Sequel to Suffering

Jesse's friends called out her name in horror when she hit the ground, her head slamming against the floor. Her body was limp, her eyes closed. Immediately blood began seeping through her hair, running down the side of her face and staining the cement beneath her dark red.

Guards came from all directions, grabbing her friends by the arms, despite their struggling. Petra was already by Jesse's side, trying to check for a pulse through the shaking of her own hands, when a guard grabbed her by the hem of her shirt, dragging her away from Jesse.

"Please, no! I need to know if she's OK!" Petra called out, trying to pull free with all her might as the guard secured her hands behind her back.

The guards took no notice of Jesse, stepping over her limp body like she wasn't even there. It was impossible to tell whether she was breathing or not.

"Is she OK!?" Radar pleaded the guards, but they ignored him.

"Please, just help her!" Petra called out as well, as they were dragged away.

All their cries were ignored, the guards not caring about their desperate wishes to know if their friend was alive or not.

-----------------------------

Jesse's limp figure lay in the obsidian cell, very shallow breaths leaving her mouth. Part of her face was coated with dried blood, her brown hair now stained a dark red.

It's been a few hours since her limp body was hauled back to her cell, dragged back there across the hard floors. Nobody has bothered to treat her injury, or even come check on her since.

But here she was, finally starting to show signs of coming to. Jesse's whole body hurt, but she wasn't even aware of it. The only pain she felt, was the continuous violent throbbing throughout her head, enough to mask any other pain she had.

Jesse coughed weakly, her eyes opening slightly. Immediately she shut them again, the light fueling the pain.

"What happened?" Jesse muttered weakly, as she tried to lift her hand to touch her head.

To her horror, her hands were tied together, tightly chained to the floor. The guards made sure she wasn't going anywhere.

"No..." Jesse tried getting up, but she was too disorientated to even process which direction was up.

Her surroundings were a dizzying mass of colour, her head spinning. It took only a mere few minutes for Jesse to fall back the ground, whimpering in pain. Her throat felt unusually dry, and she could faintly taste blood in her mouth.

Jesse closed her eyes again, trying to relief herself of some of the pain. That little bit of fight, felt like it had drained the last energy from her system.

"What happened?" Jesse thought to herself.

She vaguely remembered escaping the cell to look for her friends, but after that everything was a blur. Did she find them? How did she end up back here with this injury?

Jesse shook her head to herself. She must've found them, she had very vague bits and pieces of memory. She remembered seeing their faces again, hearing their voices... something about an air vent? Yes, yes, they went through one...

Jesse groaned again, feeling slightly sick to her stomach as even more pain pulsed through her head. The memory was vague, but it was there. Her friends were still alive.

That was the last thought that went through Jesse's mind, before she slipped into unconsciousness once more.

-----------------------------

Jesse woke up hours later, her body cold and shivering. She felt a little more aware of her surroundings, less confused. The pain in her head had been reduced but it was still there.

Jesse struggled herself to her feet. Her hands were still chained to the floor, metal cuffs securing her wrists. Now that the extreme headache had slightly been relieved, Jesse was reminded of her fractured ribs and bruised body. Everything hurt.

But Jesse was blinded by a new form of rage, her tortured mind loosing it's senses.

Her hands still secured with heavy chains, she starting slamming them against the bars of the gates, kicking the metal and screaming.

"You won't keep me in here forever!" Jesse cried out, as she slammed her fists into the bars, fresh blood dripping from her hands.

She was so close, she was back in her friends' arms.

The metal gate rattled as Jesse repeatedly flung herself at it, shrieking every time she did.

They could've gotten out of there, but they didn't. All because she was too weak to keep up.

Jesse wasn't sure whether her blind anger was for the Warden and the guards, or even for herself. But she couldn't keep it contained any more, as she took out every ounce of frustration she had.

It went on for the rest of the night, the pained cries and screams echoing through the entire building. By the time Jesse's hands were raw and swollen, the delicate bones all broken, she had started using her feet.

