From The Wind Blows Free - The lights in the ancient tunnel came on, blinding him, searing whitely into his brain. The footsteps came closer, closer … There. He saw a shoe, right in front of his eyes. Voices. “Is he dead?” “No such luck,” “He’s too tough to kill.” A foot nudged his battered shoulder, none too gently. “Come on, Sam boy. Get up.” It was like awakening after a too-long sleep. He had to swim back towards awareness, pulling his way through dense layers of stifling fog. Every bone in his body hurt. He rolled over very slowly. He struggled to his knees. The foot hit him again. It wasn’t a hard kick, but it didn’t have to be. Sam went down, his mouth in the dust. “Come on, Sam boy. Stop playing around.” “That’s enough of that, Ralph. Let him alone” Sam tried it again. He got to his knees , waited. Nothing happened. He pulled himself erect. His vision cleared. There were three of them in the corridor with him. They were all Crewmen, and they all had face masks on to protect them from the dust. He recognized Ralph Holbrook by his voice. The men all had canteens clipped to their belts. “Water,” He said. His voice was a dry croak. The men were ghostly in the white light. One of them shook his head. “No water , Kingsley. Not until we get you back where you belong. After that you can have all the water you want.” “Water,” he said again. His throat was on fire. “Sorry, Sam boy.” Holbrook moved a little. Sam could hear the water gurgling in his canteen. “Let’s go Kingsley,” said the man who had spoken before. He sounded almost bored. “It’s a long walk back.” Sam stared at the canteen on Holbrook’s belt with raw, red eyes. He stood absolutely motionless, and then something snapped inside of him. It was like a dam bursting, a dam he had held in check all his life. His eyes brightened, and a terrible, icy strength flowed into his exhausted body. He stood up straight, his head almost touching the roof of the tunnel. His huge frame seemed to swell until he filled the corridor. His hair was white with dust but his eyes were black coals in the light. He clenched his bleeding fists and his lips drew back from his teeth. Suddenly he was very calm, very sure. He stood there like a rock. He was through running. And then, for the first time in his life, Sam Kingsley really got mad.