I sit on my bunk, waiting for the announcement. By now, word had already spread, everyone knew that the second round would start tonight.
"Do you have any loved ones?" John's voice comes from the upper bunk, breaing our silence.
"Yeah, I do."
A sigh escapes my lips as my thoughts drift toward her.
I miss her. I miss the warmth Aurelia brought into my life. I miss the comfort of having her in my arms, our late night conversations, our flirty text messages. Everything. I miss everything.
I squeeze my eyes shut, feeling the small pain in my heart deepen.
I thought about the broken promise I made to her. The promise to call her after every Earth rotation.
They had taken my communicator, leaving me separated and alone. I wanted to call her so much, to hear her voice, to see her face. Yet I couldn't.
Was she worried about me? Was she sitting by her communicator, waiting for my call? Was she angry, thinking I had forgotten about our promise?
What was she doing right now? Was she crying, wondering what had happened to me? Was she spamming my communicator, trying to get through to me? Or was she assuming that I've chosen to ignore her, that I've abandoned her?
No, that can't be it, she wouldn't assume that yet… right? No, of course not. Our bond is too close for her to think something like that.
Yet, the thought of it still made my heart ache in a way I couldn't possibly describe.
I cant remember the last time I was this far away from her. Growing up, we were basically inseparable. It's always been me and her, ever since childhood.
I feel my tears threatening to spill as I continue to think about how I left her all alone and vulnerable.
No. I cant break down. Not now. Not when my life is on the line. I need to be ready. I need to survive. These thoughts will only hold me back.
I quickly wipe my tears, attempting to focus.
I missed her laugh, her voice, the way she made me feel. I missed the way she teased me, scolded me, and loved me. I missed her so much.
I need to see her again. I need to make it out of here. I need to improve, and learn. I need to become strong enough to protect both of us from the horrors of this universe.
"You thinking about your mom and dad?" John asks, pulling me back into reality. I can hear the slight concern in his voice as he shifts his body toward the edge of his bunk.
"Nah, my wife."
The bed creaks as John sits up, his legs dangling off the top bunk.
"Your wife? You're married?" he asks, his voice full of surprise.
"Yeah," I say, swallowing hard at the mention of her.
"Well tell me about her!" he screams, a little too excitedly. I can tell that he's only trying to lift my mood. He can't have his most trustworthy teammate showing signs of depression and mental illness.
I force a smile, trying to convince him that i'm alright. "She was my best friend growing up. I love her dearly."
"What did she look like?" John presses, climbing down from the top bunk.
I smile softly, thinking back to her. "She has that clear, glowing pale skin, golden blonde hair, and those ruby red eyes that seemed to shine whenever she looked at me. She's so beautiful," I tell him, the warmth of our memories filling me.
"I loved watching her dress up in her various dresses and jewels. I loved watching the smile on her face whenever she'd call my name. She was so warm, so caring."
"She's really my everything. " I chuckle, thinking about how I got into this situation in the first place. I could be living my best life in the estate right now, my girl by my side, yet I chose to be here. I chose to improve myself. I chose to try and become better, no matter what. I made a promise to protect her, and this is the only way I know how.
"Do you have a wife, or family?" I ask John, hoping to turn the conversation away from me before I accidentally say something foolish.
He quickly covers the small look of confusion on his face, replacing it with a frown. He sighs heavily, sitting next to me on my mattress.
"No," He says softly. "My father died many years ago during the war. My mother... she died soon after from the stress. The Republic barely pays a livable wage to its soldiers, making it almost impossible for their families to survive. My mother was forced to take on the job of a baker in order to keep us in school." He says, releasing a sigh.
I can hear the pain in his voice as he recalls his memories.
"With my father and his small paychecks gone, we could barely make ends meet. My mom stopped eating and took on extra jobs just to keep us fed. The over working or the stress must have gotten to her. I remember walking into the kitchen one morning, finding her hanging body floating over the dining room table."
His words hang in the air, both heavy and sort of suffocating. I stare at him, my mouth agape as my mind races to process the horror's released from his mouth. My stomach twists and churns as I attempt to envision his words. How could he say something like that so nonchalantly?
"I see... any siblings?" I ask, trying to bring up the now depressing mood. He had to have some family still alive... right?
He let's out a shaky breath. "I had eight older siblings. They're all gone now."
I catch a tear rolling down his cheek, ensuring that the man in front of me is still very much human.
Sure, I may hate many of my enemies, yet even I wouldn't wish a fate like this upon them.
