+++++++++++++++++++++++++
No, he didn't want to remember this. He had spent the last months and weeks trying to forget. But, the images flew through his mind like a rouge slipfighter. He was sitting outside the Nietzschean compound. It was dark, and it was late. His mother would skin him alive when he got home. He was two hours from his home on the beach but the prize he was hoping to claim was worth any punishment his mother could deal out.
There was a small hole in the fence.
Fergus and him had discovered it. They had been checking on it over the course of the week but no one seemed to notice it and no one came to repair it.
He shivered as the night got darker and cooler. He wrapped his arms around himself to keep warm. His shirt was threadbare and was little comfort. His thoughts drifted back to his blanket that waited for him at home. He shook of those thoughts and tried to focus on the project at hand.
The spaceport ran along side the Nietzschean compound. Some off-worlders had been granted permission to set up shops and the like. The plan was that once it got dark enough he would slip through the fence. There was a business close enough to the Compound that he was pretty sure he could get to unseen. He was going to bring home food.maybe even a knife for his father.
He had been dragging Fergus back and fourth for days. They had watched the building, studying it. Fergus said he saw some one carry a pie out but Seamus had refused to believe it. Fergus was currently curled up in the bushes near by. He was sleeping and that was okay. Seamus didn't want him to come along. If something were to happen he would never forgive himself. Besides, he could run faster then Fergus.
He took a deep breath and a good look around. It was now or never.
He lay on the cold ground and used his elbows to wiggle through the hole. Anyone bigger would have never made it through. For a moment he got snagged on a piece of wire as he pulled himself through. He pulled as hard as he could and he heard material rip but he was free. One more hole in a shirt already riddled with them made little difference.
Once through he curled him self up tight. Sitting on his haunches he looked around again.
A light breeze whipped through the area. A piece of garbage hit the fence nearby causing him to jump. Nothing else moved.
He ran. He tried to stay small and low. He zigzagged his way across the open field until he reached the back of the building.
His heart soared with excitement and adrenaline. He had done it! He was there! This really was going to work!
He made his way over to the back door. There was an electronic pad there. He pulled out a small piece of cloth. Inside it he had kept some small wires he had be scavenging. He pulled on out as he flipped open the front of the panel.
As much as Fergus loved ships Seamus loved machines of all sort. He always needed to know how they worked. How they fit together, how they came apart. Why they did the things they did. Even if he never actually managed to get anything from inside at least he got to see the inside of the panel. He studied it. There were so many parts and computer chips and nano widgets and relays. It was beautiful. To most people the inside of that panel would have been like trying to read a foreign language. To Seamus it was poetry. The cold wind and the passage of time had been forgotten.
Seamus finally remembered himself and put his tiny wire in exactly the right place. There was a bright spark, a loud hiss and a soft click as the locking mechanism on the door let go.
He hunched down and waited once more.
If anyone were to have reacted.if he had triggered an alarm he would know soon.
He sat quietly for a moment. All that he could here were the faint sounds of nightlife from the spaceport. A wild thought came over him. He didn't have to go back. He could stow away on one of the ships.leave this hellhole forever. But, the thought flitted away with the wind. He couldn't leave his family behind. He let his eyes gaze up at the stars. The pollution made them faint but they were still there. He sighed. No matter how badly he wanted to see them they would have to stay a million miles away.
He wasn't sure how much time had passed but it must be enough.
He stood up slowly. With one final look to see if anyone was watching he pushed lightly on the door. It swung in easily. The room was even darker then outside and smelled softly of stale bread. His mouth watered all the same. He grinned to himself. Visions of Fergus's pie filled his mind. He walked through the back of the store, which seemed like a storage room crossed with a kitchen and made his way to the front.
It was.amazing. He stood there for a moment completely stunned. On ever shelf there was.food! There was more food then Seamus's limited culinary experiences could even identify. He walked along one wall. A row of sticky buns gleamed in the light. Breads, meat pies and tarts. He turned unsure where to start when he saw them, Fergus' pie. Not one but dozens and dozens.
He might have actually giggled out loud.
He quickly started grabbing buns and cookies and stuffed them in his pockets. The very last thing he did was pick up three pies as he headed for the door.
He didn't stop to look around, there was no hesitation. He burst out the back door and made a mad dash for the fence. He could see Fergus there waiting for him. Relief was evident on the younger boy's face. He crashed in to the fence using it to slow himself down. "Look Fergus!" he beamed. "You were right! Pies!"
Fergus grinned back at him through the fence. But, suddenly the younger boys stare shifted from Seamus to a point directly behind him. Fergus' grin disappeared.
