

She stood and disappeared from his view. He knew what was coming even before he heard the distinct whistling sound of the cane. He did not know what the target would be until the pain erupted in his left foot. It did not hurt less. He was not in any way acclimatized or immunized to it. If anything, it hurt more. He was sure his feet had each swollen from the first three crops and were now more sensitive. He jerked and pulled, but other that wiggle his toes, there was nothing he could do.

He knew the next one was coming and it did. His right sole joined the left in the new arrival of intolerable pain. He screamed, he pleaded, he begged, but everything was unintelligible. It wasn't just the distorting effect of the bit. Even without the bit, it would have been gibberish. He wanted to tell her that he would do whatever she wanted. He needed to let her know that he would be completely obedient. He would do whatever she commanded. His eyes had filled with tears blurring his vision and running down his face. He was also now having some trouble breathing through his nose as his nose was filled with mucus from his wild sobbing. Fortunately or perhaps unfortunately, the bit, although discouraging and garbling his speech, did not interfere with his breathing.

His mind had drifted, for a moment, to another place, but it was brought back by the next stripe of pain to his foot, followed, not to long after, by a strike to his other foot. The sole of each foot had now been caned five times each, broken into two sessions of three and then two strikes each, each session about half an hour apart. He tensed in anticipation of the sixth strike. It did not come. She stopped and he felt her hands on his feet. He knew she was being gentle, but his feet were so sensitive now, that even her light touch hurt terribly. Before she stood, and left once more, she gave a hard pat, not quite a slap, to the sole of his right foot. The pain from this simple move shot like needles up his legs.

This could not continue. He could not take any more of this. He had to get loose. He had to get loose now. He twisted his upper body – the strap across his shoulders held him to the floor. He pulled at his arms – they stayed where they had been held for the last four months. He pulled on his legs trying to get his feet out of the hated stocks – the wood creaked and groaned but not only did neither foot come lose the entire thing didn’t even move. He raised his head and shook it from side to side – his upward movement stopped as the chain to his nose ring pulled tight. The chain rattled, the bowl shook and his nose hurt. He lowered his head. He was completely helpless. He could only pray that when she returned she would not hit him anymore. He could swear that he could feel each of the stripes, which had to be evidenced by huge welts on the sole of each foot. He was not sure he would be able to walk even though his hoof boots carried most of his weight on the balls of his feet and his toes. He knew his feet were going to take days if not weeks to heal – if they ever did.

How could he have been so stupid? Sally was so good to him. She took care of him. She was so kind to him. Certainly, she had high expectations and disciplined him when he didn’t do what he was supposed to do, but he knew it was for his own good. She only wanted him to do well. He had returned her caring by running away, deserting her, leaving her at the bottom of the ditch. What if she had been hurt? He thought she was ok, but he was not thinking of that when he ran. She could have been hurt. It was his fault. All of this was his fault. He always messed everything up. That was why he needed Sally to direct him. He needed her to keep him on track and guide him.

He laid his head back in the bowl. Both sides of his face were now caked in the slim from the remainder of the mixture of food and water he had not consumed. Even the simple task, of eating and drinking, he had not completed. He had drunk enough to keep him from drowning, but he had still left a lot in the bowl. Still, he had drunk a lot. And now, he was feeling the effect. He needed to piss. He tried to think of something else, take his mind off the need. How long would they leave him like this? He deserved it. He knew that now, but they had to know the effect drinking that large volume of liquid would have on him.

He tried to twist his lower body, but with his ankles held firm in the stocks, his arms held in his binder behind his back, and the strap across his upper body, he could not move more than a fraction of an inch. His stomach was cramping now. His legs had cramped a long time ago. The need was increasing. Then it just came. He felt the warm liquid squirting back onto his body and pooling below him. At first, the relief felt good, but he was now soaked in his own urine from his navel to just above his knees.

“Not even house broken.” He could not see her, she was somewhere behind him. “You just let go with a stream whenever you please. One has to wonder if you are even worth training.” He didn’t even bother to lift his head.

He felt hands on his feet. She was rubbing something into first one and then the other. Her touch made him realize just how sensitive his feet were, but whatever she was rubbing on them was soothing and did seem to reduce the pain.

“I think these feet have learned not to run away. Is that so?”

He frantically nodded his head up and down. The chain from his nose ring shook and rattled the bowl to which it was attached. It hurt, but he didn’t care. He needed to make sure she saw it. He needed to make sure she knew that he had learned his lesson. And, he had. He would not try to escape. He would not run. He would behave.

“Ok. Now we need to start working on obedience.”

What did that mean? He needed rest. He had indicated he would be obedient. He felt a chill run through his body and he shivered compulsively.

She removed first one foot, then the other, from the stock. As she removed his feet he felt his pony hooves being pulled back on and tightly laced. The boots felt way too small. He knew his feet were swollen from the beating. They needed to be rested, not placed back in the boot. But that was not his decision. When he felt the first boot pulled onto his foot, he tried to pull and twist it free.

“You don’t want your boots? Maybe we should just continue with the cane.” He froze. He could not resist. He stopped twisting and pulling and instead pushed his leg out for her to finish what she was doing.

“Better.” She said as she tightened the lacings on the first boot. “Maybe there is hope for you yet.”

When she removed the other foot, he held his leg up so that she could fasten the boot in place. But, there was something wrong with the first boot. The inside was supposed to be smooth, but it was not. There was something in there. He could feel it at his toes. What had she done?

When his boots were back on his feet, she hobbled him to about 8”. Then she fastened a line from the pulley in the ceiling to the back of his harness, and only then, removed the strap over his shoulders. He thought the security was crazy. He had learned his lesson. He was not going to run. Besides, as sore as his feet where from the beating, he doubted he could even stand on them. But he was about to learn that he could.

“Up Pony.” She said as she started to pull on the line from to the block and tackle. He knew he had to get to his feet. He tried to work his legs under him. His entire lower body was now wet from the puddle he had made on the floor. He was not unhappy to get out of that spot.

As soon as he put his feet down and let them support his legs, he was sorry. Even though his weight was forward on his toes and balls of his feet, he did not realize how much of it was carried by the arch portion of the boot. The contact with the sole of his feet was agonizing. And, there was something in his boots. He could feel it digging into his toes and the balls of his feet. He loosened his legs taking up the weight with the line suspended to the block and tackle.

“You are going to stand here and think about what a bad pony you have been and how much you really want to be a good pony.”

That was nuts. His feet hurt way too much to stand. He needed to lie down and let them rest. He needed a couple of days to rest them and let them heal. He could not stand on them. But with the line from the block and tackle, he figured he could keep his feet on the floor then, by flexing his knees, he could take most of the weight on the line to his tack.

He watched as she inserted a pole into a hole in the floor in front of him. At the same level as his head, there was a metal circle about six inches in diameter. The pole was firmly fixed into the floor. In the middle was a black box. She quickly pulled three wires with alligator clips from the box and fastened them to the rings in his nipples and the one at the end of his penis. Jacob knew what those did, and he knew that he was not going to like this.

She took a damp towel and wiped the mess from his face. Then she removed his bit. He wanted to tell her that he understood and that he would be the best pony she ever saw. He wanted to beg her for mercy, but he was too frightened to make a sound. As he looked into her face, he knew there was nothing he could do to stop her doing whatever she had in mind. He not only had no control he had nothing with which to bargain.

“Open.” She demanded. He did. She held a new bit, except that from the front of the bit a thin L shaped bar extended for about two feet then bent up in an L shape with the leg of the L about 8”. Maneuvering the bar so that it passed through the metal ring, with the L on the far side pointing up, she fastened the bit in Jacob’s mouth. This bit did not move around but held in place causing the bar, which extended straight forward from his mouth, to move with any movement of Jacob’s head. The bar could move around in the circle, which was now just a little over a foot in front of his face. That left almost a foot of the bar and the upward L extending on the other side of the metal circle.

She flipped a switch on the front of the box and a green light came on. Jacob looked down toward it, but as he did, the end of the bar lowered and touched the lower part of the ring. An electrical shock instantly hit his nipples and penis. He directed his attention back to the bar and lifted his head to move the bar up breaking the contact. In so doing he hit the top of the ring and was rewarded with another slightly stronger shock before he got the bar positioned in the middle of the ring.

“I see there is no need for explanation. This is designed to teach proper head position, but I think it is also good to underscore the importance of staying where you are supposed to be. Let’s see how you are in the morning.”

Jacob squealed in response. Involuntarily he twisted his head. Only slightly, but it was enough to make contact once again. The shock was still greater than the last time.

“As you can see it increases the shock with every contact. The good news is that it only takes five minutes of no contact to reset the level.”

Jacob held his body He was still carrying his weight mostly on the line from the pulley, but he had to increase the pressure on his feet to keep from swinging back and forth. That hurt.

“Oh, and the idea is that you are to stand on your feet, not hang there like a puppet.” She walked over to where the line from the pulley was hitched to the post. She let out about a half foot of slack. At first Jacob’s body lowered with the line, but, even raising his head, he could not keep his weight on the line and at the same time keep the bar from touching the circle. It only took one more shock to make him stand on his booted feet. The pain in his feet was terrible. And, whatever was in the boots was digging into his toes and the balls of his feet. That was going to be very uncomfortable very soon. He stepped back and forth from hoof to hoof. She looked at the movement and smiled.

“Gee, I’m afraid your boots were lying by the wheat barrel. They may have picked up some wheat kernels. I guess I should have gotten those out before we put them back on, but I am just too tired to do that now. I am sure morning will be fine.”