"My two oldest brothers got drafted soon after mother died, leaving our eldest sister in charge of our small and humble abode. My oldest brother, Lawson lasted far longer than my father and other brother who both died shortly after joining the army. He'd always send his small paychecks home, yet it wasn't enough."
He pauses, thinking of what to say next.
"We weren't always poor." He says, his voice kind of distant. "Before my father was drafted, he was an accountant. He brought in more than enough money to send all of us to school. My eldest sister at the time was quite pretty, so it wasn't uncommon to see many of the rich and spoiled young brats hit on her in the halls."
His eyes darken as he continues to speak, almost as if his memories haunt him.
"But after everything went to shit and our parents died, she decided to go meet with one of those spoiled, rich classmates. He was the son of a rich factory owner. She thought that he could maybe help our situation, or at least give us some of the money he promised for marrying her many years ago."
"It wasn't surprising that he had my sister married to him. She was vulnerable and he promised to send us a small fortune."
"Yet the money never came, and we never saw our sister again. It was only a few days later that the money from my eldest brother would also cease. Lawson had disappeared too, probably killed in action."
John swallows hard, diverting his eyes from me, preferring to stare at the floor.
"After that, we were forced to sell all our belongings for food and water. My mothers old jewelry, our old furniture, and anything else that could be pawned off. Our three eldest siblings and our parents were all gone, leaving us behind to fend for ourselves. Our now oldest sibling, Rebecca, naively went back to the same factory owner's son, looking for my eldest sister, or even just the money that was promised to us. The man acted as if we were stupid, claiming that he had already sent us the money. Rebecca was beat, and thrown back out into the streets as if she was a beggar.
John clenches his fists. "That day, Rebecca ran away from home, saying that 'no one should live this way, and that we should all go live our best lives without being tied down to one another.' It was heart breaking hearing that from one of my closest sisters."
"After that, our whole family kind of split off. I stayed alone at the house for a few years, stealing and pickpocketing from those in the slums. I was often caught and beat to the point of near death. One day, I decided to pickpocket the wrong person, and was taken to prison. There, they gave me a choice. Serve in the military for three years, or be imprisoned for 10. It was one of the Republic's programs that involved getting more men to the front. I was only maybe 16 at the time. I of course, chose the military."
He smiles bitterly. "I thought that I was going to die. I thought it was the end of everything. Yet it was't. I found a home there and I survived. After those three years, I finally got my first paycheck."
"I remember spending it all on sweets and cakes." he says, chuckling softly.
"After that, I decided to stay in the military. I had no future anywhere else. Who would want a crazy, broken man like me? The only people who needed men like that was the military, and although the pay was crap, I had free lodgings, and free food. That was enough."
He pauses, staring at the ceiling. "When my ship surrendered that day, I thought it was over. But here I am, fighting for another chance. A second chance at freedom."
"I see..." I tell him, trying to process the information he just gave me.
His origins were dark, far darker than my own. He is dedicated. He will do anything he can for his freedom. And if it wasn't for me, he just might have survived.
...
It didn't take long before our manager's voice echoed through the speakers once again.
"Greetings, remaining prisoners. The second round will begin shortly. You will be immersed into a virtual reality simulation that replicated an isolated, and abandoned island with primitive technology. Your objective is simple: Survive. How long? Well, that's up to you. Your true goal is to figure out how to signal a rescue boat to the island.
Do not attempt to sail too far away from the island on your own. An invisible barrier surrounds it, and if crossed results in an immediate death. Remember, the more dangerous prisoners you eliminate now, the easier the later round will be. Technically, hunting other's is your choice, but eliminating other will gain the favor of the crew and the Chancellor, resulting in rewards that will be accessible in a menu once you enter the simulation.
There are no safe zones, no rules, and no exceptions. If you die in the simulation, you die for real.
Good luck!"
Click
John and I exchange a glance, both us still processing the information we were given.
"It seem's like Whiskey's intel was accurate." John says, his voice low but steady.
I nodded, my mind already racing with various thoughts about what this simulation would actually be like. What were we walking into?
Pshhhh
I hear the familiar noise of gas and steam rushing through pipes, yet now it sound a bit different. It sounded... thicker.
A strange white gas begins to pour into our cell, swirling around us like mist on a foggy day. I could feel my eyelids growing heavy as my thoughts began to grow groggy. The gas throbbed in my head, making me feel increasingly drowsy.
John's voice cut's through the haze as he screams into my ear. "Let's try to find each other as soon as we can. I'll leave an X marked on the trees wherever I go. If you see an X, follow it. We may be able to find each other again!"
His words were the last I heard before the deep, unrelenting slumber overtook me.
The world faded to black, and everything went silent.