Tuesday 11 June 2013

Chapter 1 : Part A


6:12 am

I couldn’t stay any longer. I had to get out before they came back, whoever they were. I couldn’t do the things that they want me to do or tell them the things they want to know, and when I remained silent they hurt me trying to get an answer. I didn’t know anything, not even who he was. My first memory is of me getting thrown into this cell wearing a tattered grey shirt and grey shorts. I was locked up in an old, square cell made out of cement just below the ground. The only source of light in the room was an old light bulb hanging from the roof that was blinking out every few seconds. The wall to the left of the door had a bed, if it could be called that. The bed was a solid concrete slab rising up out of the ground and it stopped at knee height and had a paper thin mattress on top. I hadn’t been able to sleep the first few nights that I was here. There was a constant dripping sound from behind the wall near my bed. The air tasted foul and I often vomited. The smell was putrid and when I first came in I thought that I might pass out. The smell didn’t bother me now, though. I was tall for my age and my feet hung right off the edge. I had been starved almost to death, eating less than a dog would, and my once muscular body had started to wear away to skin stretched tight over my bones. I had no idea how long I had been here but I would imagine it would have been at least 2 months. But I had a plan. I was ready. I could hear the guard snoring. The guard was a short man; he was bald with a wrinkled face and was in his late forties. I had often heard the other guards that walk past call him Michael but the name didn’t suit the man so I decided to call him Barry. He didn’t seem to like that but I called him it anyway. He had often come close to punching me but he stopped as just before he swung. That was when I realised that they needed me alive and unharmed. I walked up to the old, sturdy iron door and looked through the keyhole. In the little light on the other side I could make out the guard. He was sitting on a chair with his head leaning against the wall and his gun was on his lap. I had to be careful; I would only get one chance. ‘Hey’ I said in a quiet voice. Was I really ready to do this? ‘Hey’. The guard snapped out of his sleep and was on his feet in seconds, until he realised it was me talking.
‘You’ he said in a gruff voice
‘I need to go to the bathroom’
‘Fine’ he said.
 I could sense the annoyance in his voice. I had to be careful of the words I used. If I tipped him over the edge he might decide to lock me in my cell, and that would be the end of my plan. As he led me to the bathroom I surveyed my surroundings, the whole complex was a maze of cells and it would be hard to navigate through hem even with a map. The rest of the cells looked a lot like mine but were unused. I was the only prisoner.  It was a quick walk to the bathroom. The bathroom was a sterile white and looked like it was cleaned every morning. I walked into the small cubicle and the door was locked behind me. I could see the guard’s feet under the door. He was standing in front of the cubicle facing it to make sure that I didn’t escape.  Perfect, that was just how I had planned.  I turned towards the toilet bowl and lifted the lid. I was nervous now so I actually needed to pee. This was good in a way because the guard would hear and believe there was nothing wrong, and then came the disgusting part. I dipped my hand into the bowl and scooped the yellowed water up. I stood there building up courage but by the time I was ready the water had slipped through my hands. I scooped up the water again and shoved it straight into my mouth without a thought. The taste was vile and every cell in my brain kept telling me to spit it out but I couldn’t. I put my hand back into the bowl and scooped up more water and shoved that into my mouth to. I repeated this until my mouth was full, flushed the toilet and turned towards the door. I heard a grunt from the guard that sounded like “finally”. The guard opened the door and made me walk out.  He walked around me and turned to face me, getting ready to do a search to see if I was holding anything I shouldn’t be. He bent over and patted me down. When he stood up he stared at my face. I realised that this was the moment. I spat the yellow water into his face. He doubled over and I sprinted past. I came out and ran left, away from my cell. I had only made it a couple of steps before red lights started flashing and a siren was being played over the loudspeakers. The guard must have recovered and triggered and emergency alarm. I didn’t have much time.  I ran forwards and came to a crossroad hat was on a 45 degree angle.  