Chapter 8

Henry didn't come back last night. It's been 2 weeks since the failed breakout. We were demoralized to hear there was a failed attempt, and I thought Daniel was affected the most. He got a lot quieter and less positive after. But I guess even Henry must've been holding out hope until then. As for me, I’ve been having nightmares any time I managed to sleep at all. Being on that table with the doctor cutting me up. Other times it was being betrayed by my friends, the other heroes, before finding myself on that table. I knew they didn't hold any blame for me being here, but I felt hurt that they hadn't saved me yet. Some heroes. But I wasn't one to talk.

I haven't been brought back to the room since that day, but the others still got taken away from time to time, though less frequently. Henry was the most recent. He had a bit of a blunt personality, but I didn't hate him. It felt so much emptier with him gone, surprisingly.

Betty has been teaching me a bit of sign language. I know the sign for guards, prisoners, cell, bar, hay, swords, club, and a few body parts like arms, legs, tail, ears, head, fingers, and stuff. It was harder since they still hadn't taken the shackles off me. During the night, Simon gives me tips for fighting, but says it's difficult without actually doing it. I think he's just trying to keep the mood up since Daniel seems down. Either way, it fills the time.

"Keep walking!"

A loud shout from the hallway beyond the door. The guards got up as footsteps grew closer. From the sounds of it, there were 2 guards and someone in chains. They stopped when they got to the door.

"Prisoner transfer!"

They opened the door, and 2 guards carried in a dirty, human man with a long beard. They walked up to the cell across from me, and tossed the man in. He fell flat on his face and didn't bother getting up. While the guards who dropped him off talked to the fat guard, I moved closer to my bars to check on him.

"Gilbert Mako. Charged with giving false information to soldiers about the whereabouts of ember traitors, which resulted in an ambush. They believe he has real information and plan to get him to talk."

The fat guard didn't seem to care much and just looked over at him in the cell, lying on the floor. "... He even alive? He's just lying there."

"He's alive. Just acts like a corpse."

"Alright. Thanks for your work." The fat guard didn't bother looking up from his cards.

The guards awkwardly looked at each other before shrugging and leaving.

It was hard to see from where I was, but he looked ok. I didn't think he hit his head; there was no blood, and his breathing seemed fine. He just didn't move like he was sleeping. I moved away and sat with my back to the wall. It would be lights out soon; maybe he had some news about the outside.

…

The guards closed the door behind them as they exited the dark room. I planned to talk to Gilbert once they were gone to see how he was.

I opened my mouth to speak, but before I even got a word out, he suddenly rolled over and shot up into a sitting position. It startled me good. I managed to keep the volume down despite the surprise.

"Gah! What the heck, man! Are you ok?"

He looked at me with wide eyes, then turned his head slowly until he was looking at Daniel.

"Psst! Hey. Daniel. It's me. I'm here to bust you out. Pack your things."

Daniel froze for a moment, then quickly scrambled to his feet and got as close to his cell bars as he could, but he still wouldn't be able to see.

"Who?"

"It's me! Scott. Did you think we forgot about you?"

"But, the break-in attempt last week... I thought..."

"Last week? That wasn't us if there was one. This was our plan. One moment."

He started shuffling around in the dark, patting his body and pulling things out of places I didn't want to see, along with a tooth that wasn't actually a tooth, but a secret compartment filled with something I couldn't see until he poured it out. He ended up with what looked like a rock, a powder from his fake tooth, and a sort of clay he scraped off his gums.

"How do you plan to get out now that you're in here with us exactly?" Daniel whispered.

"Don't worry, I have everything I need. I practiced this a lot to make sure it was the same every time."

He stared down at his pile of odd junk. He took the rock and began drawing on the floor with it. It was impossible to see in the tiny amount of light that came from the door. I questioned if he even knew what he was doing.

"Hey, Daniel? I think your friend is insane."

"That's very concerning to hear from Mr. murdered hero."

"I know. Imagine how crazy he must be if even I think it."

"What's he doing?" Anna asked.

"He's drawing something with a rock. I can't see it."

"Could be a ritual circle." She said.

"I thought the bars prevented magic or something?"

"Ritual circles don't use mana. You just need the right circle and ingredients."

He continued drawing for over a minute, slowing down and being careful. When he was done, he took the clay and worked it for a bit. He held it towards the light to see what he was doing, and I was able to see him shape it into a jagged-looking toothpick.

He placed the clay pick and the powder in the circle, and took a deep breath.

"Ok, please work."

I could feel the tension of everyone in the room. He moved his chained hands into the circle until he metal touched it. There was a flash of light and a short, low buzz. I looked to the door to make sure the guards hadn't noticed, then back to him when I was sure it was ok. The chains on his arms were gone. He picked up the clay pick, but it was no longer clay. He tried bending it, and it held.

"It worked."

Daniel whispered over.

"What worked? What did you do?"

"I made a lock pick. I can get us both out."

"All of us. Get us all out. Please." Daniel said.

"No. That's too dangerous. Two is the limit."

"I'm not leaving if you can't get all of us out."

"You're gonna risk both of us dying for some people you've only known for a few months in prison? Don't be stupid."

They were whispering harshly at each other. It was almost funny, if it wasn't so serious.

"I wouldn't have lasted here without them. They kept me sane. It's all of us or none of us."

"..."

"Scott, please."

"Fine, dammit. But just the people in this room. I'm not saving the entire prison. Also, if they slow us down or cause us problems, they get left behind."

Sounds of relief and happiness escaped from each cell.

Simon spoke up next.

"Well, come on then. Let's go."

"Not tonight. There's going to be a distraction tomorrow. We wait for that."

There were no protests. We were finally getting out. We just had to wait one more day.

…

Morning arrived. I don't think any of us slept much because we were too excited to be getting out. We all did our best to conceal that excitement and look bored and depressed. Everything that happened that was even slightly out of the ordinary made me think it was part of the distraction. I wish I knew what I was waiting for.

Footsteps. Not in metal boots. Was this it?! I sat up. The others did too. A knock at the door followed by one of the outside guards poking their head into the room.

"Sir, the doctor is here for John again."