I promised this chapter earlier, but I don't always get around to working on my stories as I'd like to. Anyways, enjoy!
Tears continued to stream down my fur covered face, blurring my vision, aside from the heavy down pour, to the point at which I have to rely of lights to see where I'm going. For some reason, my head is in excruciating pain, pounding with each foot fall. I can hear a weird sound that...sounds like a baby whining into a pillow. I shake my head in frustration and stop to look for any lights to guide me.
I'm just finding the street lights when a crack emits, racking the earth beneath my paws. Every hair on my body is now sticking up. My ears twitch at a slight splintering sound, making me look to my side. I notice movement above me and look up. One of the lights is...coming towards me? By the time I realized what was happening, it was too late. I screamed out as I turned and jumped forward, using every ounce of leg power I had. A crack from behind me, not too different from a car exploding, practically splits my ear drums in two. When I shriek in pain, I thought it was because the crashing telephone pole ruined my ears. Pain shoots through my spine and into my tail though. I desperately look down to find my tail caught beneath the wooden mass.
"Geh-Aaagh...hegh...hel..p...Someone, h-help ME! HEEELP!" I hopelessly plea.
To my surprise though, I see a blurred figure running towards me...followed by two more. I quickly rip off the black mask and toss it as far away as I can, yelping in pain when I turned to throw it. One of the figures clicks on a flash light and shines it on me as they approach. I can't see who they are, or even if they're cops but I think I can make assumptions, considering one of them, a female, just clicked on a radio with a static crackle and reported the scene before her. The two other figures get down on their knees on either side of me, placing their hands on the pole. To my surprise, they manage to move it a little, just enough for me to slide my tail out from under. The instant I'm free, I leap over the fallen pole and run as fast as I can.
...I never should have ran. I might have been able to get out of there. The agony was unimaginable. You know, tasers are already very painful on a human. They aren't designed to be used on a chipmunk. I was almost fried right then and there. But that was my consequence for being stupid, and I blacked out.
The next thing I knew, I was sitting on an iron chair. The first place I'd expected to wake up at was a hospital, not a court of law. I was shocked when I looked down to find myself dressed in an orange jumpsuit. I cringed when I heard someone to the right of me yell 'Murderer!'. That was NOT what I was. I was about to yell back at whoever made the outburst when the judge beat his mallet three times on his table. No wonder they use those stupid things. It's loud and manages to shut everyone up.
"Everyone settle down! He's awake now. Court is in session!", the man sighed, "Alvin Seville. Well isn't this a surprise. I'm confident that no one would have EVER guessed that you would stoop so low as to murder your own brother. Everyone loved you, but now you are no better than the rest of the filth that crawls through this room."
"I did NOT kill my brother!", I shot at him. The judge just glares at me.
"Due to last years events, during early autumn, juvenile murder has become just as unforgivable as any adult murder. Because of that single month, where several gangs of teenagers had gone on that killing spree, we will show you no mercy."
Yeah...the month of slaughter. Because of those gangs, young murder has been treated just as harshly as any other murder. I grunt in frustration and look behind me, just as two enormous men in black suits walk through the double doors and both take a seat.
"Tha-that's them!" I scream, trying to point but find my paws tied with a white, plastic strap, "That's the men who killed Simon!"
The judge completely ignored me and kept speaking, "Alvin Seville. We here by sentence you to life in Caldera Penitentiary with no chance of parole. Case closed. Goodbye."
I froze while everyone began talking, clapping or whatever. Caldera?! That's the place the men in the black suits said they would see me at! Suddenly, I'm yanked from the uncomfortable chair by a hand wrapped around me, pinning my arms to my sides.
"Dude, let go of me! I can walk you know!", I yelled at the man, who was in a police uniform.
"Shut it Seville. You're too small for the usual escort method. So just shut up. I don't want to hear your voice anyways. I used to love your band, but now you've taken that away from me!", the cop hissed back.
The two men in the black suits smiled their shark grin at me as the policeman walked by them and pushed open the doors. The noise of the people in the court room was cut off to a muffle as the doors slammed shut. When the man brought me into the lobby, I noticed Dave, Theodore, and the Chipettes, all sitting in one corner of the room.
"Guys! Dave, help me out here!", I said, yelling slightly.
Dave glanced at me with eyes full of unrelenting sorrow, then turned away. The Chipettes, nor Theodore looked at me. The last thing I saw of them was when the front doors to the building closed, and I could see Theodore's tear stricken face pear out the door window at me as I was taken away.
*SCENE TRANSITION*
A lot of the events following that were just a blur. I remember being driven in a squad car to a bus stop out in the country, though I don't know how far out. The road kept going, but there was one exit to the left, a dirt road with a black, armored bus just sitting there. When I was escorted to the bus, one of those men in black greeted the officer, grabbing me as he did and literally hurled me into the bus. I was lucky enough to land on another kid, however, he didn't take to kindly to it. I was thrown again, only this time skimming the edge of a seat and falling onto the rubber treaded walk way. It didn't hurt too much, but I was getting tired of being tossed around like a rag doll. I cursed them all under my breath and climbed into a seat. It was only then that I noticed just how desolate the vehicle was.
Everyone on the bus was of mere kids. Some of them looked to be no more than ten years old. Many of them were crying, or simply burying their faces into their hands or knees. I could hear a boy mumbling from the seat behind me, 'I didn't do it. I didn't do it. I didn't do it...'. There was one more man dressed in black at the back of the bus. My attention drifted to the spas-12 he held up against his shoulder. He noticed me and smirked, showing me the familiar shark grin they all seem to share. I turned back to face the front of the bus, shuddering. The driver's seat was separated from the passenger seats by a chain link fence with an, also chain link, door. All the windows were covered in chain link fencing as well. I whimpered pathetically. This was like being in a cage. It was then that the first man in black got back onto the bus, closing the double doors behind him. He then closed and locked the cage door and started up the bus.
