Welcome to Trench

Escape Plans

25 days.

At least, that's how many more lines are on the wall since I last saw the person on the wall. I sit and choke down my 2nd meal as I watch other prisoners take their walk for the day.

My leg bounces fast as my mind wanders to the person. I haven't seen him since, and it's making me lose hope of ever leaving this gray place.

Maybe I had imagined it? Maybe he really wasn't there? Maybe I was really looking at any excuse to leave, and the excuse wasn't even there.

I don't know, but I can feel my hope fading fast and it's making me worried. I'm afraid I'll get stuck in the loop of Dema, and I'll go through the depressing assimilation process of the city, and I'll never be able to make it out and back home.

The terrible creaking of my door alarmed me that I had to return the tray that my food came in on. I looked at my guard straight in his eyes as I did. I'm not scared of them anymore, and I want them to know. Even if I have no hope of getting out, I at least won't back down from them. I return back to my desk and take out the quill and ink well from the drawer, and a sheet of paper. Old fashioned, but the Bishops don't want the prisoners to have anything they can make into a weapon.

I dip the feather end in the black liquid and gently brush the soft part across my cheek as I think of what to write. I start scratching on the paper, and find myself writing about the person.

Day 400-something - evening walk

Halfway on route, man on wall - hallucination?

Guard: no reaction

Writing this out, I realize I sound more crazy about this. The fact that the guard had no reaction to the person means that it was in fact something I made up. I set the quill down and place my face in my hands. I'm losing it. I'm losing my mind and I'm beginning to accept my fate that I'm stuck here forever. Not like it already hasn't felt like forever. I put away the quill, paper, and ink and lay down on my bed.

A crazy idea set into my head as I stared at the stone ceiling above me.

What if I did try to escape?

What could be the worst that happened?

They throw me in a dungeon? Torture me and then put me back in the 1st circle? Kill me?

The last option almost sounded better than staying here. That would probably be the best outcome of being captured again. Yet my heart began to race as I thought about the world outside the walls. Maybe I could go back to my home in Ohio.

I shook my head at that thought. That seemed like a distant memory now, almost like I had never actually lived there. Like I had dreamt of it, a make believe world outside of these walls. Maybe I couldn't return to Ohio after all.

I shook my head again. I'd be able to. I know it. Maybe not right now but at some point if I can make it out alive. That made my heart race again. I got out of my bed and walked over to the door, pulling a little on it to test it.

The door creaked and moved slightly in the frame, but did not open. I inspected the lock and the frame, trying to spot any weak points. I couldn't notice any and sighed out of frustration before moving to the window. Again, no points after inspection. Even if I could get out through the window, it was about a 4-story drop. Easy bait for the guards, if I survived the fall.

My hands went to my head as panic filled my chest. I couldn't leave while on my walk, my guard would catch me and put me who knows where. The door doesn't budge and the window is too risky. I turned to my bed while trying to control my breathing, and a faltered at the lines on the wall.

The knife.

Could I scratch away at the door frame? I could loosen where the lock engages into the frame and pull the door open when there's no guards? My mind raced with ideas to get out.

First, I'd have to figure out the guard schedules. There's almost always a couple in my hallway getting their prisoners out for a walk, and all of them are always there to give meals. Then, I'd be able to scratch away at the stone around the lock engage. Finally there would be a time I could escape. It can't be that easy though, can it?

How long would disengaging the lock take? Is there ever a break in guard times? Could I really make it out of the walls?

I don't know. It's ambitious, but I'm doing it. I'm escaping soon. I figured tomorrow would be the best time to start, I'd wake up early and start tracking the schedule at the beginning of the day by looking out of the small window in my cell door. After I have the schedule down I can begin working on breaking out.

I sat down at my desk again and wrote down what I knew about my schedule. Meal times, my walk time, the days we go do our ritual and the path to it, anything I could think of as useful. Once I felt satisfied with what was on paper, I put the quill and well back into my desk and carefully slid the paper under my "bed." God forbid one of the guards find it.

I laid down on the bed and thought about what today was. Conveniently it was a ritual day, so I could really pay attention to the other tunnels that are blocked off.

Am I smart enough to pull this off? Am I dumb enough to?

This plan was fueling my energy, something I haven't felt in over a year of being here. I didn't care if I was smart or dumb enough to, if I could actually pull off navigating through the tunnels, it would be the greatest escape ever.

I let my mind wander with daydreams of being out of these four walls when the familiar creak of my door snapped me out of it. I jumped off of my bed and followed my guard out, noticing the others walking with their prisoner.

The ritual!

I had let my mind wander so much, that I had forgotten about it! Now was my chance to memorize the tunnels. Or at least what I knew of them.

I followed the crowd of people down the stairs and into the tunnel opening. My heart could beat out of my chest, but I took a couple of deep breaths to remind myself that I need to pay attention to what was happening.

There was no other tunnels until we reached the first turn. It was pretty much a dead end, either right or left, and we go right to head to the ritual. As we made our normal turn, I looked over my shoulder to the other tunnel. I knew I shouldn't have bothered looking, it was blocked by a wooden door.

It wasn't for a while that our next turn was. This one was the left turn, and also what made my stomach sink thinking about my escape plan. This one split off into three different tunnels. If I were to get to this point, where exactly could I go that would be best? The crowd made its left turn and I shook the thought out of my brain.

We came upon our next turn, another left, where this one was a little easier. These tunnels broke off into a Y shape, so if I were to come this way through the tunnels, I would take the right tunnel.

It wasn't long before we came to our next set of tunnels, this one with three, where we go straight. This choice would be a hard one if it came down to it, also.

We came upon another dead end with either right or left, and the crowd took its usual right. The closer we got to the building, the more dread filled my stomach. This was making me realize that I may be in over my head, but if I were to escape, I needed to just do it. No stopping. 100% committed.

We emerged out of the tunnel and into the building, the bishops already beginning to do their dance around the neon lights. We filed into a circle around them, and when the signal was given, we all knelt.

A feeling I couldn't quite pin-point filled my chest. I'm here, worshipping this neon light and praising the bishops, all while I'm planning to escape from them.

Before I knew it, the ritual was over and we were all heading back to our cells. I began to dread having to make the schedule. It almost seemed impossible that I could scratch away at the lock. But I couldn't be stuck here forever. I had to get out, no matter what it took.