When I woke up the next morning, Braken still hadn't come back, and I started to worry. What if they'd killed him?

Leo had noticed, too, and was now pacing back and forth across his cage. He couldn't keep his hands out of his hair, and every time I caught sight of one of the braids, the braids Braken had done, my worry deepened and my chest hurt.

Finally, they brought him back. I could hear the crackling of electricity as they came closer. I looked up and inhaled sharply as I saw the condition he was in, and my heart hurt even more.

His eyes were bloodshot, like he hadn't slept in days, and one of them was almost swollen shut. His arms and face were covered in cuts and bruises, and his hair was matted to his forehead with blood. There was dried blood smeared across his face from his nose, and his bottom lip was split open and still bleeding. He kept playing with it with his tongue, licking it as if cleaning himself up.

His wrists were cuffed together with a long piece of wood, with only two holes for his wrists. It reminded me of the stocks from medieval times that I'd read about in books. He couldn't put his hands together, and he couldn't touch the wood to disintegrate it. He had his fists halfway closed, and he held them up against his chest in a protective manner. He had his hoodie on again, but the sleeves were rolled up and I could see the black and purple bruises covering his arms, almost as bad as his face. As they shoved him toward us, I noticed that his ankle hadn't been properly fixed - it was straightened out now, but it was swollen to nearly double its original size, most definitely broken. He looked up as he must've heard my distress, and managed to give me a ghost of a smile.

"Braken?" Leo whispered, almost in disbelief. "What ... what did they do to you?"

The soldiers shoved him into his cage before he could answer, and he stumbled and fell, only letting out a gasp for breath as he hit awkwardly on his side. The soldiers slammed the door shut and he flinched, sucking on his lip and keeping his eyes on the floor.

"Braken, what did they do to you?" Leo asked, louder. I could barely see him from his position on the floor, but I heard him let out a small groan as he sat up. Slowly, he climbed to his feet, though he kept his weight off of his broken ankle, and rested against the window. Leo immediately reached through the bars and gently touched his bruised and bloodied face. "Oh, Braken, how could they do this?" he whispered.

Braken kept his eyes down and lifted his hands up, trying to sign something even though he could barely move them in the board. He grimaced as he curled his fingers, but ignored it and tried again. This time, he let out a strangled yelp and squeezed his eyes shut.

"What's wrong?" I asked softly, instantly regretting it as Leo hissed at me to shut up.

The silent boy paused, and then opened his palms and held them flat out. I caught my breath and covered my mouth, and Leo let out a small cry of despair. Braken's hands were covered in red and brownish blisters, all up his fingers, across his palms, down to his wrists. His skin was torn and mangled, a few filling with puss, most of them ripped open and bleeding. I could almost see the soldiers forcing his hands against the heated metal plate, almost smell the burning flesh, but I could clearly hear his crying, the sizzling of his hands against the metal, and the soldiers' laughing at his pain.

"They did this on purpose," Leo said, his voice wavering. "They did it so you wouldn't be able to talk to me." He started to cry, furiously rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, clenching his teeth. "I hate them. I hate them!"

Braken shook his head and tried to say something, biting his lip and then wincing. He made two simple symbols with his hand, cringed, and then tried again, making them more defined.

"No, Braken. It's not okay," Leo snapped. "How do you think this is okay?"

"They're afraid of you," I said, getting just as angry as he was. "They think the only way to keep these Unnaturals under control is to imprison them, to torture them, to kill them in a horrific way." I stormed to the door and grabbed the bars, yelling out into the hallway. "But I've learned something that none of you humans are willing to admit. You -" I pointed to one of the soldiers walking by. "How old are you? Forty five? Old enough to have a seventeen year old son. There's one right there who could have been yours! Would you have traded him away to this nightmare to save yourself?" He just glanced at me and picked up his pace, trying to get away from me. "Do you even know what love is?" I screamed, my face red and my chest burning with hatred. I might've been crying, but I couldn't tell. I was done with this. "These are people, too! They're not game pieces to throw around for your enjoyment! You're torturing innocent people who were only doing their best to survive! If you can't see the damage you're doing, then ... you're just as stupid as you are heartless!"

"Joel, please. You don't want to make them mad," Leo murmured.

"I hate them!" I clenched my fists and squeezed my eyes shut. Leo was right. I needed to calm down. "I hate myself ..." My voice cracked and I slumped down, resting my forehead on the bars. I hated myself for being one of them.

"But you're going to get us out, right?" Leo said. "You promised."

"I promise," I whispered.

...

Later, the same two women brought food again, the same mushy grey stuff, though it looked a little more black today. Leo got some, thankfully, because Braken needed all the food he could get if he was going to return to full health any time soon. I ate mine solemnly, only focusing on putting each handful into my mouth and making sure I didn't taste it. I looked up when I heard Braken's yelp, and went over to the bars to investigate. He yelped again as I came closer, and I winced. I hated hearing him make noise, because none of his noises sounded even remotely human.

Currently, I could see him trying to pick up the bowl of mush, but with his blisters, it was nearly impossible to hold it, and because of the board on his wrists restricting his movement, he wouldn't have been able to get a good grip on it anyway. Leo was watching him sadly, staring hard at the bowl, as if he could move it with his mind if he stared hard enough.

Braken tried a few more times, and then slumped over, shifting to sit cross-legged. He tried to rub his eyes, but he brought his hands up too fast and slammed the board into his chin. He quickly dropped them down and started to cry, giving up.