"Enjoy the ride!", he said with a chuckle.
The ride went in utter silence. I stared out the window most of the time, simply thinking of why this was happening. Why had they just gone and accused me of murder?! Just so they could get me into their stupid prison? Even worse...if I ever get out for whatever reason...will my family believe that I'm innocent? I cringed in sickening guilt, deciding to just observe my surroundings. The sides of the road were shrouded in light pine wood forestry. The skies are beginning to cloud up. It will be raining soon. I'm just then starting to think about the robbery with Simon when I hear hacking and coughing beside me. I swing my head to the boy across from me, hunched over and spilling his stomach contents all over the floor.
The man in the back of the bus walks over to the driver, "You owe me. I won the bet.", his voice boomed along with that typical smirk.
The driver looked over at the kid and then him, "Damn. You always guess who pukes first.", the driver said. The man with the shot gun just laughed before strolling to the back of the bus again.
I looked at the kid who'd vomited again then turned back to the window. Then I saw it. Caldera Penitentiary. It almost looks like a castle, an immense, impenetrable fortress. Although...it would kind of be the opposite of that wouldn't it. Inescapable. The entire structure is made up of blackish stone, a broad entrance cut into the center and blocked by massive, iron doors. Each corner of the structure is topped with look out towers. Although, it doesn't seem like they're being used.
The bus suddenly stopped in front of the building, making everyone lean forward. I however nearly fell off the stupid seat. I jumped down from the chair and followed the other kids out of the bus. The man with the spas-12 followed close behind as we followed the driver towards the front of Caldera, who then typed in a code onto a key pad beside the door. The pad emanated a beep, followed by the sound of shifting hydraulics as the doors slid into the walls. We were escorted inside and the doors were closed again. I had to cover my ears when the two iron doors collided together, making an unbearably loud bang that echoed in the corridor I now found myself in.
The driver vacated us, walking into a room to the right while the one with the shot gun kept us moving forward. At the end of the hallway were silver double doors. There however was no key pad for this one. To the left and right were two different rooms as well.
"Alright inmates. Everyone into the room on the left. Inside, you will find several stalls. Each of you will occupy a stall where you will be showered and rid of your urban clothes or jail uniforms. You will simply dump the clothes into a bin integrated in the walls of the stall. After putting your clothes in the bin, you will press a button to the right of the bin and be showered. Once you are done, you will leave the stalls and be issued your Caldera inmate uniform. That is all.", explained the man.
We all did as we were told without a word. In the room, there really was nothing but the stalls he'd mentioned lining the walls. There were maybe ten or twelve, all of them simple grey doors on the walls that went from ceiling to floor. We all picked out a stall and I shut the door behind us. There was no lock on the door, which made me quite uncomfortable. I quickly got out of the jail clothes I'd been fitted into while I'd been unconscious and began looking for the bin the man had mentioned. Wasn't too hard to find. It was simply a silver lid on the back wall of the stall that slid up into a black, steel sheath. Inside...nothing but pure darkness. I wondered as to where it lead to...then a thought crossed my mind.
"I-I could jump in there!", I whispered, almost inaudibly.
The only problem is...I just don't know where it goes. This just leads down into the ground. It could lead into a grinder or something. I would be mutilated! 'Eeegh, aw screw it', I thought as I tossed the jump suit into the darkness. I immediately regretted doing so, 'Aw shit! I don't have my new uniform yet!'. I swore aloud, not caring who heard it at this point.
"May as well find that button.", I mumbled to myself, easily finding the black little circle beside the silver bin.
My regret was only going to increase as time went by...I had not expected in any way shape or form to be drenched and nearly drowned by the tsunami of arctic water that descended onto me. The other kids quickly began mimicking my yelps and half screams as they too were blasted with freezing water. Thank God it didn't last very long. I'd maybe been under the arctic assault for thirty seconds when the water abruptly cut off and what was surrounding me drained away. I shuddered as I shakily stood up and looked down at myself. 'Sheesh, now I do look like a rat!', I silently exclaimed.
I gingerly step out of the stall, still thoroughly soaked, to find the rest of the kids completely naked as well as drenched, shivering and panting slightly from shock. At least the freezing water and air combination sort of obscures the fact that we're indecent. The man in black then walked in carrying several pairs of white jumpsuits and orange overalls. He's also holding what looks like shoes made of sand paper.
He begins handing out the clothes to each of us, "These are your uniforms. They will be changed daily and these paper shoes will be disposed of daily."
Paper shoes? Huh, well I wasn't too far off wasn't I? I eagerly accept my set of clothes, which are conveniently in my size.
"Hey...um, why do you guys have clothes in my size?", I asked the man.
He looked at me awkwardly, "What, you'd prefer human sized clothes?"
"No no! It's just...I didn't expect you guys to."
The man stared for a moment before replying, "We can prepare for almost anything on very short notice. We were told you would be joining us, so we had an order placed for clothes in your size. Now shut up, and get back into the hall way.", he snapped.
I did as I was told, satisfied that I'd at least gotten an answer, and the other kids followed me and the man back into the hall way. The man then took out a radio and simply said, "Open it."
A moment passed, then the silver doors slid into the walls with the sound of more hydraulics. Inside was a simple, square room. It's an elevator.
"Alright, all of you inside!", the man commanded in his booming voice.
Once we were in the elevator, he turned and said something to the radio again, then the doors closed. The elevator jolted down slightly, making everyone nearly lose their footing, then gently began it's descent.
Hello my fellow chipmunks and chipettes! I'd quick like to say that even if you're a guest, you can still review my stories. I greatly appreciate your feed back. It means a lot to me.
May all munk kind reign!