this is quite an active chapter, so i hope you like.
CHAPTER 12
IN HELL
Nox spent many a suppertime with the kid, Lage, and grew quite attached to it. The secret remained secret, even to his fellow inmates, but one thing was affected. Nox had decided to serve his time, and forget the escape; it was safer for the kid. This meant that he had to try and dissuade the others from it, or simply opt out. They didn’t take this kindly, when Nox told them at breakfast, the next day.
“What do yeh mean ‘not gonna’ bother’?!” Glon questioned aggressively.
“I thought we were gonna’ be an odd damn team!” Rowl joined, equally as aggressively, whilst Billy sat sulking.
“Look, you gotta’ see it from my point of view, I’ve only got two more months on my sentence, and I don’t wanna’ throw that up the spout! Come on lads, I can opt out cant I?”
“Yeah, I spose.” Glon answered, looking around himself, paranoid.
“No! No fuck that! Fuck this!” Rowl shouted, standing up, much to Glon’s panic.
“Sit down!” Glon said aggravated.
“Shut up! Shut up!” Billy added, clutching at his ears, trying to block out the arguing.
“I’ve got another fucking three years on my sentence!” Rowl yelled, flipping the table over, covering nearby inmates in mush with shouts of un-appreciation.
A gang of mudokon inmates noticed the disturbance, and wanting to see who the superior gang was, made their way towards them. Nox noticed them, readying himself, whilst trying to calm down Rowl.
“COME ON FUCKERS!! COME ON CO’S!! ARREST ME BOYS!!” Rowl bellowed up towards CO’s on the third floor. They began running down the staris towards them.
Glon stood and shouted; “Careful fella’s.” Pointing at the fast approaching gang of five mudokon inmates.
“You think your hard fuckers!” One of the mudokons shouted, within fist range, Nox having to duck from a swing.
A riot broke out. Everyone fighting for their own gangs.
Nox quickly winded his assailant with a punch to his stomach, making him double over, then knocking him out with a strong uppercut to his chin. Rowl hit one of the mudokons hard in the teeth, making Rowl wince, peeling skin from his knuckles, but making the mud swallow a few teeth first. Then he was hit in the face-tentacles, and fell to the floor. Glon, although old for a slig, still gave ‘em some, and kicked the mud standing over Rowl in the stomach with one of his robotic legs. The mudokon emitted a cry, but grabbed Glon by the throat in desperation, beginning to strangle him.
Billy saw this and shouted, “Get off Glon! Nasties!!”
He punched one mudokon unfortunately standing in front of his massive frame with his meaty arm, knocking him out instantly, possibly permanently. He strived to reach Glon, who was being strangled and brought down to his knees by now, but a slig from another gang got in his way. His reaction; he picked up the slig inmate with both arms, and with a roar, slammed him down onto the marble floor. There was a sickening crunch, and the slig fell limp instantly, head twisted around the wrong way.
Nox was having his own difficulties, and was currently fighting two mudokon gang members. They circled him, both armed with shivs.
We’re gonna’ need some fucking dire skill here!! Remember yer close combat training!
The mud to Nox’s left leapt at him, but Nox steadied himself, deflecting his shiv-wielding arm with his forearm and grabbing his other arm, twisting it in its socket as the mudokon screamed in pain, Nox suffering no stab wounds. He quickly spun around and ducked the other mud’s swipe with his shiv, snatching the downed mud’s blade. Moving slowly towards the mudokon, he gave a false slash, making the mudokon dodge it, but fall into Nox’s trap; he stabbed the mud in the shoulder and left it there as he wailed in pain. He pulled it out of himself in a hardy manner, and wielded both weapons.
Shit!!
Nox grabbed a wooden chair, and flung it with all his might at the well armed mudokon. It smashed off the mud’s head, and fell broken to the floor, along with the now dead mudokon, blood spreading from the indent in his head.
Nox looked around at the chaos of the hall, inmates fighting inmates, no CO’s in sight.
Rowl had already gotten up off the floor, and lunged at the mudokon strangling Glon, making him let go of him. With Rowl still hanging from his back, they fell backwords through a nearby table, smashing it in half, winding Rowl temporarily, but he didn’t slacken his grip. Glon picked up a broken off chair leg, and hit the same mud in the face with a crack, killing him. Rowl wriggled his way out from under the bloodied mudokon, readying himself for more fighting.
Billy picked up half the broken table, wielding it savagely, swinging it too and fro, giving no mercy to those who tried to oppose him.
The CO’s finally arrived, pouring off the stairs like a swarm of rough justice, the inmates then uniting with each other and fighting against the true source of their misery. It was a sight to behold, mudokons fighting alongside sligs, all battling the same ‘enemy’; the CO’s, who had been told to avoid fatalities. After all, the prisoners were their business, without them, there would be no prison.
The alarms began to whine, making even more adrenaline pump through Nox’s veins, and he thought one thing.
