Behind Bars

Part Nine: A Jackie London Odyssey


The metallic clanking roared inside Yang's head, her ears ringing. The cell door ratcheted and coughed along its rusted track – click, click, clang. A distant mechanism buzzed, the bars slammed into place, and the door banged shut – sealing Yang in, alone.

Numbly, Yang stood at the door to her cell, staring out through the bars. Unseeing, she replayed the scene in the Rec Center over and over.

Vaguely, she remembered being pulled away from Raya and marched back to D block amidst a roiling mass of inmates. Guards yelled – worried about more fights breaking out. Yang hoped Church or Mirra had found Raya, but she couldn't see through the crowd.

Mostly, she saw Cadeja's face in her mind – Kowalski's blood dripping from her fangs, her body arched defensively in front of Raya, a low growl ripping up her throat.

She wasn't sure how long she stood there, staring sightlessly out into D block, but Yang snapped out of her memories when the lights shut off for the night. In the sudden darkness, Yang shifted her weight, her muscles stiff from standing still. Turning away from the bars, she stumbled over to the bunks.

Half-blind, she felt for the edge of the beds and climbed up into her bunk. Falling heavily onto her mattress, Yang stared up at the ceiling for a few moments, unmoving.

Shivering, she eventually sat up and grabbed a gray crewneck sweatshirt she kept folded up by the foot of her bed. She pulled it over her head and slid her arms into the sleeves, leaving the right one untied – too exhausted to care.

Slumping back down onto her bed, Yang curled up on her side and hugged her pillow to her chest. She listened to the slowly fading noises of the women around her settling in for the night. A few muttered conversations died out, leaving the Wilds empty of sound, save for the occasional cough or the squeal of aging mattress coils.

At some point, Yang drifted off to sleep – for once, blessedly free from dreams. Later, when she woke, she was tangled up in her cream-colored sheets – her wool blanket kicked to end of the bed.

Looking around, she waited for her eyes to adjust. Tossing her hair and tucking it behind her left ear, she listened to the sound that had woken her.

The soft, high voice of the lark drifted down to her from one of the floors above. The slow notes of a lullaby hummed through D block. Yang listened, not recognizing the words. Frowning, she concentrated.

Singing more softly than usual, the echoes of the lark's song were fuzzy and indistinct – buzzing down in broken whispers. Sitting up and crawling along her bed towards the cell door, Yang still couldn't make out the lyrics. All she could hear was the gradual rise and fall of her voice, circling through a simplistic melody.

Giving up, Yang slouched against the wall and listened attentively to the sweet music. After a few minutes, the tempo slowed even further – shifting perhaps into a new song. It was lower and harder for Yang to hear, but she felt the notes thrumming in her chest.

Letting her head rest back against the wall, Yang closed her eyes – floating. She let the lark's hushed voice wash over her. The music shifted again, and Yang recognized the next song. Even though she still couldn't quite make out the words, she remembered the tune from that night she'd laid with her head in Cadeja's lap, listening.

"Ella es la Llorona," echoed the memory of Cadeja's voice in Yang's head. Opening her eyes, she felt the muscles in her jaw clench shut as she remembered the story behind the song.

Curling up her knees, Yang hugged her legs to her chest and let herself drift with the melody. Burying her face against her legs, Yang tried to shake the memory that followed on the heels of the song's lyrics –

"Ave rota – la sangre cae. Ave rota – la sangre llora. Ave rota – la sangre…"

Yang squeezed her eyes shut, trying to cast out the vestiges of the nightmare. In the darkness, she saw again her sister's face, white teeth flashing, as she spoke with Cadeja's voice.

"Ave rota – la sangre habla. Ave rota – la sangre ríe. Ave rota…"

Opening her eyes and crawling back under the sheets, she pulled a blanket over her head. Gradually, her memory of the dream changed and morphed. Ruby's face slowly melted away, replaced by Cadeja's – mouth open and fangs dripping with blood. Her lips pulled down into a grimace, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes.

