The Name's Oliver - Ben Oliver. Ch. 159: Duty vs Ethics, Pt. II

[Schipperke]

Blood Island, Part XIII

Diary Entry

Fluffy flew around and around the courtyard until he finally returned to my shoulder.



I tucked the little fellow back in my inventory to rest and went over to ask Darren a question.



"Oh yes!" Darren said.  He whispered in my ear, "There are definitely blind spots that the surveillance cameras can't see.  I've found a few of them and I'm sure the other guys have found more."



He pointed at Brian.  "Brian used to be an artist, you know.  A good one.  We could get him to draw a map for you so you'll know just where all the blind spots are."



Darren asked why I wanted this information.

"I can't say just yet," I told him.  "There's something I need to figure out first."

He nodded and went off to talk to the other inmates, while I went off to think.  I had finally realized why Warden Blue had locked me up.  It was obvious.  He had been expecting the military to send someone to subdue the prisoners by force.  When I told him I was planning to negotiate with the prisoners, listen to their demands, he knew he couldn't risk letting me talk to them.  The last thing he wanted was for someone from outside to find out what was going on here.  He had tried to talk me out of it, but I kept insisting on talking to the prisoners.  And of course, I had told him I had no weapons, so he didn't have any reason to search my inventory.

I had been hoping that De Luca would send out reinforcements when she didn't hear from me, but that hadn't happened.  The Warden must have given her some story about me not arriving or that I had been there and left.  I couldn't count on any help from that quarter.  I had an idea that might work, but first I needed to know if I could trust the prisoners. 

That evening as we sat around the table after supper, Brian slipped a rolled-up piece of paper into my hand under the table.



I made my way to the shower room - the only place with no surveillance cameras - and looked at the map Brian had drawn.  Yes!  This was going to work. 

I waited until Conrad was asleep, then quietly crept out of my bunk.  The cell door was locked as before, but I wasn't panicking this time and I had remembered my encounter with Sneakers* - the second-storey man who had tried to steal the Comte de Simylla's soulpeace gem.  Just before the police arrived to take him away, Sneakers had thrust something into my hand, saying "Please take this, sir!  If they catch me with my tools, the sentence will be twice as long!"  The little bag contained his lock-picking tools.  I had practiced with them on and off, and I hoped my skill was equal to the lock on the cell door.

The lock wasn't a complicated one, and I was soon creeping down the corridor, trying to stay in the blind spots.  I reached the dining room and my goal - the warden's office.



I was dismayed to see the lock on the warden's office was much more tricky than the one on the cell door.



But I had come this far, and I was determined.  I worked and worked on the door, terrified that any moment I'd hear the guard's footsteps behind me.  Finally the tumblers clicked into place and I was in the warden's office.



Soon I was clicking away on the warden's computer.  I couldn't send anything out, unfortunately - that required the warden's special password - but I was able to access the prisoner files.



I was worried about the amount of time I had already spent out here - unlocking the warden's office door had taken much too long - so I quickly glanced through the files, shut down the computer, and returned to my cell to think.



Diary Entry Ends.

*Ben's encounter with Sneakers is on page 3 of this story.

[Audren]

Oh, Sneakers! I remember him! How convenient that his little "present" was just what Ben needed! Quite a nice little callback! 

[ladybug53]

It looks like Ben's on the right track . I had kind of forgotten about Sneakers .  Great chapter ! 

[Schipperke]

Blood Island, Part XIV

Diary Entry

What little I had been able to read of the prisoners' files confirmed what they had been telling me - none of them should have been here.  Darren and Conrad's sentences had long since been completed, and they should have been released back to the community.  Brian should never have been here, it not being a crime anywhere in the civilized world to create art critical of the social order.  And I could see no reason at all for Arnie to be here.  He had been placed in a juvenile detention facility as a teenager when his parents died, and when he became a young adult he was just transferred here. 

So I was planning a prison escape that would get all of us out of this hell-hole.  It would be tricky to pull off, but I didn't have much time before the vampires would start feasting on me, and I needed the help of the other prisoners.  I sat alone at breakfast, thinking about my plan.



First, I had to give each prisoner one of the dragon's eggs that Lady Olive had given me.  When De Luca called to send me here, I was in such a hurry that I forgot to take the extra eggs out of my inventory, and I was glad of that.

Arnie accepted his dragon's egg somewhat dubiously.



He put his ear to the package, listening to hear if it was rustling.  "You're sure it won't attack me?" he said.  I assured him he was quite safe.



