Chapter 17:
Working Days

	The door slammed open the next morning, waking everybody out of 
hibernation. Tobias got up and kept Samantha and Kaitlyn behind him. Crash 
and his men got ready to put up a fight. Swift backed up a little, ready to 
do her thing. They waited patiently. A few minutes of anticipation passed 
before Isthus walked in. "Good morning all," he said. "I hope you slept well 
last night."
	"What do you want, Isthus?" Tobias asked. "Come to try to make me your 
war toy again?"
	An evil grin crossed Isthus' face. "You have a strong will, Lone Wolf. 
But we will see to it that it is ground upon the rocks. I have come to warn 
you all that you will begin laboring for us in our Tetrium mines in a half 
an hour. I advise that you get dressed and work out the kinks in your 
muscles. It's going to be a grueling day for you all."
	"You're fuckin' sick, Isthus. My spirit is too strong for you to crush 
with mere labor."
	"We shall see, Lone Wolf. We shall see indeed." He turned and left, 
slamming the heavy door behind him. 
	He shook his head. "Samantha, where did you hide all of our clothes?"
	She moved to one of the wall and removed a stone. She pulled from it 
the many, well folded articles of clothing. "Right here," she said. She 
handed each person their bundle and they all dressed.
	"I'm wanna try something. Swift, I need your help."
	"What do you want me to do?"
	"Can you create a psy field that will prevent them from detecting a 10 
second communications burst?"
	"I can."
	"When I give the signal, do it." He pushed the button on his belt and 
fiddled with the headset. "Ready?"
	She put her fingers to her temples. "I am."
	He waited patiently. "Go!" She clenched her teeth. A wave of energy 
flooded the room. He pushed a button. "Sven, Larcris, any member of the Pack 
that's out there. This is Lone Wolf. We're being held somewhere in Raider 
territory. I'm not sure where, but we're fine. We need backup ASAP." Swift 
fell to her knees. He pushed the button again. "It's done." He went over to 
Swift. "Are you all right?"
	"I am."
	"Strong enough to work in the mines with us?"
	"Yes."
	"All right then. Everybody, let's work hard at this." He took a deep 
breath. "But I still have one question."
	"What's that?" Kaitlyn asked.
	"What the hell is Tetrium?"

	They were issued some protective gear, their mining tools, and brought 
down a long road to a nearby mountain. The horrid, red sun beat down upon 
their figures as they trudged along the dry, cracked asphalt road. "Don't 
worry," the guards told them. "It's a lot cooler inside the mine."
	Tobias nodded and looked at Crash. "They don't seem that bad."
	Crash laughed. "Are you kidding? They're only acting nice in the hopes 
of getting you to work for them."
	"I kinda figured that one out."
	"So what are we gonna do once we get inside the mine? What's the big 
plan?"
	He smirked. "We're going to go in there, tools in hand, and we're 
going to do some mining."
	"What?!" One of the guards swatted at him, barely missing. "What do 
you mean we're going to do some mining?"
	"It's too early to try to make a break for it. They'd expect something 
like that. We should look passive for a while, ya know, to get their guard 
down."
	"I see. So you're saying we work for them to soften their defences? I 
can do that. How well of a job do I have to do though?"
	"Do less than a half assed job Crash. If we work at maximum capacity, 
we'll be aiding their war efforts."
	"Ah. I get it now." He chuckled. "I hope Hack's willing to screw 
around with the light pick settings."
	He shook his head. "Crash, you are a magnet for trouble. You and your 
boys better stay on your side of the mine shaft."

	The walls glittered. The dark gray cave walls were lined with all 
sorts of bright, shiny minerals. Tobias looked about in wonder at the sight 
of it. "This place is amazing!" he exclaimed. "What are you guys mining?"
	"Iron, Titanium, Gold, Silver, and Tetrium," one of the guards said. 
"It's all crucial to the war effort."
	"That's right, I never got my explanation of Tetrium."
	"Tetrium is a super strong mineral," Kaitlyn explained. "It highly 
manageable and lightweight, making for good body armor suits. It's also got 
some degree of resistance to radioactivity. I'm assuming that the safety 
gear has a layed of Tetrium in it somewhere."
	"That's true ma'am," the guard told her.
	"Well then, I'm assuming that we're safe."
	"Okay," Tobias said. "Where are we working?"
	A guard pointed down one of the tunnels. "Third corridor on your left 
is a gold/tetrium deposit," he said. "Start mining it. We'll send a cart 
down in a half an hour to pick up what you've got out of the vein."
	He smiled. "All right then!" He put his hard hat on and turned the 
little flashlight on. "Let's get to work." The others followed his lead and 
they marched down the tunnel.

