Week 5 Storytelling: Arabian Nights

Damn it. Damn it damn it! Why the hell did I think lying to my sister was a good idea? If I had just used my damn brain, I would be sitting at home with Sarah, probably having a nice hot meal and rolling in our bounty. Now I am stuck in this hell hole for three weeks. Damn it.

Gregor sulked through the dining hall of the prison, lost in his own thoughts. Not paying attention, he crossed the path of the worst criminal in the entire place.

Sloan was a convicted murderer, drug lord, thief, bad-joke-teller, and all around awful person. When he died he was going to that special place in hell reserved for the worst criminals and people who talked in movie theaters. Sloan ran the prison. Everyone new had to be approved by him and put into their place. If he didn’t like you, you would probably end up dead within the next few days.

“Oy, space brat. Watch where you’re walking.” Sloan drawled.

“Oy, prison brat, why don’t you?” Gregor spat back and continued to walk on. Gregor was never good at settling under authority. Especially when that authority deserved to be dead.

Sloan cracked a wicked smile and leaned in to his right hand man Bear, “Bring him to me tonight. We will give him one more chance, since he is new and I am feeling gracious today.” Bear grunted and the group of abnormally large men walked off.

Gregor continued to be lost in his thoughts through the day and was glad when lights-out finally hit. He curled up, thought of home, and drifted off to sleep.

In the wee hours of the night, when all was dark and everyone was sound asleep, Bear set out to snatch Gregor. Bear snuck into the cell, unlocking it using a key he had stolen from the guard, quietly made his way over to Gregor and whacked him over the head to be sure that he was unconscious.

When Gregor came to he was laying on a rug, hands tied behind his back, and a sack over his head.

“What the hell…” Gregor grumbled as he sat up.

“Ah, so you are awake! Good. Sit him up and remove the bag.” Sloan barked to Bear.

Bear followed his orders.

“Oh great. It’s you again. What do you want?” Sloan frowned at Gregor’s disrespect.

“I know you…” Sloan leaned in and looked Gregor over very carefully. When he realized who was sitting in front of him his frown turned into bared teeth and clenched fingers.

“YOU! You are the brother bounty hunter who threw me in here in the first place! You better hope my anger subsides after I murder you, otherwise i’m going after your precious little sister too when I get out of here.” Gregor laughed. Sloan stood, walked over to Gregor, and grabbed him from under his chin, lifting him from the ground.

“Why are you laughing?” Sloan demanded.

“My sister would kill you faster than you could say ‘Oy, space brat!’. And I am sorry about throwing you in here. It is just a job! Let me at least try to make it a little more bearable here for you. Though you seem to be doing pretty well…” Sloan growled.

“How could you do that? I have been here for seven years and still have eighty-two to go. How will you make my days better?” Sloan threw Gregor to the ground, letting him speak. Sloan was genuinely curious what the space brat had to say to him.

“Let me go back to my cell and go back to sleep. In the morning I will come to you and tell you a story. It will-”

“A STORY? You want to be my story-teller? Ha! You ridiculous brat! What do you take me for? Some moronic lug who can be so easily entertained?” Sloan stalked the room and made his way back to sit in his chair.

“These aren’t just stories. I am a bounty hunter remember? And before that, my sister and I traveled with our mother all over the galaxy. I have seen places you couldn’t imagine! How about this. I tell you a story each day. If you like it, you don’t kill me. If you don’t, fine! Kill me!” Sloan stared at Gregor for a long while.

“Fine. Tomorrow in the dining hall you will tell me a story. It had better be good though. Your life depends on it space brat.” With a flick of his hand, Bear dragged Gregor out of Sloan’s cell and back down to his.

Thank GOD Sarah and I have been to so many planets and have collected so many stories. I am going to have to think up my best ones. And my longest ones. Maybe if I can drag out the stories so they last a few days, that will keep me alive just long enough that I can get out of here. This had better work…

Over the next three weeks, Gregor would eat his lunch then sulk over to Sloan’s group. He would tell his story and then when lunch was over he would leave and go about his day. Each night, in the wee hours, Bear would show up outside of his cell and report on what Sloan thought of the story. Three weeks later, Gregor was released and Sloan was still in prison.

As soon as Gregor saw Sarah he grasped her in a full on hug, “It is so good to see you Sarah. I am SO sorry about lying to you. Will you please forgive me sis? Please please please?” Gregor bounced up and down while still hugging Sarah.

Sarah giggled, “Yes dork. You lied to me, but you are still my brother. Come on. I have a job for us to do.”

And with that, the two set off on their next big adventure.

Author’s note:

For this unit I read Arabian Nights. As is my running theme, I used Sarah and Gregor Strike, my bounty hunter siblings. I changed the characters, obviously, as well as the setting but the the basic plot I kept the same. I knew I wasn’t going to have enough room to retell the stories in the same depth that they were told originally, but I tried to make it so the reader knew that Gregor’s stories were amazing enough to keep him alive.

Bibliography:

Arabian Nights' Entertainment by Andrew Lang and Illustrated by H. J. Ford. 1898.

Scheherazade and Shahryār