It had been two weeks since 19 had last seen his father. He had been moved to the orphan pen, and as much as he missed his father, there was a benefit to being in this pen.
“~19, stop your sulking, I’m bored!~” 3 practically jumped on top of the small Xling. Her father disappeared 2 years ago, so she understood how 19 felt, but she also knew him sulking would get him in trouble. She wrapped her arms around the boy as he turned to face her, smiling through his pain.
“~You know I like your hugs, but your hands are right on—~”
“~Oh, I’m so sorry! I didn’t realize there was a punishment there.~”
“~It’s not your fault. It’s new.~” 19 smiled at her softly as she removed her arms. He missed his father dearly but having his best friend at his side almost 24/7 had ceased the pain at least a little. 10 was also in the orphan pen, but due to his height, he was usually busy being trained by the master, so the two only really got to see him at night, where the three of them would sleep on top of each other.
With his dad’s disappearance, 19 knew his life was on the line. He spent almost every waking moment trying to prove to the Master that he was worth keeping alive. No matter how much his body begged him to give up. No matter how much the master berated him. No matter how much he was laughed at and whipped. He kept getting up. He kept holding on. His body screamed at him. Every step felt sharp. His back cried and pleaded. His face hiding the black and blue under his brown hair. His father believed in him. 3 believes in him. 10 believes in him. So, no matter how much doubt he had in himself, he refused to give in. His life was worth it.
3 smiled at her friend. But she was afraid. As much as she hated to admit it, 19 was a runt. His dad protected him, every X and Xling knew that. For Xs family was one of the most important parts of their lives, but 4 gave up his last remaining free will for his son, something truly admirable. But now 4 was gone. The Master had no reason to keep 19 around. She could tell he was trying to prove himself, but nothing ever seemed to do it. Or maybe it was. He had been left alive for two weeks now. Longer than anyone guessed. Maybe the Master did have some humanity in him. No. Humanity isn’t striking the child who is trying his best. Maybe the Master didn’t feel right killing an Xling directly, so he would just keep pushing the boy until his body broke.
The girl’s eyes started to tear up. 19 had been her best friend for as long as she could remember and now, she was watching him die. 19 cocked his head, seeing her glassy eyes.
“~Those tears better not be for me.~”
“~They’re not.~”
19 nodded, pretending to believe her, and smiled. She had the same fears that he did. He couldn’t tell if that made him feel better or worse. She did believe in him, he knew that. But she didn’t believe he would survive the master. Did he?
“~3! Where’s 3!~” A voice ripped through the orphan pen.
“~I’m here, I’m here. Why are you yelling 6, it’s the middle of the night, I was sleeping.~” 3 sat up drowsily. She glanced down at her friends. Both boys were both still out. Lucky. Those two could probably sleep through a bombing.
“~Well, I heard from 14, who heard from 8, who heard from—~”
“~Get on with it!~”
“~Right, well. You see. Um. Master. He. He’s gonna kill 19.~”
3 jumped up, fully awake now. Her body was shaking, not from fear but anger. “If this is a joke-~”
“~It’s not. I swear. I wouldn’t joke about that.~”
“~Why are you telling me, why not 19 himself?~”
“~Well for one, it’d be like telling a baby deer you’re about to stab him, and two, we all agreed that you’re the only one who can talk him into escaping.~”
“~Yeah I definitely— WAIT WHAT?!~”
“~Escape. You know none of us want 19 to die. He’s always been so nice, he doesn’t deserve to die. So we’ve put our heads together. During free roam today, 1 and 5 found a small hole under the back gate, made probably by a fox or something, and well it was almost big enough for them to squeeze out so—~”
“~So he would most likely be able to fit. Look it’s a fine idea but if you’re wrong and he’s caught he will be killed for sure.~”
“~Even if the rumor that the Master is going to kill him very soon is wrong, you and I both know he doesn’t have much time left, even if it’s just him falling asleep and not waking up.~”
3’s eyes darted to the ground. She knew 6 was right. She lifted her eyes to meet the other girl’s. “~He’s not going to like this.~”
“~You want me to WHAT?!~” 19 bolted upright, he was originally mad for being woken up, but now he was hearing absolute nonsense.
“~Look I know it’s crazy, but I’m begging you. Please get out of here.~” 3 looked down with pleading eyes, as all the other Xlings nodded in agreement.
