I had barely slept an hour. The shudders which continued to rock though my body allowed me no respite. Every part of me ached. Even my stomach ached from the lack of sustenance. They had forgotten to feed us or give us any water. It was probably another of their inhumane tests. I refused to break and beg for it – my pride wouldn't let me. Pride didn't stop me from feeling hungry and thirsty.

Instead I set about planning the escape. I didn't have much of a plan. I only knew that I needed to remove the wristband if we were going to have even a tiniest sliver of hope. There was no way I could live with myself if I managed my own escape but failed to save anyone else.

Staring at my wrist, I felt dread at what I had to do. I knew it would hurt - a lot. It was probably why I had hesitated for so long. I had used the excuse that I needed to regain my strength to do it. That I needed to allow myself to recover – it was lie. I was afraid – afraid of the pain even after everything I had already endured within captivity.

Drawing in a deep breath, I dragged myself over to the bars of the cell. It took all of my strength to do it. My body was heavy and my arms were weak, struggling to support me. My breathing was loud but everything was silent. The others were catching up on rest while they could. We had been promised a slight reprieve before tomorrow's main even. I dreaded to think what that could even involve. Our dreaded captors would never cease to surprise me with the new ways they found to torture us.

Turning my head away, I placed my wrist, right at the juncture below my thumb, against the bars of the cell. For the first time, as I felt it stab into my skin, I felt the spiky metal was something here to help us. Pressing my lips together, I steeled myself against the hurt to come. And then I dragged my arm against the bar. I repeated the movement over and over again. At first I was grateful for the slight numbing qualities the bracelet provided; it meant that I did not feel the initial pain.

Eventually even the bracelet was ineffective against the pain I was inflicting upon myself. After a few pulls the flesh on my hand was shredded and my hand was slick and bloody. I hissed at the sharp bite of the metal as I dragged my arm back and forth once more. The sensation was enough to make me queasy but I refused to stop and I refused to.

Digging my fingers around the cuff, my broken finger nails scrambling for purchase, I tried to pull and felt the slightest give. But it wasn't enough. Glancing down at my hand, I tried to feel horror at the sight of my mangled flesh.

"Okay, I can do this." I murmured, drawing in a deep breath and then releasing it slowly between my teeth.

Raising my hand above my head, I closed my eyes. For a moment everything was still – held upon a precipice from which there was no going back. And then I moved, my arms gliding through the air seamlessly as I brought my hand down as hard as I could. Pain shot though my injured hand and the cry escaped my lips before I could stop it.

Again I raised my hand above my head and slammed it down on the ground as hard as I could. It smacked against the floor and I felt something crack and shift within my hand. I moaned loudly as dark spots danced across my closed eye lids.

"Savannah?" Casper whispered into the darkness, his voice hoarse from lack of use. Or maybe it was from the screaming he had done the day before. His injuries had been extensive and I would never have looked down at someone if they had to scream out their pain in order to endure.

"I'm okay." I choked out, my breath stuttering as I peeled my eyes open to stare at my mangled hand.

Wrapping my fingers around the bracelet, nails under the edged, it stuck tight. I wiggled and pulled again and it finally moved. I felt the underside of the bracelet rip through my flesh as I pulled. The broken bones in my hand shifted and with one last pull, the metal cuff was off.

I threw it across the cell where it clanged against the wall before bouncing off and skidding to a halt a few feet away. And then, unable to put it off any longer, I turned my head to the side and retched, my empty stomach unable to offer anything other than bile.

Cradling, my wrist to my chest, I leant heavily against the bars of the cell and did my best not to pass out. The effects of the bracelets removal were almost instantaneous. My hand was on fire. I could feel the blood seeping from the shredded flesh and I could feel my wounds throbbing in time with my frantic pulse.

"Savannah, what have you done?" Caspar asked, panic setting his voice several octaves higher than it normally was.

Groaning low, I managed to force a reply past my lips. "I'm saving you."

I waited an hour, for the last of the bracelet's effects to leave my system before I even attempted to move. Caspar had been silent, no longer talking to me after my last biting words. But I knew he was there, waiting on the other side of the cell wall for me to speak again – to explain myself.

But I wouldn't have to explain myself – if it worked.

Closing my eyes, I drew in a deep breath and flexed my injured hand. My body cried out in protest but I ignored it. Now was not the time to be giving in to the demands of my flesh.

Instead, I looked within myself, for the part of me I had been detached from as a result of the drugs. It twitched and raised its sleepy help, and then I felt its joy as if it too had been missing something. I had never thought that my new God given gifts were a living entity but they were there, waiting to greet me like an eager puppy.

I mentally opened myself up to them and felt pure joy as I became whole for the first time in weeks. The energy rushed through my veins, flooding through every part of me. The pain in my arm lessened, numbed by the gentle rush of otherworldly magic.

Breathing deep, I summoned her into existence, my angel sword. She hummed joyously as she materialised in my hand, her bright light flooding the dreary place.

