Fragmented Zombie

Thomas in Charge

When Becker asked me to be in charge of the other mudmen, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to do it. I wasn't exactly the oldest out of the twenty of us. And I surely wasn't as experienced in being a leader as Becker was. But Becker put their faith in me, so I had hope that I'd be almost as good as they were. The only downside was that I wasn't 100% sure on how to deal with Dennis or Larry. Larry was definitely the worst out of all twenty mudmen. Dennis, on the other hand, well, he was just trying to fit in. Poor bastard was merely too shy and awkward to hold a conversation.

While I was working on the floor plan for another group of mudmen, I heard giggling behind me. I glanced over my shoulder to see who it was coming from. Not to my surprise, it was Larry, Xavier and Robert. Larry was my biggest issue. This wasn't a surprise since this behaviour was to be expected from Larry. Xavier and Robert, on the other hand, I expected more from them. Xavier was 5'8 and wore a purple t-shirt and blue jeans. Robert was 5'9 and wore a red flannel and black jeans.

I cleared my throat and said, "You three got a problem or are you going to get back to work?"

Robert and Xavier scampered off in a panic, realizing they'd been caught. Larry, on the other hand, stood his ground. "Yeah, we got a problem," Larry jeered. "I don't see why you -of all people- are in charge."

I approached Larry, grabbed him by the shirt and yanked him closer to me. "Listen here you little shit," I spat. "You better back off before I break your knees. You're lucky you even have a job here."

"Otherwise what?"

"Otherwise you'd be dead. And if you ask me, Becker should've killed you the second they met you."

Larry shoved me off of him and stormed off. That interaction alone gave me an idea. I planned on creating a sort of cage-like box once I was done with the floor plan I was already working on. The cage-like box was going to be some sort of punishment for Larry whenever he had some kind of anger outburst. There was a part of me that knew I should've run the idea by Becker before following through with it. But they put me in charge, so I had to call the shots.

Once I finished the floor plan I was working on, I took it to Silvester so she could look it over. Silvester thanked me for the floor plan and I went back to where I was. I wanted to give Larry very little room to move; but I wasn't a monster. As much as Larry pissed me off, I still felt as though he deserved to move freely when contained in a box. I hated the idea of giving Larry of all people a little common decency. But I couldn't torture Larry without reason.

The only two things Larry was going to get in the cell were a camping cot and a hole for a bathroom. If Larry needed a new bathroom, he was going to fill one hole and dig another. Would a bucket be a better, more sanitary option? Yes. Was I going to give Larry that much respect? Absolutely not. I didn't think he deserved it. I wanted to know what was going on in Larry's head, and why he was behaving the way he was. But my anger was clouding my judgment and I felt as though I was going to kill him before I could get anything out of him.

I took a look at the floor plan of the cell after finishing it. While looking at the floor plan, I realized how basic and depressing it looked. But what US jail cell isn't basic and depressing? When I decided that I was satisfied with the floor plan, I asked Dennis to help me put it together. At first, Dennis was hesitant to say yes. After a little consideration, Dennis said yes. I wanted Dennis' help specifically because I knew I could trust him. Not to mention that Dennis didn't have much else to do.

Of course, I had to explain to Dennis what it was I was working on and why I was doing it. About midway through my explanation, I noticed that Dennis looked worried. I repositioned my body to get a better look at Dennis. Dennis' face suggested worry but his body language suggested discomfort.