My senses are back to normal. Yet, it's too late – I'm chained up to the wall due to my bloodlust outburst.

Yelen and Annabelle have just returned from the hunt. Annabelle struck down a deer and they've given us three bottles of blood as a reward. Annabelle persuaded the guards to send some of the meat to the Merpeople District on her behalf. I guess they'll fulfill her wish since she's done well on the hunt. That's the rule of this prison – you hunt well, you get rewards.

"How are you holding out, Theo?" Yelen asks me.

"I would've been better if I had a chance to drink some blood in the dining hall!" I retort. It's true! I craved for blood, and so what? It was right there! Why didn't they let me drink it?

"You know that was impossible," Annabelle cuts in. "If you submit to those bloodlust outbursts, you'll end up like Kaleb."

"Yeah," Yelen says. "Kaleb drank blood during his outburst when he still couldn't control it and turned into a beastly bat. Even the warden had to be woken to bring him down!"

"Yeah." Annabelle nods. "The warden rarely awakens, but he had to arrive to subdue that beast. Otherwise, Kaleb would've never been put down."

I've heard about Kaleb – a prisoner who drank blood when he couldn't control his outbursts and turned into a gruesome bat with his mind and senses erased. It was the bestial transformation of a vampire – a giant beast who can think of nothing but blood and slaughter. Rufus says that such transformation only occurs when you don't respect the first law of infected deviants – to never taste blood or raw flesh in the first stages when you still can't control yourself.

To me, Kaleb's story sounds like a myth created to scare us. But the vampires follow that rule wholeheartedly and never let us, newbies, try the blood when we crave it.

"So, where's Kaleb now?" I ask.

"He's dead," Yelen replies.

"Dead?" I widen my eyes. Do prisoners really get killed here?!

"Are you that dense?!" Annabelle snarls. "Whenever the warden awakens, it means someone's death – either of the prisoner who's causing a ruckus or the prison-keeper who wakes him up for no serious reason. In Kaleb's case, the reason was serious, so Kaleb was the one to die."

"Is the warden truly so powerful?" I ask.

"If he weren't, we would've long escaped," Annabelle answers.

"Annabelle's right," Yelen says. "The only reason this prison keeps standing is because of the warden. He's way too powerful, even for a normal feline."

"He's a feline?" I blink in shock.

My surprise has a genuine cause. Feline zoomorphs are common in this prison. Cats, lions, tigers, panthers... They're one of the most common races in deviant society. Therefore, the Feline District is one of the largest in this prison, located next to the Canine District. Just like between the angelic and the demonic vampires, the competition between the canines (among them werewolves) and the felines is fierce. I thought this legendary warden would be something more original.

"Yeah, but as Yelen has said, he's dangerous," Annabelle replies. "He's not your average cougar. Nothing happens in this prison without his knowledge. You may call deviants monsters, but the only true monster I know is the warden."

"Something tells me you're afraid of him!" I tease her.

"Oh, shut up, Theo!" Annabelle snarls. "You'd better prepare, you're still coming to the merpeople's party!"

"I thought Rufus wanted me chained up for the rest of the day," I say.

"Well, to your luck, I'm a good hunter!" Annabelle smirks. "You'll thank me later!"

Indeed, at around eight and thirty, Vincent walks in to unchain me. Annabelle persuaded Rufus, saying that "the boss of merpeople wants my presence".

"Don't worry, Vincent, I'll take care of her!" she reassures the guard, who grunts as he unchains me.

Once I'm free, I follow Annabelle out of the cell, and soon, out of the district. We're heading to the merpeople party, which I'll be attending for the first time. To meet Derek there, again.