The Raft

Chapter 3: And they were cellmates...

After the altercation in the kitchen, the guards had taken Wanda to the hospital wing. The punch had knocked her out cold, which was honestly impressive. Carol and her group had taken snacks from the kitchen pantry before waving goodbye to Monica. Carol had promised they would talk later, so Monica held onto that thought. She was still a little terrified at the thought of Wanda eventually waking up and coming to find her, but for now she felt like she was safe. Seeing the woman she idolised so much as a child again after all these years had awoken a bunch of feelings inside of her, which jumbled together making this already confusing and overwhelming day that much more difficult.

They had all taken some time to calm down and eat something in the cantina before Yelena had spoken up again. "Well, that was the tour, pretty much. Normally it's not that eventful, but hey, you made my day entertaining." She was smoking another cigarette, and looked a little worn out. The group was sitting around a table, all dealing with their new environment in their own way. Yelena took out a clipboard and a mesh bag she had taken out of an office and cleared her throat, scanning over it quickly. "Now, at the beginning of the tour, Val asked you to remember your prison number. Do you remember it? It's of utmost importance." She took a bite of a grilled cheese she had made herself in the kitchen and eyed the group with a stern look.

Most of them had absolutely forgotten they had even been given a number, with all the things that happened since the search. Nebula however, spoke up. "#A57-1985." The number was said almost robotically.

Yelena looked impressed at the blue skinned woman. "Oh."

Normally, no prisoner ever remembered theirs, so she was taken aback. "Well, you were meant to have all forgotten. It's another form of torture Val likes to use. To scare ya." She scrunched up her nose as she smiled.

"Anyway, I'm just joking. I have your prison numbers here, and your ID cards. I do however urge you all to remember your number from here onwards, because they will punish you if you don't listen."

She got out a digital photo camera, which looked a bit dated. "We need to take a picture of each of you, as it will be displayed on your ID card. And lastly, you will each get assigned a cell. And with that comes roommates, as I said before."

Kate and Monica both immediately looked terrified at this prospect. Kate was terrified in general, but Monica realised she could quickly make many enemies here by accidentally mouthing off, on top of Wanda already hating her. What if she was bunked with the witch?

She swallowed heavily and spoke up. "Are...are they random? The cellmates?"

Yelena furrowed her brows at this interruption, wanting to finish up by now. "Yes, they are random. But I promise, you won't be bunked with that little witch, if that's what you're worried about. She has her own room. Some inmates have more influence than others, and therefore have privileges. I will urge you to respect them, or it will go downhill for you quickly."

Monica nodded, relieved. Kate however, frowned.

"That doesn't seem fair." She did not deal well with injustice and rather naively added. "We're all equal right? Why do they get special treatment?"

Yelena laughed openly and Monica scoffed. "You do realise how this sounds coming from an american white girl, right?" Yelena said, patting Kate's knee. "I would keep thoughts like these to yourself if you don't want to be shanked, Kate Bishop. Injustice is basically this prison's middle name. Deal with it."

Kate still wasn't convinced so she sighed. "Why do you keep using my full name?"

Yelena winked at her, but didn't answer her question. "Let's take pictures, ladies. I'll try to get your best side."