Few, done.
Chapter 7, There may be trouble ahead…
2 days…
Bill was woken at about 4 AM by the noise of a quiet yelp. Then he heard the old mud say; “Calm down, you’re gonna need all that adrenaline of your escape.”
“That’s easy for you to say,” Bill heard Aaron mutter, “You’re not the one about to risk his life.”
“Don’t worry about it, as long as you keep your head and remember the instructions you’ll get to the forest easily enough. I better take the map back now; the wake-up’s soon. Get some sleep. I’ll bring it back at about 11, tomorrow night.”
“OK,” Was all that Aaron said to this. It sounded like Aaron was just beginning to realise the risk of what he was about to do. The old mud took the piece of paper and Aaron curled up on his bunk to sleep. Bill did the same but didn’t manage to get to sleep again.
2 hours later (at 6 AM) the wake-up bell rang. Aaron no longer seemed jumpy but very nervous instead. He kept peering down every corridor and eyeing every slig as he went past; and he kept muttering to himself. Every so often he would freeze in his work and get a glazed look in his eyes. He would remain frozen till a slig noticed and knocked him to the floor with the spiky end of a gun.
Bill had a reasonably uneventful day, he got a few whacks for smelling like a toilet and a few more for walking under a blue light and making a slig think he was a terrorist. Bill didn’t understand why having blue skin made him look like a terrorist but he really didn’t have much say in the matter so he got beaten anyway.
In the afternoon things were pretty much the same. Aaron got beaten for “looking at his guard funny,” and Bill managed to sneak into the toilets and wash his feathers without being caught! He was so surprised that he went into a trance and bashed into a b-b-slig down the next corridor and was punished by being crushed between a wall and a door (the slig gave the door an extra shove because Bill smelt like a toilet).
Bill returned to his bunk after Aaron that night and saw him curled on his bunk, blood spreading slowly over his back. Bill curled up and went to sleep.
At 13 o’clock (not a misprint, there are 25 hours in an Oddworld day!) Bill woke up to see Aaron in his cage, pale as… something really pale! He was curled up on the floor next to his bunk asleep with that big piece of paper crumpled up between his stomach and legs.
“Oy, Aaron!” Bill hissed. Aaron didn’t wake or even stir. Bill grabbed a flattened bullet that he’d extracted from his leg a few months ago off the floor of his cell and threw it at Aaron. Aaron twitched. “Wake up kid.”
Aaron stretched out and woke up. He looked over at Bill. His face was gaunt and tired and there were enormous black bags under his eyes. “What is it?”
“You’re leavin tomorrow night aren’t ya? You gotta learn what’s on that map before then.”
“What’s the point? This is impossible.”
“What’s the point? The point is for freedom. The point is to show the glukkons what the mudokon race is made of. The point is for our species. I don’t know what you got in AC but I can tell enough to know that our species are goners without. Most of us here are goners anyway but we don’t all need that fait. You can save our people and you should. I know I don’t stand a chance but others do. They have a right to freedom. You shouldn’t deprive them of that.”
Aaron sat up, alert. “Ok, who are you and what have you done with Bill.”
Bill might have laughed but right then he was thinking the same thing. “I’m not to sure right now Aaron but you should take in what I say before this wears off. You are the person destined to save our people, if you don’t know one will.”
“What about Abe?”
Bill of course had no idea who Abe was but said: “Is Abe here? No. Is that thing in AC? Yes. Are you? Yes. Abe can’t get that thing, he’d have to be insane to go into Glucose but you’re already here. You can do it Aaron, and know one else can.”
Bill curled up and went to sleep after that. Aaron sat for a while and thought about it, then turned back to the map. Just then the old mud crept appeared out of the shadows near by. “Well,” He said, “ That guy’s sure got a lot of faith in you!”
“Alright,” Aaron replied, “How much are you paying him?”
To be continued...
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