"SEAMUS!" screamed Fergus and it was the last thing he remembered for a while.
+++++++++++++++++
When he woke up next he was sitting in a chair. His hair was dripping in his eyes and he couldn't breathe. He coughed and sputtered until he finally could draw in air. The rooms slowly came in to focus and when he saw where he was he wished he could sink back in t oblivion.
"Good Morning, little Sewer rat." A deep gravely voice welcomed him.
The last thing her could remember was Fergus screaming. He panicked and tried to leap from the chair. But, he couldn't he was stuck, no, he was tied down. He began to thrash wildly.
A very large Neitzschean came in to his view. Seamus felt all the blood rush from his face. His cousin Liam got caught by the Neitzscheans once he never came back.
The Neitzschean laughed at his fear. "Why kludge, you're not even big enough to be a rat, you're only a mouse."
Seamus shook with fear and did his best to try to disappear in to his chair. His bonds allowed very little. "I'm sorry." He whispered.
"You are sorry for what, little mouse?"
Seamus wasn't sure what the right answer was. He was only sorry he was here. So he said nothing.
"Cat get your tongue?"
Harper did not reply.
"Do you know who I am boy? I am Dionysis, out Saga by Hule. I am the future alpha of the Drago Katsovs." Dionysis paused. "Does this make you fear kludge? It should."
It must have been obvious he was terrified. His body shook and he had very little control over it. "Where's Fergus." He finally managed to squeak. "Fergus? The smaller boy?"
Harper nodded.
"I crushed him under my boot!" He cackled.
Tears flooded Harper's eyes. "You liar!"
Dionysis stepped forward. He grabbed Seamus by his hair and pulled his neck back sharply. "A thief dares to call me a liar!" They stared intently in to each other eyes. The chair and the hold Dionysis had on the top of his head did not let him look away.
Just as suddenly Dionysis let go and walked away as if in disgust. "Do you have parents, Mouse? Do they live?"
Harper gave a small nod.
"Do they teach you manners? Because, I think they have failed sorely. We teach our children their place from birth. They grow up strong and vibrant. It does not surprise me your parents have failed at this. Kludges can be .simple minded."
"Don't! Don't talk about them!"
"Ah ha! The mouse can roar like a lion. Well Kludge, if your sire's can not teach you your place . I will."
TBC
No, he didn't want to remember this. He had spent the last months and weeks trying to forget. But, the images flew through his mind like a rouge slipfighter. He was sitting outside the Nietzschean compound. It was dark, and it was late. His mother would skin him alive when he got home. He was two hours from his home on the beach but the prize he was hoping to claim was worth any punishment his mother could deal out.
There was a small hole in the fence.
Fergus and him had discovered it. They had been checking on it over the course of the week but no one seemed to notice it and no one came to repair it.
He shivered as the night got darker and cooler. He wrapped his arms around himself to keep warm. His shirt was threadbare and was little comfort. His thoughts drifted back to his blanket that waited for him at home. He shook of those thoughts and tried to focus on the project at hand.
The spaceport ran along side the Nietzschean compound. Some off-worlders had been granted permission to set up shops and the like. The plan was that once it got dark enough he would slip through the fence. There was a business close enough to the Compound that he was pretty sure he could get to unseen. He was going to bring home food.maybe even a knife for his father.
He had been dragging Fergus back and fourth for days. They had watched the building, studying it. Fergus said he saw some one carry a pie out but Seamus had refused to believe it. Fergus was currently curled up in the bushes near by. He was sleeping and that was okay. Seamus didn't want him to come along. If something were to happen he would never forgive himself. Besides, he could run faster then Fergus.
He took a deep breath and a good look around. It was now or never.
He lay on the cold ground and used his elbows to wiggle through the hole. Anyone bigger would have never made it through. For a moment he got snagged on a piece of wire as he pulled himself through. He pulled as hard as he could and he heard material rip but he was free. One more hole in a shirt already riddled with them made little difference.
Once through he curled him self up tight. Sitting on his haunches he looked around again.
A light breeze whipped through the area. A piece of garbage hit the fence nearby causing him to jump. Nothing else moved.
He ran. He tried to stay small and low. He zigzagged his way across the open field until he reached the back of the building.
His heart soared with excitement and adrenaline. He had done it! He was there! This really was going to work!
He made his way over to the back door. There was an electronic pad there. He pulled out a small piece of cloth. Inside it he had kept some small wires he had be scavenging. He pulled on out as he flipped open the front of the panel.
