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Timu's Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Novel - Crowstone - 02-01-2016
first draft, 11 chapters, 1/31/2015. based on dream, with considerable extra details added.
second draft, typos and formatting fixed 2/1/2016
--
1024 Chambers
A Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Novel by Timu
Chapter 1: The Poem
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Spoiler
In the year twenty seven sixty four
There will be a very terrible war
In the rainbow plaza, the first of may
A tragic end to the queens wedding day
The ones who attacked, who made this bloodbath
You will not survive, the new widow's wrath
Timu was so entranced that the words of the poem lost their meaning, and all she could think of was the gorgeous, heavenly voice that Brian Smoke recited them with. Brian Smoke was the dreamiest boy in class, with beautiful, flowing hair, and his mysterious, indescribable skin. But Timu was just an average girl, with above average, cute brown hair and averagely attractive averageness, who would never be able to win his heart.
"Timu! Are you paying attention?" shouted the teacher, Mr. Ursinpan, "What do you think of the poem?"
Timu stammered, "um,,, i think, it was very nice"
Mr. Ursinpan frowned, "Nice? Really? Terrible war and bloodbath? Sound nice to you?"
Timu mumbled "ummmmm, y-ye... nooooo...."
Mr. Ursinpan shrugged, "Alright, Timu, stay focused and pay attention. Moving on class, can you tell us why this poem is important?"
Diana raised her hand. She was the smartest girl in the class by far, and always knew the answer. The glance from the teacher was her cue to answer. "This poem is the only scrap of writing from before the Great Nuclear War that describes a date the could possibly be around our time!"
Mr. Ursinpan nodded. "Correct, Diana. You see class, though today's date is December 29th, Year 231, we don't know what date that corresponds to with the calendar that was used by our ancestors. While we use the same month and date system, our historians say that the Great Nuclear War could have lasted anywhere between two centuries and forty centuries. Assuming this poem provides an accurate prediction of the future, then we can simply wait until the tragic wedding happens in whatever the Rainbow Plaza is, and we'll know what our date is relative to the ancient calendar system. That will be our first step in learning more about the war and how it managed to erase the landmasses on the old maps."
The bell rang, denoting the school had ended. Mr. Ursinpan, yelled over the commotion, "Wait! Don't go yet, some of you have mail! Timu, Richard, Brian, Zarglob, and Mark, come up here. The rest of you are dismissed."
The five students got into the line. Timu was in the back right behind Brian. "Did you like the way I said that poem, Timu?" asked Brian.
Timu blushed and replied, "Yeah, i liked it a lot."
Zarglob got her mail and eyed Timu jealously before leaving. Brian whispered sexily in Timu's ear, "How about we got on a date tonight at the concert hall? 8 o clock?"
Timu blushed even harder and whispered back, "YES" very loudly.
Brian winked and got his mail and left, waving Timu goodbye.
Timu's heart was pounding and she didn't even look at the envelope Mr. Ursinpan handed her. She was already halfway home when she remembered the letter and opened it up.
In the year twenty seven sixty four
There will be a very terrible war
In the rainbow plaza, the first of may
A tragic end to the queens wedding day
The ones who attacked, who made this bloodbath
You will not survive, the new widow's wrath
Timu was so entranced that the words of the poem lost their meaning, and all she could think of was the gorgeous, heavenly voice that Brian Smoke recited them with. Brian Smoke was the dreamiest boy in class, with beautiful, flowing hair, and his mysterious, indescribable skin. But Timu was just an average girl, with above average, cute brown hair and averagely attractive averageness, who would never be able to win his heart.
"Timu! Are you paying attention?" shouted the teacher, Mr. Ursinpan, "What do you think of the poem?"
Timu stammered, "um,,, i think, it was very nice"
Mr. Ursinpan frowned, "Nice? Really? Terrible war and bloodbath? Sound nice to you?"
Timu mumbled "ummmmm, y-ye... nooooo...."
Mr. Ursinpan shrugged, "Alright, Timu, stay focused and pay attention. Moving on class, can you tell us why this poem is important?"
Diana raised her hand. She was the smartest girl in the class by far, and always knew the answer. The glance from the teacher was her cue to answer. "This poem is the only scrap of writing from before the Great Nuclear War that describes a date the could possibly be around our time!"
Mr. Ursinpan nodded. "Correct, Diana. You see class, though today's date is December 29th, Year 231, we don't know what date that corresponds to with the calendar that was used by our ancestors. While we use the same month and date system, our historians say that the Great Nuclear War could have lasted anywhere between two centuries and forty centuries. Assuming this poem provides an accurate prediction of the future, then we can simply wait until the tragic wedding happens in whatever the Rainbow Plaza is, and we'll know what our date is relative to the ancient calendar system. That will be our first step in learning more about the war and how it managed to erase the landmasses on the old maps."
The bell rang, denoting the school had ended. Mr. Ursinpan, yelled over the commotion, "Wait! Don't go yet, some of you have mail! Timu, Richard, Brian, Zarglob, and Mark, come up here. The rest of you are dismissed."
The five students got into the line. Timu was in the back right behind Brian. "Did you like the way I said that poem, Timu?" asked Brian.
Timu blushed and replied, "Yeah, i liked it a lot."
Zarglob got her mail and eyed Timu jealously before leaving. Brian whispered sexily in Timu's ear, "How about we got on a date tonight at the concert hall? 8 o clock?"
Timu blushed even harder and whispered back, "YES" very loudly.
Brian winked and got his mail and left, waving Timu goodbye.
Timu's heart was pounding and she didn't even look at the envelope Mr. Ursinpan handed her. She was already halfway home when she remembered the letter and opened it up.
Chapter 2: Drafted
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Spoiler
It was a wonderful day in Washington, EC, the capitol city of East Coast. The sun was shining low in the afternoon sky, reflecting off the Atlantopacific Ocean, people heading home from school and work. But among all the motion, Timu stood still, clutching The Letter in her trembling hands. She kept reading it over and over. She couldn't believe that she had been chosen. She was only 18 and she had her whole life ahead of her. She wouldn't even be able to have her date with Brian tonight. Everything was over for her.
When she finally got home, it was already past dinnertime.
"Timu, where have you been? We already ate!" said Timu's mother, but when she saw Timu's expression she rushed to her side, "What's wrong?"
"I... I'm sorry I didn't come home sooner. They drafted me. They're going to pick me up in an hour...."
Her mother embraced her, tears streaming from her face, "No... my baby... noooo.."
Timu cried too. "I don't want to go. Why can't they make someone else go? Why did it have to be me?"
Her mother cried some more, "It's the price we pay... it could have been me, or you, or anyone over 18 years old. It's just the price we pay, it's all completely random who they choose. If it wasn't you then it would have been someone else, and they would be having this conversation too."
Timu continued crying, "I know. It's my duty. But, I just wish, there was another way."
They cried for an hour straight, and there was a knock at the door. A man led Timu to the military van, which was very big and covered in guns. Timu turned and gave her mother one last look, the last look she'll ever get of the outside world, but the soldier closed the door.
It was a wonderful day in Washington, EC, the capitol city of East Coast. The sun was shining low in the afternoon sky, reflecting off the Atlantopacific Ocean, people heading home from school and work. But among all the motion, Timu stood still, clutching The Letter in her trembling hands. She kept reading it over and over. She couldn't believe that she had been chosen. She was only 18 and she had her whole life ahead of her. She wouldn't even be able to have her date with Brian tonight. Everything was over for her.
When she finally got home, it was already past dinnertime.
"Timu, where have you been? We already ate!" said Timu's mother, but when she saw Timu's expression she rushed to her side, "What's wrong?"
"I... I'm sorry I didn't come home sooner. They drafted me. They're going to pick me up in an hour...."
Her mother embraced her, tears streaming from her face, "No... my baby... noooo.."
Timu cried too. "I don't want to go. Why can't they make someone else go? Why did it have to be me?"
Her mother cried some more, "It's the price we pay... it could have been me, or you, or anyone over 18 years old. It's just the price we pay, it's all completely random who they choose. If it wasn't you then it would have been someone else, and they would be having this conversation too."
Timu continued crying, "I know. It's my duty. But, I just wish, there was another way."
They cried for an hour straight, and there was a knock at the door. A man led Timu to the military van, which was very big and covered in guns. Timu turned and gave her mother one last look, the last look she'll ever get of the outside world, but the soldier closed the door.
Chapter 3: Natsy Snait
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Spoiler
When the door finally opened again, the van was deep underground. The cavern was huge. Timu stepped out of the van and look around. Despite the graveness of the situation, Timu couldn't help be be amazed out how huge the cavern was.
"Welcome to the Grottoes," said a tall woman walking down some stairs before Timu, "I am Natsy Snait, the administrator of Grottco Utilities. As you know, we control the government and randomly select one adult citizen per day to be taken against their will to do labor for us down here. This is how we both provide energy for civilization and also keep control over the people."
Timu was surprised that she would outright say these terrible truths about the system she controls.
"You might be surprised that I would say these truths about my system, why, when I say it this way, it sounds downright dystopian doesn't it! But there's no other way to support society. It's not like you can ever get out of here. You will stay down here until you die, providing the world above with the power and food that it needs to survive. Complain all you want, but you will dig, and you will never escape."
Timu was very demoralized. She would never be able to escape here or see her family again. But Timu continued thinking. Timu became outraged! How could Natsy Snait do this to her people! "This is wrong," shouted Timu, "I will get out of here! And I will change the world! I'll find a better way!"
Natsy ignored her and pointed towards a doorway labeled Aptitude Testing. "Yeah yeah, I've heard it all before. The only way you'll get out of here is to finish your sentence, but no one has ever survived that long. Go to testing now. If you really want to get out of here, you better get ready to survive, or whatever."
Natsy didn't even look at Timu as she turned around and headed back up the stairs to her office. Timu watched her, gritting her teeth. Snait will pay for this. Finally, Timu looked away and headed through the doorway.
When the door finally opened again, the van was deep underground. The cavern was huge. Timu stepped out of the van and look around. Despite the graveness of the situation, Timu couldn't help be be amazed out how huge the cavern was.
"Welcome to the Grottoes," said a tall woman walking down some stairs before Timu, "I am Natsy Snait, the administrator of Grottco Utilities. As you know, we control the government and randomly select one adult citizen per day to be taken against their will to do labor for us down here. This is how we both provide energy for civilization and also keep control over the people."
Timu was surprised that she would outright say these terrible truths about the system she controls.
"You might be surprised that I would say these truths about my system, why, when I say it this way, it sounds downright dystopian doesn't it! But there's no other way to support society. It's not like you can ever get out of here. You will stay down here until you die, providing the world above with the power and food that it needs to survive. Complain all you want, but you will dig, and you will never escape."
Timu was very demoralized. She would never be able to escape here or see her family again. But Timu continued thinking. Timu became outraged! How could Natsy Snait do this to her people! "This is wrong," shouted Timu, "I will get out of here! And I will change the world! I'll find a better way!"
Natsy ignored her and pointed towards a doorway labeled Aptitude Testing. "Yeah yeah, I've heard it all before. The only way you'll get out of here is to finish your sentence, but no one has ever survived that long. Go to testing now. If you really want to get out of here, you better get ready to survive, or whatever."
Natsy didn't even look at Timu as she turned around and headed back up the stairs to her office. Timu watched her, gritting her teeth. Snait will pay for this. Finally, Timu looked away and headed through the doorway.
Chapter 4: Aptitude Testing
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SpoilerThe moment Timu walked into Aptitude Testing, there was a soldier sitting at the desk. She looked some details on the computer and remarked, "Only 18 years old? Pretty unlucky huh. That's the youngest you can be to get in here. That's less life you'll have had in the world above, and since you're younger, you're probably going to last a lot longer in the mines than those people."
She pointed down through the chamber, where Timu could see several other people, with ages ranging between their 40s and 80s lifting weights and exercising and being watched by other soldiers with clipboards. The eldest people were clearly having the most difficulty doing any physical work.
The soldier at the desk continued, "So, for the next week or so, you'll be doing that kind of stuff. We'll be watching you to make sure you're not slacking off, and also to record your progress. Try to make use of this time to get into best shape possible. It'll make things easier for you once you go to the mines. As added incentive, the better your scores are, we'll give you more bonuses, like, better food, or the occasional break day, and such."
Timu seemed confident that she'd be able to do well on the tests, but seemed uneasy, "What about those old people? Surely they need the bonuses more than I do?"
The soldier shrugged. "Yeah, but they're not very useful to us. The sooner they die off, the less resources we'll have to waste on them. It's young people like you that really keep the system going."
Timu replied indignantly, "Then why do you take old people at all?"
The soldier shook her head. "I'm not the one you should be asking those kind of questions to."
Timu was frustrated, "Well, can you at least tell me how long I'll be stuck down here? I know there's another way out that isn't dying!"