Morning? He could not stand here until morning. He knew it was evening, but it could only be early evening. This was completely impossible. He needed to tell her that this was too much. He needed to beg her to stop this. He started to look around the room for her, but quickly stopped himself just before the bar connected to the ring. He kept his eyes focused on the ring and the bar until he was sure it was back near the center. There was no other sound around him. He was alone. She had left him to his torment.

Jacob wondered if he could somehow maneuver the bar outside the ring. He tried using the slack in the restraining line from his tack to the block and tackle above him. His hope was he could get back far enough that he could lower the bar forward out of the ring. But moving back until there was tension in the line pulled him forward, and even lifting as high as he could raise his body, there was still three to four inches of bar on the other side of the ring. He could not lower it out.

Next, he tried lowering his body on the line while raising his head. By the time he got to the end of his allowed movement, even with his head tipped up as far as he could manage, the bar still fed through the ring, only now the L portion was above the ring making it almost impossible for him to even keep the bar from making contact with the ring. A sudden shock to his tender body parts reinforced this observation. He stood back up.

He wondered if he could move the ring further from his body. The pole was anchored into a hole in the floor and looked substantial. He could not kick it as his feet were hobbled and the center of the hobble chain had been connected to a ring in the floor. He could not even touch the pole with a boot. He pushed his body forward to see if he could use his weight to bend it back. On further reflection he realized that such an act may have had very bad unintended consequences, but it mattered not, because the tether stopped his body before he could actually touch the bar.

He tried lifting a leg and pushing a knee against the bar. He was able to actually get his knee to touch it, but he could create no leverage or force. All he was able to do was make the pole shake back and forth breaking his concentration and causing him to make contact and deliver a shock to his body.

Like everything else with these people, there was no escape from his predicament. He had only one choice. It was the same choice for everything they did. Compliance. But . . . all night? He could not do this all night. He had only been standing a short time and his feet felt like they were on fire from their beating. Not to mention the pain he was now feeling from the wheat kernels digging into his toes. He had to get the pressure off his feet.

Jacob decided he was going to hang on the tether and take the electric shock to ease the pain in his feet. He lowered himself slowly trying to keep the bar from making contact until the weight began to come off his feet. The bar touched the ring. The shock hit his nipples and penis. He tried to gut through it and raised his feet up off the floor. The shock started to pulse. And, the level was increasing with each pulse. In less than 30 seconds, he was back on his feet, his entire body shaking from the experience. He was gasping for breath. This made keeping the bar in the middle of the ring a huge challenge. As he gained control over himself, and returned his breathing to normal, he realized that he had no choice. He would stand here. He would force his head to hold still and keep the bar in the middle of the circle. He would do it as long as was required. He would endure the pain in his feet. He would endure the pain from the shocks when he failed to pay attention. And, he would endure the pain in the rest of the muscles of his body as they grew tired and stiff from his enforced position. He would endure because, and only because, there was no other choice.

He tried to keep his mind focused exclusively on the bar extending through the middle of the circle in front of his face. He tried to put time out of his mind and only exist in the present. He tried to will away the pain in his feet, which had now been joined by the pain in his legs, the pain in his back, the pain in his shoulders, and what was becoming the worst, the pain in this neck. The bar did not weigh much, only a pound or two. But, over time it became heavier and heavier. His chin would start to drop and he would see it and have to force his head to straighten up. Sometimes he was too late and made contact with the ring below. Sometimes he corrected too quickly or with too much energy and contacted the ring above. But, for the most part he was able to keep the bar centered long enough in between shocks to keep them at the lowest level. He didn’t like the feel of even the lowest level, but he could handle it. Even levels two and three were not that bad. But, by the time it reached level four it really hurt, and the few times he had gone beyond that, the pain was intolerable, although he did, in fact, somehow tolerate it.

He was sure he had been standing for many hours. How many he had not the slightest clue. His legs were wobbly. His back ached as it had never before in his life. He felt like he was 60. He was fighting to keep his head up, he was sure that his neck would give up at any time. And, he was exhausted. He needed sleep. He knew he was bone tired because a couple of time, in spite of the pain wracking his body he started to nod off. At least until his head went forward and his body was lit up with electricity.

Jacob wondered if there was enough electricity to kill him. When his body finally collapsed from sheer exhaustion and he was unable to respond to stop the electricity from surging through him, would it kill him? A part of him hoped it would. He thought of Sally. He thought of his nice stall back at the ranch. He wished he were home lying in his hay. He wished he were out on the road, with the feel of Sally on his back, running in the fresh breeze. They had no right to keep him here. He belonged to Sally. He was her property not theirs. This was wrong. But, would Sally even want him back? The thought that she would not want him anymore sent a shudder through his body. His only hope was that Sally would come and take him home. He didn’t even care what punishment she imposed. He deserved whatever she decided to do. He tried to pretend that he was enduring Sally’s punishment right now. That she had placed him in this position to teach him what he had done wrong. For Sally he would endure this and worse. Any pain Sally imposed would be well deserved and he would show her he would accept it.

Somehow, the fantasy that he was being punished at the hands of his proper owner brought strength back to him. She always knew, even when he thought he had exhausted his last reserves of strength, how to use her encouragement, and crop, to find that additional energy and determination buried inside. He imaged Sally standing behind him telling him “dig deep. Find the strength. Stand tall. You are my pony, be proud”. His body straightened. He needed to show Sally that he was strong. He needed her to see that he was proud to be her pony. More than anything else in the world, he wanted her to be proud of him. He would not let her down.

He stood proudly. He didn’t know it, but for the next three hours the bar only touched the circle twice. Even then, he did not even flinch when the shock hit his body.

When Anne (that is the name of the 19 year old sister who had exerted her will on Jacob the day before) walked back into the barn that morning she was shocked. She expected to find a whimpering mess. Instead, the pony was standing straight and firm. He was holding his head up and the bar, extending from his bit, could not have been steadier in the center of the ring if it were strapped there. His breathing was measured and regular. His eyes were focused straight ahead. Clearly, he could have heard her come in, but he did not register it at all. She walked around in front of him. His eyes stared straight ahead as a well trained pony’s eyes should.

She was not exactly sure what had transpired over the night, but she liked the result. She, however, did not want to be fooled by what she saw. She knew she had pushed this pony to the edge and beyond. She knew he was in a complete state of exhaustion, and she needed to get him bedded down so she did not injure him.

She quickly removed the bit from his mouth. When the weight was released, his head bobbed only slightly. She held up a water bottle and then squirted water into his mouth. He took the water without looking down or at her.

Next she removed the tether, released his hobble from the ring in the floor, and with a leash line led him over to an empty stall. He walked lifting each leg as high as his hobble would allow as if there was no pain in his feet, or anywhere else in his body, but Anne knew better. She had heard about ponies going into “pony space” to put pain out of their minds and she was pretty sure she was seeing that now. She had been pretty disgusted with this pony the day before. She had about decided it was not worth the effort. She had been particularly harsh on it, and that may have been a factor, but now she was not so sure. This animal may be quality after all.

She did not replace a bit in his mouth. She wanted him to rest and saw no need. She attached a leash to his control ring and led him to a stall in the back of the building. He followed without hesitation. He was trying to raise his knees, but she could tell that his feet were very sore.

Once inside she guided him to his knees and then to the ground. He complied, surprising her at his ability to control his body movement without the use of his arms. Anne now felt bad about having put wheat kernels in his boots. The pain from the bastinado should have been sufficient, but she had been really disgusted with this animal at that point. She clipped a chain from a ring in the stall wall to his nose ring. It had about eight feet of light chain. He was not going anywhere.

Then she removed the pony boots. She moved away from the stall and shook the wheat into a trash bin. She did not want to leave something that would attract rats. The boots were moist from heavy perspiration. She set them down for later attention. She could see that she was going to have to spend some time getting all the wheat out, again, not such a great idea. Maybe she would let her baby sister do that. Since she wanted the pony she would have to start to take care of it.

Anne returned to the pony. His feet were red and puffy. They had started to swell as soon as she had removed the boots. She could make out three red stripes on the sole of one foot and four on the sole of the other. They were well welted and she was sure they hurt a lot. Red indentations in his toes and the lower part of the foot testified to the torment from the wheat kernels. She could see that some were already bruising, but none had broken the skin. He was not now hobbled, but he allowed her to inspect his feet and handle them without any resistance. She rubbed each foot with ointment to help in the healing. Then she fastened a leather cuff to each ankle and connected them with about 2” of chain. She wanted to discourage his standing on his feet.

Anne moved Jacob into a sitting position on his straw, and then she held up a bottle of liquid food holding the feeding nipple in his mouth as he sucked in the nutrients. He was hurried at first, as if he thought it would be pulled away, but she settled him with soft shushing and strokes to the side of his head. He seemed to relax and continued sucking on the food until it was gone. She followed it with more water, which he eagerly consumed. Then she gently moved him into a lying position on the straw, and then she left, closing and latching the gate as she went.

Jacob was only slightly aware of being fed and watered. He knew that his boots had been removed and there had been a tender touch to his tortured feet. In his mind Sally had found him and saved him. Eventually he found himself lying down in a restful position. He knew he was not in his stall, but it was similar and he was tired. He was so very tired. He soon was in deep sleep.

Jacob awoke. From his stall, he could not see outside the building. He could see no light coming in from outside. He looked around the stall. It was older and more weathered than his stall. It was about 10 feet long and six feet wide. One wall was rock; two walls were wood slates running up to at least 8 feet. The final wall held the gate up to just over four feet. The gate did not have bars on the top, so a strong pony could probably launch over the top although the landing would be painful. That pony, of course, would have to be not chained. Jacob was chained from his nose ring to a ring set in the stone at the back of the stall.

