Actual Chapter One

see prologue for disclaimers and warnings.. please let it be noted that i did say this is an old fic that will probably not be update regularly after i get what i already have written posted. don't get your hopes up please and thank you.. this is unbeta'd


Chapter One

Riddick watched the other prisoners mill around on the bottom level. He had only been in this slam a few days but already he was forming an escape plan. The guards hardly ever left their tower in the center of the domed prison. The two exceptions to the rule being when a transport delivered supplies or when they threw prisoners outside for punishment, as they were doing now. He watched, memorizing every detail of the event. From how long it took to subdue a prisoner to how the guards worked together. Anything and everything that could give him an edge.

This fight was taking longer than the usual tazer-prod and grab.

The guy was fighting the guards like a seasoned warrior. Riddick had to admire anyone who could kill two guards and injure two others before being brought down by three continuous tazers, one directly to the base of the skull. This man with long brunette hair and a deep scar across his face would be someone to watch. It hadn’t escaped his attention that he had not used a single weapon besides his own hands.

“That’s the Ghost.” A prisoner next to him commented. His expression didn’t change as he contemplated the name. Ghost. Why would the prisoners have named him that? He didn’t blend into the background in a place like this. No, in fact he rather stood out even amongst the galaxies worst of the worst. This wasn’t the first time Riddick had watched the shaggy haired Ghost. He was the only interesting thing Riddick had seen since coming to this misbegotten frozen waste-land of a planet. He wondered though if he would ever see the young man again. Alive that is.

Ice.

A simple name for the prison planet he was currently visiting. During the day the surface of the planet was covered in water. No land masses over the entire planet. The domes that housed the prisons were scattered fifty miles apart all across the oceans. More than a man could swim in one day, even if the days here were longer than the standard twelve hour galactic base line. And no one wanted to be caught out in the water after dark. The temperature dropped so rapidly that in the first hour after darkness fell the surface froze solid to at least three feet down. Solid Ice. The surface temperatures continued to drop until the sun rose again. The days here though warm enough to melt the ice into slush but never really grew warm enough to sustain the human body.

Who knew how it was possible, he never really understood or cared much to understand how things like that were possible. He knew of a prison in a perpetually burning planet named Crematoria that was so close to it’s sun the surface was literally lava during the day, yet cool enough at night to harden the lava enough to walk on. Should have been impossible and yet the prison under the surface continued to thrive.

Riddick lost himself in his thoughts as he wondered around the upper levels of the dome. He pulled himself back to awareness when he heard several other long timers talking about the mysterious Ghost.

The old man stumbled and dropped the bundle of clothing he had been carrying as a cocky young punk pushed him. Several other men backed off, not wanting to get in the middle of a fight. At their age, they were on the bottom of the food chain, walking dead men really, just waiting to be buried.

“What’cha got there, old man?” the punk bent over to pick up the dropped goods.

“They are for the Ghost, he will need them in the morning,” Peitor said calmly. Surely no one would be stupid enough to mess with the Ghost’s things.

“Yeah right. I’ve been here a week, I ain’t seen nobody come back from being outside all day. They’re all frozen and shit. I’m thinking this here is mine for the takin’” Marco grinned, his rotten teeth gaping in his mouth.

“You have only been here a few day’s and yet you think you know the Ghost. Bah, fine then take it. I will wash it again later when the Ghost takes it from your dead fingers,” the old man sighed. His body was old and his time was drawing near, at another time in his life he had been someone to fear in this prison. Now he could only watch as others fought.

This young man would be less than nothing to the Ghost and he knew that although the man had a fearsome reputation and yes even killed without compunction, he would not be held responsible for the stolen clothing. Ghost would understand. And simply ask him to wash the clothing again. He backed away intending to go back to his cold cell and wait.

“Old man, I wasn’t finished with you,” Marco growled and took a step to the old prisoner only to stop cold at a whisper.

“I think you were,” Riddick spoke keeping his tone light and non threatening. Which of course any of his victims would tell you was worse than if he had shouted. If his victims could still speak that is.

Marco backed off, even he wasn’t stupid enough to challenge the Riddick. He walked backwards quickly dropping the bundle of clothing as he turned to fled. The Riddick was every convicts hero and nightmare.

Riddick stooped over and picked up the bundle of clothing. He fingered it idly as he watched the old man watch him. “Ghost, who is he?”

“Mr. Riddick, the Ghost is no one. He died long ago,” Peitor paused. If anyone could help Ghost escape it would be the Riddick. The man deserved his freedom. It was too late for him he was old and wouldn’t know what to do with himself away from slam. He had however heard the Warden speaking with one of the guards about the Ghost when the man had first arrived. He was one of the few that knew the secret the Ghost hid so well.

“That’s half the con’s in here. Walking corpse’s, but not Ghost. Dead men don’t fight like that. Now tell me what you know,” Riddick growled.

“Mr. Riddick this is not a conversation that should be had in the open,” Peitor’s eyes darted from side to side. Just because you couldn’t see them didn’t mean others weren’t listening.

“Fair enough,” Riddick nodded. His eyes narrowed as the old man walked deeper into the cell block. Hopefully the mystery of Ghost would relieve some of his boredom until time to get off this chunk of ice.

***

tbc...