She pushed a few buttons on the computer and waved Timu dismissively, "Yeah, you're right, but, it doesn't matter. Nobody ever makes it that far. You're ready to go. Bye."
She pointed down through the chamber, where Timu could see several other people, with ages ranging between their 40s and 80s lifting weights and exercising and being watched by other soldiers with clipboards. The eldest people were clearly having the most difficulty doing any physical work.
The soldier at the desk continued, "So, for the next week or so, you'll be doing that kind of stuff. We'll be watching you to make sure you're not slacking off, and also to record your progress. Try to make use of this time to get into best shape possible. It'll make things easier for you once you go to the mines. As added incentive, the better your scores are, we'll give you more bonuses, like, better food, or the occasional break day, and such."
Timu seemed confident that she'd be able to do well on the tests, but seemed uneasy, "What about those old people? Surely they need the bonuses more than I do?"
The soldier shrugged. "Yeah, but they're not very useful to us. The sooner they die off, the less resources we'll have to waste on them. It's young people like you that really keep the system going."
Timu replied indignantly, "Then why do you take old people at all?"
The soldier shook her head. "I'm not the one you should be asking those kind of questions to."
Timu was frustrated, "Well, can you at least tell me how long I'll be stuck down here? I know there's another way out that isn't dying!"
She pushed a few buttons on the computer and waved Timu dismissively, "Yeah, you're right, but, it doesn't matter. Nobody ever makes it that far. You're ready to go. Bye."
Chapter 5: Final Evaluation
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SpoilerTimu's Aptitude Scores
Day 1: 28
Day 2: 30
Day 3: 68
Day 4: 149
Day 5: 150
Day 6: 149
Day 7: 150
Day 8: 150
Day 9: 150
"Impressive scores. You rank in the 98th percentile of 'guests' we've had so far, and 91st in those also 18 years old. A nice improvement around Day 3, let me guess, you did some training during sleeping hours?"
Timu nodded drowsily. She was much stronger than she was a week ago, but she was also very sore and very tired. The evaluator continued, "Okay, well, Make use of the bonuses wisely to make up for the sleep you've lost. You'll be getting the good food, and a deluxe meal every week. You can take one day off per month, and get access to the Youth lounge after you're done with your chamber for the day, and before sleeping hours. And as your final bonus, you get a shovel."
Timu shook her head. "I won't take them. Other people need these bonuses more than I do. I want to give them away."
The evaluator chuckled, "Oh, you're not the first one to have that attitude. You don't have to make use of your bonuses if you don't want to, but you're not allowed to give them to others. You can't, in fact. Anyways, go on. Your hole is waiting for you, shovel and food is inside. Just dig until the light on the wall indicates that you're done and then you can go to the lounge, if you want."
Timu entered the tunnel. The door closed behind her. The chamber was filled with dirt, and there was very little room for her to maneuver around. The only light was a large, glowing screen behind her, next to the door, which had a large #1, and a clock indicating the time.
Timu looked around. There was a shovel on the floor beside her, but, other than that and the screen, there was only dirt. What was she supposed to do with the dirt?
Day 1: 28
Day 2: 30
Day 3: 68
Day 4: 149
Day 5: 150
Day 6: 149
Day 7: 150
Day 8: 150
Day 9: 150
"Impressive scores. You rank in the 98th percentile of 'guests' we've had so far, and 91st in those also 18 years old. A nice improvement around Day 3, let me guess, you did some training during sleeping hours?"
Timu nodded drowsily. She was much stronger than she was a week ago, but she was also very sore and very tired. The evaluator continued, "Okay, well, Make use of the bonuses wisely to make up for the sleep you've lost. You'll be getting the good food, and a deluxe meal every week. You can take one day off per month, and get access to the Youth lounge after you're done with your chamber for the day, and before sleeping hours. And as your final bonus, you get a shovel."
Timu shook her head. "I won't take them. Other people need these bonuses more than I do. I want to give them away."
The evaluator chuckled, "Oh, you're not the first one to have that attitude. You don't have to make use of your bonuses if you don't want to, but you're not allowed to give them to others. You can't, in fact. Anyways, go on. Your hole is waiting for you, shovel and food is inside. Just dig until the light on the wall indicates that you're done and then you can go to the lounge, if you want."
Timu entered the tunnel. The door closed behind her. The chamber was filled with dirt, and there was very little room for her to maneuver around. The only light was a large, glowing screen behind her, next to the door, which had a large #1, and a clock indicating the time.
Timu looked around. There was a shovel on the floor beside her, but, other than that and the screen, there was only dirt. What was she supposed to do with the dirt?
Chapter 6: The Dirt
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Spoiler
She took a handful of the dirt. It was heavy to remove from the pile, but it got lighter in her hands. To her surprise, the handful was getting smaller, and was glowing. Then, the glow started fading, and so did the dust. Back in school, it was never really explained how exactly the power was being generating by Grottco underground. And though Timu still didn't know, she had a better idea of the technology behind the scenes. She took another handful, and watched it vanish. Somehow, her actions were turning the dirt into energy. And from that energy, Grottco somehow makes all the food, electricity and other things needed in the world above.
As she took more handfuls, she figured out she didn't even have to hold the handfuls. Simply taking handfuls and throwing them aside, or even dropping them, was enough to convert them into energy. Timu still didn't take the shovel.
Using just her hands, she would handle this whole pile, even if it takes her all day. She knew that they were watching her. Maybe her protest would make a difference, or maybe she was doing nothing but waste her own time and energy.
Four hours later, she sat down on the floor. The pile was only a little bit smaller than before and she was exhausted. She considered using the shovel. But Timu didn't need it. At least not yet. Mentally she told herself that she should never need to use it, but, maybe, it would be okay if she changed her mind.
A few minutes of resting later, she resumed her work. Hurling handful by handful aside, she worked her way an inch deeper into the pile. She wondered what would happen if she just stopped. They were watching her, but what could they do to make her keep working? What if she just sat here until she died, doing nothing for Grottco? They wanted her to die eventually anyway, why couldn't she just die now?
She rested again. There was no way she could do this all in one day. And then another pile the next day, and the next.
The screen behind her blinked. She turned and looked. In addition to the #1 and the clock, more information had appeared. There was an indicator of how much dirt she had dug already and how much dirt was remaining. A box marked consequences indicates that if she fails to finish a pile, a loved one above ground will suffer. Each day this happens, the consequences will be worse. From being fined to being executed. And most importantly, if Timu doesn't do her quota of labor, Grottco will find another, more horrible way to get it done anyway.
Timu had no choice. She continued to dig.
She took a handful of the dirt. It was heavy to remove from the pile, but it got lighter in her hands. To her surprise, the handful was getting smaller, and was glowing. Then, the glow started fading, and so did the dust. Back in school, it was never really explained how exactly the power was being generating by Grottco underground. And though Timu still didn't know, she had a better idea of the technology behind the scenes. She took another handful, and watched it vanish. Somehow, her actions were turning the dirt into energy. And from that energy, Grottco somehow makes all the food, electricity and other things needed in the world above.
As she took more handfuls, she figured out she didn't even have to hold the handfuls. Simply taking handfuls and throwing them aside, or even dropping them, was enough to convert them into energy. Timu still didn't take the shovel.
Using just her hands, she would handle this whole pile, even if it takes her all day. She knew that they were watching her. Maybe her protest would make a difference, or maybe she was doing nothing but waste her own time and energy.
Four hours later, she sat down on the floor. The pile was only a little bit smaller than before and she was exhausted. She considered using the shovel. But Timu didn't need it. At least not yet. Mentally she told herself that she should never need to use it, but, maybe, it would be okay if she changed her mind.
A few minutes of resting later, she resumed her work. Hurling handful by handful aside, she worked her way an inch deeper into the pile. She wondered what would happen if she just stopped. They were watching her, but what could they do to make her keep working? What if she just sat here until she died, doing nothing for Grottco? They wanted her to die eventually anyway, why couldn't she just die now?
She rested again. There was no way she could do this all in one day. And then another pile the next day, and the next.
The screen behind her blinked. She turned and looked. In addition to the #1 and the clock, more information had appeared. There was an indicator of how much dirt she had dug already and how much dirt was remaining. A box marked consequences indicates that if she fails to finish a pile, a loved one above ground will suffer. Each day this happens, the consequences will be worse. From being fined to being executed. And most importantly, if Timu doesn't do her quota of labor, Grottco will find another, more horrible way to get it done anyway.
Timu had no choice. She continued to dig.
Chapter 7: The Youth Lounge
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SpoilerAfter more hours of hard, grueling work, Timu eventually uncovered another door on the opposite side of the chamber from the screen. It was locked. Timu figured that it was just the next chamber, and had continued to dig.
Soon, there was only a thin layer of dust on the ground now. Timu was at this point just kicking and sweeping it around with her feet, which was enough to trigger the energy conversion. After a while, the screen beeped. The #1 was lit up quite prominently in green and some options had appeared. "Eat" and "Lounge" and "Sleep" were the only options, so she picked Eat. A tray of food suddenly appeared next to her shovel, which had laid untouched for the entire time. The food tasted pretty good. She dreaded to think what other diggers might have gotten for dinner.
When she was done, she pushed Lounge, and suddenly found herself teleported to a big room with red wallpaper and couches.
The others already in there all seemed to be in their early 20s or late teens, with the exception of someone with grey hair, but a well built body. One boy exclaimed, "Hey! You're new. Welcome to the youth lounge. So named because it's mostly just youths who get to go here. My name is Carvage. I'm on chamber 155."
The old man said that his name was Senarion, and that he was on chamber 421. Two people sitting next to each other introduced themselves as twins, Irene and Sam. Apparently, Sam got drafted without warning or a random pick because Irene didn't dig a pile one day.
Timu looked alarmed. "Yikes! I... didn't know that could happen."
Sam shrugged, "Irene didn't know either. But it's not her fault. I've been here for only a couple weeks less than her and... it's very hard for me too. She's on chamber 55, and i'm on 41."
The last girl, introduced herself as Celune. Celune... the name seemed very familiar to Timu. She had blondish brown hair and was very very pretty.
"You might have heard of me before... Princess Celune... chamber 12."
Timu had heard of Princess Celune! The royal family passed the ruling powers to Grottco long ago, but the family members are still referred to with the appropriate titles despite just being regular citizens. Timu's excitement was shortlived as she remembered that dire situation that everyone here was in. Dig until you die, and make the best of life in the meantime.
Timu sunk into a large sofa and listened to the others chat about their piles. Another girl teleported in. She greeted Timu, "Hi! I'm Aluza, I just finished Chamber 126. I haven't seen you before so you must have just finished Chamber 1! Well, welcome to the club I guess....." She took a seat in the corner and listened to Senarion describe the wild days of his youth, which the others here would never be able to experience for themselves.
Soon, there was only a thin layer of dust on the ground now. Timu was at this point just kicking and sweeping it around with her feet, which was enough to trigger the energy conversion. After a while, the screen beeped. The #1 was lit up quite prominently in green and some options had appeared. "Eat" and "Lounge" and "Sleep" were the only options, so she picked Eat. A tray of food suddenly appeared next to her shovel, which had laid untouched for the entire time. The food tasted pretty good. She dreaded to think what other diggers might have gotten for dinner.
When she was done, she pushed Lounge, and suddenly found herself teleported to a big room with red wallpaper and couches.
The others already in there all seemed to be in their early 20s or late teens, with the exception of someone with grey hair, but a well built body. One boy exclaimed, "Hey! You're new. Welcome to the youth lounge. So named because it's mostly just youths who get to go here. My name is Carvage. I'm on chamber 155."
The old man said that his name was Senarion, and that he was on chamber 421. Two people sitting next to each other introduced themselves as twins, Irene and Sam. Apparently, Sam got drafted without warning or a random pick because Irene didn't dig a pile one day.
Timu looked alarmed. "Yikes! I... didn't know that could happen."
Sam shrugged, "Irene didn't know either. But it's not her fault. I've been here for only a couple weeks less than her and... it's very hard for me too. She's on chamber 55, and i'm on 41."
The last girl, introduced herself as Celune. Celune... the name seemed very familiar to Timu. She had blondish brown hair and was very very pretty.
"You might have heard of me before... Princess Celune... chamber 12."
Timu had heard of Princess Celune! The royal family passed the ruling powers to Grottco long ago, but the family members are still referred to with the appropriate titles despite just being regular citizens. Timu's excitement was shortlived as she remembered that dire situation that everyone here was in. Dig until you die, and make the best of life in the meantime.
Timu sunk into a large sofa and listened to the others chat about their piles. Another girl teleported in. She greeted Timu, "Hi! I'm Aluza, I just finished Chamber 126. I haven't seen you before so you must have just finished Chamber 1! Well, welcome to the club I guess....." She took a seat in the corner and listened to Senarion describe the wild days of his youth, which the others here would never be able to experience for themselves.
