*sigh*, writing for me right now is in slow progress. I don't know when the next chapter will be finished

Oh. I'm sorry. I'll shut up for about a week.

I don't know how well i've written this chapter, So please point out if there is anything wrong.
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Chapter 4
A Long Way from Here (Part 1)

Meanwhile, somewhere in the residential area of the X16, a light green haze appeared in a small alleyway. Then suddenly from the haze appeared a green Slig with a Walther SP22/M2 following close behind him. It was Rigel who had strangely teleported to this destination. “Where am I” he thought as he looked around. He looked at the ground to find the Walther lying on the ground. He picked it up and put it in his right jacket pocket. He then heard the radio chatter from outside of the alley. He walked towards the end and peered around the corner. Standing by what looked like a small, abandoned car dealer was another soldier also by a retinal scanner. However this time, he was Slig like. “Unit 155, possible threat has been detected in your area, suspect wears a black leather jacket and black trousers, situation is shoot first, ask questions later, over” said the radio on the Slig. “Roger that” replied the Slig down the radio. The soldier cocked its M16 assault rifle and immediately went on full alert. Rigel wouldn’t even look out of the alleyway in case of being shot. Luckily, some metal stairs ran up the side of the brick wall building next to him. He decided to climb up to the rooftop to gain a better vantage point. He had to be quiet so the soldier didn’t hear him.

When he finally reached the rooftop, he started to calculate his best possible route back to where he started. Over in the distance were taller brick buildings. He thought he would travel there first to make a better prediction on where he was and sort out his route again. Suddenly, a ricochet sounded right in front of him. He ducked behind a vent shaft and readied his Walther. He peered round the shaft and saw nothing but more brick buildings. But then something caught his eye. A soldier was stood on a balcony and it was carrying a Steyr SSG bolt action sniper rifle. “Damn” he thought as there was probably an armed sniper on every street, “This is not going to be easy”.

Meanwhile, near the cafe/secret hideout – “Where do I start” Tarios thought as he looked down the quiet streets and trying to act normal and not to raise any suspicion. It was mid-day now but everybody was still quiet and nobody wanted any attention. The radio still played the bossa nova genre tunes on the same station. Tarios walked down the soundless street and past the café but then he heard a voice that said “Hey, you”. It was the soldier outside the café. “Yeah” Tarios replied. “Let me see you’re ID” said the soldier taking out his pocket size retinal scanner. Tarios obeyed the command and walked over to the soldier. The soldier then scanned the Slig’s eyes with the scanner, but was then suddenly and quickly punched in the stomach by the fist of Tarios. He then slashed the soldier again in the face and he went down. He grabbed the Walther SP22/M2
from the Soldiers belt pocket. Some others stood in shock at what just happened. Then another soldier, carrying a M16 assault rifle, appeared from the corner of the street and saw the commotion. “Freeze” he shouted readying his rifle. Tarios quick-drew the Walther and shot the soldier once; the bullet hit the soldier’s right arm. The soldier stumbled with his arm crippled from the impact and Tarios managed to run down the street unscathed. The soldier took aim with his left arm and fired a 3-shot burst. All bullets ricocheted near Tarios since the soldier didn’t have a good aim with his left arm and the recoil was too big.

Tarios needed to get to an alleyway since a sniper could easily pick him off in the open. He reloaded the Walther and zipped into a small alleyway unharmed. The eeriness of it immediately made Tarios nervous. He didn’t want to go back as he would be the first head-shot of the afternoon. He crept down the alleyway, keeping a good guard of himself using the Walther.

I thought it was good. Plus, I'm always happy to get story updates! =)

Thankyou :)

At this point, I think we don't really mind if a chapter is good or not. I think we just want them.:D

Amen, Oddey. We want more chapters - and they're good anyway.

