Night Time Scuffle

"Are you crazy? Are you trying to get us killed due to your actions, you dumb elf?"

Lars' back met the cold, hard wall as two slender and scaly hands grabbed the collar of his rags. His assailant was Rios, a lizardman, who bore the mark of captive number 13. The mark was visible on his stomach area despite the maroon coloured scales doing their best to hide it.

"Would you let a person die in front of you when you can delay their demise?" 

Lars tried removing himself from the wall but Rios slammed him back onto the wall. Lars groaned as the cold wall seemed to increase his pain rather than soothing it.

"You listen here, I have no problem that you tried to save Rein, who is one of us, but did you have to poke into the fire that much?" Rios' body trembled as his hands became shaky, and he strengthened his grip on Lars' collar.

"If I don't speak up or act, then who the hell will?" Lars raised his arms and shoved Rios away from him.

"If you want to die that much, don't try dragging us along with you. Some of us have families to return to." Rios regained his bearings after that shove disoriented him.

"Are you sure that your families eagerly await your return? Look at Peon. His people sold him, mind you, who are also your people, to appease the demon tribe." 

This fact coming to light did not bother Peon. He clenched his fist, remembering the shamelessness of the place he once called home. 

"You bastard!"

Rios threw a punch at Lars' face, which connected as it sank into his cheek, making flesh envelope the fist. Just as Rios was about to throw another punch, Lars kicked him in the gut, throwing him away. Rios doubled over as he clutched his stomach in pain. He grimaced as he forced himself to stand up.

"If they had the gall to sell one of their own into captivity, what makes you think that your families want you back home?" Rios clenched and unclenched his fists as the pain subsided.

"What position are you to talk, as you have no home to return-?"

Suddenly, before Rios could even finish his question, Lars kneed him in the gut. This caused him to gasp at the sudden attack. He was forced to his knees, stones threatening to dig into his knees. As Rios tried to regain his bearings, the sole of a foot suddenly blocked his vision. He tried avoiding the foot, which forced him to lie flat on his back. Lars jumped on his body, straddling him and started raining blows onto his face. Lars continued punching, not caring that his opponent's face was getting swollen. Rios curled himself up in the fetal position as Lars' knuckles were being coated in his blood. Rios whimpered as he prayed to whichever deity for the abuse to stop.

"Peon get Rios once I pry Lars off him. If this continues any further, Rios might end up completely incapacitated."

Peon nodded in acknowledgement of Xero's warning. As much as he may hate his clan men, he wouldn't stand by and watch someone get killed before him. Xero snaked his hands between Lars' armpits. Before Lars could notice what was happening, Xero's hands had already joined at his neck. He was now locked in place.

"Peon now!" Peon retrieved Rios before the scuffle could continue any further.

Lars was still thrashing around in Xero's headlock as he tried to free himself. He was growling at Rios and did not want to stop until Rios met his ancestors in the afterlife.

"Forgive me for this, friend, but it's for your good."

Xero let go of Lars, but as Lars was about to pounce on Rios again, a punch nearly the size of his head met the back of his skull. This planted his face onto the ground, knocking him out.

Rios' whimpers subsided before someone calling his name caught his attention.

"Rios, you are older than the kid. So you should have seen this coming when you reminded him of something he is trying to forget." Rios struggled to observe through the tiny openings created by his swollen eyes.

Before Rios could voice a retort, Xero cut in. "I understand that the kid stooped low, but as the older person, you are not supposed to be petty and stoop lower than him. You are proving that you are more immature than he is." 

Xero let a long sigh escape his lips as he shook his head.

"That is a lesson to you and the others that there are certain things you should tread upon carefully. Also, the kid will get this talk. As much as his words may contain some elements of truth. There are some things you'd better keep under wraps, not pouring salt into the wounds."

Xero turned to the other captives in the cell with them and addressed them. "I hope that in the future there will be fewer incidents such as this.

"Yes, sir." Most voiced their agreement. Others, such as Peon, who didn't offer a response, grunted in acknowledgement.

An hour later, Lars returned to awareness. He tried wiping off the bleariness from his eyes. This was before a head-splitting headache emerged from the back of his head.

'How did I end up like this?' Lars thought as he massaged his temple, trying to soothe his headache.

Thud– the sound of heavy footsteps caught his attention. This caused him to turn his head in the direction of the sound. He saw the leathery scaled face of Xero contort into a frown.

"I see you are finally awake. I had to take some measures preventing you from doing something you will regret." Lars tried to force himself to sit up, but the migraines assaulting him forced him to keep lying on the ground.

"You almost killed a comrade in anger." Xero shook his head in disappointment.

Memories of the earlier events rushed into his mind. He recalled what transpired between him and Rios. He remembered Rios commenting on his dead family. His body trembled as he clenched his fist and tried to force himself to get up.

"Where is he? Let me settle this with him like real men."

 Xero shoved him back to the ground while pinning Lars' chest under his knee. Lars' wheezed as he felt his airways constrict. His pale skin started to gain a purple tint due to the tremendous weight exerted on his chest. Lars tapped Xero's knee to stop him from suffocating him to death.

"Will you behave once I let you go? Nod twice if you accept to behave." Lars frantically nodded for his release from the knee, threatening to suffocate him.

Xero lifted his knee from Lars' chest. Lars gasped as he took in air to his lungs, his chest heaving with each intake of air. He racked up a series of coughs, causing him to pat his chest trying to relieve his cough. After a few minutes, his coughs started to subside as his breathing evened out.

"Now, are you in a rational state of mind to speak?" Lars nodded his head while soothing his chest.

"Why?" 

"You know why. He insulted my dead family." Lars clenched and unclenched his fist as he recalled Rios' words.

"But that was after you had the gall to mock him by saying that their families may not want them to return." Lars turned his head to glare at Xero.

"I stated the truth." Xero let out a sigh as he shook his head in disappointment.

"You know, there are some things you should tread upon carefully, no matter who it is you are dealing with. If you didn't release such remarks, you would have evaded a fight." Lars snorted and looked to the side, trying his best not to acknowledge he was at fault.

"I wasn't in the wro–."

Slap.

A slap cut Lars' words short and made him turn his head to the side. He rubbed his cheek, trying to soothe the pain not realising how he got hit. When he turned his head, he saw Xero's outstretched hand.

"You should try and fix your behaviour because eventually it will kill you." Lars looked down towards his lap, not daring to raise his eyes.

"I acknowledge we all make mistakes. The first step of preventing a repeat of the same mistake is acknowledging you made a mistake. Always remember that." 

Xero walked away from Lars, leaving him to his thoughts. Lars plopped his body back to the ground. As much as Xero's slap stung and there was an imprint on his cheek, his words stung more.

'I admit I have gone a bit far because I also insulted all their families. I will eventually have to apologize.' Lars thought as the soreness of his body forced him into a deep slumber.

Night bled into day with the sun's rays penetrating through the lone window of the cell. Birds sang in choirs to symbolize the beginning of a new day. Snores from the inmates reverberated through the halls. The snores dwarfed the sounds from the incoming footsteps. Alphard dragged his baton across the bars. This notified the captives that slumber time was over.

"Arise and shine, princesses. The day has come."

As the captives dragged themselves awake, one thought echoed in their minds.

'When will this all end?'