	They were going to do anything BUT work, however. They sat around the 
large aclove, waiting patiently for something to happen. Every so often, 
Tobias wound swing his light pick at the wall and wrench free a bit of metal 
or mineral. "It's only to keep them from being suspicious," he told the 
others when they explained. "If we look like we're doing some work, then we 
don't get into too much trouble."
	"It's an ingenious plan," Crash said. He swung his pick behind him and 
wrenched free a large, iron stone. He tossed it onto the pile where Tobias 
was tossing whatever he dug out. "It'll work."
	"We can probably fill a cart at the rate you two are going," Kaitlyn 
said. She sighed. "But what has me going is that they want you, but we're 
suffering."
	He swung and wrenched free some more gold. "I'm sorry guys. If I had 
known this was gonna happen, I woulda brought more than just us along when 
we moved the base."
	Samantha sat down next to him. "It's okay love," she said, giving him 
a kiss on the cheek. "We understand." She looked at Crash.
	"Uh...yeah. She's right bro. It's okay." He swung and pulled out a 
small, black stone. It was perfectly smooth. "Whoa! This isn't terium." He 
tossed it to Hack. "Whadda ya make of it?"
	Hack caught it and looked it over. "It's man made, that's for sure. 
But what it is exactly has me." He tossed it to Wrench. "What d'ya think?"
	Wrench caught it and held it to one of the lanterns. "No clue. 
Kaitlyn, you're the scientist. You tell us what this is." He tossed it to 
her.
	She caught it. "I honestly don't know. It's not obsidian or coal, 
that's for sure."
	Tobias took it from her. "It looks like a stone from one of my games 
back home." He pocketed it. "We'll keep it handy just incase."
	Samantha smiled and rested on his shoulder. "This is actually quite 
peaceful. Low lights from the lanterns, tucked away from most of 
civilization......ya know, where a young couple would want to go for an 
intimate weekend."
	Swift looked at him. *No making jiggy-jiggy now,* she told him.
	*Don't worry,* he answered back. *If I try that, Kaitlyn'll put that 
light pick into my head.*
	She laughed. Crash looked at her. "What's so funny?"
	"Oh, nothing...." She chuckled a little before settling down.

	They picked up the pace as they heard the rickety wheels of a mine 
cart coming up the tunnel. "How're we doing?" one of the guards asked. He 
got no answer, excpet for the sound of light picks pecking away at the solid 
rock walls. He wheeled the old cart in and looked around. "My, aren't we 
diligent workers."
	They stopped their work. "Here already?" Tobias asked. "Oh well. We 
should load the cart up, right?" The guard nodded. He put the pick down and 
went over to their pile of minerals and metal. "Help me with this guys," he 
said, grabbing a few gold nuggets. Crash and the others drop their equipment 
and helped him to fill the cart. It went three quarters of the way. 
	"Not bad. If I didn't know better, I'd say you weren't even trying." 
They chuckled nervously as he wheeled the cart away. As soon as they were 
sure things were safe, they collapsed on the floor.
	"I don't want to do this," Tobias said, a little out of breath. "I'm 
not supposed to do much manual labor!"
	"I'm not either," Swift said. "I'm a mind reader, not a miner."
	He shut his eyes. "Let's just, you know, take a small nap here."
	Samantha moved towards him. "That sounds like a good idea. But what 
about the guards."
	"Fuck 'em. I'm plum tuckered out."
	"That's my kind of thinking," Kaitlyn said. She rolled over onto her 
belly.
	"We'll take a ten minute break, then get back to slacking off, okay?" 
There was a general murmer of agreement.

	It went like that for the entire day. They were brought lunch -crude 
rations with water- around one in the afternoon and brought out for dinner 
near dusk. "Well," Crash said. "Today didn't go that bad."
	"Yeah," Kaitlyn said. "Didn't get dirty or anything either." She 
picked at the rations with a fork. "Too bad this is all that they're giving 
us for food." She took a bite and winced. "They could at least give us 
something to give it some flavor!"
	"Nah," Tobias said. "If it tastes good, it's no good for ya, 
remember?"
	She chuckled. "Good point."
	"But I'm not worried about it. Brings us back to the bare bones of 
life. It's primative, yet peaceful." He took a bite and cringed. "On second 
thought, somebody go get some soy sauce."
	"Told you."
	Just then, Isthus approached them. "Good evening," he said. "Can I sit 
here?"
	"It's not like you're gonna sit anywhere else." Kaitlyn and Samantha 
moved closer to him as Isthus sat down.
	"So how are the mines?"
	"Dark, dingy, cool.....I'd say it's a nice vacation spot!" Crash 
chuckled.
	"I see. So you don't mind it?"
	"Not at all."
	"Oh....okay...." He lifted the lid off of his plate, revealing a juicy 
piece of roast beef. Everyone's eyes lit up. Isthus smirked as he sliced off 
a piece and ate it. "This is so good. You know, this orange marinade really 
gives it that extra kick."
	"Oh....my....you're trying to torture us by doing that!"
	"Perceptive."
	"I see." He got up. "Let's go find another table, let the lord here 
enjoy his meal in peace." The others nodded, picked up their plates, and 
moved to another table.
	"And Lone Wolf."
	He turned to him. "Yes?"
	"We're moving your cell. You and the three women will be in one cell 
while your soldier friends will be in the next cell."
	"Ah, thanks for the warning."