"Ave rota…" she whispered, almost begging.

"Ave rota… help me, ave rota. Dónde estás, ave rota? Help me!" she cried.

Yang pulled the blanket tighter around her, trying to block out the sound.

Cadeja screamed, her words echoing louder in Yang's head.

"Ave rota! AVE ROTA!"

Yang buried herself deeper in the sheets, lying on her stomach and waiting for the voice to fade.

"Ave rota… cuídate, y vela por mi hermana… despierta la niña, despiértate Raya… Ave rota, can you protect her? Can you?"

Cadeja's voice was lower, softer.

"Ave rota, how can you protect her if you can't even save yourself?"

Huffing, Yang flung the blankets off her head and propped herself up on her elbow. Looking at the fuzzy shapes of shifting shadows, she stared into the darkness of the cell until the last vestiges of Cadeja's voice disappeared, retreating with the memory of the nightmare.

Distantly, Yang listened to the lark's song drift to an end, the last note hanging in the air for a moment before giving way to renewed silence.

Yang's eyes burned, red-rimmed and itching. Folding herself back into her mattress, she rubbed at them with the back of her hand.

She felt the irrational urge to peer over the edge of her bed and see if Cadeja was in the bunk below her. Giving in, she leaned over, gripping the metal bedframe with her hand – glaring uselessly into the dark.

Nope, she's not there, she thought, throwing herself back against her pillow.

It's just me.

Alone.


For the next few days, Yang went through the motions of her daily routine, more or less in a robotic slumber. She'd stumble out of bed, let herself be dragged off to the showers or the mess hall or the library… she didn't much care.

Once while sitting in the Yard – her back against the great oak – she woke up from her haze to find herself crouching, backed into a corner like a feral animal.

She had angled herself towards a group of women over by the weights – unconsciously watching for their approach. In the middle stood Sasha, but save for a quick glance in Yang's direction, she left the girl alone.

She was preoccupied with the group around her. A loose ring of girls sort of just stood about, looking gaunt and almost absent from their own lives. Yang assumed they must have been the girls caught fighting – finally released from the SHU. Not a single one of them spoke. The only voices were hushed mumbles that passed between Sasha and Roxie, heads bent together in the middle of the group.

The only other time Yang seemed to check in was when she caught a glimpse of Raya in the cafeteria, a few days after Cadeja had been dragged off by the guards.

As D block lined up to grab breakfast – plastic trays in hand – inmates from A block were being led out of the cafe. Looking up from her place in line, Yang briefly caught Raya's eye. A small smile touched her lips, but it didn't reach her eyes. Bowing her head, she ducked out of the room in the crowd being marched away by the COs.

Yang simply stood there, staring after her – knowing that there was nothing she could really say or do to help.

Numbly watching a cafeteria worker's hands slide some sort of cold cut sandwich onto her tray, Yang's mind drifted – hearing again Cadeja's words:

Ave rota, can you protect her?

For the better part of a week, Yang hardly spoke to anyone. It wasn't until Cadeja was gone that Yang realized just how much she'd come to depend on her, and think of her as a friend. One night, sitting in her cell, Yang came to the shocked realization that the person she'd talked to the most in the past several days was Darrah.

Now that's depressing… she thought, eyes wide and staring at the concrete wall.

Most nights, Yang would drift off to sleep early, listening to the thrum of conversations in D block. Sometimes she'd read a little or try to write a letter home, but mostly her mind wandered – unable to focus. She'd find herself sitting at the dilapidated desk in her cell just looking at the pages uncomprehendingly, not really thinking much of anything.

It was in one of these moods when Yang's ears perked up, attracted by the noise of the cell door opening behind her.

A low buzz rattled from a muffled speaker, then the clank of a mechanism unlocking followed by the chut chut chut bang of the metal bars sliding open.

