REBEL FOR KICKS
viii. PRISON ESCAPE
❝I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT WORKED.❞

IF THERE WAS ANY REASON THAT THEIR ESCAPE PLAN WAS GOING TO FAIL, it was going to be because of Isabelle. She had been nervous all day long, gaining the attention of a few of the prisoners and guards. However, before she could be exposed, someone—usually Gamora—stepped in to calm her down. Isabelle felt slightly embarrassed that she was having such a negative effect, but she couldn't help her nerves. She was afraid of being caught and getting handed a life sentence. For now, she only had a few months to serve at the Kyln. But, if they were caught and prosecuted, she and her "friends" would be locked away for life.

Isabelle hated being a prisoner. It was humiliating and degrading. She had already suffered away in a cell on Ronan's ship and was itching for even an ounce of freedom. It was the only reason that she was going through with Rocket's escape plan. That, and her share of the money would be enough to start over somewhere far away.

"Blondie!" Rocket screeched, ripping Isabelle from her thoughts. He glared at her as he flashed his portable light into her eyes to get her attention.

"What?" Isabelle gritted out, glaring at the tiny raccoon. They kept their voices in a hushed tone, but the annoyance was as clear as day.

"Give me the security band, please," Rocket's words may have been kind, but his tone was sarcastic as he returned Isabelle's glare. Rocket was on edge, but then again, so was everyone else.

It had been Isabelle and Gamora's responsibility to find a security band while Peter had been tasked with stealing someone's prosthetic leg. It was a strange request, but somehow, Peter had managed to steal it. Isabelle had to hold in her laughter when she saw him lugging it around. It had been Groot's job to disable the alarm system while Rocket had killed the cameras and incapacitated the guards in the security room.

"Isabelle!"

"Oh, right, I'm sorry," Isabelle mumbled, fishing the security band out of her pocket before tossing it to Rocket.

Peter gave her a look, telling her to sharpen up and quit fooling around. He held the prosthetic leg over his shoulder, still waiting to use it for whatever Rocket needed it for. Rocket flashed the security band over the door and it immediately unlocked for them, allowing them access to the main area where the watchtower was located.

"Okay, now, we just need the quarnyx battery," Rocket muttered, looking up at a black panel that emitted a blinking yellow light. It was about twenty feet in the air which meant that Groot was likely the only one who could be able to reach it. Rocket looked down at the small wristband he wore as it displayed a few notes to him and the time. "It shouldn't take long to remove the battery, but the next patrol officer should make his rounds in roughly ten minutes."

"We should hurry," Gamora added, glancing around the empty area. It was big enough that anyone could be hiding in the darkness and that bothered her. Rocket's flashlight only provided so much light and darkness surrounded the five. "I feel like we're being watched."

"Nah, you're probably just paranoid," Rocket muttered, shaking his head. He climbed on top of Groot's shoulders and the plant extended his limbs to help Rocket reach the panel. Isabelle wondered where Rocket had found the necessary tools, but then assumed that he had probably stolen them.

While Rocket worked to remove the panel, Gamora, Isabelle, and Peter waited patiently. However, Gamora couldn't shake the feeling that someone else was in the room with them. "I think someone's out there..."

Isabelle did a quick scan of the surrounding darkness, but it was hard to make out anything. But, Gamora's nervousness was starting to rub off on her. "I can take a quick look?"

"Wait, I don't think it's safe to step away from the light," Gamora grabbed Isabelle's arm, stopping her from taking another step into the darkness. But, Isabelle flashed her a reassuring smile. It caused something to flutter in Gamora's heart—a sense of peace and security. It was a feeling that she had never felt before,

"I'll be fine," Isabelle pulled her arm out of Gamora's tight grasp, sending her a playful wink. If doing a quick sweep of the area was enough to calm Gamora down, then it was worth it.

"Don't bump into a chair and alert the whole prison," Peter teased, causing Isabelle to roll her eyes. He was leaned against the watchtower as he chewed on something. It looked like a piece of bubblegum, but Isabelle hadn't seen gum since she was on Earth.

Isabelle began to wander around, keeping her hands extended to make sure she wouldn't run into anything unexpectedly. So far, she had only felt tables, chairs, and the occasional poles. But, nothing else. However, when she was about to turn back, Isabelle bumped into something—no, someone. She was about to scream, but a harsh hand clamped over her mouth as she was dragged from her spot. She fought against her assailant but stopped her struggle when she noticed that they were leading her towards her group. Finally, they walked into the light which caused Peter and Gamora to gasp.

"Let her go!" Gamora gritted out, taking a warrior's stance as she glared at the man. Isabelle peeked up and immediately recognized him as Drax, the one who had tried to kill Gamora a few nights ago. "I said, let her go!"

Drax let go off Isabelle, causing her to immediately join Gamora's side. Her neck ached slightly from the tight hold that Drax had her in, but she was grateful that he hadn't killed her. Both Peter and Gamora had something trained at him, Peter had the leg and Gamora had picked up a chair.

"Woah, woah, woah, what is going on?" Rocket shouted, jumping down from Groot's shoulders and onto the floor. He flashed his light in Drax's face. "Why the hell are you here?"

