In honor of the release of The Chronicles of Riddick i give you the longest chapter so far.

Bright lights beat down on my face and I squint, "Turn down the lights."

"Do you have a shine job?" a voice asks.

"No."

"Then they stay on."

I raise my hand to my head. "It feels like my skull is splitting."

"Yeah, it'll feel that way for a while until the medicine wears off, then it will just be a dull headache."

I open my eyes slowly and look around the clean room. I turn to the old man in the white jacket, "How did I get here?"

The guy sits in a chair next to me. "Funny thing really, some guard brought you in. struck me as odd, a guard taking an inmate to the staff med."

"You fixed me up?"

"Yep. You aren't gonna kill me are ya?"

"Why would I kill you?" He shrugs and I smile, swinging my legs over and onto the floor. "How long have I been out?"

"A good two days."

I stand up slowly and find my balance. "Now that that's been covered, can I leave?"

"Sure, but be careful. You came in here looking like shit. Now you only look like crap. Better but still not good."

"Thanks for the concern." I say sarcasticly and leave. I walk up and down the halls looking for something familiar.

"Arc!"

I turn fast," Aaron, you loser. Whats going on?"

He grabs my arm and starts pulling me down the hall, almost running. "Come on, we need to go."

"Go where?"

"Just hurry up!"

I don't question him this time and run down several halls keeping right beside him. We eventually slow down and I smell something sickening. It gets stronger as we move forward and a crowd of people has gathered around out side of a cell. I hurry toward the group and break through the line of people. My mind doesn't recognize the thin on the floor so I'm left staring at it, a stupid look on my face. The people behind me are talking so I turn my attention to them.

"Poor guy."

"Yeah, but he knew he was dead. Just didn't know it would be like this."

"Heard his whore tried to fight him off."

"Bitch was crazy."

"Billy Bad Ass drug her to the pit and slit her throat."

Thoughts fly through my head. 'They cant be talking about Riddick. He wouldn't kill a woman.'

"Girl had it coming too. He probably had to hold her down to fuck her."

"HE'S NOT A RAPEST!" I burst out suddenly, causing them to look at me.

The biggest of them speaks so seriously to me, its scary. "Get your thoughts straight girl. That bastard son of a slut would hold you down, fuck your brains out, then kill you just so you couldn't run off to a cop."

Another guy steps in, "Can't ya see what he went and did ta that guy? Chained em ta the bars and used a lil lock that burnt em ta a crisp."

'That was my lock.' I stand and start running. 'Where did that guy say? The pit?'

I hear the big guy call after me, "Take the fifth right, second left. Keep going!"

The room had to have been as big as the mess hall except not cluttered with tables, but with people. In the middle of the room, people had come together with their weapons and were killing each other. 'My kind of game.' I search the out skirts of the mob and there, just as I had heard was the body of a woman, about a year older than me, sprawled out on the ground with a deep gash in her neck. The bleeding had stopped so I guessed that she had been there for a few hours. The ones who weren't in the fights were along the walls, watching and making bets. At the wall across from me, I look directly into the black goggles that were on me. I walk over and stand in front of him. "Did you kill that chick?'

He stretches is legs out, "Why do you want to know?"

"Answer me! Do you kill women?"

"I do what I need to."

Shock and anger fills me and I glare at him, speaking as clod as I can, "Do you rape women?"

He lifts his goggles not very bothered by the dim light. He gives me a look that tells me all I need to know.

"Why?" I ask calmer.

He raises an eyebrow, annoying the hell out of me. "You know what I mean. Why did you rape her?"

"I had an itch that needed to be scratched and when she started to strut her stuff around me I took the chance."

"So once you were done you just killed her."

"I'm not that fucked up Arc. She pulled a knife on me so I killed her."

"Where's the knife?" I ask, not really caring but still curious.

"In her back." Something told me he wasn't lying, and that just ticked me off more.

"Stand up." I order him, but still talking in a normal tone.

He doesn't move except to pull his goggles back down.

"I said get up!" I kick his leg and he is suddenly on his feet and I only have a second to move to avoid a fist.

Standing calmly he finally speaks, "Remember when you asked if when I said that everyone would want a piece of you, you asked if that included me."

"Perfectly." I snicker.

"Show me what you've got, kid" He holds his arms out at his sides, palms empty and facing me.

I move carefully, circling him, watching him turn with me. 'This isn't fair, he has weapons what do I have?' It pops into my mind but I don't let it show on my face. I rush him and he waits until the last second to move and grab the back of my shirt, shoving me hard. I fall onto my knees and jump back as the handle of he shiv hits the floor so hard there are sparks. I smash my shoulder into his side, just under his arm, making him lose balance and fall onto the ground. I don't move back fast enough and he gets his arm wrapped tightly around my neck, the blade of the knife against my ear. I grip wildly at his arm but he doesn't let up, just tightens. He bends down to my other ear, "You got way too close to me for too long. You need to move faster than that." He lets me go and with out even breathing I turn on him. I get behind him, and slip my chain out of my pocket, throwing it around his neck and tightening, just like he did to me with his arm.