Chapter 8: 100 days later
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SpoilerTimu checked the clock. 1 hour left until sleeping hour. About time to head to the lounge. 2 and a half chambers today. Pretty good progress. Massaging her hands, Timu looked down the tunnel. She could only see about 10 chambers down, since the only light would be from the screen in the chambers she was working on that day. Somewhere, far down the tunnel, the shovel would still be right where she left it, beside the locked door that leads to the main facility.
Taking note of the chamber number, 128, she punched the screen. As it shattered, Timu vanished, and reappeared in the youth lounge. Timu plopped comfortably on her favorite couch, and the Deluxe meal box landed in her lap a moment later.
"Stylish~" said Celune, scooting up next Timu.
"Hey hon~, looks like we got a cake!" Timu took the single fork provided with the cake and gave Celune a piece.
Celune chewed, "Chocolate... I love chocolate."
Timu giggled, "I love you! hehe! So, where did everyone else go? Bed already?"
Celune smiled, "Yeah, it's just us. I think we make it a bit too awkward when we're both here."
Timu nodded, "Mhm. I'd feel bad, but I think I've figured out a workaround."
Celune laughed, "Haha! Gonna punch a screen again?"
Timu calculated, "Not for this one! So, I'm almost to three chambers per day! Once I have three screens to work with, I could probably manipulate everyone else's schedule too!"
Celune worried, "Mess with other people's schedules? I don't think they would tolerate that. I'm pretty sure you're already pushing the line by sharing food with others!"
Timu recalled, "Well, I never would have started doing all this if Senarion didn't tell us about the Plan. He never saw anyone try it out, and... now he never will."
Celune sighed, "Oh... I miss Senarion."
Timu groaned, "Yeah... it's such a shame. But I've got to focus on the plan. They never stopped rulebreakers in the past, and they probably aren't going to stop me now."
Celune frowned, "But, changing other people's schedules, has that been done before?"
Timu hummed, "Loads of people have done it before. Why do you think there's even a lounge in the first place! What will really be hard is executing The Plan. But I'm not ready for that. But I will be eventually, and if they really want to stop me, then, they'll have to beg me to stop!"
Timu angrily devoured the remaining half of the cake in a single bite. Then, Celune and Timu made out for 50 minutes straight.
Taking note of the chamber number, 128, she punched the screen. As it shattered, Timu vanished, and reappeared in the youth lounge. Timu plopped comfortably on her favorite couch, and the Deluxe meal box landed in her lap a moment later.
"Stylish~" said Celune, scooting up next Timu.
"Hey hon~, looks like we got a cake!" Timu took the single fork provided with the cake and gave Celune a piece.
Celune chewed, "Chocolate... I love chocolate."
Timu giggled, "I love you! hehe! So, where did everyone else go? Bed already?"
Celune smiled, "Yeah, it's just us. I think we make it a bit too awkward when we're both here."
Timu nodded, "Mhm. I'd feel bad, but I think I've figured out a workaround."
Celune laughed, "Haha! Gonna punch a screen again?"
Timu calculated, "Not for this one! So, I'm almost to three chambers per day! Once I have three screens to work with, I could probably manipulate everyone else's schedule too!"
Celune worried, "Mess with other people's schedules? I don't think they would tolerate that. I'm pretty sure you're already pushing the line by sharing food with others!"
Timu recalled, "Well, I never would have started doing all this if Senarion didn't tell us about the Plan. He never saw anyone try it out, and... now he never will."
Celune sighed, "Oh... I miss Senarion."
Timu groaned, "Yeah... it's such a shame. But I've got to focus on the plan. They never stopped rulebreakers in the past, and they probably aren't going to stop me now."
Celune frowned, "But, changing other people's schedules, has that been done before?"
Timu hummed, "Loads of people have done it before. Why do you think there's even a lounge in the first place! What will really be hard is executing The Plan. But I'm not ready for that. But I will be eventually, and if they really want to stop me, then, they'll have to beg me to stop!"
Timu angrily devoured the remaining half of the cake in a single bite. Then, Celune and Timu made out for 50 minutes straight.
Chapter 9: The Plan
Show Content
Spoiler
The lit screens of chambers 893, 894, and 895 were too far away, and Timu had to rely on the glow of dirt being kicked up to see. It was a long walk, but Timu finally made it back to Chamber #1. She knelt to the ground and picked up the shovel. After 16 months, it was finally time to use it.
Timu started to head back, but stopped. She considered the door to the main facility. What if... there was an easier way? It couldn't hurt to check. She punched the door, and absolutely nothing happened. Just as she thought. It wasn't real.
She finally reached Chamber 895. Just a palmful of dirt before Chamber 896 would unlock. Everyone back in the lounge knew every detail of the Plan. If she failed today, then they will tell the next people, and they will tell the next people, and so on, until the next person strong enough is ready to improve the Plan.
She positioned the shovel carefully against the door to chamber 896. She pushed the button for sleep on chamber 894's screen. Normally, this would instantly send her to bed, but not this time. Timu destroyed the sleeping room. Then, she punched the screen of 893, shattering it. Normally, it would try to send her to the lounge and give her food simultaneously, but not this time. She already ate. Returning to 895, she squatted on the floor and got ready. She'd have less than a second for this last part. She took a deep breath and listened.
The clock on 895's screen counted down. Timu had changed the countdown to indicate when the sleeping room would be reset, rather than the end of the day, the time limit for digging out a chamber. "2 minutes left" the screen chimed.
Timu waited some more, until the screen began counting down individual seconds. "10 seconds left. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1."
And Timu grabbed the handful of dirt and hurled it at the screen. For the average digger, the dirt would fade away as it was lifted from the floor, but Timu was much faster than an average digger. The glowing dirt scattered over the screen and the wall around it. Timu hoped enough dirt had touched the screen in time.
The screen shone brighter than normal. And then, the entire screen vanished. The door to chamber 896 opened, and the shovel fell, landing with one half in each chamber. Timu looked through the hole that the screen had occupied. There was just one cable poking out of the wall, its frayed end no longer connected to the screen. She grabbed the cable and yanked it right out of the wall.
The door to chamber 895 and to 896 slammed shut. The chamber was completely dark. Timu, still holding the cable, got down the floor and felt around for the shovel. She grasped the handle of the shovel, and lifted it up.
It was the heaviest thing Timu had ever held. The weight of thousands of chambers of metal and dirt, even condensed into a virtual reality, was still nothing to sneeze at. The floor rose through her legs, through her torso, and up through her head until the entire tunnel was above her. She had finally done what strength alone could not to- break through walls that don't exist.
She was in the sleeping room again. A cable in one hand, and the other hand around a shovel inside a tunnel that had become intangible. The sleeping room of course, was completely dark and featureless. After all, you're supposed to be sleeping in it. Though Timu could not see how ridiculous the thing her hand was in looked, she knew that the people watching would be able to see.
This was the only part that Timu wasn't sure would work. Everything she just did was just to show what she was capable of. Now she had to see if they cared.
"Hello again! I have some new demands."
Though no one answered out loud, Timu heard the reply in her head anyway. "What is it this time? Another room you want to add to the lounge? Want to give everyone shovels? How come you didn't just ask us like those other times. What are you trying to prove?"
Timu waved her arms in what she hoped looked like a threatening manner. "This is bigger than schedule changes or food sharing. Though- that shovel thing is a good idea. But this time, I want out. Completely out. And if you don't take me out now... then I'll destroy the whole thing. I have the power to do so in my hands. No more dirt, no more power, nothing left for Grottco."
The reply: "You're that confident that the world can survive without us?"
Timu nodded. "Yes"
"No. The world needs us, and we need you. Put down the shovel."
Timu held the cable closer to her other hand. "Don't make me."
"Alright. So you really do know how it works. You win."
The lit screens of chambers 893, 894, and 895 were too far away, and Timu had to rely on the glow of dirt being kicked up to see. It was a long walk, but Timu finally made it back to Chamber #1. She knelt to the ground and picked up the shovel. After 16 months, it was finally time to use it.
Timu started to head back, but stopped. She considered the door to the main facility. What if... there was an easier way? It couldn't hurt to check. She punched the door, and absolutely nothing happened. Just as she thought. It wasn't real.
She finally reached Chamber 895. Just a palmful of dirt before Chamber 896 would unlock. Everyone back in the lounge knew every detail of the Plan. If she failed today, then they will tell the next people, and they will tell the next people, and so on, until the next person strong enough is ready to improve the Plan.
She positioned the shovel carefully against the door to chamber 896. She pushed the button for sleep on chamber 894's screen. Normally, this would instantly send her to bed, but not this time. Timu destroyed the sleeping room. Then, she punched the screen of 893, shattering it. Normally, it would try to send her to the lounge and give her food simultaneously, but not this time. She already ate. Returning to 895, she squatted on the floor and got ready. She'd have less than a second for this last part. She took a deep breath and listened.
The clock on 895's screen counted down. Timu had changed the countdown to indicate when the sleeping room would be reset, rather than the end of the day, the time limit for digging out a chamber. "2 minutes left" the screen chimed.
Timu waited some more, until the screen began counting down individual seconds. "10 seconds left. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1."
And Timu grabbed the handful of dirt and hurled it at the screen. For the average digger, the dirt would fade away as it was lifted from the floor, but Timu was much faster than an average digger. The glowing dirt scattered over the screen and the wall around it. Timu hoped enough dirt had touched the screen in time.
The screen shone brighter than normal. And then, the entire screen vanished. The door to chamber 896 opened, and the shovel fell, landing with one half in each chamber. Timu looked through the hole that the screen had occupied. There was just one cable poking out of the wall, its frayed end no longer connected to the screen. She grabbed the cable and yanked it right out of the wall.
The door to chamber 895 and to 896 slammed shut. The chamber was completely dark. Timu, still holding the cable, got down the floor and felt around for the shovel. She grasped the handle of the shovel, and lifted it up.
It was the heaviest thing Timu had ever held. The weight of thousands of chambers of metal and dirt, even condensed into a virtual reality, was still nothing to sneeze at. The floor rose through her legs, through her torso, and up through her head until the entire tunnel was above her. She had finally done what strength alone could not to- break through walls that don't exist.
She was in the sleeping room again. A cable in one hand, and the other hand around a shovel inside a tunnel that had become intangible. The sleeping room of course, was completely dark and featureless. After all, you're supposed to be sleeping in it. Though Timu could not see how ridiculous the thing her hand was in looked, she knew that the people watching would be able to see.
This was the only part that Timu wasn't sure would work. Everything she just did was just to show what she was capable of. Now she had to see if they cared.
"Hello again! I have some new demands."
Though no one answered out loud, Timu heard the reply in her head anyway. "What is it this time? Another room you want to add to the lounge? Want to give everyone shovels? How come you didn't just ask us like those other times. What are you trying to prove?"
Timu waved her arms in what she hoped looked like a threatening manner. "This is bigger than schedule changes or food sharing. Though- that shovel thing is a good idea. But this time, I want out. Completely out. And if you don't take me out now... then I'll destroy the whole thing. I have the power to do so in my hands. No more dirt, no more power, nothing left for Grottco."
The reply: "You're that confident that the world can survive without us?"
Timu nodded. "Yes"
"No. The world needs us, and we need you. Put down the shovel."
Timu held the cable closer to her other hand. "Don't make me."
"Alright. So you really do know how it works. You win."
Chapter 10: Stronger
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SpoilerTimu was launched out of the door to the tunnels, slamming into the wall across the hallway. She was back underground, in Grottco. She hadn't seen this hallway in over a year.
A technician looked up over a control panel. "Uh, sorry about that. We've never taken anyone out of there before."
Timu got back to her feet. "I'm fine. It didn't hurt at all. I want to visit Natsy Snait."
"She retired." said a voice behind Timu.
She turned around. A mean-faced man was standing there, with his hands behind his back. "I'm her son, Yuko Snait. I'm the administrator now. Timu, is it? Welcome back to the real world."
He held out his hand for her to shake. Timu looked at the hand, but didn't take it. "I want things to change. I'll shut down all of Grottco if I have to, but I'll settle for you just finding a different method to create energy than this...." Timu gestured towards the doorway she had been shot out of, "This... dimensional travesty."
Yuko shook his head. "I'm afraid not. This is definitely the most efficient balance between energy production and population control. We've done numerous tests."
Timu glared at him. "Don't make me use force."
Yuko ignored her threat, "Anyway, I'm afraid you're going to have to go back in there. Our laws say the only way you're allowed to leave is to die, or to reach the end of your tunnel. And sheesh, you were so close too. Only 128 more chambers and you would have been free! Legally free! But I'm afraid what you did was against the rules. You'll have to start all over again!"
Timu raised her fists. "You know how strong I am. I could take on all of Grottco."
Yuko laughed. "No you can't. You may be the first one to get out, but you're not that strong. I've seen people stronger than you. Several of my men can do you did in there... and better too!"
Timu tried to grab Yuko's throat, but Yuko grabbed her hand. "In fact, I could too."