Turning, Yang jumped out of her chair when she saw Cadeja being led in by a CO and Adrienne. It'd only been a week since the incident in the Rec Center, but Cadeja looked thinner somehow – more frail – as if she hadn't eaten in days.

The guard held her firmly by her upper arm, guiding her into the cell. Her hands were cuffed in front of her. Adrienne had a hand on her back, watching her every step like a child, which Yang realized was probably a necessary precaution – Cadeja was shaking on her feet, looking like her legs could give out at any moment.

Adrienne's eyes briefly flicked up to meet Yang's, seeming to study her face for a moment before saying something in Cadeja's ear, too low for Yang to hear. Stepping back, she exited the cell and walked a few paces away from the door. Only then did the CO release the cuffs from around Cadeja's wrists.

Following Adrienne out, the CO yelled up to the command booth and ordered the cell door shut. The metal bars groaned along their track and slammed home, flush against the concrete wall. Adrienne and the CO walked away, disappearing out of sight and leaving Yang and Cadeja alone in their cell.

Cadeja stood where the guard had left her, absently rubbing at her wrists. It took Yang a moment to understand what it was, but there was something off about her face.

Stepping closer, her eyes widened as she realized how swollen her face was. Her lips, jaw, cheeks – all were puffed out, skin taught and shiny. Dark bruises covered her jawline, running up to her cheekbones and sinking into the bags beneath her eyes.

"Cadeja…"

Ignoring Yang's openmouthed scrutiny, Cadeja slowly walked over to her bunk. Feeling the edge of her bed with her hand, she gingerly lowered herself onto the mattress, leaning dizzily to one side before correcting herself and sitting more or less upright.

As she turned, Yang noticed that the golden spike earring that was usually pierced through the cartilage of her left ear was missing – the edges of the hole ragged, looking as if it'd been torn out forcibly.

Crouching down, Yang put a hand on Cadeja's knee – still unable to look away from her face. Cadeja shied away from her touch, but made no move to swat her hand away. She just looked down at the floor, refusing to meet Yang's eye.

Angrily, Yang noticed dried blood in the corners of Cadeja's mouth. She felt her eyes flash red, tinting her vision.

What did they do to her?

After a moment, Cadeja winced – the skin around her eyes tightening as the muscles in the lower part of her face refused to move. Leaning away from Yang, she swung her legs up onto the bed and rolled onto her side, facing the wall.

As she moved, she inadvertently knocked her pillow onto the floor. Reaching over, Yang picked it up and hesitated – not sure how Cadeja would react if Yang tried to lift her head and slide the pillow underneath.

She stood motionless – unsure of what to do. Eventually, she decided to help. Leaning over the bed, she placed the pillow just behind Cadeja, and then slipped her hand under her head.

Yang must have brushed against one of the swollen bruises on the underside of Cadeja's face, because the wolf Faunus jumped at the touch and spun around to face Yang, her lips pulled back in a snarl, hissing.

"Holy sh-" the words died in Yang's mouth as she jumped back, drawing her hand away.

At first, Yang wasn't entirely sure what she was looking at – and almost before she could fully comprehend what she was seeing, Cadeja snapped her jaws shut and let her eyes drop towards the floor, tears gathering on her cheeks.

What…

Understanding dawned on Yang and her mouth dropped open.

What she had seen were two small, black and bloodied holes in Cadeja's mouth – right where her fangs had been.

They pulled out her implants…

Yang flinched – the image of thick, rusting metal pliers flashing in her mind. She could almost feel their cold, hard grip on her own teeth, and she had to fight back the urge to reach up and touch her mouth to make sure it wasn't real.

She shivered – shaking away the sensation.

From between her swollen lips, Cadeja managed to mumble, "Leave me alone, ave rota. There's nothing you can do here."

Stunned, Yang took another step away.

"But…"

Yang clamped her mouth shut, and nodded – deciding to give Cadeja her space. Her lips set into a grimly determined line. Rather than climbing up into her own bunk, she backed up a few more steps and sank to the floor, sitting crossed-legged with her back against the wall. She let her arm rest across one of her knees, and she settled in.