A Long Way from Here (Part 2)

Rigel prepared to scale the rooftops of the close brick buildings. However, with the itchy trigger fingers of the snipers, it wasn’t going to be easy. Luckily, parts of the rooftops were lined with ventilation shafts. He took a deep breath and ran for the next rooftop, He jumped and landed on the next rooftop only milliseconds before a Sniper firing at his position. The bullet zipped past Rigel by a couple of inches. He zipped behind the next vent shaft. Then suddenly, a small hatch opened on the roof and a soldier wielding a M16 rifle climbed up to the roof. Rigel reacted quickly to the new threat and quick-drew the Walther and shot the soldier in the leg. He stumbled and accidently fell down the open hatch. The M16 clattered on the ground. Rigel carefully looked down through the hatch to see the soldier lying on the metal floor below, unconscious. He didn’t dare lift his head just above the vent shaft. “Unit 23 down, close in on the kill” said the chatter of the radio attached to the soldier’s belt. Rigel had to move fast as the death of Unit 23 was notified to the other soldiers. He grabbed the M16 rifle and slid down the ladder down through the hatch to the metal floor. He checked the clip in the M16 to find it full. He checked the Soldiers belt pockets for any spare clips; luckily there were 2. He put them in his leather jacket pockets and set about getting down to the streets – the roofs were too dangerous.

Meanwhile, Tarios entered a small building inside the alley way to evade the soldiers. It looked abandoned but something didn’t seem right. He walked down a small set of concrete stairs into a small room. It was very dull and had little furniture – only a couple of wooden drawers and a wooden-framed chair covered in yellow fabric. He took a cautious step towards the furniture but the lift of a Colt Python 357 Magnum to the side of his head stopped him in his tracks. “Get down on the ground” snapped the Magnum wielder pointing the weapon towards the ground. The wielder had a feminine voice. Tarios obeyed the command and slowly knelt to the ground. She grabbed the M16 Rifle away from Tarios and placed it on one of the wooden drawers while still pointing the Magnum at Tarios. “Why are you here?” she snapped holding the Magnum firmly in her hands. “I’m in a bit of a situation here” replied Tarios trying not to make eye contact with the female, “I was escaping from the soldiers and I needed to find some safe cover –so I dashed in here”. “Well, you’ve come to the wrong place to find cover” replied the female holding the Magnum right up to his head. Tarios tried to think away out of this but the female was thinking of another way. She yanked the surrendered Slig by the arm up onto his feet. “C’mon” she said, “were going somewhere”.

More chapters. I'm always excited to get more chapters. This one is good!

Thankyou :)

I've de-railed my train due to a writer's block. May take a bit of time for me to write the next chapter

Don't worry. Same thing happened to me a while ago.
Best thing to do is just relax for a while and take things easy.

Thankyou

Sorry for the delay, revision and exams going on, and the fact that I had a short writer's block, but here is part 3 of chapter 4
edit in the last part: The point were it says "She grabbed the M16 Rifle away from Tarios and placed it on one of the wooden drawers", the M16 Rifle shoud have been a SP22/M2. Little mistake
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A long way from here (Part 3)

Meanwhile, in a large prison, Vankor and Valken sat patiently waiting for something to stir. They were in a small, concrete cell. Two beds, a sink and a shelf were the only things in the cell. Only a couple of rats scurried around the cell, completely oblivious of the two Sligs, both lying on a bed. “We need to get out of here” said Vankor quietly. “Well, we can worry about that later, as there is pretty much no way we can escape” replied Valken looking at the bars of the cell gate. A soldier patrolled past the cell and then past the other cells in the block. The soldiers never eyed the prisoners as they didn’t want any trouble stirring. They knew that nothing was going to happen for a while. So they would have to just sit and wait, and wait, and wait.

