We Were Sandwiched

As I hang here, warm but wet, I am inclined to reminisce upon my life to this point. My story is a short one, and there isn't much to tell, but if you would indulge me for a short while, it is one I would very much like to tell; before the end.

I do not know where I was born, or to whom. What I do remember is I was warm, and that I felt to be moving. It wasn't dark, but it wasn't light either. There was a kind of dim light just hanging there above me. For a time this was almost comforting, a dim glow from above, a warmth from within, and dull vibrations coming from below. This was not eternal, however. Before I knew it I had been blinded by light, the vibrations I had become to appreciate became more like a rollercoaster, and the warmth was starting to fade.

As uncomfortable as this was, I could still sense time passing. And after a while I was once again able to see my surroundings. It seemed I was not alone, for I could see hundreds, possibly thousands of others, all neatly organised around me. We were in rows, all lined up neatly as if we were going somewhere - and indeed we were. We were heading along some moving causeway, from the warm glow now far behind, towards what I can only describe as a maelstrom.

Huge gantries loomed above me, massive cylindrical rollers stretched the breadth of the causeway, and otherworldly beings, clad in white, roamed about as if to judge me. It was noisy, very noisy, I couldn't much hear myself think let alone much else. It was already seeming to me that this was only the beginning of a greater chaos. Most of the gantries were stationary, except one. It seemed to slide back and forth.

In front of me I could see this gantry, moving members of my kin from one place to another. It didn't seem too violent from afar, but as I grew nearer I could see what was happening. The gantry was not moving, but something underneath it was. A plate moved in from the side of the causeway, before rotating around. Catapulting a row of my company over in due process. All the while our overseers continued to oversee, never interfering.

Before long it was my turn. Though from my vantage point it was difficult to predict this; I only knew about it after the plate had scooped me off of the causeway. Everything went light, and before I could use this new vantage point to assess my surroundings I was back on the causeway, face down.

Now I could no longer see what was happening around me, but I could sense we were still moving. And I could still hear everything, too. There were new noises; one sounded like something was opening, another sounded like something was being forced out of a tube. It was a good while before I realised what these noises were; it turned out something sticky was being deposited onto the backs of some of my company. Though none of them ever saw it happen, for we were all face down, so details remain hazy.

I was still face down at this point, so I cannot be sure, but I am fairly sure we were approaching the rollers I had seen previously. Again, whilst I could not see anything I could still hear what was going on. There was a winding noise, and what sounding like something shunting back and forth repeatedly. Neither sound was particularly pleasant. And before long I became a victim of the roller.

There was a pressure on my back, first pushing down, then pulling up. I felt like I had been stamped on, or branded somehow. But this would have been a triviality compared to what happened next. Almost as soon as the pressure had asserted itself I was lifted from the causeway, and swung hither too about myself. For a moment I saw the causeway again, leading off into the distance, but on it seemed to be only half of my company. Where had the others gone?

It now felt like I was travelling in the wrong direction, for I could again see the previous gantry ahead of me, and could not see the rollers. It was also abundantly clear to me that I was higher than before, as if I had been raised up somehow. I knew this because I could feel a rumbling from below, and could see the end of this causeway; beyond it my previous causeway, travelling toward me, but below.

Things were also noisy; a thudding kind of noise from below, in time with the rumble. And I could hear the crashing of my company ahead of me, we were being herded into something. We were being jostled about, still being carried forwards, but not smoothly. We were jumping forward, bit by bit as if queueing for something.

This carried on for quite some time, jumping forwards ever so slightly, time and time again. This was, until we approached the end of this raised and inverted causeway. I knew then what was happening. If we were being thrown off the end of the causeway there would be no queue. We were being funnelled into something.

The end of the causeway felt bleak, and looked it too, just a flat wall. We were being pushed up against it, the whole time able to feel the rumbling of something below us. As I neared the end of the causeway it became clear we were being stacked into a chute of some kind. When it came my turn I felt a jolt, and suddenly I was lying atop one of my company. Then, just as soon as I had realised this, another jolt, and another of my company was lying atop me. We were sandwiched.

Several more jolts came, and several more of my company were stacked atop me. One for each jolt it seemed. Until the pressure above me was unbearable. Just as I thought It was all about to end, crushed amongst my company, I felt a strange yet familiar sensation below me. Something slid below me, just as before, except this time I wasn't flipped. It seemed whoever I was lying on had been removed by it. Was I next, I wondered?

Almost as fast as I realised I was now at the bottom of the chute, I was struck again. This time it slid across my face, freeing me from the crushing pressure, but leaving me to the mercy of gravity, tumbling from the bottom of the chute. There was nothing I could do to prevent this, and before I knew it I had fallen into something sticky.

I was however, now back on the main causeway, moving into the distance I had seen previously. Surrounded by my company, but there were disturbingly fewer of them. About half, I would say. Aside from that, things were relatively peaceful for a change. And for a time we slowly precessed along the causeway, into the unknown.

This precession lasted quite a while, and all the while we were getting closer to each other, more tightly packed, although I did not yet realise this. It was not until we were once again being pressing up against one another that I realised. Was there going to be another chute, I wondered, for I could not yet see an end to the causeway. It seemed to continue forever.