Timu tried to punch Yuko in the face, but Yuko grabbed her other hand. "So you've punched hundreds of piles of dirt for a year or so, and now you're very strong. But I've been punching thousands of piles of fire all my life. And now, I'm the strongest."
Yuko squeezed his hands around Timu's fist, harder and harder. They felt hotter and hotter, and burst into flames. "Aughhh!!" shouted Timu!
Yuko grinned, "Doesn't it burn?"
He let go, and Timu dropped to the floor, desperately trying to put out the fires on her hand. "Now, uh, do you remember those consequences you've heard about? Normally we only do that if you don't dig up at least one chamber per day, which is, definitely not a problem for you anymore, but I think special exceptions to the rule can be made. Get ready to see some familiar faces in a week or so!"
Yuko kicked Timu through the doorway, which slammed shut behind her.
She was back in Chamber #1. There was a full pile of dirt here, she plunged her hands in it to cool the burning. It was okay she thought, after she calmed down. She'll just do the Plan again. In a little while, after these burns had healed, she would get the shovel again and break through the walls, and the destroy the whole system. And they wouldn't be able to stop her next time.
But then Timu looked at the floor again. They didn't give her a shovel. The Plan was now impossible.
A technician looked up over a control panel. "Uh, sorry about that. We've never taken anyone out of there before."
Timu got back to her feet. "I'm fine. It didn't hurt at all. I want to visit Natsy Snait."
"She retired." said a voice behind Timu.
She turned around. A mean-faced man was standing there, with his hands behind his back. "I'm her son, Yuko Snait. I'm the administrator now. Timu, is it? Welcome back to the real world."
He held out his hand for her to shake. Timu looked at the hand, but didn't take it. "I want things to change. I'll shut down all of Grottco if I have to, but I'll settle for you just finding a different method to create energy than this...." Timu gestured towards the doorway she had been shot out of, "This... dimensional travesty."
Yuko shook his head. "I'm afraid not. This is definitely the most efficient balance between energy production and population control. We've done numerous tests."
Timu glared at him. "Don't make me use force."
Yuko ignored her threat, "Anyway, I'm afraid you're going to have to go back in there. Our laws say the only way you're allowed to leave is to die, or to reach the end of your tunnel. And sheesh, you were so close too. Only 128 more chambers and you would have been free! Legally free! But I'm afraid what you did was against the rules. You'll have to start all over again!"
Timu raised her fists. "You know how strong I am. I could take on all of Grottco."
Yuko laughed. "No you can't. You may be the first one to get out, but you're not that strong. I've seen people stronger than you. Several of my men can do you did in there... and better too!"
Timu tried to grab Yuko's throat, but Yuko grabbed her hand. "In fact, I could too."
Timu tried to punch Yuko in the face, but Yuko grabbed her other hand. "So you've punched hundreds of piles of dirt for a year or so, and now you're very strong. But I've been punching thousands of piles of fire all my life. And now, I'm the strongest."
Yuko squeezed his hands around Timu's fist, harder and harder. They felt hotter and hotter, and burst into flames. "Aughhh!!" shouted Timu!
Yuko grinned, "Doesn't it burn?"
He let go, and Timu dropped to the floor, desperately trying to put out the fires on her hand. "Now, uh, do you remember those consequences you've heard about? Normally we only do that if you don't dig up at least one chamber per day, which is, definitely not a problem for you anymore, but I think special exceptions to the rule can be made. Get ready to see some familiar faces in a week or so!"
Yuko kicked Timu through the doorway, which slammed shut behind her.
She was back in Chamber #1. There was a full pile of dirt here, she plunged her hands in it to cool the burning. It was okay she thought, after she calmed down. She'll just do the Plan again. In a little while, after these burns had healed, she would get the shovel again and break through the walls, and the destroy the whole system. And they wouldn't be able to stop her next time.
But then Timu looked at the floor again. They didn't give her a shovel. The Plan was now impossible.
Chapter 11: Consequences
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SpoilerThough her wounds had not entirely healed, Timu punched through 40 chambers in the next 10 days. But on the last day, she only punched through one, and immediately went to the lounge.
When she appeared, she noticed some new doors in the main lounge room. Also, one wall had extended out considerably. Timu looked through some of the new doors, encountering an elderly woman who had rested there over night. "Good morning, I don't think we've met. I'm Timu!" said Timu.
"Ah, hello young lady... I've heard about you" said the woman, "Thank you for this new room.... it's much nicer than the old room i would nap in."
"Oh, you're welcome, though, I, I didn't ask for it this time. I haven't talk to them at all since they put me back in," Timu replied, confused.
"Really? You know, when I was your age, my father worked for Grottco. The way he described this place was much much worse than it is today. It's kids like you that have been making it better over the generations."
Timu nodded, "Yeah. I wish I knew that kind of information when I started, but at least I figured it out soon enough."
"Why, I think the original design for this place just had one huge endless pile of dirt that everyone would have to dig at without any breaks at all. Thank goodness Grottco was willing to make things a little more bearable to stop all the mayhem the strongest people would cause."
Timu shrugged. "Eh, but, not thank goodness that Grottco makes people come here in the first place."
The elderly woman nodded in agreement. A voice called out to her, "Ms. Greytail, it's time to get back to work."
Ms. Greytail sighed. "Alright, you take care now. I'll be back in a few hours, if you still want to chat. But I'll probably just go straight to napping."
Timu waved goodbye as the old woman disappeared. "Maybe someday, everyone will get the small piles of dirt that the weak people get now," Timu thought, "Wait no- maybe someday, no one will get any piles of dirt at all! And, we'll all be free! And stuff!"
Timu continued exploring the expanded lounge, but making sure to check the main room frequently. When Timu finally spotted Celune in there, Timu ran over and hugged her. "Cely, hey! They've added 32 rooms to the lounge! They even put maps up on some of the walls, it's so huge now!"
Celune smiled, "Wow! That's pretty great news! But I thought you were expecting new people today, not new rooms!"
Timu looked uneasy, "Yeah.. that's the problem. I had nothing to do with this bigger lounge, and I am expecting someone I know, though I'm not sure exactly who. But, I'm thinking, maybe, it's going to be a lot more than one person coming in, and that's why they had to make the lounge bigger."
Celune gasped, "Oh no..."
"I don't know what to expect at this point..."
Timu heard the sound of someone teleporting in. "Hello," said the newcomer, and Timu's heart began pounding faster. She released Celune and turned around. Brian Smoke was there, swooshing his gorgeous hair, with an amazing beaming smile on his inconceivably handsome face. "Timu, long time no see. It's good to see you again. How about that date you owe me?"
When she appeared, she noticed some new doors in the main lounge room. Also, one wall had extended out considerably. Timu looked through some of the new doors, encountering an elderly woman who had rested there over night. "Good morning, I don't think we've met. I'm Timu!" said Timu.
"Ah, hello young lady... I've heard about you" said the woman, "Thank you for this new room.... it's much nicer than the old room i would nap in."
"Oh, you're welcome, though, I, I didn't ask for it this time. I haven't talk to them at all since they put me back in," Timu replied, confused.
"Really? You know, when I was your age, my father worked for Grottco. The way he described this place was much much worse than it is today. It's kids like you that have been making it better over the generations."
Timu nodded, "Yeah. I wish I knew that kind of information when I started, but at least I figured it out soon enough."
"Why, I think the original design for this place just had one huge endless pile of dirt that everyone would have to dig at without any breaks at all. Thank goodness Grottco was willing to make things a little more bearable to stop all the mayhem the strongest people would cause."
Timu shrugged. "Eh, but, not thank goodness that Grottco makes people come here in the first place."
The elderly woman nodded in agreement. A voice called out to her, "Ms. Greytail, it's time to get back to work."
Ms. Greytail sighed. "Alright, you take care now. I'll be back in a few hours, if you still want to chat. But I'll probably just go straight to napping."
Timu waved goodbye as the old woman disappeared. "Maybe someday, everyone will get the small piles of dirt that the weak people get now," Timu thought, "Wait no- maybe someday, no one will get any piles of dirt at all! And, we'll all be free! And stuff!"
Timu continued exploring the expanded lounge, but making sure to check the main room frequently. When Timu finally spotted Celune in there, Timu ran over and hugged her. "Cely, hey! They've added 32 rooms to the lounge! They even put maps up on some of the walls, it's so huge now!"
Celune smiled, "Wow! That's pretty great news! But I thought you were expecting new people today, not new rooms!"
Timu looked uneasy, "Yeah.. that's the problem. I had nothing to do with this bigger lounge, and I am expecting someone I know, though I'm not sure exactly who. But, I'm thinking, maybe, it's going to be a lot more than one person coming in, and that's why they had to make the lounge bigger."
Celune gasped, "Oh no..."
"I don't know what to expect at this point..."
Timu heard the sound of someone teleporting in. "Hello," said the newcomer, and Timu's heart began pounding faster. She released Celune and turned around. Brian Smoke was there, swooshing his gorgeous hair, with an amazing beaming smile on his inconceivably handsome face. "Timu, long time no see. It's good to see you again. How about that date you owe me?"
RE: Timu's Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Novel - Reyweld - 02-03-2016
I read it all and it was very good! 10/10, would read more.
RE: Timu's Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Novel - Crowstone - 02-03-2016
Thanks Reyweld :3
Only two chapters right now. I wrote them yesterday but didn't post them. gonna work some more now! 2/2/2016
Chapter 12: The Love Triangle
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SpoilerBrian Smoke lifted Timu up in his sensual, descriptive arms and kissed her on the cheek with his lips, I think. "I'll be honest, I was a little upset when I found out I was being sent down here but I thought I'd look on the bright side! I always missed you, and, maybe we can try again? I like how buff you've gotten..."
Timu stuttered, "Br-brian, we, we never really started though? A-and besides... I, I have someone..."
Brian set Timu down. Her heart chilled as his tactily unique hands disconnected from her skin. "Oh... I see."
Timu awkwardly held Celune's hand, "Brian,, this is, this is Celune. My guh-g-girlfriend.... and uh, this is brian smoke, my high school crush..."
Celune smiled and waved, "Hi! Nice to meet you."
Timu warbled, "wu...wuu..."
Brian bowed, his smoky hair billowing to the ground, "The princess..."
Celune asked, "so, Brian, Timu was wondering... do you know how many people got drafted?"
"At least a hundred. Basically, Timu, all your classmates from school," Brian shrugged, "I mean, not all of them have been taken yet. Only so many people can go through training at the same time, but, right now you can expect a dozen more people today, maybe 30 in the next week, but by the end of the month, probably everyone will be here."
Timu was stunned. That was so many people... what are the public going to be thinking of this? Drafting an ENTIRE school? "How... how do Grottco expect to get away with this? Won't people think it's suspicious?"
Brian was solemn, "Grottco controls everything. There are definitely people upset, but they aren't organized or have enough knowledge of what's going on to act appropriately. So, last I saw, life goes on as usual."
Celune thanked Brian, "It's bad news, but it's important that we know. Thank you, Brian, it's very helpful. On a complete change of topic, I like you. You're weird but, in a good way."
Brian was pleased, "That's very true! I think I'm weird too. Sometimes when I look in a mirror, I don't know if that's my reflection looking back at me! By the way, do we get to shower in this place? I don't want to lose my trademark, questionable look."
Celune turned to Timu, "Oh, Timu! You must get them to add showers! Even if Brian is the only person who actually needs it!"
Since the diggers automatically became clean after any teleportation, Timu never found that necessary, but nonetheless she said, "Yeah! Yeah, anything for you Brian."
Brian probably winked, "Thanks you two!"
Timu and Celune both swooned.
Timu stuttered, "Br-brian, we, we never really started though? A-and besides... I, I have someone..."
Brian set Timu down. Her heart chilled as his tactily unique hands disconnected from her skin. "Oh... I see."
Timu awkwardly held Celune's hand, "Brian,, this is, this is Celune. My guh-g-girlfriend.... and uh, this is brian smoke, my high school crush..."
Celune smiled and waved, "Hi! Nice to meet you."
Timu warbled, "wu...wuu..."
Brian bowed, his smoky hair billowing to the ground, "The princess..."
Celune asked, "so, Brian, Timu was wondering... do you know how many people got drafted?"
"At least a hundred. Basically, Timu, all your classmates from school," Brian shrugged, "I mean, not all of them have been taken yet. Only so many people can go through training at the same time, but, right now you can expect a dozen more people today, maybe 30 in the next week, but by the end of the month, probably everyone will be here."
Timu was stunned. That was so many people... what are the public going to be thinking of this? Drafting an ENTIRE school? "How... how do Grottco expect to get away with this? Won't people think it's suspicious?"
Brian was solemn, "Grottco controls everything. There are definitely people upset, but they aren't organized or have enough knowledge of what's going on to act appropriately. So, last I saw, life goes on as usual."
Celune thanked Brian, "It's bad news, but it's important that we know. Thank you, Brian, it's very helpful. On a complete change of topic, I like you. You're weird but, in a good way."
