Prologue
Clank.
Clank.
Clank.
Clank.
In the dead of night, the soft clinking of chains echoed throughout the building. Head bowed, a figure flanked by two others walked across an aisle before lurching to a stop in front of a room.
A jingle of keys. A scuffle of shoes. Silence. Then...
"Welcome to Hell, kid. Still got your sanity? Well, you gon'ta need it."
Don't get too close...
It's dark inside...
It's where my demons hide...
It's where my demons hide...
Looking around, the figure turned around to meet the gleaming eyes of an old man sitting across the wide expanse of space between them. Their eyes met and held, never wavering and so cold. It seemed that the old man was on the verge of saying something, yet not a word was spoken.
Eyes dark as the night itself calmly stared into the seemingly senile man's eyes, searching for a reason as to why he had spoken in the first place. The old man's eyes glinted once, flashing, a mad light entering those orbs before fading back into the cool darkness of his cell.
Shrugging off the brief encounter, the figure stood still until obsidian eyes had adjusted to the darkness. Spotting another person lying on one cot, the individual padded over to the other empty bedding. Careful not to be too loud, the person- man or woman, indistinguishable in the darkness- lay down on the cot and stared blankly at the ceiling.
This was the start of a new life.
A new life...in prison.
It was a life she wasn't supposed to live.
But in order for others to go free...
"Hurry! It doesn't matter now, leave him behind!"
"But it does matter! He was shot by the others, I can't just leave him behind to die!"
"If you keep on dragging him with you, the police will convict you of his murder!"
"But-"
"Come on! We don't have any time left!"
With a reluctant look, the girl slowly removed the injured man from her shoulders and lay him gently on the ground.
"Theo, I-" Whatever the girl was about to say to the injured man was cut off by the piercing wail of police sirens.
"LAY DOWN ON THE GROUND, HANDS BEHIND YOUR BACK! DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE OR ELSE WE WILL SHOOT. I REPEAT, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE OR WE WILL BE FORCED TO SHOOT."
"Like hell I will!" A vicious snarl, then a loud gunshot rang through the air.
A yell and sounds of a short scuffle, along with the ominous snap of handcuffs. A cold voice, sharp with barely suppressed anger.
"What happened?"
"Sir! A gun shot an officer out of nowhere! There is no solid proof as to who shot the officer, but the current evidence strongly points to the criminal we have just apprehended."
"Let me see him."
"Let me go!" A kick. Then a long string of swear words. Another kick, this time accompanied by a sharp snap and a sharp intake of breath.
"You. Did you just shoot this officer?" Silence. "Answer me, boy or else I will personally beat you an inch of your life, then shoot you under the pretense of suicide. I will repeat myself once more- and once more only. Did you shoot this officer?"
A baring of teeth and a rude retort. "Hell yea-"
"No. He didn't shoot the officer. I did." The man was cut off by the girl who was previously silent. She stood up unsteadily on her feet, the gun that had once been discarded on the floor clenched tightly between her softly shaking hands. "I am the one who instigated the gang war that erupted earlier. I am the one who shot that officer...and for your sakes, you should let the man go, he was a hostage I planned on taking with me." A sneer. "But now he's useless. So let him run, or I'll shoot him on the spot. His face irritates me."
"...And what of the boy beside you?"
"Dead. I shot him, he was a liability."
The cuffed man's eyes widened. He opened his mouth, about to protest. The girl shot him a glare, silently ordering him not to speak.
The man shook his head. 'You know you didn't do any of that! What are you thinking?!'
'Shut up and be quiet, stupid.'
"She's just trying to cover for me, don't listen to her-" The loud bang of a gun and the dull sound of a bullet hitting its target. Then the signal, a sickening thud of a body down and lost to the world of the living forever.
The lead officer spared the body of his fallen comrade a glance.
A disdainful sneer.
"Hn. Believe me now?"
An inscrutable look from the officer, an angry yet confused one from the comrade turned stranger.
"...Take her."
She would have to bear this burden.
But this was her choice. So that they could be free and not suffer for the injustice brought upon them all.
Only she.
Solitary. Alone, yet unwavering and strong.
Even if she had to walk past the gates of Hell, she would stand tall, chin held high.
Because she would go on forever, to infinity, for her family.
The girl blinked at the feeling of a steady gaze boring into her being.
Obsidian eyes turn to meet a blazing sunset orange.
A/N: Hello! Welcome to 'Prison', hope you enjoyed the prologue!
-via PrisonLetters