Cadeja's eyes followed her, a small spark of curiosity breaking through – a tiny bit of light. She blinked once, slowly, and bobbed her head in a brief nod.

Yang registered the wordless 'thank you.'

"It's ok," she said. "You can go to sleep, I'll be here."

The muscles in Cadeja's throat tightened and she looked as if she would speak again, but after a moment she relaxed and let her eyelids close.

After a while, Yang thought Cadeja had finally drifted off to sleep – but she never relaxed her pose. She would sit up all night watching, feeling that in some small way – she was helping.


The next morning, Yang's head drooped – touching her chin to her chest. She rubbed at the corners of her eyes, blinking as the fluorescents hummed to life, flooding the room with a wan yellow light.

Stretching, she cracked the stiff joints in her neck and shoulders – reaching her arm towards the ceiling and arching her back away from the wall behind her. A low moan escaped her lips and she yawned, squeezing her eyes shut until she released the stretch.

Stirred by the light, Cadeja lifted her head from her pillow, the black-tipped tuft of one ear twitching. Her white-gray hair draped across her face like a curtain. Reaching up with her hand, she brushed it back over her shoulder.

Yang grimaced. The swelling in her face hadn't gone down much overnight, and the bruises were still a dark blue-black around her jaw.

Cadeja sat upright, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. Yang looked away quickly before she could catch her staring at her face.

Gingerly, Cadeja reached up and poked the swollen muscles, occasionally wincing. Sliding off her bed, she lent a hand to Yang and helped hoist her off the floor to line up for count.

The cell door buzzed open and the two girls stood side by side, waiting for the COs to come by and check them off. Yang sneaked a glance up at Cadeja, concern flashing in her eyes. At least, the Faunus seemed steadier on her feet – although it didn't seem like she'd be talking much until her face and jaw returned to normal.

Silently, they walked beside each other as they were led to the cafeteria after count. As they paced down the halls, Yang found herself looking around at the other girls – almost trying to shield Cadeja from the inmates around them.

Some girls pointed, whispering behind their hands – not doubt about the bruises on Cadeja's face. Nobody said anything to them directly or made a move towards them, but something clenched in Yang's stomach. Whatever it was, it refused to let her drop her guard.

It's probably nothing…

Regardless, Yang's hand balled up into a fist. Every few seconds she'd force herself to relax her grip, only to have her fingers curl up again – the veins on the back of her hand throbbing under her skin.

After shuffling through the line, Cadeja and Yang made their way over to their customary table by the wall. They sat across from each other and Yang started to munch on some dry toast. For a few minutes they sat quietly, and Cadeja would occasionally stir a spoon in her oatmeal. She made no attempt to eat it.

Casting an eye around the room, Yang noticed that several groups of women seemed to be looking at them – leaning over the tables and talking animatedly. Yang frowned, sneaking a glance at Cadeja. As far as she could tell, the wolf Faunus was ignoring them.

About halfway through breakfast, Yang noticed a break in the large group of Faunus huddled around the tables at the far end of the room. The circle of women opened up as Leonie and her sister came striding towards where Yang and Cadeja sat.

Leonie's stride was long and purposeful, crossing the room quickly with her sister Judith in tow. Her long tail flicked from side to side – its tip twitching as if irritated.

Yang craned her neck up to watch as the Faunus loomed over their table, hands on her hips. Judith went around Cadeja's side of table, leaning around her with one hand on the tabletop.

"That was a stupid fucking move, Álvarez. Freya's a freak but she's mostly harmless. Was it worth it?" demanded Leonie, her eyes boring into Cadeja.

Yang glanced at Cadeja, who hadn't even looked up from her uneaten breakfast. After a moment, Yang opened her mouth – turning to answer Leonie but Judith silenced her with a look, shaking her head.

