I spend four weeks getting strong, helped by the fact Deecon had managed to get all of the bullets out of me as soon as I arrived. He made sure I ate regularly and drank whenever I could, life wasn't so bad as long as I was with him, without him I would have just eaten when I desperately needed to. He told me of his life and the things he did years ago and they didn't sound so awful, much in the vein of what I did but it still haunted him, makes sense in reflection. He taught me to play cards and we would play for smokes, all of which he made anyway, I know I wasn't fully understanding the games so I guessed he would let me win from time to time just for a change.

He was older than me but it didn't stop him from putting work in, we opted to work with the stone and metal, very heavy stuff but it kept our bodies in shape. It seemed like we were the only ones talking as the other prisoners just muttered and grunted clearly they gave up long ago and just worked so they could sleep at the end if the day. At one point I was tranfering borrows of rock over to transporter where I saw some vehicles being took up on the cargo lift up to top ground. There was excitement right away as I grabbed Deecon's shoulder no taking my eyes from the chrome machines being taken up to the promised land.

'What is that?' I asked him.

'Those are used in the games, Metal on Metal, a race, death match, the winners get certain luxuries for putting on a performance, better accommodation, food and some even get the chance to work for War-Don if they live through it, guess I don't need to tell you what happens to those that lose do I?'

'I still don't get it' I said

'Christ, Max you need to start using your eyes aswell as you brain, what do you think the metal is for? It gets taken down the tunnel to black fingers who do their magic to make cars, people enter the contest and they die that's how it goes' Deecon explained as best as he could, he had no interest in it.

'Im going to enter' I said no taking my eyes off the cargo lift even as it passed the rock ceiling of the pit.

'Love your soul Max but I don't think you stand a chance, if you think its a way out of here it's not, its just life with less suffering, that's if you succeed'

We worked on so we didn't get in trouble but still I hounded Deecon about getting into the game they called metal on metal. We wheeled our narrows of rocks and I asked him.

'So how do I go about getting into the game?'

'You really don't give up easy do you?'

'Guess I'm just bored with doing the same thing day in day out' I lied. Although this line of work was getting tedious to endure over the past few months.

'So you'd rather set yourself up to be killed?' He laughed at me.

'Humour me' I told him.

He tipped his barrow of stone into the transporter and turned around to face me.

'You do a trial of will, but you can't just ask for it you have to be seen proving yourself strong enough. The trails are nothing but glorified street fights with different stipulations and you much fight to the death, you win enough of those then they enter you in the metal on metal contest which is pretty much the same thing but with vehicles, the winner gets to race against War-Don but there's only ever been one winner of that finale, War-Don himself'

That night I lay awake thinking of a plan but soon the work from the day caught up with me and I was fast sleep within minutes. No dreams.

Over the next couple of days I quietly looked for trouble with some of the other inmates of the Asylum, not too obvious and not without reason. I couldn't just pick a fight with anyone here it had to be someone deserving and someone really tough. I didn't want to think too highly of myself but most of the men here were weak and would crumble in just a few seconds against me. But there was one day, while I was carrying a short metal beam to the tunnel cart that something made me smile although it was a sad situation for the young boy involved. He was beaten and kicked while down for not being fast enough fetching water for a group of men whose job it was to fill the tunnel cart with scrap metal. The one whose job it was to press the button was clearly bored and just wanted to entertain himself in the boy's pain and misery. The sweetest thing about the whole situation was that he was huge, he was physically bigger than me from his height, weight and muscle mass, he could give me the fight I needed.

I'd carried on working while Deecon stopped to take the boy aside and take care of him, he was to banged up to work now so he took him to his family or whoever was taking care of him down here.

That night I stood by the door of our room and smoked the cigarette Deecon had rolled for me and I thought about that boy and why Deecon helped him so well.

'Before this, out there, what did you do?' I asked him as he sat on the floor brewing tea, which he had won playing cards. Deecon didn't look up at me as he added dry leaves to the pot.

'I collected debts all around' he said 'always thought it kept me out of trouble and kept me eating, but it was too late to see the damage I was doing to people' he explained.

'From what I've seen of you so far you don't seem like the type to cut off fingers and break bones'

'I don't look like the type to take children as payment either but I did it' he said.

'I'm sure many of them grew up okay' I sat down near him.

'Mayhap, but that still don't make it right'

'So why the change of heart?' I finally asked.

'It can either be the biggest thing or the smallest thing to show a man the truest picture, for me it was beating my own brother to death in front if his family, theft, simply to feed those he promised to take care of, but if I hadn't done it I surely would have been killed'

I listened to his story, he spoke slow and really took his time so I would get the message of it. Deecon had lived a lifetime with blood and despair in his conscience, his helping of those in need was his way of lightening the load.

'I believe a man can make up for his mistakes max, but he still has to live with them, as long as there a more good deeds then bad by the end of his time, then his last words can be righteous'

He spoke sense and for once in my life I felt I had met a kindred spirit, someone who made me see how it should be done. There was a long silence, something I was more than used to but this felt like one I needed to break.

'How was the boy?' I asked

'He was okay, will be out of action for a few weeks but he was in good spirits when I left him with his mother'

'The man who beat him, who is he?' I asked accepting a cup of the tea he poured for me.

'Callahan, heartless fool who pushes his weight on people when the guard's are not around' he said shaking his head, then his face dropped as he looked at me. 'Why? What you thinking?'

'Think I found my way into the Trials'

I think I've managed to get over the rut that I normally fall into when trying to develop a solid setting. Hope its easy enough to follow and can promise the next few chapters to be more action packed and entertaining.