	They were indeed seperated. Swift, Kaitlyn, Samantha, and Tobias were 
put into a cell with actual furnature (as far as wood planks attached to the 
wall went). Crash and the others were put into the next cell. They quickly 
hid their clothing and turned to face the wall. "Crash?" Tobias called out.
	"Yeah," Crash replied.
	"What do you make of this wall?"
	"Solid stone." He ran his hand across it. "Very few breaks in it. 
Chances of making a hole in it isn't that good."
	"I think I can handle it," Psycho said, stepping up.
	"You'll hurt yourself, big guy."
	He shook his head. "I'm wearin' m' hard boots."
	"Your what?" Tobias asked.
	"Psycho's boots are the hardest things going. They're harder than 
marble. Stronger than steel. Thicker than the average Raider's skull." There 
were various chuckles. "Just stand up against the wall and watch out." 
Tobias nodded and he and the girls pressed themselves up against the wall. 
"Ready?"
	"Yep."
	"Go Psycho." Psycho let out a growl and kicked the wall. It shook, but 
didn't break.
	"Go again." There was another shake. One of the stone bricks became a 
little loose. "One more should do it Psycho! You da man!"
	He chuckled. "WHAAA!" The third kick sent a stone block flying across 
the cell. It smashed up against the opposite wall, turning to gravel. "There 
we go!"
	Tobias went over to the new hole and looked through it. "It's big 
enough to fit small things through it. This should work out good enough."
	Crash looked back at him. "Yeah. And when us guys are bored, we can 
look in on you and the ladies."
	"Fuck off Crash," Kaitlyn said. "You ain't gettin' any of it." She 
hugged Tobias around the neck. "We're gettin' him all that we want." Tobias 
cleared his throat. "Um....well, whenever he wants to give it to us."
	"That a girl.....now, can I please have my right to breathe back? 
You're choking me." 
	She smiled and let go. "Sorry."
	"S'okay."
	"So what are we going to do now?" Crash asked.
	"Patience is a virtue. We wait. We work. We live. They'll do it all 
for us."
	He shook his head. "If you say so." He turned away from the hole. "I 
just hope you know what you're doing."
	"I do Crash. I'm sure of it."

	They were at a little bit of a loss that night. There was a bed (even 
though it was a semi-big wooden plank attached to the wall), but it would 
only fit one of them. "So who's going to use it?" Samantha asked.
	"One of you should," Tobias said. "You all need your beauty sleep."
	"I'm not gonna use it if you're not." She hugged him. "I need you to 
cuddle with at night." He smiled and kissed her.
	"Well," Kaitlyn said. "Swift will get the bed. I really don't want to 
let Samantha have him all to herself." She grinned. "If she's this ga-ga 
over cuddling with you, I want to see what it's like."
	Swift blinked. "But I really don't want to use the bed."
	"Why not?"
	"Same reason you two have."
	"Um....girls....I'm not an object."
	"We know that. But still, we want to cuddle with ya."
	"Okay...." He sat down on the plank. "Let's try this. Tonight, Kaitlyn 
and Samantha will cuddle."
	"But Tobias!" Swift whined.
	He got up and took her hand. "C'mon....it isn't so bad. Use your 
head." He tapped his temple lightly and gave a playful wink. 
	She thought about it for a second. "Oh....all right...." She smiled 
and saw down on the plank. "I guess that's what we gotta do."
	Samantha smiled. "I'm sorry about this. But he's my boyfriend." She 
hugged him. "I promise to let you have him tomorrow night."
	"It's okay." She layed down on the make-shift bed. "Good night you 
two."
	Tobias layed down on the floor. "Good night Swift." Kaitlyn and 
Samantha crawled into his arms. He smiled and kissed the both of them. "Good 
night all."

