By Any Other Name

The Whipping Girl

I spent the night crying over 211 and being furious about everything. My hands were raw from where I hit the walls. But I didn't dare go to medical. I'd only just met my quotas lately and my Value wasn't looking too hot. And the pain seemed fitting somehow. 

The next morning, I'd barely woken up before my cuff was telling me to go back to the Hall of Repentance. I grit my teeth. Already? Were the ones they harvested not enough? 

For a moment, I seriously considered not going. Let them use the cuff on me, see if I cared. But then a large figure was standing outside my door. 

"We have to go," Sev said gently. 

I walked just fast enough to get there before my cuff would have turned black. Sev walked beside me, at the same speed, though he'd never been late to anything in his life. 

The first thing that caught my attention was the new Captain overseeing a girl being strung up by her feet. I saw her blood red hair and realized she was the one that had thrown the boot the day before. 

We're here for an execution, I thought with a sinking stomach. 

"She must have done something pretty terrible to get strung up like this," a voice said nearby. I froze. It sounded so familiar, but... there was no way. I slowly turned my head to the side and there she was. 

"211!" I cried. I rushed forward and wrapped my arms around her. After a moment, she was hugging me back. I was so overjoyed, I didn't even think about what it meant. 

"I'm sorry," she said. Her voice was muffled where her face was pressed into my shirt. I stepped back with a frown. 

"What are you sorry for?" I asked. 

"My quotas," she replied with a shrug. "I shouldn't have let them get down so low." 

I stared at her without comprehension. 

"Two, you were defending the Prophet," I reminded her. "You were doing a good thing." Well, I wouldn't have called it a good thing. But I couldn't admit that in a crowd full of people with a girl getting strung up for tossing a shoe. 

"But providing food for everyone is the greatest thing," she said. "I shouldn't have forgotten that. But I can remedy this." 

I opened and closed my mouth several times, but I couldn't think of a response. She'd come *this* close to being harvested because she'd been slightly under quota and she put the blame on herself? 

Sev was right, she was never going to be saved. 

My thrill at finding 211 alive, and my confusion at her continuing allegiance, was sidetracked by The Prophet walking out. He promptly began talking about... Overseer corruption? It was such a turn around.  The previous day, everything going wrong had been our fault. But now we were the "crucial witnesses" for the "fallen morality" of our own guards. Lady Iris had come to him and everything. 

I was barely listening. I kept looking between 211, who was nodding along eagerly, and the blood-haired girl, who was finally moving. That was when it came to light that she was the one that alerted everyone to the supposed 'Overseer corruption.' 

I doubted the girl was actually concerned about the corruption. Division 7ers were notorious for making bribes and deals. They got away with things Division 1ers wouldn't dare to dream of. 

"However," the Prophet continued. "In our quest to cleanse the world, we must not forget to cleanse ourselves of our most horrific acts, such as the violence against those who would lead us to better things. I pray that you will take this opportunity to reflect and better yourselves for the coming days ahead." He turned and regally walked out. 

If this is so good for everyone, I thought. Why is he leaving before it starts? 

I wanted to leave. To run away. But one glance at the door showed Overseers standing in front of it. This wasn't optional. 

With a groan, I turned back around. They were preparing a strange torture device I'd never even seen before. My stomach was already turning.  

"She struck the Prophet?" 211 asked in a whisper. 

"Threw a boot," I replied quietly. 

"Then this is better than she deserves," 211 said in a low voice. I narrowed my eyes at her, but she wasn't looking at me. I opened my mouth... only to have Sev's hand move over it. He was right, saying something wouldn't help. But this stung. 

I grieved for you. I thought angrily. 

Words can't even begin to describe what it's like to watch someone whipped. She was screaming almost immediately and the blood flowed freely. There were people in the crowd groaning and crying out with her. I grit my teeth and took a step away from 211. She stared at the girl without flinching. I could barely handle glances. 

At one point, I turned away entirely. But after a minute of that, the cuff on my arm glowed red. I gasped at the pain. Sev put a hand on my chin and tilted my head up. 

"Sorry," he muttered in my ear. I could feel his tension beside me. I leaned back against him as I forced myself to look back up at the girl. Her blood was now dripping down off her body and for a moment I swore I would be sick. I had to take deep breaths to keep my rations inside my stomach. 

By the time the Captain finally declared it was over, I was weak in the knees with nausea. And I wasn't the only one. I saw a couple others looking pale and shaky. But there were others looking angry. 

Hold on to it, I told myself. Hold on to the anger. It's what's gonna get us out of here. 

I couldn't save 211. And I couldn't save the girl. But I could help blow a hole in the wall out of this place. 

And that moment couldn't come soon enough.