The metal clanging became louder as she repeatedly kicked it with her boots, leaving visible scars across the leather. Jesse's rage-filled shrieks had reduced to heartbroken, pained cries. Tears streaked her cheeks, the dried blood staining them blood-red.

By the time morning came, the fight inside Jesse was still going. Her energy was drained, her eyes tinted red, but she was still determined. She lay on the floor, too weak to keep herself upright.

Her clothes were stained with blood. Her hands were swollen and covered in gaping wounds. The parts that weren't raw were bruised blue. But despite the pain she was in, despite the fact that her legs were literally too weak to hold her strength any more, Jesse was still fighting. All it took was for one thought of her friends, of her free past, to go through her head. Jesse would lash out and kick at the bars, the metal banging echoing throughout the room. She didn't care that her feet ached inside her boots, as long as she could continue to kick the bars in frustration. It was her last resort.

Jesse eventually became aware of voices. She tried sitting upright to listen, but didn't really have the strength to.

"Yes, she's been at it all night. Kept the whole place awake."

"And he thinks this will work?"

"Who knows. If she's as stubborn as the other one, this won't break her. But at least her tantrums won't disturb the rest of the institute."

Jesse knew they were talking about her. She backed up slightly till she was against the wall. What were they about to do to her?

Sure enough, soon two guards stepped into view. One of them were carrying the ring of keys that they usually unlocked her cell with when food came. But this time they definitely weren't bringing her breakfast.

"Look at you." The first guard said, crossing his arms. "Was injuring yourself like this during the night really worth it?"

Jesse didn't say anything, but she glared. A cold hard scowl, that would fit well with the quote of "if looks could kill."

"Come on." The second guard said as he stepped into her cell and knelt beside her to unlock the handcuffs. "You're actions have earned you a different place in this prison."

"Where?" Jesse asked. She tried to sound threatening, but her voice was hoarse from screaming and crying out all night long.

"You'll see." It was the guard's only reply as he hauled her off the ground.

Jesse suppressed a cry of pain as she was forced to put weight on her swollen, aching feet. The guard didn't seem to care, as he continued to force her out of her cell. It only took a few steps of walking for Jesse to start feeling dizzy.

"She's unsteady, take her other side." The guard ordered.

Jesse soon felt the second guard take her left side. As much as she hated to do it, Jesse had no choice by to slightly lean on one of the guards. If she didn't, she was going to fall. And she sure as hell wasn't in a state to fight them.

The guard that was holding her right side took out a radio, and soon Jesse could hear him talking over it with another guard.

"Yea, just get all the guests in their cells on that floor. We're leading a dangerous prisoner through."

A Dangerous Prisoner. Jesse wasn't sure if she should be proud or ashamed of her new reputation.

Most of the walk went on in silence. Jesse would occasionally resist and weakly try to pull away. It was just her way of showing them that she wasn't giving in – just because she was too weak to fight didn't mean she made peace with her fate.

They lead Jesse down two flights of stairs, much to her disadvantage. They didn't slow down for her, even when she nearly lost her footing and fell.

Finally they entered a room with a sign above the door, reading "Zombie Mines." The room was dark and dank, filled with a rotten smell that made Jesse's stomach turn.

There were a few guards in the room, all guarding the cells with the prisoners in. The prisoners were all peeking out in curiosity when Jesse was lead past their cell.

"Jesse!"

Jesse couldn't believe her eyes when she saw her friends in one of the cells. She thought they were in the Mush Room? This had to be their punishment. They were all peering out of the cell's window at her, looking like a great wave of relief had been washed over them when they saw her.

They all looked a little less strong, a bit more sickly than when she last saw them. Then again, who can stay in top shape when you're forced to live on rotten flesh?

Jesse tried to pull away, desperately wanting to just speak two words with her friends. But the guards only pulled her along, all the way to the other side of the room where she could barely see her friend's from.

There was a large iron gate, looking like it was protected by a complex security system. The Warden stood in front of it, his hands folded back behind him. The moment their eyes met, Jesse's gaze evolved to another cold scowl.