Tarios however couldn’t wait as he was being dragged to a new part of the hideout. The room was pretty blank but again had a few bits of furniture around the room. The most important bit of furniture in the room was a small wooden table with a TV on top of it. Two Sligs, one orange and the other turquoise, were sitting on a yellow couch facing the TV and a black Slig was sat on a wooden stool. “Guys, we’ve got ourselves a straggler” shouted the scarlet Slig shoving Tarios towards the three. They all looked at him until the black Slig stood up. “C’mon, Garia where’s your manners” said the Slig looking at her. “Oh yes” she said scowling back at the Slig. The Slig only just smiled. “My name is Garia” she said to Tarios, “and this is Kemi”. “How ya’ doing” he said to Tarios. However, he didn’t respond. “This here is Yarza” he continued pointing at the orange Slig; he gave a simple hand gesture to show his gratitude. “And this is Skye” he continued pointing at the turquoise Slig. The Slig just said nothing and looked at the TV. Then suddenly, cracking sounds came from the TV and a fuzzy picture came up on the screen. “Look, something’s coming on” said Yarza pointing at the TV. Everybody, except Tarios, gathered round the screen and waited for the picture to come into view. After about 10 seconds, a picture of a Vykker in a black suit came into view. “We now have direct conformation of two disruptors in our midst” the Vykker said, “recent reports showed some attacks around the D District and the S District. You are advised to subdue the attackers on sight, and then bring them to your nearest CP station. Do what you can citizens of Outpost X16, the future of our futures counts on you”. The transmission then faded away into the empty screen it was before. Yarza, Garia and Kemi all looked at Tarios who had sat down on a wooden chair at the back of the room. “Well, we know we don’t work for the oppression, but we might want to ‘quiet’ you down before you create a bit of a stir outside” said Kemi smiling evilly at Tarios. Garia and Yarza got Kemi’s hint and started to advance towards Tarios. “Fine, if you want me out, then I can go out” said Tarios standing up looking worried at the two advancing Sligs. “Oh no, we could use you in this operation” Kemi replied looking calm, “as a punching bag and target practice”. Just as he said that, Yarza slashed at Tarios who stumbled from the blow. Then Garia sent a blow towards Tarios who this time fell to the ground. Kemi kicked him in the stomach a few times to force the wind out of Tarios. “You do make a good punching bag” said Kemi sarcastically, “let’s try and work on putting up a fight”. He slashed downwards with a hard blow and smashed Tarios’ visor. Yarza then kicked him in the stomach with another hard blow. Tarios screamed in pain with each blow as he felt blood trickle down from his wounds and mouth. “Stop!” shouted Skye surprisingly and abruptly. The three attacking Sligs stopped and looked at Skye who had stood up from the couch and walked over to them. “What are you going to do about it, eh” shouted Kemi, “report him to the soldiers and then we get arrested ourselves”. “No!” she shouted back, “we are going to help him. He can be of help to us in the future – not as a punching bag or target practice, but as a good rebel”. She shoved Garia and Yarza out of the way and picked the blood covered Tarios up into her arms. “I’m gonna take him to the spare room where the mattress is”. She continued, “Then we will sort things out using no violence”. “Alright then, be my guest and alert the whole oppression” shouted Kemi. “I won’t and he won’t either”, she shouted back, “their probably too dumb to know that we are here. And more to the point, I think making him ‘quiet’ down was probably loud enough for them to hear”. Kemi just said nothing after that and Skye carried Tarios to the spare room.

When she entered the room, she laid the limp Slig on the flat mattress and looked at his wounds. “How are you feeling?” she asked calmly. Tarios moaned slightly trying to say a word. “Never better” he muttered with a slight smile. Skye slightly chuckled at the comment and tried to tend to the wounds. “Just try to relax” she said taking a small pot with some special cotton wool in it. She dabbed a bit of wool onto a wound on his chest. “Why did you get me out of that mess” Tarios muttered out with a bit of slight coughing. “I just didn’t want to see you being beaten up by those jerks” she replied still tending to the wound, “It was just thoughtless of them to attack you like that”. “Hmm, I call it invading someone’s territory” replied Tarios. “Well, looks like we are going to have to get a new visor” said Skye looking at the cracked screen on his mask. “Good” replied Tarios, “The de-steaming system to stop the visor steaming up was just starting to break up”. Sky slightly chuckled again and tended to more wounds.