As much as Fergus loved ships Seamus loved machines of all sort. He always needed to know how they worked. How they fit together, how they came apart. Why they did the things they did. Even if he never actually managed to get anything from inside at least he got to see the inside of the panel. He studied it. There were so many parts and computer chips and nano widgets and relays. It was beautiful. To most people the inside of that panel would have been like trying to read a foreign language. To Seamus it was poetry. The cold wind and the passage of time had been forgotten.
Seamus finally remembered himself and put his tiny wire in exactly the right place. There was a bright spark, a loud hiss and a soft click as the locking mechanism on the door let go.
He hunched down and waited once more.
If anyone were to have reacted.if he had triggered an alarm he would know soon.
He sat quietly for a moment. All that he could here were the faint sounds of nightlife from the spaceport. A wild thought came over him. He didn't have to go back. He could stow away on one of the ships.leave this hellhole forever. But, the thought flitted away with the wind. He couldn't leave his family behind. He let his eyes gaze up at the stars. The pollution made them faint but they were still there. He sighed. No matter how badly he wanted to see them they would have to stay a million miles away.
He wasn't sure how much time had passed but it must be enough.
He stood up slowly. With one final look to see if anyone was watching he pushed lightly on the door. It swung in easily. The room was even darker then outside and smelled softly of stale bread. His mouth watered all the same. He grinned to himself. Visions of Fergus's pie filled his mind. He walked through the back of the store, which seemed like a storage room crossed with a kitchen and made his way to the front.
It was.amazing. He stood there for a moment completely stunned. On ever shelf there was.food! There was more food then Seamus's limited culinary experiences could even identify. He walked along one wall. A row of sticky buns gleamed in the light. Breads, meat pies and tarts. He turned unsure where to start when he saw them, Fergus' pie. Not one but dozens and dozens.
He might have actually giggled out loud.
He quickly started grabbing buns and cookies and stuffed them in his pockets. The very last thing he did was pick up three pies as he headed for the door.
He didn't stop to look around, there was no hesitation. He burst out the back door and made a mad dash for the fence. He could see Fergus there waiting for him. Relief was evident on the younger boy's face. He crashed in to the fence using it to slow himself down. "Look Fergus!" he beamed. "You were right! Pies!"
Fergus grinned back at him through the fence. But, suddenly the younger boys stare shifted from Seamus to a point directly behind him. Fergus' grin disappeared.
"SEAMUS!" screamed Fergus and it was the last thing he remembered for a while.
+++++++++++++++++
When he woke up next he was sitting in a chair. His hair was dripping in his eyes and he couldn't breathe. He coughed and sputtered until he finally could draw in air. The rooms slowly came in to focus and when he saw where he was he wished he could sink back in t oblivion.
"Good Morning, little Sewer rat." A deep gravely voice welcomed him.
The last thing her could remember was Fergus screaming. He panicked and tried to leap from the chair. But, he couldn't he was stuck, no, he was tied down. He began to thrash wildly.
A very large Neitzschean came in to his view. Seamus felt all the blood rush from his face. His cousin Liam got caught by the Neitzscheans once he never came back.
The Neitzschean laughed at his fear. "Why kludge, you're not even big enough to be a rat, you're only a mouse."
Seamus shook with fear and did his best to try to disappear in to his chair. His bonds allowed very little. "I'm sorry." He whispered.
"You are sorry for what, little mouse?"
Seamus wasn't sure what the right answer was. He was only sorry he was here. So he said nothing.
"Cat get your tongue?"
Harper did not reply.
"Do you know who I am boy? I am Dionysis, out Saga by Hule. I am the future alpha of the Drago Katsovs." Dionysis paused. "Does this make you fear kludge? It should."
It must have been obvious he was terrified. His body shook and he had very little control over it. "Where's Fergus." He finally managed to squeak. "Fergus? The smaller boy?"
Harper nodded.
"I crushed him under my boot!" He cackled.
Tears flooded Harper's eyes. "You liar!"
Dionysis stepped forward. He grabbed Seamus by his hair and pulled his neck back sharply. "A thief dares to call me a liar!" They stared intently in to each other eyes. The chair and the hold Dionysis had on the top of his head did not let him look away.
Just as suddenly Dionysis let go and walked away as if in disgust. "Do you have parents, Mouse? Do they live?"
Harper gave a small nod.
"Do they teach you manners? Because, I think they have failed sorely. We teach our children their place from birth. They grow up strong and vibrant. It does not surprise me your parents have failed at this. Kludges can be .simple minded."
"Don't! Don't talk about them!"
"Ah ha! The mouse can roar like a lion. Well Kludge, if your sire's can not teach you your place . I will."
TBC