Jacob’s legs felt stiff and his feet still hurt. He remembered the ordeal. At least he remembered parts of his ordeal. He remembered his feet being beaten. He remembered being made to stand in his pony boots subjected to shocks when he moved or could not hold position. He did not remember that ending. He did not remember being put in this stall. He did not remember his pony boots being removed, but they clearly had been because they were not on his feet. Instead, his feet were wrapped in gauze.

Jacob was not sure where this stall was located. The building looked to be the same one in which he had been tormented, but he could not be sure. One barn or stable looks pretty much like another. He thought there was enough chain to get to the gate and look around. He shifted his body up onto his knees and started to stand. As soon as he put weight on his foot, the pain was too intense and he collapsed to the floor. That foot was now throbbing. He was not going to be standing for a while.

He got back to his knees. There was a bowl of water on the floor. He move over to it and stuck his head in. He was bridled and there was a bit in his mouth, but it felt strange. Probing with his tongue, he could feel that the bar of the bit had a flat part that was lying on his tongue. In the center of this part, there was a circular opening. The bar could turn, he moved it with his tongue, but the wide part of the bit forced his mouth open as it turned. He did not want to think about the potential purpose. He went back to the water and drank.

His entire body ached. It had been his feet that had been tortured, both directly and then by standing, but he must of tensed every muscle because he felt like he had just run 40 miles.

He had inspected the inside of the stall. There was really nothing to see. A ring well mounted in the back wall held the chain connected to his nose ring. It was held by a simple carabineer clip, but his arms were still in his arm binder so even a simple clip was enough to keep him restrained. Near the gate, there were pegs on the wall, high enough so that he would not bump into them when he stood – if he was ever able to stand again. They held several items of tack, now all too familiar to Jacob. There was the straw on the floor, and his water. That was it. That was the entire world right now. The straw looked inviting. The outline of his body, where he had slept, was clear. He worked his way back over and lay down. How was Sally going to find him here? Did she even want to find him? He missed her smile when she came to get him each morning. He always felt she was happy to see him. He missed the feel of her breath on his neck when she rode him. He missed her scent. He missed the touch of her hand on his shoulder, neck and head. He missed nuzzling her shoulder and feeling her stoking his head. Then he slept.

Jacob awoke to the sound of the stall gate being opened. He could see light coming in from outside. It was morning. Had he really slept a day and a night? It appeared that he had. The girl, we know her as Anne, but Jacob had no name for her, (even people who might deign to talk to ponies would never introduce themselves) stood in the doorway.

Jacob felt vulnerable lying there so he shifted his body so he could sit with his legs folded back at the knees below him. As he shifted his body upright, he felt the chain from his nose brush against his back and pull slightly over the top of his arm binder. He would go nowhere until she was ready. She was clearly in full control.

“I am not going to put your pony boots back on for a couple of days. But that, is no reason to lose training time. A good pony is unquestionably obedient. You are going to be obedient.” Jacob thought of Lady Clair and her obsession for obedience. He remembered her telling Sally that Jacob should be sent to her for some obedience training. He looked up into the girl’s eyes, she looked back unyielding. Jacob dropped his eyes.

“Straighten up. When you are on your knees you will assume the ‘kneel display’ position.” She put a finger through one of his nipple rings and lifted until his body was off his legs and up straight. Then, using her crop and hand, she straightened his head so that he looked straight ahead, tapped the inside of thighs to move his legs apart, and walking around behind him placed one ankle over the other.

She was not happy with his posture so she smacked his buttocks with her quirt until his back was completely straight.

“Better. I don’t want to see even a muscle twitch for 10 minutes. Then you can eat.” Jacob hated this position. However, he hated most of all having to hold perfectly still with his eyes facing straight forward.

He held his head still but tried to look to his right to see what was going on. There was a painful swat on his flank. “Eyes forward.” How on earth had she seen that? It wasn’t possible.

His knees were getting sore from the cement floor of the stall and the fact that several stalks of straw were underneath them. Jacob tried to shift his right knee just a little to ease the pain from the straw now embedded in his flesh. Two swipes, these really hurt. Jacob had thought Sally’s quirk hurt, but he know considered her discipline to be love taps compared to this girl. He was sure that there were two solid welts on this flank. It hurt more than the straw digging into his knee.

“That was not acceptable. We will try again. If you want to eat I suggest you get it right.” Jacob moaned and quickly learned that even that was not acceptable. He could now feel a painful stripe on his left buttocks. He knew what was required, so he froze. He knew she would just keep doing this until he did what she wanted. She could, and would, mark him all day long if necessary. He stiffened his back. He was sure he moved just a little when he did this, but if he did she either didn’t see it, or more likely she accepted that action as appropriate.

Jacob was sure it was much longer than ten minutes but he held his position.

“Good. Now you can eat.” He was still kneeling, afraid to move until she told him he could. She walked behind him and he felt her hands on his ankles. His ankles were formed in a perfect X by his position. He felt the pressure as she attached two belts around his ankles. The first circled the ankles around the outside. The second circled at a 90-degree angle between his feet and legs. When the two straps were pulled tight, they kept his legs in the current position with his knees held well apart.

The girl walked to a corner of the stall and released a line. As she walked it forward Jacob could see that it was connected to a pulley in the ceiling of the stall near the center. There was a clip in the end of the line and the girl used it to secure a large plastic bottle, at least half a gallon. The bottle hung from the strap by a loop in the bottom. On the hanging end of the bottle was a large nipple like that found on a baby bottle but much larger at least an inch in diameter and four to five inches long.

The girl then turned her attention to Jacob. He felt her turn something at the side of his bit and the bit rotated inside his mouth. He had thought that the round part in the bit would force his mouth open if turned. He was correct. The opening in the bit was rotated to face out of his mouth. The action forced his jaws apart. The girl then grasped the bottle hanging on the line and pushed it into Jacob’s mouth. The nipple pushed through the ring in the bit and then Jacob heard a snap. It had locked into place behind the ring.

She tightened the line on the bottom of the bottle until the bottle was just slightly more than 45 degrees from Jacob’s mouth up to the end connected to the line. He knelt with his back straight. “You have an hour to finish your meal. You may move your head as necessary to feed, but you are not to otherwise break position.” Then she was gone.

The ring in Jacob’s bit was solid so he could not use it to manipulate the nipple. He could not close his jaws on the nipple because of the ring in his mouth. The ring would not turn back flat because it had the nipple sticking through the middle holding it vertical in his mouth. “Catch-22”. Jacob thought.

Eventually he managed to work his tongue against the part of the nipple protruding from the ring and to use his lips to pressure the outer part of the nipple before the ring. Eventually he was able to lock around it so that he could create a sucking motion. Nutrients started to squirt into his mouth. It was pretty tasteless, but he knew it had what he needed and he was hungry and he did not want to disappoint. It was an awful lot of work, but he had learned already that when she said eat, you better eat.

When the girl returned, she seemed satisfied with the amount Jacob had eaten. His back was hurting and his neck was stiff from being craned back to accommodate the bottle. Even when he felt like he was done eating, he could not lower his chin because the whole feeding apparatus was locked in place in his mouth. He never thought he would miss his feeding trough.

Throughout the day, until long after the sun had set, he practiced the ‘kneel display’ position. They worked on keeping his chin at just the right angle. They worked on putting a slight arch in his back so that his groin was thrust forward. He didn’t much like that idea.

Finally, the girl left and returned with a bucket of water. Jacob perfectly held his position while she soaped and washed his entire body. When she got to the area between his legs, she carefully cupped his balls as she washed then. Then she soaped and washed his penis. Jacob was used to being touched there by his grooms and trainers. After all, it was the hands of others that had to do everything for him. But, the girls hands were lingering and they did not feel as impersonal as he was used to. He realized that his penis was beginning to grow. This happened occasionally when he was washed. It usually drew a derisive remark from his trainer or groom. It had been over four months since he had had any sexual release. It seemed like forever. It had been four months, since he had been captured, that the ring in the end of his penis had been locked to the ring around his balls. It had not ever been unlocked during this period.

Jacob moaned, his head drifted as his chin slipped up and his hips started to rock with the feeling. “Hold position.” Her hand squeezed his balls painfully. He went ridged. He had thought she was trying to make him feel good. Now he realized she was testing his ability to hold position and overcome his most basic urges. He hated her.

The girl continued to tease and stroke his balls and penis. She even flicked and teased his nipples. But now he knew what was required. He tried to put the rising sensations out of his mind. But, that was not possible. He also knew that if he moved he would be sorry. At one point, he let his eyes squint. “Eyes front and focused.” This earned him a stripe. How did she even see this? She was mostly behind him.

It was impossible, but somehow he got through this test. She fed him again from the stupid bottle hung in the center of his stall, and then she put him to bed. His back was stiff and hurt from holding position all day. His neck also hurt. He almost forgot the pain in his feet. He wondered if he could walk on them yet, but he could not find out because she had left his ankles strapped in the X position. It made it much more difficult to sleep, but somehow he had managed. At least she had removed the line from his nose ring and moved it to the back of his collar. He really hated being chained from his nose.

There were sounds from outside. The air was heavy and the interior of the stall was dim. Not dark, it was morning, but Jacob could tell, without even looking outside, that the weather had turned bleak. As he woke and struggled into a sitting position, his body felt chilled. The straps on his ankles were very awkward and he wished he could do something about them. He sat looking at simple buckles that could easily be opened releasing the hated things, but the simple task was not simple for him. For him those simple buckles might as well be high strength padlocks. His ankles would stay bound and useless until someone else released him. His life now, had constant reminders that he was just an animal controlled by others.

