Pheo woke from his sleep in a cold sweat, he quickly patted himself to find that he was still in one piece.
It felt so real.
He took a moment to calm himself down, looking around to find Warhound sneaking inside the cell. Taking extra measures to stay quiet, Warhound snuck himself to the middle of the room.
He found himself right in front of Pheo. He smiled at him, gesturing to close his ears before he begun to transform.
Oh no
Pheo quickly realized what was about to happen, backing off and covering both of his ears right before Warhound howled.
"Good Morning Sunshine!"
Warhound shouted out while everyone else was squirming around the room from the sudden noise.
Good thing I was prepared
Pheo went out early to see that the others got the same treatment, still trying to fully wake up.
"you feeling good?" One of the kids from the same cell asked Pheo. He looked at him surprised, "Yeah"
How is he okay?
Unlike the others, he looked perfectly fine after Warhound's howl. Even if he had his ears covered, he should've still been dizzy.
Warhound pushed the both of them away, "Alright, follow me now!" He began leading them through the complex tunnels.
There were only a few light sources to help them through the darkness, most of the time it was only Warhound's lantern that guided them forward.
"Pst" One of the kids from a group called out to Pheo. He looked to see it was a group from another cell.
He went up to him, "What do you want?"
They looked older than him. They dressed ragged, as if they haven't seen a shower for months. One of them went up to him, "I'm Jim" He extended his hand to Pheo.
Slap!
Pheo slapped his hand away. It only made Jim laugh however, "Don't be too hasty"
"Your name?" The person next to him asked.
He looked at him, noticing the obvious hostility he showed, "Pheo"
Jim pointed at the person next to him, "That's Tom, he was from the recent batch. The one before yours" He leaned in closer and whispered, "He's a bit tight if you know what I mean"
Pheo backed off, making distance between them. "Batch, what do you mean by that?"
Jim smiled at the question, "You aren't the first ones who came here" He told him, "Well, pretty obvious seeing how you saw us on the other cell last night. Right?"
"So there were others who went through the same thing as well?" Pheo asked, curious to know more about their situation.
"As far as we know? Hundreds of other kids, all delivered in 'batches' like yours." He pointed at someone else, "Its better if you ask him"
Pheo looked at the tallest of them all. He was lanky, but he also had the demeanor of a leader. Beside him was another kid, this time the smallest of the bunch.
Jim leaned in, "Little hint, its not who you think it is"
The tall person pushed him off Pheo, "I'm Mark" He introduced himself, then pointed at the small one, "And he's Jug"
Mark lifted Jug up, making sure that he was at the same eye level as Pheo.
"I'm the earliest who's been here, and so far this whole thing has been going on for months now since I arrived"
"Has there been any plans to escape yet?" Pheo went closer to Jug, but got pushed back by a girl.
Jug shaked his head, "Jen, it's fine"
She then moved away from Pheo. He noticed that she was still glaring at him, "Quite a community you got going on"
"It was hard, gathering people who could still stay strong in such a depressing place." Jug told him, "That's why when we see people like you still standing strong after a day of being here, we approach them"
Jug patted Mark, making Mark lower him so that he could step down on the ground.
"If you want to group up and work with us, all you have to do is tell me." He reached out his hand to Pheo, "We need like-minded people like you after all"
Jim went behind him, "This is when you decide" This time, Mark pulled him away.
Pheo thought about it for a while, "Not yet" He looked at Tom while saying so, noticing that his face swelled with anger.
Jim also noticed Tom's face, making him laugh hysterically.
"Alright" Jug went back to Mark, asking him to carry him again. "Just tell me when" He raised his hand, making the group move elsewhere.
Pheo really liked the proposal, but he never experienced working with others. He had always accomplished his own achievements.
I'll try my own thing first