	Swift took his subtle hint and decided to probe his mind as soon as 
they all fell asleep. "Whoa," she said. "This is getting more spacious every 
time I visit."
	"What are you talking about?" he asked, stepping out of the darkness 
of his mind.
	"The calm area. It's....a lot bigger than in the other cell."
	"No....it's still the same size."
	"I...ah never mind!" She looked about. "I still don't understand the 
darkness though."
	"I thought we discussed this."
	"We didn't." She looked about for someplace to sit. "If we can get 
comfortable, we can discuss it."
	He smirked. "We came here to make up for what you can't have because 
of Samantha and Kaitlyn, right?" She nodded. He went over to her and pushed 
her. She fell back onto a soft, low lying bed. "Is that better?"
	She smiled and stretched. "Very much." He sat down next to her. "Thank 
you." She sat up, grabbed him, and pulled him down. She cuddled up to his 
body. "So explain this darkness that surrounds us."
	"It's bad experiences mostly. Far too much hell can make you tune out 
life. You wouldn't understand it."
	"Yes I would. Try me at least."
	"Okay...you've been warned." He pointed straight up to a particularly 
dark patch. "That's my schooling life." There was a small flash of thunder 
from it. "It was absolute hell." There was another flash. "I think that'll 
be there forever."
	She smiled. "They're just memories. They'll fade."
	"I hope so." 
	She smiled and hugged him. "Let's put those worries to rest. Did I 
ever mention you were cute?"
	He smiled. "I think so."
	"Well, I'll say it again. You're very cute."
	He smiled. "Thanks."
	Suddenly, everything shook. "What was that?" She sat up and looked. 
The calm space that surrounded them had shrunk a little. "What happened?"
	"This isn't right." She looked at him. "I feel wrong doing this." The 
ground shook again. The calm space shrunk a little more. "I'm loyal to 
Samantha. I shouldn't be having this sort of affair behind-"
	"Tobias!"
	"Hmm?"
	"Please, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have whined like that before. I was 
only jealous of what Samantha had."
	He sat up. "How so?"
	"Well, I always thought you were cute....for a human, that is. I was 
hoping to score with ya, maybe start a relationship."
	He smiled and kissed her cheek. "Is that all? Swift, we have a 
relationship already."
	She quirked a brow. "How so?"
	"Well, we've got a working relationship. That's for sure."
	"Yeah, but I'd like a more personal relationship between us."
	"We do." He took his hand. "You're my friend, aren't you?"
	"Yeah, but-"
	"I know that you may never get me because of Samantha, but if she 
goes, you're next in line." The calm area began to grow.
	A twinkle came to her eyes. "Really?"
	He kissed her. "You're beautiful. You're kind. But....so is Samantha."
	"I understand." She hugged him. "I would love to have sex with ya some 
time soon, but I guess I'll have to wait." 
	He smiled. "We've got less than two weeks left here, right?" She 
nodded. "I cannot make any promises, but who knows? You may get lucky." He 
kissed her cheek. "I like you as a friend, as a woman, and as someone I can 
open up to. Thank you for being here."
	"No problem. Think we can get away with lying down? I mean, this is 
technically a dream." He grinned, wrapped his arms around her, and pulled 
her down. She giggled. "You know, I wonder what would happen if we had sex 
right here."
	"I'd probably end up having a wet dream, but I don't think Samantha 
and Kaitlyn would be very appreciative of that."
	She smiled and nuzzled his neck. "Oh. I see."
	He craned his neck a little. "Oh what the hell!" He gave her a kiss. 
"Have your way."

	He woke up the next morning. He groaned a little and tried to sit up. 
Kaitlyn and Samantha were still asleep. He managed to get his head up to see 
what had happened during the night. Lucky for him, that was nothing. He 
smiled and gently gave Samantha and Kaitlyn a shake. "Time to get up girls."
	Kaitlyn stretched and looked at him. "Good morning Lone Wolf," she 
said. "You're making life here a lot nicer, you know that?"
	He chuckled. "It's nice to see your face in the morning too." He 
turned to Samantha. "Sammy, time to get up." She muttered and swatted at the 
air. He looked at Kaitlyn again. "Mind getting off my arm for a moment?"
	"Sure thing." She got up.
	"Samantha..." He wrapped both arms around her and pulled her closer. 
"It's time to get up, beautiful."
	A smirk came across her face. She spun around and hugged him. "I know. 
I was hoping to get you to do that." She gave him a kiss. "We don't need a 
bed to be in love with each other."
	"I know. Let's say you, me, Kaitlyn, and Swift do this in the mines."
	"Sounds like a plan." She rested her head on his chest. "Maybe we can 
convince Kaitlyn to let us-"
	"NO!" Kaitlyn butt in. "NO WAY IN HELL!"
	"I was going to say let us have a threesome with her, but since she 
doesn't want it, I guess that's a no." 
	She shrugged. "Oh well."
	"My words exactly." He smiled and kissed Samantha. "I'm gonna wake 
Swift up and we can start discussing it." She smiled and nodded. He got up 
and went over to Swift, setting his hand on her shoulder and shaking gently. 
"Swift....time to get up."
	She rolled onto her back and looked up at him. "Oh!" She reached up 
and hugged him. "Did you sleep well?"
	"Yes. Did you?"
	"Oh yes. I had the greatest dream." She grinned. 
	He chuckled. "Okay....I guess that's why you hugged me when I woke you 
up. Now, get up, we've got some planning to do for the day."