"Do you realise what you've done?" The Warden asked her, when they came to a stop in front of him. If Jesse had the strength at that moment, she would've aimed her fist right at his nose.

"You, Jesse, has gone above and beyond in the Sunshine Institute. You have finally found yourself a one way ticket down to the cell-block X. Admin's command."

"I'd rather not ask what in the world that's supposed to mean." Jesse muttered, not once softening her glare.

The Warden chuckled. "It's maximum security, Jesse. You'll never stand a chance of escaping in there."

With those words he turned around, fiddling with something on the security system, the creaking gate lifted. The guards lead Jesse inside, the Warden following behind him.

Jesse looked around the place in horror. The paths were all bordered with bubbling lava, various TNT traps visible. She gulped slightly, her throat feeling dry all of a sudden.

"Here." The guard said, shoving her into a cell all of a sudden.

The momentum immediately threw Jesse to the ground and she yelped, sharp pain filling her body. The guard started kneeling down beside Jesse, holding a brand new set of metal handcuffs. Jesse reacted quickly, plunging her fist straight into his chest. The guard gasped, cursing loudly as he fell back onto the stone flooring.

"Watch yourself!" The second guard snapped, all of a sudden lurching forward, his boot coming into swift contact with Jesse's side.

She cried out out in anguish, the hit meeting her broken ribs. She recoiled on the spot, visible tears of pain brimming her eyes. Jesse kept them from spilling, trying her hardest to focus on anything else put the pain she felt.

She felt somebody take her hands, securing them with the metal cuffs. Jesse looked up, her gaze meeting the Warden's. He smiled cruelly, seemingly enjoying the pain she was in.

"Good luck, Jesse. You won't survive in here for long."

And then she was alone again. Jesse leaned back onto the floor, her breath and heartbeat racing. It was humid and hot in the cell, complete opposite to where she just came from. Jesse was still wearing Petra's jacket, and wished with all her might she could take it off. But considering she was handcuffed, she'd have to put up with the heat.

"You must have made him pretty mad to end up in here."

Jesse stiffened at the voice. Wasn't she alone? Was she hearing things? Did she really get hit that hard to the head?

"Many prisoners had come and gone through the institute, but not one has ever pushed his buttons enough to end up in this place."

OK, she definitely did not imagine that.

Jesse carefully sat up, peering around her. Sure enough, through the iron bars of the window, she could see another cell beside hers. A person stood in the cell, their back turned to Jesse.

"Who are you?" Jesse asked, leaning slightly on the bars for support.

The person turned around, looking Jesse in the eyes. She's obviously been in there for a long time, her prison-outfit torn and her purple hair a mess. Her eyes were filled with rage, and it felt like she was glaring right through Jesse.

"Name's Xara. I've been in here longer than anybody else." She replied bluntly.

Jesse nodded warily. "I'm.. Jesse."

"As I said, I've never seen another prisoner on this level of the institute." Xara said, not moving her gaze off Jesse. "What on earth did you do to anger Romeo this much?"

"Romeo?" Jesse asked in confusion.

"The Admin." Xara replied bluntly. "You didn't think that was his name, was it?"

"How do you know-"

"We have a complicated history together." Xara replied bluntly. "Now, are you going to tell me how you ended up here? On the most forbidden floor of the institute?"

Jesse just shrugged, and told Xara everything. How the Admin – or Romeo – had come to Beacontown, how she was separated from her friends, and finally; how she risked everything just for them. Jesse didn't know if she was supposed to trust Xara, but she didn't care. Just being able to talk to another person was already so much better.

Xara gave a dry chuckle. "So you're one of those ones, eh? The ones who believe in standing up for their friends instead of themselves?

"I'd die for them." Jesse said softly.

Xara didn't reply, but Jesse could almost sense her disapproving stare. Of course, Xara probably didn't have many friends. She probably thought Jesse was stupid.