Yay for more story! Development! Secret bases! I am too overly cheerful but that does not matter, because...um, because it does not matter!

Seriously, though, I am glad the story continues. Good chapter.

I do apologise for not commenting sooner. Interesting how this story is largely unknown, yet we're deeply absorbed into it.

Thankyou both

Short chapter, but it was late and I was under the influence of this song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3S4dBk4E1g&feature=fvst
Anyway enough said and sung...
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Chapter 5
Plans

In the residential area, Rigel stuck to the numerous alleyways after he exited the building he was in. This specific part of the residential area was particularly run down and decaying. The residents had abandoned this part a long time ago, now it was just a quiet ghost town. This part was also home to the bunch of outlander Sligs that had taken up residence around the concrete sewage runoffs near the estates and constructed a small settlement. The outlanders weren’t touched by the Soldiers as they posed no threat to the oppressive rule whatsoever. Rigel thought that if he headed there, he would evade the watchful eyes of the soldiers. The settlement was only a couple of blocks away. Rigel gripped the M16 with his two hands firmly and stuck to the alleyways in hope of finding the settlement and safety. However, the watchful eyes of the snipers weren’t going to let him off that easily.

Meanwhile back in the alleyway hideout, Tarios was still lying on the mattress recovering from his wounds from earlier. Skye was still sticking to his side, treating the wounds. “How are you feeling now” Skye asked looking at the healing wounds. “Better than before” replied Tarios with a slight smile. “What, better than never better?” asked Skye with a funny tone in her voice. “Yeah, never better better, or any other way you want to put it” replied Tarios forcing a bigger smile. Skye chuckled slightly and dabbed some more cotton wool onto a wound on his face. It was soaked in a special liquid making it sooth whatever pain there was. Tarios just relaxed on the mattress, trying to ignore the pain in his wounds.

Meanwhile outside where the two Sligs were, Kemi, Garia, and Yarza were sitting in front of the TV. Kemi was sat in the wooden stool he was before. “God damn her!” he said trying to keep his voice down, “Now we are all in this mess”. “What are we gonna do about it Kemi” said Yarza sat on the couch. “I don’t know, I'm thinking!" replied Kemi not wanting to be rushed. Kemi stood up and paced around the room. It was a couple of minutes of silence until Garia spoke up. “Well, we were gonna push our way to that settlement near the S District, maybe we can use him as bait, draw the soldiers attention and we can make a good escape” she said, “remember, they’re not after us, he is the target. “Hmm, like the idea Garia” replied Kemi, “although I don’t know what we are gonna do about Skye”. “No need to worry about her, she’ll probably die due to lack of experience, we’ll just leave her” replied Yarza. “Well then, our plan is formed, we will set off tonight, and it will be successful no matter what” said Kemi looking at the spare room where Skye was tending to Tarios’ wounds, “he will pay, oh he will definitely pay”.

I'm always happy that this story continues, even when others drop off. You have many supporters, Slig75, and that's because this is a good story.

Thankyou :)

I still follow, but not as intently as I probrably should be.

Interesting how much they already hate that fellow, despite that he has done naught to them.

Indeed

Just keepin' this thread alive...We need more story.

I will try and write some in the next few days or so

I think I may have to take a break for a bit, I just cannot think of how to start the new chapter, It may take a while before something pops in my head

But don't worry, it will continue

Okay, I understand. I'll just randomly post something encouraging every few weeks to make sure this thread stays alive.