Finally the girl did come. She released the belts from his ankles, then easing him onto his back she unwrapped and inspected each foot before applying new salve and rewrapping them. He tried to see what they looked like when she unwrapped each foot. They did not look as swollen as they had been the day before, but it still hurt when she touched the soles. He assumed she was touching welts on his flesh, but she did not bother to tell him or show him anything. It was really none of his business. She would decide what to do and he would do it.

After rewrapping his feet she commanded: “Kneel display.” Jacob quickly scrambled up onto his knees and assumed the position facing toward her. She had now picked up her crop and she walked around him using gentle taps to make minor corrections in his posture and position. Jacob carefully kept his eyes straight ahead drilling a hole into the side of the stall in front of him. Even when she walked around through his field of vision, he was careful to insure that his eyes did not follow her.

“Good”. She said, then, he heard her tapping her crop on the floor of the stall. “Kneel display.” At first, Jacob was not sure what to do. He was already in the display position, then, it dawned on him that she wanted him to move. He quickly followed the sound of the tapping and moved to the location. When he took up the new position his legs were spread on either side of the spot she was tapping. He had brushed against the crop with one leg as he moved into position and that had been rewarded with a painful slash to his breast, but as much as it hurt, he had ignored the pain and moved into position. Damn, she could hit hard.

The girl was right in front of him. Jacob’s eyes were focused at about her navel. A painful stripe to his right flank made him realize that if he focused his eyes on her body they would follow any movement she made. He forced himself to lose the focus and attempt to look through her to the wall beyond. He could not see it because her body blocked it, but he imagined it in his mind, and focused on what he saw in his mind.

“Good”. She said again. Jacob realized he was learning what was expected of him. That pleased him. He tried to analyze what he was feeling. He worked hard to please Sally. It was very important that she not be disappointed in him. When he thought he had let her down it made his stomach hurt. Of course, just thinking of how he had deserted her and ran away really made his stomach hurt. He didn’t feel the same about this girl. He didn’t really want to please her, but he was terrified of her. She was in control. There was no negotiating, there was no slacking, and there was no opportunity for delay or even thought. She expected her commands to be obeyed, completely and instantly. And, anything less than perfection in both his obedience and performance was punished. She knew how to cause pain. He didn’t want her to hurt him anymore. He was going to do whatever he had to do to make the pain stop.

She had positioned him at kneel present in the middle of the stall, and she used that position to feed him. Once again, it was the stupid bottle with the big nipple. He really hated feeding this way. It was completely humiliating. He truly hoped that this would not be his only source of food while on this farm.

Jacob had finished his feed by the time the girl returned. At moments, he thought he was being too slow and that she would return before he had finished. The fear of not completing the task made him feel like he was going to throw up. That made consuming the meal more difficult, but he put his mind into it, and he finished. He was breathing deeply around the nipple of the now empty bottle when she returned. He was, of course, completely dependent upon her to remove the hateful thing from his mouth.

She fastened a leash to the ring in his nose and then released the chain that held him to the back of the stall. She signaled for him to stand. He did so hesitantly. He was not wearing his boots, but he knew his feet would be tender. They were. It hurt to stand, but it was not unbearable.

She led him from the stall. She moved slowly, allowing him to step carefully. He had been so long in pony hooves that he stood and walked on his toes. He could not remember the last time he had walked in bare feet. Trying to flatten his foot to the ground hurt terribly. Both from painful welts that still decorated his soles and the deep bruises associated with them, but also from the strain on his tendons that had over the last four months adjusted to his new standing and walking position in the boots. He stayed up on his toes.

The girl led him thru the small barn and out the door. Jacob could see that the small barn was away from most of the farm buildings, including what looked like a large barn stable combination some 200 meters away. A corral attached to the barn had up to a dozen human livestock grouped and moving around. Jacob was positioned on a flat rise of land that presented a good view out and down the valley. He looked longingly at the distant end of the valley. There was never any real chance of him getting there.

She led him to an open area just before where the land began to slop downward. She signaled for him to come to a stop, and commanded: “Display”. He quickly dropped to his knees and assumed the position he had learned over the last two days. She gave him a firm swat with the crop on his right buttocks and pulled up on the leash attached to his nose ring. He responded and stood. What did she want? He did not understand. She tapped the inside of his thighs, not gently, until he moved his legs apart so that his feet stood at shoulder width. It would be about the distance of an 18” hobble. He turned his head slightly to look at her. The crop bit just above his right nipple. That really hurt. He straightened his head and looked straight ahead.

“Have you learned nothing? Standing display requires the same concentration as kneeling display. Unless you are commanded to rest, you will assume the display position whenever you are stopped.” She punctuated this admonition with three swipes to his flanks and buttocks. He felt his body begin to tremble, but he knew even an involuntary response would bring him pain. He fought to control it and finally brought his body under control.

Jacob could feel his chest rising and falling. He was breathing heavily. There was another bite of the crop to his buttocks. “Control your breathing. Movement is not acceptable.” Jacob forced himself to make his breathing shallower. He started to feel light headed, but he managed to bring it under control.

“Better”. Any recognition was a huge relief to Jacob. He had found a spot on the far side of the valley to use as his focal point. The girl had dropped down out of his sight. Then he felt her hands on his balls. He was terrified that she was going to try to get him worked up again. Instead, he felt something fastened around his balls. Now there was a weight hanging suspended from his balls. He had seen stretchers used on stallions before, but he had never worn one. He did not like the idea. He did not want something hanging from his balls, the collar he had to wear above them was sufficiently humiliating, but he knew this was not his decision, and he could do nothing to prevent it. He was surprised that whatever she had placed there did not feel heavy. However, the biggest surprise was yet to come.

“You are going to stand here in display position. You are not going to move at all. Hanging in the air between your legs is a motion sensor. It is very sensitive and you will not like what it does when it moves. Should I demonstrate?” He had broken position, he had let his head and eyes follow her voice to her face as she spoke. He sensed the movement of the crop and quickly brought his face and eyes back to their required position, but it was too late, a stripe of fire burned across this flank. It was also enough to make the device hanging between his legs sway, just a little, but a sway. Jacob was going to hate this thing. He could not look down to see, but apparently there was a wire connected to the ring in his penis and an electrical surge flowed from the clip on his penis up through the shaft, down into his balls and out through a sack of wire mesh that had been fitted over them. Fortunately, it would stop shocking him after about 5 seconds and then allow up to 60 seconds before it reset. So long as movement in the sensor had stopped, he was ok. If it were still moving there would be a new shock followed by another 60 seconds of waiting. If he reacted too strongly to the shock, he would set the device swinging too hard to come to rest in the 60 seconds allowed. Sometimes he would know that the next shock was coming and he would force himself to focus and resist moving when it came so that hopefully, by the end of the next 60-second cycle, there would not be another shock.

This was already terrible, but she was not yet done. Without removing his existing collar, she fastened another collar around his neck. It was large and thick with a metal part that curved up under his chin. He could tell that there was a box on the front of the collar itself. He saw her hands moving and felt slight pressure on each of his nipple rings. He knew she had fastened connectors to them from the box on the collar. He now had enough information to make him very uneasy. This was confirmed when he tried to glance down to see what she was doing. It caused his chin to bob just slightly. He realized as the electricity surged through his nipples that the metal on his chin was a sensor. Any movement of his head or chin and he was shocked.

Even though he was expecting something, the shock surprised him enough that he clenched his upper body, which caused just enough movement to cause a shock to rip through his penis. This was so unfair. Sally would never do anything like this. It was completely inhuman. Nevertheless, he was helpless to do anything about it. Jacob realized the irony of his situation. He was outside, he was not tethered, and he was not even hobbled. There were roadways all about him. Yet, he was completely controlled. If he tried to run, the devices connected to his body would shock him into submission. If he even moved, they would punish him. His only choice was to remain perfectly still, like one of those statue performers, or a guard at Buckingham Palace. It was what she demanded and he would obey.

Jacob's feet hurt. He legs were cramping. His neck was hurting. But he held still. Once he found the right form and position, it seemed easy somehow. He took his mind completely off his body. His eyes were fixed on a notch in the ridge on the other side of the valley. It looked like there was a road that ran from the main road up the middle of the valley up to this area. He wondered; was it a side canyon closed at the end or did it open up into some other place, some place where people were not turned into animals. Jacob was too far away to make out any detail, but he was sure he saw a vehicle of some kind travel up the road into this strange canyon only to disappear as the road curved around the hill. He imagined himself ridding in the vehicle. He imagined himself being taken from this place. He sighed. A mistake, his head moved and his nipples burned with the shock. It did not spread, and the pain passed. He refocused on the distant place.

Anne returned. She disconnected the device from between his legs. As she took it away, she fastened an 18" hobble between his hooves. "Good. You are getting the position. Rest." Then she flipped a switch on the collar, but she did not remove it. She turned and walked away.

Jacob tentatively moved his head and found that the pressure switch moved with him but did not shock him. Jacob looked down at the hobble on his ankles. There was a ring in the ground almost between his feet and a snap link had been fastened through the ring and around the chain on his hobble. It was so simple, so easily manipulated by his controllers, yet so completely effective. He may now be able to move, but he was not going to be leaving the spot where he stood. He glanced longingly out across the valley. The cloud cover now had moved down the hills so that the road Jacob had been eyeing disappeared into a veil of mist. Somehow, that made the road and its hidden canyon so much more appealing. The temperature had dropped considerably. Jacob shivered. His nakedness was accentuated by the cool air.