"You are escaping and I am coming with," Drax simply stated, not looking for permission. Isabelle didn't mind another person joining them, but she had no desire to split the money with Drax. However, it seemed that Drax wasn't after money. He wanted—no, needed—revenge. "And, he, the one who has lain with an A'askavariian, has told me that I would be the one to tear Ronan, limb from limb."

"It was one time," Peter muttered, annoyance seeping into his soul. Isabelle wrinkled her nose, not wanting to know anything about what her brother did in his free time. "I promised him that he could stay by Gamora's side until he kills her boss. And, I always keep my promises, when they're to muscle-bound whack-jobs who will kill me if I don't."

"Alright, what-the-fuck-ever," Isabelle spat out, rolling her eyes. It seemed that she was the only one who still kept the escape plan as a top priority. "We need to hurry before the next patrol—"

Voices echoed in the halls, causing the six inmates to freeze in their places. The bright light of flashlights was coming their way and everyone scrambled to find hiding places. Isabelle and Peter ducked behind a couple of tables, remaining completely still to prevent detection. Rocket and Groot had immediately jumped up, balancing on some metal beans up above them. Gamora hid behind the watchtower and Drax had found a hiding place in one of the large trash cans.

"Man, I just want to go home to my husband and kids," one of the guards muttered softly, shaking his head. He was taller than the other one and heavily built. His eyes scanned the area but didn't seem to see the inmates hiding in the shadows. "—don't know how I got stuck with the graveyard shift."

"It's the easiest shift," the other guard replied, yawning as he did. "Everyone's asleep."

Isabelle took deep breaths, keeping her head ducked under the tables. Peter laid on the floor next to her, clutching onto the prosthetic leg. She watched carefully as the guards looked around one more time before exiting out of the area through another hallway. A deep exhale left her lips as she stood upright, watching as everyone else came out of their hiding places as well.

"We need to hurry," Gamora stated, staring up at the battery they needed. Groot and Rocket agreed, making their way back to the battery and going through the process to remove it.

Isabelle kept her eyes trained on the newest member of their makeshift group, Drax. He wasn't very bright, but his muscle made up for it. He could fight and that was what they needed at the moment. However, Isabelle would not hesitate to hurt him if he lay another hand on Gamora.

"Got it!"

As soon as Rocket ripped the battery out, the sound of sirens filled the dead air of the prison. Bright red light flooded the area as the siren continued to blare, alerting every single guard in the prison.

"Shit, shit, shit!" Rocket shouted, jumping down as he stared at the group. He shifted his attention to Groot who wore a shocked expression. "Groot, I thought you took care of the alarm system!"

Groot grunted out, taking a step back. He seemed confused and nervous, but he also seemed ready for battle—as did Gamora, Peter, and Drax. It would only be a matter of seconds before they were surrounded by armed guards with the intent to shoot them.

"Okay, genius," Isabelle muttered, looking down at the pacing raccoon. It seemed that everyone was frazzled by the loud screeches of the alarm system, but they still had hope in Rocket's plan. "What's the plan now?"

However, Rocket didn't have the chance to respond as armed guards flooded the common room that the group was inhabiting. Isabelle muttered out a string of curses as she slowly raised her arms up, praying that the guards wouldn't open fire on them. She glanced at her teammates—perhaps, that was a word too strong for their relationship—and could see the hope draining from their faces.

"Lay down your weapons and surrender!" the guard barked, pointing his gun in their general direction. They were surrounded by a dozen guards or so and they all had their weapons pointed at them. While the guards held automatic weapons, they only held a prosthetic leg, a chair, and some dried fruit. Perhaps, it would have been wise to gather weapons as well before attempting to escape.

It seemed that Drax was the only one who was clearly thinking as he let out a warrior cry and rushed one of the guards, tackling him to the ground. The other guards seemed in shock as they watched their superior struggle with a man much heavier than himself. While they were distracted, Isabelle wasted no time to rush forward and yank the gun out of their hands. She hit the guard hard and watched as he collapsed to the ground—still alive, but unconscious. She looked behind her to see that the other eleven guards had been taken care of as well.

"Let's get the fuck out of here," Rocket commanded, leading the group up the staircase that led to the top of the watchtower. "It won't be long till more guards are trying to shoot us dead."

After a few minutes, they had locked themselves in the watchtower with guards surrounding the outside as they rained gunfire on them. "So, uh, what do you need to do with the leg?" Peter asked, finally setting the leg down on the counter.

Rocket glanced at the leg, holding in his laughter. "Oh, right, I was just kidding about the leg. I only needed the armband and the battery."

"Wait, what?" Peter shouted, anger and annoyance taking over his features. "I carried that stupid thing for the past hour! It smells weird too!"

Rocket burst out in contagious laughter, almost forgetting about the sound of gunfire that rung in the air. Isabelle and Gamora shared a look, trying their best not to roll their eyes. While Rocket, Peter, Drax, and Isabelle were focusing on the control panel, Gamora and Groot focused on keeping the door closed. They didn't want the guards bursting in and rearresting them. It would most likely be a life sentence if they were caught.