"Hey," Leo said gently. I could hear the heartbreak in his voice. "Don't cry. Think your way around the problem, just like you always do."

Braken shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut, sucking on his swollen lip. He seemed to shrink down into his shoulders, covering his face with his arms the best he could.

"Don't give up, Braken," I said.

He looked up at the sound of my voice and let out a little laugh, smiling just slightly through his tears. Leo turned around, just as surprised as I was, and then he laughed, too.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

Leo put his hand on his forehead and said, "You look like you ran head-on into the bars."

I felt my forehead as well, and smiled back as I felt a decent sized indent in my skin. "Ouch. No, I was just leaning against it."

"Why were you - never mind. I don't want to know." Leo turned back and grinned. "Hey, good job, Braken! I told you you could do it!"

Braken just gave him a weak smile and lifted the bowl up higher. While we'd been talking, he'd used his elbows to put the bowl on his knees, and then had adjusted his grip and brought it over to Leo.

Leo took it off of his arms and scooped out a little bit of the mush, holding it up for Braken. His friend glanced up at him, his bruised face flushing scarlet in embarrassment, and then struggled to eat it out of Leo's hand.

I finished eating my own mush, watching them sorrowfully. Leo was very careful not to hurt him as he fed him, and Braken's cheeks grew redder the more he ate. I wished I could help them somehow. How would I get them out? What would we do?

We'd eat good food first. I'd get them anything they wanted, and then I'd get them some better clothes. Leo's shirt was tattered and torn, missing a few buttons, and his pants were worn with holes in the knees. Braken's sweatshirt was anything but warm, with holes in the bottom and armpits, and the shirt underneath was a few sizes too small, even more tattered than Leo's. His jeans had more holes and patches where they'd frayed than usable fabric. It was a miracle they didn't tear whenever he sat down. And he'd need shoes for his bare feet, especially if we were going to be on the run.

After that, I'd take them far away, somewhere safe, where the Refs would never find them, somewhere where no one would be after them, where no one would hurt them just for fun. They'd always have a safe place to sleep at night, close to each other, and there'd always be a candle there for Leo, whenever he was afraid, so he wouldn't have to be in the dark.

I could picture it all clearly. There'd be a table full of food just for them, and lots of blankets - thunder crashed outside, and it started to rain, lightly at first, and then heavier. Some of the rain water trickled through the window and down the wall. I shivered and hugged myself, continuing my daydream.

Lots of blankets to keep warm, and it'd be just for them. I'd come visit them all the time and we'd talk and be just like a normal group of friends. We'd watch movies together with popcorn, and celebrate Christmas - did they even know what Christmas was? I was too afraid to ask, so I kept my thoughts quiet.

Just thinking about all of this was making me homesick. I wondered if Braken ever felt homesick, if he ever longed for a home he'd never had.

The storm outside brought a chilly draft with it, and I shivered again. Winter would be approaching soon. In only a few weeks, it'd be snowing. I went up to the arena window and cupped my hands, letting the rain pool in my fingers. It was freezing, and made my hands numb, and then I got another idea.

"Hey, Braken?" I said, going back to Leo's window. He'd finished feeding Braken and was now eating his own food. Braken was trying to get a bit of mush off of his chin, but he paused and looked up when I called him. "Stick your hands out the window," I said. "The rain will help draw the heat out of your blisters."

He nodded slightly and limped over to the window, cringing every time he stepped on his left ankle. I couldn't see him now, but I heard him yelp in pain. Leo told him to get out of the rain if it hurt, but he didn't. He stayed with his burnt hands out the window for a long time. I hoped it really was helping.

Thunder crashed, followed quickly by a burst of lightning, and the two Unnaturals flinched. Braken actually tripped over himself and he fell over, letting out a gasp of pain and curling up on the ground.

"Are you okay?" Leo and I asked at the exact same time.

He just nodded and slowly sat up, hunching over to try and keep warm.

"You don't have to be afraid of lightning," I said. "It can't get you down here."

"It's not the lightning we're afraid of," Leo mumbled, rubbing his arms to warm up. "It's what the lightning reminds us of."

I stayed quiet. It seemed as though almost everything I said made me sound like an idiot.

It got darker quicker, since they hadn't scheduled a game for tonight and the clouds covered the sun. I didn't sleep very well, and Leo had another nightmare, staying awake most of the night. I don't think Braken slept either. It was a long, cold night. The draft was wet and left me stiff in the morning, barely able to move.

"I hate the rain," Leo mumbled as the pale daylight streamed into the dark cell. "It's gloomy and cold and wet."

Braken sighed softly and stared out the window. He tried to sign something, but he winced and sighed again. Leo motioned him over and he limped toward the window, slowly and carefully writing something with his finger on Leo's wrist.

"You like the rain? That's okay," Leo said.

"Fire doesn't mix well with rain," I said, laughing, and he cracked a smile.

"What are you laughing about?" a soldier demanded, slamming his spear into the bars of the door. All three of us jumped and immediately dropped our eyes.

"Nothing, sir," Leo mumbled.

"It'd better be nothing," he growled, prowling away like some beast of the night.

I wanted to yell after him, but I couldn't. I didn't want to make things worse. They wouldn't even let us be happy.

"Oh, and one other thing," he said, backtracking. We all stared at him as he smiled morbidly. "You two - once the rain has stopped, you have a punishment to pay." Not surprisingly, he was pointing at Braken, but then he turned, and my heart nearly stopped.

He was pointing at me.