Anne held a bottle to Jacob’s face and squirted water into his mouth. He was thirsty and it was nice. He had become so used to taking water while bitted that he did not even think about the difficulty of drinking without being able to close his mouth or even having unrestricted use of his tongue. Jacob glanced at Anne and then looked down. He knew not to hold eye contact with any of the trainers. It never accomplished anything other than inviting pain. Anne was stroking the side of his head now.

“That was good. Maybe there is hope for you yet.” Jacob did not know if he should feel pleased at the seeming complement or not. He did know that he was terribly afraid of this girl and if she was pleased that meant less pain for him, so it must be a good thing.

The rest period passed too quickly. Anne ordered: “Kneel Display”. Jacob found himself dropping to his knees before he even processed in his mind what she was saying. He crossed his ankles, spread his knees, straightened his back and held his head still looking out across the valley.

“Good”. She repeated and he felt and heard her flip the switch on the collar. She had not reinstalled the shocking device on this balls and penis, but she had rearmed the device to his nipples. Any errant movement of his head or chin would be most unpleasant.

But, he knew how to do this now. He picked out a spot; it looked like a copse of trees, it was on a hillside miles away, he let his mind envision himself there among the trees. He removed his mind from his current situation holding his body perfectly still. It felt good to be off his feet. They still hurt. But he also knew that the ground was hard and before long his knees would start to ache from the pressure. Would he try to shift his weight when that happened? He did not know, but for now, he held perfectly still.

Something hit his cheek; he flinched and felt a shock run across his breasts. It had only been a drop of rain. The next one did not get a reaction from him, nor did the next and the next, as drop after drop began to fall. At first, they irritated. He had to suppress the natural inclination to shake or brush them away – the later movement, performed without thought just four months ago, was no longer a part of his reflex action, it was surprising how the body responds and learns how to cope with its limits.

Then, as the rain began to fall with earnest, it actually started to feel good. It was cool, but he felt rivulets run across his face and body washing away the dried sweat and dust. The rain did not stop. It increased in strength. Jacob had to close his eyes. He had to open his mouth only slightly to breathe without taking in water. Now the rain was very uncomfortable. He wondered where the girl was. She should not leave him out in the rain like this. She should bring him back into the building. He did not know where she was and with the sound of the rain all around him, he could not hear anything that might reveal the presence of a person. Jacob did what he could do. He knelt holding perfectly still letting the water wash over him in sheets. He envisioned the girl watching him from the cover of the building. He was just a pony kneeling in the rain. Why would she bother bringing him in?

Jacob kept his focus straightforward to the spot he had picked to watch. He was not aware of how long he had been holding his position. The rain had slackened. There was still some drizzle, but not enough to drive humans for cover. The air smelled fresh and clean.

“So this is the wild pony that Michelle caught?” It was a man’s voice coming from behind Jacob somewhere. He knew better than try to look, or even to move in any way. He held his position.

“That is him.” It was Anne.

“You said he is not registered?”

“I checked his lip. No number. You can see for yourself, no brand.”

“Strange. Well, Michelle wants to ride him to school. We don’t know much about him. What do you think?”

“He is spoiled and pampered, but I think there is potential. There is a clear streak of defiance, he is not naturally submissive, but he is pain adverse, so I think he will be very obedient with a little work. Take a look.”

Jacob could sense that the two of them had moved up behind him. He did not like being talked about in the third person. He especially did not like what the girl was saying. Of course he was not submissive and he did not like pain. That was stupid, who would? He knew that they used pain to control him, and he knew it worked. That is why he had tried to escape, but look what that had gotten him.

“Well, she did catch him, and this will allow her to sign up for the pony handling class. That is good. We can't spare Thunder, but is it safe? I don’t want her injured by a rough animal.”

“I don’t think that is a concern. So long as he knows he can’t get away he is very unlikely to do something stupid like trying to hurt a human. The greatest danger would be if he thought there was a chance to escape. I think he is perfect for her class. I could ride with her to class for the first week to help keep him in line.”

“That would make me feel better. Ok. But, if he is going to eat he is going to have to pull his own weight around here. I want you to take him to the smith. He needs to be registered and I want him equipped for night service to the herd.”

“Ok, Dad. I will take care of that. Should I tell Michelle or will you?”

“Let’s surprise her at dinner tonight. This morning at breakfast I made her think it was a bad idea. She has been quietly sulking all day.” He laughed, and even though Jacob could not see them, he sensed that there had been an exchange of hugs between the father and daughter. It had been a very long time since he had been hugged or hugged anyone. Sally had stroked his head and neck. He missed that so much. He felt his eyes moisten.

After the father had left, Jacob was removed from his spot outside and led back into the building. Once again, he was clipped in the middle of the open area and fed by means of the bottle with the long rubber nipple that locked into the ring in his bridle and forced him to work his mouth and tongue to receive his meal. He was sure this stuff was nutritious, but he hated this method of feeding.

After he had finished feeding and Anne had removed the bottle she examined Jacob’s feet. They were still very tender, but they did not seem to be swollen. He was sure that the beating had bruised them deeply and that they would be painful for a long time. In any event, Anne seemed to think it was time to put him back in his boots. This had been the longest period of time Jacob had been out of his boots since his capture. He had very mixed emotions as she placed first one foot and then the other back into his boots and laced them tightly. On one level, he did not feel complete without them on. On another level, he had enjoyed the sense of freedom that came from not having his feet so restrained.

Anne returned holding his saddle, and began fastening it in place. He had not had the saddle on his back since the little girl had captured him. More importantly, he had never been ridden by anyone other than Sally. These people did not own him. Sally did. He belonged with Sally. He did not know what they meant by him not being registered. He knew he had not been branded, and he was perfectly happy with that. He had seen the brand on the flank of enough ponies to know, that although he would probably receive one at some point, he was perfectly happy to have that event as far in the future as possible. Right now, he was not so sure. He wished that Sally had put her brand on him. He wished that Sally had registered him. If she had done that, maybe he would be home now instead of being tormented by this cruel girl.

As Anne finished fastening the saddle in place Jacob felt very nervous. He shook his body involuntarily. He moved back and forth on his hooves. He turned his head as best he could to try to keep an eye on her. He did not want her suddenly swinging onto the saddle. If she tried to mount, he planned to turn away from her and make it difficult.

Instead of trying to mount, she clipped a leash to his nose ring, unclipped him from the ceiling and led him out of the building. She then led him down the slope toward the area where he had seen other animals. As they came closer, Jacob could see a large building with an open sliding door. The door led into a corral. In the middle of the corral was a tall pole with six arms leading out. As Anne led Jacob down the slope, he saw an attendant leave the door of the building leading a string of six female ponies. They were in coffle linked by the collar, separated by about six feet of line between each of them. Each had their arms pulled up behind them in a reverse prayer with metal wrist cuffs attached to the back of a metal collar. Cuffs just below their elbows were linked together. Two of the ponies elbows met behind their backs, the other four were separated anywhere from two to six inches by a small rod. No arm movement of any kind was accommodated by their restraints.

Each pony wore hoof boots connected by a 24” hobble. Jacob was surprised that their form was not very good. While they each lifted their knees higher than normal, all of them were sloppy and there was no sense of rhythm between them. Their poor performance did not seem consistent with what seemed to be very demanding standards in this place. Maybe it was just this girl, who had control over Jacob, that insisted on such rigid standards. That gave him some hope that things might improve.

The coffle of ponies was led to the pole with the long arms. The handler fastened a lead from the first pony to the first extended arm, then she worked around the coffle attaching each pony to an arm by the lead that had been fastened to the back of the collar of the pony in front. When she had finished fastening all of them in place, she flipped a switch on the wall and the pole started to turn. Jacob was familiar with walkers, and this was a very simple one.

The ponies did the only thing they could do; they followed the arm in front of them and started to walk in a circle around the central pole. As they moved, Jacob noticed that each of these ponies had huge breasts. He had never seen breasts so large on any pony before. There was no way they could run effectively with those things. He also noticed that instead of the normal nipple ring each pony’s breasts had a round ring that was mounted in some way on the breast circling the nipple. Because it lay flush to the flesh of the breast, it would be very difficult to try to clip anything on to these rings. Jacob wondered at their purpose.

Jacob’s thoughts were interrupted as Anne led him into another corral next to the area where the six ponies from the barn were being exercised. Once she had closed the gate, she reined him and removed his hobble and leash.

Anne held both reins in her left hand and moved up close to Jacob. He backed away slowly. She applied pressure to the reins causing him to lean slightly forward, but he kept his feet back away from her. Holding her arm with the reins out to her side, she moved to his left side. Jacob tried to watch her, his eyes moving back and forth, but his vision was blocked by the blinkers.

She was close to him. He could feel her against him. He turned toward her. She tried to hold him straight with the reins but he twisted against them trying to keep her in front of him. She stroked his shoulder and his flank. It was gentle, not threatening. She was speaking to him in soft gentle tones. He knew she was trying to calm him, but he was not calm. He was afraid. He knew what she intended to do. She intended to mount him. It felt so wrong.

As he turned toward her she turned slowly with him, keeping her left arm with the reins held out to her side. He felt pressure on his back. Her right hand was grasping the back of his saddle. With her hand on his saddle and his reins held in her left hand, it was hard for him to keep turning. He stopped and shook his head back and forth.

Then there was more pressure. Weight pulling down on the saddle. He knew what had happened. She had stepped into the stirrup on his left side and was pulling her weight up. He turned to his left trying to dodge away, but it was too late. She was already off the ground with her weight carried by her foot in his left stirrup.

Then the weight shifted. She was fully on the saddle and her feet were planted in both stirrups. He shivered and shook his body. She leaned in against him. Her head was next to his right ear. “Easy boy.” She had slipped the reins around his head. “It’s ok.” Her voice was gentle and calming, but she should not be there. He needed her off his back. He jumped forward and shook his body back and forth. She stayed right with him.

