The Lion's Destiny

Little Lion

I woke up in a cold brightly-lit room, not wanting to open my eyes.

"Five more minutes," I grumble to the world, reaching feverishly for my pillow. As I grab where it should be, my fingers are rudely met with stone. Groaning in pure disdain, I reach for my blanket to pull it over my head.... Except it's not there either! 'This is anarchy, ¿Quien hizo esto?,' I yell furiously in my head. I attempt to sit up and my bed creaks wildly as if it were rusted. 'Okay, where am I,' I ponder whilst rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Once my eyes have finished slowly blinking open my vision is rudely met with rusting, peeling forest green paint. Looking around I notice a single overhead light, a wooden dresser just big enough to hold two days of clothing, a small matching wooden bedstand rotting eerily, my rusting bed and decaying cell bars to block my exit.

"Great I'm in jail," I sigh sarcastically. "But for what crime?" A shrill wind rips through my cell and causes my body to shiver and shudder in the cold. 'N-nudity,' I quickly answer myself, forcing myself up and practically running to the squatty dresser. I practically splinter the drawers trying to open them and search desperately for clothes. Instead of Clothes, I found a white package with my name on it, like the ones you get in the mail from Amazon. I ravenously tear it open, not caring about the mess. Inside lies a single outfit: A blood red prison jumpsuit, a black wife-beater, and a black newsboy cap. I quickly slip them on and look myself over.

"What the... Oh. My. God," I fume, launching the hat under my bed. I admit this outfit goes with my skin tone but I hate how it fits; It's baggy stature makes me seem even skinnier than I already am and practically falls off my torso. And don't get me started on that lame hat. I quickly roll up the legs on my jumpsuit so that they end just under my knees and tie the top half snugly around my waist. Ignoring the cold wind, I check my pockets. I find a folded, burnt piece of notebook paper and open it.

"Find the rest on your own, Little Lion - X," It reads along the thinning lines. At this point, I'm ready to strangle whoever this "X" person is. Instead, I check the bedstand, finding only matches, three keys, and a flashlight. I quickly pocket them and storm out of my cell, breaking my "door" in the process and trying to hide my trembling.

Turning around, the plaque on the wall reads D-6210. This must be my cell number. 'Wasn't there a serial killer with that same number,' I inquire, picking vaguely at my memories. I shake that ludicrous question from my head and walk briskly towards the farthest end of the hall, basking in the sunlight coming in through the various barred windows and holes in the ceiling. Some might dare say that I purred at the warmth! You see, I'm iron deficient meaning I don't produce body heat due to insufficient iron my body naturally supplies. I quickly search a few cells almost identical to mine on my way to the exit. The fruits of my hasty labor were a Sharpie, a spoon, and a pocket watch. Deciding to examine them later I pocket them and carry on until I meet a giant fork in the road. I'm not talking two or three options, though. I'm currently looking at ten different hallways, some of them with forks of their own! To remember my hallway I quickly, but neatly, scribble a cartoon lion on the archway, silently vowing to find some sort of map even if I have to chart it.

Going from left to right is the hospital wing interconnected with two cellblocks, another hall with a three-pronged fork in the road, a gargantuan cell block with a sign in the middle that I can't read, another hall with a three-pronged fork in the road, another cell block except this one contains a synagogue, three regular cell block halls, a cafeteria wing, and behind me is my cell block. After thinking it over, I sprint to the mysterious sign.

" ¡Ay Dios mío! Why is the floor so cold," I whine to the world, running faster towards the sign. Once the sign comes within legible vision it reads 'Eastern State Penitentiary Library' and I halt immediately. 'Library, library, what could I find of use in a library,' I interrogate in my head. 'A map! And paper!' I bolt inside the small office of a library and begin scanning the various books. In most of the books there's information on mental health but there are a few art books. After quickly shuffling the art books onto a small coffee table, I continued my search. Among the remaining non-mental books lies history books, autobiography books, fantasy, and math books. Behind the counter laid thousands of Date Due Slips, A small booklet, A rolled up piece of paper, copy paper, and a couple extra-large paper bags. I head to the coffee table after grabbing as much as I possibly can and fill one of the bags with my findings, stuffing the extra bag within them. After packing everything up, I haul my loot back to my "room" in this hell.

As I began nearing the crossroads, I began thinking out a game plan. 'I've got to catalogue my items, figure out what this scroll is,' I plan, walking into the crossroad. I scan for my lion and follow its corresponding hall. 'Figure out if this watch works, read this booklet, and find out where these keys go,' I continue. Pleased with my planning, I sigh contently. I slowly approach my cell and kick down the remaining bars painfully. After kicking the debris aside, I set my makeshift sack on the bedstand carefully. I take of my jumpsuit, hang it on the light, and crawl into my bed.

"But first I shall nap," I say closing my eyes and willing myself to sleep.