It was silent again. Jesse retreated back into her own cell, sitting down against the wall to rest her sore body. Part of her just wanted to sleep off the pain, but the other part wanted to fight.

"Have you ever tried escaping?" Jesse asked, looking back up through the window at Xara.

Xara snorted. "Why do you think I'm on this level? I've been trying to escape this place forever... until they've exhausted all my options."

Jesse didn't reply, her hope sinking into her shoes.

"And I won't advise trying to escape, not from this." Xara went on. "You see those pressure plates you're sitting on?"

Jesse glanced down, only then realising that the room was covered in stone pressure plates. She hadn't even noticed them.

"At least one of these pressure plates need to be stood upon." Xara went on. "Otherwise the sticky pistons above us will retract, allowing the lava and TNT to meet. I'm guessing you know what that means?"

Jesse nodded. "Boom."

"Exactly."

It was quiet again. Jesse's tired mind was racing, trying everything she could to think of a plan. She knew she couldn't get out of there, but she had to think of a way to help her friends. When she saw them earlier, it was obvious they were going through hell.

"I wish Olivia was hear." Jesse muttered to herself.

"Who?"

Jesse looked up to Xara, who was now glancing back at her from the small window.

"Olivia, one of my friends." Jesse said softly, leaning back against the wall. "She's a really good engineer, she'd know how to somehow trick this trap."

It was quiet for a moment.

"Do you know anything about redstone?" Xara asked, crossing her arms.

"Only the bits I managed to catch onto when I watched Olivia in the lab." Jesse explained. "But that was years ago, we... we sort of drifted apart."

It was quiet again for a few minutes, before Xara once more broke the silence.

"You know, back where I came from, I used to be an engineer as well."

Jesse looked up hopefully.

"It's been years however, since I even touched redstone." Xara said, thoughtfully running her hands across the pressure plates.

"Olivia used to say once you learned something about redstone, it'll always be with you." Jesse said, trying her best to sound encouraging.

"You're not helping." Xara muttered gruffly, still keeping her eyes on the pressure plates.

Jesse pulled away from the window, kneeling down to examine the pressure plates in her cell. She remember Olivia's love to work with pressure plates. There was nothing her friend used to love more than doors or gates opening automatically...

"Maybe..." Jesse whispered to herself, as she carefully wedged her fingers in underneath the pressure plate.

Her hands were still cuffed together and her fingers were raw, but she only bit her lip and pulled.

"What are you doing?" Xara asked, watching as Jesse pulled the pressure plate upwards best she can.

Jesse shut her eyes tightly, using all her strength to pull. Suddenly there was a loud snap, and she tumbled backwards. Jesse opened her eyes to see half of the pressure plate completely broken off.

"Jesse?" Xara asked uncertainly.

Jesse shuffled over to the broken pressure plate, peering in underneath. Her eyes scanned the intricate redstone wiring. Then she remembered something from very long again.

Jesse quickly lifted her head, looking over at Xara. "Do you have water?" She asked.

"Water?" Xara frowned. "What the hell do you need water for?"

"Water busts a redstone connection." Jesse said. "I know this, because... because of something from my past."

"You're right." Xara said, looking amazed. "I didn't even think of that."

She quickly disappeared deeper into her cell, returning seconds later. She was holding a battered metal cup.

"This is all I have left from when they last fed me." Xara explained, holding the cup out through the metal bars. "It's not much."

"It should be enough." Jesse said, taking the cup from Xara.

She knelt down by the broken pressure plate again, ready to drench the circuit with the bit of fluid. Jesse hesitated.

"What are you waiting for?" Xara asked in an annoyed tone.

"Before we do this, I need to ask you something." Jesse said softly, looking up at Xara.

"What?" Xara asked, looking frustrated.

Jesse bit her lip, unsure of her next words. But she knew she had to.

"I'm injured badly... if that bit isn't obvious." She said softly. "Me and my friends were really close to escaping, only I couldn't keep up..."

She looked up at Xara.

"I might not make it out. Physically I'm too weak, injured too severely."

