Chapter 28 – The End of an Era
*NOTE – Well, guys. Here we are. You knew it was coming, and now, here it is. No, it's not the end of the story. For Alan, at least. But sadly, Dave's participation in Alan's journey is at its end. Read on and, well, you probably won't enjoy it, so I won't ask you to this time. It's 'Oddworld: Al's Oddysee'. THANK YOU!*
I was astonished, to say the least. I was lost for words. Speechless. I mustered a nod at the judge, who then dismissed the court. So, I was going to shoot Dave. Then, I was going to go to prison for 10 years. With no parole. Great.
Dave's unconscious body was dragged away to a cell for the night, where he would eat his last ever meal. Not that he'd be able to choose what he had. In fact, he probably wouldn't be fed at all. I lay awake all that night, wondering how he'd reacted when he awoke in his cell and was told his best friend would shoot him in the morning. He had probably fainted, yet again. I must have slept for about half an hour in total by the time the jail warden came to escort me to the firing range. This is it, I thought. I'm going to kill him. I realised then that Dave had been right. He had said that he thought I was going to kill him. And now I was.
The weather had not lifted since yesterday. Rain still poured from the heavens and bounced upon the hard ground of the firing range, a grimy courtyard in the centre of the jail. I noticed that one end of the courtyard had a canopy protruding from it, almost like a small, dimly lit room. In the exact centre of the floor under the canopy was a chair, bolted to the ground. A gun was fastened to a stand in front of the chair, also bolted to the ground. That was obviously where I'd sit.
The warden escorted me to the chair, and after I had sat down, he pulled a thick cord from under the chair. He pulled the chord around my chest and slipped the clip on the end to the underside of the chair at the other side. There was no way I'd be getting out now. After this, two more Sligs entered the courtyard, and came under the canopy. They talked to the warden briefly, but I couldn't make out the conversation. One of them then left the courtyard, returning with another two Sligs. The pair carried Dave in their arms, blindfolded. The other carried a short, dagger-like object, but it was forked at the end. Dave was placed on a yellow cross at the far side of the courtyard, and all three Sligs came under the canopy. There were now five in total, but only two were armed with guns.
An awkward minute passed in silence before anything else happened. When it did, a Slig stepped forwards and grabbed my arms. He placed one under the barrel of the rifle before me, and secured it there with a small metal clasp. The other, he placed around the trigger housing, and again secured it with another clasp, apart from one finger, which rested just on the trigger. I was now holding the rifle, with no way of letting go, or even moving at all. The only part of my upper body which I could move was a single trigger finger. And if I moved that, Dave was dead.
The Slig stepped back, and another took up a position by my side. He unfurled a relatively long scroll, and began to read it in his typical electronic voice.
"Mudokon 276-442-B:Dave, you have been found guilty of three counts of murder on the 42nd of Julember, 217763. Today, the 44th, you are to be shot by Security Commander Alan Grike, your accomplice in the murders. You will die a slave to Oddkind, and your body will be burned. The ashes will then be sent to Vykkers Labs and made into garden fertilizer." Dave nodded from the far side of the courtyard to show that he had heard and understood the Slig. Even though his eyes were covered, I knew that they were full of despair and fear… and tears.
The Slig then turned to me. He said: "Grike, you may now open fire on the Mudokon."
"Oh, may I?" I replied. "That is most kind of you."
"Don't get sarcastic with me, Grike." The other Slig said seedily.
"Ok, then," I responded, "Answer me this. What if I refuse to shoot?"
"Oh, you won't be refusing…" The warden assured me. Another Slig stepped up behind him with the forked dagger he had brought in earlier. He walked back out of my eyeline, behind the chair, and I heard a small metal door in the back of the chair slide open. Now I understood what was going to happen.
"You ready, Slig?" The warden asked. But they weren't going to wait for an answer. I felt the forked dagger prick the skin of my back, gently at first. Then, with no warning whatsoever, the Slig behind me forced the rusty spikes deep into my back.
The pain was unbearable. The dagger pierced my skin, and I felt it starting to tear through my back muscles. Still, I tried to resist pulling the trigger on the gun. The Slig behind me pulled the dagger out abruptly. I felt blood gushing from my back. It wasn't over, though. The dagger was soon returned through the back of the chair and into my back, but this time, it was even worse. It was burning. The metal fork was white hot. I could smell the burning of my own flesh as the Slig behind me continued to thrust the dagger deeper into my back, towards my spine. It was excruciating, but I tried so hard to resist. I realised that Sligs had a much higher pain threshold than humans. My finger still rested barely a centimeter from the trigger of the rifle. The dagger was then pulled out again. The worst was still to come.
