Wayne felt a strange sense of deja vu as the metal door shut in front of him. Immediately after arriving to the Exporine kingdom, a switch had flipped. This place was not the break he had previously thought, but a miserable, scheming trap which he was now caught in once again. The same conniving person wearing a different mask. Stepping out of the cart, the unknowingness, demoralization, and utter terror came upon him, just like when he had first met the owl. The memories of that day flashed in his mind, and with every new box he was put in, they became evermore prevalent, and he would remember them for what seemed more and more often the closer it got to the present.

  At this point, Wayne was unequivocally, beyond question, a prisoner.

  “Wayne?!” As shouted.

  His heart felt numb as it pushed against his ribs, practically leaping out of his chest. He had never felt such a rush of relief in all his life, hearing the familiar voice of the only one who had shown him any nurture in this horrid place they called Cahlm.

  “As?!?” Wayne turned his head to the left, and he saw it, the two black dots, glowing with orange light.

  “What are you doing here?!”

  Still in disbelief, Wayne hesitated a moment, “I should be asking you that!”

  “I went looking for you! A guard interrogated me, and then they locked me in here! I- I don’t know what do! I’ve missed you!” As blurted out the final exclamation from his chest.

  “I’ve missed you a lot, too! Where’s all your stuff?”

  “I- I left it all at Red Wood, even the manuscript! I thought I could find you and get back. I’m such an... idiot!” Tears mixed with joy and sadness streamed from As’ face. “I can’t believe I-...”

  “As, that shit doesn’t matter! They can write a new one! We’re together! That’s what matters.”

  As continued to sob, his body pressed against the bars, “You were right! We never should’ve left the cabin! It’s my fault! I’m sorry!”

  “As! Stop, please!” Wayne’s eyes had begun to water, “You’re not alone anymore! We’ll get out.”

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  “I’ve been trying to get out for a week.” As admitted out loud, knowing the watchmen down the hall could hear him. “Where were you?” He finally asked.

  “I was in this shithole, and they forced me to work! I let myself get taken cause I thought it’d be better than there!” Talking about the camp was the absolute last thing that was on Wayne's mind.

  Wayne paid attention to As’ form, noticing his eyes were now slightly deepened into his skull, and his waist was now skinnier.

  “What did they do to you?” He asked.

  “They’ve barely been feeding me anything.”

  “Oh, God. We’re getting out of here, alright? We’ll find something.” Looking around his cell, there was a short rusted metal bar where the right wall and floor met. Picking it up, it was wet, dirty, and cold. “Maybe I can use this...” He mumbled to himself. He held it up to show As.

  Quickly, As thought, “Wayne, I have an idea... I’m stronger than you. Put the bar on the floor between the bars of your cell. I need you to slide it as hard as you can across the floor to my cell. It’s going to make a lot of noise, but trust me.”

  Expectedly, the bar clattered against the stone-laid floor, reaching As by luck. A guard was alerted on the far end, approaching them with a strange hurried saunter. As hid the bar before they were in view.

  “Callin’ for food down ‘ere eh?” They questioned, “You’ll get your bread when it’s time!” He turned around in a circle, unsure of who caused the noise. “All of you! I ‘eard some ruckus down ‘ere! Now, who was it?” A small collective groan rose in the room, and everyone seemed to be one voice. “Well, shut your mouths!” The guard began back down the hall, “You’re all in ‘ere for a reason!”

  While As had figured what the reason was, he knew Wayne couldn’t tell. He knew Wayne was the one outlier, the one who, even if he did know about the suppression of who knows how many people across Cahlm, wouldn’t want to know. His mind was set, from the moment he had stepped foot inside the new place he was incarcerated. Something As should have done a long time ago.

  To get out as quickly as possible. To not wait.