Rat

Break

Here I am, once more a trapped rat in a cage. How stupid could I be? How many times do I have to find myself in this position before I learn?

And will I be so lucky to stay alive this time?

Perhaps you may be wondering how I could fall for such a silly trick: I am used to cages. I have experienced them many times. Always, I get out. They are not so well constructed as the beasts think they are, and for a creature such as me, I can usually find a way out.

Most cages have a weakness. This one will be no different. I just need to find it. It is easier to search for a weakness than it is to ponder the stupidity that led me here.

Okay, I will relent: if I put down into words how I came to be in a cage, then maybe it will put my mind at rest and I can focus on finding a way out. As it is, I am seething with rage at myself. I am a fool.

I was lured in by food. A single morsel of meat. I did not touch it at first--I did not go near it--but it remained for several star cycles. The cage remained, too. It became such a constant presence that I forgot what it was, and I lowered my guard. It was just an object, nothing more. And food was food.

So after a few cycles, I went and ate the food. And now I am in a cage and I am most upset with myself. But I will break free. There is always a weakness, and I have always found it.

And there it is: so obvious that I am surprised I didn't see it straight away. One of the metal walls has a gap in the centre. It is a small gap, but I can squeeze my body if I need to. I can fit through, I am sure of it.

But it will not be easy. It is hard to get a grasp of the walls because they are made of little tubes running in a cross pattern. It takes me several attempts to get my face up to the height of the hole. And then I must squeeze through.

This is the hard bit, but I am lucky because the lower half of the wall is on a tension coil, but moves if I put effort into it. As I move the lower wall, the gap between both sections grows wider and I can get my head through.

First my head, next my shoulders. It is harder to hold the gap open now as my front paws have to bend down and push and my back paws are scrambling up at the same time, pushing it the other direction. Just a bit more. A little bit more.

And now I am lost: my front paws have fallen free and my back paws have lost their grip and the gap has closed with me still in it. I can feel it squeezing at my bones, at my innards. I can't move, I can't breathe.

My escape is cut off. I strain to stretch the gap but all it does is break my skin. I can taste blood in my mouth, which is bad--I have no external signs of wounds. The blood is internal. I have hurt myself... And badly.

And I can do nothing but hang. I can do nothing but hope for death.

Death is quick in coming. No, that is a lie. Death is an eternity. Life is pain.