Cheers :)

Finally got some inspiration today and here is the next chapter. Sorry it is short, but it is very late and I had to write something down. Anyway enjoy :)
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Chapter 6
Alley Encounter

Rigel ran through the alleyways with the M16 Rifle firmly in his hands trying to avoid the snipers glare. He tried to keep every step as quiet as possible to avoid being seen by foot patrols on the pavement. He reached an end to the alleyway next to a small apartment. Strangely, there were no snipers around the area. But there was a reason for all this quietness. Down the street was a fairly big barricade. This was the entrance or exit to another district. Then abruptly, a noise could be heard down the alley. “Get the hell off of me!” a female Slig’s voice shouted. “No can do Sister” another voice said that sounded like a soldier, “and you are to remain silent”. Rigel backtracked down the alley to find the source of the distress. It was just by an entrance to the alley. Rigel peered round the brick wall corner to see the female, Purple Slig being knocked to the ground by the butt of an M16. He then felt a sudden surge of anger towards this and ran aggressively towards the soldier. The soldier wasn’t quick enough to notice the butt of Rigel’s M16 Rifle to the head. The soldier fell to the ground, unconscious. Rigel then looked at the female Slig who was slightly moaning due to the pain from the knock. “Need some help” asked Rigel taking out a hand towards the female Slig. She gave no response but immediately grabbed his hand and he pulled her up. “Thanks” she said dusting herself off. “What happened” Rigel asked unknown of why this happened. “I was on my way to a settlement in the S District when this soldier suddenly and annoyingly stopped me in my tracks” replied the female Slig, “he then decided to arrest me for now reason”. She then looked down at the fallen, unconscious soldier. “Oppressive bastards” she scowled. “Well, coincidently, I’m on the run and I need some place of safety. Could you by any chance take me to this settlement you mentioned?” asked Rigel. “You bet” replied the female Slig instantly, “if you’re in that much trouble, then the settlement is a good place to hide out”. “Well then what are we waiting for” said Rigel, “let’s go”. The female Slig nodded and started walking towards the end of the alley. “By the way, what is your name” asked Rigel walking beside her. “Lotice” she replied smiling. “Nice name” Rigel said admiring it. She smiled again at the comment and walked on towards the end of the alley. Both of them didn’t notice the sun starting to set across what could be seen of a horizon. Day 1 was about to come to an end.

Good chapter! This fanfic may be slow to come out, but when it does, it sure packs a literary punch.

Thankyou

A small suggestion:

When you use "these", then you may want to make it more like this:

"We need to get out of here," Said person #1
"How?" Said person #2

Rather than:

"We need to get out of here," Said person #1 "How?" Said person #2

It makes it a bit easier to read, and looks a bit more tidy. Otherwise a fine chapter.

This whole thread is not dead, I'm just having a lot of difficulty writing any fan fiction I make. This is one major writers block i'm having and I may have to take a break for a while.

I am having problems writing a new fan fic...:fuzmad:

Good News. Since I've started college and gone away from the distractions of the summer holidays, I can now do more to The Slig Chronicles, I've been continuing with the next chapter today and I may have it done tomorrow, but I'm not entirely sure about that.

That's great to know!

Chapter 7
Night Shifts

The night drew in and it was time for Tarios, Skye and the others to move out and for the others to hatch out their plan. “Alright people, this is it” said Kemi looking over the group, “this is our final push to the S District, we won’t get caught this time and we won’t fail this time”. There was a strict rule on not being allowed in the streets after the sun had set unless under direct permission and supervision under a soldier or the nearest CP outpost. So this time, they were going to break a rule or two. “Alright people, let’s move out, and let’s hope the new guy doesn’t get killed out there” Kemi finished with a quick wink towards Yarza and Garia. They both tugged a small evil smile; Tarios and Skye didn’t notice this. The group walked up the steps and Kemi opened the door to the alleyway. The group headed out into the night, the search for the settlement had begun.