Brian was pleased, "That's very true! I think I'm weird too. Sometimes when I look in a mirror, I don't know if that's my reflection looking back at me! By the way, do we get to shower in this place? I don't want to lose my trademark, questionable look."
Celune turned to Timu, "Oh, Timu! You must get them to add showers! Even if Brian is the only person who actually needs it!"
Since the diggers automatically became clean after any teleportation, Timu never found that necessary, but nonetheless she said, "Yeah! Yeah, anything for you Brian."
Brian probably winked, "Thanks you two!"
Timu and Celune both swooned.
Chapter 13: Team Brian
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SpoilerOver the following month, more and more people joined the ranks of Timu and the others in the lounges. Timu recognized most of them, but only a few had she even interacted with. Most of the 19 and 20 year olds from Timu's high school grade were quite bitter that they had drafted to this miserable place just because of some careless girl that they don't even know.
Since conflict is unproductive between diggers, these people kept their hostility to passive unfriendliness. Whenever Timu would come to the lounge to talk about her ideas for escaping, they would all ignore her and go to another room.
But during one weekly meeting...
Timu scooted the last chair into the circle and sat down in it. "Hey everyone, thanks for remembering to come. How have you been holding up the past week? Let's start with you, hon!"
Celune smiled, "Hey! I'm feeling a bit stronger. I don't think I'm ready to take on more than one pile a day, but today I finished my pile in under 5 hours!"
Everyone clapped. Even the smallest achievements were noteworthy and spirits must remain high.
Irene spoke next, "I'm continuing practicing with throwing dust at screens. I can hit the screen in my current chamber consistently but i still can't quite make the previous chamber's screen yet. I'm sure it's possible though."
Chariny was a friend around Timu's age who was drafted a little under a year ago. "I'm on chamber 967 now. Not much else to say about that!"
Diane had only been here for a month, but already she knew more about the technology at work here than anyone else. "That's great progress from everyone! I've thought more about the designs for a tunnel elevator, and I definitely think it's more viable than-"
Suddenly, a group of diggers burst in through the door. More and more crowded into the room. It was a mob. They began chanting, "Down with Timu! Down with Timu!"
After about ten seconds they gradually stopped. And just kind of stood around silently, waiting for Timu to respond.
Timu was thinking carefully and finally said, "Heyya guys. How.... were your days?"
No one answered. Undoubtedly, all of them were expecting some sort of leader to speak up for them. A couple of diggers murmured quietly with each other, "Who was the one who organized this?" "I dunno, Steve was the one who told me, but I dunno who told him." Someone coughed. "Who's Steve?"
No one was sure quite what happened next, because Brian stood up. "That's correct! Down with Timu!"
Timu looked quite surprised.
Brian pointed his mesmerizing finger at Timu. "You're very problematic! Your mistakes brought all of us here, and you have no place being our leader. Instead, it should be me! Yes! My progress for today was............ I'm in charge now! Team Brian everyone!"
Several people in the crowd cheered. "Yeah! Team Brian!" "Whoo! Team Brian all the way!" "Down with Timu!" "I'm so glad Brian is the leader, I always imagined that he was charismatic." "Seriously, who's Steve?" "I can't think of anyone who' would be a better leader than Brian!" "That's funny, cause I can't think of Brian in general!" "I like Brian!" "Can I go now?" "Team Brian!" "I think Team Smoke is a better name!" were just some of the things said by the crowd at that time.
Brian waved his hands for silence. "Okay, everyone. Welcome to Team Brian. As new leader, my first request is that... we move to the biggest room! Follow me!"
Brian moved through the crowd and out the door, and the crowd thinned as it followed him slowly out the room. Everyone sitting down in the circle with Timu remained seated, except Diane who was holding the door open. "Aren't you guys coming?" she asked them.
"Honestly, I'm sort of confused..." said Chariny.
Diane laughed, "Brian just recruited everyone into our club! Let's go! Team Brian!"
The small club followed Diane. As she was leaving, Timu turned and looked sadly back at the chairs. Then she smiled. After picking up her favorite couch, she ran to catch back up with the main group.
Since conflict is unproductive between diggers, these people kept their hostility to passive unfriendliness. Whenever Timu would come to the lounge to talk about her ideas for escaping, they would all ignore her and go to another room.
But during one weekly meeting...
Timu scooted the last chair into the circle and sat down in it. "Hey everyone, thanks for remembering to come. How have you been holding up the past week? Let's start with you, hon!"
Celune smiled, "Hey! I'm feeling a bit stronger. I don't think I'm ready to take on more than one pile a day, but today I finished my pile in under 5 hours!"
Everyone clapped. Even the smallest achievements were noteworthy and spirits must remain high.
Irene spoke next, "I'm continuing practicing with throwing dust at screens. I can hit the screen in my current chamber consistently but i still can't quite make the previous chamber's screen yet. I'm sure it's possible though."
Chariny was a friend around Timu's age who was drafted a little under a year ago. "I'm on chamber 967 now. Not much else to say about that!"
Diane had only been here for a month, but already she knew more about the technology at work here than anyone else. "That's great progress from everyone! I've thought more about the designs for a tunnel elevator, and I definitely think it's more viable than-"
Suddenly, a group of diggers burst in through the door. More and more crowded into the room. It was a mob. They began chanting, "Down with Timu! Down with Timu!"
After about ten seconds they gradually stopped. And just kind of stood around silently, waiting for Timu to respond.
Timu was thinking carefully and finally said, "Heyya guys. How.... were your days?"
No one answered. Undoubtedly, all of them were expecting some sort of leader to speak up for them. A couple of diggers murmured quietly with each other, "Who was the one who organized this?" "I dunno, Steve was the one who told me, but I dunno who told him." Someone coughed. "Who's Steve?"
No one was sure quite what happened next, because Brian stood up. "That's correct! Down with Timu!"
Timu looked quite surprised.
Brian pointed his mesmerizing finger at Timu. "You're very problematic! Your mistakes brought all of us here, and you have no place being our leader. Instead, it should be me! Yes! My progress for today was............ I'm in charge now! Team Brian everyone!"
Several people in the crowd cheered. "Yeah! Team Brian!" "Whoo! Team Brian all the way!" "Down with Timu!" "I'm so glad Brian is the leader, I always imagined that he was charismatic." "Seriously, who's Steve?" "I can't think of anyone who' would be a better leader than Brian!" "That's funny, cause I can't think of Brian in general!" "I like Brian!" "Can I go now?" "Team Brian!" "I think Team Smoke is a better name!" were just some of the things said by the crowd at that time.
Brian waved his hands for silence. "Okay, everyone. Welcome to Team Brian. As new leader, my first request is that... we move to the biggest room! Follow me!"
Brian moved through the crowd and out the door, and the crowd thinned as it followed him slowly out the room. Everyone sitting down in the circle with Timu remained seated, except Diane who was holding the door open. "Aren't you guys coming?" she asked them.
"Honestly, I'm sort of confused..." said Chariny.
Diane laughed, "Brian just recruited everyone into our club! Let's go! Team Brian!"
The small club followed Diane. As she was leaving, Timu turned and looked sadly back at the chairs. Then she smiled. After picking up her favorite couch, she ran to catch back up with the main group.
RE: Timu's Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Novel - Crowstone - 02-03-2016
Chapter 14: Team Celune
Show Content
SpoilerCelune touched Timu's arm. "I know you're not really allowed to be vocal during the meeting, but... I was wondering, are you really okay with Brian taking over being in charge?"
Timu nodded, "Yeah, I welcome it. Everyone likes him better, and the most important thing is that everyone is working together."
Celune smiled, "That's good! But, surely you miss having some say in things?"
Timu chirped, "Hm! Yeah, a little bit, but everyone already says what I been meaning to say! Most of the people at the meetings don't say anything anyway! I mean, if I really need anything said, I just tell you and then you tell everyone else!"
"Yeah, that's true. Um," Celune looked a little sad, "Timu... about Brian... you still like him don't you? The way you look at him... you never looked at me that way."
Timu laughed nervously, "Well, in, in my defense, no one really looks at Brian the same way as.."
Celune let go of Timu, "Timu. You know that's not what I mean."
Timu leaned back in the chair. "Yeah. I do. But, I just... don't know how to say it."
Timu shivered. Celune took her hand, "Timu... it's okay. I understand! I really understand! But, it can't go on like this. I'll tell Brian for you."
Timu looked up at Celune, "You don't have to... .... okay, yeah, you do. But! What's the point, the team doesn't like me! So! It, doesn't matter, does it? I'd much rather still be with you. But, if you really don't want to be with me then..... that's, oh... I understand."
Celune looked confused.
Timu smiled, "Celune... I get it! You... you want to be with Brian!"
Celune shouted, "No! I didn't mean that! But! Yeah. I do too. But! Just so we're clear that wasn't why I..."
Timu squeezed Celune's hand. "It's alright. It's better this way isn't it? I'm not mad, I'm a little sad, but most of all I'm happy! I'm happy that it can work out. It's perfect."
Celune released Timu's hand. "Okay. I. Alright! This, it's good! For us! But! Like, how do you know that Brian, how... would he be okay with this too?"
Timu shrugged, "I dunno! Go find out!"
Celune sat up, "But... what if?"
Timu laughed, "Don't worry about it!"
"okayyy!!!" said Celune, skipping out of the room.
Once Celune was out of sight, Timu sighed smiling. "I'm rooting for you," she whispered.
Timu nodded, "Yeah, I welcome it. Everyone likes him better, and the most important thing is that everyone is working together."
Celune smiled, "That's good! But, surely you miss having some say in things?"
Timu chirped, "Hm! Yeah, a little bit, but everyone already says what I been meaning to say! Most of the people at the meetings don't say anything anyway! I mean, if I really need anything said, I just tell you and then you tell everyone else!"
"Yeah, that's true. Um," Celune looked a little sad, "Timu... about Brian... you still like him don't you? The way you look at him... you never looked at me that way."
Timu laughed nervously, "Well, in, in my defense, no one really looks at Brian the same way as.."
Celune let go of Timu, "Timu. You know that's not what I mean."
Timu leaned back in the chair. "Yeah. I do. But, I just... don't know how to say it."
Timu shivered. Celune took her hand, "Timu... it's okay. I understand! I really understand! But, it can't go on like this. I'll tell Brian for you."
Timu looked up at Celune, "You don't have to... .... okay, yeah, you do. But! What's the point, the team doesn't like me! So! It, doesn't matter, does it? I'd much rather still be with you. But, if you really don't want to be with me then..... that's, oh... I understand."
Celune looked confused.
Timu smiled, "Celune... I get it! You... you want to be with Brian!"
Celune shouted, "No! I didn't mean that! But! Yeah. I do too. But! Just so we're clear that wasn't why I..."
Timu squeezed Celune's hand. "It's alright. It's better this way isn't it? I'm not mad, I'm a little sad, but most of all I'm happy! I'm happy that it can work out. It's perfect."
Celune released Timu's hand. "Okay. I. Alright! This, it's good! For us! But! Like, how do you know that Brian, how... would he be okay with this too?"
Timu shrugged, "I dunno! Go find out!"
Celune sat up, "But... what if?"
Timu laughed, "Don't worry about it!"
"okayyy!!!" said Celune, skipping out of the room.
Once Celune was out of sight, Timu sighed smiling. "I'm rooting for you," she whispered.
Chapter 15: Team Timu
Show Content
SpoilerBrian stepped out of the shower, water dripping to the floor from his dark light skin, the steam conveniently covering something. Brian dried off with a towel while asking Celune, "Like what you see?"
Celune blushed furiously.
Brian put on a pair of clothes and looked quizzically at her. "Hey Celune.... Did you like what you saw?"
Celune blinked a couple of times and said, "What?"
Brian groaned, "Never mind, don't worry bout it babe."
Celune rubbed her nose. "Um..... I got distracted."
Brian sat down next to her, embracing her in his arms in an incomprehensible way. "What's up?"
Celune scratched her head, "Um. We're having a meeting."
"Yo" "Sup" "I think I saw his butt" "We're here too" were said by four of many people gathered in the shower room.
Chariny stepped forward. "Hey Brian, Celune, as you probably guessed, I reached Chamber 1024!"
Celune nodded. "Yup! I guessed that!"
Brian shouted, "WAIT! Before we go any further, uh, did ANY of you see anything you liked?"
The general consensus was "No, not really"
Brian sighed disappointed, "Alright then. Okay, uh, just to review, does everyone know what they're doing? Let's get into a line and check with each of you one by one!"
The crowd of young 20-somethings gathered into a long line. Brian and Celune went down the line, who was Chariny.
Chariny looked blankly at Brian. "Um. Do I really have to...?"
Celune shouted, "Yes! You do! That's the point of reviewing! Everyone needs to!"
"Alright! Understood!" stated Chariny, "I'm going to finish Chamber 1024!"