He tried to jump forward bending at the waist and straightening up quickly. She was still there. He felt her knees at his sides. It reminded him of the way Sally had felt on his back. “Calm, that’s right, just relax.” Her voice was right in his right ear. Her tone was relaxing. He tried to get control of himself.

What was he doing? He had been ridden before. This was really no different. It wasn’t Sally, but she was about the same size and weight. It didn’t hurt to have her there. He was used to carrying the weight. Why had it seemed so important to get her off his back? He did not know. Whatever his reason had been, it did not matter. He had no choice in the matter. He was wearing the saddle and she was sitting in it, and she clearly knew what she was doing.

He stopped shaking and jumping. He heard himself snort. “That’s a good boy. Slowly now.” She gently shook the reins. He knew what she wanted and he started to walk forward. He knew from her touch on the reins, and the feel of her knees against his sides, that it was not Sally, but it was close enough that he also knew what she wanted.

She walked him around the corral guiding him to the left, to the right, forward, stopping, and starting again. Jacob relaxed into his role as his body started to follow instinctively the command of the reins and her touch. It felt good to have someone on his back again, even if it wasn’t Sally.

For about an hour, they stayed in the corral moving about, getting used to the feel of each other. Anne dismounted and then mounted again. Jacob naturally twisted away the first time she had remounted, but not with the resistance he had exerted earlier. And by the time she mounted him for the fourth time he stood still waiting for her to settle into the saddle.

Finally, Anne opened the gate and walked Jacob through holding his reins. Then she flipped the reins over his shoulders and swung up into the saddle. By this time, it felt natural. She did not wait for him to adjust, but with a tap of her heels and a flick of the reins signaled for him to begin to walk. As he walked, she guided him onto a path that then turned into a road eventually leading to the main road to the farm. Guiding him in the direction she wanted to go, she brought him up first to a trot, then after a time, to a full gallop. Jacob had completely forgotten that his feet were still bruised and tender. It felt wonderful to be on the road and moving again. He knew he could not gallop for a great distance, but being able to stretch his legs and feel the air rushing over him was invigorating.

Anne’s head was down near his right ear. Her weight in the saddle had subtle differences from Sally. Jacob was wistful, wishing that Sally were here on his back not this girl, he felt a tear in his eye, but as they ran on he began to feel the familiar joinder of rider and pony, that special relationship that could only exist when the pony opens up, stretching and reaching with each step. He knew that she felt it too. Her words were soft and encouraging. This girl, who was so capable of causing him unbearable pain, now instead exuded caring and protection. Jacob leaned into the run and kept the pace. She seemed satisfied with the gait holding her knees tightly around him as she leaned into his back. Jacob felt needed. He felt wanted. He felt right about everything.

Anne must have been experienced with ponies because she seemed to sense when Jacob was beginning to over-work himself. At that point, his mind was only focused on doing what she wanted and needed. He would not stop or slow without her signal. He would keep galloping at this pace until his body just failed and he collapsed. But, he didn’t collapse. She knew when to bring him back to a trot. He knew had to maintain a trot and actually catch his breath, so long as he had not been pushed too far, and that is what he was able to do now.

There was a grouping of buildings up ahead. A number of corrals were positioned around the buildings. Anne dismounted and led Jacob through a gate that she opened and closed again behind him. Across a small enclosure was a large open barn type door. It looked like it slid on runners to the side leaving a large opening.

Through the doorway, Jacob could see a traditional looking blacksmith work area. Further, over to one side, he saw, what appeared to be a modern machine shop. As Jacob was led forward, he recognized a frame structure that drew his mind back to the night of his capture. He had been strapped to just such a structure when he had been ringed and subjected to the early indignities that were now a part of his everyday life.

Jacob shook his head and whinnied loudly. He did not want to go there. The smith, who had been working in another part of the shop turned and stepped over. Anne was pulling Jacob forward by a leash she had attached to the ring around his scrotum, but Jacob was not going easily, he was now twisting and pulling. It hurt, but he did not want to be connected to that frame. He felt a sharp stripe of fire across his right buttocks. It was quickly followed with one to his left buttocks. That moved him forward a couple of steps. He tried to duck his body down so as not to fit into the frame, but a large hand suddenly grasped the back of his neck and kept him straight as his throat was guided into the slot in the upper part of the frame clearly designed to receive it.

The hand was strong, but it was also a complete surprise and before Jacob could even react, his neck was strapped into the top of the frame. Jacob knew he was done. He still twisted and pulled, but his efforts had lost their purpose and in less than a minute, he was strapped across the shoulders, at the waist, thigh, above the knee and at the ankles. Whatever they were going to do, he could not prevent it.

Jacob did not get a good look at the smith until he walked around in front of the frame. He was perhaps in his fifties, slightly graying medium length hair, not a tall man, but he had substantial girth with extremely developed arms and shoulders. Jacob thought to himself that he would be a terrible pony. All of his weight and power was above his waist, just the opposite of Jacob.

The smith reached out and pulled down Jacob’s lower lip. He then moved his head close and carefully inspected the entire inner surface.

“You are correct Anne.” He said turning his head toward the girl. “There is no registration number and no sign of there every being one.” The smith released Jacob’s lip and moved over to a computer against one wall. Jacob could just see a portion of his back by straining his head to the right.

“Ok, let’s get him registered. Approximate age?”

“I would say 23.” Answered Anne.

“That sounds about right.” Jacob was still at an age where being considered younger than he was, was not a complement.

“Weight?”

“263.” Anne was looking at something on the side of the frame. It had a scale build in. Jacob had gained some weight during his training.

“Height?”

Anne pushed a bar down until it touched the back of Jacob’s neck at the point it met his shoulders. “15.4 hands.” Jacob knew he was being measured. He knew horses were measured in hands not people and he did not think he liked this at all.

“Mane?”

“Chestnut don’t you think?”

“Yes, that works.” The smith looked back at the computer.

“Clearly a male.” There was a pause, with clicking sounds, and then “name?” Hah Jacob thought nobody had ever even asked his name. He wondered if the girl would remove his bridle so he could tell her.

“Michelle has named it ‘Titan’”. Jacob did not know what to think of that. He was shocked. He had been given a name, named by a 18-year-old girl. He had not been consulted in any way.

“Length?” Anne approached Jacob with a set of bolt cutters. As she moved them to the area of his crotch, he felt his stomach lurch. He thought he was going to feint. Then he heard a click, but he did not feel any pain. He looked down as best he could and saw that the padlock holding his penis to the ring around his balls had been cut loose. It was the first time his penis had been free since the day he was first ringed.

Anne took his penis in her hand and stroked it a couple of time. Her touch felt good and he felt it grow. Then she held a stick against it. “Eight and a half.” She reported. She released him. He was still hard, but without being touched, that would not last for long.

The smith stood in front of Jacob with a camera and snapped a picture. Then he returned to the computer. Jacob assumed that his picture was being up-loaded with what was clearly his registration. He was being registered as a pony with some organization. Where would this data go? Who would see it?

The smith was back in front of Jacob. He had something in his hand that he held like some kind of etching tool. Jacob could see the needle at the end. He could see the inkbottle and the small tube. Although Jacob had never been tattooed, he knew what he was looking at.

The smith set down the device, then he pulled Jacob’s lip out and fastened a clip which held it in that position. Jacob knew where the tattoo was going.

The smith worked quickly and efficiently. Jacob could not tell how many numbers or letters were tattooed. Anne stood behind looking over the shoulder of the smith.

“Where do you want the body registration?” The smith was looking at Anne. It was clear that Jacob was not done.

“Above the crotch, right side.” The smith knelt down and Jacob once again felt the slight stinging of the tattoo gun. The lettering was not large you would have to be standing right in front of Jacob to read it, but it could be read without having to bend down. The first visible tattoo of Jacob’s life was on his abdomen to the right and just above his crotch. Jacob wondered if it would show above a bathing suit. Then he wondered if he would ever get the opportunity to find out. It was contained within a tattooed frame with scrolls. In the middle it read: “Titan AX054489”.

What had just happened? It had been many months since Jacob had been captured. It had been many months since he had learned that he was controlled and even owned. It had been many months since he had learned that he was a pony and that it was his job to obey and please his owners. But, this was something else. This was something more. He had been named, registered, and tattooed. He had been marked as the property of someone else.

Jacob wondered why Sally had never registered him. He wondered why she had never named him. If she had, maybe he would be back with her now instead of with these horrible people. He thought she cared for him. He though he was important to her. After all, she had refused to sell him to Lady Clair when it had been had offered – that thought gave him momentary chills. She had put an even younger pony up for auction but kept him. So why had she not completed the actions of her claim on him. Was she trying to preserve some part of his humanity? That did not seem likely; she had never treated him as anything but a pony. In the end, he just did not know.

Jacob had assumed that when they finished marking him they would be done, but the smith was back in front of him standing with Anne who then spoke. “I need him sheathed for use with the herd.”

“Control or free?” The smith replied. It meant nothing to Jacob.

“Full control, obedience and proper discipline are still problems. And I want to be able to use training stirrups for Michelle as she is still learning to ride such a spirited animal.”

“Perfect.” The smith patted Jacob on the flank, then he knelt and used an Allen wrench to remove the ring from around Jacob’s scrotum. The relief at having the weight removed was wonderful. Somehow, Jacob knew that the relief was to be short lived.

The smith returned with a box full of metal pieces. After some measurements, the first part installed on Jacob was a ring that circled the base of his penis next to his body. It was chrome colored and tightened tightly with the use of what looked like a hex wrench with a special head worked in recessed holes. It fit tightly and looked as close to permanent as it could be.

