Leon stood behind a shield, one he hoped would save his life. He was aware the inmates outnumbered his own team, but he hoped their equipment would aid them in finding victory.

He regretted now, more than ever, that guards weren’t permitted guns. Caledorn had been a peaceful nation with strict anti-gun laws. Unfortunately, that applied to guards too. It had never been an issue before, but looking at the mob before him, Leon’s right hand itched to be holding a firearm.

They charged like a unified team of gladiators. Many were already covered in blood, even those who weren’t gorey were ready to duel to the death.

Leon’s shield absorbed blow after blow from angry inmates, especially Ace.

He had always given Ace a hard time. It was a rite of passage as a guard to pick on the strongest inmates. Leon had never cared about the politics of the prison, but he wanted to fit in and be respected. He chose Ace because he was a force to be reckoned with. At that moment, Leon regretted it all.

Ace’s punches and kicks sent him further and further back. He barely had a chance to wield his baton before it was ripped from his hand.

Ace leaned in, holding the weapon high above his head. “I’m going to hit your shield very hard. Fall down and do not get back up,” Ace gruffly whispered to him.

Leon stood there, dumbfounded. He didn’t know whether to headbutt the criminal before him and rage into the fray once more or do as he said and play dead.

All too soon the baton collided with his shield, a great force reverberating through it. If that hit was upon the shield, he wasn’t prepared to see what happened when it hit his body. Leon chose falling over being a hero.

Leon crumpled to the floor in the least graceful way he could, forcing his limbs to stay by his sides and not catch his fall.

He let his eyes fall shut.

Around him he heard the grunts and hollers of various men still battling. He felt bad for the guards he wasn’t helping, but at the same time, he wasn’t willing to die for any of them. They were co-workers and most of them were heinous people. Not the type of people one should take a bullet for. At least, not the type that Leon was willing to die for.

He remained silent on the floor, waiting patiently while the fight ensued.

Finally, after what felt like hours, the fight stopped. He heard footsteps grow further away as a group departed the area.

Still, he waited.

After hearing nothing for a solid five minutes, he braved opening his eyes. Around him he saw bodies of both sides, though there were more guards strewn about than inmates. All dead. Bludgeoned to death.

Leon sat up, discarding his shield and fishing in his pocket for his cell phone.

He stood up, his fingers expertly sliding across the screen to unlock it and call someone. The only person he gave a damn about besides himself.

His sister.

The phone rang and rang, but no one answered.

Leon expected as much, he had no right to ask for more. He’d never been a great brother. He knew he deserved the shunned silence he’d received for years.

Dejected, he hung up, stuffed his phone back into his pocket and stealthily stepped through the empty corridors. He knew, if he stumbled across any prisoners, they’d kill him without hesitation.

Using his knowledge of the building, he wove through hallways and back rooms. He stopped a few times, hearing voices nearby. He held his breath and glued himself to the walls, trying to remain out of sight.

Finally, he found himself near an exit. It wasn’t the most convenient exit as it was on the other side of the building from his motorbike, but it was an exit, nonetheless.

He slid through the door and began his mission to get to his vehicle and drive far, far away. He knew he should have called someone and stayed behind to help clean up the prison. He knew many dangerous criminals had just fled into Caledorn. Though somehow, he didn’t care. There was a war going on, surely that took precedence.

He rounded the building to see a hoard of inmates all dressed in orange, in the parking garage.

“Fuck,” he muttered to himself. There was no way he was going to get his bike from there. Not with that many inmates to contend with.

He knew there were a few houses nearby, maybe one of them would lend him a vehicle, or he’d ask them to warn the authorities about the situation at the prison.

Settling on a plan he spun around and ran in the opposite direction. He moved quickly, not knowing if anyone had seen him flee. He ran up the hill behind the prison, cresting it out of breath and exhausted. He glanced behind him and saw no one following him and he sighed in relief.

Leon took a moment to sit down and catch his breath. From the top of the hill he could see the vastness of Caledorn sprawled out before him. He couldn’t see any imminent signs of war, but he knew they were happening just out of his sight.

Once more he reached for his cell phone. He dialed his sister, again.

The phone rang. And kept ringing. As he lifted his thumb to end the call, someone spoke.

“Uncle Leon?”

Leon grasped the phone and pressed it against his ear. “Hey, kiddo! Long time no talk,” he tried to sound cheerful but failed.

“Why are you calling Uncle Leon?” the sweet little voice asked.

“Is your mom around, kiddo?” Leon answered their question with a question.

There was a bit of shuffling behind the phone before the voice spoke again, “She says she doesn’t wanna talk to you.”

Leon sighed. “Alright, kiddo. I understand that. Can you put me on speaker phone? I have something I want to say to her.”

“Sure.” A few more muffled noises sounded in Leon’s ear. “Done.”

“Thanks kiddo,” Leon said. He paused for a moment trying to collect his thoughts. Fearing his sister would simply end the phone call if he said the wrong thing, he wanted to be concise.

“I’m sorry sis,” he started. “I know I wasn’t there for you a lot as kids. Our parents were… Well, piss poor parents and I should have supported you more. I was scared. Hell, I’m still scared.”

He took another deep breath.

“I just wanted you to know now, in case this war ends badly. I wanted you to hear from me that I’m sorry and I love you, Kelly.”

Before she could berate him or say something to make him cry, Leon hung up the phone.

He sat back on the hill and looked out over Caledorn once more, wondering how life manged to get so fucked up in such a short time.