"What are you saying?" Xara asked, crossing her arms.

"I need you to get my friends out for me." Jesse replied.

Xara looked like she was about to argue, but Jesse held up her hand, shushing her.

"I can get us out of the institute, but then you have to promise to take my friends. If I fall behind... just go on, don't let them turn back for me.

I can see you're somebody who wouldn't easily turn back to help an injured stranger. That's why I need you to keep going, don't let my friends turn back for me, no matter what."

The room was silent.

"You're willing to give up your life for somebody else?" Xara asked, no emotion whatsoever in her voice.

"Like I said before, I would die for my friends." Jesse said softly. "And I don't care what happens to me, as long as I know they're OK."

It was quiet again. Jesse began wondering whether Xara was planning on saying anything at all.

"OK."

"What?" Jesse asked in surprise.

"I said OK." Xara replied matter-of-factly. "I'll get them to safety. Now get us out."

Jesse nodded quickly, turning back to the pressure plate. Taking a deep breath, she tipped the tiny bit of water onto the intricate circuit.

For a second Jesse prepared herself. She was terrified of her actions have a different affect than she desired. But nothing exploded.

There was a few sparks of electricity, water meeting power. Immediately al the lights dimmed

"This is even better than I thought it would be!" Jesse heard Xara behind her. "The power got knocked out."

Before Jesse even had a chance to get in a word, Xara was out of her cell. For a second, Jesse waited for the overwhelming explosion, but nothing happened. The connection was busted.

"Come on!" Xara hissed.

She had already grabbed a chain of keys from outside the cell. As Jesse approached her, she quickly unlocked Jesse's handcuffs, before dropping the keys into her hands. In return, Jesse unlocked Xara's.

"We need to get out of here, no doubt the guards are on their way right now." Xara said firmly.

"Air vents." Jesse suddenly gasped. "I know exactly how we can get back up to the zombie mines unnoticed."

------------------------------

Jesse peered through another metal grid. The cell she was looking into this time was completely empty. She shook her head at Xara, a sign that they needed to go on.

"Are you sure we can't just leave them?" Xara asked in frustration. "The less of us there are, the bigger the chances of survival."

"No." Jesse said firmly, as she continued to crawl along the vent. "We're not leaving without my friends."

Xara muttered something under her breath as they crawled along. Jesse's own hope had started dwindling by then. She felt tired and fatigued, her head throbbing lightly. She wasn't sure how much further she could go.

Jesse stopped by another metal grid. Her heart leapt. Once again, she could see her friends in front of her. Nurm was peering out of the cell with interest, Petra was restlessly pacing up and down, and Radar was sitting on the floor not far from the vent.

"Guys!" Jesse hissed.

Within seconds her friends were by the vent, all of them whispering her name in relief and/or excitement.

"Jesse, I was so worried we wouldn't see you again!" Radar whispered anxiously.

"How did you get out of there?" Petra asked as well.

"I had some help." Jesse said, as she started detaching the grid from the inside. "We have to hurry now, come on."

Within seconds, the cell was completely empty and the grid was back up. All of them were inside the vent now, squashed up close together. Jesse had hastily introduced her friends to Xara, and explained how they managed to knock out the power. Xara then proceeded to explain the exit plan, leaving out the little deal she made with Jesse.

"But the halls are lined with security cameras." Radar pointed out, looking confused. "Wherever we try to make a run for it, we'll immediately be caught."

"Power, Radar, cameras require power." Petra whispered loudly, face-palming in annoyance.

"Oh, right." Radar replied anxiously, adjusting his glasses.

"We don't have much time, they'll have the power back up soon." Xara said, gesturing for the other's to follow her.

Nobody protested, as they all started following her. Jesse once again hung back till last.

"Hey, are you OK?" Petra asked softly, looking over her shoulder at Jesse. "You were... really badly hurt."

"I'm not great." Jesse admitted. "But I'm not dead, and in this place that's all that matters."

"You sure you'll be able to do this OK?" Petra asked.

"Yes." Jesse said.