The next part was made up of two rings that passed around his scrotum above his balls. The top ring connected into the ring at the base of the penis with a small shaft that Jacob heard click into place. The second ring was set below the first ring and settled against his balls much like the control ring he had worn since his capture, except that this ring was connected to the top ring with a series of cables between the two devices. It had a ring in the front so it could be used as a leash point – of course. The top ring also had two holes on the sides that apparently could accept some other device.

Next the smith took a small but wide ring of what looked like bronze and slipped it around Jacob’s penis so that it sat just behind the head. The smith fed the ring at the end of Jacob’s penis through the new ring. As Jacob expanded from the attention this new appliance became uncomfortable.

Next, the smith picked up, and started to examine, what looked like a large dildo. However, while a dildo was normally solid, this was hollow. It also had a metal base. After a time the smith had finished his inspection of the device – Jacob could see the device being inspected, but was able to learn little more, and Anne and the smith were not sharing.

The smith lowered the device and slid it over Jacob’s penis. Jacob, who was still mostly erect from the attention he had received while the devices were attached previously, felt this new device slide easily over his penis. He then heard it click into place, as the metal flange on the back of the device fit into metal tracks on the front of the ring at the base of his penis and on the top surface of the ring holding the top of his scrotum. Jacob was certain that, like everything else they utilized around here, this thing could be easily and quickly released by just pushing a couple of buttons. That is, it could be released by someone who could touch and manipulate it. It could not be released by a pony whose arms were bound helplessly behind him.

Jacob could feel the weight of the entire new arrangement. Fortunately, the bulk of the weight was carried by the ring circling the base of his penis. That was an uncomfortable feeling, but not painful. He twisted his body back and forth and felt the momentum from this new device swinging back and forth. Since the time of his capture and initial conversion, he had had his penis bent back and locked to his control ring. Now, although completely encased, it stuck straight out. He had felt less naked before, somehow knowing at least, that it was pulled back and not standing up.

Even though his penis was completely covered this thing not only stood up it waived and waggled around. He felt so much more exposed and vulnerable now.

“Good”. It was the smith. “Let’s give it a quick test.” Jacob did not think he wanted them to conduct any ‘tests’.

Jacob could feel the device covering his penis moving. He could tell from looking at Anne that she was moving her hand up and down the new shaft that extended from his body. He could feel almost nothing. There was almost no sensation in his penis at all. Anne was looking in his eyes and she smiled as she watched him realize that this device would completely isolate him from sensation.

Anne was holding something in her hand. Jacob watched her flip a few switches. Then she stepped forward and started to finger and tease Jacob’s nipples. “You are not allowed to become erect.” She said, as she looked him in the eyes, smiling.

Easy for her to say, not so easy for him while being teased. It had been so long since he had had any sexual release. He had been deprived throughout his captivity, but he had not been forced to resist directly. He remembered his little tryst with Midnight so early in his captivity. He also remembered spending the night on the bar in the stable being tormented. He tried to use these thoughts to control himself, but the memories of midnight and even the tormentor were having the opposite effect. He could feel the blood flowing into his cock. It was feeling very good. Besides, with his cock in this dildo sheath they could not even tell if he got hard. Fuck them.

She was only playing with his nipples, but as he grew in size he felt the sides of the shaft that held him begin to press down on him. This felt really good. Then there was the pain. It was in his balls and surging through his penis. “Bad boy.” She said.

Anne had backed away, Jacob was breathing hard. That had been a very severe shock. He did not want to feel that again. She pushed another button on the device in her hand. The inside of the sheath began to move. Something in the sheath pushed in to grab Jacob’s shaft completely, then it eased up and began to run up and down from the base to the tip. He had gone soft with the shock, but it did not take long to get him hard again. He tried to think of the pain he had felt just moments before and used the thought to keep from getting hard, but that was not working. He could feel himself growing.

What did she expect? She had not even said anything this time. Then the smith and Anne walked away. They were no longer paying any attention to him. But, he was getting plenty of attention from this new device. Finally, he just gave in. Jacob was moaning and grinding his hips. The device just kept moving up and down his cock. But, it was moving too slowly. He needed to pick up the pace. He needed something more. If he wasn’t restrained to the frame he would have found something to grind against, but he was not sure he could have felt anything through the device. He pulled and twisted his arms. He needed to get a hand in play. Strange, he had given up the thought of being able to use his hands a long time ago, yet this thing was driving him back to that thought.

He looked around wildly to try to see where Anne had gone. There must be something else; she needed to do to make this end. She couldn’t, she wouldn’t just leave him like this, would she? But, she did. Time went by and Jacob tried to settle himself, but the sheath was unrelenting, and it was attached to him. No matter what he tried to do, it was there right there surrounding him.

Finally it stopped. Jacob hung weakly against the frame. “The stimulation program seems to work. Let’s make sure he didn’t over come.” She giggled at her joke. It had not been directed at Jacob, but he did not think it was funny.

She reached down to his crotch. Jacob heard a click and the device came away in her hand. She looked inside and announced “Clean. Ok, secure the ring and I will take him home.”

Jacob’s penis was stiff and erect. The smith lifted it gently and with two fingers checked the positioning of the metal band he had earlier placed on the shaft, just behind the head. Jacob was strictly heterosexual, but right now, any touching that might get him where he needed to be was welcome. He tried to move against the hand. This evoked a laugh from the smith. “You got a randy one here Anne.”

Jacob didn’t care what he thought, he only cared that he get over that last little distance he needed. If it were the smith’s hand on his cock, well, that would just have to do. But, before he could get where he wanted there was an intense pain in his penis. The smith had driven a rod through Jacob’s penis through two aligned holes on the new ring. The pointed end of the rod was removed after it emerged from Jacob’s flesh. The rod fit into a recessed area on the side from which it was inserted. On the end where the pointed part had been the smith inserted a small cap into the recess left by the removal of the piercing part. The rod was locked into the ring and the rod locked the ring to Jacob's penis. The rod was through the upper part of the ring so that it passed above the urinary tract. The pain was terrible. The smith rubbed something over the head of his penis, and that seemed to help.

Jacob had shrunk once more, but of course, the metal ring around the head of his penis was still with him, as was the ring in the end that had not been removed. After carefully inspecting the new piercing including running a catheter up past the new device to make sure nothing had been blocked the track, the smith refastened the new sheath in place. “Check it daily for the first week. Use this.” He handed a bottle of something to Anne.

“Thanks. Any idea how quickly we can put him to work? Dad is anxious to take some of the load off Thunder.”

“I would let him heal at least three days. You can’t use the stimulator or the suppressor for a period either so he is not likely to be of much value to you until then.”

“Thanks. It remains to be seen if he is of any value at all. I would just sell him, but Michelle found him and she is just so thrilled, I think dad will do what he can to make it work.” Anne shrugged and then she and the smith shook hands.

Jacob was released from the frame and his hobble and led out of the shop by Anne. Jacob could tell that it was now early evening. He tried to remember how long it had taken them to get here. He could not remember. He wanted to get back to wherever they were going. He needed to lie down and sleep. He wished he were back in his stall with Sally. He missed his stall. He wasn’t sure where they were going to put him, but, he was sure it was not as nice as his own stall back on Sally’s ranch. Jacob felt a tear run down his cheek.

Once outside Anne brought the reins around his head and swung into the saddle. Jacob had noticed that she did not bother to make him assume the mount position with one knee on the ground, instead she mounted him while he stood. Although this allowed him to turn away from her as she mounted, she seemed to have no problem swinging up into the saddle.

Jacob looked about as best he could. He was not sure which road they had followed to get here, but that did not matter. He did not need to know where they were, where they were going, or how they were going to get there. All he needed to do was follow the reins and knee signals of his rider. He could, would, be punished for impulsively making such decisions.

Anne did not wait, apparently, she wanted to get home as well, and she flicked the reins, tapped his haunches with her heels and brought him to a trot. The road she selected had a slight uphill grade, but it did not bother Jacob. He could easily handle this grade. However, things were not the same. He was used to a more streamlined form with his penis tucked back and locked away. Now it was encased in this rubber thing that stuck out in front. Even with his head held up by his posture collar Jacob was sure he could see the tip of this thing bobbing in front of him. And, it was the bobbing and swinging and swaying that he noticed most of all. The damn thing was fastened to him so it was not going to fall off, but it had enough movement in it to allow it to swing back and forth and bob up and down.

The effect of the motion on Jacob’s member, held within, was like being gently manipulated, but the swinging and bouncing was irritating. He thought over time it would develop an identifiable pattern and he would get used to it. In fact, he could see how it could become stimulating. But that was certainly not the case now. Right now, it just felt so different that he could only think of it as irritating. It was just one more thing that was changed from his existence under Sally. One more underscore that he was no longer under her training – her control – her ownership – her protection.

Anne brought Jacob to a gallop. She clearly wanted to get home. Jacob wanted to get home too, but he did not consider where they were going as home. So far, it had only been a place of pain and torture.

It did appear that Anne was a very good rider. She felt light on Jacob’s back, when they went through turns, she knew how to position herself to maintain and enhance his center of gravity and not disrupt his rhythm and speed. She also seemed to know just how far to push him before she would bring back the pace for a time to let him catch his breath, before pushing again.

When they reached the farm, it was just past dusk. The opposite side of the valley was west because the mountains glowed with the last gasps of light before night set in. Jacob/Titan was exhausted. Anne had wrung every drop of endurance out of him. All he wanted was a place to lie down and sleep. He wondered if he would now get a stall. What would it be like? It certainly would not compare to his stall back home. He would give anything to be home curled up in his straw.