Meanwhile back at the prison, Valken and Vankor sat and waited patiently for anything to stir up. The occasional Rat scurried out of its hole in the concrete wall to look for any crumbs of food on the floor. Valken and Vankor were given a Scrab Cake as a snack for the last bit of the day, so there had to be some crumbs left on the hard floor. Eventually, something did stir up as a prison guard opened the cell gate. He looked like any soldier from outside but his uniform was different. Instead of green camouflage, he wore navy blue armour, gas mask and clothing. He looked at the two prisoners eyeing him; suspense was in the air. “Things have changed” the prison guard said with a dark tone in his voice, “you two are moving out to a security outpost in the S District, were moving out now”. The two prisoners stood up from their beds as the guard stepped out of the cell and out into the main detention area. The prisoners followed him with no other choice and took a good view of the detention area.

The room was huge, with at least 200 cells holding two prisoners in each cell. Valken and Vankor kept their emotions inside themselves to avoid attracting any attention from the guards. They walked on a narrow, metal catwalk held up by steel cables attached to the walls. There were also at least 40 guards, 2 patrolling each catwalk with 10 cells on each. Vankor and Valken just kept on walking behind the prison guard and kept their thoughts to themselves. Their new time at the outpost was only minutes away.

Chapter 8
Night of Peril

Back at the S District, the group snuck quietly in the many connecting alleyways along the brick houses until they were a short distance away from the outpost blocking their route to the District. The brick houses didn’t stop until at least half-a-mile into the D District, so the group had plenty of cover to get into the S District. The outpost only covered the road into the District, but the alleyways into it were blocked by electrical barriers so people could only access the district via the outpost. However, at this time of night, the outpost would not let anyone, except soldiers, into the District unless supervised by a Soldier. So the only option was to find someway through the electrical barriers.

Kemi peered out of an alleyway towards the Outpost. Around 5 guards were patrolling around it. He then looked at the nearest alleyway on the other side of the road where he could see an electrical barrier in action. He ducked back to the group. “All right guys” he whispered, “we can’t just stroll towards the outpost at this time of night, so we have to shut down that barrier at the other side”. “It’s never easy” whispered Yarza looking at the barrier. He was also carrying a crowbar. Kemi looked out again to see if the coast was clear – and it was. “Ok, let's go” he whispered to the team.

All of them stayed low and quiet as they ran quickly. However, the squeak from the pistons controlling their metal legs started to give their position away. The group hid behind the alleyway wall as a guard looked in their general direction. However, their sight was their handicap as they couldn’t see well in the dark of the night. They could only rely on their hearing to spot any unusual activity. But the soldier just shrugged and returned to his duties. This time, Garia peered around the corner of the building, wielding her Colt Python 357 Magnum. It was scoped and the whole condition of it was not entirely up to scratch. It was scratched and scraped and the scope lens was nowhere to be seen, perhaps shattered in a previous event.

“We’re gonna have to be quick about this” she said turning back to the group. “You can count on me” Yarza whispered while approaching the barrier. He started to inspect the sturdiness of the barrier while Tarios kept watch. Then Yarza came up with his verdict. “It looks like the barrier of electricity itself is held in place by these supports” he whispered pointing out the black, metal supports attached to the walls, “If I were to shift one support out of place, the barrier would shut down. However, it would trigger an alarm as it is wired but we have no other choice on how to approach and this is worth a shot”. “Ok then, get to work” Kemi said. Yarza nodded and immediately set about disabling the force field.

Tarios was starting to feel uneasy about this. But Skye was by his side and seeing how she saved him from the other three made him feel slightly better. However he had to try and trust these three as they knew what they were doing and they knew about a settlement. However, being beaten up didn’t reinforce that trust; it more or less broke it. Yarza inserted the crowbar into a gap in the left support and started tugging at it to weaken its structure. He tried to avoid hitting the barrier itself as it could administer a lethal shock, enough to render the victim unconscious. The rest of the group stood in suspense as the alarm could go of any moment. “I think I’m almost there” Yarza whispered as the group could clearly see the support breaking away from the strain. Then all of a sudden, the support broke and the barrier shutdown. However, immediately after it broke, a loud alarm sounded and all of the Soldiers turned in shock at the presence of it. “Alright people, let’s move” said Kemi. But before Tarios could even turn his body around to follow them, he felt a strong kick in the side. He was knocked back through the entrance of the alleyway and landed on the pavement. Kemi stood before him. “You’re not coming, you’re the prime suspect” He said smiling evilly at Tarios. Skye couldn’t react fast enough as she was also kicked and she landed right next to Tarios. Garia sent the blow towards Skye and Yarza was just standing there looking at them. “You too Skye” Garia said. “So long now” Kemi said and with that, the three ran down the alley way, leaving the other two alone. The soldiers were quick to run towards the position of the broken barrier and they quickly drew out their weapons and pointed them at Tarios and Skye. The three other Sligs were now out of site and well on their way towards the settlement. Tarios and Skye looked at the soldiers in fright, the betrayal had left them gobsmacked and speechless. But all they could do was stay still as the soldiers eyed them with their weapons.

