Finch had to sit down. His head was spinning. No it couldn’t be, this was too much change. He’d never be able to escape under a complete new watch. Rückkehr knew him better than any warden. He’d been the one to document it every time he’d tried to escape. Rückkehr would watch him like a hawk. That is he if didn’t just decide to straight execute him. With so many new workers, his death would be more productive than leaving him alive. No, no, no, no, no! Finch swung his fist against a table. “That isn’t going to happen. You and me are getting off this rock.”
***
Laid across the table were all the tools Finch believed to be useful. Among them were many of Jerry’s side projects. One of which was a security drone he had refurbished.
“So, how does this thing work?” Finch asked picking up the drone.
Jerry grabbed the drone from him. “The thing’s fragile, let me do it.” Turning a few nobs and switches, the thing lit up. “So, what’s your plan for this one?”
“Well, since they’re good for recording, I say we send it the Civilian Station and record us some ID’s.”
“That’d be good and all for forging, but we’d need a printer and some blank ID cards.”
“Rückkehr definitely has a printer in his office, and I bet The Warden’s old office has some blanks.”
“You make that sound easy.”
“That’s why I have backup plans. Did you talk to any of the guards yet?”
“Yeah. I got two of the Warden’s personal guard.”
“Oh no, not Lefty and Righty.”
“Who?”
“Never mind, I’m still not used to you being so lucid. Tell em the plan and then tell em to split up so they hit both at the same time.”
“Wouldn’t it just be easier to bring the cards to the printer, rather than steal both?”
Finch shook his head. “If we leave the printer, the last prints will be in the queue. They’ll be able to trace us easier if they know our fake identities. What kind mechanic are you, that you don’t know that?”
“The mechanic kind, not the computer programmer kind. Just cause I work with wires doesn’t mean I know how to work everything electronic.”
“Whatever, let em know. I’ll go release the drone.”
Jerry handed him the drone and left. Finch rolled the drone in his hands before setting it off. This was it. He could feel it. This was the one.
***
Everything had gone exactly as planned, the drone had taken four ID photos, Lefty got the printer and Righty had gotten four blank cards. Jerry was now in process of forging. Lefty and Righty were on lookout duty and Finch sat watching Jerry eagerly.
“That should about do it,” Jerry said, wiping his forehead.
Finch jumped up. “Let’s go then!”
“Cool your jets, it’s only a matter of time before Rückkehr finds out. If he finds out before we get to the station, we’re screwed. We need to get there fast.”
“What’re you suggesting? We steal a speeder car? There’s only one of those in the whole complex.”
“Well, we already stole one thing from Rückkehr, we might as well make it two.”
Finch snorted. “And I thought I was supposed to be the crazy one.”
***
Jerry swiped a card into the garage panel. It buzzed and flashed red.
“Damn it, I helped add the lava diamond chassis when it was first made. I was hoping they might have forgotten to take me off the access list. I guess they run a pretty tight ship.”
Lefty rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right.”
“What?” asked Finch.
“What indeed, this plan’s fucked. We need a new one.”
Finch moved to the panel. “Hold on, maybe it’s not. I’ma try something.” He pulled the screwdriver off his belt and started screwing off the panel.
Lefty got in his way. “Hey! Don’t fuck with that.”
“We don’t got any better plans. Just let me try.”
Jerry put a hand on Lefty’s shoulder. “It’s worth a chance. This is our best shot at escaping.”
“Whatever, but when he fucks up and alarms start blaring, don’t-,“ Lefty said, stopping as the panel popped off. “All right, you got it off, but what are you gonna do? Just start pulling wires?”
Finch grabbed a handful of wires and pulled. “Essentially.” With a creak and a thud, the door opened.
Lefty folded his arms. “Fuck you.”
Righty crouched through the door. “All clear.” Righty gestured for them to come in.
Jerry whistled. The lava diamonds glistened giving the car a blood red glow. “She sure is a beaut-,“ Jerry started, a shot interrupting him.
Finch pivoted only to be hit square in the chest with an electro staff. He fell with a thud, convulsing. Facing him on the ground was Jerry, a large chunk of his upper left forehead missing. Blood poured out of Jerry’s head, slowly inching toward Finch’s own head.