Anne led him into a larger building. It looked like a combination of a barn and a stable from the outside. The door that they entered revealed a small stable area. There were no more than eight stalls. Jacob could not see if any or all were occupied. He assumed one would now be his.

Before taking him to a stall, Anne led him into a standard pony washroom. This facility appeared older than the one Jacob was used to with stains and some apparent damage to the once white tiles of the wall. It only had a single washing rack in the middle of the room. Jacob’s home stable had three racks. Although Jacob was very tired, and hungry, a good wash sounded good. He had not been properly groomed in some time.

Anne led Jacob to the washing rack and quickly fastened the collar in the middle of the top bar around his neck. It clicked shut and Jacob knew from experience that he would not be going anywhere until she was done. The collar had only a simple latch, but the latch release was at the end of the bar in which it was set. This meant that a pony locked in the collar, even with the use of his arms, could never reach the release. It was just too far away.

Anne fastened his left ankle cuff to a ring in the floor. Then she moved to his right side and removed his right pony boot. It was very difficult for a pony locked in the frame at the neck to kick to the side. A kick to the back was possible and had the most force. A frontal kick had less force but with the steel shoes could be very damaging, but to the side was hard. Jacob knew. He had tried it a couple of times just after his capture. He had not hit his target but his handler’s whip had certainly found theirs. He didn't try to kick any more.

When the right boot was removed, Anne lifted his foot and inspected his sole. Then she lowered his foot, attached a cuff and clipped it to the floor. She then moved back to the left, unclipped the hoof and removed that boot. When she was finished, she lowered and restrained that leg. Jacob was now held in an A form secured at the neck with his legs held about 24 inches apart.

Anne then began to unlace Jacob’s arm binder. Jacob knew this routine also. It was not frequent, due more so to the time it took to attend to the lacing of the binder than security concerns. These people were very well organized and trained. When releasing the arm binder the attendant stood behind the pony. So it was only done after the legs were secured. After the lacings were removed, the cover was folded down revealing the arms and their internal holding straps. Even without the cover, the pony would be unable to release the bindings. Next, the single strap holding the wrists together at the small of the back was released. This allowed the arms to hang down at the sides, now restrained only by the strap above each elbow. It is worth noting, that even with full use of the arms, it is a rare animal, which would be able to open the elbow straps. The buckles open to the front resisting attempts from behind. The pony may be able to reach across their back and touch the strap on the other arm but cannot get sufficient leverage to open the buckle. Usually a pony would try to move the arms at this point, if only to restore some sense of control over them. The available range of movement posed no threat to the handler, so long as the pony was restrained at the neck and ankles, and the handler stayed behind the pony.

Then one arm, usually the right, was grasped at the wrist by the handler’s right hand as the left hand released the elbow strap. As soon as the strap is released, the arm is lifted and locked into a metal cuff on the same bar as the neck collar. If the pony offers any resistance, the handler merely steps back and applies the whip until the pony places the wrist in the cuff allowing the handler to step forward and close the cuff. Only when the first arm is secured is the second arm unbuckled and locked at the bar. Jacob knew that the feeling of freedom derived from the removal of the armbinder was illusory. He had fought for freedom a couple of times only to finally submit to the inevitable. He had clawed at the collar at his neck. He had reached behind to try to release his other arm, but eventually he had surrendered and placed his wrist into the stock to be secured. A woman half his size had complete control over him at all times. He had no illusion that it would be any different here and he was far too afraid of this girl to try anything.

After his armbinder was removed and his arms locked safely in their cuffs she removed the remainder of his tack, including his bridle and bit. Jacob was now completely naked except for the new device fixed over his penis and his tail with its associated plug that made it a permanent fixture.

Anne handed all of the leather to another girl Jacob had not seen before and who then left the cleaning stall. Jacob expected that his tack was being cleaned and shined. A cold burst of water made Jacob stiffen. Anne then set a bucket of soapy water next to him and began to wash his body using a mitt like the one he had used to wash his car. Jacob giggled thinking of the comparison of his car to him. He was now, after all, a form of transportation.

While the water from the hose had been very cold, the water in the bucket was at least warm. The feel of her hands, washing and soaping his body, felt very soothing. She took her time scrubbing him clean. At times, she would stop and he could feel her fingers checking for any irritation on his skin. He was, after all, valuable property.

With the posture collar removed, Jacob was now able to look down at the new addition from the afternoon. It did not look like a sheath. Unless one looked closely, it looked like his actual appendage. Much larger, of course, but the coloring and the texture of the material looked quite real. He had a mixed reaction when she ran her hands over the sheath to clean it. He felt nothing. This was very strange. He had become so used to being touched while being washed. It had become a source of pleasure to him, even though he was never able to achieve satisfaction. Now he could not feel a thing in his penis. Except for the pain in the tip where he had been pierced. His balls, however, were fully in play and as she washed them, he sensed himself expanding, all with no visible effect on the sheath.

After Anne had soaped his body, she once again turned the cold hose on him. Again, he could swear that the water at this farm was much colder than at Sally's ranch. In any event, nobody cared what he thought. Held in the washing frame he could not even move away or toward the water. She had to walk around him with the hose to insure that she had washed away all the soap.

Anne put the hose away and dried Jacob’s body with large towels. She left and returned with a bottle of oil that she started to rub onto and into his skin. The washing had been almost rough, but this was gentle. She worked and massaged his muscles. It felt wonderful. He wished he were laying on a massage table instead of standing with his arms, neck and ankles locked in place, but it still felt very good.

When she finally finished his entire body glistened. It actually made him feel proud. He felt like standing tall, he lifted his chest as best he could in the position he was held. By this time, the other girl had returned with his tack. It had been cleaned and oiled as well. Sweat from the body of a pony can soak into the leather and make it stiff and even brittle. His tack was once again soft and pliable, and, as always, very strong.

Anne wasted no time tacking him back up. When it came time for his armbinder, she reversed the procedure she had followed before. The armbinder was attached to his body in the correct position. Then, as she stood behind him, well out of reach of any attempt he might make to grab her, she released and refastened first one arm and then the other to the above the elbow strap. Even though his arms could still move about from the elbows down it was useless to try to use them to do anything. He did not resist as she folded his arms up against each other and fastened the final strap across his wrists. She then began again lacing the binder from the middle to the ends completing above each elbow. Not that he had had any real use of his arms before being rebound, but now, once again, they were gone. He knew when she was done he would twist and test the binding. He always did after it had been removed and reapplied, but he already knew that she had fastened everything securely with professional efficiency. There was nothing he could do to take it off.

His harness and then his bridle complete with this farm’s hated bit that turned into a ring were replaced and adjusted to his body. At Sally's he had been allowed to eat and sleep without his bit. He had hoped that some freedom would be allowed here. The hoof boots were left off for now, but his ankles were cuffed and hobbled – as always, proper security. Only then, was he released from the frame and led to one of the stalls. In the middle of the stall, a clip was fastened to the rings on each shoulders of his harness. The bit was turned as the ring part pushed his mouth open and then the end of a tube with a long rubber nipple was snapped into place. Jacob was familiar with the nipple arrangement from the feeding bottle that had been used since his re-capture. He wondered if he had experience his last solid food, as he closed his lips around the new invader and utilized the pressure and sucking motions he had had to learn in order to receive sustenance.

After Jacob had finished feeding, he wondered if anyone would come and remove this hateful thing from his mouth. He wanted to lie down and get some rest, but he could not. He was held on his feet by the straps connected to his shoulders. He tried to look around to see what else he could of his surroundings. The stall was made of wood walls that rose to a 12-14 foot ceiling. There was a gate in the doorway of the stall that led to the central corridor. It was also wooden and was apparently latched from the outside. It was approximately four feet high. The interior of the stall was clean, but showed signs of age. The concrete floor had a light covering of straw. Jacob could not make out a drain, but he could not see behind him so he did not know if there was anything in the back of the stall. He could not even see what material the back wall was made of. He obsessed on this for a bit, doing his best to twist his body in the harness, or turn his head, but the combination of his tack and the tube with the feeding attachment fastened into his mouth made it impossible. Behind him, could be a portal to paradise and he would not know it. Jacob could see that the back wall of the stall across from him was made of wood and did not have any visible additions of interest. He assumed his looked the same, yet the inability to look back made him uneasy.

The stall across the corridor was not occupied. It did have two straps and a tube like the one attached to Jacob hanging near the middle. Jacob could see that there was a stall to the right and left of the one across from him, but he was positioned far enough back in his stall so that he could not see far enough into either of those stalls to know if they were occupied.

Then, Jacob heard sound to his left. He thought he heard a creaking sound. Jacob thought about it for a moment. Then he twisted his body from right to left and then back. He heard the same creaking sound coming from the straps that held him in place. There was at least one other occupant of the stable with Jacob. For some reason that made him feel better. He had become used to being part of a herd and he needed some association with other ponies. He hoped his new handlers would return and remove his bit so that they could talk to his stable mate the way he was used to doing at home. He wanted to lie down, but the straps at his shoulders forced him to stand. He had heard some stable made ponies stand. He hoped this was not one.

Nobody returned. Nobody removed the tube from Jacob’s mouth although the feed changed to just water. Nobody released him and allowed him to lie down. At least the shoulder straps took much of his weight and he was able to sleep. The biggest problem was what to do with his head. The collar was uncomfortable when he tried to hang his head, and in some positions, it interfered with his breathing. The shoulder straps could be used a bit, but as he drifted, his head would slide off and jerk him awake. He finally found that if he tipped his head back to the side he got a little support from the shoulder strap and he could rest.