"She didn't ask you, Yang," she said. It was the first time Yang had really heard Judith's voice – it was low, almost gravelly.

Leonie briefly shifted her gaze to Yang, assessing the younger girl before turning her attention back to Cadeja.

"Speak up, Álvarez. The fuck happened to you?" she asked, eyes raking over the bruises on Cadeja's face. "Was it Kowalski? Other COs? Most girls don't come outta the SHU quite that fucked up."

Yang stared, looking between the Faunus. Cadeja continued to glare silently at the tray in front of her. Her hand curled into a fist on the table beside her breakfast.

Impatience flickered across Leonie's features.

"Cadeja!" she barked, slamming a hand against the table. Yang, leaning on her elbow, felt the metal surface shake under her. "What happened!"

The skin tightened around Cadeja's eyes and she slowly turned her head to meet Leonie's gaze, glaring up at her from under her creased brow.

An almost imperceptible look passed between the Verté sisters. Yang barely caught it as Leonie bobbed her chin in a brief nod at Judith.

Yang nearly jumped up from the table when she heard Cadeja scream – whipping her head back towards her friend, she saw that Judith had reached up squeezed the sides of Cadeja's cheeks with her fingers, pressing harshly into the bruises.

As she roared in pain, Cadeja's mouth opened and bared her teeth.

Yang heard Leonie suck in a breath, cussing.

"No they fuckin' didn't," she hissed, leaning closer to Cadeja's mouth.

Leonie pushed her face into Cadeja's, trying to get a better look, but by then Cadeja had snapped her jaws shut. She raised a hand to her cheek, shuddering.

Judith looked up at her sister.

"What? What did you see?" she asked. Standing behind Cadeja, she hadn't seen into her mouth.

"They pulled her fangs," said Leonie, practically spitting out the last word.

A look of disgust crossed Judith's face and she glanced over at the group of Faunus seated by the cafeteria's exit. Yang followed her line of sight, face falling when she saw that the other inmates were watching them closely. Already, their whispers had escalated into a roaring murmur that quickly spread across the cafe.

"Attacking a Faunus like that, those dicks in blue are practically asking for a fight," she growled.

Leonie glanced back over her shoulder, looking at the growing crowd of Faunus, pointing and staring at Cadeja.

"Trust me – after this shit, I can almost guarantee they're gonna get one," she muttered, eyes narrowing.

Yang hesitated – feeling out of place, she didn't want to point out that Cadeja's fangs weren't technically a Faunus trait. Biting her lip, she realized that 'technically' didn't matter much. What mattered was what it all looked like: human guards had ripped the fangs out of the mouth a beaten, broken-looking Faunus.

The hair stood up on the back of Yang's neck. Glancing around, she saw that the news was spreading fast. Even the human women seemed to know what was going on – some were already bickering with small groups of Faunus. Several inmates were pointing and yelling. One woman with a bushy black tail grabbed a human inmate by the front of her shirt, shaking her.

This is gonna get ugly… thought Yang, rising out of her seat. It's not gonna take long for news of this to spread all over the Birdcage.

COs started to wade through the rows of tables, leaving their posts around the perimeter of the room. The Faunus glared at them as they passed, letting their conversations die out. Faunus and human women backed off from one another, some with their hands held in the air and false smiles on their faces.

Maybe the COs can get them to back down for now… but that's not gonna last long. The Faunus are gonna talk themselves into a fury.

Yang turned her attention back to the table in front of her when Judith grunted, pushed aside as Cadeja stood up from the bench. Tossing her hair over her shoulder – and whipping Judith in the face with it as she passed – Cadeja stomped away.

"Hold up!" yelled Yang, rushing after her. In her hurry, she bumped Leonie with her shoulder as she shoved her way past. Mumbling an apology, Yang noticed that the tall Faunus was too distracted to even notice.