The Sligs conversed briefly behind me, and the rain outside the canopy was beginning to pour down like crazy. The dagger was soon returned to my back again, for the final time. This time, it felt much cooler, but it was by no means better. I felt the forks of the dagger tear further into my muscles, and then a cold liquid ran through the veins of my back. Seconds later, a sensation like nothing I had ever felt before filled my entire body. The Slig had injected some kind of acid into my bloodstream. The pain was now intolerable. My muscles ached and at the same time felt like they were on fire. It felt like every bone in my body had simultaneously shattered, and my skin felt like it was covered in deep cuts and gashes. This was torture too much for anybody. It was sadistic. Emotionless. I couldn't bear it any longer. I looked at Dave, still on the verge of tears. I whispered under my breath: "I'm sorry, Dave." Then, I closed my eyes and pulled the trigger.
When I opened my eyes again, it was all over. The Sligs had all left, apart from the warden, and two Interns were dragging Dave's lifeless body away to Vykkers Labs. The warden unstrapped me from my chair, and stood me up, hands behind my back, to escort me back to my cell. But I wasn't going to let that happen.
"Do you know who that Mudokon was?" I asked the warden. "To me, I mean? Do you know who he was to me?"
"I have no idea," The warden said, "And frankly, I don't give a damn."
"He was everything to me." I told him angrily. "He was the only person in the whole of Mudos I knew I could trust. He was my best friend." Emotion welled up inside me like never before. Everything since I'd arrived on Oddworld came flooding back. The fear I'd felt when I first arrived. The sadness I'd felt when I realised I might never return home. The anger I'd felt, over and over again, when person after person had let me down. Every negative emotion under the sun flooded into my mind: Fear, anger, anxiety, disappointment and sorrow. And with them, positive emotions: Hope, determination, and courage. I could still escape this. I could still save Abe. I had to save Abe.
Suddenly, a burst of adrenalin rushed through me. I pulled one arm free from the warden's grasp with all my might, and turned around to punch him square in the face. He staggered backwards, but didn't fall. I dived on him with a force I never thought was possible. His face was suddenly laced with fear. I screamed aloud and lifted his head into the air. I forced it back against the concrete floor, then did it again, and again. Each time, more and more colour left the Slig's face, until it was over. He was dead. I stood and ran from the courtyard, his gun in my hand. In the main corridor of the building, ten or more Sligs were scattered along the walls. I fired off multiple shots, each one a direct hit. Six of the Sligs fell to the ground.
The voice of a much larger, more heavily armed Slig came from behind me. I turned around to see a Big Bro Slig, Blitz Packer in hand. He fired a shot, and the world seemed to slow down from my perspective. I saw the can leaving the gun's barrel with immense pressure. I saw it jettison from the Blitz Packer and rocket towards me. I ducked, and it flew right over my head. Three Sligs at the end of the corridor were hit by that single can, and all three fell to the ground, dead. Now, only I, the Big Bro Slig, and two other Sligs remained in the corridor. But I wasn't giving up without a fight. Adrenalin still rushed through my head. I was full of energy that seemed impossibly strong. I ran towards the Big Bro Slig and jumped onto his head, flipping myself over onto his back. I fiddled around with the wires at the back of his head, pulling out cables here and there. Tangled mass of wire fell to the floor. I noticed a thick, black cable plugged into a socket marked with a red ring around it. The Big Bro Slig was still thrashing and yelling as I clutched his neck desperately. I grabbed the wire, and let myself fall from his back. It was torn from its socket.
The Big Bro Slig screamed, a sound like a Scrab being strangled by the web of a Bolamite whilst a Fleech tore off its legs with its abnormally long tongue. He collapsed, and the metal fixture on the back of his neck began to beep slowly. The beeping soon became more frequent, and I realised he was about to self-destruct. Like lightning, I darted towards the two remaining Sligs in the corridor. They tried to shoot at me, but both missed. I whisked their rifles out of their hands and turned to face them. I shot, one gun in each hand, and they both collapsed. I turned again, and sprinted to the fire escape at the end of this particular corridor. Forcing the lock to break with brute strength unmatched by any other creature on Oddworld, I turned and slammed the doors behind me. I then took the opportunity to dive behind a nearby rock, and waited. Not a moment too soon, the entire building exploded catastrophically. The force of the Big Bro Slig's self-destruct was similar to a bomb the size of a car. A huge gust of wind erupted from the site of the disaster, blowing the spines off of nearby trees. I looked on in awe at the destruction I had just caused. But there was no time to waste.
I got to my feet and ran. Ran as fast as I could. Memories flashed through my mind. I saw Dave when I had first met him, Fope when we had encountered Stranger, Abe when he lay dead in my arms. Reaching the top of the nearest hill, I turned a full circle, looking in the sky in every direction possible. Rage and energy still rushed through my veins. Then, I spotted it. In the distance, flying about a mile up in the air, was the airship that I'd seen only once before. But sure enough, it was exactly what I was looking for. It was painted on the side in huge yellow letters. The number '25'. Between strained breaths, I stared at the gargantuan air fortress, and muttered to myself: "This ends now."