"Y'all are a bunch of knuckleheads!" Isabelle didn't bother to hide the irritation in her tone as she glared at her brother and the raccoon. Their lives were on the line and they were fighting over a leg. "How much longer, Rocket?"

"Yes, I grow tired of this irksome confinement," Drax added, sparing a glare at the guards that were trying to shoot their way inside. "We will be riddled with bullets if you do not hurry."

"Yeah, I‟ll have to agree with the walking thesaurus on that one."

Drax's demeanor had immediately changed, turning to glare at Peter. Isabelle felt herself grow defensive for a split second, not fully trusting Drax. He leaned in close, "do not ever call me a thesaurus."

"It's just a metaphor, dude."

"Don't bother, Quill," Rocket muttered. He, still, found the time to respond to bickering around him as he continued to work on the control panel of the watchtower. His work was something that Isabelle did not understand since she wasn't very skilled in mechanics, but she trusted him. "His people are completely literal. Metaphors are gonna go over his head."

"Nothing goes over my head," Drax retorted, causing his arms over his chest. He held his head high as he ignored Rocket's harsh words. "My reflexes are too fast. I would catch it."

Perhaps, if their situation wasn't life-threatening, they would have shared a laugh at Drax's words. But, that wasn't the case as the glass separating them from the guards was starting to crack due to the repeated trauma. However, Gamora had the last word. "I'm going to die surrounded by the biggest idiots in the galaxy."

— — —

"I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL HIM," Isabelle gritted out. It had been several long agonizing minutes since her brother had split from the rest of the group to go back for something that one of the guards had stolen from him. She had no doubt that the rest of the group would have left him behind, but Peter had taken the Orb with him. She gripped the wheel of Peter's ship, the Milano. Isabelle could still remember the huge crush that Peter had on actress Alyssa Milano—the person who he had named his ship after—and she could still recall all the times that he had professed his love for the actress. "Do you see him yet?"

"No," Drax answered, continuing to stare out the windows. If they weren't on the brink of recapture, Isabelle would have commented on how pretty the stars looked—maybe even flirted with Gamora and told her that her beauty was more mesmerizing than the stars. However, Isabelle was too worried about her idiot little brother. "How's he gonna get to us?"

"He declined to share that information with us," Gamora spat out, clearly on edge. She paced around the ship, taking in its filthy appearance.

Rocket groaned, sinking into the seat next to Isabelle's. "—dumbass took the Orb with him too."

"It's a safety measure," Isabelle snapped, tired of hearing them complain. She was angry that Peter had gone back into the prison, but she was most worried about his wellbeing. "He knows that you assholes would have left without him!"

"We are going to be blown to bits if we don't fucking leave now!" Rocket shouted, glaring at Isabelle. He struggled to take the controls over, but Isabelle was ready to fight the small rodent. After they had turned the antigravity in the Kyln, they had been able to get away from the guards and retrieve their items. Isabelle had her weapons again, feeling tougher already. If Rocket wanted a fight, that's what he was going to get. But, she knew one thing for sure—she was not going to leave without her brother.

"We're not leaving without the Orb," Gamora snapped, sending a glare toward Rocket as well. She held her sword out, ready to hurt Rocket as well. However, he had access to his guns and it wouldn't take him long to shoot them dead.

"Cease your bickering, he is here," Drax shouted, causing everyone to drop their weapons. They opened the back latch, allowing him into the ship. Isabelle watched as oxygen filled the area where Peter stood before the shield separating them dissolved. "This one shows spirit. He shall make a keen ally in the battle against Ronan companion. Tell us, what were you retrieving?"

Peter grinned, holding up his walkman—the one that their mother had gifted him with. Isabelle could feel the familiar pang of hurt fill her heart, but she ignored it as she began to move the ship away from the prison. It was time to get far far away from the prison and sell the stupid Orb. She just wanted to buy her planet and live out the rest od her days in peace.

"You endangered our lives for that?" Gamora spat out. It was reasonable for them to be angry since they didn't understand how much the walkman really meant to Peter.

However, the fighting ceased when Drax uttered, "You're an imbecile."

♡

Okay, I know that this chapter is honestly SO rushed, but at this point, I really don't care! I just wanted them out of that damned prison because it feels like they've been stuck in that dreadful place for years! It probably feels that way because I take so long to update, but I am hoping that a change of scenery will allow me to write this fic better! Also, I know that their escape did NOT happen like this in the movie, but I wanted to go down a different route. I just get tired of rewatching scenes and following transcripts. I did include some of the original dialogue from the film to keep it as close to canon as possible, but most of it is pretty AU. I am honestly happier with it this way because I want to create a new story and not just write a retelling of the movie.

I tried to add some cute moments between Gamora and Isabelle, but they're scattered. But, I think the next chapter will have some bonding and cute moments! I will try to have Isabelle bond with each of the characters in the next chapter to set up relationships and stuff! 😊

I honestly still don't know what I am doing with my writing. I am not happy with it at all, but I'm trying. In a year or two, I'll probably come back and rewrite everything. But, that is future Amara's problem.

— AMARA
PUBLISH DATE — 10.02.2019