I tighten it and whisper into his ear, "You shouldn't have let me go and dropped your guard."

He reaches back and grabs my arms, flipping me over and onto the ground. He turns me around and pulls me under him, holding me with his legs on either side of me, and his arm over my neck, shiv pointed under my jaw. "Next time I won't let you go" He licks his lips, "but you're not ready for that Kid." He lets me go and backs away.

I stand up and, not wanting to look at him, watch the mob. The fight was getting pretty big now. Blood forms pools on the stone floor as body after body falls, broken. I look behind me, instantly confused at the fact that Riddick had snuck away so easily. I scan the crowd and spot him on the other side of the room. He catches me looking at him and I cross my arms, turning back to the fight.

"Ok guys, that's enough. Break it up." My heart almost stops as I hear that voice shouting over the screams. Josh shoves his way through the crowd alone.

'Oh please no Josh. Just turn around and leave.'

"Hey! Did you hear me? I said cut it out!" He pushes one guy backward, knocking him and another fighter over. I run so fast through the crowd that I cant even feel my legs move. I come up behind Riddick, grab one of his shivs, and rush into the fight before he can turn around. I hear a scream to my left and break through the people to see my friend's hurt form fall. I stand in the riot looking down at him, letting my brain work to figure out what it was my eyes were seeing. A boot comes down onto his neck and I just watch, refusing to look at the faggot hurting Josh.

"Stupid cop." The guy says.

Josh gasps and lets out a cry, snapping the last bit of sanity I had. 'No one screws with Ache De Katze's bud.' I jump the guy and bury the shiv in his chest. 'Show these posers what a real killer is like,' I run behind a few unsuspecting people, pegging them in the sweet spot until people start coming after me. Moving quickly between them, I slit a few throats, stab backs, and gut people until people back up. Glaring at the bodies, I turn back to Josh and lift is limp body up.

"Wake up." I shake him until his eyes open some. "Come on. Help me out here." With one of his arms around my shoulders, I get him to his feet and walk him into the hall, not even Glancing at Riddick. "Where should I take you Josh?"

"Take a left up here."

I turn and keep my pace. After taking another left, Josh stops and pulls himself away from me. I look him over as he leans against a wall. "What the hell were you trying to do back there?"

"This is a place to put murderers to stop them, not to let them tune up their skills."

"You tried to break up a riot. Alone! I thought you were smarter than that."

"I'm sorry. I had a few drinks and..."

"YOU WERE DRINKING? ON DUTY? DURING A RIOT?" I grab his shoulders and hold him against the wall. "What the fuck were you thinking? I just slaughtered a room full of people to save your sorry ass and you aren't even sober!"

"Arc, I'm sorry, alright?"

"Shut up and listen. I saved your miserable life and endangered mine! I should have just left you lying on the floor."

"Arc, please."

"I said shut up!" A thick arm wraps around my neck and pulls me away from Josh, who falls to the floor coughing and rubbing his neck. The arm lets me go and pushes me to the ground. My palms are sweaty and I guess that I was choking Josh, the one person I was trying to save in this hellhole other than myself.

"You're one lucky cop." This was Riddick's voice but I just stare at the ground. "Get out of here."

"Arc?" There is worry in Josh's voice.

'He's concerned. Just go Josh, I cant save you from him.'

"I owe you Arc." He turns and I hear his steps fade into nothing. I still feel the handle of the large shiv in my right hand. I look at it seeing the once shined silver blade now completely red, with blood dripping the tip. My knuckles are white from gripping the handle so hard. I look up at a stern Riddick standing above me.

"You heard why he was acting stupid, now why were you?"

"He's a friend. I can't let him get killed when I can stop it."

"Damn it kid! He's the cops, you're the convict. Put them together and one's gonna ghost the other. Survival of the fittest."

I look back down at the floor, my eyes burning with tears I refuse to show. 'First rule, no crying. It's a show of weakness.'

"You can keep it." He says, his voice softer now.

"What?"

"That shiv. You're holding it like your life depends on it, so its yours." He helps me up off the floor. "Happy Birthday."

We get back to is cell and I settle onto the cot, my back pressed against the wall, and Riddick lays on his back next to me. A smile appears on my face and I laugh quietly. I hear Riddick shift to face me. "What?"

"Just thinking."

"Of what?"

"Where did Josh get enough alcohol to make him do something that dumb? I've gotten drunk hundreds of times and the stupidest thing I've ever done is steal a car, and even then I have a designated driver." All Riddick does is shake his head and roll back over.