Orphan's options were limited. Tug was simply too strong, and had too good a grip, for him to have any but the slimmest of odds of escaping.
Fortunately, he could sometimes beat the odds.
He makes himself instantly aware of the best options for using his leverage to best advantage and selects among them.... but to no avail.
Unfortunately, this was not one of the times he managed to beat the odds.
desperate attempt
Knowing something just was not right about this reality, he thinks "Maybe this is all some bad shared dream or something."