Catching up to Cadeja, Yang put a hand on her shoulder and steered her away from her direct path towards the exit. Guiding her around the large group of Faunus, Yang scanned the room. Making a decision, she marched towards a CO standing to the left of the exit, dragging Cadeja with her.

"CO Lowell!" she called, catching her eye.

"Yes, inmate?" she said, nervously eyeing the muttering groups of Faunus around them.

"We're done with breakfast. Can you take us back to D block?" said Yang.

The guard hesitated – it wasn't standard procedure to let inmates leave meals early.

"Um…"

Lowell noticed at the dejected look on Cadeja's face, still dithering.

"Please," said Yang, flashing her a weak smile. "My cellmate is tired. I think she needs to lie down. She'll be more comfortable back in her own bed," she continued, hoping she sounded convincing.

C'mon dammit we need to get out of here before this place goes nuts!

CO Lowell seemed to make up her mind. She nodded, bringing a small radio up to her mouth.

"Sir – Lowell in the cafe. I'm escorting a sick inmate back to D block early. I'll report back in five."

A voice crackled through on the other end, presumably acknowledging what she'd said.

Looking back at Yang and Cadeja, she said, "Let's go." Beckoning with her arm, she led them out of the cafeteria and back towards D block.

After a few minutes, they were back in their cell. Standing by the door, Lowell looked at Cadeja sympathetically as she settled back into her bed.

"I'll be back for you guys later. You have rec hour in the Yard this morning," she said, stepping away as the cell door clanked shut.

Yang looked up, seeing that the guard had already turned and started walking away. Calling after her, she said softly, "Thank you."

Sitting in the chair at their desk, Yang turned herself towards Cadeja's bed.

"You doing okay?" she asked.

Cadeja opened her mouth, and paused, spitting before she could speak. A little bit of fresh blood landed on the floor where her spit landed.

"I'm gonna be okay," she said – her swollen lips distorting her speech. "Just need to lay low for a while." She grimaced, hand gently touching where Judith had pressed into her bruises earlier.

Yang nodded. Sitting in the chair backwards, she draped her arm over the back of the chair and rested her chin on it. She paused, thinking.

"You wanna talk about what happened?" asked Yang.

Cadeja shook her head once.

"Not yet."

"Okay. Just – when you're ready, I'll be here."

Cadeja smiled weakly, flinching when the muscles in her face contracted around the bruises.

"…and whatever happened with Kowalski, you don't have to say anything – but if you ever want to…"

Cadeja's smile faded.

"…someday," was all she said.

For a moment Cadeja's eyes glazed over – looking like she was a million miles away. After a pause, she seemed to snap back to herself, shaking her head and tossing her hair.

"How's Raya?" she asked, unable to roll the 'r.'

For a minute, Yang considered exaggerating what she knew, but she shook her head – deciding to tell the truth.

"Honestly, I don't really know. I've only seen her once when she was leaving the cafe with the rest of A block," she said. "But I'm sure Church and Mirra are keeping an eye on her. She'll be ok."

Cadeja nodded along as Yang spoke, not really looking at anything.

"Thanks, Yang," she said. Lying back, she rested her head on her hands. "I think I'm gonna try to get some rest till Lowell comes back. It's gonna take a while for my aura to fix all this shit," she murmured, indicating her face.

"Probably not a bad idea," said Yang. Not bothering to climb up into her own bed, Yang let her eyes close, her head still resting on her arm draped over the back of the chair. Exhaustion after a long, sleepless night was rapidly starting to catch up with her.

But before either of them could fall asleep, a clamor of voices echoed through D block as the rest of the inmates returned from breakfast.

Yang picked her head up, looking towards the source of the noise. The tenor of their voices was a little too loud for the usual conversation that buzzed through the Wilds.

The volume picked up as the inmates came further down the rows of cells. In the crowd, some girls were yelling. Standing up, Yang crossed over to the bars of her cell and peered out.

Below her, on level one, she saw a Faunus with some sort of rat tail cat-calling at a group of human inmates. Yang recognized some of them as part of Sasha's crew – one or two had even been women locked up in the SHU for fighting in the Yard.