Lage!
He began to run towards the laundry area.
“Where ya’ goin’?!” Rowl shouted to him, his face-tentacles split and bleeding.
“Come with me, you lot!” Nox yelled back, knowing time was not his friend at this particular moment, and they needed to get out of the hall before the fighting got too heavy.
They abided, Billy still armed with half a table.
Nox led them into the laundry area, and ran up to the hole where the kid was hiding.
“Whats all that noise?” It asked, feeling afraid.
Nox’s pals grouped behind him, and took in the rare sight. Nox wondered if he’d done the right thing.
“How in the name of fucking…!” Was Glon’s only reaction.
“Who are these uncle Nox?” Lage asked.
“Uncle Nox?! Uncle Nox?!” Rowl repeated, almost dumbfounded.
“Not really.” Nox answered quietly so Lage wouldn’t hear.
Then Billy, again, said something very moral.
“We’re here to protect yeh, little one.”
Glon, Nox and Rowl all looked at him, holding his half-table like a shield, suddenly looking very chivalric. They all consciously agreed without saying a word, as the child come out and hugged Billy’s legs.
Nox felt strangely jealous.
“Come on,” He said, leading the mudokon child back to the hole, “You gotta’ stay here while we…just stay here. No peeking!”
“Now I understand.” Rowl said solemnly, and nodded in Nox’s direction.
“I think they’re coming.” Glon said.
In reaction to this, Nox pushed a trolley of sheets next to the hole in the wall, hiding Lage.
Glon was right.
A group of seven slig inmates ran I from the corridor, and stopped suddenly at the sight of them, especially Billy’s hulking build.
“End o’ the line, kiddo’s!” Glon barked, still brandishing his bloodstained chair leg, and currently pattinf it in one hand.
“There’s more of us than you! Get the fuck out!”
during this exchange of words, Nox glanced towards the hole next to him, and saw Lage peeking at him through a hole. Nox gestured with his hand not to look.
“We ‘aint goin’ sonny.” Rowl said, looking quite threatening with his battle wounds.
KILL THEM MOTHER FUCKERS!
They ran towards them, and the scrap began.
Nox received a hard punch into the side of his face. He saw stars, but shook ‘em off and counteracted with a nice roundhouse swing, striking the same slig in the visor, cracking it and causing the slig to fall over, blind, but almost breaking Nox’s knuckles. Taking the eye-watering pain, he turned, bringing his close combat skills to the fore, and strategically elbowed another slig in the face, causing it to fall, meeting Nox’s metal kneecap harshly.
Rowl socked one in the chest with a thud, but was punched in the stomach in return, lifting him from the floor and putting him down into a heap, moaning. Glon saw this and proceeded to take two sligs on at the same time in order to protect Rowl’s downed form. Swinging the wooden chair leg wildly, striking one of them on the top of the head, causing him to fall limp, presumably dead. He took a punch to the face, then another, and another, struggling to stay conscious with each blow.
Billy grabbed one slig by the shoulder and punched it in the face with his right fist, breaking its neck. Then swiping another two sligs with his half-table, knocking them out immediately, splattering blood onto Billy’s ‘shield’. He then noticed Glon’s predicament, and instantly intervened, smashing his half-table directly onto the top of the slig, narrowly missing Glon’s defeated self, currently on his knees, face bloody and dazed. The slig was literally crushed under the weight and strength of the ‘shield’.
Nox looked about himself, taking in the view, ignoring the moans of the sligs that were still alive and conscious.
“Fuck.” Rowl said, getting himself up with a wince, clutching his stomach.
“I tell yeh, that’ll bruise in the mornin’!” Nox said from experience, panting.
“You alright Glon?” Billy asked, dropping his half-table and helping him to his feet.
“Yeah son…I’m…ok…I think.” Glon replied.
“You wanna’ take it easy old slig!” Rowl began, bent over and panting, hands on his knees, “I had ‘em covered.”
“Oh!” Glon started, also out of breath, “And when were you gonna’ get up and defend yourself while lying on the floor?! Eh!”
“I think the words he’s lookin’ for are ‘thank you’.” Nox noted Glon.
“Yeah, I spose. Thanks Glon.” Rowl admitted, his pride dented.
“Ha ha, saved by an old slig? Heh heh heh!” Glon taunted.
The alarms stopped, and there was an eerie silence, apart from the fighting going on in the hall. There was a crackle of static from the speakers, and a glukkon voice spoke over the intercom, Sronti.
“Open fire.”
That’s when Nox and his group heard shots being fired, and shouts from the hall.
“Sweet odd! There fuckin’ shootin’ ‘em!!” Glon yelled.
“What do we do?” Rowl asked desperately, Billy sensing something was wrong, but not quite sure what was going on.
“I don’t think there’s anything we can do.” Nox replied grimly.
He just thanked his lucky stars they were out of the hall.
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i love writing fight scenes!
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