I don't recall how long this lasted, but I do remember the causeway getting consistently narrower. We were not being crushed though, we were being separated. Every so often the walls of the causeway would get narrower, and a column of my company were being taken away. For a while it seemed I might escape this fate, for the wall was an awfully long way from me. But with every passing moment it grew ever nearer.

Eventually, the wall was indeed very close. So close I could see how it worked. Nothing moved, there were just a series of openings in the wall, that all seemed to open up to a path dropping below. Beyond this was unclear, and before I could assert any more, I was next. An opening loomed in front of me, like a gateway. A wall to my right, with the rest of my company on my left. This would be the last time I saw this company; as before long, a second wall appeared to my left, cutting me off, and sending me down a new tributary.

This new journey was perhaps the most interesting, slowly trundling along following the company ahead of me. At first, we moved downwards. I could tell this as the causeway we had previously been travelling on was now above us, getting ever narrower, and ever further away. Before long though we were turning away from it, to the side, and levelling out. From here I could see the old causeway, stretching all along my horizon, almost infinite in length.

For the next few moments it slowly disappeared from view, until it was no longer visible to me. With this view out of sight I set my sights back on our new causeway. Things were tranquil, and if not for the stickiness I still felt on my back almost pleasant. This was not to last however, for I could see an end to this causeway. Though not a sudden end. Rather, there was a small ramp moving back and forth, spreading my company across a wider causeway.

Whilst this ramp was not sudden, it was not smooth either. For a moment I was quite dizzy, and unable to scan my surroundings. When I did, however, it was to my horror that we were again being separated, this time all at once, into a handful of smaller tributaries. At this point I was sure the end was near, our numbers had been cut in half, and we had been separated twice.

Before long we were once again travelling along a single width causeway, faster this time. No sight of the others I had just been separated from, just myself, and those unlucky souls in front and behind me. Just as I could assess my new surroundings the causeway was once again coming to a sudden end. We stopped. Then, we started to jolt forwards. This time not in small jolts as before, but larger ones, almost as if entire batches of my company were being taken out somehow.

When my time came, I knew what was going to happen. We were all herded into a chute, stacked on top one another, the crushing force from above again unbearable. But this time, there was no slice of freedom from below - we did not move at all. Something outside the chute was moving, I could not see it, and we were encased in something. First at the bottom, then, as we were slid downwards out of the chute, the top. Everything went dark.

From here my memory grows blurry, for I could neither see nor hear much of anything. But for the first time in my life, I wasn't being tormented, attacked, or defiled. Nonetheless, my company and I were tightly packed, and encased in something, so things still felt rather bleak. But regardless, I decided to get what rest I could.

I am not sure how much time passed before I woke up, but I recall a rumbling sound, almost as if we were moving. And were I not still confined to this pitch black container, I would know if this were the case. Anyway I assume we were, for when I woke up I couldn't see any signs of a causeway. My environment was totally different.

There was a tearing sound, as if my container was being torn open. It was. And before long I could see once more. This place was much brighter than before, and much quieter too. Though before I could take a proper look around I was up-turned, and my company and I were once again tumbling with only gravity behind us. Fortunately I landed on my side, so I could still see out of our new container.

I couldn't see how many of us remained, or in what state, but I know for sure we were piled in some kind of transparent container. For I could see out with total clarity. This new environment was very bright, and whilst no causeways existed, there were plenty of ominous looking objects.

A large bowl, with some kind of blade above it; this must be for slicing up victims. A boxy device, slitted at the top, that seemed to intermittently emit smoke when things were placed inside, immolation is such a cruel fate. And a larger box, with an orange glow inside; this reminded me of my birth. Nonetheless, this felt like a prison no better than my previous container, except this time I could see the implements of my potential torture.

My stay here was long, and quite boring. I did however make acquaintances with a few of my company. I overheard mention that we were somehow paired up; this was apparently the explanation for the stickiness we all felt at our backs. At least one of us was also somehow without a pair, which perplexed me. I was also led to believe we were not all the same, and that some of us were different shapes, though I was unable to confirm this for some time.

I've no idea how long passed, but one day one of my captors decided to open my prison, remove me, and transfer me to a flat dish. Whilst I was being carried I was able to take note of my final prison. My company were indeed all different shapes; the stickiness felt on my back was indeed another of my company stuck to my back... Or was I stuck to their back? There was however, one of us without a pair - right at the bottom of the container, crushed. I took one last look around before consigning myself to my fate, wondering which of the many devices would be the end of me. It turned to be none of them.

After a short travel we had left these surroundings, and had travelled through some square looking archway. After the dish I was travelling on had been placed down I became aware of a vessel next to me, smaller than my previous container, and not transparent. I could also feel it radiating heat; reminding me again of home.

This wasn't to last however, as before long my captor picked me up, held me above this vessel for a moment, then attempted to drown me for several seconds. Upon removing me, they shook me slightly, and begun raising me upwards.

I guess with that, we are at the end of this little tale. I know not where I am headed next. Goodbye.