I whistled a little tune to myself as I wandered the thick walls of the prison. My hands were in my pockets as I enjoyed the moment of freedom. No responsibilities, and nobody bothering me.

I took a breath as I turned the corner where I would see Baro.

Only Baro wasn't there.

I raised my eyebrows as I stopped whistling and walked down the corridor at a quicker pace until I could see the prison cells. All of the guards were missing from their posts.

Until I heard a noise that made me walk over towards prisoner 134340's cell.

I gasped as I spotted the guards, batons out, beating up the prisoner. 134340 sputtered out blood onto the cement and his clothes as he took a hit in the back from Baro, who shouted ugly words at him.

"What the hell is going on here?" I spoke, making sure to use my official voice.

Everyone froze and turned to face me with wide eyes, except for the prisoner, who looked at me with half-closed eyes before he collapsed onto the cement ground.

"Sandeul, help the prisoner onto his cot before joining us out here. The rest of you," I paused as I glared at the lot of prison guards my father had hired. "Out here, now."

Baro swallowed harshly as he lined up alongside the guards, Sandeul quickly joining.

I cleared my throat. "What the hell is wrong with you people? Since when do we beat prisoners? They are humans too!"

At this, the guards all snickered, cracking jokes amongst each other.

"Quiet." My normally loud voice was already at almost a yell, the sound reverberating off of the cement walls.

"I do not care what this prisoner has done. I don't care about what my father has told you. I am the one he put in charge of the prisons. I am the one who can determine whether you all have jobs in Auralia."

The guards stiffened at my words, a few of them nodding.

"There will be no hands laid on my prisoners, do you all understand?" They clicked their heels together as their postures straighted, their hands coming up in a salute, some more reluctantly than others. "If there is any, and I mean any, more reports of anything going wrong down here, I will not be afraid to whoop someone's ass. I don't care if I'm the prince."

I motioned for them to get back to work as I wandered over to the gate. The prisoner lay unconscious on his cot, blood and bruises covering his body.

"Baro, let me in, and get me some supplies to clean him up."

Baro hummed in response and did as I asked, bringing me a bowl of water and a towel before buzzing me into the cell.

I knelt down, groaning a little at the discomfort of the rough ground on my knees, but I had other concerns to deal with.

I wet the towel in the bowl and started to wipe up the blood on his arms and face. I smiled softly as I got a close look at his soft features. He didn't look like the type of person to have committed a crime so severe he was given the death penalty.

"What did you do to deserve this, hmm?" I spoke softly as I cleaned him up.

"I-If you knew, you'd probably join in next time someone was beating me." His deep voice caught me off guard, his left eye slowly opening, his left eye swollen shut. I could hear the pain laced in his voice.

"I doubt that."

•••••

I actually love this story so far.