Days passed since the boy died, and his body remained decaying in his cell, filling the air with a rotten stench that had engulfed the area around the cell.
The prisoners in the surrounding cells quickly became bothered by its disgustingly fishy odor.
Nobody wanted to bat an eye, though, not wanting to get the attention of the guards. But, for the sake of his sanity, a single man in the cell next over couldn't take it anymore and shouted:
"H-hey guards! C-can you do something about this smell?!"
Fear hit the prisoners around.
The man waited… but all he could hear was the sudden silence in the cell hall from the other prisoners around, not wanting involvement from the man's attention.
Suddenly, a barrage of footsteps sounded from down the hall and got closer until they stopped.
Three guards appeared in front of the prisoner's cell to see his skinny figure. He had long dusty brown hair that stretched to his lower back. His face, his body, looked thin all around; he looked malnourished just as every prisoner did; his ribs extruded through his skin, and his arms seemed like they had no mass to them. He was more of a stick than a man.
One of the men stepped directly in front of the cell bars. He sported a metal helmet, with a long piece of scrappy brown cloth that covered his body; a guard's attire, normal for such a shabby place.
The guard looked at the man who stood in the corner of his cell, trying to avoid where the smell was coming from.
"Was that you who yelled?"
The man slowly turned around, pinching his nose with his fingers, and responded, revealing a scratchy voice.
"Y-yes, sir…"
Quickly, the guard looked over into the cell just next to the man's, looking at the boy's decaying corpse flattened on the floor. Then, he brought his attention back over to the man..
"Hey, 16, I got news for you, it looks like I got a job, and if you don't do it your head is coming off."
The two guards behind the one in front stood there looking at the body, it was mutilated, dents covered the corpse, it was like a raisin, dried of all its juices.
The two quickly turned their eyes away. Their stomachs twisted weakly.
"Y-yes, I'll do it."
The guard began to laugh.
"Haha! You hear that, rookies?"
The guard turned around and looked at the two guards, obviously not doing so well.
"This guy really likes to work, huh?"
It was no question, nobody liked the guard, he always acted so cocky and arrogant, those who spent their life close to him knew this. Even the other guards in the prison disliked him.
Hesitantly, the two guards responded, appealing to the guard in front of them.
"Haha, they always do, sir."
"Hehe, always."
The guard turned back towards the cell, then glared back over to where 16 was, staring him down.
"Anyways, 16! Your job is to dispose of the kid's body, you're going to have a new friend here today, and we need a cell to be open, you understand?"
"Y-yes, sir."
The guard was pleased.
"Alright, so get to it!"
He reached down to his waistband and grabbed a ring of keys from his left hip. He slowly twisted the metal ring, releasing it from his waistband, and flipped the keys around until he grabbed onto a single gold key.
He first walked over to the boy's cell, unlocked it, and opened the door to the kid's cell, then walked back towards the door to cell 16, repeating the same thing.
Both doors were open, and the guard waved, gesturing for 16 to remove himself from his cell. As he did, he looked back at the two nervous guards behind.
"Alright, you two, watch him. If he tries to pull something, break his fucking neck."
The two responded at the same time.
"Yes, sir."
16 slowly exited his cell, the guards watched as he limped slowly down the hall, then into the boy's rotting cell.
He approached the boy's body, which lay near the bed, still on the ground from the guard's beating.
As he got closer to the body, he felt his stomach turn and gagged profusely.
With no other choice, he bent down, then grabbed the body; he threw the light corpse over his shoulder, adjusting it to his frail back.
He turned around, slowly approaching the guards, stopping just before them.
He glanced up.
"H-how do you want me to get rid of his b-body?"
"That's not our job now, is it?"
"…"
He made his way out of the cell, and the two guards waited for him, watching his every move. He made his way left, where the entrance to the cell hall was surrounded by two guards much taller than the surrounding guards.
Nearly a minute later, they met the entrance, where a wooden door seemed to stop them. 16 looked up, and the two guards before him were staring at him.
"…"
None of them said a word.
One of the guards behind suddenly stepped in front of 16, meeting their gazes firsthand.
"It's okay, we are watching this one, just keep an eye on the other prisoners here, alright?"
The guards only nodded.
"Now let us through."
The guard on the left reached down to his pocket, then retrieved his hand.
He held a small silver key the size of a paperclip, which he inserted into the door's small lock, letting the three access into the main building.
Once the door opened, the guard behind 16 suddenly pushed him from the back, causing him to stumble forward.
"Hey, look down, I don't want you getting any ideas about escaping."
"O-ok."
16 quickly veered down, and as the guard in front began walking, he slowly followed, then did the guard behind.
He was stuck between the two guards. There was nothing he could do but follow them. They were well-trained, prepared for any situation; an escape or even an assault, anything, the guards were ready.
After a few seconds, the guard in front of him suddenly stopped. 16 bumped into his chest, almost sending him backwards.
The guard didn't react.
"Turn right and keep walking forward. Soon, there will be a small window, you can just throw the body out the window."
He turned his body to the right as commanded, but was overcome by a sense of confusion as the guards helped him.
"Y-you said you w-wouldn't help me.
"Shut your mouth, 16! Walk!"
"…"
He began walking down the corridor, and slowly an area of light appeared on the ground in front of him.
As he continued, the light grew longer, then 16 looked up before him. He noticed a small window with two twisted steel bars blocking anything from coming in.
He flipped the boy's body over to his right shoulder and slowly inched directly next to the window. He turned his body and began tilting to his right.
The boy began sliding off his shoulder, then split the window's bars, landing on a patch of grass just outside.
With the weight off his body, 16 turned back towards the window and peered outside, wanting to admire the world he rarely got to see.
As he stared outside, an approaching mass caught his eye. He noticed a blonde-haired man being escorted towards the entrance as three guards surrounded him.
The young-looking man carried shackles around his ankles, but he showed no struggle while walking. Though his body wasn't big or wide, he seemed strong. Through his clean white shirt and his brown pants, 16 could see a chiseled physique that was almost perfect.
His face was quite perfect as well; it was pretty like a woman's. His skin was smooth, flawless, there were no wrinkles, no dirt; it shone brightly, just like his beautiful golden eyes. He was the most elegant man 16 had ever seen.
16 stared at the man for a second, then the man locked eyes with him, flashing a slight smile that glistened under the light of the sun. Then, he watched as the man disappeared around the corner of the prison, where the entrance was.
Suddenly, 16 was nudged in the back, he lost his balance, and fell forward, striking the metal bars with his forehead. Blood slowly began to spill down his face, dyeing his vision a blurry red tint.
His body soon dragged down the bars, then the wall, until he splattered all over the ground.
"Stop staring outside, you worried about the body stinking up the place? Don't worry, some animal will probably make a feast of the boy."
He lay on the ground for a long moment, groaning in pain. Then, using his hands, he weakly pushed himself up until his torso was fully off the ground.
He looked back and stared at the guard's angry face with his sorrowful one. The guard met his eyes, then came to his side, bent down, and, grabbing his bicep, he forcefully pulled him up 16, until he managed to come to a stand.
16 stared at the guard for a moment, then slowly limped away from the window as blood began dripping down the side of his face, creating small drops on the ground that grew longer as he moved. His mind had become numb.
The guard spoke again.
"Now back to your cell, and close your eyes this time before I close them myself."