Above him stood Lefty, a devious grin plastered across his face. “You know, I really am quite disappointed. I really thought you’d put up a better fight, but I suppose this was to be expected. You are the worst escape artist ever. I mean for Christ’s sake, there was a month where a new inmate escaped every day. Thirty fucking inmates man, thirty just fucking walked outta here. We have so many coming in. We wouldn’t even be able to maintain em all if no one ever escaped. It just floors me, we can’t even shoot you fuckers, you got better armor then us, and all you got to do is avoid a stick and you’re scot fucking free. No one fucking even uses ID’s. They’ll drop that rule in day. It’s all just one fucking joke, and you couldn’t figure it out in seven fucking years! I used to pity you. I really did, I thought maybe you were just really unlucky, but now I just see how fucking pathetic you are. I can’t even, it’s just too fucking hilarious.”
Righty gave a thumbs up.
“Well, my fucking friend. I suppose this is goodbye. Here, I’ll even leave you a present.” Lefty placed the gun in Finch’s frozen hand. “Hasta La Vista, shithead.” He saluted as the two drove off into the distance.
***
Finch laid on the ground, currents still following throughout. How could he have been so stupid? He let his eagerness to escape blind him. Of course, Lefty never would’ve helped him escape, not after he broke his nose. He was so stupid, stupid, stupid! And Jerry, poor Jerry, the closest thing he ever had to a friend here, dead because he was stupid and rash. Inside his gut was a terrible feeling, one he hadn’t felt in a long time. Finch stared at Jerry’s lifeless eye. The galaxy was a cruel place, often taking more than it gave, but not today. Today this was his mess. It was his fault Jerry was dead, and he had failed because of his own arrogance.
No, Jerry’s sacrifice wouldn’t go in vain. He would escape for the both of them. Even he had to drag himself all the way to the station. Struggling, he strained every muscle he had to move. His whole body felt like it was on fire, but he was able to clench the gun. Slowly but surely, he regained uses of his arms and dragged himself toward the garage door. This was gonna hurt, a lot. His rage fueled him. It grew inside him, bubbling and spewing like one Thermos’ many volcanoes. This was not the end, not yet.
***
Finch, now upright, limped up a cliff. Still disoriented from the shock, he needed to get his bearings. At the sound of cocked weapons, Finch spun around, bursts of pain shooting up and down his body. Out of the thick smoke came Rückkehr and several guards. Finch raised his gun at Rückkehr. “One more step and I blow out your brains.”
Rückkehr raised his hands. “Mr. Finch please, let’s be civil. Look, I don’t care what you did to Jerry. I don’t care what you did to my car. I don’t care who you killed or how many times you escaped. I plain just don’t give a damn about you. I’m not like the others. I don’t enjoy cruelty, and I am not a fan or murder. Just come on down and hand over that gun. Then you’re free to go.”
“Bullshit, you’ll kill me.”
Rückkehr shook his head. “
The galaxy is full men much worse than you. One more free bad apple isn’t going to do anything. I don’t care who lives or dies. I care about myself and the opportunity I have here. The things I’ve planned, this place is nothing more than the beginning. I’ve bode my time, now I get to shine. So hand over the gun, and my men will escort you to the station. I promise. You have my word. I just cannot have you waving that thing around. No more civilians are to be hurt at the station. My reputation depends on it.”
It was a trap. It had to be. It couldn’t be this easy. No, as soon as Rückkehr had the gun, he’d shock him and have him executed. Lefty was right, they could only stop him by shocking him, but they couldn’t risk it with him aiming a gun at Rückkehr. He wouldn’t die to them, not like this, not on their terms. Finch took a deep breath and fired. Rückkehr fell like a stone, the guards charged at Finch. Looking over his shoulder, Finch looked out across the cliff. For the first time, Thermos actually looked peaceful, pretty even. The lava below was golden orange. It reminded him of a stew his mother used to make him when he was sad. She called it the “happy stew”. Everything felt so calm. He could no longer feel the currents or the weight of his armor. He felt as light as a feather. He was tired, tired of running, tired of escaping, tired of all the bullshit that was this world. Dropping the gun, Finch turned around and jumped.
About the Author
Born in the suburbs of Philadephia, Michal Warchol has always had a love for storytelling. A fan of the weird and silly, Michal is currently working to finish up his degree in Creative Writing at Full Sail University. After that though, he hopes to break into the world of Television and to one day helm his own series.
The Lava Miner Page 2