Brian gave a thumbs up or two, and Celune turned to the next person, a girl named Beth.
She stated proudly, "All I have to do is just kinda be here!"
Brian gave Beth a look. Beth tried to return it. "Alright! Not everyone needs to do this!" Brian announced, "Everyone whose role in the plan is to basically do nothing, go stand over there!"
64 diggers got out of line and gathered at the tables in the indicated part of the room. "Or sit. That's fine too. Good work guys!" Brian joked.
Someone said, "Yeah! We did it! Team Brian!"
Several of the diggers including Celune laughed. "Alright, haha, that's enough," she continued, "Okay, your turn."
The next person in line was Jerem, and he said, "I ate a shovel!"
Celune gave a look of approval and moved to the next person. One by one, the rest of the crowd explained what they did to prepare for the plan, and what they would do while it was in action.
Chariny would dig out Chamber 1024.
The shovel eaters would all gather in the shower.
The bedroom breaker task force would ensure the Sleep Rooms would be destroyed.
The oldest digger would sleep.
Diane had organized her builders.
Irene and the others have three miles of cable prepared.
Brian would do his thing.
64 diggers would sit back and take it easy.
Team Timu was in position.
They were not watching.
The shovel would break.
And then Chariny dug out Chamber 1024.
Celune blushed furiously.
Brian put on a pair of clothes and looked quizzically at her. "Hey Celune.... Did you like what you saw?"
Celune blinked a couple of times and said, "What?"
Brian groaned, "Never mind, don't worry bout it babe."
Celune rubbed her nose. "Um..... I got distracted."
Brian sat down next to her, embracing her in his arms in an incomprehensible way. "What's up?"
Celune scratched her head, "Um. We're having a meeting."
"Yo" "Sup" "I think I saw his butt" "We're here too" were said by four of many people gathered in the shower room.
Chariny stepped forward. "Hey Brian, Celune, as you probably guessed, I reached Chamber 1024!"
Celune nodded. "Yup! I guessed that!"
Brian shouted, "WAIT! Before we go any further, uh, did ANY of you see anything you liked?"
The general consensus was "No, not really"
Brian sighed disappointed, "Alright then. Okay, uh, just to review, does everyone know what they're doing? Let's get into a line and check with each of you one by one!"
The crowd of young 20-somethings gathered into a long line. Brian and Celune went down the line, who was Chariny.
Chariny looked blankly at Brian. "Um. Do I really have to...?"
Celune shouted, "Yes! You do! That's the point of reviewing! Everyone needs to!"
"Alright! Understood!" stated Chariny, "I'm going to finish Chamber 1024!"
Brian gave a thumbs up or two, and Celune turned to the next person, a girl named Beth.
She stated proudly, "All I have to do is just kinda be here!"
Brian gave Beth a look. Beth tried to return it. "Alright! Not everyone needs to do this!" Brian announced, "Everyone whose role in the plan is to basically do nothing, go stand over there!"
64 diggers got out of line and gathered at the tables in the indicated part of the room. "Or sit. That's fine too. Good work guys!" Brian joked.
Someone said, "Yeah! We did it! Team Brian!"
Several of the diggers including Celune laughed. "Alright, haha, that's enough," she continued, "Okay, your turn."
The next person in line was Jerem, and he said, "I ate a shovel!"
Celune gave a look of approval and moved to the next person. One by one, the rest of the crowd explained what they did to prepare for the plan, and what they would do while it was in action.
Chariny would dig out Chamber 1024.
The shovel eaters would all gather in the shower.
The bedroom breaker task force would ensure the Sleep Rooms would be destroyed.
The oldest digger would sleep.
Diane had organized her builders.
Irene and the others have three miles of cable prepared.
Brian would do his thing.
64 diggers would sit back and take it easy.
Team Timu was in position.
They were not watching.
The shovel would break.
And then Chariny dug out Chamber 1024.
Chapter 16: The Breakthrough
Show Content
SpoilerThe chamber screen shouted a prerecorded message at Chariny.
"You did it! You achieved what no one else has done before- reach the end of your tunnel! 1024 chambers and 1024 days ago, you were drafted to dig, and you have reached the legal end of your sentence! You are now free to go! Please prepare for freedom!"
The metal wall was bare, oddly jarring to Chariny, who was used to there being another door and another door, to the next chamber and the next. But she told herself to resume focus.
"Please prepare for freedom!" the chamber screen repeated.
Chariny clawed at the metal wall. Nothing really happened
"Please prepare for freedom!" the chamber screen repeated again!
Chariny was already finding it annoying. She struck the wall again and again.
"Please prepare for freedom!"
Chariny smiled. The wall had a dent in it. Keep going, she told herself.
"Please prepare for freedom!"
A chunk of metal clanged to the floor. Chariny peered through the hole in the wall. There wasn't anything out there.
The chamber screen was probably still yelling at her, but she had completely tuned it out by now. She reached into the gap and tried to wrench it open wider.
She grunted and strained. The crack got larger and larger. The finally, she yanked hard, bringing down a rended metal panel that made up half the wall to the ground. Scraps of metal littered the floor behind her and she continued working at the wall, tearing it down to reveal the emptiness beyond her tunnel.
She stepped out of bounds. It was crowded back there and hard to move. Barely enough space. But it was good enough for now. Chariny didn't quite understand what was happening, but Diane had told her enough of what to expect. Now she just had to wait.
She looked down the tunnel. Months of work, hours and hours of digging. The whole tunnel gradually lit up. She watched others dig their piles, and move on to the next, die, and dissappear, and newbies come in, start over. She saw an enormous pile of dirt, gradually grow into a smaller pile, and then a set of piles. People who used to work together, and people who now dug alone. The system rearranging and improving. Dust vanishing, dust appearing. Chariny could see where the energy went when dirt disappeared. She watched generations of diggers punch screens, destroy screens, pull cables, and get trapped behind doors. Shovels abandoned and shovels retrieved, snapped by hand, stuck in doors. Layers and layers of tunnels lifted. Closer and closer to a plan that worked. She saw Timu leave, and she saw Timu come back. Chariny saw her successors, who reached chamber 1024 and ceased to be. She saw the newest draftee stare at their pile and cry. She saw tunnels and tunnels, rising upwards, and then finally, the door of chamber 1024 closed and its screen went dark.
Chariny stepped back out into Chamber 1024. "Hm," she wondered out loud, "I wonder if any of that blurry stuff had any significance."
There was a knocking at the door. "Hey! It worked, I think! I can't see anything though, it's very dark in here," Chariny answered.
"Step back! I'm gonna open the door!"
Timu smashed the door down. Behind her, 6 rebels cheered. Timu stepped in, her smile growing bigger and bigger.
Chariny hugged her, asking, "We did it?"
"We did it!" said Timu, hugging back.
They let go. Timu turned and looked at her team. "We did it!!!"
"Yup!"
Timu turned back to Chariny. Chariny was smiled back.
"We did it!!!!!!!!!"
Timu jumped around. "We did it, we did it! We did it!!" she repeated, "OmGGGGGGGGGGG WE DID IT"
THEY DID IT!
"You did it! You achieved what no one else has done before- reach the end of your tunnel! 1024 chambers and 1024 days ago, you were drafted to dig, and you have reached the legal end of your sentence! You are now free to go! Please prepare for freedom!"
The metal wall was bare, oddly jarring to Chariny, who was used to there being another door and another door, to the next chamber and the next. But she told herself to resume focus.
"Please prepare for freedom!" the chamber screen repeated.
Chariny clawed at the metal wall. Nothing really happened
"Please prepare for freedom!" the chamber screen repeated again!
Chariny was already finding it annoying. She struck the wall again and again.
"Please prepare for freedom!"
Chariny smiled. The wall had a dent in it. Keep going, she told herself.
"Please prepare for freedom!"
A chunk of metal clanged to the floor. Chariny peered through the hole in the wall. There wasn't anything out there.
The chamber screen was probably still yelling at her, but she had completely tuned it out by now. She reached into the gap and tried to wrench it open wider.
She grunted and strained. The crack got larger and larger. The finally, she yanked hard, bringing down a rended metal panel that made up half the wall to the ground. Scraps of metal littered the floor behind her and she continued working at the wall, tearing it down to reveal the emptiness beyond her tunnel.
She stepped out of bounds. It was crowded back there and hard to move. Barely enough space. But it was good enough for now. Chariny didn't quite understand what was happening, but Diane had told her enough of what to expect. Now she just had to wait.
She looked down the tunnel. Months of work, hours and hours of digging. The whole tunnel gradually lit up. She watched others dig their piles, and move on to the next, die, and dissappear, and newbies come in, start over. She saw an enormous pile of dirt, gradually grow into a smaller pile, and then a set of piles. People who used to work together, and people who now dug alone. The system rearranging and improving. Dust vanishing, dust appearing. Chariny could see where the energy went when dirt disappeared. She watched generations of diggers punch screens, destroy screens, pull cables, and get trapped behind doors. Shovels abandoned and shovels retrieved, snapped by hand, stuck in doors. Layers and layers of tunnels lifted. Closer and closer to a plan that worked. She saw Timu leave, and she saw Timu come back. Chariny saw her successors, who reached chamber 1024 and ceased to be. She saw the newest draftee stare at their pile and cry. She saw tunnels and tunnels, rising upwards, and then finally, the door of chamber 1024 closed and its screen went dark.
Chariny stepped back out into Chamber 1024. "Hm," she wondered out loud, "I wonder if any of that blurry stuff had any significance."
There was a knocking at the door. "Hey! It worked, I think! I can't see anything though, it's very dark in here," Chariny answered.
"Step back! I'm gonna open the door!"
Timu smashed the door down. Behind her, 6 rebels cheered. Timu stepped in, her smile growing bigger and bigger.
Chariny hugged her, asking, "We did it?"
"We did it!" said Timu, hugging back.
They let go. Timu turned and looked at her team. "We did it!!!"
"Yup!"
Timu turned back to Chariny. Chariny was smiled back.
"We did it!!!!!!!!!"
Timu jumped around. "We did it, we did it! We did it!!" she repeated, "OmGGGGGGGGGGG WE DID IT"
THEY DID IT!
RE: Timu's Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Novel - Reyweld - 02-03-2016
Eagerly looking forward to more!
Show Content
Spoiler
Brian. No. Bad Brian.
((The firebender guy is going to woop some butts! Hype!
Also, my guess for the future is that either Brian is going to be taken out of the picture, or Timu x Celune x Brian. Although, after that shower scene, I don't know how to think of Brian...))
Quote:Brian dried off with a towel while asking Celune, "Like what you see?"
Brian. No. Bad Brian.
((The firebender guy is going to woop some butts! Hype!
Also, my guess for the future is that either Brian is going to be taken out of the picture, or Timu x Celune x Brian. Although, after that shower scene, I don't know how to think of Brian...))
RE: Timu's Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Novel - ICan'tGiveCredit - 02-04-2016
Brian needs to burn.
RE: Timu's Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Novel - Crowstone - 02-04-2016
here's yuko again! get excited!
Chapter 17: The War Begins
Show Content
SpoilerYuko slammed his fist furiously on his desk, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT'S EMPTY??!"
The messenger patted his sleeve to extinguish the small fire there, "Yeah, all the diggers have escaped somehow."
Yuko took a deep breath and said calmly, "Okkayyyy I feel better now. That's, uh, pretty bad."
They bent down to collect the bits of smoldering wood that Yuko had scatted across the floor.
Yuko asked stoicly, "So, where are they all now?"
The messenger guessed, "I think they must have built a new area to hide in. We'll have to completely engineer the portal in order to look for it."
Yuko nodded, "Right, okay. Makes sense. You guys are already working on that, right?"
"Yeah, Elmer estimates they'll be done in 1.5 hours," the messenger held a drawer of partially singed documents to Yuko, "Do you want to keep these?"
Yuko glanced at the documents. "Nah, you can just toss those out."
The messenger dropped the drawer into the trash chute and resumed picking up the detritus.
They continued cleaning in silence for a couple of minutes.
"Hey, do, do you know how they managed to do it?" asked Yuko, sweeping away the last ashes into a dustpan.
The messenger looked at him carefully. "Um. They had a lot of young able-bodied people."
Yuko nodded solemnly. "Righto. So it was my fault then. Whoops."
The messenger looked around the room awkwardly. "...yup."
Yuko dumped out the ashes into the trash chute. "Okay, well, thanks for helping me clean up, and telling me about what happened. What's your name?"
The messenger said, "Uh, I'm Fred."
Yuko handed Fred a scrap of paper, "Congratulations, Fred, you're promoted."
Fred took the piece of paper. It was entirely charred black. "Oh, nice. Thanks."
Yuko dismissed Fred, "Alright! You can go now. Hey, if you see Chainwreck, can you send her in?"
Fred saluted casually and headed out the door, "No problem!"