There was a path leading to the right went back the way I had come and the path to the left continued forward. Without thinking I turned right. I ran a few hundred metres and came to a stop at a dead end. I was about to turn back when I head guards talking back at the crossroad. I jumped into a cell and ran to the back. I ran to the back of the cell and started pounding at the bars. These bars were more rusted than the ones in the cell I had been staying in. It was no use.  I turned towards the door and walked out of the cell. The guards ran up and tackled me to the ground. When the guards got off me I stood up and put my hands into the air. I fell down and my head hit the ground hard. I seemed to be floating in nothing. No, not floating but falling. I looked to where a thought down was and saw a vast blue rushing towards me. The ocean, but how did I get here? I had nothing to break the surface tension and falling from here would be like falling on a slab of cement. I tried to scream but I couldn’t make a sound. I smashed into the water. I know that most, if not all, of my bones should be broken but I can’t feel any pain. I thrashed about trying to surface, but I only succeeded in making a lot of noise. I was going to drown in the middle of the ocean. I blinked and suddenly I was back into the prison building, right in front of a flight of stairs. I did not question how I got back but bolted up the stairs hoping that it would lead to an exit. I ran up one level and peeked through the door. It was a lobby. The marble desks and gold plating made it obvious that his captors were rich, and they liked showing off. There was a door, only 10 metres from where I stood but it was guarded. I started to think about what I would do if I got out. I had no money, no food, no water and nowhere to stay. I had to stay here. I had to find the stuff that I came here with because it might jog my memory or there may be clues as to where to go next.  The stairs continued up so I stated going up. I peeked into the next room.  There was no-one in this room. I decided there was no harm in looking in here. The room was an office. There were little cubicles with barely enough desk space to work. Most of the cubicles were filled with photos of family and friends and as I walked pass I stepped into a cubicle. There was an expensive computer sitting on the desk. The screen was off but the light on the tower was flashing. I hit the power button for the screen. It slowly came to life and displayed a Word document. I scanned through it quickly, looking for clues on what this place was. I finished the document with no more idea as when I started. I turned the screen off and left the cubicle. I doubted anyone here would know that I was even in the building, let alone why I was here. I left that floor and headed up. The second floor was the same layout as the first and held more empty cubicles. This continued up until the ninth floor. This seemed to be the top level. There was a small area before a big wall cut through the room. There were chairs at either side of the room and the same marble and gold was present. There was also some wood incorporated into the room. There was a door made out of wood and frosted glass with a gold-plated doorhandle. I reached out and grabbed the handle. I pushed down and found, to my surprise, that the door opened. I pushed inwards slowly, trying not to make a sound. I peeked in and saw that the room was empty. I stepped in and noticed the silence. There were no alarms going up here and it felt strange. There was an elaborate marble desk with a high end touch-screen computer on top. I hit the power button and the screen sprung to life.  Someone had been using this computer and logged off, but I only needed the password to get back in. I tried “Password” and the computer unlocked. I opened up” My Computer” and went straight to the personal files. These were the files that could only be accessed by this computer, so I believe that this is where secrets would be kept. I was searching through the files when I heard people running up the stairs. I still hadn’t found anything and I was about to get caught and thrown back into the cell. I had to leave now. I was about to run, but then I remembered about after I got out and pulled the hard drive out. It would be a start to finding out who I was. I run out of the room and into the stairwell. The noises were closer now and I could hear voices. I turned and sprinted up the stairs. I was going the wrong way! I went up and found the end of the stairs. I burst through the door and looked around. I was standing on the roof of a building in the middle of the desert. I was trapped.

Intro

I am not sure who is going to read it or whether it will be read at all. I am a 13 year old male in year 8 and i have started to write a novel entitled "Run". I will be posting it piece by piece, and not at regular intervals, I have other social and sporting commitments. I will try to get a piece a week up here, but I cannot promise anything. I am open to praise and constructive critisism, this will help me finish this novel and have it as good as it could be. Hope you enjoy what I post.
Dean