thanks folks, and yes, i can see how it may seem like they're gearing up for an 'Arnold Schwarzenegger-styled' escape, but when they say weapons they mean anything they can get their hands on. it'd be pretty hard to get their hands on guns, anyway.
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They polished off the rest of the bottle between them, and slept. Joe had a strange dream. He dreamt he had been caught by sligs in the free-fire zone, and that they were taking Joe to a tall, wooden stake sticking out of the ground.
The sligs were crowding around Joe, all jeering and shouting, then Joe noticed a face. It was Crob in the crowd. He called out to him, but Crob just smiled at him. it wasn’t a warm, comforting smile, it was an evil, sinister smile.
Then Joe was picked up by the feet as well as his arms and was being carried to the stake by sligs. He then noticed another face in the raging crowd of grimacing slig faces. It was Relb. Once again Joe called out to him, but Relb just winked at him. An unsettling wink, meaning there was a lot more for Joe to enjoy yet.
Joe came ever closer to the giant stake, and noticed yet another face in the crowd. It was Muller. Joe called out to him, but it was in vain. Muller laughed; not a cheerful laugh, but a deep, disturbing cackle.
Joe was right next to the Stake now, but before he was lifted up, he noticed another face in the crowd. It was Rol. He screamed out to him, terrified, but Rol spat in Joe’s face.
Joe was lifted up to the top of the stake, and he could feel its sharpened point pressing into his stomach. They began to pull Joe towards the floor. Joe let out a scream as the point began to slowly pierce his skin. He saw blood start to drip down onto the grassy ground, then he woke up.
Joe awoke with Crob’s concerned face looking down on him.
“Wake up. You were shouting in your sleep.” He said.
“Fucking hell, Joe! If your that scared, don’t bother coming!” Rol remarked as he climbed out of the hole and into the air vent passage.
“Give it a rest, Rol.” Crob answered.
Joe stood up from his position on the floor, and noticed that Relb was sitting on a crate, looking like he had just woke up, and Muller was asleep on the floor. Crob walked over to Muller and prodded him on the shoulder.
“C’mon Muller. Get up.”
“Why’s he always the last one to get up?” Relb moaned, rubbing his eyes.
Muller yawned and turned over.
“Oi!” Relb shouted, and pushed Muller with his foot.
“The buzzer hasn’t gone yet.” Muller mumbled in a sleepy daze.
The buzzer sounded.
“Ha ha! It has now! Come on Muller, you’ll have the sligs kickin’ seven shades o’ shit outta’ ya’ if you don’t get up.” Relb said, standing up and stretching.
“Wake up, Muller! If we go now we can get the best bits of meat from the canteen!” Joe said.
Muller stirred, and slowly got up, at which point Relb was already climbing out of the hole. Muller, Crob and Joe all went to the canteen together, while Relb went to fetch his equipment from wherever it was he left them the day before.
Joe walked into the canteen, his friends in tow, and was glad to see that there was no stain on the floor from the mudokon that had been shot the day before. The canteen was virtually empty, so he walked up to the hatch, took a large piece of cooked meat, and slapped it onto a metal tray, Crob and Muller doing likewise. They sat at a metal table by the wall, and ate.
“I haven’t had breakfast for a week, now.” Crob said, filling his mouth with the salty flesh.
“Yeah,” Muller began, mouth full. “Nor have I.”
Joe took a bite out of his meat, and chewed its tough density. He then spoke.
“I wonder what shit we’ll be cleaning up today?”
“I’ve gotta’ go back to this slig today, and ask him what to do.” Muller informed. “He told me yesterday to go back to his post for more work.”
“More like a beating. Be careful Muller, sligs are sneaky bastards.” Crob warned.
“No no no, he’s alright really! He gives me safe jobs, not like them other sadistic sligs.” Muller said, shovelling more meat into his mouth.
“Well, think of me when your doin’ whatever, ‘cus I’ve gotta’ oil and grease up a few meat saws, and then I’ve got to climb down a meat grinder shoot and unblock the stupid thing, while its still on!” Crob said in a matter-of-fact tone.
“Just make sure you don’t kill yourself, Crob. We need you for tonight.” Joe said, finishing off the last piece of his meat.
“Oh shit, yeah! I’d forgotten about that.” Crob told them.
“Oh…don’t remind me. I feel sick whenever I think about it. You do know we’re all gonna’ die.” Muller said, leaving the rest of his meat.
“Ah can it!” Crob said in reaction to this. “The only way we’ll all die is if we try and do it without being prepared. Rol and Relb are getting some weapons, we’ve got the brains of the operation,” Crob said as he pointed at Joe. “Behind us. Its gonna’ be fine!”
But Muller was right. It was very risky, and could ultimately lead to the bloody demise of all of them, at the hands of slig guards. Joe got butterflies in his stomach as he thought of this.
“You alright?” Crob asked. “You’ve gone quiet?”
“Its nothing.” Joe lied. “Lets go before the sligs come in to eat.”
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rather long.
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