Yuko Snait looked out through the window and thought deeply about the situation. He looked down at his employees and soldiers running to and forth, skillfully fulfilling their duties like precisely oiling the clockwork and flawlessly regulating the machines. An enormous scraping sound rang through the cavern, and people quickly moved out of the way of a huge tank rolling down the middle. The war machine was almost unrecognizable under the disarrayed mess of metal and scrap covering it. Someone had chained countless wrecks of all sorts of obliterated vehicles all over it. Clearly whoever owned this tank valued power and intimidation over speed and maneuverability.
Yuko opened the window as it drew near, and it stopped. The engines turned off, and a tall, well-built woman stepped out. She wore huge maroon armor, covered in spikes. A crunched up brown truck was mounted on her back. "It's time!" Yuko shouted down to her.
Chainwreck grinned wickedly and cracked her knuckles and the chains wrapped around them. "I've been waiting for this!" she whispered cruelly to herself.
Yuko looked down at her. After a few seconds, he shouted again, "Did you say something?"
Chainwreck opened the backdoor of the tank and pulled out a brand new mahogony desk, shiny and varnished. She tossed it up to Yuko's window, and Yuko caught it and put the desk in the center of his office. "Thanks, Chainwreck!"
Chainwreck gave Yuko a thumbs up and shouted back. "You're welcome!"
The messenger patted his sleeve to extinguish the small fire there, "Yeah, all the diggers have escaped somehow."
Yuko took a deep breath and said calmly, "Okkayyyy I feel better now. That's, uh, pretty bad."
They bent down to collect the bits of smoldering wood that Yuko had scatted across the floor.
Yuko asked stoicly, "So, where are they all now?"
The messenger guessed, "I think they must have built a new area to hide in. We'll have to completely engineer the portal in order to look for it."
Yuko nodded, "Right, okay. Makes sense. You guys are already working on that, right?"
"Yeah, Elmer estimates they'll be done in 1.5 hours," the messenger held a drawer of partially singed documents to Yuko, "Do you want to keep these?"
Yuko glanced at the documents. "Nah, you can just toss those out."
The messenger dropped the drawer into the trash chute and resumed picking up the detritus.
They continued cleaning in silence for a couple of minutes.
"Hey, do, do you know how they managed to do it?" asked Yuko, sweeping away the last ashes into a dustpan.
The messenger looked at him carefully. "Um. They had a lot of young able-bodied people."
Yuko nodded solemnly. "Righto. So it was my fault then. Whoops."
The messenger looked around the room awkwardly. "...yup."
Yuko dumped out the ashes into the trash chute. "Okay, well, thanks for helping me clean up, and telling me about what happened. What's your name?"
The messenger said, "Uh, I'm Fred."
Yuko handed Fred a scrap of paper, "Congratulations, Fred, you're promoted."
Fred took the piece of paper. It was entirely charred black. "Oh, nice. Thanks."
Yuko dismissed Fred, "Alright! You can go now. Hey, if you see Chainwreck, can you send her in?"
Fred saluted casually and headed out the door, "No problem!"
Yuko Snait looked out through the window and thought deeply about the situation. He looked down at his employees and soldiers running to and forth, skillfully fulfilling their duties like precisely oiling the clockwork and flawlessly regulating the machines. An enormous scraping sound rang through the cavern, and people quickly moved out of the way of a huge tank rolling down the middle. The war machine was almost unrecognizable under the disarrayed mess of metal and scrap covering it. Someone had chained countless wrecks of all sorts of obliterated vehicles all over it. Clearly whoever owned this tank valued power and intimidation over speed and maneuverability.
Yuko opened the window as it drew near, and it stopped. The engines turned off, and a tall, well-built woman stepped out. She wore huge maroon armor, covered in spikes. A crunched up brown truck was mounted on her back. "It's time!" Yuko shouted down to her.
Chainwreck grinned wickedly and cracked her knuckles and the chains wrapped around them. "I've been waiting for this!" she whispered cruelly to herself.
Yuko looked down at her. After a few seconds, he shouted again, "Did you say something?"
Chainwreck opened the backdoor of the tank and pulled out a brand new mahogony desk, shiny and varnished. She tossed it up to Yuko's window, and Yuko caught it and put the desk in the center of his office. "Thanks, Chainwreck!"
Chainwreck gave Yuko a thumbs up and shouted back. "You're welcome!"
Chapter 18: Boring War Stuff
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SpoilerThe rebels had built themselves a big cozy cavern at the end of chamber 1024. They had more than enough furniture, food, clothing, and water to survive for at least 1 and a half years.
During the first two months, Grottco soldiers patrolled the abandoned tunnels. The Lounge was removed completely and the sleeping rooms had become completely inaccessible by rebels and Grottco alike.
The soldiers would find a tunnel, and go down it all the way to chamber 1024. And they would find nothing and go back and try a different tunnel. There was no more dirt in the tunnels and no new diggers.
The rebel's hideout was hidden and safe, completely undiscoverable. The rebels merely waited in peace as Grottco grew more impatient and made their next mistake.
Grottco had not generated any new energy for months, and now had to resume operations. They created new tunnels and brought in new draftees to dig. But always, these new draftees would disappear by the end of their first day, rescued by a team of rebels who would sneak out and save them.
By the 6th month, Grottco had redesigned the digging chambers. Each digger was put in their own, much larger, more open area, where the digger would dig out a large pit that would get refilled everyday, with armed guards watching them above.
Grottco was unable to send new guards after they had been stealthily taken out, and diggers continued to disappear, recruited by the rebels every day.
Grottco started making decoy diggers, to trick the rebels into saving them. This worked only once, and both the rebels and Grottco suffered two dozen casualties.
In the ninth month, the rebels were running out of food, a little earlier than they had expected. They had been eating more than necessary, and as new recruits came in, food reserves depleted faster. Now scouts had to both retrieve food and also avoid decoys, traps, and patrols. Rebel morale suffered every time a scouting party didn't make it back.
The enemy soldiers were catching on to where the rebel base was hiding. Several shortcuts and skips had to be patched out to keep the base hidden. After a full week of scouts going missing, Brian and Celune agreed that it was too dangerous to send anyone else.
The rebels started having more problems with dissatisfaction and traitors as food supplies went low. More and more were reducing their amount of exercise, slowing down excavation and construction of the tunnel elevator.
After a month and a half of desperation and doing almost nothing, the tunnel elevator was almost complete. This revelation promoted hope in the group, and work on it resumed it's original pace and it was finished in a week. They were finally ready to escape!
During the first two months, Grottco soldiers patrolled the abandoned tunnels. The Lounge was removed completely and the sleeping rooms had become completely inaccessible by rebels and Grottco alike.
The soldiers would find a tunnel, and go down it all the way to chamber 1024. And they would find nothing and go back and try a different tunnel. There was no more dirt in the tunnels and no new diggers.
The rebel's hideout was hidden and safe, completely undiscoverable. The rebels merely waited in peace as Grottco grew more impatient and made their next mistake.
Grottco had not generated any new energy for months, and now had to resume operations. They created new tunnels and brought in new draftees to dig. But always, these new draftees would disappear by the end of their first day, rescued by a team of rebels who would sneak out and save them.
By the 6th month, Grottco had redesigned the digging chambers. Each digger was put in their own, much larger, more open area, where the digger would dig out a large pit that would get refilled everyday, with armed guards watching them above.
Grottco was unable to send new guards after they had been stealthily taken out, and diggers continued to disappear, recruited by the rebels every day.
Grottco started making decoy diggers, to trick the rebels into saving them. This worked only once, and both the rebels and Grottco suffered two dozen casualties.
In the ninth month, the rebels were running out of food, a little earlier than they had expected. They had been eating more than necessary, and as new recruits came in, food reserves depleted faster. Now scouts had to both retrieve food and also avoid decoys, traps, and patrols. Rebel morale suffered every time a scouting party didn't make it back.
The enemy soldiers were catching on to where the rebel base was hiding. Several shortcuts and skips had to be patched out to keep the base hidden. After a full week of scouts going missing, Brian and Celune agreed that it was too dangerous to send anyone else.
The rebels started having more problems with dissatisfaction and traitors as food supplies went low. More and more were reducing their amount of exercise, slowing down excavation and construction of the tunnel elevator.
After a month and a half of desperation and doing almost nothing, the tunnel elevator was almost complete. This revelation promoted hope in the group, and work on it resumed it's original pace and it was finished in a week. They were finally ready to escape!
Chapter 19: The Siege Ends
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SpoilerYuko Snait stood waiting by the main door of Grottco. A fancy car came through and his mother stepped out.
Yuko smiled and hugged her, "Hey Mom! I wasn't expecting you. Did you come because of the good news?"
Natsy patted her son on the back. "Yes, I saw your... good news. But the reason I came was because I need to tell you that you are celebrating too early."
Yuko let go, upset. "But they haven't done anything in 2 months! Sure, they're probably still hiding in there, but they've definitely given up by now!"
Natsy shook her head. "You made one mistake a year and a half ago when you gave them all that manpower, but I thought you had learned your lesson!"
Yuko threw up his hands in despair. "Mom! Yes! I did learn my lesson. I was very careful about every move we took against them in the past year! I didn't send any more draftees than necessary, and... also.... won more battles in general i guess."
Natsy scoffed, "Yuko, Yuko. The lesson was that you shouldn't underestimate their capabilities. 2 months of inactivity, from our point of view. 2 months of progress for them! You might be right that they're slowly starving to death in there, but you'll be sorry when they reveal that something that you can't deal with!"
Yuko was silent.
Natsy nodded approvingly, "Good, keep thinking. Figure it out before it's too late. Alright, I'm leaving, bye."
Yuko waved goodbye and returned to the office. He pressed a button to make an announcement to everyone in the facility, "Okay, everyone, this is Mr. Snait, and, this is not ideal, of course, but all crews, initiate Operation B. You know what to do. As for military teams, all of you are now on duty. You have 10 minutes to get ready and report to your squad leaders. Military squad leaders, you have 5 minutes to check in with me in my office. Alright, good luck everyone."
Yuko turned off the microphone and sighed deeply. This was very risky, but, according to his mother's implications, it would be quite worth it. He set to work. One by one, squad leaders would come in, receive their orders and head off for work. In between, he would type away at the computer and get everything ready. Finally, after 12 minutes, everyone was in position. He readied his finger over the button to turn off the Dimensional Sandbox, taking one last moment to consider what he was about to do.
As a consequence, the Dimensional Sandbox would be destroyed. Grottco would have to use the weaker Operation B to generate power in the meantime, at least until a new one could be built, which could take months. And as for everyone in the Dimensional Sandbox, either they are ready or not ready. If they are ready, and they indeed had a plan, then it was too late to stop them anyway. But if they weren't ready, then now they never will.
Yuko pushed the button, and the Dimensional Sandbox shut down. Soldiers pointed their guns at the disabled portal, while other guards were positioned all around the facility, prepared for whatever the rebels were doing, if anything at all.
Yuko smiled and hugged her, "Hey Mom! I wasn't expecting you. Did you come because of the good news?"
Natsy patted her son on the back. "Yes, I saw your... good news. But the reason I came was because I need to tell you that you are celebrating too early."
Yuko let go, upset. "But they haven't done anything in 2 months! Sure, they're probably still hiding in there, but they've definitely given up by now!"
Natsy shook her head. "You made one mistake a year and a half ago when you gave them all that manpower, but I thought you had learned your lesson!"
Yuko threw up his hands in despair. "Mom! Yes! I did learn my lesson. I was very careful about every move we took against them in the past year! I didn't send any more draftees than necessary, and... also.... won more battles in general i guess."
Natsy scoffed, "Yuko, Yuko. The lesson was that you shouldn't underestimate their capabilities. 2 months of inactivity, from our point of view. 2 months of progress for them! You might be right that they're slowly starving to death in there, but you'll be sorry when they reveal that something that you can't deal with!"
Yuko was silent.
Natsy nodded approvingly, "Good, keep thinking. Figure it out before it's too late. Alright, I'm leaving, bye."
Yuko waved goodbye and returned to the office. He pressed a button to make an announcement to everyone in the facility, "Okay, everyone, this is Mr. Snait, and, this is not ideal, of course, but all crews, initiate Operation B. You know what to do. As for military teams, all of you are now on duty. You have 10 minutes to get ready and report to your squad leaders. Military squad leaders, you have 5 minutes to check in with me in my office. Alright, good luck everyone."
Yuko turned off the microphone and sighed deeply. This was very risky, but, according to his mother's implications, it would be quite worth it. He set to work. One by one, squad leaders would come in, receive their orders and head off for work. In between, he would type away at the computer and get everything ready. Finally, after 12 minutes, everyone was in position. He readied his finger over the button to turn off the Dimensional Sandbox, taking one last moment to consider what he was about to do.
As a consequence, the Dimensional Sandbox would be destroyed. Grottco would have to use the weaker Operation B to generate power in the meantime, at least until a new one could be built, which could take months. And as for everyone in the Dimensional Sandbox, either they are ready or not ready. If they are ready, and they indeed had a plan, then it was too late to stop them anyway. But if they weren't ready, then now they never will.