"I missed you." I murmured to the warm piece of metal, smiling as the blade hummed back in delightful tones. I was almost certain the blade had missed me too – but that was crazy.

I shook my head – maybe the doctor had damaged me more than just physically.

Feeling stronger than I had since my capture, I pushed to my feet. My injured hand was wrapped around the hilt of the blade and it throbbed in protest as I raised the blade in the air and then brought it down hard upon the door of the cell. Desperation and hope warred within me for equal standing as I willed my beautiful blade to cut through it all, spring me free from this cell and tear me a path out of this hellhole.

The blade shone brighter, hissing vivid white sparks as it made contact with the metal and then it was sliding through the bars with ease. I cut around the locking mechanism and then with am swift kick, I watched as the door to my cell swung open.

I released the breath I hadn't realised I had been holding. My shoulders relaxed and a tear sprang to my eyes. I was far from free, far from going home but it was the closest I had been to escape.

Stepping out into the corridor, sword held before me, I tiptoed my way to Caspar's cell.

The pale man was slumped against the wall nearest to mine. As the bright light from my sword fell upon him, he raised his bracelet wearing arm up to shield his face. With barely a thought, the light dimmed and I dropped to my knees before his cell.

Up close the damage wrought by the doctor was much worse than I had initially thought. Both of his eyes were bruised and puffy. The whites of his eyes, which were just about visible through the slits on his bruised face, were red from all of the broken blood vessels.

"Oh you poor boy," I murmured, my undamaged hand stretching out to stroke his cheek. I stopped before I could make contact. His face was just one stretch of tenderised meat.

Caspar's hand slipped through the bars and wrapped around my hand, his fingers squeezing mine.

"I'm okay."

I shook my head. "You're not but it's alright. When we're out of here you can heal." Squeezing his hand once more, I released his hand. "Give me your other arm."

When the white haired young man hesitated, I pointed as his arm. "Your arm."

He met my stare for several long moments and then he swapped his arms so that the wrist clad in the metal cuff was dangling before me.

Meeting him eye to eye, I smiled grimly. "Do you trust me?"

The man nodded his head so before he could hesitate, I struck fast, waving my sword through the air and brought it down upon the cuff. It cut through the metal with the same amount of ease as it had the bars of my cell but it stopped before it could ever mar Caspar's bruised skin.

Hastily Caspar pulled his arm back into the safety of his body and trained his wide eyes upon me. I held my hands up in front of me, the sword vanishing with just a thought. She was still there though. I could feel her beautiful hum just waiting to be called back into service.

"Take off the cuff. You need to be ready. As soon as the guards come to take one of us, we need to be free of the drugs. We need to be strong." I murmured.

Staring at cuff on his arm, the beaten man's fingers shook as he wedged them under the band and then peeled them away from his wrist. He breathed out a sigh. His eyes closed as a single tear slipped down his ruined face.

My eyes focused on the item he held in his hand. I hadn't looked at the inside of the band I had removed from my own body. Looking at the cuff which had been removed so painlessly from Caspar, I felt sick to think I had forced it off of my wrist. I knew that my hand was mangled as a result of the attempt – that the skin would forever be marred if I could not get to a proper healer in time. I knew that my bones were knitting back together faster than any human but they ached and were uncomfortable as they were not in proper alignment. Yet it was the band which sent shivers down my spine. The underside had several sharp prongs which were bloody from where they had been buried in Caspar's flesh. And then there was the capsule on the inside with the drug within it. It fed down into the prongs which bled the chemicals into the bloodstream.

"Rest up, I will remove the bands from the others and then we wait to strike."

"Why can't we go now?" Caspar asked, forcing himself up on to his feet despite his injuries.

"Two reasons. First, I can't carry you all out of here. You all need a chance to regain back your strength once the cuff has been removed."

"And second?"

"Secondly, we need them to open the door. As good as my sword is, I'm not too sure whether it can cut through something that thick. It is just a sword after all, even if it is angelic." I muttered the last words to myself but in the relative silence, Caspar must have heard as he tilted the head to the side, his eyes asking the question he had not voiced.

"Long story, maybe I'll tell you some time." I smiled and then spun on my heel.

Cell by cell, I summoned my blade and cut through the metal cuffs on the other prisoners. The last cell's occupant almost broke my heart. There were two children sharing the small space. Their features were similar so it was clear that the young boy and girl were siblings. They clung to one another desperately in their slumber. I hadn't even known they were in the cell block with us as they were so quiet.

Even maternal part of me was raging at the sight of the bruises which marred their skin. I eventually woke them and got the cuffs removed from all prisoners. There were ten of us in total making the escape attempt. One of the occupants hadn't woken to my calls and when I had finally stepped into the cell, I found that I was too late. The woman had died with her eyes closed and fear upon her face. I would never forget her face – I had a feeling it would haunt my nightmares for years to come.

Finally I returned to my cell. The only thing left to do was wait for morning.