Wake Up And Run

The Dark Room

In an underground bunker, on a large rectangle table, six people were seated opposite each other, with between each one a space enough for two chairs. In front of each is a large transparent screen. Whatever is showing on it is only visible to the person in front of it.

To anyone seeing it, for the it will look very strange. Looking at those six people dressed in a peculiar way, with hoods covering their heads and masks over their faces, looking at a screen in front of them and typing something on an empty space in front of them, no one is talking, and the most strange thing is that they have been that way for six days now. None of them moved a single inch, not even for a minute from their position.

The reason for that is really simple: because there are no doors or windows, no entrance or exit, any normal human will wonder how they got in to begin with.

Suddenly someone appeared from nowhere, for the first time, the six people's attention was diverted from the screens to the man who appeared at the head of the table they were seated at. "Ladies and gentlemen, the first phase was successful. Congratulations.Your contribution will be appreciated and rewarded when time comes. You can leave now. Your replacement will arrive as soon as you're ready."

No one could see their expressions, but the way they raised their chests, the pride was totally visible. The same way the man came in, he left without any other words.

Adlian had it rough in the last year since she became an orphan. After the unknown accident that took away her mother and father, whom no one bothered to explain it to her, she had to struggle every day just to survive and support her little sister, who was only eight years old. Indeed, indeed, she herself is still only thirteen years old. It doesn't matter in this city that only the strong and the smarter can survive.

It was only by pure luck that she survived until now and was, on top of that, able to support her little sister, if you could call having one meal a day is a surviving, and she understood that very well, knowing the life situation in this dark city she lives in and the many deaths she sees every single day, with or without a reason. She was aware that her faith could be similar to those she encounters every day when she leaves the one single bed room she calls home.

All that changed today. Today, with a smile and a bag full of food, she was going back home. Today she secured a dream job, not only for herself but also for her little sister, which could guarantee the safety and support of her little sister. She couldn’t imagine it when she was approached by two government officials on the street corner where she stood looking for a job. Any kind of offer she gets she usually accepts without hesitating, but today when she first noticed the two government officials before they even crossed the road, she started following them with her eyes, not even blinking even once, wondering who was the lucky one they came for today.

Everyone knows about the dark room; it's the project that the government has implemented to improve the lives of the citizens, although nobody knows what's going on in there because everyone who goes inside there never comes out. They move to the inner city, where only the government and high-class citizens reside. It's where everyone dreams of it all the time, but no one ever enters.

It was the longest night ever for Adlian, and with the excitement, she was unable to sleep, hugging her little sister more tightly than usual. For a while, it was their last night together for a while. For how long she doesn’t know yet. She is happy, though, since she is not going to worry about her any more. She has been promised that she will be fed, clothed, and sheltered. What else is there in this life? Those basic things are not available to most people in this country.

Adlian had no idea what the job she signed up for was, though she didn't mind whatever came her way, she was ready to face it. She heard that it was an honor and privilege to work in the dark room and that it was a service to the country and the people. That didn't matter much to her.

What mattered most to her was that their lives would change forever for both of them, herself and her sister's. She had been told to pack their belongings and someone would come in the morning to pick them up. After they dropped off her sister at their new residence, she would undergo a few days of training, then she would start her duties for her country.

These were the words they used. Though she understood its words to implement patriotism in her, though she nodded as an agreement, deep down in her mind, she was thinking of it as just a job and a means to an end.

Little did she know that literally, her life would change forever, but not in the way she'd been thinking of.

.................

Emika She was shocked by the result she received from the computer. "Please repeat the last sentence," she asked for the third time, and for the third time, the computer repeated, "Conclusion, Origin Unknown." Still, she couldn’t believe what she had heard. She couldn't believe the young man in front of her was an alien. What else could he be?

"Human physiology detected,"

"No biological enhancement detected,"

"No trace of its DNA detected"

"Origin Unknown" is the conclusion.

That was the full assessment the computer gave after scanning the boy. His physiology was human, but his DNA couldn't be traced and he was not enhanced.

How could anyone at this age survive or even be alive without enhancement? The planet can't support normal human life anymore, so everyone has to be enhanced to be able to survive in this harsh atmosphere. So what does this mean? She couldn’t reach any other conclusions herself, and she had to accept the computer's analysis.

So this young man is an alien. It's hard to believe, but apparently that is the fact. Now wondering how to communicate with him, she just took a deep breath and asked the young man, "Hi, my name is Emika." Can you tell me what your name is? " The boy just stared at her and didn't reply. " Suggestion: try using signals or sign language," the computer suggested to her. Pointing to her chest, she said, "My name is Emika..Emika," repeating her name a couple times, and then pointed at him and asked, "What is your name?".

Apparently young man understood the question but instead of getting any answer he seemed to thinking of answer, he thought for a little bit looking down then he shook his and said " I don’t remember" " I don’t know", Emika wondering if that was his name or my eyes she thought he understood but he didn't so she had to repeat the same thing again, and again she got got the same answer but this time only one sentence" I don’t know".

That convinced Emika he repeating his name though it's a strange language that he spoke but at least there is some progress and some type of communication going on now that by itself made her smile and said "That is a long name I am not sure even if I could pronounce it" and paused for few seconds then said " How about if I call Aden in short" then pointed at him Aden, he nodded and repeated after her pointing at his chest "Aden sounds nice since I don't even remember my own name" "OK Aden".

The girl in front of me, who seems not much older than me, even though I can't remember my age, signaled with her fingers to follow her. Apparently, I was held underground because we went up using something like an elevator without any doors, rails, or anything to hold on to.

She called me Aden. It sounds nice. Though I don't remember anything, somehow it sounded familiar. I don't know why. I don't know how tall the tower we are in is, but it took us almost 5 minutes to reach where we were going. During the ride, everything around us was visible to me, but I couldn't recognize any thing intact.

It looked like we were taking a tour in a city, not inside a building. On each floor, there was a lot of traffic, people passing each. I even saw what looked like a shopping center where people were buying and selling things. It was far enough for me not to recognize any item, but clearly there was some type of business going on there. Each floor had a different design than the other one we passed. It was an amazing experience.

When we finally arrived at our destination, I was taken to a guest room with a large bed in the middle of it, two large sofas, a round table in the middle, and, behind it, a large glass window covering the length of the entire wall. On the other hand, a dressing table with a mirror on top of it.

She pointed at the sofa, telling me to sit, and asked me in the same universal language, pointing to her mouth, if I needed anything to eat. I wasn't feeling hungry, but I nodded and sat on one of the sofas. I didn't think it was wise to refuse the hospitality that I had been offered.

I relaxed on the sofa, waiting for the girl who left me alone in the room. Unfortunately, I didn't know what faith lay ahead of me, or I would have run away from that tower immortality if I only knew.

That day, my life changed without my knowledge, like the calm before the hurricane.