“~I can’t just leave. Even if there is a hole there, who knows if I could even make it.~”
“~I believe you can. You’re small so you hide easily, plus speed is kinda your thing,~” 10 finally spoke. For what 19 lacked in height and strength, he made up in speed, even though the Master would never acknowledge it or even let him demonstrate.
“~Ok, fine, let’s say I make it. I’d be abandoning all of you. You would still be stuck here. And my leaving could just make things worse for all of you. So no way.~”
3 slapped him across the face. “~You idiot, you absolute idiot.~” Her eyes filled with tears. “~If you have the chance to live, then you should take it. You would say the same thing to any of us wouldn’t you?~”
“~I mean may–~”
“~Plus, you can think of it this way. If you get out, maybe you can figure out a way to free all of us. If you can’t leave for yourself. Then leave to find help. And don’t come back until you find solid help.~”
All the Xlings started chattering, all agreeing and pushing 19 towards the pen fence. “~Do it for us,~” they chanted until 19 climbed over the fence, which was met with a cheer and some shushes.
“~3, I promise I’ll come back. I truly promise that the next time you see me, you will be free. You will all be free.~”
3 smiled and fluffed his head one last time for good luck. “~I’ll be waiting~”
Getting out of the pen was the easy part. It had been built for creatures who lacked opposable thumbs. The guards knew that the Xs could escape from their pens quite easily, but none ever did, as they had an order to shoot on sight if an X is spotted out of their pen, save for free roam. Xs learned this the hard way, and since most did not have a death wish, they remained in their pens.
19 ran to the barn door, he had several advantages over the guards. He was small. He was fast. He had night vision. Quietly and carefully sliding the door open he peered out at the dark and empty farm. Due to the lack of attempted escapes, the guards on night duty often slacked off. With one more glance back at his only friends, the only people he had left, he slipped out of the barn.
The farm was about 100 acres and it lay silent. The hole was near the left wall and having to dodge anyone and everyone who came onto his path, 19 knew the trip would take several hours. Unlike the pens, the walls were built to prevent escapes. They were 10ft of solid concrete with electrified wire at the top. There were two gates, the north gate, and the south gate, and those were heavily barred and locked.
Formulating a plan quickly, 19 took off toward the nearest tree. He would need to stay undercover as much as possible, which would mean running in a zig-zag formation. Annoying. He got about 50 feet from the barn before he encountered his first obstacle.
“Ugh why do we have to do this, Xs aren’t stupid enough to try to escape,” the guard whined, rounding the bush with the escaping Xling in it
“Well, if they do try anything, I’m going to have fun taking them down. I hope it’ll be a big one. Putting a bullet in its head would be so satisfying,” the other laughed, aiming his gun and pretending to shoot.
“Well, if you get one, I hope there’s a second one so I can also get some enjoyment.”
“Dude, are you crazy?”
“Huh?”
“Didn’t you watch the briefing? If you encounter more than one X outside of their pen, run, hide, and call for backup. When Xs work together they really work together. I dunno why, but they’re really- ugh. Just the point is as soon as an X teams up with another, you better have at least 10 gunners or you’re dead.”
“Oh. Okay then let’s just share the big one.
“Hmm, I’ll think about it.”
“Oh, come on dude. The whole thing is hypothetical, so can’t you just say you’ll share it with me.”
“No.”
The voices of the arguing guards slowly faded, as 19’s heartbeat grew louder. He had no idea what they were saying, but it surely wasn’t anything good. Didn’t matter now, he needed to keep moving. He poked out of the bush and then dashed to a tree about 100 feet away. The coast was clear. Keep running. His body, which was aching and screaming just an hour before, felt nothing now. Turns out that high doses of adrenaline trumped everything else. But he sure would feel it doubled after he was out. Didn’t matter now. Survival was the goal and survive he would.
After hours of ducking and rolling, hiding and sprinting, huffing and puffing, 19 made it to the left wall, and conveniently he was right next to the hole. Since it was small, it wasn’t made a necessity, so it was left untouched for now. 6 was right, he could definitely squeeze under it. But his body didn’t move.
“~You’re not abandoning them. They want you to do this. They begged you to do this,~” he thought to himself, but still, he couldn’t move. He wanted to run back. This place was a miserable hellhole, but it was the only home he knew. It’s where he was born. It’s where he grew up. It’s where everyone he loved was. Except it wasn’t. They had killed his father. He didn’t disappear, he was killed. They had killed his mother, by forcing her to have him. 3 and 10 would face the same fate. He had a chance to change that. So, the petite Xling got down on his knees, crawled into the hole, and squeezed under the wall.
Freedom.
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