A guard barked at the Faunus to shut up, but she spun on her heel and started yelling at him instead. Several other inmates joined her, forming a tight half-circle around him.

Elsewhere, Yang could hear similar arguments as inmates yelled at each other and at the COs who were trying to force them back into their cells.

"You racist son of a bitch! Of course you'd take her side!"

"What're you gonna do? Pull my teeth out and lop off my tail you prick?"

"INMATE! Shut your mouth and return to your-"

The guard's voice cut off mid-sentence and he grunted. Yang couldn't see where he was, but she heard a thud followed by the sound of air whooshing out of his lungs.

Gripping the bars with her hand, she pressed her face against the cell door trying to get a better look at what was going on around her.

Everywhere, fights were breaking out between inmates and the guards. Heavily outnumbered, the COs were quickly overwhelmed. Some girls – trying to duck out of the way – darted into nearby cells. Belatedly, a siren sounded and a metallic buzzing noise rocked D block as each of the cell doors slid shut, triggered by the emergency alarm.

Unfortunately, most of the inmates of the Wilds had still been in the hallways running along the rows of cells when the doors slammed shut. Radios crackled as COs called for backup.

"Somebody get the Warden's office on the phone!"

"WE NEED MORE MEN GET YOUR ASSES DOWN HERE NOW! D BLOCK IS COMPROMISED!"

All the while, Yang watched as the fights escalated around her. Across from her on the second floor, she saw two girls clawing at each other's faces. One grabbed a fistful of brown hair and smashed the other girl's face into the bars of the nearest cell. The bones of her cheek cracked with an audible crunch before she collapsed unconscious to the floor.

Yang jumped back as a tall, skinny male guard ran by her cell, nearly hitting her exposed hand wrapped around the bars as he passed by. Chasing him was a group of three women, teeth bared in openmouthed snarls.

Panicking, he dropped his baton and reached for a small remote in his pocket. Fumbling, he pressed a button and a second later screams tore through the air – ripping out of the cells all over second floor D block. He had remotely activated some of the ankle monitors – electrocuting the inmates wearing them.

Unfortunately for him, he only triggered two of his pursuers' monitors, and the third one fell on him, crying out as her comrades collapsed. Horrified, Yang looked away – noticing several unconscious bodies littered all over the floor. In his rush, he had electrocuted several innocent bystanders, including some of the women who had hidden in the cells.

Yang flinched as Cadeja appeared beside her, covering her ears with her hands to block out the blaring alarm and screeching inmates. D block practically shook as the growling voices of COs barked at their attackers, women everywhere – Faunus and human alike – screaming at the guards, alarms pulsing through the air.

And slowly, a chorus of beep beep beep welled up amidst the crowd of roaring voices.

Somewhere on one of the floors above them, something crashed and an inmate in khaki scrubs shrieked as she fell over a railing, falling three floors to the bottom of D block. Yang's eyes bulged out of her head as she watched. After a moment, the woman started to move again – somehow still conscious. One of her legs was crumpled underneath her – clearly broken.

Looking away, Yang's attention went back to the guard who'd been tackled in front of her cell. Belatedly, she found herself yelling at the inmate who was still on top of him, trying to get her hands around his throat.

"STOPPPPPP!"

The scream echoed inside her head and tore at the inside of her throat. Not hearing or not caring, the woman ignored her and continued her assault on the guard pinned underneath her.

Even before the cry died in her throat, Yang lost track of the sound of her own voice as the beeps screeching out of a macabre choir of monitors ripped into a crescendo and several women lost their fights with the COs, zapped into unconsciousness after triggering the devices around their ankles.

And still, Yang screamed uselessly.

"STOP! STOPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!"

Motion flickered in her peripheral vision and Yang pushed her face back against the bars, watching as more COs flooded onto the second floor of D block. Running ahead of the crowd, CO Lowell came barreling towards the inmate on top of the guard in front of Yang and Cadeja's cell.