Yuko pushed the button, and the Dimensional Sandbox shut down. Soldiers pointed their guns at the disabled portal, while other guards were positioned all around the facility, prepared for whatever the rebels were doing, if anything at all.
Chapter 20: The Tunnel Elevator
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SpoilerBrian and Celune stood in front of the crowd of rebels.
Brian finished a headcount and whispered to Celune.
Celune nodded and shouted out to everyone, "OkAY everyone. Oof. Can everyone hear me?"
There were a few "Yesses" and a few "did she ask us something?"
Celune coughed. She spoke to the front row of people, "Okay, I'm gonna shout louder so everyone can hear me. You guys be ready, I'm gonna be pretty loud."
They nodded. Celune screamed, "EVERYONE IS HERE, SO YOU SHOULD ALL BE READY TO GO. IF YOU AREN'T, THEN RAISE YOUR HAND."
No one raised their hand.
Celune rasped, "Okkkaay. Brian take over, please," and clapped her hands over her ears.
Brian yelled, "ALRIGHT GREAT LETS GO."
The crowd cheered and filed out of the room to the construction area. The tunnel elevator was an infinitely high structure made up of tunnels stacked upon each other. 1024 chambers per tunnel meant that it was 2 miles long and 10 meters wide.
The rebel army gathered into the lowest tunnel and dispersed along it. There were 128 of them, meaning they could each have 8 chambers all to their own, which was far more space than necessary. However, Diane had advised that they should remain clustered towards the first end of the tunnel to make it easier to get out when they escaped.
The screens in every chamber turned on, and Brian's digitally unrecognizable face appeared on it. "Hey, this is Brian. In case you couldn't tell. We're ready to depart. So, you guys should be prepared for Grottco to attack us immediately once we're out. When we emerge, we'll still be in here, but it'll still only be 6 inches of metal between us and their guns, so, brace yourselves. Here we go..."
Brian finished a headcount and whispered to Celune.
Celune nodded and shouted out to everyone, "OkAY everyone. Oof. Can everyone hear me?"
There were a few "Yesses" and a few "did she ask us something?"
Celune coughed. She spoke to the front row of people, "Okay, I'm gonna shout louder so everyone can hear me. You guys be ready, I'm gonna be pretty loud."
They nodded. Celune screamed, "EVERYONE IS HERE, SO YOU SHOULD ALL BE READY TO GO. IF YOU AREN'T, THEN RAISE YOUR HAND."
No one raised their hand.
Celune rasped, "Okkkaay. Brian take over, please," and clapped her hands over her ears.
Brian yelled, "ALRIGHT GREAT LETS GO."
The crowd cheered and filed out of the room to the construction area. The tunnel elevator was an infinitely high structure made up of tunnels stacked upon each other. 1024 chambers per tunnel meant that it was 2 miles long and 10 meters wide.
The rebel army gathered into the lowest tunnel and dispersed along it. There were 128 of them, meaning they could each have 8 chambers all to their own, which was far more space than necessary. However, Diane had advised that they should remain clustered towards the first end of the tunnel to make it easier to get out when they escaped.
The screens in every chamber turned on, and Brian's digitally unrecognizable face appeared on it. "Hey, this is Brian. In case you couldn't tell. We're ready to depart. So, you guys should be prepared for Grottco to attack us immediately once we're out. When we emerge, we'll still be in here, but it'll still only be 6 inches of metal between us and their guns, so, brace yourselves. Here we go..."
Chapter 21: Infinity Rounded Down
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SpoilerCelune and Diane gave Brian the nod. Brian nodded back. He turned and looked at Timu. She blinked, then blushed and finally nodded too. She hadn't done much in the past year in terms of leading, but Celune and Brian wanted to have her around anyway whenever anything important happened. Timu appreciated that they still cared about her, but still felt kind of useless just watching them.
Brian pressed the button and time stopped within the tunnel elevator.
9 days, 5 hours, 43 minutes and 29 seconds later, Yuko turned off the Dimensional Sandbox.
And time resumed within the elevator, as it blasted out of the sandbox and up through the earth. The ground above Grottco rended apart. In a panic, soldiers fired wildly at the massive structure. Ceilings collapsed, walls broke apart and floors crumbled. Dirt, real dirt, covered almost everything.
Timu kept her balance as the floor rumbled. Brian still had his finger over the button. Diane smiled squealing, "It worked! We did it!"
Many people down the tunnel whoops in excitement.
Brian spoke through the screens again, "Okay, it's not over yet. Alright, we've got 37 floors to ascend through. Um, actually 32. Those last 5 extend higher above the ground than we need. Alright, get ready! Ascension in.... 5 seconds!"
The rebels and their belongings ascended gradually upwards, phasing through the floors and ceilings in their way.
Yuko burst out of a heap of dirt and surveyed the destruction. He estimated a 10% casualty rate for Grottco. He looked at the structure that had burst out of Sandbox's portal. It was 2 miles long, longer than Grottco itself, extending far through the earth. The sky was visible, and the sun was shining down. Yuko was not expecting something like this. He turned on the microphone and made an announcement. "Everyone! As soon as you're ready, focus fire on ... on. Shit."
The announcement system was not working, and he hurled his microphone. It burned up in the atmosphere before it hit the side of the huge metal wall.
He leapt out of what was left of his office. 7 squad leaders were looking at him. Yuko signed for them to focus fire on the top of the structure. They nodded in understanding and passed the orders to their troops.
Yuko squinted and watched. The sunlight made it hard to see what was going on up there, but the top of the structure was gradually getting shredded up. Yuko gave another signal to the squad leaders, aim a little bit downwards, where the structure is above ground level.
"This is going well so far," said Brian. The sound of bullets smashing into the side of the wall had started to fade away. They were about halfway up the elevator.
Diane's enthusiasm had faded away. "This isn't good. They're probably aiming at the top of the elevator. We better be careful not to go so high."
The metallic banging and clanging on the walls was starting up again, gradually growing more frequent as they neared the top. A loud, ominous crunching noise could be heard above them. It grew louder and louder.
The top 4 floors of the elevator collapsed under their own weight, pinching the last floor above ground. Half a mile of that section peeled agonizingly off of the distant lengths of the elevator, and finally broke off. Yuko looked at the massive slab of metal falling down at his location. Yuko looked around. Several of his workers were scrambling around the rubble, the increasingly large shadow overtaking them as they fled the area of impact. Yuko identified the weakest point, and jumped up and punched the falling metal heap right back into the elevator.
The rebels had already abandoned the vertical movement approach, and were running down the length of the tunnels. Groups of rebels, stranded across multiple floors, ran through flames and shrapnel only to find the tunnels ending quickly into a wall of natural dirt. More and more of the tunnel exploded apart, not only from the assault of Grottco weaponry, but also because the escapees were very used to making their way through obstacles with brute strength.
Finally, Timu smashed out of the side of the tunnel and onto the surface of the earth. She regrouped with a disappointingly small group of survivors running away from the disaster. They ran into the forest and kept running, trying to stay together, but some certainly fell behind and were lost along the way.
Two dozen rebels sat around in a forest clearing, panting and sweating.
"That.... huff.... went worse than I'd hoped..." cried Timu.
Diane patted her back. "It's... alright. There's more survivors. I just don't know where. Somewhere around. Don't worry."
Timu hugged Diane. "Thanks. Yeah."
Timu and Diane went around to the other survivors, asking them if they were okay and not to worry. From the sun's position and the smoke in the sky, they could tell that Grottco was to the north, about 6 miles away based on Diane's estimate.
They all sat around in a circle around a campfire. Timu looked at some notes she had scribbled on a burger wrapper.
"Okay everyone. Let's.... rest tonight. Tomorrow, we'll head east and try to find more of our friends. We've got two or three days of food. As soon as dinner is done cooking, we need to put out this fire. We'll want... two people at a time keeping watch. You guys, while you eat figure out how tired you are and, then the sentries can take turns appropriately. I expect at least a couple of survivors catching up, so, make sure not to confuse enemies with allies while keeping watch. That's... all I guess. Enjoy dinner and rest well..."
Timu enjoyed her first meal back in the real world, a cheeseburger. They did it. Around three years since she got drafted, she was finally free. But there was a lot of work ahead. After the first shift of sentry duty, she curled up at the base of a tree and swiftly fell asleep.
Brian pressed the button and time stopped within the tunnel elevator.
9 days, 5 hours, 43 minutes and 29 seconds later, Yuko turned off the Dimensional Sandbox.
And time resumed within the elevator, as it blasted out of the sandbox and up through the earth. The ground above Grottco rended apart. In a panic, soldiers fired wildly at the massive structure. Ceilings collapsed, walls broke apart and floors crumbled. Dirt, real dirt, covered almost everything.
Timu kept her balance as the floor rumbled. Brian still had his finger over the button. Diane smiled squealing, "It worked! We did it!"
Many people down the tunnel whoops in excitement.
Brian spoke through the screens again, "Okay, it's not over yet. Alright, we've got 37 floors to ascend through. Um, actually 32. Those last 5 extend higher above the ground than we need. Alright, get ready! Ascension in.... 5 seconds!"
The rebels and their belongings ascended gradually upwards, phasing through the floors and ceilings in their way.
Yuko burst out of a heap of dirt and surveyed the destruction. He estimated a 10% casualty rate for Grottco. He looked at the structure that had burst out of Sandbox's portal. It was 2 miles long, longer than Grottco itself, extending far through the earth. The sky was visible, and the sun was shining down. Yuko was not expecting something like this. He turned on the microphone and made an announcement. "Everyone! As soon as you're ready, focus fire on ... on. Shit."
The announcement system was not working, and he hurled his microphone. It burned up in the atmosphere before it hit the side of the huge metal wall.
He leapt out of what was left of his office. 7 squad leaders were looking at him. Yuko signed for them to focus fire on the top of the structure. They nodded in understanding and passed the orders to their troops.
Yuko squinted and watched. The sunlight made it hard to see what was going on up there, but the top of the structure was gradually getting shredded up. Yuko gave another signal to the squad leaders, aim a little bit downwards, where the structure is above ground level.
"This is going well so far," said Brian. The sound of bullets smashing into the side of the wall had started to fade away. They were about halfway up the elevator.
Diane's enthusiasm had faded away. "This isn't good. They're probably aiming at the top of the elevator. We better be careful not to go so high."
The metallic banging and clanging on the walls was starting up again, gradually growing more frequent as they neared the top. A loud, ominous crunching noise could be heard above them. It grew louder and louder.
The top 4 floors of the elevator collapsed under their own weight, pinching the last floor above ground. Half a mile of that section peeled agonizingly off of the distant lengths of the elevator, and finally broke off. Yuko looked at the massive slab of metal falling down at his location. Yuko looked around. Several of his workers were scrambling around the rubble, the increasingly large shadow overtaking them as they fled the area of impact. Yuko identified the weakest point, and jumped up and punched the falling metal heap right back into the elevator.
The rebels had already abandoned the vertical movement approach, and were running down the length of the tunnels. Groups of rebels, stranded across multiple floors, ran through flames and shrapnel only to find the tunnels ending quickly into a wall of natural dirt. More and more of the tunnel exploded apart, not only from the assault of Grottco weaponry, but also because the escapees were very used to making their way through obstacles with brute strength.
Finally, Timu smashed out of the side of the tunnel and onto the surface of the earth. She regrouped with a disappointingly small group of survivors running away from the disaster. They ran into the forest and kept running, trying to stay together, but some certainly fell behind and were lost along the way.
Two dozen rebels sat around in a forest clearing, panting and sweating.
"That.... huff.... went worse than I'd hoped..." cried Timu.
Diane patted her back. "It's... alright. There's more survivors. I just don't know where. Somewhere around. Don't worry."
Timu hugged Diane. "Thanks. Yeah."
Timu and Diane went around to the other survivors, asking them if they were okay and not to worry. From the sun's position and the smoke in the sky, they could tell that Grottco was to the north, about 6 miles away based on Diane's estimate.
They all sat around in a circle around a campfire. Timu looked at some notes she had scribbled on a burger wrapper.
"Okay everyone. Let's.... rest tonight. Tomorrow, we'll head east and try to find more of our friends. We've got two or three days of food. As soon as dinner is done cooking, we need to put out this fire. We'll want... two people at a time keeping watch. You guys, while you eat figure out how tired you are and, then the sentries can take turns appropriately. I expect at least a couple of survivors catching up, so, make sure not to confuse enemies with allies while keeping watch. That's... all I guess. Enjoy dinner and rest well..."
Timu enjoyed her first meal back in the real world, a cheeseburger. They did it. Around three years since she got drafted, she was finally free. But there was a lot of work ahead. After the first shift of sentry duty, she curled up at the base of a tree and swiftly fell asleep.