Awesome new chapters! It's good to see this series come back.

Thankyou :)

Chapter 9
Arrival and Delay (Part 1)

Meanwhile in the S District, Rigel and Lotice were still making their way towards the settlement. It was still night time “Where is this settlement” asked Rigel. “It’s just one block away based in an old sewage runoff system” Lotice Replied as they were coming towards the entrance of an alleyway, “you can’t miss it”. “Surely the settlement would be a cause of concern with the soldiers” said Rigel looking out at any activity along the road. “No actually” Lotice said surprisingly, “they don’t bother the settlement because they don’t cause any sort of trouble or disturbance and the soldiers think it’s just a place where others can live in, as long as they don’t stir up any trouble”. Rigel looked both ways across the road, but there was no sign of any soldier activity. “Looks like the coast is clear” said Rigel looking back at Lotice. She nodded and they both crossed the road quickly. Now the settlement was only a couple of alleyways away.

Meanwhile, Tarios and Skye were still being held at gunpoint near the broken electrical barrier. But it was then that a soldier abruptly hit the two Sligs in the head with the butt of his M16 assault rifle. They were rendered unconscious and were soon dragged towards the outpost. “Take them to the detention cells” said one of the soldiers standing by the entrance to the outpost. The soldier dragging the Sligs nodded and took them down through the outpost’s underground passageways.

Rigel and Lotice were now within a stone’s throw away from the entrance to the settlement. It was made up of a broken sewer grate partly covering the runoff hole. The runoff chamber had long been drained out to house the many residents who had no other place to go. However, there were still a couple of damp patches in the chamber. “Well, here we are” Lotice said stopping at the entrance of the settlement. “Not bad” Rigel commented on the settlement’s construction and the social structure that was housed inside it. The residents had built small shelters out of corrugated iron and other types of metal. Some shelters were beginning to rust away. “Let’s get inside” said Lotice now walking through the broken sewer grate. Rigel quickly followed behind.

Most of the residents were sleeping in their makeshift shelters. The two crept across the area, trying to keep the noise level of their footsteps as quiet as possible. The sleeping area was connected to a smaller room ahead. This was where the medical and other supplies were kept. “This way” Lotice whispered pointing towards the supply room, “we can meet the head of the settlement in there”. Rigel nodded back to her. Once they were in the supply room, Lotice walked to the back of the room where a grey Slig was sat on a small wooden chair facing an old desk. “Ah, welcome back Lotice” he said rather calmly, Lotice smiled back to him, happy that she was now in safe hands, “and who’s this”. “This is Rigel” she replied bringing him to the front of the desk with her arm, “I found him one of the alleyways in this district, he needed somewhere to stay and he did save me from a Soldier, so I helped him out”. “It is good to meet a newcomer to the settlement” the grey Slig said, “I’m Lewis, the head, the sheriff and the negotiator of this settlement”. He took out his hand as a gesture to shake hands with Rigel. He responded by firmly gripping Lewis’ hand with his. “Good to know that we can get along with each other” Lewis said smiling at the same time. Rigel gave a smile back. Lotice stood there looking content with her doing. Rigel was now safe at last.