AN: Enjoy chapter 3, people. Just so you know, this story does have a few mildly scary West Campus scenes in later chapters. If you like it, review and I will keep writing. If you hate it, don't review and I will keep writing. Win win scenario.

"Escaping" Said Jack.

I must have looked confused because he followed with an explanation

"Every day we spend here is a day we spend away from civilisation, from our friends, from our family." His eyes began to water, "And our only hope of living freely is to escape from this prison and get away. Far away. But, if officials and" he shuddered "Headmaster find you plotting an escape it's off to west campus for you."

"West campus?" I asked. The way he said it, it sounded like it was hell times a million.

"If you value your life and your sanity" he muttered "You will stay the hell away from there."

I took one look at his face and decided to drop the subject. Obviously he knew more about it than he was letting on.

"So, how long have you guys been here?" I asked.

"One year" said Merida and Rapunzel.

"Three years" Said Jack, looking at the ground. "And I am NOT going to be here a fourth. This time I either escape from this hell-hole" His voice lowered "Or I die trying."

"Jack, don't be stupid" Said Merida. "You know they need our powers, they won't let you, they'll just…"

"West Campus?" I guessed.

"Hiccup, West Campus is not something to be taken lightly" Said Rapunzel.

"You have to understand the gravity of the punishment if you are to help us" Said Merida.

"You need to meet Kozmotis Pitchiner"

Said Jack.

I stood at the foot of his bed and looked at the scrawny, pale 16 year old boy with jet black hair in front of me.

"He came back from West Campus last week" Jack offered by way of explanation.

"Pitch" Said Jack. "That's his name"

Pitch screamed and cried. His whole body convulsed and twitched. "NO!" He screamed. Black sand curled up around at the edges of his hands and arms.

"Is he having a nightmare?" I asked.

"Nope." Said Jack with pain visible on his face. "He's wide awake. And has been since he got back"

"That's horrible" I said.

"He's one of the lucky ones."

He looked over at the other bed.

An almost fully grown man sat on his bed and tilted his head to the side in a childish gesture of not understanding. I looked into his eyes and I saw…nothing. No thoughts, No feelings, no activity. He was a shell. That's all.

We left and returned to the observatory.

"Do you… do you still want to help?" Asked Rapunzel.

I thought for a second and nodded. I wanted to do anything I could to escape… and to keep my new friends out of West Campus. At whatever cost.

"Tell me about Valka" Said Jack.

"What is there to say?" I said. "I barely knew her. She disappeared a week after I was born. That was twenty years ago."

"Twenty?" Jack said. "Valka119 was invented twenty years ago by Red Death Enterprises."

"Red death enterprises? That sounds horribly familiar"

I had a flash back. I had seen that name on the side of a box in the fire that burnt my leg off. My leg! They still didn't know about that. I have a very convincing prosthetic. I should tell them soon, I said to myself. Wait, I thought would they still let me help them? They might think that I would just slow them down. I won't tell them. I will tell them… Eventually. Maybe once we escape.

"Maybe I do have more connection to this than I thought" I said. Maybe they would keep me around even with my prosthetic if they thought I was important.

The concern on my face must have been pretty clear, because Rapunzel asked what was wrong.

"Nothing" I replied with a sigh, "Nothing"