“Now, if you’d be so kind as to place your hand on the scanner, it’ll register your U.I and assign you to your post.”

*Beep*

The Rep looks down on the monitor attached to the scanner and says, “You’ve been assigned to the inventory department of the Factory. You’ll be working in the compartment 2D. Next… ”

Hmm, Inventory huh… well, whatever. I wonder what the kid got.

“I’ll go over the rules once more. Everyone works Monday-Friday with Sunday being laundry day. You have a 6 hours’ work schedule that begins at 8:00 am with an hour lunch break at 11:00.”

After the bathroom fiasco, I barely had time to brush my teeth, let alone actually shower. But at least showers aren’t scheduled here; I can probably grab one later.

We were called to Section 4F immediately after and got a tour of the facility; as well as an earful of the rules.

The officer in charge was a woman, TAG7485. Yeah, they don’t go by names in here; at least not to the inmates. I still can’t decide if that’s smart or just plain rude. Anyways, her instructions were clear and concise. Of course, the female and male inmates are housed in separate buildings. Though both prisons exist on the same island, they are in no way connected and run independently.

Prisoners must work five days a week until they are medically unable to or until retirement at 80 (basically the rest of their lives). There are two departments: The Call Center and the Factory.

Yes, there is a factory inside the prison. What did you think they were going to have us do? Braid each other’s hair, eat food and live lavishly for the rest of our lives?

In the Governments opinion and, I in part agree; they have created a perfect-enough world. Medicine, Education, Food; everything is more or less free. All you have to do is decide what you want to do with your life and live!

If you take away all the possible reasons a person has for doing bad, and they still break the law… I’d lock them up for eternity too! They don’t deserve to live in society.

“As you can see, this is the lunch room. This is where you’ll come to eat your meals three times a day. Please do not spend more than 30 minutes in the lunch area after you’ve finished eating. You can visit a recreational area if you are not working otherwise return to your room. If you decide to sign up for the privileged program, all materials would be delivered to your room on the agreed delivery date.

Recreational area? Privilege program…

“So, for your recreational pleasure, we have a Tennis and Basketball court and a Library. You get two points each day for showing up to work. Failure to do so without a written consent from a Commanding Officer or a Medical Representative will result in the removal of any and every already accumulated point. For those of you with families, your points are transferred at the end of each week to the Head of the Household. We also have a privilege program for those without families and for special occasions. At a cost, we can provide some supplemental services such as a movie, music, special foods not on the cafeteria menu or anything else that is approved by an officer. These services usually range between 20-50 points and can only be done once a month.”

I gotta say- it’s a lot more civil than I thought it would be. I mean, yeah, you technically can’t travel the world… or have a real choice in your life. Not to mention… you know, the whole constantly living in fear of being raped for some cases. But considering you threw that all away yourself, this is a pretty sweet deal!

“Okay, we've come to the end of the tour. You will all be assigned to your Cells, and Dinner will be brought to you shortly. As of tomorrow, you have one phone call every other day. But, we’ve arranged for you all to speak with your families tonight before bed. Think of it as a sort of necessary integration…

Make no mistake; you will never see your families again. Not in this lifetime. This is your home now.”

I’d be damned if I let myself die here with these scum bags. Over my, dead body...

Ok, bad choice of words…

There are 26 cell blocks in total; labeled A-Z. Each cell block has 100 rooms, no more than 5x9 feet large; having one bed, a table and chair and a shelf to put the six suits of uniforms were given. We’re a wall away from each other, the kid and I. I’m afraid to admit it, but from now on, Cell P13, is my new home.

I was almost asleep when I heard a knock on the door. I figured I’d best keep my strength up so after showering I got something to eat and had a 50-minute exercise session. When I got to the door, a guard was waiting.

“There’s a call for you.”

What… How? My dad is my only relative doesn’t have a clue that I’m here. Wait, this isn’t even a real identity!

I was escorted to the phone, where the line was already waiting. Tentatively, I took the phone and breathed heavily directly into the speaker.

“Nick… is that you?”

Alaya…

“Alaya…” I called out, not paying enough attention to my tone or volume.

“No please, say it louder!”

Shit…

I drew a bit closer to the phone getting into whispering position. “What…How are you doing this?”

“I’ll explain. But first, memorize this number quickly: 000-0000. Don’t ever write it down. You can only call for 3 minutes each time, no longer. We have 2:38 seconds before this call becomes traceable, so I’ll be brief.”

I secured the phone tightly to my ear and rehearsed the number in my head while simultaneously listening.

“I was able to hack into Level B of the Government System. That’s where I found them; I found your files as well as the bug they’ve placed in your U.I.”

“How the hell did you manage that?” I didn’t realize just how much I yearned to feel a sense of familiarity until I heard Alaya’s voice. I could always depend on her, but this is a crime of national security, to say the least. She’s risking far too much…

“Remember my ex-boyfriend Jarred?”

“Mr. cries a lot?”

Didn’t they break up like a year ago?

“Yeah, well... He wasn’t crying last night.” She gloated.

“You didn’t…” My displeasure about hearing this was not so much a critique of her choices as it was a concern for her wellbeing.

“Eh, not the worst thing I’ve done. I bugged his I.D so that every time he accesses the system at work, I can privately bridge the connection creating a temporary access portal. Anyways, I think you ought to know that their file on you is extensive and in great detail.”

“So what? They’re the government; nothing is outside of their reach.”

“No, I don’t think you get it. They told you that your work in the force brought a lot of attention your way and is the reason they were so quick to call upon you.”

“Yea, So…”

“This file is dated 15 years ago…”

“….What did you just say?”

As you’d imagine, I was more or less baffled. Everything they told me was now put into question. Just how much of what they said was actually true?

*Beep Beep*

“That’s my watch, only a minute left. Nick, there’s more…”

I took a deep sigh and drove my fingers across my skull before answering, “Go ahead.”

“While digging around,” She continued.“I found something else of concern, something you need to you know.”

“What’s that?” I asked.

“I saw the next batch of prisoners scheduled for transfer tomorrow. The file appeared because I entered a filter locator to find your account which was bugged. But two other accounts came up with yours, two brothers, twins in fact. They are blonde, thick build, clearly know their way around the gym.”

“And you think their U.I’s have been bugged too?”

“More than that, I’m sure they are. But that’s not the weird part. When I tried to locate their real identities, unlike yours, everything came up blank!”

“What do you mean blank, you probably missed something?

“Don’t forget who you’re talking to! I’ve checked a thousand times, a thousand different ways. Whoever they are, they have no record in society. It’s like they don’t exist.

So who are they…

And why are they coming to the prison?”