She hated lying to her friends. She was almost certain she wouldn't get out of this... but she couldn't let Petra know that.

The rest of the trip was quiet, nobody saying anything. They passed a few rats on the way, who didn't seem to fazed by their presence. Jesse tried her best to edge away from the rodents she despised so much.

"We're not far now." Xara said.

"How do you know?" Radar asked.

"Because we literally passed the office a minute ago." Xara snapped at him. "The next vent must be in the hallway."

Radar immediately shut up, definitely not about to risk asking Xara another question.

Soon the group stopped, Jesse hearing the familiar fiddling with the metal grid right after Xara announced that the coast was clear.

The moment the grid was off, Xara was out of the vent in a swift movement. Everybody followed. Jesse was relieved when Petra offered her a hand, helping her clamber out of the vent. Not far from the vent, Jesse couldn't help but notice faint red stains on the floor. Was it her blood?

"Come on, before the guards find us or the power goes back on." Xara instructed, gesturing towards the entrance.

Nobody needed a second invitation as they immediately made for the door. The moment they were out of the building however, they were running. Outside, there were guards everywhere.

Jesse heard one of them anxiously calling "Prisoner X has escaped! Prisoner X has escaped!" while pointing at Xara. Jesse didn't question what he meant.

"This way! I know my way through the maze!" Xara called out, gesturing towards the maze.

Everybody followed her, right into the tunnel. Jesse had already started falling behind, feeling light-headed and dizzy. She glanced over her shoulder, noticing through her blurred vision that the guards were catching up.

As Jesse looked back, she made eye-contact with Xara. She gave Jesse a firm nod. And Jesse knew what to do.

So, allowing Xara to lead her friend's into the maze, them not even knowing of Jesse's actions, she stopped dead. Jesse stopped in her tracks, watching as her friends disappeared around a bend. She just hoped Xara would be able to stop them, if they saw her missing and tried to come back.

"I'm sorry." Jesse said softly, trying to fight back tears. She wasn't successful.

Guards came from behind, grabbing Jesse. They were yelling and screaming, but it all sounded distant. Jesse didn't care what they were about to do to her. They could kill her.

"Did you stop prisoner X!?"

"No, they made it into the burrows!"

"There's no way anybody's getting their hands on her, now that she's made it that far!"

"We got this one however."

Jesse looked up weakly, watching as guards stopped in front of the maze, shaking their heads. It was clear that they knew – Xara's made it into the maze, there was no way they'll be able to find her now.

"How could you?"

Jesse looked up slightly, to see the Warden standing in front of her.

"You freed Prisoner X." The Warden said in a cold voice. "Do you have any idea what you've done?"

"I saved my friends." Jesse replied softly, her voice shaking.

The Warden lashed out, shoving Jesse back against the wall of the Sunshine institute. Jesse stayed quiet, but her expression showed absolute pain. She looked up at the Warden again, her vision now doubling over.

"Don't you realise what you've done!?" The Warden bellowed at Jesse. "The Admin will be furious! We'll all be in great trouble, we'll all suffer because of you!"

"We're even then." Jesse replied bluntly. The Warden didn't even seem to hear those words.

"Take her out of here, back to her cell!" He snapped to a nearby guard. "And make sure she suffers along the way."

He turned his gaze to Jesse one last time.

"After what she did, The Admin might just give her the death penalty."

___

4571 words... Even I'm speechless XD 

I don't think I've ever written a one shot this long. And it's got two prequels, geez. Tbh, it doesn't feel like I've just finished three one shots, it felt like I've written a book XD

So, this is finally the end of this one-shot train. I'm afraid this is how it ends, no more sequels. Whatever happens next, is completely up to your imagination.

I need to take a break from these one shots now XD Remember when I said I wanted to spam you guys with cute, goofy tree house one shots? Well instead I wrote these torturing, suffering one shots. I think it's time I resume the cute goofy ones XD 

So, Imma go look for my sanity that I lost somewhere along the road of writing this, see ya all next time!