/authors/chicory/ Recent content in Chicory on Utopia Stories Library Hugo en-us /stories/39904/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 /stories/39904/ <p><em><strong>Author's Note:</strong> This is only the first part of what hopefully will be a fairly long story set in an indefinite far-future. The government as we know it has collapsed, and crime syndicates and influential families run the show.</em></p> <p><em>This is my first effort, so let me know what you think!</em></p> <p><strong>Part 1</strong></p> <p><strong>Patrick</strong></p> <p>I&rsquo;d expected it to be darker.</p> <p>Admittedly, I&rsquo;ve never been abducted before, but when your captors refer to your prison as &ldquo;the dungeon,&rdquo; I think it&rsquo;s fair to expect something a little more threatening than a basement. They didn&rsquo;t even board up the broken windows, just installed bars. They clearly aren&rsquo;t worried about us being seen. Outside the windows is flat earth dotted with weeds and the occasional car tire. I waste a few minutes wondering where we are, like I&rsquo;ve been doing since I woke up.</p>