But even as she reached the girl and started pulling her off – still raining blows down on the guard beneath her – more inmates came rushing down the walkway from the opposite direction.

CO Lowell disappeared in a mass of roiling bodies. Yang reached her hand out through the bars, desperately trying to help. She barely even registered it when Cadeja pulled her back, screaming in her ear.

The fights started to dissolve as more and more inmates triggered their monitors, but still the guards were heavily outnumbered. A girl fell and Yang caught a glimpse of CO Lowell, wrestling with a Faunus who was trying to pry her nightstick out of her hand.

The Faunus was heavier than the small guard and started to wrest the black baton out of Lowell's hands. Yang briefly lost sight of them as two girls clawing at each other scrambled between them. By the time they moved past Yang's cell, the Faunus had taken hold of the hefty weapon.

Eyes wide, CO Lowell stuffed her hand into her pocket – fingers searching for the monitors' remote – but a vicious blow landed on her unprotected wrist and something crunched. Lowell gripped her wounded arm, hunching over in pain.

Unable to protect herself, she started to retreat – and backed into a group of her colleagues, trying to defend themselves from their own attackers. The large Faunus advanced, and started to lash out with the baton.

Lowell stumbled back, tripping as the Faunus landed several hits on Lowell's exposed head and shoulders. Yang's stomach sank as the nightstick landed with a wet thud, raking Lowell across her face. Blood spattered from a gash on her right cheek and her nose stuck out at a funny angle, bits of cartilage peeking through the skin.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Yang bellowed, helpless.

CO Lowell collapsed to the floor, hands raised over her head. Guards everywhere were shouting. Inmates screamed. And still the Faunus attacked.

Crack. Crack. Thud.

A gleeful laughter bubbled up through the chaos.

A crunching sound squelched as the baton connected again and again with Lowell's now unconscious body.

Thud. Thud. Crunch.

"NOOOOOOO! STOPPPPPPPP!"

Dimly, Yang registered more beeps, punctuating the sirens and alarms and screams and roars with a high-pitched wail –

BEEEEEP BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP

A shiver ran up Yang's spine, and even as she stared at the bloody red mess where CO Lowell's face used to be, she was able to sense the pain coming a moment before it started –

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" bellowed a deep, disembodied voice.

Every muscle in Yang's body contracted, snapping her head back and freezing her arms in place. Her stomach clenched, legs shaking. Something heavy brushed against her, falling. Cadeja?

Yang's eyes rolled back in her head – jaw clenched together so tight it felt like her teeth would break.

Make it stop, make it stop…

It was all over in a matter of seconds – the electric current running through Yang from her monitor peaked and her jaw released just briefly enough for her to utter a strangled cry as she finally collapsed to the floor, landing awkwardly on top of Cadeja – already subdued by the shock.

Yang's vision started to fade, still staring vaguely at the mangled form of CO Lowell, her body lying on the floor just across from Yang on the opposite side of the bars.

Slowly, a black curtain fell over the world – and the jumbled collection of thoughts and spasming muscles that was Yang Xiao Long slipped, fading into unconsciousness.


Author's note: O.o Action is rising! Much more to come – although I don't think I'll be posting over the weekend what with the holiday and all. Happy New Year's everybody!

Thanks again to everyone for sending messages/posting reviews – I can't tell you how much I appreciate your feedback! Keep 'em coming!

Even though this story doesn't perform as well numbers-wise compared to some of my others (in terms of views/visitors/etc.), this one is without a doubt my favorite – so please do me a solid, tell a friend, spread the word – I love the conversation that's growing up out of this fic and I can't wait for what comes next!

I hope to have chapter 10 posted early next week? We'll see – the title will be yet another literary reference, thank you to Mr. Dylan Thomas! (Sorry guys, no more spoilers this time – getting too close to the climax for story arc number one!)