Conrad, Brian and Darren took their dragon's eggs gladly.  Darren was gleeful:  "Just wait till those guards get a load of this!"



Brian was delighted at the prospect of having a little friend like Fluffy.



I told them, "Now, you have to talk to the egg until it hatches.  And you can't talk about just any old thing.  From my experience, dragon's eggs are very interested in wall-climbing.  If you talk to your egg about wall-climbing, it will be happy and you'll get a lovely little dragon."

To a prisoner whose life is constantly constrained by walls on every side, the idea of climbing walls was very appealing.  We all adjourned to the shower room where the inmates could talk to their eggs without being watched by the guards.



I watched for a while until I was satisfied they were doing it right, then I left to take a nap.  I had been up most of the night planning and thinking, and I needed to be well-rested for the next part of my plan.



Soon the eggs began to hatch.



As instructed, the boys each picked up their dragon, fed and named it, and tucked it into their inventory before returning to their cells for a nap.



Conrad was jubilant as he walked into our cell with his dragon on his arm.  "His name is C.J. - Conrad Junior!  Me and him are gonna whomp a vampire!"



"Quick - put him away in your inventory!" I cautioned him.  "Don't let the guards see him yet."

[ladybug53]

This aught to be good ! Anxious to see how they all get out of there . Great chapter ! 

[MarianT]

Can't wait to see what happens next, but I'm sure the red dragons will play a big part!

[Wiry]

It looks like one of them hatched a green dragon? 

[Schipperke]

It looks like one of them hatched a green dragon? 

No, they're definitely all red.  I think what you saw must have been the egg breaking up.  I'm not sure Ben knows that talking about different subjects gives different colour dragons, but he definitely knows that red dragons are interested in wall climbing! 

[Swirl-Girl]

Hm. This plan seems very interesting. I think I can see where he might be going. I don't sound to sure, do I?

[Schipperke]

Blood Island, Part XV

Diary Entry

That evening after supper I told the inmates my plan.



"I'm ready!" Darren exclaimed.

"Let me at 'em!" Conrad said.

"I'll do my best," Brian said.

"When do we start?" Arnie asked.

"Right now!" I answered, and led the way up the stairs.



The loudspeaker blared at us to turn around, but we ignored it.  We arrived upstairs to find Warden Blue and one of the guards relaxing in luxurious surroundings.  So this was the guards' room, where all the money had been going that was supposed to be used to provide the prisoners with educational and recreational facilities.



"Look, Anselm!" the warden exclaimed to the guard.  "Dinner is being served early this evening."  To me he said, "Well, Ben Oliver, we meet again.  How nice of you to come to dinner."



I told him none of the prisoners were here for dinner.  We were here to present our demands.  I didn't expect him to listen to us, but I wanted to see what his response would be.



He laughed.  "You are in no position to make demands on us," he said.  "Has it escaped your notice that you are now a prisoner, and I am in charge here?  Now, which of you tasty morsels shall I start with?  Anselm, I'll toss you for the first taste of the new dish on the menu - Ben Oliver."

"Men, arm your dragons!" I commanded.  The prisoners all pulled out their dragons.



The guard the warden had called Anselm said, "Aw, look, they've brought their cuddly toys!"

Conrad said, "You've had your last drink of me, you nasty creep!  Conrad Junior will teach you a lesson you'll not soon forget!"



"Dragons, attack!" I shouted.  And it began.





I left the prisoners and their dragons to deal with the guards and made my way downstairs.  I was a bit concerned about the third guard - the one on patrol outside - but I needed to get back into the warden's office.

I knew I probably couldn't crack the warden's password, but I was hoping I could find a way to bypass it somehow so I could send copies of all his files to Carl and De Luca.  I sat down at the computer.



I was too busy to notice someone watching me through the window in the door.

[ladybug53]

Oh nooo ! I really needed to read some more .    Till next time .   Great update !   

[MarianT]

The guard plans to attack with a yeti?

[cndneh]

The guard plans to attack with a yeti?

maybe he's as strong as a yeti and is gathering his strength to beat Ben. 

Or maybe he's yelling at Ben, "You son of a Yeti!  Just you wait!"

[Wiry]

maybe he's as strong as a yeti and is gathering his strength to beat Ben. 

Or maybe he's yelling at Ben, "You son of a Yeti!  Just you wait!"

Maybe he IS a yeti?! 

[Swirl-Girl]

Or maybe he just happens to be thinking about yetis?
I hope he can manage it!